Minolta Camera Kabushiki Kaisha

Yoshio Kuramoto

Hiroshi Ueda

Yasuhiro Nanba

Masatoshi Itoh

Toru Matsui

Motonobu Matsuda

Toshinori Imura

Yasuo Yamazaki

Kyozo Uesugi

Mitsuru Saito

Yoshiiku Kikukawa

Maki Yamashita

Isamu Uchida

Katsuhiro Ise

An objective lens extension device for use with a camera having an interchangeable lens coupling includes front and rear mounts having confronting recesses which form a housing when together, the rear mount having a camera coupling and the front mount having a lens coupling similar to the camera lens coupling and complimenting and rear mount camera coupling. A bellows extends between the mounts coaxial with the mount couplings and a pair of similar longitudinally extending linearly extendable contractable link assemblies, for example of the lazy tongs type, extend between and are connected to the mounts and lie in mutually perpendicular planes. A third link assembly may be provided parallel and similar to one of the others. The link assemblies may be spring biased to a contracted condition, releasably locked in preselected conditions and transversely stressed to frictionally retard their movement. In the bellows and link assemblies contracted condition they are enclosed in the housing formed by the contracted mounts.

Lens mount support for self-extending camera

A photographic camera having an automatic rangefinder system wherein a light emitter projects a beam of light through a convergent lens to illuminate a target object. This beam of light is detected through another convergent lens by one of a group of photoresponsive elements forming a light receiver. Depending upon which photoresponsive element of the light receiver detects the reflected beam of light, the range of the target object to be photographed from the photographic camera is indicated. The light emitter and the light receiver are supported by a single support member in laterally offset relation to each other and the lens elements for converging the projected beam of light and the reflected beam of light, respectively, are integrally formed of a synthetic resin. The rangefinder elements are assembled into a rangefinder module.

Automatic rangefinder system for photographic camera with light emitting

A camera is equipped with a member bearing data to be photographed such as a date and the like and a data light focusing optical system for projecting the illuminated data from the data member at the front of the camera rearwardly with the object light toward the data photographing portion of the film. The data light focusing optical system is arranged so that the data light is directed to be incident on the data photographing portion of the film from a direction different from the incident direction of the object light. Provided in the front of the data photographing portion of the film is an object light incidence limiting member which is positioned parallel with the plane of the film and allows the transmission of the data light therethrough but interrupts the object light directed toward the data light focusing portion of the film.

Data photographic device for camera

A camera includes a forwardly facing illuminatable visual member and a first group of laterally spaced parallel vertical light absorbent vanes extending from the face of the visual member to restrict the light rays directed therefrom to a predetermined horizontal angle which is a function of the intervane spacing and the depth of the vanes. The vane parameters are such that the predetermined angle is equal to the camera field angle or the range finder viewing angle or two groups of vanes may be provided corresponding to each of the camera and view finder field angles. A second group of vertically spaced horizontal vanes may be provided to limit the visibility of the visual member to one or more vertical angles. The first and second vane groups are perpendicular to each other and either intercept each other, from rectangular frames or are superimposed. A network is provided for varying the illumination of the visual member in response to the ambient light and another network is provided for illuminating the visual member in relation to the initiation of a self-timing cycle. Where two angles delineating vane groups are provided, the visual member is divided into corresponding differently illuminated sections.

Camera position indicator device

Each exchangeable lens in a series of exchangeable lenses for use in single lens reflex cameras comprises a lens barrel including at least one lens and a diaphragm, a fixed index on the outer surface of the lens barrel, a diaphragm setting ring including f-number graduations ranging from a maximum f-number to a minimum f-number of the exchangeable lens, with the ring rotatable to a plurality of positions to align any one of the f-number graduations to an index so as to be set to a desired f-number. A first projection on the ring is spaced a predetermined first distance, common to each exchangeable lens of the series, from the minimum f-number graduation in the rotational direction of the ring. Thus, the amount of rotation of the first projection with the ring set to a desired f-number corresponds to the step-difference between the minimum and the desired f-number. A second projection of the ring is spaced a predetermined second distance from the maximum f-number graduation in the rotational direction of the ring. The second distance is dependent on the value of the maximum f-number of each exchangeable lens of the series of lenses such that the second projection is at a position dependent on the value of the maximum f-number of the exchangeable lens with the ring set to the maximum f-number.

Exchangeable lenses for use in internal light measuring type single lens

A large number of cones such as circular cones or pyramids, or conical recesses are regularly uniformly distributed and formed on a surface of a transparent focussing plate. Each cone or conical recess has a large number of fine irregularities on the sloping surface thereof to thereby diffuse the light passing through the sloping surface.

Focussing plate

A camera focussing aid includes an auxiliary light projector directing a light beam forwardly of the camera and mounted in the camera body or in a separable flash unit. A mechanism is provided for deactivating the auxiliary projector during the camera exposure sequence and includes a switch network connecting the auxiliary projector lamp to a battery, the switch being opened either with the depression of the shutter release member, the initiation of the shutter opening, the closing of the flash triggering switch or a drop in voltage across the flash charge capacitor. The projector beam is advantageously of small divergence and the auxliary projector may be used with a camera having a split image range finder or a single lens reflex camera.

Camera focussing aid

A self-processing camera is adapted to receive a film magazine containing a plurality of film units mounted in a line upon an elongated leader paper and equally spaced therealong. Each of the film units includes an image recording unit consisting of a photosensitive sheet overlying an image receiving sheet and separable therefrom, and a rupturable portion, containing processing fluid, disposed at one side of the image recording unit. The leader paper is folded to dispose the film units in a superposed stack within the film magazine and the latter has a take-up reel to which is secured one end of the leader paper and is adapted to wind thereon a film unit excluding the image recording unit. After exposure of the foremost film unit, the leader paper is wound upon the take-up reel, drawing the exposed film unit between pressure rollers which rupture the portion containing processing fluid and distribute the latter over the exposed film unit to develop the same, whereafter the film unit is separated from the leader paper and discharged from the camera. The camera includes a rotating member which automatically rotates the take-up reel of the magazine at a controlled rate in response to the termination of exposure and also insures that the take-up reel is rotated to a precise extent sufficient to wind the leader paper thereon by a length corresponding to the distance between the leading edge of one film unit and the leading edge of the next film unit.

Growing community of inventors

Toyonaka, Japan

Yoshio Kuramoto