The present application is based on, and claims priority from JP Application Serial Number 2019-208555, filed Nov. 19, 2019, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to an image processing device, an image processing method, and a recording device.

2. Related Art

It is disclosed that an image processing device performs, when the information of the barcode image is included in the image data for forming an image by an image forming unit, and when either of the resolution of the image forming unit and the resolution of the image data is not integer multiple of the other, regarding the resolution of the image data at the location of a barcode image as a resolution that one is an integer multiple of the other, and outputting to the image forming unit (See JP-A-2016-64511).

When a draft on which a code image such as a barcode and a two-dimensional code (QR code (registered trademark) and the like) is recoded is read by a reading apparatus such as a scanner, in the generated image data, a blur may occur in the edge portion of each element such as a bar constituting the code image. The blur is expressed in a color that is brighter than a color of the element and darker than a color of space between elements. The color of such a blur is called an intermediate color or halftone.

When halftone processing is executed to make image data including the code image in which the blur occurs in the edge portion of the element such as a bar recorded on a recording medium, the quality of the code image sometimes deteriorates due to unnecessary generation of dots corresponding to pixels that match the blur.

SUMMARY

An image processing device includes a code detection unit configured to detect a code image included in the input image, a pixel value determination unit configured to determine whether a pixel value of each pixel included in the code image corresponds to an intermediate color between a color of code elements constituting the code image and a color of a space between the code elements, and a pixel value converting unit configured to convert a pixel value of a separated pixel that is separated from the code elements by k pixels or more, among intermediate color pixels that are pixels determined to correspond to the intermediate color, into a pixel value brighter than the intermediate color, wherein k is an integer of 2 or greater.

