US3011416A - Photographic apparatus for taking sequential pictures - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 5, 1961 BASE 7 LENS o. s. HAMMER 3,011,416

PHOTOGRAPHIC APPARATUS FOR TAKING SEQUENTIAL PICTURES Filed Aug. 21, 1959 I5 Sheets-Sheet 1 CAMERA MOTOR OLIVER S. HAMMER ATTORNEY Dec. 5, 1961 o. s. HAMMER 3,011,416

PHOTOGRAPHIC APPARATUS FOR TAKING SEQUENTIAL PICTURES Filed Aug. 21, 1959 3 SheetsSheet 2 STOPPING SWITCHES 34 Q 52 55 SUPPLY 6 REEL| 2 40 4| 2e 6 2| u 5 39 -29 '.FIG. 5

l 1 "l IGENEVA DISC 48 I sou/1m: SHAFT 22 JIG. 6

REWIND REELE1 8 STUB SHAFT 2O SUPPLY REEL E 7 PARTITION 9 28 omvs SHAFT 2 55 DRIVE SHAFT 4| WORM 39 INVENTOR OLIVER S. HAMMER ATTORNEY Dec. 5, 1961 o. s. HAMMER 3,011,416

PHOTOGRAPHIC APPARATUS FOR TAKING SEQUENTIAL PICTURES Filed Aug. 21, 1959 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 i ara 92 7 j //(72 73 as 87 cg cwcxsa 84,: LOW TIMING MOTOR con.

HIGH SIDE 7O STOPPING "3 INVENTOR OLIVER s. HAMMER ATTORNEY United States Patent 6 3,011,416 PHOTOGRAPHIC APPARATUS FOR TAKING SEQUENTIAL PICTURES Oliver S. Hammer, New Albany, Ind., assignor to United Electronics Laboratorieglnc, Louisville, Ky.', a corporation of Kentucky Filed Aug. 21, 1959, Ser. No. 835,246

' '11 Claims. (Cl. 95-11) I This invention relates to photographic apparatus for taking sequential pictures.

Apparatus fortaking sequential photographs of fixed areas at spaced intervals is useful in various applications including commercial, industrial and medical. Thus, in banks, stores and other establishments, its use deters the commission of crimes such as robbery, shop lifting, vandalism, etc., and assists in the identification of the perpetrators thereof; in stores, factories and other places, it is useful in recording the activities of sales persons and workers, the flow of materials and the operation of machines and equipment; and in medical clinics and wards, for recording behavior and other data useful in making clinical and psychiatric ward analyses.

Photographic apparatus of this type has a number of requirements. It must be capable of extended troublefree operation and easily and quickly serviced whenever necessary. Since'the camera location is fixed by the area to be photographed, it is not always readily accessible; hence, it should be controlled from a control assembly which can be conveniently located. For a given design to be useful in a wide variety of different applications, the duration of the operating time interval employed should be readily adjustable to selected values over a wide range and such adjustment should be easily and quickly made at the control assembly.

The principal objects of the present invention are to provide a camera which meetscertain of these requirements and to provide a sequential picture-taking photographic apparatus which meets all of them.

More specifically, on important object of the present invention is to provide, for use in taking sequential photographs at controlled intervals, a camera having one or more of the following advantages: it is of such simple and sturdy design that it can be easily and inexpensively manufactured; it can be easily and quickly installed, loaded and unloaded; it will operate over a long period of time in a trouble-free manner without requiring any personal attention; it is not readily derangedpand it may be easily and quickly serviced when trouble arises, its unique construction making it possible to remove and replace the entire operating mechanism of the camera as easily and quickly as the film itself.

Another important object is to achieve the foregoing objectives in a camera, which does not necessarily embody specially constructed movable or other parts likely to require frequent service or replacement, but which makes use largely of sturdy, conventionally constructed,

readily obtainable parts.

With respect to the sequential picture-taking photographic apparatus as a whole, other important objects are: to provide a motorized camera which is simply and effectively controlled from a remote conveniently located control assembly; to provide a control assembly having a timer which may beeasily and quickly adjusted to any of a wide range of selected time intervals; to provide an apparatus having a timer controlled means which initiates the picture taking operation and a camera controlled means which inactivates the camera at the end of that operation and conditions the camera for the next picture taking operation; and to provide a simple arrangement which may be operated from one or more readily accessible points to render the timer inoperative and cause the 3,011,416 Patented Dec. 5, 1961 ice apparatus to operate as a movie camera and take pictures in rapid succession. l l I In carrying out my invention, I provide a camera which comprises: (1) a case; (2) a lens'mount at its front end; (3) a rigid frame located and removably mounted with in the case and composed of a partition extending longitudinally in the front-to-rcar direction with its opposite faces spaced from opposite walls of the case; (4) a shutter mechanism mounted on the frame at the front end of the partition; (5) a film handling mechanism mounted on the frame on one side of the partition; and (6) motorized means, including a drive train on the other side of said partition, for operating said mechanisms. i

I believe it is unique in camera construction to provide a rigid removably mounted frame in the form of a partition with the various mechanisms and operating means mounted on that frame for ready removal with that frame as a unit through a normally closed access opening. Certainly this arrangement contributes to the simplicity and sturdiness of the design as well asits rela} tively low manufacturing cost. Since my arrangement mounts the film handling mechanism on the removable side of the case where it is readily accessible through the normally closed access opening, it becomes possible to load and unload the camera easily and quickly. Furthermore, with the shutter and film handling mechanisms, and the motorized means for operating such mechanisms, all mounted on the frame to form a unitary assembly, it also becomes possible to remove that assembly easily and quickly as a unit through said access opening. Consequently, it is a simple matter to remove this entire unit for inspection andrepair and, when necessary, to replace it with another like interchangeable unit and thereby restore the camera quickly to service while the old unit can be repaired at leisure.

