KR20090086768A - scanner - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a scanner configured to scan each of two types of scan objects having different reflective properties of the surface. The scanner according to the present invention includes a first and a second transparent body arranged so that each surface in contact with the scan object has different reflection characteristics, a light source emitting light toward the first and second transparent body, the first transparent body or And an image sensor mounted to the carrier selectively passing through the vicinity of the second transparent body and receiving an image of the light passing through the first or second transparent body and converting the light into an electrical signal.

Description

Scanner {Scanner}

The present invention relates to a scanner, and more particularly, to a scanner configured to scan two kinds of scanning objects having different surface reflection characteristics.

Scanners are used to copy or convert information that exists in analog form, such as documents or photographs, into digital information.

A typical scanner includes a glass plate on which a scan object is placed, a light source disposed under the glass plate to irradiate light toward the glass plate, and an image outputting an electric signal by receiving light reflected from the surface of the scan object after being emitted from the light source. And a digital signal processing processor for converting an analog signal output from the image sensor into a digital signal.

When the scanner is activated, the light source emits light toward the glass plate. The light is transmitted through the glass plate, reflected from the surface of the scan object placed on the glass plate, and then transmitted to the image sensor.

Since the amount of reflection of light varies according to the contrast of the surface of the scan object, the image sensor outputs an electrical signal corresponding to the amount of reflected light. In more detail, since the letter portion printed on the document has a low reflectance and the margin without letters has a high reflectance, the area corresponding to the letter portion of the light incident on the image sensor is dark and the area corresponding to the margin portion is bright. In this manner, the image of the scan object is formed on the image sensor, and the image sensor outputs an electrical signal corresponding to the image of the scan object. The analog electrical signal output from the image sensor is converted into a digital signal by the digital signal processing processor.

As described above, the scan information obtained through the scanner is useful for copying a scan object or digitizing and storing information on the surface of the scan object.

A typical scanner configured as described above, however, cannot scan objects of different characteristics from paper or photographs. For example, when a fingerprint or a stamp is scanned by using a general scanner configured as described above, only the contact area of the finger or the inside of the outer part of the seal come out black and the ridge of the fingerprint or the contour of the seal cannot be obtained clearly. Therefore, a separate recognition device must be purchased in order to scan a fingerprint, a painting, or the like. This not only increases the cost of spending in government offices or companies, but also has a problem in that the user's convenience is inferior.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the first and second transparent bodies arranged so that each surface in contact with the scan object have different reflection characteristics, a light source emitting light toward the first and second transparent bodies, the first transparent body or Provided is a scanner including a carrier selectively disposed to pass through the vicinity of the second transparent body and an image sensor for converting the light passing through the first or second transparent body into an electrical signal.

In the scanner according to an embodiment of the present invention, the first and second transparent bodies are disposed side by side, and the carrier is disposed between the first and second transparent plates when viewed from above and selectively movable in both directions. Can be mounted.

In the scanner according to an embodiment of the present invention, the first transparent body includes a glass plate for transmitting the light of the light source, and the second transparent body has a surface in contact with the scan object substantially the light of the light source It may comprise a polygonal prism arranged to totally reflect.

In the scanner according to an embodiment of the present invention, the first transparent body includes a glass plate that transmits light of the light source, and the second transparent body has a flat contact surface to which the scan object is in contact with and light incident from the light source. It may be made to include a Fresnel lens surface formed on the opposite surface of the contact surface to substantially total reflection.

The scanner according to an embodiment of the present invention may further include a condenser lens disposed between the second transparent body and the image sensor to collect light reflected from the second transparent body.

The scanner according to an embodiment of the present invention may further include a reflector that changes the path of the light reflected from the second transparent body and transmits it to the image sensor.

In the scanner according to an embodiment of the present invention, the second transparent body may be formed smaller than the first transparent body so as to scan a fingerprint or a seal.

On the other hand, in another form of this invention, the light source arrange | positioned in a housing, the glass plate arrange | positioned on one surface of the said housing, and the 1st scan object is mounted and is made to transmit the light of the said light source, and the contact surface on which the 2nd scan object is mounted A transparent body disposed on one surface of the housing to substantially totally reflect the light of the light source, a carrier mounted in the housing so as to lie between the glass plate and the transparent body, and a carrier passing selectively through the glass plate or the vicinity of the transparent body and the carrier And it provides a scanner comprising an image sensor for receiving the light passing through the glass plate or the transparent body and outputs an electrical signal.

