JPH09211563A - Camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily set a specified stroboscopic mode by providing a camera with a setting means for storing specified stroboscopic mode information in a storage means and a switching means so that the circulating order of only the part of the specified mode may be changed based on the information in the storage means. SOLUTION: The switching means 7 circularly switches plural stroboscopic modes such as the propriety of the actuation of a red-eye softening function or strobe light emission at the time of photographing. A display means 8 such as an LCD, etc., displays to confirm in what state the photographing mode including the stroboscopic mode is. A main switch 9 functioning also as the setting means sets a condition on the propriety of the actuation of the camera and stores the mode in the storage means in the case the specified mode is set out of the stroboscopie mode. As for the circulation of the stroboscopic mode, the circulating order of only the part of the specfied mode is changed based on the information in the storage means.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a camera having a plurality of strobe modes.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, in order to reduce the frequency of occurrence of red-eye effect when stroboscopic photography is performed in the dark, before the shutter is opened (strobe irradiation) in order to narrow the pupil of the person who is the subject in advance. There are many cameras provided with a red-eye reduction function that irradiates a subject with light from a lamp or the like.

In such a camera, even when the operating state of the red-eye reduction function is stored according to the user's setting and the camera is once stopped (main switch OFF) and then re-enabled (main switch ON). A learning function of a so-called red-eye reduction function, which can be adjusted to the previously set state, is disclosed in JP-A-7-43787.

In addition, a plurality of flash modes (for example, an automatic flash mode for automatically flashing in the dark,
There are many cameras equipped with a forced flash mode that flashes regardless of the brightness of the subject.

In such a camera, the strobe mode is generally cyclically switched by a single switch. As for the red-eye reduction function, "automatic flash mode with red-eye reduction function""automatic without red-eye reduction function" By using one type of strobe mode such as "light emission mode", a single switch for setting the red-eye reduction function is often omitted.

[0006] Further, the learning function is used in a mode that is frequently used (for example, in the automatic light emission mode, there is a red-eye reduction function /
None) is generally used to improve the operability of the user. In addition, the above-mentioned frequently used modes are collected at the beginning of circulation to enhance operability.

[0007]

However, a learning function for preferentially setting a specific mode (a frequently used mode, etc.) among strobe modes (for example, a red-eye reduction function is incorporated in the strobe mode cycle as described above). In this case, the red-eye reduction learning function) is the easiest to store only the set flash mode. In the setting method, the stored mode is changed in order since the stored mode is changed sequentially. All cycles must be done to reset to the first mode if it is not. For example, if there are five modes, the learning function targets that are frequently used are the first two, and the set mode is the second mode, in order to reset to the first mode, Four modes of circulation must be performed. This is a defect as a learning function for the purpose of performing a simple setting of a frequently used mode, and there is a problem in operability.

An object of the invention according to the present application is to provide a camera capable of easily setting a specific strobe mode.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In a camera capable of cyclically switching a plurality of strobe modes, a configuration for realizing the object of the invention according to the present application sets a specific mode among the strobe modes. Storage means for storing,
A setting means for storing the set specific strobe mode information in the storage means and a switch means for switching the strobe mode are provided, and the circulation of the strobe mode is based on the information in the storage means. The camera is characterized in that the cyclic order is changed only in a specific mode portion.

In this configuration, the plurality of strobe modes include at least an automatic light emission mode with a red-eye reduction function and an automatic light emission mode without a red-eye reduction function, and the specific modes stored in the storage means include the two modes. And

[0011]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

(First Embodiment) FIGS. 1 to 6 show a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a camera, (a) is a front view,
3B is a rear view, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the stroboscopic light emitting portion, and FIG.
FIG. 3 is an electric circuit block diagram of the camera of the present invention. In these figures, 1 is a stroboscopic light emitting unit for irradiating light to a subject during shooting in the dark, 11 is a xenon tube for illuminating the subject during shooting, and 12 is for irradiating the subject before shooting. The red-eye reduction lamp for narrowing the pupil and reducing the red-eye (which is a so-called red-eye reduction function), and 13 for reflecting the emitted light of the xenon tube 11 and the red-eye reduction lamp 12 toward the subject Reflective shade,
Reference numeral 14 is a Fresnel lens for converging the light emitted from the xenon tube 11 and the red-eye reducing lamp 12 directed toward the subject by the reflector 13 toward the subject.

