JP2008021120A - Writing information processing system, writing information processing method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To perform edition processing on an electronic document, an original of a printed matter, correspondingly to predetermined writing on the printed matter. <P>SOLUTION: Writing information, which is information related to writing operation of a user on a medium having a document image printed thereon, is generated. From the generated writing information, a predetermined mark is discriminated. An editing content corresponding to the discriminated mark is set. Then, edition processing of the set editing content is performed on the electronic document being the original of the document image, or a duplicated document of such electronic document. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a writing information processing system that processes writing information obtained by digitizing writing on a medium such as paper.

In recent years, when using a special pen to draw characters or pictures on special paper with fine dots printed on it, it is converted to electronic data and transferred to a personal computer or mobile phone to save the contents. In addition, technology that is sent as e-mail has attracted attention.
In this technique, small dots are printed on the special paper used at intervals of, for example, about 0.3 mm. For example, dots of different patterns are drawn on grids of a predetermined size on the paper, for example, and the dot patterns are read by a dedicated pen with a built-in digital camera, for example. Thereby, the position of the character etc. written on this special paper is specified, and such a character etc. can be utilized as electronic data.

Here, as a prior art described in the publication, there is one that prints a fixed form on such special paper and designates an item in the fixed form so that detailed information on the item can be referred to ( For example, see Patent Document 1). Specifically, a table for associating the coordinate information on the paper with the item information and a table for associating the item information with the detailed information are provided, and the detailed information of the item corresponding to the coordinates read by the user with the reading device is provided to the user. This is sent to the terminal.
There is also a technique for assigning a specific function to an area on a sheet (see, for example, Patent Document 2). Specifically, an area to be printed on the position information recording medium is created using a personal computer and an application, and a specific function is assigned to the created area.

JP 2004-102707 A (page 8-10, FIGS. 2, 5-7) JP 2004-280519 A (pages 8-9, FIG. 5)

However, on the special paper described above, in addition to the above described items for associating the electronic information to be referred to and the specific function to be operated, characters and graphics for transmitting various information as in general printed matter Etc. can also be printed. Also, it is possible to print only characters, figures and the like for transmitting various information on special paper. Then, when the user makes various writings such as comments on the description content or underlining of parts that are felt important, such writing is overlaid on the electronic document that is the original of the printed matter. It can also be recorded. At that time, if an edit desired by the user can be applied to the electronic document itself in response to writing (writing) by the user, the electronic document can be customized to an extremely convenient electronic document for each user.
However, conventionally, in order to edit an electronic document, it is necessary to read out the electronic document from, for example, a computer and perform a change input process using, for example, a keyboard for the user separately from writing on the printed matter. It was a troublesome operation.

  The present invention has been made to solve the technical problems as described above, and an object thereof is to perform an editing process on an electronic document that is an original of a printed matter in correspondence with a predetermined writing on the printed matter. Is to be able to do.

  For this purpose, the writing information processing system of the present invention includes writing information generating means for generating writing information, which is information related to a user's writing operation on a medium on which a document image is printed, and writing information generating means. An edit content setting means for determining a predetermined mark from the written information generated in this way, and setting an edit content corresponding to the determined mark, and an electronic document that is the original of the document image or a duplicate document of such an electronic document. On the other hand, it is characterized by comprising editing means for performing editing processing of the editing content set by the editing content setting means.

Here, the information processing apparatus may further include a storage unit that acquires the writing information from the writing information generation unit and stores the writing information in association with the electronic document or the copy document that has been edited by the editing unit. . The editing content setting means has a table that defines the correspondence between the mark type and the editing content, and the correspondence defined in the table can be added or changed. Can do.
Further, character data storage means for storing character data is further provided, and the editing content setting means extracts the character or character string on the electronic document corresponding to the position on the medium where the predetermined mark is written and extracted. The editing content for storing the character or the character string in the character data storage means can be set.

Further, it further comprises character data storage means for storing character data, and the editing content setting means extracts and extracts a plurality of characters or character strings on the electronic document corresponding to positions on the medium where predetermined marks are written. A plurality of characters or character strings are associated with each other, and edit contents stored in the character data storage means are set.
Further, the image processing apparatus further includes thumbnail storage means for storing thumbnails, and the editing content setting means extracts a character string and / or a figure on the electronic document corresponding to the position on the medium where the predetermined mark is written. A thumbnail composed of a character string and / or a graphic is generated, and editing contents for storing the generated thumbnail in the thumbnail storage unit can be set.
Further, the image processing apparatus further includes thumbnail storage means for storing thumbnails, and the editing content setting means extracts a character string and / or a figure on the electronic document corresponding to the position on the medium where the predetermined mark is written. A thumbnail composed of a character string and / or a figure and writing information is generated, and editing contents for storing the generated thumbnail in the thumbnail storage unit can be set.

Further, the present invention is regarded as a writing information processing method, and the writing information processing method according to the present invention includes a step of generating writing information which is information related to a user's writing operation on a medium on which a document image is printed. A step of determining a predetermined mark from the written information, setting the editing content corresponding to the determined mark, and setting for the electronic document that is the original of the document image or a duplicate document of the electronic document. And a step of performing editing processing of editing contents.
Here, the method may further include a step of storing the edited electronic document or duplicate document as a new electronic document. In particular, the new electronic document can be characterized in that writing information is stored in association with it.

  Further, the present invention is regarded as a program, and the program of the present invention acquires, in a computer, a function for acquiring writing information that is information related to a user's writing operation on a medium on which a document image is printed, and the acquired writing information. A function for determining a predetermined mark from the list, setting the editing contents corresponding to the determined mark, and the editing contents set for the electronic document that is the original of the document image or a duplicate document of the electronic document. It is characterized by realizing a function for performing an editing process.

  Note that this program may be executed by loading a program stored in a reserved area such as a hard disk into the RAM, for example. In addition, there is a form that is executed by the CPU in a state stored in the ROM in advance. Further, when a rewritable ROM such as an EEPROM is provided, only a program may be provided and installed in the ROM after the device is assembled. In providing this program, it is also conceivable that the program is transmitted to a computer having a data recording device via a network such as the Internet and installed in a ROM of the data recording device.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to edit an electronic document simply by writing a predetermined mark on the medium.
Further, according to claim 2 of the present invention, it is possible to hold a unique electronic document edited in accordance with the use of the user.
According to claim 3 of the present invention, it is possible to freely set the correspondence between the mark and the editing content.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to search for a character or phrase at a position where a predetermined mark is written as a keyword, create an index, or the like.
According to claim 5 of the present invention, it is possible to create a new electronic document that is a summary in which characters and phrases are associated with each other.
According to claim 6 of the present invention, it is possible to create thumbnails made up of character strings and figures and use them for searching and the like.
According to claim 7 of the present invention, it is possible to create a thumbnail in which writing information is associated with a character string or a figure and use it for searching or the like.

According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to edit an electronic document only by writing a predetermined mark on the medium.
According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to hold a unique electronic document edited in accordance with the use of the user.
According to claim 10 of the present invention, it is possible to hold a unique electronic document edited in association with writing information.
According to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, it is possible to edit an electronic document only by writing a predetermined mark on the medium.

The best mode for carrying out the present invention (hereinafter referred to as “embodiment”) will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
In the writing information processing system of the present embodiment, a code pattern image is printed on a medium such as paper in addition to a document image of an electronic document. The code pattern image is an image of an identification code and a position code obtained by encoding identification information and position information.
Here, as the identification information, either identification information for uniquely identifying a medium or identification information for uniquely identifying an electronic document printed on the medium is employed. When the former identification information is adopted, when a plurality of copies of the same electronic document are printed, different identification information is given to different media. On the other hand, when the latter identification information is adopted, when the same electronic document is printed, the same identification information is given even on different media.
The position information is information representing the coordinate position on the medium.

