Patent attributes
A radiation image is read out by causing a linear reading light beam to scan a radiation image sensor, which has a plurality of parallel linear electrodes to output charge signals according to the radiation image upon exposure to a reading light beam in the longitudinal direction of the linear electrodes, and obtaining an image signal by integrating charge signals, output by the respective linear electrodes in response to the scan of the reading light beam. A pulsed light beam which is projected onto the radiation image sensor for a predetermined time in each of the integrating times is employed as the reading light beam, and projection of the pulsed light beam is controlled so that the center of the time for which the pulsed light beam is projected onto the radiation image sensor is earlier than the center of the integrating time.