JP2000089274A - Camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a camera constituted so that external force preventing the movement of a lens part may not act on the driving of a photographing lens even when the external force acts on the lens part when the photographing lens is moved in a direction where it projects from a camera main body. SOLUTION: A front group lens 201 and a middle group lens 202 constituting the photographing lens 20 are provided in the camera main body 10 by a supporting means 60 so that they can move in an extending direction where they approaches to a subject and in a withdrawing direction where they are separated from the subject. The lens 201 is constituted so that it may be energized in the extending direction where it approaches to the subject and energized in a direction where an engaging member 715 is engaged with a supporting member 603 by a coil spring 811. The lens 202 is similarly constituted so that it may be energized in the extending direction where it approaches to the subject and energized in the direction where the engaging member is engaged with the supporting member by the coil spring.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a retractable camera in which a taking lens projects from a camera body when the camera is used, and the taking lens is housed in the camera body when the camera is not used. The present invention relates to a camera in which, even when an external force for preventing the movement of a taking lens is moved in a direction protruding from a camera body, the external force does not act on a driving system of the taking lens. is there.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A still camera or a digital camera is equipped with a photographic lens having a focusing function for changing a focal length of a lens in order to focus on a distance to a subject, and a wide-angle and telephoto function according to an object to be photographed. In such a camera, when the camera is used, the taking lens projects from the camera body,
When the camera is not in use, the camera is made retractable so that the taking lens can be housed in the camera body, so that the camera can be made more compact.

[0003]

Conventionally, in such collapsible cameras, when a power switch is turned on, a built-in lens driving system is operated to project a photographing lens from the camera body, thereby enabling photographing of the camera. Transition to a state. In this case, when an external force for preventing the movement of the photographing lens in the protruding direction acts on the photographing lens, the stepping motor for driving the photographing lens becomes overloaded and loses synchronism, and in the worst case, the drive system may be damaged. . Therefore, in a conventional camera, a mechanism for slipping the rotation of the stepping motor when an external force is applied to the photographing lens moving in the protruding direction is provided in the lens driving system, or the number of steps of the stepping motor that has lost synchronization is detected. It is necessary to provide a rotation detecting means that performs the rotation. However, even if the number of steps of the stepping motor is detected by the rotation detecting means, it is necessary to correct the moving position of the taking lens based on the detected value, which complicates the configuration and hinders downsizing. There's a problem.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an external force for preventing the taking lens from moving when the taking lens is moved in a direction protruding from the camera body. It is an object of the present invention to provide a camera in which this external force does not act on the drive system of the photographing lens even if is acting, and which does not require a slip mechanism and a rotation detecting means.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a camera body, a taking lens, and a moving direction in which the taking lens approaches the subject and moves away from the subject. Support means for movably supporting, and driving means for moving the photographing lens in the extending direction and the retracting direction, wherein the photographing lens is projected from the camera body by the driving means at the time of photographing, and at the time of non-photographing A collapsible camera in which the photographing lens is housed in the camera body by the driving means, wherein the camera is provided on one of the photographing lens and the driving means, and is detachable from the photographing lens or the driving means. And transmitting the driving force of the driving unit in the extending and retracting directions to the photographing lens while being engaged with the photographing lens or the driving unit. Engaging member, characterized in that it comprises a biasing means for biasing the engaging member in a direction to engage with the taking lens or drive means urges said photographic lens to said feeding direction.

According to the present invention, the photographing lens includes a plurality of lens groups arranged so as to be movable in an optical axis direction. Each of the lens groups includes the driving unit, the engaging member, and the urging unit. It is characterized by having each. According to the present invention, the driving unit is rotatably supported by the camera body and extends in parallel with the moving direction of the photographing lens.A motor mounted on the camera body and rotating the lead screw, A nut member which is screwed into the lead screw, moves by rotation of the lead screw, and engages with the engaging member. In the present invention, the support means may include a plurality of guide rods extending in the camera body in parallel with a moving direction of the photographing lens, and a support provided on the photographing lens and slidably engaged with the guide rod. And a member. In the present invention, the urging means is a coil spring. According to the present invention, an image sensor is provided on a surface on which a subject is imaged by the photographing lens. According to the present invention, a silver halide film is provided on a surface on which a subject is imaged by the photographing lens.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment according to the camera of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a front view of a camera showing an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a collapsible digital camera, FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC of FIG. 1, and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line DD of FIG.

