Abstract:
An apparatus and method relating to the print quality of a high speed package printer that produces photographs of varying size from film negatives. The high speed package printer includes a diffusion plate and a diffusion plate cleaner, and a film cleaner to remove dust and unwanted particles from the diffusion plate and film, thereby increasing the quality of prints from the printer. The apparatus increases print quality by having a plate that diffuses light from a light source shining on the photographic paper, and by automatically cleaning the diffusion plate with a brush during the time between exposures and while the photographic paper and photographic film are advancing. The apparatus also increases print quality with a film cleaning arrangement that includes applying an electrostatic charge to the film, brushing the surface of the film, vacuuming the surface of the film and using sticky rollers to remove any dust or other particles during the advancement of the film to the light source and during the time between exposures.

Description:
This is a Divisional of application Ser. No. 08/931,580, filed on Sep. 16, 1997 now U.S. Pat. No. 5,949,523. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     I. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates generally to a printer for selectively projecting photographic images onto a projection plane containing photographic paper. More particularly, the present invention relates to a high speed photographic package printer for producing a plurality of different sets or packages of photographs based on one or more negatives, wherein the improved package printer boasts an automatic paper-loading feature, dynamically controlled paper-slack loops, off-center printing, a rotational prism for creating 10″×13″ photographs, a 13-UP lens assembly including 12 wallet lenses and a single 5″×7″ retro-focus lens, an automatic diffusion plate cleaner, an improved dichroic lamp filtering arrangement, a focal plane shutter, bi-directional film movement, an improved film cleaner, and improved masking. 
     II. Discussion of the Prior Art 
     Photographic package printers have experienced proliferated use and widespread popularity due to their ability to generate custom made photographic packages consisting of selected photographs of varying size, shape, and style based on one or more negatives. Photographic package printers accomplish this by providing a lamphouse from which a beam of light is directed through photographic film onto a projection plane containing photographic paper for producing a print. In order to vary the shape and size of the particular prints, package printers are equipped with a plurality of movable lenses having varying magnification ratios so as to create a wide variety of exposures upon the photographic paper. By way of example and not limitation, package printers are commonly employed for processing the exposed photographic film from annual school photography sessions wherein each student within the school or class is photographed in any number of different poses using one or a plurality of different backdrops. The student may thereafter choose from among the various proofs generated during the photography session to order a custom package containing any number of different size or style photographs, such as wallet-size, 5″×7,″8″×10,″ and 10″×13″ photographs. However, the package printers of the prior art suffer from several substantial drawbacks both in terms of the speed of operation and print quality. 
     With specific regard to the speed of operation, the prior art package printers have several time limiting features which collectively restrict the ability of the package printers to operate at high speeds. One such drawback is that the prior art package printers typically require considerable time and energy to load the paper into the paper deck for subsequent exposure. Although several attempts have been made to automate the paper loading process, these efforts fail to provide a reliable means for guiding the paper during the loading stage such that significant system down time may be experienced to rectify the situation and reload the paper. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,181,066 to Ozawa et al. discloses a paper transporting device for a photographic printer which utilizes retractable bridge members to support the paper during the loading stage, a first pair of drive rollers for drawing the paper into the printer, and a second pair of drive rollers for propelling the paper to a processing section of the printer. U.S. Pat. No. 5,107,296 to Ozawa et al. discloses the use of retractable bridge members for controlling the transportation of the paper between a paper supply cartridge and a processing section. U.S. Pat. No. 4,961,093 also employs retractable bridge members so as to facilitate the loading of paper from a paper supply magazine into exposure apparatus and further to a take-up magazine. U.S. Pat. No. 4,655,583 to Kitai entails maintaining the traveling path of the photographic paper from a supply cartridge to nipping rollers in a straight manner by adjusting the height of an inner frame via elevator means. U.S. Pat. No. 4,566,784 to Nitsch discloses an apparatus for threading a new roll of paper into a photographic copier, comprising a retractable flap which, when disposed in the operative (guiding) position parallel to the paper, forms a passageway for threading the new roll of paper into the photographic copier. However, although the improvements offered in these references provide benefits over manual paper loading, their teachings are nonetheless flawed in that they merely provide guidance along a single surface of the paper, thereby allowing the paper to buckle and become fouled up during the loading process. 
     Another time limiting feature of the prior art package printers relates to the paper slack loops associated with the drive motors used to load and advance the photographic paper. Paper slack loops are essentially reservoirs containing a length of photographic paper which allows the paper to be advanced quickly into and out of an exposure area within the paper deck by factoring out the inertia of the paper supply spool. U.S. Pat. No. 5,181,066 to Ozawa et al. discloses a pair of loop sensors associated with each paper slack loop for detecting when the particular loop has exceeded a predetermined threshold. U.S. Pat. No. 5,107,296 to Ozawa et al. discloses a loop sensor for detecting a predetermined length of a first loop. U.S. Pat. No. 4,961,093 to Hicks also discloses the use of a pair of sensors for detecting when each particular paper slack loop exceeds a predetermined length. U.S. Pat. No. 5,159,385 to Imamura discloses a photo-lab system having a plurality of loop sensors for controlling the length of the paper within the respective paper loop reservoirs. The paper slack loop sensing arrangements within the above-identified references, however, are flawed in that they are not capable of detecting the actual length of the paper within each respective paper loop reservoirs but rather are merely capable of determining whether the particular paper loops have exceeded a predetermined limit or range. This is disadvantageous in terms of responsiveness in that a lag time exists between the instance that the sensors detect that the paper has exceeded the predetermined threshold and the time that the drive motors are activated to advance the paper, thereby limiting the overall speed at which the package printer can operate. 
     Another drawback stems from the manner in which 10″×13″ photographs are generated in prior art package printers. The traditional method for generating 10″×13″ photographs in package printers is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,162,843 to Clapp, wherein the photographic negative is physically rotated within the film deck in order to project a 10″×13″ image on the 10″ wide paper. Although effective at producing the 10″×13″ photographs, this technique is particularly disadvantageous in that the mechanical turrets employed to rotate the negative are extremely bulky and heavy. The attendant bulk of the mechanical turret consumes a substantial amount of valuable space within the package printer, while the exorbitant weight limits the speed at which the negative can be rotated and causes substantial vibrations within the package printer which require lengthy settling time. The settling time and rotation time are additive such that the overall amount of time required to generate a 10″×13″ photograph is quite lengthy. Moreover, the mechanical turret can only support a limited amount of photographic film such that the film must be reloaded quite often. This increases the overall down time for the printer which, it will be appreciated, restricts the speed and throughput of these package printers. The mechanical turrets are also flawed in that the bearings are prone to wear out and become damaged through repeated rotation which, once again, leads to increased system down time for repair. 
     Another significant flaw in the prior art package printers is that they print on-center, that is, the negative is co-aligned with the approximate center of the photographic paper such that the image-bearing light projects in a directly vertical fashion from the negative to the approximate center of the photographic paper. U.S. Pat. No. 5,162,843 to Clapp, for example, discloses one such package printer which employs on-center printing. The main disadvantage of on-center printing is that it requires an extra step of advancing the photographic paper for the purpose of creating marking notches in the paper to indicate the end of each exposure and the end of each entire photographic session. Marking the paper in this fashion aids in the photograph development process in that the processing equipment can be equipped to interpret the various notches in order to automatically process, sort, and package the particular photographs within each photographic session. In order to properly mark each exposure and/or photographic session, the marking notches are preferably placed at or near the leading edge of each photographic exposure on the paper such that the processing components can accurately detect their occurrence. Typically, the marking notches are created through the use of one or more actuating cylinders disposed off-center to the negative. In that the printing is on-center, i.e. directly above the negative, the paper must be advanced after each exposure to accomplish the desired marking before advancing further to avail the next unexposed portion of paper. This is disadvantageous in that the paper must be stopped prior to performing the aforementioned marking process. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the extra step of stopping to conduct punching activities consumes a substantial amount of valuable time. 
     Still other drawbacks with prior art package printers relate to the task of producing a plurality of differently sized photographs with a single exposure. More specifically, problems result due to the fact that this task is typically accomplished by situating a plurality of lenses having a variety of different magnification ratios on a single assembly within the lens deck. Each particular lens on the assembly has a corresponding focal point which requires the lens to be positioned a predetermined distance from the projection plane in order to produce the desired image on the photographic paper. Thus, each lens has a specific vertical height on the assembly which, in turn, causes the moment of inertia of the assembly to be far removed from the center of gravity of the assembly. This is disadvantageous in that removing the moment of inertia from the center of gravity causes the assembly to experience rocking during movement back and forth within the lens deck, thereby increasing the settling time between exposures. Still a further drawback with producing multiple images with a single exposure is that the ray traces from the various lenses tend to intersect if the number of lenses becomes too concentrated on the assembly. The intersection of ray traces is problematic in that it produces fouled or imperfect images on the photographic paper. 
     A still further drawback with the package printers of the prior art relates to the ability of the film to be translated during the operation of the package printer. To be more specific, the film within the package printers of the prior art are simply unidirectional, i.e. the film can only progress from the film supply spool to the film take-up spool. In this arrangement, then, the number of different composites which can be formed is very limited in that the various negatives cannot be switched back and forth into position over the lamp house. This effectively limits the range of possible composite photographs which can be accomplished with the package printers of the prior art. In order to overcome this deficiency, separate printers are specifically employed to create composite photographs using a plurality of different negatives. This is disadvantageous, however, in that the package printer and the composite printer will have different color emulsions and, therefore, resulting composites will not share the same color as the prints generated by the package printer. The need for a separate composite printer is also disadvantageous in terms of the time required to perform the custom printing and, moreover, the film and/or paper is subject to an increased risk of damage during the transportation to and from the composite printer. 
     Yet another drawback with the prior art package printers stems from the fact that the shutter assemblies are disposed above the focal plane. Positioning the shutter above the focal plane is problematic in that it requires a relatively large shutter opening and, therefore, a relatively large assembly to carry the shutter within the printer. The increased mass of the shutter assembly translates into decreased speed of operation in that there is more mass to move back and forth to effectuate a shutter operation. The increased mass of the shutter assembly also translates into increased settling time between shutter operations, thereby adversely affecting the reliability and operating speed of the package printer. Still another problem with positioning the shutter assembly above the focal plane is that interference may result between the shutter assembly and the lower lens assemblies within the lens deck. 
     Still another time limiting drawback with the package printers of the prior art pertains to the amount of energy consumed by the individual bulbs within the lamp house. To be more specific, the lamp house typically requires combining red, yellow, and green light in specific fashion to ensure for the proper exposure of the photographic paper. To accomplish this, the manufacturers of the lamp houses typically provide multiple (3 or 4) separate white light bulbs with each bulb equipped with a red, yellow, or green filter for creating the colored light. However, red is the predominant color required when creating the exposures on the photographic film and, as such, the underlying light bulb associated with the red filter is typically operated at a higher power than the light bulbs associated with the yellow and green filters. This presents a drawback in that each light bulb associated with a red filter will burn out at a higher frequency than the light bulbs used with the yellow and green filters due to the relatively large amount of power consumed by the red filtered light bulb, thereby increasing the amount of system down time when the burned out bulbs must be replaced. 
     Still other drawbacks exist in the prior art package printers with respect to print quality. First, the prior art package printers typically do not provide sufficient cleaning means for minimizing the amount of lint, dust, and other airborne contaminants from the surface of the film. For example, a typical film cleaning arrangement entails providing a pair of sticky rollers on the upstream or supply side of the photographic film in an effort to prepare the film for processing. However, such an arrangement is ineffective in eliminating all of the dust and related undesirables from the film so that the photographs may be marred or flawed. In the instance that such dust particles results on the film, it could translate into the ruination of an entire sitting which, as can be appreciated, results in lost profits due to wastefulness. At the very least, it will require manual touching up which, once again, adds to the overall time to create the photographs within each requested package. 
     Drawbacks also exist in the prior art package printers with regard to their ability to clean the diffusion plates used to equalize the light from the lamp house. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,181,066 to Ozawa et al. discloses a diffusion plate for diffusing and equalizing the light passing through the filter assembly of the light source wherein the diffusion plate must be cleaned manually between a predetermined number of sittings. This is flawed in that lint, dust, and other similar particles may come to rest on the diffusion plates such that spotted imperfections form on all the photographs being processed. This can be particularly damaging if the “floaters” are not discovered until after the processing of the exposed paper such that a large portion of the exposures must be repeated, consuming a substantial amount of system down time and resulting in large amounts of scrap and waste. 
     Yet another flaw in print quality resides in the masking used to crop the image bearing light beam to produce sharply delineated borders. U.S. Pat. No. 5,181,066 to Ozawa et al. discloses a variable mask including a length adjusting mask for adjusting the length of the exposure frame according to the print size, and a width adjusting mask for adjusting the width of the exposure frame according to the paper size and any border required in the print to be made. U.S. Pat. No. 5,287,141 to Yoshikawa also discloses a variable mask in an exposure room which masks the photographic paper in accordance with the particular print size. In similar fashion, U.S. Pat. No. 4,655,583 to Kitai discloses a trimming mask frame provided in conjunction with a press pan. However, these arrangements are incapable of adequately cropping the image bearing light beam to produce a well defined print border. 
     In light of the foregoing, therefore, a need exists for an improved high speed package printer which is capable of loading the photographic paper in an automatic fashion such that the paper will not be subject to buckling or become fouled in the paper transportation path. The improved high speed package printer should be capable of dynamically measuring the paper slack loops to ensure for the smooth and efficient operation of the paper drive motors. A need also exists for eliminating the need to advance the paper after each exposure to punch the paper at the leading edge of each exposure. The improved high speed package printer should also allow 10″×13″ photographs to be taken without the need for a rotating turret and should be capable of generating 12 wallet sized photographs and a single 5″×7″ photograph with a single exposure. The improved package printer should furthermore be capable of producing folio photographs comprising four different 4″×5″ photographic images, as well as automatically removing all dust particles and “floaters” from the diffusion plate so as to improve print quality. The improved high speed package printer should also be equipped with an improved lamp house filtering arrangement which reduces the degree to which the light bulbs associated with the red filter burn out so as to minimize system down time. The improved high speed package printer should also have an improved film cleaning arrangement for minimizing the amount of dust and related which are able to settle on the film, thereby reducing the amount of scrap and the amount of manual touching up required to salvage the marred photographs. The package printer should furthermore have an improved negative cropping arrangement for producing a sharply delineated print border. Lastly, the improved high speed package printer should have bi-directional film movement so as to increase the range of possibilities with respect to the various photographs included within a particular composite photograph. 
     OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide an improved package printer which is capable of operating at high speed. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved high speed package printer which is capable of loading the photographic paper in an automatic fashion without having the paper buckle or become fouled up during loading. 
     It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an improved high speed package printer capable of dynamically measuring the paper slack loops so that the paper drive motors can quickly and efficiency advance the paper within the paper deck. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved package printer which does not require the paper to be advanced after each exposure to punch the paper at the leading edge of each exposure. 
     It is still another object of the present invention to provide an improved high speed package printer having the ability to produce 10″×13″ photographs without the need for a rotating turret and the ability to produce 12 wallet sized photographs and a single 5″×7″ photograph with a single exposure. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved package printer capable of producing folio photographs comprising four different 4″×5″ photographic images. 
     It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an improved package printer which is capable of automatically removing all dust particles and “floaters” from the diffusion plate, thereby reducing the need to repeat tainted sittings and reducing the overall amount of scrap and waste. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved high speed package printer with an improved lamp house filtering arrangement for equalizing the power at which each light bulb is operated at so as to cause each bulb to burn out at approximately the same time, thereby allowing all the bulbs to be changed at the same time so as to minimize system down time. 
     It is still further object of the present invention to provide an improved film cleaning arrangement for minimizing the amount of dust and related which are able to settle on the film, thereby reducing the amount of scrap and the amount of manual touch-up required to salvage photographs marred by such impurities. 
