JPH07308027A - Electric apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent the consumption of a battery due to over activation by activating the battery through a load for activating the battery and regulating the operation of the battery activating load thereby activating the battery as required. CONSTITUTION:If a battery activating load 1 is connected with a zero mercury battery 1 prior to the operation for deciding the battery life and the counting time of a timer 12, started counting upon finishing the driving of the load 10, is within a predetermined time, the battery 1 is not activated but the lifetime is decided. The battery 1 is activated only when the counting time of the timer 12 exceeds the predetermined time. Consequently, the battery 1 is not activated every time when the lifetime is decided but it is activated only when the interval between the photographing operations is long. This arrangement prevents the lifetime of the battery 1 from shortening due to the increase of current consumption caused by the operating time of sequence prolonged at the time of continuous photographing.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electric device, particularly a battery device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Japanese Patent Application No. 5 which is a prior application filed by the present applicant.
According to No. 90517, use of the battery before the battery life determining operation is performed in the battery life determining means for determining whether or not the battery life is expired by connecting a load to the battery containing no mercury compound for a short time. A battery activation means for performing a battery activation operation that provides a sufficient load condition to stabilize the initially generated chemical properties is provided, and the temporarily generated chemical properties are stabilized, and then a normal battery is provided. The life judgment operation is performed.

[0003]

However, in the above-mentioned prior art, since the battery activation operation is performed every time the battery life determination operation is performed, not only the operation time of the sequence becomes longer, but also the load condition is given to reduce the consumption current. Is increased, which in turn shortens the battery life.

In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide an electric device which performs a battery activation operation as needed.

[0005]

According to the present invention, a battery activation means for activating a battery and a regulation means for regulating the operation of the battery activation means are provided to activate the battery as necessary. It is possible to reduce the battery consumption due to excessive activation.

Further, the regulating means regulates the operation of the battery activating means for a predetermined time from the operation of the battery activating means, so that the battery can be activated as needed with a simple structure, and the battery due to excessive activation can be It is to prevent consumption.

Further, the battery activating means is driven by driving a load, and when the load is driven for another purpose, the operation of the battery activating means is restricted for a predetermined time after the driving of the load so that the special battery can be operated. The battery can be activated without providing activation means.

[0008]

1 is a block diagram showing the outline of a camera which is an electric device embodying the present invention. In the figure, 1 is a battery which does not contain a mercury compound, which is a power source of the camera (hereinafter In the description of the example, it will be referred to as a "mercury zero battery".) 2 is a CPU that controls various circuits of the camera, and has a ROM that has a program built therein and a RAM that stores the contents of various flags. ing. 3 is a film drive circuit for driving a film feeding motor 4 for winding and rewinding a film, 5 is a known strobe circuit, and 6 is a known strobe circuit.
Is a xenon tube that flashes under the control of the strobe circuit 5, 7 is a shutter drive circuit that opens and closes a shutter (not shown), 8 is an AE circuit that measures subject brightness using a photometric sensor (not shown), and 9 is not shown AF circuit for detecting the subject distance (or the defocusing state of the photographing lens) using the photometric sensor of 10, a display device made of liquid crystal or the like for displaying various kinds of photographing information and giving a warning, and 11 as a battery activation means. A battery activation load, 12 is a timer as a time measuring means for starting time measurement from the end of the battery activation operation (after disconnecting the battery activation load), and has reached a time when the battery activation state cannot be maintained. At times, a timer flag is set and the time measurement is stopped. SW1 is a switch that is turned on by the first stroke of the release button (not shown), SW2 is a switch that is turned on by the second stroke of the release button (not shown), RWSW is a rewind switch that forcibly rewinds the film, and SESW is a self-timer. It is a self-switch for activating.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the operation of the CPU 2, which will be described below.

[Step 101] When the mercury-free battery 1 is loaded in the battery storage chamber of the camera, the process proceeds to step 102.
By this, power is supplied to various circuits of the camera.