With respect to the apparatus as a whole, I achieve a very important object of this invention by providing (1) a motorized camera with a two-position stopping switch assembly, which is controlled by the camera motor, (2) a remote timer with a timer controlled two-position starting switch assembly and (3) an electrical circuit means interconnecting these assemblies in a manner such that the timer controlled starting switch assembly activates the motorized camera at the beginning of each timed interval causing it to' take aphotograph and the motorized camera operates thestopping switch assembly to shut itself down at the end of one picture taking operation and to condition itself for the beginning of the next timer-controlled picture taking operation which starts when the timer controlled starting switch assembly reactivates the motorized camera at the beginning of the next timed interval. Another object is achieved by providing a panic circuit which may be closed by any one of a number of panic switches to connect the camera motor directly across a power line for continuous opera: tion.

An embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein: i i

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an installation of a sequential picture photographic apparatus in a bank;

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of the camera frame, and the elements cooperating with it to form a unit, which can be removed from the case, the latter being indicated in dotted lines;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the unit of FIG. 2 with the case indicated in dotted lines;

FIG. 4 is one side elevational view of the removable unit of FIGS. 23 taken on the film handling side of the partition; I i

FIG. 5 is another side elevational View of the remoyable unit of FIGS. 2-4 taken on the drive side of the partition;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged horizontal sectional view taken along line 6-6 of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary sectional view of the supply reel and its mounting taken along line 7-7 of FIG. 6;

,FIG. 8 is a fragmentary sectional view of the rewind r'eel and its drive connection taken along line 8-8 of FIG. 6;

' FIG. 9 is a fragmentary view of the Geneva mechanism connecting the main drive shaft with the pull-down shaft;

FIG. is a somewhat schematic view showing the electrical circuit means interconnecting the camera motor and its stopping switch assembly with the starting switch assembly and showing the relationship of such circuit means with a mechanical timer and associated circuits; and

FIG. 11 is a modification of FIG. 10 with an electrical timer. The apparatus of FIGS. 1-10 comprises: a camera which may be conveniently positioned to take pictures of a given area in a bank, department store, factory or other establishment; a control box which may be located independently of the camera at a point where it is convenient for maintenance and like purposes; and electrical circuit means interconnecting the box and camera to control the operation of the camera from the control mechanism of the box.

CAMERA The camera apparatus illustrated comprises: (1) a case having an aperture; (2) a frame within the case, including a partition; (3) a film handling mechanism mounted on one side of the partition, said mechanism including a film pull-down or feed sprocket; (4) a shutter mechanism for the camera lens aperture; (5) a stopping switch assembly including a pair of stopping switches simulta neously operable between a first position, wherein one stopping switch is closed and the other switch open, and a second position, wherein the other switch is closed and the first switch open; and (6) motorized camera-operating means, such as a camera drive motor, alternately ac,-

tive and inactive and operable, when active, to operate the shutter and thereby expose a picture taking frame on a reel of film, to operate the pull-down and thereby feed an unexposed frame of the film into operative position and, at the end of each picture taking (film feeding and exposing) operation, to operate the stop switches from one positionto the other so as to open one stop switch and thereby inactivate the camera motor and simultaneously close the other stop switch and thereby condition the camera motor for the next picture taking operation.

Camera case The camera case 1 is in the form of a conventional rectangular box having opposite side walls including removable side wall 2, top and bottom walls with a suitable fitting on its bottom wall for camera mounting purposes and front and rear walls with a suitable lens mount 3 and picture taking aperture in its front wall and an electrical receptacle 4 preferably mounted on its rear wall.

Camera frame The frame comprises a rigid (metal or plastic) casting, preferably of L-shape in horizontal cross-section. The foot 7 of the L-shaped casting provides a base plate 7, which is rigidly but removably secured to a wall of the case, preferably the front wall thereof. To this latter end, the outer face of the front wall of the case is provided with screw holes which match the screw holes 7a in the front face of the base plate 7 as seen in FIG. 2. This front base plate 7 also contains an aperture 8 which is positioned in axial alignment with the lens case 3 and with the corresponding aperture in the front wall of the case.

The leg 9 of the L-shaped casting provides a rearwardly extending partition 9 which, as shown, is vertically arranged although it may be otherwise arranged. The opposite sides of partition 9 are spaced from the adjacent walls .of the case to accommodate the film handling mechanism on one side of the partition and on the other side thereof, a substantial part of the entire drive mechanism for the various driven elementsof the camera. For the sake of clarity, these sides of the partition 9 are respectively designated as the film handling side and the drive or drive train side.

