Photographic apparatus having a handle for effecting film processing

Claim 2

A self-developing camera system effective for spreading a processing fluid over a sheet of photographic material as such sheet of material is withdrawn therefrom responsive to a pulling force being exerted on such sheet of material and a restraining force being applied to such camera system, comprising: a housing adapted to receiving such sheet material and including means defining an opening at one end thereof for withdrawal of such sheet material; and holding means located at the other end of said housing and connected thereto at a point spaced from said opening and positioned close to a longitudinal axis of said housing which passes through said opening for precluding rotational motion of said housing relative to said holding means around said longitudinal axis while permitting other rotational degrees of freedom of said housing relative to said holding means.

Claim 3

The camera system of claim 1 wherein said holding means permits relative pivotal motion of said housing around at least one axis approximately normal to said longitudinal axis.

Claim 4

The camera system of claim 1 wherein said holding means is a torsion-resistant handle connected to said housing by means permitting pivotal motion thereof with respect to said handle only around axes approximately normal to said longitudinal axis.

Claim 5

The camera system of claim 1 including complimentary means in said housing and said holding means for limiting the relative motion between said housing and said holding means so as to inherently extend said holding means from said housing in a position suitable for holding during film withdrawal.

Claim 6

The camera system of claim 1 wherein said holding means permits two degrees of rotational freedom of said housing.

Claim 7

The camera system of claim 1 wherein said holding means includes a substantially torsion-resistant body having a hand grip at one end and affixed at the other end to said housing by a pivot shaft providing a first pivot axis approximately normal to said longitudinal axis, and said handle body including a portion intermediate said hand grip and said pivot shaft for providing another pivot axis approximately normal to said firs t pivot axis.

Claim 8

The camera system of claim 1 wherein said housing includes sheet contacting surfaces defining a gap lying in a given plane, and said longitudinal axis is substantially normal to said plane and passes through said gap and said opening.

Claim 9

The camera system of claim 7 wherein said holding means permits relative motion of said housing around an axis lying close to and substantially parallel to a plane normal to the plane of said gap and laterally bisecting said gap.

Claim 10

The camera system of claim 7 wherein said holding means permits relative motion of said housing thereto around an axis substantially parallel to the plane of said gap and close to and substantially parallel with a plane normal to the plane of said gap and laterally or longitudinally bisecting said gap.

Claim 11

The camera system of claim 7 wherein said holding means is a torsion-resistant handle pivotally affixed at one end to said housing by means located thereon in a plane normal to the plane of said gap and laterally bisecting said gap.

Claim 12

The camera system of claim 7 wherein said holding means is a handle having a torsion-resistant body affixed to said housing by means providing a fulcrum for relative motion between said housing and said handle body around an axis approximately normal to said longitudinal axis, and said fulcrum spaced sufficiently close to said longitudinal axis and sufficiently far from the plaNe of said gap such that the line extending between said fulcrum and the center of said gap forms a small angle to said longitudinal axis.

Claim 13

The camera system of claim 7 including means for aligning sections of such film material immediately in advance of said gap such that the longitudinal center line of said sections is disposed coplanar with said longitudinal axis.

Claim 14

The camera system of claim 1 wherein said holding means includes an elongated shank member of substantially rigid material having a grip member extending laterally at one end thereof and a pivot arm extending laterally at the other end thereof for connection to said housing.

Claim 15

The camera system of claim 13 including stop means for limiting the rotation of said pivot arm to an acute angle with respect to said longitudinal axis so as to maintain said handle in extended relation to the camera body.

Claim 16

The camera system of claim 13 including a hinge intermediate said grip member and said pivot arm and disposed across said shank member for providing a hinge axis substantially normal to the pivot axis of said arm.

Claim 17

The camera of claim 15 wherein said shank includes a living hinge for permitting pivotal motion of said housing around an axis approximately normal to the axis of said pivot arm.

Claim 18

The camera of claim 15 wherein said pivot arm is located on said housing close to an end wall thereof, and said hinge is disposed between said pivot arm and said crossbar and is approximately positioned over said end wall such that the handle body may be folded flat against said end wall.

