JP3596343B2 - Photo printing equipment - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a photographic printing apparatus that prints an image on a photographic paper by exposing a photographic paper as a photosensitive material through a light modulation element such as a digital micromirror device.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, various photoprinting apparatuses for printing a digital image on photographic paper using a light modulation element have been implemented. Among such photographic printing apparatuses, a digital microcontroller that arranges a large number of extremely small micromirrors on a plane as a light modulation element and controls the reflection direction of reflected light by changing the inclination angle of each micromirror. A photographic printing apparatus using a mirror device (hereinafter abbreviated as DMD) has been proposed.
[0003]
The DMD has an advantage that, for example, the use efficiency of light from a light source is higher than that of a liquid crystal display device (hereinafter, abbreviated as LCD) widely used as a light modulation element. This is because, in LCDs, the aperture ratio is relatively low due to switching elements and various wirings formed in a thin film shape, and due to its structure, polarization components in a certain direction out of light from a light source. This is because there is a problem that only the light can be used. On the other hand, since the DMD has a structure in which light from a light source is reflected by a micromirror, light of all polarization components can be used efficiently.
[0004]
FIG. 6 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration example of a conventional photographic printing apparatus using a DMD. This conventional photographic printing apparatus has a configuration in which a light source 51, a DMD 52, and print lenses 53A, 53B, and 53C are arranged inside a housing 54 having a light-shielding property.
[0005]
The light source 51 includes, for example, a halogen lamp and a reflector, and emits light in a direction in which the DMD 52 is arranged. As described above, the DMD 52 has a plurality of micromirrors arranged corresponding to each pixel, and reflects light emitted from the light source 51 toward the photographic paper 55 in accordance with image information.
[0006]
The print lenses 53A, 53B, and 53C collect the light reflected from the DMD 52 toward the photographic paper 55, and then project the light onto the photographic paper 55. These print lenses 53A, 53B, and 53C have different focal lengths, that is, different magnifications, and are selectively disposed on an optical axis connecting the DMD 52 and the photographic paper 55.
[0007]
In the photographic printing apparatus having the above-described configuration, when printing is performed for each of the photographic papers 55 having different paper widths, one of the print lenses 53A, 53B, and 53C corresponding to each paper width is used. Is selected and arranged on the optical axis. As a result, an image having an optimum size for each paper width can be printed on the printing paper 55.
[0008]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
The above-described conventional photographic printing apparatus has a configuration in which a print lens having an optimum magnification is provided for each corresponding paper width. In the example shown in FIG. 6, three types of print lenses 53A, 53B, and 53C having different magnifications are provided so as to correspond to photographic paper 55 having three types of paper widths. In such a configuration, it is needless to say that the available paper widths are limited to three types, and it is impossible to support various types of paper widths currently on the market.
[0009]
In order to cope with a larger paper width, a configuration is conceivable in which the types of print lenses to be mounted are increased. However, increasing the number of types of print lenses causes problems such as an increase in cost due to the print lenses, an increase in the size of the apparatus due to an increase in space required for disposing a plurality of print lenses, and an increase in the weight of the apparatus. Will be. In addition, since means for switching a large number of print lenses needs to be increased, this also increases the cost, the size of the apparatus, and the weight.
[0010]
Further, instead of providing a plurality of print lenses corresponding to each paper width, a configuration using a zoom lens or a bifocal lens has been proposed. The zoom lens is a single lens, and can move a part of the constituent lens along the optical axis, thereby continuously changing the focal length without changing the position of the image plane and the aperture ratio. Further, the bifocal lens is a lens which is a single lens and can arrange a part of the constituent lens by switching between two predetermined positions, and is capable of switching between two focal points. It is something that has become. When such a lens is used, a plurality of paper widths can be handled without increasing the size of the apparatus.
[0011]
However, when such a zoom lens or a multifocal lens is used, there is a problem that the image quality of a printed image is deteriorated due to aberration and uneven light amount generated when the magnification is changed. Further, the lens itself becomes expensive, which leads to an increase in the price of the device.
[0012]
The present invention has been made in order to solve the above problems, and its object is to reduce the cost, volume, and weight of the apparatus without increasing the photographic paper made of various types of paper width. An object of the present invention is to provide a photographic printing apparatus that can appropriately perform exposure.