Camera film handling mechanism The film handling mechanism is advantageously located between the film handling side of the partition 9 and the removable wall 2. As illustrated, this mechanism comprises: a supply reel 12; upper and lower idler pulleys 13 and 14 respectively located above and below the base lens aperture 8 in the base plate 7 and rotationally mounted on the partition 9; a pull-down sprocket 15 mounted on pull-down shaft 16 which projects through partition 9; an idler pulley 17 rotationally mounted on partition 9 at an oblique angle; a rewind or take-up reel 18 having a square hole or bore; and shaft means removably mounting both reelson the partition for relative rotation.

The reel-mounting shaft means comprises: a diametrically large hollow stub shaft 20 mounted on the film face of partition 9 to project therefrom entirely through the bore of supply reel 12 but only partly through the bore of take-up reel 18; a take-up shaft 21 rotationally mounted in the hollow stub shaft 20 to project from both faces of the partition 9, this shaft projecting on the film handling side entirely through the stub shaft 20 and both of the reels 12 and 18, the extreme projecting end thereof being flattened somewhat; and a fitting 22 which may partially support the take-up reel 18 on the take-up shaft and which does effect a reel driving connection between the extreme projecting end of the take-up shaft 21 and the take-up reel 18.

The fitting 22 comprises: a square shaft 22 fitting into the square hole or bore of the take-up reel 18, and having a bore to receive the extreme projecting end portion of the take-up shaft 21; a resilient detent means yieldably locking the fitting 22 on the take-up shaft 21; a fiatfaced projection 23 in that bore cooperating with the flattened portion on the take-up shaft to prevent relative rotation therebetween; and a knurled knob 24 fixed to the outer end of square shaft 22 to facilitate the removal and replacement of the fitting.

While the supply reel 12 andtake-up reel 18 may, and preferably; do, rotate in the same direction, they do not rotate at the same speed. The supply reel l2 operates at a speed ranging from minimum to maximum as it changes from a full reel to an empty reel condition while the corresponding speed of the take-up reel 18 reversely ranges from maximum to minimum as it changes inthe reverse manner. .Accordingly, a washer 25 or other suitable spacer should be mounted on the stub shaft between such reels to space them.

Camera shutter mechanism The shutter mechanism comprises: a shaft 28 mounted on the drive side of the partition 9 through a bearing block 29 to extend both forwardly and rearwardly from the bearing block with its forward end terminating at the front endof the base plate 7; and a shutter 30 in the form of a rotary disc mounted on the front end of the shaft 28 in position such that, when the shutter disc is rotated, a radial slot 31 in the shutter disc 30 will expose the aperture 8 in the base'plate 7 of the frame to the light which passes through the lens mount 3 in the front wall of the case.

Camera stopping switch assembly The stopping switch assembly 34 is of the type normally operating between two extreme positions, namely: a first position wherein one stopping switch is open and the to move the stoppi other closed and a second position wherein said one stopping switch is closed and the other open. This form of switch assembly performs the function of a convene ine 3- y swi h nd m y. ably is, constructed as a 3-way switch. Y

The stopping switch assembly 34, which is mounted on the drive side of partition 9. along its upper edge and midway betwe n ts fro t a e r ends, d s; a o zontal operating arm 35 pivoted to the case of the stopping switch assembly 34 for angular movement vertically between a lower spring-biased position, corresponding to one position of the stopping switch assembly, and an upper position, corresponding to the other position of the stopping switch assembly. It will be understood, of course, that when the arm 35 is forced upwardly against the spring bias, it forces the stopping switch assembly into one position Whereas, when it is permitted to move downwardly to its other position, it permits the biasing spring ng switch assembly 34 to its other switch position.

Camera drive or motorized camera operating means The motorized camera operating means or drive is alternately active and inactive; When active, it is operable to effect the picture taking operation wherein it operates the shutter and film pull-down mechanisms sequentially and then operates said stop switch assembly to terminate the picture taking operation and condition the camera for the next picture taking operation. Simultaneously with its operation of the film pulldown mechanism, it rotates the take-up reel 18 sufficiently to take up the resulting slack in the film therebetween.

As illustrated, the motorized operating means comprises: a motorized drive shaft assembly; and three operating connections from that assembly including: a shutter operating connection; a film pull-down and take-up reel operating connection; and a stepping switch operating connection.

Motorized drive shaft assembly.This assembly comprises: a motor 38; and a motor-driven drive train including a motor-driven worm 39, worm-driven worm gear 40 and worm-gear-driven main drive shaft 41. This assembly is mounted at opposite ends as follows: the motor 38 is rigidly mounted on the lower edge of the partition 9; and the main drive shaft 41 is rotationally mounted on the partition 9 to project from the drive side thereof. The motor 38 is an electric motor but it could be a solenoid or other form of motor.

Shutter operating c0nnecti0n.The shutter operating connection is in the form of a direct gear connection 44 between the mid-portion of the main drive shaft 41 and the rear end of the shutter operating shaft 28. It will bc'understood, of course, that as the main drive shaft 41 rotates /2 of a revolution, it will rotate the shutter shaft 28 and shutter one full revolution so as to take one picture. While the radial slot 31 on the shutter may be located to take that picture during the final end portion of each shutter revolution, in the arrangement illustrated, it is so located" as to expose the film and thereby take a picture during the initial portion of each revolution, the precise location on the disc illustrated being at about 3 eclock.