In the writing information processing system of the present embodiment, writing is performed with an electronic pen on a medium on which such an image is printed. Thereby, writing information is generated based on the position information included in the code pattern image. Further, the electronic document is specified based on the identification information included in the code pattern image. If the identification information included in the code pattern image is the identification information of the medium, the electronic document can be specified by managing the correspondence between the identification information and the electronic document printed on the medium. .
Then, writing information is associated with the specified electronic document.

  In this specification, the term “electronic document” is used, but this does not mean only data obtained by digitizing a “document” including text. For example, “electronic document” includes image data such as pictures, photographs, figures, etc. (regardless of raster data or vector data) and other printable electronic data.

Hereinafter, the writing information processing system according to the present embodiment that performs such a schematic operation will be specifically described.
As described above, in the writing information processing system according to the present embodiment, identification information that uniquely identifies a medium and identification information that uniquely identifies an electronic document printed on the medium are used as identification information. However, here, a case where identification information for uniquely identifying a medium is employed will be described as an example.

In the writing information processing system according to the present embodiment, as already described, the identification information of the medium is embedded in the code pattern image. Therefore, in this embodiment, “identification information” refers to identification information of a medium. For example, when each person writes a memo or the like separately in a printed document created from the same electronic document, it is convenient to embed different identification information for each medium. This is because it is easy to manage the writing information for the medium separately for each medium.
In addition, if different identification information is embedded for each medium, it is useful for information tracking. For example, by recording the correspondence between the identification information of the medium and the user who has instructed printing, it becomes possible to easily grasp who has output a specific print document.
In the following description, the identification information and the position information are clearly distinguished from each other for the sake of simplicity. However, there is also a technique in which different position information for each medium is embedded in a code pattern image, and the medium is identified by the difference in the position information. Therefore, when such a method is adopted, it is assumed that the position information has a function of identifying the medium, and this is considered as identification information.

First, the configuration of the writing information processing system of the present embodiment will be described.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of a writing information processing system to which the present embodiment is applied. This writing information processing system is configured by connecting a terminal device 10, a document server 20, an identification information server 30, and an image forming apparatus 40 to a network 90. The writing information processing system includes a print document 50 and an electronic pen 60.

The terminal device 10 is used for instructing printing of an electronic document or generating writing information. For example, a personal computer (PC) is used as the terminal device 10.
The document server 20 stores an electronic document. When there is an instruction to print the electronic document, an instruction to form a superimposed image in which the image of the electronic document and the code pattern image are superimposed is output. In the present embodiment, the document server 20 also has a function of copying an electronic document. The document server 20 can be realized by a general-purpose server computer, for example.

The identification information server 30 issues identification information to be given to the medium. The issued identification information is managed in association with the electronic document printed on the medium. In the present embodiment, the identification information server 30 also has a function of specifying an electronic document that associates writing information. The identification information server 30 can be realized by a general-purpose server computer, for example.
The image forming apparatus 40 forms an image on a medium. Here, as an image forming method in the image forming apparatus 40, for example, an electrophotographic method can be used, but any other method such as an ink jet method may be used.

The print document 50 is a medium on which a superimposed image obtained by superimposing an image of an electronic document and a code pattern image is printed.
The electronic pen 60 is a pen device having a function of recording (writing) characters or figures on the printed document 50. In the present embodiment, the electronic pen 60 also has a mechanism for transmitting information acquired from the code pattern image to another device.

Next, an operation when the print document 50 is generated in the writing information processing system of the present embodiment will be described.
FIG. 2 is a sequence diagram showing an operation in the writing information processing system when the print document 50 is generated.
First, the user operates the terminal device 10 to designate an electronic document to be printed from among the electronic documents stored in the document server 20. As a result, the terminal device 10 transmits an instruction to print the electronic document to the document server 20 (step 101). At this time, the terminal device 10 also transmits print parameters designated by the user. Here, the print parameters include page, number of copies, paper size, N-up (printing in which N pages of an electronic document are allocated within one page of paper), margins, and the like.

  The document server 20 receives an electronic document print instruction from the terminal device 10 (step 201). Then, the storage location of the electronic document instructed to be printed and the print parameters received from the terminal device 10 are transmitted to the identification information server 30 (step 202).

Thereby, the identification information server 30 receives the storage location of the electronic document and the print parameters (step 301). Then, unused identification information is extracted from the database that manages the identification information (step 302). Here, the number of pieces of identification information to be extracted is determined according to the printing parameters. In other words, basically, the number of pieces of identification information obtained by multiplying the number of pages to be printed by the number of copies is extracted. However, if there is an N-up designation or the like in the print parameters, this is also taken into consideration. For example, when printing 5 copies of a 10-page electronic document in 2-up, 25 (= 10 ÷ 2 × 5) pieces of identification information are extracted.
Next, the identification information server 30 associates the identification information, the storage location of the electronic document, and the print parameters and registers them in the database (step 303). Then, the identification information server 30 transmits the identification information to the document server 20 (step 304).

Thereby, the document server 20 receives the identification information (step 203). Then, a code pattern image in which identification information and position information are embedded is generated (step 204). Details of the code pattern image generation process will be described later.
Thereafter, the document server 20 transmits the document image and code pattern image of the electronic document to the image forming apparatus 40, and instructs image formation (step 205). This instruction can be performed, for example, by generating a page description language (PDL: Print Description Language) from the electronic document, identification information, and position information, and transmitting it.

  The image forming apparatus 40 receives the document image and code pattern image of the electronic document from the document server 20 (step 401). The image forming apparatus 40 first develops the document image into C (cyan), M (magenta), and Y (yellow) images (step 402). Next, the document image is formed using C, M, and Y toners, and the code pattern image is formed using K (black) toner (step 403).

In the above-described example, the identification information server 30 simply issues the identification information, and the document server 20 generates a code pattern image including the identification information and instructs the image forming apparatus 40 to form an image. However, the identification information server 30 may generate a code pattern image and instruct the image forming apparatus 40 to form an image.
The code pattern image can also be generated by the image forming apparatus 40. In this case, the document server 20 or the identification information server 30 adds the identification information to the PDL generated from the electronic document and transmits it to the image forming apparatus 40, and the image forming apparatus 40 generates a code pattern image including the identification information. It will be.

  In the above description, the configuration in which the database configured by associating the identification information, the storage location of the electronic document, and the print parameters is placed in the identification information server 30 has been described. This is because by placing such a database on a sharable device (identification information server 30), it is possible to deal with a plurality of users and to ensure the security of electronic documents using server access control technology. However, such a configuration is not necessarily employed, and a configuration in which such a database is placed in the terminal device 10 or the document server 20 may be employed.

In the image forming apparatus 40 described above, the code pattern image is formed using K toner. This is because the K toner has a larger amount of infrared light absorption than the C, M, and Y toners, and the code pattern image can be read by the electronic pen 60. However, the code pattern image can also be formed using special toner.
Here, as the special toner, an invisible toner having a maximum absorption rate of 7% or less in the visible light region (400 nm to 700 nm) and an absorption rate of 30% or more in the near infrared region (800 nm to 1000 nm) is exemplified. . Here, “visible” and “invisible” are not related to whether they can be recognized visually. “Visible” and “invisible” are distinguished depending on whether or not an image formed on a printed medium can be recognized by the presence or absence of color development due to absorption of a specific wavelength in the visible light region. Further, “invisible” includes those that have some color developability due to absorption of a specific wavelength in the visible light region but are difficult to recognize with human eyes.
In addition, the invisible toner preferably has an average dispersion diameter in the range of 100 nm to 600 nm in order to increase the near-infrared light absorption capability necessary for machine reading of an image.