Claim 19

A photographic apparatus effective for spreading a processing fluid over a sheet of photographic material as such sheet of material is withdrawn therefrom responsive to a pulling force being exerted on such sheet of material and a restraining force being applied to such apparatus system, comprising: first means for forming a chamber adapted to receive such sheet of material having an exit opening at one end thereof and for forming a pair of sheet-contacting surfaces defining an elongated pressure-generating gap lying in a given plane, said sheet-contacting surfaces being adapted to effect the spreading of such fluid over such sheet of material as it is manually withdrawn from said chamber through said gap; and second means, connected to said first means in spaced apart relationship to said pressure-generating gap and adapted to be held in an operator''s one hand as such pulling force is exerted on such sheet of material, for permitting said first means to automatically orient itself with respect to the direction in which said pulling force is exerted thereon so as to substantially eliminate any deviation between said direction and a line normal to said given plane and passing through the center point of said pressure-generating gap, in at least either a first plane which includes said line and substantially bisects said pressure-generating gap extending lengthwise of said gap or a second plane perpendicular thereto which includes said line and laterally bisects said gap while tending to restrain any rotational movement of said first means around said line.

Claim 20

A photographic apparatus effective for spreading a processing fluid over a sheet of photographic material as such sheet of material is withdrawn therefrom responsive to a pulling force being exerted on such sheet of material and a restraining force being applied to such apparatus system, comprising: first means for forming a chamber adapted to receive such sheet of material having an exit opening at one end thereof and for forming a pair of sheet-contacting surfaces defining an elongated pressure-generating gap lying in a given plane, said sheet-contacting surfaces being adapted to effect the spreading of such fluid over such sheet of material as it is manually withdrawn from said chamber through said gap; and second means, connected to said first means in spaced apart relationship to said pressure-generating gap and adapted to be held in an operator''s one hand as such pulling force is exerted on such sheet of material, for permitting said first means to automatically orient itself with respect to the direction in which said pulling force is exerted thereon so as to substantially eliminate any deviation between said direction and a line normal to said given plane and passing through the center point of said pressure-generating gap, in at least either a first plane which includes said line and substantially bisects said pressure-generating gap extending lengthwise of said gap or a second plane perpendicular thereto which includes said line and laterally bisects said gap while tending to restrain any rotational movement of said first means around said line.

Claim 21

The camera of claim 18 wherein said second means includes a handle having a hand grip portion of substantially rigid material extending laterally at one end of a substantially torsion-resistant body portion, said body portion connected at its other end to said first means by means solely permitting pivotal motion of said first means with respect to said hand grip around axes close to and approximately parallel with said first and second planes.

Claim 22

A handle for alignment of a hand-held photographic apparatus during processing of a photographic film material by manual withdrawal of such material from an opening of the apparatus housing, said handle comprising a torsion-resistant member having a hand grip at one end and a coupling means at the other end for attachment to such housing so as to provide a fulcrum operating along an axis parallel to a longitudinal axis of such housing which passes through said opening for precluding rotation of such housing relative to said hand grip around said longitudinal axis while permitting other rotational degrees of freedom of such housing.

Claim 23

A handle for alignment of a hand-held photographic apparatus during processing of a photographic film material by manual withdrawal of such material from an opening of the apparatus housing, said handle comprising a torsion-resistant member having a hand grip at one end and a coupling means at the other end for attachment to such housing so as to provide a fulcrum operating along an axis parallel to a longitudinal axis of such housing which passes through said opening for precluding rotation of such housing relative to said hand grip around said longitudinal axis while permitting other rotational degrees of freedom of such housing.

Claim 24

The handle of claim 20 wherein said coupling means includes a first pivot means at one end thereof for permitting pivotal motion of said torsion-resistant member relative to said coupling member around an axis approximately normal to the longitudinal axis of said torsion-resistant member, and said coupling means includes a second pivot means at the other end thereof for permitting pivotal motion of such apparatus housing around an axis approximately normal to both said first pivot axis and said longitudinal axis of said member.

