JPH11355626A - Electronic camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electronic camera capable of being thinned by the effective layout of respective constitution units inside. SOLUTION: This electronic camera is provided with an almost flat camera main body, an opening part 1a for a photographing lens is disposed at the front surface part 10a, a battery housing chamber 2d is provided inside on the back surface side of the grip part 2b of the main body and a memory card slot 21 is provided inside on a front surface side. Also, an image display device 23 is disposed at the back surface part 10b of the main body, a strobe capacitor 24 parallel to the bottom surface of the main body is disposed at the lower part of the display device 23, an electric circuit board 29 is disposed at a position clamped by the housing chamber 2b and the card slot 21 on the front side of the image display device 23 and the strobe capacitor 24 further and the camera is thinned.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an arrangement of components of an electronic camera capable of displaying a captured image or recording the image on a recording medium and a shape of an electronic camera body (outer body).

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As an example of the arrangement of each component and the shape of a camera body in an electronic camera capable of displaying an image captured by a conventional image pickup device or the like or recording the image on a recording medium, the present applicant has Patent application 9-1 previously proposed
There is an electronic imaging device shown in 61587. Figures 15 and 1
6 is a front view and a cross-sectional view of the electronic camera, and FIG.
FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of internal components housed in the electronic camera.

In the above-mentioned electronic camera, FIGS.
As shown in FIGS. 6 and 17, a photographing lens unit 122 is provided on the right side (on the front view) of the camera main body 101, and an image display device 113 is provided on the back side. The plurality of batteries 151 for power supply are housed in the camera body 101. Further, the strobe condenser 158 is provided at a position overlapping the image display device 113 in the thickness direction.
The removable recording medium 141 is inserted into and removed from the recording medium mounting section 140 from the side of the camera body 101. further,
The operation switches 107a and 115a are disposed on the upper surface or the rear surface of the camera, and an electric circuit board having a contact portion is disposed therein.

[0004]

However, when the thickness of the electronic camera body is reduced, the electronic camera shown in FIG. 15 or the like is not necessarily arranged in an advantageous manner. That is, since the plurality of batteries 151 are arranged so as to overlap in the thickness direction of the camera body 101, and since the strobe condenser 158 is arranged at a position overlapping the image display device 113 in the thickness direction, the thickness of the camera is reduced. Increases, which is disadvantageous for thinning. Further, since the recording medium 141 has a structure in which the recording medium cover 104 provided on the side surface of the camera body 101 is opened and closed, and is inserted and removed, the mounting position of the strap on the side surface is limited. Further, when the camera main body 101 is made thin, the operation section area on the upper surface is also reduced, so that the operation switches tend to concentrate on the back. However, merely moving the operation switch to the rear surface adds the thickness of the operation switch unit 115a and the like and the substrate thereof, and does not necessarily reduce the thickness of the camera body 101.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is an object of the present invention to realize a thin electronic camera by effectively laying out the internal components.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a user-friendly electronic camera that does not increase in thickness even if an operation switch is provided on a rear portion of the camera body.

[0006]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electronic camera having a substantially flat outer shape and an opening for a taking lens in a flat front surface. A battery storage section provided on the back side inside the grip section of the main body, a recording medium slot provided on the front side inside the grip section of the electronic camera main body, and a recording medium slot provided on the back side of the electronic camera main body. Image display device for displaying the displayed image, and a strobe arranged at a substantially lower portion of the image display device with the longitudinal direction of the shape held in a direction parallel to the bottom surface of the electronic camera body. A strobe condenser and a front surface of the electronic camera main body, the image display device and the strobe condenser, and the battery housing and the recording medium. And an electric circuit board arranged sandwiched lot.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the electronic camera according to the first aspect, a tripod mounting portion is disposed at a bottom portion of the electronic camera body and between the strobe condenser and the battery housing portion. ing.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the electronic camera according to the first aspect, wherein the battery housing section includes:
It has a flat shape, its main surface is arranged so as to be parallel to the front part of the electronic camera body, and furthermore, the battery insertion slot of the battery storage section and the recording medium insertion slot of the recording medium slot are both It is provided adjacent to the bottom of the electronic camera body.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the electronic camera according to the third aspect, wherein the battery insertion opening and the recording medium insertion opening are rotated to close the insertion opening. Lids are provided, respectively, and a rotation axis for rotating the respective opening / closing lids is common.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the electronic camera according to the first aspect, wherein the electronic camera is mounted on the electric circuit board and transmits and receives electric signals and the like between the electronic camera and an external device. The jack is located at an end of the electric circuit board, at a position between the electric circuit board and the image display device.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the electronic camera according to the first aspect, a display section of the image display device is provided on a rear portion of the electronic camera main body so as to accommodate the strobe condenser therein. A more protruding projection of the surface is formed.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the electronic camera according to the first aspect, the back surface of the electronic camera body partially has a protruding portion which is higher than the peripheral surface of the image display device. And operating means is arranged on a connection surface connecting the peripheral surface and the protrusion.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the electronic camera according to the seventh aspect, an operation mode is partially displayed together with an image on the image display device, and the arrangement of the operation means and the operation mode are displayed. And the corresponding display position.