1 to 5, a retractable digital camera includes a camera body 10, a photographing lens 20, a CCD, and the like.
The imaging device 30 includes a substrate 40 on which various circuit elements are mounted, a cover 50 for housing these components, and the like. The camera body 10 has a photographic lens housing 101, and the photographic lens 20 can be housed in the housing 101 in a buried state.

The photographing lens 20 includes a front lens group 201 held by a lens barrel 201A, a middle lens group 202 held by a lens barrel 202A, and a rear lens group 203.
The front lens group 201, the middle lens group 202, and the rear lens group 203 are arranged in the housing unit 101 in the optical axis direction with their optical axes aligned with each other. The front lens group 201 and the middle lens group 202 are movably supported in the optical axis direction by the support means 60 provided on the camera body 10. It is fixed to 10. Reference numeral 204 denotes a stop provided at the front of the middle group lens 202. Further, the front group lens 201 and the middle group lens 202 are configured to be individually moved in the extending direction approaching the subject and the extending direction separating from the subject by the driving units 71 and 72 provided in the camera body 10, Further, the front group lens 201 and the middle group lens 202 are provided with urging means 81 and 82 for urging each of them in the extending direction approaching the subject.

The support means 60 is located on the upper side in the housing section 101 and on both sides of the taking lens 20, and is disposed in parallel with the moving direction of the front group lens 201 and the middle group lens 202. And supporting members 603, 6 protruding from the lens barrel 201A of the front lens group 201 on both of the guide rods 601 and 602.
The front group lens 201 is slidably engaged to support the front lens group 201 so as to be movable in a moving-out direction approaching the subject and a moving-in direction moving away from the subject. The support member 6 protruding from the lens barrel 202A of the middle group lens 202 is provided.
The middle group lens 202 is slidably engaged with the guide rods 601 and 602 so as to movably support the middle group lens 202 in the extending direction approaching the subject and the retracting direction separating from the subject.

The driving means 71 of the front lens group 201 is
As shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 5, the camera body 10 is disposed in the housing portion 101 in parallel with the guide rod 601,
A lead screw 711 rotatably supported by the camera body 10 at both ends, and a drive motor 71 such as a DC motor or a stepping motor mounted on the camera body 10
2, a gear train 713 for transmitting the rotation of the drive motor 712 to the lead screw 711, and a lead screw 7
And a nut member 714 that is screwed to the nut 11 and moves by the rotation of the lead screw 711. The nut member 714 has a support member 60 for the front group lens 201.
3 is provided with a detachable engagement member 715. Further, the urging means 81 of the front group lens 201 is
3 and a coil spring 811 bridged between the engaging portion 102 provided at the end of the camera body 10 on the side where the front group lens 201 protrudes.
The configuration is such that the front group lens 201 can be urged in the extending direction approaching the subject, and can be urged in the direction in which the engagement member 715 is engaged with the support member 603.

The driving means 72 of the middle group lens 202 is
As shown in FIGS. 1, 4 and 5, the camera body 10 is disposed in the accommodating portion 101 of the camera body 10 in parallel with the guide rod 602,
A lead screw 721 rotatably supported by the camera body 10 at both ends, and a drive motor 72 such as a DC motor or a stepping motor mounted on the camera body 10.
2, a gear train 723 for transmitting the rotation of the drive motor 722 to the lead screw 721, and a lead screw 7
21 and a nut member 724 that is moved by the rotation of the lead screw 721. The nut member 724 includes a support member 60 for the middle group lens 202.
5 is provided with a detachable engaging member 725. The urging means 82 of the middle group lens 202 is
5 and a coil spring 821 bridged between the locking portion 103 provided at the end of the camera body 10 on the side where the middle group lens 201 protrudes.
The configuration is such that the middle group lens 202 can be urged in the extending direction approaching the subject and can be urged in the direction in which the engagement member 725 is engaged with the support member 605.

