The invention relates to a method for scanning originals using a scanner, for example a flatbed scanner, said method comprising the steps of: (i) performing a pre-scan using a scanner bed (2) of the scanner, said scanner bed (2) having an extension in the x-direction and in the y-direction, in order to measure an x-extension (4) between a smallest (4a) and a largest extension value (4b) in the x-direction and to measure a y-extension (6) between a smallest (6a) and a largest extension value (6b) in the y-direction in respect of each of the originals on the scanner bed (2), and creating scanning frames (R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6) associated with the originals from the respectively measured extension values, (ii) specifying the scanning frame (R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6) with the largest y-extension (6) as the leading frame (R4), (iii) defining as subsequent frames (R3, R5) those which are located with their y-extension within a section (10) of the scanning bed which is spanned in the y-direction by the smallest and the largest extension value of the y-extension of the leading frame, (iv) creating an image processing dataset from said section, its leading frame and its subsequent frames, (v) registering said image processing dataset in a list of image processing datasets, (vi) performing steps (ii) to (v), without taking into account the scanning frames already existing in an image processing dataset, until all the scanning frames measured in step (i) are included in an image processing dataset, (vii) capturing image data by scanning the sections of the image processing datasets registered in the list, (viii) cropping the image data of originals from the captured image data along the scanning frame, and (ix) storing the cropped image data of the originals.

(FIG. 2)

An optical scanning device includes a housing and an fθ lens accommodated in the housing. The housing has a bottom surface, and side walls erected from a bottom surface and surrounding the bottom surface along a perimeter thereof. One side wall of the side walls has, on an outer surface thereof, one or more positioners that position the optical scanning device relative to an image forming apparatus main body. The bottom surface has one or more first bottom surface ribs extending from the positioners toward the fθ lens in an oblique direction with respect to the side wall having the positioners in a plan view.

A document reading device includes: an image capturing member that captures an image of a document; a placement portion that is disposed below the image capturing member and that has a boundary line between multiple surfaces at a position at which the boundary line is covered by the document when the document has a maximum size that the image capturing member is capable of imaging and the document is placed on the placement portion; and a document reading member that reads the document that is placed on the placement portion.

A document reading device includes an imaging unit that images a document, a placing portion that includes a first placing portion and a second placing portion and that has a placing surface on which the document is placed, the placing surface being formed by the first placing portion and the second placing portion, and a detector that detects an edge of the document that is placed on the placing surface by using a color difference or a luminance difference between the placing surface and the document. An end portion of the first placing portion adjacent to the second placing portion extends toward the second placing portion beyond an end portion of the second placing portion adjacent to the first placing portion.

An image reading apparatus includes a reading member that reads an image of a document that is transported, a discharge portion onto which the document that is read by the reading member is discharged, a placement portion that is installed above the discharge portion, an object being placed on the placement portion such that at least a part of an upper surface of the reading member is covered, and an image capturing member that is installed above the placement portion and that captures an image of the object that is placed on the placement portion.

An image processing apparatus includes a medium discharge portion onto which a medium to be taken out by a person with the person standing is discharged, a placement portion that is installed above the medium discharge portion, an object in color that is represented by using a Y-value closer than a value that represents black color to a value that represents white color where the color is represented by using a Y-value that represents luminance in a YCbCr method being placed on the placement portion, an image capturing member that is installed above the placement portion and that captures an image of the object that is placed on the placement portion. Color of an upper portion of the placement portion is represented by using a Y-value closer than the value that represents the white color to the value that represents the black color where the color is represented by using the Y-value that represents the luminance in the YCbCr method such that the object and the placement portion are distinguishable from each other in the image that is captured by the image capturing member.

An image forming apparatus includes: an image forming section that forms an image on a document; a first ejection section that ejects the document on which the image has been formed by the image forming section; an exterior portion which is movable and at least a part of which constitutes an exterior of the apparatus; an entrance portion that is exposed by movement of the exterior portion and that constitutes an entrance for the document to be transported to an image reading section that reads the image formed on the document; the image reading section that reads the image formed on the document transported after the entrance portion is exposed; and a second ejection section that ejects the document which has been read by the image reading section. An ejecting direction of the first ejection section, an ejecting direction of the second ejection section, and a moving direction of the exterior portion coincide with each other.

According to an embodiment, a storage method includes: a step of generating scan data by scanning of a document with a reading device; a step of acquiring index information that is different from information that is based on the document; and a step of assigning the acquired index information to the scan data and storing the scan data to which the index information is assigned in a storage device.

According to an embodiment, a storage method includes: a step of generating scan data by scanning of a document with a reading device; a step of acquiring index information that is different from information that is based on the document; and a step of assigning the acquired index information to the scan data and storing the scan data to which the index information is assigned in a storage device.

Provided is a technique for allowing a user to easily check the status of an image scanning apparatus. An image scanning apparatus is configured to transmit original document image data by storing, sequentially in a buffer, line data obtained by line-by-line scanning of an original document and transmitting the stored line data to a host computer sequentially line by line, and includes a control unit configured to perform control to transmit original document image data including notification image data to the host computer in a case where it is detected that the apparatus status of the image scanning apparatus is not normal during processing executed in response to a scan command received from the host computer, the notification image data being a notification of an error occurrence.