JP2002139772A - Finder device for camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an easy-to-use finder device for a camera excellent in operability through which a photographer performs photography after confirming composition and performing focusing with such feeling that he (she) looks in a finder in the same manner as in the conventional device even under a low luminance condition such as at night. SOLUTION: In this camera having the optical finders (4, 5, 8 and 9) for optically observing a subject image through a photographic lens 1 such as a single lens reflex camera, the photographer 30 actuates a mirror for observation 3, a near infrared ray radiating lamp 21, an imaging device 17 and a liquid crystal display device 12 by operating a rotationally operating member 15 under the low luminance condition such as at night, whereby an electronic image by the near infrared ray photography of the imaging device 17 is guided to an eyepiece 9 through a half mirror 16 being an optical member arranged in the optical path of the optical finder. At such a time, simultaneously,the mirror 3 being a light shielding means is moved up, so that the incidence of the ordinary subject optical image on the optical finder is interrupted.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a camera finder for observing a subject image.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, when photographing a subject with a camera, it is general to perform a release operation after checking the composition and adjusting the focus by looking through a finder. However, when shooting in a dark place, the viewfinder image becomes difficult to see,
The above operations are very difficult.

By the way, under low brightness conditions such as at night,
An image pickup display device that irradiates a subject with near-infrared light, captures an image with an image sensor having sensitivity in the near-infrared region, and displays a subject image obtained on the liquid crystal display panel is disclosed in It is disclosed in, for example, JP-A-2000-115759. Therefore, if such a device is mounted on a camera, the above problem can be solved.

[0004]

However, it is not preferable to provide such an image display device in addition to the optical viewfinder in the silver halide camera from the viewpoint of arrangement space. Also,
If the photographer decides on the composition and adjusts the focus while looking through the viewfinder or while looking at the liquid crystal display panel, it is very troublesome and may miss a photo opportunity.

Accordingly, the present invention solves the above-mentioned problems, and enables photographing after confirming the composition and adjusting the focus as if looking through the viewfinder, even in low-luminance conditions such as at night, as in the prior art. It is an object of the present invention to provide an easy-to-use camera finder device.

[0006]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a camera finder device comprising: an optical finder for optically observing a subject image;
Or, irradiating means for irradiating near-infrared light, infrared region, or imaging means having sensitivity in the near-infrared region, and display means for displaying an electronic image based on the output of the imaging means, An optical member arranged in the optical path of the optical viewfinder to guide the electronic image displayed on the display means to the eyepiece optical system of the optical viewfinder; a light blocking means for blocking incident light from the subject to the optical viewfinder; Control means for operating the light blocking means, the irradiating means, the imaging means, and the display means in response to an operation of an operating member.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, in a camera having an optical viewfinder for optically observing a subject image through a photographing lens, such as a single-lens reflex camera, the photographer manually operates the camera under low brightness conditions such as at night. By operating the members, the above-described light-shielding means, irradiation means, imaging means, and display means are operated, and an electronic display image obtained by near-infrared or infrared imaging of the imaging means is optically arranged in the optical path of the optical finder. It leads to the eyepiece optical system of the optical finder through the member. At the same time, the normal light from the subject in the optical viewfinder is blocked by the light shielding means. As a result, even in low-brightness shooting such as at night, it is possible to perform shooting by checking the composition and adjusting the focus by looking into the optical viewfinder and then performing a release operation, as in the case of high-brightness such as daytime.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a camera finder apparatus for optically observing a subject image, and irradiating means for irradiating the subject with infrared light or near-infrared light. An imaging unit having sensitivity in an infrared region or a near-infrared region; a display unit for displaying an electronic image based on an output of the imaging unit; and a display unit arranged in an optical path of the optical finder; An optical member that guides the electronic image displayed to the eyepiece optical system of the optical finder, a photometric unit that measures the subject brightness, and compares the subject brightness with a predetermined value, and the subject brightness is darker than the predetermined value. A control means for operating the irradiation means, the imaging means, and the display means when the judgment is made, is provided.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in a camera such as a compact camera having an optical viewfinder for optically observing a subject image through an optical system different from a photographing lens, the subject brightness measured by the photometry means is reduced. It is automatically determined whether the image is brighter or darker than a predetermined value. If it is determined that the image is darker than a predetermined value (at low luminance such as at night), the irradiation unit, the imaging unit, and the display The means is operated to guide an electronic display image obtained by the near-infrared or infrared imaging of the imaging means to an eyepiece optical system of the optical finder through an optical member arranged in an optical path of the optical finder. As a result, even when photographing at low luminance such as at night, it is possible to photograph by performing a release operation after confirming the composition by looking through the optical viewfinder as in the case of high luminance such as during daytime.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the camera finder device according to the second aspect, the control means sets the subject brightness to be higher than another predetermined value set to a higher brightness side than the predetermined value. The electronic image display operation is continued until it is determined that the image is bright.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, in the camera provided with the finder device according to the second aspect, it is determined that the photometric subject brightness is lower than a predetermined value, and the display operation of the electronic image is started once. Thereafter, even if the surroundings become brighter due to illumination or the like and the subject brightness exceeds the above-described predetermined value, the above-described electronic control is performed until it is determined that the subject is brighter than another predetermined value set on the high brightness side. The image display operation is continued. Thus, as long as the brightness around the subject fluctuates within a certain range from a dark state lower than the first predetermined value to the another predetermined value, the electronic image observation mode is continued, and the other Since the hysteresis is provided so as to switch to the optical image observation mode for the first time after exceeding the predetermined value, it is possible to prevent the operation mode of the finder from switching frequently and becoming unstable.

