JPH0450932A - Motor driven zoom device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve the operability of zooming by executing continuous zoom and end point movement by means of one operating member. CONSTITUTION:This device has an instructing means which instructs the zooming in a telephoto direction or wide direction by the prescribed operation of the zoom operating member and a means which instructs the end point movement to the telephoto end and the wide end by the other operation. Namely, a switch related to the zooming is constituted of 3 pieces of brushes and four contacts provided on a zoom lever 12. The lever 12 is energized in a neutral point by a spring in a sliding direction and is kept energized upward by a spring 12a. The lens zooms in the wide and telephoto directions when the zoom lever 12 is moved small in the wide and telephoto directions. The lens is moved to the wide end and the telephoto end when the lever is moved large in the wide and telephoto directions. The continuous zoom operation is executed in this way and the end point movement to the telephoto end and the wide end is executed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to an improvement of an electric zoom device that changes the focal length of a photographic lens using a motor.

[Prior Art and Problems to be Solved by the Invention] Cameras equipped with this type of electric zoom device have been known.

Conventional electric zoom devices operate the zoom lever to
The focal length is continuously changed in the telephoto direction or wide direction. - The numerical zoom lever can be operated in both directions from the neutral position, and is configured to return to the neutral position when released. When the lens is in the zooming range, the zoom motor continues to rotate and the focal length changes continuously while the zoom lever is operated in the telephoto or wide-angle direction. When the zoom lever is released, the lever returns to the neutral position and rotation of the zoom motor is stopped.

This method has the advantage of being able to continuously change the focal length, allowing you to take photos that suit the photographer's wishes, compared to bifocal cameras that can switch between telephoto and wide-angle cameras. be.

However, with the above configuration, the lens can be moved to the telephoto end.
Alternatively, if you want to immediately move to the wide end, you have to keep operating the zoom lever, which is a cumbersome operation.

"Object of the invention" This invention was made in view of the above problems,
To provide an electric zoom device that has a continuous zoom function and can be easily moved to a telephoto end and a wide end.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an electric zoom means for changing the focal length of a photographing lens by a motor, a zoom operation member for performing a zoom operation, and a zoom operation member for performing a zoom operation. a first instruction means for instructing the electric zoom means to zoom in the telephoto and wide-angle directions by a predetermined operation of the member; and a first instruction means for instructing the electric zoom means to zoom in the telephoto and wide-angle directions by performing other operations of the zoom operation member; and a second instruction means for instructing the user.

[Example] The present invention will be described below based on the drawings. 1 to 21 show an embodiment of an electric zoom device according to the present invention.

First, the appearance of the camera will be explained according to FIGS. 1 to 3.

In FIG. 1, 1 indicates a camera body, and 2.3 indicates a zoom lens barrel.

On the front side of the camera body 1, as shown in FIG. 2, a distance measuring section 4, a finder window 5, a zoom type strobe 6, a light receiving element CdS, and a self-timer lamp 7 are provided.

On the back side of the camera body 1, there is a back cover 8, a mode button 9,
A select button 10, a drive button 11, a zoom lever 12 used for zooming and exposure of the lens and selecting a photographing method, a power button 13, a green lamp 14, a red lamp 15, and a back cover release lever 1G are provided.

The back cover 8 is opened when the back cover release lever 16 is operated in the direction of the arrow from its upward stop position toward its downward stop position. The back cover release lever 1G is at the lowering stop position when the back cover 8 is open and in the erodible position, and is raised when the back cover 8 is closed.

The mode button 9, select button 10, drive button 11, and power button 13 are all self-back switches, and when released after being pressed, they return to their initial positions.

At the top of the camera body 1, as shown in FIG. 1, a shutter button 17 and an LCD panel 18 are provided.

Next, the circuit configuration of the above-mentioned camera will be explained based on FIG. 4.

The main CPU is the center of this control circuit.

A sub-CPU that performs shutter-related processing is connected to this main CPU via a drive IC.

The main CPU performs the following controls based on inputs from information input means such as switches.

(1) Control the zoom motor and wind motor via each motor drive circuit.

(2) Controls the lighting and blinking of the green lamp 14 for distance measurement-related displays, the red lamp 15 for strobe-related displays, and the self-timer lamp 7 for self-timer-related displays.

(3) Control the display on the LCD panel 19.

(4) Perform charging control of the strobe circuit.

