JP2000298305A - Electronic camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain an electronic camera whose durability and reliability are improved by preventing the damage or breakage of an optical head and also preventing the deterioration of printing image quality caused by the soiling of the optical head. SOLUTION: When a back cover 51 is operated to be opened so that a printing cartridge 38 may be attached to a cartridge housing part 64, the optical head 33 is moved to a retreat position and a shutter 80 is closed to cover over the optical head 33. Meanwhile, when the cover 51 is operated to be closed so that the cartridge 38 may be taken out from a cartridge housing part 64, a shutter 80 covering over the optical head 33 is opened and the optical head 33 is moved to a light emitting operation position to expose printing paper 40.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electronic camera having a printer mechanism for printing and discharging a photographed image or the like on a print paper containing a cartridge, and more particularly to an improvement in an arrangement of the printer mechanism in a housing.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-26561 (Japanese Patent Application No. 7-175) filed by the same applicant as the present invention.
No. 167), there have been proposed some electronic cameras having a printer mechanism for printing a photographed image on a print sheet in a housing and discharging the print result. According to the electronic camera described in the above publication, as a configuration example of a printer mechanism that prints a captured image or the like on print paper,
It is disclosed that the system includes an “ink-jet system”, a “thermal transfer system”, a “thermal sublimation system”, and the like.

An electronic camera boasts an advantage over a silver halide camera from the viewpoint of being able to reproduce a photographed image on the spot and being instantaneous. The fact that such an electronic camera further incorporates the above-described print mechanism and can print (print) a captured image on the spot means that the use of the electronic camera is greatly expanded and its use value is increased. I do.

However, an electronic camera incorporating such an advantageous printing mechanism also has the following problems. That is, in an electronic camera of a type that incorporates an optical head and forms a printed image by exposing a photosensitive printing paper by light emission of the optical head, dust or dust adheres to the light emitting surface of the optical head, or If damage occurs due to scratching, poor print quality will occur due to poor exposure,
Or, the reliability and durability of the print function itself are significantly reduced, for example, the print function itself becomes defective. Such a situation is likely to occur when an operator mounts or removes the cartridge because the optical head is provided near the cartridge in which the printing paper is stored.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and can prevent damage or breakage of an optical head and can prevent deterioration in print image quality caused by contamination of the optical head. It is an object of the present invention to provide an electronic camera with improved durability and reliability.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above problems and achieve the object, the present invention is configured as follows.

[1] An electronic camera according to the present invention includes: a photographing lens unit for forming an optical image of a subject; and an image representing the subject image by photoelectrically converting the optical image of the subject formed by the photographing lens unit. Electronic imaging means for outputting information; a cartridge accommodating portion for accommodating a cartridge containing photosensitive printing paper in a paper-feedable state; and an electronic imaging device provided near a paper feeding position of the cartridge. An optical head for exposing a subject image based on the image information obtained by the means to photosensitive printing paper fed from the cartridge; a first position for opening the optical head; and shielding the optical head. An optical head shielding means configured to be movable between the second position and the second position.

[2] An electronic camera according to the present invention includes: a photographing lens unit for forming an optical image of a subject; and an image representing the subject image by photoelectrically converting the optical image of the subject formed by the photographing lens unit. Electronic imaging means for outputting information; a cartridge accommodating portion for accommodating a cartridge containing photosensitive printing paper in a paper-feedable state; and an electronic imaging device provided near a paper feeding position of the cartridge. An optical head for exposing a subject image based on the image information obtained by the means to photosensitive printing paper fed from the cartridge; and moving the optical head to the printing paper exposure by moving the optical head to a first position. And an optical head moving means for moving the optical head to a retreat position by moving the optical head to a second position.

[3] The electronic camera of the present invention has the above-mentioned [2].
Wherein the optical head further comprises an optical head shielding means movably configured between a first position for opening the optical head and a second position for shielding the optical head. Features.

