Color and monochrome image processing and outputting apparatus

An image forming apparatus comprising an image processing apparatus, the image processing apparatus comprising:

• a color image correction processing unit configured to perform color image correction processing on the RGB image data to output color image data;
• a monochrome image conversion processing unit configured to perform monochrome image conversion processing on the RGB image data to convert the RGB image data to monochrome gray-scale image data;
• a judging device configured to judge, while the color image correction processing unit performs color image correction processing and the monochrome image conversion processing unit performs monochrome image conversion processing, whether the input RGB image data is color or monochrome to produce a judgment result based on a color difference threshold and a number of pixels threshold;
• an accumulation device configured to accumulate the color image data and the monochrome gray-scale image data and to accumulate the judgment result correlatively with the accumulated color and monochrome gray-scale image data;
• a network interface configured to transmit data accumulated in the accumulation device to an external network;
• and
• a controller configured to output either the color image data or the monochrome gray-scale image data accumulated in the accumulation device to an external network in accordance with the judgment result of the judging device;
• wherein a threshold value, used by the judging device to judge whether the input RGB data is color or monochrome, is switched by the judging device in accordance with a selected image quality mode.

An image processing apparatus comprising:

• a color image correction processing unit configured to perform color image correction processing on the RGB image data to output color image data;
• a monochrome image conversion processing unit configured to perform monochrome image conversion processing on the RGB image data to convert the RGB image data to monochrome gray-scale image data;
• a judging device configured to judge, while the color image correction processing unit performs color image correction processing and the monochrome image conversion processing unit performs monochrome image conversion processing, whether the input RGB image data is color or monochrome to produce a judgment result based on a color difference threshold and a number of pixels threshold;
• an accumulation device configured to accumulate the color image data, the monochrome gray-scale image data, and the judgment result;
• a network interface configured to transmit data accumulated in the accumulation device to an external network;
• and
• a controller configured to output either the color image data or the monochrome gray-scale image data accumulated in the accumulation device to an external network in accordance with the judgment result of the judging device;
• wherein a threshold value, used by the judging device to judge whether the input RGB data is color or monochrome, is switched by the judging device in accordance with a selected image quality mode.