[0014]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. An electronic camera according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a photographing lens optical system that mainly captures subject light, an imaging element that outputs a subject image as an electric signal, and a recording medium that stores imaging information based on the electric signal. An electronic camera incorporating a display device or the like for displaying the captured image, a camera body serving as an exterior body of the electronic camera, and an arrangement of each component disposed in the body will be described below.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the electronic camera according to the present embodiment as viewed from obliquely below the front side.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an appearance of the electronic camera as viewed from obliquely above the rear side. FIGS. 3, 4, and 5 are a rear view, a plan view, and a right side view of the electronic camera, respectively.

As shown in FIGS.
Has a substantially flat outer shape and includes a front cover 1 and a rear cover 2. An opening 1a for a photographing lens of the refractive optical system 26 (see FIGS. 9 and 14) is provided in a flat front surface 10a of the main body 10, and a strobe light emission window 11 is provided in the upper right.

An image display device 23 such as an LCD for displaying an image is provided on the back surface 10b side of the camera body 10.
A protruding portion 2a which is a lower portion thereof and protrudes from the peripheral surface 2c of the display surface 23a of the display device 23;
The right side of the image display device 23 and the protrusion 2a
Similarly, the peripheral surface 2c of the display surface 23a of the display device 23
A protruding grip portion 2b that is more protruding is provided. As will be described later, a strobe capacitor 24 for strobe charging is accommodated inside the protruding portion 2a. Further, a battery storage room 2d as a battery storage portion is provided in the grip portion 2b, and the battery pack 21 is stored therein. The height of the protruding portion 2a and the grip portion 2b may be approximately the same, or may be higher.

On the inclined connecting surface 2a0 between the protruding portion 2a and the peripheral surface 2c of the display surface 23a, there is provided an operating means for switching the operation mode by a pressing operation, and instructs permission / prohibition of strobe light emission. Flash operation button 1 for
4a and an image quality adjustment button 1 for switching image quality during memory recording
4b and a self-timer operation button 14c for instructing self-timer shooting are provided. In addition, the grip portion 2b
A frame feed (+ side) button 15a and a frame feed (-side) button 15b, which are operation means for performing a frame feed every time a pressing operation is performed, are provided on an inclined connection surface 2b0 between the display frame 23a and the peripheral surface 2c of the display surface 23a. It is arranged.

The display surface 23 of the image display device 23
a, the flash operation button 14a and the image quality adjustment button 14
b, at a corresponding position along the lower side of the self-timer operation button 14c, a strobe light emission mark indicating an operation mode switched by each operation button, an SQ mark indicating image quality, and a self-timer shooting mark are associated with operation of each button. Is displayed. Similarly, frame advance (+ side) button 15a, frame advance (-
A sign indicating the frame feed direction is displayed at each corresponding position along the right side of the (side) button 15b in association with the operation of each button.

On the upper surface 10c of the camera body 10, a release button 12 for operating a photographing instruction and a group of operation buttons 13 for setting a photographing condition and a condition for reproducing a memory image are arranged. An input / output jack group 16 for connecting an external device is provided on the right side surface 10e of the camera body 10.

A card slot cover 3 for closing an insertion opening 21a for a memory card slot 21 (see FIGS. 13 and 14) disposed in front of the grip portion 2b is provided on a bottom surface portion 10d of the camera body 10. A battery storage chamber cover 4 is provided to open and close an insertion opening 2e for a battery storage chamber 2d (see FIGS. 13 and 14) disposed in the grip portion 2b. Further, a tripod screw portion 17 is provided at a lower portion of the image display device 23 and substantially at an intermediate position on the right side between the strobe condenser 24 and the memory card slot 21.

