1. A method for decompressing image data, that is compressed by discarding pixels along a direction parallel to an edge while maintaining pixels along a direction perpendicular to the edge, representing a plurality of pixels and represented by a plurality of bitwords, each pixel corresponding to a separate bitword, the process comprising:
decompressing data from a compressed-data-bitword to provide data indicative of a plurality of explicit pixels; and
synthesizing data from the data indicative of the plurality of explicit pixels to provide data corresponding to at least one synthesized pixel, the at least one synthesized pixel representing at least one discarded pixel.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein decompressing a quantity of non-continuous tone data is increased to approximately four times of a quantity of uncompressed non-continuous tone data present in a plurality of bitwords representing a plurality of pixels.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein, during decompression, non-continuous tone data with a high spatial resolution in one dimension is decompressed into a high spatial resolution bitword-map with reference to information indicating the direction of the edge within the image data.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein, decompressing the data from the compressed bitword for a single data pixel comprises:
identifying a bit word as continuous tone data; and
decompressing continuous tone data to provide image data for a single pixel at a higher spatial resolution corresponding to a plurality of pixels.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein, decompressing the data from the compressed bitword for a single data pixel comprises: synthesizing bitwords of information corresponding to discarded non-continuous tone data; and
copying the single pixel to provide the image for the surrounding pixels.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the bitwords are bytes.
7. The method of claim 6, wherein, for each bitword, synthesizing the data is performed in either a fastscan direction or a slowscan direction based on a direction bit contained in that bitword.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein, synthesizing the data comprises determining which pixel positions are to be synthesized during decompression based on the direction bit.
9. A method for decompressing image data, that is compressed by discarding pixels along a direction parallel to an edge, representing a plurality of pixels and represented by a plurality of bitwords, each pixel corresponding to a separate bitword, the process comprising:
decompressing data from a compressed-data-bitword to provide data indicative of a plurality of explicit pixels; and
synthesizing data from the data indicative of the plurality of explicit pixels to provide data corresponding to at least one synthesized pixel, the at least one synthesized pixel representing at least one discarded pixel,
wherein each of the bitwords are bytes;
wherein decompressing the data from the compressed bitword comprises:
referencing a segmentation bit of the bitword to determine whether the bitword contains non-continuous tone data;
referencing a direction bit to determine whether the direction of the edge located in spaced relationship to a first and a second pixel;
referencing a three-bit value indicative of the first pixel; and
referencing a three-bit value indicative of the second pixel.
10. A method for decompressing image data, that is compressed by discarding pixels along a direction parallel to an edge, representing a plurality of pixels and represented by a plurality of bitwords, each pixel corresponding to a separate bitword, the process comprising:
decompressing data from a compressed-data-bitword to provide data indicative of a plurality of explicit pixels; and
synthesizing data from the data indicative of the plurality of explicit pixels to provide data corresponding to at least one synthesized pixel, the at least one synthesized pixel representing at least one discarded pixel;
wherein each of the bitwords are bytes;
wherein for each bitword, synthesizing the data is performed in either a fastscan direction or a slowscan direction based on a direction bit contained in that bitword;
wherein synthesizing the data comprises:
determining which pixel positions are to be synthesized during decompression based on the direction bit;
rendering from each bitword twice as many pixels in a direction perpendicular to an edge indicated by the direction bit of that bitword.
11. A method for decompressing image data, that is compressed by discarding pixels along a direction parallel to an edge, representing a plurality of pixels and represented by a plurality of bitwords, each pixel corresponding to a separate bitword, the process comprising:
decompressing data from a compressed-data-bitword to provide data indicative of a plurality of explicit pixels; and
synthesizing data from the data indicative of the plurality of explicit pixels to provide data corresponding to at least one synthesized pixel, the at least one synthesized pixel representing at least one discarded pixel;
wherein each of the bitwords are bytes;
wherein for each bitword, synthesizing the data is performed in either a fastscan direction or a slowscan direction based on a direction bit contained in that bitword;
wherein synthesizing the data comprises:
determining which pixel positions are to be synthesized during decompression based on the direction bit;
when the direction bit indicates a vertical edge, using the three-bit value associated with the first pixel and the three-bit value associated with the second pixel in the compressed-data-bitword to determine slope in the fast scan direction to render the vertical edge.