[0013]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above problems, a photographic printing apparatus according to claim 1 includes a light source,Has multiple micromirrors,The light from the above light source isMicro mirrorIrradiate the light to the photosensitive material by modulating it every timeDigital micromirror deviceAnd aboveDigital micromirror deviceProjection means for projecting light from the light-sensitive material onto the photosensitive material,While scrolling and displaying image information in the display area of the digital micromirror device, and performing exposure by moving the photosensitive material in synchronization with the scroll,Of the above photosensitive materialIn the direction perpendicular to the scroll directionDepending on the size,In the above display area, the image is actuallyImage to be displayedThe width of the display area in the direction perpendicular to the scroll directionIs changed.
[0014]
According to the above configuration,Digital micromirror deviceThe size of the image to be displayed is changed to correspond to the photosensitive material of each size, so that it is possible to print on photosensitive materials of various sizes without providing a special configuration. Become. Therefore, for example, the size, weight, and cost of the apparatus itself can be reduced as compared with a configuration in which a projection unit is provided for each size of a photosensitive material in the related art.Further, according to the above configuration, the photosensitive material is exposed by the digital micromirror device having a plurality of micromirrors for controlling the reflection direction of the light from the light source according to the image data. The present invention can provide a photographic printing apparatus with high use efficiency.
[0015]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the photographic printing apparatus according to the first aspect, the projection unit includes a plurality of projection lenses having different projection magnifications, and the projection lens includes the projection lens.Digital micromirror device, And are selectively arranged on the optical axis of the light irradiated on the photosensitive material.
[0016]
According to the above configuration, a plurality of projection lenses having different projection magnifications,Digital micromirror deviceIs selectively arranged on the optical axis of the light irradiated to the photosensitive material from above, so that it is possible to print with good image quality on a photosensitive material having a wider range of sizes. More specifically, in each projection lens,Digital micromirror deviceBy changing the size of the image to be displayed on the, it is possible to cope with photosensitive materials of a plurality of sizes. If the size range of the photosensitive material that can be handled by each projection lens is set to be different from each other, the photographic printing apparatus itself has a configuration that can support photosensitive materials of a larger size. Further, by providing a plurality of projection lenses having different projection magnifications, in each projection lens,Digital micromirror deviceThe range in which the size of the image to be displayed is changed can be reduced. This allowsDigital micromirror deviceIn this case, it is possible to suppress a decrease in the image quality of the burned-in image, which occurs when the amount of change in the size of the image displayed on the image is increased.
[0017]
Further, since each projection lens can be constituted by a single focus lens, it is possible to prevent the deterioration of the image quality of a printed image due to the occurrence of aberration and uneven light amount for any size photosensitive material.
[0018]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the photographic printing apparatus according to the first aspect, the projection unit includes a single projection lens.
[0019]
According to the above configuration, printing can be performed on photosensitive materials having different sizes only by providing one projection lens. Therefore, the size and weight of the photographic printing apparatus itself can be minimized. As a result, it is possible to reduce the cost. Further, since the projection lens switching means required when a plurality of projection lenses are provided is not required, the cost can be further reduced, and the reliability can be improved because the switching control is not required.
[0020]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.
[0021]
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of the photographic printing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. This photo printing apparatus has a configuration in which a light source 1, a DMD 2, and print lenses (projection lenses) 3A, 3B, and 3C are arranged inside a housing 5 having a light-shielding property. An opening 6 is formed in the housing 5. The light source 1 is arranged in a direction inclined by a predetermined angle from a normal direction on the reflection surface of the DMD 2. The print lenses 3A, 3B, 3C and the opening 6 are arranged in this order from the DMD 2 side in the normal direction to the reflection surface of the DMD 2. The photographic paper 4 as a photosensitive material is disposed outside the opening 6.
[0022]
The light source 1 supports, for example, a lamp unit including a halogen lamp and the like, a reflector for reflecting light emitted from the lamp unit in a direction in which the DMD 2 is arranged, a lamp unit and a reflector at a predetermined position, and a lamp unit. It is composed of a socket part for supplying power.
[0023]
The DMD 2 includes a plurality of memory cells (not shown) provided in a matrix on a substrate, and a plurality of micromirrors (not shown) corresponding to each memory cell. Each time, the direction of reflection of light emitted from the light source 1 is changed.
