Opaque Projector

Opaque projector, also referred to as episcope, is a forerunner to an overhead projector. It displays opaque materials by shining a bright lamp onto the object from above. A system of mirrors, imaging lenses and prisms is used to focus an image of the material onto a screen.

Since opaque projectors must project the reflected light, they need brighter bulbs and bigger lenses then overhead projectors. Care must be taken for the materials not to be damaged by the heat produced by the light source. Opaque projectors are not as common as modern overhead projectors.

Opaque projectors are usually used to project images of book pages, drawings, mineral specimens, leaves, etc. They have been produced as artists’ magnification tools to allow images to be transferred to surfaces like prepared canvas, or for lectures and discourses. In the early and middle parts of the 20th century, inexpensive opaque projectors were manufactured and marketed as toys for children.

In educational settings, the specific role of the opaque projector has been replaced by the presenter, a lighted table with a fixed video camera above it. The image from the camera is displayed using a separate projector.

If you are planning to buy an opaque projector for your professional activity or other purposes, consider buying a used opaque projector. This option will save you a lot of money, and the projector will be your reliable companion until you decide to replace it by a newer unit.

American Optical Opaque Projector

The opaque projector was designed and produced by the American Optical Company in the early 1960s. The opaque and overhead projector product lines were sold to Kalart Victor in the middle 70s and then sold again to Neumade in the 80s. Neumade continues manufacturing the same units with the same parts that were used in the original American Optical projectors.

The Use of Opaque Projectors

A lot of professional artists and craftsmen all over the world increase their efficiency by using opaque projectors for enlarging pictures, photos and other images for fast and accurate tracing onto their media of choice.

Artists use various types of media use projectors to project photos and other images to sketch enlargements of their originals. Projectors are widely used to project enlarged photos for drawing larger copies of the projected photographs onto almost any media. Using an overhead projector allows you to enlarge a picture onto a wide variety of surfaces for tracing or drawing enlarged copies of the original picture.