Asahi Kogaku Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha

Pentax Corporation

Ryoji Honda

Tadashi Takahashi

Masahiro Kita

Kiyoshi Negishi

Takaaki Yano

Tomoyuki Nishikawa

Tatsuya Yoshida

Makoto Takada

Shoji Kamasako

Tsutomu Sato

Ikuo Negoro

Satoshi Takami

Masami Shirai

Rensuke Adachi

Mitsuru Iida

Tetsuya Utsui

Katsuhiko Furuya

Yuzuru Doi

Junji Usami

Tsutomi Sato

Hitoshi Osawa

A device for controlling an amount of light of a lighting unit for use in an endoscope that is used to view an image of an object. A light shielding system shields light generated by a light source and transmitted to the endoscope and a stepping motor drives the light shielding system for a plurality of predetermined time intervals. A system detects a brightness of the image during each of the plurality of predetermined time intervals and an input system inputs one of a plurality of desired brightnesses of the image. A generating system generates a predetermined number of pulses during each of the plurality of predetermined time intervals, the predetermined number of pulses being transmitted to the stepping motor and a system determines an angular position of the light shielding system. A setting system sets one of a plurality of allowed brightness ranges of the image in response to the determined angular position of the light shielding system and a system determines whether the detected brightness is within the set one of the plurality of allowed brightness ranges.

Device for controlling an amount of light of a lighting unit for an endoscope

A device for controlling an amount of light of a lighting unit for use in an endoscope, used to view an image of an object. The device includes a light shield for shielding light generated by a light source and transmitted to the endoscope. A stepping motor drives the light shield for a series of predetermined time intervals. Brightness of the image is detected during each of the time intervals and pulses are generated during each of the time intervals. A desired brightness of the image is input. The number of pulses generated is determined in accordance with the input desired brightness of the image. The pulses generated are used to drive the stepping motor in each of the plurality of time intervals.

A device for controlling an amount of light of a lighting unit for use in an endoscope, used to view an image of an object. The device includes a plurality of light shields for shielding light generated by a light source and transmitted to the endoscope. A plurality of stepping motors drive the light shield for a series of predetermined time intervals. Brightness of the image is detected during each of the time intervals and pulses are generated during each of the time intervals. The number of pulses generated is determined in accordance with a difference between the brightness of the image detected during each of the time intervals and a desired brightness of the image. The pulses generated are used to control the drive of the plurality of stepping motors in each of the plurality of time intervals.

A device for controlling an amount of light of a lighting unit for use in an endoscope, used to view an image of an object. The device includes a light shield system for shielding light generated by a light source and transmitted to the endoscope. A stepping motor drives the light shield for a series of predetermined time intervals. Brightness of the image is detected during each of the time intervals and pulses are generated during each of the time intervals. One of a plurality of brightness ranges is set in accord with desired brightness of image. A determination is made as to whether the detected brightness is within one of the ranges. The pulses generated are used to drive the stepping motor in each of the plurality of time intervals.

A device for controlling an amount of light of a lighting unit for use in an endoscope, used to view an image of an object. The device includes a light shield for shielding light generated by a light source and transmitted to the endoscope. A stepping motor drives the light shield for a series of predetermined time intervals. Brightness of the image is detected during each of the time intervals and a predetermined number of pulses are generated during each of the time intervals. An angular position of the light shielding system is determined and the phase of excitation of the motor is varied in response to the angular position. The pulses generated are used to drive the stepping motor in each of the plurality of time intervals.

A device for controlling an amount of light of a lighting unit for use in an endoscope, used to view an image of an object. The device includes a light shield for shielding light generated by a light source and transmitted to the endoscope. A stepping motor drives the light shield for a series of predetermined time intervals. Brightness of the image is detected during each of the time intervals and pulses are generated during each of the time intervals motor hunting is detected. The number of pulses generated is determined in response to detection of hunting and when hunting is detected the number of pulses is reduced. The pulses generated are used to drive the stepping motor in each of the plurality of time intervals.

