Patent ID: 8655107

Claim:
An image processing apparatus comprising: a processor, the processor including: an acquiring unit that acquires a first document and a second document; a specifying unit that specifies a first image area among first image areas included in the first document and a second image area among the first image areas; a search unit that searches the second document for a first matching image area among second image areas of the second document that most closely matches the first image area and searches the second document for a second matching image area among the second image areas that most closely matches the second image area; a difference extracting unit that extracts a difference between the first document and the second document based on search results of the search unit; and a generating unit that generates and displays a difference display image showing the difference between the first document and the second document based on the difference extracted by the difference extracting unit, wherein the difference comprises a change in position between a first position of the first image area in the first document and a second position of the first matching image area in the second document and a change in content between first content of the second image area in the first image and a second content of the second matching image area, wherein the generating unit generates the difference display image to show the change in position in a first formatting and to show the change in content in a second formatting different from the first formatting, the first formatting and the second formatting being visually distinguishable from the first image areas of the first document and second image areas of the second document that are unchanged between the first document and the second document, and wherein the difference display image is a single image illustrating an integration of the first document, the second document, the change in position in the first formatting, and the change in content in the second formatting.