[0024]
More specifically, the DMD 2 has a configuration in which a plurality of micro-sized swingable micro mirrors are provided on a substrate via a post, and the inclination of each micro mirror is adjusted according to image data. The exposure of the photographic paper 4 is controlled by changing the light reflection direction.
[0025]
That is, the micromirrors corresponding to the pixels to be irradiated with light are inclined in such a direction that the light from the light source 1 is reflected in the direction of the photographic paper 4. On the other hand, at the time of non-exposure, and the micromirrors corresponding to the pixels to which light should not be irradiated, the micromirrors are inclined so that the light from the light source 1 is reflected in a direction different from the photographic paper 4 direction. By such control, printing according to the image data is performed on the photographic paper 4.
[0026]
The print lenses 3 </ b> A, 3 </ b> B, and 3 </ b> C collect the light reflected from the DMD 2 toward the photographic paper 4, and then project the light onto the photographic paper 4. Each of the print lenses 3A, 3B, and 3C is constituted by a single focus lens, and is designed so as not to generate any aberration or uneven color. The print lenses 3A, 3B, and 3C have different focal lengths, that is, different magnifications, and are selectively disposed on an optical axis connecting the DMD 2 and the printing paper 4. The switching of the positions of the print lenses 3A, 3B, 3C is performed by switching means (not shown).
[0027]
Although not shown, a color wheel, an integrator rod, and a condenser lens are arranged on the optical axis connecting the light source 1 and the DMD 2 in this order from the light source 1 side.
[0028]
The color wheel has a disk-shaped wheel, and has a configuration in which three substantially fan-shaped filters respectively corresponding to red, green, and blue are provided in a region radially divided from the center by three in the radial direction. ing. Then, the light source 1 is rotated about a rotation axis so that light from the light source 1 can pass through any region of the filter.
[0029]
The integrator rod is made of, for example, quartz glass (BK-7), and has a rectangular parallelepiped shape having a cross section of about 2 mm × 6 mm and a length of about 150 mm. When light enters from one end of the integrator rod, total internal reflection is repeatedly performed inside, and light is emitted from the other end in a state where light amount unevenness is removed. That is, although the light emitted from the light source 1 has uneven light intensity due to the influence of the shape of the lamp filament and the shape of the reflector, the light amount hardly decreases by passing through the integrator rod. The uneven light amount is removed.
[0030]
The condenser lens focuses the light emitted from the integrator rod toward the display area on the DMD 2.
[0031]
Next, the DMD 2 used in the photographic printing apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 3 is a plan view when the DMD 2 is viewed from the reflection surface direction. The DMD 2 is provided with a reflection area 2B composed of a plurality of micromirrors formed on the substrate 2A.
[0032]
In the reflection area 2B, 1280 micromirrors are arranged in the horizontal direction and 1024 in the vertical direction in FIG. That is, about 1.31 million micromirrors are arranged in total. Among these micromirrors, there may be some defective mirrors (defective pixels) FM that cannot change the light reflection direction.
[0033]
Therefore, in the present embodiment, a configuration is used in which only 1280 rectangular areas (display area 2C, hatched areas in FIG. 3) in the horizontal direction and 192 in the vertical direction in the reflection area 2B are used for actual exposure. Has become. Then, the image information is scrolled and displayed in the display area 2C, and the exposure is performed by moving the photographic paper 4 in synchronization with the scroll of the display area 2C.
[0034]
As described above, only the display area 2C which is a part of the reflection area 2B of the DMD 2 is used for actual exposure. Therefore, even if the defective mirror FM exists in the reflection area 2B, the defective mirror FM is not used. The display area 2C can be set so as to avoid the existing area. Accordingly, the image actually printed on the photographic printing paper 4 is not affected by the defective mirror FM, and a high-quality print image can be provided.
[0035]
FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing the above-described exposure method. In FIG. 4, the print lens 3 corresponds to any of the print lenses 3A, 3B, and 3C described above. In the DMD 2, the image displayed in the display area 2C is scrolled downward in FIG. 4 line by line. Then, the photographic paper 4 is moved upward in FIG. 4 at the same speed as the speed at which the image irradiated on the photographic paper 4 moves with the scroll in the display area 2C. Thus, each pixel of the image displayed in the display area 2C and each pixel on the photographic paper 4 have a one-to-one correspondence.
