X-rite Gmbh

Lawrence D Zandstra

David R Bowden

Douglas V Baker

Bernard J Berg

Thomas J Boes

Ross A Ouwinga

A colorimeter for reading color bars of printed sheets or the like includes a longitudinally extending base including a paper stop along which a sheet to be tested for color may be positioned. An autonomously operating colorimeter head is moved along the base in a direction parallel to the edge of the sheet by means of an electric motor mounted on the base and driving an helical thread lead screw engaging an X-axis carriage supporting the head. The head is moved by operation of the lead screw in a direction parallel to the edge of the sheet, referred to as the direction of the X-axis. The head includes an electric motor and a Y-axis transport supporting an optics unit. The optics unit is moved within the head in a direction parallel to a Y-axis, extending perpendicularly to the X-axis. The optics unit is preferably a spectrophotometer including a rotating wheel provided with a plurality of individual filters, spaced apart along the periphery of the wheel. The individual filters each pass light of a predefined wavelength onto a single photodetector and the signal derived from the photodetector is integrated over a period of time to provide an output signal representative of the intensity of a particular wavelength.

Scanning colorimeter with x-y drive

A scanning densitometer is disclosed for obtaining color density measurements from colored samples, such as color bars and the like. The scanning densitometer includes a densitometer head (100) and a densitometer head transport system (101) having transport bars (102, 103). A sample sheet is positioned under the transport bars (102, 103) and the self-propelled head (100) moves over the sheet along the bars (102, 103) toward an end limit stop (105). During a return movement from the end limit stop (105) to a docking end housing (110), color measurement data is obtained. Upon docking at the docking end housing (110), an optical communications interface is provided so that data from the densitometer head (100) can be transmitted to a host computer.

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Rockford, MI, United States of America

Lawrence D Zandstra