JP2005106934A - Lens barrier system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the occurrence of level difference between barrier blades in a lens barrier device including a plurality of barrier blades. <P>SOLUTION: A lens barrier system is provided with a plurality of barrier blades 20 and 30 which are provided freely shakably for a base 10 and cooperatively open/close an aperture part and a driving ring 40 or the like which drives the plurality of barrier blades to open/close the aperture part, and the plurality of barrier blades 20 and 30 are provided freely slidably on the same plane and have fitting projecting parts 25 and 35 and fitting recessed parts 26 and 36 which can be fitted to each other in the slide direction and are so formed that the fitting projecting part 25 and fitting recessed part 26 of one barrier blade 20 are fitted to the fitting recessed part 36 and fitting projecting part 35 of the other barrier blade 30 respectively when performing the closing operation. Thus a beautiful appearance is obtained without bring about level difference. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a lens barrier device for protecting a lens of a camera such as a digital still camera or a digital video camera, and more particularly to a lens barrier device that opens and closes an opening using a plurality of barrier blades.

A conventional lens barrier device that opens and closes the front of the camera is a barrier substrate having an opening, and is provided on the barrier substrate in a swingable manner, and extends in a swinging direction at a tip end region opposite to the swinging fulcrum. What is provided with a pair of barrier blade | wing etc. which respectively have the extending piece to do is known.
In this apparatus, the extended piece of one barrier blade always overlaps the other barrier blade and the extended piece of the other barrier blade is always in the whole stroke range where the pair of barrier blades open and close. (See, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2000-231137 A

  By the way, in the conventional lens barrier device, since the barrier blades are always formed to overlap each other, a step is generated at the edge of the barrier blades, the appearance is not good, and the barrier blades are attached to the lens. Since the device is arranged so as to overlap in the optical axis direction, the device becomes thick in the optical axis direction, and it is difficult to reduce the thickness of the lens barrier device particularly when barrier blades made of a resin material or the like are used.

  On the other hand, arranging a pair of barrier blades on the same plane in the blade chamber, reducing the clearance tolerance of the blade chamber so as not to cause a step, and increasing the dimensional accuracy of each component increases the cost and increases the barrier blade. As a result, the sliding resistance increases and smooth opening and closing operations cannot be obtained.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to reduce the thickness, size, and cost of a lens barrier device using a plurality of barrier blades for opening and closing an opening. An object of the present invention is to provide a lens barrier device capable of achieving a smooth opening / closing operation with a good appearance by eliminating the steps between the barrier blades while reducing the size of the barrier blades.

The lens barrier device of the present invention includes a base that defines an opening, a plurality of barrier blades that are swingably provided with respect to the base, and that cooperate to open and close the openings, and a drive that opens and closes the plurality of barrier blades. Each of the plurality of barrier blades is provided so as to be swingable on the same surface, and has a fitting convex portion and a fitting concave portion that can be fitted in the swinging direction, and has a closing operation. At this time, the fitting convex portion and the fitting concave portion of one barrier blade are formed so as to be fitted to the fitting concave portion and the fitting convex portion of the other barrier blade, respectively.
According to this configuration, when the plurality of barrier blades are operated by the driving mechanism so as to close the opening in cooperation with each other, each barrier blade has a fitting convex portion and a fitting concave portion of one barrier blade, It fits with the fitting recesses and fitting projections of other barrier blades. Thus, the plurality of barrier blades are in a state in which the opening is closed on the same plane without causing a step. Accordingly, there is provided a lens barrier device that can achieve a smooth opening / closing operation while achieving a reduction in the thickness of the device, and that has a good appearance.

