JPS6048018B2 - photo color printer - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a photographic color printer, and more specifically, the present invention relates to a color printer for photography, and more specifically, scans each point of a color original image (color negative film, inverted color film) with a moonlight beam, and converts the obtained color signal into each point. modulate the intensity of the recording light beam accordingly,
This invention relates to a photographic color printer that records a reproduced image on color paper by deflecting this intensity-modulated light beam.

In conventional color printers, an imaging optical system is disposed between a color original image and color paper, and an image recorded on the color original image is formed onto the color paper for printing. Then, the blue, green, and red components of the light transmitted through the entire image are measured, and the exposure amount of each of the three color light components is adjusted so that the ratio of the three color light components is constant. In this way, conventional color printers correct the hue and gradation of the entire screen, so if the colors of the image are uneven, color areas will occur, resulting in a photo that looks like complementary colors. There is a drawback.

Furthermore, since it uses an imaging optical system with lenses,
Another drawback is that the quality of the printed photo deteriorates when it is enlarged to a large size.

In addition, with conventional color printers, when printing inverted color film (color positive film), it is necessary to first print on color negative film (internegative film) and then print from this internegative film onto color vapor, or to print using inverted color vapor. , the image is printed directly onto this.

Therefore, printing reversal color film requires special printing processing. Moreover, the former printing method requires two baking steps, making it impossible to obtain a good printed image, while the latter printing method requires a developing device for reversal color vapor and chemicals, among other disadvantages. There is also. The present invention is intended to solve the above-mentioned drawbacks, and an object of the present invention is to provide a photographic color printer that can easily print on the same color vapor, regardless of whether it is a color negative film or a reversal color film. That is. Moreover, the present invention
It is an object of the present invention to provide a photographic color printer that can easily correct the hue and density of each part of an image, thereby making it possible to obtain a printed photograph with the same hue and gradation. A further object of the present invention is to provide a color printer for photographs that can be enlarged to a large size without degrading image quality.

The device of the present invention scans a color original image with a reading light beam containing three color light components of blue, green, and red, and uses the obtained color signal to measure the intensity of the blue light, green light, and red light of the reading light beam. The invention is characterized in that the intensity-modulated light beam is deflected and a reproduced image is recorded on a color vapor. As the light beam, it is desirable to use a laser beam with good directivity. This light beam contains three colors of red, green, and blue light. This three-color light is
It can be generated from a single light beam generator or from color-separated light beam generators. A reading light beam for reading the image information recorded on the color original image and a recording light beam for recording the image on the color vapor are required.

These light beams may be generated from separate light beam generators, but the light beams generated from the same light beam generator may be divided by a half mirror, etc., and one of the light beams is used for reading, and the other light beam is used for reading. It is desirable to use it for recording purposes. The color original image is scanned by a reading light beam, and the transmitted light is separated into three colors of blue, green, and red, and measured by a photodetector.

The output signal from this photodetector is computed and image processed for gradation and color correction. The intensity of the recording light beam is modulated in accordance with this arithmetic processed color signal.

The modulated recording light beam is deflected by a deflection scanning device to record a reproduced image on the color vapor. By using both sides of the mirror, one deflection scanning device can be used for reading and recording.

In online color printers, the color signal is input to a modulator that modulates the intensity of the recording light beam, and in offline printers, it is temporarily recorded on a recording device such as a magnetic tape, and the color signal is read out from the magnetic tape during printing. It will be done.

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

FIG. 1 schematically shows a color printer.

Three color laser beams are emitted from a blue laser light source 1, a green laser light source 2, and a red laser light source 3. These three-color laser beams only need to have constant intensity;
They do not necessarily have to be the same. The laser light source 1 for blue color is a He-Cd laser that emits a laser beam of 441.6 nm, the laser light source 2 for green color is an A-pillar laser light that emits a laser beam of 514.5 nm, and the laser light source for red color is a He-Cd laser that emits a laser beam of 514.5 nm. He emits a light beam of 632.8 nm
-Ne laser is used. The light beams emitted from the respective laser light sources 1, 2, and 3 are divided by half mirrors 4, 5, and 6 into reading and recording beams.

The blue, green, and red light beams reflected by the half mirrors 4, 5, and 6 are combined into a reading light beam 7.

