Asahi Kogaku Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha

Toru Kando

Keisuke Haraguchi

Tahei Morisawa

Satoshi Takami

Koji Sato

Yoshifumi Kuroki

Masaaki Morizumi

Teruo Hagiwara

Mituo Satoh

A compact camera which includes an auto focus mechanism arranged above a shutter aperture between a film cartridge chamber and a film spool chamber at the same height above the light axis center as a strobe mechanism mounted above the spool chamber. A film winding and shutter charge gear is mounted above the film cartridge chamber and a film winding gear mounted between spool chamber and strobe mechanism. Gear transmission means are mounted between said gears and between an aperture and an auto focus mechanism, and serve for interlocking rotation of the gears.

Compact camera

A cover-equipped camera includes a cover movable right and view left at the front of a camera body to shield or expose its lens and finder, and a fixed cover with and from which the movable cover is contacted or released. The opening and closing cover includes a sliding guide member integral to the cover, and sliders projected from the camera body. The movable cover is guided and slided with the sliders fitted into slits formed in the sliding guide member. When the movable cover is to be opened for exposure, a lock lever is released by the action of an operating lever to quickly open the movable cover. The movable cover is also kept open by magnetic force at the same time. The cover-equipped camera can achieve protection and dust-free effects, is excellent in quick shuttering capacity, and can take photos without failure.

Cover-equipped camera

An electronic flash camera, in which a power source switch for an electronic flash unit contained in the camera is interlocked to the operation of opening and closing a cover of the front of an optical system of the camera such that said power source switch is turned off when resetting said electronic flash unit and/or when closing said cover.

Electronic flash camera

An adaptor for a camera for operating multiple flash units with a single camera device in which all of the flash units simultaneously emit light. Output signals from each of the flash units indicating that the corresponding individual flash unit is ready to emit light are coupled to corresponding inputs of a logical product circuit such as an AND gate. The single output of the AND gate is coupled to a single corresponding input of the camera device. The X contact of the camera device is coupled in common to the actuation terminals of each of the flash units.

Multiple flash adaptor

An electromagnetic release mechanism for a camera in which a release member is returned to an energized and locked position through a spring which is energized and deenergized in response to rotation of a cam which is rotated upon performing a film winding operation. A rotatable release locking member has a forked end in which is engaged a first end of a release member and a cut in which an end of a slidable release drive member is lockably engaged. A movable member is mounted on the other end of the release member at a position to be attracted by an electromagnet the force of which is reduced by a coil wound thereon when a current is passed through the coil upon the start of a release operation. A spring joins the release member to one end of an arm which is rotated at its center and which has its other end riding upon the cam surface. With this construction, it is unnecessary to provide a separate mechanism for forcibly returning the release member after a release operation has been accomplished.

Electromagnetic release mechanism

A release button device for controlling the release of a shutter in an electromagnetic release type camera in which commercially available cable release units and electrical remote release units can be both used. An electrically conductive release button which is adapted for receiving the cable release unit is coupled to an electrically insulative central core frame. The plunger of the cable release unit can pass through an aperture formed in the release button and central core frame. An electrically conductive central core frame is slidably disposed in the aperture in the core frame. A protrusion which forms a first contact of a release switch is positioned below a lower end of the central core and a dome-shaped contact piece forming the second contact is disposed therebetween. Upon depression of the release button or a plunger of a cable release unit, the contact piece is pushed into contact with the protrusion thus closing the release switch.

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Toru Kando