In the above configuration, the plurality of barrier blades are continuously connected to the abutting end surface that can abut in the swinging direction and the abutting end surface so as to face each other in a contact or non-contact manner in a direction substantially perpendicular to the swinging direction. The structure which has the formed opposing surface is employable.
According to this configuration, when the plurality of barrier blades are in the positions where the openings are closed, the contact end surfaces are in contact with each other in the swing direction, and at the same time, the opposing surfaces are in a direction substantially perpendicular to the swing direction (for example, Since they overlap in a contact or non-contact state in the direction of the optical axis of the lens, it is possible to reliably block external light or dust from entering.
Here, when the opposing surfaces face each other in a non-contact state, the barrier blades are positioned only by the fitting convex portion and the fitting concave portion, while on the other hand, when the opposing surfaces face each other in contact with each other Since the barrier blades are not only positioned by the fitting convex portion and the fitting concave portion, but also positioned by the opposing surfaces, the step between the barrier blades is reliably prevented.

In the above configuration, the plurality of barrier blades may employ a configuration including a first barrier blade and a second barrier blade each having a fitting convex portion and a fitting concave portion.
According to this configuration, when the drive mechanism performs the opening / closing drive, the first barrier blade and the second barrier blade are separated from each other to open the opening, and on the other hand, they are close to each other and joined on the same surface to be opened. Close. Thus, by employing two barrier blades, the opening can be reliably opened and closed while simplifying the structure.

In the above configuration, one of the fitting convex portion and the fitting concave portion is provided near the tip of the first barrier blade and the second barrier blade, and the other of the fitting convex portion and the fitting concave portion is the first barrier blade and the first barrier blade. The structure provided near the rocking | fluctuation spindle of 2 barrier blade | wings is employable.
According to this configuration, in the closing operation, the vicinity of the tip of the first barrier blade is fitted to the vicinity of the swing support shaft of the second barrier blade, and the vicinity of the tip of the second barrier blade is the swing of the first barrier blade. Since it fits in the vicinity of the support shaft, the tip end side of the barrier blade, which is likely to cause a step, is reliably positioned by the other barrier blade, and the occurrence of the step can be prevented more reliably.

In the above configuration, the base may adopt a configuration having a guide path that slidably guides a plurality of barrier blades.
According to this configuration, when the plurality of barrier blades perform the opening operation and the closing operation, the guide path supports and guides each barrier blade, so that the fitting operation between the fitting convex portion and the fitting concave portion is also performed. It is performed more smoothly.

In the above configuration, a configuration may be employed in which the base is provided with a cover that defines the opening and is connected to cover the plurality of barrier blades.
According to this configuration, when providing a cover that defines the blade chamber in cooperation with the base, it is not necessary to manage the size of the blade chamber with high accuracy, and the cost of the apparatus can be reduced.

In the above configuration, a configuration in which the plurality of barrier blades are formed of a resin material can be employed.
According to this configuration, even if the barrier blades are made of resin material, even if the barrier blades are slightly thicker, the barrier blades are arranged on the same plane instead of being overlapped with each other. The cost of the apparatus can be reduced.

  As described above, according to the lens barrier device of the present invention, the plurality of barrier blades that are provided so as to be swingable with respect to the base and cooperate to open and close the opening are provided on the same plane so as to be swingable. Each of the plurality of barrier blades is provided with a fitting convex portion and a fitting concave portion that can be fitted in the swinging direction, and when the closing operation is performed, the fitting convex portion and the fitting concave portion of one barrier blade are provided. By forming so as to be fitted to the fitting recesses and fitting projections of other barrier blades, the plurality of barrier blades can close the opening on the same plane without causing a step. . As a result, it is possible to provide a lens barrier device that can achieve a smooth opening / closing operation and a good-looking appearance while achieving a reduction in thickness.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
1 to 12 show an embodiment of a lens barrier device according to the present invention. FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of the device, FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the device, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a base. 4 is a perspective view showing a drive ring forming a part of the drive mechanism, FIGS. 5 to 7 are perspective views and sectional views showing barrier blades, FIG. 8 is a partial sectional view of the apparatus, and FIGS. FIG. 11 and FIG. 12 are plan views showing a state in which the barrier blade closes the opening.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the lens barrier device includes a base 10 defining an opening 10a, a first barrier blade 20 as a plurality of barrier blades swingably provided with respect to the base 10, and a first barrier blade. 2 barrier blade 30, drive ring 40 as a drive mechanism for opening and closing the barrier blades 20, 30, a cover 50 connected to the base 10 so as to cover the barrier blades 20, 30 and defining an opening 50 a, the barrier blade 20 , 30 are urged in the closing direction, and springs 70 are urged to urge the drive ring 40 so as to drive the barrier blades 20, 30 in the opening direction.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the base 10 is formed in an annular shape so as to define a circular opening 10a using a resin material, and an inner peripheral surface of the opening 10a is formed on the front surface thereof. The cylindrical portion 11 that delimits and protrudes forward in the optical axis direction L, the arc-shaped guide path 12 that slidably guides the barrier blades 20 and 30, and the support that supports the barrier blades 20 and 30 so as to swing freely. The shaft 13, the four restricting pieces 11 a formed to protrude radially outward from the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 11, the through hole 14 that penetrates the base 10, and the front of the optical axis direction L in the vicinity of the edge of the through hole 14 Projecting and projecting and projecting to the through-hole 14 side, the two latching protrusions 16 for latching one end 61 of the spring 60 biasing the barrier blades 20 and 30, and the drive ring 40 in one direction One end 7 of the spring 70 biasing against A latching projection 17 for latching, a pin 18a for positioning the cover 50, a hole 18b used for attachment to a lens barrel, etc., four projections 19 for connecting the cover 50 by snap fit, and the like. ing.

