Patent ID: 7222932
Filing Date: 2007-05-29
Classification: H04N

Abstract:
1. A printer having a medium loading chamber that houses a recording medium on which a latent image is formed by exposure and made visible by development, in which an image is recorded on the recording medium in the medium loading chamber by forming a latent image on the recording medium by exposure based on image data and developing the latent image, comprising: an image data acquisition section that externally acquires first image data; an exposure head that performs exposure of the recording medium in the medium loading chamber based on second image data to form the latent image on the recording medium; a developing section that develops the latent image formed by the exposure head; a temperature sensor that measures a temperature at the time when the printer is turned on, a temperature estimation section that has a plurality of pieces of temperature estimation information prepared for temperatures measured by the temperature sensor, the temperature estimation information being used for determining an estimated value of the temperature of the exposure head from the elapsed time after the turn-on, and determines an estimated value of the temperature of the exposure head depending on the elapsed time from the turn-on to the exposure based on temperature estimation information associated with the temperature measured by the temperature sensor at the time of turn-on; and image data conversion section that has a plurality of pieces of image data conversion information prepared for temperatures to compensate a variation of the quantity of exposure light applied to the recording medium due to a variation of the temperature of the exposure head and converts the first image data to the second image data based on image data conversion information associated with the estimated temperature value determined by the temperature estimation section.