Minolta Camera Kabushiki Kaisha

Keiji Yamazaki

Hiroshi Hosomizu

Makoto Kamiya

Hiroshi Ueda

Nobuyuki Taniguchi

Kenji Tsuji

Kunio Kawamura

Toshio Kobori

Mamoru Katsuragi

Masataka Hamada

Norio Ishikawa

Kohtaro Hayashi

Takeshi Egawa

Kazuo Kimura

Akira Yamanaka

Yukio Miki

Yasuo Yamazaki

Yukio Maekawa

Masayuki Nakasa

Yoshiharu Ohta

Tatsuro Izumi

Katsuhito Akagi

Ichiro Yoshiyama

Haruyuki Nagano

Horoshi Ueda

In a telescope, the adjustment order is limited so that dioptric power adjustment is made after adjustment of a distance between a pair of optical systems is completed. A pupil distance and a dioptric power correction amount are stored in a memory for every user. When a user uses the telescope, his or her pupil distance and dioptric power correction amount are read out from the memory to automatically make adjustment.

Binocular system with automatic diopter power adjustment

A mounting device on a camera has a mounting member to fit with an accessory so as to mount the accessory on the camera by sliding it. The mounting member which is molded out of plastic in one piece has eaves-like portions overhanging from an upper portion thereof in opposite directions intersecting perpendicularly to a mounting direction of the accessory, thus having a generally T-shaped cross section. The mounting member has a groove running in the mounting direction at a top central portion for receiving a projecting portion of the accessory so as to determine a horizontal (lateral) position of the accessory relative to the camera. The eaves-like portions receive mating members of the accessory thereunder so as to determine a vertical position of the accessory relative to the camera. The groove is narrower at the front end than at the back end where an insertion opening for the accessory mounting is provided, where the projecting portion of the accessory is similarly narrower at the front end from which the accessory is inserted into the groove.

Mounting devices for removably mounting an accessory on a camera

The present invention relates to a battery compartment capable of selectively accommodating an integrated battery unit and a plurality of cylindrical batteries. This battery compartment comprises a housing adapted to fit the integrated battery unit and a support member which is pivotably placed about a support portion provided to a side interior wall of the housing between a supporting position substantially perpendicular to the side interior wall to laterally support the plurality of cylindrical batteries and a recessed position along the side interior wall to be recessed from an accommodating space for the integrated battery unit. This support member is always urged toward the supporting position and a loading of the integrated battery unit is carried out in such a manner that the support member is displaced to the recessed position against a resilience of the support member toward the supporting position.

Battery compartment

A flash device for use in association with a camera is disclosed. The camera provides focal length data representing a focal length of a lens mounted on the camera to the flash device. The flash device comprises a body portion, a flash head pivotally mounted on the body portion, a xenon tube provided in the flash head for emitting a flash light, and a lens is provided in front of the light emitting means movably to change the angle of the cone of the flash light. A driving circuit, controlled by a microcomputer, is provided for driving the lens in response to the focal length data to set the angle of the cone of the flash light correspondingly to the focal length. A pivot detector is provided for detecting the pivotal movement of the flash head. When the pivotal movement is detected, the microcomputer controls the driving circuit so as not to drive the lens but to maintain the lens, during and after the pivotal movement, in the same position as it was before the pivotal movement.

Flash device for use in photography

In a camera automatic diaphragm control device of the type wherein scene light is measured through the diaphragm aperture during the stopping-down operation thereof, which is arrested when the measured light value reaches a given level with respect to manually set exposure parameters, thereby determining the diaphragm aperture, structure is provided for positively ensuring that the diaphragm aperture is left fully open when the set exposure parameters and the measured light require such diaphragm aperture setting. The diaphragm aperture control device is employed in a single lens reflex camera with a reflex mirror retractable from a viewing position at selected times in dependence on whether the diaphragm aperture remains fully open or is reduced.

Automatic diaphragm control and mirror release devices for cameras

An automatic diaphragm control device is constructed such that energization of a release electromagnetic causes a release interlock mechanism to simultaneously release diaphragm stop means and a diaphragm operating mechanism. This allows the diaphragm stop means to stop the diaphragm operating mechanism at a position maintaining the diaphragm fully open when a diaphragm control circuit, based on T.T.L light measurement, generates a diaphragm stop signal simultaneously with the energization of the release electromagnet to energize a diaphragm determination electromagnet which in turn releases the diaphragm stop means. In response to termination of an exposure, a reset member directly engages and returns the release interlock mechanism and the diaphragm operating mechanism while returning the diaphragm stop means through the release interlock mechanism. An adjusting member is disposed between a stop lever and an armature lever of the diaphragm stop means for enabling adjustment of the position of the stop lever relative to the armature lever. This adjustment makes it possible to minimize the time lag from the generation of the diaphragm stop signal till the actual stoppage of the diaphragm operating mechanism. Another adjusting member is disposed between the stop lever and the release interlock mechanism for enabling adjustment of the amount of overcharge of the stop lever which occurs with the release interlock mechanism having been returned by the reset member.

