JPH11142966A - Microfilm retrieval device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To detect a frame without making a device large-sized by deviating the detecting position of the frame by optical fibers from the image projecting range of a film in the length direction of the film. SOLUTION: A pair of optical fiber holding blocks 100 and 102 crossing the microfilm 26 in a width direction and facing each other at both surfaces of the film 26 by giving a slight gap is disposed at the image reading position of the film 26, that means, outside the image projection range A. Then, nine optical fibers 104 and nine optical fibers 106 arrayed in the width direction of the film 26 are made to pierce through the blocks 100 and 102. The positions of the fibers 104 and 106 are set on a more upstream side (supply reel side) than the position of an optical axis 74 by a distance B. Then, light emitted from the opposed fibers 104 is made incident on the fibers 106 through the film 26. The fibers 106 are guided to an optical sensor and a density signal being the output of the optical sensor is inputted to a decision part so that the decided result of the existence of the frame is obtained.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a microfilm search apparatus for determining the presence or absence of a frame based on a density change in a running direction of a microfilm and performing a search.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In order to search for microfilms,
A device is known in which a search mark (blip) is attached to each frame at a position that does not overlap the traveling locus width of the frame, and the blip is detected and searched.

On the other hand, it has been considered that a search is performed by detecting the presence or absence of a frame instead of the blip. That is, a density sensor is provided within the width of the traveling locus of a frame, and the presence or absence of a frame is determined from a change in film density detected by the density sensor. The density sensor can be composed of, for example, a light emitting element and a light receiving element which face each other with a film interposed therebetween.

[0004]

2. Description of the Related Art In this case, a density sensor for detecting a frame is a narrow micro-roll film (usually about 1 mm).
However, since light for image projection is also projected on the microfilm, the density sensor must be arranged at a position that does not overlap with the image projection range. For this reason, there is a problem that the space for disposing the density sensor becomes large and the device becomes large.

In order to improve the accuracy of frame detection and to cope with films having different photographing methods, a plurality of density sensors may be arranged adjacent to each other in the film width direction. However, such arrangement is difficult because the width of the microfilm is narrow. Therefore, it is conceivable to input an enlarged image of a frame to the density sensor. However, in this case, the size of the apparatus is significantly increased.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a microfilm search apparatus capable of detecting a frame without increasing the size of the apparatus. .

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, it is an object of the present invention to determine the presence or absence of a frame based on a change in density in the running direction of a microfilm, search for a target frame, and output an enlarged projection image of the target frame. In the device,
One or more pairs of optical fibers whose end faces oppose each other across the microfilm within the traveling locus width of the top, a light source that guides light to one optical fiber whose one end faces one side of the film, and the other side of the film An optical sensor for detecting the amount of light incident on the other optical fiber opposite thereto, a binarizing section for binarizing a density signal output from the optical sensor, and judging the presence or absence of a frame based on the binarized signal A determination unit that outputs a determination signal, and a search unit that searches for a frame based on the determination signal, wherein a frame detection position by the optical fiber is displaced in a film length direction from an image projection range on the film. This is achieved by a microfilm search device characterized in that:

In this case, the size of the apparatus can be further reduced by using the light source for frame detection which guides light to the optical fiber also as the light source for image projection. Since the end face of the small-diameter optical fiber faces the film in this manner, it is also possible to detect the coma with a plurality of pairs of optical fibers. In this case, the size of the apparatus can be reduced by converging the end of the optical fiber on the light source side and making this converging portion face the light source for image projection. If the optical fiber on the light source side is opposed to the film from the image projection light source side of the film, the optical fiber becomes short, which is suitable for miniaturization of the apparatus.

[0009]

FIG. 1 is a view showing a use state of one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the inside of a scanner used here, FIG. 3 is a side view showing an arrangement of main parts of the scanner, and FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a line sensor driving section, FIG. 5 is a view showing a main part, FIG. 6 is a view for explaining an example of the arrangement of optical sensors, and FIG. It is.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 10 denotes a computer main body, which incorporates a CPU and the like. Reference numeral 12 denotes a display means such as a CRT or a liquid crystal plate, and 14 denotes a keyboard, which are placed on a desk 16. Reference numeral 18 denotes a scanner housed under the desk 16, which incorporates the microfilm search device of the present invention. Reference numeral 20 denotes a printer placed beside the desk 16.

