JPH0473768B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Technical Field] The present invention relates to a photographic printing method for two-dimensionally printing a plurality of prints on a sheet of photographic paper.

[Prior art]

An example of conventional two-dimensional printing is printing from the same negative screen using a compound lens called a cluster lens and printing it on a sheet of photographic paper as a two-dimensional print of the number of compound eyes of the lens or its multiple. Printing that prints 2 to 8 prints from different negative screens on a sheet of photographic paper, such as what is called multi-print or school photo, or as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 104918/1983. method is known.

However, it has been found that the above-mentioned printing method has the following drawbacks regarding the finished two-dimensional print.

(1) In a two-dimensional print format that consists of a fixed arrangement of compound lenses or a plurality of lenses equivalent to the number of two-dimensional screens, the composition is uniquely determined by the arrangement of the lenses. be. Therefore, when compared with albums and the like in which photos are laid out in a free format on a mount, it must be said that this is extremely inadequate and unsatisfactory in meeting the needs of users.

(2) In the fixed lens arrangement method, when printing a two-dimensional array on photographic paper of a certain size,
The number of arrays is limited due to the relationship between the effective angle of view and the required effective diameter of the lens. For example, in recent years, a disk-shaped film called disk film has been commercially available, but this film has 15 negative frames arranged in a radial pattern, and the area of each frame is small (8.2 x 10.6 mm), making it difficult to print. If the image is printed to the same size as the current service print from 35 mm film (e.g., 82 x 114 mm in E size), screen distortion will be noticeable and the print quality will deteriorate. In experiments conducted by the present inventors, it was determined that a print with a length ratio of about 1/2 to 2/3 of an E size print is the limit at which the occurrence of grain unevenness on the print is not noticeable. As an example, if 15 frames of this disk film are printed two-dimensionally on a sheet of photographic paper about A4 size (see Figure 1), the size of each printed screen is 41
The size is about 53 mm to 49 x 64 mm, and the projection magnification at this time is about 5 to 6 times.

Now, when a printing machine is configured according to the above values, and according to the photo printing machine described in JP-A-52-104918, three lenses are required to be fixedly arranged, but the arrangement pitch of each lens is It becomes about 8-9mm. Therefore, the diameter of the lens itself, including the lens barrel, must be 8 mm or less, but this value is completely unfeasible for a printing lens that has the effective angle of view necessary to obtain prints of the above size. . Therefore, two-dimensional printing with such a large number of prints is virtually impossible with a fixed arrangement of multiple lenses.

(3) A printing device that produces school photos using cluster lenses, etc. prints the screen equivalent to the number of lenses at once with a single exposure.

In this case, a printing optical path equivalent to the number of lenses is generated from a single light source, but not only is the effective angle of view used for printing different for each lens, but the main light source has a different A difference in the amount of light transmitted through the lens occurs due to the difference in the angle between the direction of the light beam and the principal axis of each lens, and this difference in the amount of transmitted light causes a difference in density between each print screen. This difference in density is particularly noticeable when two-dimensionally printing the same negative screen, such as in school photos, and is also caused by a decrease in print quality. The difference in the amount of light transmitted through these lenses is
A printing machine that performs sequential exposure, such as the printing machine described in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Publication, cannot be avoided as long as a plurality of lenses are fixedly arranged.
In order to eliminate this inconvenience, it is necessary to correct the change in the amount of light transmitted through the lens due to the change in the printing optical path, or to have a means that can individually determine the amount of exposure light corresponding to each printing optical path. I'm getting old.

[Purpose of the invention]

This invention solves the drawbacks of these existing two-dimensional printing methods and aims to improve the finishing quality. Furthermore, by proposing a method and mechanism for two-dimensional printing through a single lens, the present invention Its main purpose is to make fixed layouts free.

[Structure of the invention]

The photographic printing method of the present invention that achieves the above object is as follows:
Using a fixed exposure light source, with the film and photographic paper stationary at a fixed position, a single lens system is moved, and the film and photographic paper are moved in a direction transverse to the transport direction of the photographic paper.
In a photo printing method that prints a photo of a frame, when printing a photo of the left and right frames, the following (a) to (d) are performed based on the density difference information with the center frame stored in the storage means.
The present invention is characterized in that the exposure amount is automatically corrected by the following method.

(b) A method of correcting by converting density difference information into exposure time and extending the exposure time by the amount of time necessary for correction.

