Scepter Scientific Inc. Integrated Vision Technologies

 

Computer Pagination System

 

Large format laser based image pagination Phototypesetter producing 1200 different fonts. Imagesetter producing line art, halftones, and logos Image rotation, sizing, and special effects

 

The computer pagination system was designed as a means to convert a laser flat field scanning system into a very powerful phototypesetter.

 

The heart of the computer pagination system is a bit slice raster image processor which translates the various page elements (symbolic text, continuous tone, line art, and rule commands) into binary raster data for real time output to a laser scanner.

 

Fonts are arranged so as to allow the user to link subsets into any desired user oriented arrangement from the base font. Fonts are stored as digital information on a 160 megabyte disk which permits vast numbers of faces and characters to be on-line at all times.   Logos, line art and halftone graphics may be stored as font characters for inclusion in the output image without having to digitize these elements in the pagination system.

 

Advanced features of the computer pagination system include:

 

 

Laser Scanning Facsimile System

 

 

A flat field scanning system was designed to scan a 17 x 21 inch page in a raster format with a sampling resolution of one million pixels per square inch. The input scanner and signal processing produce a binary signal indicating the presence of a black or white image pixel. The binary pixel data is sampled by a space stable reference clock, buffered, and formatted for transmission.

 

The transmitted data, received at a remote site, is decoded into pixel raster data and used to modulate a laser scanning system synchronized to the incoming data stream. The modulated laser, scanning a photosensitive material such as a silver negative or photosensitive printing plate, exposes the corresponding black pixels reproducing the entire transmitted image in less than one minute.

 

Various configurations, options, and accessories, were developed to complement the laser scanning system. Some of the features include:

 

 

 

Printed Circut Artmaster Generator

 

The laser artmaster generator was developed to replace pen photoplotters in generating printed circuit artmasters from CAD data. Photoplotters produce artmasters by drawing the printed circuit image with a light pen mounted to a precision x - y plotter. The process, for a large and complex artmaster, might take as much as 12 hours to complete often requiring changes or modification with a subsequent plot. On the other hand, the laser artmaster generator was designed to produce the same plot of equivalent accuracy in less than two minutes. 

 

The laser artmaster generator required the development of an extremely precise flat field laser scanning system with an absolute addressable pixel accuracy of less than 0.001 inches. The precision scanner was integrated with a precision reference system and facsimile electronics to faithfully reproduce printed circuit artmasters in raster data format.

 

A raster image processor was developed to accept the industry standard Gerber photoplotter commands and convert them into real time raster formatted data compatible with the laser scanner.

 

The fully integrated system is capable of reproducing printed circuit artmaster drawings from CAD data in less than two minutes, with an absolute image accuracy better than 0.001 inches over a 17 x 21 inch format.