The scanner 18 has a cartridge insertion port 22 at the upper part of the front surface thereof.
4 (see FIGS. 2 and 3), the image of the micro-roll film 26 having a width of 16 mm is read at a low density. The read image is subjected to predetermined image processing by a CPU or the like in the computer main body 10 and then displayed on the display unit 12.

This image reading is performed while the line sensor 96 described below is stopped and only the film 26 is run.
In the meantime, the display means 12 of the CRT displays the read image while changing it continuously in synchronization with the running of the film 26. Therefore, the display on the display means 12 moves in synchronization with the running of the film 26, and an image substantially similar to that projected on the screen can be displayed on the display means 12.

At the time of a manual search, the operator looks at the image on the display means 12 and instructs output for an image that needs to be printed out. Based on this output instruction, the scanner 18 sets the position of the frame to a correct position and reads the entire image with high-density image quality. The high-density image is printed out to the printer 20, stored in a hard disk or the like, or transferred to an external processing device.

At the time of automatic search, the address of the target frame is input from the keyboard 14. In this automatic search, a target frame is searched by detecting frames and counting the number of frames. This frame search is performed by using the determination result of the determination unit 112 described later indicating the presence or absence of the frame, and
16 is performed.

Next, the configuration of the scanner 18 will be described. The scanner 18 has a vertically long housing 28, and a supply-side reel drive unit 30 is provided above a front portion of the housing 28, and a take-up reel drive unit 32 is provided below the front portion. The supply-side reel drive unit 30 inserts the cartridge 2 into the cartridge insertion slot 22.
When the cartridge 4 is inserted, the cartridge 24 is automatically moved to engage the reel 24A with the rotating shaft. Further, the leading end of the film 26 is pulled out, sent downward, and guided to the take-up reel 32A of the take-up reel drive unit 32.

Here, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the film 26 passes behind the gap between the reel drive units 30 and 32, that is, passes through the back as viewed from the front of the housing 28. In FIG. 3, 34, 34,
36, 36 are guide rollers for the film 26. Accordingly, a space 38 is formed between the gap and the front panel 28A of the housing 28, and a light source unit 52 described later is accommodated therein.

The take-up reel drive section 32 has a drive belt 40 that runs in contact with the reel 32A as shown in FIG. This drive belt 40 is a guide roller 4
2, 44, a drive roller 46, an encoder 48, and a tension roller 50, and are driven by the drive roller 46 to travel in the film winding direction (the direction of the arrow). The encoder 48 controls a constant feed amount of the film 26 (for example, 0.1 m
m) to output a sampling signal.

Numeral 52 denotes a light source unit accommodated in the space 38 between the reel driving units 30 and 32,
It includes a reflecting mirror 56, a condenser lens 58, an appropriate filter, and the like. In FIG. 2, reference numeral 60 denotes a power supply circuit, and 62 denotes a power control circuit such as a motor.

Next, the line sensor driving section 64 will be described.
The line sensor driving section 64 is integrated with the projection lens 66. That is, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the frame (rotating frame) 68 of the line sensor driving unit 64 is integrally formed with a cylindrical portion 70 for holding the projection lens 66.
The projection lens 66 held by the cylindrical portion 70 has a fixed focal point and a magnification of about twice. The cylindrical portion 70 is rotatably held by a frame (fixed frame) 72 fixed to the housing 28 so that the inclination of the image to be read can be corrected. Here, the cylinder 70 rotates about an optical axis 74 perpendicular to the film 26.

The cylindrical portion 70 of the rotating frame 68 and the pulley 76 of the servomotor 76 mounted on the fixed frame 72
A belt 78 is wound around A. The rotation frame 68 is rotatable around the optical axis 74 by the rotation of the motor 76.

As shown in FIG. 4, a movable base 80 is attached to the rotating frame 68 on a surface opposite to the cylindrical portion 70. That is, the movable base 80 is provided with a pair of guide rods 82, 82.
Slidably held by the optical axis 74 near the opening of the cylindrical portion 70.
Can be reciprocated in a direction orthogonal to.

A belt 86 wound around pulleys 84, 84 is provided on the rotating frame 68 in parallel with the reciprocating direction of the movable table 80.
And one side of the movable table 80 is fixed to the belt 86. One pulley 84 has a servo motor 8
The rotation of 8 is transmitted via the belt 90. As a result, by rotating the servo motor 88 forward and backward, the movable table 8 is rotated.
0 can be reciprocated on a plane orthogonal to the optical axis 74.