     It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide an improved package printer having an improved negative cropping arrangement for producing a sharply delineated print border. 
     It is still further object of the present invention to provide an improved package printer having an improved shutter assembly which is below the focal plane so as to decrease the size of the shutter assembly and increase shutter speed and system reliability. 
     It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an improved high speed package printer having bi-directional film movement so as to increase the range of possibilities with respect to the various photographs included within a particular composite photograph. 
     In accordance with a broad aspect of the present invention, the foregoing objectives are attained by providing an improved photographic package printer, comprising a paper deck, a film assembly, light projection means, and a lens deck. The paper deck has a supply of photographic paper, an exposure aperture, and means for selectively positioning unexposed portions of the photographic paper over the exposure aperture. The film assembly has a supply of photographic film, a negative aperture, and bi-directional film transportation means for selectively positioning one of a plurality of film negatives within the negative aperture. The light projection means is disposed proximate to the film assembly for selectively projecting light through the film negative disposed within the negative aperture to produce image-bearing light projecting toward the exposure aperture of the paper deck. The lens deck is disposed in between the paper deck and the film assembly. The lens deck includes a plurality of selectively positionable projection assemblies for magnifying the image-bearing light and projecting magnified image-bearing light onto the photographic paper within the exposure aperture. The lens deck also includes selectively positionable masking means for selectively blocking out portions of the magnified image-bearing light. The plurality of selectively positionable projection assemblies include optical rotation means for optically rotating the image-bearing light ninety degrees to project a 10″×13″ photographic image on the paper within the exposure aperture. 
     In accordance with a still further broad aspect of the present invention, the aforementioned objects are attained by providing a high speed photographic package printer, comprising a paper supply cartridge, a printing assembly, and a paper take-up cartridge. The paper supply cartridge has a supply of unexposed photographic paper. The printing assembly has a paper deck, a film deck, a lamp deck, and a lens deck. The paper deck is coupled to the paper supply cartridge for selectively positioning portions of the unexposed photographic paper within an exposure aperture. The film deck includes a plurality of photographic negatives and bi-directional film transportation means for selectively positioning one of the plurality of photographic negatives within a negative aperture. The lamp deck is disposed proximate the film deck for selectively projecting light through the negative aperture to produce image-bearing light projecting toward an approximate center of the exposure aperture. The lens deck is disposed between the film deck and the paper deck and has selectively positionable projection means for projecting magnified image-bearing light onto the unexposed photographic paper within the exposure aperture in an off-center fashion relative to the negative aperture and selectively positionable masking means for blocking out selected portions of the magnified image-bearing light. The paper take-up cartridge is coupled to the paper deck of the printing assembly for receiving exposed photographic paper from the exposure aperture. The off-center printing facilitates marking the photographic paper within the exposure aperture during exposure by the magnified image-bearing light and the bi-directional film transportation means cooperates with the selectively positionable masking means to produce composite photographs based on a plurality of different negatives. 
     In yet another broad aspect of the present invention, a method is set forth for providing a photographic package printer, comprising the steps of: (a) providing an improved paper deck having paper transportation means for selectively transporting photographic paper over an exposure aperture, means for automatically loading the photographic paper, and means for dynamically measuring a length of paper slack loops formed within the paper deck to facilitate advancing the paper; (b) providing an improved film deck having a supply of photographic film, bi-directional film transportation means for selectively transporting said photographic film back and forth over a negative aperture, and film cleaning means for automatically removing impurities from the film during transportation by the bi-directional film transportation means; (c) providing an improved lamp deck proximate the film deck for projecting light through the negative aperture to form image-bearing light, the lamp deck including a plurality of lamp assemblies cooperatively operable with a power supply and filter means for balancing the light such that the power supply can power each of the plurality of lamp assemblies at approximately the same level; and (d) providing an improved lens deck disposed between the film deck and the paper deck having a plurality of projection assemblies for selectively magnifying the image-bearing light to produce magnified image-bearing light which projects off-center from the negative aperture onto the photographic paper within the exposure aperture of the paper deck, masking means for selectively blocking out portions of the magnified image-bearing light, and motor means for selectively positioning the masking means and the plurality of projection assemblies to produce photographic packages including composite prints and 10″×13″ prints. 
     In accordance with yet another broad aspect of the present invention, an improved paper deck is provided within a photographic package printer, comprising an exposure aperture, means for transporting photographic paper to and from the exposure aperture, and means for automatically loading the photographic paper within the paper deck. The means for automatically loading includes first means for selectively maintaining the photographic paper in a substantially straight paper path during transportation to and from the exposure aperture and second means for selectively maintaining the photographic paper in a substantially straight paper path during transportation over the exposure aperture. The first means for selectively maintaining includes upper paper guide means for guiding an upper surface of the photographic paper during transportation to and from the exposure aperture and lower paper guide means for selectively guiding a lower surface of the photographic paper during transportation to and from the exposure aperture. The second means for selectively maintaining includes upper paper guide means for guiding the upper surface of the photographic paper during transportation over the exposure aperture and lower paper guide means for selectively guiding the lower surface of the photographic paper during transportation over the exposure aperture. 
     In accordance with another broad aspect of the present invention, an apparatus is provided for improving the print quality of a photographic printer comprising diffusion means for equalizing light emitted from a light source, and means for automatically cleaning the diffusion means so as to periodically remove dust and other unwanted particles from the diffusion means. 
     In still another broad aspect of the present invention, a method is provided for automatically cleaning a diffusion plate of a photographic printer, comprising the steps of: (a) providing a brush member in association with the diffusion plate; and (b) selectively engaging the brush member and the diffusion plate so as to remove dust and other unwanted particles from the diffusion plate. 
     In accordance with yet another broad aspect of the present invention, a system is provided for improving the print quality of a photographic package printer, wherein the printer has a supply of photographic film and means for selectively advancing the photographic film over a light source. The system includes an electrostatic charging means provided for applying an electrostatic charge to the film, brush means for brushing a surface of the film, and vacuum means for creating an air suction force away from a surface of the film. The electrostatic charging means cooperates with the brush means and the vacuum means to remove dust and other particles from the film during the advancement of the film to the light source. 
     In accordance with a still further broad aspect of the present invention, a film cleaning assembly is provided for use in a photographic package printer. The film cleaning assembly comprises vacuum means for creating an air current which draws dust and related impurities away from the photographic film within the photographic package printer during transportation to a light source, electrostatic charging means for applying an electrostatic charge to the photographic film, and brush means disposed in between the electrostatic charging means and the light source for removing dust and related impurities from the photographic film during transportation to the light source. 
     In accordance with yet anther broad aspect of the present invention, a method is disclosed for automatically cleaning a supply of photographic film during transportation within a photographic printer, comprising: (a) applying an electrostatic charge to the film during transportation to repel dust and other foreign impurities from top and bottom surfaces of the film; (b) brushing the photographic film during transportation to remove the dust and other foreign impurities therefrom; and (c) vacuuming the dust and other foreign impurities from the film during transportation. 
     In another important aspect of the present invention, an apparatus is provided for selectively cropping light passing through a photographic negative in a photographic printer, wherein the apparatus comprises means for selectively positioning one of a plurality of negative cropping apertures within the light projecting between a photographic light source and the photographic negative. 
     In yet a further broad aspect of the present invention, a system is provided for selectively forming light passing from a photographic light source to a photographic negative in a photographic printer. The system includes cropping means having a plurality of apertures formed therein. The cropping means are slidably disposed between the photographic light source and the photographic negative. Also provided are translation means coupled to the cropping means for selectively translating the cropping means within the light passing from the photographic light source to the photographic negative. The translation means can be selectively operated to position one of the plurality of apertures of the cropping means within the light passing from the photographic light source to the photographic negative to produce a photograph having a predetermined border configuration. 
     In yet another important aspect of the present invention, a method is provided for selectively cropping light within a photographic printer to provide photographs having a plurality of different border configurations, comprising the steps of: (a) providing cropping means having a plurality of apertures formed therein; (b) positioning the cropping means in between a photographic light source and a photographic negative within the photographic printer; and (c) selectively translating the cropping means so as to position one of the plurality of apertures within light projecting from the photographic light source to the photographic negative. 
     In still a further broad aspect of the present invention, an apparatus is provided for optically rotating image-bearing light within a photographic printer approximately ninety degrees for projection onto photographic paper. The apparatus comprises first prism means, second prism means, third prism means, and magnification means. The first prism means is positioned to receive the image-bearing light from a photographic negative, the second prism means is positioned to receive the image-bearing light from the first prism means, and the third prism means is positioned to receive the image-bearing light from the second prism means. The first, second, and third prism means cooperate to optically rotate the image-bearing light approximately ninety degrees while maintaining the proper orientation of the image-bearing light as it projects upwardly from the photographic negative. The magnification means are provided for magnifying the rotated image-bearing light from the first, second, and third prism means to produce a photographic image on the photographic paper having a predetermined size. 
     In yet another important aspect of the present invention, a rotational prism assembly is provided for use in a photographic printer comprising a first prism member, a second prism member, and a third prism member. The first prism member has a light inlet surface, a light outlet surface disposed generally perpendicular to the light inlet surface, and an angular surface extending between the light inlet surface and the light outlet surface. The second prism member has a light inlet surface disposed generally parallel to the light outlet surface of the first prism member, a light outlet surface disposed generally perpendicular to the light inlet surface of the second prism member, and an angular surface extending between the light inlet and light outlet surfaces of the second prism member. The third prism member has a light inlet surface disposed generally parallel to the light outlet surface of the second prism member, a light outlet surface disposed generally perpendicular to the light inlet surface of the third prism member, and an angular surface extending between the light inlet and light outlet surfaces of the third prism member. The first, second, and third prism members cooperate to optically rotate image-bearing light projecting from a photographic negative approximately ninety degrees so as to produce a photographic image on photographic paper which is rotated approximately ninety degrees from the photographic negative while in the same orientation of as on the photographic negative. 
     In another broad aspect of the present invention, a method is provided for optically rotating image-bearing light within a photographic printer, comprising the steps of: (a) providing first prism means, second prism means, and third prism means for optically rotating the image-bearing light from a photographic negative approximately ninety degrees; (b) providing magnification means associated with the first, second, and third prism means for magnifying the image-bearing light to produce a photographic image on photographic paper having a predetermined size; and (c) positioning the first prism means within said image-bearing light such that the first prism means cooperates with the second and third prism means to optically rotate the image-bearing light approximately ninety degrees prior to projection on the photographic paper. 
     In still a further important aspect of the present invention, an improved lens assembly is provided for use in a photographic printer. The lens assembly comprises a first plurality of lenses, a second plurality of lenses, lens means, and transportation means. The first plurality of lenses are provided for producing wallet sized photographic images on photographic paper within an exposure aperture of the photographic printer. The second plurality of lenses are provided for producing sub-wallet sized photographic images of the photographic paper within the exposure aperture of the photographic printer. The lens means is provided for producing a photographic image approximately 5″×7″ in size on the photographic paper within the exposure aperture of the photographic printer. The transportation means is provided for selectively transporting the first and second plurality of lenses and the lens means within the photographic printer. The transportation means can be selectively employed to position the first and second plurality of lenses and the lens means within image-bearing light projecting from a photographic negative to produce a plurality of wallet sized photographic images, a plurality of sub-wallet sized photographic images, and a 5″×7″ photographic image on the photographic paper within the exposure aperture of the photographic printer with a single exposure of the photographic negative. 
     In still a further broad aspect of the present invention, in a photographic package printer, an improved lens assembly is provided comprising a 5″×7″ lens assembly, a plurality of wallet lenses, a plurality of sub-wallet lenses, and selectively positionable support means. The plurality of wallet lenses are disposed adjacent to the 5″×7″ lens assembly. The plurality of sub-wallet lenses are disposed adjacent to the 5″×7″ lens assembly. The selectively positionable support means are provided for selectively positioning the 5″×7″ lens assembly, the plurality of wallet lenses, and the plurality of sub-wallet lenses within image-bearing light projecting from a photographic negative to produce a 5″×7″ photograph, a plurality of wallet sized photographs, and a plurality of sub-wallet sized photographs with a single exposure of the photographic negative. 
     In yet another broad aspect of the present invention, a system is provided for producing composite photographs within a photographic package printer. The system comprises composite lens means, means for selectively positioning the composite lens means, selectively positionable masking means, and bi-directional film transportation means. The composite lens means is provided for magnifying image-bearing light from a photographic negative to produce a plurality of magnified image-bearing light beams projecting toward photographic paper within an exposure aperture. The means for selectively positioning is provided for selectively positioning the composite lens means within the image-bearing light to produce the plurality of magnified image-bearing light beams. The selectively positionable masking means are disposed between the composite lens means and the photographic paper within the exposure aperture for selectively blocking out at least one of the plurality of magnified image-bearing light beams extending from the composite lens means. The bi-directional film transportation means are provided for selectively positioning one of a plurality of photographic negatives within a negative aperture to produce the image-bearing light. The bi-directional film transportation means cooperates with the masking means and the composite lens means to produce a composite photograph on the photographic paper within the exposure aperture comprising a plurality of individual photographic images where at least two of the plurality of individual photographic images are based on different photographic negatives. 
     In still another broad aspect of the present invention, a system is provided for equalizing the operation level of each of a plurality of additive light bulbs within a photographic lamphouse. The system comprises filtering means associated with each of the plurality of additive light bulbs for balancing the color of the light being emitted from each of the plurality of additive light bulbs such that each of the plurality of additive light bulbs may be powered at the same approximate level. 
     These and further objects and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art from a review of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and appended claims. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a side view of a high speed package printer  10  of the present invention with the covers removed to display the working parts; 
     FIG. 2 is an enlarged side view of the paper deck  46  during normal operation; 
     FIG. 3 is a top view of the paper deck  46  as shown in FIG. 2; 
     FIG. 4 is an enlarged side view of the paper deck  46  illustrating an automatic paper loading feature of the present invention; 
     FIG. 5 is a top view of the paper deck  46  as shown in FIG. 4; 
     FIG. 6 is an enlarged view illustrating the light-tight coupling between the paper deck  46  and the paper take-up cartridge  14 ; 
     FIG. 7 is an enlarged side view of the film deck  48  of the present invention; 
     FIG. 8 is a top view of the film deck  48  as shown in FIG. 7; 
     FIGS. 9A is an enlarged side view of the automatic film cleaning assembly  182  of the present invention; 
     FIG. 9B is an end view of the automatic film cleaning assembly  182  as shown in FIG. 9A; 
     FIG. 9C is a top view of the automatic film cleaning assembly  182  as shown in  9 A; 
     FIG. 10 is an enlarged side view of the improved negative cropping assembly  268  of the present invention; 
     FIG. 11 is a top view of the improved negative cropping assembly  268  as shown in FIG. 10; 
     FIG. 12 is an enlarged top view of the diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284  of a first preferred embodiment of the present invention during normal operation; 
     FIG. 13 is an enlarge top view of the diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284  shown in FIG. 12 during a cleaning operation; 
     FIG. 14 is a cross sectional view of the diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284  shown in FIG. 12 taken along lines  14 — 14 ; 
     FIG. 15 is an enlarged top view of a diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284 ′ of a second preferred embodiment of the present invention during normal operation; 
     FIG. 16 is an enlarged top view of the diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284 ′ shown in FIG. 15 following a cleaning operation; 
     FIG. 17 is a cross sectional view of the diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284 ′ shown in FIG. 15 taken along lines  17 — 17 ; 
     FIG. 18 is an enlarged side view of the lens deck  52  provided in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 19A is a top elevational view of a first projection assembly  314  within the lens deck  52  having a rotational prism assembly  356  for producing 10″×13″ photographs and a lens unit  358  for producing 8″×10″ photographs; 
     FIG. 19B is a side view of the first projection assembly  314  shown in FIG. 19A; 
     FIG. 19C is a front view of the first projection assembly  314  shown in FIG. 19A; 
     FIG. 19D is a cross-sectional view of the rotational prism assembly  356  taken along lines  19 D— 19 D in FIG. 19B; 
     FIG. 19E is a cross-sectional view of the rotational prism assembly  356  taken along lines  19 E— 19 E in FIG. 19D; 
     FIG. 20 is a perspective view of the various prism assemblies and lens assemblies within the rotational prism assembly  356  shown generally in FIGS. 19A-19E; 
     FIG. 21A is a top elevational view of a second projection assembly  316  within the lens deck  52  including a quint lens assembly  432  for producing composite photographs having five different photographic images and a quad lens assembly  434  for producing composite photographs having four different photographic images; 
     FIG. 21B is a side view of the second projection assembly  316  shown in FIG. 21A; 
     FIG. 22A is a top elevational view of a third projection assembly  318  within the lens deck  52  having a 13UP lens assembly  514  for generating a 5″×7″ photograph, nine wallet size photographs, and three sub-wallet size photographs with the exposure of a single negative; 
     FIG. 22B is a side elevational view of the third projection assembly  318  shown in FIG. 22A; 
     FIG. 22C is a front elevational view of the third projection assembly  318  shown in FIG. 22A; 
     FIG. 23 is a side view of the various lens members disposed within the lens module  534  shown in FIGS. 22A-22C for producing 5″×7″ photographs; 
     FIG. 24A is a top elevational view of the fourth projection assembly  320  within the lens deck  52  having an 18UP lens assembly  600  for generating eighteen individual photographs with the exposure of a single negative; 
     FIG. 24B is a side elevational view of the fourth projection assembly  320  shown in FIG. 24A; 
     FIG. 25A is a top elevational view of a fifth projection assembly  322  within the lens deck  52  having charm lens assembly  628  for producing three identically sized charm photographs with the exposure of a single negative; 
     FIG. 25B is a side elevational view of the fifth projection assembly  322  shown in FIG.  25 A. 