Next, the code pattern that is the basis of the code pattern image generated in the present embodiment will be described.
FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a code pattern.
First, the bit pattern constituting the code pattern will be described.
FIG. 3A shows an example of bit pattern arrangement.
A bit pattern is the minimum unit of information embedding. Here, as shown in FIG. 3A, bits are arranged at two locations selected from nine locations. In the figure, black squares indicate positions where bits are arranged, and hatched squares indicate positions where bits are not arranged. There are 36 (= ₉ C ₂ ) combinations for selecting 2 locations out of 9 locations. Therefore, 36 types (about 5.2 bits) of information can be expressed by such an arrangement method.
However, the identification information and the position information are expressed using 32 (5 bits) of these 36 patterns.

By the way, the minimum unit square shown in FIG. 3A has a size of 2 dots × 2 dots at 600 dpi. Since the size of one dot at 600 dpi is 0.0423 mm, one side of the minimum unit square is 84.6 μm (= 0.0423 mm × 2). The larger the dots that make up the code pattern, the more likely it is to be noticeable. However, if it is too small, printing with a printer becomes impossible. Therefore, the above value is adopted as the dot size, which is larger than 50 μm and smaller than 100 μm. Thereby, it is possible to form dots of an optimum size that can be printed by the printer. That is, 84.6 μm × 84.6 μm is the minimum size that can be stably formed by the printer (image forming apparatus 40).
In addition, by making the dot such a size, one side of one bit pattern becomes about 0.5 (= 0.0423 × 2 × 6) mm.

A code pattern composed of such bit patterns will be described.
FIG. 3B shows an example of the arrangement of code patterns.
Here, the minimum unit square shown in FIG. 3B corresponds to the bit pattern shown in FIG. That is, the identification code obtained by encoding the identification information is embedded using 16 (= 4 × 4) bit patterns. Also, the X position code obtained by encoding the position information in the X direction and the Y position code obtained by encoding the position information in the Y direction are each embedded using four bit patterns. Further, a synchronization code for detecting the position and rotation of the code pattern is embedded in the upper left corner using one bit pattern.
Since the size of one code pattern is equal to the width of five bit patterns, it is about 2.5 mm. In the present embodiment, a code pattern image obtained by imaging the code pattern generated in this way is arranged on the entire sheet surface.

Next, a process for encoding identification information and position information and generating a code pattern image from the encoded information will be described. In the case of the writing information processing system described with reference to FIG. 1, this processing is executed by the document server 20.
FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining encoding and image generation processing in the document server 20.
First, encoding of identification information will be described.
For encoding the identification information, an RS (Reed Solomon) code of a block encoding method is used. As described with reference to FIG. 3, in the present embodiment, information is embedded using a bit pattern that can represent 5-bit information. Therefore, since an information error also occurs in units of 5 bits, an RS code having good coding efficiency is used in the block coding method. However, the encoding method is not limited to the RS code, and other encoding methods such as a BCH code can also be used.

As described above, in the present embodiment, information is embedded using a bit pattern having an information amount of 5 bits. Therefore, the block length of the RS code needs to be 5 bits. For this reason, the identification information is divided into blocks of 5 bits. In FIG. 4, the first block “00111” and the second block “01101” are cut out from the identification information “0011101101001.
Then, RS coding processing is performed on the identification information that has been blocked. In FIG. 4, “blk1”, “blk2”, “blk3”, “blk4”,... Are blocked, and then RS coding is performed.

  By the way, in this embodiment, the identification information is divided into 16 (= 4 × 4) blocks. Therefore, the number of code blocks in the RS code can be 16. Further, the number of information blocks can be designed according to an error occurrence state. For example, if the number of information blocks is 8, RS (16, 8) code is obtained. This code can correct even if an error of 4 blocks (= (16−8) / 2) occurs in the encoded information. Moreover, if the position of the error can be specified, the correction capability can be further improved. In this case, the amount of information stored in the information block is 40 bits (= 5 bits × 8 blocks). Therefore, about 1 trillion kinds of identification information can be expressed.

Next, encoding of position information will be described.
For encoding the position information, an M-sequence code, which is a kind of pseudo-random sequence, is used. Here, the M sequence is a sequence of the maximum period that can be generated by a K-stage linear shift register, and has a sequence length of 2 ^K −1. Arbitrary consecutive K bits extracted from the M sequence have a property that they do not appear at other positions in the same M sequence. Therefore, the position information can be encoded by using this property.

By the way, in the present embodiment, a necessary M-sequence order is obtained from the length of position information to be encoded, and an M-sequence is generated. However, if the length of the position information to be encoded is known in advance, it is not necessary to generate the M sequence each time. That is, a fixed M sequence may be generated in advance and stored in a memory or the like.
For example, it is assumed that an M sequence (K = 13) having a sequence length of 8191 is used.
In this case, since the position information is also embedded in units of 5 bits, 5 bits are extracted from the M series having a sequence length of 8191 and blocked. In FIG. 4, the M sequence “11010011011010...” Is blocked by 5 bits.

  Thus, in the present embodiment, different encoding methods are used for position information and identification information. This is because it is necessary to set the detection capability of identification information to be higher than the detection capability of position information. That is, since the position information is information for acquiring the position of the paper surface, even if there is a part that cannot be decoded due to noise or the like, the part is lost and does not affect the other part. On the other hand, if the identification information fails to be decoded, it is impossible to detect a target reflecting the writing information. Further, with such a configuration, it is possible to minimize the image reading range when decoding position information and identification information. That is, when an encoding method having a boundary such as an RS code is used for position information, it is necessary to read the code between the boundaries when decoding it, so the range for reading the image is shown in FIG. The area needs to be twice as large as the area. However, by using the M series, it is possible to have a configuration in which an area having the same size as the area shown in FIG. This is because the position information can be decoded from an arbitrary partial sequence of the M sequence due to the nature of the M sequence. That is, when decoding the identification information and the position information, it is necessary to read the area having the size shown in FIG. 3B, but the read position matches the boundary shown in FIG. There is no need. The position information can be decoded from a partial series at an arbitrary position of the M series. Since the same information is arranged on the entire surface of the sheet, the original information is restored by rearranging the pieces of the read information even if the reading position deviates from the boundary shown in FIG. be able to.

  In this way, after the identification information is divided into blocks, it is encoded with an RS code, and when the position information is encoded with an M sequence and then divided into blocks, the blocks are synthesized as shown in the figure. . That is, these blocks are developed on a two-dimensional plane in the format shown in the figure. The format shown in FIG. 4 corresponds to the format shown in FIG. That is, a black square means a synchronization code. Further, “1”, “2”, “3”, “4”,... Arranged in the horizontal direction represent X position codes, and “1”, “2”, “3”, “ 4 ”,... Mean Y position codes. The position code is indicated by a number corresponding to the coordinate position because different information is arranged if the position of the medium is different. On the other hand, a gray square means an identification code. Since the same information is arranged even if the position of the medium is different, the identification codes are all indicated by the same mark.

Incidentally, as can be seen from FIG. 4, there are four bit patterns between two synchronization codes. Therefore, 20 (= 5 × 4) bit M-sequence partial sequences can be arranged. If a 13-bit partial sequence is extracted from the 20-bit partial sequence, it is possible to specify which partial sequence in the whole (8191) the 13 bits are. As described above, when 13 bits out of 20 bits are used for specifying the position, it is possible to detect or correct the extracted 13-bit error using the remaining 7 bits. That is, it is possible to detect and correct an error by confirming the 20-bit consistency by using the same generator polynomial as when the M sequence was generated.
Thereafter, the bit pattern in each block is imaged by referring to the dot image. Then, an output image representing information with dots as shown on the rightmost side of FIG. 4 is generated.

