Abstract: An image information reading apparatus that can obtain high quality images without an effect of noise and a photographing condition or the like is realized even in the case where a low-bit A/D converter is used. The apparatus comprises control means for switching between pre-reading to main reading, characteristic determination means for determining, by analyzing an electric signal obtained by the pre-reading, a normalization processing characteristic used in normalization processing on an electric signal obtained by the main reading, and normalization processing means for carrying out the normalization processing on the electric signal in the main reading according to the determined normalization processing characteristic. The characteristic determination means analyzes image data by using a cumulative histogram of pre-reading data, and determines the normalization processing characteristic so that an image represented by the image data has adequate density and contrast.

Abstract: In a radiation image data obtaining method and a radiation image data obtaining apparatus, quality degradation at the periphery of an image is prevented after subtraction processing. Radiation emitted from a radiation source and having passed through a subject is irradiated onto a detector. An image signal in accordance with the intensity of the radiation is output from a detection layer at the front. Meanwhile, a portion of the radiation which has not been converted into visible light by a scintillator out of the radiation irradiated onto the detection layer passes through the detection layer and reaches another detection layer at the rear. An image signal is output from the layer at the rear. The image signal from the rear is input to size correction means and a size correction operation is carried out in the means so that the sizes of images represented by the image signal from the front and an image signal after the correction agree.

Abstract: A dark current component included in an image signal output from a detector of optical reading type is reduced in a radiation image data obtaining method and apparatus using the detector. A detector having radiation-insensitive areas at both ends of a stripe electrode outside an image area along the longitudinal direction thereof is used. An image signal output from a current detection amplifier is converted into image data having digital values by an A/D converter and input to a memory. A correction data calculation circuit finds correction data gradually decreasing from a starting area to the ending area of vertical scan in accordance with each position of each element along the longitudinal direction thereof, based on image data of the insensitive areas corresponding to the scan starting and ending areas. For each element, a subtraction circuit subtracts the correction data from image data of an image area.

Abstract: There is provided a collimating plate including a transparent support, a multiple of light transmitting spheres fixed to the support in partial contact therewith and a light blocking area that blocks passage of light through areas other than light transmitting areas composed of areas of contact between the support and the spheres and nearby areas. There is also provided a backlight system including the collimating plate and a housing that is optically closed by the collimating plate and that includes an inner surface having reflecting properties. They can produce adequately convergent collimated light the intensity of which drops by 50% at angles of no more than ± 15 degrees, thereby realizing a liquid-crystal display that can provide a sufficiently good contrast ratio over a wide range of viewing angles to be advantageously used in medical applications.

Abstract: A heat developing apparatus having a structure such that a heat developing photosensitive material on which a latent image has been formed, by exposure to a corresponding image, is developed by performing heating. An inhibitor for inhibiting development when a heat development temperature has been raised is contained in the heat developing photosensitive material, and the heat developing photosensitive material is developed with heat at a temperature satisfying |&Dgr;D/&Dgr;T|≦0.15 when an assumption is made that &Dgr;D is an amount of change in the density and &Dgr;T is an amount of change in the heat development temperature.

Abstract: The light diffusing plate includes a light-transmissive support, a diffusing layer having light-transmissive spheres, and a light-sensitive color forming material interposed between the support and the diffusing layer, the light-sensitive color forming material containing a positive-acting diazo light- and heat-sensitive material or a positive-acting silver halide light-sensitive emulsion, or a negative-acting light-sensitive color forming material in the side contacting the light-transmissive spheres and a positive-acting light-sensitive color forming material in the side of the support, the light-sensitive color forming material being developed to take on color after generally parallel light is launched from a side where the diffusing layer is provided. The display apparatus makes use of the diffusing plate.

Abstract: In an energetic-beam detection apparatus having a selenium detector which includes a substrate and an energetic-beam absorber being formed on the substrate and containing selenium, a temperature detecting unit detects a temperature of the selenium detector, and a temperature control unit controls the temperature of the selenium detector so that the temperature is maintained in a predetermined range when the selenium detector is in operation. Alternatively, when the temperature of the selenium detector is outside a predetermined range, an operation suppressing unit suppresses the operation of the selenium detector, or a notification unit notifies a user of the deviation of the temperature of the selenium detector from the predetermined range.

