JPH0722669Y2 - Camera with inspection function - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial field of application] The present invention relates to a camera having a photometric device and a distance measuring device, which is capable of automatic exposure photography and automatic focusing photography.
More specifically, the present invention relates to a camera having an inspection function capable of easily monitoring the measurement data of each device.

[Problems to be Solved by Conventional Techniques and Inventions] As the automation of cameras advances, a camera equipped with a photometric device for automatic exposure photography or a rangefinder device for autofocusing of a photographic lens is possible. There is a tendency for cameras and the like to be generalized.

In these cameras, it is necessary to inspect whether or not the built-in photometric and distance measuring devices normally operate when the performance of the product is inspected.

Conventionally, in this inspection, some cameras were pulled out from all products, disassembled, actually measured light, distance measured and monitored by external device for signal of built-in electronic circuit, or electronic circuit Means such as controlling the signal with an external device to monitor the signal have been used.

However, in the case of such means, there is a problem that a large-scale external device is required for the inspection, and moreover, the inspection time is long, so that it becomes a sampling inspection and the performance of all products cannot be inspected. It was

[Object of the Invention] The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and provides a camera in which product inspection can be easily performed without using an external device by providing the camera with an inspection function. The purpose is to

[Means for Solving the Problems] The invention according to claim 1 is a measuring means for measuring photographing data which changes depending on an external environment, a film sensitivity information input means for reading film sensitivity information provided in a film cartridge, and a film. A film detecting means for detecting whether or not is set in a state where it is pulled out from the cartridge, a display means for visually displaying predetermined information from the outside, a photographing mode for executing a normal photographing operation, and the measuring means. And a switching means for switching the operation mode to be executed by the control means, and the switching means for switching the operation mode to be executed by the control means. On condition that the film sensitivity information input means is a predetermined value, and the film detection means has not detected a film, An inspection, wherein the operation mode is switched to an inspection mode, and the control means causes the display means to perform a display operation of a measured value by the measurement means which is not executed at least in the photographing mode in the inspection mode. It is a camera with functions.

[Embodiment] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 2 to 8 show an embodiment of a camera having an inspection function according to the present invention.

First, the external appearance of the camera will be described with reference to FIGS.

This camera is a so-called compact type lens shutter camera in which a taking lens (zoom lens) 11 and a finder system 21 are independently provided, and a strobe 22, a photometric CdS 23, a distance measuring device 24, etc. are provided on the front surface. ing. The taking lens 11 is supported in a movable lens barrel 27 which is provided in a fixed lens barrel 26 fixed to the camera body 25 so as to be retractable.

The movable lens barrel 27 is displaced by the built-in zoom motor between the storage position shown by the broken line in FIG. 3 and the macro position shown by the solid line, and changes the focal length of the taking lens 11.

In addition, the shutter button 28 that also functions as a zoom button is on the top surface.
Is provided. The shutter button 28 has a substantially triangular planar shape as a whole, and a front portion 28a is a two-step switch including a photometric switch and a release switch described later, one rear side 28b is a zoom tele switch, and the other side 2
8c is a zoom wide switch. These three
The positions a, b, and c can be operated exclusively, and when operating one, the other two positions cannot be operated.

On the back side of the body, as shown in FIG. 4, a main switch 30 and a mode switch are provided above the back cover 29 for attaching and detaching the film.
A liquid crystal display panel (hereinafter referred to as an LCD panel) 32 and the like are provided. The main switch 30 is a three-position slide switch, and functions as a lock switch and a macro switch described later.

On the side of the finder 21, a red lamp 33 for displaying a strobe-related item and a green lamp 34 for displaying a distance-related item are provided.

Further, when the back cover 29 is opened, as shown in FIG. 5, a film switch 35 for detecting the presence / absence of a film is provided above the aperture, and one set is set in the patrone chamber 36 for mounting the film patrone. 4 with two electrodes
A set of Dx contacts Dx1, Dx2, Dx3, Dx4 is provided. Dx1 is a ground contact, and it detects ISO 25 to 3200 by dividing it into eight stages of zones by a 3-bit signal from the other three, and is a Dx code input means for reading the Dx code. It functions as a so-called film sensitivity information input means. The correspondence between ON / OFF of each contact and ISO sensitivity is shown in the table on the next page.

Reference numeral 37 is a spool shaft for winding the film.

In this camera, the focal length of the taking lens 11 changes, the change of the open F value due to the change, the lens is at the wide-angle end, the telephoto end, and the macro position for close-up photography. The information such as the fact that the vehicle is in the storage position and the storage (lock) position is automatically detected, and various controls are performed according to the information.

