LASER OPERATED SCANNING AND PRINTING SYSTEM

A scanning and printing system scans and digitizes graphical information for recording on magnetic tape and also prints graphical information previously stored in digital form on a magnetic tape. Scanning and printing is accomplished by directing a laser beam through a pinhole in an aperture plate and thence through a set of optics, which collimate the beam and scan it across the surface of a graphic medium. For operation as a printer the laser beam is addressed by an accousto-optic modulator, which is positioned between the laser and the aperture plate. The accousto-optic modulator causes a shifting of the laser beam in accordance with digitized data trains representing positive and negative areas in an image to be reproduced. The laser beam is normally blanked out by the aperture plate and is periodically shifted by the accousto-optic modulator for direction through the pinhole. The graphic medium is mounted on a semi-cylindrical platen and is scanned by a rotating lens system. A stepping ...