The substrate 40 is fixed to the rear end of the camera body 10, and a CCD image pickup device 30 is mounted on the substrate 40. The CCD image pickup device 30 is located behind the rear lens group 203. It is arranged so as to coincide with the image plane of the subject by the taking lens 20.

Next, the operation of the camera according to the embodiment of the present invention configured as described above will be described. When a power switch (not shown) is turned on during photographing, the drive motor 712 is started, and the drive motor 712 is turned on.
Is rotated through a gear train 713 through a lead screw 711.
Is transmitted to Thus, when the lead screw 711 rotates, the nut member 714 screwed with the lead screw 711 moves in the direction of the arrow X1 in FIG. At this time, the guide rod 601
The support member 603 slidably engaged with the front lens group 201 is pressed against the engagement member 715 of the nut member 714 by the coil spring 811 when the nut member 714 moves in the direction of arrow X1 in FIG. The whole follows the movement of the nut member 714 in the same direction (extending direction)
As a result, the front end portion of the front group lens 201 protrudes outward from the camera body 10 as shown in FIG.

Here, when the front lens group 201 is operated in the extending direction and an external force is applied to the front lens group 201 to prevent the movement in the extending direction, if the front lens group 201 is moved in the extending direction. The movement stops, and the movement following the movement of the nut member 714 in the extending direction stops. That is, the engagement member 715 is separated from the support member 603 with the movement of the nut member 714 in the extending direction,
As a result, no external force acts on the driving means 71 including the nut member 714 and the driving motor 712 to prevent the front lens group 201 from moving in the extending direction. When the external force acting on the front lens group 201 is released, the front lens group 201 is moved by the coil spring 811 to the supporting member 6.
03 moves until it hits the engaging member 715 of the nut member 714.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, even if an external force for preventing the movement of the front lens group 201 is applied to the front lens group 201 when the photographing lens 20 is moved in the direction protruding from the camera body 10, this is not the case. Since no external force acts on the driving means 71 of the front lens group 201, the driving motor 7
12 and its driving circuit can be prevented from being burned out, the conventional slip mechanism and rotation detecting means are no longer necessary, and the stepping motor loses synchronism and cannot move the photographing lens to an accurate position. Can be solved.

When the drive motor 722 is activated during the focusing or zooming operation on the photographing lens 20, the rotation of the drive motor 722 causes the gear train 7 to rotate.
The nut member 724 is transmitted to the lead screw 721 via 23 and rotates the lead screw 721 to move in the direction of the arrow X2 in FIG. At this time, since the support member 605 slidably engaged with the guide rod 602 is pressed against the engagement member 725 of the nut member 724 by the coil spring 821, the nut member 7
When 24 moves in the direction of arrow X2 in FIG.
The whole 2 moves in the same direction (extending direction) following the movement of the nut member 724.

Here, when an external force is applied to the front lens group 201 to prevent the movement of the front lens group 201 in the extension direction, the movement of the front lens group 201 in the extension direction is stopped. Is stopped, the middle group lens 202 does not follow the movement of the nut member 724. That is, the nut member 724
As a result, the engaging member 725 is separated from the support member 605 with the movement in the extending direction, and as a result, the driving means 72 including the nut member 724 and the driving motor 722 prevents the movement of the middle group lens 202 in the extending direction. No external force acts. When the external force acting on the middle group lens 202 is released, the middle group lens 202
By 1, the support member 605 moves until it comes into contact with the engagement member 725 of the nut member 724.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, when the photographing lens 20 is moved in the direction protruding from the camera body 10, an external force acting on the front group lens 201 to prevent the movement is applied to the middle group lens 202. Even when the movement in the extension direction is stopped, the external force is
Since it does not act on the drive means 72 of the drive motor 022, it is possible to prevent the drive motor 722 and its drive circuit from being damaged, and to eliminate the need for the conventional slip mechanism and rotation detection means. Can also solve the problem that the photographing lens cannot be moved to an accurate position due to step-out.