[0012]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. [First Embodiment] FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing a configuration of a finder device of a camera according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
This embodiment shows an example applied to a single-lens reflex camera. 1A shows a state in which an optical image is optically observed, and FIG. 1B shows a state in which an electronic image is optically observed.

In FIG. 1, a subject image light beam passes through a photographing lens 1 and an aperture mechanism 2 and is reflected by an observation mirror 3 to form an image on a focusing screen 4.

The photographer 30 can observe the subject image formed on the focusing screen 4 via the pentaprism 8 and the condenser lens 5 by looking through the eyepiece lens 9.

At the center of the focusing screen 4 (an area of about 1% in terms of area ratio), a split image
A prism (hereinafter, a split image) 4a is arranged. The split image 4a is generated when the camera is a manual focus adjustment camera (manual focus camera).
It is arranged as a focus adjustment auxiliary optical member,
Two semicircular wedge-shaped bracelets inclined in opposite directions are arranged vertically. The intersection of the two wedge prisms is the focus surface. For example, when observing one line, if the focus is on this focus surface, the upper and lower images become one line. If the photographer adjusts the focus of the photographing lens by operating a not-shown distance ring or the like so as to eliminate the displacement of the upper and lower images, a photograph in which the subject is in focus can be taken.

Behind the observation mirror 3, a focal plane shutter 7 and a silver halide film 6 are arranged.
When a release button (not shown) is operated, the observation mirror 3 rotates around the rotation shaft 3a as shown by the arrow and retracts out of the photographing optical path, and the focal plane shutter 7 is opened for a set time and the silver is opened. The salt film 6 is exposed. When the exposure operation is completed, the observation mirror 3 is lowered again so that the subject image light beam can be guided to the finder optical system (the focusing screen 4, the condenser lens 5, the pentaprism 8, the half mirror 16, and the eyepiece 9). It has become.

On the other hand, an infrared lamp 21 as an irradiating means for irradiating near-infrared light is provided on the photographing lens side of the camera body.

Further, a rotary operation member 15 as a manual operation member is provided on the eyepiece side of the camera body, and by operating the rotation operation member 15, the near infrared light from the infrared lamp 21 is transmitted. Simultaneously with the start of light irradiation, the observation mirror 3 is retracted outside the imaging optical path, and the imaging mirror 13 is advanced into the imaging optical path.