As a means of inputting information to the main CPU,
There are the following:

(1) A main switch that is turned on by pressing the power button 13. To turn on or stop the power, turn on the main switch.
It can be switched every time. Therefore, when the power button 13 is pressed once while the power is not turned on, the main switch is turned ON once.
When the power button is pressed once while the power supply means is on, the main switch is turned on once and the power supply is stopped.

(2) A photometry switch that is turned on by pressing the shutter button 17 one step.

(3) A release switch that is turned on by pressing the shutter button 17 in two steps.

(4) A tele switch that is turned on by tilting the zoom lever 12 from the neutral position to the tele side.

(5) A wide switch that is turned on by tilting the zoom lever 12 from the neutral position to the wide side.

(6) Zoom mode switch (7
) A mode switch that is turned on by pressing the mode button 9 for setting the exposure method.

(8) A drive switch that is turned on by pressing the drive button 11 for changing the shooting method.

(9) A select switch that is turned on by pressing the select button 10. The select button 10 is used to select the number of self-timer images, interval start time, interval time, etc. of the photographing method.

(10) Zoom code ZC for detecting lens position
O1ZC1, ZC2゜(11) When the back cover release lever 16 is pushed down, 0FFL,
The back cover switch turns ON when the back cover 8 is closed and the lever is raised to the lock position.

(12) Wind pulse switch for detecting film running.

On the other hand, the sub CPU controls a distance measurement unit consisting of an infrared LED and a PSD via an autofocus IC, and also outputs distance measurement data based on the output of the autofocus IC and photometry data based on the output of the CdS. Main C
Transfer to PU.

The drive IC controls the shutter circuit and outputs a trigger signal to the strobe circuit based on commands from the sub-CPU.

Next, details of the zoom mode switch, wide switch, and tele switch will be explained.

The zoom-related switch is composed of three brushes provided on the zoom lever 12 and four contacts.

The positional relationship of each contact point is as shown in FIG. The ground contact GND is provided over the entire movable range of the brush. Further, the contacts of the wide switch and the tele switch are provided throughout the movable range of the brush to the wide side and the tele side, respectively, except for the neutral position. The contacts of the zoom mode switch are provided over a region from the middle part of the wide switch contacts to the middle part of the teleswitch contacts via the neutral position. When each brush comes into contact with the contact portion, it becomes conductive with GND and turns on each switch.

Five types of information can be input to the main CPU by combinations of ON and OFF of the zoom mode switch, tele switch, and wide switch. This information is used for zoom operations or for shooting/exposure method settings.

For example, when operating the zoom, if you move the zoom lever slightly in the wide/tele direction, the lens will zoom in the wide/tele direction, and stop when you release the lever. If you move the lever in the wide or telephoto direction, the lens will move to the wide or telephoto end.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show other examples of zoom-related switches.

If the operation of the lens is classified only in accordance with the amount of operation as described above, there is a risk of erroneous operation. Therefore, in this example, the zooming operation is the same as the above example, and the end point movement is performed after pressing down the entire lever in a direction perpendicular to the tele-wide direction, so that the same operation can be clearly differentiated. It is said that

That is, the zoom lever 12 provided with a brush can be slid in the telephoto and wide-angle directions as in the above-mentioned example, and can also be operated in a direction perpendicular to this sliding direction, as shown in FIG. be able to. Further, the lever 12 is urged to a neutral position by a spring (not shown) in the sliding direction, and is also urged upward in the figure by a spring 12a.

The contact pattern of the code plate is as shown in FIG. 7, and the telephoto, wide switch contacts, and GND contacts are formed wide so that the brush can come into contact with them when the lever 12 is in either the upper or lower position. The contact point of the zoom mode switch is narrow so that it comes into contact with the brush only when the lever is pressed down.

The operator can perform continuous zoom operations by simply sliding the lever in the telephoto and wide-angle directions, and can also adjust the endpoints to the telephoto and wide-angle ends by pressing down on the zoom lever and sliding it in the telephoto and wide-angle directions. can be moved.

Please note that the configuration of the zoom lever is limited to the configuration above.
For example, the lever may be made to be slidable in the telephoto and wide directions, and may also be made to be able to protrude and retract from the main body, and the end point may be moved by sliding the lever while pushing it.

Next, the functions of the mode button 9 and drive button 11 will be explained.

The mode button 9 has the function of setting an exposure method.