Next, reflection of writing information in an electronic document in the writing information processing system of the present embodiment will be described. However, in the following description, the writing information is directly added to the electronic document.
First, the electronic pen 60 used to read the writing on the printed document 50 will be described.
FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating the mechanism of the electronic pen 60.
As shown in FIG. 5, the electronic pen 60 includes a control circuit 61 that controls the operation of the entire pen. The control circuit 61 includes an image processing unit 61a that processes a code pattern image detected from an input image, and a data processing unit 61b that extracts identification information and position information from the processing result there.
The control circuit 61 is connected to a pressure sensor 62 that detects a writing operation by the electronic pen 60 by a pressure applied to the pen tip 69. Further, an infrared LED 63 that irradiates infrared light onto the medium and an infrared CMOS 64 that inputs an image are also connected. Further, an information memory 65 for storing identification information and position information, a communication circuit 66 for communicating with an external device, a battery 67 for driving a pen, and pen identification information (pen ID) are stored. A pen ID memory 68 is also connected.

Here, an outline of the operation of the electronic pen 60 will be described.
When writing with the electronic pen 60 is performed, the pressure sensor 62 connected to the pen tip 69 detects the writing operation. Thereby, the infrared LED 63 is turned on, and the infrared CMOS 64 captures an image on the medium by the CMOS sensor.
The infrared LED 63 is pulsed in synchronization with the shutter timing of the CMOS sensor in order to reduce power consumption.
The infrared CMOS 64 uses a global shutter type CMOS sensor that can simultaneously transfer captured images. A CMOS sensor having sensitivity in the infrared region is used. In order to reduce the influence of disturbance, a visible light cut filter is disposed on the entire surface of the CMOS sensor. The CMOS sensor captures an image with a period of about 70 fps to 100 fps (frame per second). The image sensor is not limited to a CMOS sensor, and other image sensors such as a CCD may be used.

When the captured image is input to the control circuit 61, the control circuit 61 acquires a code pattern image from the captured image. Then, it is decoded to obtain identification information and position information embedded in the code pattern image.
Hereinafter, the operation of the control circuit 61 at this time will be described.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the control circuit 61 of the electronic pen 60.
First, the image processing unit 61a inputs an image on the print document 50 (step 601). Then, processing for removing noise included in the image is performed (step 602). Here, the noise includes variations in CMOS sensitivity, noise generated by an electronic circuit, and the like. What processing is performed to remove noise should be determined according to the characteristics of the imaging system of the electronic pen 60. For example, sharpening processing such as blurring processing or unsharp masking can be applied.

Next, the image processing unit 61a detects a dot pattern (the position of the dot image) from the image (step 603). For example, the dot pattern portion and the background portion are separated by binarization processing, and the dot pattern can be detected from each binarized image position. When a binarized image contains a lot of noise components, for example, it is necessary to combine a filter process for determining a dot pattern based on the area and shape of the binarized image.
In addition, the image processing unit 61a converts the detected dot pattern into digital data on a two-dimensional array (step 604). For example, on a two-dimensional array, a position where there is a dot is converted to “1”, and a position where there is no dot is converted to “0”. Then, the digital data on this two-dimensional array is transferred from the image processing unit 61a to the data processing unit 61b.

Next, the data processing unit 61b detects a bit pattern including a combination of two dots shown in FIG. 3A from the received digital data (step 605). For example, the bit pattern can be detected by moving the boundary position of the block corresponding to the bit pattern on the two-dimensional array and detecting the boundary position so that the number of dots included in the block is two. .
When the bit pattern is detected in this way, the data processing unit 61b detects the synchronization code by referring to the type of the bit pattern (step 606). Then, the identification code and the position code are detected based on the positional relationship from the synchronization code (step 607).
Thereafter, the data processing unit 61b decodes the identification code to obtain identification information, and decodes the position code to obtain position information (step 608). About an identification code, identification information is obtained by performing RS decoding process. On the other hand, for the position code, position information is obtained by comparing the position of the read partial series with the M series used at the time of image generation.

Next, processing for generating writing information from information acquired by the electronic pen 60 and adding it to the electronic document, and processing for editing the electronic document based on the generated writing information will be described.
In the writing information processing system of the present embodiment, when information representing a predetermined mark is included in the information acquired by the electronic pen 60, the writing information of the mark is added to the electronic document, or Instead of adding the writing information of the mark to the electronic document, the electronic document is subjected to an editing process determined corresponding to the mark.
The process of adding handwritten information to the electronic document and the process of editing the electronic document based on the handwritten information are realized by the terminal device 10, the document server 20, and the identification information server 30 exchanging information with each other. .

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating functional configurations of the terminal device 10, the document server 20, and the identification information server 30. The terminal device 10, the document server 20, and the identification information server 30 also have a function for generating the print document 50, but here, for adding the writing information to the electronic document and editing the electronic document. Only the functions of are shown.
As illustrated in FIG. 7, the terminal device 10 includes an input unit 11, an output unit 12, a writing generation unit 13, a transmission unit 14, a reception unit 15, an editing instruction unit 16, and an editing table storage unit 17. Yes.
The input unit 11 receives an input such as a response from the user in response to an inquiry to the user. Also, a setting input from the user to the edit table storage unit 17 is accepted.
The output unit 12 outputs an inquiry to the user.
The writing generation unit 13 generates writing information based on the position information obtained from the electronic pen 60. Accordingly, the writing generation unit 13 functions as writing information generation means.

The editing instruction unit 16 analyzes the writing information generated by the writing generation unit 13 and determines a specific mark included in the writing information. Then, the editing table storage unit 17 is referred to, and editing content information representing editing content corresponding to the determined specific mark is generated. The generated editing content information is sent to the transmission unit 14. Therefore, the editing instruction unit 16 functions as editing content setting means.
The edit table storage unit 17 stores a table (see FIGS. 9 and 10 in the subsequent stage) that defines the correspondence between the mark type determined by the edit instruction unit 16 and the edit content information for setting the edit content. ing. The edit table storage unit 17 includes a table that stores a predetermined correspondence between a predetermined specific mark and edit content information for setting edit content as an initial setting (default). The table is configured such that the correspondence (including deletion) can be arbitrarily changed or added by setting input from the input unit 11.
The transmission unit 14 transmits identification information, writing information, editing content information, a response to an inquiry to the user, and the like.
The receiving unit 15 receives identification information and position information from the electronic pen 60, and receives an inquiry to the user from the identification information server 30.

  These functional parts are realized by cooperation of software and hardware resources. Specifically, a CPU (not shown) of the terminal device 10 stores a program for realizing the functions of the input unit 11, the output unit 12, the writing generation unit 13, the transmission unit 14, the reception unit 15, and the editing instruction unit 16. To the main storage device for processing. The edit table storage unit 17 is realized by a memory connected to the CPU.

The document server 20 includes a document storage unit 21, a document generation / editing unit 22, a writing addition unit 23, a transmission unit 24, and a reception unit 25.
The document storage unit 21 is a storage unit and stores an electronic document.
The document generation / editing unit 22 generates a new electronic document (hereinafter referred to as “replicated document”) obtained by copying the electronic document stored in the document storage unit 21, and stores the generated copied document in the document storage unit 21. To do. Further, the generated duplicate document is edited based on the editing content information, and the edited duplicate document is stored in the document storage unit 21. Further, a new electronic document or thumbnail is generated based on the edited content information from the generated duplicate document or writing information, and the generated new electronic document or thumbnail is stored in the document storage unit 21. Therefore, the document generation / editing unit 22 functions as an editing unit.

The writing adding unit 23 adds writing information to the duplicate document stored in the document storage unit 21.
The transmission unit 24 transmits information relating to generation of a duplicate document, addition of writing information to the duplicate document, information relating to editing of the duplicate document, information relating to generation of a new electronic document or thumbnail, and the like.
The receiving unit 25 receives an instruction for generating a duplicate document, adding written information to the duplicate document, an instruction for editing the duplicate document (edit content information), and the like.

  These functional parts are realized by cooperation of software and hardware resources. Specifically, a CPU (not shown) of the document server 20 reads programs that realize the functions of the document generation / editing unit 22, the writing addition unit 23, the transmission unit 24, and the reception unit 25 from the external storage device to the main storage device. Process with. The document storage unit 21 is realized by, for example, a magnetic disk.