Therefore, a code plate is attached to the peripheral surface of the cam barrel for moving the lens, and a plurality of brushes that are in sliding contact with the code plate are provided on the body side. Information detected from the conduction relationship of these terminals is output as a zoom code.

Next, the control system of the camera described above will be described with reference to FIG.

The central part of this control circuit is the main CPU 100, and a sub-CP that performs shutter-related processing in a form subordinate to this.
U200 is connected via four serial signal lines.

The main CPU 100 always operates in synchronization with the clock of the clock oscillation circuit 101 as long as the battery is housed in the camera, and the winding is performed via the motor drive circuit 110 based on the detected switch input or the state of the camera. The motor 111 and the zoom motor 112 are controlled to perform display control of the LCD panel 32, control of turning on and off of the green and red lamps 33 and 34, control of blinking, and charging control of the strobe 22.

The switches include (1) a lock switch SWL that is turned on when the slide lever of the main switch 30 is in the lock position, (2) a macro switch SWM that is turned on when the slide lever of the main switch 30 is in the macro position, (3 ) It is turned on by pressing the shutter button 28 front 28a one step.
Light metering switch SWS, (4) Turn on by pressing the front part 28a of the shutter button 28 two steps
Release switch SWR, (5) Zoom tele switch SWT that turns on when one end side 28b of the shutter button 28 is pressed, (6) Wide switch SWW of zoom that turns on when the other end side 28c of the shutter button 28 is pressed, (7) ) There is a film switch SWF that is pressed by the film and turned off when the back cover is closed while the film is pulled out from the cartridge, and the brush that slides against the Dx code and the code plate from the Dx contact. Enter the zoom code from.

On the other hand, the sub CPU 200 receives the clock oscillation circuit 201 when the power is turned on by the operation signal output from the main CPU 100.
It operates in synchronism with the clock, and performs photometry, distance measurement, and shutter-related processing while transmitting signals with the main CPU 100. The sub CPU 200 controls the shutter block 210, the photometric CdS 23, the distance measuring device 24, and the battery check circuit 220, and also generates the trigger pulse TRG of the strobe 22 in synchronization with the release. As the shutter block, for example, a unit for performing focusing and shutter release by a built-in pulse motor as described in JP-A-60-225122 is used.

Further, the distance measuring device 24 has a known configuration including an infrared light emitting diode IRED that emits light toward a subject and a position sensor PSD that receives light reflected by the subject. To measure the distance.

Next, the program stored in the main CPU 100 described above will be described along with the operation of the camera according to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. Note that the following description will focus on shutter-related processing, and will only touch the other parts lightly.

<< MAIN >> First, the main flow chart of FIG. 7 will be described. This main flow chart defines the basic operation of the camera, and other processing is performed by calling or branching from the main flow according to various conditions.

In step (hereinafter referred to as S.) 1, the states of the switches described above are input, and the main CPU 100 stores the detection results thereof in the memory.

Then, in S.2, the state of the switch is input again. This is a process for detecting the dynamic change of the switch by comparing with the data stored in the memory in S.1.

In S.3, the state of the lock switch SWL is determined from the switch data input in S.2. Lock switch SWL
Is turned on when the camera is stored in a state where it is not used for shooting. In this case, it is determined in S.4 whether or not the shooting lens is in the locked position. If it is already in the lock position, the process proceeds to the lock flow. The lock flow is processed when the lock switch is in the ON state.
This is a flow for prohibiting operations such as zoom operation, photometry, distance measurement, and release.

If the lens is not in the lock position, a lens storing process for storing the taking lens to the lock position is executed in S.5, and then the process branches to the lock flow.

When the lock switch SWL is OFF, preparation processing for photographing is performed below.

First, in S.6, the state of the macro switch SWM is determined. When the macro switch SWM is ON, it is determined in S.7 whether or not the taking lens is set to the macro position for close-up photography. If the taking lens is already in the macro position, the process directly proceeds to S.19, which will be described later.

When it is determined in S.7 that the taking lens is not set to the macro position, lens macro processing for extending the lens is executed in S.8, and then the process returns to the start of the main flow.

If it is determined in S.6 that the macro switch SWM is off, the shooting lens is required to be in the zoom range, so it is first determined in S.9 whether the lens is in the lock position. To be done. And when in the locked position,
In S.10, the lens advance processing is executed to extend the lens to the wide end of the zoom area.

First, in S.11, it is determined whether or not the lens is in the macro position. If the shooting lens is in the macro position,
In S.12, a lens retracting process for returning the lens to the tele end of the zoom area is executed.

If it is in the zoom range from the beginning and if the lens is set to the zoom range by the processing of S.10 and S.12 above, then
The state of the zoom wide switch SWW is determined in S.13.