     FIG. 26A is a perspective view of the lamphouse  51  shown generally in FIG. 1 illustrating an improved filtering arrangement in accordance with one aspect of the present invention; 
     FIG. 26B is a top view of the lamphouse  51  shown in FIG. 26A; 
     FIG. 26C is a cross-sectional view of the lamphouse  51  taken along lines  26 C— 26 C in FIG. 26B; 
     FIG. 26D is a cross-sectional view of the lamphouse  51  taken along lines  26 D— 26 D in FIG. 26B; 
     FIG. 27 is a side view of the high speed package printer  10  in operation while generating a 10″×13″ photograph  714  via optical rotation; 
     FIG. 28 is a side view of the high speed package printer  10  in operation while generating an 8″×10″ photograph  718 ; 
     FIG. 29 is a side view of the high speed package printer  10  in operation while generating a composite photograph  720  comprising five individual photographic images; 
     FIG. 30 is a side view of the high speed package printer  10  in operation while generating a folio-style photograph  732  comprising four individual photographic images; and 
     FIG. 31 is a side view of the high speed package printer  10  in operation while generating a 13UP photograph  742  comprising nine wallet sized photographic images, three sub-wallet sized photographic images, and a single 5″×7″ photographic image. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     FIG. 1 illustrates a high speed package printer  10  constructed in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention with the front covers removed to display the working parts. The improved package printer  10  includes a paper supply cartridge  12 , a paper take-up cartridge  14 , and a high speed printing assembly  16  disposed therebetween. The paper supply cartridge  12  comprises a housing member  18  having a motor-driven supply spool  20  with a length of unexposed photographic paper  22  wound thereon, a first roller  24  for directing the paper  22  up to the top of supply cartridge  12 , and a second roller  26  for directing the paper  22  outwardly toward the printing assembly  16 . The paper  22  is approximately 10 inches wide and the supply spool  20  is capable of holding a length of up to 4,000 feet thereof. The paper take-up cartridge  14  comprises a housing member  28  having a motor-driven take-up spool  30  for receiving approximately 500 feet of paper  22  after it has been exposed within the printing assembly  16 . As will be discussed in detail below, the paper supply cartridge  12  and the paper take-up cartridge  14  are detachably mounted to the printing assembly  16  in light-tight fashion such that the paper passing within the printing assembly  16  and, moreover, such that ambient light cannot invade the interior of either cartridge when disconnected from the printing assembly  16 . Structurally, the printing assembly  16  includes a rigid housing having a top wall member  32 , a bottom wall member  34 , first side wall  36 , a second side wall  38 , a rear wall  40 , an upper partition  42 , and a lower partition  44 . In terms of function, the printing assembly  16  includes a paper deck  46  disposed between the paper supply cartridge  12  and the paper take-up cartridge  14  containing various components for controlling the transportation and exposure of the paper  22  during operation, a film deck  48  disposed proximate the lower partition  44  for controlling the transportation and positioning of photographic film, a lamp deck  50  having a lamphouse  51  for passing light upward through the film deck  48  so as to produce image bearing light, and a lens deck  52  disposed between the film deck  48  and the paper deck  46  having a plurality of selectively positionable lenses for magnifying the image bearing light as it passes from the film deck  48  to the paper deck  46 . 
     By way of overview, the paper deck  46  includes an improved exposure assembly for accurately maintaining the paper  22  in a predetermined projection plane to ensure proper focus, an improved paper-slack loop sensing arrangement for providing high speed paper advancing between the supply cartridge  12  and the take-up cartridge  14 , and an improved paper loading feature for automatically feeding photographic paper  22  from the supply cartridge  12  to the take-up cartridge  14  at start-up. The improvements within the lens deck  52  include a rotational prism for generating 10″×13″ photographs without physically rotating the film, off-center printing for allowing the paper  22  to be punched during the exposure period to decrease paper waste and decrease the amount of time between exposures, penumbra masking for producing photographs with sharply defined borders, composite masking for producing composite photographs comprising a plurality of different photographic images, and a 5″×7″ retro-focus lens for producing a 13UP photograph comprising 9 wallet-size photographs, 3 sub-wallet size photographs, and a single 5″×7″ photograph with a single exposure. The film deck  48  boasts a self-cleaning diffusion plate arrangement for automatically cleaning the diffusion plate after each sitting, an improved film cleaning assembly for ensuring that all potential contaminants are removed from the film prior to exposure, and a plurality of selectively positionable cropper masks disposed between the film and the diffusion plate for defining sharp borders on the image bearing-light which progresses upwardly from the film deck  48 . The lamphouse  51  of the lamp deck  50  has an improved dichroic filtering arrangement for equalizing the level at which each of the additive light bulbs are powered such that all the light bulbs will have a substantially equal life and can therefore be replaced at the same time. 
     Paper Deck 
     With reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, the paper deck  46  is shown during the normal operating mode with the paper  22  forming a first paper slack loop  54  and a second paper slack loop  56 . The paper deck  46  includes a first paper drive unit  58 , an exposure assembly  60 , a second paper drive unit  62 , a third paper drive unit  64 , first and second ultrasonic proximity sensors  66 ,  68 , first and second upper paper guide members  70 ,  72 , and selectively actuable first and second bridge members  74 ,  76 . The first paper slack loop  54  is formed between the first paper drive unit  58  and one end of the exposure assembly  60 , while the second paper slack loop  56  is formed between the second paper drive unit  62  and the third paper drive unit  64 . The first paper drive unit  58  is disposed along the first side wall  36  and includes a wall mount  78 , an outer covering  80  which encloses a driver roller  82 , a pinch roller  84 , and opposed paper feed members  86 ,  88  which direct inwardly traveling paper between the pinch roller  84  and the drive roller  82 . A motor  90  is provided to selectively rotate the drive roller  82  to advance paper inwardly toward the exposure assembly  60 . The third paper drive unit  64  is constructed in much the same fashion as the first paper drive unit  58  so as to prohibit ambient light from penetrating into the interior of the paper deck  46  during operation. The third paper drive unit  64  includes a wall mount  92  and a cover member  94  which encloses a drive roller  96 , an angled paper feed member  98 , and a cutting assembly  100  for automatically cutting the paper  22  when the paper take-up cartridge  14  is to be detached and sent out for processing with the exposed paper  22  disposed therewithin. This automatic paper cutting feature is advantageous in that it eliminates the need to open up the paper deck  46  and/or the paper take-up cartridge  14  to manually cut the paper  22 , thereby reducing any unwanted exposure to ambient light. 
     The exposure assembly  60  includes first and second side walls  102 ,  104  which extend vertically from the upper partition  92  and horizontally from the back wall member  40 , a lower guide plate  106  fixedly attached to the upper edge of the first and second side walls  102 ,  104 , and an upper guide plate  108  disposed in juxtaposed and spaced relationship with the lower guide plate  106  so as to define a paper path therebetween. The lower guide plate  106  has a curved first edge facing the first paper drive unit  58 , an angled second edge facing the second paper drive unit  62 , and an exposure aperture  110  within which an unexposed length of photographic paper  22  is positioned to receive image-bearing light from the lens deck  52  for the purposes of generating photographs. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the exposure aperture  110  is approximately 13 inches in length and 10 inches wide. A hinged mask member  112  is provided in association with a first actuating cylinder  113  for selectively reducing the length of the exposure aperture  110  during operation. A door member  114  is provided in association with a second actuating cylinder  115  to selectively close off the exposure aperture  110  for facilitating the improved paper loading feature of the present invention. The exposure assembly  60  also includes a vacuum platen  116  disposed over the exposure aperture  110  of the lower guide plate  106  for drawing the paper  22  into flush position against the upper guide plate  108  during each exposure period so as to maintain the paper  22  in a consistent projection plane. This is particularly advantageous in that it causes the paper  22  to lie absolutely flat against the upper guide plate  108  so as to eliminate any bends or kinks in the paper  22  which can cause the resulting photographs to be out of focus. To accomplish this suction force, the upper guide plate  108  is provided with a plurality of air holes and the vacuum platen  116  is connected to a vacuum pump  118  via a hose member  120 . 
     The vacuum platen  116  also includes a pair of apertures (not shown) through which a first and a second paper punching actuator  122 ,  124  may be selectively operated to create notches along the either side of the paper  22  proximate the leading edge  126  of the exposure aperture  110 . More specifically, the first paper punching actuator  122  punches a notch along one side of the paper  22  for the purpose of marking the end of each exposure, while the second paper punching actuator  124  punches a notch along the opposite side of the paper  22  for the purpose of marking the end of each photographic session. As will be discussed in greater detail below, the lens assemblies of the lens deck  52  provide for off-center printing such that the first and second hole punching actuators  122 ,  124  can perform the desired marking while the paper  22  is being exposed by the image bearing light from the lens deck  52 . This is advantageous over the prior art package printers which print on-center with the negative in that such on-center printing systems require a separate advancing step after each exposure in order to position the edge of the photograph with the hole punching actuators which are located at the leading edge of the exposure aperture. By performing the marking and the exposures simultaneously, the present invention is able to eliminate the extra advancing step found in the prior art so as to decrease the amount of time between each exposure, thereby increasing the overall speed of the improved printer  10 . 
     The second paper drive unit  62  is the primary driving force when advancing an unexposed portion of the paper  22  into position above the exposure aperture  110  of the exposure assembly  60 . The second paper drive unit  62  includes a drive roller  128 , an optically encoded pinch roller  130 , and a motor  132  for rotating the drive roller  128 . In order to maximize the speed at which the paper  22  may be advanced within the paper deck  46 , the second paper drive unit  62  is communicatively linked with the vacuum pump  118  so as to turn off the suction force to the vacuum platen  116  in between exposures such that the paper  22  may be advanced without any hindrance from the vacuum platen  116 . Moreover, in an important aspect of the present invention, the speed of the paper advance is sharply increased by employing the first and second ultrasonic proximity sensors  66 ,  68  to form the first and second paper slack loops  54 ,  56 , respectively. As noted above, the first and second paper slack loops  54 ,  56  each serve as a buffer or reservoir of paper  22  such that the exposed paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110  may be quickly advanced and replaced with a fresh, unexposed portion of paper  22  without being limited by the speed at which the paper supply spool  20  within the paper supply cartridge  12  can pay out the paper  22 . In that the exposure aperture  110  is approximately 13 inches in length, the first and second paper slack loops  54 ,  56  must be maintained at approximately 13 inches so as to rapidly replace the exposed photographic paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110  with a fresh and unexposed portion of paper  22  to prepare for the next set of exposures. To accomplish this, the first proximity sensor  66  is positioned mid-way between the first paper drive unit  58  and the curved first edge of the lower guide plate  106  so as to direct an ultrasonic beam  134  downward through an aperture  136  formed in the first upper paper guide member  70  and into the first paper slack loop  54 , while the second proximity sensor  68  is positioned in between the second paper drive unit  62  and the third paper drive unit  64  so as to direct an ultrasonic beam  138  through an aperture  140  formed within the second upper paper guide member  72  and into the second paper slack loop  56 . In this arrangement, the improved high speed package printer  10  of the present invention is capable of advancing the paper  22  the required distance of 13 inches in approximately 0.25 seconds. 
     In addition to providing high speed paper advancing, the first and second ultrasonic proximity sensors  66 ,  68  also decrease the amount of time required to reform the paper slack loops  54 ,  56  following each advance, thereby allowing a greater number of paper advances to be performed within a given period of time. More specifically, the ability to quickly reform the first and second paper slack loops  54 ,  56  stems from the fact that the first and second proximity sensors  66 ,  68  dynamically measure the length of the respective paper slack loops  54 ,  56 . The first proximity sensor  66  is communicatively linked to the drive motor  90  of the first paper drive unit  58  in a feedback arrangement such that the speed of the drive roller  82  will be increased or decreased dynamically depending on the actual length of the first paper slack loop  54  so as to quickly return the first paper slack loop  54  to a length of approximately 13 inches. In similar fashion, the second proximity sensor  68  is connected to a motor  142  of the third paper drive unit  64  in a feedback arrangement such that the speed of the drive roller  96  will be dynamically changed depending on the contemporaneous paper slack loop length measured during the paper advancing stage so as to quickly reform the second paper slack loop  56  having a length of 13 inches. By dynamically measuring the paper slack loops with ultrasonic sound waves, the first and second proximity sensors  66 ,  68  of the present invention are much more responsive than the various paper slack loop sensing arrangements discussed supra and are therefore capable of increasing the overall speed of the improved high speed printer  10  of the present invention. 
     With collective reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, the automatic paper loading feature of the present invention will now be discussed. In general, the ability to automatically load paper  22  into the paper deck  46  is accomplished by providing a substantially continuous and straight paper path which extends from a paper inlet port within the first paper drive unit  58  to a paper inlet port in the paper take-up cartridge  14  such that the paper  22  can be driven quickly into and through the paper deck  46  without bunching up or fouling in the process. In order to create such a straight paper path, the first and second bridge members  74 ,  76 , as well as the door member  114 , are moved into the generally horizontal positions shown. The selective positioning of the first and second bridge members  74 ,  76  is accomplished through the use of a third and a fourth actuating cylinder  144 ,  146 , respectively, while the selective positioning of the door member  114  is accomplished via the second actuating cylinder  115 . In this arrangement, then, the paper  22  is initially fed into and through the paper inlet port of the paper deck  46  such that the leading edge of the paper  22  is guided by the opposing paper feed members  86 ,  88  so as to arrive at the junction point between the drive roller  82  and the pinch roller  84  of the first paper drive unit  58 . Upon activation the drive roller  82  of the first paper drive unit  58  will force the paper  22  through the paper path formed between the first upper paper guide member  70  and the first selectively actuable bridge member  74 . 
