JPH1073876A - Self-checkable camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the occurrence of an accident causing damage to a camera by displaying the fact that abnormality is detected on an image display monitoring device, when the abnormality is detected in the operation of the camera by a self-checking function. SOLUTION: When a diaphragming signal is not outputted from a diaphragm detecting mechanism 15 over a specified time or more, regardless of the execution of a diaphragming operation and shutter opening/closing operations or a signal on the opening/closing of a shutter is not outputted from a shutter detecting mechanism 18, it is judged that an abnormal state is obtained, to stop an exposure operation. Further, when the signal from a film moving amount detecting mechanism 21 is not inputted, it is judged that the abnormal state is obtained, to stop the operation of winding one frame. Thus, when various kinds of abnormal states are detected, the contents of the abnormal states, a countermeasure, etc., are displayed on a monitor 10. These bits of display information are previously stored in a data storage circuit 12 and an image processing circuit 8 selectively reads out suitable information, in accordance with instructions from a control circuit 9, to display the suitable information on the monitor 10.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a camera capable of self-checking, and more particularly, to a camera having a function of self-checking camera operation and notifying a photographer of an abnormal state when the operation is abnormal.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art If a photographer operates the camera incorrectly or if an abnormality occurs in the camera, if the photographer continues to use the camera without noticing it, the camera may fail to take important photos, or the abnormality may cause the camera to fail. May lead to irreparable damage.
In order to prevent such accidents beforehand, the actual practice of the Japanese Utility Model laid-open No. 1-1331
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 39-1992 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 1-219727, a camera which self-checks whether an abnormal state has occurred, and when it is determined that the state is abnormal, displays the content on a segment type liquid crystal display device. Is disclosed.

[0003]

However, the display device of the abnormal state disclosed in the above-mentioned publication also uses a segment type liquid crystal display device for displaying information such as the number of photographed frames, so that it is symbolized. Although simple display is possible, it has been difficult to satisfactorily display detailed abnormality contents, for example, information on the location of the abnormality, the estimated cause, the recovery method, and the like.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and provides a camera for notifying a user of information such as the details of the abnormality, the cause of the abnormality, and a coping method when an abnormality occurs in the camera. That is the task.

[0005]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a camera capable of self-checking, which detects a portion where an abnormality occurs during operation of the camera. According to the means and the abnormality occurrence site,
A storage unit that stores information about the abnormality in advance, an imaging unit that captures an image substantially equivalent to the image exposed on the film, and a display unit that displays an output of the imaging unit. When an abnormality of the camera is found, information corresponding to the abnormality occurrence site is read from the storage means, and the read information is displayed on the display means.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the self-checkable camera according to the first aspect, the information stored in the storage means is provided for a photographer for a photographer for the same occurrence site. It consists of one type of information and a second type of information for the repairer, and one of them is selected according to the display mode. The self-checkable camera according to claim 3 has a photographing optical system and an observation optical system,
Film photographing means for exposing a silver halide film, photographing means for sharing the photographing optical system of the film photographing means and outputting an optical image of an observation visual field as electric signals, and a photographer receiving the output signal of the photographing means Monitor means for displaying the state of the observation field of view, detection means for detecting an abnormal operation of a mechanism included in the film photographing means and its part, and an abnormal part according to an abnormal part of each part detected by the detecting means. And storage means for storing information indicating a state in advance, and when an abnormality is found by the detection means, information relating to the abnormality is read from the storage means in accordance with the abnormality occurrence part, and the information is monitored by the monitor. Display on the means.

[0007]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a single-lens reflex camera according to a first embodiment of the present invention. First, the configuration of this camera will be described. Behind the taking lens 1 having a plurality of lens groups, a movable main mirror 2 formed almost entirely by a half mirror and a movable sub-mirror 6 are arranged. Above the main mirror 2, a focusing screen 3 for forming an image of a subject passing through the taking lens and a pentaprism 4 for observing the subject image formed on the focusing screen 3 from a finder eyepiece 5 are arranged. ing.

