Abstract:
An image processing apparatus including an image input module configured to input a document image; a detect module configured to detect whether copy control information is provided with document image data of the document image; a transfer module configured to transfer the document image data through a network in case the detect module detects the copy control information; an edit module configured to edit the document image data, and create an edited image according to the copy control information; and an image output module configured to output the edited image.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application is based upon and claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 from Japanese Patent Application No. 2007-161193, filed Jun. 19, 2007, and Japanese Patent Application No. 2008-112321, filed Apr. 23, 2008, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0003]    The present invention generally relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, and a storage medium, and more particularly, to an image processing apparatus and an image processing method that has an unjust copy prevention function. 
         [0004]    2. DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART 
         [0005]    Leaking information provided on a paper document is a problem in some companies. Thus, in many cases there is a prohibition against copying a paper document including confidential information. In this kind of situation, technologies to restrain/prevent copying of the paper document (hereinafter, called “unjust copying”) are known in the related art. 
         [0006]    For example, a copy management system is known including a digital multi-function peripheral (hereinafter, called “MFP”) and a management server. A document image, when making a copy of a document, is read by a scan unit of the MFP, sent to the management server through a network, stored by the management server, and managed/referred to by an observation manager. This copy management system may have a restraining effect on unjust copying due to the observation feature. See, for example, US Laid-Open Patent Application No. US20060197980. 
         [0007]    In addition, a digital MFP with an unjust copy prevention function is known. The MFP decides whether the document read by a scanner of the MFP is a confidential document or not based on whether special information is detected. For example, a special ground pattern can be provided on the document. If it is decided that the read document is a confidential document, then the MFP destroys the read image by, for example, converting the image to an all gray image. (hereinafter called a “destruction feature”) See, for example, US Laid-Open Patent Application No. US20050078331 or US Laid-Open Patent Application No. US20060197980. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0008]    The inventors recognized that trying to build a copy management system combining the observation feature and the destruction feature as described above with regard to the related art would result in the read image being destroyed and transmitted to a management server in its destroyed form. As a result, when checking the stored image, the observation manager would not recognize the original document contents subjected to the unjust copy attempt. 
         [0009]    Embodiments of the present invention provide an image processing apparatus, a image processing method, and a recordable storage medium containing program code for causing a computer to perform an image processing method that solves or reduces one or more of the problems caused by the limitations and disadvantages of the related art, and to reduce unjust copying effectively by inputting a document image, detecting whether copy control information is provided with the document image data, transferring the document image data through a network in case the copy control information is detected, editing the document image data to create an edited image according to the copy control information and outputting the edited image. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0010]      FIG. 1  illustrates a configuration of an image processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0011]      FIG. 2  illustrates a software control configuration of an image processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0012]      FIG. 3  illustrates a configuration of an unjust prevention unit of an image processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0013]      FIG. 4  is a sequence chart showing a method for managing unjust copying according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0014]      FIG. 5  is a flow chart showing a method for managing unjust copying according to an embodiment of the present invention; and 
           [0015]      FIG. 6  illustrates an example of an e-mail data sent to an observation manager when an unjust copying has occurred according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0016]    Preferred embodiments of the present invention are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the present invention is not limited to those embodiments. 
         [0017]    Referring to  FIG. 1 , an image processing apparatus  100  acquires a document image from a scan unit  101  with an ADF (auto document feeder), and acquires input data from the operation panel  102 . The document image is sent to an image-processing unit  105  through the scan I/F  103 . The image-processing unit  105  performs, for example, a filtering processing, a letter-image separation/extraction processing, and a halftone processing to generate document image data (for example, a raster image data), and sends the document image data to the unjust copy prevention unit  106 . 
         [0018]    The unjust copy prevention unit  106  judges the document image to determine whether the document is prohibited from being copied by detecting copy control information. In case the document is prohibited from being copied, the image processing apparatus  100  prevents unjust copying by destroying data regarding color or the like such that contents of the document are not recognizable upon being output. Destroying collar information includes, for example, converting image data to all gray, or overlaying a pattern mask image on the document image. 
         [0019]    The image-processing unit  105  and the unjust copy prevention unit  106  may be implemented in many of the modules of the image processing apparatus  100 . For example, the unjust copy prevention unit can be implemented as a module of the scanner application/scanner engine which treats the document image in the image processing apparatus  100 . 
         [0020]    The copy control information of this embodiment can be added to the document using various methods. For example, a user can print the document from a printer driver of a computer with instructions to overlay a particular image (for example, a specific character string, a specific image, or a digital watermark) on the document image which reflects that the document is prohibited from being copied. 