  The drive ring 40 as a drive mechanism is formed of a resin material, and as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, an annular portion 41, a cam portion 42 protruding from the annular portion 41 toward the rear in the optical axis direction L, Two engaging pieces 43a and 43b projecting radially outward from the annular portion 41, a latching piece 44 for latching the other end 72 of the spring 70, and a notch 45 through which the regulating piece 11a passes when assembled to the base 10. , Four regulated portions 46 whose dropout is regulated by the regulation piece 11a, regulated pieces 47 whose fallout is regulated by the regulation piece 15, and the like are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the cam portion 42 has a cam surface 42 a on the tip side. When this lens barrier device is attached to the tip of the lens barrel of the camera, for example, the engaging protrusion P provided on the camera side is engaged with the cam surface 42a as the lens barrel retracts. By combining, the drive ring 40 is rotated in the arrow R2 direction against the biasing force of the spring 70 biased in the arrow R1 direction.

  The first barrier blade 20 is formed of a resin material in a thin plate shape, and as shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, a cylindrical portion 21 through which the support shaft 13 of the base 10 passes, and a columnar shape in the vicinity of the cylindrical portion 21. The engaged portion 22 formed by the engagement portion 43a of the drive ring 40 engages, a linear contact end surface 23, and a surface perpendicular to the contact end surface 23 (optical axis direction L). The opposing surface 24 formed continuously, the fitting convex part 25 formed near the tip, the fitting concave part 26 formed near the cylindrical part 21 supported by the support shaft 13 (that is, close to the swinging support shaft). The sliding piece 27 etc. which slide on the guide path 12 of the base 10 is provided.

  The second barrier blade 30 is formed of a resin material in a thin plate shape, and as shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, a cylindrical portion 31 through which the support shaft 13 of the base 10 passes, and a columnar shape in the vicinity of the cylindrical portion 31. So that the engaging portion 43b of the drive ring 40 engages, the abutting end surface 33 having a linear shape, and a surface perpendicular to the abutting end surface 33 (optical axis direction L). The opposing surface 34 formed continuously, the fitting convex part 35 formed near the tip, and the fitting concave part 36 formed near the cylindrical part 31 supported by the support shaft 13 (that is, close to the swinging support shaft). The sliding piece 37 etc. which slide on the guide path 12 of the base 10 is provided.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 6, when the first barrier blade 20 and the second barrier blade 30 come close to each other and join to close the openings 10 a and 50 a, the fitting convex portion 25 of the first barrier blade 20. Is fitted into the fitting recess 36 of the second barrier blade 30, and the fitting projection 35 of the second barrier blade 30 is fitted into the fitting recess 26 of the first barrier blade 20.

