Eastman-kodak Company

Paul L Taillie

Thomas J Quattrini

Edward P Furlani

Joel S Lawther

Thomas M Stephany

David R Dowe

Steven M Bryant

Paul Teremy

Michael L Wash

Thomas D Jensen

Arthur A Whitfield

Robert L Kuhn

Duane J Farling

Fernando G Silva

Robert D Huot

John K Erickson

A film-based magnetic head cleaning medium in which the head cleaning areas are formed by puncturing the film all the way through with a plurality of sharp prongs to produce an area of projecting puncture edges which are raised from the surface of the film thereby creating roughened areas which scrape accumulated debris from the magnetic head as the film is passed between the magnetic head and facing load pressure pad.

Magnetic head cleaning film strip and method of making same

A camera for taking pictures, comprises a viewfinder masking device having three different format mask configurations; a manual picture-format selector having three different format selection settings which correspond respectively to the three different format mask configurations in order to select any one of the three different format mask configurations; and a default reset for returning the selector to a predetermined one of the three different format selection settings and returning the viewfinder masking device to a corresponding one of the three different format mask configurations, when the selector is in any one of the selection settings that is not the predetermined one, after a picture is taken and before another picture is taken.

Camera with variable format viewfinder

An electromagnetic actuator includes a core made of a soft magnetic material, a permanent magnet located between a pair of ends of the core, the permanent magnet being supported for movement, and an electrically conductive coil wrapped about a portion of the core. The reluctance of the core is adjustable to alter movement of the permanent magnet as a function of time upon application of electrical current to the coil of the electromagnetic actuator.

Core made of a soft magnetic material for use in an electromagnetic

A gimbaled load pad mounting arrangement in which a rigid load pad is detachably mounted on the spherical end of a spring-loaded mounting shaft. The load pad is provided on the side with flexible retention hooks with finger portions that engage the underside of the mounting frame to hold the load pad in position during assembly. Once the magnetic head is mounted in position, the pressure of the head against the load pad disengages the finger portions from contact with the underside of the frame thereby allowing the gimbaled load pad to assume its exact constraint position against the face of the magnetic head.

Magnetic head apparatus with gimbaled load pad

A photographic camera (10) includes a supply chamber (14) for receiving a cartridge (16) enclosing a photographic filmstrip (18) wound on a supply spool (92); a rotatable member (90) disposed in the supply chamber for being coupled to rotate a supply spool of a cartridge installed in the supply chamber; a takeup chamber (20); a takeup spool (22) in the takeup chamber for winding a filmstrip drawn in a first direction from a cartridge in the supply chamber; a head (102) positioned between the supply and takeup chambers for at least one of reading and recording data on a filmstrip; a first drive system (24, 50-78) for rotating the takeup spool to draw a filmstrip from a cartridge in the first direction and wind a filmstrip onto the takeup spool; a second drive system (24, 50-68, 80-88) for rotating the rotatable member to rotate a supply spool to draw a filmstrip in a second, opposite direction from the takeup spool and wind a filmstrip onto a supply spool in a cartridge; and a brake mechanism (118, 118a, 118b, 118c), responsive to a change in rotation of the takeup spool from the first direction to the second direction, to resist rotation of the takeup spool in the second direction, so as to apply tension to a filmstrip to reduce variations in the speed of a filmstrip while the head records data as a filmstrip is wound from the takeup spool to a supply spool in a cartridge.

Photographic camera with mechanically actuated tension control for

A photographic camera is provided with magnetic recording means including a frequency selection circuit responsive to a controller to iteratively record data on a magnetic recording layer formed on photographic film with each iteration being recorded at a different recording frequency. Suitable selection of recording frequencies for a range of expected film speeds will result in a predetermined number of recorded iterations for which respective bit densities and cumulative recorded track length will fall within predetermined acceptable limits established for reliable reading of the data by subsequent data read circuits.

Method and apparatus for recording data on photographic film in a low

An improved hard stop for use with an aperture mechanism is comprised of at least one blade moveable along a path between a closed position and at least one open position, and at least one hard stop that is moveable between a first position, out of the blade path, and a second position, in the blade path, to position the blade in the open position when an edge of the blade contacts a hard stop piston. The improved hard stop is comprised of a magnetic piston, an electromagnet that is positioned proximate the magnetic piston for causing the magnetic piston to move to the first position when current is applied to the electromagnet in a first direction and for causing the magnetic piston to move to the second position when current is applied to the electromagnet in a second direction. A first ferromagnet is positioned at the first position to maintain the magnetic piston at the first position when current ceases to be applied to the electromagnet in the first direction. A second ferromagnetic is positioned at the second position to maintain the magnetic piston at the second position when current ceases to be applied to the electromagnet in the second direction.

Electromagnetic mechanism for providing a hard stop for moving blade

A magnetic head-to-media backer device comprising an elastically deformable reed-like backer member adapted to urge a flexible magnetic media into contact with a magnetic head, is characterized in that a rigid frame has a cavity defined at least by a pair of opposite walls shaped to hold the backer member bent in an arc with two opposite leg portions of the backer member captured within the cavity to permit them to be deformed against respective ones of the opposite walls and a center portion of the backer member protruding from an opening to the cavity to permit it to be depressed at least part way into the opening to deform the leg portions toward the opposite walls. Thus, when a magnetic head is forced against the center portion the center portion can be depressed into the opening until the leg portions are deformed against the opposite walls, thereby providing a very stable support for the magnetic head.

Magnetic head-to-media backer device

The reliability of data transfer between stages of photographic filmstrip use and processing is enhanced by magnetically recording a limited data set repetitively along a wide track in a frame of the filmstrip. Plural laterally offset magnetic read heads monitor the data in the magnetic track and provide output data signals on parallel independently operating channels. The data content of the output data signals is examined to determine whether the data of an individual data signal contains corruption error. The combined linear and parallel redundancy of the system tends to ensure successful data transfer despite a less than perfect head-to-film interface and other data corrupting influences.

Method and apparatus for magnetically communicating via a photographic

Apparatus in a simple low cost camera for encoding predetermined formats of exposed image frames on film of the type having a magnetic layer thereon in which there are a plurality of parallel data tracks prerecorded on the film. A user-operable selector means on the camera is set to establish the format of an image frame to be exposed on the film. In response to the selector means, a magnetic means is translated laterally across the film to position a magnetic erasure field in the path of one or more of the prerecorded data tracks to cause erasure of a segment of the selected tracks associated with the image frame. Preferably, the erasure field is always in the path of a first of a plurality of tracks to simultaneously indicate both normal format and the extend of film usage. Movement of the erasure field into the path of one or more additional adjacent data tracks is used to indicate pseudo image formats such as pseudo-tele and pseudo-pan prints. The selected erased segments can then be detected at the photofinishing printer to cause printing of the appropriate normal or pseudo-format prints.

Growing community of inventors

Rochester, NY, United States of America

Paul L Taillie