Exposure apparatus and method

• US 20040214099A1
• Filed: 04/23/2004
• Published: 10/28/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 04/25/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co Limited (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Matsumoto, Kenji
• Granted Patent: US 7,327,377 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 430/24
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/70275 Multiple projection paths, e.g. array of projection systems, microlens projection systems or tandem projection systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/1903 Arrangements for enabling electronic abutment of lines or areas independently scanned by different elements of an array or by different arrays
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/195 the array comprising a two-dimensional array or a combination of two-dimensional arrays
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/19573 Displacing the scanned image
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/19584 Combination of arrays
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/19589 Optical means, e.g. an optical fibre bundle, for mapping the whole or a part of a scanned image onto the array
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0082 Image hardcopy reproducer H04N2201/0091 - H04N2201/0094 take precedence

Abstract

In order to obtain a preferable image without “stripe-shaped unevenness”, an exposure apparatus comprising first and second exposure heads having light emitting sections emitting light with first and second intensity arranged in main and sub scanning directions such that an exposure area including an overlapped exposure area overlapping an exposure area of the first exposure head is exposed by the second exposure head and a driving control unit by which light emitting sections of the first and second exposure heads are lit at a predetermined timing in the overlapped exposure area such that a difference in the maximum exposure amount between pixels adjoining each other in the main scanning direction is smaller than a difference in the maximum exposure amount between each pixel in the exposure area of the first exposure head and each pixel in the exposure area of the second exposure head, is provided.

Claims

1. An exposure apparatuses comprising:

a first exposure head in which a plurality of light emitting sections which emit light with first intensity are arranged in a main scanning direction and in a sub scanning direction;

a second exposure head in which a plurality of light emitting sections which emit light with second intensity are arranged in the main scanning direction and in the sub scanning direction in such a way that an exposure area including an overlapped exposure area overlapping an exposure area of the first exposure head is exposed by the second exposure head; and

a driving control unit by which each of the light emitting sections of the first exposure head and the second exposure head is lit at a predetermined timing in such a way that a difference in the maximum exposure amount between pixels adjoining each other in the overlapped exposure area in the main scanning direction is smaller than a difference in the maximum exposure amount between each pixel in the exposure area of the first exposure head and each pixel in the exposure area of the second exposure head.

2. An exposure apparatuses according to claim 1, wherein the maximum exposure amount of each pixel in the overlapped exposure area monotonously increase or decrease in the main scanning direction.

3. An exposure apparatuses according to claim 2, wherein the maximum exposure amount of each pixel in the overlapped exposure area monotonously increase or decrease in the main scanning direction by changing a ratio between the number of light emitting sections which are lit with the first intensity and that of light emitting sections which are lit with the second intensity in a plurality of light emitting sections corresponding to the overlapped exposure area.

9. An exposure apparatuses according to claim 1, wherein a common electrode is provided in such a way that a plurality of light emitting sections which are arranged in a different direction from the sub scanning direction are driven.

4. An exposure apparatuses comprising:

a first exposure head in which a plurality of light emitting sections which emit light with first intensity are arranged in a main scanning direction and in a sub scanning direction; and

a second exposure head in which a plurality of light emitting sections which emit light with second intensity are arranged in the main scanning direction and in the sub scanning direction in such a way that an exposure area including an overlapped exposure area overlapping an exposure area of the first exposure head is exposed by the second exposure head,

wherein the light emitting sections which emit light with the first intensity and the light emitting sections which emit light with the second intensity are provided in a predetermined ratio corresponding to the overlapped exposure area in such a way that a difference in the maximum exposure amount between pixels adjoining each other in the main scanning direction is smaller than a difference in the maximum exposure amount between each pixel in the exposure area of the first exposure head and each pixel in the exposure area of the second exposure head.

5. An exposure apparatuses according to claim 4, wherein the maximum exposure amount of each pixel in the overlapped exposure area monotonously increase or decrease in the main scanning direction.

10. An exposure apparatuses according to claim 4, wherein a common electrode is provided in such a way that a plurality of light emitting sections which are arranged in a different direction from the sub scanning direction are driven.