That is, the above-mentioned observation mirror 3 is shown in FIG.
In addition to retreating to the outside of the photographing optical path when a release operation is performed at the time of photographing (a), the observation mirror 3 also rotates the rotating shaft 3a when the infrared lamp 21 is turned on as shown in FIG. Is rotated around an arrow as shown in the figure and retracted out of the photographing optical path. When the near-infrared light is irradiated, the observation mirror 3 retracts out of the photographing optical path, and at the same time, as shown in FIG. The imaging mirror 13 is configured to rotate about a rotation shaft 13a as shown by an arrow in the drawing and to advance into the imaging optical path.

The subject image light flux from the photographing lens 1 is reflected obliquely downward and leftward in the figure by the image pickup mirror 13, and forms an image on the image forming surface of the image pickup device 17 via the image pickup lens 14. The imaging element 17 has an imaging sensitivity region in the near-infrared region, and can capture a subject image irradiated with near-infrared light by the infrared lamp 21 for irradiating near-infrared light. An electronic image picked up by the image pickup device 17 is used for a liquid crystal display device 1 described later.
2 is displayed.

On the other hand, the exit surface 8a of the pentaprism 8
A half mirror 16 is provided in the observation optical path between the
However, the reflection surface 16a is disposed such that the reflection surface 16a is on the eyepiece side. Then, the reflection surface 1 of the half mirror 16
The display lens 10 is positioned with respect to the half mirror 16 such that the center of the display surface of the liquid crystal display device 12 corresponds to the center of 6a.
And a liquid crystal display device 12.

The half mirror 16 functions as an optical member that guides the optical image from the pentaprism 8 to the eyepiece 9 and also guides the electronic image displayed on the liquid crystal display device 12 to the eyepiece 9. That is, the optical axes of the liquid crystal display device 12 and the display lens 10 are arranged so as to be orthogonal to the observation optical axis (incident optical axis) of the eyepiece 9, and the liquid crystal display image is reflected by the half mirror 16 and the eyepiece 9 and enter the eyes of the photographer 30. Liquid crystal display device 12
A backlight device 11 for illuminating an image displayed on the liquid crystal is provided on the back side of the backlight.

Next, observation of an optical image and an electronic image according to the above configuration will be described. The observation mirror 3 is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 1, when the subject image is optically observed, it is disposed in the photographing optical path (hereinafter, referred to as a down state), and the observation mirror 3 is used at the time of photographing and electrically as shown in FIG. When observing, it rises and retreats from the photographing optical path (hereinafter, referred to as an up state).

In the down state shown in FIG. 1A, the subject image light beam is reflected upward in the drawing. The reflected subject image light flux forms an image on the focusing screen 4.

The observer 30 can observe the subject image on the focusing screen 4 via the eyepiece 9, the half mirror 16, the pentaprism 8, and the condenser lens 5.

When a release button (not shown) is operated in this state, the observation mirror 3 retreats outside the photographing optical path,
The aperture mechanism 2 is stopped down to a predetermined aperture value set by the photographer, and the focal plane shutter 7 opens and closes to perform a photographing operation on the film 6. Thereafter, the film 6 is wound up by one frame, the observation mirror 3 returns to the photographing optical path again, and a series of photographing operations is completed.

When the photographer 30 rotates the rotary operation member 15 in a predetermined direction, thinking that the viewfinder image is dark,
As shown in FIG. 1B, the observation mirror 3 retreats outside the imaging optical path, and the imaging mirror 13 advances into the imaging optical path.

In this state, the luminous flux of the subject image is reflected obliquely downward and leftward in the figure by the imaging mirror 13, and forms an image on the imaging surface of the imaging device 17 via the imaging lens 14.

On the other hand, the infrared lamp 21 is turned on and irradiates near infrared light to the subject. The subject image irradiated with the near-infrared light is captured by the imaging device 17. And the imaging device 1
The electronic image captured in 7 is displayed on the liquid crystal display device 12.

