Eastman-kodak Company

Peter A Wacht

Joel S Lawther

Joseph A Watkins

Anthony Dirisio

James F Schmitt

In a camera frame assembly, a frame includes a film return chamber, a film roll chamber spaced apart from the film return chamber, and a midsection extending between the chambers. The midsection has a pair of film guide surfaces that define a film path between the chambers. A holdfast is joined in fixed relation to the midsection adjacent the film roll chamber. The holdfast extends outward from the midsection toward the film path. The holdfast is fully outside the film path. A film unit has a film holder and a filmstrip. The film holder is seated in the film return chamber. The filmstrip has a leading portion having a free end and a grip adjoining the free end. The filmstrip has a main portion adjoining the leading portion. The filmstrip is movable between a first position in which the grip engages the holdfast and a second position in which the main portion occupies the film path and extends from one of the chambers to the other. A camera and transportable camera intermediate likewise have a holdfast and grip.

Camera having a filmstrip holdfast spaced apart from a film path and transportable camera intermediate

In a film camera production method, a leading portion of a filmstrip is draped across a midsection of a camera frame. The camera frame has a film roll chamber joined to the midsection. A free end of the leading portion is lodged in the film roll chamber and a retention zone of the filmstrip is placed in engagement with a retention structure mounted to the frame. The retention zone adjoins the free end. The retention structure is fixed in position on the frame. The engagement of the retention zone and retention structure locks the leading portion against longitudinal travel toward the film roll chamber. The frame is transported and, during the transporting, the engagement of the retention zone and retention structure is maintained. Following the transporting, the retention zone is pulled off the retention structure.

One-time use camera assembly process having filmstrip anchored during camera frame assembly transport

A one-time-use camera comprises a filmstrip having a certain width and a film leader for the filmstrip having another width that is greater than the width of the filmstrip, a film-exposure backframe opening, a pair of parallel film edge guides located apart from each other a distance substantially equal to the width of the filmstrip to guide the filmstrip over the backframe opening, and a pair of leader edge guides located parallel to the film edge guides and apart from each other a distance less than the width of the wider leader, but greater than the distance separating the film edge guides, in order to make the wider leader be bent widthwise at opposite longitudinal edge portions of the wider leader between the film edge guides and the leader edge guides, whereby the wider leader is prevented from having to significantly increase the size of the one-time-use camera.

One-time-use camera bends wider film leader widthwise to conserve space

A compact camera comprising a main body part, and a substantially flat flash circuit board, is characterized in that the flash circuit board has at least two separate flat board pieces, and the main body part has respective separate locations for each one of the separate pieces of the flash circuit board.

One-time-use camera with multi-piece flash circuit board to improve

A method of retracting a filmstrip wound on a filmstrip reel. The filmstrip has a rear end which is attached to a spool of a film cartridge. The filmstrip reel comprising a pair of side walls, each side wall having a spiral track for retaining an edge of the filmstrip. The filmstrip is rewound into the film cartridge by applying a removing force on the rear end of the filmstrip in a direction for rewinding the filmstrip into the films cartridge. At the same time, one of the side walls is oscillated with respect to the other side wall about its central axis.

Growing community of inventors

Ontario, NY, United States of America

Peter A Wacht