The movable table 80 has guide rods 82, 82
A long window 92 is formed in a direction perpendicular to the direction of the movable table 80, that is, in a direction perpendicular to the reciprocating direction of the movable table 80. This long window 92
Is located on the optical axis 74 in the longitudinal direction. A printed wiring board 94 is fixed to the rear surface of the movable base 80, that is, the surface opposite to the cylindrical portion 70 so as to be orthogonal to the optical axis 74.

A CCD line sensor 96 facing the long window 92 is fixed to the substrate 94 (FIG. 3). The substrate 94 is also provided with a preamplifier for amplifying the output of the line sensor 96. CCD line sensor 9
Of course, the light receiving surface of No. 6 coincides with the image forming surface of the projection image of the projection lens 66.

Next, an apparatus for detecting frames will be described with reference to FIGS. Outside the image reading position of the microfilm 26, that is, outside the image projection range A, a pair of optical fiber holding blocks 100 and 10 which cross the film 26 in the width direction and face both sides of the film 26 with a slight gap therebetween.
2 are provided. These blocks 100, 102
Has nine optical fibers 10 arranged in the film width direction.
4,106 are inserted. These optical fibers 10
The positions 4 and 106 are upstream of the position of the optical axis 74 by a distance B (on the supply reel 24A side).

The optical fibers 104 and 106 are arranged in blocks 100 and 10 so that they are perpendicular to the film 26.
2 and these end faces face each other with the film 26 interposed therebetween. That is, the end faces of the nine optical fibers 104 face the end faces of the nine optical fibers 106, respectively. As a result, nine combinations in which the end faces face each other with the film 26 interposed therebetween can be obtained.

The nine optical fibers 10 held by the block 100 located on the lamp 54 side with respect to the film 26
4 are bundled and guided to the vicinity of the lamp 54 of the light source unit 52. Therefore, the nine optical fibers 1
Light is incident on the film 04 and is guided to one surface (the surface on the block 100 side) of the film 26.

Light emitted from nine optical fibers 104 opposed to each other enters the nine optical fibers 106 held by the block 102 through the film 26. 9
The optical fibers 106 are guided from the block 102 to the optical sensors 108, respectively. The density signals output from the nine optical sensors 108 are separately input to a binarization unit 110, where they are binarized in synchronization with a sampling signal output from the encoder 48.

Each of the nine binarized signals is determined by a decision unit 112.
The determination result of the presence or absence of a frame is obtained based on the output of each optical sensor 108 here. This determination unit 112
Then, the presence or absence of a frame is determined from the binary signal.

The determination unit 112 also includes the sensor selection unit 1
Fourteen signals are input. This sensor selection unit 114
The optical fiber 106 whose end face is located within the width of the running axis trace of the frame corresponding to the film shooting method, and the optical sensor 108 connected thereto are selected. The determination unit 112 selects only the determination result of the sensor 108 selected by the sensor selection unit 114 from these nine determination results, and determines the presence or absence of a frame according to a shooting method such as simplex, duplex, or duo.

As shown in FIG. 6A, the end faces of the nine optical fibers 104 and 106 are on a straight line perpendicular to the running direction of the film 26 and at different positions in the width direction of the film 26. is there. In this embodiment, since the optical sensor 108 detects the amount of incident light on the optical fiber 106,
This is substantially the same as the optical sensor 108 located at a position where the end face of the optical fiber 106 faces the film 26. Therefore, FIG. 6 illustrates that the optical sensor 108 is located at the end face position of the optical fiber 106 on the film 26 side.

These nine optical sensors 108 are positioned in the film width direction such that a plurality of optical sensors 108 always pass through one frame even when the film photographing method is different. FIG. 6A shows the case of the simplex system, in which case the determination unit 112 determines whether the sensor selection unit 1
The frame is detected by the eight optical sensors 108 (A) based on the output of No. 14 and the blip 1 is detected by the other optical sensor 108B.
18 is detected. Therefore, the determination unit 112 determines the presence or absence of a frame using the binarized signals output from the eight binarization units 110. For example, if a majority or a certain percentage or more of the determination results is black, it is determined that a frame exists. The presence or absence of a frame may be determined using the logical product or logical sum of the determination results. In this case, it is also possible to search using the output of the optical sensor 108B that detects the blip 118.

FIG. 6B shows a case of the duplex system, in which the front and back of a document are simultaneously photographed on the upper and lower channels, and there is an optical sensor 108C which does not detect a frame between both channels. Therefore, in this case, the determination unit 11
2 detects the frame of each channel based on the output of the sensor selection unit 114, using the output of each of the three optical sensors 108D and 108E passing within the width of the upper and lower channels except for the output of the optical sensor 108C. I do.