(b) A method of making corrections by biasing the exposure illuminance with density difference information and increasing the amount of light from the light source.

(c) A method in which the ND filter, cut filter, daylight user, etc. are configured to be movable or switchable on the exposure axis, and correction is performed by means of changing the amount of transmitted light.

(d) A method in which the aperture of a baked lens is configured to be continuously variable, and correction is performed by changing the aperture value.

This invention will be explained in detail below.

FIG. 1 shows an example in which a photographic print A is created by arranging 15 frames A' of a disk film or the like in a 5×3 arrangement. In FIGS. 2 and 3, photographic prints B and C are created by two-dimensionally arranging five or three frames of screens B' and C' in a state in which the matrix arrangement is disrupted.

Next, before explaining the photoprinting method of the present invention, a reference example of a photoprinting machine will be explained. Figure 4 shows an example of creating a matrix print in three rows, where 1 is a light source, 2 is a heat-insulating glass, 3 is a filter, 4 is a lens barrel, 5 is a lens, and 6
7 is a shutter, and 7 is a roll of photographic paper, which is fed a fixed amount by a feed roller 8 in the direction of the arrow. 9 is a printing frame, which is a negative carrier 1 which will be described later.
0 or by a drive device provided separately.

It should be noted that instead of having the configuration in which the printing frame is moved as shown in the drawings, a printing frame having a printing window corresponding to the printing screen may be fixedly arranged corresponding to each position of the light source 1 to the filter 3. It is also possible to replace the negative mask window with a print printing frame, thereby eliminating the need for a printing frame on the paper surface.

One end of the negative carrier 10 is loosely supported by a slide shaft 11, and the other end is engaged with a threaded rod 13 that is tightly driven by a motor 12, and as the motor 12 rotates, it moves in the direction of the arrow. perform a reciprocating motion.

The film 14 is conveyed one frame at a time on a negative carrier by known means, and the frame portion to be printed is positioned on the mask 18 of the negative mask substrate 17 and is pressed by a pressure bonding plate 19. Crimping plate 19
A solenoid 20 is used to press and release the negative film. Note that 22 is a screen detector that detects notch marks and the like on the film.

Next, a method for producing the above-mentioned photographic prints using this photographic printing machine will be explained. First, the film 14 is transported over the negative carrier 10 by a film transport device (not shown).
When it is detected that the first frame of is located on the mask 18, the solenoid 20 is actuated and
The film is crimped.

On the other hand, the photographic paper 7 wrapped in a roll is
The photographic paper is conveyed by the feed roller 8 of the photographic paper conveying device and supplied to the printing position as shown in the figure, and at the same time, the printing frame 9 is also set on the first printing screen.

When the above preparations are completed, exposure is performed by the light source 1, the rotary solenoid is activated, the shutter 6 is moved from the exposure axis, and the first frame of the film 14 is printed on the first printing screen of the photographic paper 7. will be carried out.

When the printing of the first frame is completed, the pressure bonding plate 19
The crimping of the film 14 is released, the film 14 is transported a certain amount so that the second frame comes to the position of the mask 18, and the solenoid 20 is activated again to crimp the film 14 with the crimping plate 19. At the same time, negative carrier 1
0 is a threaded rod 13 driven by a motor 12
According to the rotation of the negative position 1 to 2 shown in FIG.
will be moved by the amount up to. Also, printing frame 9 is also photographic paper 7.
Move to the second burning screen position. In this state, the second frame of the negative film 14 is printed. Similarly, when the printing of the third frame is completed, the negative carrier 10 is returned to its original position, and at the same time, the photographic paper 7 is conveyed according to the rotation of the feed roller 8 so that the fourth printing screen comes to the printing position. be done.

Thereafter, when the desired number of two-dimensional prints are completed one after another, the cut mark 7a is printed and the photographic printing is completed, and the film 14 is transported from the exposure section by a film transporting device (not shown) to the next printing. Film is fed continuously.

In the above reference example, the maximum movement amount of the negative carrier 10 is 2x, and x is, for example, 110 film 14
The short side length of one frame is 13 mm α (corresponding to the white spots formed around the screen when printing on photographic paper), and α is approximately 1 mm, so use this. The effective angle of view of lens 5 is 13×3+2α≒41 on the long side of the negative film surface.
(mm) or more is good. in this way,
In this reference example, as long as it is within the effective angle of view of one lens 5, proper printing is possible no matter where the negative film to be printed is located in the exposure area. It is applied,
There is a fundamental difference from conventional multi-print (school photo) that uses multi-lens lenses.