At this time, the backlight device 11 disposed behind the liquid crystal display device 12 illuminates the liquid crystal display device 12.

The image light flux displayed on the liquid crystal display device 12 passes through the display lens 10 and then passes through the half mirror 16.
The light is reflected toward the eyepiece lens 9 on the reflection surface 16a, and passes through the eyepiece lens 9 to reach the eye of the photographer 30.

That is, in the optical observation state, if the photographer 30 operates the rotary operation member 15 when he / she thinks that "the finder image is dark," the electronic observation state is switched.

In this electrical observation state, the image that can be observed through the eyepiece 9 is only an electronic image because the observation mirror 3 is in the up state. Therefore, the optical image and the electronic image do not appear to overlap.

When a release button (not shown) is operated in this state, the aperture mechanism 2 is stopped down to a predetermined aperture value set by the photographer, and the focal plane shutter 7 opens and closes to perform a photographing operation on the film 6. Is performed. In this photographing operation, if a strobe device is mounted on the camera, strobe light emission is performed simultaneously. Thereafter, the film 6 is wound up by one frame, the observation mirror 3 returns to the photographing optical path again, and a series of photographing operations is completed.

FIG. 2 shows the configuration of the finder device of the camera shown in FIG. The finder device of the single-lens reflex camera shown in FIG. 2 performs a rotation operation (ON (ON) or OFF) of the rotation operation member 15.
(OFF) and a switch input circuit 16 for detecting a pressing operation of the release button 23 and outputting a switch detection signal.
And a central processing unit (CPU) that generates various control signals based on a switch detection signal of a rotation operation or a release operation from the switch input circuit 16 and controls various circuits and mechanisms in the camera. A control circuit 19 as a control means, an exposure control mechanism 23 for controlling the aperture mechanism 2 and the focal plane shutter 7 by a control signal from the control circuit 19, and a film 6 to be fed by a control signal from the control circuit 19. Film feeding mechanism 24
And a mirror driving mechanism 22 that drives the observation mirror 3 and the imaging mirror 13 according to a control signal from the control circuit 19.
Lamp driving circuit 2 for lighting and driving the infrared lamp 21 which is an irradiation means by a control signal from the control circuit 19
0, an image sensor 17 having high sensitivity in the near-infrared region, and an image pickup operation performed by the image sensor 17 based on an operation control signal from a control circuit 19. Signal to LCD 12
An image processing circuit 18 for turning on the backlight device 11 while performing signal processing so that the image signal can be displayed on the liquid crystal display device; a liquid crystal display device 12 as display means for displaying an image signal processed by the image processing circuit 18; And a backlight device 11 for irradiating the backlight 12 with backlight light.

The image processing circuit 18 includes the rotating operation member 1
In response to a control signal from the control circuit 19 based on the rotation operation of No. 5, an imaging start instruction signal is given to the imaging device 17 to cause the imaging device 17 to start imaging.
The image signal is input from the image sensor 17 at the same time as receiving the imaging completion signal from the image sensor 17 and the image signal processing is performed, and then the display instruction signal and the illumination instruction signal are given to the liquid crystal display device 12 and the backlight device 11, respectively. 12 displays an electronic image. The observation mirror 3 constitutes a part of an observation optical system that guides a light beam from a subject to a focusing screen 4, and when an electronic image is captured, the observation mirror 3 is in an up state (retracted state) to be in a focusing state. It functions as a light blocking means for blocking a light beam incident on the light.

Next, the operation of the finder device shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

When the power switch (not shown) of the camera is turned on, the flowchart of FIG. 3 starts. If the release button 23 or the rotary operation member 15 is not operated, the loop of steps S1 and S2 is repeated to turn on the release operation. It is in a state of waiting or turning on the rotation operation (electronic image display operation).

First, in step S1, it is checked whether or not the release SW linked to the release button 23 has been turned on. When the release SW is turned on, the observation mirror 3 is raised (step S16), and the photographing operation of step S17 is started. The shooting operation is performed by the focal plane shutter 7.
Opening and closing, exposure to the film 6, and winding of one frame of the film by the film feeding mechanism 24.