A focal plane shutter 16 is disposed immediately before the silver halide film 19 located behind the main mirror 2 and the sub mirror 6. Below the main mirror 2, there is arranged an image sensor 7 that receives light rays that pass through the main mirror 2 and are reflected by the sub-mirror 6.
Is connected to an image processing circuit 8 for processing an electronic image substantially equivalent to an optical image recorded on the silver halide film 19. The image processing circuit 8 includes a control circuit 9 which will be described later, a monitor 10 which is disposed on the back or top of the camera body and displays the output of the image sensor 7, and an image memory which stores the output of the image sensor 7. And a data storage circuit for storing predetermined data for displaying details of the abnormal state and a countermeasure on the monitor 10 when an abnormality is detected in the camera operation by the self-check function of the camera. 12 are connected.

An aperture member 13 is disposed inside the taking lens 1. The aperture member 13 is driven by an aperture drive mechanism 14 based on a command from the control circuit 9, and the operation state of the aperture member 13 is detected by an aperture detection mechanism 15. Is done. The aperture detection mechanism 15 detects the movement of a member connected to the aperture member 13 by a non-contact type sensor such as a photo interrupter, a photo reflector, and a Hall element.

The focal plane shutter 16 is controlled by a shutter drive mechanism 17 to control the shutter charging and opening / closing operations. The operation state of the shutter 16 is detected by a shutter detection mechanism 18. The shutter detection mechanism 18 has the same configuration as the aperture detection mechanism 15. The film 19 is driven by a film feeding mechanism 20, and the moving state of the film 19 is detected by a film moving amount detecting mechanism 21. This film movement amount detection mechanism 2
1 detects the perforation of the film 19 by a photo interrupter or a photo reflector.

The focus adjustment system 1a of the photographing lens 1 is driven by a lens drive mechanism 22, and the movement state of the focus adjustment system 1a is detected by a lens movement amount detection mechanism 23. The lens moving amount detecting mechanism 23 detects the rotation state of the comb-shaped rotating member provided in a part of the driving force transmission system of the lens driving mechanism 22 by using a photo interrupter. The main mirror 2 retracts upward on the drawing prior to the exposure operation, and the sub-mirror 6 retracts downward on the drawing prior to the exposure operation.
Is driven and controlled by the mirror driving mechanism 24.

The control circuit 9 has a mode setting circuit 25 as input information, a first release switch which is operated by pressing the release member halfway, a second release switch which is operated by fully pressing the release member, and a back cover. A group of operation switches 26 including various switches (both not shown) related to camera operations such as a back cover switch that turns on, a focus detection mechanism 27 for detecting the amount of defocus of the photographing lens with respect to the subject, and photometry for detecting the brightness of the subject A mechanism 28 and an ISO information setting mechanism 29 for setting the ISO sensitivity of the silver halide film 19 are connected to each other. In addition to these, the aperture detection mechanism 15, the shutter detection mechanism 18, the film movement amount detection mechanism 21, the lens movement The amount detection mechanisms 23 are respectively connected.

The control circuit 9 includes the image processing circuit 8
In addition, an aperture driving mechanism 14, a shutter driving mechanism 17, a film feeding mechanism 20, a lens driving mechanism 22, and a mirror driving mechanism 24 are connected, and operate according to the instructions of the control circuit 9. The above is the structure of the camera shown in FIG. There are various possible abnormal situations that can occur in this camera, and examples of such abnormalities are shown below. (1) Abnormality in film feeding Anomaly judgment criterion: No signal is output from the film moving amount detecting mechanism 21 although the normal film feeding operation is being performed. Probable cause: Film loading failure, film feeding mechanism 20
(Motor or transmission system) or film movement amount detection mechanism 21. (2) Shutter operation abnormality Abnormality criterion; shutter detecting mechanism 18 in exposure operation
Does not output a shutter operation signal. Presumed cause: abnormality of shutter 16 and shutter drive mechanism 17 (motor and transmission system) or abnormality of shutter detection mechanism 18. (3) Aperture operation abnormality Abnormality judgment criterion: No signal relating to the aperture state is output from the aperture detection mechanism 15 in the aperture operation. Probable cause: abnormality of aperture member 13, aperture drive mechanism 14 (motor or transmission system), or abnormality of aperture detection mechanism 15. (4) Focus Adjustment Operation Abnormality Criteria for Determining Abnormality: A signal relating to the amount of lens movement is not output from the lens movement detection mechanism 23 when the focus adjustment system 1a is driven. Presumed cause: abnormality of lens drive mechanism 22 (motor or transmission system) or abnormality of lens movement amount detection mechanism 23.

