| Canon, according to the dictionary means is a general | | | | needle due to which ink sprayed out! Therefore, the |
| law, rule, principle or criterion; church decree or law; | | | | researchers concluded that heat instead of pressure |
| member of cathedral chapter; body of writings | | | | could be used to eject the ink on the media. The |
| accepted as genuine. | | | | development of this technology gave the world it’s |
| Now what I am talking about is a company that | | | | first bubblejet printer in 1981. |
| manufactures user-friendly products! Canon the | | | | Laser Beam Printing |
| camera making company that now gives varied other | | | | Another important technology in the field of printing by |
| products and services to the world such as printers, | | | | Canon was the development of laser beam printers |
| inks and fax machines and copiers! | | | | (LBP). It started research on laser as a means of |
| Canon’s Roots | | | | writing as early as 1962. However it was unable to |
| Canon’s roots were laid in 1933 with very few | | | | develop a practical laser source and hence could not |
| employees as a precision optical instruments lab. The | | | | acquire the patents it had applied for due to which the |
| Laboratory was founded in 1933 in a third-floor | | | | research and development was suspended. |
| apartment of the Takekawaya Building in Roppongi, | | | | In the 1970s when lasers came into practical application |
| Azabu Ward, Tokyo. Its objective was to produce | | | | fields Canon resumed its research on laser beam |
| high-grade cameras. | | | | printers and developed the LBP’s of today |
| A young man named Goro Yoshida, a passionate | | | | combining their electro photographic technologies with |
| camera-lover; and his brother-in-law, Saburo Uchida, | | | | laser technology. |
| set up the Laboratory jointly. Their aim was to make | | | | The development of lasers imprinting also gave birth to |
| cameras that could compete with the German models | | | | a number of high-speed copy machines by Canon |
| that were considered the most advanced of the day. | | | | such as The NP-8500, the world's first retention-type |
| They started by analyzing existing cameras, which | | | | copying machine in 1978. |
| were difficult to obtain. Systematically, they studied | | | | The NP-8500 SUPER, an ultrahigh speed-copying |
| each camera's internal workings, examined | | | | machine capable of producing 135 copies per minute |
| mechanisms, drew up design diagrams and procured | | | | 1981; and the PC-10 and PC-20, the world's first |
| parts. Takeshi Mitarai, a close friend of Uchida provided | | | | personal copying machines with replaceable cartridges |
| the funds required for the research. Mitarai later | | | | were introduced by Canon in 1982. |
| became president of the company and built its | | | | In 1984 Canon gave the world its LBP-8/CX, the |
| foundation. | | | | smallest and lightest laser beam printer. |
| It then went on to become a renowned camera | | | | Today Canon develops technology that couples direct |
| making company. When it grew and decided to | | | | printing options from Cell phones equipped with a digital |
| diversify its business plans it had to shed its image of a | | | | camera, hence integrating printing technology with |
| company that manufactured only cameras, therefore | | | | photography! One such latest technology is the direct |
| the top brass of the company decided to take on the | | | | wireless printing from a camera! The printing is |
| name Canon Inc in 1969. The year1969 was also the | | | | achieved using infrared and Bluetooth communication |
| year that canon forayed into business machines and | | | | technology embedded in the cell phones or PCs. Being |
| eventually into the printing business. | | | | wireless no cables are required, and the image quality |
| Product Chronology | | | | parallels that of printouts from PCs using memory |
| To go through a brief chronology of Canon’s | | | | cards. |
| printing and copying history - Canon successfully | | | | One important feature Canon uses to achieve real |
| developed the laser beam printer in 1975. In 1982, the | | | | true to life image quality on paper is: Color reproduction: |
| PC-10 and PC-20, the world's first personal copying | | | | The color range of digital cameras (YCC) is much |
| machines with replaceable cartridges, were introduced. | | | | wider, making it possible to capture a vast amount of |
| Canon, in collaboration with IBM Japan, Ltd., developed | | | | color information when shooting. To achieve similar |
| the world’s first notebook PC with an installed | | | | quality Canon added red ink and green ink, which |
| printer in 1993. | | | | offers high brightness and chromaticity, to the six |
| Bubble Jet Discovery | | | | existing inks in their inkjet printers, raising the saturation |
| One of canon’s most interesting discoveries in the | | | | of the red and green output range by 1.6 times and 1.2 |
| field of printing technology was the bubble jet printing | | | | times respectively. The result is photo image output |
| technology. Researchers while working on the inkjet | | | | with improved depth and translucence, and color |
| printing technology hit upon the discovery when a hot | | | | reproduction comparable to that of prints from photo |
| solder gun accidentally touched the tip of an ink-filled | | | | film. |