         [0021]    The image processing apparatus  100  includes a CPU  107 , a RAM  108 , and NVRAM/ROM  109 . 
         [0022]    The image processing apparatus  100  manages execution of a plurality of software processing modules using the CPU  107 , the RAM  108 , and the NVRAM/ROM  109 . 
         [0023]    The image processing apparatus  100  includes a plurality of controllers as a middleware module group  111 . The controllers include, for example, a facsimile controller for controlling a FAX unit  115  and a DSU/TA  116 , an engine controller for controlling a printer unit  118 , a memory resource controller for controlling a memory unit  120  such as a HDD which stores the document image data and the destroyed document image data as part of a job log. The job log is used to provide operation information of the document image in the case when a notice of unjust copying is transmitted to a management server  121 . A communication controller for controlling communication through a network  119  to the management server  121  is also provided. 
         [0024]    In addition, the job log may be stored in the NVRAM  109  or another solid storage device of the image processing apparatus  100  instead of the memory unit  120 . 
         [0025]    The scan unit  101  reads a document and acquires the document image from the document when a user instruction requesting an output (for example, copy, fax, email, file upload through the network) of the document image is requested via the operation panel I/O I/F unit  104  of the image processing apparatus  100 . 
         [0026]    Referring to  FIG. 2 , a control level block  200  of the image processing apparatus  100  includes a hardware layer  210  and software layer  220 . The software layer  220  includes an application layer  230  and a middleware layer  240 . The hardware layer  210  includes an engine group (for example, scan engine  211 , print engine  212 , NIC  111   a , and FAX unit  115 ) and a device driver for the engine group. 
         [0027]    The application layer  230  includes a copy application  231 , a scan application  232 , a printer application  233 , and a FAX application  234 , where these applications provide the user various functions. 
         [0028]    In this embodiment, the document image is handled with the copy application  231 . In addition, the copy application  231  will be applied to other output functions such as fax, email, and file upload through the network. 
         [0029]    The middleware layer  240  is implemented as firmware to control the image processing apparatus  100 . Each module of middleware layer  240  executes various interrupt controls, and provides common functions for each application  231 - 234  of the application layer  230 . 
         [0030]    For example, the middleware layer  240  includes a system control service (SCS)/a system resource manager (SRM)  241 , an image memory handler (IMH)  242 , an engine control service (ECS)  243 , a machine information report service (MIRS)  244 , a net file application (NFA)  245 , and a memory control service (MCS)  246 . 
         [0031]    The SCS/SRM  241  manager controls the system and the hardware resources. The IMH  242  allocates memory to the process of the invention, and manages the memory allocated to the process. In addition, in this embodiment, the IMH  242  manages an image revision/an image destruction process (for example, color conversion process, or over paint process) of the document image during the unjust copying process. The ECS  243  enables the engine controller  112  to control the scanner engine  211  and the printer engine  212  according to the instructions of a read job and a print job received from each of the applications. 
         [0032]    The MIRS  244  includes an E-mailer. The MIRS  244  notifies the observation manager of unjust copying by E-mail when the unjust copy prevention unit  106  judges the document to be copy prohibited. 
         [0033]    The unjust copying E-mail notification data includes, for example, apparatus information, a job log, and/or the document image data, and sends the E-mail to a registered e-mail address registered, for example, to the observation manager or the management server  121 . 
         [0034]    The NFA  245  controls the transmission of the read document image to the management server  121  with protocols such as FTP, HTTP, FTPS, or HTTPS. 
         [0035]    The MCS  246  maintains information of the prohibited copied image. The MCS  246  manages preservation of the job log in the memory device  120 . The job log may include information regarding the document image and the unjust copying. 
         [0036]    Referring to  FIG. 3 , the handling result of the unjust copy prevention unit  106  is used for each process such as generating an unjust copy notification, transmitting a document image, and processing a document image using the middleware module group  111 . 
         [0037]    The unjust prevention unit  106  includes an input buffer  310 , an image analysis module  330 , an image edit module  340 , and an image output module  350 .  10036 ] The input buffer  310  functions as temporary memory of the document image, receives the document image from the image-processing unit  105 , and transfers the document image to the image analysis module  330 . The image analysis module  330  analyzes the document image received from the input buffer  310 , and judges whether the document image includes the copy control information indicating that copying is prohibited. The copy control information can be character strings or a particular image. The character strings can be, for example, “secret”, “confidential” meaning prohibited, or “name”, “phone” meaning private. The particular image can be, for example, a mark indicating that copying is prohibited, a special background watermark, a part of a special image, or a bar code. 
