Nikon Corporation

Tatsuo Amanuma

Hidenori Miyamoto

Toshiyuki Nakamura

Yoshio Imura

Sueyuki Ohishi

Minoru Kato

Junichi Omi

Hiroshi Wakabayashi

Isao Soshi

Yoshiaki Ohtsubo

Nobuhiko Terui

Hideya Inoue

Akira Katayama

Keishi Urata

Daiki Tsukahara

Toru Kosaka

Naoki Watanabe

Yukikazu Iwane

Jun Nagai

Jirou Asami

Norikazu Yokonuma

Kazuharu Imafuji

Hitoshi Aoki

Noriyasu Kotani

Tadao Kai

Kiyosada Machida

Shinichi Hirano

Toshio Sosa

Yoshikazu Iida

Hiroshi Terunuma

Tadashi Otani

Noboru Akami

Yoshihisa Kitagawa

Fumiya Taguchi

Yoshihiro Takeuchi

Hachiro Kanai

Minoru Katou

Masato Matsuzawa

Suieyuki Ohishi

A camera is provided which has a vibration detection unit that detects vibration, a photographic focal length detection unit which detects the focal length of the photographic optical system, and a distance-measurement unit that measures the distance to the object being photographed. The vibration compensation device employs drive motors as a vibration compensation unit. The drive motors have a start up time which is at least as fast as the acceleration of a vibration having roughly a sine wave shape with a frequency of 10 Hz and a maximum velocity of 7.5 mm/sec. Such a motor is able to reach the maximum velocity of the vibration in under 25 ms. Additionally, a correct compensating coefficient calculation unit is provided which, from the output of the photographic focal length detection unit and the output of the distance-measurement unit, calculates a correct compensation coefficient for determining how much to change the optical axis of the photographic optical system relative to the output of the vibration detection unit. The vibration compensation device compensates for vibrations by driving the motor to change the optical axis of the photographic optical system of the camera in response to the compensation coefficient and the output of the vibration detection unit.

Camera with vibration compensation device varying the compensating action in accordance with the focal length of a lens and the distance to the subject

A camera equipped with a vibration detection unit which detects vibrations in the camera, a vibration compensation unit which performs vibration compensation based on the vibration detection signals of the vibration detection unit, and a strobe emitting unit which emits photographic fill-in light. A control unit is provided that prohibits charging of the strobe battery while the vibration detection unit is operating. In addition, when it has been determined that photographic fill-in light is needed, and the vibration detection unit is operating, and when the strobe battery is uncharged, the operation of the vibration detection unit is stopped.

Camera having a vibration compensation device and a strobe emitting device

A camera, such as a video camera or other electrically recordable camera, has scale imprintable capabilities and a method for imprinting a scale onto memory storage media. The camera and method imprints, optically or electrically, a standard scale on memory storage media for the purpose of estimating the size of a subject image. A photographic magnification calculation circuit calculates the photographic magnification based on a subject distance, and a reference scale setting circuit sets a reference scale for the purpose of estimating the size of the subject image on the memory storage media regardless of the magnification during picture taking or print size. An imprinting circuit imprints, optically or electrically, the reference scale onto the memory storage media in accordance with the reference scale setting circuit, and only when needed or wanted. The reference scale can be imprinted in a vertical or horizontal direction in accordance with a mode selection switch. In addition, date, time and other information can also be imprinted onto the memory storage media. Picture taking will not be performed when it is not possible to accurately superimpose the reference scale and warning displays are generated.

Camera having scale imprintable capabilities and method for imprinting

A camera displacement mechanism control device can maintain the time required to effect removal of backlash within a set time. Zooming-down is started by the zoom-down switch being turned ON, and the lens barrel is driven as far as the wide-angle terminus if the zoom-down switch is not turned OFF during zooming-down. Alternatively, if the zoom down switch is turned OFF during zooming-down, the lens barrel is driven to the next halt position after the position where the zoom-down switch was turned OFF. In either case, the lens barrel is caused to overshoot the target halt position in the direction of scrolling-in for a time interval long enough to effect removal of backlash, and is subsequently driven in the direction of scrolling-out and halted at the described target halt position.

Displacement mechanism control device in a camera

A vibration preventing camera includes a vibration amount detecting unit for detecting the amount of vibration, a vibration correcting unit for correcting vibration, a light measuring unit for measuring the light value at a subject, and a control unit for controlling the vibration correcting unit in consonance with a detection signal that is obtained by the light measuring unit and the vibration detecting unit, and for activating the vibration detecting unit after the length of exposure is determined by the light value at the subject that is obtained by the light measuring unit. More preferably, a vibration preventing camera further includes a self-timer unit, and when the self-timer unit is set for an exposure, the vibration detecting unit is activated after the timing count down for the self-timer unit begins.

Vibration preventing camera

A vibration compensation device for use in an optical imaging system, such as a camera, having a vibration detection unit to detect vibrations in the camera and a vibration compensation unit to drive a vibration compensation optical lens perpendicular to an optical axis to correct for the vibrations detected by the vibration detection unit. A display unit, preferably a lamp, is provided to indicate the detection of vibrations by the vibration detection unit. Further, the vibration detection device is provided with a switch to allow the user to select whether the vibration compensation device is to be enabled or disabled. When the vibration detection device is enabled, upon the halfpress of a shutter release button, the vibration detection unit is initialized to determine the point at which the angular velocity of the vibration compensation optical lens equals 0. Thereafter, the vibration compensation unit drives the vibration compensation optical lens in response to the signals from the vibration detection unit. Conversely, when the vibration compensation device is disabled, a wait time, equal to the amount of time otherwise required to detect where the angular velocity equals 0, is waited so as to present the photographer with the same feel regardless of whether he takes a picture with the vibration compensation device enabled or disabled.