' Film pull-down and lake-up reel operating connecti0n.The operating connection for the film pull-down operates intermittently at a rate equal to one operation during a portion of each /2 revolution of the main drive shaft 41. A I may employ any ratchet, cam or gear controlled automatic indexing mechanism which serves to rotate the pull-down, periodically, a unform angular degree of the magnitude required to move the film lineally a distance equal to the length of one frame, either immediately before the shutter operation begins or immedi ately after it is completed.

Preferably I employ an indexer in the form of a Geneva mechanism connecting the motorized drive shaft therefore, be and prefer 6 41 to. the drive shaft 16 of the pull-down sprocket 15. This Geneva mechanism includes: two circularly spaced driving pins 47 mounted to be driven by and to rotate circularly about the motorized main drive shaft 41; a slotted Geneva disc 48 mounted on the pull-down shaft I 1 6; and a blocking disc 49 mounted on main drive shaft 41 to rotate therewith. The blocking disc 49, which operates to prevent unintentional movement of Geneva disc 48, is divided into two parts, each part accommodating A; of a revolution of main drive shaft 41.

The Geneva mechanism is arranged, in the construction illustrated, to operate after the picture taking operation has occurred; hence, such mechanism operates the film pull-down during the last of each half revolution of the drive shaft 41, this operation corresponding to the rotation of the shutter disc from the 3 oclock position of its slot 31 counterclockwise through the last 270 to the 6 oclock position thereof. In so operating, one drive pin 47 of the Geneva mechanism will enter a slot in the Geneva disc 48 and, through its resulting engagement with the Geneva disc, turn it through one-sixth of its revolution (during the completion of a one-half revolu tion of the drive shaft 41) and thereby remove an exposed frame on the film and replace it with an unexposed frame.

The take-up reel operating connection is nothing more than an extension of the film pull-down operating connection. This extension comprises: a suitable pulley located on the drive side of the partition and fixedly mounted on the pull-down shaft 16; and an endless belt 51 connecting that pulley with a pulley 52 also located on the drive side of the partition but fixedly mounted on the projecting drive side end of the take-up shaft 21. This connection attempts to drive the take-up reel 18 the maximum distance during each operation. So long as the actual movement of the take-up reel 18 is less than maximum, the belt 51 slips to a corresponding degree.

Stopping switch operating c0nnecti0n.-The connection for operating the stopping switch mechanism 34 comprises: a stopping cam 55 mounted on the main drive shaft 41 and so located that, during one-half of a given revolution of that shaft, it will force the stopping switch mechanism 34 to its upper position and, during the next half of that same revolution, it will permit the spring bias to move the stopping switch mechanism to its lower position.

CONTROL BOX The mechanism in the control box is indicated only schematically in the wiring diagram of FIG. 10. This control box mechanism comprises; a clock; a starting switch assembly; and a timing mechanism.

Clock In the structure illustrated in the wiring diagram of FIG. 10, provision is made for 5 different time lapse periods and the arrangement is of a character requiring 5 starting switch assemblies, one for each time lapse period, each starting switch assembly being designated 61.

Each starting switch assembly 61 is identical to the camera stopping switch mechanism 34 in that it is of the 3-way type normally operating between two extreme positions including: a first position wherein one starting switch is open and the other closed; and a second position wherein said one starting switch is now closed and the other open. It will be understood that each starting switch assembly 61 has an operating arm corresponding to the arm 35 of the stopping switch assembly 34 and a corresponding spring bias which causes it to operate in a corresponding way.

Timing mechanism Any suitable form of timing mechanism may be used. The timing mechanism illustrated in FIG. 1O comprises: a timing motor 64 rotating a shaft 65 at a desired rate; and a succession of timing cams, the first and last ones of which are respectively designated 66 and 67 mounted on the shaft 65 for rotation therewith, With this arrangement, the shaft 65 rotates all cams simultaneously at the rate of say one revolution per minute.

The first cam 66 is designed to operate its starting switch twice per revolution or minute holding it in each of its two positions for a time lapse period of 30 seconds. The next cam operates its switch four times per minute or revolution to establish a time lapse period of 15 seconds while the third, fourth and fifth cams operate their respective switches, say six, twelve and twenty times per revolution, to establish time lapse periods of say 10, and 3 seconds respectively. Naturally any of these operations can be varied by increasing or decreasing the speed of the timing motor 64 or changing cams.

ELECTRICAL CIRCUIT MEANS.

Basically, the electrical circuit means operates to interconnect the starting and stopping switches 61 and 34 so that when a selected timing cam closes a starting switch 61, it will establish a circuit, preferably a relay circuit, through that particular stopping switch 34, which is then closed, and thereby directly or indirectly cause the camera motor 38 to be connected across the electrical power supply line and thereby energized. The camera motor first operates the film handlingv and shutter mechanism to take a picture and feed or remove a frame and next operates the stopping switch mechanism 34 to shut down the camera motor, open the stopping switch, which it last closed, and close the other stopping switch so as to condition the camera for the next operation.

