JP3204898B2 - Zoom operation device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a zoom operating device, and more particularly to a zoom operating device operated when the focal length of a photographic lens of a camera is changed.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There is known a compact camera in which a camera body is miniaturized so as to be convenient for carrying. Also,
Some of such conopact cameras include a zoom lens that can change the focal length of the taking lens from, for example, 35 mm to 105 mm. Some compact cameras equipped with a zoom lens are provided with a zoom lever that can be swingably operated. By operating the zoom lever, the photographing lens can be zoomed by the driving force of a motor.

As shown in FIG. 8, the zoom lever includes a lever member 70 having a predetermined contact pattern (rotor) on the bottom surface, and a resilient metallic brush (contact element) contacting the contact pattern. ) 71 constitute two sets of switches for zooming to the telephoto side and the wide-angle side. The zoom lever is configured such that one of a pair of switches is selectively provided by projecting only a lever 70a on the rear side of the camera, or by arranging a lever member 70 on an upper portion and swinging the lever 70a. When ON, the photographing lens is zoomed to the wide-angle side or the telephoto side.

The zoom lever is oscillated between a telephoto position for zooming the focal length of the taking lens toward a telephoto (long focal length) side and a wide-angle position for zooming toward a wide-angle (short focal length) side. At the same time, the neutral spring is biased from both the telephoto position and the wide-angle position toward the neutral position where zooming is not performed on the telephoto side or the wide-angle side.

[0005] As shown in FIG.
Both ends 75 a and 75 b are hung on an engagement pin 76 a provided integrally with the lever member 76 and an engagement member 77 fixed to a camera body or the like. Lever member 76
Is pivoted clockwise in the drawing, one end 75a is rotated clockwise by the pressing of the engagement pin 76a, and thereafter the lever member 7 is rotated.
When the hand is released from the lever 6, the engagement pin 76a is pressed through the one end 75a by the bias of the neutral spring 75, so that the lever member 76 rotates counterclockwise. And one end 76a
When the lever reaches the position where the lever engages with the engaging member 77, the biasing force of the neutral spring 75 does not act on the lever member. Similarly,
After releasing the lever member 76 after swinging the lever member 76 in the counterclockwise direction in the drawing, the engaging pin 76a is pressed by the other end 77b of the neutral spring 75, and the other end 75a
Is rotated to a position where it is engaged with the engagement member 77. In this manner, after performing the zooming operation by swinging the lever member 76, if the lever operation force is reduced, the lever member 7 can be moved.
6 instantaneously returns to the neutral position and can be adjusted to the desired focal length.

[0006]

In the zoom lever using a brush as described above, the brush may be bent and deformed when the lever member is assembled. Since a lever member that covers the brush is used, a relatively large mounting space is required in the camera. Further, a zoom lever using a neutral spring as described above requires a relatively large mounting space in the direction in which the end of the spring extends. For example, if the zoom lever is made to protrude from the back of the camera, a mounting space is required in the front-rear direction of the camera, which hinders thinning of the camera. Conversely, if priority is given to reducing the thickness, the arrangement of the zoom lever is restricted, resulting in poor operability.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and has improved workability during assembly.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a zoom operation device that is advantageous in reducing the thickness of a camera without impairing operability.

[0008]

According to the present invention, in order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the zoom lever is inserted into a shaft mounting hole provided at a root portion of the zoom lever inside the camera body. And a pair of spring ends extending radially from the coil portion and supported by the shaft inserted into the coil portion, each of the spring ends being the root of the zoom lever. A torsion spring which is pressed against each spring receiver formed on the portion and holds the zoom lever at a neutral position, and a zoom lever which is operated to swing toward a telephoto position or a wide-angle position, and one of the spring receivers has a spring end. And a pair of stoppers for receiving the other end of the spring when one of them is pressed, and accumulating the torsion spring in a direction to return the zoom lever to the neutral position.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, a pair of projections are formed at the root of the zoom lever, and when the zoom lever is swung to a telephoto position or a wide-angle position, each of the projections is provided correspondingly. The telephoto or wide-angle drive switch is pressed.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the zoom lever is horizontally mounted on the shaft, and the telephoto position and the wide angle position are set up and down with respect to the neutral position.

