Image processing system, image processing server, image forming apparatus, image processing method, and recording medium

1. An image processing system comprising:

an image forming apparatus; and

first and second image processing servers connected to the image forming apparatus via a network,

the first image processing server comprising:

a first image processor which performs a first image processing operation on target image data received from the image forming apparatus; and

a protected area calculator which calculates a protected area to be prohibited from being processed next, which is related to an area processed by the first image processor, and generates image protection information including information of the protected area, and

the second image processing server comprising a second image processor which performs a second image processing operation on areas excluding the protected area whose information is included in the image protection information generated by the protected area calculator.

2. The image processing system as recited in claim 1 , wherein:

the second image processing server further comprises a transaction processor which processes a transaction for an image processing operation having been performed; and

the transaction processor processes a transaction for the image processing operation having been performed on the areas excluding the protected area.

3. The image processing system as recited in claim 1 , wherein the first image processing operation is a data merging operation to merge a data object to the target image data.

4. The image processing system as recited in claim 3 , wherein the data object is a character string.

5. The image processing system as recited in claim 3 , wherein the data object is an image including a character string.

6. The image processing system as recited in claim 3 , wherein the data object is a barcode or a two-dimensional code representing a code.

7. The image processing system as recited in claim 1 , wherein:

the image forming apparatus comprises an order information generator which generates order information indicating an order of the image processing operations to be processed by the first and second image processing servers; and

the target image data and the image protection information are transmitted from the first image processing server to the second image processing server to be processed thereby, in the order of the image processing operations to be processed, indicated by the order information generated by the order information generator.

8. The image processing system as recited in claim 1 , wherein the first image processing server returns the target image data and the image protection information to the image forming apparatus after performing the first image processing operation, and then the image forming apparatus transfers the target image data and the image protection information received therefrom to the second image processing server.

9. The image processing system as recited in claim 1 , wherein:

an intermediate server is provided between the image forming apparatus and a group of the first and second image processing servers; and

the first image processing server returns the target image data and the image protection information to the intermediate server after performing the first image processing operation, and then the intermediate server transfers the target image data and the image protection information received therefrom to the second image processing server.

10. The image processing system as recited in claim 1 , wherein:

the image forming apparatus comprises a target area setting portion which determines a target area whose image needs to be processed by the first image processing server; and

the protected area calculator of the first image processing server calculates the protected area to be prohibited from being processed next, based on the target area determined by the target area setting portion of the image forming apparatus.

11. An image processing system comprising:

an image forming apparatus; and

an image processing server connected to the image forming apparatus via a network, performing multiple image processing operations on target image data received from the image forming apparatus,

the image processing server comprising:

a first image processor which performs a first image processing operation;

a protected area calculator which calculates a protected area to be prohibited from being processed next, which is related to an area processed by the first image processor, and generates image protection information including information of the protected area; and

a second image processor which subsequently performs a second image processing operation on areas excluding the protected area whose information is included in the image protection information generated by the protected area calculator.

12. An image processing server comprising:

an image processor which performs an image processing operation on target image data received from an image forming apparatus which is connected to the image processing server via a network;

a protected area calculator which calculates a protected area to be prohibited from being processed next, which is related to an area processed by the image processor, and generates image protection information including information of the protected area; and

a transmitter which transmits the target image data processed by the image processor and the image protection information generated by the protected area calculator, to any of the following destinations: a second image processing server which subsequently performs a second image processing operation, the image forming apparatus which is allowed to transfer the target image data and the generated image protection information to the second image processing server, and an intermediate server which is provided between the image forming apparatus and the group of the image processing servers.

13. The image processing server as recited in claim 12 , further comprising a transaction processor which processes a transaction for an image processing operation having been performed, wherein the transaction processor processes a transaction for the image processing operation having been performed on areas excluding the protected area.

14. The image processing server as recited in claim 12 , wherein the image processing operation is a data merging operation to merge a data object to the target image data.

15. The image processing server as recited in claim 14 , wherein the data object is a character string.

16. The image processing server as recited in claim 14 , wherein the data object is an image including a character string.

17. The image processing server as recited in claim 14 , wherein the data object is a barcode or a two-dimensional code representing a code.

18. An image forming apparatus employed in an image processing system comprising:

the image forming apparatus; and

first and second image processing servers connected to the image forming apparatus via a network, performing different image processing operations in a predetermined order on target image data received from the image forming apparatus,

the image forming apparatus comprising:

an area setting portion which determines target areas to be processed by the first and second image processing servers and protected areas to be prohibited from being processed by the first and second image processing servers; and

a transmitter which transmits the target image data and information indicating the target areas and the protected areas both determined by the area setting portion, to the first and second image processing servers.

19. An image processing method implemented by an image processing system comprising:

an image forming apparatus; and

first and second image processing servers connected to the image forming apparatus via a network,

the image processing method comprising:

the first image processing server is:

performing a first image processing operation on target image data received from the image forming apparatus; and

calculating a protected area to be prohibited from being processed next, which is related to an area processed by the first image processing operation, and generating image protection information including information of the protected area, and

the second image processing server is performing a second image processing operation on areas excluding the protected area whose information is included in the image protection information generated by the first image processing server.

20. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium having an image processing program stored thereon to make a computer controlling an image processing server execute:

performing an image processing operation on target image data received from an image forming apparatus connected to the image processing server via a network;

calculating a protected area to be prohibited from being processed next, which is related to an area processed by the image processing operation, and generating image protection information including information of the protected area; and

transmitting the target image data processed by the image processing operation and the generated image protection information, to any of the following destinations: a second image processing server which subsequently performs a second image processing operation, the image forming apparatus which is allowed to transfer the target image data and the generated image protection information to the second image processing server, and an intermediate server which is provided between the image forming apparatus and a group of the image processing servers.