[Step 102] Various flags are initialized (reset).

[Step 103] A film is loaded,
It is judged whether or not the back cover is closed. When the back cover is not closed, the step remains, and when the back cover is closed, the process proceeds to step 104.

[Step 104] A sub-routine for a battery remaining amount detecting operation is executed.

Although the details will be described later with reference to FIG. 3, as a result, when it is determined that the battery voltage is sufficient to continue the subsequent operation (in the case of OK), the process proceeds to step 105, and it is sufficient. When it is determined that it is not (in the case of NG), the process proceeds to step 120.

[Step 105] As a result of the above battery remaining amount detection operation, it is determined that the battery voltage is sufficient to continue the subsequent operation. Therefore, the film drive circuit 3 and the film feeding motor 4 are used. To feed the film in blank.

[Step 106] Here, the input of switches such as the switch SW1, the self switch SESW, and the rewind switch RWSW which are turned on by the first stroke of the release button is awaited.

Next, the case where the switch SW1 is turned on will be described. When the switch SW1 is turned on in this manner, the operation proceeds from step 106 to step 107.

[Step 107] Similar to step 104, the remaining battery level detecting operation subroutine is executed. As a result, if the battery voltage is OK, step 10
8. If it is NG, proceed to step 120.

[Step 108] The AE circuit 8 is operated to obtain subject brightness information.

[Step 109] It is judged from the above-mentioned subject brightness information whether or not it is dark enough to require a strobe flash. If dark, the process proceeds to step 118, and if bright, the process proceeds to step 110.

[Step 110] The AF circuit 9 is operated to detect the subject distance (or the defocusing state of the taking lens).

[Step 111] The state of the switch SW1 is determined. If the switch SW1 is off, the process returns to step 106,
If it is on, the process proceeds to step 112.

[Step 112] Second release button
Determine the state of the switch SW2 that turns on with the stroke,
If it remains OFF, the process returns to step 111 and the same operation is repeated. If it is turned on, the process proceeds to step 113.

[Step 113] The focusing lens (not shown) is driven to the in-focus position based on the information obtained in step 110.

[Step 114] Opening / closing control of a shutter (not shown) is performed via the shutter drive circuit 7 based on the information obtained in step 108.

[Step 115] Data information such as date is imprinted on a predetermined position of the photographing frame.

[Step 116] The photographic frame is wound up via the film drive circuit 3 and the film feeding motor 4.

[Step 117] A strobe charging start signal is output to the strobe circuit 5, and strobe charging is performed in preparation for the next photographing. Then, when the strobe charge completion signal is input from the circuit, the process returns to step 106 and enters a state of waiting for input of various switches.

If it is determined in step 109 that the subject brightness information is dark enough to require strobe flash, as described above, steps 109 to 1
Proceed to 18.

[Step 118] The strobe charge start signal is output to the strobe circuit 5, and then the process proceeds to the next step 119 where the strobe charge completion signal is input from the circuit.

[Step 119] The above step 104,
Similar to 107, the remaining battery level detection operation subroutine is executed. As a result, if the battery voltage is OK, the above A
The process proceeds to step 110 for performing the F operation, and proceeds to step 120 in the case of NG.

[Step 120] Here, since it is determined that the mercury-free battery 1 is NG as described later, the warning display is given through the display 10.

[Step 121] The camera is put in a hold state, and a switch input waiting state in step 106 is entered.

Next, the above steps 104, 107, 11
The subroutine of the battery remaining amount detecting operation performed in 9 will be described with reference to FIG.

[Step 151] Here, it is judged whether or not the battery activation load connection is made before the battery check, and if the connection is made as a result, the process proceeds to step 152, otherwise. Proceeds to step 153.

This is because the mercury-zero battery has been activated for a while after being activated, so it is judged whether or not it has already been activated depending on whether or not the battery activation load is connected before the battery check. If the battery activation load connection is not made, the process proceeds to step 153 where activation is performed, and if not, the process proceeds to step 152 where it is determined whether or not activation is still performed.