[0011]

FIG. 2 shows a camera embodying the present invention. The camera 10 has a built-in photographing mechanism and electronic circuits for performing various controls.
a and a rear cover 11b. On the front face of the camera body 11, a light emitting window 12 and a light receiving window 13 for autofocus, a photometric window 14 for controlling an exposure amount, an objective window of a finder 15, and a strobe light emitting unit 16 are provided. Further, a release button 17 is provided on the upper part of the camera body 11, and the photographing is performed by pressing the release button 17.

At the center of the front surface of the camera body 11, a retractable zoom lens barrel 19 having a taking lens 18 is provided. When a power button (not shown) is turned on, the zoom lens barrel 19 is extended from a state stored inside the camera body 11 to a state protruding as illustrated. Further, the photographing lens 18 built in the zoom lens barrel 19
Can continuously change the focal length by operating the zoom lever 20 (see FIG. 3).

As shown in FIG. 3, on the back of the camera body 11, there are provided an eyepiece window of the finder 15, an LCD 21 for displaying photographing information such as the number of photographed frames of the photographic film to the photographer, and a zoom operation section. 22 zoom levers 20 are exposed. The zoom lever 20 swings up and down to move between a telephoto position where the focal length of the photographing lens 18 is zoomed to the telephoto side and a wide angle position where the zoom distance is zoomed to the wide angle side. For example, when swinging upward, the taking lens 18 is zoomed to the telephoto side, and when swinging downward, the taking lens 18 is zoomed to the wide-angle side. When the swing operation is not performed, the zoom lever 20 is restored and maintained at a neutral position between the telephoto position and the wide-angle position, as described in detail below. After the photographer swings the zoom lever 20 to the telephoto position or the wide-angle position, and then releases the force of the operation or releases the hand from the zoom lever 20 to release the operation, the zoom lever 20 is instantaneously moved. Return to neutral position.

When the photographer holds the camera 10, the zoom lever 20 is used to release the release button 17.
Behind the release button 17, the camera body 1
1, the tip of the zoom lever 20 projects from the contour of the camera body 11. In addition, since the natural state of finger-holding varies depending on the size and shape of the camera, the zoom lever 20 may be arranged slightly shifted in the left-right direction from the rear of the release button 17 in accordance with this.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, a zoom operation unit 22 as a zoom operation device is used to expose a lever member 30, a torsion spring 31, a shaft 32, and a zoom lever 20 to the outside. It comprises an opening 33 formed in the rear cover 11b, a mounting portion 34 formed around the opening 33 on the inner surface side of the rear cover 11b, and a zoom switch 40. 1 (a) and 1 (b) are drawn with the zoom lever 20 in the neutral position and the sectional position shifted.

The lever member 30 has a zoom lever 20 integrally formed on an outer periphery of a skirt 35 formed by cutting a hollow cylinder in a direction along the axis thereof, and a shaft 32 at a root portion inside the skirt 35. Hole 36 through which is inserted
a, 36b, spring receivers 37a, 37b for receiving the spring ends of the torsion spring 31, pressing portions (projections) 38a, 38b for pressing the zoom switch 40, and the like.

The lever member 30 is provided with a shaft 32 inserted through holes 40a and 40b formed in the mounting portion 40.
Is passed through the holes 36a and 36b, so that it is rotatably attached to the rear cover 11b about the shaft 32 as a rotation center. As a result, the zoom lever 20 projects from the opening 33 to the rear side of the camera body 11 and is exposed, so that the zoom lever 20 can swing vertically. The torsion spring 31 is disposed between a pair of restricting pieces 41 formed on the inner peripheral wall of the skirt 35. When the lever member 30 is assembled to the rear cover 11b, the shaft 32 is attached to the coil portion 31c. Passed.

