A flatbed scanner includes a flatbed document scanner body accommodating a transparent plate for supporting a physical document and a document cover, which includes a sheet member with an expanse covering at least a substantial area of the transparent plate. The rectangular document cover has an underside and a movable carriage extending across the rectangular transparent plate in a transverse direction. The movable carriage carries a camera or an optical system for a camera. The sheet member of the rectangular document cover is magnetic or carries one or more magnetic plates, so as to be magnetically attracted towards the movable carriage and exert a pressing force on the physical document when supported on the rectangular transparent plate. A compressing force is thereby applied to an original document resting at an area at which the movable carriage currently is located while scanning a line of the original document.

An illuminating device capable of stably illuminating an irradiated object such as a document while suppressing light loss with a simply structure is provided. An LED array and a reflective plate are disposed sandwiching a slit (St) through which light reflected by a document MS passes and a light-guiding member is disposed on the side of the LED array. The light-guiding member includes a direct emission unit disposed between an illumination range y centered on a document reading position and the LED array and an indirect emission unit disposed between the reflective plate and the LED array, a light incidence face of the direct emission unit and a light incidence face of the indirect emission unit are disposed at mutually different position around the LED array, and the LED array is disposed on a side of an interior angle formed by the light incidence faces.

An image reading device includes an image reader movable along an image reading face, a casing to house the image reader, including a restraint holder, and a restraint to be held by the restraint holder of the casing and configured to restrict movement of the image reader. The restraint includes an operation portion to be disposed outside the casing. The operation portion is operated to move the restraint, in the restraint holder, to: a restricting position to restrict movement of the image reader; a first unlock position to cancel restriction of movement of the image reader; and a second unlock position at which movement of the image reader is not restricted. At the first unlock position, movement of the restraint to the restricting position is allowed. From the second unlock position, movement to the restricting position is less smooth than movement from the first unlock position to the restricting position.

An image reading apparatus includes a moving unit, a first detecting unit, and a second detecting unit. The moving unit moves a calibration plate in the main scanning direction relatively to a reading apparatus. The calibration plate is a plate for calibrating the reading apparatus. The reading apparatus has a reading unit and reading glass. The reading unit is arranged in the main scanning direction. The reading glass is disposed on a reading surface side of the reading unit. The first detecting unit detects an abnormality on the calibration plate from reading results. The reading results are obtained in such a manner that, while the moving unit is controlled to move the calibration plate, the reading unit reads the calibration plate. The second detecting unit detects an abnormality on the reading glass from the reading results.

An illuminating device capable of stably illuminating an irradiated object such as a document while suppressing light loss with a simply structure is provided. An LED array and a reflective plate are disposed sandwiching a slit (St) through which light reflected by a document MS passes and a light-guiding member is disposed on the side of the LED array. The light-guiding member includes a direct emission unit disposed between an illumination range y centered on a document reading position and the LED array and an indirect emission unit disposed between the reflective plate and the LED array, a light incidence face of the direct emission unit and a light incidence face of the indirect emission unit are disposed at mutually different position around the LED array, and the LED array is disposed on a side of an interior angle formed by the light incidence faces.

An image forming apparatus, with a document cover open and in addition with no document placed on a contact glass, without performing printing operation, performs first test reading where the contact glass is read without a light source being turned on; thereafter, performs the printing operation, and performs second test reading where the contact glass is read without the light source being turned on. The image forming apparatus checks a flicker level based on a first comparison value calculated based on image data acquired in the first test reading and a second comparison value calculated based on image data acquired in the second test reading.

This image processing apparatus includes a first determination section, a first control section, a second determination section, and a second control section. If the first determination section determines that there are images whose outer shapes are not rectangular, the first control section performs control operations to connect edges of the images to combine the images. The second determination section determines whether the outer shape of the combined image, which is made of the images combined by the first control section, is rectangular or whether the combined image is bilaterally symmetric with respect to a predetermined line passing through the center of the combined image. If the second determination section determines that the outer shape of the combined image is rectangular or that the combined image is bilaterally symmetric, the second control unit performs control operations to produce a composite image of the images with the edges connected to each other.

The image forming apparatus includes an image reading section and a control section. The image reading section reads a document placed on a contact glass to generate image data. The control section decides whether or not the document is present at a specified position of the contact glass and, upon deciding that the document is present at the specified position, erases handwritten images from the image data of the document read by the image reading section.

A reading module has a light source, an optical system imaging, as image light, reflected light of the light radiated from the light source to the document, and a sensor converting the image light imaged by the optical system into an electrical signal. The optical system has a mirror array in which reflection mirrors are coupled together in an array in the main scanning direction and an aperture stop portion having a first aperture adjusting the amount of image light reflected from a reflection mirror and a second aperture shielding stray light that enters the first aperture from an adjacent reflection mirror. The second aperture is arranged at such a position as to be able to shield stray light passing through a boundary between the reflection mirrors and the center of the first aperture when the mirror array contracts to the maximum extent in the main scanning direction.

An image reading apparatus includes: a contact glass provided at an upper surface of a main body of the apparatus to set a manuscript thereon, an image sensor being positioned below the contact glass and having a reading surface on contact glass side for reading an image from the manuscript on the contact glass, a carriage supporting the image sensor accommodated in a sensor container formed to have a recess open to the contact glass side, a rail member slidably supporting the carriage, and a biasing member biasing the image sensor to the contact glass side via a biased portion adjacent to the reading surface of the image sensor. An upper end of the biasing member is positioned below the contact glass and above the lower surface of the image sensor.