Automatic diaphragm control device for cameras

A mounting structure for levers and the like such as in a reflex camera mirror box includes a metal base plate which may be the wall of the box and one or more tongues stamped from and bent outwardly perpendicular to the base plate and a synthetic organic polymeric resin having low friction and low light reflectivity properties molded to integrally form a layer on the base plate inside face, portions to fill the openings in the plate left by the tongues and externally cylindrical sheaths at least partially enveloping the tongues and functioning as reinforcing cores and defining projections which serve as pivots for swingably supporting levers, as lever stop abutments or for other functions. Where a projection is exposed to little stress, the core tongue may be omitted and by providing recesses in a tongue circumferential surface, the connection of the sheath to the plate covering resin layer may be omitted.

Projecting member carried by the base plate for cameras

An indicating device for a camera, which includes a viewfinder and which is selectively settable to either an automatic diaphragm control mode or an automatic shutter speed control mode, enables selective observation of the f-number and the shutter speed scales in accordance with the selection of the exposure control modes. The f-number and shutter speed scales are provided on a common transparent scale plate which is interconnected with an exposure control mode selecting member by a scale shifting mechanism. The scale shifting mechanism shifts the scale plate to a first position wherein only the f-number scale is in the viewfinder optical path upon selection of the automatic diaphragm control mode, and to a second position wherein both the f-number scale and the shutter speed scale are in the viewfinder optical path. A scale shielding member is provided within the viewfinder optical path to shield the f-number scale when the scale plate is in the second position.

Indicating devices for camera viewfinders

An exposure indicating device for single lens reflex cameras which are selectively settable to automatic aperture control or automatic shutter speed control modes includes an exchangeable lens which has first and second information transmitting members, and a diaphragm setting member settable to one of a number of manually set aperture positions. The first transmitting member transmits to a first information receiving member, first information of the step-difference from a minimum to a preset f-number of the lens independently of the set position of the diaphragm setting member. The second transmitting member transmits to a second information receiving member, second information of a maximum f-number only when the diaphragm setting member is set to select a maximum f-number. A camera body is provided with a modes selecting member which switches the camera either into the automatic aperture control mode or into the automatic shutter speed control mode and enables observation of either an aperture scale or a shutter speed scale within a finder view field. The first information thus received enables automatic shutter speed control, and indication of an automatically controlled shutter speed prior to a stopping-down operation. The first and second information thus received are composed with each other, only in the automatic aperture control mode, to generate information of the minimum f-number of the lens, which enables indication of an f-number corresponding to an automatically controlled aperture prior to the stopping-down operation.

Indicating device for single lens reflex camera

An exposure indicating device for single lens reflex cameras which are selectively settable to automatic aperture control or automatic shutter speed control modes includes an exchangeable lens which has first and second information transmitting members, and a diaphragm setting member settable to one of a number of manually set aperture positions and to an automatic aperture control position. The first transmitting member transmits to a first information receiving member, first information of the step-difference from a minimum to a preset f-number of the lens independently of the set position of the diaphragm setting member. The second transmitting member transmits to a second information receiving member, second information of a maximum f-number only when the diaphragm setting member is set to the automatic aperture control position. The second transmitting member also serves as a mode selection and scale selection member which switches the camera into the automatic aperture control mode and enables observation of an aperture scale within a finder view field when the diaphragm setting member is set to the automatic aperture control position. The second transmitting member also switches the camera into the automatic shutter speed control mode and enables observation of a shutter speed scale within the finder view field when the diaphragm setting member is set to any one of the manually set aperture positions. The first information thus received enables automatic shutter speed control, and indication of an automatically controlled shutter speed prior to a stopping-down operation. The first and second information thus received are composed with each other, only in the automatic aperture control mode, to generate information of the minimum f-number of the lens, which enables indication of an f-number corresponding to an automatically controlled aperture prior to the stopping-down operation.

Exposure indicating devices for single reflex cameras

Disclosed are exposure data indicating means for an exchangeable lens type camera which is selectively settable for operation in either a diaphragm priority automatic shutter speed control mode or a shutter speed priority automatic diaphragm control mode and which includes structure enabling indication of an f-number representative of an automatically controlled diaphragm aperture when the maximum f-number of the particular exchangeable lens mounted on the camera has been preset. The indicating means provides an indication within a finder view field of both a preset f-number and a preselected shutter speed when the camera is set to operate in the automatic diaphragm control mode and of only a preset f-number when the camera is set to operate in the automatic shutter speed control mode. The indicating means includes a view-finder and two separate optical arrangements adapted for directing light to introduce visible information relating to set f-number and selected shutter speed into the view-finder view field. A shutter element coupled with a manually operated exposure mode selector is operable to block one optical arrangement and thereby prevent information relating to shutter speed from being introduced into the finder view field when the mode selector is operated to set the camera in its automatic shutter speed control mode.

Growing community of inventors

Sakai, Japan

Keiji Yamazaki