This reading light beam 7 passes through a condensing lens 8 and enters a two-dimensional deflection scanning device 9 . With this two-dimensional deflection scanning device 9,
The reading light beam 7 is deflected in the X and Y directions and scans the color original image 10. The light beam that has passed through the color original image 10 passes through a condensing lens 11, and then passes through a dichroic mirror 12,
13 and 14 sequentially.

The dichroic mirrors 12 to 13 separate the light beam into three colors of blue, green, and red. The color-separated three-color light is photomul 15 for blue and photomul 1 for green.
6. The light enters the red photomultiplier 17 and its intensity is measured. The color signals measured by each of the photomultiples 15 to 17 are amplified by amplifiers 18 to 20, respectively, and then sent to a color correction circuit 21, where they are subjected to arithmetic processing.

The color correction circuit 21 processes the color signal in accordance with the characteristics of the color vapor so that the characteristic curves of blue, green, and red overlap and the exposure amount versus density of each color becomes equal. The color-corrected color signal is sent to gradation correction circuits 22 to 24, where the gradation is corrected.

The tone correction circuits 22 to 24 adjust the contrast of the image by changing the slope of the characteristic curve. The color correction circuit 2
1. The polarity of the gradation correction circuits 22 to 24 is converted by a polarity switching circuit 25 depending on the type of color negative film or inverted color film (positive film).

In other words, in the case of a reversal color film, by switching the polarity, the blue color signal B is made to have a size that corresponds to the density of the yellow pigment (B density) constituting the original color image. , so that the color signal G for green has a size corresponding to the density (G density) of the magenta dye that makes up the color original image, and the color signal R for red has a size that corresponds to the density (G density) of the magenta dye that makes up the color original image. It is converted into a size according to the density (R density). In this way, the polarity of the color signal is converted depending on the type of color original image, and the hue is converted to a complementary color, so even if it is a reversal color film, it can be printed on color vapor in the same way as color negative film. Ru.

Note that color correction may be performed after tone correction. The gradation-corrected blue, green, and red color signals are input to A/0 modulator processors 26, 27, and 28.
0 The high frequency (several MHz to several + MHz) that operates the modulator
z) is computed within this processor to amplitude modulate the carrier wave.

The blue, green, and red color signals calculated by the A/0 modulator processors 26 to 28 are sent to the A/0 modulator 29.
to 31, respectively. This A/0 modulator 29 is placed in the optical path of the blue light beam that has passed through the half mirror 4, and modulates the intensity of the light beam by flag diffraction. Further, the A/0 modulator 30 is arranged in the optical path of the green light beam transmitted through the half mirror 5, and is arranged in the optical path of the green light beam transmitted through the half mirror 5.
The zero modulator 31 is placed in the optical path of the red light beam that has passed through the half mirror 6. These A/0 modulators 2
9 to 31 modulate the intensities of blue light, green light, and red light according to the three color light components of the image recorded on the color original image 10. The blue light modulated by the A/0 modulator 29 enters the dichroic mirror 32 and is reflected downward. The green light modulated by the A/O modulator 30 is
After being reflected, the light enters the dichroic mirror 34. The red light modulated by the A/0 modulator 31 is transmitted to the mirror 3
5, 36, then dichroic mirror 34
The dichroic mirror 34 converts the red light into
It is combined with green light. This combined light is reflected downward by the mirror 37 and enters the dichroic mirror 32, where it is combined with the blue light. A recording light beam 38 composed of three color lights combined by a dichroic mirror 32 passes through a condenser lens 39 and then enters a two-dimensional deflection scanning device 40 .
The recording light beam is deflected by the two-dimensional deflection and scanning device 40, and a reproduced image is recorded on the color vapor 41. FIG. 2 shows an optical system of a color printer in which one unit serves as both a reading deflection scanning device and a recording deflection scanning device.