As shown in FIG. 8, three types of exposure methods are available: auto (automatic strobe flash mode), strobe ON (strobe forced flash mode), and strobe OFF (strobe flash prohibition mode).

In FIG. 8, display marks corresponding to each exposure method are shown, but in the case of auto, there is no display mark. Also,
One counter EXPMODE (hereinafter abbreviated as EXPMODE) is prepared corresponding to the exposure method.
, EXPMODER OH" corresponds to auto, "IH" corresponds to strobe ON, r2Ji;t corresponds to strobe OFF. If you press mode button 9 repeatedly, EXPMO
DE is 0.1, 2, 0. ... will be changed in this order.

The drive button 11 has a function of setting a shooting method. As shown in FIG. 9, five types of shooting methods are available: single-frame shooting, self-timer self-W, interval, and mid-rewind. Display marks corresponding to each shooting method are also shown in Fig. 9.
It is not displayed when shooting a single frame. In addition, a counter DRrVMODE (hereinafter, DRIVMO) is set depending on the shooting method.
DE (abbreviated) is the preparation for this DRIVMOD.
ErooooB is single-frame shooting, roooIBJ is self-timer, rooloBJ is self-TIQ, ro
ollB corresponds to the interval, and rlX X XBJ corresponds to midway rewinding. In addition, "x" is "0", "1"
This means that either of these is acceptable.

If you press drive button 11 repeatedly, DRJVMO
DEfJ< 0000.0001.0010.0011
．． It is changed in the order of 0000.

In addition, in any mode, if you hold down the drive button for more than 3 seconds, DRIVMODE=IX
is set to mid-rewind mode. Display is performed on the LCD panel 19 based on EXPMODE and DRIVMODE, and control during photographing is also performed based on these.

In the interval mode, the interval start time and interval time can be set.

Here, the interval start time is a time for specifying how many minutes (seconds or hours) have passed since the start of interval photography before the first image of interval photography is to be taken. Furthermore, the interval time is the time from when the negative photographing is performed until the next photographing is performed.

In the self-timer mode, the number of shots can be selected from 1 to 5.

Next, the display contents of the LCD panel 19 will be explained with reference to FIG. 10. Exposure method marks and photographing method marks by the mode button 9 and drive button 11 are displayed in each display area according to their respective modes, and since the meaning of the name mark has already been described, the remaining marks will be explained.

In FIG. 10, rINTJ means that the imaging method is interval, and "←" below it is displayed when setting the interval time. The "S" to the left of "■NTJ" is displayed when setting the interval start time. At the same time, ")" below "S" is also displayed. 2
0 is the battery mark that lights up when the battery is exhausted, and 21
is a display area that displays numerical values of focal length, interval start time, and interval time. rmmJ is the unit mark that lights up when displaying the focal length and means millimeters, "s" means seconds, r m J means minutes, and "h" means hours, and when the time is displayed during interval shooting. Light. Here, "m" and rmmJ share a segment. These "s, m, h, mmJ are selected according to each aspect. Also, the display area 22 is for displaying the number of shots, and "EX" is a number of shots mark indicating single shooting. .

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram of the zoom code. The zoom code is generated by the contact relationship between a code plate provided on a part of the zoom lens barrel and four brushes that slide relative to the code plate.

The code plate has ZCO, ZCI, ZC2, GND (7
) It has four types of contacts. ZCO, ZCI, ZC2
When each brush comes into contact with the contact portion indicated by diagonal lines, it becomes electrically conductive with the GND brush and turns ON. The signals taken out from the brushes are "0" when each of the brushes ZCO, ZCI, and ZC2 are in contact with the contacts and conductive, and are "1" when they are not in contact. In this specification, 3-bit information detected from the conduction relationship between these terminals is defined as a zoom code.

In addition, this camera uses a lens position code PO3 (hereinafter referred to as PO3) based on the zoom code for zooming control.
(hereinafter referred to as DIV) and a focal length code DIV (hereinafter referred to as DIV). Here, the POS indicates that the lens is in the retracted position (PO2-4), that it is in the lens stop prohibited range between the wide end and the retracted position (PO2-4), the wide end (PO2-4), and the tele end (PO2-4). PO2-4) Near field, zoom range between wide end and tele end (PO2-4)
The focal length code DIV is used to divide the zoom range into 21 parts and detect the lens position. DIV in the diagram is 16
It is a decimal number display.

