JPH05284278A - Original reader - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide an original reader in which the manufacture efficiency is enhanced, the manufacture cost is reduced and the original is accurately read. CONSTITUTION:An original reader is a reader comprising a light source 1, plural lenses 7 arranged in a line at a prescribed interval and plural semiconductor chips having lots of photoelectric conversion elements 4a arranged in a line while corresponding one to one to each lens, and in which the plural lenses 7 are made of an integrated transparent plastic. Furthermore, the transparent plastic formed integrally is formed by a waving body to link each lens.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a contact type document reading apparatus used in a facsimile or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, document reading devices such as contact image sensors have been actively developed. The present inventors have already proposed a configuration as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 as this document reading device. 11 is an exploded perspective view of the document reading apparatus, and FIG. 12 is a sectional view taken along line XX of FIG. According to these figures, 1 is a light source, 2 is a lens, 3 is a housing for supporting the lens 2, 4 is a semiconductor chip,
Reference numeral 5 is an electrically insulating substrate on which the semiconductor chip 4 is mounted. The light source 1 is composed of a light emitting diode, a fluorescent lamp, or the like,
The light source 1 is arranged diagonally below the original 6 and in parallel with the original 6, and the light source 1 projects the light obliquely to the lower surface of the original 6 and irradiates the photoelectric conversion element 4a with the reflected light. The image information 6 is transmitted to the photoelectric conversion element 4a. A plurality of lenses 2 are linearly arranged below the original 6 projected by the light source 1 at positions separated from the original 6 by a predetermined distance, and each lens 2 is reflected by the original 6. Light is divided into several blocks, and the reflected light of each divided block is reduced and applied to the photoelectric conversion element 4a on the semiconductor chip 4. The lens 2 has a housing 3 made of aluminum or the like at both ends.
The lens 3 is linearly arranged at a position separated from the original 6 by a predetermined distance by the housing 3.

Below the lens 2 linearly arranged by the housing 3, an electrically insulating substrate 5 is arranged in parallel with the lens 2 at a predetermined interval, and the upper surface of the electrically insulating substrate 5 is further provided. Semiconductor chips 4 having a large number of photoelectric conversion elements 4a on the upper surface are linearly arranged at a predetermined distance from the lens 2 and in a number corresponding to the lens 2 in a one-to-one correspondence.

The photoelectric conversion element 4a formed on the upper surface of each semiconductor chip 4 is an original 6 which is irradiated through the lens 2.
The reflected light is converted into a predetermined electric signal, whereby the image information of the document 6 is converted into an electric signal.

Thus, in the document reading apparatus described above,
The light source 1 projects the light on the original 6, the reflected light is divided into several blocks, and the reflected light of each block is irradiated onto each photoelectric conversion element 4a of the semiconductor chip 4 through the lens 2, and the irradiation is performed. The image of the document 6 is read by causing photoelectric conversion corresponding to the emitted light.

[0006]

However, in the document reading apparatus having such a structure, one lens 2 is provided corresponding to each semiconductor chip 4, so that the number of the lenses 2 can be changed. However, there is a problem in that the manufacturing efficiency cannot be improved because there is a work in the process of mounting the lens 2 individually.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a document reading apparatus, a light source, a plurality of lenses linearly arranged at a predetermined interval, and each lens has a one-to-one correspondence. It is characterized in that it comprises a plurality of semiconductor chips having a large number of corresponding photoelectric conversion elements arranged linearly, and such a plurality of lenses are made of translucent plastic integrally molded.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the original reading device according to the first aspect, the integrally molded translucent plastic is composed of a corrugated body for connecting the individual lenses. It is characterized by

An original reading apparatus according to a third aspect of the present invention includes a light source, a plurality of lenses linearly arranged at predetermined intervals, and one-to-one correspondence with each lens and linear arrangement. A plurality of semiconductor chips having a large number of photoelectric conversion elements, and a housing in which at least the plurality of lenses and the plurality of semiconductor chips are arranged, and the plurality of lenses are flexible plate-shaped. A plurality of lenses and a flexible plate-shaped body are integrally formed on the body, and a light-transmissive plastic integrally formed on the body is used as a plurality of lens positioning members provided on the housing. Each of the lenses is set, and the flexible plate-like body is transformed into a corrugated body to be installed in the housing.

