Digital image scanning apparatus with pixel data compensation for bad photosites

Claim 1

Image scanning apparatus comprising; an imaging device having a plurality of photosites defining an image scan line; signal processing means for converting image signals from each of said photosites into digital image pixel data representative of the response of each photosite to image light; data memory means for accumulating pixel data transferred from the signal processing means; photosite memory means for storing attribute data indicating good and bad photosites in said imaging device including a number of one or more successive bad photosites at the beginning of said image scan line; means for retrieving said attribute data from said memory means in synchronism with processing of individual photosites in said imaging device; and data transfer means responsive to said retrieved attribute data for inhibiting transfer to the data memory of pixel data from said number of successive bad photosites at the beginning of said image scan line and for continuing to transfer to said data memory pixel data corresponding to the last good photosite in the image scan line for a number of photosite periods required to provide a full scan line complement of pixel data.