Note that in FIG. 11, the wide end of PO2-4 is also expressed as having a constant width, but this portion actually has no width. That is, PO2-4 occurs only when the lens is set to the wide end. P
The same applies to the telephoto end of O2-4.

The contact point ZC2 is used for wide end and telephoto end detection.

On the other hand, in the zoom range, as described above, there are 21 divisions corresponding to the focal length of the photographic lens, but the 20 stages must be divided using 2 bits. Therefore, in this example, a relative code configuration is adopted in which zoom codes 5, 4, and 6.7 are repeatedly made to correspond to DIV=IH to 14H.

With such a configuration, it is not possible to identify a single focal length code that corresponds to the focal length of the lens from only statically detected zoom codes. The lens is configured to detect the current focal length code and sequentially rewrite the focal length code stored in the memory to determine the current focal length code. Note that the focal length is displayed on the LCD panel 18 in 12 steps from 38 mm to 90 mm.

Next, the operation of the above camera will be explained based on a flowchart.

<Reset Process> When the battery is installed, the reset of the main CPU of the camera is canceled, and the program is executed from the reset process shown in FIG. 12.

First, all memories are initialized in step RTI, and signals of all switches are inputted in step RT2. Then, in step RT3, exposure and shooting method initialization processing is executed, EXPMODE, DRIVE
MODE is initialized. By this initialization, each memory has the following contents: 1-frame shooting mode, auto exposure mode, 1 self-timer frame, 10 seconds interval start time, and 10 seconds interval time.

Next, in step RT4, the zoom initialization process shown in FIG. 13 is executed.

As mentioned above, this camera uses either a zoom code or a relative code, so if the battery is removed and the memory contents are discarded, the camera itself will no longer be able to determine the current position of the photographic lens. In such a case, the zoom initialization process is performed to temporarily return the photographing lens to the storage position, which is the absolute code.

In the zoom initialization process, a zoom code is input in step ZMI, and it is determined in step ZM2 whether the zoom code is "2". The zoom code is “
2", the lens is already in the storage position, so there is no need to move the lens, but the lens is moved so that it can be confirmed that the reset has been applied. In this case, the zoom motor is rotated forward for 100 m5 in step ZM3.2M4, and reversed in step ZM5. If the zoom code is not "2", the process moves directly to step ZM5.

Next, in step ZM6.2M7, the zoom code is "2".
When it becomes "2", the process moves to step ZM8 to apply a brake on the zoom motor, and in step ZM9, the POS is set to 0 and the process returns to the reset process.

Through the above process, the lens is set to the storage position of pos=o, the reset process is completed, and the control proceeds to the lock process.

(Lock processing) Figure 14 shows the lock processing. This processing is performed when the camera is switched from the shooting standby state to the storage state by operating the power button (main switch) or by automatic storage described later. This is a process of waiting at low power.

Automatic retraction is a function that retracts the lens to its storage potential if the camera is left unattended for three minutes or more without any switch being operated. This camera also has an automatic return function that returns the lens to the state before automatic storage when the main switch is turned on again after the lens is automatically stored.

When entering the lock process, first, 3 in step LOI.
A 0 minute timer is started. This 30 minute timer is used to determine whether or not to perform automatic return when the main switch is turned on after automatic storage.

The main switch remains ON even after 30 minutes have passed after automatic storage.
If not, it is assumed that the lens has simply been forgotten to be stored, and automatic return is not performed.

Next, in step LO2, all displays on the LCD are turned off. Then, in step LO3, the flag ')FLEX
It is determined whether Z is "0" or "1". flag? FLExz is used to determine whether or not a film is attached. flag? FLEXZ is "0" when no film is set in the camera, and "j" when film is set.

If a film is loaded, the number of films is displayed on the LCD panel in step LO4. Then, in step LO5, the state of the main switch is memorized. Note that if no film is mounted, step LO5 is executed without displaying the number of films.

Next, in step LOG, signals from the main switch and the back cover switch are input.

In steps LO7 and LO8, it is determined whether the 30-minute timer has timed up or not, and if it has timed up, it is flagged? A[TORET is set to 0. The second flag 7AIJTORET is used to determine whether or not to perform automatic return of the lens.

In steps LO9 to LO15, the flag? Processes such as film loading are executed based on the state of LDEND and the back cover switch.

flag? LDEND is set to "1" when film loading is completed, and is set to rQJ when film loading is not completed. With this camera, loading is performed automatically when the film is loaded and the back cover is closed, so the flag? LDEND is rO
J occurs when the back cover is open, when the back cover is closed but no film is set, or when the rewind has finished.