[Step 152] The timer flag that is set when the set time of the timer is exceeded is checked, and if the flag is set, the battery is activated. Step 1
If the timer flag is not set, the battery is still activated, so that the battery is not activated and the routine proceeds to step 157.

As a result, a new battery activation operation is not performed when the battery is activated, and the battery activation operation is performed only when the battery is not activated. Therefore, the battery check time during continuous use can be shortened. It can be carried out.

[Step 153] Here, in order to activate the mercury-zero battery 1 (remove the oxidation phenomenon and reduce the internal resistance to a normal resistance value), it is comparatively performed as compared with a normal battery check described below. A load that consumes a large current is connected to the mercury-free battery 1.

In this embodiment, the direct current battery activation load indicated by 11 in FIG. 1 is exclusively provided, and this is selected as the battery activation load.

[Step 154] Here, the energization time to the battery activating load 11 is determined, and the circuit is energized for this time. Here, the energization of the battery activation load 11 can be changed according to the operating environment temperature (the energization time can be made longer at low temperature than at high temperature), and can be changed depending on the number of times of use (number of times of photographing), and the following battery check Change based on the result of. FIG. 4 shows a state at the time of energizing the battery activation load at this time, and FIG. 4B is a current waveform when the battery activation load 11 is connected.

The energization of the battery activation load is as shown in FIG.
In addition to the case where the operation is continuously performed as shown in FIG. 5, the operation may be performed intermittently as shown in FIG. From the results of the experiment, it has been clarified that the latter can activate the battery in a shorter time.

When the energization of the battery activation load is completed for the predetermined time determined as described below, the process proceeds to step 155.

[Step 155] The battery activation load 11 is disconnected from the mercury-free battery 1.

[Step 156] The timer 12 and the timer flag are reset and the time measurement is started again.

[Step 157] Here, for example, the shutter drive circuit 7 is used to perform a normal battery check.
Is connected to the mercury-free battery 1 as a load for this.

[Step 158] The shutter drive circuit 7 is energized for a predetermined time, and the voltage across the mercury-zero battery 1 at this time is detected.

[Step 159] The shutter drive circuit 7, which is the load for the normal battery check, is disconnected from the mercury-free battery 1.

[Step 160] The voltage across the mercury zero battery 1 obtained in step 158 is compared with the battery life determination level to determine whether or not the battery voltage is a voltage at which the subsequent operation can be continued. I do. As a result, if the battery voltage is OK, the process proceeds to the next step as described in FIG. 2, and if the battery voltage is NG, the process proceeds to step 120 for displaying a warning in any case.

Further, although the voltage across the mercury-zero battery 1 is detected in this embodiment, a battery check is included to detect the speed of the member driven by the battery to determine the state of the battery.

As described above, in the battery life determination operation, before the battery life determination operation, the elapsed time of the timer which starts counting from the time when the heavy load is connected to the mercury-zero battery and the driving of the load is finished. The battery life determination operation is performed without activating the battery within the specified time, and the battery activation operation is performed only when the specified time is exceeded, so that the battery activation is performed every time the battery life determination operation is performed. The battery activation operation is performed only when the interval between one shooting and the next shooting is long, so the sequence operation time (from release to shutter) is performed when continuous shooting is performed. It is prevented that the current consumption is increased due to the increase in the power consumption) or the load condition is given, and as a result, the battery life is shortened.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an outline of a camera which is a second embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 1 is a battery which does not contain a mercury compound, which is a power source of the camera (hereinafter referred to as a battery). In the description of the examples, "zero mercury battery"
Is written. ) 2 is a CPU for controlling various circuits of the camera, and has a ROM having a program built therein and a RAM having contents of various flags stored therein. 3 is a film drive circuit for driving a film feeding motor 4 for winding and rewinding the film, and 5 is a known strobe circuit,
Reference numeral 6 is a xenon tube which is controlled by the strobe circuit 5 to emit a flash light, 7 is a shutter drive circuit which opens and closes a shutter (not shown), 8 is an AE circuit which measures the subject brightness using a photometric sensor (not shown), and 9 is An AF circuit for detecting a subject distance (or a defocusing state of the taking lens) using a photometric sensor (not shown), 10 is a display unit made of liquid crystal or the like for displaying various kinds of photographing information and giving a warning, and 12 is a strobe circuit 5
Is a timer that starts time measurement from the end of the operation of charging the capacitor (not shown), and when the time when the battery activation state cannot be maintained is reached, the timer flag is set and the time measurement is also stopped. To do.

