JP2000101878A - Electronic camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce power consumption by enhancing visibility of display of liquid crystal display device at a dark place. SOLUTION: A lighting device 26 that lights a liquid crystal display screen of a reflection type liquid crystal display device 24 is provided retractably to a camera body 12 of this camera 10 and the lighting device 26 is projected from the camera body 12 to light the liquid crystal display screen 24A of the reflection type liquid crystal display device 24. Preferably, power is supplied to the lighting device 26 when the lighting device 26 is projected from the camera body 12.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electronic camera,
In particular, the present invention relates to an electronic camera provided with a reflective liquid crystal display.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, most electronic cameras have a liquid crystal display for confirming a composition and displaying a photographed image. By the way, since the liquid crystal is a light receiving element, the display cannot be confirmed unless some illumination means is used. For this reason, ambient light or illumination light from a backlight is required for display confirmation. Since the electronic camera can be used even at night or in a dark place where ambient light is dark, a transmissive liquid crystal display using a backlight as illumination is employed.

[0003] However, an electronic camera equipped with a transmissive liquid crystal display has a disadvantage that power is easily consumed because the backlight is always used, even when used in a place where ambient light is sufficiently bright. In order to solve such a drawback, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 64-4181 discloses an electronic camera in which the backlight is turned off when the surroundings are sufficiently bright and ambient light is used instead of the backlight.

[0004]

However, the electronic camera disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 64-4181 is
Since the backlight is ON / OFF controlled in conjunction with the aperture detection signal from the image sensor, there is a disadvantage that the liquid crystal display becomes almost invisible at the time of a malfunction at the control boundary. In addition, when the automatic mechanism is provided, there is a disadvantage that the user does not have a degree of freedom in switching even if it is determined that the liquid crystal display is difficult to see, and as a result, the liquid crystal display becomes difficult to see.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and improves the visibility of a liquid crystal display in a dark place.
An object is to provide an electronic camera that can achieve low power consumption.

[0006]

The invention according to claim 1 is
In order to achieve the above object, in an electronic camera provided with a reflective liquid crystal display means for displaying an image based on an image signal from an image sensor in a camera body, an illuminating means for illuminating a display surface of the reflective liquid crystal display means Is provided on the camera main body so as to be freely retractable, and the display surface of the reflective liquid crystal display is illuminated by projecting the illuminating means from the camera main body.

According to the present invention, in a place where the ambient light is sufficiently bright, the liquid crystal display is confirmed using the ambient light. Then, in a place where the ambient light is dark, the illuminating means is projected from the camera body, and the liquid crystal display is confirmed by the illuminating light of the illuminating means. According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electronic camera including a reflection type liquid crystal display unit for displaying an image based on an image signal from an image pickup device in a camera body in order to achieve the above object. Is provided inside the camera body so as to be tiltable, and illumination means for illuminating the display surface of the reflection type liquid crystal display means is provided inside the camera body, and the reflection type liquid crystal display means is tilted inside the camera body. The illumination means illuminates the display surface of the reflective liquid crystal display means.

According to the present invention, in a place where the ambient light is sufficiently bright, the liquid crystal display is confirmed using the ambient light. Then, in a place where the ambient light is dark, the reflection type liquid crystal display means is tilted inside the camera body, and the liquid crystal display is confirmed by the illumination light of the illumination means installed inside the camera body.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of an electronic camera according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
1 to 3 show a first example of an electronic camera according to the present invention.
3 is a front perspective view, a rear perspective view, and a side view of the embodiment. FIG. As shown in the figure, the electronic camera 10 of the present embodiment
Has a camera body 12 formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape.

As shown in FIG. 1, a photographing lens 14 is provided on a front surface 12A of the camera body 12, and light incident on the photographing lens 14 is transmitted to a solid-state (not shown) built in the camera body 12. It is converted into an image signal by the image sensor. Also, on the front surface 12A of the camera body 12,
A strobe light emitter 16 is arranged at the upper left corner, and a finder window 18 of an optical finder is formed at the upper right corner.