When this switch SWW is ON, it is determined in S.14 whether or not the taking lens is at the wide end. If the taking lens is already at the wide end, it cannot move further to the wide side, and the process proceeds to S.19. If it is not at the wide end, in S.15, a wide process for moving the lens to the wide side is executed. In the wide processing, when the wide switch is turned off or the lens reaches the wide end, the lens is stopped and the process returns to the start of the main flow.

If it is determined in S.13 that the wide switch SWW is OFF, this time in S.16, the zoom tele switch SW
The state of T is determined.

When the tele switch SWT is ON, it is determined in S.17 whether the lens is at the tele end. If it is located at the tele end, jump to S.19 as described above.

If it is not at the tele end, tele processing is performed in S.18 to move the lens to the tele side. In the tele process, the movement is stopped when the tele switch SWT is turned off or the lens reaches the tele end, and then the process returns to the start of the main flow.

If both zoom switches are OFF, S.19,
In S.20, it is determined that the photometry switch SWS has changed, and if the photometry switch SWS has changed from OFF to ON, the process branches from S.20 to the flowchart "AEAF" for performing photometry, distance measurement, and release processing described later.

If there is no change in the metering switch SWS, or from ON to OFF
If it changes to, the switch data in the memory is rewritten in S.21 to the data input in S.2, and the loop is performed after stopping the processing for 125 ms in S.22.
Processing proceeds to S.2.

<< AEAF >> FIG. 8 shows a flow "AEAF" of photometry, distance measurement and release processing which is branched from S.20 of the main flow.

In this example, the Dx code printed on the mounted film cartridge indicates ISO 3200, and when the film switch is ON, that is, when the film is not pulled out, this is set to the test mode (this application). It corresponds to the inspection mode referred to in the invention), and the AF step based on the distance measurement data is displayed on the LCD panel. It should be noted that the LCD panel displays the focal length, the number of films, etc. in the normal mode not in the test mode.

When the process is started, first, in S.100, it is determined whether or not the battery voltage is sufficient to continue the process. If the voltage is equal to or higher than the predetermined value, the distance measurement data based on the detection result of the AF unit is input in S.101. Distance measurement data is
Converted into AF steps that divide 0.5 m to infinity into 36 steps.

Next, in S.102, the photometric CdS for measuring the subject brightness was used.
The photometric data based on the output of is input.

In S.103, the main CPU 100 reads the Dx code of the mounted cartridge from the conduction state of the Dx contact, recognizes this as the ISO sensitivity of the film in the correspondence relationship in the table on page 7, and detects the film sensitivity value Sv (apex display). ).

In S.104, AF determined according to the ranging data
LL (Le
ns Latch) operation is performed. The AF step is uniquely determined based on the distance measurement data, but the lens latch is the same.
The AF step also has a different value depending on whether the taking lens is in the normal photographing mode or the macro photographing mode, and thus is determined by taking these information into consideration.

In S.105, the test flag _FTSTBLB indicating the test mode is once cleared.

In S.106, the Dx code input in S.103 is ISO 32.
Whether or not it represents 00, that is, all Dx contacts
It is determined whether or not the code is ON.

When it is determined in S.106 that the ISO 3200 cartridge is attached, it is determined in S.107 whether the film switch SWF is OFF. And this switch
If it is judged to be ON, that is, if the film is not pulled out, the test flag F _TSTBLB is set to 1 in S.108, the current display data of the LCD panel is backed up in memory in S.109, and the measurement is performed. AF as distance data
The steps are displayed.

There are two conditions for the test mode, but ISO
The 3200 film is rarely used in practice, especially in the user group of the compact camera shown in this embodiment, and even if it is used, it is necessary to pull out the film in order to shoot. In this case, the test function is not set, so that the test function does not hinder shooting.

At the inspection stage, it is possible to judge very easily whether or not the operation of the photometric device is normal simply by preparing an ISO 3200 cartridge.

In S.110, the AE data that controls the shutter speed is set to the bulb exposure mode, and the Flashmatic (FM) data does not fire the flash NFL.
Is set to. The valve exposure mode is a mode in which the shutter is open while the shutter button is pressed and is closed when the shutter button is released.

If the ISO 3200 patrone is not attached in S.106, that is, the patrone is not attached at all, or if the patrone other than ISO 3200 is attached, the judgment in S.107 is not made and S.107 is not performed. 111 AEFM operations are performed.

Even if an ISO 3200 cartridge is attached, the AEFM process is executed without entering the test mode even when the film is pulled out.

The processing in S.111 determines the shutter speed and aperture value by AE calculation if the exposure value is bright enough to not require strobe emission, and conversely by FM calculation if the exposure value requires strobe emission. Is to determine.