[0036]
In such an exposure method, the exposure time for each pixel on the photographic paper 4 is a maximum time required for the image to scroll the vertical width of the display area 2C. In addition, the micromirrors arranged in a line in the vertical direction in the display area 2C sequentially irradiate a certain pixel on the photographic paper 4 with light. By changing the number of micromirrors that actually irradiate light to one pixel among the micromirrors arranged in one line in the vertical direction, the gradation of the pixel is expressed. As described above, since the gradation of the pixel is digitally expressed, for example, the nuance of the gradation of the original image can be expressed more faithfully as compared with a configuration in which the gradation of the pixel is expressed in analog. Can be.
[0037]
By performing exposure in the above-described manner, it is possible to print on the photographic paper 4 an image in which there are no defective pixels and the gradation of each pixel is accurately represented. In addition, since the exposure is performed while the photographic paper 4 is being conveyed, the time required for conveying the photographic paper 4 can be reduced. Therefore, the print processing capability of the photographic printing apparatus itself can be enhanced.
[0038]
Next, the operation of the photographic printing apparatus according to the present embodiment when performing exposure corresponding to photographic paper 4 having various paper widths will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (b).
[0039]
In the photo printing apparatus according to the present embodiment, as a method corresponding to the photographic paper 4 having various paper widths, a method of changing the size of the projected image by switching the print lenses 3A, 3B, and 3C, and a method in the DMD 2 are described. In the display area 2C, there is a method of changing the width of the image display area 2D for actually displaying an image. By switching the print lenses 3A, 3B, and 3C, the width of the image display area 2D can be changed more finely by changing the width of the image display area 2D so as to correspond to three types of paper widths. Details will be described below.
[0040]
First, the setting of the magnification of the print lens 3A will be described as an example. The magnification of the print lens 3A is set such that the image is displayed using the entire width of the display area 2C in the DMD 2 and the photographic paper 4 having the largest width among the paper widths of the photographic paper 4 corresponding to the print lens 3A. It is set to be optimal when performing exposure. Such a state is schematically illustrated in FIG.
[0041]
In FIG. 1A, an area inside a bold line on the DMD 2 indicates an image display area 2D for actually displaying an image. In the state shown in FIG. 1A, the image display area 2D matches the display area 2C of the DMD 2. In this case, the width of the image display area 2D is about 21.76 mm.
[0042]
Further, among the printing papers 4 corresponding to the print lens 3A, the paper width of the printing paper 4 having the largest width is set to 127 mm. Therefore, by setting the magnification of the print lens 3 to about 5.836, the image displayed in the image display area 2D can be projected over the entire paper width of the photographic paper 4. In FIG. 1A, the area inside the bold line on the photographic paper 4 indicates an exposure area 4A where light emitted from the entire area of the image display area 2D is irradiated onto the photographic paper 4. ing.
[0043]
As described above, the magnification of the print lens 3A is set in accordance with the paper width of the photographic paper 4 having the largest width among the photographic papers 4 corresponding to the print lens 3A. However, if the magnification of the print lens 3 is correspondingly increased when the paper width of the photographic paper 4 is extremely large, each pixel of the image printed on the photographic paper 4 becomes large, and Will deteriorate. Therefore, the magnification of the print lens 3A is set to such an extent that the image quality of the image printed on the photographic paper 4 is not impaired. When the magnification of the print lens 3 is set to about 5.836 times as described above, the image printed on the photographic paper 4 has a sufficient image quality for practical use.
[0044]
Next, an operation of exposing the photographic paper 4 having a paper width smaller than the above-described paper width using the print lens 3A will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1B is an explanatory diagram showing an example when exposing photographic paper 4 having a paper width of 120 mm.
[0045]
In this case, the image display area 2D of the DMD 2 is set to have a width smaller than the width of the display area 2C of the DMD 2 itself. Specifically, the ratio between the paper width of the photographic paper 4 in the case of FIG. 1A and the paper width of the photographic paper 4 in the case of FIG. The width of the image display area 2D is set so as to be substantially equal to the ratio of the width of the area 2D to the width of the image display area 2D in FIG. That is, when the width of the image display area 2D in FIG. 1B is set as x, x that satisfies the relationship of 127: 120 = 21.76: x (unit: mm) may be obtained. From the above equation, x = 20.56 (mm) is obtained.