Next, an operation sequence of the camera will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. In order to simplify the description, it is assumed that a photographic film is loaded in the camera in advance. FIG. 2 is a main flowchart of the control circuit 9. When the power of the camera is turned on and the control program of the control circuit 9 is started, after various initialization operations (not shown), step S (hereinafter simply referred to as S) is performed.
In step 1, the state of the back cover switch in the operation switch group 26 is checked.

When the back cover switch state has changed from off to on, the idle feed subroutine is executed in S2. This idle feed subroutine is for feeding the film loaded in the camera to the first position.
This is a subroutine for automatically winding up to the top of the frame. If a signal is not input from the film moving amount detecting mechanism 21 during the idle film feeding operation, the control circuit 9 operates in an abnormal state. Judging that there is, the idle feeding operation is stopped.

When the idle feed subroutine ends, it is checked in step S3 whether the idle feed subroutine has ended normally. If not, the data "1" is set in the abnormal register in step S4. This abnormality register is a register that is referred to when displaying what kind of abnormality has occurred in the camera, and indicates an abnormality occurrence part of the camera by data set. Data "1" set in S3 is data indicating that film feeding is abnormal. Subsequently, the process branches to an abnormality display subroutine shown in FIG. 3 and described later in S5.

If the idle feeding has been completed normally, it is checked in step S6 whether the first release switch in the operation switch group 26 has been turned on. If it is on, a focus adjustment subroutine is executed in S7. This focus adjustment subroutine controls the lens drive mechanism 22 to drive the focus adjustment system 1a to the in-focus position based on the amount of defocus of the photographing lens 1 with respect to the subject detected by the focus detection mechanism 27 shown in FIG. This is a subroutine. In this focus adjustment subroutine, when the focus adjustment system 1a has not reached the end position of the movement range and the signal relating to the lens movement is not detected from the lens movement amount detection mechanism 23 for a predetermined time or more, it is determined that the state is abnormal. To stop the focus adjustment operation.

When the focus adjustment subroutine is completed, S8
In step S9, it is checked whether the focus adjustment subroutine has been completed normally. If the subroutine has not been completed normally, data "2" is set in the abnormal register described above in step S9, and then in step S1.
At 0, the flow branches to the abnormality display subroutine shown in FIG.
The data “2” is data indicating that the focus adjustment operation is abnormal.

If the focus adjustment operation has been completed normally, S
At 11, it is checked whether the second release switch in the operation switch group 26 is on. If the second release switch is off, it is checked again at S13 whether the first release switch is on. At this time, if the first release switch is off, the process returns to S6, and if the first release switch is on, the process returns to S6.
Return to 11.

If the second release switch is ON in S11, an exposure subroutine is executed in S12. This exposure subroutine includes subject brightness information by the photometric mechanism 28 of FIG.
Determining exposure conditions for the silver halide film 19 based on the sensitivity information;
, The step of controlling the aperture member 13 and the shutter 16 in accordance with the determined exposure condition to expose the silver halide film 19, and the step of returning the mirror 2 and the sub-mirror 6 to drive. Since the details of the exposure operation are out of the scope of the present invention, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

In this exposure subroutine, when a stop signal is not output from the stop detecting mechanism 15 for a predetermined time or more, or a signal relating to opening and closing of the shutter is output from the shutter detecting mechanism 18 despite the execution of the stop operation and the shutter opening / closing operation. Is not output, an abnormal state is determined, and the exposure operation is stopped. When the exposure subroutine is completed, it is checked in step S13 whether the exposure subroutine has been completed normally. If the exposure subroutine has not been completed normally, data "3" is set in the abnormality register in step S14. Branch to the indicated abnormality display subroutine. The data "3" set in the error register is
This data indicates that the exposure operation has not been completed normally.

If the exposure operation has been completed normally, S14
The control circuit 9 supplies an image display signal for displaying an image to the image processing circuit 8 in FIG. In response to this image display signal, the image processing circuit 8 first reads out the image signal from the image sensor 7, converts it into a digital signal,
To be displayed. As a result, a subject image substantially identical to the subject image exposed on the silver halide film is displayed on the monitor 10 on the spot.

Further, together with the image display on the monitor 10,
The digital image signal is stored in the image memory 11. The image signal stored in the image memory 11 can be re-displayed by the user at an appropriate point in time. However, the details of the mechanism are out of the scope of the present invention, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted. When the image processing circuit 8 is displaying the image, a one-frame winding subroutine is executed in S15. This one-frame winding subroutine uses the silver halide film 1
9 is wound up by one frame. If a signal from the film moving amount detecting mechanism 21 is not input while the one-frame winding operation is being performed, it is determined that there is an abnormal state and the one-frame winding operation is performed. Abort.

When the one-frame winding subroutine is completed,
At 16, it is checked whether the one-frame winding subroutine has been completed normally. If the one-frame winding subroutine ends normally, the process returns to step S6.
At 17, a rewind subroutine is executed. The reason for this is that the winding of one frame failed when the end of the film was reached.

There is no particular problem if the rewind subroutine functions normally. However, if a signal is not output from the film movement detecting mechanism during rewinding, an abnormality has occurred in the mechanism relating to film feeding. If there is, the rewind operation is stopped. In S18, it is checked whether or not the rewinding has been completed normally. If the rewinding has not been completed normally, data "4" is set in the abnormality register in S19, and then the abnormality display subroutine shown in FIG. Branch to Data "4" set in the abnormality register indicates that one frame of the film was not wound up or rewound normally.

In this camera, when the above-described various abnormalities are detected, the contents of the abnormalities or the countermeasures are displayed on the monitor 10. The operation at the time of detecting such abnormalities will be described. I do. There are two types of display modes for the abnormal state: a normal display mode and a detailed display mode. These display modes are controlled by a mode setting switch (not shown) provided on the surface of the camera body and the mode setting circuit 25 described above. This display mode is set, and the display mode is initialized to the normal display mode when the power of the camera is turned on.

In the normal display mode, when an abnormality is found, a message notifying the user of the occurrence of an abnormality, a schematic diagram showing the location of the abnormality, and a remedy are displayed on the monitor 10 as shown in FIG. 4A. Is done. On the other hand, if an abnormality is found while in the detailed display mode,
As shown in FIG. 4B, detailed information on the abnormality for the repairer such as the content of the abnormality, the procedure for finding the cause of the abnormality, and the repair method is displayed.

The display information is stored in the data storage circuit 12 in advance, and the image processing circuit 8 selectively reads out appropriate information in response to an instruction from the control circuit 9, and displays it on the monitor 10. You. Subsequently, the abnormality display subroutine shown in FIG. 3 will be described. First, it is checked in S31 whether or not the display mode is the detailed display mode. If the display mode is the normal display mode, it is checked in S32 whether the data of the abnormality display register is "1". When the data in the abnormality register is "1", it means that the idle feeding operation is abnormal, and therefore, in S33, the address (No. (1 data address), and then proceeds to S47.