In the above embodiment, the photographing lens 20 is composed of the front lens group 201, the middle lens group 202, and the rear lens group 203, and the front lens group 201 and the middle lens group 202 are close to the subject. Although the description has been made of a case in which the movable lens can be moved in the moving direction and the moving direction away from the subject, the present invention is not limited to this. The same can be applied to objects. Further, the supporting means 60 and the driving means 71, 72 of the photographing lens 20 in the present invention are not limited to those having the structure shown in the above embodiment, and a dovetail type supporting means or a cam type driving means may be used. . Further, in the present invention, the engaging members 715 and 725 are not limited to being provided on the driving means 71 and 72 side, but may be provided on the photographing lens 20 side. In the above embodiment, the case where the present invention is applied to a retractable digital camera is described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention can be similarly applied to a silver halide film type camera. In this case, a silver halide film is arranged on a surface on which a subject is imaged by the photographing lens.

[0021]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, when the taking lens is moved in the direction protruding from the camera body, even if an external force for preventing the movement is applied to the lens portion. In addition, this external force can be prevented from acting on the drive system of the photographing lens, thereby preventing the motor of the drive system and its drive circuit from being damaged, and using the slip mechanism and the rotation detecting means. It is also possible to solve the problem that it becomes unnecessary and the drive motor loses synchronism and the photographing lens cannot be moved to an accurate position.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a camera showing an embodiment when the method of the present invention is applied to a retractable digital camera.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line BB of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line CC of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line DD of FIG. 4;

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 10 camera body 20 photographing lens 201 front group lens 202 middle group lens 203 rear group lens 30 CCD image pickup device 60 support means 601 guide rod 71, 72 drive means 711, 721 lead screw 712, 722 drive motor 714, 724 nut member 715, 725 engaging member 81, 82 biasing means 811, 821 coil spring

Claims (7)

[Claims] A camera body; a photographing lens; supporting means for movably supporting the photographing lens on the camera body in a extending direction approaching a subject and a retracting direction separating from the subject; Driving means for moving the camera lens in the direction and the retraction direction. When taking a picture, the taking lens is protruded from the camera body by the driving means, and when not taking a picture, the taking lens is housed in the camera body by the driving means. A collapsible camera, which is provided on one of the photographing lens and the driving unit, is detachable from the photographing lens or the driving unit, and is driven in a state in which the driving lens is engaged with the photographing lens or the driving unit. An engaging member for transmitting a driving force in the extending and retracting directions of the unit to the photographing lens; and moving the photographing lens in the extending direction. And a biasing means for biasing the engaging member in a direction for engaging the engaging member with the photographing lens or the driving means. 2. The photographing lens includes a plurality of lens groups arranged so as to be movable in an optical axis direction, and each of the lens groups includes the driving unit, the engaging member, and the urging unit. The camera according to claim 1, wherein: 3. A driving device comprising: a lead screw rotatably supported by the camera body and extending parallel to a moving direction of the photographing lens; a motor mounted on the camera body to rotate the lead screw; The camera according to claim 1, further comprising: a nut member that is screwed to the lead screw, moves by rotation of the lead screw, and engages with the engaging member. 4. The support means includes a plurality of guide rods extending in the camera body in parallel with a moving direction of the photographing lens, and a support provided on the photographing lens and slidably engaged with the guide rod. And a member.
Or the camera of 2. 5. The camera according to claim 1, wherein said urging means is a coil spring. 6. The camera according to claim 1, wherein an image sensor is provided on a surface on which a subject is imaged by the photographing lens. 7. The camera according to claim 1, wherein a silver halide film is provided on a surface on which a subject is imaged by the photographing lens.