JPH06160971A - Switching mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To decrease the influence of a hand shake at the time of photographing by instructing the various operations of a camera without contact. CONSTITUTION:The distance 1 between a camera body 7 and a photographer's forefinger 6 is measured by a photoreflector 9 and the output thereof is detected as a voltage change in a PR circuit 10 and is converted into digital data by an A/D converter 11. Further, a microcomputer 12 outputs signals to an LED decoder driver 13, an AE-AF circuit 15 and an exposing circuit 16, respectively in accordance with the digital data. The LED decoder driver 13 lights an LED display element 14 upon receipt of this signal. The AE-AF circuit 15 measures the light and distance of a subject. The exposing circuit 16 starts exposing of a film. A range finder frame 18 is displayed in a finder 17 and the lighting states of 8 pieces of LEDs of the LED display element 14 are displayed by a level meter 19.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a switch mechanism for instructing a release operation of a camera in a non-contact manner.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, the start of photographing by a camera is instructed by a mechanical release system in which a release button is pushed with fingers. However, the camera body shakes due to the operation force when the operator presses the release button, and the exposure time becomes long particularly when the camera is narrowed down or in the dark, so the effect of the camera shake becomes remarkable. Therefore,
There has been proposed a technique for instructing the start of shooting in a non-contact manner without pressing the release button.

For example, in JP-A-3-36532, JP-A-3-36533, and JP-A-4-56935, a grip sensor and an eye sensor are used, and no special operation is required, and a normal photographing operation is performed. Discloses a technique relating to a camera with an eyepiece detection function, which takes measures against noise to start the operation of various functions of the camera without the photographer being aware of it.

Further, in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 60-205432, it is possible to selectively perform a projection operation by voice input, either by manual release operation or input, so that power consumption is saved and malfunction is prevented. A technique related to a voice input camera is disclosed.

Further, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 60-205433, it is possible to start the photographing operation of the camera by voice input, and by successively advancing the projection sequence of the camera by voice input, a reliable operation that does not depend on the sense of hand can be performed. Techniques relating to a voice input camera are disclosed.

Further, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-100026 discloses a technique relating to a photographing instruction device by eye-gaze detection capable of giving an operation instruction such as start of photographing without using a hand and having good operability. There is.

[0007]

However, the above-mentioned JP-A-3-36532 and JP-A-3-36533 have been mentioned above.
In the techniques disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-56935 and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-56935, when a photographer holds a camera and enters a photographing operation, AF and AE are repeatedly performed at the same time, resulting in a large amount of wasted power consumption.

Further, the above-mentioned JP-A-60-20543.
In the techniques disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2 and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 60-205433, various operations are instructed by voice input,
Release may be accidentally performed due to ambient noise or the like.

Further, in the technique disclosed in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-100026, various operations are instructed by detecting the line of sight of the photographer. Therefore, moving the line of sight removes the eyes from the main subject to be photographed. Because,
You may miss a photo opportunity.

As described above, in each of the above-mentioned techniques, various measures are taken in order to achieve the purpose of reducing the influence of camera shake, but various problems are caused due to the measures. , It is hard to say that they have achieved their purpose.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to reduce the influence of camera shake during photographing by instructing the camera to perform various operations in a non-contact manner.

[0012]

In order to achieve the above object, in the switch mechanism according to the first aspect of the present invention, a detecting means for detecting a value corresponding to the pushing amount of the switch in a non-contact manner, and the detecting means. Based on the output of the determination means for determining the amount of depression of the switch with respect to the total amount of depression, and based on the output of the determination means, a value corresponding to the amount of depression of the switch is predetermined. And a sequence control means for executing a predetermined sequence when the value exceeds.

Further, the switch mechanism according to the second aspect further comprises display means for displaying a value corresponding to the pushing amount so that the state of the switch can be confirmed based on the output of the judging means. And further,
In the switch mechanism according to the third to fifth aspects, the detecting means includes an optical sensor, a sound wave sensor, and a magnetic sensor, respectively.

[0014]

That is, the switch mechanism of the present invention is the first aspect of the present invention.
In the switch mechanism according to this aspect, the detecting means detects the value corresponding to the push amount of the switch in a non-contact manner, and the determining means determines how much the push amount of the switch is based on the output of the detecting means with respect to the entire push amount. The amount of Then, based on the output of the determination means, the sequence control means executes a predetermined sequence when the value corresponding to the switch pressing amount exceeds a predetermined value.