[4] The electronic camera of the present invention has the above-mentioned [1].
Or the lid according to any one of [3], wherein the lid is closed when the cartridge is mounted in the cartridge storage, and is opened when the cartridge is removed from the cartridge storage. Moving the optical head shielding means to the first position in conjunction with the closing operation of the lid, and moving the optical head shielding means to the second position in conjunction with the opening operation of the lid. Means are further provided.

[5] The electronic camera of the present invention has the above-mentioned [2].
Or the lid according to any one of [3], wherein the lid is closed when the cartridge is mounted in the cartridge housing, and is opened when the cartridge is removed from the cartridge housing. Moving the optical head moving means to the first position in conjunction with the closing operation of the lid, and moving the optical head moving means to the second position in conjunction with the opening operation of the lid. Means are further provided.

[6] The electronic camera of the present invention provides the electronic camera according to [1].
Or the detecting device for detecting the position of the optical head, and the amount of exposure to the printing paper according to the position of the optical head detected by the detecting device. And control means for controlling.

[7] The electronic camera of the present invention has the above-mentioned [4].
Or the apparatus according to any one of [6], further comprising: an image display unit provided on the lid unit for displaying a subject image based on image information obtained by the electronic imaging unit. Features.

[0014]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of an electronic camera according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 (a) shows a photographing lens (subject) side, and FIG. Display LCD
(Operator) side. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the electronic camera, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an arrangement of the hardware components in a housing.

As shown in FIG. 1A, a camera housing 70 is provided.
Is provided with a photographing lens unit 3 and a strobe window 62 on the front side, and a release 59, a mode switch 60,
A mode LCD 61 is provided, and a card cover 53 is provided on a side surface. Also, as shown in FIG. 1B, the cartridge lid opening knob 63, the rear lid 51, and the display L
A CD (liquid crystal display) 9 is provided.

As shown in FIG. 2, the electronic camera according to the present embodiment has a zoom lens 1 and a focus lens 2, and forms an optical image of a subject. Image sensor 4 and an imaging circuit 5 that photoelectrically convert an optical image of the subject and output image information representing the subject image, and an A / D that converts image information output as an analog signal from the imaging circuit 5 into a digital signal. Conversion circuit 6
A built-in memory 7 for temporarily storing digital image information output from the A / D conversion circuit 6, a display circuit 8 for reading image information from the built-in memory 7 and supplying it to the display LCD 9, a display circuit 8 And a display LCD 9 for displaying an image of the subject based on the image information supplied from. The drive of the zoom lens 1 is controlled by a zoom motor 13,
The focus lens 2 is driven and controlled by a focus motor 14. A video terminal 18 is connected to the display circuit 8, and a video (video) signal of a captured image is externally output from the video terminal 18.

A compression / decompression circuit 10 for compressing image information stored in the built-in memory 7 and outputting it to the detachable memory 11 or reading image information recorded in the detachable memory 11 for decompression is provided. This detachable memory 11
Is made of, for example, an SSFDC (Solid State Floppy Disk Card) and is removably attached to the card slot 52.
The operator can pull out the removable memory 11 from the card slot 52 and replace it with another removable memory as needed.

The external interface (I / F) 17 is
An interface for inputting and outputting various information to and from an external device such as a personal computer via a communication cable or the like connected to the external input / output terminal 19.

The power supply section 20 receives power from a replaceable battery 54 or an external power supply input terminal 22.

The system controller 12 includes a strobe 1
It is provided as control means for controlling the operation of the entire apparatus including the operation unit 5 and the operation unit 16. This system controller 12
Is provided in the camera housing 70, and can control the printer unit 30 that prints a captured image.

As shown in FIG. 2, the printer unit 30 includes a print image generation circuit 31, a head drive circuit 32, an optical head 3
3, a head position sensor 34, a drive control circuit 35, a drive unit 36, a cartridge detection sensor 37, a print cartridge 38, a pinch roller 39, and the like.