     The first upper paper guide member  70  extends up to the approximate edge of the upper guide plate  108  and the first bridge member  74  extends up to the first curved edge of the lower guide plate  106  such that the paper continues to progress in an unimpeded fashion in the paper path defined between the upper and lower guide plates  108 ,  106 . The door member  114  has a raised portion having approximately the same dimensions as the exposure aperture  110  so as to effectively fill in the exposure aperture  110  when the door member  114  is disposed in the horizontal position shown, thereby eliminating any friction points where the paper  22  can snag. The door member  114  may also be equipped with rib members having angled end portions so as to minimize the amount of contact between the paper  22  and the exposure assembly  60 . In any event, the paper  22 , under the initial driving force of the motor  90  within the first paper drive unit  58 , continues to the end of the paper path defined between upper and lower guide plates  108 ,  106  such that the leading edge of the paper  22  lodges between the drive roller  128  and the pinch roller  130  of the second paper drive unit  62 . The motor  132  of the second paper drive unit  62  will thereafter add to the initial driving force provided by the motor  90  of the first paper drive unit  58  so as to propel the paper  22  through a paper path defined between the second upper paper guide member  72  and the second bridge member  76  and into contact with the drive roller  96  within the third paper drive unit  64 . 
     FIG. 6 is an enlarged view illustrating the connection between the paper deck  46  and the paper take-up cartridge  14  shown generally in FIG. 1 to further explain the automatic paper loading feature of the present invention, as well as the light-tight junction between the paper take-up cartridge  14  and the printing assembly  16 . As can be seen, the second upper paper guide member  72  is connected to the outer edge of the cover member  94  and the second bridge member  76  extends up to the approximate edge of the paper guiding member  98  such that the paper  22  will simply progress into contact with the drive roller  96  of the third paper drive unit  64 . This engagement will thereafter propel the paper  22  through the third paper drive unit  64 , the wall mount  92 , the second side wall  38 , and a first coupling member  150  before passing into and through a roller assembly  152  within the take-up cartridge  14 . A second coupling member  154  is attached to the exterior surface of the housing member  28  of the take-up cartridge  14  so as to mutually engage with the first coupling member  150 . The roller assembly  152  includes a cover member  156  having a first roller  158 , a second roller  160 , a third roller  162 , and an angled guide member  164 . The angled guide member  164  serves to force the leading edge of the paper  22  into contact with the first roller  158 . The first roller  158  cooperates with the second and third rollers  160 ,  162  to accept the paper  22  into the interior of the paper take-up cartridge  14 . The cover of the paper take-up cartridge  14  may thereafter be opened up so as to connect the paper  22  to the take-up spool  30 . Following this, the cover is replaced so as to enclose the interior of the paper take-up cartridge  14  such that printing operations may ensue immediately thereafter. 
     With continued reference to FIG. 6, as the printing operations are conducted within the printing assembly  16 , the take-up spool  30  within the paper take-up cartridge  14  will eventually reach its capacity such that the exposed photographic paper  22  disposed therein must be sent out for processing. In this instance, the automatic cutting feature of the present invention should be employed to a sever the paper  22  such that the paper take-up cartridge  14  may be detached from the printing assembly  16 . To accomplish this, a rotating knife assembly  166  is provided including a circular blade member  168 , a blade containment block  170  extending between the second side wall  38  and the cover member  94 , a shaft member  172  extending between the circular blade member  168  and a motor assembly  174 . The motor assembly  174  includes a motor  176 , a block  178  having a shaft translation aperture  180 , and a plurality of gears and/or belts (not shown) for rotating the shaft member  172  and translating the shaft member  172  back and forth within the shaft translation aperture  180 . The blade containment block  170  and the shaft translation aperture  180  are both sufficiently greater than the 10 inch width of the paper  22  such that the shaft member  172  may he translated along the entire length of the shaft translation aperture  180  while rotating the circular blade member  168  to thereby severe the paper  22 . As noted above, the roller assembly  152  of the paper take-up cartridge  14  provides a light-tight seal such that it may be removed from the printing assembly  16  without having ambient light infiltrate and damage the exposed photographic paper  22  within the take-up cartridge  14 . The rotating knife assembly  166  further assists in this regard by allowing the paper  22  to be severed in an automatic fashion without the need to open the paper deck  46  and/or the paper take-up cartridge  14 , thereby ensuring that the sensitive photographic paper  22  within the paper take-up cartridge  14  and the paper deck  46  are protected from ambient light during transportation for developing. Furthermore, the automatic cutting feature is performed in quick fashion without the need for manual cutting by a worker which saves time and operating costs. 
     Film Deck 
     With reference now to FIGS. 7 and 8, illustrated in detail is the film deck  48  constructed in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. As noted above, the film deck  48  offers several significant advantages over the prior art so as to increase the overall speed of operation and print quality. Namely, the film deck  48  provides bi-directional film movement for producing composite prints, an improved film cleaning arrangement for removing any impurities from the film prior to exposure, an improved cropping arrangement in between a diffusion plate and the film for sharply defining the borders of the image bearing light which progresses from the film deck  48  toward the lens deck  52 , and a diffusion plate cleaning arrangement for automatically cleaning the diffusion plate after a predetermined number of exposures. The film deck  48  accomplishes these features by providing a film supply spool  184  disposed at the end of a first arm member  188 , a film take-up spool  186  disposed at the end of a second arm member  190 , a negative holder assembly  192  disposed in between the first and second arm members  188 ,  190 , a film cleaning assembly  182  disposed along the first arm member  188 , a negative cropping assembly (not shown) disposed within a cover member  202 , a diffusion plate cleaning assembly (not shown) disposed within a cover member  204 , and a bar code reader  194  disposed proximate the negative holder  192 . Each negative of the film  196  contains bar code information which indicates what types of photographs the customer has ordered for that particular negative. The bar code reader  194  scans the bar code information into a microprocessor-based controller (not shown) which then controls the system so as to produce a custom-made package of preselected photographs. 
     The first arm member  188  includes a front support wall  210  and a rear support wall  212  disposed in parallel relationship and extending laterally away from the cover member  202 . The second arm member  190  is constructed in identical fashion as the first arm member  188 , including a front support wall  214  and a rear support wall  216 . A pair of bi-directional motors, namely a first motor  198  and second motor  200 , are fixed to the rear support walls  212 ,  216 , respectively, and communicatively linked to the microprocessor-based controller (not shown) for selectively driving the film  198  in the forward and reverse directions depending upon what types of photographs are desired. The first motor  198  is coupled to the film supply spool  184  via a first belt  222  and a second belt  224  which cooperate with a drive roller  218  to transfer the driving force of the first motor  198  to the supply spool  184 . The second motor  200  is coupled to the film take-up spool  186  via a first belt  226  and a second belt  228  which cooperate with a drive roller  230  to transfer the driving force of the second motor  200  to the take-up spool  186 . A first sticky roller  206  and a second sticky roller  208  are provided in between the film cleaning assembly  182  and the negative holder  192  for removing dust and similar impurities from the top and bottom surfaces of the film  196 , respectively, as the film  196  travels in the forward direction, i.e. from the supply spool  184  to the take-up spool  186 . In similar fashion, a third sticky roller  220  is provided in between the film take-up spool  186  and the negative holder assembly  192  for removing impurities from the top surface of the film  196  as it travels in the reverse direction, i.e. from the take-up spool  186  to the supply spool  184 . 
     The negative holder assembly  192  includes a fixed lower plate member  232  having a projection aperture (not shown) formed therethrough, a moveable upper plate member  234  having a projection aperture  236  formed therethrough, and a lever mechanism  238  for selectively maneuvering the upper plate member  234  into one of an open state and a closed state. In the open state, the lever mechanism  238  raises the upper plate member  234  away from the lower plate member  232  such that the film  196  may be freely advanced or reversed until a predetermined negative is centered over the projection aperture (not shown) of the lower plate member  232 . Once this occurs, the lever mechanism  238  positions the upper plate member  234  in the closed state by lowering the upper plate member  234  into flush contact with the lower plate member  232  so as to sandwich the predetermined negative of the film  196  therebetween. This aligns the projection apertures  236  of the upper and lower plate members  234 ,  232  and maintains the predetermined negative in a fixed vertical position such that the light from the lamp deck  50  can pass through the predetermined negative within the film  196  to form image-bearing light which thereafter projects upwards to the lens deck assembly  52 . Once the predetermined negative is no longer needed, the upper plate member  234  is raised via the lever mechanism  238  such that the film  196  may be selectively advanced or reversed to place a new predetermined negative in position within the negative holder  192 . 
     In an important aspect of the present invention, this bi-directional film movement enables the package printer  10  to generate composite photographs based on a plurality of individual photographic negatives. As will be described in greater detail below, this is accomplished by providing a composite lens assembly having a plurality of different lenses, selectively advancing and/or reversing the film  196  over the lamp house  50  to sequentially project a plurality of different image-bearing light beams upward to the composite lens assembly, and selectively masking the magnified image-bearing light produced by the composite lens assembly such that only one photographic image is created on the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110  for each negative selected to form the composite photograph. This is a marked improvement over the prior art package printers in that it enables the package printer  10  to produce an entire photographic package, including both composite and individual photographs, in immediate succession without the need to employ a separate composite printer, thereby saving substantial amounts of processing time when composite photographs are desired. Eliminating the need to transfer the film to a separate composite printer also reduces the risk of damaging the film and ensures that the composite photographs will share the same color balance as the individual photographs, thereby increasing the overall print quality of the photographic package. 
     With reference to FIGS. 9A-9C, the automatic film cleaning assembly  182  of the present invention includes an electrostatic charging device  240 , an upper brush member  242 , a lower brush member  244 , a vacuum assembly  245  and an air jet assembly  246  which collectively remove dust particles and similar impurities from the film  196  so as to reduce the incidence of blurring imperfections on the resulting photographic prints. In a preferred embodiment, a mounting assembly, indicated generally at  248 , is provided to properly position the electrostatic charging device  240 , the upper brush member  242 , the lower brush member  244 , the vacuum assembly  245 , and the air jet assembly  246  relative to the film  196  to ensure for the adequate removal of impurities from the film  196 . The mounting assembly  248  includes a base portion  250 , an upper vacuum member  252 , and a lower vacuum member  254 . The upper and lower vacuum members  252 ,  254  extend perpendicularly from an outwardly facing surface of the base portion  250  and are disposed in spaced relation so as to allow the film  196  to pass therebetween. 
     The electrostatic charging device  240  is positioned in close proximity to the lower surface of the film  196  through the use of a brace member  256  so as to apply an electrostatic charge to the film  196 , as well as any dust and other impurities disposed on the top or bottom surface of the film  196 . This serves to repel the dust and other unwanted impurities away from the top and bottom surfaces of the film  196 . By establishing such an electrostatically charged condition, the present invention advantageously “loosens” the unwanted impurities from the film  196  such that they may be readily removed from the film  196  via the upper and lower brush members  242 ,  244 , the vacuum assembly  245 , or other dust-removing means such as an air jet assembly  246  or sticky rollers  206 ,  208 , and  220 . In a preferred embodiment, the electrostatic charging device  240  is a model 4004707 produced by SIMCO. However, it is to be understood that any number of different types of electrostatic charging devices may be employed in the aforementioned fashion without departing from the scope of the present invention. Moreover, it is fully anticipated that the electrostatic charging device  240  may be disposed proximate the bottom and/or top surface of the film  196  without departing from the scope of the present invention. 
     The upper brush member  242  and lower brush member  244  are positioned on the mounting assembly  248  such that their opposing ends collectively sandwich and contact the top and bottom surfaces, respectively, of the film  196  as it passes through the cleaning assembly  182 . The upper and lower brush members  242 ,  244  are detachably mounted to the upper and lower vacuum members  252 ,  254 , respectively, via any number of readily available attachment means, including but not limited to bolts, Velcro (TM), adhesives, or grooves formed within the upper and lower vacuum members  252 ,  254  for slidably receiving the upper and lower brush members  242 ,  244 , respectively. In a preferred embodiment, the individual brush members  242 ,  244  comprise carbon filament brushes. However, those skilled in the art will appreciate that any number of different types of brushes may be employed in this fashion without departing from the scope of the present invention. 
     In its broadest sense, the vacuum assembly  245  of the present invention comprises an upper vacuum member  252  and a lower vacuum member  254  disposed in close proximity to the upper and lower surfaces of the film  196 , respectively, so as to exact a collective suction force which draws dust and related impurities away from the film  196 . In a preferred embodiment, the upper and lower vacuum members  252 ,  254  are hollow in construction and connected to a vacuum pump (not shown) via an tube member  261  leading to vacuum plenum  263  and outlet for the vacuum  265 . The amount of suction force generated within the upper and lower vacuum members  252 ,  254  may be controlled by selectively adjusting the operating speed of the vacuum pump (not shown) and/or by selectively adjusting the position of the upper and lower vacuum members  252 ,  254  relative to the film  196 . 
     Air jet assembly  246  of the present invention comprises an upper air jet tube  258  and a lower air jet tube  260  disposed in close proximity to the upper and lower surfaces of the film  196 , respectively, so as to blow on the film to loosen and remove dust and related impurities from the film  196  and allowing an air stream to develop from the air jet apertures  257  in air jet tubes  258 ,  260  to the vacuum members  252 ,  254  removing dust, dirt and other particles from the film  196  and sucking them up into the vacuum assembly  245 . In a preferred embodiment, the upper and lower air jet tubes  258 ,  260  are hollow in construction and connected to a compressed air supply (not shown) via an L-shaped tube member  262 . More specifically, the upper and lower air jet tubes  258 ,  260  each have a plurality of apertures  257  which face the upper and lower surface of the film  196 , respectively, such that air will be blown onto the top and bottom surfaces of the film  196 . In a preferred embodiment, the first and second air jet tubes  258 ,  260  extend perpendicularly from tube member brackets  264 ,  266  at fixed locations along the length thereof. The amount of blowing force generated within the upper and lower air jet tubes  258 ,  260  may be controlled by valves (not shown) selectively adjusting the operating pressure of the air supply and/or by selectively adjusting the position of the upper and lower air jet tubes  258 ,  260  relative to the film  196 . 
     Taken collectively, then, the electrostatic charging device  240 , the upper and lower brush members  242 ,  244 , the vacuum assembly  245 , and the air jet assembly  246 , augment the film cleaning ability of the first, second, and third sticky rollers  206 ,  208 ,  220  such that the improved film cleaning assembly  182  of the present invention greatly reduces the amount of dust and related impurities on the top and bottom surfaces of the film  196 . This results in several significant advantages over the prior art technique of merely employing sticky rollers to remove these unwanted impurities. First, by reducing the amount of dust and similar impurities on the film  196 , the film cleaning assembly  182  of the present invention lowers the frequency at which dust-related imperfections occur on the resulting photographic prints such that the need to manually touch up the prints is practically eliminated. This is advantageous in that it saves valuable processing time and improves the overall print quality. The film cleaning assembly  182  of the present invention is also advantageous in that it performs its dust removing functions before the film reaches the first, second, and third sticky rollers  206 ,  208 ,  220 , thereby decreasing the amount of dust and related articles which will accrue on the first, second, and third sticky rollers  206 ,  208 ,  220  within a given period of time. This has the overall effect of reducing the frequency at which these sticky rollers need to be cleaned or replaced, thereby reducing the amount of system down time devoted to such cleaning or replacement activities. 
     With reference to FIGS. 9A-9C, the automatic film cleaning assembly  182  of the present invention includes an electrostatic charging device  240 , an upper brush member  242 , a lower brush member  244 , a vacuum assembly  245 , and an air jet assembly  246  which collectively remove dust particles and similar impurities from the film  196  so as to reduce the incidence of blurring imperfections on the resulting photographic prints. In a preferred embodiment, a mounting assembly, indicated generally at  248 , is provided to properly position the electrostatic charging device  240 , the upper brush member  242 , the lower brush member  244 , the vacuum assembly  245 , and an air jet assembly  246  relative to the film  196  to ensure for the adequate removal of impurities from the film  196 . The mounting assembly  248  includes a base portion  250 , an upper vacuum member  252 , and a lower vacuum member  254 . The upper and lower vacuum members  252 ,  254  extend perpendicularly from an outwardly facing surface of the base portion  250  and are disposed in spaced relation so as to allow the film  196  to pass therebetween. 
