# US 9,883,064 B2 · Image reader and image forming apparatus determining direction of document to be read > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 9,883,064 B2 - Document ID: US9883064B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/363,272 - Filed: 2016-11-29 - Published: 2017-06-08 - Granted: 2018-01-30 - Earliest claimed: 2015-12-08 - Assignees: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc. - Applicants: KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc. - Inventors: Shinichi Kimura - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US9883064B2 ## CPC - H04N 1/00721: {Orientation} - G06V 30/1478: {of characters or characters lines} - G06V 30/18095: {Summing image-intensity values; Projection and histogram analysis} - G06V 30/414: Extracting the geometrical structure, e.g. layout tree; Block segmentation, e.g. bounding boxes for graphics or text - H04N 1/00726: {Other properties of the sheet, e.g. curvature or reflectivity} - H04N 1/00737: {using the scanning elements as detectors} - H04N 1/3877: {Image rotation} - G06V 30/10: Character recognition - H04N 2201/0094: Multifunctional device, i.e. a device capable of all of reading, reproducing, copying, facsimile transception, file transception - H04N: PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION - G06V: IMAGE OR VIDEO RECOGNITION OR UNDERSTANDING ## Abstract An image forming apparatus includes: a document reading section; a character detection section detecting, based on image data of a document obtained through reading by the document reading section, characters included in an image formed on the document; a character concentration detection section detecting concentration of the characters detected by the character detection section; a character direction detection section detecting a direction of the characters whose concentration detected by the character concentration detection section is in a preset specified concentration range; and a document direction determination section determining, based on the direction of the characters detected by the character direction detection section, a direction of the image formed on the document as a document direction, wherein the character direction detection section, upon determination that the image on the document is a monochromatic image, defines, as the specified concentration range, a concentration range higher than predefined first concentration. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An image reader comprising: a document reading section reading a document; a character detection section detecting, based on image data of the document obtained through the reading by the document reading section, characters included in an image formed on the document; a character concentration detection section detecting concentration of the characters detected by the character detection section; a character direction detection section detecting a direction of the characters detected by the character detection section, the character direction detection section targeting the characters whose concentration detected by the character concentration detection section is in a specified concentration range to perform the character direction detection; and a document direction determination section determining, based on the direction of the characters detected by the character direction detection section, a direction of the image formed on the document as a document direction, wherein the character direction detection section determines, based on the concentration of the characters detected by the character concentration detection section, whether the image on the document is a monochromatic image or a color image, and upon determination that the image on the document is a monochromatic image, the character direction detection section sets the specified concentration range as a concentration range higher than predefined first concentration that indicates a range of concentration to be used for a character printing using a font, and detects a direction of the characters detected by the character detection section only for the characters whose character concentration is in the specified concentration range. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The image reader according to claim 1, wherein based on the concentration of the characters detected by the character concentration detection section, the character direction detection section determines whether the image on the document is a monochromatic image or a color image, and upon determination that the image on the document is a color image, the character direction detection section defines, as the specified concentration range, a concentration range higher than predefined second concentration and a concentration range between third concentration lower than the second concentration and fourth concentration lower than the third concentration. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The image reader according to claim 1, further comprising a concentration range setting reception section receiving, from an operator, setting of a value indicating the specified concentration range, wherein the character direction detection section defines, as the specified concentration range, the value received by the concentration range setting reception section. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The image reader according to claim 1, further comprising an operation section selectively receiving either of a handwritten character exclusion instruction indicating that the document direction is determined while excluding handwritten characters and a handwritten character incorporation instruction indicating that the document direction is determined while not excluding but incorporating the handwritten characters, wherein upon reception of the handwritten character exclusion instruction by the operation section, the character direction detection section detects the direction of the characters while defining, as the specified concentration range, the concentration range higher than the first concentration, and upon reception of the handwritten character incorporation instruction by the operation section, the character direction detection section detects the direction of all the characters regardless of whether or not the characters are in the specified concentration range. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The image reader according to claim 1, wherein upon determination that the image on the document is a monochromatic image, in place of processing of defining, as the specified concentration range, the concentration range higher than the predefined first concentration, the character direction detection section performs processing of calculating, based on the concentration of each of the characters detected by the character concentration detection section, a concentration histogram for each character detected by the character detection section, and from the calculated concentration histogram, processing of defining, as the specified concentration range, a most frequently appearing range. ### Claim 6 An image forming apparatus comprising: an image reader comprising: a document reading section reading a document; a character detection section detecting, based on image data of the document obtained through the reading by the document reading section, characters included in an image formed on the document; a character concentration detection section detecting concentration of the characters detected by the character detection section; a character direction detection section detecting a direction of the characters detected by the character detection section, the character direction detection section targeting the characters whose concentration detected by the character concentration detection section is in a preset specified concentration range to perform the character direction detection; and a document direction determination section determining, based on the direction of the characters detected by the character direction detection section, a direction of the image formed on the document as a document direction, wherein the character direction detection section, based on the concentration of the characters detected by the character concentration detection section, determines whether the image on the document is a monochromatic image or a color image, and upon determination that the image on the document is a monochromatic image, the character direction detection section sets the specified concentration range as a concentration range higher than predefined first concentration that indicates a range of concentration to be used for a character printing using a font, and detects a direction of the characters detected by the character detection section only for the characters whose character concentration is in the specified concentration range; and an image formation section forming an image on a recording medium.