Reference numeral 2 is a release switch for starting the photographing operation of the camera, and 3 is a lens barrel having a photographing lens, inside of which a shutter for controlling the exposure amount to the film is arranged. Reference numeral 4 is a known distance measuring sensor for measuring the distance to the subject, 5 is a known photometric sensor for measuring the luminance of the subject, and 6 is a finder for confirming the photographing angle of view.

Reference numeral 7 is a switch means for cyclically switching between a plurality of strobe modes such as the operation of the red-eye reduction function at the time of photographing and the presence / absence of stroboscopic light emission, and 8 is a state of a photographing mode including the strobe mode. A display means such as an LCD for confirming whether or not the like, 9 sets the operation enable / disable state of the camera, and stores a mode in the storage means described below when a specific one of the strobe modes is set. The main switch also serves as a setting means for

The strobe mode which can be set by the switch means 7 in the present embodiment has a "red-eye reduction function" in which the red-eye reduction lamp is automatically turned on in the dark and the strobe is emitted when the shutter is opened (during film exposure). "Automatic flash mode (R-AUTO)", "Red-eye reduction function automatic flash mode (AUTO) without flashing red-eye reduction lamp automatically when the shutter is open (during film exposure) in dark conditions, subject "Forced flash mode (M-ON)" that flashes when the shutter is open (during film exposure) regardless of the brightness of the flash, "Forced flash mode (M-OF) that flashes regardless of the brightness of the subject"
F) "," When the shutter is open (during film exposure) after the red-eye reduction lamp is automatically turned on in dark conditions, the flash fires and the shutter remains open for a while "Slow sync mode (SLOW-S) There are five types of the above, and the specific modes for storing in the storage means by the main switch 9 as described above are “automatic light emission mode with red-eye reduction function (R-AUTO)” and “automatic emission mode without red-eye reduction function (AUTO)”. There are two modes.

Reference numeral 31 is a control circuit for controlling the entire camera, and is provided with recording means 311 for recording measurement information.
Reference numeral 32 is a known distance measuring circuit including the distance measuring sensor 4, 33
Is a known photometric circuit including the photometric sensor 5, 34 is a red-eye lamp drive circuit for lighting the red-eye reducing lamp 12, 35 is xenon depending on the photometric result of the photometric circuit 33 and the strobe mode set by the switch means 7. A strobe drive circuit for causing the tube 11 to emit light, 36 is a shutter drive circuit that controls the amount of exposure to the film by opening and closing shutter blades (not shown) by energizing the coil 37, and 38 is exposure to the film A feeding circuit that controls the rotation operation of the feeding motor 39 to feed a predetermined amount (for example, one frame) of film after the operation is completed.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the camera of the embodiment, which starts when the main switch 9 is turned on.

In step S101, the setting status of the strobe mode among the contents stored in the storage means 311 is confirmed. If the setting status is "0", the process proceeds to S102, and if "1", the process proceeds to S103. S102 is the flash mode circulation pattern 0 (AUTO → R-AUTO → M-ON → M-O) that first sets the “automatic flash mode without red-eye reduction function (AUTO)”.
FF → SLOW-S → AUTO → ...). S
103 is an "automatic flash mode with red-eye reduction function (R-AU
Strobe mode circulation pattern 1 to set (TO) first
(R-AUTO → AUTO → M-ON → M-OFF → S
LOW-S → R-AUTO → ...) is set. The difference between the strobe mode circulation pattern 0 and the strobe mode circulation pattern 1 is a specific mode, that is, the circulation order of "automatic flash mode without red-eye reduction function (AUTO)" and "automatic flash mode with red-eye reduction function (R-AUTO)". The only difference is.