Further, in the switch mechanism according to the second aspect, the display means displays the value corresponding to the pushing amount so that the state of the switch can be confirmed based on the output of the judging means. Then, in the switch mechanism according to the third to fifth aspects, an optical sensor, a sound wave sensor, a magnetic sensor or the like is used as the detecting means.

[0016]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing the basic configuration of the switch mechanism of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the detection unit 1 is connected to the determination unit 2, and the determination unit 2 is connected to the transition unit 3 and the display unit 4.

In such a structure, when the detection unit 1 detects the release pushing amount in a non-contact manner, the determination unit 2 determines the magnitude of the release pushing amount, and the transition unit 3 determines the determination unit 2. It is instructed to shift to the control such as the exposure start based on. Then, the display unit 4 displays information on the amount of pushing of the release based on the determination of the determination unit 2. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the switch mechanism according to the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in the figure, the light of the LED of the photo reflector 9 is transmitted through the body 7 of the camera, which is touched by the forefinger 6 of the photographer when the user grips the grip of the camera, and the light is reflected by the transparent surface. There is a transparent plastic window 8 with a small amount. The photo reflector 9 is connected to a PR circuit 10, and the PR circuit 10 is connected to a microcomputer 12 via an A / D converter 11.

The microcomputer 12 is connected to the LED decoder driver 13 by a total of five lines, which are four lines for outputting from the lines D ₀ to D ₃ and a latch line (RA), and the LED decoder driver 13 is connected. Reference numeral 13 is connected to the LED display element 14. further,
This microcomputer 12 has an AE / AF circuit 15,
It is also connected to the exposure circuit 16. The pressure resistance element circuit 5 is also connected to the microcomputer 12.

The position of the plastic window 8 is as follows.
As shown in FIGS. 3 (a) and 3 (b), as shown in FIG. 3 (a), this plastic window 8 is provided on the grip portion of the camera body 7, and is used in a general silver halide camera. It is in the same position as the release switch. Furthermore, FIG.
As shown in (b), the release section is provided with a cover for cutting off external light to prevent the output of the PR circuit 10 from becoming unstable due to external light.

In such a structure, the distance 1 between the camera body 7 and the forefinger 6 of the photographer is measured by the photo reflector 9, and the output of the photo reflector 9 is PR.
The circuit 10 detects the voltage change, and the analog voltage is converted into a digital value by the A / D converter 11.

Further, the microcomputer 12 is based on the digital value from the A / D converter 11 and
It outputs signals to the LED decoder driver 13, the AE / AF circuit 15, and the exposure circuit 16, respectively.

Upon receiving a signal from the microcomputer 12, the LED decoder driver 13 receives eight LEs.
LED display element 14 in which D is in one package
Is turned on, the AE / AF circuit 15 performs photometry and distance measurement of the subject, and the exposure circuit 16 starts exposure of the film.

Further, in the finder 17, the distance measuring frame 1
8 is displayed, and the level meter 19 displays the lighting state of eight LEDs of the LED display element 14. The pressure resistance element circuit 5 detects pressure as a voltage change using an element whose resistance value changes when pressure is applied to the pressure receiving surface, and is not limited to this as long as it can detect a photographing state. Not a thing. The detailed operation of the switch mechanism according to the first embodiment will be described below with reference to FIGS. 4 to 11.

In the first embodiment, the pressure resistance element circuit 5 is touched to notify the camera of the start of photographing, and when the release operation is started, the index finger 6 is shifted to the right and the finger is placed on the photo reflector 9. Give instructions by moving it up and down. In this way, when the forefinger 6 has a constant height or reaches a predetermined position, shooting is started. For example, when the shutter is released, the index finger 6 can be easily moved to the right to give an instruction to that effect.

When the PR circuit 10 receives from the microcomputer 12 that the PR circuit 10 is in the photographing state based on the pressure resistance element circuit 5, and the light of the LED of the photo reflector 9 is irradiated, the LED of the photo reflector 9 is lit. The emitted light passes through the plastic window 8 of the camera body 7 and is reflected by the forefinger 6 of the photographer. The reflected light again passes through the plastic window 8 of the camera body 7 and the light receiving element of the photo reflector 9. Is received by. The amount of light received by the light receiving element and the distance 1 between the forefinger 6 of the photographer and the plastic window 8 are in inverse proportion to each other.