[0010]

According to the document reading apparatus of the first aspect, since the plurality of lenses are made of the light-transmissive plastic integrally molded, the cost of the individual lenses is lower than the total cost.
It is possible to reduce the total cost, and moreover, it is possible to mount a plurality of integrally molded lenses at once without mounting each lens individually in the manufacturing process, thereby improving manufacturing efficiency. be able to.

Further, when the above-mentioned integrally molded translucent plastic is mounted in the housing of the device, the linear expansion coefficient of the translucent plastic is significantly larger than the linear expansion coefficient of the housing. The thermal expansion between the photoelectric conversion elements due to the change does not substantially pose a problem, whereas the thermal expansion between the lenses is very large, and therefore the relative positions of the individual photoelectric conversion elements and the lenses are largely displaced. On the other hand, according to the document reading apparatus according to the second aspect, even if the light-transmissive plastic integrally molded so as to come to the lens position previously arranged at the predetermined position expands and contracts due to temperature change, the individual lens A corrugated body for connecting
Moreover, since both ends of the series of lens groups are fixed to the housing, the lens position changes according to the linear expansion coefficient of the housing, and the photoelectric conversion element also changes position according to the linear expansion coefficient of the housing. There is no relative displacement between the lens and the photoelectric conversion element.

According to another aspect of the document reading apparatus of the present invention, the light-transmissive plastic in which the plurality of lenses are linearly arranged on the flexible plate-like body and which are integrally molded is provided. The lenses are set in a plurality of lens positioning members provided in the housing, and the flexible plate-like body is transformed into a corrugated body to be installed in the housing. There is no relative displacement between the conversion elements. Moreover, if the translucent plastic integrally molded in this way has a simple shape with no thin portion, even if this translucent plastic molded product is injection-molded, the raw material resin remains at the end. There is also an advantage that it is possible to make good translucent plastic molded products.

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the positional relationship between a light source, a lens and a semiconductor chip in the document reading apparatus of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the positional relationship between the lens and the semiconductor chip. An integrally molded lens array body of translucent plastic, 4 is a semiconductor chip, and 5 is an electrically insulating substrate on which the semiconductor chip 4 is mounted. FIG. 2 is a front view showing the relationship between the lens array body 7 and the semiconductor chip 4. The lens array body 7 is composed of a plurality of cylindrical lenses 7a and a rod-shaped body 7b that is bent once to connect the cylindrical lenses 7a. The rod-shaped bodies 7b are connected in four directions to each cylindrical lens 7a. In addition, the rod-shaped body 7b is arranged in a wavy shape over the array direction of the lens array body 7. In the document reading device of this embodiment, the contents and arrangement of each member except the lens array body 7 are the same as those of the document reading device having the configuration shown in FIGS. 11 and 12.

Further, each lens array body 7 shown in FIGS.
In terms of the method of forming the rod-shaped bodies 7b, the examples have different numbers, and have substantially the same function.

The light source 1 is composed of a light emitting diode, a fluorescent lamp or the like, and is arranged obliquely below the original 6 so as to be parallel to the original 6. The light source 1 projects light obliquely to the lower surface of the original 6 and irradiates the photoelectric conversion element 4a with the reflected light, thereby transmitting the image information of the original 6 to the photoelectric conversion element 4a. A plurality of lenses 7a are linearly arranged below the original 6 projected by the light source 1 at a position separated from the original 6 by a predetermined distance, and each lens 7a is reflected by the original 6 as a light source 1. Light is divided into several blocks, and the reflected light of each divided block is applied to the photoelectric conversion element 4a on the semiconductor chip 4 in a reduced size.

