INFORMATION PROCESSING APPARATUS, METHOD, AND COMPUTER-READABLE MEDIUM

• US 20090268259A1
• Filed: 04/24/2009
• Published: 10/29/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/25/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Kikuchi, Hiroshi
• Granted Patent: US 8,817,334 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 358/468
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00846 based on detection of a dedicated indication, e.g. marks or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00854 Recognising an unauthorised user or user-associated action
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00856 Preventive measures
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00859 Issuing an alarm or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00875 Inhibiting reproduction, e.g. by disabling reading or reproduction apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00877 Recording information, e.g. details of the job
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32128 attached to the image data, e.g. file header, transmitted message header, information on the same page or in the same computer file as the image for information embedded in the image H04N1/32144
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3202 of communication or activity log or report
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3205 of identification information, e.g. name or ID code H04N2201/3209 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3221 of a job number or identification, e.g. communication number
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3246 of data relating to permitted access or usage, e.g. level of access or usage parameters for digital rights management [DRM] related to still images
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3269 of machine readable codes or marks, e.g. bar codes or glyphs
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3271 Printing or stamping

Abstract

An information processing apparatus determines permission to duplicate a target image based on a two-dimensional code included in the target image. The information processing apparatus includes a CPU having a control unit that stores information concerning the target image, information based on the two-dimensional code including information indicating the permission of the duplication of the target image, and information indicating a user who has issued an instruction to duplicate the target image in a copy log in association with each other if the two-dimensional code is included in the target image.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus for determining permission to duplicate a target image based on a two-dimensional code included in the target image, the information processing apparatus comprising:

a control unit configured to store information concerning the target image, information based on the two-dimensional code including information indicating the permission to duplicate the target image, and information indicating a user who has issued an instruction to duplicate the target image in a storage unit in association with each other if the two-dimensional code is included in the target image.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the information based on the two-dimensional code is a result of determining whether the duplication of the target image is permitted.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the control unit stores the information concerning the target image, the information based on the two-dimensional code, and the information indicating the user who has issued the instruction to duplicate the target image in the storage unit in association with each other as a log.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the two-dimensional code includes ID information, and

the control unit compares an image associated with the ID information with the target image if the ID information is stored in the storage unit in advance and a warning unit issues a warning to prevent unauthorized duplication if the image associated with the ID information is not matched with the target image.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the control unit stores digital information resulting from decoding the two-dimensional code in the storage unit as the information based on the two-dimensional code.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein, if the two-dimensional code is included in the target image, the control unit determines whether a second two-dimensional code is included in the target image, detects whether a hash value of the two-dimensional code is included in the second two-dimensional code if the control unit determines that the second two-dimensional code is included in the target image, and causes the duplication not to be performed if the control unit detects that the hash value of the two-dimensional code is not included in the second two-dimensional code.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 6,

wherein, if the control unit detects that the hash value of the two-dimensional code in the target image is included in the second two-dimensional code, the control unit determines whether the two-dimensional code including the hash value of the two-dimensional code exists in another target image to be duplicated, causes the other target image to be duplicated if the control unit determines that the two-dimensional code including the hash value of the two-dimensional code exists, and causes the other target image not to be duplicated if the control unit determines that the two-dimensional code including the hash value of the two-dimensional code does not exist.

8. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein, if the two-dimensional code is included in the target image, the control unit detects whether a duplication permission condition exists in the two-dimensional code, causes an accepting unit to accept an input if the duplication permission condition is detected, causes the target image to be duplicated if the input accepted by the accepting unit satisfies the duplication permission condition, and causes the target image not to be duplicated if the input accepted by the accepting unit does not satisfy the duplication permission condition.

9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the control unit causes a setting unit to set a duplicate enabling condition permitting duplication if the two-dimensional code is not included in the target image.

10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 9,

wherein the duplicate enabling condition is at least one of a user name and a password.

11. An information processing apparatus for determining permission to duplicate a target image based on a two-dimensional code included in the target image, the information processing apparatus comprising:

a control unit configured to store information indicating the target image, information included in the two-dimensional code, and information indicating a user who has issued an instruction to duplicate the target image in a storage unit in association with each other if the two-dimensional code is included in the target image.

12. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a determining unit configured to determine whether a two-dimensional code is included in a target image to be duplicated; and

a control unit configured to cause a print unit to duplicate the target image and to store information indicating the target image, information included in the two-dimensional code, and information indicating a user who has issued an instruction to duplicate the target image in a storage unit in association with each other if the determining unit determines that the two-dimensional code is included in the target image, and configured to cause the print unit not to duplicate the target image if the determining unit determines that the two-dimensional code is not included in the target image.

13. A method for an information processing apparatus to determine permission to duplicate a target image based on a two-dimensional code included in the target image, the method comprising:

storing information concerning the target image, information based on the two-dimensional code including information indicating the permission of the duplication of the target image, and information indicating a user who has issued an instruction to duplicate the target image in a storage unit in association with each other if the two-dimensional code is included in the target image.

14. The method according to claim 13,

wherein the information based on the two-dimensional code is a result of determining whether the duplication of the target image is permitted.

15. A method for an information processing apparatus to determine permission to duplicate a target image based on a two-dimensional code included in the target image, the method comprising:

storing information indicating the target image, information included in the two-dimensional code, and information indicating a user who has issued an instruction to duplicate the target image in a storage unit in association with each other if the two-dimensional code is included in the target image.

16. A method comprising:

determining whether a two-dimensional code is included in a target image to be duplicated;

causing a print unit to duplicate the target image and storing information indicating the target image, information included in the two-dimensional code, and information indicating a user who has issued an instruction to duplicate the target image in a storage unit in association with each other if the determining unit determines that the two-dimensional code is included in the target image; and

causing the print unit not to duplicate the target image if the determining unit determines that the two-dimensional code is not included in the target image.

17. A computer-readable medium causing a computer to execute a method for an information processing apparatus to determine permission to duplicate a target image based on a two-dimensional code included in the target image, the method comprising:

storing information concerning the target image, information based on the two-dimensional code including information indicating the permission of the duplication of the target image, and information indicating a user who has issued an instruction to duplicate the target image in a storage unit in association with each other if the two-dimensional code is included in the target image.