Abstract: A recording head adjustment method includes: a dot row forming step of causing relative movement between a recording medium and a recording head in which a plurality of sub-heads each including a plurality of recording elements are joined together, and driving the plurality of recording elements at prescribed drive timing with respect to each of the plurality of sub-heads in such a manner that dot rows for the respective sub-heads are formed in a direction substantially perpendicular to a direction of the relative movement; a step-difference amount calculation step of measuring positions in the direction of the relative movement of the dot rows for the respective sub-heads in a situation where a range of a part of the dot rows formed by an overlapping portion between the mutually adjacent sub-heads where recording rates represented by number of dots per unit surface area are substantially same as each other is set as a measurement object, and obtaining an amount of step difference between the sub-heads repres

Abstract: An image-forming method, containing: providing a heat-sensitive transfer image-receiving sheet having at least one heat insulation layer containing hollow polymer particles and at least one receptor layer containing at least one latex polymer, in this order on a support, and a heat-sensitive transfer sheet having a thermal transfer layer containing a thermal transferable dye; feeding the sheets through, between a rotatable platen roller and a thermal head having heating elements aligned in a main scan direction, to move the sheets in a sub scan direction approximately perpendicular to the main scan direction, to form an image on the image-receiving sheet, in which the thermal head has a glaze provided with the heating elements and formed in a convex shape, and the glaze's convex vertex is shifted to an upstream side in the sub scan direction, with respect to the center's position of the heating elements.

Abstract: A recording head adjustment method includes: a dot row forming step of causing relative movement between a recording medium and a recording head in which a plurality of sub-heads each including a plurality of recording elements are joined together, and driving the plurality of recording elements at prescribed drive timing with respect to each of the plurality of sub-heads in such a manner that dot rows for the respective sub-heads are formed in a direction substantially perpendicular to a direction of the relative movement; a step-difference amount calculation step of measuring positions in the direction of the relative movement of the dot rows for the respective sub-heads in a situation where a range of a part of the dot rows formed by an overlapping portion between the mutually adjacent sub-heads where recording rates represented by number of dots per unit surface area are substantially same as each other is set as a measurement object, and obtaining an amount of step difference between the sub-heads repres

Abstract: An object is to repress image degradation due to sensitivity unevenness and a change of sensitivity of a recording medium. Laser light emitted from a plurality of laser light sources are combined, the combined laser light is irradiated to the recording medium including a photosensitive layer and a light-transmitting layer provided over the photosensitive layer, and wavelengths of the laser light emitted from the plurality of laser light sources are determined so as to be distributed within a predetermined wavelength range which is greater than or equal to a resonance minimum wavelength range between a first wavelength wherein light transmittance thereof through the light-transmitting layer is maximized and a second wavelength wherein the light transmittance thereof through the light-transmitting layer is minimized and a different between the first and second wavelengths is minimized.

Abstract: An image-forming method, containing: providing a heat-sensitive transfer image-receiving sheet having at least one heat insulation layer containing hollow polymer particles and at least one receptor layer containing at least one latex polymer, in this order on a support, and a heat-sensitive transfer sheet having a thermal transfer layer containing a thermal transferable dye; feeding the sheets through, between a rotatable platen roller and a thermal head having heating elements aligned in a main scan direction, to move the sheets in a sub scan direction approximately perpendicular to the main scan direction, to form an image on the image-receiving sheet, in which the thermal head has a glaze provided with the heating elements and formed in a convex shape, and the glaze's convex vertex is shifted to an upstream side in the sub scan direction, with respect to the center's position of the heating elements.

Abstract: A photosensitive composition having an extremely constant photosensitivity distribution relative to an exposure light having a wavelength of 400 nm to 410 nm, and excelling in pattern reproductivity, suppressing variations in pattern formation; a pattern forming material and a photosensitive laminate with the photosensitive composition laminated thereon; and a pattern forming apparatus and a pattern forming process. The photosensitive composition contains a binder, a polymerizable compound, and a photopolymerization initiator; the photosensitive composition has a maximum spectral sensitivity in the wavelength range of 380 nm to 420 nm; the minimum exposure dose S400 capable of forming a pattern at a wavelength of 400 nm of the photosensitive composition is 300 mJ/cm2 or less; the minimum exposure dose S410 capable of forming a pattern at a wavelength of 410 nm of the photosensitive composition is 300 mJ/cm2 or less; and S400 and S410 satisfy the relation 0.6<S400/S410<1.6.