As shown in FIG. 1, a shutter button 20 is disposed on the upper surface 12B of the camera body 12. When the shutter button 20 is pressed, an image signal output from the solid-state image sensor at that time is transmitted to the camera. The data is recorded as image data in a memory built in the main body 12. Camera body 1
As shown in FIG. 2, an eyepiece 22 of an optical finder is formed on the rear surface 12C of the second camera 2 at the upper left corner. The eyepiece section 22 of the optical finder can observe a field of view substantially equal to the angle of view.

A reflection type liquid crystal display 24 is provided on the rear surface 12C of the camera body 12, and an image based on the image signal converted by the solid-state image sensor is displayed on the reflection type liquid crystal display 24. . As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, an illumination device 26 is provided above the reflection type liquid crystal display 24.
It is provided so that it can appear and disappear from C. This lighting device 26
Is configured such that a reflecting plate 30 and a fluorescent tube 32 are arranged inside a casing 28 formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape.
The illumination device 26 pops up from the rear surface 12C of the camera body 12 by sliding an illumination button 34 provided at the upper right corner of the rear surface of the camera body 12 as shown in FIGS. Liquid crystal display 2
4 illuminates the liquid crystal display surface 24A.

Here, the pop-up mechanism of the lighting device 26 is configured as follows. FIG. 6 shows the lighting device 2
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional plan view illustrating a configuration of a pop-up mechanism of No. 6;
As shown in the figure, a immersion hole 36 is formed in the rear surface 12C of the camera body 12. The lighting device 26 is fitted into the immersion hole 36 via a spring 38. A projection 40 having a triangular cross section is fixed to one end of the lighting device 26, and the projection 40 is loosely fitted in a groove 42 formed on one end surface of the immersion hole 36. A stopper hole 44 is formed in the groove 42.
A stopper 48 is fitted through a spring 46.

The distal end of the stopper 48 is formed in a tapered shape, and a connecting rod 50 is connected to the proximal end thereof. The connecting rod 50 is connected to a slide rod 52 connected to the lighting button 34, and as a result, the stopper 48 moves in conjunction with the lighting button 34. That is, when the illumination button 34 is slid leftward in FIG. 6 against the urging force of the spring 46, the stopper 48 retreats into the stopper hole 44, and when the sliding force is released, the stopper 48 is urged by the spring 46. It protrudes into the groove 42.

The pop-up mechanism of the lighting device 26 configured as described above operates as follows. Camera body 1
The illumination device 26 immersed in the camera body 2 is prevented from protruding from the camera body 12 by the projection 40 fixed to one end thereof being locked by a stopper 48. Now, when the illumination button 34 is slid leftward in FIG. 6 against the urging force of the spring 38, the stopper 48 retreats into the stopper hole 46. As a result, the locking of the projection 40 by the stopper 48 is released. When the locking of the projection 40 is released, the lighting device 26
Is biased by the spring 46 and moves in a direction protruding from the rear surface 12C of the camera body 12.

Here, the groove 42 is formed with a certain length, and the illumination device 26 is connected to the rear surface 12C of the camera body 12.
, The protrusion 40 comes into contact with the front end surface 42A of the groove 42. As a result, the movement of the illumination device 26 is restricted, and stops at a position protruding from the rear surface 12C of the camera body 12 by a predetermined amount (stops at a position indicated by a two-dot broken line in FIG. 6).

The case where the illumination device 26 is immersed in the camera body 12 is as follows. That is, the lighting device 26 is pushed into the camera body 12. When the illumination device 26 is pushed toward the inside of the camera body 12 as described above, the inclined surface of the triangular projection 40 pushes the tapered surface of the stopper 48, and the stopper 48 resists the urging force of the spring 46. Push down. And this stopper 48
Get over. Stopper 4 pushed down by projection 40
When the projection 40 passes, the spring 46 is again urged by the spring 46 to project into the groove 42, and the projected stopper 48
Locks the projection 40 to prevent the lighting device 26 from projecting. In this state, the distal end surface of the illumination device 26 is located on the same plane as the rear surface 12C of the camera body 12.