SW1 is a switch that is turned on by a first stroke of a release button (not shown), SW2 is a switch that is turned on by a second stroke of a release button (not shown), RWSW is a rewind switch for forcibly rewinding the film, and SESW Is a self-switch for operating the self-timer.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing the operation of the CPU 2, which will be described below.

[Step 101] When the mercury-free battery 1 is loaded in the battery storage chamber of the camera, the process proceeds to step 102.
By this, power is supplied to various circuits of the camera.

[Step 102] Various flags are initialized (reset).

[Step 103] A film is loaded,
It is judged whether or not the back cover is closed. When the back cover is not closed, the step remains, and when the back cover is closed, the process proceeds to step 104.

[Step 104] The subroutine for the battery remaining amount detecting operation is executed.

Although the details will be described later with reference to FIG. 8, as a result, when it is determined that the battery voltage is sufficient to continue the operation thereafter (in the case of OK), the process proceeds to step 105, where it is sufficient. When it is determined that it is not (in the case of NG), the process proceeds to step 120.

[Step 105] As a result of the battery remaining amount detection operation described above, it is determined that the battery voltage is sufficient to continue the subsequent operation. Therefore, the film drive circuit 3 and the film feeding motor 4 are used. To feed the film in blank.

[Step 106] Here, the input of the switch SW1, which is turned on by the first stroke of the release button, the self switch SESW, the rewind switch RWSW and the like is awaited.

Next, the case where the switch SW1 is turned on will be described. When the switch SW1 is turned on in this manner, the operation proceeds from step 106 to step 107.

[Step 107] Similar to step 104, the battery remaining amount detecting operation subroutine is executed. As a result, if the battery voltage is OK, step 10
8. If it is NG, proceed to step 120.

[Step 108] The AE circuit 8 is operated to obtain subject brightness information.

[Step 109] It is judged from the above-mentioned subject brightness information whether or not it is dark enough to require stroboscopic flash. If dark, the process proceeds to step 118, and if bright, the process proceeds to step 110.

[Step 110] The AF circuit 9 is operated to detect the subject distance (or the defocusing state of the taking lens).

[Step 111] The state of the switch SW1 is determined. If the switch SW1 is off, the process returns to step 106,
If it is on, the process proceeds to step 112.

[Step 112] Second release button
Determine the state of the switch SW2 that turns on with the stroke,
If it remains OFF, the process returns to step 111 and the same operation is repeated. If it is turned on, the process proceeds to step 113.

[Step 113] Based on the information obtained in the above step 110, the focus adjustment lens (not shown) is driven to the in-focus position.

[Step 114] Opening / closing control of a shutter (not shown) is performed via the shutter drive circuit 7 based on the information obtained in step 108.

[Step 115] Data information such as date is imprinted on a predetermined position of the photographing frame.

[Step 116] The photographing frame is wound through the film drive circuit 3 and the film feeding motor 4.

[Step 117] A strobe charging start signal is output to the strobe circuit 5, and strobe charging is performed in preparation for the next photographing. When the strobe charge completion signal is input from the circuit, the process proceeds to step 130.

[Step 130] The timer 12 and the timer flag are reset, and the time measurement is started again.
The process returns to step 106 to enter the input waiting state of various switches.

