FR2678352A1 - System for rapidly attaching a camera to a tripod - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a system for rapidly attaching a camera to a tripod. The attachment system comprises: - a mounting plate (12) and a sole plate (14) which are fixed dismantleably respectively on the platform (18) of the tripod (20) and on the lower face of the camera, the said sole plate being pierced with an oblong slot (54), - a small plate (58) also pierced with an oblong slot mounted under the sole plate and connected to the latter by means of a screw (46) which passes through the said slots (54) from the lower face of the small plate, the threaded shank of the screw projecting above the sole plate and screwing into a tapped hole provided in the bottom of the camera, - and an anti-loosening (locking) means (60) provided on the small plate, and capable of interacting with the camera in order to prevent it from unscrewing accidentally from the screw (46).

Description

SYSTEM FOR QUICK ATTACHING OF A CAMERA
ON A TRIPOD.

 The present invention relates to a system for quick attachment of a camera, such as a camera or a camcorder, to a tripod.

 Until now, to achieve this fixing, it was known to provide the upper plate of the tripods with a threaded rod and to provide on the bottom face of the cameras a tapped hole in which is screwed the threaded rod.

 However, due to a lack of standardization, the respective lengths and diameters of the threaded rod and the tapped hole are not always equal on all devices and tripods. It can therefore happen that a user having several cameras and tripods cannot indifferently fix one of his cameras on any tripod. In addition, due to frequent handling, the camera may accidentally loosen.

 It is true that in the particular case of camcorders, we manage to remedy this last drawback by the fact that it is generally provided on their bottom face, in addition to the tapped hole for screwing the threaded rod of the tripod, a hole smooth into which a protruding lug comes, also formed on the tripod plate, the center distance of the threaded rod and the lug being in principle equal to that between the tapped hole and the smooth hole. After screwing the camcorder onto the threaded rod, the lug is brought into the protruding position in the smooth hole. The camcorder is thus immobilized against any untimely loosening.

 However, even this fastening system suffers from a lack of standardization. For example, some camcorders do not have a smooth hole, some tripods do not have a lug, or the center lines defined above may not be equal on all camcorders and tripods.

 The present invention aims to remedy all of these drawbacks of the prior art by proposing a fastening system which makes it possible to instantly fix any camera on any tripod.

The fastening system according to the invention is characterized in that it comprises
- a plate and a base fixed in a removable manner respectively on the tripod plate and on the underside of the camera, said plate being provided with a fixed lateral stop and a movable lateral stop, this- ci being able to be moved between a position separated from the movable stop to allow the insertion of the sole between said stops, and a close position for which the sole is clamped against the fixed stop, said sole being pierced with an oblong slot,
- a plate also pierced with an oblong light mounted under the sole, and connected to the latter by means of a screw which passes through said lights from the underside of the plate, the threaded rod of the screw projecting at above the sole and coming to be screwed into a tapped hole provided in the bottom of the camera,
- And an anti-loosening means provided on the wafer, and capable of cooperating with the camera for preventing the accidental unscrewing of the screw.

 According to a first embodiment, said anti-loosening means is constituted by an edge of the plate bent at right angles to the latter so as to form a tab capable of coming to bear against a lateral face of the apparatus of Shooting.

 When the screw is fully screwed into the camera, it locks the wafer relative to the sole in a position for which the tab is in abutment against the side face of the camera. It can no longer loosen spontaneously.

 According to a second embodiment, said anti-loosening means is constituted by a fixed lug carried by the upper face of the plate, said lug being capable of passing through a hole drilled therein and of entering a hole formed on the face bottom of the camera.

 Here again, once the camera is screwed onto the threaded portion of the screw, and the lug is engaged in said hole, the camera can no longer loosen unexpectedly.

The invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which
Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view of a fastening system using an anti-loosening plate according to a first embodiment
Figure 2 is a perspective view of the wafer of Figure I
Figures 3 to 5 show in elevation three successive phases of the wafer mounting operation
Figure 6 is a sectional view of the sole of Figure 1 attached to a camera, along the line VI-VI of Figure 1
Figure 7 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the anti-loosening plate; and
Figure 8 is a sectional view showing a sole provided with the plate of Figure 7, attached to the camera.

 The attachment system 10 illustrated in the figures comprises a plate 12 and a base 14 intended to be fixed respectively to a camera 16 (FIG. 6) and to the plate 18 of a tripod 20.

 The plate 12 has a structure similar to that described in patent NO 2,552,579, except that in this patent, the plate comes from manufacture with the plate, while according to the invention it constitutes a removable part independent of the plate.

