Method and apparatus for recording graphic information magnetically

An imaging apparatus for recording graphic information from an original onto a receiving surface, comprising:

• (a) means for providing a magnetic field;
• (b) means for shaping the magnetic field to a substantially linear configuration to provide a line with a uniform magnetic intensity throughout its length for any instant of time;
• said shaping means including a copying head having a plurality of electrically conductive and magnetically permeable laminae electrically insulated from each other to define a stack of said laminae having a first terminal and a second terminal, each of said laminae having a gap therein between said terminals bridged by an electrically conductive and non-magnetic material, said line being disposed along said gap;
• (c) electrical means connected to said first and second terminals for varying the intensity of portions of the magnetic field along said line to provide magnetic information in accordance with information contained on a corresponding portion of the original graphic information;
• and
• (d) surface means positioned adjacent to said gap in magnetic coupling relation to said linear configuration of said magnetic field for recording thereon the magnetic information contained along said line and for producing thereon a magnetic image corresponding to the original graphic information, said surface means further attracting thereto a toner material and transferring the toner material to a receiving surface in quantity corresponding to variations of light and shade in the original as provided by magnetic field intensity variations along said line.