Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Shigeru Mitsu

Akira Ueno

Hiroshi Takeda

Kenji Koyama

Susumu Iguchi

Keiji Himuro

Yoshio Serikawa

Yoshihiko Shimura

Yukihisa Narazaki

A flashing apparatus of an automatic light-adjusting type for illuminating a photographed object by discharging a charge charged to a main capacitor from a light emitting tube has an energy amount detector for detecting an energy amount applied to the light emitting tube from the main capacitor; an energy amount setting device for setting an amount of discharged energy of the main capacitor corresponding to a quantity of light required to illuminate the photographed object; a comparator for comparing the energy amount detected by the energy amount detector with the energy amount set by the energy amount setting device; and a light emission stopping device for stopping light emission of the light emitting tube by a signal outputted from the comparator when the comparator detects that the discharged energy amount of the main capacitor is in conformity with the set amount of the energy amount setting device after the light emission is started. The flashing apparatus may further has a voltage detector constituting the energy amount detector and detecting a voltage applied to the light emitting tube from the main capacitor; an electric current detector for detecting an electric current flowing through the light emitting tube; a multiplying device for multiplying the detected voltage by the detected electric current; an integrator for integrating the multiplied results; etc.

Flash control based on calculated required flash energy

A drive control device for controlling a zoom lens of a camera comprising: a zoom lens arranged on an optical axis; a motor for driving the zoom lens; a first controller for controlling a first zooming function wherein the zoom lens is moved at a relatively slow normal speed; a first trigger for starting the first zooming function only when the first trigger is being manipulated. The device further comprises a focal distance detector for detecting the position of the zoom lens on the optical axis; a first detector which detects a longest distance state wherein the zoom lens is positioned at a maximum focal point; a second detector which detects a shortest distance state wherein the zoom lens is positioned at a minimum focal point and which outputs a signal of the minimum focal position corresponding to the shortest distance state; a second controller for controlling a second zooming function of the camera wherein the zoom lens is moved at a speed far fastener than the normal speed by the motor; and a second trigger for starting the second zooming function. When the second trigger is manipulated, the zoom lens is automatically driven to move to the maximum focal position or to the minimum focal position irrespective of the length of the manipulation time of the second trigger.

Control device for driving zoom lens of camera

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Shigeru Mitsu