Abstract: Disclosed is an image recording apparatus for forming an image on a heat development photosensitive material or a light- and heat-sensitive recording material through a dry processing, said image recording apparatus being capable of continuously recording high-quality images over a long period of time by providing a heat development part with a cleaning mechanism therefor and including a storage part in which the recording material is stored; a latent-image forming mechanism which forms a desired latent image on the recording material conveyed from the storage part; a heat development mechanism which develops the recording material and includes a heating member for heating at a given temperature the recording material conveyed from the latent-image forming mechanism and a press contact member for pressing the recording material against the heating member; and a cleaning mechanism which cleans that contact surface of at least one of the heating member and the press contact member which comes into contact with

Abstract: The improved image recording apparatus that performs image recording on a recording material to output a print with a record of a visible image includes an outputting device of a print having printed thereon a minimum density in the recording material, a measurement device for measuring the minimum density that has been recorded on the print, and a control device by which tones to be recorded are controlled in accordance with the minimum density measured by the measurement device. The image recording apparatus that uses various recording materials including light-sensitive materials and thermal recording materials and which, in spite of the fluctuation in the fog density of a particular recording material or the difference in characteristics between production lots and other identifications of the recording material, is capable of consistent recording of high-quality images that assure satisfactory tone representation over the entire density range including low densities.

Abstract: A thermal recording system for recording an image or the like on a thermo-sensitive recording medium using a laser beam under a preheated condition of the thermo-sensitive recording medium. In the thermal recording system, a preheating means preheats the thermo-sensitive recording medium which has leuco dyes, a developer and light-absorbing dyes all provided on a support and which develops color in continuous tone at a density corresponding to the energy of applied heat, to a predetermined temperature less than a color-developing temperature. A heating-beam generating means allows the thermo-sensitive recording medium to be scanned with a laser beam emitted therefrom so as to heat the thermo-sensitive recording medium to a predetermined color-developing temperature. Thus, the heating-beam generating means can control the laser beam in a sufficient control range, thereby making it possible to record an image or the like on the thermo-sensitive recording medium with high accuracy.

Abstract: The thermal printer includes a thermal recording head and a platen roller. The thermal recording head records the image on a thermal recording material by contacting therewith at a predetermined pressure. The platen roller is arranged to face the thermal recording head and supports and transports the thermal recording material to be recorded thereon. The platen roller is covered with covering rubber in which the relation between hardness H (degree) and thickness t (mm) satisfies the following formula: 5t+30≦H≦5t+50. The thermal printer is capable of obtaining a recorded image of high-quality without generating unevenness of an image, unevenness derived from a streak, a blur or the like.

Abstract: A radiation source, which produces radiation, is located on one side of an object, two-dimensional image read-out device is located on the other side of the object, the two-dimensional image read-out device comprising stripe-shaped electrodes for reading latent image charges, which carry image information, and an operation for recording and reading out a radiation image of the object is performed. A grid plate is located between the object and the two-dimensional image read-out device, the grid plate guiding only the radiation, which comes from a specific direction, to the two-dimensional image read-out device. The operation for recording and reading out the radiation image of the object is performed in this state, and deterioration in image quality due to scattered radiation is prevented.

Abstract: Disclosed is an apparatus for forming images on dry-processable recording materials, including heat-developable photosensitive recording materials and light- and heat-sensitive recording materials, wherein an exposed recording material is transported into a heat development section and brought into conduct with a heating drum to undergo heating to form an image. In continuous development, when an image recording material having a size different from that of the lastly developed material is ready to be carried in the development section, the transport of the recording material to be developed is suspended and the recording material has a wait of a predetermined standby time. During this waiting period also, the heating drum is left as it revolves and the heat source is left as it evolves heat. As a result, the surface temperature of the heating drum restores the predetermined temperature and the temperature distribution thereof becomes stationary, and thereby the generation of development streaks is reduced.