As described above, the strobe operation button 14a and the like are connected to the projection 2a and the peripheral surface 2c of the display surface 23a.
The frame feed (+ side) button 15a and the like are disposed on the inclined connection surface 2b0 between the grip portion 2b and the peripheral surface 2c of the display surface 3a. Have been. Therefore, as shown in FIG.
Even when the camera main body 10 is placed on the back surface 10b thereof, the image display device
0, and the display surface 23a is protected. At the same time, the flash operation button 14a and the like and the frame advance (+
The side) button 15a does not touch the table surface, and is protected from malfunction even if the camera is operating.

Next, the arrangement of each component housed in the camera body 10 of the electronic camera according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing the camera body 10 including the front cover 1 and the rear cover 2 of the electronic camera, and the components housed therein.

On the front side inside the front cover 1, an L-shaped first electric circuit board 28, a memory card slot 21 in which a memory card 41 can be mounted, an operation circuit board 30, and a lens opening 1a. A refracting optical system 26, which is a photographing optical system in which the first lens unit faces, and a strobe light emitting unit 27, which faces the strobe window 11, are provided. Also,
The first electric circuit board 28 and the memory card slot 2
A second electric circuit board 29 is disposed behind the first electric circuit board 29.
Further, an image display device 23 is provided behind the second electric circuit board 29, and a strobe condenser 24 is provided along the bottom surface of the image display device 23 below and inside the protruding portion 2a of the rear cover 2. I have. A battery storage chamber 2d in the rear cover 2 is provided behind the second electric circuit board 29, and three battery packs 42 are loaded from the insertion opening 2e of the battery storage chamber and stored. .

Details of the positions of the above-described respective constituent members will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 12, which show the arrangement of the respective constituent members through the body of the camera according to the present embodiment. FIG. 7 is a perspective front view,
8 is a transparent plan view, FIG. 9 is a transparent bottom view, FIG. 10 (A) is a transparent left side view, FIG. 10 (B) is a transparent right side view, FIG. 11 is a transparent rear view, and FIG. It is -B 'sectional drawing.

As shown in FIGS. 7, 10 (A), 12, etc., a notch 28 is formed in the front cover 1 along the front surface 10a of the main body.
The L-shaped first electric circuit board 28 having a is located, and the refractive optical system 26 is located in the cutout portion 28a along the up and down direction with the first group lens 31 part downward. . In addition, a strobe light emitting unit 27 having a reflector and a light emitting tube is located at the upper right position.

As shown in FIG. 12, the refractive optical system 26 includes a first group lens 31, a mirror 34 for reflecting the captured subject light upward, and a second group lens 32.
, A third group lens 33, a low-pass filter 35, and a CCD 36 serving as an image sensor. Although the refractive optical system 26 is incorporated in the camera body 10 as a photographing optical system, the present invention is not limited to this, and a non-refractive optical system may be disposed at a similar position as a photographing lens optical system.

As shown in FIGS. 7 and 9, etc., the main body front 10
A memory card slot 21 is arranged along the line a. An insertion opening 21a of the cover slot 21, which is a recording medium insertion opening for mounting the memory card 41, is provided on the bottom face 10d side of the main body (see FIG. 1).

As shown in FIGS. 7, 8, and 10A, an operation circuit board 30 is provided above the memory card slot 21 and the refractive optical system 26 and along the upper surface 10c of the camera body. Have been. The operation circuit board 30 is provided with a switch contact group operated by the operation button group 13 and the like.

As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10B, a second electric circuit board 29 is provided behind the first electric circuit board 28 and the memory card slot 21 in parallel with the first electric circuit board 28. Are arranged. The strobe condenser 24 is disposed behind the second electric circuit board 29 and in the protruding portion 2a of the rear cover 2 so that its longitudinal direction is parallel to the left-right direction of the main body bottom portion 10d. .

Also, behind the second electric circuit board 29, the battery storage chamber 2d in the grip portion 2b of the rear cover 2
The battery pack 42 is stored in the battery pack. Note that the battery storage chamber 2d has a flat shape along the main body front portion 10a, and the insertion opening 2e of the battery pack 42 is formed in the main body bottom portion 10d.
(See FIG. 1). The battery storage chamber 2d does not necessarily store the battery pack 42, but may store a plurality of single batteries in a line.

As shown in FIGS. 10A, 11, 12 and the like, an image display device 23 is provided behind the second electric circuit board 29 and above the strobe condenser 24.
As shown in FIGS. 10B and 11, the input / output jack 16 for connecting to an external device is provided at the end of the second electric circuit board 29.
The input / output jack 16 is located above the right side surface 10e of the camera body.