6. An exposure apparatuses comprising:

a first exposure head in which a plurality of light emitting sections are arranged in a main scanning direction and in a sub scanning direction;

a second exposure head in which a plurality of light emitting sections are arranged in the main scanning direction and in the sub scanning direction in such a way that an exposure area including an overlapped exposure area overlapping an exposure area of the first exposure head is exposed by the second exposure head, and

a driving control unit by which each of the light emitting sections of the first exposure head and the second exposure head is lit with predetermined light emitting intensity and at a predetermined timing in such a way that a difference in the maximum exposure amount between pixels adjoining each other in the overlapped exposure area in the main scanning direction is smaller than a difference in the maximum exposure amount between each pixel in the exposure area of the first exposure head and each pixel in the exposure area of the second exposure head.

7. An exposure apparatuses according to claim 6, wherein the maximum exposure amount of each pixel in the overlapped exposure area monotonously increase or decrease in the main scanning direction.

8. An exposure apparatuses according to claim 7, wherein the maximum exposure amount of each pixel in the overlapped exposure area monotonously increase or decrease in the main scanning direction by changing a ratio of the light emitting intensity of the light emitting sections between the first exposure head and the second exposure head in a plurality of the light emitting sections corresponding to the overlapped exposure area.

11. An exposure apparatuses according to claim 6, wherein a common electrode is provided in such a way that a plurality of light emitting sections which are arranged in a different direction from the sub scanning direction are driven.

12. An exposure apparatuses comprising:

a first exposure head in which a plurality of light emitting sections which emit light with first intensity are arranged in a main scanning direction and in a sub scanning direction;

a second exposure head in which a plurality of light emitting sections which emit light with second intensity are arranged in the main scanning direction and in the sub scanning direction in such a way that an exposure area including an overlapped exposure area overlapping an exposure area of the first exposure head is exposed by the second exposure head, wherein

in light emitting sections in the first exposure head, which are disposed correspondingly to the overlapped exposure area, number of the light emitting sections which are used for exposure gradually decreases towards the downstream side in the main scanning direction and towards the downstream side of the sub scanning direction, and in light emitting sections in the second exposure head, which are disposed correspondingly to the overlapped exposure area, number of the light emitting sections which are used for exposure gradually increases towards the downstream side in the main scanning direction and towards the downstream side of the sub scanning direction.

13. An exposure apparatuses comprising:

a first exposure head in which a plurality of light emitting sections which emit light with first intensity are arranged in a main scanning direction and in a sub scanning direction;

a second exposure head in which a plurality of light emitting sections which emit light with second intensity are arranged in the main scanning direction and in the sub scanning direction in such a way that an exposure area including an overlapped exposure area overlapping an exposure area of the first exposure head is exposed by the second exposure head, wherein

in light emitting sections in the first exposure head, which are disposed correspondingly to the overlapped exposure area, light emitting intensity of the light emitting sections which are used for exposure gradually decreases towards the downstream side in the main scanning direction and towards the downstream side of the sub scanning direction, and in light emitting sections in the second exposure head, which are disposed correspondingly to the overlapped exposure area, light emitting intensity of the light emitting sections which are used for exposure gradually increases towards the downstream side in the main scanning direction and towards the downstream side of the sub scanning direction.

14. An exposure method for exposing a photosensitive material, in which,

by using a first exposure head and a second exposure head, the second exposure head in which a plurality of light emitting sections are arranged in a main scanning direction and in a sub scanning direction being arranged in such a way that an exposure area including an overlapped exposure area overlapping an exposure area of the first exposure head in which a plurality of light emitting sections are arranged in the main scanning direction and in the sub scanning direction is exposed by the second exposure head,

the photosensitive material is exposed in such a way that a difference in the maximum exposure amount between pixels adjoining each other in the overlapped exposure area in the main scanning direction is smaller than a difference in the maximum exposure amount between each pixel in the exposure area of the first exposure head except for the overlapped exposure area and each pixel in the exposure area of the second exposure head except for the overlapped exposure area.