[0046]
If the width of the image display area 2D is set as described above, printing can be performed on the photographic papers 4 having different paper widths by using the print lenses 3A having the same magnification so as to obtain the optimum image widths. .
[0047]
As a method of making the image display area 2D smaller than the width of the display area 2C of the DMD 2 itself, as shown in FIG. 1B, the DMD 2 is set so that the micro mirrors at both ends of the display area 2C are turned off. The control can be performed by controlling the DMD 2 so that the micromirror in one end area of the display area 2C is turned off. That is, the above-described control can be performed only by transmitting to the DMD 2 data that turns off the micromirrors in the areas other than the image display area 2D in the display area 2C. Therefore, the program that controls the DMD 2 is modified. There is no need to perform such a process.
[0048]
In the above example, the case where the paper width of the photographic paper 4 is 127 mm and the case where the paper width is 120 mm has been described. However, the width of the image display area 2D is appropriately adjusted for other paper widths in the same manner as described above. It is possible to respond by doing. However, it is necessary to suppress the upper limit of the paper width of the photographic paper 4 that can correspond to the print lens 3A to such an extent that the image quality of an image printed on the photographic paper 4 does not deteriorate.
[0049]
As described above, when the print lens 3A is used, by adjusting the width of the image display area 2D, it is possible to cope with the photographic paper 4 having a plurality of types of paper widths. Similarly, when the print lenses 3B and 3C having different magnifications are used, by adjusting the width of the image display area 2D, it is possible to cope with the photographic paper 4 having a plurality of types of paper widths. . That is, by setting the range of the paper width that can be supported by each of the print lenses 3A, 3B, and 3C to be different from each other, the photographic printing apparatus itself has a configuration that can support many paper widths.
[0050]
When the width of the image display area 2D is reduced as in the example of FIG. 1B, for example, the image display area 2D has the same width as the display area 2C as in the example of FIG. Thus, the number of pixels of the image data input to the DMD 2 is reduced according to the reduction ratio of the image display area 2D. In order to reduce the number of pixels of the image data, data processing may be performed by a generally used image reduction algorithm. For example, there is a method of calculating the value of each pixel in the reduced image by performing a process equivalent to linear interpolation based on the correspondence between the pixel arrangement position in the original image and the pixel arrangement position in the reduced image. .
[0051]
As described above, when the width of the image display area 2D is reduced, the number of pixels of the image data is reduced. However, since the magnification of the print lens 3A is not changed, each of the images printed on the photographic paper 4 is not changed. The size of the pixel will not change. That is, the reduction in the number of pixels due to the reduction in the width of the image display area 2D does not reduce the pixel density of an image printed on photographic paper.
[0052]
Further, when the degree of reduction in the width of the image display area 2D becomes large and the image quality of an image to be printed is remarkably reduced due to the reduction in the number of pixels, it is configured to switch to a print lens with a smaller magnification to expose. Just fine. With this setting, it is possible to minimize the deterioration of the image quality due to the reduction in the number of pixels due to the reduction in the width of the image display area 2D for the printing paper 4 having any paper width.
[0053]
Although the above-described photographic printing apparatus has a configuration in which three types of print lenses 3A, 3B and 3C are provided as shown in FIG. 2, only one type of print lens 3 is provided as shown in FIG. It is also possible to adopt a configuration provided. According to this configuration, since only one print lens 3 is required, the size and weight of the photographic printing apparatus itself can be minimized, and the cost can be reduced. In addition, since a print lens switching unit, which is required when a plurality of print lenses are provided, is not required, cost can be further reduced, and reliability can be improved because switching control is not required.
[0054]
In the case of such a configuration, the magnification of the print lens 3 is the same as the above, and the image is displayed by using the entire width of the display area 2C in the DMD 2, and among the paper widths of the photographic paper 4 that can be handled, The setting is made so as to be optimal when exposing the photographic paper 4 having the largest width. The printing paper 4 having a smaller paper width can be handled only by reducing the width of the image display area 2D.
[0055]
In this case, similarly to the above, the magnification of the print lens 3 is set to such an extent that the image quality of the image printed on the photographic paper 4 is not impaired. Therefore, even when the width of the image display area 2D is reduced, the size of each pixel of the image printed on the photographic paper 4 does not change, so that the pixel density of the image printed on the photographic paper does not decrease.