Here, the details of the structure of the card slot, the battery storage chamber and its lid will be described. FIG. 13 is an enlarged view of a part of the card slot lid 3 and the periphery of the battery storage chamber lid 4 of the camera body bottom surface 10d, and FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA 'of FIG.

A card slot 21 is provided in the front cover 1 inside the card slot cover 3, and a memory card 41 as a recording medium is inserted through an insertion opening 21a arranged in the bottom face 10d of the main body. Can be mounted. Further, a battery storage chamber 2d is provided in the rear cover 2 inside the battery storage cover 4, and a triple battery pack 42 can be loaded through an insertion opening 2e provided on the bottom surface 10d of the main body.

The card slot cover 3 and the battery compartment cover 4 are supported by a common support shaft 5 supported by the front cover 1 so as to be rotatable to an open / close position. Then, the card slot lid 3 is closed at the closed position.
Can be locked by the projection 1b. A lock member 6 with a slidable knob 6a urged by a spring 7 is attached to the battery storage chamber lid 4, and the lock member 6 can lock the rear cover 2 in the closed position. it can. To open the battery compartment 2e, the knob 6a is retracted to release the lock,
The battery compartment lid 4 can be opened.

In the electronic camera of the present embodiment configured as described above, since the internal components are provided as described above, the camera body 10 of the thinner electric camera is provided.
Can be applied. In addition, the insertion opening 21a of the memory card slot and the insertion opening 2e of the battery storage chamber are arranged on the bottom surface 10d serving as a dead space other than the tripod screw portion of the camera body, so that the upper surface portion 10c of the camera body can be removed. Since the side surface portion 10e can be used as an operation button or a strap attachment space, there is an effect of further reducing the thickness and at the same time improving usability.

The memory card slot lid 3 and the battery storage chamber lid 4 are rotatably supported by a common support shaft 5, which is advantageous in terms of cost, assembly, and space.

Further, by arranging the input / output jack 16 in an empty space formed by the second electric circuit board 29, the image display device 23, and the strobe capacitor 24, the space can be effectively used. Effective for thinning.

The projection 2 is provided at the lower part of the image display device 23.
is formed to accommodate the strobe condenser 24. The projection 2a does not hinder image observation and switch operation, and also protects the display surface 23a of the image display device 23. It also works effectively for miniaturization of the main body.

Further, since operation buttons such as a mode switching button and a frame feed button are arranged on the projecting portion of the rear portion 10b of the camera body and the inclined connecting portions 2a0 and 2b0 of the grip portion, the rear portion 10b is set downward. When placed on a table or the like, the operation buttons are less likely to be pressed and malfunction. In addition, the image display device 23 displays, together with the image, a mode switched by operating the operation button, a frame feed direction, and the like on a side portion of the image display device corresponding to the position of the operation button, thereby improving usability. Can be.

[0041]

As described above, according to the electronic camera of the first or second aspect of the present invention, since the internal components are efficiently arranged, a thin electronic camera can be realized.

According to the electronic camera according to the third aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the electronic camera according to the first aspect, the bottom of the camera body, which is a dead space, is effectively used, and the upper surface of the camera body, Since the side can be used for the operation unit placement space or the strap attachment space,
The thickness can be reduced and the usability can be improved.

According to the electronic camera of the fourth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the electronic camera of the third aspect, the rotation axis of the opening / closing lid of the recording medium insertion opening and the opening / closing lid of the battery insertion opening are further adjusted. By making them common, it is advantageous in terms of space, cost and assemblability.

According to the electronic camera of the fifth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effects of the electronic camera of the first aspect, an input / output jack is further provided in an empty space formed by the electric circuit board, the strobe capacitor, and the image display device. Since they are arranged, a more efficient thinning can be achieved.

According to the electronic camera of the sixth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the electronic camera of the first aspect, a portion projecting from the display surface is further formed at a lower portion of the mounting portion of the image display device. Since the strobe condenser is arranged inside, the protrusion does not obstruct the visibility and operation, and furthermore, the protrusion also serves as a protection part of the display unit, so that downsizing can be realized.

According to the electronic camera of the seventh aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the electronic camera of the first aspect, since the operating means is further disposed on the connection surface on the back of the camera body, the usability is improved. When placed on a table or the like with the back face down, it is unlikely that a malfunction will occur due to the pressing of the operating means.

According to the electronic camera of the eighth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the electronic camera of the seventh aspect, the display of the operation means and the operation mode is displayed at a corresponding position on the image display device. So it is convenient.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exemplary perspective view showing the appearance of an electronic camera according to an embodiment of the present invention as viewed from obliquely below a front side.