12. A method for decompressing image data, that is compressed by discarding pixels along a direction parallel to an edge, representing a plurality of pixels and represented by a plurality of bitwords, each pixel corresponding to a separate bitword, the process comprising:
decompressing data from a compressed-data-bitword to provide data indicative of a plurality of explicit pixels; and
synthesizing data from the data indicative of the plurality of explicit pixels to provide data corresponding to at least one synthesized pixel, the at least one synthesized pixel representing at least one discarded pixel;
wherein each of the bitwords are bytes;
wherein for each bitword, synthesizing the data is performed in either a fastscan direction or a slowscan direction based on a direction bit contained in that bitword;
wherein synthesizing the data comprises:
determining which pixel positions are to be synthesized during decompression based on the direction bit;
when the direction bit indicates a horizontal edge, using the three-bit value associated with the first pixel and the three-bit value associated with the second pixel in the byte of compressed data to determine slope in the slow scan direction to render the horizontal edge.
13. A method for decompressing compressed image data that is compressed by discarding pixels along a direction parallel to an edge while maintaining pixels along a direction perpendicular to the edge, the method comprising:
decompressing a single byte of compressed data to produce four pixels of non-continuous tone data.
14. The method of claim 13, further comprising, transmitting the byte of data to a print engine where the step of decompressing is performed, the step of decompressing including extracting data necessary to render two non-continuous tone data pixels and fabricating two more non-continuous tone data pixels in a low-spatial resolution direction based on a set of values of the extracted data.
15. The method of claim 13, wherein the four pixels represent a two-by-two pixel array.
16. A decompression system for decompressing image data, the image data containing non-continuous tone data and continuous tone data, the non-continuous tone data compressed by discarding pixels along a direction parallel to an edge while maintaining pixels along a direction perpendicular to the edge, the system comprising:
a decompressor that decompresses a data bitword-map to provide high spatial resolution data containing non-continuous tone data using extra resolution in a direction substantially perpendicular to an edge of marks, and that decompresses the data bitword-map to provide low spatial resolution continuous tone data.
17. The decompression system of claim 16, further comprising an image forming device, wherein the decompression system is incorporated in the image forming device.
18. The decompression system of claim 17, wherein the image forming device is one of at least a facsimile machine, a laser printer, an inkjet printer, a digital copier or a full-width-print bar printer.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A method for executing a processing routine utilizing an internal memory and an external memory and requiring more than one external memory access, comprising the step of:
distributing the external memory accesses based on a predetermined number of consecutive external memory accesses wherein distributing external memory accesses comprises interrupting access to the external memory after a predetermined number of external memory accesses with a predetermined number of internal memory accesses.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of distributing the external memory accesses such that the number of consecutive external memory accesses is minimized.
3. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of distributing the external memory accesses substantially evenly.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of distributing the external memory accesses comprises temporarily interrupting access to the external memory for a predetermined amount of time after a predetermined number of consecutive external memory accesses.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined number of consecutive external memory accesses is based on an available energy supply.
6. A method for executing a processing routine utilizing an internal memory and an external memory, comprising the steps of:
determining an available energy supply;
accessing the external memory only if the available energy supply exceeds a threshold value; and
accessing the internal memory if the available energy supply does not exceed the threshold value.
7. The method of claim 6, further comprising the step of distributing the external memory accesses if the available energy supply does not exceed a threshold value.
8. The method of claim 7, further comprising the step of distributing the external memory accesses based on a predetermined number of consecutive external memory accesses.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein the predetermined number of consecutive external memory accesses is determined at least in part by the available energy supply level.
10. The method of claim 7, wherein the processing routine further utilizes an internal memory and the method further comprises the step of distributing access to the external memory by interrupting access to the external memory after a predetermined number of consecutive external memory accesses with a predetermined number of internal memory accesses.
11. A processing system (100), comprising:
an internal memory (102) and an external memory (103); and
a processor (101) adapted to execute a processing routine utilizing the internal memory (102) and the external memory (103), wherein the processor (101) is configured to:
distribute external memory accesses based on a predetermined number of consecutive external memory accesses; and
distribute external memory accesses by interrupting access to the external memory (103) after a predetermined number of external memory accesses with a predetermined number of internal memory accesses.
12. The processing system (100) of claim 11, wherein the processor (101) is further configured to distribute the external memory accesses such that the number of consecutive external memory accesses is minimized.
13. The processing system (100) of claim 11, wherein the processor (101) is further configured to substantially evenly distribute the external memory accesses.
14. The processing system (100) of claim 11, wherein the processor (101) is further configured to temporarily interrupt access to the external memory (103) for a predetermined amount of time after a predetermined number of consecutive external memory accesses.
15. The processing system (100) of claim 11, wherein the predetermined number of consecutive external memory accesses is based on an available energy supply.