Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Mutsuo Shimomae

Yoshiaki Hanyu

Hiromi Okubo

Masakazu Ohshita

Masayoshi Watanuki

Shinichiro Nishioka

A page printer printing document data includes a first rasterizing part for rasterizing the document data with a first resolution and a data compression part for compressing each of blocks which form first rasterized data from the first rasterizing part to produce a compression code, and for storing the compression code in a compression memory. The page printer further includes a data decompression part for decompressing the compression code stored in the compression memory, and for transmitting decompressed data to a printer engine having the first resolution. A second rasterizing part rasterizes the document data again with a second resolution less than the first resolution when the compression code exceeds a given size. A resolution converting part in the page printer converts second rasterized data from the second rasterizing part to conversion data with the first resolution, and transmits the conversion data to the printer engine having the first resolution.

Variable-length reversible image data compression process

Page printer, resolution converting method, and variable-length

Page printer resolution converting method, and variable-length

A bit-map unit forms a bit map using given image data. A boundary recognizing unit recognizes characteristics of a boundary present between first type of pixels and second type of pixels constituting the bit map. A determining unit determines for each pixel whether correction is necessary so as to make the image produced from the given image data significantly finer, the determination using at least part of the boundary characteristics. A correction unit performs a correction on the image data for the pixel, the correction of which pixel has been determined to be necessary, the correction being performed in a manner determined depending on the relevant boundary characteristics. A data replicating unit replicates the given image data to be used in the correction to be performed by the correction unit. A timing producing unit produces timing in which the data replicating unit performs the replicating operation. A times-setting unit sets the number of times by which the data replicating unit performs the replicating operation. A numbering unit numbers the image data set created by the replication for each replication operation so as to identify the number of each image data set created by the replication.

Image data processing system and method realizing fine image with simple

In a digital copier, facsimile machine, scanner, image filing apparatus or similar apparatus, an image processing device is provided with a capability of surely identifying confidential or secrecy documents which should be protected from unauthorized persons. The confidential or inhibited documents are provided with inhibition patterns by printing or copying over the entire surfaces thereof. The device prevents image data representative of this kind of documents from being improperly copied, transferred, stored or input.

Image forming apparatus with security feature which prevents copying of

An image processing system for smoothing edges of an image, includes a sampling part for sampling a group of dots from an image having a plurality of input black and white dots, the group of dots having a target dot at the center of a region and being sampled for each dot of the image, a recognition part for recognizing a dot pattern from the sampled dots, the dot pattern described by successive black dots and located at a boundary between a black dot region and a white dot region, and for producing code signals from the result of the recognition to define features of the dot pattern for each target dot, a discrimination part for detecting whether or not each target dot is part of an inclined line having a gradient relative to horizontal or vertical direction in response to the code signals, thus determining whether or not each target dot is to be corrected, a correction part with a memory, for inputting the code signals to the memory as address inputs when the dot is to be corrected, and for outputting a corresponding correction dot data from the memory in accordance with the code signals, and an output part for outputting an image with corrected dots which are in accordance with the correction dot data of the correction part.

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Yokosuka, Japan

Mutsuo Shimomae