The print image generating circuit 31 converts the image data of the captured image supplied from the system controller 12 into image data for printing. The head drive circuit 32 drives and controls the optical head 33 to emit light based on the image data for printing.

As the optical head 33, one equivalent to an optical head applied to, for example, an LED printer is used. For example, this optical head is a chip-shaped LED that is regularly arranged in a line and contributes to the formation of RGB, like a so-called line sensor, and captures an image on the surface of a photosensitive printing paper by light emission from each LED. And a micro lens for forming an image. Photosensitive printing papers are known, and for example, those described in JP-A-10-093849 are used. The printing paper has a portion for holding the developing solution on a side thereof, and the portion for holding the developing solution is crushed by a pinch roller or the like, so that the developing solution is applied to the surface.

The drive control circuit 35 of the print unit 30 rotates a drive step motor (drive unit 36). The rotation is transmitted to the first capstan shaft 56 via a transmission system (not shown). As shown in FIG. 3, the first pinch roller 5
5 presses the printed paper 40 against the first capstan shaft 56 with a constant pressure, and follows the first capstan shaft 56. The rotation of the first capstan shaft 56 causes the photosensitive print paper 40 to be sent to the position of the optical head 33 (feed). At this time, in the printing paper 40, the developer is exposed by the pressing force from the first pinch roller 55 to the first capstan shaft 56 and is applied to the surface.

After the exposure of the photosensitive agent and the application of the developing solution based on the light emission from the optical head 33 involved in the printing image formation, the printing paper 40 is moved to the second capstan shaft 58 and the second pinch rotating with the second capstan shaft 58. The sheet is conveyed to a predetermined position by the roller 57 and discharged. Particularly, in the present embodiment, the print paper 40 is discharged into the gap between the print cartridge 38 and the back cover 51 (display LCD 9). The print paper 4
The transport speed of 0 is determined by the rotation speed of the first capstan shaft 56, and the pressing force of the second pinch roller 57 is set to be lighter than that of the first pinch roller 55. The transport speed of the printing paper 40 needs to be synchronized with the light emission by the optical head 33.

The arrangement of the hardware components in the camera housing will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3
In FIG. 7, the shielding and moving mechanism of the optical head according to the feature of the present invention is not shown, and this portion will be described later in detail with reference to FIGS.

In the camera housing 70, the photographing lens unit 3
The imaging substrate 5 and the main substrate 50 are arranged in the space on the side. In addition to the image sensor 4 as shown in FIG.
An imaging circuit 5, an A / D conversion circuit 6, and the like are provided.
The main board 50 is provided with the built-in memory 7, the compression / expansion circuit 10, and the like as the main components of the system controller 12. Just behind this main board 50,
That is, on the rear side of the housing 70, the hardware components of the printer unit 30 and the battery 54 are arranged.

The printer unit 30 includes a pinch roller 39 and the like.
(Paper transport mechanism) and a cartridge accommodating portion 64 for accommodating the print cartridge 38 in a state capable of feeding paper to a printing mechanism including the optical head 33 and the like. And is disposed in the camera housing 70 such that its main plane is substantially orthogonal to the extension of the optical axis of the taking lens unit 3. The print cartridge 38 is provided in a state where a plurality of print papers (print papers) 40 are housed inside. A cartridge detection sensor 37 is provided at a predetermined position in the cartridge accommodating portion 64, and is configured to detect mounting / removal of the print cartridge 38.

A back cover 51, which is opened and closed when the print cartridge 38 is mounted in the cartridge accommodating portion 64 or when the print cartridge 38 is removed from the cartridge accommodating portion 64, is formed on the back of the camera housing 70. In addition, a display LCD 9 is disposed on the back cover 51. The back cover 51 can be opened by the operator sliding the back cover opening knob 63 shown in FIG. 1B, and the back cover opening knob 63 is locked in response to the closing operation of the back cover 51. You. 4, the back cover 51 is opened, and the print cartridge 38 is attached to the camera housing 70.
The state attached to is shown. By arranging the display LCD 9 on the rear cover 51 in this way, the surface occupied by the thin plate-shaped display LCD 9 generally overlaps the occupied surface of the rear cover 51, and the rear cover 51 and the display LCD 9 are separated from each other. The rear surface of the camera housing 70 is more compact than when the camera housing 70 is disposed. Further, by holding the rear cover 51 (and the display LCD 9) with a finger and sliding the rear cover opening knob 63, the mounting / removal of the print cartridge 38 can be easily performed.

