Photographic viewfinder with divided field frame and imaging means

Claim 1

AN OBJECTIVE FIELD DEFINING VIEWFINDER COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, A HOUSING HAVING AN OBJECT FACING FRONT WALL AND AN EYE FACING REAR WALL; A COMPOSITE PARALLELEPIPED BODY OF TRANSPARENT MATERIAL HAVING A LIGHT RAY ENTRY END AT SAID FRONT WALL AND A LIGHT RAY EXIT END AT SUCH REAR WALL AND THROUGH WHICH THE OBSERVER VIEWS DIRECTLY A SCENE TO BE PHOTOGRAPHED, SAID BODY INCLUDING AN OBJECT FACING FIRST BODY PART AND AN EYE FACING SECOND BODY PART; THE EYE FACING END SURFACE OF SAID FIRST BODY PART BEING FORMED AS A V-SHAPED SALIENT TO CONSTITUTE A MALE ROOF PRISM, AND THE OBJECT FACING END SURFACE OF SAID SECOND BODY PART BEING FORMED WITH A V-SHAPED RECESS COMPLEMENTARY TO SAID SALIENT TO CONSTITUTE A FEMALE ROOF PRISM; SAID TWO BODY PARTS BEING JOINED AT CEMENTED INTERFACES BETWEEN THEIR TWO MATING PAIRS OF INNER END SURFACES; A PAIR OF PARTIALLY LIGHT-PERMEABLE MIRRORS EACH DISPOSED IN A RESPECTIVE ONE OF SAID INTERFACES AND FACING TOWARD THE LIGHT RAY EXIT END OF SAID BODY AND TOWARD A RESPECTIVE LATERAL SURFACE THEREOF; MEANS, INCLUDING OPENINGS IN SAID FRONT WALL, FORMING A PAIR OF COMPLEMENTARY FIELD FRAME DEFINING LIGHT RAY ADMISSION AREAS DISPOSED SYMMETRICALLY LATERALLY OF, BUT CLOSELY ADJACENT, SAID BODY AT THE LIGHT RAY ENTRY END THEREOF, AND RESPECTIVELY ADJACENT OPPOSITE ONES OF SAID LATERAL SURFACES THEREOF; SAID FRONT WALL HAVING AN OPENING FOR ADMITTING LIGHT FROM THE OBJECT THROUGH THE LIGHT RAY ENTRY END OF SAID BODY; A PAIR OF REFLECTING MIRRORS, EACH POSITIONED IN DIRECT ALIGNMENT WITH ONE OF SAID LIGHT ADMISSION AREAS AND FACING TOWARD THE ASSOCIATED LIGHT ADMISSION AREA AND TOWARD A RESPECTIVE ONE OF SAID PARTIALLY LIGHT-PERMEABLE MIRRORS TO REFLECT LIGHT RAYS, ENTERING THROUGH ITS ASSOCIATED LIGHT ADMISSION AREAS, LATERALLY TO THE FACING PARTIALLY LIGHT-PERMEABLE MIRROR FOR REFLECTION BY THE LATTER TO THE LIGHT RAY EXIT END OF SAID BODY TO FORM IMAGES OF SAID AREAS IN THE IMAGE FIELD OF THE VIEWFINDER; SAID REAR WALL HAVING A SINGLE OPENING CENTERED ON THE OPTICAL AXIS OF SAID BODY FOR SINGLE EYE VIEWING OF THE OBJECT AND THE IMAGES OF BOTH OF SAID AREAS IN SAID IMAGE FIELD; THE RELATIVE ORIENTATION OF SAID REFLECTING MIRRORS AND SAID PARTIALLY LIGHT-PERMEABLE MIRRORS WITH RESPECT TO THE OPTICAL AXIS OF THE FINDER BEING SUCH AS TO CONVERGINGLY SHIFT THE TWO FRAME DEFINING IMAGES LATERALLY TOWARD THE OPTICAL AXIS OF THE VIEWFINDER TO AN EXTENT SUCH THAT SAID FRAME DEFINING IMAGES COMPLEMENT EACH OTHER IN SAID IMAGE FIELD TO PROVIDE THEREIN, IN THE FIELD OF VIEW OF A SINGLE EYE OF AN OBSERVER, AN IMAGE OF A COMPLETE OBJECTIVE FIELD DEFINING FRAME; AND A PAIR OF COLLIMATING LENSES POSITIONED ON RESPECTIVE ONES OF SAID LATERAL FACES OF SAID EYE FACING SECOND BODY PART AND EACH DISPOSED IN THE PATH OF LIGHT RAYS REFLECTED BY A RESPECTIVE REFLECTING MIRROR TO ITS ASSOCIATED PARTIALLY LIGHT-PERMEABLE MIRROR, THE OPTICAL CONSTANTS OF EACH OF SAID LENSES BEING SUCH THAT THE LIGHT RAYS PASSING THERETHROUGH ARE FOCUSED SHARPLY AT SUBSTANTIALLY INFINITY IN THE FIELD OF VIEW OF THE VIEWFINDER IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE IMAGE OF THE PHOTOGRAPHIC OBJECTIVE.