Abstract: When exposing a pattern on a recording medium, such as a printed wiring board on which a photosensitive layer having sensitivity to light, such as a resist layer or the like, is stacked, the photosensitive layer is prevented from unduly becoming irremovable or liable to be peeled off, while maintaining the adhesion of the layer. In order to achieve this, when a wiring pattern is exposed on a resist layer formed on a substrate by an exposure apparatus 3, irradiation energy of the exposure light is controlled to become greater in an edge portion of the wiring pattern than in the other portion of the wiring pattern.

Abstract: When exposing a predetermined pattern on a photosensitive material of a plate-like laminated body formed by applying a photosensitive film, which is formed of the photosensitive material and a support medium stacked on top of another, on a substrate with the photosensitive material toward the substrate, the reaction of the resist layer with oxygen is minimized. In order to achieve this, a peeling unit (180) for peeling the support medium from the photosensitive material (150) is provided within an exposure apparatus (1), and the predetermined pattern is exposed on the photosensitive material (150) by a scanner (162) immediately after the support medium is peeled from the photosensitive material (150) by the peeling unit (180).

Abstract: Printed circuit boards having patterns of uniform line width can be produced. A lamination apparatus superposes a resist layer on a substrate. Further, the substrate is exposed to light carrying information representing lamination date/time. An exposure apparatus reads out the lamination date/time information before performing exposure and judges whether passage time from the lamination to the current time is within the range of predetermined hold time. If the judgment is NO, the exposure apparatus issues a warning to notify an operator that the passage time from the lamination to the current time is not within the range of the predetermined hold time. The operator may remove the substrate from the exposure apparatus because it is impossible to form a pattern of desirable line width on the substrate.

Abstract: In the recording apparatus 121, a recording medium fixing member 123 having a plurality of suction ports on the fixed surface to fix the recording medium 101; an adhering roller 143 which can contact with or separate from the recording medium fixing member 123 and which cleans the fixed surface; a flexible plate 137 which is attached onto the fixed surface of the recording medium fixing member 123 and whose contact surface with the recording medium is cleaned by the adhering roller 143; and a suction apparatus for recording medium fixing which sucks the air from the suction ports of the recording medium fixing member 123 and sucks and fixes the flexible plate 137 and the recording medium 101 onto the fixed surface of the recording medium fixing member 123, are provided.

Abstract: In forming a mask pattern on a circuit board, a mask pattern of N-layer structure is formed in a region where the mechanical strength of the circuit board needs to be increased. N photosensitive layers are first stacked on a substrate so that they becomes lower in sensitivity from the first photosensitive layer toward the Nth photosensitive layer. In the first photosensitive layer (bottom layer), a first pattern is formed and has the same shape as a predetermined pattern to be formed on the circuit board. In the Kth photosensitive layer (N?K?2), a Kth pattern is formed so that the Kth pattern is smaller than a (K?1)st pattern formed in the (K?1)st photosensitive layer and arranged inside the (K?1)st pattern.

Abstract: A recording method in which, using recording head (40) having a plurality of recording elements, a plurality of colors are recorded on a recording medium with spots formed by the recording elements that are actuated in accordance with the key image information. Recording is performed with the start position with being offset from at least among two colors either upstream or downstream in the sub-scanning direction by an amount of spot(s) in the range from one spot to the number of spots defined such that total number of spots in the sub-scanning direction subtracts one spot.

Abstract: An image is formed on a non-flexible sheet member by laying and tightly adhering an image transfer sheet having a photo-thermal conversion layer and an image forming layer onto the non-flexible sheet member, scanning the image transfer sheet from the back with laser spots so that only areas of the image forming layer affected by heat developed in the photo-thermal conversion layer correspondingly to a scanned pattern are fused to the non-flexible sheet member, and peeling the image transfer sheet from the non-flexible sheet member.