The identification information server 30 includes a DB (database) storage unit 31, a control unit 32, a registration unit 33, a transmission unit 34, and a reception unit 35.
The DB storage unit 31 is a database in which identification information, a storage location of an electronic document, a print parameter, a flag indicating the presence / absence of a duplicate document, and contents of editing (edit contents information) performed on the duplicate document are associated with each other. Remember.
The control unit 32 controls the overall operation of the identification information server 30.
The registration unit 33 registers information in the database stored in the DB storage unit 31.
The transmission unit 34 transmits an inquiry to the user to the terminal device 10, and the document server 20 is instructed to generate a duplicate document, add written information to the duplicate document, and an edit instruction to the duplicate document (edit content information). ).
The receiving unit 35 receives identification information, writing information, editing content information, a response to an inquiry to the user, and the like from the terminal device 10, and generates a duplicate document and adds writing information to the duplicate document from the document server 20. And information on the generation of new electronic documents and thumbnails.

  These functional parts are realized by cooperation of software and hardware resources. Specifically, a CPU (not shown) of the identification information server 30 reads a program for realizing the functions of the control unit 32, the registration unit 33, the transmission unit 34, and the reception unit 35 from the external storage device to the main storage device, and performs processing. Do. The DB storage unit 31 is realized by a magnetic disk, for example.

  By the way, in the example mentioned above, it was set as the structure which arrange | positions the edit instruction | indication part 16 and the edit table memory | storage part 17 in the terminal device 10. FIG. However, the editing instruction unit 16 and the editing table storage unit 17 may be arranged in the document server 20 or the identification information server 30.

Next, the contents of the database stored in the DB storage unit 31 in the identification information server 30 will be specifically described.
FIG. 8 shows an example of data in this database.
Among these, FIG. 8A shows a table for managing electronic documents printed on each medium.
As shown in FIG. 8A, the table includes identification information, an electronic document storage location, print parameters, and a flag as items.

In this embodiment, the identification information is identification information of each medium as described above.
The storage location of the electronic document is information (address information) of the location where the electronic document printed on each medium is stored.
The print parameter is a print parameter set when an electronic document is printed on each medium. In FIG. 8A, print parameters are shown in the form of “page (P), margins (A, B, C, D)”. P is a page number, and A, B, C, and D are left, right, upper, and lower margins (unit: mm), respectively. Here, the page and the margin are shown as print parameters, but the present invention is not limited to this. In addition to this, it is possible to manage various printing parameters used in normal printing.

  The flag indicates whether a duplicate document has been generated for the electronic document printed on each medium. In the present embodiment, the flag “ON” indicates that a duplicate document has been generated, and the flag “OFF” indicates that a duplicate document has not been generated. Immediately after the data is registered in step 303 of FIG. 2, the corresponding flag is set to “OFF” which is an initial value. However, after that, when a duplicate document is generated by writing on the print document 50, the flag is set to “ON”.

The database in FIG. 8A will be described more specifically.
First, the first to fourth lines indicate that two copies of the first page to the second page of the electronic document “aaa.doc” have been printed. In that case, one part is printed with left and right and top and bottom margins of 1 mm, and the other part is printed with left and right and top and bottom margins of 2 mm.
The fifth line indicates that one copy of the first page of the electronic document “bbb.doc” has been printed. At that time, the left and right margins are printed at 1 mm, and the upper and lower margins are printed at 2 mm.

  Since the flags in the 3rd to 5th lines out of the 1st to 5th lines are “OFF”, the original electronic document is not duplicated. On the other hand, the flags in the first and second lines are “ON”. This indicates that writing was performed on the medium managed in the first line or the medium managed in the second line, and the original electronic document “aaa.doc” was copied.

When a duplicate document for the original electronic document is generated in this way, the identification information server 30 of the present embodiment manages this with a separate table.
FIG. 8B shows a table for managing such a duplicate document.
In other words, the first page of “aaa.doc # 1”, which is a duplicate document for “aaa.doc”, is associated with the medium managed in the first line of FIG. Also, the second page of “aaa.doc # 2”, which is a duplicate document for “aaa.doc”, is associated with the medium managed in the second line of FIG.

  Further, editing content information representing the content of editing performed on each duplicate document is associated. That is, the edit content information “0001” described later is associated with the first page of “aaa.doc # 1” which is a duplicate document for “aaa.doc” in the first line of FIG. . Also, the editing content information “0011” described later is associated with the second page of “aaa.doc # 2” which is a duplicate document for “aaa.doc” on the second line in FIG. .

  Here, an example is shown in which a duplicate document of an electronic document managed in the first and second lines in FIG. 8A is managed in FIG. 8B. However, this does not mean that writing was actually made on both the media managed in the first and second lines in FIG. When writing is made on a certain medium, a duplicate document may be generated for the entire original electronic document, or a duplicate document may be generated only for a page printed on the medium of the original electronic document. is there.

Here, the editing content information generated by the editing instruction unit 16 of the terminal device 10 of the present embodiment will be described.
9 and 10 show an example of a table stored in the edit table storage unit 17. In the tables shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the types of marks determined by the editing instruction unit 16, editing contents corresponding to the marks, and editing contents information uniquely representing the editing contents are provided as items. Yes.
When the writing generation unit 13 of the terminal device 10 generates the writing information based on the position information obtained from the electronic pen 60, the editing instruction unit 16 analyzes the generated writing information and generates a specific mark included in the writing information. Is determined. A predetermined editing content is assigned to each of the determined marks. And the edit content information showing each edit content is defined in common in the writing information processing system of this Embodiment. That is, in the terminal device 10, the document server 20, and the identification information server 30 of the writing information processing system of the present embodiment, the editing content information uniquely means the same editing content. The tables shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 represent these correspondences.
Therefore, when a specific mark included in the writing information is determined, editing content information representing editing content assigned to the mark is acquired from the editing table storage unit 17, and the document generation / editing of the document server 20 is performed. It is transmitted to the unit 22. Then, the document generation / editing unit 22 executes the editing process of the content corresponding to the mark for the duplicate document.
The editing content corresponding to the mark type in the table of the editing table storage unit 17 may be configured to be displayed on a display unit (not shown) provided in the terminal device 10 according to a request from the user, for example. it can.

Using the tables shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 as an example, specific editing contents and operations corresponding thereto will be described.
The first line of FIG. 9 shows a case where the mark determined based on the writing information is “◎”. In this case, the editing instruction unit 16 of the terminal device 10 instructs editing of “add a red sticky note with the word“ most important matter ”written on the electronic document” assigned to the “◎” mark. Edit content information “0001” is generated. Then, the editing content information “0001” is transmitted to the document generation / editing unit 22 of the document server 20. The document generation / editing unit 22 of the document server 20 that has received the editing content information “0001” generates a duplicate document of the original electronic document, and the red color in which “the most important matter” is written on the generated duplicate document. Edit to add a tag. Then, the edited duplicate document is stored in the document storage unit 21.
In this case, the document generation / editing unit 22 stores an editing processing algorithm that specifically executes the editing contents shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 corresponding to the editing contents information. Thereby, the document generation / editing unit 22 performs a predetermined editing process corresponding to the editing content information transmitted from the terminal device 10.
In the present embodiment, a configuration has been described in which a duplicate document of an original electronic document is generated and the generated copy document is edited. However, the original electronic document may be directly edited. it can.

“O” mark (edited content information “0002”) assigned to “Add orange tag with word“ important matter ”written on electronic document” on the second line in FIG. 9, third line “△” mark (edited content information “0003”) assigned with “Add yellow sticky note with word“ notes ”on electronic document” edited in The same processing is performed for the “□” mark (edited content information “0004”) to which “simply add a blue tag” is assigned.
Note that the user can extract all of a duplicate document to which a specific tag is added or a duplicate document to which a tag is added, for example, by an input from the input unit 11 of the terminal device 10. In that case, a duplicate document having edit content information “0001” or the like is selected from the table of FIG. 8B stored in the document storage unit 21. At that time, it is also possible to generate a new electronic document composed of the selected duplicate document.

