JP2000352781A - Image reader - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make preventable dust adhering to photographic film from influencing image pickup. SOLUTION: An attaching groove 51 is formed in the film path 32 of a film carrier 20. A diffusing plate 50 and a film path mask 39 are arranged in the groove part 51. The plate 50 is provided with an attraction bracket 63, and the mask 39 is provided with a magnet 65. The mask 39 is attachably/detachably attached to the groove 51 by attraction by magnetic force between the magnet 65 and the bracket 63. The center of a film path 70 is projected in a columnar surface shape, so that a guide projected line 73 is formed. A slit 71 is formed long in the width direction of film at the top part of the curved guide surface 73a of the projected line 73. Light from a light source is radiated to the photographic film from the slit 71. Since dust adhering to the photographic film drops from the slit 71, the dust is not accumulated near an image pickup surface.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to an image reading apparatus for reading image information using a CCD or the like while transporting a photographic film or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Image information of a photographic film is read by a CCD, digitally processed, and then printed on photographic paper or the like. In this case, image information is read by irradiating the light of a light source to the photographic film from a light transmitting portion provided in the film passage and capturing the transmitted light of the photographic film by a CCD.

[0003] In addition to reading image information, the CCD has
Various bar codes and the like formed on the side edges of the photographic film are also read. On the other hand, perforations are formed on the photo film at a constant pitch for film feeding and positioning of photographed frames. Therefore, when image information or film type information is read by a CCD or the like, if the perforations pass through the reading unit, of the light incident on the CCD, the light passing through the perforations becomes an excessive amount. Therefore, it is necessary to reduce the amount of light in this portion so that the output of the CCD is not saturated by the light that has passed through the perforation. To cope with this, a translucent glass plate having a dimming means such as an ND filter is arranged in a portion where perforations pass (for example, Japanese Patent Application No. 09-276097).

[0004]

However, when the light-transmitting glass plate is disposed in this manner, dust or the like adhering to the film may adhere to the glass plate. In this case, the dust is read by the CCD, and linear noise is included in the read image information.

An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an image reading apparatus capable of reducing the influence of dust and easily removing dust.

[0006]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image reading apparatus for reading an image of a photographic film illuminated by a light source on a film passage. A light transmitting portion for illuminating an area to be read of the film is constituted by an opening provided in the film passage. As a result, since there is no glass plate or the like in the light transmitting portion, even if the photographic film is sent to the light transmitting portion in a state where dust is attached, the photographic film does not adhere to the glass plate and falls down. Therefore, since dust does not stay at a position near the image pickup surface of the film, linear noise due to dust does not occur in the read image information.

A film carrier for feeding the photographic film in the longitudinal direction is provided, and the opening is constituted by a slit provided in the film passage of the film carrier, and the slit is arranged in a direction intersecting the longitudinal direction of the photographic film. Is preferred. Further, since the film passage portion having the slit is configured to be detachable from the base member of the film carrier, it is possible to easily clean the dropped dust. In the present invention, the term "removably" means that the device can be easily removed without using a tool such as a screwdriver, and is operated by a user and a serviceman who performs repairs.

In addition, a film passage portion having the slit is disposed above the light source, and a diffusion plate is disposed on a base member of a film carrier between the light source and the slit. It is preferable to provide a gap between the plate and the plate. As a result, dust falling from the opening is located on the diffusion plate distant from the film imaging surface, so that the influence of noise due to dust can be eliminated or the influence can be reduced.

[0009] Further, by providing the diffusion plate in a removable manner on the film carrier, both sides of the diffusion plate can be easily cleaned. In the present invention, the term “removal” refers to removal using a tool such as a screwdriver, and is not normally performed by a user, but is operated by a service person. In addition,
The diffusion plate may be detachably attached by a magnet method, a click locking method, or the like, similarly to the film passage portion having the slit.

The film passage portion may include a curved guide surface which bends the film in a direction perpendicular to the film surface and takes a warp in the film width direction, and the slit is disposed at a central portion of the curved guide surface. preferable.
In this case, the curvature in the width direction of the photographic film is corrected, and the photographic film becomes linear, so that the imaging can be performed with high accuracy. In addition, since the curved guide surface is formed by the substantially cylindrical guide ridges arranged along the film width direction, the film can be smoothly curved, and the running property of the film is not impaired.