Claim 25

The handle of claim 20 wherein said coupling means includes means for releasably attaching said handle to such housing for pivotal motion thereof.

Claim 26

A handle configured for attachment to a camera which includes a wall portion having an orifice therethrough for facilitating said attachment, said handle comprising: a body; a shaft joined at one end to said body and configured for insertion of its other end in such orifice; a shaft locking member configured for passage through such orifice and for locking engagement with said other end of said shaft following its insertion in such orifice for precluding withdrawal thereof; and a coupling member integral with said shaft member and extending from said other end thereof, said coupling member configured for passage through such orifice, said coupling member carrying said shaft locking member at its distal end, and said coupling member configured for folding back on itself so as to permit locking engagement of said locking member with said other end of said shaft.

Claim 27

A handle configured for attachment to a camera which includes a wall portion having an orifice therethrough for facilitating said attachment, said handle comprising: a body; a shaft joined at one end to said body and configured for insertion of its other end in such orifice; a shaft locking member configured for passage through such orifice and for locking engagement with said other end of said shaft following its insertion in such orifice for precluding withdrawal thereof; and a coupling member integral with said shaft member and extending from said other end thereof, said coupling member configured for passage through such orifice, said coupling member carrying said shaft locking member at its distal end, and said coupling member configured for folding back on itself so as to permit locking engagement of said locking member with said other end of said shaft.

Claim 28

A handle adapted for self-locking attachment to a camera, said handle comprising, a body portion having a shaft member extending therefrom and adapted to be inserted within a wall opening of such camera for attachment thereto, said shaft including at its extended end a tongue including means for engaging said shaft, said tongue configured to be inserted in said wall opening and folded back on itself to engage said extended end of said shaft so as to retain said shaft in said wall opening, and said tongue is adapted in its folded condition to be laterally extended from said shaft for cooperation with stop means of such camera for limiting the angular rotation of said shaft in said opening.

Claim 29

A handle adapted for self-locking attachment to a camera, said handle comprising, a body portion having a shaft member extending therefrom and adapted to be inserted within a wall opening of such camera for attachment thereto, said shaft including at its extended end a tongue including means for engaging said shaft, said tongue configured to be inserted in said wall opening and folded back on itself to engage said extended end of said shaft so as to retain said shaft in said wall opening, and said tongue is adapted in its folded condition to be laterally extended from said shaft for cooperation with stop means of such camera for limiting the angular rotation of said shaft in said opening.

Claim 30

A handle adapted for self-locking attachment to a camera, said handle comprising, a body portion having a shaft member extending therefrom and adapted to be inserted within a wall opening of such camera for attachment thereto, said shaft including at its extended end a hollow yieldable portion and a tongue configured for insertion in said wall opening, said tongue including a plug member insertable in said hollow portion and configured for folding back on itself for insertion of said plug member in said hollow portion for retaining of said shaft in said wall opening.

Claim 31

A handle adapted for self-locking attachment to a camera, said handle comprising, a body portion having a shaft member extending therefrom and adapted to be inserted within a wall opening of such camera for attachment thereto, said shaft including at its extended end a hollow yieldable portion and a tongue configured for insertion in said wall opening, said tongue including a plug member insertable in said hollow portion and configured for folding back on itself for insertion of said plug member in said hollow portion for retaining of said shaft in said wall opening.

Claim 32

The handle of claim 25 wherein said hollow, yieldable portion includes at its distal end a portion of larger diameter than said opening, and said plug is closely fitted to said hollow portion such that upon insertion therein, said plug prevents contraction of said hollow portion and removal of said shaft from said opening.

Claim 33

The handle of claim 25 wherein said hollow, yieldable portion is provided by axially extending fingers of said shaft, and said fingers including laterally disposed outwardly extended projections at the distal end of said shaft forming an outer diameter larger than said opening.

Claim 34

The handle of claim 27 wherein the projection of at least one of said fingers is laterally extended to provide said tongue.