Further, as shown in FIG. 7A, the contact end surface 23 of the first barrier blade 20 contacts the contact end surface 33 of the second barrier blade 30 in the swing direction, and the first barrier blade 20 Of the second barrier blade 30 is opposed in the optical axis direction L perpendicular to the swing direction.
Therefore, in the closing operation, the first barrier blade 20 and the second barrier blade 30 are not only positioned by fitting the fitting convex portions 25 and 35 and the fitting concave portions 26 and 36 but also the facing surface 24 and the facing surface 34. In addition to positioning by contact with the optical axis direction L, the positioning is ensured so as not to cause a step in the optical axis direction L, and at the same time, the openings 10a and 50a are reliably shielded so that light, dust, or the like can be seen from the outside. Intrusion can be prevented.

  As shown in FIG. 7B, the facing surface 24 ′ of the first barrier blade 20 is not in contact with the facing surface 34 ′ of the second barrier blade 30 in the optical axis direction L perpendicular to the swinging direction. You may form so that it may oppose in a state. In this case as well, the contact end faces 23 and 33 are in contact with each other, so that the opening is reliably shielded and light or dust can be prevented from entering from the outside.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the cover 50 is formed in a disk shape from a resin material. The cover 50 has a substantially rectangular opening 50 a at the center thereof, and is directed rearward in the optical axis direction L from the outer periphery. A latch piece 51 snap-fitted to the protrusion 19 of the extended base 10, two positioning holes 52 through which the pins 18a of the base 10 pass, two circular holes 53 corresponding to the holes 18b of the base 10, and a small diameter at the tip of the support shaft 13 Two circular holes 54 and the like into which the portion 13a is fitted are provided. The cover 50 defines a blade chamber that accommodates the barrier blades 20 and 30 in cooperation with the base 10.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 8A, the spring 60 is a torsion type spring, and is disposed around the cylindrical portions 21 and 31. One end 61 of the spring 60 is hooked on the hooking protrusion 16 of the base 10. The other end 62 is engaged with the engaged portions 22 and 32 of the barrier blades 20 and 30 from the side opposite to the engagement pieces 43a and 43b. Thereby, the spring 60 always urges the first barrier blade 20 and the second barrier blade 30 in the closing direction.

  Next, the procedure for assembling this apparatus will be described. First, as shown in FIG. 2, the drive ring 40 is brought closer to the base 10 from the front in the optical axis direction L, the cylindrical portion 11 is inserted inside the drive ring 40, and the notch 45 is regulated by the base 10. The piece 11 a is inserted, and the cam portion 42 is passed through the through hole 14 of the base 10.

  When the driving ring 40 is rotated clockwise (in the direction of the arrow R2) by a predetermined angle when the driving ring 40 comes into contact with the sliding surface 10b of the base 10, as shown in FIG. The ten restricting pieces 11a and 15 are slidably engaged with the restricted portion 46 and the restricted piece 47 of the drive ring 40 to restrict the drive ring 40 from falling forward in the optical axis direction L. .

  Here, since the restricting pieces 11a and 15 for receiving the drive ring 40 are provided in the vicinity of the cam portion 42, the drive ring 40 is applied even when a pressing load directed forward in the optical axis direction L acts on the cam portion 42. Is held so that it can rotate smoothly with respect to the base 10 without being deformed.

  Subsequently, with the springs 60 fitted on the outer circumferences of the cylindrical portions 21 and 31, the barrier blades 20 and 30 are brought close to the base 10 from the front in the optical axis direction L, and the base 10 is supported on the cylindrical portions 21 and 31. While passing the shaft 13, one end 61 of the spring 60 is latched to the latching protrusion 16, and the other end 62 is latched to the engaged portions 22 and 32. Further, one end 71 of the spring 70 is latched to the latching protrusion 17 of the base 10, and the other end 72 is latched to the latching piece 44 of the drive ring 40.

  Thereafter, the cover 50 is brought closer to the base 10 from the front in the optical axis direction L, the tip small-diameter portion 13a of the support shaft 13 and the pin 18a are passed through the circular holes 52 and 54, and the latching piece 51 is latched to the protrusion 19. And connect by snap fit. Thereby, the assembly of the lens barrier device as shown in FIG. 1 is completed.

