Image processing apparatus and image processing method

1. An image processing apparatus comprising:

an object extraction unit configured to extract an object from an input image;

a metadata extraction unit configured to extract metadata related to the object;

a determination unit configured to determine, on the basis of whether or not another object exists near the object, whether to describe a first vector path description or to describe a second vector path description, wherein the first vector path description is data of a first frame which circumscribes the object with a shape similar to a shape of the object, and wherein the second vector path description is data of a second frame which circumscribes the object with a predetermined shape, and wherein the determination unit determines to describe the first vector path description when another object exists near the object, and wherein the determination unit determines to describe the second vector path description when another object does not exist near the object;

a frame creation unit configured to create the first vector path description in the case that the determination unit determines to describe the first vector path description, and to create the second vector path description in the case that the determination unit determines to describe the second vector path description; and

a document creation unit configured to create an electronic document including data of the input image and the created first or second vector path description with which the metadata is associated,

wherein when a keyword search is performed on the created electronic document, highlight display is performed in accordance with the created first or second vector path description with which metadata that matches the keyword is associated.

2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the determination unit determines, on the basis of i) whether or not the object is described in a vector path description, ii) the size of the object, and iii) whether or not another object exists near the object, whether to describe the first vector path description or to describe the second vector path description, and

wherein, when the object is described in a vector path description and when the size of the object is small or another object exists near the object, the determination unit determines to describe the first vector path description, and

wherein, when the object is not described in a vector path description, or when the object is described in a vector path description, the size of the object is large, and there is no adjacent object near the object, the determination unit determines to describe the second vector path description.

3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the first vector path description is the data of the first frame which circumscribes the object with a shape similar to the shape of an outer contour of the object.

4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the first vector path description includes an enlargement parameter description for making a frame larger than the object.

5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein a drawing color of the first and second vector path description is a transparent color.

6. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the first and second vector path description includes a parameter description of a highlighting color used for highlight display when the keyword search is performed.

7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the highlighting color used for performing highlight display is different from the color of the object.

8. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein

the frame creation unit further creates a third vector path description of supplementary information which supplementarily indicates the object,

the document creation unit creates an electronic document including the input image, the first or second vector path description with which the metadata is associated, and the third vector path description of supplementary information, and

when a keyword search is performed on the electronic document, highlight display is performed in accordance with the first or second vector path description with which metadata that matches the keyword is associated and the third vector path description of supplementary information.

9. An image processing apparatus comprising:

an object extraction unit configured to extract an object from an input image;

a metadata extraction unit configured to extract metadata related to the object;

a determination unit configured to determine, on the basis of whether or not another object exists near the object, whether to describe a first vector path description or to describe a second vector path description, wherein the first vector path description is data of a frame which circumscribes the object with a shape similar to an outer contour of the shape of the object, and wherein the second vector path description is data of a frame which circumscribes the object with a predetermined shape, and wherein the determination unit determines to describe the first vector path description when another object exists near the object, and wherein the determination unit determines to describe the second vector path description when another object does not exist near the object;

a frame creation unit configured to create the first vector path description that is data of a frame which circumscribes the object with a shape similar to an outer contour of the shape of the object in the case that the determination unit determines to describe the first vector path description; and

a document creation unit configured to create an electronic document including data of the input image and the first vector path description with which the metadata is associated,

wherein when a keyword search is performed on the created electronic document, highlight display is performed in accordance with the first vector path description with which metadata that matches the keyword is associated.

10. An image processing apparatus comprising:

an extraction unit configured to extract an object from an input image and obtain area information of the object;

a determination unit configured to determine, on the basis of whether or not another object exists near the object, whether to describe a first vector path description or to describe a second vector path description, wherein the first vector path description is data of a transparent frame which circumscribes the extracted object with a shape of the obtained area information, and wherein the second vector path description is data of a frame which circumscribes the object with a predetermined shape, and wherein the determination unit determines to describe the first vector path description when another object exists near the object, and wherein the determination unit determines to describe the second vector path description when another object does not exist near the object;

a frame creation unit configured to create the first vector path description that is data of a transparent frame which circumscribes the extracted object with a shape of the obtained area information in a case that the determination unit determines to describe the first vector path description; and

an electronic document creation unit configured to create an electronic document including the input image and the created vector path description,

wherein the created vector path description of the transparent frame includes a parameter description of a highlighting color for highlighting the frame when an object is searched for and detected as a search result from the created electronic document.

11. An image processing method comprising:

an object extracting step of extracting, by an object extraction unit, an object from an input image;

a metadata extraction step of extracting, by a metadata extraction unit, metadata related to the object;

a determination step of determining, on the basis of whether or not another object exists near the object, by a determination unit, whether to describe a first vector path description or to describe a second vector path description, wherein the first vector path description is data of a first frame which circumscribes the object with a shape similar to a shape of the object, and where the second vector path description is data of a second frame with circumscribes the object with a predetermined shape, and wherein the determination unit determines to describe the first vector path description when another object exists near the object, and wherein the determination unit determines to describe the second vector path description when another object does not exist near the object;

a frame creation step of creating, by a frame creation unit, the first vector path description when determining to describe the first vector path description in the determination step, and creating, by the frame creation unit, the second vector path description when determining to describe the second vector path description in the determination step; and

a document creation step of creating, by a document creation unit, an electronic document including data of the input image and the created first or second vector path description with which the metadata is associated,

wherein when a keyword search is performed on the created electronic document, highlight display is performed in accordance with the created first or second vector path description with which metadata that matches the keyword is associated.

12. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium having recording thereon code of computer-executable instructions that, when executed by an image processing apparatus, causes the apparatus to perform steps comprising:

an object extracting step of extracting by an object extraction unit, an object from an input image;

a metadata extraction step of extracting, by a metadata extraction unit, metadata related to the object;

a determination step of determining, on the basis of whether or not another object exists near the object, by a determination unit, whether to describe a first vector path description or to describe a second vector path description, wherein the first vector path description is data of a first frame which circumscribes the object with a shape similar to a shape of the object, and wherein the second vector path description is data of a second frame which circumscribes the object with a predetermined shape, and wherein the determination unit determines to describe the first vector path description when another object exists near the object, and wherein the determination unit determines to describe the second vector path description when another object does not exist near the object;

a frame creation step of creating, by a frame creation unit, the first vector path description when determining to describe the first vector path description in the determination step, and creating, by the frame creation unit, the second vector path description when determining to describe the second vector path description in the determination step; and

a document creation step of creating, by a document creation unit, an electronic document including data of the input image and the created first or second vector path description with which the metadata is associated,

wherein when a keyword search is performed on the created electronic document, highlight display is performed in accordance with the created first or second vector path description with which metadata that matches the keyword is associated.