Patent ID: 7583864

Claim:
An image reader, comprising: an image reading device for reading a document; an initialization operation control device that performs an initialization operation in which the image reading device moves to a standby position where the image reading device needs to be located prior to a start of the reading operation; a storage device that stores flag data representing whether the initialization operation needs to be performed; and a flag data control device that controls the flag data, the flag data representing necessity of execution of the initialization operation while the reading operation is performed by the image reading device and the flag data representing nonnecessity of the execution of the initialization operation after the reading operation by the image reading device is finished, wherein, when the flag data represents the necessity of the execution of the initialization operation, the initialization operation control device performs the initialization operation; and when the flag data represents the nonnecessity of the execution of the initialization operation, the initialization operation control device does not perform the initialization operation.