The illumination device 26 is automatically turned on when it protrudes from the camera body 12, and is automatically turned off when it is immersed in the camera body 12. That is, in the lighting device 26, when the lighting device 26 protrudes from the rear surface 12C of the camera body 12, a switch (not shown) recognizes this and sends a signal to turn on the fluorescent tube power supply circuit, and the fluorescent tube 32 is automatically turned on. Let it. When the illuminating device 26 is immersed in the camera body 12, a switch (not shown) recognizes this and sends a signal to turn off the fluorescent tube power supply circuit, thereby automatically turning off the fluorescent tube 32.

The operation of the electronic camera 10 according to the first embodiment configured as described above is as follows. When the electronic camera 10 is used in a place where ambient light is sufficiently bright, the user checks the liquid crystal display of the reflective liquid crystal display 24 using the ambient light. On the other hand, when using the electronic camera 10 at night or in a dark place where the ambient light is dark, the user slides the lighting button 34 to pop up the lighting device 26 from the rear surface 12C of the camera body 12. When the illumination device 26 protrudes from the back surface 12 of the camera body 12, it is automatically turned on to illuminate the liquid crystal display surface 24A of the reflective liquid crystal display 24. Thus, the user can check the liquid crystal display on the reflective liquid crystal display 24.

The user who has finished using the device in a dark place pushes the lighting device 26 toward the camera body 12 to immerse the lighting device 26 in the camera body 12. Thereby, the lighting device 26 is automatically turned off. As described above, according to the electronic camera 10 of the present embodiment, since the lighting device 26 is used only when the ambient light is dark, power consumption can be suppressed.

In addition, since the illumination device 26 is immersed in the camera body 12 when not in use, portability is improved. Furthermore, since there is no circuit for detecting the brightness of ambient light and the structure is simple, the manufacturing cost can be suppressed. Further, since the fluorescent tube 32 cannot be turned on unless the lighting device 26 is mechanically popped up, it is possible to prevent the fluorescent tube 32 from being forgotten while being turned on.

The mechanism for popping up the lighting device 26 is not limited to the one in the present embodiment, and other known mechanisms can be used. 7 and 8 are a rear perspective view and a side view, respectively, of a second embodiment of the electronic camera according to the present invention. In the electronic camera 60 according to the second embodiment, the reflection type liquid crystal display 24 is provided to be tiltable inside the camera body 12.
When the camera 2 is tilted inside the camera main body 12, the illumination device 26 provided in the camera main body 12 illuminates the liquid crystal display surface 24A of the reflective liquid crystal display 24. Specifically, it is configured as follows.

The same or similar members as those of the electronic camera 10 according to the above-described first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, a rectangular concave portion 62 is formed on the rear surface 12 </ b> C of the camera body 12, and the reflective liquid crystal display 24 is fitted into the concave portion 62. Support shafts 64, 64 are fixed to lower portions of both ends of the reflective liquid crystal display 24, and the support shafts 64, 64 are rotatably supported by bearings (not shown) provided in the camera body 12. Therefore, the reflection type liquid crystal display 24 can swing about the support shafts 64, 64. A spring 66 is attached to the rear surface of the reflective liquid crystal display 24, and the spring 66 urges the reflective liquid crystal display 24 in a direction protruding from the rear surface 12C of the camera body 12.

Here, as described above, the reflection type liquid crystal display 24 urged in the direction protruding from the back surface 12C of the camera body 12 is restricted from protruding by the same mechanism as the pop-up mechanism of the above-described first embodiment. Is done. That is, the reflection type liquid crystal display 24 is
When pushed toward the rear surface 12C of the camera, a projection (not shown) provided on the reflection type liquid crystal display 24 engages with a stopper (not shown). As a result, as shown in FIGS. Incline at a predetermined angle. When the illumination button 34 is slid, the engagement between the projection and the stopper is released, and as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8,
Return to upright state.

