Nippon Kogaku K.k.

Nikon Corporation

Yoshiyuki Nakano

Akihiko Sato

Etsuo Tanaka

Yoshiaki Tanabe

Nobuo Matsukawa

Hiroshi Hasegawa

Tetsuro Goto

Osamu Maida

Yoshitaka Araki

Keiji Ohsawa

Mikio Takemae

Ryuichi Mori

Masakazu Tomatsuri

Sunao Nishioka

Masaru Ichikawa

Hironobu Kato

Hidenobu Kondo

Atsushi Sano

Kiyosada Machida

Keisuke Mochizuki

A mirror operating device for speeding up a photographic operation cycle in a camera having a reflecting mirror for viewfinder observation. The reflecting mirror is movable between a first position blocking a photographic optical path and a second position aside from the photographic optical path. An electromotive drive source moves the reflecting mirror to the first position from the second position after an exposure to view a subject in a viewfinder. The time required for performing a mirror lowering operation is improved by controlling operation of a shutter mechanism and the electromotive drive source to move the reflecting mirror according to specific timing operations. The opening of the shutter mechanism is controlled according to a signal from a first delay device, and the start of the electromotive drive source to drive the mirror is started in response to a signal from a second delay device. The signals from the first delay device and the second delay device are output with respect to a reference signal such that the electromotive drive source starts moving the mirror before the shutter mechanism is finished closing, at a time that the reflecting mirror substantially does not obstruct the photographic optical path until the closing of the shutter mechanism finishes.

Mirror operating device for a single lens reflex camera which maximizes

A camera has first and second openable/closable shutters disposed in side-by-side relationship with the same photographing optical path and can be attached with a flash device. The camera includes a first photographing portion for exposing a film with light by operating a first shutter in an opened state of a second shutter and a second photographing portion for exposing the film with the light by operating the second shutter in the opened state of the first shutter. The camera also includes a control circuit for selecting one of the first and second photographing portions and a flash control circuit for controlling the flash device when effecting flash photographing. The flash control circuit controls the flash device synchronizing with the film exposure corresponding to the selected photographing portion.

Control device for a camera capable of using a flash device

An autofocus camera conducts a focus detection operation with one of differently directed sets of photoelectric conversion elements which is given priority according to the detected attitude of the camera. If focusing cannot be effected using the elements given priority, a focus detection operation is automatically conducted with the other elements. Also provided is a camera having a first mode of operation in which focusing detecting operations are conducted which collectively utilize outputs of all of the elements of differently directed sets of photoelectric conversion elements when a first camera attitude is detected, and a second mode of operation in which focusing detecting operations are conducted which collectively disregard the output of at least one conversion element when a second camera attitude is detected.

Autofocus camera

A film rewinder for a camera comprising a motor and rewinding means driven by the motor and adapted to rewind a used film into a film cartridge, comprises first sensing means disposed at a specific position in the path of the film moved to the film cartridge when the film is being rewound and effective to generate an output signal when the leader portion of the film has passed the specific position; second sensing means effective to generate an output signal when the leader portion of the film is further rewound to the film cartridge beyond the specific position; means for selecting one of first and second conditions; and control means. The control means is used for de-energizing the motor when the first condition is selected by the selecting means and if the control means receives the output signal from the first sensing means and for de-energizing the motor when the second condition is selected by the selecting means and if the control means receives the output signal from the second sensing means.

Film rewinder

A device for supplying an electric energy to an electric device of a camera includes, first power source means in which a first cell is loaded that has a given output capacity sufficient for the electric device to exert its function, second power source means in which a second cell is loaded that has a given output capacity sufficient for the electric device to exert its function, and switching means to be operatively changed between a first switching state where the electric device is connected to the first power source means and a second switching state where the electric device is connected to the second power source means. Furthermore, the device includes responsive means responsive to the loading operation of the first cell for causing the switching means to change to the first switching state.

Power source device with reserve power source for camera

A system consists of a camera provided with warning means to be activated by a detection switch which is closed in cooperation with a film counter, and an accessory unit to be mounted on the camera, wherein the accessory unit is provided with means for generating a warning signal for activating the warning means when the count of shot signals of the camera reaches a number of exposures preset in the accessory unit.

