An image reading apparatus includes a platen, a copyholder pressed against a reading surface of a document placed on the platen, and a placing part movably provided, on which a non-pressed portion of the document that is not pressed by the copyholder is placed.

A flatbed scanner document scanner includes a large format document scanner body accommodating a rectangular rigid frame with an upwardly facing plane face and a rectangular transparent plate for supporting a large format document. The rectangular transparent plate overlies the upwardly facing plane face all around the metal frame. The scanner also includes a movable carriage configured to move along and below the rectangular transparent plate and carrying a line camera extending across the rectangular transparent plate. The rectangular transparent plate and the metal frame are bonded together by a hard glue seam that runs on the upwardly facing plane face of the metal frame. A predetermined deflected shape can be formed when the bonded plate and frame are turned upside-down. The rectangular metal frame can deform under its own load to a cambered shape, a flat shape or a less deflected shape when turned upright in a normal position.

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.

To specify a contour to be detected even when there are a plurality of candidates of the contour on the periphery of a photographing target, an image processing apparatus comprises: a determining unit which detects a plurality of candidate points being the candidates of the contour of a subject based on distance image information of the subject in an image, and determines an inspection-target area in the image based on the detected candidate points; and a specifying unit which detects line segments existing in the inspection-target area determined by the determining unit, based on luminance information of the inspection-target area, and specifies the line segment being the contour of the subject based on the candidate point from the detected line segments.

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.

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.

An image scanner includes a stationary original plate on which a stationary original is placed and a moving original plate, over which a moving original is conveyed, aligned with the stationary original plate in a sub-scanning direction and tilted relative to the stationary original plate by a given angle. A reader is movable in the sub-scanning direction between a stationary original reading span disposed opposite the stationary original via the stationary original plate to read an image on the stationary original and a moving original reading position disposed opposite the moving original via the moving original plate to read an image on the moving original. The reader pressingly contacts the stationary original plate and the moving original plate as the reader moves in the sub-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.

A image reading apparatus includes a first placement unit, a second placement unit, a first reading unit, a second reading unit, a rotating mechanism, and a switch-over mechanism that switches over the first placement unit and the second placement unit between a horizontal state and an inclined state. The rotating mechanism rotates the first reading unit and the second reading unit, so that, in the horizontal state, the first image reading unit and the second image reading unit read a medium placed on the first placement unit and a medium placed on the second placement unit respectively, and, in the inclined state, the first image reading unit and the second image reading unit read a medium placed on the second placement unit and a medium placed on the first placement unit respectively.

Provided is an image reading apparatus including a first image reading unit which reads a surface of a medium which is transported along a transport path; a second image reading unit which reads a surface of the medium once the medium is mounted on a medium reading surface; and an opening/closing member switch between a closed position and an opened position with respect to the medium reading surface, in which at least a part of the medium reading surface overlaps at least a part of the first image reading unit in an apparatus height direction. In addition, at least a part of the opening/closing member overlaps at least a part of the first image reading unit in the apparatus height direction.