         [0038]    The image analysis module  330  stores the document image in the image storage module  360  (for example, a HDD, or silicon memory) according to the result of the image analysis, and in case the document image is prohibited from being copied, notifies the image edit module  340  of the prohibited copying. The image edit module  340  edits the document image. 
         [0039]    When notified of a “copy prohibition” from the image analysis module  330 , the image edit module  340  destroys the document image, for example, by color editing from full color to mono gray color, or adding a masking pattern to the document image. The image edit module  340  transfers an edited document image to the image output module  350 . 
         [0040]    In addition, the image edit module  340  may delete the stored document image in the image storage module  360  after transferring the edited document image to the image output module  350  for additional precautions to prevent the document image from being leaked. 
         [0041]    On the other hand, when notified of “not copy prohibited” from the image analysis module  330 , the document image is passed through the image edit module  340  without editing to the image output module  350 . 
         [0042]    The image output module  350  transfers the received (edited or non edited) document image to each forwarding address selected by the user, for example, the print engine  212 , the FAX unit  115 , or E-mailer  244  (MIRS). 
         [0043]    Further, the unjust prevention unit  106  includes an image sending instruction module  360 , and an unjust copy notification module  320 . The image analysis module  330  notifies the image sending instruction module  360  and the unjust copy notification module  320  when it is judged that the document image is copy prohibited. 
         [0044]    The unjust copy notification module  320 , in response to the notice, instructs the E-mailer to generate a notice of unjust copying and to send the notice. The E-mailer generates the notice of unjust copying including a predetermined notice of unjust copying and the job log. The job log may include a time stamp, apparatus identification information, job identification information, and/or the document image. Then, the E-mailer sends the E-mail to the predetermined address. 
         [0045]    The image sending instruction module  360 , in response to the notice reads out the document image from the image storage module  360 , and sends the document image to the management server  121  through the NIC  111   a.    
         [0046]    To improve security, the image storage module  360  may refuse access from other applications during the above sequence using a programming technique, for example, “Mutex”, “Semaphore”, “Synchronization Class”, or “Synchronization Method”. 
         [0047]    Referring to  FIG. 4 , the copy application  231  sends a job start request to the ECS  243  (S 401 ). The ECS  243  sends a command “Id=page open” to the MCS  246  (S 402 ), wherein the page open command starts the MCS  246  document registration, and sends a scan process execution request with the Id to the SCS/SRM  241 (S 403 ). The SCS/SRM  241  sends the process execution request with the Id to the scan engine  211  (S 404 ), and to the IMH  242  (S 405 ). Then, the scanner engine  211  starts scanning the document. The scan engine  211  acquires the document image from the document. The unjust copy prevention unit  106  judges the document image as shown in  FIG. 3 . In case the document is prohibited from being copied, the SCS/SRM  241  is provided an unjust copy notification (S 406 ). The SCS/SRM  241  sends a scan execute state to ECS (S 407 ). 
         [0048]    The ECS  243  sends a page close command to the MCS  244  to register the image data as the copy prohibition document (S 408 ). 
         [0049]    The MCS  244  sends an instruction to the MIRS  244  to send an E-mail to the manager (S 409 ), and sends an instruction to the NFA  245  to send the image data to the management server  121  (S 410 ), (S 411 ). The sequence chart from S 412  to S 416  is a process implemented by the image edit module  340 . 
         [0050]    The ECS  243  sends a print process execution request regarding the image data prohibited from copying to the SCS/SRM  241  (S 412 ). The SCS/SRM  241  sends an image destruction request to the IHM  242  (S 413 ). The IHM  242  destroys the image by editing the image data (S 414 ), and sends a destruction complete notification to the SCS/SRM  241  (S 415 ). The SCS/SRM  241  sends a process execution request to the print engine  212  (S 416 ). 
         [0051]      FIG. 5  is a flow chart showing an exemplary method of managing prohibited copy according to an embodiment of the present invention. The entire process is explained as shown in  FIG. 4 . 
         [0052]      FIG. 6  is a diagram showing an exemplary e-mail sent to an observation manager when prohibited copying occurs. 
         [0053]    Referring to  FIG. 6 , the E-mail includes Subject, date, device identification, and a job log. 
         [0054]    Furthermore, in the embodiments of the invention, the image processing apparatus  100  may include a peripheral device, for example, a scan unit, or a print unit inside of the image processing apparatus.