Patent ID: 7616357

Claim:
An image processing apparatus for scanning an image printed on an original and performing image processing, comprising: a scanner having at least a scanning width corresponding to a width in a first direction of the original, a moving unit adapted to move the scanner in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction, a first scan control unit adapted to control the scanner and the moving unit to control a scanning operation such that the image is scanned with a first resolution, for each of a plurality of blocks obtained by dividing the image into the predetermined size blocks in the first direction and the second direction, a first determination unit adapted to determine whether an image in each of the plurality of blocks is blank or not, the blocks having been scanned under control of the first scan control unit, a second determination unit adapted to determine, based on a determination result of the first determination unit, whether the plurality of blocks include a blank stripe in which blocks in the first direction are all blank, a storage unit adapted to store determination results of the first and second determination units, and a second scan control unit adapted to control the scanning operation such that the image is scanned with a second resolution higher than the first resolution, wherein, with regard to consecutive blank stripes based on the determination result of the second determination unit, the determination result being stored in the storage unit, the second scan control unit controls the scanning operation such that the moving unit moves the scanner while skipping image scanning of the blank stripe at a first speed higher than a second speed without skipping image scanning, wherein the second scan control unit determines the first speed based on a length of the consecutive blank stripes and controls the moving unit to accelerate a speed of movement of the scanner from the second speed to the first speed, the acceleration being started at the beginning of the consecutive blank stripes, wherein the second scan control unit controls the scanning operation such that the moving unit decelerates the speed of movement of the scanner from the first speed to the second speed while maintaining the direction of movement in the second direction before the scanner reaches the end of the consecutive blank stripes, and wherein the acceleration and the deceleration of the speed of movement of the scanner are respectively performed only once for each single set of the consecutive blank stripes.