An electric insulating substrate 5 is arranged below the lens array body 7 in parallel with the electric insulating substrate 5 at a predetermined interval. On the upper surface of the electric insulating substrate 5, a large number of photoelectric conversion elements 4a are provided. The semiconductor chips 4 having the above are linearly arranged at a predetermined distance from the lens 7a and in a number corresponding to the lens 2 on a one-to-one basis.

The photoelectric conversion element 4a formed on the upper surface of each semiconductor chip 4 serves to convert the reflected light of the document 6 emitted through the lens 7a into a predetermined electric signal, whereby the document 6 of the document 6 is converted. Image information is converted into an electrical signal.

The lens array body 7 is an acrylic resin,
It is made of polycarbonate resin, polyester resin, etc., and is integrally formed by injection molding or pressing. At that time, as shown in FIG. 2, it is molded so as to form a cylindrical lens 7a. A convex spherical surface 7c is formed on one end surface of the cylindrical shape, and a concave spherical surface 7d is formed on the other end surface. Thereby, the reflected light of the original 6 is condensed on the semiconductor chip 4.

In such a document reading apparatus, the light source 1
Illuminates the original 6 and irradiates the photoelectric conversion element 4a formed on the upper surface of the semiconductor chip 4 with the reflected light through the lens 7a, and performs photoelectric conversion corresponding to the light radiated on each photoelectric conversion element 4a. When it is raised, it functions as a document reading device.

Thus, according to the document reading apparatus having the above-mentioned structure, the plurality of lenses 7a are made of the light-transmissive plastic integrally molded, so that the total cost of the individual lenses is reduced as compared with the total cost. It is possible,
In addition, it is possible to mount a plurality of integrally molded lenses 7a at one time without mounting each lens individually in this apparatus in the manufacturing process, and thus it is possible to improve manufacturing efficiency.

Next, a specific configuration of the above-mentioned document reading device will be described.

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the document reading apparatus, in which the same parts as those in FIG. 1 are designated by the same reference numerals.

According to the figure, 8 is an elongated casing,
A light source mounting slope 8a is formed in the housing 8, and the LED 9 as the light source 1 and the LED mounting substrate 10 are arranged on the light source mounting slope 8a. A glass substrate 11 is arranged on the housing 8, and a document (not shown) to be read on the glass substrate 11 is sent. A recess 8b is formed in the housing 8, the lens array body 7 is arranged in the recess 8b, and both ends of the lens array body 7 are fixed to the long ends of the housing 8. An electrically insulating substrate 5 made of glass epoxy or the like is installed under the housing 8, and the semiconductor chips 4 are arranged on the electrically insulating substrate 5. Further, a bottom lid 12 made of aluminum or the like is attached to install the electrically insulating substrate 5 in the housing 8. The arrow in the figure is the optical path.

The semiconductor chip 4 having a large number of photoelectric conversion elements 4a on its upper surface is manufactured by the well-known photolithography technique, ion beam processing method or the like on the upper surface of the semiconductor chip 4 made of silicon or the like.

The electrically insulating substrate 5 on which the semiconductor chip 4 is mounted is made of, for example, glass epoxy resin,
A predetermined conductor pattern (not shown) made of copper or the like is provided on the upper surface, and each electrode of the semiconductor chip 4 is electrically connected to a part of the conductor pattern through a bonding wire or the like, and the other end is The image information of the document 6 converted into a predetermined electric signal by the photoelectric conversion element 4a by being electrically connected to an external drive circuit (not shown) is transmitted to the external drive circuit.

