Although Canon’s precision optical technology is readily visible in Canon cameras and lenses, most people might not know that its existence actually extends much further into a wide variety of high-technology fields, supporting the steady progress of society. This section provides a brief introduction to the various fields other than conventional photography where Canon lenses are playing an ever-expanding role.
At an altitude of 4200m above sea level, the Japanese Subaru large optical-infrared telescope atop Mauna Kea on the island of Hawaii is home to Canon ultra-high performance lens technology. With an 8.2-meter diameter, the telescope’s main mirror is the largest in the world, and is equipped with an optical system that creates an image at the principal focus — an unheard-of feature in large reflecting telescopes. And it is Canon lens technology which made the principal focus correction optical system possible. Canon developed this system using the concept of “smaller and lighter” in order to solve the problem of how to fit it onto the principal focus of the telescope-a feat otherwise impossible using conventional optical design. Indeed, compared to the original design specifications, Canon succeeded in making the system 70% smaller and 50% lighter than it would have turned out otherwise. This principal focus correction optical system possesses a field of view of 30 arc-minutes, which is overwhelmingly wider than that of other large telescopes, and it is also equipped with a mechanism that uses a shift method to deliver high-precision optical correction of atmospheric dispersion, a phenomenon that causes light entering the earth’s atmosphere to turn different colors due to the varying index of refraction of each wavelength. Astronomy - observing distant celestial bodies to find out how the universe was created. Here, too, Canon’s optical technology is hard at work.
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Canon High-Performance Lens Technology also at Work in the Field of Digital Imaging
Digital imaging devices are now mainstream and continue to advance by leaps and bounds in terms of image quality and operability. Recognizing that lens performance significantly influences the image quality and desirability of digital cameras and video camcorders, Canon incorporates leading lens technology developed originally for EF lenses to meet the most demanding expectations of users. For example. Canon’s IXY DIGITAL/PowerShot DIGITAL ELPH/DIGITAL IXUS series cameras, renowned for their wealth of functions and ease of use, offer superb image quality and surprisingly high zoom ratios thanks to UA aspherical lens elements boasting a super-high refractive index and UD lens elements that efficiently reduce color aberrations. Moreover, an increasing number of models such as the IXY DIGITAL 900 IS/PowerShot SD800 IS DIGITAL ELPH/DIGITAL IXUS 850 IS, PowerShot G7, PowerShot A710 IS, and PowerShot A570 IS feature a lens-shift Image Stabilizer mechanism that greatly reduces the incidence of camera-shake blur. Canon’s interchangeable lenses for XL series digital video camcorders and advanced lens technology in High Definition consumer-level compact cameras like the HV10 have also received widespread acclaim.
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Pursuing World Events in Real-time: High-Performance Canon TV Zoom Lenses
The spread of satellite television broadcasts and 24-hour news channels allows us to watch the real-time unfolding of events from our living rooms. Canon lenses are used throughout the world in the cameras in these fields. The images you from worldwide news reports and international sporting events, and the unmanned broadcasts from various regions, are brought into your home through Canon lenses. In other words, without knowing it, people are constantly seeing images reproduced by Canon lenses every day. Canon has also developed many lenses for use with next-generation high-definition television (HDTV) cameras, thereby contributing to photography of advanced large-scale images. In September 2002, we developed a 100x zoom HDTV-compatible field lens (focal length range of 9.3mm to 930mm, f/1.7-4.7), the world’s first broadcast television zoom lens with triple-digit zoom ratio. The lens has been used in many broadcast stations around the world.
Supporting the Progress of Electronic Technology: Ultra-High-Resolution Canon Lenses
CPUs, LSIs, memory, and other high-precision electronic components are essential to the operation of computers and other electronic equipment. Behind the manufacturing of such components is semiconductor exposure equipment which projects intricate electronic circuit patterns over and over onto silicon wafers during the manufacturing process for large integrated semiconductor chips. The development and manufacture of semiconductor exposure equipment requires positioning and control technologies which make it possible to move superior optics and silicon wafers at high speeds and with ultra-high precision. Canon is one of the few makers of semiconductor exposure equipment in the world, and has always contributed as a leading company in the field.
In response to the growing demand for semiconductor miniaturization, Canon is honing its liquid filtering exposure technologies to enable their eventual practical application. This technology employs an ArF (argon fluoride) excimer laser as the light source and ultrapure water in the gap between the wafer and the semiconductor exposure device projection optics. The result is ultra miniaturization of circuit line width down to 45 nanometers (1 nanometer=1/1,000,000mm), a significant improvement over the previously assumed limit of 65 nanometers.
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High-Precision Optical Technology: The Heart of Laser Beam Printers
Canon holds an overwhelming world market share for laser beam printers. At the heart of the laser beam printer is the laser scanner unit. The laser is reflected by a four- to six-sided polygon mirror rotating at 10,000 to 20,000 rpm and then scanned onto a photosensitive drum.
To print an image with a resolution of about 560 dots per square millimeter, the drum scanning must be ultra-precise. Canon laser beam printers feature state-of-the-art electronics, precision optics, and manufacturing technologies. They include a polygon mirror with a finish smoother than one-fifth of the wavelength (780 nm) of the laser used, a motor, which spins this mirror at high speed, and a special optical system which uses an aspherical element. Canon precision optics technology is a traditional stronghold and continues to play an important role in a variety of fields.
The photograph below shows the laser scanner unit for an economy-priced laser beam printer designed for small and home offices. Use of a special aspherical element to which plastic molded lens technology has been applied permits the printer to achieve high performance and low cost
Contributing to Human Health: Another Type of Canon Lens
Medical equipment contributes to healthy lives, and here, too, you can find Canon lens technology. A special camera called a “fundus camera” (fundus is a Latin word meaning “depths” or “back” - in this case, the back of the eyeball) is used in fundus examinations, which are useful for diagnosing a variety of ailments, by taking a picture of the retina which is located at the back of the eye. Canon developed the Non-Mydriatic Retinal Camera as well as the 60° Fundus Camera, which can record a wide field of view, years ahead of the competition, making it easier to provide many people with fundus examinations in a variety of situations, including group examinations. Canon also developed the Auto-Ref. Kerameter, which measures the eye refraction and cornea shape simultaneously for optometric and contact lens prescriptions.
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