The configuration of the back cover 51 is not limited to that shown in FIG. For example, the back cover 501 shown in FIG. 5 differs from the back cover 51 in FIG. 4 in that a hinge portion is provided on the bottom surface of the camera housing 70.

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing an optical head shielding and moving mechanism according to a feature of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is an upper sectional view showing the optical head shielding and moving mechanism.

As shown in FIG. 6, a rectangular parallelepiped optical head 33 has its end mounted on a head base 82. The head base 82 is attached to the camera housing 70 via pins so as to be movable in the direction of arrow B. The optical head 33 is connected to a flexible printed circuit board 92 which can be extended and contracted, and receives an electric signal for forming a print image from the flexible printed circuit board 92.

An H cam pin 84 is provided on the head base 82, and the H cam pin 84 is engaged with a K cam groove 86 formed on the back surface of the cam plate 85. Cam plate 8
5 is provided with a cam plate gear 86, which meshes with an idler gear 87. On the other hand, the idler gear 87 has a gear portion 89 formed on the side of the lid lever 88.
Also meshes. The idler gear 87 has an appropriate thickness so that the gear portion 89 of the lid lever 88 and the cam plate gear 86 do not interfere with each other. The cover lever 88 has a cover lever groove 90 formed therein.
Is fixed to a pin 91 fixed to the pin. Thus, the amount of rotation of the back cover 51 is limited by the cover lever groove 90.

The head base 82 has an H cam groove 8
3 are provided. The H cam groove 83 is engaged with the S cam pin 81 provided on the shutter 80. The shutter 80 is attached to the camera housing 70 via a pin so as to be movable in the direction of arrow A.

In such a mechanism, when the back cover 51 is opened and closed, the idler gear 87 meshing with the gear portion 89 of the cover lever 88 rotates, and the cam plate gear 86 (cam plate 85) meshes with the idler gear 87. Rotate. When the cam plate 85 rotates, the H cam pin 84 is slid along the K cam groove 86 due to the rotational movement of the K cam groove 86. As a result, the head base 82 moves along the arrow B direction.

The movement of the H cam groove 83 of the head base 82 causes the S cam pin 82 to slide along the groove. Thereby, the shutter 80 moves along the arrow A direction.

As shown in FIG. 7A, when the operator opens the back cover 51, the head base 82 is moved by the action of the above-described mechanism, and the optical head 33 is moved to the retracted position (non-light emitting operation position). And the shutter 80 moves and closes. That is, the optical head 33 is shielded by the shutter 80 from the space on the side of the print cartridge 38 across the frame.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7B, when the operator closes the back cover 51, the shutter 80 is opened and the head base 82 moves, and the optical head 33 is used for the exposure of the print paper 40. Move to a predetermined position (light emission operation position). That is, the optical head 33 projects (opens) by a predetermined amount from the opening of the frame into the space on the print cartridge 38 side. The printing process described above is executed in this state. A photo sensor (not shown) is provided at an appropriate position near the optical head 33. According to the position of the optical head 33 detected by the photo sensor,
The exposure amount on the printing paper 40 is controlled to an appropriate exposure amount.

As described above, according to the present embodiment,
When the operator opens the back cover 51 and mounts or removes the print cartridge 38, it is possible to prevent the optical head 33 from being damaged or broken by mistake. Also,
Since the back cover 51 is open, it is possible to prevent dust and dirt from adhering to the optical head 33. In addition, the operator operates the rear cover 51.
By simply closing the, the protection function of the optical head 33 can be automatically released, and there is no operational burden.