An AF chart for auto-focusing is disposed at both ends of the slit in the film width direction, and based on image data of the AF chart, a defective mounting of the film passage portion having the slit to the base member is detected. Is preferred. In this case, the installation failure of the film passage can be reliably detected with a simple configuration, and the occurrence of image reading failure due to the installation failure is eliminated.

[0012]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS First, a digital lab system in which the present invention is implemented will be described. As shown in FIG.
The digital lab system 10 includes the line CCD scanner 1
1. An input device 13 including an image processing unit 12 and an output device 17 including a laser printer unit 15 and a processor unit 16.
It is comprised including.

The line CCD scanner 11 reads an image recorded on a photographic film by a line CCD. The film to be read is, for example, a 135-size photographic film, an IX240-type photographic film, and various photographic films such as 110-size, 120- and 220-size (Brownie size), and can read a reversal film in addition to a negative film. Can be.

The image processing section 12 performs image processing such as various corrections on the read image information, and outputs the image information to the laser printer section 15 as recording image data. Further, the image processing unit 12 outputs the image data on which the image processing has been performed to the external device 18 as an image file. For example, the information is output to a recording medium 18a such as a memory card or a CDROM, or transmitted to another information processing device 18b via a communication line.

The laser printer unit 15 includes R, G, and B laser light sources and a modulation unit. The modulator modulates each laser from the laser light source based on the image data for recording, scans and exposes the photographic paper with the modulated laser, and records the image on the photographic paper. The processor unit 16 performs color development, bleach-fix, washing, and drying processes on the photographic paper that has been scanned and exposed, and performs development processing.

FIG. 3 shows a schematic configuration of an optical system of a line CCD scanner including a film carrier 20. This optical system includes a light source 21 such as a metal halide lamp or a halogen lamp. Light source 21
Is located at the focal position of the reflector 22. The reflector 22 is made of a material that transmits infrared light (IR), and its reflection surface is formed in a parabolic shape. Light from the light source 21 is reflected by the reflector 22 and is emitted toward the photographic film 23.

On the light emitting side of the light source 21, an IR cut filter 24, a light amount adjusting diaphragm plate 25, a balance filter 2
6. The light diffusion boxes 27 are arranged in order along the optical axis L. The insertion position of the light amount adjustment diaphragm plate 25 into the optical axis L is variable, and the light amount is thereby adjusted. Also,
The balance filter 26 is provided with a negative film filter 26a and a reversal film filter 26b for adjusting the color temperature, and one of them is selectively inserted into the optical axis L.

On the opposite side of the photographic film 23 from the light source 21, a lens unit 28 and a line CCD 29 are arranged in order along the optical axis L. Lens unit 28
Indicates the image recorded on the photo film 23 as a line CCD
An image is formed on the light receiving surface 29. In FIG. 3, the lens unit 2
Although 8 shows only a single lens, the lens unit 28 may be a plurality of zoom lenses.
The lens unit 28 is configured to be finely movable along the optical axis L by the lens motor 19, whereby focus adjustment is performed.

The line CCD 29 is an R, G, B CCD
The cell rows are arranged in the feed direction of the photo film 23 (the direction of arrow A in FIG. 3). Each CCD cell row is CC
D cells are arranged in a line in the width direction of the photo film. Thus, the main scanning for reading the film image is performed in the arrangement direction of the CCD cells. Further, by sending the photographic film 23, a sub-scan for reading the film image is performed. In the line CCD 29, since three CCD cell rows are sequentially arranged at a predetermined pitch along the feed direction of the photographic film 23, the line CCD 29 is used to detect the R, G, B component colors at the same pixel. Causes a time difference. For this reason, in the present embodiment, the detection timing of the photometric signal is delayed by a different delay time for each component color, whereby the R, G, and B photometric signals of the same pixel are simultaneously output from the line CCD. .

FIG. 4 shows the main structure of the 135-size film carrier 20. As shown in FIG. Film carrier 20
Is composed of a base 30 and a cover 31, and a film passage 32 is formed between them. The cover 31 is attached to the base 30 so as to be openable and closable, and the film passage 32 on the base 30 can be opened by opening the cover 31 upward.

