Patent ID: 8319987

Claim:
An image processing apparatus that performs compression coding on a plurality of page images and generates an electronic file, comprising: an input unit configured to input the plurality of page images; a first separation unit configured to separate each of the plurality of page images into a text image and a background image; a first compression coding unit configured to perform binarization on the separated text images to which the plurality of page images have been separated by the first separation unit, and perform compression coding appropriate for binary images on each of the binarized text images; a second separation unit configured to further separate each of the separated background images, to which the plurality of page images have been separated by the first separation unit, into a common background image portion and page-unique background image portions by comparing the separated background images to which the plurality of page images have been separated by the first separation unit, wherein the common background image portion is a common portion between the separated background images, and wherein each of the page-unique background image portions is not common to the separated background images; a second compression coding unit configured to perform compression coding appropriate for multi-valued images on the common background image portion and the page-unique background image portions; and a file generation unit configured to generate the electronic file that can describe plural pages, by associating each page with the compression coded data of the text image of the each page, the compression coded data of the page-unique background image portion and a link to the compression coded data of the common background image portion, wherein the compression coded data of the common background image portion is linked to the plurality pages in the generated electronic file.