Canon DZ3600u manual Twain, 119

Glossary

TWAIN

An application programming interface (API) standard for image input devices, such as the DZ-3600U, image scanners and digital cameras. Any device will work with any application program, regardless of the manufacturer or model, as long as both comply with the standard.

USB

Universal serial bus: a new interface standard that supports up to 127 peripheral devices, such as keyboards, displays, mice and modems in a daisy chain connection.

VAROS

VAriable Refraction Optical System: an imaging technology that achieves a ninefold increase in resolution by optically sampling an object from nine minutely different angles and integrating the data into a single image. Using VAROS, the DZ-3600U is able to achieve a resolution equivalent to a 3.6-million element charge-coupled device (CCD).

White Balance

The human eye is an extremely adaptable device. For example, if exposed to a sheet of white paper outdoors at noon, it will recognize it as ‘white paper.’ If exposed to the same sheet indoors in a room with the lights off and little ambient light, it will still recognize it as ‘white paper.’ Moreover, it can even recognize it under the light of a red sky at twilight. An electronic eye (such as the CCD element used in the DZ- 3600U), on the other hand, will probably register the paper as white in the outdoor setting, gray in the darkened room and red under the night sky.

The white balance function is what compensates for this phenomenon. The DZ-3600U is equipped with an auto white balance function so that there is no need to make adjustments in most cases. Nonetheless, it is also equipped with a manual white balance function for when it is required (p. 70).

Appendix

119