The film passage 32 has a film insertion port 3
3 sequentially, a film leading edge sensor 34, a first feed roller pair 35, a dust removal roller pair 38, a second feed roller pair 3
6, film path mask 39, third feed roller pair 37,
The film storage guides 40 are arranged in order.

The film leading end sensor 34 detects the insertion of the leading end of the photographic film 23. This detection signal is sent to a controller (not shown). The controller rotates the film feed motor 43 forward based on the film leading end detection signal. The film feed motor 43 is driven by each of the feed roller pairs 3 via timing belts 44 to 46 and pulleys.
5-37. Thus, the photo film 23
Is sent to be drawn into the film carrier 20 and stored in the film storage guide 40. The dust removing roller 38 comes into contact with the photo film 23 and removes dust attached to both surfaces thereof.

The nip rollers of the second and third roller pairs 36 and 37 are configured to be able to move up and down by roller shift mechanisms 47 and 48, and move between a lowered nip position and a retracted position which is separated and retracted upward. . Then, the second and third roller pairs 36 and 37 are selectively brought into a nip state, and the film is fed. In the A-direction feed in which the photographic film 23 is drawn into the film carrier 20, the third feed roller pair 3
7 is in the nip state. When the photographic film 23 is fed in the direction B opposite to the direction A, the second feed roller pair 36 is in a nip state.

The film passage mask 39 is disposed substantially at the center of the film carrier 20 between the second and third feed roller pairs 36 and 37. As shown in FIG.
The film passage mask 39 is detachably attached to an attachment groove 51 formed in the base 30.

The mounting groove 51 is formed substantially at the center of the base 30 of the film carrier 20. The diffusion plate 50 and the film passage mask 39 are attached to the attachment groove 51. Two positioning pins 53 protrude from the bottom 51 a of the mounting groove 51. The positioning pin 53 is provided in the positioning hole 5 of the film passage mask 39.
4 is fitted. Further, mounting screw holes 55 are provided in the bottom 51a, and mounting screws 5 are provided in these mounting screw holes 55.
The diffusion plate 50 is attached via 6. Further, an opening 57 is formed at the center of the mounting groove 51, and the light of the light source 21 (see FIG. 3) is transmitted from the opening 57 to the photographic film 2.
Irradiation toward 3.

The diffusion plate 50 comprises a diffusion plate main body 60 and a frame 61 for mounting the same. As shown in FIG. 5, the diffusion plate main body 60 is configured by sandwiching a diffusion thin plate 60c between two glass plates 60a and 60b. The attachment frame 61 has a diffusion plate attachment opening 61a, and the diffusion plate main body 60 is fixed to this portion via a sealant 59. The sealant 59 is disposed around the diffusion plate main body 60 to prevent dust from entering the light diffusion box 27.

As shown in FIG. 1, mounting holes 62 and suction brackets 63 are provided on the upper surfaces of both ends of the mounting frame 61. The suction bracket 63 is formed of a metal disk that is attracted by a magnetic force, and is fixed to the mounting frame 61.

The film passage mask 39 is attached to the mounting groove 51.
, And a positioning hole 54 is formed in the bottom surface thereof. In the film passage mask 39 at a position corresponding to the suction bracket 63,
A magnet (permanent magnet) 65 is attached. Due to the attraction between the magnet 65 and the attraction bracket 63, the film passage mask 39 comes into close contact with the mounting groove 51. In this close contact state, the movement of the film passage mask 39 on the base 30 is restricted by the fitting of the positioning pins 53 and the positioning holes 54.

A knob 66 is formed at one corner of the upper surface of the film passage mask 39 so as to protrude. By holding the knob 66 and lifting it upward, the film passage mask 39 can be easily removed from the base 30.

On the upper surface of the film passage mask 39, a shallow groove-like film passage 70 is formed. The film passage 70 is continuous with the film passage 32 on the base 30 side in a state in which the film passage mask 39 is attached to the attachment groove 51 and is in close contact therewith. A slit 7 is formed in the center of the film passage 32 along the width direction of the photo film 23.
1 is formed. The slit 71 is provided in the film passage 7.
It is formed longer than the width of 0.