Using the scanner according to the present invention has the effect that it is possible to effectively scan each of the two kinds of scanning objects having different reflection characteristics of the surface. For example, identification cards such as paper, photographs, and ID cards can be scanned with a single scanner because the reflective properties of the surface are similar.However, fingerprints and coatings have very high reflective properties when compared to the above paper, photographs, and ID cards. Because they are different, they cannot be scanned by scanners that can scan surfaces such as paper, photos and ID cards. However, since the scanner according to the present invention is provided with two transparent bodies having different reflection characteristics, it is possible to effectively scan two kinds of scanning objects having different reflection characteristics on the surface.

In addition, the scanner according to the present invention is configured to selectively scan the identification card, such as a resident registration card and fingerprint or stamp, so that you can easily and quickly obtain identity information, such as using a single scanner or verify and authenticate the identity information, etc. There is also an effect.

Furthermore, the scanner according to the present invention is configured to scan two kinds of scanning objects having different surface reflection characteristics by using one image sensor. Therefore, the scanner according to the present invention has the effect that the structure is relatively simple and can be manufactured at low cost.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the description of this embodiment, the same name and the same reference numerals are used for the same configuration and additional description thereof will be omitted.

1 is a perspective view illustrating a scanner according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view briefly showing an internal configuration of the scanner of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a schematic view schematically showing an internal configuration of the scanner of FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 1, two transparent bodies having different reflection characteristics are disposed side by side on one surface, for example, an upper surface of the housing 100. As the first transparent body disposed on the upper left side of the housing 100, the glass plate 110 is used as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, and the second transparent body disposed on the upper right side of the housing 100 is polygonal. For example, triangular prisms 120 may be used.

The light source 210 is disposed inside the housing 100. The light source 210 emits light toward the first and second transparent bodies, that is, the glass plate 110 and the prism 120. For example, a light emitting diode (LED) may be used as the light source 210.

The carrier 150 is provided inside the housing 100 to reciprocate in the vicinity of the first and second transparent bodies, for example, a lower space. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the carrier 150 is disposed between the first and second transparent bodies, that is, the glass plate 110 and the prism 120. The reciprocating movement of the carrier 150 is performed by the belt 151 and the drive motor 153, and the guide bar 155 guides the carrier 150 to reciprocate stably.

When the driving motor 153 rotates in one direction when the carrier 150 is at an initial position, that is, between the glass plate 110 and the prism 120, the carrier 150 moves toward the glass plate 110. do. When the driving motor 153 rotates in the other direction opposite to the one direction, the carrier 150 returns to the initial position. When the driving motor 153 rotates in the other direction when the carrier 150 is in the initial position, the carrier 150 moves toward the prism 120. When the driving motor 153 rotates again in one direction, the carrier 150 returns to the initial position.

As described above, the carrier 150 may be formed in the vicinity of the first or second transparent body, that is, the glass plate 110 or the prism 120, for example, the space below, depending on the rotation direction of the drive motor 153. It is possible to reciprocate.

The carrier 150 is equipped with an image sensor 220 for scanning an object placed on the first or second transparent body, that is, the glass plate 110 or the prism 120. Here, the light source 210 may also be mounted on the carrier 150. Accordingly, when the driving motor 153 is operated, the image sensor 220 and the light source 210 mounted on the carrier 150 move together toward the first or second transparent body.

As the image sensor 220, for example, a Charged Coupled Device (CCD) or a Contact Image Sensor (CIS) may be used. Since the image sensor 220 is expensive, the image sensor 220 is manufactured to be compact and configured to scan a scan object placed on the first or second transparent body while moving with the carrier 150.

The image sensor 220 receives light passing through the first or second transparent body, that is, the glass plate 110 or the prism 120 after being emitted from the light source 210, and converts the light into an electrical signal. The electrical signal output from the image sensor 220 is converted into digital signals '0' and '1' by the image processor 230. The image processor 230 includes a digital signal processor (DSP) and a buffer memory (Buffer Memory) for processing a digital signal, the carrier 150 as shown in Figures 2 and 3 ) Can be mounted.