     The electrostatic charging device  240  is positioned in close proximity to the lower surface of the film  196  through the use of a brace member  256  so as to apply an electrostatic charge to the film  196 , as well as any dust and other impurities disposed on the top or bottom surface of the film  196 . This serves to repel the dust and other unwanted impurities away from the top and bottom surfaces of the film  196 . By establishing such an electrostatically charged condition, the present invention advantageously “loosens” the unwanted impurities from the film  196  such that they may be readily removed from the film  196  via the upper and lower brush members  242 ,  244 , the vacuum assembly  246 , or other dust-removing means such as an air jet assembly or sticky rollers  246   206 ,  208  and  220 . In a preferred embodiment, the electrostatic charging device  240  is a model 4004707 produced by SIMCO. However, it is to be understood that any number of different types of electrostatic charging devices may be employed in the aforementioned fashion without departing from the scope of the present invention. Moreover, it is fully anticipated that the electrostatic charging device  240  may be disposed proximate the bottom and/or top surface of the film  196  without departing from the scope of the present invention. 
     The upper brush member  242  and lower brush member  244  are positioned on the mounting assembly  248  such that their opposing ends collectively sandwich and contact the top and bottom surfaces, respectively, of the film  196  as it passes through the cleaning assembly  182 . The upper and lower brush members  242 ,  244  are detachably mounted to the upper and lower vacuum members  252 ,  254 , respectively, via any number of readily available attachment means, including but not limited to bolts, Velcro (TM), adhesives, or grooves formed within the upper and lower vacuum members  252 ,  254  for slidably receiving the upper and lower brush members  242 ,  244 , respectively. In a preferred embodiment, the individual brush members  242 ,  244  comprise carbon filament brushes. However, those skilled in the art will appreciate that any number of different types of brushes may be employed in this fashion without departing from the scope of the present invention. 
     In its broadest sense, the vacuum assembly  245  of the present invention comprises an upper vacuum member  250  and a lower vacuum member  254  disposed in close proximity to the upper and lower surfaces of the film  196 , respectively, so as to exact a collective suction force which draws dust and related impurities away from the film  196 . In a preferred embodiment, the upper and lower vacuum members  252 ,  254  are hollow in construction and connected to a vacuum pump (not shown) via an tube member  261  leading to vacuum plenum  263  and outlet for the vacuum  265 . The amount of suction force generated within the upper and lower vacuum members  252 ,  254  may be controlled by selectively adjusting the operating speed of the vacuum pump (not shown) and/or by selectively adjusting the position of the upper and lower vacuum members  252 ,  254  relative to the film  196 . 
     Air jet assembly  246  of the present invention comprises an upper air jet tube  258  and a lower air jet tube  260  disposed in close proximity to the upper and lower surfaces of the film  196 , respectively, so as to blow on the film to loosen and remove dust and related impurities from the film  196  and allowing an air stream to develop from the air jet apertures  257  in air jet tubes  258 ,  260  to the vacuum members  252 ,  254  removing dust, dirt and other particles from the film  196  and sucking them up into the vacuum assembly  245 . In a preferred embodiment, the upper and lower air jet tubes  258 ,  260  are hollow in construction and connected to a compressed air supply (not shown) via an L-shaped tube member  262 . More specifically, the upper and lower air jet tubes  258 ,  260  each have a plurality of apertures  257  which face the upper and lower surface of the film  196 , respectively, such that air will be blown onto the top and bottom surfaces of the film  196 . In a preferred embodiment, the first and second air jet tubes  258 ,  260  extend perpendicularly from tube member brackets  264 ,  266  at fixed locations along the length thereof. The amount of blowing force generated within the upper and lower air jet tubes  258 ,  260  may be controlled by valves (not shown) selectively adjusting the operating pressure of the air supply and/or by selectively adjusting the position of the upper and lower air jet tubes  258 ,  260  relative to the film  196 . Taken collectively, then, the electrostatic charging device  240 , the upper and lower brush members  242 ,  244 , the vacuum assembly  246   245 , and an air jet assembly  246  augment the film cleaning ability of the first, second, and third sticky rollers  206 ,  208 ,  220  such that the improved film cleaning assembly  182  of the present invention greatly reduces the amount of dust and related impurities on the top and bottom surfaces of the film  196 . This results in several significant advantages over the prior art technique of merely employing sticky rollers to remove these unwanted impurities. First, by reducing the amount of dust and similar impurities on the film  196 , the film cleaning assembly  182  of the present invention lowers the frequency at which dust-related imperfections occur on the resulting photographic prints such that the need to manually touch up the prints is practically eliminated. This is advantageous in that it saves valuable processing time and improves the overall print quality. The film cleaning assembly  182  of the present invention is also advantageous in that it performs its dust removing functions before the film reaches the first, second, and third sticky rollers  206 ,  208 ,  220 , thereby decreasing the amount of dust and related articles which will accrue on the first, second, and third sticky rollers  206 ,  208 ,  220  within a given period of time. This has the overall effect of reducing the frequency at which these sticky rollers need to be cleaned or replaced, thereby reducing the amount of system down time devoted to such cleaning or replacement activities. 
     FIGS. 10 and 11 illustrate yet another important feature of the present invention, namely an improved negative cropping assembly  268  for selectively defining the borders of the image bearing light which passes upwardly from the film deck  48 . The negative cropping assembly  268  is disposed within the cover member  202  shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 and includes an elongated cropper member  270 , an elongated gear engagement member  272  extending along the underside of the cropper member  270 , and a motor  274  having a rotatable gear arm  276  extending therefrom. The cropper member  270  is generally planar and includes a first cropping aperture  278  having substantially rounded corner portions, a second cropping aperture  280  having slightly rounded corner portions, and a third cropping aperture  282  having square corner portions. In an important aspect of the present invention, the cropper member  270  is slidably disposed in between the lower plate member  232  of the negative holder assembly  192  and a diffusion plate (not shown) disposed within the cover member  202 . The gear engagement member  272  cooperates with the gear arm  276  of the motor  274  such that the cropper member  270  may be selectively positioned within the cover member  202  to align one of the first, second, and third cropping apertures  278 ,  280 ,  282  directly underneath the negative aperture  236  of the negative holder assembly  192 . In so doing, the light which passes upwardly through the diffusion plate (not shown) will be shaped by one of the first, second, and third cropping apertures  278 ,  280 ,  282  prior to passing through the film  196 . Importantly, the improved negative cropping assembly  268  of the present invention is capable of translating the cropper member  270  within the cover member  202  at high speeds such that the various cropping apertures may be quickly interchanged depending upon the type of border is desired on each particular photographic print. It is to be understood that the corners of the first, second, and third cropping apertures  278 - 282  may be configured in any of a variety of ornate shapes, including but not limited to stars. 
     With reference to FIGS. 12-14, illustrated is a diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284  constructed in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284  resides within the cover member  204  shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 and includes a diffusion plate  286 , a cleaning member  288 , and means for selectively passing the diffusion plate  286  under the cleaning member  288  to remove dust and other unwanted particles from the top surface of the diffusion plate  286 . The diffusion plate  286  is common in the art and serves to equalize the light which is emitted upwards from the lamp deck  50  before it passes through the negative positioned within the negative holder assembly  192 . The cleaning member  288  is disposed in fixed position and includes a rigid upper member  290  and a brush member  292  extending downwardly therefrom. In the preferred embodiment shown, the means for automatically passing the diffusion plate  286  under the cleaning member  288  comprises a first side rail  294  disposed parallel to a second side rail  296 , a first pair of slide members  298   a,    298   b  fixed to one edge of the diffusion plate  286  for sliding longitudinally along the first side rail  294 , a second pair of slide members  300   a,    300   b  fixed to the diffusion plate  286  for sliding longitudinally along the second side rail  296 , and coupling means for coupling the diffusion plate  286  to a motor  302  for selectively translating the diffusion plate  286  back and forth along the first and second side rails  294 ,  296 . By way of example and not limitation, the coupling means may comprise a first gear member  304  connected a shaft  306  of the motor  302 , a second gear member  308  disposed in co-aligned fashion with the first gear member  304 , a belt member  310  extending between the first and second gear members  304 ,  308 , and a clamping arm  312  extending from the first slide member  298   b  for connecting the diffusion plate  286  to the belt member  310 . 
     FIG. 12 illustrates the diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284  during normal operation, that is, during the exposure of each photographic negative, while FIG. 13 illustrates the diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284  during the cleaning operation. The diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284  is arranged such that the diffusion plate  286  will be positioned directly in between the lamp deck  50  and the improved negative cropping assembly  268  during the period of normal operation as shown in FIG.  12 . This, once again, serves to equalize the light projecting upwardly from the lamp deck  50  so as to ensure proper color balance in the resulting photographic prints. After a predetermined number of exposures have been undertaken, or once each sitting is finished, the diffusion plate  286  will be translated into the position shown in FIG. 13 so as to draw the top surface of the diffusion plate  286  into contact with the brush member  292 , thereby removing any debris or particles that may have settled on the diffusion plate  286  during operation. In the preferred embodiment, the motor  302  is capable of translating the diffusion plate  286  back and forth past the brush member  292  in approximately 0.25 seconds. 
     FIGS. 15-17 illustrate a diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284 ′ in accordance with a second preferred embodiment of the present invention. In contrast to the first preferred embodiment shown in FIGS. 12-14, a diffusion plate  286 ′ is disposed in a fixed position directly above the lamp deck (not shown), while a cleaning member  288 ′ is equipped with translation means for automatically passing the cleaning member  288 ′ over the top surface of the diffusion plate  286 ′ to thereby selectively clean the diffusion plate  286 ′. In order to selectively pass the brush member  292 ′ across the diffusion plate  286 ′, the translation means comprises a first side rail  294 ′ disposed parallel to a second side rail  296 ′, a first slide member  298 ′ fixed to one edge of the cleaning member  288 ′ for sliding longitudinally along the first side rail  294 ′, a second slide member  300 ′ fixed to the cleaning member  288 ′ for sliding longitudinally along the second side rail  296 ′, and coupling means for coupling the cleaning member  288 ′ to a motor  302 ′ for selectively translating the cleaning member  288 ′ back and forth along the first and second side rails  294 ′,  296 ′. As with the embodiment shown in FIGS. 12-14, the coupling means may comprise a first gear member  304 ′ connected a shaft  306 ′ of the motor  302 ′, a second gear member  308 ′ disposed in co-aligned fashion with the first gear member  304 ′, a belt member  310 ′ extending between the first and second gear members  304 ′,  308 ′, and a clamping arm  312 ′ extending from the first slide member  298   b ′ for connecting the cleaning member  288 ′ to the belt member  310 ′. 
     The cleaning member  288 ′ may be selectively moved across the diffusion plate  286 ′ such that the brush member  292 ′ sweeps away any unwanted particles from the diffusion plate  286 ′, thereby minimizing the likelihood that dust or “floaters” will foul up or impede the light as it progresses through the diffusion plate  286 ′. As noted above, this sweeping action is employed after a predetermined number of exposures have been completed, i.e. in between sittings, such that any dust which may have settled on the diffusion plate  286 ′ during the previous sitting may be removed prior to performing the exposures which comprise the next sitting. This is particularly advantageous in that, to the extent dust and related particles accrue on the diffusion plate  286 ′, the resulting defects on the photographic prints will be isolated to the prints of a single sitting rather than to the prints of several individual sittings. The end result is a drastic reduction in the amount of waste which stems from dust settling on the diffusion plate  286 ′ which, it will be appreciated, reduces expense and improves overall print quality. 
     In an important aspect of the present invention, the diffusion plate cleaning assemblies  284 ,  284 ′ accomplish the aforementioned cleaning function in a quick and expedient fashion such that the diffusion plates  286 ,  286 ′ may be cleaned while the film  196  is being advanced between exposures so as to increase the overall speed of operation. For example, in the preferred embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 12-14, the diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284  is capable of translating the diffusion plate  286  back and forth under the cleaning member  288  in approximately 0.25 seconds. In similar fashion, the alternate diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284 ′ shown in FIGS. 15-17 is capable of moving the cleaning member  288 ′ back and forth across the top surface of the diffusion plate  286 ′ in approximately 0.25 seconds. As noted above, the present invention provides the ability to advance the paper  196  at a rate of 13 inches/0.25 seconds such that an unexposed portion of paper  196  may be positioned within the exposure assembly  60  in preparation for a subsequent set of exposures. In an important aspect of the present invention, the motors  302 ,  302 ′ are controlled such that the entire cleaning operation will be performed while the paper  196  is being advanced, thereby eliminating the prior art need to halt operations to manually clean the diffusion plate. Moreover, it is also possible to configure the diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284 ′ in FIGS. 15-17 such that the cleaning member  288 ′ will pass only once over the diffusion plate  286 ′ in between sittings (i.e. from FIG. 15 to FIG.  16 ), thereby performing the cleaning function in even less time than described above. Considering all of the above-enumerated features, the diffusion plate cleaning assemblies  284 ,  284 ′ of the present invention minimize the time require to clean the diffusion plate  286 ,  286 ′ and, by performing the cleaning on a periodic basis, improves the overall print quality. 
     Lens Deck 
     With reference to FIG. 18, illustrated in detail is the lens deck  52  of the present invention. The lens deck  52  includes a first projection assembly  314 , a second projection assembly  316 , a third projection assembly  318 , a fourth projection assembly  320 , a fifth projection assembly  322 , a first masking assembly  324 , and a second masking assembly  326 , all of which are slidably displaceable along corresponding side rails via a plurality of individual motor assemblies. More specifically, a first motor  328  is employed to selectively translate the first projection assembly  314  along a first pair of side rails  330 , a second motor  332  is used to selectively translate the second projection assembly  316  along a second pair of side rails  334 , a third motor  336  is employed to selectively translate the third projection assembly  318  along a third pair of side rails  338 , a fourth motor  340  is configured to selectively translate the fourth projection assembly  320  along a fourth pair of side rails  342 , and a fifth motor  344  is used to selectively translate the fifth projection assembly  322  along a fifth pair of side rails  346 . A sixth motor  348  and a seventh motor  352  are further provided for selectively translating the first and second masking assemblies  324 ,  326  along a sixth pair of side rails  350 . As will be discussed in greater detail below, the aforementioned projection assemblies  314 - 322  include several distinct lens types such that a variety of different photographic exposures may be formed on the photographic paper  22  by selectively positioning the projection assemblies  314 - 322  in the image-bearing light being projected from the film deck  48 . The projection assemblies  314 - 322  are also equipped with various masking members which, in cooperation with the first and second masking assemblies  324 ,  326 , produce sharply defined borders on each photo exposure by positioning a particular masking member within the shadow or penumbra area generated along the edges of the image bearing light as it projects upward towards the paper  22 . 
     Referring to FIGS. 19A-19C, the first projection assembly  314  includes a rotational prism assembly  356  for producing 10″×13″ photographs, an 8″×10″ lens assembly  358  for producing 8″×10″ photographs, a carriage member  360  for supporting the 8″×10″ lens assembly  358  and rotational prism assembly  356 , and a mask member  362  for reducing reflections within the lens deck  52 . The rotational prism assembly  356  includes a housing member  402  fixedly attached to a support plate  366  which, in turn, is fixedly attached to the carriage member  360  via a plurality of stand-off members  368 . The housing member  402  extends downwardly through a prism aperture  364  formed in the carriage member  360  and, as will be discussed in greater detail below, includes a plurality of interiorly disposed prism and lens members for rotating the image-bearing light which projects upwardly from the film  196  by ninety (90) degrees to produce 10″×13″ photographs on the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110 . The 8″×10″ lens assembly  358  includes an 8″×10″ lens unit  370  centrally disposed within a tubular housing member  372 . The tubular housing member  372  is fixedly attached to a support plate  374  and extends downwardly through a lens aperture  376  formed in the carriage member  360 . The support plate  374 , in turn, is fixedly attached to the carriage member  360  through the use of a plurality of stand-off members  378 . The carriage member  360  is further equipped with a plurality of slide members  380   a,    380   b  for slidably receiving the first pair of side rails  330  shown in FIG.  18 . The mask member  362  is fixedly attached to the slide members  380   a,    380   b  and includes an aperture  384  which allows image-bearing light to project upwards for magnification by the second, third, fourth, and fifth projection assemblies  316 - 322 . By restricting the projection of the image-bearing light in this fashion, the mask member  362  serves to reduce the incidence of reflections within the lens deck  52  when using the second, third, fourth, and fifth projection assemblies  316 - 322 , thereby improving print quality. 