At both ends of the slit 71, the ND filters 72 are fixed to the portions where the perforations of the 135-size photographic film 23 are located. The ND filter 72 forms a light reducing unit. The ND filter 72 is formed by forming an aluminum vapor-deposited film on a glass plate.
Attached to. The aluminum vapor-deposited film is further provided with an AR coat, and is subjected to reflection and flare prevention treatment.

Further, as shown in FIG.
The AF chart 80 is provided so as to be continuous with the outer end of the AF chart 2. The AF chart 80 is formed of a fine stripe pattern, and the stripe 81 is formed in a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the slit 71. The AF chart 80 is photographed by the line CCD scanner 11 to detect the mounting failure of the film path mask 39 and to focus the lens unit 28.

As shown in FIG. 5, the portion through which the image recording portion of the photographic film 23 passes in the slit 71 is opened so that it is not closed by a glass plate or the like. Therefore, dust or the like attached to the photo film 23 falls downward when passing through the slit 71.
As a result, dust does not stay at a position near the film imaging surface, and the resulting streak-like noise does not appear in the read image. Further, since the dust that has fallen and remains on the diffusion plate 50 is separated from the surface of the photo film 23, the dust does not similarly cause noise. That is, since there is a distance between the diffusion plate 50 and the photo film 23, dust does not cast a shadow on the imaging surface, and the influence of dust on imaging is reduced.

Further, around the slit 71, a guide ridge 73 long in the film width direction is formed. The guide ridge 73 includes a cylindrical curved guide surface 73a. The curved guide surface 73a allows the photographic film 23
Is curved in the feed direction, so that there is no warpage in the film width direction (main scanning direction), and flatness is ensured. Thereby, the image reading accuracy of the photo film 23 is improved. The film passage mask 39, the diffusion plate 50, and the mounting groove 51 constitute a light transmitting portion.

The detection of the improper installation of the film passage mask 39 is performed by using a focus adjusting means 85 as shown in FIG. The focus adjustment unit 85 includes the image processing device 12, a focus adjustment unit 86, a driver 87, and the lens motor 19. Using this focus adjusting means 85, in addition to adjusting the focus of the lens unit, the film path mask 3
9 is detected.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the focus adjustment processing and the mounting failure detection processing. First, the focus adjustment unit 8
6 sets the lens unit 28 to the initial position at the lowermost end of the focus adjustment range, rotates the lens motor 19 by a fixed amount via the driver 87, and shifts the lens unit 28 upward by a fixed step. Each time this step moves, the AF chart 80 from the area CCD 29 is read.
Is obtained from the image processing apparatus 12. Next, the focus adjustment unit 86 obtains a contrast between each stripe 81 of the AF chart 80 and the ground 82 based on the image data of the AF chart 80. It is preferable that the arrangement level of the AF chart 80 be substantially the same level as the image recording surface of the film.

The contrast of the AF charts on both sides is obtained for each step feed, and is stored. The lens unit 2 is located at the top end of the focus adjustment range by each step movement.
When 8 is set, the step movement ends. Then, the lens position where the contrast CA of one of the AF charts is maximum is determined as the focus position. At this in-focus position, the absolute value | CA− of the contrast difference is compared with the contrast CB of the other AF chart.
CB | When the absolute value of the contrast difference is equal to or smaller than the fixed value C1, the film path mask 3
9 is determined to be mounted in a normal state parallel to the base 30. In this case, the lens unit 28 is set at this in-focus position, and the focus adjustment is completed. When the absolute value | CA-CB | exceeds the fixed value C1, it is determined that the film passage mask 39 is defectively attached in an inclined state. In this case, a mounting failure alarm is issued to notify the operator of the mounting failure.
Thus, the attachment check of the film passage mask 39 is prompted.

Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described. FIG.
As shown in FIG.
When the photo film 23 is set in the insertion slot 33 and the leading end of the photo film 23 is inserted, the film feed motor 43 rotates.
Thereby, the first and third film feed rollers 35,
At 37, the photographic film 23 is fed in the direction of arrow A and drawn into the film carrier 20. When the retracted photographic film 23 passes through the slit 71 of the film passage mask 39, the line CCD 29 (see FIG. 3) reads an image and a bar code from the photographic film 23.
The pre-scan is performed when the film is pulled in, and the fine scan is performed when the film is returned in the direction opposite to the film drawing direction (the direction of arrow B). In the pre-scan, the frame image is preliminarily read, and reading conditions (for example, the light amount applied to the frame image,
CD storage time). In the fine scan, high-precision image reading is performed according to the reading conditions determined in the pre-scan.

