Signal processing equipment

• US 6,404,930 B2
• Filed: 10/07/1997
• Issued: 06/11/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/07/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Nakamura, Kouzou, Nakamura, Toshiaki, Inuzuka, Tatsuki, Nakashima, Keisuke
• Primary Examiner(s): Boudreau, Leo
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dang, Duy M.
• Application Number:
  US08/930,632
• Publication Number:
  US 20010043747A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,708 Days
• Field of Search: 382/233, 382/234, 382/235, 382/236, 382/238, 382/239, 382/240, 382/241, 382/242, 382/243, 382/244, 382/245, 382/246, 382/248, 382/251, 382/252, 382/253, 345/501, 348/396, 348/157, 348/222, 348/399, 709/204, 368/9, 358/501, 358/401, 358/409, 358/426, 358/450, 358/448, 358/452, 358/453
• US Class Current: 382/235
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/40 Picture signal circuits H04N1/387 takes precedence

Abstract

An apparatus is provided for expanding, decompressing and editing signals, and particularly a signal processing equipment for printing or displaying images. The apparatus includes compression device for image data, storing device for storing the compression data, decompression device, and editing device for editing, using only signals for editing, wherein the transfer of the data between the device is executed using the compression data.

Claims

1. A signal processing equipment, comprising:

compression means for converting an input signal into compressed data being compressed at a fixed compression rate,

wherein said compression means comprises;

means for dividing said input signal of a color image, where plural pixels are represented by plural color signals, into a plurality of blocks each being composed of a predetermined number of pixels,

means for calculating approximated color signals based on said plural color signals in said block, and

means for selecting an approximated color signal corresponding to a color signal of each pixel in said block and outputting selected approximated color signals for each block as said compressed data;

a memory which stores said compressed data;

a processor which reads stored compressed data from said memory; and

decompression means for decompressing said compressed data from said processor,

wherein said processor reads compressed data from said memory and causes said decompression means to decompress said compressed data from said processor in synchronism with a timing of outputting decompressed data from said decompression means to an output device, and

wherein said processor reads said compressed data from said memory, rewrites a part of said compressed data, and stores the rewritten compressed data to said memory.

2. The signal processing equipment according claim 1, wherein said fixed compression rate can be set according to capacity of said memory.

3. A signal processing equipment, comprising:

compression means for converting an input signal into compressed data being compressed at a fixed compression rate,

wherein said compression means comprises;

means for dividing said input signal of a color image, where plural pixels are represented by plural color signals, into a plurality of blocks each being composed of a predetermined number of pixels,

means for calculating approximated color signals based on said plural color signals in said block, and

means for selecting an approximated color signal corresponding to a color signal of each pixel in said block and outputting selected approximated color signals for each block as said compressed data;

a memory for storing compressed data;

a display which displays decompressed data;

a processor which reads compressed data from said memory; and

decompression means for decompressing said compressed data from said processor,

wherein said processor reads said compressed data from said memory, causes said decompression means to decompress compressed data from said processor in synchronism with a scanning order and a display timing of said display and to output decompressed data to said display according to said display timing of said display, and

wherein said processor reads said compressed data from said memory, rewrites a part of said compressed data, and stores the rewritten compressed data to said memory.

4. A signal processing equipment, comprising:

storing means for storing compressed data,

wherein said compressed data is generated according to the steps of;

dividing an input signal to a plurality of blocks each being composed of a predetermined number of pixels, and said input signal being composed of a plurality of pixels having a plurality of color signals,

calculating approximated color signals based on said plurality of color signals in said block,

approximating said plurality of color signals in said block to said calculated approximated color signals,

selecting said approximated color signals corresponding to a color signal of each pixels in said block, and

converting said compressed data into said calculated approximated color signals and said selected result of said approximated color signals; and

decompression means for converting a decompressed data into said compressed data,

wherein said decompression means reads said compressed data from said storing means and converts said compressed data into decompressed data in synchronism with a timing of outputting said decompressed data from said decompression means to an output device, and

wherein said processor reads said compressed data from said memory, rewrites a part of said compressed data, and stores the rewritten compressed data to said memory.

5. A signal processing equipment, comprising:

compression means for converting an input signal into compressed data being compressed at a fixed compression rate,

wherein said compression means comprises;

means for dividing said input signal to a color image, where plural pixels are represented by plural color signals, into a plurality of blocks each being composed of a predetermined number of pixels,

means for calculating approximated color signals based on said plural color signals in said block, and

means for selecting said approximated color signals corresponding to a color signal of each pixel in said block and outputting selected approximated color signals for each block as said compressed data;

a memory which stores said compressed data;

a processor which reads stored compressed data from said memory; and

decompression means for decompressing said compressed data from said processor,

wherein said processor reads compressed data from said memory and causes said decompression means to decompress said compressed data from said processor in synchronism with a timing of outputting decompressed data from said decompression means to an output device, and

wherein said processor reads out compressed data for rewriting from said memory, calculates an addressing said memory to which rewritten compressed data is to be stored, rewrites said compressed data, and stores the rewritten compressed data into said memory at the calculated address.

6. A signal processing equipment, comprising:

compression means for converting an input signal into compressed data being compressed data fixed compression rate,

wherein said compression means comprises;

means for dividing said input signal to a color image, where plural pixels are represented by plural color signals, into a plurality of blocks each being composed of a predetermined number of pixels,

means for calculating approximated color signals based on said plural color signals in said block, and

means for selecting an approximated color signals corresponding to a color signal of each pixel in said block and outputting selected approximated color signals for each block as said compressed data;

a memory which stores said compressed data;

a display which displays decompressed data;

a processor which reads stored compressed data from said memory; and

decompression ;

means for decompressing said compressed data from said processor,

wherein said processor reads said compressed data from said memory, causes said decompression means to decompress said compressed data from said processor in synchronism with a scanning order and a display timing of said display and to output decompressed data to said display according to said display timing of said display, and

wherein said processor reads out compressed data for rewriting from said memory, calculates an address in said memory to which rewritten compressed data is to be stored, rewrites said compressed data, and stores the rewritten compressed data into said memory at the calculated address.

7. A signal processing equipment, comprising:

storing means for storing compressed data,

wherein said compressed data is generated according to the steps of;

dividing an input signal to a plurality of blocks each being composed of a predetermined number of pixels, and said input signal being composed of a plurality of pixels having a plurality of color signals,

calculating approximated color signals based on said plurality of color signals in said block,

approximating said plurality of color signals in said block to said calculated approximated color signals,

selecting said approximated color signals corresponding to a color signal of each pixel in said block, and

converting said compressed data into said calculated approximated color signals and said selected result of said approximated color signals; and

decompression. means for converting a decompressed data into said compressed data,

wherein said decompression means read said compressed data from said storing means and converts said compressed data into decompressed data in synchronism with a timing of outputting said decompressed data from said decompression means to an output device, and

wherein said processor reads out compressed data for rewriting from said memory, calculates an address in said memory to which rewritten compressed data is to be stored, rewrites said compressed data, and stores the rewritten compressed data into said memory at the calculated address.