First, if loading has not finished, loading will be performed if the back cover is closed, and no processing will be performed if the back cover is open. Although the loading process will not be described in detail, it is a process in which the set film is advanced up to a frame that can be photographed.

If loading has been completed and the camera back is open, the above-mentioned exposure and shooting method initialization processing and winder system initialization processing are performed, and the flag? AUTORET is “
Set to OJ. Winder initialization process,
flag? LDEND, 75g? FLEXZ, flag? REwEND is set to "O", the film number counter is also cleared, and 1. The display of the number of films on the LCD panel is stopped.

In steps LO16 and LO17, the main switch O
The change from FF to ON is monitored. Step LO1
The determination No. 6 is made by comparing the previous contents of the main switch stored in the memory with the contents of the main switch input this time.

If there is no change in the main switch or from ON to O
If it changes to FF, 5 in step LO18.
The low current consumption mode process, which is put on standby every 00m5, is executed, and the process returns to step LO5. Therefore, the camera's C
The PU continues to operate in low current consumption mode.

When the main switch changes from OFF to ON,
Flag in step LD17? The state of ALITORET is determined.

First, the flag? If AUTORET is "1", the processes of steps L020 to LO23 are executed and control is transferred to the main process. Flag at step LO20? AUTORET is set to "O". Step L
At 021, exposure method display processing is executed. Step L
At 022, photographing method display processing is executed. Step L
At O23, the lens automatic return process shown in FIG. 19, which will be described later, is executed. Through the processing of steps L020 to L023, the camera returns to the state immediately before the lens was automatically retracted.

flag? If AUTORET is "0", exposure method/photography method initialization processing is executed in step L024, and wide movement 1 processing shown in FIG. 18 is executed in step L025, and the lens is moved to the wide end. After that, move on to main processing.

Interrupt Processing> FIG. 15 shows a flowchart of interrupt processing. This process is executed based on the cutoff signal generated at intervals of 50 m5, and executes display-related processes and soft timer counting.

In step IR], an INT timer used for time measurement during intervals and self-timers is counted, and in step IR2, other timers, such as a 30-minute timer used in lock processing, are counted.

Next, in step IR3, the green lamp and red lamp are blinked. This process is a process for causing a blinking green lamp to warn of short distance and a blinking red lamp to prompt the use of a strobe at 4 Hz.

Step IR4 is a process for determining whether the hard timer of 0.5 seconds has timed up, and when the time has expired, the processes from step IR5 onwards are executed. Therefore, the processes from step IR5 onwards are executed once every ten interrupt processes.

In steps IR5 and IR6, the hard timer is restarted and a plurality of soft timers are counted.

In steps IR7 to IRIO, the display of the remaining time of the interval is permitted, and the remaining time of the interval is displayed when the camera is in automatic shooting mode and the shooting method is interval.

In step IRII, the LCD blinks and the interval mark, self-timer mark, etc.
to blink.

The processing of steps IR5 to IRII does not need to be executed very frequently; on the other hand, if it were executed every time an interrupt occurs, the interrupt processing itself would take a long time and could interfere with the main loop. , is executed every 0.5 seconds.

Main Processing> Figures 16 and 17 show the main processing. This process is repeatedly executed when the camera enters a shooting standby state by operating the main switch.

First, a 3-minute timer is started in step MAI. This 3-minute timer is used to determine automatic lens storage, and is used when the lens is stored when there is no change in any switch for 3 minutes or more.

Next, in step MA2, a select mode counter SELEMODE (hereinafter referred to as SELEMODE)
6SELEMODE, in which is set to rQJ, is used when setting modes such as self-photography and interval [photography]. Then, in step MA3, the switch information is stored in memory.

Next, in steps MA4 to MA8, flags are selected depending on the setting and operation status. Set 5WSEN to "0" or "1". flag? 3WSEN is used for photometry permission determination. ? 5WSEN=1 means photometry processing permission, ? 5WS
EN=O means that photometry processing is prohibited.

flag? 5WSEN is set to "1" because the shooting method is not mid-rewind and is it a flag? REWEND is rO
, and the photometry switch information in the memory is OFF.
, and flag otherwise? 5WS
EN is set to "O". flag? REWF and ND are set to "1" when rewinding is completed, and are set to "O" when rewinding is not completed.