The light beams emitted from the blue laser light source 50, the green laser light source 51, and the red laser light source 52 pass through the mirror 53.
, 54, and 55, respectively, and enter half mirrors 56, 57, and 58, which are arranged obliquely in each optical path. These half mirrors 56 to 57 divide the light beam into a reading light beam and a recording light beam. Half mirror 56-58
The light beam reflected laterally by the reading light beam 59
is synthesized into

This reading light beam 59 is passed through a pinhole 6 in order to cut the light reflected on the back surfaces of the half mirrors 56 to 58.
Enters 0. The reading light beam 59 passing through this pinhole 60 passes through mirrors 61, 62, J63, and a condensing optical system 64, and reaches a first galvanometer 65 that deflects the light beam in the X direction. The mirror 65a of the galvanometer 65 is
A double-sided mirror is used, a reading light beam 59 is incident on the back surface, a reading light beam to be described later is incident on the front surface,
Both light beams are deflected simultaneously. Said half mirror 56
The blue light color, green light color, and red light color that passed through ~58 are as follows:
The signals enter A/0 modulators 66, 67, and 68, respectively, and are intensity-modulated according to the color original image.

Note that in addition to this A/0 modulator, an electro-optic effect or mechanical modulator may be used. The blue light, green light, and red light whose intensity is modulated by these A/O modulators 66 to 68 are laterally reflected by dichroic mirrors 69, 70, and 71 and combined as a recording light beam 72. .

This recording light beam 72 enters the pinhole 73 and A
The O-order diffracted light that has not been diffracted by the /0 modulators 66 to 68 is cut. The recording light beam 72 passing through the pinhole 73 is reflected by a mirror 74, passes through a condensing optical system 75 for forming an image as a small spot on an image plane, and reaches the first galvanometer 65.

Reading light beam 5 reflected by first galvanometer 65
9 passes through the mirror 79 and enters the back surface of the mirror 77a of the second galvanometer 77 which deflects the light beam in the Y direction.

On the other hand, the recording light beam 72 reflected by the surface of the mirror 65a of the first galvanometer 65 is transmitted to the mirrors 78, 79,
80, the mirror 77a of the second galvanometer 77
incident on the surface of Each of the mirrors 76, 78, 79, 8
0 is placed at the corner of the rectangle. Second galvanometer 77
The reading light beam 59 is reflected downward, and the color original image 3
1 is scanned two-dimensionally three times.

On the other hand, the recording light beam 72 is reflected upward and scans the color vapor 82 two-dimensionally. a reading light beam 59;
Since the deflection directions of the recording light beams 72 are opposite to each other, an inverted image of the color original image 81 is recorded on the color vapor 82, similar to the imaging optical system of a conventional color printer. Using this optical system has the advantage that it is easy to handle because the arrangement of color original images and color vapor, changes in size, etc. are the same as in conventional color printers.

An even greater advantage is that since the galvanic L meter is used for reading and recording, the device is inexpensive.

The present invention having the above configuration scans a color original image with a light beam, converts this into an electric signal using a measuring means, and modulates the intensity of the recording light beam with this electric signal. By processing the signals, it is possible to easily correct the hue, gradation, etc. of each part of the image to produce a good printed photograph.

Furthermore, since electrical signals can be converted by polarity conversion, even reversed glass films can be printed on color vapor in the same way as color negative films.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing the apparatus of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the optical system of a color printer.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A reading light beam generating means for generating a reading light beam, a deflection scanning means for deflecting the reading light beam to scan an image recorded on a color original, and a reading light beam that is transmitted through the color original. Measuring means that measures the three color light components of blue, green, and red of the reading light beam, and calculates the output signal from this measuring means so that the image recorded on color paper has the optimal hue and gradation. A correction means for correcting, a polarity switching means for switching the polarity of this correction means, three colors of blue, green, and red.
A recording light beam generating means for generating a recording light beam of colored light is arranged in the optical path of each of the three color recording light beams, and is arranged in the optical path of each of the three color recording light beams, and adjusts each recording light beam according to the color signal outputted from the correction means. A photographic color printer comprising a light modulating means for performing intensity modulation, and a deflection scanning means for deflecting the intensity-modulated three-color light to record an image on color paper. 2. The photographic color printer according to claim 1, wherein the reading light beam generating means and the recording light beam generating means are used in combination. 3. The reading deflection scanning means and the recording deflection scanning means are used together, and one surface of the mirror of the deflection scanning means deflects the reading light beam, and the other surface deflects the recording light beam. Claim 1 characterized in that
Color printer for photos as described in section.