     FIG. 20 illustrates the 90 degree image rotation accomplished by the rotational prism assembly  356  of the present invention. To aid in the understanding of the rotational prism assembly  356 , the housing member  402  is not shown so as to expose the optical components employed to accomplish the aforementioned image rotation. Specifically, the rotational prism assembly  356  includes a first prism member  386 , a second prism member  388 , a third prism member  390 , a first lens assembly  392 , a second lens assembly  394 , and a third lens assembly  396 . The first lens assembly  392  is positioned between the first and second prism members  386 ,  388 . The second lens assembly  394  is positioned between the second and third prism members  388 ,  390 . The third lens assembly  396  is juxtaposed in close proximity to the top surface of the third prism member  390 . In operation, the rotational prism assembly  356  is positioned within the lens deck  52  such that the first prism member  386  is positioned directly above a negative  408  within the film  196 . The first and second lens assemblies  392 ,  394  cooperate with the first, second, and third prism members  386 - 390  to rotate the image bearing light from the film  196  approximately ninety (90) degrees. The third lens assembly  396  is configured to magnify the rotated image-bearing light such that a 10″×13″ photographic print may be generated on the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110  of the paper deck  46 . 
     Through the foregoing arrangement, then, the rotational prism assembly  356  of the present invention rotates the image-bearing light which projects upwardly from the negative  408  such that the resulting image  404 ′ on the paper  22  is approximately 90 degrees out of phase from the image  404  on the negative  408 . The main advantage of rotating the image-bearing light in this fashion is that it allows 10″×13″ photographs to be generated on the photographic paper  22 , which is typically 10″ wide, without having to physically rotate the film  196 . In most instances, the negatives of the film  196  are situated such that the longitudinal axis of the photo subjects are perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the film  196 . In that the image-bearing light is projected upwards in the same orientation as it resides on the negative, this light must be rotated ninety (90) degrees before projecting onto the paper  22  in order to form a 10″×13″ photograph. In the past, this rotation was accomplished through the use of mechanical means, namely a turret or turntable for physically rotating the film  196 . This technique, however, is costly in terms of the time required to rotate the film  196 , the time required to dampen out the rotation-induced vibrations, and the space required to carry out film rotation. 
     In yet another important aspect, the rotational prism assembly  356  of the present invention accomplishes the aforementioned image-rotation without reversing or inverting the image  404  on the negative  408  such that the orientation of both images  404 ,  404 ′ are in accord with one another. This feature is best illustrated with reference to the images  404 ,  404 ′ on the negative  408  and paper  22 , respectively. The stick-man image  404  on the negative  408  is provided with an object  406  at the end of his right arm. Importantly, the rotational prism assembly  356  effectuates image rotation such that the resulting image  404 ′ is projected onto the paper  22  with the object  406 ′ similarly disposed at the end of his right arm. This is a particularly advantageous distinction over the prior art image rotation arrangements which employ mirrors because such mirror arrangements tend to invert or reverse the orientation of the image between the negative and the paper. 
     With reference again to FIGS. 19A-19E, the housing member  372  of the rotational prism assembly  356  includes a base portion  410  integrally connected to a tubular portion  412 . The base portion  410  forms the housing for the first, second, and third prism members  386 ,  388 ,  390 , as well as the first and second lens assemblies  392 ,  394 , while the tubular portion  412  serves as the housing for the third lens assembly  396 . In a preferred embodiment, the first lens assembly  392  includes a first lens member  414  and a second lens member  416 , the second lens assembly  394  includes a first lens member  418  and a second lens member  420 , and the third lens assembly  396  includes a first lens member  422  and a second lens member  424 . The tubular portion  412  includes a lower tubular section  426  fixed to the base portion  410 , an upper tubular section  428 , and a middle tubular section  430  extending therebetween. The first and second lens members  422 ,  424  of the third lens assembly  396  are preferably housed within the upper tubular section  428 . The first prism member  386  is positioned directly above the center of the negative (denoted as reference numeral  408 ′ in FIG.  19 A), the third prism member  390  is centered below the lower tubular section  426 , and the second prism member  388  is positioned angularly between the first and third prism members  386 ,  390 . Arranged in this fashion, the rotational prism assembly  356  accomplishes the desired ninety (90) degree image rotation in a fully optical fashion, thereby eliminating the need to employ the bulky and slow mechanical turret systems. As noted above, this effectively reduces the space required, and also reduces the settling time in that there is no need to wait for vibrations to die out as was the case with a rotating turret. Moreover, the rotational prism assembly  356  of the present invention does not use any mirrors to accomplish the image rotation, thereby ensuring that the resulting photographic image is in the same orientation as it resides on the negative. 
     Referring now to FIGS. 21A and 21B, the second projection assembly  316  includes a quint lens assembly  432  and a quad lens assembly  434  fixedly attached to a carrier assembly  436 . As will be explained in greater detail below, the carrier assembly  436  is slidably disposed within the lens deck  52  such that the quint lens assembly  432  and the quad lens assembly  434  may be selectively positioned within the image-bearing light being projected upwardly from the film deck  48 . The quint lens assembly  432  is equipped with five separate lens units and the quad lens assembly  434  is equipped with four separate lens units such that, when either is positioned within the image-bearing light, each lens unit will project a magnified image-bearing light beam upwardly towards the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110 . In an important aspect of the present invention, a plurality of masking members are provided in between the second projection assembly  316  and the paper  22  for selectively blocking out one or more of the magnified image-bearing light beams so as to restrict the number of magnified image-bearing light beams which project onto the paper  22  at any given time. Through this masking feature, in cooperation with the bi-directional film movement described above, the quint lens assembly  432  and quad lens assembly  434  are capable of generating a plurality of different photographic images on the paper  22  exposed within the exposure aperture  110 . Moreover, as will be set forth in greater detail below, the present invention can produce these composite photographs in quick succession so as to save time and, hence, cost. 
     With regard to structure, the carrier assembly  436  includes an upper carrier member  438 , a lower carrier member  440 , a vertical wall member  442  extending therebetween, and a plurality of slide members  444 . The upper carrier member  438  is generally rectangular and planar in shape and includes a quint lens aperture  446  for allowing image-bearing light to project upwardly into the various lens units of the quint lens assembly  432  for magnification. The lower carrier member  440  is similarly generally rectangular and planar in shape and includes a quad lens aperture  448  for allowing image-bearing light to project upwardly into the various lenses of the quad lens assembly  434  for magnification. The vertical wall member  442  is attached in perpendicular fashion to adjacent edges of the upper and lower carrier members  438 ,  440  such that the upper and lower carrier members  438 ,  440  are disposed in a generally parallel and spaced relationship with one another. The plurality of slide members  444  are fixedly attached to the outer corners of the upper and lower carrier members  438 ,  440  so as to slidably receive the second pair of side rails  334  shown in FIG.  18 . An attachment member  450  forms a portion of one of the slide members  444  for the purpose of coupling the second motor  332  to the second projection assembly  316 . 
     The quint lens assembly  432  includes a generally planar lens support member  452  having a first lens unit  454 , a second lens unit  456 , a third lens unit  458 , a fourth lens unit  460 , and a fifth lens unit  462  fixedly attached thereto. The first lens unit  454  includes a tubular housing member  464  extending downwardly from the approximate center of the lens support member  452 . The first lens unit  454  also includes an internally disposed lens assembly  466  having a predetermined magnification ratio which, as will be described below, is capable of producing a centrally located, relatively large photographic image on the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110 . In the preferred embodiment shown, the second, third, fourth, and fifth lens units  456 - 462  are identical in construction and arranged in a generally rectangular configuration about the first lens unit  454 . The second, third, fourth, and fifth lens units  456 - 462  include tubular housing members  468 ,  470 ,  472 ,  474  and internally disposed lens assemblies  476 ,  478 ,  480 ,  482 , respectively. Each of the second, third, fourth, and fifth lens assemblies  476 - 482  have an identical predetermined magnification ratio which, in a preferred embodiment, is generally less than the magnification ratio of the first lens assembly  466 . Arranged in the foregoing fashion, the second, third, fourth, and fifth lens units  456 - 462  are capable of producing four identically sized, relatively small photographic images in a rectangular arrangement about the centrally located, relatively large photographic image generated by the first lens unit  454 . 
     In a preferred embodiment, the size of the photographic image generated by the first lens unit  454  is approximately 4.6″×6.5″, while the size of each photographic image generated by the second, third, fourth, and fifth lens units  456 - 462  is approximately 2.75″×3.75″. The longitudinal axis of each photographic image is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the paper  22  such that the resulting composite has all five photographic images disposed in a symmetrical arrangement on a single 10″×13″ swath of paper  22 . In an important aspect of the present invention, the centrally located, relatively large photographic image is produced by configuring the lens assembly  466  within the first lens unit  454  in a retro-focus arrangement. More specifically, the lens assembly  466  includes an internally disposed mirror arrangement for increasing the overall distance which the magnified image-bearing light must travel before projecting onto the paper  22 . This, of course, has the effect of increasing the size of the resulting photographic image on the paper  22 . The principal advantage of such an arrangement is that the first lens unit  454  may be positioned physically closer to the paper  22  and still produce the centrally located photographic image in the desired size of 4.6″×6.5″. Without the benefit of such a retro-focus arrangement, the first lens unit  454  would have to extend well below the position shown in FIG. 21B in order to produce the centrally located photographic image in the desired size. As will be appreciated with reference to FIG. 18, the retro-focus arrangement of the lens assembly  466  therefore allows the first lens unit  454  to be positioned higher within the lens deck  52  so as to establish an ample amount of vertical clearance between the first and second projection assemblies  314 ,  316 . This, of course, eliminates the threat of collision between the first and second projection assemblies  314 ,  316  and provides for a more compact arrangement of the components within the lens deck  52 . Importantly, this retro-focus arrangement also brings the first lens unit  454  closer to the paper  22  such that the second, third, fourth, and fifth lens units  456 - 462  are not blocked by the first lens unit  454  such that they can effectively receive the image-bearing light without interference. 
     The quad lens assembly  434  includes a first lens unit  484 , a second lens unit  486 , a third lens unit  488 , and a fourth lens unit  490 , all of which are fixedly attached to a generally planar lens support member  492 . A plurality of stand-off members  494  are provided for fixedly attaching the lens support member  492  to the lower carrier member  440  such that the first, second, third, and fourth lens units  484 - 490  are disposed above the quad lens aperture  448  formed in the lower carrier member  440 . In the preferred embodiment, the first, second, third, and fourth lens units  484 - 490  are identical in construction and comprise tubular housing members  496 ,  498 ,  500 ,  502  having internally disposed lens assemblies  504 ,  506 ,  508 ,  510 , respectively. The housing members  496 - 502  are disposed in a generally square arrangement on the lens support member  492  and extend upwardly therefrom. Each lens assembly  504 - 508  has an identical magnification ratio which, in a preferred embodiment, is capable of generating a photographic image approximately 3.5″×5″ in size on the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110 . More specifically, the first, second, third, and fourth lens units  484 - 490  are configured such that the longitudinal axis of each 3.5″×5″ photographic image is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the paper  22 . As will be set forth in greater detail below, the resulting composite comprises an upper right photographic image formed by the first lens unit  484 , a lower right photographic image formed by the second lens unit  486  and disposed immediately below the upper right photographic image, a lower left photographic image formed by the third lens unit  488  and disposed immediately adjacent to the lower right photographic image, and an upper left photographic image formed by the fourth lens unit  490  and disposed immediately above the lower left photographic image and immediately adjacent the upper right photographic image. If so desired, the remaining unexposed portion of the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110  (to the left of the photographic images) may be utilized by simply advancing the paper  22  and generating two more photographic images immediately adjacent to the upper and lower left photographic images. 
     FIGS. 22A-22C illustrate the third projection assembly  318  constructed in accordance with yet another important aspect of the present invention. The third projection assembly  318  includes a carrier assembly  512 , a 13UP lens assembly  514 , and a masking member  516 . The carrier assembly  512  comprises a generally planar carrier member  518  having a 13UP lens aperture  520  formed therethrough and a plurality of slide members  522  extending upwardly from each corner. The 13UP lens aperture  520  is provided to allow the image-bearing light to pass upwardly from the film deck  48  into the 13UP lens assembly  514  for magnification. The slide members  522  are provided for slidably receiving the third pair of side rails  338  set forth in FIG. 18, and the third motor  336  is coupled to an attachment member  524  such that the third projection assembly  318  may be selectively translated within the lens deck  52 . The 13UP lens assembly  514  includes a generally planar lens support member  526  fixedly attached to the carrier member  518  via a plurality of stand-off members  528 , a wallet lens module  530 , a sub-wallet lens module  532 , and a 5″×7″ lens module  534 . As will be explained in greater detail below, the wallet lens module  530 , the sub-wallet lens module  532 , and the 5″×7″ lens module  534  are arranged so as to simultaneously generate nine wallet size photo-graphs, three sub-wallet size photographs, and a single 5″×7″ photograph, respectively, on the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110  with the exposure of a single negative. The masking member  516  is connected to the carriage member  518  via opposing arm members  536 ,  538  and includes a first quad lens masking aperture  540  and a second quad lens masking aperture  542 . As will be explained in greater detail below, the first and second quad lens masking apertures  540 ,  542  cooperate with the first and second masking assemblies  324 ,  326  shown in FIG. 18 to selectively mask out one or more of the magnified image-bearing light beams from the quad lens assembly  434 . In conjunction with the bi-directional film movement described above, this masking feature provides the ability to generate a folio photograph comprising several different 3.5″×5″ photographic images on the paper  22  while maintaining the third projection assembly  318  in a fixed position within the lens deck  52 . 
     The wallet lens module  530  includes a base member  544  and nine identically constructed lens units  546 . More specifically, the nine lens units  546  are disposed on the base member  544  so as to form a first column  548 , a second column  550 , and a third column  552 . The first column  548  is provided along one longitudinal edge of the base member  544 . The second column  550  is provided parallel to the first column  548  in the approximate center of the base member  544 . The third column  552  is provided along the other longitudinal edge of the base member  544  parallel to the second column  550 . Each of the nine lens units  546  includes a tubular housing member  554  and an internally disposed lens assembly  556 . In a preferred embodiment, each lens assembly  556  is configured to produce a wallet sized photograph approximately 2.2″×3.1″ on the paper  22 . As will be illustrated and described in greater detail below, the parallel arrangement of the first, second, and third columns  548 ,  550 ,  552  causes the nine lens units  546  to generate three parallel columns of three wallet size photographs on the paper  22  such that the longitudinal axis of each photograph is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110 . Specifically, a first column of three wallet size photographs will be generated along the trailing edge of the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110 , while a second and a third column of three wallet sized photographs will be generated parallel to and in a slightly spaced relation to the first column of three wallet size photographs. 
     The sub-wallet lens module  532  is constructed in similar fashion as the wallet lens module  530  and includes a base portion  558  and a row of three identically constructed lens units. More specifically, a first lens unit  560  is provided proximate one lateral edge of the base portion  558 , a second lens unit  562  is provided in the approximate center of the base portion  558  immediately adjacent to the first lens unit  560 , and a third lens unit  564  is provided proximate the other lateral edge of the base member  558  immediately adjacent to the second lens unit  562 . Each lens unit  560 - 564  includes a tubular housing member  566 ,  568 ,  570  and an internally disposed lens assembly  572 ,  574 ,  576 , respectively. In a preferred embodiment, each lens assembly  572 ,  574 ,  576  is capable of generating a sub-wallet photograph having an approximate size of 1″×2.1″ on the paper  22 . In the foregoing arrangement, the first, second, and third lens units  560 ,  562 ,  564  will generate three sub-wallet photographs as a row extending between the leading edge of the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110  and the third column of wallet photographs generated by the third column  552  of the wallet lens module  530 . 