The presence of the plastic window 8 allows the reflected light of the PR circuit 10 to return when the index finger 6 is completely in contact with the camera. And
The data received by the light receiving element, which changes depending on the distance l, is converted into a voltage by the PR circuit 10.

The detailed connection relationship between the photo reflector 9 and the PR circuit 10 is as shown in FIG. 4, in which LED is a light emitting diode, PT is a phototransistor, and R ₁ and R ₂ are resistors. Shown respectively.

In the figure, when a positive voltage is applied by Vcc, the light emitting diode LED is turned on by a current i ₀ determined by Vcc and the resistance R ₁ , and the light is incident on the phototransistor PT which is a light receiving element. Then, the base current of the phototransistor PT flows, the phototransistor PT turns on, and the current i ₁ starts to flow.

Therefore, the output of the voltage Vout changes depending on the amount of light received by the light receiving element, and the amount of light received by the light receiving element corresponds to the changed distance 1 of the forefinger 6. Therefore, the shorter the distance ₁ is, the larger the current i ₁ is. And as a result, the output is V
It will approach the value of cc. Next, the relationship between the output voltage Vout and the distance 1 between the forefinger 6 of the photographer and the plastic window 8 is as shown in FIG.

In the figure, the horizontal axis represents the distance 1 and the vertical axis represents the output voltage Vout, and the range obtained as the voltage change is between the distances l ₀ and l ₁ . This distance l ₀ indicates when the index finger 6 contacts the plastic window 8, and the distance l ₁ indicates the index finger 6
Is determined by how close to above the plastic window 8 is to be detected, which is the portion corresponding to the stroke in terms of the release switch of the camera. In this embodiment, the distance l _1, which is the stroke amount, is a distance of about 3 mm from l ₀ .

In the above characteristic curve, the voltage Vmax corresponds to the time when the forefinger 6 of the photographer is about to release the shutter and is still in the standby state, and the voltage when the forefinger 6 contacts the plastic window 8. It corresponds to Vmin. Then, the light from the distance l ₀ is set to come into the light receiving element, between the distance 0 to the distance l ₀ light is constant output voltage does not come reflected.

Further, in the above characteristic curve, the distance l
The voltage Vout between ₀ and l ₁ changes depending on the photographer. Therefore, in order to accurately obtain the relationship between the distance l and the voltage Vout, the release operation is performed once as an exercise to practice the above-mentioned distance l.
E ² the relationship between voltage Vout and It is necessary to store it in a PROM or the like. This E ² The information in the PROM can also be used to make the display level proportional to the distance 1 as a threshold value for display described later.

By the way, the voltage Vout output from the PR circuit 10 is sent to the A / D converter 11, and an 8-bit output voltage from 0 to 5 V is used as the A / D converter 11. Disassemble.
Accordingly, the distance l ₀ For example, the output voltage Vmax and 15μm units difference from about 14μm When 4V of Vmin in FIG. 5
And l ₁ can be monitored.

In this way, the A / D converter 11 has two
56 Output voltage Vout decomposed from "0" to "256"
Is transferred to the microcomputer 12 as a digital value of. This data transfer is performed by serial communication bit by bit, and the A / D converter 11 outputs the data to the microcomputer 12 in real time. Then, the microcomputer 12 sequentially monitors A
The output data of the / D converter 11 is converted as shown in Table 1 below.

[0036]

[Table 1]

Vout in Table 1 corresponds to the voltage Vout on the vertical axis of FIG. 5 and is a value corresponding to the distance l. And
The maximum output is 4.5V (Vmax) and the minimum is 0.5V
As (Vmin), the microcomputer 12 converts each value from "0" to "8" digital value. The converted digital value is stored in the code address data of the microcomputer 12.

The A / D values in Table 1 above are the A / D converter 1
This is the data that is output from 1 and is 0 as described above.
Microcomputer 12 as an integer from 1 to 255
Judge. This A / D value corresponds to the output voltage Vout, and 5V is decomposed into 256, so the output voltage Vout
The maximum value Vmax of 4.5V is "230" when the A / D value is reached.
Then, the A / D values up to the minimum value Vmin 0.5V are as shown in Table 1 above.

Then, conversion of the A / D value output from the A / D converter 11 from "0" to "8" of data is performed as follows. That is, for example, in the conversion of data “1”, the A / D value is between “26” and “51”, and when the data is “8”, the A / D value is “20”.
It is when it is between 5 "and" 230 ".

