DOCUMENT READING APPARATUS HAVING A WAVEGUIDE FORMED IN A SUBSTRATE

摘要

A hand-held scanner comprises contact image scanning technology. A waveguide (2) formed in a substrate is comprised of an elongate light pipe (5) which includes a reflective layer (7) deposited on an inside lateral surface. Light sources (6) disposed at each end of the light pipe emit rays of light through the light pipe (5). The rays of light propagate in the light pipe (5) until striking an area of a reflective surface (7). The reflective surface directs the rays away from the lateral surface and onto the scan line of a document (3). The light of the illuminated scan line is reflected back through the waveguide, through a slit (10) not covered by the reflective layer (7), and onto an optical lens array (8) which focuses the light onto an optical sensor array (11) that converts the image into a digital image to be saved in an internal memory. In a further embodiment (Fig. 4), the waveguide (2) includes a mirrored surface (12) that directs the light of the illuminated scan line through the waveguide (2) and through the optical lens array (8).