FIG. 2 is an exemplary perspective view showing the appearance of the electronic camera shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a rear view of the electronic camera of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the electronic camera of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a right side view of the electronic camera in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing a front cover and a rear cover which are camera bodies in the electronic camera of FIG. 1, and respective constituent members housed therein.

FIG. 7 is a perspective front view showing the arrangement of each component of the electronic camera of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a perspective plan view showing an arrangement of each component of the electronic camera of FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is a perspective bottom view showing the arrangement of each component of the electronic camera of FIG. 1;

10 is a transparent side view showing an arrangement of each component of the electronic camera in FIG. 1, wherein FIG. 10 (A) is a left side view, and FIG.
(B) is a right side view.

FIG. 11 is a transparent rear view showing an arrangement of each component of the electronic camera of FIG. 1;

FIG. 12 is a sectional view taken along line AA ′ of FIG. 7;

FIG. 13 is an enlarged view of a part of the lower surface of the main body of the electronic camera of FIG. 1, around a card slot cover and a battery storage room cover;

FIG. 14 is a sectional view taken along line BB ′ of FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 is a front view of a conventional electronic camera.

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view of the electronic camera of FIG.

FIG. 17 is an exploded perspective view of internal components housed in the electronic camera of FIG. 15;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Front cover (electronic camera main body) 1a ... Photographing lens opening 2 ... Rear cover (electronic camera main body) 2a ... Projection part 2a0 ... Inclined connection surface (connection surface) 2b ... Grip part 2b0 ... Inclined connection surface ( Connection surface) 2d… Battery storage room (battery storage part) 2e… Battery insertion opening (battery insertion opening) 3… Card slot cover (opening / closing cover) 4… Battery housing room cover (opening / closing cover) 10… Electronic camera body 10a ... front part of the camera body 10b ... rear part of the camera body 10d ... bottom part of the camera body 14a ... strobe operation button (operation means) 14b ... image quality adjustment button (operation means) 14c ... self-timer operation button (operation means) 15a 15b: Frame feed button (operation means) 16: Input / output jack 17: Tripod screw part (tripod mounting part) 21: Memory card slot (recording medium slot) 21a: Card insertion slot 23 image display device 23a display surface 24 strobe condenser 29 second electric circuit board (electric circuit board) 41 memory card (recording medium) 42 battery pack (battery)

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. An electronic camera having a substantially flat outer shape and an opening for a photographing lens in a flat front surface portion, comprising: a battery housing portion provided on a back surface side of a grip portion of the electronic camera body. Provided on the front side of the grip of the electronic camera body,
A recording medium slot for accommodating a recording medium, an image display device provided on the back of the electronic camera body for displaying an image, and a posture in which a longitudinal direction of the shape is parallel to a bottom surface of the electronic camera body. A strobe condenser for emitting a strobe arranged substantially below the image display device; and a front surface of the image display device and the strobe condenser parallel to a front surface of the electronic camera body. And an electric circuit board interposed between the battery accommodating portion and the recording medium slot. 2. The electronic camera according to claim 1, wherein a tripod mounting portion is disposed at a bottom portion of the electronic camera body and between the strobe condenser and the battery housing portion. 3. The battery accommodating portion has a flat shape, and is disposed such that a main surface thereof is parallel to a front portion of the electronic camera main body. 2. The electronic camera according to claim 1, wherein both of the recording medium slots of the recording medium slot are provided adjacent to the bottom of the electronic camera body. 4. An opening / closing lid for rotating and closing the insertion opening is provided at each of the battery insertion opening and the recording medium insertion opening. 4. The electronic camera according to claim 3, wherein the moving axis is common. 5. An input / output jack mounted on the electric circuit board for transmitting an electric signal or the like between the electronic camera and an external device is provided at an end of the electric circuit board. 2. The electronic camera according to claim 1, wherein the electronic camera is disposed at a position sandwiched between the image display devices. 6. The electronic camera body according to claim 1, wherein a projection is formed on the rear surface of the electronic camera body so as to accommodate the strobe condenser therein. Electronic camera. 7. A back portion of the electronic camera body partially has a protruding portion higher than a peripheral surface of the image display device,
2. The electronic camera according to claim 1, wherein operating means is disposed on a connection surface connecting the peripheral surface and the protrusion. 8. The image display device according to claim 7, wherein an operation mode is partially displayed together with an image, and an arrangement of the operation means and a display position of the operation mode correspond to each other. Electronic camera.