 It will be recalled that such a plate comprises a substantially flat bottom 22 having a tapped hole 24 by means of which it can be fixed on the plate 18. It also includes a fixed stop 26 and a movable stop 28 capable of being moved towards or away from the fixed stop by means of a clamping member consisting of a screw 30 integral in axial movement with the mobile stop, but which can rotate relative to it, and which is screwed into the plate. Said screw can be driven by means of a lever 32.

 The fixed stop and the mobile stop are inclined towards one another so as to form with the bottom 22 a dovetail profile, the spacing of which can be modified by acting on the lever 32.

 The sole 14 comprises a flat and rectangular bottom wall 34, two opposite edges of which are curved, forming two wings 36, 38 inclined with respect to said wall at an obtuse angle. The two other opposite edges of the sole are also curved and form two lateral stops 40, 42 capable of coming to bear against the sides of the plate 12 when an attempt is made to slide the sole parallel to the fixed stops 26 and mobile 28.

The sole cannot therefore accidentally escape from the plate.

 The bottom wall 34 of the sole is covered with a rubber coating 44 of any other material which promotes adhesion.

 The sole is secured to the camera 16 by means of a screw 46 comprising a head 48, and on its rod, a smooth cylindrical portion 50 and a threaded end portion 52 of diameter greater than that of the smooth portion .

 The bottom wall 34 is pierced with an oblong opening 54 parallel to the wings 36, 38 and of width comprised between the diameter of the smooth portion 50 of the screw 46 and that of the threaded portion 52. The opening 54 opens into a hole 56 with a diameter greater than that of the threaded portion. Likewise, the covering 44 is pierced with an oblong opening 57 wider than the hole 56 and substantially as long as the assembly of the opening 54 and the hole 56.

 The anti-loosening device according to the invention will now be described.

 In a first embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the anti-loosening device consists of a rectangular plate 58 provided at one of its ends with a tab 60 bent at 900. The tab is covered on its face interior of a coating layer 62 of a material promoting adhesion.

 The plate is pierced with a longitudinal slot 64 of the same width as the slot 54, but more elongated than it, and opens out into a hole 66 of the same diameter as the hole 56. The plate is slid through two elongated slots 68, 70 made on the lateral stops 40,42 just under the bottom wall 34.

 A user having several devices and a tripod must obtain a single plate 12 which he will fix once and for all on the platform 18 of the tripod 20 by screwing the screw (not shown) of the latter in the tapped hole 24. I1 will have to equip its devices with identical standard soles 14, because this is a fundamental characteristic of the invention, the sole and the plate are adaptable to all types of apparatus and tripods.

 The sole assembly is done as follows: the plate 58 is engaged in the slot 70 only, and it is placed in an inclined position as shown in FIG. 3 so as to release the hole 66. The rod of the screw 46 in this hole until the threaded portion 52 has fully penetrated there, then the screw is slid in the direction of the arrow fl, to bring it into the elongated lumen 64 so that it cannot be detach from the plate. The plate and the screw are then in the position illustrated in FIG. 3.

 The plate 58 is then pivoted in the direction of the arrow f2, while bringing the screw 46 opposite the large diameter hole 56 of the sole. The threaded portion 52 of the screw is then introduced into said hole 56 and the plate is slid in the direction of the arrow f3 (FIG. 4) until its free end engages in the slot 68. The sole is then in the position shown in Figure 4.

 The screw 56 is then moved in the direction of the arrow f3 in FIG. 4 in order to engage it in the oblong opening 54 from which it will no longer be able to exit since the threaded portion 52 has a diameter greater than the width of said opening . The sole is then in the position shown in FIG. 5.

 To prevent the screw from accidentally detaching and getting lost, the threaded portion 52 is forced through a rubber washer 72 which is lowered onto the smooth portion 50.

 We can now assemble the sole to the camera 16. For this, we place the camera on the sole so that the threaded hole 74 it carries in its bottom 76 is facing of the threaded portion 52 of the screw. The plate 58 is pulled in the direction of the arrow f4 in FIG. 5 so that the bottom 76 of the device can lie flat on the coating 44 without being hampered by the tab 60, then the plate is pushed back to that said tab is applied against a side wall 78 of the camera (Figure 6). The screw is then fully tightened by acting on its head 48. An elastic washer 47 is placed under the screw head 48. The anti-loosening system is then in the position shown in FIG. 6. The device does not risk to loosen because it is prevented by the abutment of its side wall 78 on the tab 60 of the plate, which is itself locked against any sliding movement, by the screw 46.

 The device provided with the sole can then be fixed on the plate 12. For this, the movable stop 28 is moved apart enough so that the sole 14 can pass freely between the fixed stop 26 and the movable stop 28. The latter is then tightened by means of the lever 32 so as to block the wings 36, 38 of the sole between the stops 26, 28.

