Correction Chart Reference Marks for Exposure Head Light Uniformity
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing image-forming apparatuses using solid-state exposure methods face challenges in accurately correcting uneven light amounts due to errors in light-emitting chips and lens arrays, leading to insufficient recognition of local unevenness in light distribution.
Innovation Solution
An image-forming apparatus with a correction chart that includes reference marks to precisely determine the boundaries between light-emitting chips, allowing for accurate generation of correction data based on density measurements in specific regions, enabling effective correction of light amount unevenness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a test chart is used to correct light amount unevenness, then correction capability is provided, but recognition accuracy of chart sections corresponding to light-emitting chips is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The correction chart is divided into multiple regions, with each region corresponding to a specific light-emitting chip. Reference marks are placed at boundaries between regions to enable precise identification and segmentation of the chart areas that correspond to individual chips, allowing accurate measurement of light amount for each chip region
Solution Approach 2:
Reference marks are introduced as intermediary elements on the correction chart. These marks serve as mediators between the physical light-emitting chips and the chart regions, enabling the reading unit to accurately identify which chart section corresponds to which chip, thereby improving recognition accuracy for correction purposes
2Measurement precision
If local unevenness in light distribution is to be captured with high accuracy, then correction precision is improved, but the ability to precisely recognize chart positions corresponding to chips is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The correction chart is segmented into multiple regions, with each region corresponding to a specific light-emitting chip. This segmentation allows the system to capture local unevenness in light distribution for each chip region separately, improving position capture accuracy while maintaining the correspondence information between chips and chart regions
Solution Approach 2:
Reference marks serve as intermediary indicators that preserve the correspondence information between light-emitting chips and chart regions. By detecting these reference marks, the system can accurately identify which chart position corresponds to which chip, preventing loss of correspondence information while enabling high-accuracy capture of local light unevenness
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enables high-accuracy correction of light amount unevenness by precisely identifying the position of local variations, improving the overall performance and quality of the image-forming process.
Implementation Method 1
a latent image is formed by exposing a photosensitive drum with light emitted by LEDs (e.g., organic EL elements)
Implementation Method 2
a rod lens array that focuses light from the light-emitting element set on a surface of the photosensitive drum
Implementation Method 3
generate correction data for correcting an unevenness in light amount of the exposure head using a read image of the correction chart obtained by optically reading the formed image
Data Source
AI summary
An image-forming apparatus includes a generating unit that generates correction data for correcting an unevenness in light amount of an exposure head using a read image of a correction chart, and a correction unit that corrects image data for image formation based on the correction data. The exposure head includes light-emitting chips, each of which includes light-emitting elements. The correction chart includes a plurality of regions arranged in a direction, a first reference mark located on one side of the regions, and a second reference mark located on the other side of the regions. The generating unit determines partial regions respectively formed by the light-emitting chips within the regions based on positions of the first and second reference marks in the read image of the correction chart, and generates the correction data based on a result of measurement on the partial regions.