Image processing apparatus and method and storing medium

• US 6,366,685 B1
• Filed: 09/23/1998
• Issued: 04/02/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Takaragi, Yoichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Boudreau, Leo
• Assistant Examiner(s): CHOOBIN, BARRY
• Application Number:
  US09/158,822
• Time in Patent Office: 1,287 Days
• Field of Search: 382/140, 382/115, 382/284, 382/232, 382/100, 355/40, 380/54, 396/319
• US Class Current: 382/140
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0021 Image watermarking

Abstract

It is an object to prevent an abuse of a print-out copy image as much as possible even if an image which was optically recorded in a film is printed out. For example, it is an object to enable information of an author to be obtained as much as possible so long as a copy image is used. To accomplish the objects, an image processing apparatus of the invention has optical reading means for optically reading a film and generating image data, magnetic reading means for magnetically reading the film and generating predetermined additional information, adding means for adding the predetermined additional information to the image data so that it is hard to be discriminated by the human eyes, and output means for outputting the image data to which the predetermined additional information was added.

Claims

1. An image processing apparatus comprising:

optical reading means for optically reading a film and generating image data;

magnetic reading means for magnetically reading said film and generating predetermined additional information;

adding means for adding said predetermined additional information to said image data so that it is hard to be discriminated by the human eyes; and

output means for outputting the image data to which said predetermined additional information was added,

wherein said image data and said predetermined additional information are generated from a same film.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said film is an APS film.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said adding means embeds said predetermined additional information as digital watermark information into said image data.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said optical reading means is a color scanner.

5. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said magnetic reading means is a film scanner.

6. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said output means is a color printer.

7. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said image data is color image data comprising a plurality of components and said adding means adds said predetermined additional information by changing a part of said plurality of components.

8. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said predetermined additional information is copyright information.

9. An apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising second adding means for adding a visible image showing that said predetermined additional information is added to said image data to said image data.

10. An image processing method comprising:

an optical reading step of optically reading a film and generating image data;

a magnetic reading step of magnetically reading said film and generating predetermined additional information;

an adding step of adding said predetermined additional information to said image data so that it is hard to be discriminated by the human eyes; and

an outputting step of outputting the image data to which said predetermined additional information was added,

wherein said image data and said predetermined additional information are generated from a same film.

11. A storing medium in which an image processing program has been stored so as to be able to be read out into a computer, wherein said program comprises:

an optical reading step of optically reading a film and generating image data;

a magnetic reading step of magnetically reading said film and generating predetermined additional information;

an adding step of adding said predetermined additional information to said image data so that it is hard to be discriminated by the human eyes; and

an outputting step of outputting the image data to which said predetermined additional information was added,

wherein said image data and said predetermined additional information are generated from a same film.

12. An image processing apparatus comprising:

first input means for inputting image data obtained by reading a predetermined film by optical reading means;

second input means for inputting additional information obtained by reading said predetermined film by magnetic reading means;

adding means for adding said predetermined additional information to said image data so that it is hard to be discriminated by the human eyes; and

output means for outputting the image data to which said predetermined additional information was added,

wherein said image data and said predetermined additional information are generated from a same film.

13. An apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said film is an APS film.

14. An apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said adding means embeds said predetermined additional information as digital watermark information into said image data.

15. An apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said optical reading means is a color scanner.

16. An apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said magnetic reading means is a film scanner.

17. An apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said output means is a color printer.

18. An apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said image data is color image data comprising a plurality of components and said adding means adds said predetermined additional information by changing a part of said plurality of components.

19. An apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said predetermined additional information is copyright information.

20. An apparatus according to claim 12, further comprising second adding means for adding a visible image showing that said predetermined additional information is added to said image data to said image data.

21. An image processing method comprising:

a first inputting step of inputting image data obtained by reading a predetermined film by optical reading means;

a second inputting step of inputting additional information obtained by reading said predetermined film by magnetic reading means;

an adding step of adding said predetermined additional information to said image data so that it is hard to be discriminated by the human eyes; and

an outputting step of outputting the image data to which said predetermined additional information was added,

wherein said image data and said predetermined additional information are generated from a same film.

22. A storing medium in which an image processing program has been stored so as to be able to be read out into a computer, wherein said program comprises:

a first inputting step of inputting image data obtained by reading a predetermined film by optical reading means;

a second inputting step of inputting additional information obtained by reading said predetermined film by magnetic reading means;

an adding step of adding said predetermined additional information to said image data so that it is hard to be discriminated by the human eyes; and

an outputting step of outputting the image data to which said predetermined additional information was added,

wherein said image data and said predetermined