  The fifth line in FIG. 9 shows a case where it is determined that the line is “underline (single line)” based on the writing information. In this case, the editing instruction unit 16 of the terminal device 10 performs editing for instructing editing “add an underline to characters located in a corresponding part on the electronic document” assigned to “underline (single line)”. Content information “0011” is generated. Then, the editing content information “0011” is transmitted to the document generation / editing unit 22 of the document server 20. Upon receiving the editing content information “0011”, the document generation / editing unit 22 of the document server 20 generates a duplicate document of the original electronic document. Further, based on the position information of “underline (single line)”, a character (character code) is generated in a predetermined area, for example, above (under the Y direction) of “underline (single line)” from the generated duplicate document. Check if it exists. If there is a character code (character code string), the character code string is extracted. Then, an editing process for adding an underline to the extracted character code string is performed, and the edited duplicate document is stored in the document storage unit 21.

  “Double underline” (edited content information “0012”) assigned with the “highlight bold characters in bold characters located in the relevant part of the electronic document” editing in the sixth line in FIG. 9, the seventh line The same processing is performed for “wavy underline” (edited content information “0013”) to which “edit the color of the character located in the corresponding part on the electronic document to red” is assigned.

On the other hand, the first line of FIG. 10 shows a case where the mark determined based on the writing information is a “frame having a predetermined area or more”. In that case, the editing instruction unit 16 of the terminal device 10 extracts “a character (character code) or a clause (character code string) enclosed in a frame on the electronic document” assigned to the “frame” mark. "Edit content information" 0021 "instructing editing" is generated. Then, the editing content information “0021” is transmitted to the document generation / editing unit 22 of the document server 20. Upon receiving the editing content information “0021”, the document generation / editing unit 22 of the document server 20 generates a duplicate document of the original electronic document and adds writing information. Then, the duplicate document to which the writing information is added is stored in the document storage unit 21.
Here, the phrase is a character string in which a plurality of characters representing a certain meaning as a whole are connected.

Further, the document generation / editing unit 22 performs editing to extract characters (character codes) and phrases (character code strings) enclosed in a frame on the electronic document for the generated duplicate document. The extracted character (character code) and clause (character code string) are stored in the document storage unit 21 as “keyword”. Here, the “keyword” is used for searching for an electronic document by a user, for example. That is, it is possible to search for an electronic document including the character or clause from the extracted character (character code) or clause (character code string). At that time, it is possible to automatically create an index of the electronic document including the characters and clauses.
The storage of the “keyword” in the document storage unit 21 is performed by assigning a predetermined storage area for “keyword” to the document storage unit 21. The “keyword” can also be stored in the DB storage unit 31 of the identification information server 30. Here, the document storage unit 21 functions as a character data storage unit.

  The second line of FIG. 10 shows a case where the mark determined based on the writing information is “a line connecting a frame having a predetermined area or more”. In this case, the editing instruction unit 16 of the terminal apparatus 10 extracts “characters (character codes) and phrases (character code strings) enclosed in a frame on the electronic document” assigned to the “line” mark. Then, edit content information “0022” for instructing “edit to associate these characters and phrases with each other” is generated. Then, the editing content information “0022” is transmitted to the document generation / editing unit 22 of the document server 20. Upon receiving the edited content information “0022”, the document generation / editing unit 22 of the document server 20 generates a duplicate document of the original electronic document and adds writing information. Then, the edited duplicate document is stored in the document storage unit 21.

  Further, the document generation / editing unit 22 extracts characters (character codes) and phrases (character code strings) enclosed in a frame on the electronic document from the generated duplicate document, and these characters and phrases are extracted. Edit to associate each other. Then, the extracted character (character code) and clause (character code string) are stored in the document storage unit 21 as a new electronic document edited in a format associated with each other.

  Here, as a format for associating the extracted characters and phrases with each other, for example, an area surrounded by a plurality of different format frames is formed on the page, and each extracted character or phrase is displayed in the area. It is possible to adopt an editing mode that sets printing parameters for printing two-sided printing on each side of the extracted characters and phrases at the time of printing with the image forming apparatus 40.

As described above, when a new electronic document is generated at the same time in addition to the duplicate document for the original electronic document, in the present embodiment, the new electronic document is converted into the format shown in FIG. Manage in a separate table.
That is, in a table (not shown) similar to FIG. 8B, “aaa.doc”, which is a new electronic document for “aaa.doc” for the medium managed in the first line of FIG. # 1 "is associated. Further, “aaa.doc # 2”, which is a new electronic document for “aaa.doc”, is associated with the medium managed in the second line of FIG.
The user can extract all newly generated electronic documents using this table, for example, by input from the input unit 11 of the terminal device 10. In that case, the electronic document having the editing content information “0021” is selected from the same table as FIG. 8B stored in the document storage unit 21. At that time, it is also possible to perform an editing process for automatically generating an index of the selected electronic document.

Further, the third line in FIG. 10 shows a case where the mark determined based on the writing information is “an arrow line connecting a frame having a predetermined area or more”. In this case, the editing instruction unit 16 of the terminal apparatus 10 extracts “characters (character codes) and phrases (character code strings) enclosed in a frame on the electronic document” assigned to the “line” mark. Then, edit content information “0023” is generated for instructing editing “associate characters and phrases in the frame on the electronic document positioned at the start point of the arrow line with the characters and phrases in the frame positioned at the end point”. Then, the editing content information “0023” is transmitted to the document generation / editing unit 22 of the document server 20. Upon receiving the edited content information “0023”, the document generation / editing unit 22 of the document server 20 generates a duplicate document and adds writing information. Then, the edited duplicate document is stored in the document storage unit 21.
Further, the document generation / editing unit 22 extracts characters (character codes) and clauses (character code strings) enclosed in a frame on the electronic document from the generated duplicate document, and sets them at the start point of the arrow line. Editing is performed for associating characters and phrases in a frame on the electronic document that is located with characters and phrases in the frame located at the end point. And it memorize | stores in the document memory | storage part 21 as a new electronic document edited as the format which respectively linked the extracted character and phrase.

  Here, as a format for associating the extracted characters and phrases with each other, for example, an area surrounded by a plurality of different types of frames on the top and bottom is formed on the page, and an arrow line is formed in the area formed above the area. Editing form or image forming apparatus for displaying characters and phrases in a frame on an electronic document located at the end point, and displaying characters and phrases in a frame on the electronic document located at the start point in an area formed at the bottom When printing at 40, characters and phrases in the frame on the electronic document located at the end of the arrow line are surrounded by a frame of a predetermined format and printed on one side, and the characters in the frame on the electronic document located at the start point It is possible to adopt an editing mode or the like that sets printing parameters for duplex printing on the other side of the text or phrase as it is.

  In addition, the fourth line in FIG. 10 is, for example, “◇” located at the end of a sentence such as a handwritten character or figure (for example, the area located at the lowermost right of the writing information) where the mark determined based on the writing information is written. The case where it is a mark is shown. In that case, the editing instruction unit 16 of the terminal device 10 extracts “handwritten characters and graphics assigned to the“ ◇ ”mark and the electronic document in the vicinity thereof, and creates thumbnails thereof. Edit content information “0031” for instructing “edit” editing is generated. Then, the editing content information “0031” is transmitted to the document generation / editing unit 22 of the document server 20. Upon receiving the editing content information “0031”, the document generation / editing unit 22 of the document server 20 generates a duplicate document of the original electronic document and adds writing information. Then, the edited duplicate document is stored in the document storage unit 21.