Warning system for remaining amount of film in a camera

A shutter of a camera having an opening member for opening a shutter aperture and a closing member for closing the aperture. The focal plane shutter shields the aperture from light by both the opening member and the closing member immediately after termination of film exposure.

Shutter mechanism of a camera

In a camera having a stop drive mechanism adapted to be driven by an electric motor to vary a stop aperture and a film wind-up mechanism adapted to be driven by the electric motor to wind up a film, the electric motor is rotated to drive the stop drive mechanism before exposure of the film, and it is also rotated to drive the film wind-up mechanism after the exposure of the film. The rotating speeds of the electric motor in the first rotation to drive the stop drive mechanism and in the second rotation to drive the film wind-up mechanism are independently variable.

Motor driven camera

There is provided a flash photography system which allows control of a relation between a light emission duration of a flash device and a full-open time of an exposing aperture of a focal plane shutter in an ideal condition. In the system, an electronic flash device comprises circuitry for producing an output representing the maximum discharge time period of illumination light and circuitry for transmitting the output to a camera when the flash device is coupled to the camera.

Flash photography system

A light-shielding blade for use in a light control device, comprises a flat area and a recessed area on each face. The recessed area on one face is positioned substantially corresponding to the flat area on the other face. The light control device is for controlling a light-passing aperture and comprises a blade group composed of plural light-shielding blades movable between an extended state in which the plural blades are extended in a partially overlapping condition and a superposed state in which the plural blades are stacked in a substantially overlapping state. The blade group comprises at least a blade provided with a flat area and a recessed area on each face thereof. The recessed area on one face is positioned substantially corresponding to the flat area on the other face, and at least one of the flat areas is in overlapping contact with a neighboring blade in said extended state of the blade group.

Light shield blades for light control device and light control device

A planar light-intercepting blade adapted to be moved in the direction of surface thereof at a position across the optical path of an optical device to thereby control the quantity of light passing through the optical path comprises a pair of outer layers forming the outer surfaces of the blade, and an inner layer formed between the outer layers and having a number of spaces therein.

Light-intercepting blade for a light control device

In a single lens reflex camera having a reflecting mirror provided across the light path of a light beam travelling toward a film surface past the stop of a phototaking lens so as to be retractable from the light path, an apparatus for driving the stop device of the phototaking lens for the control of the stop to a predetermined aperture value and the reflecting mirror in relation to the exposure to the film surface includes stop-down operating means capable of being coupled to the stop device and displaceable between a first position for providing a maximum aperture opening to said stop and a second position for providing a minimum aperture diameter to said stop, moving means having a first moving area capable of moving forward while imparting the displacement from the first position to the second position to the stop-down operating means and moving backward while imparting the displacement from the second position to the first position to the stop-down operating means and a second moving area continuous to the first moving area and capable of moving while maintaining the stop-down operating means in the second position, and drive means for moving the moving means forward in the first moving area before the exposure to the film surface and subsequently moving the moving means in the second area. The drive means includes means for driving the reflecting mirror for said retraction while the moving means is in the second moving area.

Driving apparatus in a camera

A portion of the driving force for the aperture control apparatus is used to accumulate mechanical energy as required to drive a certain particularly selected device which is to be operated after the operation of the aperture control apparatus. To this end, there is provided mechanical energy accumulation means connected to the driving source. As the result of the work of the mechanical energy accumulation, the speed of the displacement mechanism is reduced.

Driving system in camera

In order to utilize the advantage of compactness of the current-attraction type solenoid devices and the advantage of two-solenoid electric shutter of being easily linked with other mechanisms, the electric shutter has such a structure that a reciprocating shutter charging member is not returned at the completion of the shutter charging operation but returned when the first and second solenoids are energized after the picture-taking operation is initiated, and that a resetting member is retract from the moving area of the moving members of the first and second solenoids in relation to said returning motion.

Electric shutter device having a reciprocating shutter charging member

A shutter blade for focal plane shutter, in which the blade thickness is made the thinnest possible by forming a plurality of recesses throughout the whole area, except for the connecting part of the blade with a drive mechanism and the outer peripheral edge of the blade. The recesses are in the regular polygonal shape such as hexagon, square, triangle, and so forth.

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Yoshiyuki Nakano