Abstract: In image recording, density correction is performed by an improved method in which the image densities on a density correcting reference chart that have known densities which are associated with a visual density are measured with a densitometer for setting the density correcting conditions, the correcting conditions for correcting the values of measurement with the densitometer such that they coincide with the image densities on the reference chart are constructed from the image densities on the reference chart and the values of measurement with the densitometer, and the density correcting conditions are set in accordance with the constructed density correcting conditions. Alternatively, the density correcting conditions are set in consideration of a threshold for color formation to occur in the thermal recording material or the maximum heating time in thermal recording is controlled.

Abstract: According to the improved image recording method, each of pixels that compose an image to be recorded is rendered to be recordable as it is split into L recording points which are scattered in the direction of transport of thermal recording materials, multiple tone image data of each of the pixels is split in accordance with the multiple tone image data into M general equal portions of image data, M being smaller than L, the split image data is assigned in general equal amounts to at least part of the L recording points and the image is recorded as it is scattered among the part of the recording points on the basis of the split image data.

Abstract: The improved image recording apparatus comprises an image processing section which receives image data from its external supply source and which processes the image data by image processing procedures including at least shading compensation performed on the basis of conditions for shading compensation so as to produce recording image data; an output portion for outputting the image data of an image for setting the conditions for shading compensation; an image recording section which performs image recording in response to the image data delivered from the image processing section or the output portion; a reading portion for reading the image recorded by the image recording section; and a setting portion by which the conditions for shading compensation to be used in the image processing section are set on the basis of the result of the reading by the reading portion of the image for setting the conditions for shading compensation.

Abstract: In an image recording method, toner images of the same color are electrographically formed in superposition onto a recording medium. The recording medium is paper, film, or the like. Each toner image is formed of toner particles. Particles having different sizes or optical densities may be used in different toner images. No wet system processing is involved. The image recording apparatus employing the method may have one or more drums on which latent images are formed. The latent images may be identical or may be varied based on the image density.

Abstract: A thermal recording system for recording an image on a thermo-sensitive recording medium using a laser beam under a preheated condition of the thermo-sensitive recording medium. In the thermal recording system, a preheating device preheats the thermo-sensitive recording medium which has leuco dyes, a developer and light-absorbing dyes all provided on a support, and which develops color in a continuous tone at a density corresponding to the energy of the applied heat, to a predetermined temperature less than a color-developing temperature. A heating-beam generating device allows a laser beam to scan the thermo-sensitive recording medium so as to heat the thermo-sensitive recording medium to a predetermined color-developing temperature. Thus, the heating-beam generating device can control the laser beam in a sufficient control range, thereby making it possible to record an image on the thermo-sensitive recording medium with high accuracy.

Abstract: In the improved thermal recording method in which image data supplied from an image data supply source are subjected to specified image processing jobs and in which a thermal head is driven in accordance with the processed image data so as to perform thermal recording, image processing jobs are performed in a specified order such that sharpness correction and tone correction are followed by shading correction and correction of resistance values which, in turn are followed by compensation for temperature elevation, provided that calculation treatment of respective values of the image data for the compensation for temperature elevation is performed either prior to or after either one of the corrections that are performed subsequent to the tone correction. It is preferred that black ratio correction and/or load variation correction are also performed after the shading correction and the correction of resistance values, and prior to the compensation for temperature elevation.

Abstract: A thermal recording device scans a laser beam over a thermosensitive recording medium which comprises a support coated with a coloring agent, a color developer, and a light absorbing dye and produces a color having a density commensurate with the lever of a thermal energy applied thereto, thereby to record an image thereon. The thermal recording device has a laser beam applying mechanism for emitting and applying a laser beam modulated by an image to be recorded to the thermosensitive recording medium, a temperature or humidity detecting mechanism for detecting a temperature or humidity with respect to the thermosensitive recording medium, and a controller for correcting the intensity of the laser beam emitted by the laser beam applying mechanism based on the humidity detected by the humidity detecting mechanism.