Although not shown, the digital signal converted by the image processor 230 is transmitted to a controller (not shown) provided inside the scanner or a controller (not shown) of a computer (not shown) connected to the scanner by a data transmitter. . When the scanner according to the present invention is configured to directly process and store the scanned information and store or output it to the outside, the scanner is provided with a separate control unit (not shown) for this, which is the outer surface of the housing 100 It may be appropriately controlled through the control panel 130 provided in. Otherwise, the digital signal converted by the image processor 230 is transmitted to a control unit of a separate computer to which the scanner is connected.

On the other hand, in the scanner according to an embodiment of the present invention, the first and second transparent bodies are disposed such that each surface in contact with the scan object has different reflection characteristics. As a result, the scanner according to an embodiment of the present invention can effectively scan two kinds of scanning objects having different reflection characteristics of the surface, for example, paper, photographs, fingerprints, and paints. 4 to 8 schematically illustrate a principle and a structure of scanning two types of scan objects different from each other by the first and second transparent bodies, which will be described below in more detail with reference to these drawings.

For reference, FIG. 4 is a schematic view showing the image sensor scanning the paper placed on the glass plate in the scanner of FIG. 1, and FIG. 5 shows the image sensor scanning the fingerprint of the finger contacted on the prism in the scanner of FIG. FIG. 6 is a schematic view illustrating a characteristic in which light of a light source is reflected at a contact portion between a finger and a prism in FIG. 5. 7 is a schematic view illustrating an example in which a reflector is provided between a prism and an image sensor in the scanner of FIG. 1, and FIG. 8 illustrates a Fresnel lens that may be applied instead of the prisms of FIGS. 5 and 7 in the scanner of FIG. 1. Schematic diagram.

The glass plate 110 disposed on the upper left side of the housing 100 as the first transparent body is disposed to transmit light emitted from the light source 210 as shown in FIG. 4. The first scan object 10 may be placed on the glass plate 110. The first scan object 10 may include an ID card such as a paper, a photo, and a social security card. The paper, photographs, and ID cards have a substantially flat surface, and the amount of light reflected on these surfaces varies depending on the intensity of the surface.

Light emitted from the light source 210 disposed below the glass plate 110 to one surface, that is, the upper surface of the housing 100 passes through the glass plate 110 as indicated by the arrow of FIG. It is transmitted to the surface of the scan object 10. The amount of light reaching the surface of the first scan object 10 is reflected depending on the contrast of the first scan object 10. The light reflected from the surface of the first scan object 10 passes through the glass plate 110 and then is transmitted to the image sensor 220. The image sensor 220 receives the light passing through the glass plate 110 and outputs an electrical signal, and the output electrical signal is transferred to the image processor 230 to be converted into a digital signal.

As described above, the first scan object 10 having characteristics such as an ID card such as a paper, a photo, and an ID card may be placed on the first transparent body, that is, the glass plate 110, and scanned effectively. However, when the fingerprint 21 of the finger is placed on the glass plate 110 and scanned, effective scan information cannot be obtained because the amount of light reflected by the finger is not very different. The same applies to a scan object having a curved surface, such as a painting (not shown).

The second transparent body, that is, the prism 120 may effectively scan the second scan object 20 having characteristics such as the fingerprint 21 or the painting of the finger. 5 and 6 illustrate the scanning principle of the second scan object 20 using the second transparent body in detail, which will be described below in more detail with reference to these drawings.

The second transparent body, that is, the prism 120 is disposed to substantially totally reflect the light emitted from the light source 210 on the contact surface 121 that the second scan object 20 contacts. That is, the prism 120 is disposed so that the contact surface 121 can substantially reflect the light of the light source 210. To this end, the prism 120 is disposed such that light emitted from the light source 210 is incident on the contact surface 121 at an angle greater than a critical angle.