[0040] but can also be displayed by taking at regular intervals the voltage Vout in the above Table 1, the E ² It may be performed as follows based on the information of the distance l and the voltage Vout stored in the PROM. That is, the distance l is between l ₀ and l ₁ of the distance l.
First, the distances l ₀ to l ₁ are divided into 8 equal parts according to Table 1 so that the levels are displayed at equal intervals in proportion to.

When this is expressed by an equation, Δl = (l
Since the ₁ -l ₀₎ / 8, can be displayed at regular intervals of distance l a voltage Vout corresponding to equal intervals Δl by being the threshold. Table 1 shows data
When it is “1”, it corresponds to the distance l ₀ to the distance l ₀ + Δl.
Here, the microcomputer 12 uses the A / D
The following three operations are performed based on the A / D value of converter 11.

First, when the A / D value output from the A / D converter 11 becomes "128", that is, when it is expressed by the distance l, it is measured at a point just in the middle of l ₀ and l _1.
A signal is transmitted to the AE / AF circuit 15 so that distance measurement is performed.

Next, a signal is transmitted to the exposure circuit 16 so that exposure is performed at the point where the A / D value becomes "225". Here, the reason why the A / D value "230" corresponding to the maximum value Vmax of the output voltage Vout is not performed is that the above-mentioned exposure operation is performed immediately before the index finger 6 touches the plastic window 8.

Another operation of the microcomputer 12 is to shift the LED from the line D ₀ to the line D ₃ in order to light the LED by using the LED decoder driver 13.
Output the digital value of ta. For example, data
When outputting the "8", Expressed from the line D ₀ in (bits to output a signal of the D to ₂ "L" in line D ₃ is "H" D _3, D _2, D _1, D _0: 1,0,0,0
Corresponding to).

As described above, since there are four lines D ₀ to D ₃ , 15 types of data can be transmitted by combining them and can be recognized by the LED decoder driver 13. In the LED decoder driver 13, signal lines D ₀ to D ₃ corresponding to the data “0” to “8” of the microcomputer 12, the latch line RA, and the eight lines for turning on the LED display element 14 are turned on. And are connected.

Further, the LED decoder driver 13 has 8 bits of output for 4 bits of input of data, stops its role as a decoder by the signal of the latch line RA, and outputs regardless of 4 bits of input data. 8
Bits can be kept constant. Next, the detailed connection relationship between the LED decoder driver 13 and the LED display element 14 is as shown in FIG.

As shown in the figure, the LED decoder driver 13 includes the LED 1 to LED 8 of the LED display element 14.
Each of them is connected by a line, and when the line is set to the high level "H", the LED is turned on, and when the line is set to the low level "L", the LED is turned off. And the lighting of LED1 to LED8 is dat
a Corresponding to digital values from "0" to "8".

When data is "0", none of the LEDs are turned on, and when data is "5", LED1 is turned on.
To LED5 are turned on, and LEDs 6 to 8 are turned off. In this way, the display that the LED becomes longer or shorter is made like the bar graph, and it can be used as a level meter.

Further, the LED display element 14 includes the LED 4 and L
ED8 is red and the other LEDs are green. As a result, when the red color of the LED 4 lights up, it is possible to confirm at a glance that the AE / AF circuit has been activated, and further, the fact that the operation has been transferred to the exposure circuit 16 and the shutter has been released.
It can be confirmed by the red lighting of 8.

While the above operation is being performed, LE
The D display element 14 lights up and down as a level meter. At this time, if the response is too fast and the level cannot be determined, the latch line RA connected to the LED decoder driver 13 is set to the microcomputer 12
It can be set freely by operating with. next,
The optical system for lighting the LED light emitted by the LED display element at the position of the level meter 19 of the finder 17 is as shown in FIG.

In the figure, the light guided by the focusing lens 20 for forming an image of a subject on the film surface is reflected by the mirror 21, passes through the screen mat 22, further passes through the pentaprism 23, and finally passes. The light enters the eyes of the photographer through the eyepiece lens 24.

Then, the LED display element 14 is provided in the optical path.
Is projected toward the screen mat 22 to display the level magnitude in the finder 17. With such a configuration, it is possible to display the subject and the level meter at the same time, and by setting the display method outside the frame of the viewfinder in addition to the above,
More information can be displayed. Next, FIG. 8 is an improved example of the finder display, in which the LED display element 14 is arranged below the finder 17
It is an increase in the number of.