 To disassemble the device and the sole, the operations just described are carried out in reverse.

 The plate 58 and the light 64 which it carries will be long enough so that the distance from the screw 46 to the tab 60 can be adapted to the dimensions of the devices on the market. However, if the plate is too short for a given device, it may not be used. For this, it is mounted in the inverted position, as shown in dashed lines in Figure 6. It can also be removed outright from the sole. There is, however, an advantage in returning it, because in this way there is no risk of losing it.

 The plate 58 ′ according to the embodiment of FIG. 7 differs from that of FIG. 2, in that, on the one hand, it does not have a bent tab, and on the other hand, that it is provided of a lug 80 projecting from its upper face. Here also, the plate has an elongated opening 64 of width comprised between the diameter of the smooth portion 50 and that of the threaded portion 52 of the screw 46, said lumen opening into a hole 66 of diameter greater than that of said threaded portion.

 The plate 58 'is mounted in the sole in much the same way as in the previous embodiment. In the assembled position shown in Figure 8, the lug 80 passes through a hole 84 drilled in the sole and in its coating and enters a hole 82 provided in the bottom of the device 16. The screw 46 is screwed into the tapped hole 74, as in the previous embodiment. The lug 80 thus prevents any untimely loosening of the device around the screw 46.

 It will be noted that the distance between the axis e of the screw and of the lug is adjustable by sliding the screw in the slots 54 and 64 of the sole and of the plate, which makes it possible to adapt the sole of this mode of realization to all types of devices on the market, whose center distance between holes 74 and 82 varies from one device to another.

 If a user has an appliance without a pinhole hole 82, he can, as in the previous embodiment, turn the plate 58 so that the pin 80 is directed downwards.

Claims (10)

 1.- Quick attachment system of a camera on a tripod, characterized in that it comprises  - a plate (12) and a sole (14) detachably fixed respectively on the plate (18) of the tripod (20) and on the lower face (76) of the camera (16), said plate (12) being provided with a fixed lateral stop (26) and with a movable lateral stop (28), the latter being able to be moved between a position spaced from the movable stop to allow the insertion of the plate (12) between said stops, and a close position for which the sole is clamped between said stops, said sole being pierced with an oblong opening (54),  - a plate (58; 58 ') also pierced with an oblong lumen (64) mounted under the sole, and connected to the latter by means of a screw (46) which passes through said lumens (54, 64) from from the underside of the plate, the threaded rod of the screw protruding above the sole and being screwed into a tapped hole (74) provided in the bottom of the camera,  - And an anti-loosening means (60; 80) provided on the plate, and capable of cooperating with the camera (16) to prevent it from accidentally unscrewing from the screw (46).  2. Quick attachment system according to claim 1, characterized in that said anti-loosening means is constituted by an edge of the plate, bent at right angles to the latter to form a tab (60) capable of come to bear against a lateral face (78) of the camera.  3.- quick attachment system according to claim 1, characterized in that said anti-loosening means is constituted by a fixed lug (80) carried by the upper face of the plate (58 '), said lug being capable of passing through a hole (84) drilled in the sole and entering a hole (82) formed on the underside of the camera.  4. Quick attachment system according to claim 1, characterized in that said fixed (26) and mobile (28) stops form an acute angle relative to the body (20) of the plate (2).  5. Quick coupling system according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the sole (14) comprises a rectangular flat wall (34) in which the oblong opening (54) is pierced, two opposite edges of said wall , parallel to said lumen being bent at an obtuse angle with respect to the wall to form two wings (36, 38) capable of coming between the fixed stop (26) and the movable stop (28) of the sole.  6. Quick attachment system according to claim 5, characterized in that the two other edges of the sole form lateral stops (40, 42) intended to prevent accidental withdrawal of the sole by sliding it between the stops ( 26, 28) thereof.  7. Quick attachment system according to one of claims 1 and 6, characterized in that said lateral stops (40, 42) have two elongated slots (68,70) for the introduction of the plate.  8. A fastening system according to claim 1, characterized in that the screw (46) comprises a head (48) and a rod having a smooth portion (50) and a threaded end portion (52) of diameter greater than that of the smooth portion.  9.- fastening system according to one of claims 1 and 8, characterized in that the oblong slots (54, 64) of the sole and of the plate have a width between the diameter of the smooth portion (50) and that of the threaded portion (52).  10.- System according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the oblong openings (54, 64) of the sole and of the plate respectively open into round holes (56,66) of diameter greater than that of the portion threaded (52) of the screw.