Virtual rescanning: a method for interactive document image quality enhancement

• US 6,370,277 B1
• Filed: 12/07/1998
• Issued: 04/09/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Kofax Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Kofax Image Products Incorporated (Kofax Ltd.)
• Inventors: Borrey, Roland, Macciola, Anthony
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Thomas D.
• Assistant Examiner(s): BRINICH, STEPHEN M
• Application Number:
  US09/206,753
• Time in Patent Office: 1,219 Days
• Field of Search: 382/260, 382/261-269, 382/254
• US Class Current: 382/260
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00236 using an image reading or reproducing device, e.g. a facsimile reader or printer, as a local input to or local output from a computer image input to or image output from a computer via a network H04N1/00209
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00241 using an image reading device as a local input to a computer input via network, e.g. network scanners H04N1/00225
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/0035 User-machine interface; Control console input or output arrangements for computers G06F3/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/0044 for image preview or review, e.g. to help the user position a sheet
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00482 outputting a plurality of job set-up options, e.g. number of copies, paper size or resolution
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0098 User intervention not otherwise provided for, e.g. placing documents, responding to an alarm

Abstract

According to the present invention, an image processing system for processing scanned images using a user predefined parameters and acceptable tolerances. When a scanned image falls outside the scope of the predefined parameter tolerances, the system invokes a real-time user interactive process which involves a continuous looping back process comprising prompting the user for image setting data, loading the image data from a fast memory device such as a cache, generating processed image data and displaying the processed image data on a display terminal, prompting the user for acceptance of the processed image data. This process loops back to the beginning until the user accepts the processed image data. This invention provides the user with an efficient and time saving method of scanning documents by precluding the user having to physically reload the document into the scanner should the scanned quality be unacceptable, and an interactive method to set the attributes of a paper scanner.

Claims

1. A scanning and image processing system having a set of user defined parameters, said system comprising:

a scanner to scan a first document and generate image data corresponding to said first document;

an image processor to receive the image data generated by said scanner, said image processor having image control switches that are set to process the image data; and

an image acquisition controller interconnected with said image processor, said image acquisition controller providing switch data to said image processor by which to set the image control switches of said image processor,

wherein the image data received and processed by said image processor is adjusted in real time by the steps of;

(1) determining whether the image data received by said image processor is within the user defined parameters of said system; and

(2) scanning a new document with said scanner and generating new image data for receipt by said image processor if the image data from the first document is within the user defined parameters;

or

(3) transmitting the switch data from said image acquisition controller to the image control switches of said image processor if the image data from the first documentation is outside the user defined parameters, said image processor processing the image data with the switch data; and

(4) repeating step (1) and one of step (2) or step (3).

2. The scanning and image processing system recited in claim 1, wherein the switch data provided to said image processor by said image acquisition controller is entered manually into said image acquisition controller by a user of said system.

3. The scanner and image processing system recited in claim 2, further comprising a user input peripheral device by which the user manually enters the switch data into said image acquisition controller.

4. The scanning and image processing system recited in claim 1, wherein the switch data provided to said image processor by said image acquisition controller is adjustable.

5. The scanning and image processing system recited in claim 1, further comprising a video display at which to view the image data and the switch data after being processed by said image processor.

6. The scanning and image processing system recited in claim 1, further comprising a memory by which to capture and store the image data generated by said scanner, said image processor copying the image data stored in said memory.

7. The scanning and image processing system recited in claim 6, wherein said memory to store the image data is an image cache.

8. The scanning and image processing system recited in claim 1, further comprising image storage means in which to store the image data and the switch data after being processed by said image processor.

9. A scanning and image processing system having a set of user defined parameters, said system comprising:

a scanner to scan a first document and generate image data corresponding to said first document;

an image cache in which to capture and store the image data generated by said scanner;

an image processor to copy the image data generated by said scanner and stored in said image cache, said image processor having image control switches that are set to process the image data;

an image acquisition controller interconnected with said image processor, said image acquisition controller providing switch data to said image processor by which to set the image control switches of said image processor, and

a video display at which to view the image data processed by said image processor,

wherein the image data copied and processed by said image processor is adjusted in real time by the steps of;

(1) determining whether the image data copied by said image processor is within the user defined parameters of said system; and

(2) scanning a new document with said scanner and generating new image data for capture by said image cache if the image data from the first document is within the user defined parameters;

or

(3) transmitting the switch data from said image acquisition controller to the image control switches of said image processor if the image data from the first documentation is outside the user defined parameters, said image processor processing the image data with the switch data; and

(4) repeating step (1) and one of step (2) or step (3).

10. The scanning and image processing system recited in claim 9, wherein the switch data provided to said image processor by said image acquisition controller is entered manually into said image acquisition controller by a user of said system at a user input peripheral device.