Method and apparatus for capturing the image of bound documents such as books using digital camera

A device for copying bound documents, comprising:

• a housing having a lower support and a side support;
• a pivoting scale support having upper and lower ends, the lower end thereof being mounted on an upper surface of the lower support of the housing;
• first and second horizontal support plates, each said support plate being mounted on a respective one of a pair of horizontally opposed ends of the upper end of said pivoting scale support, said first and second horizontal support plates being adapted for respectively supporting first and second covers of a bound document to be copied, said first and second horizontal support plates being angled with respect to one another;
• a transparent cover pivotally secured to an upper end of the side support of said housing, said transparent cover being adapted for removably covering the bound document, said transparent cover having a substantially V-shaped contour for covering the bound document when the bound document is open in a substantially V-shaped configuration;
• first and second means for capturing digital images of first and second sides, respectively, of the bound document displayed through the transparent cover;
• a pair of upper supports for supporting said first and second means for capturing the digital images above the transparent cover;
• a substantially C-shaped gear secured to said pivoting scale support;
• and
• a manually-driven gear engaging said substantially C-shaped gear for driving rotation thereof to selectively raise and lower said first and second horizontal support plates.