Canon - From Cameras to Printers and Other PC Peripherals

When Canon first started, the company focus was on making cameras of a high quality. In the year 1936, the company came out with the first ever 35mm focal plane shutter camera, which was called the Hansa Canon. Film cameras have gone out of style in modern times, being replaced by digital cameras, and Canon has kept pace with technology. The products produced today by Canon include digital copiers, cameras, controllers, printers, and fax machines.

Canon is a well trusted name, and has been since the company introduced their first camera, being a favorite of both professional and amateur photographers around the world. When Canon first introduced a printer that was small enough to hold in your hand and which easily and quickly connects to a digital camera, the company showed they were still a leader in the industry, combining photographic expertise with printer technology.

Cannon is a leader in other industries as well, not just the photography industry. The year 2003 saw the company being ranked third worldwide for the total number of United States patents issued, and through the years the company has been granted more than twenty six thousand patents, an amazing number.

Canon Patents in Printing Technology

Some of the most well known patents held by Canon include a laser beam print engine, bubble jet printing, binoculars, optical image stabilizers, video cameras, plain paper copying devices, broadcast lenses, and eye control focus systems, to name just a few.

The Canon USA main offices are in Lake Success, New York. Yoroku Adachi is the President and CEO of Canon USA, and oversees the company. The product line for Canon today include copiers, image filing systems, cameras and lenses, printers, scanners, optical equipment, camcorders, fax machines, broadcast equipment, and other customized imaging equipment.

The Canon company operates under kyosei, which is a philosophy that states: All people, regardless of race, religion, or culture, harmoniously living and working together into the future. Another loose translation means the common good, and this philosophy is followed in every step and process at Canon, all the way from research to distribution. The company also sponsors a number of educational, environmental, and social programs.

The markets for Canon products include consumers, businesses, and entire industries. Consumers know the Canon name from products like digital and film cameras, printers, binoculars, copiers, fax machines, scanners, calculators, camcorders, visualizers, network video solutions, and projectors.

Businesses frequently choose Canon products in the office place, and these products include digital presses, copiers, printers, multifunction products, and products called micrographics systems, which include readers, scanners, and digital storage systems.

Canon also serves industrial needs by making products which include eye care systems, medical imaging systems, motor Canobeam system/free space optics, semiconductor equipment, broadcast and communications, contract manufacturing solutions, and encoder/optoelectronic system components. Canon is a leader in innovation concerning industries such as broadcasting, medical, and manufacturing.

As a company, Canon continuously moves forward with new technology and products. Their newest research involves next generation technologies which include both DNA chip fabrication and robotics, nanotechnologies, production engineering technologies, device technologies, environmental technologies, and quality management technologies.

Canon is a company that cares about the future, and this is evident by the fact that the company sets aside around ten percent of sales each year to fund research and design efforts. There are many Research and Development facilities around the world, including locations in Japan, California, Maryland, and Virginia, among others. There are a number of sales offices around the United States, and the world, as well, including offices in New Jersey, Illinois, California, New York, Utah, Pennsylvania, and many more.