Patent ID: 8125700

Claim:
An optical scanning apparatus for scanning a rotating photosensitive member with a light beam deflected by a rotatable polygonal mirror, said optical scanning apparatus comprising: a first light source for outputting a first light beam; a second light source for outputting a second light beam; a third light source for outputting a third light beam; a fourth light source for outputting a fourth light beam; a fifth light source for outputting a fifth light beam; a first optical unit for adjusting a distance between imaging positions of the first light beam and the second light beam and a distance between imaging positions of the second light beam and the third light beam, to a first distance with respect to a rotational moving direction of the photosensitive member; a second optical unit for adjusting a distance between the fourth light beam and the fifth light beam to a second distance; a third optical unit for adjusting the imaging positions of the fourth light beam and the fifth light beam relative to the first light beam, the second light beam and the third light beam, the imaging positions of which are adjusted by said first optical unit, wherein by rotational adjustment of said third optical unit, the fourth light beam is capable of being imaged between the first light beam and the second light beam, and the fifth light beam is capable of being imaged between the second light beam and the third light beam, with respect to the rotational moving direction of the photosensitive member, or the fourth and fifth light beams and the first and second light beams are capable of being imaged at positions across the third light beam from each other with respect to the rotational moving direction of the photosensitive member.