If the data in the abnormal register is other than "1" in S32, the flow advances to S34 to check whether the data in the abnormal register is "2". When the data of the abnormality register is “2”, it means that there is an abnormality in the focus adjustment operation. Therefore, in S35, the address of the data storage circuit 12 storing the normal display data relating to the focus adjustment abnormality (second address). Is set, and the process proceeds to S47. S
If the data of the abnormal register is other than "2" at S34, S
Proceeding to 36, it is checked whether the data of the abnormal register is "3".

When the data of the abnormality register is "3",
Since it means that the exposure operation is abnormal, S37
Then, the address (third data address) for storing the normal display data relating to the exposure abnormality of the data storage circuit 12 is set by the data 37, and the process proceeds to S47. If the data in the abnormal register is other than "3" in S36, the data in the abnormal register can be specified as "4", so the address (No. 4 data address) and S4
Go to 7.

On the other hand, if it is determined in S31 that the mode is the detailed display mode, it is checked in S40 whether the data of the abnormality register is "1". If the data in the abnormality register is "1", an address (fifth data address) for storing detailed display data relating to the non-feed error of the data storage circuit 12 is set in S41, and the flow proceeds to S47. If the data of the abnormal register is other than "1" in S40, the process proceeds to S42, and it is checked whether the data of the abnormal register is "2". If the data in the abnormality register is "2", an address (sixth data address) of the data storage circuit 12 at which detailed display data relating to the focus adjustment abnormality is stored in S43, and the flow proceeds to S47.

If the data in the abnormal register is other than "2" in S42, the flow advances to S44 to check whether the data in the abnormal register is "3". If the data in the abnormality register is "3", an address (seventh data address) for storing detailed display data relating to the exposure abnormality in the data storage circuit 12 is set in S45, and the flow proceeds to S47. S44
When the data in the abnormal register is other than "3", the data can be specified as "4".
An address (eighth data address) storing detailed display data relating to the rewind abnormality of No. 2 is set, and the flow advances to S47.

The control circuit 9 transfers the data address value set in S47 to the image processing circuit 8, and then in S4
8. In S49, a display data read signal and a display signal are output. The image processing circuit 8 accesses the storage address of the data storage circuit 12 based on the transferred data address, reads out display data corresponding to each address, and displays the contents of the read out display signal on the monitor 10. I do.

Next, it is checked in step S50 whether a predetermined time has elapsed after the display processing. If the predetermined time has not elapsed, the back cover switch state of the back switch in the operation switch group 26 is determined in step S51. The open / closed state is checked, and if it is determined that the back cover remains closed, the process returns to S50. The reason for checking the back cover switch in S51 is
It is as follows. That is, in this camera, four abnormal states are assumed, that is, an abnormal feeding error, a focus adjustment error, an exposure error, and a winding / rewinding error. Of these, the abnormal feeding error is somewhat different from the remaining three abnormalities. In most cases, the abnormality during the idle feeding is caused by a film loading error by a photographer, rather than an abnormality of a camera driving mechanism or a detection mechanism. In this case, the abnormality can be easily recovered by simply reloading the film. Nevertheless, if the abnormality display mode cannot be restored,
Because the camera is difficult to use, this camera monitors the status of the back cover switch even during the abnormal display operation only when there is an abnormal feed operation. If the back cover operation is performed, the camera returns to FIG. Can be executed again.

Since a monitor device for displaying an abnormal state generally consumes relatively large power, it is not preferable to display a monitor for a long time in a battery-powered camera. Thus, in the camera of the present embodiment, when a predetermined time has elapsed after the start of the display processing, the camera shifts to an energy saving mode (hereinafter, abbreviated as an energy saving mode) for minimizing power consumption in the camera. This is S
This is the reason why the elapse of a predetermined time is checked at 50.

When it is determined in step S50 that a predetermined time has elapsed after the display processing, in step S52, the monitor 10, the image processing circuit 8,
Then, the power supply to the other photographing operation control circuit is cut off or the operating frequency of the control circuit 9 is reduced, and then the mode is shifted to the energy saving mode in S53. In this energy saving mode, at least the circuit for detecting the state of the operation switch group 26 is operating, and if the photographer performs any switch operation, each circuit in the camera is reset to the active state by the return process of S54. The abnormal display operation can be restarted.

