Image Processing Apparatus and Image Processing Program for Superimposing an Image

Abstract

An image processing apparatus for generating a synthesized image in which an auxiliary image is superimposed on a normal image, includes an image data synthesizing unit to which normal image data comprising color information and image attribute information correspondent to pixels bitmap-expanded from the normal image and auxiliary image data comprising at least color information correspondent to pixels bitmap-expanded from the auxiliary image are supplied, and which generates synthesized image data for each pixel by synthesizing pixel data of the normal image data and pixel data of the auxiliary image data based on the color information and image attribute information of the normal image data.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a normal image, an auxiliary image and a synthesized image thereof;

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a normal image, an auxiliary image and a synthesized image thereof of a first embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a normal image, an auxiliary image and a synthesized image thereof of the first embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of an image forming system of the present embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a flow chart of the rendering processing of the present embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a flow chart of the synthesizing processing of the bitmap data synthesizing unit of the first embodiment;

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of data in a buffer memory produced by bitmap data synthesizing processing;

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of the bitmap data synthesizing unit of the present embodiment;

FIG. 9 is another schematic diagram of the bitmap data synthesizing unit of the present embodiment; and

FIG. 10 is a diagram of an example of the synthesizing of image data of a second embodiment.

Claims

1. An image processing apparatus for generating a synthesized image in which an auxiliary image is superimposed on a normal image, comprising: an image data synthesizing unit to which normal image data comprising color information and image attribute information correspondent to pixels bitmap-expanded from said normal image and auxiliary image data comprising at least color information correspondent to pixels bitmap-expanded from said auxiliary image are supplied,and which generates synthesized image data for each pixel by synthesizing pixel data of said normal image data and pixel data of said auxiliary image data based on said color information and image attribute information of said normal image data.

2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said image data synthesizing unit synthesizes the two data by substituting said color information of said auxiliary image data for said color information of said normal image data in a case that a combination of said color information and image attribute information of said normal image data is a first combination, and without substituting said color information of said auxiliary image data for said color information of said normal image data in a case that a combination of said color information and image attribute information of said normal image data is a second combination.

3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said image data synthesizing unit synthesizes the two data by blend-processing said color information of said normal image data and said color information of said auxiliary image data in a predetermined blending ratio in a case that a combination of said color information and image attribute information of said normal image data is a first combination, and without substituting said color information of said auxiliary image data for the color information of said normal image data in a case that a combination of said color information and image attribute information of said normal image data is a second combination.

4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said image data synthesizing unit does not change said image attribute information of said normal image data and outputs said information as image attribute information of said synthesized image data.

5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said image attribute information includes at least a character, a graphic and a picture,said first combination comprising one or both of a combination in which said color information is white or a color close thereto and said image attribute information is a graphic and a combination in which said color information is the same color as the color information of the auxiliary image data or a color close thereto and said image attribute information is a graphic, and said second combination comprising a combination that does not include said first combination.

6. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said auxiliary image comprises a latent image having an output density when copied from said latent image formed based on said synthesized image data, higher than an output density in a state prior to copying.

7. An image forming apparatus for printing a synthesized image in which an auxiliary image is superimposed on a normal image, comprising: an image processing unit comprising a renderer which generates normal image data comprising color information and image attribute information correspondent to pixels bitmap-expanded from said normal image based on normal image print data described in a predetermined print language, and an image data synthesizing unit to which auxiliary image data comprising at least color information correspondent to pixels bitmap-expanded from said auxiliary image and said normal image data are supplied, and which generates synthesized image data for each pixel by synthesizing pixel data of said normal image data and pixel data of said auxiliary image data; anda print engine which prints images based on said synthesized image data generated by said image processing unit.

8. The image forming apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said image data synthesizing unit blend-processes said color information of the pixel data of the two image data at a predetermined blending ratio.

9. An image processing program for generating a synthesized image in which an auxiliary image is superimposed on a normal image, the program causing a computer to configure an image data synthesizing unit to which normal image data comprising color information and image attribute information correspondent to pixels bitmap-expanded from said normal image and auxiliary image data comprising at least color information correspondent to pixels bitmap-expanded from said auxiliary image are supplied, and which generates synthesized image data for each pixel by synthesizing pixel data of said normal image data and pixel data of said auxiliary image data based on said color information and image attribute information of said normal image data.