Olympus Optical Company, Ltd.

Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Olympus Corporation

Iolympus Optical Co., Ltd.

Kenichi Oinoue

Masatoshi Ida

Masahiro Aoki

Asao Hayashi

Junichi Nakamura

Kenji Fukuoka

Tadashi Morokuma

Kenji Kimura

Masafumi Yamasaki

Kazuo Nakamura

Takashi Tsukaya

Hideyuki Kenjyo

Toru Musha

Kouichi Karaki

Atsushi Yusa

Takeomi Suzuki

Shunpei Tanaka

Ryuji Hirata

Takashi Hamaoka

Shohei Nagai

Katsumi Terada

An electronic camera system including an electronic camera having a recording medium which records image information obtained by shooting an image, a detection arrangement which detects that a memory capacity of the recording medium becomes a predetermined value, and a first interface which transmits and receives information, and a communication unit including a wireless communication arrangement which can transmit an image file, a transmission control arrangement to transmit the image information recorded on the recording medium by the wireless communication arrangement based on a detection signal from the detection arrangement, and a second interface which transmits and receives the information with the first interface of the electronic camera.

Electronic camera and electronic camera system

In an electronic camera system, a camera body includes a card slot for receiving a memory card M, a card slot for receiving an HDD pack H, and a battery chamber for receiving a battery B. An expansion unit includes a grip portion for receiving a battery back having a power supply capacity larger than that of the battery B, a detection switch for detecting the attached state of the expansion unit to the electronic camera, and an LCD panel for displaying a predetermined alarm message when the HDD pack H is inserted into the card slot, and the detection switch detects that the expansion unit is not attached to the electronic camera.

Electronic camera system

An apparatus for detecting focus conditions of an imaging optical system is disclosed. The apparatus comprises a light flux dividing means having a plurality of light flux dividing elements arranged at a predetermined focal plane or near a plane conjugated therewith, a photoelectric conversion means having a plurality of light receiving elements arranged to receive light fluxes divided by respective light flux dividing elements in line therewith and means for detecting focus conditions of the imaging optical system based on the outputs of the light receiving elements. The photoelectronic conversion means is so arranged that the cross-section of light fluxes incident upon respective light receiving elements at the exit pupil of the imaging optical system includes regions which are not overlapped with each other.

Apparatus for detecting focus conditions of an imaging optical system

A method for detecting a focus condition of an objective lens system of a single-lens reflex camera is disclosed. A light flux emanating from the objective lens system is divided into first and second light fluxes by means of a prism array having inclined surfaces whose normal lines make a criticl angle with respect to the optical axis of the imaging optical system. Said first and second light fluxes are transmitted through first and second halves of the objective lens system. The first and second light fluxes are made incident upon first and second light receiving element arrays, respectively, to produce first and second sets of output signals representing light distribution of first and second images formed by the first and second light fluxes. From the first and second sets of output signals, interpolated values are derived to form first and second modified sets of signals composed of the first and second sets of output signals and interpolated values. A correlation between the first and second modified sets of signals is derived to detect the focus condition of the objective lens.

Method for detecting a focus condition of an imaging optical system

In order to effect an automatic focus control in an image pick-up apparatus, a photography lens for forming an image of the object onto a two-dimensional solid state image sensing device is arranged in a fixed position, while the two-dimensional solid state image sensing device is arranged movably in the optical axis direction of the photography lens, and the image sensing device is moved in accordance with a focusing error signal detected by a focusing condition detecting circuit having an additional light receiving element mounted on the same substrate as the image sensor but discrete from and operating independently of the image sensor. Since the light and small solid state image sensing device is moved for the focus control instead of the heavy and large photography lens, it is possible to perform the focus control in a prompt manner and to make a mechanism for driving the image sensing device small and simple.

Automatic focus controlling apparatus and method

In a camera, a focus condition of an objective lens system is automatically detected in accordance with a combination of two different type detection methods. A light flux emanating from the objective lens system is divided into two light fluxes by means of a prism having a half mirror and a reflecting mirror and a first light flux transmitted through the half mirror is received by a first light receiving element array via a lenticular lens array and a second light flux reflected by the half mirror and reflecting mirror successively is directly received by a second light receiving element array. The lenticular lens array is so arranged that an exit pupil of the objective lens and the first light receiving element array are conjugated with each other and thus divided images of the exit pupil are projected upon respective elements of each pair of adjacent light receiving elements. At first, illumination signals supplied from the first image receiving element array are processed to derive a first evaluation value on the basis of an image lateral shift detection to indicate roughly a focal condition of the objective lens system. After the objective lens system has driven near the best focus position, illumination signals supplied from the first and second light receiving element arrays are processed to derive a second evaluation value on the basis of an image sharpness detection to indicate finely the focal condition of the objective lens system.

Apparatus and method for detecting focus condition of imaging optical

A method and apparatus for detecting focus conditions of a photographic optical system is disclosed. The invention comprises a member for dividing the wavefront of a light beam from a photographic optical system in an image space thereof, a first light receiving device including two photocell arrays provided in the front and the rear of a surface conjugated to a predetermined focal plane of the optical system, and a second light receiving device including at least one photocell array provided at a surface conjugated to one of the photocell arrays in the first light receiving device. A first signal representing horizontal shift of an optical image is detected based on outputs of at least one photocell array in the second light receiving device and one photocell array in the first light receiving device having a relation conjugated to the photocell array in the second light receiving device. A second signal representing defocused amount of the image is detected based on outputs of two photocell arrays in the first light receiving device thereby detecting focus conditions by the first and the second signals.