In steps MA9 to MA12, flag 7REWEN is set to rQJ or "1" depending on the state of setting and operation.

flag? REWEN is used to determine permission for mid-way rewinding.

flag? REwo is set to "1" when the shooting method is mid-rewind and the release switch information in the memory is OFF; otherwise, the flag? REWEN said, “It is considered O.J.

In steps MA13 to MA18, flags are set depending on the setting and operation status. Set ZOONEN to rQJ or "1j.

This flag? Is ZOOMEN 6 flags used to determine zoom permission? ZOOMEN said, ``What is considered I is that both the teleswitch and wide switch information in the memory are OF.
In the case of F, if either one is ON, is it a flag? Z
OOMEN is set to rQJ.

Therefore, when the zoom lever is in the neutral position, the flag? ZO
OMEN will be set to "1". When you keep pushing the zoom lever towards the tele switch, or when you keep pushing the zoom lever towards the wide switch, the flag? ZOOMEN remains "0". In step MA17, the state of the switch is input.

In step MA18, the previous switch information in the memory and the switch information input in step MA17 are compared. When there is a change in the switch input, the 3-minute timer is restarted at step PlA19, and when there is no change, step MA19 is passed and the process moves to step MA20.

In step MA20, it is determined whether or not the 3-minute timer has timed up. If the 3-minute timer has timed up, steps MA21 to MA23 determine whether the flag is set? After AUTORET is set to "1" and strobe charge stop processing and lens automatic storage processing are executed, the process shifts to lock processing. That is, the power button 13, the shutter button 17, the zoom lever 12, and the drive button 11.
If 3 minutes or more elapse without operating the TW button 18 or opening the back cover 8, the lens will be automatically retracted. The automatic lens storage process in step 23 will be described later.

If the 3-minute timer has not timed up, it is determined in steps MA24 and MA25 whether or not to perform midway rewinding. Is it a flag that causes midway rewinding to be executed? This is a case where REWEN is "1" and the release switch is turned on. In this case, after the strobe charging stop process is executed in step MA26, the rewind process is executed in step MA27, and the process proceeds to the lock process. A detailed description of the rewind process will be omitted, but this process is a process for rewinding the film that has been shot or partially shot into the film cartridge.

In steps MA28 to MA34, the flag ? LDE
Processing such as loading is executed based on the states of the ND and the back cover switch. If loading has not yet been completed, if the back cover is closed, flash charging will be stopped and loading will be performed; if the back cover is open, no processing will be performed. If loading has finished,
If the back cover is open, the above-mentioned exposure and photographing method initialization processing and winder system initialization processing are performed.

Step MA35. In MA36, main switch O
The change from FF to ON is monitored. Step MA3
The determination No. 5 is made by comparing the previous contents of the main switch stored in the memory with the contents of the main switch input this time.

If there is no change in the main switch or from ON to O
If it changes to FF, the process proceeds to "B" in Figure 17, and if it changes from OFF to ON, charging of the strobe is stopped in step MA37, and the lens is moved to the storage position in step MA38. Store it and move on to lock processing.

In step MA39 in FIG. 17, exposure method/photography method setting processing is performed. In this process, the exposure method and shooting method described above are set by operating the mode button, select button, and drive button.

After completing the exposure method/shooting method setting process, step MA4
Flag at 0? 5ELECT is “1” or “0”
”. this? 5ELECT is set during the exposure method/photography method setting process, and is set to "1" when the settings have been changed. If this flag is ], it is determined that a variable setting operation is being executed, and the zoom-related and release-related processes of steps MA41 to MA54 are skipped. ``The reason why zoom-related processing is not performed while changing the output method/shooting method settings is because the tele and wide switches are shared between zoom-related and variable settings, so the settings are limited to only one of them. This is because it is necessary.

flag? When 5ELECT is "O", the flag ? The state of ZOOMEN is judged and this flag? If ZOOMEN is "1", zoom-related processing is executed in steps MA42 to MA49.

In steps MA42 to MA49, the zoom tele processing shown in FIG. 20 is executed when the tele switch is ON and the tele end has not been reached, and when the wide switch is ON and the wide end has not been reached, the zoom tele processing shown in FIG. 21 is executed. Zoom wide processing is executed. Note that before moving to zoom telephoto and zoom wide processing, strobe charging stop processing is executed.

If each end point has been reached, step MA50
~ MA54 is skipped and the process proceeds to step MA55, and if both the tele switch and the wide switch are OFF, the process proceeds to step MA50.