     The 5″×7″ lens module  534  includes an upper housing member  578 , a lower housing member  580 , and, as will be described hereinafter, an internally disposed lens assembly for generating a 5″×7″ photographic image adjacent and parallel to the row of three sub-wallet photographs proximate the leading edge  126  of the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110 . In order to position the 5″×7″ photographic image in this specific area of the exposure aperture  110 , it is necessary to project the magnified image-bearing light off-center with respect to the negative  408  within the film aperture  236 . With combined reference to FIG. 23, this is accomplished by configuring the lens assembly to include a first lens member  582 , a second lens member  584 , a third lens member  586 , a fourth lens member  588 , a fifth lens member  590 , and a sixth lens member  592 . The first and second lens members  582 ,  584  are disc-shaped and disposed proximate the bottom edge of the lower housing member  580 , while the third and fourth lens members  586 ,  588  are disc-shaped and disposed within the lower housing member  580  proximate the junction with the upper housing member  578 . The fifth and sixth lens members  590 ,  592  are in the form of a half disc and are disposed within the upper housing member  578 . More specifically, the sixth lens member  592  is located at the approximate top of the upper housing member  578 , while the fifth lens member  590  is disposed a predetermined distance below the sixth lens member  592  within the upper housing member  578 . 
     In an important aspect of the present invention, the 5″×7″ lens module  534  is positioned within the lens deck  52  such that the first and second lens members  582 ,  584  are off-center with respect to the negative  408  within the film aperture  236 . In this arrangement, then, the image-bearing light rays (shown in solid lines at  594 ) pass angularly upwards from the negative  408  and into the first and second lens members  582 ,  584 . The angular projection of the image-bearing light into the first and second lens members  582 ,  584 , in turn, causes the image-bearing light rays  594  to continue projecting angularly through the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth lens members  586 - 592  and further into the desired position proximate the leading edge  126  of the exposure aperture  110 . This is advantageous in that it provides the ability to generate 13 individual photographic images (9 wallets, 3 sub-wallets, and one 5″×7″) on the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110  with the exposure of a single negative. Moreover, this is advantageous in that the fifth and sixth lens members  590 ,  592  may be formed in the half disc shape, thereby reducing the amount of space consumed by the 5″×7″ lens module  534 . To further explain, the off-center positioning of the 5″×7″ lens module  534  causes the entire image-bearing light rays  594  to extend angularly to the right of center after passing through the first, second, third, and fourth lens members  582 - 588 . Thus, the fifth and sixth lens members  590 ,  592  need only comprise the right half of an ordinarily disc-shaped lens, as opposed to a full disc shape as shown in phantom at  590 ′,  592 ′. If the 5″×7″ lens module  534  were disposed directly above the negative  408  within the film aperture  236 , the resulting image-bearing light rays (shown in dashed lines at  596 ) would project upwardly in a straight fashion and therefore require that the fifth and sixth lens members  590 ,  592  be fully formed to include each left half  590 ′,  592 ′. 
     Turning to FIGS. 24A and 24B, the fourth projection assembly  320  includes a carriage assembly  598  having an 18UP lens assembly  600  fixedly attached thereto. The carriage assembly  598  includes a generally planar carriage member  602  and a plurality of slide members  604 . The carriage member  602  has an 18UP lens aperture  606  formed therein for allowing the image-bearing light to project upwardly into the 18UP lens assembly  600  for magnification. The slide members  604  are fixedly attached to the carriage member  602  so as to slidably receive the fourth pair of side rails  342  shown in FIG.  18 . An attachment member  608  is provided for coupling the fourth motor  340  to the fourth projection assembly  320  so that the fourth projection assembly  320  may be selectively translated within the lens deck  52 . The 18UP lens assembly  600  comprises a generally planar lens support member  610  having a bank of eighteen identically constructed lens units  612 . The support member  610  is connected to the carriage member  602  via a plurality of stand-off members  624  such that the lens units  612  are disposed directly above the 18UP lens aperture  606  The eighteen lens units  612  are similar in structure to the aforementioned lens units, each including a tubular housing member  614  fixedly attached to the lens support member  610  having a lens assembly  616  disposed therein. In a preferred embodiment, the lens units  612  are arranged to form a first column  618 , a second column  620 , and a third column  622 . All of the lens assemblies  616  have the same magnification ratio such that, in a preferred embodiment, eighteen individual photographic images, each having an approximate size of 1.20″×1.7″, are projected upon the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110 . More particularly, the first column  618  of six lenses will project a column of six individual photographic images extending across approximately the entire 10 inch width of the paper  22  along the leading edge  126  of the exposure aperture  110 . In similar fashion, the second column  620  of six lenses will project a corresponding column of six photographic images parallel to those generated by the first column  618  of six lenses, while the third column  622  of six lenses will generate a corresponding column of six photographic images proximate those generated by the second column  620  of six lenses. 
     With reference now to FIGS. 25A and 25B, the fifth projection assembly  322  includes a carriage assembly  626  and a charm lens assembly  628 . The carriage assembly  626  includes a generally planar carriage member  630  having a plurality of slide members  660  disposed thereon for slidably receiving the fifth pair of side rails  346  shown in FIG.  18 . An attachment member  662  is provided on one of the slide members  660  for coupling the fifth motor  344  to the carriage assembly  626  such that the fifth projection assembly  332  may be selectively positioned within the lens deck  52 . The carriage member  630  includes a first quint masking aperture  632 , a second quint masking aperture  634 , and a charm aperture  636  formed therein. As will be described in greater detail below, the first and second quint masking apertures  632 ,  634  are provided to allow only two of the four magnified image-bearing light beams from the second, third, fourth, and fifth lens units  456 - 462  of the quint lens assembly  432  to pass upwardly toward the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110 . As will be explained below, the first and second quint masking apertures  632 ,  634  cooperate with the first and second masking assemblies  324 ,  326  so as to provide folio photographs comprising a plurality of different 3.5″×5″ photographic images. The charm aperture  636  is provided such that image-bearing light may project upwardly into the charm lens assembly  628  for magnification. The charm lens assembly  628  includes a generally planar lens support member  638  having a first charm lens unit  640 , a second charm lens unit  642 , and a third charm lens unit  644  attached thereto. The lens support member  638  is fixedly attached to the carriage member  630  via a plurality of stand-off members  646 . In a preferred embodiment, these charm lens units  640 - 644  are identical in construction and include tubular housing members  648 ,  650 ,  652  having internally disposed lens assemblies  654 ,  656 ,  658 . Each lens assembly  654 - 658  has a magnification ratio for producing charm-sized (1″×1.25″) photographic images on the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110 . More specifically, the photographic images are approximately 1″×1.25″ in size and, in a preferred embodiment, are positioned parallel and immediately adjacent to the 8″×10″ photographic image generated by the 8″×10″ lens unit  358  of the first projection assembly  314 . 
     Lamp Deck 
     With reference now to FIGS. 26A-26D, shown is the lamphouse  51  embodying yet another important feature of the present invention. The lamphouse  51  may comprise any number of commercially available lamphouses having a plurality of lamp assemblies for projecting light upwardly towards the film deck  48 . In a preferred embodiment, the lamphouse  51  includes a housing member  664  equipped with a first lamp assembly  668 , a second lamp assembly  670 , a third lamp assembly  672 , and an internally disposed power supply  674 . The upper surface of the housing member  664  includes a circular portion  676  disposed centrally between angularly extending side wall portions  678 ,  680 ,  682 ,  684 . The circular portion  676  includes a first filter aperture  686 , a second filter aperture  688 , and a third filter aperture  690 . In a preferred embodiment, the first, second, and third filter apertures  686 - 690  are formed such that each aperture defines a circular area of approximately 2.41 square inches. The lamp assemblies  668 - 672  are identical in construction, each including a reflective bulb enclosure  692 ,  694 ,  696  coupled directly below the first, second, and third filter apertures  686 ,  688 ,  690 , respectively, and an internally disposed light bulb  698 ,  700 ,  702 . The power supply  674  is coupled to each light bulb  698 - 702  and configured such that each light bulb  698 - 702  may be selectively driven to vary the light energy being emitted therefrom. 
     In an important aspect of the present invention, an improved filtering arrangement is provided for balancing the color of the light being emitted by the light bulbs  698 - 702  such that each light bulb  698 - 702  may be powered at approximately the same level. As will become apparent, equalizing the level at which each of the light bulbs  698 - 702  are powered creates a condition where all the light bulbs  698 - 702  will have a substantially equal life span such that they can all be replaced at the same time, thereby minimizing system down time consumed for replacing the light bulbs  698 - 702 . The improved filtering arrangement of the present invention includes a first dichroic filter  704  disposed within the first filter aperture  686 , a second and a third dichroic filter  706 ,  708  disposed within the second filter aperture  688 , and a fourth and a fifth dichroic filter  710 ,  712  disposed within the third filter aperture  690 . In order to properly expose the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110 , the lamphouse  51  must combine red, green, and blue light in specific fashion to ensure proper color balance. To accomplish this, the first, third, and fourth dichroic filters  704 ,  708 ,  710  are provided as red in color, the second dichroic filter  706  is provided as green in color, and the fifth dichroic filter  712  is provided as blue in color. In terms of size, the first dichroic filter  704  has an area of approximately 2.41 square inches, the second dichroic filter  706  has an area of approximately 1.69 square inches, the third dichroic filter  708  has an area of approximately 0.72 square inches, the fourth dichroic filter  710  has an area of approximately 1.35 square inches, and the fifth dichroic filter  712  has an area of approximately 1.06 square inches. 
     In the foregoing arrangement, the first dichroic filter  704  filters the light emanating from the first lamp assembly  668 , the second and third dichroic filters  706 ,  708  combine to filter the light emanating from the second lamp assembly  670 , and the fourth and fifth dichroic filters  710 ,  712  combine to filter the light emanating from the third lamp assembly  672 . Each of the filtered light beams is thereafter passed through the diffusion plate  286  prior to passing through the negative aperture  236  to further ensure proper color mixing for optimal exposure quality on the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110 . Moreover, by providing the second and third dichroic filters  706 ,  708  and the fourth and fifth dichroic filters  710 ,  712  in matched sets as set forth above, the resulting light beams are appropriately colored such that each of the light bulbs  698 - 702  may be operated at approximately the same power level. Operating the light bulbs  698 - 702  at equivalent power levels is advantageous in that the bulbs  698 - 702  will have approximately the same effective life span such that they may all be replaced at the same time, thereby minimizing the amount of system down time for such activities. This is in marked distinction to filtering arrangements of prior art lamphouses which, as noted above, involve positioning a single uni-color dichroic filter (i.e. red, green, blue, yellow) over each lamp assembly for creating the colored light. In that red is the predominant color required when creating exposures on photographic paper, the light bulb associated with the red filter are typically operated at a higher power than the other light bulbs, thereby causing it to burn out at an increased rate relative to the other light bulbs. This, once again, disadvantageously translates into increased system down time for replacing the burned out light bulbs. The improved filtering arrangement of the present invention solves this problem by equaling the light energy which is emitted from the light bulbs  698 - 702 . As noted above, this causes all the light bulbs  698 - 702  to have substantially the same life span such that they can all be replaced at the same time so as to effectively reduce the amount of system down time. 
     Mode of Operation 
     FIG. 27 illustrates the high speed package printer  10  of the present invention configured to produce a 10″×13″ photograph  714 . With further reference to FIGS. 19A-20, the first projection assembly  314  is positioned within the lens deck  52  such that the first prism member  386  of the rotational prism assembly  356  is located directly above the image-bearing light which progresses upward from the film deck  48 . The first prism member  386  cooperates with the second and third prism members  388 ,  390  and the lens assemblies  392 - 396  to rotate and magnify the image-bearing light from the film deck  48  to produce the 10″×13″ photographic image  714  on the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110  of the paper deck  46 . The second, third, fourth, and fifth projection assemblies  316 ,  318 ,  320 ,  322  are moved off to either side of the lens deck  52  via motors  332 ,  336 ,  340 ,  344  so as not to interfere with the magnified image-bearing light projecting upwardly from the rotational prism assembly  356 . In a preferred embodiment, the first and second masking assemblies  324 ,  326  may be selectively posiitoned within the penumbra of the magnified image-bearing light via motors  348 ,  352 , respectively, to define sharp borders along the leading and trailing edges of the resulting 10″×13″ image  714 . It should be noted with particularity that the magnified image-bearing light projects off-center with respect to the negative within the negative holder assembly  192 , as evidenced by the negative center line designated at  716 . 
     FIG. 28 illustrates the high speed package printer  10  of the present invention configured to produce an 8″×10″ photograph  718 . With further reference to FIGS. 19A-19C, the first projection assembly  314  is positioned within the lens deck  52  such that the 8″×10″ lens unit  358  is positioned directly above the image-bearing light projecting upwardly from the film deck  48 . The lens assembly  370  within the 8″×10″ lens unit  358 , in turn, magnifies the image-bearing light from the film deck  48  to project the 8″×10″ photographic image  718  on the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110  shown in FIG.  3 . As above, the second, third, fourth, and fifth projection assemblies  316 ,  318 ,  320 ,  322  are moved off to either side of the lens deck  52  via motors  332 ,  336 ,  340 ,  344  so as not to interfere with the magnified image-bearing light projecting upwardly from the 8″×10″ lens unit  358 . In an important aspect, the hinged mask member  112  is selectively actuated via first actuator  113  to thereby shorten the length of the exposure aperture  110 . In a preferred embodiment, the mask member  112  is specifically dimensioned so as to create a sharp border along the trailing edge of the resulting 8″×10″ photographic image  718 . The second mask member  326  may be selectively positioned within the penumbra of the magnified image-bearing light from the 8″×10″ lens unit  358  via the motor  352  so as to define a sharp border along the leading edge of the resulting 8″×10″ photographic image  718 . It should once again be noted that the magnified image-bearing light projects upwardly from the 8″×10″ lens unit  358  off-center in relation to the negative center line  716  such that the 8″×10″ photographic image  718  abuts the leading edge  126  of the exposure aperture  110  as shown in FIG.  3 . 
     FIG. 29 illustrates the high speed package printer  10  of the present invention configured to produce a quint photograph  720  comprising five separate photographic images  722 - 730 . The first projection assembly  314  is positioned within the lens deck  52  such that the aperture  384  formed in the mask member  362  (FIG. 19A) is located directly above the negative within the film deck  48 . Positioning the first projection  314  in this fashion restricts the image-bearing light which projects from the film deck  48  so as to reduce the incidence of reflections within the lens deck  52  when using the second, third, fourth, and fifth projection assemblies  316 - 322 . The second projection assembly  316  is positioned within the lens deck  52  such that the quint assembly  432  shown in FIGS. 21A and 21B is centered within the image-bearing light which progresses upwardly through the aperture  384  of the first projection assembly  314 . This upwardly projecting image-bearing light causes each lens unit  454 - 462  of the quint assembly  432  to project magnified image-bearing light upwardly such that, if unimpeded, the quint photograph  720  will result on the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110  shown in FIG.  3 . Specifically, the first lens unit  454  will produce the first photographic image  722  centered slightly to the left of the negative center line  716 , while the second, third, fourth, and fifth lens units  456 ,  458 ,  460 ,  462  will produce the second, third, fourth, and fifth photographic images  724 ,  726 ,  728 ,  730 , respectively, disposed in equidistant fashion about the first photographic image  722 . 