  Next, the operation of this apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS. For convenience of explanation, the cover 50 is omitted in FIGS. 9 and 11 (only the opening 50a is indicated by a two-dot chain line), and the cover 50 is omitted in FIGS. 10 and 12 (only the opening 50a is indicated by a two-dot chain line). In addition, the barrier blades 20, 30, etc. are indicated by two-dot chain lines.

  First, in a state where the cam portion 42 of the drive ring 40 does not receive a pressing force from the engagement protrusion P or the like on the camera side, the drive ring 40 is biased by the spring 70 and is positioned at the counterclockwise rotation end. At this time, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the first barrier blade 20 and the second barrier blade 30 have the engaged portions 22, 32 against the urging force of the spring 60, while the drive ring 40. Pushed by the engaging pieces 43a and 43b, the cover 50 is located at the open position where the opening 50a is fully opened.

From this state, when the cam portion 42 of the drive ring 40 receives a pressing force from the engagement protrusion P or the like on the camera side and the drive ring 40 rotates clockwise by a predetermined angle while resisting the biasing force of the spring 70, The engagement pieces 43a and 43b of the drive ring 40 are retracted from the engaged portions 22 and 32 of the barrier blades 20 and 30, and at the same time, the first barrier blade 20 and the second barrier blade 30 are counteracted by the biasing force of the spring 60. Rotate clockwise to close.
In this closing operation, the barrier blades 20 and 30 are free of rattling or the like in the optical axis direction L because the sliding pieces 27 and 37 are guided along the guide path 12. As a result, the closing operation is performed smoothly and stably.

  11 and 12, the fitting convex portion 25 of the first barrier blade 20 is fitted into the fitting concave portion 36 of the second barrier blade 30, and the fitting convex portion 35 of the second barrier blade 30. Is fitted into the fitting recess 26 of the first barrier blade 20, and the contact end surface 23 of the first barrier blade 20 contacts the contact end surface 33 of the second barrier blade 30. The surface 24 opposes in the state which contacted the opposing surface 34 of the 2nd barrier blade 30. FIG.

In this way, the fitting convex portions 25 and 35 are fitted into the fitting concave portions 26 and 36, respectively, so that the first barrier blade 20 and the second barrier blade 30 do not cause a step in the optical axis direction L. Therefore, the opening 50a is closed and the appearance is improved.
Further, since the contact end surfaces 23 and 33 come into contact with each other and are reliably shielded, and the opposing surfaces 24 and 34 face each other in the optical axis direction L perpendicular to the contact end surfaces 23 and 33, light or dust from the outside And the like are reliably prevented.

  In particular, the barrier blades 20 and 30 have fitting convex portions 25 and 35 on the tip side, and fitting concave portions 26 and 36 near the swinging support shafts (support shaft 13 and cylindrical portions 21 and 31), respectively. Since the vicinity of the tip ends of the barrier blades 30 and 20 are fitted in the vicinity of the swinging support shafts of the barrier blades 30 and 20, the tip side where the step is likely to be generated is reliably positioned by the other barrier blade, and the step is generated. More reliably prevented.

  As described above, according to this apparatus, the plurality of barrier blades 20 and 30 are not stacked in the optical axis direction L, but are arranged on the same plane, so that the apparatus can be thinned in the optical axis direction L. Since the plurality of barrier blades 20 and 30 are positioned flush with each other, it is not necessary to manage the dimensional tolerance of each component with high accuracy in order to prevent a step, and the cost of the apparatus can be reduced.

In the above embodiment, the two barrier blades 20 and 30 are shown as a plurality of barrier blades. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and as long as a fitting convex portion and a fitting concave portion can be provided, three barrier blades can be provided. You may employ | adopt the structure of this invention in the above barrier blade | wing.
In the above-described embodiment, the drive ring 40 is shown as a drive mechanism that is rotated by the cam action by receiving a pressing force from the engagement projection P or the like on the camera side, but is not limited thereto, and is manually rotated. The configuration of the present invention may be employed in a configuration including a drive ring or other drive mechanism.