Method and apparatus for detecting focus conditions of a photographic

A method of detecting focusing conditions used for optical machinery is disclosed. The focusing conditions of an optical image projected onto photodetector arrays arranged on both sides of the focal plane with a certain optical distance are detected based on an evaluation function representing a sum of absolute values of differences between output signals of adjacent photodetectors. When a value of a first evaluation function represented by the largest absolute value is less than a predetermined threshold a second evaluation function represented by a sum of the maximum and next largest absolute values is used thereby detecting the focusing conditions for a graded image.

Method of detecting focusing conditions

A method for detecting optically an F-number of an interchangeable imaging lens is disclosed. An image of an exit pupil of the imaging lens is projected onto an array of photoelectrically converting light receiving elements so as to measure a diameter of the image of the exit pupil of the imaging lens formed on the light receiving element array. The diameter of the exit pupil image is measured by counting the number of the light receiving elements whose photoelectrically converted outputs are larger than a predetermined threshold value and then the effective F-number of the imaging lens is detected in accordance with said counted number. Further, an image lateral shift amount detected by an image lateral shift detection system is corrected by the detected F-number and an accurate focus detection of the imaging lens can be performed.

Method for detecting F-number of lens

In an analog-digital converting apparatus including a row of light receiving units with each unit having a light receiving element and a sample-hold circuit, a counter for producing a digital signal whose value is increased successively, a digital-analog converter for receiving the digital signal and producing an analog reference signal whose amplitude increases successively from a lower limit value to an upper limit value in step-shaped manner, comparators for comparing the output signals of the light receiving units with said analog reference signal, respectively, memories for receiving the digital signal and controlled by the comparators, respectively to store instantaneous digital values when the corresponding comparators change their states, there is provided a second light receiving unit having substantially the same construction as that of the first mentioned light receiving unit except that a light receiving element provided therein is covered with a light shielding mask so as to produce an output equivalent to a dark current component of the light receiving element, the output of which unit is used as a lower limit voltage source for said digital-analog converter. The apparatus may further include a third light receiving unit having substantially the same as that of the first light receiving unit except that the light receiving element is removed and the input of the sample-hold circuit is connected to a supply voltage so as to produce an output equivalent to a saturation value of the light receiving element, the output of which unit is used as an upper limit voltage source for the digital-analog converter.

Analog-digital converting apparatus

In a method and apparatus for detecting focus condition of an imaging optical system, the focus condition is detected in accordance with a combination of two different detection methods such as an image sharpness detection and an image lateral shift detection by using first and second light receiving element arrays for the image sharpness detection and a third light receiving element array for the image lateral shift detection. For making the construction of the apparatus compact and simple, these light receiving element arrays are formed on the same semiconductor substrate. Further a light flux dividing prism and a lenticular lens array are formed integrally with each other. According to the focus detection method of the present invention, it is possible to detect the focus condition for various kinds of subjects accurately over a wide range by using both the image sharpness detection and image lateral shift detection even in a range near an in-focus position.

Apparatus and technique for detecting and controlling the focusing of an

In a single-lens reflex camera having an objective lens, a focusing screen and a view finder, a photodetector array is arranged to receive a central part of an object image formed by the objective lens and a focusing condition of the objective lens is detected by calculating an evaluation function from image signals supplied from the photodetectors. A presetting dial for selecting given photodetectors whose image signals are used for detecting the focusing condition is provided at such a position that a part of the dial is exposed to the outside through an opening formed in a rear wall of a camera body at a position underneath a film winding lever. A light emitting diode array is provided on the focusing screen so as to be seen by a user through the view finder. Only desired light emitting diodes are lighted on under the control of a signal supplied by the dial to indicate the region of the photodetector array which is used for detecting the focusing condition.

Apparatus for detecting a focusing condition of an objective lens

In an endoscope for displaying an image of an object on a monitor screen, a static induction transistor (SIT) image sensor having a number of light receiving elements is arranged at a light emitting side of an image guide bundle. In order to eliminate dead spots appearing in the displayed image due to broken fibers in the image guide bundle, pixel signals of light receiving elements corresponding to the dead spots are formed by interpolation with the aid of pixel signals derived from light receiving elements adjacent to the relevant light receiving elements to be interpolated. As an interpolation function, for example, an average of the pixel signals derived from the adjacent light receiving elements is used. The addresses of the light receiving elements corresponding to the dead spots are stored previously in a PROM during a manufacturing stage. In this manner, the interpolated image of the object having an excellent image quality can be displayed on the monitor.

Endoscope with image correction means

A method of automatically adjusting focus conditions of photographic optical system is disclosed. In the method at least a part of optical image formed on a predetermined focal plane by an optical system is projected onto first and second photocell arrays in the front and the rear of a surface conjugated to the predetermined focal plane, and onto at least one of other photocell arrays arranged between the first and second photocell arrays. Outputs of first, second and other photocell arrays are arithmetically operated in accordance with respective given evaluation functions thereby obtaining first, second and other evaluation values. These evaluation values are compared with each other and the optical system is intermittently shifted in the optical axis direction with first or second moving step in the case of decision from the compared result that the optical system is positioned within or outside a predetermined range including the in-focused position.

Method of automatically adjusting focus conditions

A focus condition of an objective lens is detected on the basis of a lateral shift of two images formed by first and second light fluxes which are transmitted through right- and left-hand halves of the lens, respectively. In order to separate the first and second light fluxes, there is arranged an array of triangle prisms each having first and second surfaces which are inclined symmetrically with respect to the optical axis of lens by a critical angle so that one of the light fluxes is transmitted through the one of the surfaces, but is totally reflected by the other surface of each prism. The first and second light fluxes transmitted through the prisms are received by an array of light receiving elements in such a manner that the first and second light fluxes are selectively received by odd and even numbered light receiving elements, respectively.

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Tokyo, Japan

Kenichi Oinoue