Abstract: A record head for applying laser light for drawing to a record medium and a record medium are supported so that they can be relatively moved in a main scanning direction and a sub scanning direction along the surface of the record medium through a move guide mechanism. The record head has a laser displacement sensor for detecting the distance to the light exposure position of the record medium in a noncontact manner. A record apparatus has an auto focus mechanism for correcting misregistration between the focus position of the laser light for drawing emitted from the record head and the record medium to a reference value based on the detection value of the laser displacement sensor, so that the focal distance between the record head and the record medium is held good regardless of deformation of a guide rail of the move guide mechanism, etc.

Abstract: Binary image data representing a desired image is first generated, and on-off control of an energy beam scanning a recording medium is performed based on a value of each pixel data constituting the binary image data to record the image on the recording medium. Some pixel data are then selected from pixel data of the binary image data that have a first value turning on the energy beam, and the first value of the some pixel data is replaced with a second value turning off the energy beam. The on-off control is performed based on the first or second value of each pixel data constituting binary image data obtained after the first value is replaced with the second value.

Abstract: By use of an exposure apparatus provided with a spatial light modulation device, which has a plurality of pixel sections arrayed in two-dimensional directions, a plurality of images for sensitivity detection are formed on a photosensitive material, each of the images for sensitivity detection being constituted of a plurality of spot images dispersed within a predetermined unit area, the number of the spot images dispersed within the predetermined unit area being set so as to become large in stages among the plurality of the images for sensitivity detection. The sensitivity of the photosensitive material is detected in accordance with the plurality of the images for sensitivity detection, which have been formed on the photosensitive material.

Abstract: An image recording equipment is provided with an adhesive roller that is brought into contact with a surface of an image recording sheet wound around a rotary drum and keeps in contact with the image recording sheet with contact pressure axially distributed in a range from approximately 0.01 Mpa to approximately 0.2 Mpa desirably in a concave distribution pattern.

Abstract: In forming a mask pattern on a circuit board, a mask pattern of N-layer structure is formed in a region where the mechanical strength of the circuit board needs to be increased. N photosensitive layers are first stacked on a substrate so that they becomes lower in sensitivity from the first photosensitive layer toward the Nth photosensitive layer. In the first photosensitive layer (bottom layer), a first pattern is formed and has the same shape as a predetermined pattern to be formed on the circuit board. In the Kth photosensitive layer (N?K?2), a Kth pattern is formed so that the Kth pattern is smaller than a (K?1)st pattern formed in the (K?1)st photosensitive layer and arranged inside the (K?1)st pattern.

Abstract: In a recording apparatus, a recording medium is fixed to a recording medium fixing member. To record a desired image, the recording medium is exposed to light containing image/character data, while the recording medium is moved in the main scan direction, and a plurality of spots arrayed on the recording medium are moved in a direction orthogonal to the main scan direction. In the recording apparatus, first and second exposure operations are performed. In the first exposure operation, the recording medium is exposed to the light containing image/character data, while forming pixel groups or island patterns each consisting of a predetermined number of pixels consecutively arrayed on the recording medium in the main and sub-scan directions. In a second exposure operation and the subsequent ones, the pixels in an unexposed area other than the island patterns on the recording medium are successively exposed to the light.

Abstract: To provide a recording apparatus capable of executing the stable recording not to waste the light energy even when the power/wavelength of the light beam in the recording apparatus, that records the image/characters onto the recording medium like the data by employing the light beam, are changed, the circumstances such as the temperature, the humidity, etc. are changed, and the recording velocity is changed. A recording apparatus comprises a recording medium fixing member for fixing a recording medium that consists of a superposition of a transfer film and a receiver film, a main scanning direction moving device for moving the recording medium fixing member, a laser recording head for emitting a light beam, and a vertical scanning direction moving device for moving the light beam emitted from the laser recording head in a vertical scanning direction that is perpendicular to the main scanning direction, wherein a light intensity distribution of the light beam is almost a rectangular parallelepiped.