In the figure, D ₁ is a ready-to-shoot standby state, D ₂ is a release intermediate state showing from the release operation to the first release, D ₃ is a 1R state showing the first release position, D ₄ is a release intermediate state that indicates between the first release and the second release, D ₅ is a 2R state that indicates the second release position,
D ₆ indicates AF, AE, E indicating that distance measurement and photometry have been completed.
ND state, D ₇ is a shooting prohibition state that prohibits the shutter from being released when using the self-timer or when confirming the release by trial, and D ₈ is a state where there is a lot of chattering in the release or the state of the second release is long. The release warnings and the displays D ₉ and D ₁₀ displayed when detected by the above-mentioned detection respectively indicate the mode states indicating the mode difference (for example, the camera shake prevention mode). Note that all of these judgments are made by the microcomputer 12. Next, FIG.
The operation of the microcomputer 12 of the switch mechanism according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

First, the voltage change of the pressure resistance element circuit 5 is monitored to detect the photographing state (step S10).
1) When the voltage exceeds a predetermined threshold value, it is determined that the photographing is started and the process proceeds to step S103 (step S102).
At this time, if the voltage is equal to or lower than the threshold value, the process returns to step S101 to detect the shooting state again.

Then, the voltage change of the photo reflector 9 is monitored to detect the non-contact release state (step S103), and the subroutine "level conversion" is executed based on this voltage change to replace the data. At this time,
The conversion value is stored in the data of the code address, but details will be described later (step S104).

Then, the data is output to the LED decoder driver 13 to turn on the LED (step S10).
5) When the stored data is "4",
Distance measurement is started, and when data is other than "4", the process proceeds to step S107 (step S106).

Then, the stored data is "8".
If it is, the process proceeds to step S108 to check whether the exposure is started, and if data is other than "8",
The process returns to step S103 to see the release state (step S107).

In step S108, if the photometry / distance measurement is completed, the process proceeds to step S109, and if not completed, the process proceeds to step S103 to monitor the release. Then, when the exposure is started, it is confirmed in step S110 whether or not the exposure is completed (step S1).
09). Here, we will wait until the end. When the processing is finished in this way, step S1 is again performed for the next shooting.
Returning to 01, a series of operations is repeated.

After the exposure is completed in step S110, when the shutter is released, the display is erased and reset, the display is continued until the state before the release is released once after the shutter is released, or the continuous shooting mode is set. In this case, the usability is further improved by providing the function of continuously displaying the shutter release. Next, the sequence of the subroutine "level conversion" in step 103 of FIG. 9 will be described with reference to FIG.

First, when the A / D value monitored by the A / D converter 11 is 205 or more and less than 230, step S2
If not 10 above, the process proceeds to step S202 (step S201).

Then, in step S210, L in FIG.
8 is stored in the code address data so that all of ED1 to LED8 are turned on. Similarly, step S2
In 02, when the A / D value is 179 or more and less than 205, the process proceeds to step S211, and otherwise proceeds to step S203. Then, in step S211, LED1 to LED
7 to the code address data to light up to 7
To be stored.

In the same manner, steps S212 to S2 are divided according to the cases of steps S203 to S208.
The data corresponding to 09 is stored in the code address data.

As described above, according to the switch mechanism of the first embodiment, the release operation, which has been performed by the up and down operation up to now in the above-described configuration, can be easily performed by using the non-contact switch. You can do it in action.
The present invention is not limited to this, and various improvements and
It can be changed. For example, as shown in FIG. 11A, the photo interrupter 27, which is the same optical sensor, can be used instead of the photo reflector 9 which is the detection unit 1.

In this case, the release portion is composed of a release button 26, a spring 25 that feels a very small amount of force pushing the release button 26, a light shield plate 28 and a photo interrupter 27 connected to the lower part of the release button 26 in the drawing. Composed.

When the release button 26 is pushed, the light shield plate 28 enters the gap of the photo interrupter 27. Then, the photo interrupter 27
A value corresponding to the pressing amount of the release button 26 can be obtained by changing the voltage. Therefore, with the above configuration, the non-contact switch can be easily configured with a shape that is not affected by external light and is the same as that of a release switch of a general camera.

Further, as shown in FIG. 11B, the pressure resistance element 29 is arranged at a position higher than the photoreflector 9 and the index finger 6 is placed in the state shown in FIG. The output change may be detected.

