Patent · US Active

Image processing method, image processing apparatus, image processing program, printer, print instructing terminal, and image processing system

US7436550B2 · kind B2 · utility

6Cited by
2References
13Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateSep 15, 2004
Grant dateOct 14, 2008
Priority date
Expiry dateSep 13, 2026

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH04N1/4052
  • WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

An image processing method, apparatus, and program as well as a printer, a print instructing terminal, and an image processing system, capable of reducing or preventing deterioration of the image quality and achieving binarization at high speeds is provided. An image processing method, by which a multi-grayscale image is divided into two regions. These regions are synthesized after error diffusion processing is applied to each region. Before the original image is divided into two regions, errors of respective pixels on a dividing line are diffused to these two regions. It is thus possible to obtain substantially the same processing result as in a case where the error diffusion processing is applied continuously across the entire original image. Hence, it is thus possible to reduce or eliminate stripes or the like in the joined portion that deteriorate the image quality when the divided regions are synthesized after the error diffusion processing, which enables a high-quality image to be obtained.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.