If it is determined in step 109 that the subject brightness information is dark enough to require strobe flashing, as described above, steps 109 to 1
Proceed to 18.

[Step 118] The strobe charge start signal is output to the strobe circuit 5, and then the process proceeds to the next step 131 where the strobe charge completion signal is input from the circuit.

[Step 131] The timer 12 and the timer flag are reset and the time measurement is started again.

[Step 119] The above step 104,
Similar to 107, the remaining battery level detection operation subroutine is executed. As a result, if the battery voltage is OK, the above A
The process proceeds to step 110 for performing the F operation, and proceeds to step 120 in the case of NG.

[Step 120] Here, since the mercury-zero battery 1 is determined to be NG as described later,
The warning display is performed via the display 10.

[Step 121] The camera is put in a hold state, and a switch input waiting state in step 106 is entered.

Next, the above steps 104, 107, 11
The subroutine of the battery remaining amount detection operation performed in 9 will be described with reference to FIG.

[Step 201] Here, before the battery check, it is judged whether or not the strobe circuit 5 has been connected and the capacitor (not shown) has been charged. If the result shows that the connection has been made, step 152 Otherwise go to step 202. This is because the mercury-zero battery is activated for a while after a heavy load is applied.Therefore, it is judged whether it has already been activated or not depending on whether or not it has already been charged before the battery check, and the strobe is charged. If not, the process proceeds to step 202 for activation, and if not, the process proceeds to step 152 for determining whether it is still activated.

[Step 152] The timer flag that is set when the set time of the timer is exceeded is checked, and if the flag is set, the battery is activated Step 2
If the timer flag is not set, the battery is still active, so the battery is not activated, and the process proceeds to step 157.

As a result, a new battery activation operation is not performed when the battery is activated, and the battery activation operation is performed only when the battery is not activated. Therefore, the battery check time during continuous use is shortened. It can be performed.

[Step 202] Here, in order to activate the mercury-zero battery 1 (remove the oxidation phenomenon and reduce the internal resistance to a normal resistance value), it is comparatively performed as compared with a normal battery check described below. A load that consumes a large current is connected to the mercury-free battery 1.

In the second embodiment, the strobe circuit 5 which is an AC load is selected as the load for activating the battery.

[Step 154] Here, the energization time to the strobe circuit 5 which is the load for activating the battery is determined, and the circuit is energized for this time.

Here, the energization of the strobe circuit 5 is changed according to the temperature of the environment in which it is used (the energization time is made longer at low temperatures than at high temperatures), and it is changed depending on the number of times of use (number of times of photographing), and the following battery check Change based on the result of. FIG. 4 shows a state at the time of energizing the battery activation load at this time, and FIG.
It is a current waveform when is selected.

Further, the power supply to the strobe circuit 5 is not limited to the case where it is continuously carried out as shown in FIG. 4, but may be carried out intermittently as shown in FIG. From the results of the experiment, it has been clarified that the latter can activate the battery in a shorter time.

[Step 155] The battery activation load, that is, the strobe circuit 5 is disconnected from the mercury-free battery 1.

[Step 156] The timer 12 and the timer flag are reset and the time measurement is started.

[Step 157] Here, for example, the shutter drive circuit 7 is used to perform a normal battery check.
Is connected to the mercury-free battery 1 as a load for this.

[Step 158] The shutter drive circuit 7 is energized for a predetermined time, and the voltage across the mercury-zero battery 1 at this time is detected.

[Step 159] The shutter drive circuit 7, which is the normal battery check load, is disconnected from the mercury-free battery 1.

[Step 160] The voltage across the mercury-zero battery 1 obtained in step 158 is compared with the battery life determination level to determine whether or not the battery voltage is a voltage at which the subsequent operation can be continued. I do. As a result, if the battery voltage is OK, the process proceeds to the next step as described in FIG. 7, and if the battery voltage is NG, the process proceeds to step 120 for displaying a warning in any case.