In such a structure, the coefficient of thermal expansion of the lens array body 7 is 6 × 10 ⁻⁵ / ° C. when it is made of acrylic resin, and the distance between the lenses 7 a is 8 mm.
Then, when the temperature is raised from 25 ° C. to 50 ° C., the interval extends by 12 μm. On the other hand, when the housing 8 is made of glass fiber reinforced (or carbon fiber reinforced) polycarbonate resin, the line The expansion coefficient is, for example, 1.9.
Since it is × 10 ^-5 / ° C, the interval is 8 mm and the temperature change ΔT =
With respect to 25, it is only a slight deviation of 3.8 μm. This value is practically within the allowable range when used as a document reading device. And the lens array body 7 can be provided with elasticity by the rod-shaped bodies 7b arranged in a wavy shape,
The array size of the lens array body 7 is determined according to the size of the housing 8, and thus the relative displacement between the lens and the light receiving element due to thermal expansion can be prevented.

Further, in the present embodiment, the linear expansion coefficient of the housing 8 in which both ends of the lens array body 9 are fixed and that of the electrically insulating substrate 5 on which the semiconductor chip 4 is mounted are substantially the same. Is good.

The casing 8 is made of, for example, glass fiber reinforced plastic (coefficient of linear expansion: 17 × 10 ^-6 K ^-1 )
It is molded and manufactured in a predetermined shape by adopting a conventionally known injection molding method or the like. The electrically insulating substrate 5 is made of, for example, a glass fiber reinforced epoxy resin, and the glass epoxy resin has a linear expansion coefficient of 15 × 10 ⁻⁶ to 30 × 10 ⁻⁶ K.
^-1, which is substantially the same as the linear expansion coefficient of the housing 8 that supports the lens array body 9,
Even if electric power is applied to the conductor pattern on the electrically insulating substrate 5, the light source 1, etc., and the temperature of the document reading device becomes high due to the Joule heat generated by the application of the power, the electrically insulating substrate 5 and the housing 8 substantially expands by the same amount, and as a result, the semiconductor chip 4 mounted on the electrically insulating substrate 5
The lens 7a supported by the housing 8 is not always located at a predetermined position and a positional deviation is not substantially generated between them, so that the original 6 can be read accurately.

The electrically insulating substrate 5 made of such a glass epoxy resin is manufactured by pouring a sol-like epoxy resin into a glass fiber and then curing the epoxy resin, and the semiconductor chip 4 is formed on the upper surface thereof. Are mounted and fixed in a straight line through an adhesive made of epoxy resin, polyimide resin, or the like.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications and improvements can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. Examples of these are shown in FIGS.
Indicated by.

For example, a lens array body 13 having a shape as shown in FIG. 4 may be used. In this lens array body 13, 13a is a lens, and this lens 13a is formed by making a part of a plate-like body into a lens shape. These lenses 13a
Is connected to the flexible strip 13b.

FIG. 5 shows a lens array body 14 having another shape. According to this figure, a cylindrical lens 14b is formed inside the rectangular column 14a, and each rectangular column 14a is connected by a plate 14c. As a result, a plurality of plate-like bodies 14c are arranged in a wavy shape, and elasticity is obtained.

Further, as shown in FIG. 6, in the document reading apparatus of FIG. 1, a light shielding plate 15 may be provided between the respective lenses 7a, and the light shielding plate 15 is integrally formed at the time of injection molding of the housing 8. .. As a result, light from the adjacent lens 7b does not enter, so stray light can be prevented and reading characteristics (for example, main scanning MTF, black / white ratio) can be improved.

Furthermore, in the case of the lens array body 13 shown in FIG. 4, a light shielding plate 16 may be provided as shown in FIG.
In this figure, a pressing plate 17 is provided to fix the lens 16a, and this pressing plate 17 is integrally formed with the light shielding plate 16 when the housing 8 is injection-molded.