Therefore, the optical head 33 is prevented from being damaged or damaged, and the print quality is prevented from deteriorating due to the contamination of the optical head 33, so that the durability and reliability of the electronic camera can be improved.

[Features of Embodiment] [1] The electronic camera described in the embodiment has a photographic lens unit (3) for forming an optical image of a subject and the photographic lens unit (3).
Electronic imaging means (4, 5) for photoelectrically converting an optical image of a subject formed by (1) and outputting image information representing the subject image
And a cartridge (3) containing photosensitive printing paper (40).
8) in a cartridge storage section (6
4) and a photosensitive member provided near the paper feeding position of the cartridge (38), and a subject image based on image information obtained by the electronic imaging means (4, 5) fed from the cartridge (38). Head (33) for exposing sensitive printing paper (40)
An optical head shielding means (80) movably configured between a first position for opening the optical head (33) and a second position for shielding the optical head (33). I do.

[2] The electronic camera shown in the embodiment is
A photographic lens unit (3) for forming an optical image of a subject, and electronic imaging for photoelectrically converting the optical image of the subject formed by the photographic lens unit (3) and outputting image information representing the subject image Means (4, 5), a cartridge accommodating section (64) for accommodating a cartridge (38) containing photosensitive printing paper (40) in a state capable of being fed, and feeding of the cartridge (38). Provided in the vicinity of a position, for exposing a subject image based on image information obtained by the electronic imaging means (4, 5) to photosensitive printing paper (40) fed from the cartridge (38). The optical head (33) is moved to a first position to move the optical head (33) to a predetermined position for exposing the printing paper, and to the second position to move the optical head (33). An optical head moving means (82) for moving the optical head to the retracted position.

[3] The electronic camera shown in the embodiment is
The apparatus according to [2], wherein the optical head (3
The optical head further comprises optical head shielding means (80) configured to be movable between a first position for opening 3) and a second position for shielding the optical head (33).

[4] The electronic camera shown in the embodiment is
The apparatus according to any one of the above [1] and [3], wherein the cartridge (38) is closed when the cartridge (38) is mounted in the cartridge housing part (64), and the cartridge housing part (64) is closed. The lid (51) opened when the cartridge (38) is taken out, and the optical head shielding means (80) are moved to the first position in conjunction with the closing operation of the lid (51). Means for moving the optical head shielding means (80) to the second position in conjunction with the opening operation of the lid (51).

[5] The electronic camera shown in the embodiment is
The device according to any one of the above [2] or [3], wherein the cartridge is closed when the cartridge (38) is mounted in the cartridge housing portion (64), and the cartridge is closed from the cartridge housing portion (64). The lid (51), which is opened when the cartridge (38) is removed, and the optical head moving means (82) are moved to the first position in conjunction with the closing operation of the lid (51). Means for moving the optical head moving means (82) to the second position in conjunction with the opening operation of the lid (51).

[6] The electronic camera described in the embodiment is
The device according to any one of the above [1] and [5], wherein a detecting means for detecting a position of the optical head (33), and a detecting means for detecting a position of the optical head (33) detected by the detecting means. Control means for controlling the amount of exposure to the printing paper (40) accordingly.

[7] The electronic camera shown in the embodiment is
The device according to any one of [4] and [6], wherein the electronic imaging means is provided on the lid (51).
An image display means (9) for displaying a subject image based on the image information obtained by (4, 5) is further provided.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but can be implemented with various modifications.