FIG. 6C shows the case of the duo system.
The center optical sensor 108F does not detect a frame. For this reason, based on the output of the sensor selection unit 114, the determination unit 112 detects the frame of each channel by four optical sensors 108G and 108H included in the two groups divided into the upper and lower groups. The search unit 116 searches for a target frame by integrating the determination signals output from the determination unit 112.

Since the optical fibers 104 and 106 are used as described above, the end faces of the optical fibers 104 and 106 can be arranged close to each other in the width direction of the narrow film 26. Further, a light source unit 5 for photographing an image
2 is used to guide light to each optical fiber 104,
There is an advantage that the light source can be simplified and the device can be downsized. However, in the present invention, another light source may be used, or light may be guided to each optical fiber 104 using a plurality of light sources. The present invention may use only a pair of optical fibers.

In this embodiment, since the density sensors (optical sensors) are arranged on a straight line perpendicular to the running direction of the film, the presence or absence of a frame can be detected at the same timing. Therefore, a plurality of density sensors (optical sensors)
Is not necessary to correct the output timing of each density sensor (optical sensor) as in the case of disposing them in the running direction of the film, thereby simplifying the circuit configuration.

[0037]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the end faces of a pair or a plurality of pairs of optical fibers are opposed to each other with the film interposed therebetween, and the light introduced into one of the optical fibers is guided to the film, and the light transmitted through the film is transmitted. Since the amount of light transmitted through the other optical fiber is detected by an optical sensor to determine the presence or absence of a frame, the presence or absence of a frame can be detected at a position that does not overlap the image projection range on the film. At this time, since the end face of the small-diameter optical fiber faces the film, it is not necessary to secure a large space for arranging the optical fiber near the film, and the apparatus can be downsized.

In this case, the light source for guiding light to one of the optical fibers, that is, the light source for frame detection, can also be used as the light source for image projection. In this way, the size of the device can be further reduced. Since the optical fiber has a small diameter, it is possible to arrange multiple pairs of optical fibers facing each other in the width direction of the film. In this case, the frame detection accuracy can be improved by detecting the frames at multiple positions become. At this time, the plurality of optical fibers on the light source side are converged on the light source side, and the converging portion faces the light source for image projection, whereby the size of the apparatus can be further reduced. (Claim 3)

If the end surface of the optical fiber on the light source side is opposed to the surface on the light source side of the film, the optical fiber comes close to the image projection light source, and this optical fiber can be shortened ( Claim 4). Therefore, attenuation of light in the optical fiber can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a use state of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the inside of a scanner used here in a see-through manner;

FIG. 3 is a side view showing the arrangement of the main part.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a line sensor driving unit.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a main part.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an arrangement of optical sensors.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an optical sensor and an image projection range.

[Explanation of symbols]

 26 Microfilm 52 Light source unit 54 Lamp 100,102 Optical fiber holding block 104,106 Optical fiber 108 Optical sensor 110 Binarization unit 112 Judgment unit 114 Sensor selection unit 116 Search unit A Image projection range

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A method according to claim 1, wherein the presence or absence of a frame is determined based on a change in density in a running direction of the microfilm, and a target frame is searched.
In a microfilm search device that outputs an enlarged projection image of the target frame, a pair or a plurality of pairs of optical fibers whose end surfaces face each other across the microfilm within the width of the traveling locus of the frame, and one end of which faces one side surface of the film A light source for guiding light to one optical fiber, an optical sensor for detecting the amount of light incident on the other optical fiber facing the other side of the film, and a binarization for binarizing a density signal output from the optical sensor Unit, a determination unit that determines the presence or absence of a frame based on the binarized signal and outputs a determination signal, and a search unit that searches for a frame based on the determination signal, wherein a frame detection position by the optical fiber is provided. A microfilm retrieving device, wherein the image is shifted from the image projection range on the film in the length direction of the film. 2. The microfilm search device according to claim 1, wherein the light source for guiding the light to one of the optical fibers is also used as a light source for image projection. 3. The optical fiber according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of end faces of the optical fibers face each other with the film interposed therebetween, and the other ends of the plurality of optical fibers having one ends facing one side face of the film are converged to face a light source for image projection. 2. Microfilm search device. 4. The microfilm search device according to claim 2, wherein an end face of one of the optical fibers into which light is introduced from the light source faces a light source side surface of the film.