Polaroid Corporation

Nicholas Gold

Richard R Wareham

John J Driscoll

Philip R Norris

A photographic film assemblage including a film spool about which is wound a length of resilient material including a strip of photographic film and an opaque leader. The opaque leader is provided along its sides with a series of integral tabs which are adapted to be displaced from the plane of the leader by a film metering sprocket of a camera during movement of the film. The resiliency of the tabs results in those located in the ultimate convolution of the roll of material being displaced from the curved plane of the ultimate convolution thereby leaving voids or apertures therein. When the tabs appear in both the ultimate and penultimate convolutions of the roll, some of the tabs in the penultimate convolution enter the apertures in the ultimate convolution thereby deterring clockspringing of the roll. When the tabs are located in the plane of the leader, they function to substantially prevent the passage of light to underlying convolutions of film.

Photographic film assemblage with improved leader

A photographic film assemblage including a film spool about which is wound a length of film, a housing for rotatably supporting the film spool such that a leading end of the film may be advanced to the exterior of the housing via a film withdrawal opening or passageway in the housing, and means for protecting the film from exposure by ambient light which passes freely through the passageway. The passageway is constructed such that relative rotation between the film spool and the housing, in a given direction, is all that is needed to move the leading end of the film to the exterior of the housing via the passageway.

Photographic film assemblage having a non-lighttight film withdrawal

Apparatus for processing an exposed roll of instant or self-developing type transparency film. The apparatus includes structure for supporting a film cassette containing an exposed roll of film, a spool having an elongate strip of sheet material wound thereupon, and a take-up reel which is adapted to receive an end of the exposed film and the sheet material and which is adapted to be rotated so as to wind the exposed film and the sheet material thereupon in superposed relation as a processing composition is being coated upon the sheet material so as to initiate the formation of visible images in the film. The apparatus also includes a rotary knife which is actuated as a trailing end portion of the exposed film is being withdrawn from the film cassette so as to sever the film which was wound upon the take-up reel from its attachment to the film cassette's spool.

Film processor having automatically actuated film severing means

A method and apparatus for making a self-coiling sheet. The apparatus includes a work station at which a relatively short section of a sheet of flexible material, e.g., crystalline polyethylene terephthalate, is folded upon the remainder of the sheet. The sheet is then advanced onto the carrier plate which, in turn, is mounted for movement toward and away from a gap defined by a pair of superposed pressure-applying rollers. The carrier plate is adapted to deposit the sheet between the rollers such that the folded section of the sheet is located in engagement with one of the rollers and the underlying portion of the sheet is in engagement with the other roller. The rollers are rotated in the same direction so as to drive the folded section of the sheet toward the carrier plate while simultaneously driving the remainder of the sheet in the opposite direction. This action results in the sheet being ejected from the gap of the rollers as a multi-layered generally cylindrical coil having a permanent set. The sheet may be uncoiled and, when left free, will automatically return to its coiled condition.

Method and apparatus for making a self-coiling sheet

A film pack for small format, self-processing film sheet assemblies and by which such film sheet assemblies may be exposed and processed by instant camera designed for larger format, standard film sheets. The small format film pack has the same exterior dimension as the standard film pack but positions the small format sheet properly for exposure in the camera. Movement of a camera carried film pick is transmitted to the reduced format film sheets by a pick relay which may include a mechanism for amplifying the distance of camera pick movement. A mask is provided for the camera viewfinder to correlate the size of a subject image to that of the reduced image format of the film sheets.

Film pack for small format film sheets

An accessory for use in an instant camera designed for standard film packs and by which the same camera can be used to expose and process self-processing film sheet assemblies of reduced image format size prepackaged in corresponding sized film packs. The accessory is in the nature of a U-shaped housing having exterior planar dimensions to complement the interior planar dimensions of a well in the camera for receiving a standard film pack. The U-shaped configuration of the housing defines a recess to receive and position the modified film pack of reduced size. The accessory carries movement transmitting relays by which actuation of a camera mounted switch is energized by insertion of the modified film pack and by which movement of a camera carried pick is transmitted to an accessory pick for initial ejecting movement of an exposed film sheet from the modified pack. The accessory pick is actuated preferably by a camera pick movement amplifier to accommodate the reduced exterior dimensions of the reduced format film sheet. Also, a viewfinder mask is provided as an adjunct to the accessory so that a viewed image will be collated with the reduced image format of film sheets in the modified film pack.