If it is determined in step S1 that the release SW is off, it is checked in step S2 whether the display SW linked to the rotary operation member 15 is on. If the display switch is off, the process returns to step S1. When the photographer 30 turns on the display SW by operating the rotation operation member 15, the observation mirror 3 is raised (step S3), the imaging mirror 13 is raised (step S4), and the infrared lamp 21 is turned on. Irradiation is started (step S5), and imaging by the imaging device 17 based on near-infrared light and image display by the liquid crystal display device 12 are started (step S6). Thus, the photographer 30 can observe the electronic image displayed on the liquid crystal display device 12 as a finder image of the subject via the eyepiece optical system.
Therefore, it is only necessary to operate the distance ring (not shown) of the photographing lens 1 so that the finder image of the subject is focused so that the finder image looks sharpest, and then the release operation is performed.

After the start of the electronic image display in step S6,
If there is no operation of the rotation operation member 15 or the release button 23, the loop of steps S7 and S8 is repeated, and a state of waiting for the rotation operation to be turned off or waiting for the release operation to be turned on. If the display switch is turned off in step S7, the electronic image display is stopped (step S12).
The infrared lamp 21 is turned off (Step S13), the imaging mirror 13 is moved out of the observation optical path (Step S14), and the observation mirror 3 is lowered in the observation optical path (Step S15).
After that, the process returns to step S1.

In the confirmation of the display SW after the start of the electronic image display in step S6 (step S7), if the display SW is still on, the release SW is determined in step S8.
Check if is turned on. When the release SW is turned on, after stopping the display of the electronic image (step S9), turning off the infrared lamp 21 (step S10), and moving the imaging mirror 13 out of the observation optical path (step S11), step S17 is performed. Enter the shooting operation. The photographing operation includes opening and closing of the focal plane shutter 7, exposure of the film 6, and winding of one frame of the film by the film feeding mechanism 24.

After the photographing operation in step S17, the display S
A check is made as to whether W is on (step S18). If the display SW is turned on, release S
After waiting for the W to be turned off (step S19), the imaging mirror 13 is moved up in the observation optical path (step S4), and the flow proceeds to steps S5 and S6 described above. If the display switch is turned off in step S18, the control waits for the release switch to be turned off (step S20), lowers the observation mirror 3 into the observation optical path (step S21), and returns to step S1. As a result, the optical image observation is enabled.

[Second Embodiment] FIG. 4 shows a second embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a front view showing the appearance of a compact camera to which the camera finder device of the embodiment is applied.

In FIG. 4, a lens barrier 49 is slidably attached to the front cover 48 in the compact camera. When the lens barrier 49 is opened, the lens barrier 49 is located in front of the front cover 48 (in front of the figure). The photographing lens 50 is configured to protrude. When the lens barrier 49 is opened, the strobe unit 54 projects from the upper surface of the camera body. On the front surface of the strobe unit 54, an infrared lamp 53 is arranged alongside the strobe light emitting portion 54a. The infrared lamp 53 emits near-infrared light toward the subject when the brightness of the subject is low, such as at night. Further, the lens barrier 49
When the is opened, an imaging lens 51 for capturing an object image and obtaining an electronic image on an exterior panel member 64 disposed above the photographing lens 50, a finder window 52 for capturing an optical image from the object, Photometric window 55 for measuring subject brightness, active auto focus (A
An AF projection window 56 for projecting near-infrared light for F) and an AF light receiving window 57 for receiving near-infrared light reflected from a subject by AF projection are provided. In addition, behind the imaging lens 51, an imaging element (reference numeral 91 in FIG. 6) having sensitivity in a near-infrared region for imaging a subject image incident through the lens is provided. Also,
Behind the photometric window 55, a photometric sensor (reference numeral 71 in FIG. 6) for detecting the brightness of the subject light incident through the photometric window is provided. Further, the AF light receiving window 5
A distance measuring sensor (reference numeral 83 in FIG. 6) for measuring a subject distance by detecting an incident angle of infrared light reflected from the subject is disposed behind the reference numeral 7. A release button 58 for starting photographing is provided on the upper surface of the camera body.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing the configuration of the finder optical system in FIG. In FIG. 5, the front cover 4
A finder window 52 is provided in the camera exterior panel member 64 mounted on the camera body 8, and an optical image incident into the camera body through the finder window 52 is
After being reflected by the half mirror 60a, the prism 6
The light is reflected by the zero mirror 60b, exits from the exit surface, and enters the eye of the observer 65 through the eyepiece lens 61. On the other hand, the liquid crystal display device 62 is disposed so that the display surface faces one end surface of the Porro prism 60 on the half mirror 60a side. On the back of the liquid crystal display device 62, a backlight device 6 for irradiating a liquid crystal display image with backlight light is provided.
3 are provided.