When reading the image, the photographic film 2
Even if dust is attached to 3, the dust is not
Falling downward without staying at Further, dust that has fallen and remains on the diffusion plate 50 is not formed as dust because the distance between the diffusion plate 50 and the photo film 23 is large. Disappears.

Particularly, since the film passage around the slit 71 is formed as a cylindrical curved guide surface 73a, the behavior of the photographic film 23 to be fed changes from flat to curved. As a result, the film of the attached dust is separated from the film, and the dust falls into the slit 71. Therefore, generation of noise due to the adhesion of dust that cannot be removed by the dust removal roller 38 can be efficiently suppressed.

Before or after reading the image, the cover 31 of the film carrier 20 is opened, and as shown in FIG.
By holding the knob 66 of the film passage mask 39 and removing it from the base 30, dust on the diffusion plate 50 can be easily cleaned. Moreover, the film carrier 20
Is attached to the base 30 by suction by the magnet 65, so that it can be easily removed. Further, the film passage mask 3 attracted by the magnet 65
9, the movement is regulated by the positioning pin 53,
The film passage mask 39 does not move in the mounting groove 51.

Before the input device 13 starts reading a photographic film, the AF chart 80 is imaged, and based on the image, it is determined whether the attachment of the film passage mask 39 is normal. First, focusing of the lens unit 28 is performed based on the imaging data of the AF charts 80 on both sides. At this time, when the contrast in the AF charts 80 on both sides is not within a certain range and there is a difference between the two, it is determined that the film passage mask 39 is set obliquely on the base 30 and a mounting failure alarm is generated. Emits. Thus, even when the film passage mask is removed for maintenance or the like, the film passage mask can be attached in parallel to the base 30, and an imaging failure due to an attachment failure can be eliminated.

In the above embodiment, the positioning pins 5
Although the movement in the mounting groove portion 51 is restricted by 3, a structure in which the film passage mask 39 is fitted in the mounting groove portion 51 instead or in addition thereto may be adopted.

In the above embodiment, a permanent magnet is used as the magnet 65, but an electromagnet may be used instead. Further, the magnet 65 is used for the film passage mask 39.
However, it may be provided in the mounting frame 61 or the mounting groove 51 of the diffusion plate 50 on the suction partner side. Further, the film passage mask 39 is attached to the mounting groove 51 by magnet attraction.
However, instead of or in addition to this, the film passage mask 39 may be fixed using other locking means.
As the locking means, a means for fixing the film passage mask with a projecting pin or the like, or a means for fixing the film passage mask 39 in the mounting groove 51 with a sandwiching member can be used.

In the above embodiment, the film passage mask 3
Although the diffuser plate 9 and the diffuser plate 50 are configured as separate members, the diffuser plate 50 may be removably incorporated in the film passage mask 39. In this case, by removing the film passage mask 39 from the base 30 and separating the diffusion plate 50,
It is possible to easily remove dust from both.

In the above embodiment, the diffusion plate 50 is screwed to the mounting groove 51. However, the diffusion plate 50 may be removably mounted to the mounting groove 51 by means of positioning pins or magnets.

FIGS. 9 and 10 show another embodiment in which the diffusion plate 90 is detachably attached to the base 91 by a click locking method. Note that the same components as those shown in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted. A knob 90a is formed on the diffusion plate 90 so as to protrude.
By holding the base 91 with a finger, the base 91 can be easily attached to and detached from the diffusion plate mounting groove 92. A conical positioning hole 93 is formed at one end of the diffusion plate 90 in the film width direction, and a hemispherical locking hole 94 is formed at the other end.

