The Mead Corporation

Eugene Nodov

Richard Sutera

Burton W Scott

Arthur Cox

Suresh C Paranjpe

George W Denlinger

John A Thiel

Apparatus for illuminating a narrow transverse strip on a document. The apparatus includes a pair of laterally extending illumination lamps and a pair of trough shaped reflectors for collecting light from the illumination lamps and focussing one-dimensional images of the lamp filaments along a common line extending across the document. Each trough shaped reflector has an associated flat reflecting mirror for directing its beam of illuminating light toward the document. The two flat mirrors are rotated in synchronism for scanning the light beams longitudinally along the document. The trough shaped reflectors are moved in synchronism with the scanning movement of the beams so that the images of the lamp filaments remain in one-dimensional focus throughout scanning of the flat document plane. The illuminating light is further collected and directed toward the document by a pair of reflective side surfaces which define walls for the illumination station.

Line source illuminator

A lens system for scanning a document positioned on a flat support. The lens system operates in cooperation with apparatus which scans a beam of illuminating light across the document and a scanning mirror, which directs reflected light from the illuminated document in a direction toward an array of photodetectors. The lens system is positioned between the scanning mirror and the photodetector array and includes a movable doublet lens and fixed doublet lens. The movable doublet lens collimates the light through the lens system, while the fixed doublet lens focuses an image of the scanned document portion upon the face of a photodetector array. A set of 6 correcting lenses are arranged symmetrically with respect to a plane of symmetry in a position between the two doublet lenses. A barrel cam and a follower arrangement is provided for moving the movable doublet lens in synchronism with the image scanning mirror, so that optical field flattening is achieved.

Lens system for document scanning

A jet drop copying apparatus has a print head which directs a row of jets toward a print sheet mounted on a rotating drum. The row of jets extend substantially across the full width of the print sheet and are operated under control of a printing controller to print a series of tracks extending circumferentially along the sheet. The jets are shifted laterally in synchronism with the drum rotation such that each jet is moved a distance equal to the width of one printing track during one rotation of the drum. The shifting continues until a solid print has been obtained. An illumination device is provided for illuminating a narrow strip extending across a document to be copied and projecting an image of the illuminated strip upon a row of photodetectors. Longitudinal image scanning proceeds in synchronism with the rotation of the printing drum, and there is a lateral shifting of the image in synchronism with the shifting of the jet printing tracks.

Apparatus and method for jet drop copying with an array of jets and

A system for scanning a document positioned on a flat support and generating electrical signals representing the observed image information. Means are provided for scanning an elongated beam of illuminating light across the document from end to end and simultaneously imaging the illuminated region upon a line of photodetectors. The photodetectors are spaced apart for viewing different portions of the imaged strip. An image shifting arrangement shifts the image in synchronism with the document scan, so that all portions of the imaged document are viewed at one time or another by one of the photocells comprising the photodetector array. A field flattening arrangement operates in synchronism with document scanning so as to provide continuous focusing adjustment. The electrical signals which are generated by the system are suitable for controlling an ink jet printer or other electrically operated dot matrix recorder.

Document scanning system

A document illumination system adapted for use in a jet drop copier or duplicator. A pair of focussing reflectors collect illumination from two parallel line source illuminators and direct the collected illumination toward a pair of scanning mirrors. The scanning mirrors, together with a pair of side mirrors, direct narrow beams of illumination toward a common illuminated strip on the face of a document positioned on a flat document support member. The scanning mirrors are scanned in synchronism to move the illuminated strip back and forth along the face of the document, and the reflectors are concomitantly moved in synchronism to maintain an image of the illumination sources in one dimensional focus at the surface of the document. All motion of the scanning mirrors and the reflectors is produced by a single drive motor, which drives a set of interspersed timing belts to produce uniform rotary motion of the input shafts for four conjugate cam arrangements. The conjugate cam arrangements are appropriately configured for producing the requisite motion of the reflectors and the scanning mirrors.

Growing community of inventors

Richardson, TX, United States of America

Eugene Nodov