In the configuration shown in FIG. 5, when the periphery of the object (not shown) is bright (high brightness), a light image (visible light image) from the object enters the porro prism 60 in the camera body through the finder window 52, First, the light path is changed by being reflected by the half mirror 60a in the Porro prism 60, and further changed by being reflected by the mirror 60b in the Porro prism 60. Then, the light enters the eye of the photographer 65 through the eyepiece 61. In a low-luminance state such as at night, the photographer 65 cannot see the light image by visible light through the eyepiece 61 as described above.
The infrared lamp 53 shown in FIG. 4 is driven to emit near-infrared light based on the result of detection by the photometric sensor described above. And is converted into a liquid crystal display signal by an image processing circuit (not shown), and is displayed on the liquid crystal display element of the liquid crystal display device 62 illuminated with backlight light. Is done. The electronic image light displayed on the liquid crystal enters the Porro prism 60, passes through the half mirror 60 a in the poly prism 60, is further reflected by the mirror 60 b in the Porro prism 60, and changes the optical path. After that, it enters the eyes of the photographer 65 as a near-infrared photographed image.

FIG. 6 shows the configuration of the finder device of the camera shown in FIG. The viewfinder device of the compact camera shown in FIG. 6 includes a control circuit 70 as a control unit including a central processing unit (CPU) for controlling various circuits and mechanisms in the camera, and a photoelectric conversion unit such as a light receiving element. An electric signal from the photometric sensor 71 is input, the luminance level of the subject is measured, and a photometric circuit 72 as photometric means for supplying to the control circuit 70 is provided. An infrared lamp driving circuit 73 that drives the lamp 53, a switch input circuit 76 that detects a pressing operation of the release button 58 and supplies the switch detection signal to the control circuit 70, and an exposure control signal from the control circuit 70. An exposure control mechanism 79 for controlling a lens shutter 80 such as a sector shutter, and a film 78 based on a feed control signal from a control circuit 70. A film feeding mechanism 77 for feeding, a lens driving mechanism 81 for focusing a focusing lens 82 based on an AF control signal from a control circuit 70, and a distance measuring sensor disposed behind the AF light receiving window 57 A distance measuring circuit 84 for measuring the subject distance based on the detection signal of 83; an image sensor 91 as an imaging means having high sensitivity in the near infrared region; and an image sensor based on a control signal from the control circuit 70 An image processing circuit 90 that processes the image signal captured by the image sensor 91 so that the image signal can be displayed on the liquid crystal display device 62 and turns on the backlight device 63, and a display that displays the image signal processed by the image processing circuit 90. And a liquid crystal display device 62 as a means.

The image processing circuit 90 includes a photometric sensor 71
A low-brightness detection signal obtained from the control circuit 70 based on the subject luminance detection signal from the control unit 70 provides an imaging start instruction signal to the imaging device 91 to start imaging by the imaging device 91. When the imaging is completed, the imaging completion signal is output from the imaging device 91. At the same time as receiving an image signal from the image sensor 91 and performing image signal processing, the liquid crystal display device 62 and the backlight device 6
A display instruction signal and an illumination instruction signal are given to each of the liquid crystal display devices 3 to display an electronic image on the liquid crystal display device 62.

Next, the operation of the finder device shown in FIGS. 4 to 6 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

The flowchart shown in FIG. 7 is started by opening the lens barrier 49 of the camera. First, step S
At 31, the control circuit 70 checks whether or not the release SW linked to the release button 58 has been turned on. If the release button 58 has not been turned on, the flow advances to step S32 to measure the subject luminance by the photometric sensor 71 and the photometric circuit 72. Then, it is determined whether or not the subject brightness BV is equal to or less than a predetermined value BV1 for low brightness determination (step S33). If the subject brightness BV is equal to or less than the predetermined value BV1, the infrared lamp 53 is irradiated (step S34), and the image sensor 91
, The display of the captured image signal on the liquid crystal display device 62 is started (step S35).
Thereby, the photographer 65 can check the electronic image acquired by the irradiation of the near infrared light on the liquid crystal display screen.

Next, in step S36, the release button 5
It is checked whether or not the release SW linked to 8 has been turned on. If the release SW remains off (OFF), the process returns to step S32, repeats the loop of S32 to S36, and waits for the release operation to be turned on.

When the release SW is turned on in step S36, the control circuit 70 controls the photometric sensor 71 and the photometric circuit 72.
(Step S37), and the distance is measured by the distance measuring sensor 83 and the distance measuring circuit 84 (step S3).
8) The focus is adjusted by controlling the lens driving mechanism 81 and the focusing lens 82 based on the distance measurement result (step S39), and then the photographing operation (the aperture control of the lens shutter 80 and the strobe light emission) is performed based on the photometry result. Control of the section 54a and film exposure) are performed (step S40). Then, in step S41, the process waits for the release SW to be turned off. If the release SW is turned off, the process returns to step S31.

In step S31, the release switch remains off, and the subject brightness BV measured in step S32 is measured.
Is higher than the low luminance determination value BV1 as a result of the determination in S33, the process proceeds to step S42. This corresponds to, for example, when lighting is turned on in a room or the like from a state where there is no lighting. In step S42, it is checked whether or not the infrared lamp 53 is irradiating. If the infrared lamp 53 is not irradiating, step S31
And if the release SW remains off, S
The loop from 31 to S33 and S42 is repeated.

In step S42, if the infrared lamp 53 is irradiating, the conditions for stopping the near-infrared irradiation are as follows.
Proceeding to step S43, it is checked whether or not the subject brightness BV is brighter than another predetermined value BV2 set on the higher brightness side than the low brightness determination value BV1. If the subject brightness BV is higher than the predetermined value BV2, the infrared lamp 53 is turned off (step S44), and the process returns to step S32. On the other hand, if the subject luminance BV is equal to or less than the predetermined value BV2 in step S43,
Without turning off the infrared lamp 53, the process returns to step S32, and the loop of S32, S33 and S42, S43 is repeated.

The judgment step of step S43 is a step in which the lighting condition and the turning-off condition of the infrared lamp 53 are different, that is, the lighting condition is changed from lighting to turning off, and the lighting condition is changed from turning off to turning on. By maintaining the lit state even if the direction changes slightly brighter than the lit state, and turning off the light only when it becomes brighter than another predetermined value BV2 set on the high brightness side, the infrared light lamp An unstable state in which 53 constantly flashes is eliminated.

In the embodiment described above, a near-infrared light irradiation lamp is used as the irradiating means, and an image sensor having high sensitivity in the near-infrared region is used as the imaging means. However, the light beam used in the present invention is not limited to near-infrared light, but may be infrared light in the infrared region. Therefore, the irradiating means and the imaging means each emit an infrared light irradiating an infrared light. Alternatively, an imaging element having high sensitivity in the infrared region may be used.