Therefore, when the zoom lever is operated toward the telephoto side when zoom operation is permitted, the zoom lens is moved toward the telephoto side until it reaches the telephoto end. Furthermore, when the zoom lever is operated to the wide side, the zoom lens is moved toward the wide side until it reaches the wide end.

Flag at step MA41? If ZOOMEN is determined to be "0", the process skips the zoom-related processing described above and moves to step MA50.

Step MA50. MA51 tech, 7-7g? 5WSE
Branching to the AEAF control process is determined based on the photometry switch. flag? If 5WSEN is "1" and the photometering switch is OIJ, step M
Strobe charging stop processing is performed in A52, and step MA
At step 53, AEAF control processing for controlling photometry, distance measurement, and release is executed. When the AEAF control process ends, winding process is executed in step MA54, and step M
The process advances to A55 and continues processing. The winding process is a process of winding the film by one frame after the release to prepare for the next release.

flag? If 5WSEN is 0, charging control is executed in step MA55, and then the process returns to "C" in FIG. 16 to repeat the process.

Next, processing for moving the zoom lens will be explained.

(Lens storage processing, etc.) Figure 18 shows the processing of lens storage, automatic lens storage, and wide movement.These processes are called in different places, but the latter half of the processing is the same. , shown in the same figure.

Lens storage processing and lens automatic storage processing are both processes that move the lens to the storage position.The former is executed when the camera is turned off by pressing the power button, and the latter is automatically executed when the camera is left unattended for 3 minutes or more. It is executed in The lens storage process is performed in step MA38 of the main process.
The lens automatic storage process is executed in step MA23 of the main process.

The wide movement process is a process for moving the lens in the storage position to the wide end, and is called in step LO25 of the lock process as described above.

In steps LMI to LM4, the POS value of the position to which the lens should be moved is set in the memory MVPO3. In the case of lens storage or automatic lens storage, O indicating the storage position is set, and in the case of wide movement, 2 indicating the wide end is set. In addition, in the case of automatic lens storage,
The lens position (Dm) set before storage is stored in the memory ME.
Write to MDIV. The written value is used when the lens automatically returns.

In step LM5, the current POS and MVPO8 are compared, and if POS is smaller, the zoom motor is rotated forward in step LM6, and if PO30 is larger, the zoom motor is rotated in reverse in step LM7. In a situation where lens storage or automatic lens storage is executed, the lens is in the zoom range and the POS is 2 to 4, so MVPO3 is smaller and the lens is reversed and moved to the storage position. In the situation where wide movement is executed, pos=o, so
MVPO3 is larger and the zoom motor rotates forward.

In steps LM8 to LMIO, the lens position is detected and the focal length is displayed while waiting until POS matches MVPO3. When they match, the zoom motor is braked in step LMII and the process returns to the called step. do.

- Lens automatic return process> FIG. 19 shows the lens automatic return process called at step L023 of the lock process.

In this process, first, in step LR1, the zoom motor is rotated in the normal direction.

In steps LR2 to LR4, while detecting the lens position and displaying the focal length, wait until the DIV matches the MEMDIV written by the lens automatic storage, and when they match, the zoom motor is braked in step LR5. Return to the called step.

As a result, the DIV before lens automatic storage is performed.
The lens can be returned to the position shown below.

Zoom Tele Processing> FIG. 20 is a flowchart showing the zoom tele processing called in step MA49 of the main process.

When this process starts, the zoom motor is rotated in the normal direction at step ZTI.

Then, in steps ZT2 to ZT7, either the hand is released from the zoom lever and the telephoto switch is turned off, the lens reaches the telephoto end, or the zoom lever is operated greatly toward the telephoto side and the zoom mode switch is turned off. The zoom motor continues to rotate forward while detecting the lens position and displaying the focal length. Tele switch is 0F
If the FL or lens reaches the telephoto end, the zoom motor is braked in step ZT6, and then the process returns to the main process.

On the other hand, when the zoom mode switch is turned OFF, the lens position is detected in steps ZT8 to ZTIO and the focal length is displayed while waiting for the lens to reach the telephoto end. Apply a brake to the zoom motor.

Therefore, when the zoom lever is lightly operated toward the telephoto side, the focal length of the lens changes continuously toward the telephoto side.
It stops when the zoom lever is returned to neutral. If the zoom lever is operated largely toward the telephoto side, the lens will move to the telephoto end and stop even if the lever is subsequently returned to the neutral position.

