Scanning apparatus for biological microdensitometry

Claim 2

Scanning apparatus for controlling the passage of radiant energy to a radiant energy sensing device, said apparatus having two members rotatable about a common axis and lying across a path of radiant energy to the sensing device, each of said members having opaque areas for interrupting the passage of radiant energy to the sensing device and narrow and elongated transparent areas which permit the passage of radiant energy to the sensing device, driving means for moving said members at different velocities relatively across the path of radiant energy leading to the sensing device with their transparent areas being in intersecting alignment to form a moving transparent scanning zone which moves in plural passes across different portions of a scanned field, said scanning zone being smaller in all dimensions than the field, one of said members having a pair of said transparent areas in the form of spirals which are mirror images of each other.

Claim 3

Scanning apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said spirals are logarithmic spirals.

Claim 4

Scanning apparatus according to claim 1 in combination with a light microscope, said sensing device lying in the path of light emerging from the microscope.

Claim 5

Scanning apparatus for controlling the passage of radiant energy to a radiant energy sensing device, said apparatus having two members coaxially mounted for independent rotation lying across a path of radiant energy to the sensing device, each of said members having opaque areas for interrupting the passage of radiant energy to the sensing device and narrow elongated transparent areas which permit the passage of radiant energy to the sensing device, the transparent area on one of the members being a radial linear slot located to move across the entire field, and the transparent area on the other said member being in the form of a logarithmic spiral, driving means for moving said members at different velocities relatively across the path of radiant energy leading to the sensing device with their transparent areas being in intersecting alignment to form a moving transparent scanning zone which moves in plural passes across different portions of a scanned field, said scanning zone being smaller in all dimensions than the field, whereby the transParent areas intersect at an angle which remains constant throughout their movement across the field and provide a moving transparent scanning zone formed by the intersection of the transparent areas which maintains a constant area throughout its movement across the scanned field.

Claim 6

Scanning apparatus for controlling the passage of radiant energy to a radiant energy sensing device, said apparatus having two members coaxially mounted for independent rotation lying across a path of radiant energy to the sensing device, each of said members having opaque areas for interrupting the passage of radiant energy to the sensing device and narrow elongated transparent areas which permit the passage of radiant energy to the sensing device, the transparent area on one of the members being a radial linear slot located to move across the entire field, and the transparent area on the other said member being in the form of a logarithmic spiral, driving means for moving said members at different velocities relatively across the path of radiant energy leading to the sensing device with their transparent areas being in intersecting alignment to form a moving transparent scanning zone which moves in plural passes across different portions of a scanned field, said scanning zone being smaller in all dimensions than the field, whereby the transParent areas intersect at an angle which remains constant throughout their movement across the field and provide a moving transparent scanning zone formed by the intersection of the transparent areas which maintains a constant area throughout its movement across the scanned field.

Claim 7

A mechanical scanner according to claim 4 wherein the driving means moves the linear slot through a distance equal to its circumferential dimension as one of said logarithmic spirals is passed completely thereacross at least one whole time.

Claim 8

A mechanical scanner according to claim 4 wherein the other said member has a pair of transparent portions in the form of logarithmic spirals which are mirror images of each other.

Claim 9

A mechanical scanner according to claim 4 wherein the transparent areas have an equal width, thereby producing a transparent scanning zone in the form of an equilateral quadrilateral.

Claim 10

A mechanical scanner according to claim 4 in combination with a light microscope, said sensing device lying in the path of light emerging from the microscope.

Claim 11

A mechanical scanner according to claim 4 wherein the moving scanning zone maintains a constant quadrilateral shape throughout its movement across the scanned field.