JP2004170489A - Camera with built-in flash device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make the turning angle of a built-in flash device larger without making a camera main body and the built-in flash device larger or lowering the strength thereof. <P>SOLUTION: The camera has a built-in flash device 20 pivotally supported so as to be turnable relative to a camera main body 10 between a using posture and housing posture, and is equipped with an intermediate member 30 having 1st and 2nd turning restriction parts 32 and 31 capable of respectively abutting on the abutting part (wall surface of a groove 11b) of the main body 10 and the abutting part (wall surface of a groove 21a) of the flash device 20. The 1st restriction part 32 allows the turning of the device 20 relative to the member 30 at a 1st angle, and the 2nd restriction part 31 allows the turning of the member 30 relative to the main body 10 at a 2nd angle. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a camera having a built-in flash device rotatable between a use posture and a storage posture.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art There is a camera having a built-in flash device of a pop-up type that is rotatable between a storage position covering a pentagonal portion of a camera body and a use position protruding upward from the camera (for example, see References 1 and 2). In these cameras, the stopper shaft of the camera body relatively moves within the restriction groove provided on the flash device side in accordance with the pop-up of the built-in flash device, and when it reaches the use posture, it comes into contact with the stopper shaft and the end surface of the restriction groove. The above rotation is prevented.
[0003]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-7-36094 (FIGS. 1 and 2)
[Patent Document 2]
JP-A-2002-40524 (FIG. 3, paragraph 0019)
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, when a large photographic lens is attached to a camera, light from a built-in flash device may be vignetted by the lens. In order to prevent this, it is necessary to make the light emitting unit emit light as far as possible from the camera, and to bring the light emitting unit away from the camera, it is necessary to increase the rotation angle from the storage position to the use position There is. Increasing the rotation angle itself can be realized by changing the contact position with the stopper shaft by lengthening the above-described restriction groove, but if priority is given to miniaturization of the camera, extension of the groove is impossible in terms of space. . The same applies to the case where the restriction groove is provided on the camera body side and the case where the restriction groove is provided on the flash device side.
[0005]
In order to increase the rotation angle without lengthening the restricting groove, the position of the restricting groove, in other words, the position where the stopper shaft abuts, should be closer to the rotational center of the flash device. However, in this case, the distance from the tip of the flash device to the contact position is inevitably increased, which is disadvantageous for external force. In other words, when an excessive force is applied to the tip of the flash device, the longer the distance is, the greater the moment is, and the greater the force is applied to the abutting portion. In some cases, the stopper shaft may be broken.
[0006]
An object of the present invention is to provide a flash device built-in camera capable of increasing the rotation angle of the built-in flash device without increasing the size of the camera body and the built-in flash device and without reducing the strength.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The present invention is applied to a camera having a built-in flash device rotatably supported on a camera main body between a use posture and a stored posture, and a first body which can abut the camera main body and the built-in flash device, respectively. , An intermediate member having a second rotation restricting portion. The built-in flash device is allowed to rotate by a first angle with respect to the intermediate member, and further rotation is prevented by the first rotation limiting portion, and the intermediate member is rotated about the rotation axis of the flash device. Rotation by the second angle with respect to the camera body is permitted, and further rotation is prevented by the second rotation restricting portion. As a result, the flash device can rotate with respect to the camera body within an angle range equal to the sum of the first angle and the second angle.
According to the second aspect of the invention, the first and second rotation restricting portions are respectively provided on the surface of the intermediate member on the side of the built-in flash device and the surface of the camera body side so as to be separated from each other in the rotation direction. It is composed of first and second projections.
According to the third aspect of the present invention, the built-in flash device and the camera body have first and second grooves into which the first and second projections are inserted, respectively, and the first projection is a wall surface of the first groove. The second projection restricts rotation of the intermediate member by contact with the wall surface of the second groove.
According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the intermediate member is rotatably supported by a shaft member on the camera body side that rotatably supports the built-in flash device.
According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the intermediate member has a thin plate shape and is inserted into a gap between the built-in flash device and the camera body.
The invention according to claim 6 is applied to a camera having a built-in flash device rotatably supported on the camera body between a use posture and a storage posture, and is disposed between the built-in flash device and the camera body. And an intermediate member having first and second rotation restricting portions capable of contacting the camera body and the built-in flash device at least in a use posture.
[0008]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
One embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a main part of a camera with a built-in flash device according to the present embodiment, wherein 10 is a camera body, and 20 is a built-in flash device. The built-in flash device 20 is composed of a pair of left and right arms 21 (only one is shown) and a light emitting unit 22 supported at the distal ends of these arms 21, and has a substantially U-shape when viewed from above. An arc-shaped groove 21 a for restricting rotation of the flash device 20 is formed on the inner surface of each arm 21.