As shown in FIG. 5, the light emitted from the light source 210 is incident into the prism 120 through the lower surface 123 of the prism 120 and is totally reflected by the contact surface 121. The light totally reflected by the contact surface 121 is incident on the reflecting surface 122 forming one surface of the prism 120, and the reflecting surface 122 has a critical angle of the light reflected from the contact surface 121. Since it is arranged to be incident at a larger angle, substantially total reflection occurs on the reflective surface 122 as shown in FIG. 5. Therefore, light incident from the light source 210 to the lower surface 123 of the prism 120 is transmitted to the image sensor 220 via the contact surface 121 and the reflective surface 122.

However, when the second scan object 20 such as the fingerprint 21 of the finger contacts the contact surface 121, the contact surface 121 is in contact with the second scan object 20 as shown in FIG. 6. The portion 'A' loses the condition under which the incident light is totally reflected by changing the refractive index. Therefore, as shown by the arrow of FIG. 6, the light of the light source 210 incident on the contact surface 121 of the prism 120 is totally reflected at the portion of the valley 23 that does not contact the contact surface 121, but The ridges of the fingerprint 21 in contact with the contact surface 121 are not totally reflected. Therefore, the fingerprint 21 in contact with the contact surface 121 of the prism 120 is darkly observed, so that the shape of the fingerprint 21 is clearly displayed, so that the image sensor 220 has the shape of the fingerprint 21. Can be read effectively. The same applies to the painting.

A condenser lens 240 may be disposed between the prism 120 and the image sensor 220 as shown in FIG. 5. The condenser lens 240 collects light that passes through the prism 120 and then passes through the image sensor 220 to form an image on the image sensor 220. It allows you to read the shape of.

On the other hand, the scanner according to the present invention may further include a reflecting plate 250 for changing the movement path of the light passing through the prism 120 to be transmitted to the image sensor 220, as shown in FIG. When the light passing through the prism 120 is configured to be hard to be directly transmitted to the image sensor 220, the reflector 250 is arranged to have at least one light on the movement path of the light as shown in FIG. 7. The movement path of the light is changed to be incident on the image sensor 220. For reference, reference numeral 260 is an imaging means for effectively imaging light such as a condenser lens on the image sensor 200.

In the above, an example in which the polygonal prism 120 is used as the second transparent body has been described. However, the present invention is not limited thereto. As another example, the Fresnel lens 120a may be used as the second transparent body as shown in FIG. 8. As shown in FIG. 8, the Fresnel lens 120a forms a flat contact surface 121a to which the second scan object 20 contacts, and a surface opposite to the contact surface 121a and has a plurality of prism bands 126a. Includes a Fresnel lens surface 123a.

The contact surface 121a of the Fresnel lens 120a is disposed such that light incident through the lower surface of each prism band 126a is incident at an angle greater than a critical angle. Accordingly, light incident into the Fresnel lens 120a through each prism band 126a is totally reflected at the contact surface 121a as shown in FIG. 8. When the second scan object 20 such as the fingerprint 21 comes into contact with the contact surface 121a, the contact part loses the total reflection condition and thus total reflection does not occur. Accordingly, the Fresnel lens 120a can effectively scan the fingerprint 21 or the like on the same principle as described with reference to FIGS. 5 to 7.

In the scanner according to the present invention, the first transparent body is provided to scan an ID card such as a paper, a photo, or a social security card as described above, and the second transparent body is provided to scan a fingerprint or a seal. Accordingly, the second transparent body, that is, the glass plate 110, is formed to have a size or larger than that of an ID card or the like, and the first transparent body, that is, the prism 120 or the Fresnel lens 120a. ) Is formed smaller than the first transparent body to the extent that the fingerprint 21 or the painting can be scanned.

The user may selectively scan the first scan object 10 such as a resident registration card and the second scan object 20 such as a fingerprint by using the scanner according to the present invention configured as described above. For example, when a user's registration card is placed on the first transparent body, that is, the glass plate 110, and the control panel 130 provided on the outer surface of the housing 100 is operated, the carrier 150 may be connected to the glass plate ( While moving toward 110, the image sensor 220 scans the ID card on the glass plate 110. When the scan is completed, the carrier 150 returns to the initial position.

As another example, when a finger or a paint is placed on the second transparent body, that is, the prism 120 or the Fresnel lens 120a and the control panel 130 is manipulated, the carrier 150 causes the prism 120 to operate. Alternatively, the image sensor 220 scans a fingerprint or a painting while moving toward the Fresnel lens 120a. When the scan is completed, the carrier 150 returns to the original position.