  In the above-described embodiment, a configuration in which the fitting convex portions 25 and 35 are provided near the tip of the barrier blades 20 and 30 and the fitting concave portions 26 and 36 are provided near the swinging support shaft of the barrier blades 20 and 30 is shown. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a configuration in which a fitting concave portion is provided near the tip of the barrier blades 20 and 30 and a fitting convex portion is provided near the swing support shaft of the barrier blades 20 and 30 is adopted. Also good.

  As described above, the lens barrier device according to the present invention is not limited to a camera equipped with a retractable lens barrel as long as it is disposed on the front surface of the lens and protects the lens, and other digital still cameras, It can also be used in digital video cameras, silver salt film cameras, and the like.

1 is an external perspective view showing an embodiment of a lens barrier device according to the present invention. It is a disassembled perspective view of the lens barrier apparatus shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the base which makes a part of lens barrier device. It is a perspective view which shows the drive ring as a drive mechanism which makes a part of lens barrier device. It is a perspective view which shows the state which two barrier blades mutually separated and opened the opening part. It is a perspective view which shows the state which two barrier blades approached each other and closed the opening part. FIG. 2 shows a relationship between two barrier blades in a closed state, (a) is a sectional view showing respective contact end faces and opposing faces, and (b) shows another embodiment of the contact end faces and opposing faces. It is sectional drawing. It shows the relationship between the base, drive ring, barrier blade, cover, etc. constituting the lens barrier device, (a) is a sectional view showing the vicinity of the support shaft, and (b) is a sectional view showing the vicinity of the cam portion. is there. It is a top view which shows the state which two barrier blades opened the opening part. It is a top view which shows the state which two barrier blades opened the opening part. It is a top view which shows the state which two barrier blades closed the opening part. It is a top view which shows the state which two barrier blades closed the opening part.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Base 10a Opening part 12 Guide path 13 Support shaft 20 1st barrier blade | wing 21 Cylindrical part 22 Engagement part 23 Abutting end surface 24, 24 'Opposing surface 25 Fitting convex part 26 Fitting concave part 27 Sliding piece 30 2nd Barrier blade 31 Cylindrical part 32 Engaged part 33 Abutting end face 34, 34 'Opposing surface 35 Fitting convex part 36 Fitting concave part 37 Sliding piece 40 Driving ring (driving mechanism)
41 Annular part 42 Cam part 50 Cover 50a Opening part 60, 70 Spring

Claims (7)

A base that defines an opening; a plurality of barrier blades that are provided so as to be swingable with respect to the base and cooperate to open and close the opening; and a drive mechanism that drives the opening and closing of the plurality of barrier blades. ,
Each of the plurality of barrier blades is provided so as to be swingable on the same surface, and has a fitting convex portion and a fitting concave portion that can be fitted in the swinging direction. The fitting convex part and the fitting concave part of the blade are formed so as to be fitted to the fitting concave part and the fitting convex part of other barrier blades, respectively.
A lens barrier device. Each of the plurality of barrier blades is continuous with the abutting end surface that can abut in the swinging direction and the abutting end surface so as to face each other in a contact or non-contact manner in a direction substantially perpendicular to the swinging direction. A formed opposing surface,
The lens barrier device according to claim 1. The plurality of barrier blades include a first barrier blade and a second barrier blade each having the fitting convex part and the fitting concave part,
The lens barrier device according to claim 1, wherein the lens barrier device is a lens barrier device. One of the fitting convex part and the fitting concave part is provided near the tip of the first barrier blade and the second barrier blade,
The other of the fitting convex part and the fitting concave part is provided closer to the swing support shaft of the first barrier blade and the second barrier blade.
The lens barrier device according to claim 3. The base has a guide path for slidably guiding the plurality of barrier blades,
The lens barrier device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the lens barrier device is provided. The base is provided with a cover that defines an opening and is connected to cover the plurality of barrier blades.
The lens barrier device according to claim 1, wherein the lens barrier device is a lens barrier device. The plurality of barrier blades are formed of a resin material,
The lens barrier device according to claim 1, wherein the lens barrier device is a lens barrier device.

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