International Business Machines Corporation

Sidney Jared Fox

Van Clifton Martin

Filip J Yeskel

Danny Allen Van Hook

William J Zimmermann, Jr

Image processing system for reproducing on a bilevel medium documents having mixed formats (text, halftone, and continuous tone) by selective thresholding of scanned pel values based on detected characteristics of the material to be reproduced. The characteristics of interest for each pel include its reflectance (gray) level, a gradient value derived from surrounding pels, a hysteresis value based on the thresholding decisions for preceding pels, and a look-ahead value based on following pels. Depending on relationships among the characteristics of interest, the pel values are applied to one of a plurality of thresholders most suitable for thresholding the determined format. The determination (discrimination) process can be improved by including a novel defocused symmetry discriminator (or a high-frequency detector) in conjunction with an information homogeneity discriminator to eliminate local anomolies.

Universal thresholder/discriminator

An ink jet copier is provided with a document scanner which scans a document to be copied one line at a time producing non-coded binary data. The binary data is inserted in storage in a predetermined arrangement. Stored data is removed from selected predetermined locations in accordance with an algorithm and applied to a plurality of ink jet nozzles arranged in multiple linear arrays about the circumference of a rotating paper drum. The data signals selectively applied to the ink jet printers control the deposition of ink on the paper supported on the rotating drum to cause the reproduction of the original scanned image on a predetermined interlaced basis.

Single array ink jet printer

Multiple array printer

Ink jet copier

Growing community of inventors

Boulder, CO, United States of America

Sidney Jared Fox