Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an optical scanning apparatus that scans by light a surface to be scanned.
Description of the Related Art
A conventional optical scanning apparatus used for an image forming apparatus such as a laser printer optically modulates a laser beam emitted from a light source in response to an image signal and performs a deflection scanning by the optically modulated laser beam using a light deflector. As a light source that emits the laser beam, different semiconductor lasers (e.g. a single-beam semiconductor laser that has one light emitting point and a multibeam semiconductor laser that has a plurality of light emitting points) are used depending on a printing speed and an image quality of the image forming apparatus.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-305950 discusses a configuration in which, when a multibeam semiconductor laser is used, an arrangement angle of light emitting points of the semiconductor laser is set by rotating and fixing the semiconductor laser around an optical axis so that a distance in a sub scanning direction between a plurality of light beams becomes a predetermined value.
Meanwhile, in recent years, manufacturers each have printer products lineups including various types of printers so that a user can select a printer depending on the use. There is a case where there is a plurality of types of printer products that have substantially the same outer shapes but differ in printing speed and image quality. In such a case, it is useful even in controlling costs to share components and units among the plurality of types of printer products. More specifically, a printer product that has a low printing speed may be loaded with a first optical scanning apparatus using a single-beam semiconductor laser, and a printer product that has a high printing speed may be loaded with a second optical scanning apparatus using a multibeam semiconductor laser. In this case, sharing of components and units, which covers a wide range of printer products, can be performed by partially changing components between the first optical scanning apparatus and the second optical scanning apparatus. In this case, to differently manufacture the first optical scanning apparatus and the second optical scanning apparatus, it is necessary not only to use different semiconductor lasers (i.e. a single-beam semiconductor laser and a multibeam semiconductor laser) but also to use different substrates that include a driving circuit for driving the semiconductor laser.
If different substrates are used depending on the number of light emitting points in the light source, however, a plurality of types of substrates need to be respectively produced. This requires costs for a production facility and management.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds