JPH10104711A - Camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To miniaturize a camera by making its height lower than that when a battery chamber is arranged above or below a film rewinding chamber and to facilitate the arrangement of the battery chamber over an aperture, for making the height of the camera lower by disposing a finder above the film rewinding chamber, an electric flash light emitting part ahead of the battery chamber and a light receiving part, below the aperture. SOLUTION: The battery chamber 23 loaded with a power supply battery 22 is arranged over the aperture 26. This battery chamber 23 is provided to approach the aperture 26 up to such a degree that the chamber 23 is overlapped with the edge out of the exposed range of a photographic film set in the aperture 26, in the height direction of the camera 1. The finder 5 is disposed above the film rewinding chamber 31 and the electric flash light emitting part is disposed ahead of the battery chamber 23. An automatic focusing light receiving part 29 is arranged below the aperture 26.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a camera, and more particularly to a miniaturized camera.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recently, cameras compatible with a new system called an advanced photo system are commercially available.
The photo film cartridge used in this new system is
It is about 25% smaller in volume ratio than the 135 type which is most widely used. For this reason, many cameras that support the new system are smaller than conventional cameras. For example, in the case of “Cannon IXY” (product name), the size is 90 (width) × 60 (height) × 27 (depth) mm.

[0003] In this "Cannon IXY" (trade name),
A battery compartment is arranged below the film take-up compartment for miniaturization, and batteries for power supply are taken in and out from the side of the body. On the other hand, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-295048 describes an invention in which a battery chamber is arranged above a film winding chamber to reduce the size of a camera.

[0004]

By the way, a battery, for example, a lithium-type CR2, which is frequently used in recent cameras, has a shorter length than a AA battery, but is relatively large. In most cases, they were placed at the four corners. When the battery chamber is arranged above or below the film winding chamber as in the invention described in the above-mentioned products and publications,
Although the width of the camera can be reduced, the height of the camera must be equal to the height of the film winding room and the height of the battery room. Was desired.

[0005] It is an object of the present invention to provide a camera which is smaller in size without the above disadvantages.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, a camera according to the present invention is provided with an edge above an aperture defining an exposure area of a photographic film and outside the exposure area of the photographic film set in the aperture. And a battery chamber for accommodating a battery for power supply is arranged so as to approach the aperture to such an extent as to overlap in the height direction. In addition, the finder optical system is arranged above the film take-up chamber, and the battery chamber in which the battery for the power supply is stored is positioned above the aperture and the edge outside the exposure range of the photographic film set in the aperture. It is arranged so as to approach the aperture to the extent that it overlaps in the vertical direction. Further, a strobe light emitting section is arranged in front of the battery chamber. Further, a light receiving section for auto focus is arranged below the aperture.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In FIG. 2 showing the appearance of a camera 1 embodying the present invention, a slide cover 3 covering approximately 2/3 of the entire surface of the camera body 2 is slidably provided outside the camera body 2. Is provided, and when this is closed,
It has a very portable design with no protruding parts on the outside. A finder objective window 5a is provided on the front surface of the camera body 2, and a shutter button 6 is provided on the upper surface of the slide cover 3 so as not to protrude and cannot be pressed.

When the slide cover 3 is opened to the photographing position which is the first click stop position, the main switch 7 (see FIG. 8) provided at the lower part of the camera body 2 is turned on, and as shown in FIG. Lens barrel 9 of photographic lens 8
Is pulled out to a predetermined position, and the strobe light-emitting unit 11 arranged above this pops up. A projection 6a (see FIG. 8D) formed on the lower surface of the shutter button 6 engages with a movable portion of a release switch 15 (see FIG. 8) incorporated in an upper corner of the camera body 2. Then, it slightly protrudes, and the pressing operation becomes possible.

A light projecting unit 17 for autofocus is provided obliquely above the photographing lens 8 and a light receiving unit 1 is provided obliquely below and to the left.
8 are exposed. The shutter button 6 and the switch 1
The engagement with 5 is performed only when the slide cover 3 is at the photographing position, and is not performed at the position where the slide cover 3 is closed and at other positions described later. In this embodiment, taking into account a new type of photographic film cartridge described later and a small film format built in this cartridge, the photographic lens 8 has a focal length of, for example, 21 m.
m (approximately 28 mm in terms of 135 type) was used.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, when the slide cover 3 is at the photographing position, the finder eyepiece window 5b provided on the back of the camera body 2 is connected to the slide cover 3
It is protruded to a position easy to peep in conjunction with the opening operation of the. In addition, in addition to the number of shootable
A large-sized liquid crystal panel 20 for displaying a date, various strobe modes, and the like is exposed. Also, the large liquid crystal panel 20
Buttons 10a, 10b, 10c and 10d for changing a date and setting various strobe modes are provided below the box. Note that the large-sized liquid crystal panel 20 is made larger and a touch sensor type in which an arbitrary position of the panel is operated in the same manner as the buttons 10a to 10d is provided.
a to 10d may be omitted. By doing so, there are no irregularities, and the design is simplified.

An electronic flash unit 11 is provided above the camera body 2.
Behind is a battery for power supply (for example, CR2 type 3V)
A lid 24 of a battery chamber 23 (see FIGS. 1 and 5) for accommodating a single battery 22 is openably and closably attached with a claw. The lid 24 has an L-shape, and a claw hook 24a for opening the lid 24 is formed in a half-moon concave shape on the surface on the large liquid crystal panel 20 side. The lid 24 cannot be opened or closed by being pressed by the slide cover 3 at the position of the slide cover 3 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, and the slide cover 3 is further pulled out (FIG. 8).
(C))).

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, a battery chamber 23 for storing a battery 22 is disposed above an aperture 26 for defining an exposure range of a photographic film 25. In a general compact camera, a finder optical system, an autofocus mechanism, and the like are arranged in this portion. In the present embodiment, the light emitting section 28 for an active autofocus is used.
And the light-receiving unit 29 are separately disposed obliquely above and below the photographing lens 8, and the miniaturized real image type finder 5 is disposed above the film winding chamber 31 so that an empty space is formed above the aperture 26. The battery compartment 23 was arranged here. This allows the camera 1 to be mounted more than the battery chamber 23 provided above or below the film winding chamber 31.
Height can be reduced.

Further, in the present embodiment, the battery chamber 23 is brought closer to the aperture 26 so that the battery chamber 23 overlaps the edge of the photographic film 25 outside the exposure range with the width D in the height direction of the camera 1. The height of the camera 1 was reduced. Also, since the battery chamber 23 is arranged so as to be included in the horizontal length of the aperture 26, or is almost entirely included, and is substantially covered by the horizontal length of the aperture 26, the battery The chamber 23 does not interfere with the film winding chamber 31,
This can contribute to reducing the height of the camera 1.

Inside the battery chamber 23, a well-known ribbon 34 for taking out the battery is fixedly provided so as to be sandwiched between the bottom surface of the battery chamber 23 and the battery 22. In addition, on both inner sides of the battery chamber 23, at least one of a pair of electric contact pieces 22a and 22b that are in contact with the bipolar terminals of the battery 22 is provided with at least one having a spring property.

A circuit board of a strobe device is disposed above the film winding chamber 31, and below the film winding chamber 31, a gear train 27 for film feeding described later is provided.
Is arranged. Also, below the aperture 26,
A main condenser 30 of the strobe device is arranged. It is preferable that the strobe device of the present embodiment is an auto strobe of a constant light emission type.
The charging operation of the main capacitor 30 is started simultaneously with the pop-up of 1. A photometric window 21 is disposed obliquely above the taking lens 8 on the opposite side of the light projecting unit 28.

On the opposite side of the film take-up chamber 31 across the aperture 26, a new type of photographic film cartridge 32 (see FIG. 3) is used to wind the photographic film out of the port through the spool by rotating the small resin cartridge up to the film leader. 6) is disposed. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8D, a lid 35 that is opened and closed when loading and collecting the photographic film cartridge 32 is attached to the bottom side of the cartridge storage chamber 33 via a hinge 35a so as to be openable and closable. ing.

In the embodiment used together with the slide cover 3 of the present embodiment, the lid 35 does not require a lock mechanism, and is engaged with the spool of the photographic film cartridge 32 at the upper part of the cartridge storage chamber 33. A rotatable shaft 37 is provided for urging the photographic film cartridge 32 in a direction of discharging the photographic film cartridge 32 from the cartridge storage chamber 33. As a result, as described later, when the slide cover 3 is pulled out to the leftmost end and moved.
5 is slightly rotated from the closed position, the free end side is displaced to a floating state, and the photographic film cartridge 32 can be easily taken in and out. Reference numeral 51 denotes a key shaft described later.

A key shaft 38 for engaging with a key groove 36a (see FIG. 6) of a spool 36 of the photographic film cartridge 32 is rotatably provided at a central portion inside the lid 35, and a gear 39 is coaxial with the key shaft 38. Fixed. A gear 41 is provided inside the lid 35 so as to mesh with the gear 39. The gear 41 is connected to a pinion gear 46 of a feed motor 45 via a gear train 27 provided at the bottom of the camera body 2. The feeding motor 45 is housed inside a winding shaft 48 rotatably provided at the center of the film winding chamber 31.

At the top of the cartridge storage chamber 33, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 7, a key shaft 51 is rotatably provided, and a sensor 52 is fixed. The key shaft 51 is engaged with a key groove 54 (see FIG. 6) of a light shielding cover 53 for opening and closing the port 52 of the photo film cartridge 32 when the photo film cartridge 32 is loaded in the cartridge storage chamber 33, and slides. The light shielding cover 53 is rotated in conjunction with the sliding operation of the cover 3.

The sensor 52 photoelectrically detects a radial bar code 56 (see FIG. 6) provided on the spool 36, and
Such a sensor, the opening / closing structure of the light-shielding cover 53, and the cartridge itself are provided for electrically detecting the kind information, the number of shots, and the like of the photographic film 25. A camera using a new type cartridge (for example, Fuji Photo Film ( Co., Ltd. Epion 250Z, 300Z (trade name))
And a detailed description is omitted. The lens barrel 9 is moved back and forth between the storage position and the photographable position between the light receiving section 29 and the film winding chamber 31, and
A drive motor 58 for moving the lens barrel 9 to a focus position during autofocusing is provided. When a zoom mechanism is used, the drive motor 58 is used as a drive motor.

When the slide cover 3 is closed, the camera 1 constructed as described above has a very convenient form and size, for example, 80 mm (width) ×, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 8A. It is 50 mm (height) x 26 mm (depth). To take a picture with the camera 1, the slide cover 3 is moved from the closed position shown in FIG. 8A to a photographing position which is a first click stop position shown in FIG. As a result, the width of the camera 1 is increased to about 106 mm to facilitate holding.

In this photographing position, the main switch 7 is turned on at the same time when the slide cover 3 is click-stopped.
So that the strobe light emitting unit 11 is displaced to a position further away from the photographing lens 8 in order to avoid the red-eye effect.
The flash emission unit 11 pops up. Then, the lens barrel 9 is extended to a predetermined position where photographing is possible, and the finder eyepiece window 5b is further projected to the predetermined position. Further, the projection 6a of the shutter button 6 engages with the movable portion of the switch 15, and the shutter button 6 slightly projects from the upper surface of the slide cover 3 to be pressed.

When the photographer positions the main subject at the center of the viewfinder screen and then half-presses the shutter button 6, infrared light is emitted from the light projecting section 17 and light reflected by the subject is transmitted to the light receiving section 18. Incident. The drive motor 58 is driven based on the distance measurement data thus obtained, and after the lens barrel 9 moves to a position corresponding to the focus position, the focus is locked. At the same time, the brightness of the subject is measured based on the subject light incident from the photometry window 21, and is green by the well-known program AE when the proper exposure is obtained, and by the strobe device when the brightness is low and there is a possibility of camera shake. The main capacitor 30 is charged, and a red lamp indicating the completion of charging lights up in the viewfinder. At a short distance where focus adjustment is not possible, for example, a red lamp flashes and a short distance warning is issued.

If the photographing is possible, framing is performed while the shutter button 6 is half-pressed, and then the shutter button 6 is fully pressed. As a result, the shutter unit is driven, and the photographic film 25 set on the aperture 26 is exposed to subject light. When the luminance of the subject is low, the strobe light is automatically emitted from the strobe light emitting unit 11 simultaneously with the driving of the shutter unit. Immediately after this, the feed motor 45 starts driving and the photo film 2
5, one frame is fed. Since the remaining number of films that can be photographed is displayed on the large liquid crystal panel 20 on the back, photographing is continued while confirming this. To change the flash mode, the buttons 10a to 10d are operated as needed.

When the battery 22 is to be replaced, the battery 22 shown in FIG.
As shown in (2), the slide cover 3 is moved to the second open position where the slide cover 3 is click-stopped next. As a result, the entirety of the lid 24 is exposed.
And the battery compartment 23 is exposed. Next, when the ribbon 34 is pulled, the old battery 22 is lifted up. Then, when the new battery 22 is pushed into the battery chamber 23 with the ribbon 34 sandwiched between the battery 22 and the bottom surface of the battery chamber 23, each terminal of the battery 22 comes into contact with the electric contact pieces on both sides in the battery chamber 23. Thereafter, the cover 24 is covered so as to cover the opening of the battery chamber 23, and if the cover 24 is strongly pressed from above, the cover 24 is locked by the engagement of the claws. At this battery replacement position, the projection 6a of the shutter button 6 is disengaged from the movable portion of the switch 15, and the shutter is not released even if the shutter button 6 is pressed down.

To replace the photo film cartridge 32, the slide cover 3 is moved to the full position as shown in FIG. This slide cover 3 is (C)
The key shaft 51 rotates the light-shielding lid 53 in conjunction with the movement operation from (D) to (D), and closes the port port 52 in a light-tight manner. The slide cover 3 cannot be moved any more, so that it does not come off the camera body 2. When the bottom of the camera 1 is on the top, the photographic film cartridge 32 biased by a spring pushes up the lid 35 and the lid 3
The free end side of 5 rises.

If the lid 35 is rotated by lifting the free end side of the lid 35 with a finger, the gear train 27 and the gear 4
1 is released, the lid 35 can be opened, and the photographed photo film cartridge 32 can be collected. When the bottom of the camera 1 is down, the cover 35 is stopped in a slightly rotated state by the engagement between the key groove 36a of the photographic film cartridge 32 and the key shaft 38 of the cover 35. As a result, the photo film cartridge 32 is prevented from being accidentally dropped when the lid is opened.

Photographed photo film cartridge 32
Is collected, a new photo film cartridge 32 is inserted into the cartridge storage chamber 33, and the lid 35 is rotated in the closing direction. Thereafter, when the slide cover 3 is returned to at least the position (C), the lid 35 is completely closed, and the gear 41 meshes with the gear train 27. At the same time,
The photo film cartridge 32 is in the cartridge storage room 3.
3 and the light-shielding lid 53 is turned to the open position by the key shaft 51. Thereafter, the feed motor 45 starts driving, and the photographic film cartridge 3
The photographic film 25 is sent out from the second port 52. After the photographic film 25 for the entire photographing area is wound on the take-up shaft 48, the first frame of the photographic film 25 is set on the aperture 26, and at the same time, the shutter is charged and the driving of the feed motor 45 is stopped. Is done.

To stop shooting and carry the camera 1,
The slide cover 3 is moved in the closing direction from the state shown in FIG. At the start of this movement, the strobe light emitting unit 11, which has popped up, the shooting lens 8, which has been extended, and the finder eyepiece window 5b, which has protruded, return to their original positions. After that, since the slide cover 3 is allowed to move further, when the slide cover 3 is moved to the closed position shown in FIG. 8A, the slide cover 3 is click-stopped. As a result, the main switch 7 is turned off, the shutter button 6 and the switch 15 are disengaged, and the shutter button 6 cannot be pressed. Also,
Since the camera 1 has no shape protruding from the outer surface, the camera 1 can be easily carried in a shirt breast pocket or the like.

In the embodiment described above, the light projecting section for autofocus is arranged obliquely above the taking lens.
A light projecting unit may be provided in the viewfinder. Although the active system using infrared light is employed as the autofocus mechanism, a passive system based on phase difference detection may be employed. Further, a combination of these methods may be used.

Although the slide cover is click-stopped at the three-stage open position, the slide cover may have two stages. In this case, the first stage of the opening is the photographing position, and the second stage of the opening is the battery replacement position and the cartridge replacement position. In the above-described embodiment, the slide cover is provided to achieve both compactness in carrying and easy holding in photographing. However, the slide cover may be omitted. In this case, a main switch is separately provided, and a lock mechanism is provided on the lid of the cartridge storage chamber. Although the camera of the above embodiment uses a photographic film cartridge corresponding to a new system called an advanced photo system, the present invention may be applied to a camera using a conventional patrone type film called a 135 type. .

[0032]

As described above, according to the present invention, the upper part of the aperture that defines the exposure range of the photographic film and the edge outside the exposure range of the photographic film set in the aperture overlap in the height direction. Since the battery compartment for accommodating the battery for the power supply is arranged so as to approach the aperture to the extent possible, the height of the camera can be reduced, which contributes to the miniaturization of the camera. Further, since the finder optical system is arranged above the film winding chamber, a space for arranging the battery chamber and the like above the aperture can be secured, and the degree of design freedom can be increased. Further, since the strobe light emitting portion is arranged in front of the battery chamber, an empty space can be created above the film winding chamber, and the degree of freedom in camera design can be increased. Further, since the light receiving unit for autofocus is arranged below the aperture, a space for disposing the battery chamber and the strobe light emitting unit can be secured above the aperture, and the degree of freedom in design can be increased.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an arrangement of a battery room in a camera of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the camera with a slide cover closed.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the camera from the front when the slide cover is at a shooting position.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the camera when the slide cover is set at a shooting position from the rear side.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the camera showing a battery chamber from a side.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the camera showing the battery chamber from above.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the camera showing the cartridge storage chamber from the side.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a change in the state of the camera at each position of the slide cover.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Camera 2 Camera body 3 Slide cover 5 Viewfinder 6 Shutter button 7 Main switch 8 Shooting lens 11 Strobe light emitting part 15 Switch 17 Light emitting part 18 Light receiving part 20 Large liquid crystal panel 21 Photometry window 22 Battery 23 Battery compartment 24, 35 Cover 25 Photo film 26 Aperture 27 Gear train 32 Photo film cartridge 38,51 Key shaft 39,41 Gear 45 Feed motor

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification code FI G03B 17/56 G03B 17/56 B

Claims (4)

[Claims] A power supply is provided so as to approach the aperture above an aperture defining an exposure area of the photographic film and to an extent that the aperture overlaps an edge of the photographic film set in the aperture outside the exposure area in a height direction. A battery, in which a battery chamber for accommodating batteries for use is arranged. 2. A cartridge storage chamber for storing a photo film cartridge on both sides of an aperture defining an exposure range of the photo film, and a film take-up chamber for winding a photo film drawn from a photo film car shoe ridge. In the camera, a finder optical system is disposed above the film take-up chamber, and a battery chamber in which a battery for power is stored is provided above the aperture and an exposure range of a photographic film set in the aperture. A camera characterized in that it is arranged so as to approach the aperture to such an extent that it overlaps with the outer edge in the height direction. 3. The camera according to claim 1, wherein a strobe light emitting unit is disposed in front of the battery chamber. 4. The camera according to claim 1, wherein a light receiving unit for auto focus is arranged below said aperture.