When the camera motor circuit is de-energized, it is desirable to stop the camera motor quickly. It is also desirable: to keep a current record of the number of pictures taken by the apparatusand to have one circuit for bypassing the clock 58 and another circuit for by,- passing the time lapse circuit.

Accordingly, the electrical circuit means, as illustrated, comprises: (1) a clock circuit to start and stop the ape paratus; (2) a timing motor circuit to establish the time intervals and cause the starting switch assembly to be actuated coincidentally with the end of one timed interval and the beginning of the next; (3) a relaycircuit I energized by the closure of a starting switch; (4) an when the apparatus is activated, the circuit of the timing motor 64 will be continuously energized to rotate cam shaft 65 and all of the timing cams onit including the first and last cams 66 and 67. But only a selected one of these'cams will be eifective to control the operating time lapse period of this apparatus. Thus, in theFIG. 10 form, the selected cam is made efiective by connecting the a and b contacts, of the stopping switch assembly 34, respectively to the a and b contacts of that A.C. circuit for operating the camera motor, the opening and closing of this circuit being controlled by the main relay circuit; and (5) a number of miscellaneous circuits including (a) a DC. circuit for braking the camera .to a quick stop, (b) a rectifier circuit forsupplying D.C. to'the braking circuit, (0) a counter-circuit for counting the number of pictures taken, (d) a clock bypass circuit I and (e) a panic circuit for bypassing the timing circuit. Clock circuit Timing motor circuit The timing motor circuit includes: the high side 70; theclock controlled switch 72; a normally closed line switch 73; the timing motor 64; and the return side of the line 71. During the working day or other time period particular starting switch 61 which is operated by the selected cam.

For example, if we wish to select a time lapse period of 30 seconds, it becomes necessary to make the first cam 66 operate as the controlling cam for the main relay circuit. This is accomplished by selectively connecting the a and [1 terminals of starting switch 61, which is operated by the first cam 66, to the a and b terminals of the stopping switch 34. may be most conveniently efiected in the control box by appropriately switching-(or otherwise moving) the control box terminals 75 of lines 76 and 77, which interconnect the control box portion of the relay circuit with the camera portion of that circuit so that line 76interconnects the a contacts and line 77, the b contacts of the starting and stopping switches. This establishes a main relay circuit under the control of the 30 second timing cam 66. r

Main relay circuit The main relay circuit, thus established, extends from the high side 78 of the clock controlled power line to the common terminal of all starting switches 61, thence either through contact a of the selected starting switch, interconnecting line 76 and stopping switch contact 34a or through contact b of the selected starting switch, interconnecting line 77.and stopping switch contact 3412, and thence, in either case, successively through interconnecting line 79 and relay coil 80 to the lowside 71 of the power supply line.

The apparatus will, of course, begin to operate with the selected starting switch cam 66 in whatever position it happens to be when the timing motor circuit is energized. For the sake of clarity, we assume that, when the apparatus is first activated by clock 58, the timing and stopping cams of FIG. 10 are situated as follows: the first timing cam 66 in the control box holds the [1 cont-actof starting switch 61 closed; the stopping cam-55, which operates the stopping switch mechanism 34 in the camera, holds the b contacts of stopping switch mechanism 34 closed; and the FIG. 10 positions of bothof these timing and stopping cams 61 and 55, correspond to the very beginning of the energization of the relay coil 80 of the main relay circuit, which is therefore immediately efiective to close its relay switch contacts 81(b) and thereby energize the camera motor circuit.

Camera m'otor circuit The camera motor circuit, when thus closed, com prises: the high side 70 of the power line; line 78 leading to the common terminal of the starting switches; selected starting switch 61(b); interconnecting line 77 leading to the stopping switches; stopping switch 34(b); interconnecting line 79 leading to the relay switch; relay switch 81(b); interconnecting line 82 leading to the camera motor; camera motor38; interconnecting line 83 leading to the return side of the power line; and return side 71. This circuit may omit the connections 7982 going to the main relay coil 80 and coming back through the relay switch 81 if, as may be desired in some cases, the relay circuit or some of the miscellaneous circuits are not to be used. In such event, the common terminal of stopping switch 34 is connected directly to motor 38.

With or without such miscellaneous circuits, the camera motor 38 remains energized until a picture has been taken and the film has been moved one frame (before or after the picture is taken) at which time stopping This selective connectiontlOIl.

lllfscellancous circuits Motor-braking D.C. circuit.This circuit is designed to connect a charged condenser 84 across the camera motor '38 immediately following the de-energization of the motor 38. In the braking circuit, the condenser 84 is connected, on its high side, through the braking contact a of the spring-biased main relay switch 81 and through interconnecting line 82 to one side of the motor, and, on its low side, through interconnecting line 83 to the other side of the motor. When switch 81(a) is closed, condenser 84 will discharge only through the AC. motor 3-8 to bring it to an instant halt.

D.C. supply or rectifier circuit. To charge the condenser 84, it is connected on its low side directly to the return side 71 of power line, and, on its high side, to the high side of the power line through a resistor 87, which controls the rate of charge, and a rectifier 83, which provides rectified DC. current. Thus, this circuit extends from the high side 70 through rectifier 88, resistor 87, condenser 84 and return side 71.

Counter circuit-The counter circuit is the same as the main relay circuit except that the counter circuit coil 90 is in parallel with relay coil 80. The counter coil 9%, when energized, operates a conventional counter 91 to indicate that another picture has been taken.

Manual clock bypass circuit.-This circuit comprises a manually operable switch 92 bypassing the clock controlled switch 72,. Panic circuit.-The panic circuit is in the form of one or more switches 94, each of which is arranged to bypass the timing circuit and cause the camera to take photographs in rapid succession. The panic circuit extends from the high side 70 of the power line through switch 94 to the high side 79 of the relay coil 8t) and thence through that coil to the return side 71' of the power line so as to energize the main relay coil continuously so long as any switch 94 remains closed. The continuous energization of this coil holdsmain relay switch 81(1)) closed throwing the camera motor 38 directly across the line as follows: the high side 70; switch 94; switch 81(b); interconnecting line 82; camera motor 38; interconnecting line 83; and return side 71 of the power line.

OPERATION As soon as the clock circuit closes the clock controlled switch 72, then the timing motor circuit will be directly energized while the main relay circuit and the counter circuit will be energized through one side or another of the stopping switch 34. We assume that the last two circuits are initially closed through the b side. Upon energization, the relay circuit instantly closes relay switch 81(b) to energize the camera motor operating circuit. The camera motor 38 now rotates the shutter counterclockwise beginning at its 6 oclock FIG. 2 position. When it has rotated one-quarter of a revolution to its 3 oclock position, it exposes the film to take a picture.

As the shutter rotates through the next three-fourths of its revolution, the pull-down will move the supply reel the equivalent of one frame. Simultaneously, the take-up reel will be rotated to rewind the exposed film sufiiciently to take up the slack created by the pull-down operation.

When the shutter completes one full revolution, the

1 operating shaft 41 will have completed a one-half revolution, at which point the stopping cam 55 operates switch 34 to open the b contact and close the a contact. This effects the de-energization of the counter. circuit, the relay circuit and the camera motor operating circuit.

The shutter may, of course, rotate at a speed of one revolution per second, more or less; hence, all of the foregoing operation will occur in that time. Thereafter, the timing motor 64 continues to drive shaft 65 to turn the first timing cam 66 through the remaining portion of the first 30 second timing interval established by onehalf of a revolution of the timing shaft 65 and timing cam 66.

At the end of the first 30 second period, the. starting cam 66 will release switch 61 permitting the spring of that switch to open its b" side and simultaneously close its a side. This re-establishes the counter and relay circuits while the relay circuit effects, a closure of the cameramotor operating circuit. As a consequence, another picture is taken, another pull-down operation performed and then the relay circuit is d e-energized to effeet a de-energization of the camera motoroperating circuit and a simultaneous energization of the camera motor braking circuit.

During each motor operation, in which a picture is taken and the reel pulled down one frame, the condenser 84 is connected across the line through rectifier 88 and resistor 87. In this way, condenser 84 is sufficiently, if not fully, charged by the time that the camera motor operation ceases. With the de-energization of the relay coil 80, its switch 81(b) opens the camera motor circuit while its switch 81(a) closes, and thereby places condenser 84 across the terminals of the camera operating motor 38. The discharge of the condenser 84 through the motor, which follows this connection, eifects an instant braking of the camera motor 38 at a time when the shutter has about completed one revolution.

If, for any reason, clock switch 72 is bypassed, by closing the manually operated switch 92,, the apparatus will nevertheless continue to operate as before. The time lapse intervals are unaffected.

If an emergency occurs, rendering it desirable to take one picture after another as rapidly as possible, the same can be accomplished by closing any one of the panic switches 94. Thus, during a bank holdup, a bank employee may silently step on a switch 94 and thereby render the timing circuit ineffective and simultaneously render the apparatus effective to take one picture after another at the rate determined by the operation of the shutter disc without any time interval between successive revolutions. Assuming that this disc now rotates at 75 revolutions per minute, it is thus possible to take 75 pictures per minute.

The regular normal timing interval may, of course, be changed from the 30 second interval to 20 seconds, 10 seconds, 5 seconds or 3 seconds by using the second, third, fourth or last of the timing cam. Other timing intervals may be employed by using other cams or a faster or slower timing motor speed.

FIG. 11

The camera, timer and circuit means of FIG. 1 are the same as those of FIGS. 1-10 except that an electrical circuit arrangement is used for establishing the timed intervals and operating the starting switch instead of the mechanical arrangement disclosed in FIG. 10. This electrical circuit arrangement, which enables one pair of starting switches to be used in place of the five pairs shown in FIG. 10, comprises: a latching relay op erable, when actuated, to operate the starting switch from one latched position to another; an electrical timing circuit means; and means controlled by the timing circuit and operative, when the timing circuit reaches the end of a timed interval, to actuate said latching relay.

