Patent ID: 6914621

Claim:
A shading correction method for a heat development recording apparatus which exposes a heat development recording material including a heat development and photosensitive material or a photosensitive and heat sensitive recording mate alto a laser beam to form a latent image on the heat development recording material and performs heat development for the heat development recording material on which the latent image is formed, comprising the steps of: before the heat development recording apparatus is shipped, continuously outputting a continuous recording pattern to a recording surface, measuring recording density of the continuous recording pattern by a recording density measuring unit, generating a shading correction table for each pixel, and registering the shading correction table in storing unit; and after the heat development recording apparatus is shipped without mounting the recording density measuring unit thereon, outputting a discrete recording pattern, measuring recording density of the discrete recording pattern for each discrete recording position, generating another shading correction table, and updating the shading correction table registered in the storing unit.