A placement detection system includes: a placement table; an imaging device that images an object placed on the placement table through the placement table to generate an input image; and a control device that receives the input image. The control device identifies a higher-level pixel having a pixel level higher than or equal to a predetermined pixel level in the input image, sets a threshold value of the higher-level pixel, and sets a threshold value of a target pixel other than the higher-level pixel to a lower value than the threshold value of the higher-level pixel in accordance with a distance between the higher-level pixel and the target pixel. The control device binarizes a pixel level of the target pixel in accordance with the threshold value of the target pixel to produce a binarized image and detects a shape of the object by using the binarized image.

At the time of copying a smaller document and a larger document on output sheets having the same size, in a first case where a first document is smaller and a second document is larger, a printing control unit analyzes a content of the second document, and copies the first document and the second document on output sheets having sizes corresponding to the analysis result. In a second case where the first document is larger and the second document is smaller, a content of the first document is analyzed, and the first document and the second document are copied on output sheets having sizes corresponding to the analysis result.

An image forming apparatus includes a document reading unit configured to collectively read a plurality of source documents placed on a document table, a reference document image selector that selects, as a reference document image, an individual image representing the source document located closest to a position corresponding to a far left corner of the document table, a first relative position detector that detects a relative position between the reference document image and each of the individual images other than the reference document image, and a first pair identifier that identifies, as an image pair representing front and back faces of the same source document, a pair of individual images, the respective relative positions of which, from the reference document image in one of the both image data and from the reference document image in the other one of the both image data, are closest to each other.

An image scanning device includes a placement-area image data capturing unit that captures placement-area image data corresponding to an area where documents are placed on a platen, a document image data capturing unit that captures pieces of document image data, each of which corresponds to one of the documents, and acquires positions of the pieces of document image data, in accordance with the placement-area image data captured by the placement-area image data capturing unit, a placement order acquiring unit that acquires an order in which the documents, each of which corresponds to one of the pieces of document image data, have been placed in accordance with at least the positions of the pieces of document image data, each of which corresponds to one of the documents, and a sequencing unit that assigns to the pieces of document image data the order acquired by the placement order acquiring unit.

An inspection device includes an image reader that generates a scan image, an inspector that inspects an inspection target image formed on a storage medium, by comparing a scan image with a reference image, a storage that stores the reference image, and a hardware processor that stores into the storage the reference image generated as the scan image by reading with the image reader an image formed on a recording medium by the image former on a basis of a second print job for generating the reference image, determines whether the reference image stored in the storage satisfies a predetermined condition when a data amount of the reference image stored in the storage becomes equal to or larger than a predetermined amount, and deletes the reference image determined to satisfy the predetermined condition from the storage.

An image scanning device includes a placement-area image data capturing unit that captures placement-area image data corresponding to an area where documents are placed on a platen, a document image data capturing unit that captures pieces of document image data, each of which corresponds to one of the documents, and acquires positions of the pieces of document image data, in accordance with the placement-area image data captured by the placement-area image data capturing unit, a placement order acquiring unit that acquires an order in which the documents, each of which corresponds to one of the pieces of document image data, have been placed in accordance with at least the positions of the pieces of document image data, each of which corresponds to one of the documents, and a sequencing unit that assigns to the pieces of document image data the order acquired by the placement order acquiring unit.

A method of digitizing, including accepting papers in an input tray for digitizing, digitizing content of the paper with a first digitizing scanner, digitizing calibration markings with each paper digitized by the first digitizing scanner or digitizing content of the paper with a second digitizing scanner, comparing the calibration markings to predefined markings or comparing the digitized content of the paper from the first digitizing scanner with the digitized content of the paper from the second digitizing scanner, determining if the content of the paper from the first digitizing scanner was scanned correctly based on the, directing the paper to one of two or more output trays by a controller responsive to the determining.

An image scanning device includes a placement-area image data capturing unit that captures placement-area image data corresponding to an area where documents are placed on a platen, a document image data capturing unit that captures pieces of document image data, each of which corresponds to one of the documents, and acquires positions of the pieces of document image data, in accordance with the placement-area image data captured by the placement-area image data capturing unit, a placement order acquiring unit that acquires an order in which the documents, each of which corresponds to one of the pieces of document image data, have been placed in accordance with at least the positions of the pieces of document image data, each of which corresponds to one of the documents, and a sequencing unit that assigns to the pieces of document image data the order acquired by the placement order acquiring unit.

Systems and methods for detecting the presence of metallic objects in media to be conveyed in a medium transport system are disclosed. One or more induction sensors are included in the medium transport system to detect the presence of metal in the transported media, with detection signals sent from the sensors to a system processing unit. An ultrasonic detector is employed in some embodiments to output another detection signal. One or more microphones may also be included, for detecting the sound created as the medium is being transported. The system processing unit analyzes various detection signals and analyzes computed sound values from the microphones, to determine the presence and location of metal in the media. A position jam detector may assist in determining jams of the media along the medium transport path.

A system for validating a hologram on a document is provided. The system includes a camera for taking plurality of images of the hologram, a memory for storing the plurality of images, a display for displaying at least one of the images and for instructing a user to rotate the document such that at least two of the images are taken from different hologram viewing angles, and a processor for analysing the characteristics of the hologram in each of the plurality of images and for determining whether any of the characteristics match a predetermined characteristic set for a predetermined hologram type.