Latching relay The latching relay comprises: a solenoid coil 97; and a latching mechanism schematically indicated at 98 for operating starting switch 61 to and latching it in first one position, to close its a side and open its b side, and

then another position, to close its "b side and open its of electrical power in the form. of a transformer having a primary 100 and a secondary 101; a pair of condensers 103 and 104; a circuit for'charging one condenser of said pair comprising secondary 101, line 102, condenser 103 (or condenser 104), relay switch 105(1)) (or relay switch 106(b)), resistance 107 and rectifier 108 back to a tap on the secondary 101; another circuit for discharging the other condenser of said pair over a timed interval, said othercircuit comprising the negative side of the condenser 104 (or condenser 103), relay switch 106(a) (or relay switch'105(a)), line 109, resistance110, a

selected resistance 111, of a series ranging from 111A to 111E, and line 102 back to the positive side of the condenser; and a panic circuit comprising either (a) one containing switches 94 placing the camera motor 38 directly across the line, this panic circuit preventing the counter circuit from operating successively, or (b) another composed of said other circuit for discharging the 'said other or timing condenser (103 or 104) plus panic switch 112 (and other remote panic switches connected through receptacle 113), which short-circuits'the operative timing resistor 111 but remains in series with resistor 110 to provide a minimum time interval (say one-half second) sufficient to accommodate the operating time requirements of the camera for performing the picture- 'taking and pull-down operations, this panic circuit permitting the successive operation of the counter circuit.

The resistances 111A through E are of progressively smaller order correspondingly providing progressively smaller timing intervals when interposed in the timing circuit. Thus the highest resistance A may be of a value high enough to establish a discharge time lapse of 30 seconds, for example, in the condenser discharging circuit. Similarly, the resistances B, C, D and B may establish, .for example, time lapse periods of 20 seconds, seconds, 5. seconds and 3 seconds or for any other suitable range of value. i

The relay switches 105 and 106 are connected to the latching relay mechanism 98 so that when this mechanism operates the starting switch first to one position and then to its other position, the relay switches 105 and 106 will be first operated to close the a side in one switch and the b side in the other and next operated to open the a in said one switch and the b. in said other. The relay switches 105 and 106 thus function to interchange the condensers 103 and 104 in the condenser charging and discharging circuits so as to place the newly discharged condenser 103 (or 104) into the charging circuit for charging purposes and thenewly charged condenser 104 '(or 103) into the discharging circuitfor the purpose of instituting a new timed condenser-discharging interval. 3

Means for actuating latching relay' to the negative side of the condenser discharging circuit which establishes the timed intervals. This connection 129 imposes the negative voltage, of whichever condenser (103 or 104) happens to be in the condenser discharging circuit, upon the space electrode 122 of the Thyratron 120 to maintain that Thyratron in a non-conductive state until the discharging circuit is substantially fully discharged.

When the negative voltage of the discharging condenser thus declines to a predetermined value, the tube 120 becomes conductive. As a result, the plate circuit of that tube is energized. The resulting plate current energizes latching relay coil 97 which operates the latching mechanism 98. In this manner, the starting switch 61 and interchange switches105 and 106 are operated.

Operation In operation, with the power supply switch closed, the apparatus as a whole will be energized when clock 58 closes switch '72, and will start to warm up to a fully operative condition. Now, assuming all par-ts of the fully operative apparatus to be in the position shown in FIG. 11 and at the beginning of a 10 second operating period, it follows that the counter, control relay and camera motor operating circuits will be energized as before; that the camera motor will rotate the shutter through one revolution during which the camera takes a picture and the pull-down mechanism is operated and at the end of which the stopping switch 34(b) is opened and stopping switch 34(a) closed; and that transformer primary 100 and its secondary 101 are also energized.

The energization of the secondary places condenser 103 on charge through switch 105(b) and condenser 104 on discharge through switch 106(11). Since resistor 111C is in the discharge circuit, the time interval will approximate 10 seconds and the negative voltage imposed (by the negative side of condenser 104, switch 106(a), line 109 and line 129) on space electrode 122 will render the Thyratron tube 120 non-conductive until the end of which opens starting switch 61(b) and closes starting switch 61(a), opens interchange switch 105(b) and closes 105(a). and opens interchange switch 106(a) and closes 106(1)).

With this operation of starting switch 61, the counter, control relay and camera motor circuits are operated as before. With the operation of the interchange relay switches 105 and 106, condenser 104 is switched into the charging circuit and condenser 103 in the discharging circuit. As soon as fully charged condenser 103 is introduced into the discharging circuit, it imposes a high negative voltage on space electrode 122 instantly rendering Thyratron 120 non-conductive and thereby de-energizing latching relay coil 97. The operation of the panic circuit through switch 94 or 112 causes the camera to take photographs in rapid succession although, due to the presence of resistance 110 in the panic circuit controlled by switch 112, a short time interval is established between successive picture-taking operations of the camera.

ADVANTAGES My camera has a number of advantages. Among these are: it is simply, sturdily and inexpensively constructed, easily and quickly installed, loaded, operated and unloaded and trouble-free in operation; its frame unit is easy to insert, remove and replace, hence, maintenance is facilitated; and it is compact, a 7% x 7%" x 4" camera case being large enough to house a frame unit carrying two reels, each capable of holding 200 feet of film. All of these advantages may be usefully employed in reel type cameras generally, regardless of their intended fields of use. Furthermore, my camera may be, and preferably is, used with standard commercially available lenses.