Photographic system accessory for small format film sheets

An accessory adapted for selective attachment to a film cassette for photographically recording indicia on a film unit within the cassette. The accessory includes a base plate having an integrated circuit (IC) chip mounted thereon, a light emitting diode (LED) display and pair of spring clips for electrically and structurally interconnecting the base plate and the display in spaced parallel relation. A pair of electrical contacts extend outwardly from the base plate for connecting the IC chip with the terminals of a battery when the accessory is attached to the film cassette. A collimating screen is mounted on the surface of the LED display facing the base plate such that when the accessory is attached to the cassette the base plate is in engagement with the rear wall of the cassette and the collimating screen extends into an exposure aperture in the cassette'forward wall and into engagement with an opaque cover sheet located within the cassette. Subsequent to the loading of the cassette into a camera, the cover sheet is removed from the cassette and the first of a plurality of film units is urged into its exposure position with a small corner portion of its exposure surface in engagement with the collimating screen. When the IC detects an electrical load on the cassette's battery, it momentarily directs a flow of current from the cassette's battery to the LED display thereby illuminating the display so as to photographically record the indicia on the film unit being exposed. In a preferred embodiment, the indicia represents the date of the exposure and therefore the accessory includes its own battery for driving the display's timing circuit. Alternatively, the indicia represents the aperture setting and/or the speed of the camera's shutter.

Exposure identification accessory

A camera back for processing film units of the self-developing or instant type. The camera back, which preferably is adapted to replace the back of a conventional camera, e.g., a 35 mm camera, includes a first housing for supporting a film cassette containing a stack of film units in position for exposure of an endmost film unit in the stack and a pair of rollers for spreading a processing fluid across an element of the film unit after it has been photographically exposed. A second housing including an expansible chamber is reciprocally mounted to the first housing for movement between a first position in which the chamber is collapsed and a second position in which it is extended. A gear rack is coupled to the second housing and to a gear on one of the rollers for driving the latter. The exposed film unit is processed by moving its leading edge into the bite of the rollers and then manually grasping the second housing and moving it from the first position to the second position. This movement is used to drive the roller and thus advance the exposed film unit through the rollers and into the continually expanding chamber which provides a dark environment for the film unit.

Camera back

Apparatus having a chamber for receiving a stack of photographs which are to be sequentially moved into a projection plane whereat their images may be projected onto a viewing screen. One wall of the chamber includes a shelf which is adapted to support one end of the stack of photographs such that, upon initial loading of the stack of photographs into the chamber, the endmost photograph located closest to the projection plane is prevented from falling completely into the projection plane. The apparatus includes an indexing member which is movable into and out of engagement with the one end of the endmost photograph so as to push it off of the shelf thereby enabling it to move substantially fully into the projection plane wherein it defines an acute angle with the next adjacent photograph which is now being supported at one end by the shelf. The relationship of these two photographs is now such that only their ends, i.e., the ends opposite the shelf are in engagement with each other thereby substantially obviating any problem of the two photographs damaging each other, e.g., by scratching each other, during movement of the endmost photograph in a direction away from their engaged ends and toward their said one ends.

Film transport for a viewer

A photographic film cassette having a stack of self-contained, self-developing film units includes leaders interconnecting the units to enable them to be withdrawn from the cassette one at a time. A Z-fold or zig-zag configuration of the film units and leaders is employed, with a leader interconnecting the leading edge of one film unit and the trailing edge of the preceding film unit. The cassette structure cooperates with the connection of the leader to the film unit leading edge to project a film unit against a cassette wall to prevent inadvertent withdrawal of the unit. Staggered loading, and alternatively symmetrical back-to-back loading of the film units in the cassette, can increase the number of film units the cassette accommodates in a limited space.

Apparatus for packaging and for using self-developing photographic film

A photographic film assemblage possessing the versatility for use with either manually operable or electrically powered photograhic camera systems. The preferred assemblage includes: a cassette with a chamber adapted to receive a plurality of film units; a battery cavity located within the chamber and adapted to optionally receive an electric storage battery, the cavity being formed by the cooperation of a platen light-seal member and a wall of the chamber; and an access aperture in the chamber through which the battery may be conveniently inserted and removed.

Photographic film cassette

An imbibition chamber adapter configures to be attached to a self-developing camera for receiving a transparency type self-developing film that has been advanced through pressure applying members of the camera.

Growing community of inventors

Arlington, MA, United States of America

Nicholas Gold