In addition, in this reference example, the finished print is 3
Although it was made into a matrix of rows, the combination of the amount of movement of the negative carrier 10 by the motor 12 and the amount of movement of the photographic paper 7 by the feed roller 8,
It is easily assumed that a format as shown in FIG. 2 or 3 is possible. It goes without saying that various formats other than those shown are also possible.

The reference example shown in FIG. 6 is a cut photographic paper 7
With the negative carrier and lens fixed, printing is performed by moving the photographic paper 7b back and forth and left and right by a drive device such as a rack pinion. Reference numeral 28 denotes a base, which is moved in the direction of the arrow in the same manner as the moving mechanism of the negative carrier 10 shown in FIG. A baking frame 29 is supported by a slide guide 30 provided on the base 28, and is moved in the direction of the arrow by a rack and pinion mechanism 31 driven by a motor. Baking frame stand 2
A photographic paper 7b is set on the printing paper 9 as shown by the broken line, and a printing frame 33 positioned by the positioning guide 32 is placed on top of the photographic paper 7b.

Note that a printing frame corresponding to the size of the printing screen may be fixedly arranged at the center of the exposure axis on the photographic paper 7b.

The photographic paper moving mechanism shown in this reference example can be applied to the negative carrier or lens moving mechanism in the reference example described above to move the lens or negative carrier two-dimensionally.

In the reference example shown in FIG. 7, a roll of photographic paper 7 is used, and a loop is formed at the front and rear of the printing section, so that the printing frame stand 29 can move in the direction of the arrow while holding the photographic paper 7. This is what I did. In the case of this reference example as well, instead of the printing frame 33, a printing frame of a size corresponding to the printing screen may be arranged centered on the exposure axis. Further, the loop of photographic paper 7 is constantly checked by an accumulation detector 34.

In each of the reference examples explained above, the type of negative film used does not matter, but it goes without saying that the conveyance mechanism, mask, pressure bonding mechanism, etc. may be unique, or may be compatible. Several types are available with certain mechanisms.

Further, it goes without saying that when moving the negative carrier 10, a means such as forming a loop is adopted so that the film 14 moves smoothly and the film is not cut.

FIG. 5 shows an embodiment of a photoprinting machine to which the photoprinting method of the present invention is applied. In the present invention, the exposure light source, negative carrier (not shown in FIG. 5), and photographic paper are fixed, and the lens 5 is moved by a motor or the like. The mechanism for moving the lens 5 is almost the same as the mechanism for moving the negative carrier 10 of the reference example shown in FIG.

Next, the exposure amount determining means when creating a two-dimensional print using a single lens in the photographic printing method of the present invention will be described.

What is shown in FIGS. 8 to 10 is an embodiment of a lens moving mechanism different from that shown in FIG.

In the figure, 110 is a lens, which is fixed to a lens base 111. Lens base 11
1 is supported by a lens mount 113 via guide rollers 112, 112, and the other end is supported by a slide shaft 1 via a slide bearing mechanism 114.
It is fixed at 15. Therefore, the lens 110 is moved in the direction of the arrow with the original exposure position _O1 as the center by a movement mechanism to be described later.

The mechanism for moving the lens 110 is configured as follows. Lens 110 (lens base 11
1) is always urged in the direction of arrow B by a spring 120, and its stopping position is determined by the angular position of the roller 121 disposed on the upper surface of the lens base 111 and the cam 122 in contact with the roller 121. That is,
When the cam 122 is at the angle shown in FIG. 8, the center of the lens 110 is at the original exposure position _O1 ,
The cam 122 is connected to the transmission mechanism 124 by the motor 123.
As the roller 1 is rotated clockwise through the
Lens base 1 interlocked with cam 122 via 21
11 moves in parallel in the direction of arrow A and reaches exposure position O ₂ , and from this position moves in parallel in the direction of arrow B in the opposite direction, passes through exposure position O ₁ and reaches exposure position O ₃ .
The sensor 130 detects which of the exposure positions O ₁ to _{O 3} the center of the lens 110 is located.