Further, as shown in FIG. 11 (c), by using the photodetector and the LED for the detection unit 1 as the detection unit 1, the light of the LED in front of the grip unit is made to be three photodiodes facing each other. It can also be configured to receive light.

In such a structure, when the forefinger 6 is moved in the direction of the arrow, the light of the LED is blocked and the output of the voltage appears on the photodiode side. At this time, 3
By looking at the outputs of the two photodiodes, the index finger 6
You can see how much is moving in the direction of the arrow. Also, the greater the number of photodiodes and LEDs, the more detailed confirmation can be made. Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.

The second embodiment is characterized in that an ultrasonic sensor is used in the detecting portion, whereas an optical sensor is used in the detecting portion in the first embodiment, and other configurations are as follows.
The description is omitted because it is the same as the determination unit, the transition unit, and the display unit after the detection unit in the first embodiment described above. Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 12, a detection unit using the ultrasonic sensor of the second embodiment will be described.

As shown in the figure, the detection unit of this embodiment is
A piezoelectric element 30 which is an ultrasonic sensor, a transmitting circuit 31 for vibrating the piezoelectric element 30 at a specific frequency to generate ultrasonic waves, and ultrasonic waves generated by the transmitting circuit 31 are transmitted to an object such as the forefinger 6. It is composed of a receiving circuit 32 for picking up the ultrasonic waves reflected and returning to the piezoelectric element 30, and the transmitting circuit 31 and the receiving circuit 32 are connected to the microcomputer 12, respectively.

In such a structure, the piezoelectric element 3
0 detects how far the forefinger 6 of the photographer is separated from the piezoelectric element 30 by reflection of ultrasonic waves. In principle, the piezoelectric element 30 is bent at a high frequency by utilizing the property that the element is bent when a voltage is applied, and ultrasonic waves are generated by its reaction.

On the other hand, since the piezoelectric element 30 also has the characteristic of generating a voltage when pressure is applied, it is possible to generate a voltage by picking up returning ultrasonic waves. It is the transmission circuit 31 that functions to generate ultrasonic waves in the piezoelectric element 30 utilizing the above characteristics. Generally, in order to drive the piezoelectric element 30 with a high voltage, the transmission circuit 31 supplies a high-frequency high-frequency voltage. Output.

Further, the ultrasonic wave generated by the transmitting circuit 31 is detected again by the receiving circuit 32, which is determined by the input voltage, and the transmitting circuit 31 and the receiving circuit 32 are connected to the same piezoelectric element 30. Therefore, the microcomputer 12 controls the transmission and the reception to be performed alternately. This allows the index finger 6 in real time.
The distance between and the piezoelectric element 30 can be measured.

Here, the microcomputer 12 measures the distance as described below. That is, the ultrasonic wave is generated from the piezoelectric element 30 through the transmitting circuit 31 at a certain time T ₁ , and the time T ₂ is the time when the generated ultrasonic wave is received by the receiving circuit 32 through the piezoelectric element 30. The time obtained by subtracting the time T ₁ from the time T ₂ is the distance between the forefinger 6 of the photographer and the piezoelectric element 30.

The longer the time (T ₂ −T ₁ ) is, the greater the distance is, and the shorter the time is, the shorter the distance is. Therefore, the time can be calculated from the time (T ₂ −T ₁ ). This calculation is performed by the microcomputer 12. As described above, according to the second embodiment, the same effect as that of the first embodiment can be obtained even if the ultrasonic sensor is used for the detection unit of the first embodiment. Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described based on FIG. The third embodiment is characterized in that a magnetoresistive element is used in the detection unit 1 of the first embodiment. In FIG. 13, the MR circuit 34 changes its internal resistance when receiving the external magnetic field of the lightweight magnet 33 attached to the forefinger 6 of the photographer.

The MR circuit 34 is shown in detail in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 4, it is composed of a magnetic resistance element 35 and a resistance R which serves as a dividing resistance for monitoring a change in the internal resistance of the porcelain resistance element 35 as a voltage. A voltage of R / (MR + R · Vcc) is output to.

In the same circuit, a pressure resistance element whose resistance value changes when the pressure changes instead of the magnetic resistance element 35 can be detected in exactly the same manner. Therefore, the pressure resistance element can also be applied. In this case, the voltage Vo
Changes correspond to changes in the distance between the index finger 6 and the MR, so the changes in the voltage Vo are monitored by the A / D converter 11 and measured.