An illumination device 26 is arranged inside the camera body 12 above the reflective liquid crystal display 24. The illumination device 26 is composed of a reflector 30 and a fluorescent tube 32, similarly to the illumination device of the first embodiment described above. When the reflection type liquid crystal display 24 is tilted inside the camera body 12, the illumination device 26 is automatically turned on. Lights up. That is,
In the illumination device 26, when the reflection type liquid crystal display 24 is tilted inward of the camera body 12, a switch (not shown) recognizes this and sends a signal to turn on the fluorescent tube power supply circuit, thereby automatically turning on the fluorescent tube 32. . When the reflective liquid crystal display 24 returns to the upright state, a switch (not shown) recognizes this and turns off the fluorescent lamp power supply circuit.
A signal for causing the fluorescent tube 32 to be turned off automatically.

The operation of the electronic camera 60 according to the second embodiment configured as described above is as follows. When the electronic camera 60 is used in a place where the ambient light is sufficiently bright, as shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. The liquid crystal display on the liquid crystal display 24 is checked.

On the other hand, when using the electronic camera 60 at night or in a dark place where the ambient light is dark, the user pushes the reflection type liquid crystal display 24 toward the inside of the camera body 12 to obtain an image as shown in FIGS. Then, the reflective liquid crystal display 24 is tilted. When the reflective liquid crystal display 24 is tilted inside the camera body 12, the illumination device 26 is automatically turned on to illuminate the liquid crystal display surface 24A of the reflective liquid crystal display 24. Thus, the user can check the liquid crystal display on the reflective liquid crystal display 24.

When the user has finished using the device in a dark place, he slides the illumination button 34 so that the reflective liquid crystal display 24 stands upright. When the reflective liquid crystal display 24 is set upright, the lighting device 26 is automatically turned off. As described above, in the electronic camera 60 of the present embodiment, similarly to the electronic camera 10 of the above-described first embodiment, since the lighting device 26 is used only when the ambient light is dark, power consumption is suppressed. be able to.

The mechanism for tilting the reflection type liquid crystal display 24 is not limited to the one in the present embodiment, and other known mechanisms can be used. In addition, the first and second
In the electronic cameras 10 and 60 of the embodiment, the lighting device 2
The lighting device 26 is automatically turned on when the display 6 is popped up or when the reflection type liquid crystal display 24 is tilted inside the camera body 14, but a switch for the lighting device is provided even if it is provided independently. You may. That is, the lighting device 26 may be turned on by the user turning on the switch, instead of being turned on automatically.

[0030]

As described above, according to the electronic camera of the present invention, the lighting means is used only when the ambient light is dark, so that the power consumption can be suppressed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a first embodiment of an electronic camera according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of the first embodiment of the electronic camera according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the first embodiment of the electronic camera according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a rear perspective view of the first embodiment of the electronic camera according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the electronic camera according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional plan view showing a configuration of a pop-up mechanism.

FIG. 7 is a rear perspective view of a second embodiment of the electronic camera according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a side view of a second embodiment of the electronic camera according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a rear perspective view of a second embodiment of the electronic camera according to the present invention.

FIG. 10

[Explanation of symbols]

 10, 60: electronic camera 12: camera body 14: photographing lens 24: reflective liquid crystal display 26: lighting device 34: button for lighting

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. An electronic camera having a reflection type liquid crystal display means for displaying an image based on an image signal from an imaging device in a camera body, wherein the illumination means for illuminating a display surface of the reflection type liquid crystal display means is provided in the camera. An electronic camera, wherein the display surface of the reflective liquid crystal display device is illuminated by protruding and retracting the illumination device from the camera body. 2. The electronic camera according to claim 1, wherein power is supplied to the illumination unit when the illumination unit protrudes from the camera body. 3. An electronic camera provided with a reflection type liquid crystal display means for displaying an image based on an image signal from an image pickup device in a camera body, wherein the reflection type liquid crystal display means is tiltably provided inside the camera body. Along with illuminating means for illuminating the display surface of the reflective liquid crystal display means inside the camera body,
An electronic camera, wherein the display surface of the reflective liquid crystal display means is illuminated by the illumination means by inclining the reflective liquid crystal display means inside the camera body. 4. The electronic camera according to claim 3, wherein said illumination means is supplied with power by tilting said reflection type liquid crystal display means inside said camera body.