- (Zoom Wide Processing) FIG. 21 is a flowchart showing the zoom wide processing called at step MA46 of the main processing.

When this process begins, the zoom motor is reversed in step Zw1.

Next, in steps ZW2 to ZW18, the zoom lever is released and the wide switch is turned OFF, the lens reaches the wide end, or the zoom lever is operated greatly toward the wide side and the zoom mode switch is turned OFF.
The zoom motor continues to be reversed while detecting the lens position and displaying the focal length until F is reached.

If the lens passes the wide end while the zoom motor is rotating in reverse (PO2-4), step ZW6 to ZW
IO processing is executed. First, wait 50m5 after passing the wide end, then switch the zoom motor to forward rotation, wait for the lens to reach the wide end while detecting the lens position, and when it reaches the wide end, brake the zoom motor. Return to main processing.

The wide switch is turned off while the zoom motor is rotating in reverse.
If F, the processes of steps ZW11 to ZW17 are executed. First, after waiting 70 m5 after the wide switch is turned OFF, the zoom motor is rotated forward for 50 m5. Here, the lens position is detected, and if this is the stop prohibited position (POS 1) between the wide end and the storage position, the processes of steps ZW8 to ZWIO are executed. If the stop position is other than PO3=1, the focal length is displayed, the zoom motor is braked, and the process returns to the main process.

The zoom mode switch is turned OFF while the zoom motor is reversing.
If so, in steps ZW19 to ZW21, the lens position is detected and the focal length is displayed while waiting for the lens to pass through the wide end. When passing the wide end,
Wait 50m5 at step ZW22, then step ZW2
Step 3 switches the rotation of the zoom motor to normal rotation, and step Z
W24. Wait until it reaches the wide end while detecting the lens position with ZW25, and when it reaches the wide end, step ZW2
Step 6 applies the brake to the zoom motor and returns to the main process.

Note that the reason why the rotation of the motor is once switched to normal rotation before stopping the zoom motor is to eliminate mechanical backlash in the zoom drive system. Also, turn the wide switch to
If the forward rotation time is longer than the reverse rotation time after FF,
The lens will stop on the telephoto side from the position where the wide switch is turned off, and there is a possibility that the focal length display will return to the telephoto side. In order to prevent such problems, the reversal time is set to 70m5. The normal rotation time is 50 m5.

Through the above processing, when the zoom lever is lightly operated to the wide side, the focal length of the lens changes continuously to the wide side, and stops when the zoom lever is returned to the neutral position. If the zoom lever is moved to the wide side, the lens will move to the wide end and then stop even if the lever is returned to the neutral position.

"Effects" As described above, according to the electric zoom device of the present invention, continuous zooming and end point movement can be performed with one operating member, and the operability of the zoom motor can be improved.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 to 3 show the external appearance of the camera, with FIG. 1 being a plan view, FIG. 2 being a front view, and FIG. 3 being a rear view. Fig. 4 is a block diagram of the control circuit, Fig. 5 is an explanatory diagram of the contact configuration of the zoom switch, Figs. 6 and 7 are explanatory diagrams showing other examples of the zoom switch, and Fig. 8 is a display of the exposure method. Correspondence diagram, Figure 9 is the display correspondence diagram of the shooting method, Figure 10 is the LC
FIG. 11 is an explanatory view of the segments of the D panel, and is a developed view of the code plate and a corresponding view of the code plate and each code. 12 to 21 are flowcharts showing the functions of the camera of this embodiment. FIG. 12 is a reset process, FIG. 13 is a zoom initialization process, FIG. 14 is a lock process, and FIG. 15 is an interrupt process. Processing, Figures 16 and 17 are main processing, Figure 18 is lens storage processing, etc., Figure 19 is automatic lens return processing, Figure 20 is zoom tele processing, and Figure 21 is zoom Y applicant Asahi optical nid processing. It shows. Business Stock No. Section No. No. No. No. No. No. 1

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] An electric zoom means for changing the focal length of a photographic lens by a motor, a zoom operation member for performing a zoom operation, and a predetermined operation of the zoom operation member to perform zooming in the telephoto and wide direction directions. a first instruction means for instructing the electric zoom means; and a second instruction means for instructing the electric zoom means to move an end point to a telephoto end or a wide end by another operation of the zoom operation member; An electric zoom device comprising: