Exposure system

An exposure system for exposing a recording material, comprising:

• a holder holding a recording material;
• a plurality of light sources capable of simultaneously emitting exposure light;
• an exposure head in which said plurality of light sources are located at dispersed sites at regular intervals in a direction of arrangement along said recording material;
• a transport unit moving said exposure head along said recording material;
• an exposure-data input unit acquiring general exposure data describing the contents of exposure of said recording material;
• a channel-by-channel-exposure-data generator generating, based on said general exposure data, channel-by-channel exposure data describing the contents of exposure performed by each of said plurality of light sources;
• and
• an exposure controller controlling said plurality of light sources so that exposure light is emitted according to the contents of description of said channel-by-channel exposure data, wherein
• (a) in a case where said plurality of light sources are all in a light-emitting state,
• said channel-by-channel-exposure-data generator generates said channel-by-channel exposure data describing the way that an exposed area should be formed by use of said exposure light emitted from all of said plurality of light sources,
• said exposed area being formed by said exposure controller causing said plurality of light sources to emit exposure light according to said channel-by-channel exposure data while causing said transport unit to move said exposure head through only a standard interval having a distance approximately equal to an interval between said plurality of light sources;
• and
• (b) in a case where said plurality of light sources includes some non-light emitting light sources,
• said channel-by-channel-exposure-data generator generates said channel-by-channel exposure data describing the way that said exposed area should be formed by use of said exposure light emitted from a specific light source in the light-emitting state during a period when said exposure head is moved through a complementary interval in addition to said standard interval,
• said complementary interval being continuous at least either before or after said standard interval and having a distance equal to a multiple of the length of said standard interval by a natural number,
• said specific light source being determined by the locations of said non-light emitting light sources,
• said exposed area being formed by said exposure controller causing said specific light source to emit exposure light according to said channel-by-channel exposure data while causing said transport unit to move said exposure head through said standard interval and through said complementary interval.