As described above, in the battery life judging operation, before the battery life judging operation, the strobe circuit is connected to the mercury-zero battery, and the elapsed time of the timer for starting the counting from the time when the driving of the load is finished is predetermined. If it is within the time, the battery life determination operation is performed without activating the battery, and the battery activation operation is performed only when the predetermined time is exceeded,
Up to now, the battery activation operation was performed every time the battery life judgment operation was performed, but the battery activation operation is performed only when the interval between one shooting and the next shooting is long, so continuous shooting is performed. In this case, it is prevented that the operation time of the sequence (from the release to the shutter being released) becomes long, or the load condition is given to increase the current consumption, resulting in shortening the battery life.

In the second embodiment, the strobe circuit 5, which is an AC load, is selected as the battery activation load. However, it is not limited to this,
Heavy load (feed motor drive by film drive circuit,
Further, although not shown, driving of a motor used in the camera or the like) may be selected as a load for battery activation.

Further, the battery check includes a method of judging the state of the battery based on the speed of the member driven by the battery.

[0099]

As described above, by having the battery activating means for activating the battery and the regulating means for regulating the operation of the battery activating means, frequent activation of the battery is a cause. It is possible to reduce the processing speed and battery consumption that occur in the above.

Further, the regulating means regulates the operation of the battery activating means for a predetermined time from the operation of the battery activating means, so that the battery can be activated as needed with a simple structure, and the battery due to excessive activation can be activated. It is possible to prevent battery consumption and extend battery life.

Further, the battery activating means is driven by driving the load, and when the load is driven for another purpose, the operation of the battery activating means is regulated for a predetermined time after driving the load. Even when the special battery activation means is not provided, the time when the battery activation means is needed can be accurately grasped, the consumption of the battery due to the excessive activation can be prevented, and the battery life can be extended.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a main configuration of a camera as an electric device that is a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the operation of the CPU of FIG.

3 is a flowchart showing a "battery check operation" of FIG.

FIG. 4 (a) is a timing chart showing an example of the energization state of the load when the battery is activated in step 154 of FIG. 8, and is a diagram showing a state in which a current is continuously supplied to the strobe circuit. FIG. 4B is a timing chart showing an example of the energization state of the load when the battery is activated in step 154 of FIG. 3, showing a state in which a current is continuously applied to the DC load.

5 (a) is a timing chart showing an example of the energization state of the load at the time of battery activation in step 154 of FIG. 8, showing a state in which a current is intermittently applied to the strobe circuit. FIG. 4B is a timing chart showing an example of the energization state of the load when the battery is activated in step 154 of FIG. 3, showing a state in which a current is intermittently applied to the DC load.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a main configuration of a camera as an electric device that is a second embodiment of the present invention.

7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the CPU of FIG.

8 is a flowchart showing the "battery check operation" of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Battery containing no mercury compound 2 CPU 3 Film drive circuit 4 Film feeding motor 5 Strobe circuit 6 Xenon tube 7 Shutter drive circuit 8 AE circuit 9 AF circuit 10 Indicator 11 Battery activation load 12 Timer

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An electric device comprising: a battery activating means for activating a battery; and a regulating means for regulating the operation of the battery activating means. 2. The electric device according to claim 1, wherein the regulating means regulates the operation of the battery activating means for a predetermined time after the operation of the battery activating means. 3. A determination means for detecting the state of the battery, a battery activation means for activating the battery, and a determination means for determining permission or prohibition of the operation of the battery activation means. The means operates before the detecting means and the battery activating means, and when the operation of the battery activating means is permitted, the detecting means operates after activating the battery activating means, An electric device characterized in that when the operation of the battery activating means is prohibited, the detecting means operates without operating the battery activating means. 4. The battery activating means is driven by driving a load, and when the load is driven for another purpose, the operation of the battery activating means is regulated for a predetermined time after driving the load. The electric device according to claim 2, wherein 5. The electric device according to claim 1, wherein the battery activation means activates the battery by charging a charging means.