Image reading apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10091375-B2
Application number	US-201615042000-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 11, 2016
Priority date	Feb 12, 2015
Publication date	Oct 2, 2018
Grant date	Oct 2, 2018

Abstract

An image reading apparatus includes a transport unit which transports a document, and reading units which read an image of the document which is transported. It is assumed that an operation of reading an image when specific setting information is not input to a control device of the image reading apparatus is set to a first reading mode, and an operation of reading an image when specific setting information is input to the control device is set to a second reading mode. In this case, in the second reading mode, image data of an image with a resolution which is equal to that in the first reading mode is generated, while causing the reading units to read an image from a document which is transported by the transport device at a lower speed than that in the first reading mode.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An image reading apparatus comprising:
a transport unit which transports a document;
a reading unit which reads an image of the document which is transported by the transport unit; and
a control unit which generates image data as data of the image which is read by the reading unit,
wherein, as operation modes for performing reading in the reading unit, there are a first reading mode and a second reading mode in which resolutions of the generated image data are the same, and transport speeds are different from each other,
wherein the control unit transports the document at a low speed when reading the document in the second reading mode compared to a case in which the document is read in the first reading mode,
wherein, in a case in which specific setting information is input in the middle of transporting the one document in each of the documents using the transport unit when continuously reading images of a plurality of documents in the first reading mode, the control unit continues to read the image of one document in the first reading mode and then reads the image of a subsequent document of the one document in the second reading mode, and
wherein an operation mode of reading a document with a first thickness is set to the first reading mode, and an operation mode of reading a document with a second thickness which is thinner than the document with the first thickness is set to the second reading mode,
wherein the control unit provides image data that are independent of transport speeds of the one document and of the subsequent document.

2. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising: a sonic wave sensor which outputs a sonic wave to a document which is transported by the transport unit, and detects an attenuation rate of the sonic wave, wherein the control unit determines that the document which is transported by the transport unit is thin when an attenuation rate of a sonic wave which is detected by the sonic wave sensor under a circumstance in which the document is transported by the transport unit is less than a determining attenuation rate, and executes the second reading mode.

3. The image reading apparatus according to claim 2 ,
wherein the sonic wave sensor is a sensor which detects whether or not a plurality of documents are transported by being overlapped,
wherein a multi-feeding detecting attenuation rate which is larger than the determining attenuation rate is provided as a threshold value for determining whether or not a plurality of documents are transported by being overlapped, and
wherein the control unit executes the first reading mode when an attenuation rate of a sonic wave which is detected by the sonic wave sensor under a circumstance in which a document is transported by the transport unit is the determining attenuation rate or more, and less than the multi-feeding detecting attenuation rate, and stops transporting of a document using the transport unit and reading of an image using the reading unit, when an attenuation rate of a sonic wave which is detected by the sonic wave sensor under a circumstance in which a document is transported by the transport unit is the multi-feeding detecting attenuation rate or more.

4. The image reading apparatus according to claim 3 ,
wherein the transport unit includes a pair of transport rollers which is located on the upstream side in a transport direction of a document compared to the reading unit, and a feeding roller which is arranged on the upstream side in the transport direction of a document compared to the pair of transport rollers, and feeds the document toward the pair of transport rollers, and
wherein the sonic wave sensor is arranged between the feeding roller and the pair of transport rollers in the transport direction of the document.

5. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the control unit switches a reading mode to be executed from the second reading mode to the first reading mode, when a predetermined ending condition is satisfied under a circumstance in which the second reading mode is selected.

6. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the control unit switches a reading mode to be executed at a time of reading the subsequent image from the second reading mode to the first reading mode, when setting information for ending the second reading mode is input under a circumstance in which the second reading mode is selected.

7. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the control unit switches a reading mode to be executed from the second reading mode to the first reading mode, when starting reading of an image based on the subsequent job under a circumstance in which the second reading mode is selected.

Assignees

• Seiko Epson Corp

Inventors

• Koyanagi Noriyuki
• Okuno Tokujiro

Classifications

• H04N1/00811

  according to user specified instructions, e.g. user selection of reading mode · CPC title

• H04N1/00716

  Thickness · CPC title

• H04N1/00822 Primary

  Selecting or setting a particular reading mode, e.g. from amongst a plurality of modes, simplex or duplex, or high or low resolution · CPC title

• H04N2201/0081

  Image reader (H04N2201/0091 - H04N2201/0094 take precedence) · CPC title

• H04N1/0057

  Conveying sheets before or after scanning (arrangements for conveying sheets as part of the scanning operation H04N1/04 and subgroups) · CPC title