On the bottom surface of the mounting groove 95 for the film passage mask of the base 91, a diffusion plate mounting groove 92 is formed. A positioning projection 96 is formed on one side surface of the diffusion plate mounting groove 92. In addition, a click locking portion 97 is provided on the other side surface facing the positioning projection 96. The click locking portion 97 is
A coil spring 101 and a click locking projection 102 are disposed in the inside, and a cover is provided with a projection restricting plate 103. The click locking projection 102 is urged toward the positioning projection 96 by the coil spring 101. Also, the protrusion restricting plate 1
03 regulates the click locking projection 102 so as not to fall out of the storage hole 100.

The attachment of the diffusion plate 90 is performed as follows. First, the diffusion plate 90 is inserted into the diffusion plate mounting groove 92 such that the positioning hole 93 is aligned with the positioning projection 96. Next, the diffusion plate 9 is positioned around the positioning protrusion 96.
0 is rotated to lock the locking projection 102 of the click locking portion 97 in the locking hole 94. As a result, as shown in FIG. 10, the diffusion plate 90 is fixed by the click locking portion 97. To remove the diffusion plate 90, the knob 90a is pinched and the diffusion plate 90 is lifted. As a result, the click locking is released, and the diffusion plate 90 can be easily removed from the mounting groove 92. Note that the shapes of the positioning holes 93 and the positioning projections 96, the structure of the click locking portions 97, and the like may be appropriately changed. In this way, by making the diffusion plate 90 detachable, not only the upper surface of the diffusion plate 90,
The lower surface can also be easily cleaned.

In the above embodiment, the present invention was applied to the 135-size film carrier 20.
It may be a film carrier for X240 type or other 110, 120, 220 size photographic film.
In this case, the width of the film passage or the film feed roller pair is changed according to the width of the film to be used.

The present invention may be applied to a film carrier for both 135 film and IX240 film in addition to the exclusive type film carrier. In this case, as shown in FIG.
And a movable guide 110 that can be changed between IX240 and IX240. In the case of the IX240 film, IX2
The film passage mask 111 for 40 is set in the mounting groove 112. Film passage mask 111 for IX240
Also, a film passage mask 3 for 135 as shown in FIG.
9 has basically the same structure. However, since the film width, the perforation position, and the image recording position are different from each other, the film passage width, ND
The position and size of the filter are different. Note that the same components as those shown in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted. In this embodiment, the movable guide 110 is used. In addition, although not shown, instead of using the movable guide 110, a dedicated film path is provided for each, and a structure for guiding to a common film reading unit is provided. Is also good. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the present invention is applied to a film carrier for both 135 film and IX240 film. However, when reading a film of the same type, which has a different image width, such as a panorama size frame, is recorded. Alternatively, a film passage mask may be provided for the full size and the panorama size, and these may be selectively set on the film carrier.

In the above embodiment, the AF chart 80 is imaged, and the improper installation of the film passage mask 39 is detected based on the contrast between the stripes 81 and the ground 82 from the imaged data. Focusing and mounting failure detection may be performed based on distance information to the film passage mask 39. For example, the distance from the lens unit 28 at both ends in the film width direction of the film passage mask 39 is obtained using a distance measuring sensor,
When this distance is different at both ends, it may be determined that the film passage mask 39 is not properly attached.

In the above embodiment, the contrast is obtained at all the step positions of the lens unit 28. However, the focus may be adjusted by stopping the shift of the lens unit 28 when the contrast becomes maximum. In this case, the mounting defect is detected after the focus adjustment.

[0054]

According to the present invention, since the light transmitting portion is constituted by the opening, even if the film is sent to the image reading portion in a state where the dust adheres, the dust can adhere to the glass plate or the like. Instead, it falls down. Therefore, dust does not stay at a position near the film imaging surface, so that linear noise due to dust does not occur in the image information.

By forming the film passage portion having the slit so as to be detachable from the film carrier, the fallen dust can be easily cleaned. Further, the light source unit is constituted by a light source and a diffusion plate and is arranged on a film carrier,
By disposing a film passage portion having the slit above the light source portion and providing a gap between the opening and the diffusion plate, dust falling from the opening is placed on the diffusion plate separated from the film imaging surface. Since it is located, noise generation due to dust is eliminated.

