The first Premier Company Plan is launched
1976 - 1987
| History of Enterprise | History of Products | |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | The first Premier Company Plan is launched. A committee is established to discuss Canon development, production and sales systems. The Kosugi office opens as a base for optical equipment. Canon (U.K.) Ltd. is established. Canon enters the facsimile machine market. |
The AE-1 SLR camera with a built-in microcomputer is introduced, triggering an AE boom. The CR-45NM, the world's first nonmydriatic retinal camera, is introduced. |
| 1977 | Ryuzaburo Kaku is appointed president of Canon Inc.
Ryuzaburo Kaku The Utsunomiya plant of Tochigi Canon Inc. (today, Canon Inc.'s Utsunomiya Plant) opens. |
The K-35 series of lenses for cinematography wins an Academy Award from the U.S. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. |
| 1978 | A product-specific business division structure is introduced. Canon begins offering color copying services. Canon Australia Pty. Ltd. is established. |
The NP-8500, the world's first retention-type copying machine, is introduced. The PLA-500FA, the world's first mask aligner with a laser-based automatic alignment system, is introduced. |
| 1979 | Overseas sales exceed ¥100 billion for the first time. Copyer Co., Ltd. becomes an affiliated company. Canon Singapore Pte. Ltd. is established. |
The LBP-10, using a semiconductor laser, is introduced.
LBP-10 laser beam printer (1979) The AF35M, a fully automatic AF compact camera, is introduced.A mini floppy disk drive is introduced. |
| 1980 | The Canoword 55 Japanese-language word processor, the first such product with roman alphabet inputting, is introduced.
Canoword 55 The Auto Ref R-1, an automatic refractometer, is introduced. |
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| 1981 | The Hiratsuka Plant opens as the Component Development Center. The Ami Plant opens as a precision equipment factory for the manufacture of facsimiles and precision molds. The Ueno Plant opens as a copying machine and LBP chemical product manufacturing factory. |
The NP-8500 SUPER, an ultrahigh-speed copying machine capable of producing 135 copies per minute, is introduced. The New F-1, a professional-use system SLR, is introduced. A CVC video system is introduced. |
| 1982 | The Second Premier Company Plan is launched. Oita Canon Inc. is established in Japan. |
The PC-10 and PC-20, the world's first personal copying machines with replaceable cartridges, are introduced. The HT-3000 handy terminal is introduced. The AS-100 16-bit personal computer is introduced. The AP400 and AP500 electronic typewriters (for Western languages) are introduced. The Crib-O-Gram, an audio-visual tester for infants, is introduced. |
| 1983 | The Utsunomiya Optical Products Plant opens as a factory to manufacture mask aligners and peripheral equipment. Canon Bretagne S.A.S. is established in France. |
The CanoWord Mini 5 personal-use word processor is introduced. The MyCard, credit card-sized calculator, is introduced. The T50 SLR camera is introduced and wins Japan's 1983 Good Design Grand Prize. |
| 1984 | A joint technology agreement is signed in the PRC; copying machine production starts at facilities in Zhanjiang and Tianjin. Canon Components, Inc. is established in Japan. |
The PC Printer 70 is introduced as the world's first plainpaper reader/printer for COM. Canon announces laser beam facsimile machines. Practical tests of a still video camcorder are conducted at the Los Angeles Olympic Games. The digital laser copying machine system NP-9030 is introduced. The LBP-8/CX, the world's smallest and lightest laser beam printer, is introduced.
LBP-8 The PV14 x 12.5B HD, a zoom lens for high-definition television, is announced. |
| 1985 | A tie-up agreement related to computer technology is concluded with Hewlett-Packard Co. of the U.S. Canon Virginia, Inc., is established in the U.S.A. Lotte Canon Co., Ltd. (today, Canon Korea Business Solutions Inc.), a joint venture, is established in the ROK. |
The BJ-80, the world's first inkjet printer using Bubble Jet technology, is introduced. The Canofile 5500 electronic filing system is introduced. The EZPS5300 electronic editing and printing system is introduced. The Canovision 8 VM-E1, an 8 mm video camcorder, is introduced. |
| 1986 | A tie-up agreement covering ISDN fax interface technology is concluded with Siemens AG of Germany. A tie-up agreement covering advanced medical equipment is concluded with Eastman Kodak Co. of the U.S. |
The FC-3 and FC-5 portable personal-use copying machines are introduced.
FC-3 copying machine (1986) The FAX L3100, conforming to the G4 standard, is introduced.The Canola BP1210-D, a Bubble Jet desktop calculator, is introduced. The T90 high-performance electronic SLR camera is introduced. The RC-701, the world's first still video camera, and video system is introduced. Sales begin for the Auto Keratometer RK-1, which can measure both refractivity and corneal shape. Canon's Corner Cube Reflector is installed in the Ajisai geodetic satellite. |
| 1987 | The Canon Foundation is established to provide assistance for research into mutual understanding between Japan and Europe. Canon licenses camera technologies to GoldStar Precision of Korea, which begins production. |
The CLC-1, a digital full-color copying machine, is introduced. The Board Copier A-1, an electronic blackboard that can print on plain paper, is introduced. Sales of the CanoWord αseries Japanese word processor begin. The EOS autofocus SLR camera is introduced, along with a range of EF lenses.
EOS 650 SLR camera (1987) Canon launches a broadcasting lens with 50 x zoom, then the highest zoom ratio in the world.Sales of CAPLAS, a CAE software application for use in injection molding, commence. |
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