Device for controlling an amount of light of a lighting unit for an

A device for controlling an amount of light of a lighting unit for use in an endoscope, used to view an image of an object. The device includes a light shield for shielding light generated by a light source and transmitted to the endoscope. A stepping motor drives the light shield for a series of predetermined time intervals. Brightness of the image is detected during each of the time intervals and pulses are generated during each of the time intervals. The number of pulses generated is determined in accordance with a difference between the brightness of the image detected during each of the time intervals and a desired brightness of the image. The pulses generated are used to drive the stepping motor in each of the plurality of time intervals.

An electrophotographic printer is capable of using a plurality of types of continuous form recording media having different page lengths, respectively. In the printer, a photoconductive member is charged and exposed to light carrying image data to form a latent image. In operation, one of the plurality of types of recording media is selected, and a portion of the photoconductive member corresponding to a page of the selected one of the plurality of types of recording media is exposed to light. In another embodiment, a laser beam printer utilizes a continuous-form recording sheet, wherein two control members are provided for, respectively, controlling the recording sheet so as to be discharged from the printing device after a printing operation, and for controlling the recording sheet so as to be located at a position from which a printing operation is restarted. Thus, recording sheets are not wasted when printer output is started.

Electrophotographic printer using a continuous-form recording sheet

A light source apparatus for an endoscope having a light source for emitting a bundle of illuminating light rays which are to be supplied to a light guide of the endoscope. The apparatus includes at least a pair of light-blocking plates disposed in the bundle of illuminating light rays to face each other across the optical axis of the ray bundle, and a device for supporting the light-blocking plates such that the plates are rotatable about an axis extending therebetween at right angles to the optical axis. At least one of the light-blocking plates has such a cross-sectional configuration as viewed in the optical axis direction that the light-blocking plate is bent at an angle to the axis of rotation near the center of the illuminating optical path.

Light source apparatus for endoscope

An optical scanning device emits a scanning laser beam which scans a photoconductive material, and a detection device located upstream with respect to the scanning direction of the laser beam. The laser beam is first emitted to scan the detection device, and the reception of the laser beam is detected by the detection device. The emission of the laser beam is terminated as soon as the detection device first detects the reception of the laser beam. A scanning laser beam modulated with image information is then emitted to scan the photoconductive material.

Method and apparatus for controlling a scanning beam of an optical

A laser driving circuit that controls an intensity of a laser beam emitted by a laser diode to become a predetermined destination value. The predetermined destination value is shifted to a lower value when at least one of a plurality of predetermined signals is not inputted to the laser driving circuit. The lower value is shifted to the predetermined destination value a predetermined period after all of the predetermined signals have been inputted to the laser driving circuit.

Laser driving circuit

A data recovery device is employed in a printer using a continuous form recording medium for reprinting data after printing has been interrupted. In the data recovery device, the number of pages remaining in a predetermined area of the feed path of the recording medium is counted. A plurality of page buffers are sequentially read out and printed. The printing operation is controlled such that the one of the data storing means from which the data is read out and printed by the printing means is identified based on the number of the pages remaining in the predetermined area.

Data recovery device for printer

A temperature control system is employed in a electrophotographic printer for controlling the temperature of a heat roller. In the system, the temperature of the heat roller is kept in a predetermined range of an operable range when printing is executed, and kept in a predetermined range of a standby range, which is lower than the operable range, when printing is unexecuted. The temperature of the heat roller is controlled to be raised up to the upper limit of the operable range before it is changed to be in the standby range when printing is terminated.

Temperature control system

A storage vessel detecting mechanism is used for detecting an error condition of a storage vessel, which is detachably fitted in a main apparatus. The vessel is movably fitted in the main apparatus, and one end of a movable member, which is pivoted, is engaged with the vessel. The other end of the movable member is located between first and second positions when the vessel is not installed and when the vessel is accommodating a predetermined amount of substances therein. It is determined whether the other end of the movable member is located in a predetermined range. An error condition of the vessel is detected when the other end of the movable member is located at a position other than in the predetermined range.

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Asaka, Japan

Ryoji Honda