     In an important aspect of the present invention, the first and second quint masking apertures  632 ,  634  of the fifth projection assembly  322  (FIG. 25A) cooperate with the first and second masking assemblies  324 ,  326  to selectively block out one or more of the magnified image-bearing light beams from the quint lens assembly  432  so as to restrict the number of magnified image-bearing light beams which project onto the paper  22  at any given time. This selective masking feature, in conjunction with the bi-directional film movement of the present invention, provides the capability to generate the quint photograph  720  wherein each photographic image  722 - 730  is based on separate and distinct negative within the film  196 . For example, the first photographic image  722  may be formed separately by masking out the magnified image-bearing light beams from the second, third, fourth, and fifth lens units  256 - 462  while allowing only the light from the first lens unit  454  to project unimpeded onto the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110 . In a preferred embodiment, this masking is accomplished by moving the third, fourth, and fifth projection assemblies  318 - 322  off to either side of the lens deck  52  while selectively positioning the first and second masking assemblies  324 ,  326  to block out the magnified image-bearing light beams from the second, third, fourth, and fifth lens units  256 - 462 . Moreover, the first and second masking assemblies  324 ,  326  may be advantageously positioned within the penumbra of the image-bearing light from the first lens unit  454  so as to produce sharply defined borders on the trailing and leading edges, respectively, of the resulting photographic image  722 . 
     Following each exposure the film  196  within the film deck  48  may thereafter be selectively advanced or reversed to position another preselected photographic negative within the negative aperture  236  of the negative holder assembly  192 . In a preferred embodiment, the masking members  324 ,  326  and masking apertures  632 ,  634  are simultaneously re-positioned while the film deck  48  is locating the next preselected negative so as to reduce the overall amount of time between each exposure. For example, after the exposure which forms the first photographic image  722 , the film  196  within the film deck  48  may be selectively advanced or reversed to locate another preselected negative while, at the same time, the masking members  324 ,  326  and masking apertures  632 ,  634  are re-positioned to produce the second, third, fourth, or fifth photographic images  724 - 730  based on the new negative. In order to create the second photographic image  724 , the first masking assembly  324  will be positioned so as to block out the magnified image-bearing light from the first, fourth, and fifth lens units  454 ,  460 ,  462 . The fifth projection assembly  322  will also be positioned such that the image-bearing light from the second lens unit  456  will project through the first quint masking aperture  632  to create the photographic image  724 . In an important aspect, the staggered relation between the first and second quint masking apertures  632 ,  634  causes the carriage member  630  of the fifth projection assembly  322  to mask out the light projecting upwardly from the third lens unit  458  while the first quint masking aperture  632  allows the magnified image-bearing light from the second lens unit  456  to project onward to the paper  22 . It is furthermore possible to position the second masking assembly  326  within the penumbra of the image-bearing light as it projects toward the paper  22  to define a sharp or crisp border on the leading edge of the second photographic image  724 . 
     The third, fourth, and fifth photographic images  726 - 730  may be formed separately in the same fashion as set forth above. More specifically, the third photographic image  726  may be individually formed by selectively positioning the first masking assembly  324  to block out the magnified image-bearing light from the first, fourth, and fifth lens units  454 ,  460 ,  462 , while simultaneously positioning the fifth projection assembly  322  such that the image-bearing light from the third lens unit  458  will project through the second quint masking aperture  634  to create the photographic image  726 . As above, the second masking assembly  326  may be selectively positioned within the penumbra of the upwardly projecting light so as to produce a sharply defined border on the leading edge of the resulting photographic image  726 . The fourth photographic image  728  may be individually formed by selectively positioning the second masking assembly  326  to block out the magnified image-bearing light from the first, second, and third lens units  454 ,  456 ,  458 , while simultaneously positioning the fifth projection assembly  322  such that the image-bearing light from the fourth lens unit  460  will project through the second quint masking aperture  634  to create the photographic image  728 . Finally, the fifth photographic image  730  may be individually formed by selectively positioning the second masking assembly  326  to block out the image-bearing light from the first, second, and third lens units  454 ,  456 ,  458 , while simultaneously positioning the fifth projection assembly  322  such that the image-bearing light from the fifth lens unit  462  will project through the first quint masking aperture  632  to create the photographic image  730 . In the latter two instances, the first masking assembly  324  may be selectively positioned within the penumbra of the upwardly projecting light so as to form sharply defined borders along the trailing edges of the resulting photographic images  728 ,  730 . 
     FIG. 30 illustrates the high speed package printer  10  of the present invention configured to produce a folio-style composite  732  comprising four separate photographic images  734 - 740 . The second projection assembly  316  is positioned within the lens deck  52  such that the quad lens assembly  434  shown in FIGS. 21A and 21B is centered within the image-bearing light which progresses upwardly through the aperture  384  of the first projection assembly  314  (FIG.  19 A). Arranged as such, each lens unit  486 - 490  of the quad lens assembly  434  will project magnified image-bearing light upwardly toward the paper  22  within the exposure aperture (FIG.  3 ). In an important aspect of the present invention, each photographic image  734 - 740  of the folio-style photograph  732  can comprise a different photograph by selectively masking out the magnified image-bearing light beams which project upwardly from the lens units  486 - 490  in conjunction with the bi-directional film feature of the film deck  48 . The selective masking is accomplished through the use of the masking member  516  of the third projection assembly  318  (FIGS.  22 A- 22 C). More specifically, the first and second quad lens masking apertures  540 ,  542  of the third projection assembly  318  (FIG. 22A) are disposed in a spaced and staggered relation such that the masking member  516  will effectively block out three of the four magnified image-bearing light beams from the quad lens assembly  434  when one of the masking apertures  540 ,  542  is positioned above one of the lens units  484 - 490 . 
     In order to create the first photographic image  734 , the third projection assembly  318  is positioned such that the first quad lens masking aperture  540  is directly above the first lens unit  484 . This allows the magnified image-bearing light from the first lens unit  484  to project upwardly toward the paper  22  while the masking member  516  effectively blocks out the image-bearing light from the second, third, and fourth lens units  486 - 490 . The second photographic image  736  may be similarly formed by positioning the third projection assembly  318  such that the second quad lens masking aperture  542  is located directly above the second lens unit  486 , thereby allowing the image-bearing light from the second lens unit  486  to project upwardly in an unimpeded fashion such that the masking member  516  blocks out the image-bearing light from the first, third, and fourth lens units  484 ,  488 ,  490 . The third and fourth photographic images  738 ,  740  are formed in similar fashion by positioning the second quad lens masking aperture  542  over the third lens unit  488  and positioning the first quad lens masking aperture  540  over the fourth lens unit  490 , respectively. In a preferred embodiment, the first and second masking assemblies  324 ,  326  may be employed to create sharply defined borders on the resulting photographic images  734 - 740 . This is accomplished by selectively positioning the first and second masking members  324 ,  326  such that the first masking member  324  is disposed within the penumbra, or shadow, of the trailing edge of the image-bearing light projecting upwardly from each lens unit  484 - 490 , while the second masking member  326  is likewise positioned within the penumbra, or shadow, of the leading edge of the image-bearing light projecting upwardly from each lens unit  484 - 490 . 
     FIG. 31 illustrates the high speed package printer  10  of the present invention configured to produce a 13UP photograph  742  comprising nine wallet-sized photographic images  744 , three sub-wallet-sized photographic images  746 , and one 5″×7″ photographic image  748 . The third projection assembly  318  (FIGS. 22A-22C) is positioned within the lens deck  52  such that the 13UP lens assembly  514  is centered within the image-bearing light which progresses upwardly through the aperture  384  of the first projection assembly  314  (FIG.  19 A). In an important aspect of the present invention, the wallet lens module  530 , the sub-wallet lens module  532 , and the 5″×7″ lens module  534  are configured so as to simultaneously magnify and project all of the photographic images  744 - 748  onto the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110  (FIG. 3) for each exposure performed by the film deck  48 . In this fashion, all of the photographic images  744 - 748  which comprise the 13UP photograph  742  are based on the same negative and therefore result in identical photographs of varying size. Producing the 13UP photograph  742  to comprise identical photographic images of varying size is particularly noteworthy in view of the prior art package printers which typically employ separate lens assemblies for producing each particular size of photograph. Such prior art systems therefore require the use of several different lens assemblies to generate photographs of varying size which, it will be appreciated, consumes a considerable amount of time to accomplish the selective positioning and exposure. The 13UP lens assembly  514  of the present invention, on the contrary, advantageously increases the number of photographs which may be generated during the exposure of a single negative, thereby maximizing the efficiency of the package printer  10  of the present invention. 
     Creating the 13UP photograph  742  presents a significant technical challenge in that the wide range of photograph sizes (i.e. wallet, sub-wallet, and 5″×7″) necessarily requires lens assemblies having a wide range of focal lengths. More specifically, with combined reference to FIG. 31, the focal length of the 5″×7″ lens assembly  514  is substantially larger than the focal length of the wallet and sub-wallet lens assemblies  530 ,  532 , while the focal length of the sub-wallet lens assembly  532  is substantially shorter than the 5″×7″ and wallet lens assemblies  514 ,  530  in order to create the photographic images  744 - 748 . In an important aspect of the present invention, the 5″7″ lens assembly  514  is constructed in a retro-focus arrangement and the sub-wallet lens assembly  532  is constructed with an internal mirror arrangement such that both lens assemblies are as close as possible to the center of gravity of the third projection assembly  318 . Specifically, the retro-focus feature of the 5″×7″ lens assembly  534  allows it to be disposed closer to the paper  22  than would ordinarily be possible, while the mirror arrangement of the sub-wallet lens assembly  532  allows it to be disposed farther away from the paper  22  than would ordinarily be possible. Constructing the 13UP lens assembly  514  in this fashion is beneficial in that it brings the moment of inertia of the third projection assembly  318  closer to its center of gravity so as to effectively eliminate any rocking or vibrations following the movement of the third projection assembly  318 , thereby minimizing setting time and increasing the overall speed of operation of the package printer  10 . The 13UP lens assembly  514  is furthermore advantageous in that effectively creates the photographic images  744 - 748  shown in FIG. 31 in close proximity to one another so as to minimize the amount of space between the adjacent photographic images. This, it will be appreciated, is beneficial in that it amounts to a more efficient use of the photographic paper  22 . 
     With reference to FIGS. 22A-23, space within the lens deck  52  is furthermore conserved by constructing the 5″×7″ lens assembly such that the fifth and sixth lens members  590 ,  592  are each provided as half-lens in shape. As noted above, the 5″×7″ lens module  534  is positioned within the lens deck  52  such that the first and second lens members  582 ,  584  are off-center with respect to the negative  408  within the film aperture  236 . The image-bearing light rays  594  therefore pass angularly from the negative  408  into the first and second lens members  582 ,  584  and onward in an angular fashion to the third and fourth lens members  586 ,  588 . The image-bearing light  594  thereafter exits the fourth lens member  588  and continues angularly to the right of center so as to project fully through the fifth and sixth lens members  590 ,  592 . This is advantageous in that the fifth and sixth lens members  590 ,  592  do not need to be constructed as full lenses to include the left halves  590 ′,  592 ′ as shown in phantom. Rather, the fifth and sixth lens members  590 ,  592  may be formed in the half disc shape, thereby reducing the amount of space consumed by the 5″×7″ lens module  534 . 
     Although the fourth and fifth projection assemblies  320 ,  322  are not shown in operation, it is to be understood that the fourth and fifth projection assemblies  320 ,  322  are selectively positionable within the lens deck  52  via motors  340 ,  344 , respectively, for producing a plurality of identical photographic images on the paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110  (FIG.  3 ). More specifically, the 18UP lens assembly  600  of the fourth projection assembly  320  may be selectively positioned within the image-bearing light projecting through the aperture  384  of the first projection assembly  314  (FIG. 19A) so as to project a bank of eighteen individual photographs as described above with reference to FIGS. 24A and 24B. The lens units  612  of the 18UP lens assembly  600  project upwardly in an off-center fashion such that the resulting bank of eighteen photographic images is disposed on the paper  22  proximate the leading edge  126  of the exposure aperture  110  (FIG.  3 ). In a preferred embodiment, each bank of eighteen photographs consumes approximately one third (⅓) length of the exposure aperture  110  such that  54  photographs can be generated on a single 10″×13″ swath of unexposed paper  22  within the exposure aperture  110 . This is easily accomplished by advancing the paper  22  such that the original bank of eighteen photographs is positioned slightly outside the exposure aperture  110 , re-exposing the negative to form a second bank of eighteen photographs adjacent to the first bank, and repeating this process to form a third bank of eighteen photographs adjacent to the second bank. The fifth projection assembly  322  may be operated in a similar fashion to produce a bank of three individual charm-sized photographs on the paper  22  proximate the leading edge  126  of the exposure aperture  110  (FIG.  3 ). For example, the fifth projection assembly  322  may be employed to create a row of three charm photographs alongside an 8″×10″ photograph. 
     It should be noted with particularity that each photographic image created by the projection assemblies  314 - 322  is projected off-center to the right of the negative, as designated by reference numeral  716 , such that the resulting images are formed proximate the leading edge  126  of the exposure aperture  110  (FIG.  3 ). Such off-center printing is advantageous in that the paper  22  can be marked via paper punching actuators  122 ,  124  while the exposures are being carried out. This is in contra-distinction to the prior art printers which print on-center in that the paper  22  must be advanced in such systems following each exposure to appropriately mark the paper for processing. The additional step of advancing, it will be appreciated, consumes valuable time and therefore decreases the overall output of such prior art package printers over a given time. The off-center printing of the present invention, however, effectively eliminates any additional advancing steps for marking by printing off-center such that the marking can be conducted by the actuators  122 ,  124  while the exposures are being conducted. This advantageously increases the overall speed and hence output of the package printer  10 . 
     In summary, the high speed package printer  10  advantageously includes an improved paper loading feature for automatically loading photographic paper without fear of having the paper buckling or becoming fouled up in the paper transportation path. The ultrasonic proximity sensors  66 ,  68  are provided for dynamically measuring the paper slack loops to ensure for the smooth and efficient operation of the paper drive motors which, as will be appreciated, enables high speed paper advancing. The diffusion plate cleaning assembly  284  sweeps the diffusion plate on a periodic basis to automatically remove any and all dust particles and/or “floaters” which may have settled on the diffusion plate during use, thereby reducing the need to repeat tainted sittings and reducing the overall amount of scrap and waste. The film cleaning assembly  182  automatically removes dust and related impurities from the passing film so as to improve overall print quality, reduce the amount of scrap, and reduce the need to manually touch-up the prints to remove blemishes caused by dust. The negative cropping assembly  268  is provided between the lamp deck  50  and the film deck  48  for selectively cropping the light which projects upwardly from the lamphouse  51  into one of several sharply delineated border shapes. Furthermore, the bi-directional film movement and selective masking capabilities advantageously provide the capability to generate composite photographs based on a plurality of different negatives so as to eliminate the need for separate composite printers. The rotational prism assembly  356  advantageously generates 10″×13″ photographs via optical rotation so as to eliminate the need for a rotating turret. The 13UP lens assembly  514  is capable of creating nine wallet sized photographs, three sub-wallet sized photographs, and a single 5″×7″ photograph with a single exposure. The filtering arrangement within the lamphouse  51  advantageously equalizes the operation level of each lamp assembly  668 - 672  such that each light bulb  698 - 702  will have the same approximate life span, thereby allowing all of the bulbs  698 - 702  to be replaced at the same time so as to minimize system down time. 
     The various embodiments of the present invention have been described herein in considerable detail in order to comply with the Patent Statutes and to provide those skilled in the art with the information needed to apply the novel principles and to construct and use such specialized components as are required. It is also to be understood that the invention can be carried out by specifically different means and that various modifications can be accomplished without departing from the scope of the invention itself Moreover, the corresponding structures, materials, acts, and equivalents of all means or step plus function elements in the claims below are intended to include any structure, material, or acts for performing the functions in combination with other claimed elements as specifically claimed. 
     For example, although the paper take-up cartridge  16  is shown as being substantially smaller than the paper supply cartridge  14 , it is to be fully understood that the paper take-up cartridge  16  may be constructed in essentially the same fashion as the paper supply cartridge  14  so as to receive a greater quantity of photographic paper therein.