The above embodiment includes the following configuration. (1) Detecting means for detecting an abnormality in camera operation together with a location where an abnormality has occurred, storage means for storing detailed information corresponding to each of the abnormality detections, and an abnormality state detected by the detecting means. A self-checkable camera comprising: an information reading unit that reads information stored in a storage unit; and a monitor that electrically displays the read information. (2) The self-checkable camera according to (1), wherein the detailed information corresponding to each of the abnormal states includes at least a content of the abnormal state and a place where the abnormal state occurs. (3) The self-checkable camera according to (1), wherein the detailed information corresponding to each of the abnormal states includes information for a photographer and information for a repairman. (4) Detecting means for detecting an abnormal operation of the camera together with the location where the abnormality has occurred, and storing two types of information, detailed information for the photographer and detailed information for the repairer, corresponding to each of the abnormal states. Storage means, setting means for setting a display mode, and details for the photographer stored in the storage means according to the display mode set by the setting means when an abnormal condition is detected by the detection means. A self-checkable camera, comprising: display means for displaying either information or detailed information for a repair person. (5) The self-checkable camera according to (4), wherein the display means is a monitor device that electrically displays an image or a message. (6) Monitor means for electrically displaying the subject image in conjunction with the exposure operation of the silver halide film, detection means for detecting an abnormal operation of the camera together with the location of the abnormality, and detailed information corresponding to each of the abnormal states And when the abnormal state is detected by the detecting means, reads out the detailed information corresponding to the abnormal state from the storing means, and displays the detailed information on the monitor means instead of the subject image. A self-checkable camera, comprising:

[0038]

As described above, according to the present invention, when an abnormality is detected in the camera operation by the self-check function, the fact that the abnormality has been detected is displayed on the monitor device for image display. The photographer can reliably recognize that an abnormality has occurred in the camera, thereby preventing an important photograph from being missed or an accident that could lead to damage to the camera. Since the coping method and the detailed information of the abnormality are displayed, an effect of easily specifying the abnormality occurrence site can be obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a camera according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a main routine of a control circuit 9 of the camera shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an abnormality display subroutine of a control circuit 9 of the camera shown in FIG. 1;

4 shows an example of an abnormal display displayed on the monitor 10 of the camera shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 4a is a simplified display, and FIG. 4b is a detailed display.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 photographing lens, 2 main mirror, 3 reticle, 4 pentaprism, 5 finder eyepiece, 6 submirror, 7 image sensor, 8 image processing circuit, 9 control circuit, 10 monitor, 11 image memory, 12 data storage circuit.

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A detecting means for detecting a site where an abnormality has occurred during operation of a camera, a storage unit for storing information relating to the abnormality in advance according to the site where the abnormality has occurred, Imaging means for capturing an image substantially equivalent to the image to be obtained; and display means for displaying the output of the imaging means. When an abnormality of the camera is detected by the detection means, an abnormality occurrence site is detected from the storage means. A self-checkable camera, which reads information corresponding to the information and displays the read information on the display means. 2. The information stored in the storage means is composed of a first type of information for a photographer and a second type of information for a repairman for the same occurrence site, and is displayed. The self-checkable camera according to claim 1, wherein one of the cameras is selected according to a mode. 3. A film photographing means having a photographing optical system and an observation optical system for exposing a silver halide film, and an optical image of an observation visual field as an electric signal by sharing a photographing optical system of the film photographing means. Imaging means for outputting, monitoring means for receiving the output signal of the imaging means and displaying the state of the observation field of view to the photographer, detection means for detecting an abnormal operation of the mechanism included in the film photographing means and its portion, Storage means for storing in advance information indicating the location and state of the abnormality in accordance with the location of the abnormality in each section detected by the detection means, and when the abnormality is found by the detection means, A self-checkable camera, which reads out information on an abnormality from the storage means in accordance with (1) and displays the information on the monitor means.