Further, a lens array body 18 as shown in FIG.
May be used. The lens array body 18 has a configuration in which each lens 18a is arranged in one flexible plate-like body 18b, and each lens 18a is a cylindrical body to be a lens and a collar portion 1
8c is formed, and a frame 19 for positioning each lens 18a is integrally formed in the housing 8 when the housing 8 is injection-molded. As shown in FIG. 9, the collar portion 18c is formed in each frame 19.
And set each lens 18a by engaging
As shown in FIG. 10, the flexible plate-shaped body 18b is transformed into a corrugated body, whereby the lens array body 18 is moved to the housing 8.
It may be installed in. Lens array body 1 having such a configuration
If it is 8, there is no thin part in the shape and the rod-shaped body 7b of the lens array body 7 shown in FIG. 1 is not present, which is a simple shape. Therefore, even if this translucent plastic molded product is injection molded. The raw material resin reaches the end and good translucent plastic moldings are made.

[0037]

As described above, in the document reading apparatus of the present invention, the cost is reduced as compared with the cost of each lens by adopting the translucent plastic in which a plurality of lenses are integrally molded. Moreover, it is possible to mount a plurality of integrally molded lenses at once without mounting each lens individually on this device in the manufacturing process.
Thereby, the manufacturing efficiency can be increased and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

Further, in the document reading apparatus of the present invention, the individual lenses are connected even if the light-transmissive plastic integrally molded so as to be located at a predetermined lens position is expanded or contracted due to temperature change. Since the corrugated body is provided for this purpose, the lens position changes according to the linear expansion coefficient of the housing, and the light receiving element also changes position according to the linear expansion coefficient of the housing, and the relative position between the lens and the light receiving element. There is no deviation.

Furthermore, a plurality of lenses are arranged in a straight line on a flexible plate-like member, and a transparent plastic integrally formed with them is used to position a plurality of lenses on a housing. If each of the lenses is set as a member for use and the flexible plate-like body is deformed into a corrugated body to be installed in the housing, the shape is a simple shape without a thin portion. Even if this light-transmissive plastic molded product is injection-molded, the raw material resin reaches the end, and there is also an advantage that a good light-transmissive plastic molded product is produced.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a positional relationship among a light source, a lens, and a semiconductor chip in a document reading apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a positional relationship between a lens and a semiconductor chip in the document reading apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a document reading apparatus of this embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an example of a lens array body.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an example of a lens array body.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a relationship between a lens array body and a shielding plate.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a relationship between a lens array body and a shielding plate.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing an example of a lens array body.

9 is a perspective view showing an installation state of individual lenses of the lens array body of FIG. 8. FIG.

10 is a perspective view showing an installed state of the lens array body of FIG.

FIG. 11 is an exploded perspective view of a conventional document reading apparatus.

12 is a sectional view taken along line XX of the document reading device of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 ... Light source 7, 13, 14, 18 ... Lens array body 3, 8 ... Housing 4 ... Semiconductor chip 4a ... Photoelectric conversion element 5 ... Electrically insulating substrate 6 .... Manuscript

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of light sources, a plurality of lenses linearly arranged at a predetermined interval, and a plurality of photoelectric conversion elements linearly arranged in one-to-one correspondence with each lens. 2. An original reading apparatus comprising the semiconductor chip of claim 1, wherein the plurality of lenses are integrally formed of translucent plastic. 2. The document reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the integrally molded translucent plastic is composed of a corrugated body for connecting the individual lenses. 3. A plurality of light sources, a plurality of lenses linearly arranged at a predetermined interval, and a plurality of photoelectric conversion elements linearly arranged in one-to-one correspondence with each lens. Of the semiconductor chip and a casing in which at least the plurality of lenses and the plurality of semiconductor chips are arranged, the plurality of lenses are linearly arranged on the flexible plate-like body. A transparent plastic in which the plurality of lenses and the flexible plate-like body are integrally formed is arranged, and the respective lenses are set in a plurality of lens positioning members provided in the housing. An original reading device, characterized in that the flexible plate-like body is installed in a housing by being transformed into a corrugated body.