The information scanned by the scan object on the first transparent body or the second transparent body as described above is converted into a digital signal by the image processor 230 and then transmitted to the controller (not shown) by the data transmitter. The scan information transmitted to the controller may be stored as it is or processed and stored in a storage device, or used for the purpose of confirmation and authentication. Therefore, the scanner according to the present invention can be very useful in the field of scanning identification card, fingerprint or seal, etc. to obtain identification information, and using the obtained identification information to verify or authenticate the identity.

As described above, the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described, and the fact that the present invention can be embodied in other specific forms in addition to the above-described embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope thereof has ordinary skill in the art. It is obvious to them. Therefore, the above-described embodiments should be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive, and thus, the present invention is not limited to the above description and may be modified within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.

1 is a perspective view of a scanner according to an embodiment of the present invention;

2 is a perspective view briefly showing an internal configuration of the scanner of FIG. 1;

3 is a schematic view schematically showing the internal configuration of the scanner of FIG. 1;

4 is a schematic view showing a state in which the image sensor scans the paper placed on the glass plate in the scanner of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing an image sensor scanning a fingerprint of a finger in contact with a prism in the scanner of FIG. 1; FIG.

FIG. 6 is a schematic view illustrating a characteristic in which light of a light source is reflected at a contact portion between a finger and a prism in FIG. 5;

7 is a schematic view showing an example in which a reflector is provided between a prism and an image sensor in the scanner of FIG. 1; And

8 is a schematic diagram illustrating a Fresnel lens that may be applied in place of the prism of FIGS. 5 and 7 in the scanner of FIG. 1.

        <Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

10: first scan object 20: second scan object

100: housing 110: glass plate

120: prism 120a: Fresnel lens

121, 121a: contact surface 150: carrier

210: light source 220: image lens

230: image processing unit 240: condensing lens

250: reflector 260: imaging means

Claims (10)

First and second transparent bodies disposed such that respective surfaces in contact with the scan object have different reflection characteristics; A light source emitting light toward the first and second transparent bodies; A carrier selectively disposed past the vicinity of the first transparent body or the second transparent body; And An image sensor mounted on the carrier and converting light passing through the first or second transparent body into an electrical signal; Scanner consisting of. The method of claim 1, And the first and second transparent bodies are disposed side by side, and the carrier is disposed between the first and second transparent plates and mounted to be selectively movable in both directions. The method of claim 1, The first transparent body comprises a glass plate for transmitting the light of the light source, the second transparent body is a scanner made of a polygonal prism is arranged so that the surface in contact with the scan object substantially total reflection of the light of the light source . The method of claim 1, The first transparent body may include a glass plate that transmits light of the light source, and the second transparent body may be formed on a flat contact surface to which the scan object contacts and an opposite surface of the contact surface to substantially totally reflect light incident from the light source. A scanner comprising a Fresnel lens surface formed. The method according to claim 3 or 4, And a condenser lens disposed between the second transparent body and the image sensor to collect light reflected from the second transparent body. The method according to claim 3 or 4, The scanner further comprises a reflecting plate for changing the path of the light reflected from the second transparent to the image sensor. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, The second transparent body is a scanner, characterized in that formed smaller than the first transparent body to scan the fingerprint or stamp. A light source disposed within the housing; A glass plate disposed on one surface of the housing and placed on a first scan object to transmit light of the light source; A transparent body disposed on one surface of the housing such that a contact surface on which a second scan object is placed is substantially totally reflected by the light of the light source; A carrier mounted in the housing so as to lie between the glass plate and the transparent body, selectively passing through the glass plate or the vicinity of the transparent body; And An image sensor mounted on the carrier and outputting an electrical signal by receiving light passing through the glass plate or the transparent body; Scanner consisting of. The method of claim 8, And the transparent body comprises a polygonal prism arranged such that the contact surface substantially totally reflects the light of the light source. The method of claim 8, And the transparent body comprises a Fresnel lens surface having a plurality of prism bands formed on opposite surfaces of the contact surface to substantially totally reflect light incident from the light source.

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