In S104, it is detected whether or not the switch means 7 is pressed (turned on), and if it is turned on, S
If not, the process proceeds to S106.

In S105, one mode of strobe mode setting is circulated according to the strobe mode circulation pattern set in S102 or S103, and the process proceeds to S104 again. In S106, it is detected whether or not the release switch 2 is turned on, and if it is turned on, the process proceeds to S107, and if not, the process proceeds to S108.

In step S107, known distance measurement by the distance measuring circuit 32 and known light measurement by the photometric circuit 33 are performed, an appropriate exposure amount is calculated by the control circuit 31, and the shutter drive circuit 36 is driven based on the calculation result ( Depending on the strobe mode that has been set, the red-eye lamp drive circuit 34 drives the red-eye lamp to turn on and the strobe drive circuit 35 also emits strobe light) to expose the film, and then the feed circuit 38 is driven. Feed the amount of film. A so-called shooting operation is performed.

In S108, it is detected whether or not the main switch 9 is turned off, and if it is turned off, the process proceeds to S109, and if not turned off, the process proceeds to S104 again.

In step S109, it is determined whether or not the set strobe mode is a specific mode ("automatic light emission mode without red-eye reduction function (AUTO)" or "automatic light emission mode with red-eye reduction function (R-AUTO)"). Judgment, if it is the specific mode, go to S110, and if not, S113.
Move to.

In step S110, it is determined whether or not the set strobe mode is the "red-eye reduction function-free automatic light emission mode (AUTO)". If the red-eye reduction function-free automatic light emission mode is set, the operation proceeds to step S111. When not in the automatic flash mode (in the automatic flash mode with red-eye reduction function)
Shifts to S112. In step S111, "0", which means the setting of the flash mode circulation pattern 0 for initially setting the "red eye alleviation function-free automatic light emission mode (AUTO)", is stored in the flash mode setting area of the storage unit 311. In step S112, "1" is stored in the strobe mode setting area of the storage unit 311 and means "1" which means the setting of the strobe mode circulation pattern 1 which first sets the "red-eye reducing automatic emission mode (R-AUTO)". That is, when the main switch 9, which also serves as a setting means for storing the strobe mode (specific mode), is turned off, the storage means 3 indicates which mode is prioritized.
It will be stored in 11. In S113, it is determined that the main switch 9 has been turned off, and the operation of the camera is prohibited.

The above is a series of operations of the camera according to the present embodiment.

FIGS. 5 and 6 show an example of the strobe mode display circulation of the display means 8, FIG. 5 is a conventional circulation example, and FIG. 6 is a circulation example of this embodiment. Both are likely to be frequently used "Automatic flash mode with red-eye reduction function (R-AUT
O) ”and“ Automatic flash mode without red-eye reduction function (AUT
O) ”is the specific mode that is the target of the learning function.
5 (a) and 6 (a) are both cases where "automatic light emission mode with red-eye reduction function (R-AUTO)" is initially set, and although there is no difference between the related art and this embodiment, learning Use the function to select "Automatic flash mode without red-eye reduction function (A
When "UTO)" is set to the initial setting, "Automatic flash mode without red-eye reduction function (AUTO)" that seems to be most frequently used next is "Automatic flash mode with red-eye reduction function (R-AU)"
In order to reset "TO)", it is conventionally necessary to operate the switch means 7 four times (four strobe mode shifts), as shown in FIG. Then, as shown in FIG. 6B, it can be set by one operation of the switch means 7 (one strobe mode shift).