In the mounting portion 40, an upper spring stopper 42 is formed above the opening 33, and a lower spring stopper 43 is formed below the opening 33. As shown in FIG. 1A, the spring stoppers 42 and 43 are provided on the skirt 40 so as to face the inside of the camera 10 when the zoom lever 20 is at the neutral position.
The camera 10 is set so as to be at the same height as 7a and 37b.
Projecting from the inner surface side. One end 31a of the torsion spring 31 is hooked on the upper spring stopper 42 through one spring receiver 37a, and the other end 31b is hooked on the lower spring stopper 42 through the other spring receiver 37b. It is assembled in such a manner. The torsion spring 31
1A, one end 31a is biased clockwise in FIG. 1A, and the other end 31b is biased counterclockwise.

The torsion spring 31 is connected to each spring stopper 42, 4
3, when the zoom lever 20 is not vertically pivoted, the lever member 30 is biased by the torsion spring 31 so that the spring receivers 37 a and 37 b
The torsion spring 31 is also engaged at the same time, that is, the spring receiver 37a, the upper spring stopper 42, and the spring receiver 37.
b and the lower spring stopper 43 are at the same height,
Each of the torsion springs 31 is engaged with the zoom lever 20, and the zoom lever 20 is held at the neutral position.

As shown in FIGS. 1B and 5, a zoom switch 40 is provided inside the camera 10 at a position facing the lever member 30. The zoom switch 40 includes a pair of two conductive patterns 46 and 47 formed on a switch pattern portion 45a, respectively.
This is a well-known rubber switch including a pressed portion 48 made of conductive rubber.

The switch pattern portion 45a on which the two sets of conductive patterns 46 and 47 are formed is disposed directly below the upper surface of the camera body 11, is formed integrally with the flexible circuit board 45 on which various circuits are mounted, and is assembled. Sometimes it is bent and arranged on the back side of the camera 10. Also, the flexible circuit board 45 facing the release button 17
Are provided with three conductive patterns 49, and a shutter pressing portion 50 made of conductive rubber is arranged above these. These conductive patterns 49 together with the shutter pressing portion 50 constitute a release switch.
When the release button 17 is pressed, the center conductive pattern 49 and the conductive patterns 49 on both sides thereof are connected by the shutter pressing portion 50 to be turned ON, and the shutter is operated.

By providing the zoom operation section 22 behind the release button 17 and on the back side of the camera body 11 in this manner, the switch pattern section 45a constituting the zoom switch 40 can be replaced with the release switch 5 described above.
Flexible circuit board 4 provided with one conductive pattern 49
5 can be formed integrally, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced. Further, by using a rubber switch as the zoom switch 40, there is no advantage that the rubber switch is deformed at the time of assembling or the like, so that there is an advantage that handling is easy and workability is improved.

Each of the pressed parts 48 is formed by protruding from the skirt 35 of the lever member 30.
The projections 48a and 48b are formed on the respective rotation trajectories. The projection 48a is pressed by the pressing portion 38a or the projection 48b is pressed by the pressing portion 38b toward the inside of the camera, so that the inside of the camera is selectively provided. Are in contact with the conductive patterns 46 and 47. Thereby, any one of the two sets of conductive patterns 46 and 47
When the pair is connected and the pair of conductive patterns 46 are connected, the taking lens 18 is zoomed to the telephoto side, and when the pair of conductive patterns 47 is connected, the taking lens 18 is zoomed to the wide angle side. That is, the conductive pattern 46 and the projection 48a constitute a switch for telephoto driving, and the conductive pattern 47 and the projection 48b constitute a switch for wide-angle driving.