Vibration compensation device for a camera and an associated visual

A camera with vibration correcting function is provided with a plurality of vibration detecting devices for detecting the vibration of the camera, a plurality of vibration correcting devices for effecting vibration correction control in conformity with the respective outputs of the vibration detecting devices, and an abnormality detecting device for detecting the abnormality of the output of the vibration detecting devices, and only the vibration correcting device corresponding to the vibration detecting device having the output for which abnormality has been detected by the abnormality detecting device is inhibited from effecting the vibration correction control.

Camera with vibration correcting function

A film driving circuit that is capable of normal driving and reverse driving to drive-control a first motor and a second motor each rotating in only one direction. The motor driving circuit is structured so the first motor driving and the second motor driving is controlled by four switching elements composing a bridge circuit. The first motor connects to the connecting points of two of the switching elements. The second motor connects to the connecting points of the other two of the four switching elements. A CPU controls the first motor and the second motor by controlling the on-off status of the four switching elements.

Motor driving circuit and method for driving two motors

This camera capable of image blur reduction includes a photographic device which performs photography, a camera vibration detection device which detects the value of a physical quantity related to the amount of camera vibration, an image blur reduction device which performs image blur reduction operation based upon the output of the camera vibration detection device in order to reduce blurring of the photographic image caused as a result of camera vibration, and a control device which causes the operation of the image blur reduction device after a predetermined time period has elapsed from the time point of starting of operation of the camera vibration detection device, and which causes the operation of the photographic device during the operation of the image blur reduction device.

Camera capable of reducing image blur

A camera with a vibration correction function provided with a continuous shot mode for carrying out continuous photographing, has a vibration detecting device for detecting vibration of the camer, a vibration correcting device for correcting the vibration of the camera at the time of photographing based on a signal from the vibration detecting device, a film feeding device for feeding a photographic film loaded in the camera, a film end detecting device for detecting an end of the photographic film, and a control device for stopping the operation of the vibration detecting device and making the film feeding device start rewinding the photographic film when receiving a film end detection signal from the film end detecting device during photographing under the continuous shot mode.

Camera with vibration correction function

A lens driving system for a camera with an anti-vibration function has a vibration correcting lens drivable in a direction in which blurring of an image on an image surface due to a camera shake is prevented from occurring, vibration correcting lens driving means for driving the vibration correcting lens, a photointerrupter detecting a relative position and speed of the vibration correcting lens, and a disk being connected to the correcting lens driving means and having a plurality of slits determined in accordance with the width of a slit of a light receiving section of the photointerrupter and the resolution of detection of shift of the vibration correcting lens in order to turn on and off the photointerrupter repeatedly.

Lens driving system for camera with anti-vibration function

A photographing apparatus having a vibration reducing mechanism comprises a photographing optical system, a preparatory flash device for preventing a pink-eye, and a vibration reducing mechanism for detecting a vibration quantity of an optical axis of the photographing optical system and moving a whole or a part of the photographing optical system relatively to a photographing picture. The photographing apparatus has a function of stopping the preparatory flash device when the vibration reducing mechanism is in an operable state.

Photographing apparatus having vibration reducing mechanism

A camera with a vibration correction function prevents a battery from unnecessarily exhausting due to a failure of a vibration corrective lens driving system and provides accurate vibration-resistant control. A vibration corrective lens is subjected either to a centering drive operation to drive an optical axis to a center position of the photographing system or to a resetting drive operation to drive the optical axis to the initial position. When an abnormal drive operation is detected, the centering or resetting operation ceases to supply electric power to the angular velocity detecting circuit, the motor drive circuit, and the lens displacement detecting circuit.

Camera having vibration correction function

An apparatus to detect the amount and direction of rotary motion for use in a vibration compensation system in an optical camera. An indicator disk is provided around the output shaft of a motor which actuates a compensation lens to compensate for vibrations to the camera. The periphery of the indicator disk is provided with a series of holes. A pair of photodetectors, are arranged on the periphery of the disk so as to detect the holes passing thereunder. The two photodetectors are separated by a distance equal to 3/4 of the distance between two holes. By comparing the pattern of signals emitted by the photodetectors the direction of rotation of the indicator disk can be determined. Further, the pulses in the output of either photodetector can be counted to determine the amount of movement. The actual direction and amount of movement as calculated is provided to a vibration compensation circuit as feedback for use in controlling the compensation lens.

Rotary motion detector

In a camera with vibration correcting function, by varying the optical axis of the phototaking lens according to the vibration of the camera, there are provided a main control device for controlling the phototaking exposure process of the camera and a vibration correcting control device for controlling the vibration correcting operation of the camera, in which the vibration correcting control device has at least a stopped state without function and a function state, and the main control device is electrically connected with the vibration correcting control device and is adapted to control the same. The power consumption in the vibration correcting control device is reduced by switching the stopped state and the function state of the vibration correcting control device, by the control signal from the main control device.

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Ageo, Japan

Tatsuo Amanuma