Patent ID: 7103221

Claim:
An image processing apparatus comprising: a developing means for developing entered image information described in a page description language and storing developed image data for each pixel in first storage means; a discriminating means for discriminating a characteristic of an image, pixel by pixel, by referring to the image data that have been stored in said first storage means, and storing a discrimination code representing a result of discrimination in second storage means, wherein said discriminating means performs discrimination processing by referring to image data of an area comprising the pixel of interest and a plurality of pixels surrounding said pixel of interest, and said processing is based upon items of image data having different values present in said area and a maximum value of differences between said pixel of interest and said pixels surrounding said pixel of interest; a readout means for reading the image data stored in said first storage means and reading the discrimination code, which corresponds to the image data pixel by pixel, out of said second storage means; and a converting means for converting the image data, which have been read out of said first storage means by said readout means, to a pulse-width modulated signal having a period according to the discrimination code read out of said second storage means by said readout means.