As shown in FIG. 6, when the zoom lever 20 is swung upward from the neutral position to the telephoto position,
As shown in FIG. 6A, the spring receiver 37a on the upper side of the lever member 30 rotates one end 31a of the torsion spring 31 clockwise in the figure against the bias of the torsion spring 31. , FIG.
As shown in (b), the pressing portion 38a formed on the spring receiver 37a presses the projection 48a provided on the pressed portion 48 of the zoom switch 40. Thereby, the conductive pan 4
6 is connected and turned on, and the photographing lens 18 is zoomed to the telephoto side.

When the zoom lever 20 is swung downward from the neutral position to the wide angle position, as shown in FIG. 7A, the lower spring receiver 37b of the lever member 30 is twisted. The other end 3 of the torsion spring 31 against the bias of the spring 31
7B, the pressing portion 38b formed on the spring receiver 37b is connected to the protrusion 4 provided on the pressed portion 48 of the zoom switch 40, as shown in FIG.
8b is pressed. As a result, the conductive pan 47 is connected and turned ON, and the photographing lens 18 is zoomed to the wide angle side.

Note that the lever member 30 is
a, 38b, the projections 48a, 48 of the pressed portion 48 corresponding thereto.
b, and is rotated to the position (telephoto position, wide-angle position) where the conductive patterns 46 and 47 are connected, the rotation restricting piece 55 (see FIG. 4) formed on the mounting portion 34 is spring loaded 37a. , 38 and regulates its rotation.

By configuring the zoom operation unit 22 in this manner, the zoom lever 22 is restored to the neutral position,
The mounting space for the torsion spring 31, the mounting portion 33, the lever member 30, and the zoom switch 40 for holding is a small space inside the rear cover 11b.
This enables the camera body 11 having a zero thickness.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described. The photographer holds the camera body 11 and looks through the viewfinder 15 to perform framing. At this time, the photographer places his right palm on the right side of the camera body 11,
With the thumb on the back side of the camera body 11, the middle finger, ring finger,
The camera body 11 is held by the little finger, and the index finger is placed on the release button 17 on the upper part of the camera body 11 to hold the camera body 11. In this manner, when holding in a natural form, the user can touch and operate the zoom lever 20 disposed on the rear side of the camera body 11 behind the release button 17 with the right thumb without breaking this form. Become like

When performing the zooming, the photographer swings the zoom lever 20 upward or downward while looking through the viewfinder 15. For example, when zooming in on the telephoto side, the zoom lever 20 is swung upward to bring it to the telephoto position. By this operation, as shown in FIG. 6A, the lever member 30
1 is rotated to the telephoto position against the bias by the one end 31a. At this time, the one end 31a of the torsion spring 31 is disengaged from the upper spring stopper 42 due to the rotation of the spring receiver 37a on the upper side of the lever member 30, and is rotated while being engaged with the spring receiver 37a. Will be. Further, the other end 31b of the torsion spring 31 is maintained in a state of being engaged with the lower spring stopper 43.
Is rotated together with the spring receiver 37a, so that the torsion spring 31 is charged.

When the zoom lever 20 is swung to the telephoto position in this way, as shown in FIG.
The upper protrusion 48 a provided on the pressed portion 48 of the zoom switch 40 is pressed by the pressing portion 38 a of the lever member 30.
As a result, the projection 48a is elastically deformed and pushed toward the conductive pattern 46, and the projection 48a and the conductive pattern 46 are brought into contact with each other, so that the pair of conductive patterns 46 is brought into conduction. Then, when the pair of conductive patterns 46 conduct, the zoom mechanism built in the camera body 11 operates so as to increase the focal length of the photographing lens 18, and the photographing lens 18 is zoomed to the telephoto side.

After swinging the zoom lever 20 to the telephoto position, the photographer releases his / her finger from the zoom lever 20 or weakens the operating force to a certain level or less.
When the operation is stopped, the lever member 30 in which the spring receiver 37a is engaged with the one end 31a of the torsion spring 31 moves
1b is engaged with the lower spring stopper 43, and the biasing of the torsion spring 31 accumulated to rotate the zoom lever 20 to the neutral position via one end 31a. As a result, the protrusion 48a is released from the pressing by the pressing portion 37a, so that its elastic deformation is restored, the protrusion 48a is separated from the conductive pattern 46, the pair of conductive patterns 46 becomes non-conductive, and zooming to the telephoto side is stopped. Is done.