By disposing the diffusion plate on the film carrier in a detachable manner, the diffusion plate can also be removed from the film carrier, and the cleaning thereof becomes easy. Further, the film passage portion includes a curved guide surface that bends the film in a direction perpendicular to the film surface to take a warp in the film width direction. Since the curvature of the film in the width direction is corrected to be linear, the image pickup can be performed with high accuracy, and the separation of dust attached to the film due to a change in the behavior of the film is improved.

An AF chart for autofocus is arranged at both ends in the film width direction of the slit, and based on the image data of the AF chart, a defective mounting of the film passage portion having the slit to the base is detected. With a simple configuration, it is possible to reliably detect a defective mounting of the film passage portion. Therefore, since an image is not read in a state of improper mounting, occurrence of a reading error or the like can be suppressed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a film passage mask of an image reading apparatus according to the present invention;
It is a perspective view which shows a diffusion plate and an attachment groove part.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a digital laboratory system using the image reading device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view showing an optical system of the line CCD scanner.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view showing an internal configuration of the film carrier.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing an attached state of a film passage mask.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged plan view showing a slit, an ND filter, and an AF chart.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a process of detecting a mounting failure of a film passage mask.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a main part showing a state where a film passage mask is removed.

FIG. 9 is an exploded cross-sectional view of another embodiment in which a diffusion plate is configured to be detachable.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing an attached state in an embodiment in which a diffusion plate is configured to be detachable.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a film passage mask, a diffusion plate, and a mounting groove in a film carrier of a type which is used as both a 135 photographic film and an IX240 photographic film.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 20 Film carrier 21 Light source 23 Photo film 28 Lens unit 29 Line CCD 30 Base 31 Cover 32 Film passage 35-37 Film feed roller pair 39 Film passage mask 50, 90 Diffusion plate 51 Mounting groove 53 Positioning pin 54 Positioning hole 60 Diffusion plate body 61 Mounting Frame 63 Suction Bracket 65 Magnet 66 Knob 70 Film Passage 71 Slit 72 ND Filter 73 Guide Ridge 73a Curved Guide Surface 80 AF Chart 97 Click Lock

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification FI theme coat ゛ (Reference) H04N 1/04 H04N 1/12 Z (72) Inventor Toshiyuki Inoue 798 Miyadai, Kaiseicho, Ashigaruga-gun, Kanagawa Prefecture Photo film Co., Ltd. F term (reference) 2H106 BA55 BH00 5B047 AA05 AB04 BA01 BB02 BC14 BC18 5C062 AB03 AB05 AB17 AB29 AB32 AD00 AD01 AD05 BA06 5C072 AA01 DA16 NA02 VA03

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. An image reading apparatus for reading an image of a photographic film illuminated by a light source on a film passage, wherein an opening provided in the film passage has a light transmitting portion for illuminating an area to be read of the photographic film. An image reading apparatus, comprising: a unit. 2. A film carrier for feeding the photographic film in a longitudinal direction, wherein the opening is constituted by a slit provided in a film passage of the film carrier, and the slit is arranged in a direction crossing the longitudinal direction of the photographic film. 2. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: 3. The image reading apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the film passage portion having the slit is detachably provided on a base member of the film carrier. 4. A plurality of types of film passage portions having said slits are provided according to the type of photographic film,
4. The image reading apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image reading apparatus is selectively set on the base member in accordance with a type of the photographic film to be read. 5. The image reading apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the film passage portion having the slit is fixed to the base member by magnet attraction or click locking. 6. A film passage portion having the slit is disposed above the light source, a diffusion plate is disposed on a base member of a film carrier between the light source and the slit, and a photographic film on the slit is diffused. The image reading device according to claim 2, wherein a gap is provided between the image reading device and the plate. 7. The image reading apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said diffusion plate is detachably provided on a film carrier. 8. A film passage portion having the slit includes a curved guide surface for curving a film in a direction orthogonal to a film surface to take a warp in a film width direction, and the slit is provided at a central portion of the curved guide surface. The image reading device according to claim 2, wherein the image reading device is arranged. 9. An image reading apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said curved guide surface is formed of a substantially cylindrical guide ridge arranged along the film width direction. 10. An AF chart for auto-focusing is disposed at both ends of the slit in the film width direction, and based on image data of the AF chart, a defective mounting of a film passage portion having the slit to a base member is determined. The image reading apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image reading is performed.