[0049]

As described above, according to the present invention,
It is possible to prevent the optical head from being damaged or damaged and to prevent the print quality from deteriorating due to the contamination of the optical head, thereby providing an electronic camera with improved durability and reliability.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIGS. 1A and 1B are perspective views showing the appearance of an electronic camera according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein FIG. 1A is a view showing a photographing lens (subject) side, and FIG. 1B is a view showing a display LCD (operator) side. Diagram shown

FIG. 2 is an exemplary block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the electronic camera according to the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an exemplary sectional view showing the arrangement of hardware components of the electronic camera in the housing according to the embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a view showing a state in which a back cover is opened and a print cartridge is attached to a camera housing in the electronic camera according to the embodiment;

FIG. 5 is an exemplary view showing a modification of the back cover mounting structure according to the embodiment;

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing a shielding and moving mechanism of the optical head according to the embodiment;

FIG. 7 is an upper cross-sectional view showing the optical head shielding and moving mechanism according to the embodiment;

[Explanation of symbols]

 3. Photographing lens unit 9 Display LCD 51 Rear cover 53 Card cover 59 Release 60 Mode switch 61 Mode LCD 62 Strobe window 63 Rear cover release knob 64 Cartridge housing 70 Camera housing

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) G03B 17/02 H04N 5/76 E 5C022 17/26 B41J 3/21 L 5C052 H04N 5/225 5/76 F Terms (reference) 2C162 AE23 AE28 FA17 FA70 2H018 AA32 BE02 2H020 CA03 CA07 2H100 BB05 CC01 CC07 EE06 FF01 2H104 AA19 5C022 AA13 AC00 AC69 AC74 AC77 AC78 5C052 AA11 DD02 EE03 EE05 EE08 FA07 FA03 FC08 FE08

Claims (7)

[Claims] A photographing lens unit for forming an optical image of a subject; and an electronic imaging unit for photoelectrically converting an optical image of the subject formed by the photographing lens unit and outputting image information representing the subject image. And a cartridge accommodating portion for accommodating a cartridge storing photosensitive printing paper in a paper-feedable state, provided near the paper-feeding position of the cartridge, and storing image information obtained by the electronic imaging means. An optical head for exposing an image of a subject based on photosensitive printing paper fed from the cartridge; and a first position for opening the optical head and a second position for shielding the optical head. An electronic camera, comprising: a movable optical head shielding means. 2. A photographing lens unit for forming an optical image of a subject, and electronic imaging means for photoelectrically converting an optical image of the subject formed by the photographing lens unit and outputting image information representing the subject image. And a cartridge accommodating portion for accommodating a cartridge storing photosensitive printing paper in a paper-feedable state, provided near the paper-feeding position of the cartridge, and storing image information obtained by the electronic imaging means. An optical head for exposing a photosensitive printing paper supplied from the cartridge to a subject image based on the cartridge; and moving the optical head to a predetermined position for exposing the printing paper by moving the optical head to a first position; An optical head moving means for moving the optical head to a retreat position by moving the optical head to a second position. 3. An optical head shielding means movably arranged between a first position for opening the optical head and a second position for shielding the optical head. Item 3. The electronic camera according to item 2. 4. A lid portion that is closed when the cartridge is mounted in the cartridge storage portion and that is opened when the cartridge is removed from the cartridge storage portion, and interlocked with the closing operation of the lid portion. Means for moving the optical head shielding means to the first position, and for moving the optical head shielding means to the second position in conjunction with the opening operation of the lid. Claim 1 or 3
An electronic camera according to any one of the preceding claims. 5. A lid which is closed when the cartridge is mounted in the cartridge housing, and which is opened when the cartridge is taken out of the cartridge housing, and interlocked with the closing operation of the lid. Means for moving the optical head moving means to the first position and moving the optical head moving means to the second position in conjunction with the opening operation of the lid. Claim 2 or 3
An electronic camera according to any one of the preceding claims. 6. A control device for controlling a position of the optical head, wherein the control unit controls an amount of exposure to the printing paper in accordance with the position of the optical head detected by the detecting unit. The electronic camera according to claim 1, wherein: 7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising: an image display unit provided on the cover unit, for displaying a subject image based on image information obtained by the electronic imaging unit. An electronic camera according to claim 1.