Further, this rotation causes the zoom lever 20 to rotate.
When the spring reaches the neutral position, the height of the spring receiver 37a and the upper spring stopper 42 is set to be the same in this state, so that one end 31a of the torsion spring 31 is received by the upper spring stopper 42 and engaged therewith. You. Further, when the zoom lever 20 is in the neutral position, the height of the lower spring receiver 37b and the lower spring stopper 43 of the lever member 40 are the same, so that the other end 31b of the torsion spring 31 Is in a state where the spring stopper 43 and the spring receiver 37b are simultaneously engaged. As a result, the lever member 30
Is not rotated in any of the rotation directions by the torsion spring 31, and as shown in FIG.
The zoom lever 20 is restored to the neutral position, and this state is maintained. In addition, even when the zoom lever 20 is in the neutral position, the torsion spring 31 is kept in the charged state, so that the zoom lever 20 does not wobble in the neutral position.

On the other hand, when zooming to the wide-angle side, the zoom lever 20 is swung downward to set it to the wide-angle position. By this operation, the lower spring receiver 37b of the lever member 30 rotates, so that the other end 31b of the torsion spring 31 is disengaged from the lower spring stopper 43, and the other end 31b and the spring receiver 37b are disengaged. 7A, the lever member 30 resists the bias of the torsion spring 31 and
Is rotated to the wide-angle position shown in FIG. Further, the torsion spring 31 is maintained in a state where one end 31a thereof is engaged with the upper spring stopper 42, so that the other end 31 of the torsion spring 31 is
By rotating b together with the spring receiver 37b, the torsion spring 31 is charged.

When the zoom lever 20 is swung to the wide angle position in this manner, as shown in FIG.
The lower projection 48b provided on the pressed portion 48 of the zoom switch 40 is pressed by the pressing portion 38b provided on the engagement surface 37b. As a result, the protrusion 48b is pushed toward the conductive pattern 47, and the protrusion 48b and the conductive pattern 47 come into contact with each other, so that the pair of conductive patterns 47 is brought into conduction. When the pair of conductive patterns 47 conducts, the zoom mechanism built in the camera body 11 causes the photographing lens 1 to move.
8 is operated to shorten the focal length, and the photographing lens 18 is zoomed to the wide angle side.

When the photographer stops operating the zoom lever 20 after swinging the zoom lever 20 to the wide-angle position, the lever member 30 in which the spring receiver 37b is engaged with the other end 31b of the torsion spring 31 is turned on. The zoom lever 20 is rotated to return to the neutral position via the other end 31b by the bias of the stored torsion spring 31. Thereby, the projection 4
8b is released from the conductive pattern 47 because the pressing by the pressing portion 37b is released, the elastic deformation thereof is restored. As a result, the pair of conductive patterns 47 becomes non-conductive, and zooming to the wide angle side is stopped.

Further, this rotation causes the zoom lever 20 to rotate.
Reaches the neutral position, the other end 31b of the torsion spring 31 is received and engaged by the lower spring stopper 43. As a result, the lever member 30 is not rotated in any of the rotation directions by the torsion spring 31, and the zoom lever 20 is restored to the neutral position as shown in FIG. This state is maintained.

As described above, the photographer swings the zoom lever 20 between the telephoto position and the wide angle position to zoom the photographing lens 18 to a desired focal length. For example, when the photographing lens 18 is zoomed, the viewfinder 15 is moved by a visual field correction mechanism (not shown).
Is corrected to a value corresponding to the photographing range of the focal length of the photographing lens 18 having been zoomed. The photographer observes the corrected view range of the viewfinder 15 and, when the desired photographing range is reached, the zoom lever 20.
Stop the operation, press the release button 17, and
Take a picture. When the release button 17 is pressed, the pressed portion 50 disposed immediately below the release button 17
5 is elastically deformed toward the conductive pattern 49. As a result, each conductive pattern 49 is conducted through the pressed portion 50, the release switch 51 is turned on, and the shutter is operated to perform photographing.