Further, the release switch portion at this time has the structure shown in FIG. 15, and the release switch 33, the spring 20 having a considerably weak repulsive force, and the magnetoresistive element 35 are respectively located. With such a configuration, since it has the same shape as a release switch of a general camera, it is difficult to feel a sense of discomfort, and the position where the release is started can be easily confirmed. Therefore, according to the third embodiment, the same effect as that of the first embodiment can be obtained by using the magnetoresistive element in the detection unit of the first embodiment.

As described in detail above, in the switch mechanism of the present invention, the release switch of a general camera uses a photoreflector, a piezoelectric element, a magnetoresistive element or the like to release the camera in a non-contact manner. Since it is possible, it is possible to reduce the influence of camera shake in the relays operation.

Further, since the amount of pushing of the release is displayed in the viewfinder, the shutter chance is not missed, and there is little possibility that the release will be accidentally released due to other noises or noises. Further, when the release switch is detected after confirming the photographing standby by the pressure resistance element or the like, there are various advantages such that there is no fear of consuming unnecessary power consumption.

[0081]

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a switch mechanism that reduces the influence of camera shake at the time of photographing by allowing various operations of the camera to be instructed in a non-contact manner.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing a basic configuration of a switch mechanism of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a switch mechanism according to the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

3 (a) and 3 (b) are views showing an arrangement position of a plastic window 8. FIG.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a detailed connection relationship between a photo reflector 9 and a PR circuit 10.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a relationship between a distance 1 between an index finger 6 of a photographer and a plastic window 8 and an output voltage Vout.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a detailed connection relationship between the LED decoder driver 13 and the LED display element 14.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of an optical system for lighting the LED light emitted by the LED display element at the position of the level meter 19 of the finder 17.

FIG. 8 is an example of an improved viewfinder display, and the viewfinder 1
7 is a diagram showing a state in which the LED display element 14 is arranged below 7 and the number of LEDs is increased.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining an operation of the microcomputer 12 of the switch mechanism according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining a sequence of a subroutine “level conversion” in step 103 described above.

11A to 11C are diagrams showing an improved example of the first embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a configuration of a switch mechanism according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a configuration of a switch mechanism according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of an MR circuit 34 of a third embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of a release switch section of the third embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Detection part, 2 ... Judgment part, 3 ... Transition part, 4 ... Display part, 5
... pressure resistance element circuit, 6 ... photographer's finger, 7 ... camera body, 8 ... plastic window, 9 ... photo reflector, 10
... PR circuit, 11 ... A / D converter, 12 ... Microcomputer, 13 ... LED driver, 14 ... LED display element, 15 ... AE / AF circuit, 16 ... Exposure circuit, 17
... finder, 18 ... distance measuring frame, 19 ... level meter, 2
0 ... Condensing lens, 21 ... Mirror, 22 ... Screen mat, 23 ... Penta prism, 24 ... Eyepiece lens, 25 ...
Spring, 26 ... Release button, 27 ... Photo interrupter,
28 ... Shading plate, 29 ... Pressure resistance element, 30 ... Piezoelectric element,
31 ... Transmission circuit, 32 ... Reception circuit, 33 ... Magnet, 34 ...
MR circuit, 35 ... Magnetoresistive element.

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[Procedure amendment]

[Submission date] March 23, 1993

[Procedure Amendment 1]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0079

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

As described in detail above, in the switch mechanism of the present invention, the release switch of a general camera uses a photoreflector, a piezoelectric element, a magnetoresistive element or the like to release the camera in a non-contact manner. Since it is possible, it is possible to reduce the influence of camera shake in the release operation.

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A detection means for detecting a value corresponding to the push-in amount of the switch in a non-contact manner, and to what extent the push-in amount of the switch is based on the output of the detecting means with respect to the total push-in amount. And a sequence control means for executing a predetermined sequence when the value corresponding to the pressing amount of the switch exceeds a predetermined value based on the output of the judgment means. Switch mechanism characterized by. 2. The display device according to claim 1, further comprising display means for displaying a value corresponding to the pushing amount so that the state of the switch can be confirmed based on the output of the determination means. Switch mechanism. 3. The switch mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the detection means includes an optical sensor. 4. The switch mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the detection means includes a sound wave sensor. 5. The switch mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the detection means includes a magnetic sensor.