Image processing apparatus and method

• US 7,403,310 B2
• Filed: 11/05/2002
• Issued: 07/22/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/16/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: Ouchi, Satoshi, Kobayashi, Koji, Miyagi, Noriko
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee; Thomas D.
• Assistant Examiner(s): BRINICH, STEPHEN M
• Application Number:
  US10/287,630
• Publication Number:
  US 20030095287A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,086 Days
• Field of Search: 358/1.9, 358/2.1, 358/3.24, 358/3.27, 358 314- 315, 382199-200, 382265-266, 382/269
• US Class Current: 358/3.24
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10008 from scanner, fax or copier
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10024 Color image
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/20012 Locally adaptive
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/20192 Edge enhancement; Edge preservation
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30176 Document
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 5/20 using local operators
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 5/70 Denoising; Smoothing
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 5/73 Deblurring; Sharpening
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/13 Edge detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/4092 Edge or detail enhancement
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/6022 Generating a fourth subtractive colour signal, e.g. under colour removal, black masking

Abstract

An edge amount detector detects an edge amount from RGB signals, and a filter processor synthesizes an output for edge enhancement with an output for smoothing at a proportion based on the detected edge amount. Another edge amount detector detects an edge amount of a black component from CMY signals, and an ink generator/undercolor remover changes an ink generation rate according to the detected edge amount.

Claims

1. An image processing apparatus comprising:

a plurality of adaptive processors each of which performs a different predetermined adaptive processing in accordance with an edge amount of an image signal; and

a plurality of edge amount detectors that each detect the edge amount for a corresponding one of the plurality of adaptive processors, each of the edge amount detectors configured differently so as to each detect an optimized edge amount for the corresponding adaptive processor.

2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each of the edge amount detectors changes an image signal that detects the edge amount in accordance with the corresponding adaptive processor.

3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each of the edge amount detectors changes the size of a filter that detects the edge amount in accordance with the corresponding adaptive processor.

4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein each of the edge amount detectors obtains the edge amount by performing an expansion processing, after detecting the edge amount by use of the filter.

5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein each of the edge amount detectors invalidates outer edge portions of the signal after being subjected to the expansion processing, after detecting the edge amount by use of the filter.

6. An image processing method comprising steps of:

performing a plurality of different predetermined adaptive processing steps in accordance with an edge amount of an image signal; and

detecting the edge amount in each of the adaptive processing steps, wherein the edge amount is optimized for the adaptive processing step in which the edge amount is detected.

7. The image processing method according to claim 6, further comprising changing an image signal that detects the edge amount in accordance with the corresponding adaptive processor.

8. The image processing method according to claim 6, further comprising changing the size of a filter that detects the edge amount in accordance with the corresponding adaptive processor.

9. The image processing method according to claim 8, further comprising obtaining the edge amount by performing an expansion processing, after detecting the edge amount by use of the filter.

10. The image processing method according to claim 9, further comprising invalidating outer edge portions of the signal after being subjected to the expansion processing, after detecting the edge amount by use of the filter.