Patent · US Active

Optical scanning device and image forming apparatus

US8179580B2 · kind B2 · utility

2Cited by
2References
20Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateMay 12, 2011
Grant dateMay 15, 2012
Priority date
Expiry dateMay 12, 2031

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG02F1/29
  • WIPO fieldOptics
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

An optical scanning device includes a light source; a scanning unit to deflect/scan a laser beam from the light source; an imaging optical system to focus the deflected and scanned laser beam to a scan-target surface; an electro-optic element to electrically change a refractive index thereof; a controller to control the refractive index of the electro-optic element to adjust deflection amount of the laser beam; and a positional shift detecting unit, disposed away from the light path, to detect a positional shift of the incident laser beam from an ideal position in a sub-scanning direction. The device further includes a beam splitting element, and the controller adjusts a deflection amount of the laser beam from the electro-optic element based on a detection result by the positional shift detecting unit and corrects a positional shift in the sub-scanning direction of the laser beam on the scan-target surface.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.