In the above, the angle information of the cam 122 (lens 11
0 position information) is detected by the sensor 130 and input to the exposure amount control circuit via a controller (not shown). The center of the lens 110 is the original exposure position
When the lens is at O ₁ and when it is at the exposure position O ₂ or O ₃ , if the light source light intensity is constant, the lens 1
There is a difference in the amount of light obtained through 10. on the other hand,
Elements 162 and 16 that measure the amount of light transmitted from the negative
Since the amount of light detected by 3 is constant regardless of the movement of the lens, if exposure is performed only according to the screen information obtained from the negative screen judgment work performed prior to photo printing, the exposure Position O ₂ , O ₃
In this case, underexposure will occur. Therefore, when the center of the lens 110 is at the exposure position _O2 or _O3 , different printing control is required than when the center is at the _O1 position, even if a print is to be obtained from the same negative screen.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram of exposure control. Generally, in color printers, printer setup work is performed prior to actually printing the user's negatives. During the setup process, print the print using a separately prepared set-up negative film, measure the density or color balance of the print, and if the print is unsuitable, input the necessary correction data into the printer. Then, correct the density or color balance, etc., and print again.

The optimum print level is determined in the manner described above, and in addition to the general setup work described above, the following work is performed in the present invention.
Using a set-up negative, three rows of prints are made from the same negative screen as the lens moves, and the reflection density of the prints is measured. The measured densities on the left and right print screens are lower by a certain level than the center print screen. There are two reasons for this concentration change.

(b) The angular difference between the line connecting the center positions of the negative, lens, and printed screen at the central screen (corresponding to the position O ₁ in Figure 1) and the central optical axis of the lens is zero. Therefore, the required effective angle of view on the lens is the minimum angle around the lens center axis, whereas for the left and right screens (O ₂ or O ₃ ), there is an angle between the exposure line and the lens center axis due to lens movement. Because of this difference, a larger effective angle of view is required to project a negative image.

(b) The principal ray direction of the light irradiating the negative image from the light source coincides with the exposure axis direction on the central screen, but has an inclination corresponding to the angular difference on the left and right screens. Therefore, a decrease in print density corresponding to these changes in light amount occurs on the left and right screens.

The measured density difference between the center screen and the left and right screens is input to the printer, and is stored in the printer by density difference information storage means.

Next, during actual printing, as shown in FIG. 4, the lens positions O ₁ and O ₂ are detected by the lens position information detection means, or determined from the printing order if the printing order has been determined in advance. , O ₃ to determine whether or not to perform concentration difference correction. For example O ₁
In the case of , the density difference information is ignored and the negative transmitted light photometry means (the photometry element 162 in FIG. 9) and the density,
The exposure amount is determined only by the screen information obtained by the color determination means, and in the case of O ₂ or O ₃ , the stored density difference information is converted into the exposure amount for the exposure amount determined above. Exposure may be performed using the amount of light added to the amount of light.

As specific means for correcting the exposure amount, several methods as described below can be considered.

(b) A method that performs correction by converting density difference information into exposure time and extending the exposure time by the amount of time necessary for correction.

(b) Correction is performed by biasing the exposure illuminance based on density difference information and increasing the amount of light from the light source.

(c) A device in which an ND filter, cut filter, daylight user, etc. is configured to be movable or switchable on the exposure axis, and correction is performed by means of changing the amount of transmitted light.

(d) The aperture of the baked lens is configured to be continuously variable, and correction is made by changing the aperture value.

etc.

Furthermore, various methods other than the bias method can be considered based on the above-mentioned methods. For example, a method may be used in which the optimal exposure conditions for the center, left and right screens are determined separately in advance, and the exposure conditions are changed in accordance with lens position information, print order, or the like.

For two-dimensional printing other than matrix printing, similar exposure adjustments can be made by calculating and inputting the relationship between print density and each lens position as a function from several sample prints during setup. I can do it.

Furthermore, in the present invention, the correction for the change in the amount of printing light due to the movement of the optical axis is configured to be corrected inside the printing machine main body, but it is also possible to perform this in the printing machine pre-processing process without performing it in the printing machine main body. good. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 58-9136, filed by the applicant,
The image observation device described in Published Patent Publication No. 21734, or Utility Application No. 191344, Japanese Patent Application No. 1987-
209319, No. 57-209320, No. 57-209321, etc. When observing images using a monitor TV etc. described in the specifications, etc., prints that are determined in advance when printing conditions are determined based on the observed images. The correction amount may be biased by the operator according to the order, or the circuit configuration may be such that the bias is automatically applied. Furthermore, there is a device in which an operator visually judges a negative image and inputs printing data, such as a pre-lead notch which is used as a negative information input means in a reorder printing system described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 57-6835. Needless to say, the same applies when using the reorder receiving machine described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 56-162736.