[0009]
On the upper surface of the camera body 10, there is provided a pentagonal section 11 for storing a pentaprism, which is a finder optical system, and a rotating shaft member 11a protrudes from both side surfaces of the pentagonal section 11. An arc-shaped groove 11b for restricting rotation of the flash device 20 is formed in front of the groove. The base end portions of the pair of arms 21 are supported by the rotating shaft member 11a, whereby the built-in flash device 20 rotates between the retracted position shown in FIG. 2 and the use position shown in FIG. It is possible. The light emitting unit 22 faces downward in the retracted position, and faces forward (subject side) in the use position.
[0010]
A plate-like intermediate member 30 is interposed between each arm 21 of the built-in flash device 20 and the side surface of the pentagonal portion. The intermediate member 30 is rotatably supported by the rotation shaft member 11 a, and stopper pins (projections) 31, 32 are provided on both side surfaces of the intermediate member 30 so as to be separated from each other in the rotation direction of the intermediate member 30. One stopper pin 31 is engaged with the groove 11b on the main body side, and the other stopper pin 32 is engaged with the groove 21a on the arm 21 side.
[0011]
Next, the operation of the built-in flash device 20 will be described.
When the built-in flash device 20 is in the retracted position, as shown in FIG. 2, the stopper pin 32 is located at the upper end of the groove 21a, and the stopper pin 31 is located at the lower end of the groove 11b, and the grooves 21a and 11b are in an overlapping state. . The built-in flash device 20 is urged in the direction A by a spring (not shown) toward the use position, but is held in the retracted position because it is locked to the pentagonal portion 11 by a locking member (not shown). .
[0012]
When the locking is released, the built-in flash device 20 starts rotating (pop-up) in the direction A by the urging force of the spring. Initially, the built-in flash device 20 rotates with respect to the intermediate member 30 as the stopper pin 32 relatively moves in the groove 21 a with the rotation of the arm 21. When the rotation angle of the arm 21 reaches a first angle corresponding to the length of the groove 21a, the stopper pin 32 comes into contact with the lower end wall of the groove 21a, and at this time, the rotation of the arm 21 with respect to the intermediate member 30 is mechanical. Is blocked. That is, thereafter, the intermediate member 30 rotates integrally with the built-in flash device 20.
[0013]
The intermediate member 30 rotates with respect to the camera body 10 together with the built-in flash device 20 when the stopper pin 31 moves in the groove 11 b of the pentagonal portion 11. When the rotation angle reaches a second angle corresponding to the length of the groove 11b, the stopper pin 31 contacts the upper end wall of the groove 11b as shown in FIG. The rotation is mechanically prevented, and the built-in flash device 20 is held in the posture (use posture) at that time.
[0014]
When the built-in flash device 20 is stored, the operation of the built-in flash device 20 with respect to the intermediate member 30 and the operation of the intermediate member 30 with respect to the main body 10 are reverse to those described above. When the flash device 20 reaches the storage position shown in FIG. 2, the flash device 20 is locked to the main body 10 by the above-described locking member.
[0015]
According to the above operation, the rotation angle (the rotation angle with respect to the main body 10) between the storage posture and the use posture of the built-in flash device 20 is (first angle + second angle). That is, with the intermediate member 30 interposed, the built-in flash device 20 can be rotated by an angle corresponding to the length of the sum of the groove 21a on the flash device side and the groove 11b on the main body side. Therefore, the turning angle of the built-in flash device 20 can be increased without lengthening the individual grooves 21a, 11b and without bringing the positions of the grooves 21a, 11b closer to the center of rotation. The light emitting unit 22 can emit light at a position away from the camera by an amount corresponding to the increase in the rotation angle, and there is no fear that light is vignetted even when a large photographic lens is attached. Further, it is advantageous in terms of space because it is not necessary to lengthen the groove, and it is also advantageous in terms of strength because it is not necessary to bring the groove close to the center of rotation.
[0016]
The above strength will be described in detail.
When the built-in flash device 20 is in the use posture of FIG. 3, the stopper pins 31 and 32 receive the forces in the directions B and C of FIG. 4 from the wall surfaces of the grooves 21a and 11b by the urging force of the springs. When an external force in the direction A of FIG. 3 is applied to the light emitting unit 22 for some reason, the force in the directions B and C increases, but this force is transmitted from the light emitting unit 22 which is the point of action to the rotation restricting unit (stopper pin and groove). (The contact portion) increases (moment increases), and in some cases, the stopper pin may be damaged or the intermediate member 30 may be distorted. However, in this embodiment, since the groove does not need to be close to the center of rotation, the distance from the light emitting unit 22 to the rotation restricting unit can be relatively short, and the force in the B and C directions does not need to be increased. Therefore, there is no inconvenience such as breakage of the stopper pin, and distortion of the intermediate member 30 is suppressed. Moreover, since the intermediate member 30 is sandwiched so that both surfaces thereof are almost in contact with the arm 21 and the pentagonal portion 11, the distortion can be prevented by the arm 21 and the pentagonal portion 11.