[0056]
However, in the case where only one type of print lens 3 is provided, the degree of reduction in the width of the image display area 2D becomes too large when trying to correspond to a smaller paper width, and the number of pixels is remarkable. The problem of image quality deterioration due to the deterioration occurs. Therefore, it is necessary to set the lower limit of the applicable paper width so that the image quality of the image to be printed is not impaired.
[0057]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, the photographic printing apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention includes a light source,Has multiple micromirrors,The light from the above light source isMicro mirrorIrradiate the light to the photosensitive material by modulating it every timeDigital micromirror deviceAnd aboveDigital micromirror deviceProjection means for projecting light from the light-sensitive material onto the photosensitive material,While scrolling and displaying image information in the display area of the digital micromirror device, and performing exposure by moving the photosensitive material in synchronization with the scroll,Of the above photosensitive materialIn the direction perpendicular to the scroll directionDepending on the size,In the above display area, the image is actuallyImage to be displayedThe width of the display area in the direction perpendicular to the scroll directionIs changed.
[0058]
This makes it possible to print on photosensitive materials of various sizes without providing a special configuration. For example, a configuration in which projection means is provided for each size of the photosensitive material in the related art is used. As a result, the size, weight, and cost of the device itself can be reduced.Further, there is an effect that it is possible to provide a photographic printing apparatus having high use efficiency of light from a light source.
[0059]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the photographic printing apparatus, the projection unit includes a plurality of projection lenses having different projection magnifications, and the projection lens includes the projection lens.Digital micromirror deviceAnd the light-sensitive material is selectively arranged on the optical axis of the light applied to the photosensitive material.
[0060]
Thereby, in addition to the effect of the structure of claim 1, in each projection lens,Digital micromirror deviceBy changing the size of the image to be displayed on the camera, it is possible to support photosensitive materials of a plurality of sizes, and by setting the range of sizes of the photosensitive material that can be supported by each projection lens to be different from each other. In addition, the photographic printing apparatus itself has an effect of being able to cope with a photosensitive material of a larger size. Further, by providing a plurality of projection lenses having different projection magnifications, in each projection lens,Digital micromirror deviceSince the range of changing the size of the image displayed on theDigital micromirror deviceThus, it is possible to suppress a decrease in the image quality of a burn-in image, which is caused when the amount of change in the size of the image to be displayed is increased.
[0061]
Further, since each projection lens can be constituted by a single focus lens, there is an effect that the deterioration of the image quality of a printed image due to the occurrence of aberration and uneven light amount can be prevented for any size photosensitive material. .
[0062]
A photographic printing apparatus according to a third aspect of the present invention is configured such that the projecting means includes one projection lens.
[0063]
As a result, in addition to the effects of the first aspect, the size and weight of the photographic printing apparatus itself can be minimized, and the cost can be reduced. In addition, since the projection lens switching means required when a plurality of projection lenses are provided is not necessary, the cost can be further reduced, and the reliability can be improved because the switching control is not required. Play.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (b) are views showing an operation when performing exposure corresponding to photographic paper having various paper widths in a photographic printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of the photographic printing apparatus.
FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a state of a reflection surface of a DMD provided in the photographic printing apparatus.
FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an exposure method using the DMD.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view schematically showing another configuration example of the photo printing apparatus.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a conventional photographic printing apparatus.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 light source
2 DMD
2C display area
2D image display area
3.3A, 3B, 3C print lens (projection lens)
4 photographic paper
4A exposure area
5 Case
6 opening

Claims (3)

A light source,
A digital micromirror device having a plurality of micromirrors , modulating light from the light source for each micromirror according to image data, and irradiating the light to a photosensitive material;
Projecting means for projecting light from the digital micromirror device onto the photosensitive material,
Scrolling and displaying image information in the display area of the digital micromirror device, and performing exposure by moving the photosensitive material in synchronization with the scrolling,
According to the size of the photosensitive material in the direction perpendicular to the scroll direction, the width of the image display area for actually displaying an image in the display area in the direction perpendicular to the scroll direction is changed. Photo printing equipment. The projection means includes a plurality of projection lenses each having a different projection magnification, and the projection lens is selectively disposed on an optical axis of light emitted from the digital micromirror device to the photosensitive material. 2. The photographic printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the photographic printing is performed. 2. A photographic printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said projection means comprises a single projection lens.

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