FIG. 12 shows another reference example. In this reference example, the LATD photometric element 155 of the BGR is transmitted through a reflecting mirror 152, a condenser lens 153, and a diffuser plate 154 corresponding to three positions O ₁ to O ₃ of the lens.
A to 155c are individually arranged. 9th
The LATD photometric element 163 in the figure is fixedly placed around the lens, and in this case, even if the lens moves between O ₁ and O ₃ , there will be no damage to the print surface through the lens due to lens movement. Since changes in the amount of printing light cannot be detected, there is no need for the above-mentioned correction, but as shown in Figure 5, the printing on the print surface changes depending on the position of each lens. It is possible to accurately measure the absolute value of the amount of light. Therefore, correct photometry for each print row is performed by switching the LATD photometry elements 155a to 155c in accordance with the lens position information or print order information, so no correction for positional movement is required.

In the above example, the LATD photometric elements are arranged separately according to the lens positions _O1 to _O3 , but they may be configured to be movable and moved in accordance with the movement of the lens. Furthermore, the printing optical axis may be moved by moving the negative with a single fixed lens.

〔Effect of the invention〕

This invention has the above structure, and by creating two-dimensional prints using a single lens, it has a degree of freedom in layout, and can produce high-quality two-dimensional prints in large quantities at low cost. You can achieve your goals.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 to 3 are plan views showing examples of photographic prints produced according to the present invention, FIG. 5 is a perspective view schematically showing a photographic printing machine in which the present invention is carried out, and FIG. 8 is another embodiment. A plan view showing the same, FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view,
Figure 10 is a side sectional view, Figure 11 is a block diagram of exposure control, Figures 4, 6, 7, and 12.
The figures are perspective views showing other embodiments. In the figure, 1 is a light source, 2 is heatproof glass, 3
is a filter, 4 is a lens barrel, 5 is a lens, 6 is a shutter, 7 is a roll of photographic paper, 7b is a cut photographic paper, 8 is a feed roller, 9 is a printing frame, 10 is a negative carrier, 11 is a slide shaft, 12 is a motor, 13
14 is a screw mechanism, 14 is a film, 17 is a negative mask substrate, 18 is a mask, 19 is a pressure bonding plate, 20 is a solenoid, 28 is a base, 29 is a printing frame, 30 is a slide guide, 31 is a rack and pinion mechanism, 32
is a guide, 33 is a baking frame, 34 is an Akiyum detector,
110 is a lens, 111 is a lens base, 112 is a guide roller, 113 is a lens mount, 114 is a slide bearing mechanism, 115 is a slide shaft, 1
20 is a spring, 121 is a roller, 122 is a cam, 12
3 is a motor, 124 is a transmission mechanism, 130 is a sensor, 152 is a reflecting mirror, 153 is a condenser lens,
154 is a diffusion plate, 155a to 155c, 162,
163 indicates each LATD photometric element.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. Using a fixed exposure light source, with the film and photographic paper stationary at a fixed position, a single lens system is moved to capture three frames in a direction transverse to the transport direction of the photographic paper. A photo printing method for printing a photo, which is characterized in that when printing a photo of left and right frames, the exposure amount is automatically corrected based on the exposure amount based on density difference information with the center frame stored in a storage means. . 2. Claim 1, characterized in that the exposure amount is corrected by converting density difference information into exposure time and extending the exposure time by the time necessary for correction.
Photo printing method described in section. 3. The photographic printing method according to claim 1, wherein the exposure amount is corrected by biasing the exposure illuminance based on the density difference information and increasing the light source light amount. 4. Claim 1, characterized in that the ND filter, cut filter, daylight user, etc. are configured to be movable or switchable on the exposure axis, and the exposure amount is corrected by means for changing the amount of transmitted light. Photo printing method described. 5. The photographic printing method according to claim 1, wherein the aperture of the printing lens is configured to be continuously variable, and the exposure amount is corrected by changing the aperture value.