In the above-described embodiment, the operation direction of the zoom lever is the vertical direction. However, the operation direction may be the horizontal direction. However, when the operation direction is the vertical direction, as in the above-described embodiment, zooming to the telephoto side in the upward direction and wide-angle side in the downward direction has an advantage that the photographer can easily remember the operation. .

[0039]

As described above, according to the present invention, the zoom lever is swingably supported by inserting the shaft into the shaft mounting hole provided at the root portion of the zoom lever inside the camera body. The zoom lever is held at the neutral position by pressing each spring end of the torsion spring supported by inserting the shaft through the coil portion against each spring receiver formed at the root portion of the zoom lever. At the same time, when the zoom lever is swung toward the telephoto position or the wide-angle position and one of the spring ends is pressed by one of the spring receivers, the other of the spring ends is received by the pair of stoppers, and the zoom lever is moved to the neutral position. Since the torsion spring is stored in the returning direction, the mounting space for the zoom operation device can be reduced, and the camera can be made thinner.

Further, when the zoom lever is swung to the telephoto position or the wide-angle position, the telephoto or wide-angle drive switch is pressed by a pair of projections formed at the root portion of the zoom lever. Alternatively, the focal length of the zoom lens can be changed to the wide angle side.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross section of a zoom operation unit according to the present invention in a state where a zoom lever is in a neutral position.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a front side of a camera provided with the zoom operation unit.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a rear side of the camera provided with the zoom operation unit.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing an exploded zoom operation unit.

FIG. 5 is a cutaway view showing a flexible circuit board provided in the camera.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing a state of a zoom operation unit when the zoom lever is swung to a telephoto position.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state of a zoom operation unit when the zoom lever is swung to a wide-angle position.

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view showing a conventional zoom lever and zoom switch.

FIG. 9 is a plan view showing a neutral spring used in a conventional zoom lever.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 10 camera 11 camera body 17 release button 20 zoom lever 30 lever member 31 torsion spring 32 shaft 40 zoom switch 37a, 37b spring receiver 38a, 38b pressing part 42, 43 spring stopper 45 flexible circuit board 46, 47 conductive pattern 48 covered Pressing part

Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-2-308211 (JP, A) JP-A-6-94973 (JP, A) JP-A-2-79009 (JP, A) , U) Fully open 58-31506 (JP, U) Fully open 58-1922 (JP, U) Fully open 60-175439 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB Name) G02B 7/02-7/105

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A zoom operation device comprising a zoom lever which is selectively operated at one of a telephoto position and a wide-angle position with a neutral position therebetween when a focal length of a zoom lens is changed, and is oscillated. The zoom lever includes a shaft that is inserted into a shaft mounting hole provided at a root portion of the zoom lever inside the body and supports the zoom lever in a swingable manner, and a coil portion and a pair of spring ends radially extending from the coil portion. A torsion spring that is supported by the shaft inserted through the coil portion, each of the spring ends is pressed against each spring receiver formed at the root portion of the zoom lever, and holds the zoom lever in a neutral position;
When the zoom lever is swung toward the telephoto position or the wide-angle position and one of the spring ends is pressed, the other spring end is received, and the zoom lever is twisted in a direction to return to the neutral position. A zoom operating device comprising: a pair of stoppers for storing a spring. 2. A pair of projections are formed at a root portion of the zoom lever, and when the zoom lever is swung to a telephoto position or a wide-angle position, a telephoto or wide-angle lens provided by one of the projections, respectively. 2. The zoom operating device according to claim 1, wherein a driving switch is pressed. 3. The zoom operation device according to claim 2, wherein a zoom lever is horizontally mounted on the shaft, and the telephoto position and the wide-angle position are set up and down with respect to the neutral position.