Further, since the intermediate member 30 has a thin plate shape, the intermediate member 30 can be arranged in a very narrow gap between the arm 21 and the pentagonal portion 11, and the addition of the intermediate member 30 does not increase the size of the camera.
[0017]
Although the intermediate member 30 is supported by the rotating shaft member 11a, this is not an essential requirement for the present invention. However, when it does not support the shaft member 11a, it is necessary to take measures to prevent the intermediate member 30 from falling. The positional relationship between the stopper pins 31 and 32 in the intermediate member 30 depends on how the two grooves overlap in the storage position. In the type in which the built-in flash device 20 covers the pentagonal portion 11 as in the present embodiment, a structure in which the lower ends of the grooves 11b and 12a are at the same height when in the retracted posture as shown in FIG. 2 is convenient. In this case, it is necessary to separate the two stopper pins 31 and 32 in the rotation direction. However, depending on the structure, a configuration in which both stopper pins are provided coaxially is also conceivable. Further, the relationship between each groove and each stopper pin may be opposite to each other. Further, each groove is not limited to an arcuate groove, and may have any shape as long as it allows at least a rotation of the flash device or the intermediate member at a predetermined angle and prevents further rotation. If this condition is satisfied, the groove need not necessarily be a groove, and may be a protrusion to which a stopper pin can abut.
[0018]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, an intermediate member having first and second rotation restricting portions that can be respectively brought into contact with the contact portions of the camera body and the built-in flash device is provided. , And a second angle of rotation of the intermediate member with respect to the camera body is allowed. As a result, the built-in flash device can be rotated by the first angle + the second angle with respect to the camera body, but the contact portion of the built-in flash device rotates the built-in flash device by the first angle. The contact portion of the camera body may be a position where the intermediate member can be turned by the second angle (for example, when the wall surface of the groove is used as the contact portion, the groove may be lengthened or the rotation shaft may be rotated). Part is not necessary). Therefore, the rotation angle of the built-in flash device can be increased without increasing the size of the built-in flash device or the camera body and reducing the strength due to the change in the position of the contact portion.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a built-in flash device supporting portion of a camera according to an embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a view of the supporting portion as viewed from the side of the camera, showing a state where the flash device is in a retracted attitude;
FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2, showing a state in which the flash device is in a use posture.
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a force applied to an intermediate member.
[Explanation of symbols]
10 Camera body 11 Penta unit 11a Rotating shaft member 11b Groove (second groove)
20 Built-in flash device 21 Arm 21a Groove (first groove)
22 Light emitting unit 30 Intermediate members 31, 32 Stopper pin (first and second protrusions)

Claims (6)

In a camera having a built-in flash device rotatably supported with respect to the camera body between a use posture and a storage posture,
An intermediate member having first and second rotation restricting portions capable of contacting the camera body and the built-in flash device, respectively;
The built-in flash device is allowed to rotate by a first angle with respect to the intermediate member, and is prevented from rotating further by the first rotation limiting portion. The flash device is configured such that the second rotation restricting portion is configured to be allowed to rotate by a second angle with respect to the camera body around the rotation axis and to prevent further rotation by the second rotation restricting portion. A camera with a built-in flash device, characterized in that it is rotatable with respect to the camera body within an angle range equal to the sum of the first angle and the second angle. The first and second rotation restricting portions are provided on a surface of the intermediate member on the side of the built-in flash device and a surface of the intermediate body on the side of the camera body, respectively. The flash device built-in camera according to claim 1, wherein the camera comprises a projection. The built-in flash device and the camera body have first and second grooves into which the first and second protrusions are inserted, respectively, and the first protrusion contacts a wall surface of the first groove. The rotation of the built-in flash device is restricted by contact, and the second protrusion restricts the rotation of the intermediate member by contact with a wall surface of the second groove. The camera with a built-in flash device as described in the above. The flash according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate member is rotatably supported by a shaft member on a camera body side that rotatably supports the built-in flash device. Built-in camera. The flash device built-in camera according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the intermediate member has a thin plate shape and is inserted into a gap between the built-in flash device and the camera body. In a camera having a built-in flash device rotatably supported with respect to the camera body between a use posture and a storage posture,
An intermediate member that is disposed between the built-in flash device and the camera main body and has first and second rotation restricting portions that can abut the camera main body and the built-in flash device at least in the use posture, A flash device built-in camera.

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