Furthermore, the document generation / editing unit 22 extracts an electronic document in a nearby region such as a handwritten character or graphic from the generated duplicate document. Then, a handwritten character or figure is added to the extracted electronic document, and editing for generating a thumbnail is performed. Then, the generated thumbnail is stored in the document storage unit 21.
The thumbnails are stored in the document storage unit 21 by assigning a predetermined storage area for thumbnails to the document storage unit 21. The thumbnails can also be stored in the DB storage unit 31 of the identification information server 30. Here, the document storage unit 21 functions as a thumbnail storage unit.

Further, the fifth line in FIG. 10 shows a case where the mark determined based on the writing information is “a frame that encloses a phrase, phrase, chart, photograph, etc. on the electronic document”, for example. In that case, the editing instruction unit 16 of the terminal device 10 edits the editing content information instructing editing “extract an electronic document in an area surrounded by a frame and create a thumbnail” assigned to the “frame” mark. “0032” is generated. Then, the editing content information “0032” is transmitted to the document generation / editing unit 22 of the document server 20. Upon receiving the editing content information “0032”, the document generation / editing unit 22 of the document server 20 generates a duplicate document of the original electronic document and adds writing information. Then, the edited duplicate document is stored in the document storage unit 21.
Further, the document generation / editing unit 22 extracts an electronic document in a region surrounded by a frame from the generated duplicate document. Then, editing is performed to generate thumbnails of the extracted electronic document. Then, the generated thumbnail is stored in the document storage unit 21.

  Here, the above-described marks and editing contents corresponding to the marks are examples, and various settings can be made to function as initial settings and further as custom settings by the user in the writing information processing system of the present embodiment. .

Next, an operation when adding writing information to an electronic document and editing the electronic document will be described.
In the writing information processing system of the present embodiment, as described above, when information representing a predetermined mark is included in the information acquired by the electronic pen 60, the writing information of the mark is included in the electronic document. In addition to adding, or instead of adding the writing information of the mark to the electronic document, the electronic document is subjected to an editing process determined corresponding to the mark. Note that the user can select, for example, from the terminal device 10 whether mark writing information is added to the electronic document and editing is performed, or editing is performed instead of adding mark writing information to the electronic document. Can be configured. Here, a case will be described as an example where mark writing information is added to an electronic document and editing is performed.

FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing an operation when an electronic document is edited by adding writing information to the electronic document in the writing information processing system of the present embodiment.
First, the electronic pen 60 transmits the identification information and position information acquired by the processing of FIG. 6 to the terminal device 10 (step 611).

In the terminal device 10, the receiving unit 15 receives the identification information and the position information from the electronic pen 60, and passes these pieces of information to the writing generation unit 13 (step 111).
Next, the writing production | generation part 13 produces | generates writing information based on the positional information in the delivered information (step 112). At this time, the writing information is generated based on position information indicating a plurality of positions on the medium.

When there is an error in the position information received from the electronic pen 60, the writing generation unit 13 may correct the position information by performing the following process.
The first is a filtering process that compares a plurality of pieces of position information and removes singularities from them. That is, the continuity of a plurality of pieces of position information acquired by one writing operation (stroke) is inspected, and points greatly deviating from the continuity are excluded as points having a decoding error. Thereby, smooth writing information can be obtained.
The second is correction processing for detecting position information that has failed in decoding and correcting the position information based on the peripheral position information. That is, a decoding error is detected by checking the continuity of a plurality of pieces of position information acquired by one writing operation (stroke). Then, position information that has failed in decoding is corrected using position information that has been successfully decoded in the vicinity thereof. Here, as a correction method, a known method such as linear interpolation or spline interpolation can be used.

  Then, the writing generation unit 13 passes the generated writing information to the editing instruction unit 16 and the transmission unit 14. The writing generation unit 13 passes the identification information transferred from the reception unit 15 to the transmission unit 14 as it is.

The editing instruction unit 16 that has received the writing information from the writing generation unit 13 analyzes the writing information and determines a specific mark included in the writing information. Then, the editing table storage unit 17 is referred to, and editing content information representing editing content corresponding to the determined specific mark is generated (step 113). The generated editing content information is transferred to the transmission unit 14.
Thereafter, the transmission unit 14 transmits the identification information, the writing information, and the editing content information to the identification information server 30 (step 114).

  As a result, in the identification information server 30, the receiving unit 35 receives the identification information, the writing information, and the editing content information, and transfers them to the control unit 32 (step 311). Then, the control unit 32 refers to the database stored in the DB storage unit 31 and determines whether or not the flag corresponding to the received identification information is “ON” (step 312). That is, it is determined whether or not a duplicate document for an electronic document printed on the medium has been generated by writing on the same medium in the past.

Here, when it is determined that the flag is “ON”, that is, when it is determined that there is a duplicate document, the control unit 32 instructs the transmission unit 34 to transmit an inquiry to the terminal device 10. And the transmission part 34 transmits an inquiry to the terminal device 10 (step 313).
If there is a duplicate document, the writing information is added to the duplicate document and editing is performed, and a new duplicate document is generated separately from the duplicate document and the writing information is added to the new duplicate document for editing. A case where processing is performed is considered. Therefore, in this embodiment, it is left to the user to decide which one to select. For example, when writing is performed on the medium managed in the first line in FIG. 8A, whether writing information is added to the duplicate document managed in the first line in FIG. Then, it is inquired whether writing information is added to the new duplicate document generated from the original electronic document managed in the first line of FIG.

  Thereby, in the terminal device 10, the receiving part 15 receives an inquiry (step 115). The receiving unit 15 passes the inquiry to the output unit 12, the output unit 12 outputs an inquiry message, and the user inputs a response to the inquiry. Here, the content of the response is selection information on whether to add writing information to an already copied document and perform editing processing, or to add writing information to a newly generated copied document and perform editing processing. is there. When such a response is input, the input unit 11 receives the response and passes it to the transmission unit 14, and the transmission unit 14 transmits the response to the identification information server 30 (step 116).

Thereby, in the identification information server 30, the receiving unit 35 receives the response and passes it to the control unit 32 (step 314). Then, the control unit 32 refers to the response content, adds the writing information to the existing duplicate document and performs the editing process, or creates a new duplicate document and adds the writing information thereto, and performs the editing process. It is determined whether or not to perform (step 315).
Here, when it is determined that the writing information is added to the already copied document and the editing process is to be performed, an instruction to that effect is given to the transmission unit 34. Then, the transmission unit 34 instructs the document server 20 to add and edit the writing information with respect to the duplicate document identified in Step 312 (Step 319).

  As a result, in the document server 20, the receiving unit 25 receives the writing information addition instruction / editing instruction and passes it to the writing adding unit 23 and the document generating / editing unit 22. Then, the writing adding unit 23 adds writing information to the designated duplicate document among the duplicate documents stored in the document storage unit 21. Further, the document generation / editing unit 22 performs an editing process based on the editing content processing information for the designated duplicate document (step 213).

On the other hand, if it is determined that a new duplicate document is generated and writing information is added thereto, the process proceeds to step 316. In the present embodiment, writing information is not added to the electronic document itself (original electronic document) printed on the medium. Accordingly, if it is determined in step 312 that the flag is “OFF”, that is, if it is determined that there is no duplicate document, the process similarly proceeds to step 316.
That is, the control unit 32 instructs the transmission unit 34 to transmit a copy document generation instruction for the original electronic document identified in step 312 to the document server 20. Then, the transmission unit 34 instructs the document server 20 to generate a duplicate document (step 316). For example, when writing is performed on the medium managed in the third line of FIG. 8A, generation of a duplicate document for “aaa.doc” is instructed.

  As a result, in the document server 20, the receiving unit 25 receives this instruction and passes it to the document generation / editing unit 22. Then, the document generation / editing unit 22 generates a duplicate document for the designated electronic document among the electronic documents stored in the document storage unit 21, and stores it in the document storage unit 21 (step 211).

At this time, the control unit 32 of the identification information server 30 acquires the print parameter associated with the medium in the database in the DB storage unit 31. Then, the transmission unit 34 transmits this print parameter to the document server 20. By doing so, the document generation / editing unit 22 of the document server 20 can generate a duplicate document that looks the same as a printed document. As a result, the writing information can be reflected on the electronic document with higher accuracy.
In addition, if the electronic document is edited, the correspondence between the electronic document and the written information may be lost, resulting in inconsistencies. Furthermore, some electronic documents, such as Web pages, do not have a page structure corresponding to a print document, and the layout of the print document may vary greatly depending on settings at the time of printing. Even in such a case, writing information can be reflected in an appropriate position by generating an electronic document having the same layout as the printed document.

  When a duplicate document is generated in this way, the document generation / editing unit 22 acquires information on the storage location (including the file name) of the duplicate document and passes it to the transmission unit 24. Then, the transmission unit 24 transmits this information to the identification information server 30 (step 212).

  Thereby, in the identification information server 30, the receiving unit 35 receives the information on the storage location of the duplicate document and passes it to the registration unit 33 via the control unit 32 (step 317). Then, the registration unit 33 stores the correspondence between the identification information and the storage location in the DB storage unit 31. Further, the flag corresponding to the original electronic document to be copied is changed to “ON” (step 318). For example, if writing is performed on the medium immediately after the first line in FIG. 8A is registered, the first line in FIG. 8B is registered here. Then, the flag in the first line in FIG. 8A is changed from “OFF” to “ON”.

  Thereafter, the control unit 32 instructs the transmission unit 34 to add writing information to the duplicate document and execute the editing process. Then, the transmitting unit 34 instructs the document server 20 to add writing information to the duplicate document identified in step 317 and execute the editing process (step 319). For example, if writing is performed on the medium immediately after the first line in FIG. 8A is registered, the first page of “aaa.doc # 1” registered in the first line in FIG. 8B is displayed. Are added and the execution of the editing process is instructed.

  As a result, in the document server 20, the receiving unit 25 receives the writing information addition instruction / editing instruction and passes it to the writing addition unit 23 and the document generation / editing unit 22. Then, the writing adding unit 23 adds writing information to the designated duplicate document among the duplicate documents stored in the document storage unit 21. Further, the document generation / editing unit 22 performs an editing process based on the editing content processing information for the designated duplicate document (step 213).

In the above description, the user is inquired to determine whether the addition of the writing information or the editing process should be an existing duplicate document or a newly created duplicate document. It is done.
First, the system side determines an electronic document to which writing information is added or edited without making an inquiry to the user.
Alternatively, if the electronic document selection method to be added or edited is already determined at the time of printing, specification information specifying the selection method may be embedded in the medium as part of the code pattern image. Good. In this case, when the electronic pen 60 acquires identification information and position information from the code pattern image, this designation information is also acquired and transmitted to the identification information server 30. Then, the identification information server 30 performs the determination in step 315 based on this designation information.

As described above, in the writing information processing system of the present embodiment, an electronic document printed on a medium on which writing has been performed is specified based on the identification information acquired by the electronic pen 60, and the electronic document ( Writing information generated based on the position information acquired by the electronic pen 60 is added to or added to the duplicate document of the original electronic document). Furthermore, the generated writing information is analyzed, a specific mark included in the writing information is determined, and an editing process of contents corresponding to the determined specific mark is performed on the duplicate document.
As a result, the user writes a specific mark on the print document 50, so that the items described in the electronic document printed on the written document 50 or the duplicate document thereof, such as a specific word or phrase, It is possible to freely edit a group of documents, charts, photographs, and those in which these are expressed in a composite manner. As a result, for example, the electronic document can be easily rewritten into an electronic document that matches the usage application of the user. In addition, it is easy to create an electronic document with new contents configured by adding items written in a specific part of the electronic document.

It is the figure which showed the whole structure of the writing information processing system of this invention. It is the sequence diagram which showed the operation | movement in the writing information processing system at the time of producing | generating a printed document. It is a figure for demonstrating a code pattern. It is a figure for demonstrating the process of an encoding and image generation in a document server. It is the figure which showed the mechanism of the electronic pen. It is the flowchart which showed operation | movement of the control circuit of an electronic pen. It is the figure which showed the function structure of the terminal device, the document server, and the identification information server. It is the figure which showed an example of the data in the database which DB memory | storage part memorize | stores. It is the figure which showed an example of the table memorize | stored in the edit table memory | storage part of the terminal device. It is the figure which showed an example of the table memorize | stored in the edit table memory | storage part of the terminal device. It is the sequence figure which showed the operation | movement at the time of adding the writing information in a writing information processing system to an electronic document, and editing an electronic document.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Terminal device, 20 ... Document server, 30 ... Identification information server, 40 ... Image forming apparatus, 50 ... Print document, 60 ... Electronic pen

Claims (11)

Writing information generating means for generating writing information that is information related to a user's writing operation on a medium on which a document image is printed;
Editing content setting means for determining a predetermined mark from the writing information generated by the writing information generating means, and setting the editing content corresponding to the determined mark;
Written information processing, comprising: an editing unit that performs an editing process of the editing content set by the editing content setting unit with respect to the electronic document that is the original of the document image or a duplicate document of the electronic document system.   The apparatus further comprises storage means for acquiring the writing information from the writing information generating means and storing the writing information in association with the electronic document or the duplicate document edited by the editing means. The writing information processing system according to claim 1.   The edit content setting means has a table that defines the correspondence between the type of mark and the edit content, and the correspondence defined in the table is configured to be addable or changeable. The writing information processing system according to claim 1. Further comprising character data storage means for storing character data,
The edit content setting means extracts a character or character string on the electronic document corresponding to a position on the medium where the predetermined mark is written, and the extracted character or character string is the character data storage means. The writing information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the editing content stored in the setting is set. Further comprising character data storage means for storing character data,
The editing content setting means extracts a plurality of characters or character strings on the electronic document corresponding to positions on the medium where the predetermined marks are written, and the extracted plurality of characters or character strings are mutually connected. 2. The writing information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the editing content stored in the character data storage means is set in association with the character information storage means. It further comprises thumbnail storage means for storing thumbnails,
The edit content setting means extracts a character string and / or figure on the electronic document corresponding to a position on the medium where the predetermined mark is written, and is composed of the extracted character string and / or figure. The writing information processing system according to claim 1, wherein a thumbnail to be generated is generated, and the editing content for storing the generated thumbnail in the thumbnail storage unit is set. It further comprises thumbnail storage means for storing thumbnails,
The editing content setting means extracts a character string and / or figure on the electronic document corresponding to a position on the medium where the predetermined mark is written, and extracts the character string and / or figure and the extracted character string and / or figure. The writing information processing system according to claim 1, wherein a thumbnail composed of writing information is generated, and the editing content for storing the generated thumbnail in the thumbnail storage unit is set. Generating writing information which is information related to a user's writing operation on a medium on which a document image is printed;
Determining a predetermined mark from the generated writing information, and setting an editing content corresponding to the determined mark;
A writing information processing method, comprising: performing editing processing of set editing contents on an electronic document that is a source of the document image or a duplicate document of the electronic document.   9. The writing information processing method according to claim 8, further comprising the step of storing the edited electronic document or the duplicate document as a new electronic document.   9. The writing information processing method according to claim 8, wherein the new electronic document is stored in association with the writing information. On the computer,
A function of acquiring writing information that is information related to a user's writing operation on a medium on which a document image is printed;
A function of determining a predetermined mark from the acquired writing information, and setting an editing content corresponding to the determined mark;
A program that realizes a function of performing editing processing of set editing contents on an electronic document that is a source of the document image or a duplicate document of the electronic document.

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