The photo-graphic apparatus, as a whole, may be easily and quickly installed with the camera located wherever required and the control box wherever it is conveniently accessible. The apparatus may be easily and quickly adjusted at the control box to operate with a particular time lapse period selected from any of a. number of such periods extending over a wide range. The use of a timercontroiled 3-way starting switch assembly and a cameramotor-controlled 3-way stopping switch assembly provides a simple and positive means of starting the camera motor to institute a picture taking operation, of stopping that motor at the end of the picture taking operation and of conditioning the motor for the next picture taking operation.

Finally, it should be noted that my apparatus permits the use, in the camera and the control box, of many standardly constructed parts. Thus the main parts of all of the film handling and drive mechanisms used in the camera and the control box are either commercially available or constructed along conventional lines or both. Such parts are of proven sturdiness and worth; hence, their use is far preferable to specially constructed parts.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. A camera for taking sequential photographs comprising: a film handling mechanism including a film pulldown; a shutter mechanism; a stopping switch assembly including a pair of stopping switches simultaneously operable alternately back and forth between a first position, wherein one stopping switch is closed and the other open, and a second position, wherein said other switch is closed and said one switch open; motorized operating means operative, when actuated, to operate said mechanisms sequentially through one photographing cycle so as to cause the shutter mechanism to expose an operatively positioned frame on a reel of film and to cause said film handling mechanism to feed a frame of said film into an operative position, and, at the end of said one photographing cycle, to operate said stop switch assembly from said first position to its second position and thereby open said one stop switch, which is adapted to inactivate the motorized operating means, and close the other stop switch, which is adapted to condition the motorized operating means for the next picture taking operation, and, at the end of the next succeeding photographing cycle, to operate said stop switch assembly from said second position to said first position, said motorized operating means including a camera-operating motor of an AC. type which is braked when energized with direct current; and brake means operative, in response to the opening of each stop switch, to stop said AC. motor by energizing it with direct current.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said brake means includes: a capacitor; means including a rectifier for charging said capacitor; and a switch operatively actuated, in response to the opening of said stop switch, to connect said capacitor to said camera motor and thereby discharge a DC. impulse theretbrough.

3. An apparatus for taking sequential photographs comprising: the camera of claim 1; a starting switch assembly including a pair of starting switches simultaneously operable alternately back and forth between a first position, wherein one starting switch is closed and the other open, and a second position, wherein said other switch is closed and said one switch open; a timer for establishing a succession of timed intervals of predetermined duration; timer controlled means operative, at the end of one timed interval, to operate the starting switch assembly from its first position to its second position, and at the end of the next succeeding timed interval, to operate said starting switch assembly from its second position to its first position; and electrical circuit means interconnecting the starting and stopping switches and operative, in response to the closure of each starting 14 switch, at the end of alternate timed intervals, to actuate said motorized operating means.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said electrical circuit means includes: a pair of switch assembly interconnecting lines, one containing one starting switch and one stopping switch in series and the other containing the other starting switch and other stopping switch in series.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 including: a relay circuit in series with said pair of switch assembly lines and arranged to be energized upon the closure of a starting switch in one line and tie-energized upon the opening of a stopping switch in the same line; and a camera motor circuit controlled by said relay circuit in a manner causing it to be correspondingly energized and de-energized.

6. The apparatus of claim 3 including: counting means for indicating the number of photographs taken; and means for operating said counting means once during each photographing cycle.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said means for operating said counting means includes: an electrical coil connected to said camera motor so as to be energized and deenergized simultaneously with the A.C. energization and deenergization of said motor.

8. The apparatus of claim 3 including: normally open panic switch means operative, when closed, to cause said camera to take photographs in rapid succession.

9. The apparatus or claim 8 wherein: said panic switch means is electrically connected to said timer; and said timer is operative, when said panic switch means is closed, to provide, between successive operations of said starting switch assembly, a timed interval which is longer than the time embraced by the shutter and pull-down operations of the camera.

10. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said timer includes: a pair of capacitors; a capacitor charging circuit; a capacitor discharging timing circuit; capacitor reversing switch means operative, in a first position, to connect one capacitor of said pair to said charging circuit and the other capacitor of said pair to said discharging timing circuit, and, in a second position, to reverse said connections; latch means operative, when actuated, not only to move the starting switch assembly from its occupied position to and latch it in its other position and thereby institute a photographing cycle, but also simultaneously to move said capacitor reversing switch from its occupied position to and latch it in its other position and thereby start one of said timed intervals; a latch operating circuit having a switch controlling its energization and being operative, when energized, to actuate said latch means; and means, responsive to a drop in the timing circuit voltage to a value below a predetermined value, to energize said latch circuit and thereby actuate the latch means.

11. The apparatus of claim 10 including: means for selectively varying the duration of the time required to discharge said charged capacitor through said discharge timing circuit.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,048,439 Fairchild July 21, 1936 2,160,818 Becker June 6, 1939 2,578,254 Lee Dec. 11, 1951 2,596,222 Doyle May 13, 1952 2,697,378 Sexton Dec. 21, 1954 2,713,814 Sonne July 26, 1955 2,795,175 Foster June 11, 1957 2,896,505 Nations July 28, 1959 2,896,522 Stein July 28, 1959 2,912,896 Allen Nov. 17, 1959

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