By the way, in the present embodiment, a plurality of circulation patterns in which only the preset specific mode portions are different in order are selected based on the information stored in the storage means. Of these, a configuration in which the order of only the specific mode portion is changed (based on the stored information) does not pose any problem. Further, although the control means is also incorporated in the storage means, there is no problem even if an external storage means such as a non-volatile memory (EEPROM etc.) is used. In addition, in the present embodiment, the specific mode (target of the learning function) stored in the storage unit is “automatic light emission mode with red-eye reduction function (R-AUT
O) ”and“ Automatic flash mode without red-eye reduction function (AUT
However, the present invention is not particularly limited to these two modes, and a mode other than the above two modes may be set as a specific mode (for example, “forced light emission mode (M
-ON) "and" Forced non-emission mode (M-OFF) "are set as specific modes, and in addition to" Automatic emission mode without red-eye reduction function (AUTO) ", 3 modes are set as specific modes. It doesn't matter at all).

(Relationship Between Configuration of Embodiment and Claims) "Red-eye reduction" in which flash light is emitted when the shutter is opened (during film exposure) after the red-eye reduction lamp is automatically turned on in darkness in the embodiment "Automatic flash mode with functions (R-AUTO)", "Automatic flash mode without red-eye reduction function (AUTO)" that automatically flashes the red-eye reduction lamp in dark conditions and flashes when the shutter is open (during film exposure) , "Forced flash mode (M-ON)" that flashes when the shutter is open (during film exposure) regardless of the brightness of the subject "Forced flash mode (M-OF) that flashes regardless of the brightness of the subject"
F) "," When the shutter is open (during film exposure) after the red-eye reduction lamp is automatically turned on in dark conditions, the flash fires and the shutter remains open for a while "Slow sync mode (SLOW-S) 5 correspond to a plurality of strobe modes in the claims, and FIG.
S104 and S105 correspond to the mode switching means,
The memory 311 of FIG. 1 corresponds to the mode storage means, and FIG.
S101, S102 and S103 correspond to the selecting means. 6C and 6D correspond to a plurality of circulation mode units having different specific modes.

The present invention is applicable to various types of cameras such as single-lens reflex cameras, lens shutter cameras, video cameras,
Furthermore, for optical devices and other devices other than cameras, and further for those cameras, optical devices, and other devices, as well as devices that are applied to these cameras, optical devices, and other devices, or elements that constitute them Can be applied.

Further, the present invention is such that the whole or part of the configuration of the claims or the embodiments forms one device and is combined with another device. It may be present or may be an element constituting the device.

[0030]

According to the invention of the present application, a specific strobe mode which is frequently used can be set by operating a switch. In particular, by setting the presence / absence of the red-eye reduction function in the specific mode, it is possible to reduce costs such as omission of a single switch for setting the red-eye function, and to improve operability for the user.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a first embodiment of a camera of the present invention, in which (a) is a front view and (b) is a rear view.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a strobe light emitting unit of the camera of FIG.

3 is an electrical control block diagram of the camera of FIG.

4 is a camera operation flowchart of the camera of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a view showing an example of circulation in a conventional strobe mode in a display state.

6 is a view showing an example of circulation in strobe mode of the camera of FIG. 1 in a display state.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Stroboscopic light emission part 11 ... Xenon tube 12 ... Red-eye reduction lamp 13 ... Reflector 14 ... Fresnel lens 2 ... Release switch 3 ... Lens barrel 4 ... Distance measuring sensor 5 ... Photometric sensor 6 ... Finder 7 ... Switch means 8 Display unit 9 Main switch 31 Control circuit 311 Storage unit 32 Distance measuring circuit 33 Photometric circuit 34 Red light lamp driving circuit 35 Strobe driving circuit 36 Shutter driving circuit 37 Coil 38 Feeding circuit 39 Feeding motor

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A camera capable of cyclically switching among a plurality of strobe modes, wherein a storage means for storing the setting of a specific mode among the strobe modes and the stored specific strobe mode information. And a switch means for switching the strobe mode, and the circulation of the strobe mode is based on the information in the storage means.
A camera characterized in that the cyclic order is changed only in a specific mode part. 2. The plurality of strobe modes include at least an automatic light emission mode with a red-eye reduction function and an automatic light emission mode without a red-eye reduction function, and the specific modes stored in the storage means include the two modes. A camera characterized by that.