Patent ID: 8446649

Claim:
An optical scanning apparatus comprising: a light source including a plurality of light emitting elements each emitting a light beam modulated in accordance with an image signal, the plurality of light emitting elements being arranged two-dimensionally in a first direction and a second direction intersecting the first direction; a rotating polygonal mirror that is irradiated with a plurality of light beams emitted from the light source, the plurality of light beams being arranged two-dimensionally, and that, while rotating, reflects and deflects, in a deflecting direction according to an angle of rotation, a plurality of light beams emitted from a plurality of light emitting elements arranged in the first direction so that the plurality of light beams propagate through one point in the deflecting direction substantially at the same time; a scanning optical system that directs the plurality of light beams reflected and deflected by the rotating polygonal mirror to an object to be scanned and that causes the plurality of light beams to scan over the object to be scanned; a detector that detects a propagation timing at which a light beam propagates through a detection point, the detection point being located within an area where the rotating polygonal mirror deflects the light beams and being located outside a scan area used for scanning of the object to be scanned; and a light emission controller that, at a time when the plurality of light beams propagate through the detection point, causes only a plurality of light emitting elements to emit light, the plurality of light emitting elements being arranged in a row in the first direction among inner light emitting elements other than light emitting elements located at both ends of a projection plane, the projection plane being a plane obtained when the plurality of light emitting elements arranged two-dimensionally are projected in a direction perpendicular to the first direction in a two-dimensional plane where the plurality of light emitting elements are arranged two-dimensionally.