[0058]

As described above, according to the present invention, even in a low-brightness condition such as at night, it is possible to take a picture after confirming the composition and adjusting the focus as if by looking through the finder, as in the related art. An easy-to-use camera finder device with excellent operability can be realized.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing a configuration of a finder device of a camera according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a finder device of the camera in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the finder device shown in FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 4 is an exemplary front view showing the appearance of a compact camera to which a camera finder device according to a second embodiment of the present invention is applied;

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a configuration example of a finder optical system in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a configuration of a finder device of the camera in FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the finder device shown in FIGS. 4 to 6;

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Photographing lens 2 ... Aperture mechanism 3 ... Observation mirror (also functioning as light blocking means) 4 ... Focusing screen 5 ... Condenser lens 6 ... Film 7 ... Focal plane shutter 8 ... Pentaprism 9 ... Eyepiece (eyepiece optical system) 10 ... Display lens 11 ... Backlight device 12 ... Liquid crystal display device (display means) 13 ... Imaging mirror 14 ... Imaging lens 15 ... Rotation operation member (manual operation member) 16 ... Half mirror (optical member) 17 ... Imaging device ( (Imaging unit, one having sensitivity in the near-infrared region or one having sensitivity in the infrared light region may be used.) 18 ... Image processing circuit 19 ... Control circuit (control unit) 21 ... Infrared lamp (irradiation unit, near red) 23 ... Release button 30 ... Photographer 48 ... Front cover 49 ... Lens barrier 5 .., A photographing lens 51, an image pickup lens 53, an infrared lamp (a irradiating means, a near-infrared light irradiation lamp or an infrared light irradiation lamp is also possible) 54, a strobe unit 54 a, a strobe light emitting section 58, a release button 60, a porro prism 60a ... half mirror 60b ... mirror 61 ... eyepiece (eyepiece optical system) 62 ... liquid crystal display device (display means) 63 ... backlight device 64 ... camera exterior panel member 65 ... photographer 70 ... control circuit (control means) Reference numeral 71: photometric sensor (photometric means) 72: photometric circuit (photometric means) 78: film 80: shutter 82: focusing lens 83: distance measuring sensor 84: distance measuring circuit 90: image processing circuit 91: imaging device (imaging means, One having sensitivity in the near infrared region or one having sensitivity in the infrared light region may be used.)

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) G03B 19/12 G03B 19/12 // H04N 5/225 H04N 5/225 B F term (Reference) 2H002 DB05 FB58 FB73 GA00 JA02 JA03 2H018 AA00 AA02 AA21 AA26 BE00 BE02 2H054 BB00 BB04 BB11 CD03 5C022 AB15 AB68 AC02 AC03 AC09 AC42 AC51

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An optical viewfinder for optically observing a subject image, irradiating means for irradiating the subject with infrared light or near-infrared light, and an infrared region or a near infrared region. Imaging means having sensitivity to the display, display means for displaying an electronic image based on the output of the imaging means, disposed in the optical path of the optical finder, and displaying the electronic image displayed on the display means in the optical finder. An optical member that guides the eyepiece optical system; a light blocking unit that blocks incident light from the subject to the optical viewfinder; and a light blocking unit, the irradiation unit, the imaging unit, and the display in response to an operation of a manual operation member. Control means for operating the means. 2. An optical viewfinder for optically observing a subject image; irradiating means for irradiating the subject with infrared light or near-infrared light; Imaging means having sensitivity to the display, display means for displaying an electronic image based on the output of the imaging means, disposed in the optical path of the optical finder, and displaying the electronic image displayed on the display means in the optical finder. An optical member that guides the eyepiece optical system; a photometric unit that measures subject brightness; comparing the subject brightness with a predetermined value; and when it is determined that the subject brightness is darker than the predetermined value, the irradiation unit includes: A camera finder device comprising: an imaging unit; and a control unit for operating the display unit. 3. The electronic control unit according to claim 2, wherein the control unit continues the display operation of the electronic image until it is determined that the subject brightness is brighter than another predetermined value set to a higher brightness side than the predetermined value. 3. The camera finder device according to claim 2, wherein: