Patent ID: 6728010
Filing Date: 2004-04-27
Classification: H04N

Abstract:
An image reader comprising:a holding glass to hold an object to be read, the holding glass being a rectangular, plate-like, flat plate having two pairs of sides that intersect each other at right angles; an illuminating unit, including a tube-like lamp and provided in parallel with one of the two pairs of sides of the holding glass to emit a light and illuminate an area having a given range on the holding glass; and a reflector, provided along the lamp of the illuminating unit, to receive the light from the illuminating unit and reflect the light toward an irradiation range from a direction opposite to a direction of the light emitted from the illuminating unit in order to irradiate the holding glass, the reflector being a flat member which is folded once in a direction parallel with the one of the two pairs of sides of the holding glass, to have a first reflection plane and a second reflection plane, an angle between the first reflection plane and a center of irradiation on the holding glass being smaller than that between the second reflection plane and the center of irradiation on the holding glass, the first reflection plane of the reflector being located such that the angle between the first reflection plane and the center of irradiation on the holding glass ranges from 22.5Â° to 26.5Â°, and the second reflection plane of the reflector being located such that an angle between the second reflection plane and the center of irradiation on the holding glass ranges from 33Â° to 37.5Â°; a converging lens to converge the light reflected by the object on the holding glass illuminated by the illuminating unit and the reflector; and a CCD sensor to receive the light focused by the focusing lens and outputting an electrical signal corresponding to the received light.