The main CPU 100 transfers the LL data, AE data, and FM data calculated in S.112, S.113, and S.114 to the sub CPU 200.

In S.115, it is determined whether or not the release switch SWR, in S.116, the photometric switch SWS, and in S.117, the lock switch SWL is ON. When the photometry switch is ON and the lock switch is OFF, S.1 until the release switch is turned ON.
Continue to rotate the loop from 15 to S.117, and release switch is ON
Exposure start signal in S.120 when sub CPU20
Output to 0.

Metering switch is off or lock switch is on
If S.118 is set, the test flag F _TSTBLB is set to 1
If it is the test mode, the LCD panel display is switched from the AF step to the stored normal display in S.119, and if it is not the test mode, S.11 is displayed.
Jump 9 and go to the main flow.

When the shutter release switch SWR is turned on while the metering switch SWS is on and the lock switch SWL is off, the main CPU 100 is set to S.1.
At 20, the exposure start signal is output to the sub CPU 200. When this signal is input, the sub CPU 200 extends the lens to the in-focus position based on the LL data, controls the aperture and shutter speed based on the AE data, or controls the aperture and strobe based on the FM data. , Release the shutter.

In S.121, it is determined whether the test flag _FTSTBLB is 1 or not. If this flag is 0, the main CPU 100 is S.
In S122, the exposure end signal is input, and in S.123, it is determined whether or not the film is drawn out. If the film is drawn out, in S.124, the winding process of winding the film by one frame is performed.

Although the winding process will not be described in detail, the process proceeds to the main flow when the normal winding is completed, and the rewinding process is performed when the winding is not completed within a predetermined time.

Now, in S.121, the test flag F _TSTBLB is 1,
That is, when it is determined that the test mode is set, the determination in S.125 is repeated until the photometric switch SWS is turned off. During this time, the shutter remains open. Therefore, by opening the back cover and arranging frosted glass or the like on the aperture, it is possible to visually check the actual image formation state.

When the hand is released from the shutter button, a valve closing signal is output in S.126, the display of the LCD panel is switched to the information backed up in the memory in S.127, and the process proceeds to S.122.

This is the end of the description of this embodiment. In the above example, only the distance measuring and the distance measuring are shown as the measuring means. However, it is also possible to display the data of the photometric device for measuring the subject brightness.

[Effect] As described above, according to the invention of claim 1, the camera can be switched to the inspection mode by a required operation of the camera, and the measurement data by the measuring means of the camera is displayed in the inspection mode in the inspection mode. Will be displayed in
The inspection can be performed by visually observing the displayed measurement data and judging the suitability thereof without using an external inspection device or the like.

Moreover, since the required operation is on condition that the film sensitivity information input means has a predetermined value and the film detection means does not detect the film, the inspection function of the camera interferes with the photographing operation of the user. Nothing.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram corresponding to the claims of this invention. 2 to 8 show an embodiment of the present invention. 2 to 5 show the appearance of the camera. FIG. 2 is a front view, FIG. 3 is a plan view, FIG. 4 is a rear view, and FIG.
The figure is a rear view with the case back open. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a control system. 7 and 8 are flowcharts showing the functions of the camera. FIG. 7 is a main flow, FIG. 8 is photometry, distance measurement,
This is a release-related flow. 24 …… Distance measuring device (measurement means) Dx1,2,3,4 …… Dx contact (Dx code input means) SWF …… Film switch (film detection means) 32 …… LCD panel (display means) 100 …… Main CPU (control means)

Continuation of the front page (72) Katsutoshi Nagai 2-36-9 Maeno-cho, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo Asahi Kogaku Kogyo Co., Ltd. (56) Reference JP-A-56-55931 (JP, A) JP-A-55- 133024 (JP, A) JP 62-129830 (JP, A)

Claims (2)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. A measuring means for measuring photographing data which changes depending on the external environment, a film sensitivity information input means for reading film sensitivity information provided on a film cartridge, and whether the film is set in a state of being pulled out from the cartridge. A film detecting means for detecting whether or not there is a film, a display means for displaying predetermined information so as to be visible from the outside, a shooting mode for performing a normal shooting operation, and an operation for inspecting the operating state of the measuring means. It comprises a control means for executing one of the operations of the inspection mode and a switching means for switching the operation mode to be executed by the control means, wherein the switching means is such that the film sensitivity information input means has a predetermined value, Also, if the operation mode is switched to the inspection mode on condition that the film detection means does not detect the film, Moni, the control unit, the test mode, a camera having a test function, wherein at least not executed in the photographing mode, for display operation of the measurement by the measurement unit on the display unit. 2. A camera having an inspection function according to claim 1, wherein said measuring means is distance measuring means for measuring a subject distance.