US3683774A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Photographic camera with electrically operated film metering and timing mechanism
Assignee: Balda Werke Photographische Gerate und Kunststof GmbH and Co KG
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Filing: 1970-07-16
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Granted: 1972-08-15
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Expires: 1990-07-16
Abstract
Abstract A photographic camera with a scanner for sensing perforations on a roll of film used for indexing film frames. The scanner has electrical contacts cooperating with a printed circuit board oriented parallel to the motion of the scanner. The contacts perform switching functions to control electrical elements on the camera. Camera exposure and film advance can be interlocked. A lever can be tensioned by depressing an exposure release member. The lever is held by an abutment and released when the lever moves away from the abutment. To take delayed exposures for selfphotographs, the lever can be held by a mechanical or electrical timing mechanism for a predetermined time interval after the exposure release member is depressed. The camera parts are preferably made of electrically insulating plastic material through injection molding.
Inventors
- 👤 Karl Heinz Lange
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-02 13:41
CPC Classifications
G; G03; G03B; G03B17/00; G03B17/42
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 20
Claim 1
Independent Claim
254 words
A photographic camera having a shutter with timing mechanism controlling said shutter for automatic exposures comprising, in combination, film means having a perforation per frame; stop slide means for sensing said perforation in said film means; circuit board means with conductive paths arranged parallel to the motion of said stop slide means; contact means connected to said stop slide and contacting said conductive paths on said circuit board means; operation selecting means for selecting the operational state of said camera and linked to said stop slide for moving said contact means against said predetermined ones of said conductive paths dependent upon the selected operational state of said camera; retarding mechanism slide means with retaining projection for operation during automatic exposure; tension lever means cooperating with said retaining projection; link means cooperating with said retarding mechanism slide means so that said retaining projecTion follows the release movement of said shutter; release slide means operative during said release movement; pawl means engaging said slide means and locking said slide means in place at the end of said release movement, said retaining projection following said release movement through said link means and moving out of initial operative position to an end position at the end of said release movement; timing means for delaying by a predetermined interval the return of said retaining projection to said initial position after having reached said end position, said retaining projection releasing said tension lever means upon return to said initial position for releasing said camera after said predetermined interval of time.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
254 words
A photographic camera having a shutter with timing mechanism controlling said shutter for automatic exposures comprising, in combination, film means having a perforation per frame; stop slide means for sensing said perforation in said film means; circuit board means with conductive paths arranged parallel to the motion of said stop slide means; contact means connected to said stop slide and contacting said conductive paths on said circuit board means; operation selecting means for selecting the operational state of said camera and linked to said stop slide for moving said contact means against said predetermined ones of said conductive paths dependent upon the selected operational state of said camera; retarding mechanism slide means with retaining projection for operation during automatic exposure; tension lever means cooperating with said retaining projection; link means cooperating with said retarding mechanism slide means so that said retaining projecTion follows the release movement of said shutter; release slide means operative during said release movement; pawl means engaging said slide means and locking said slide means in place at the end of said release movement, said retaining projection following said release movement through said link means and moving out of initial operative position to an end position at the end of said release movement; timing means for delaying by a predetermined interval the return of said retaining projection to said initial position after having reached said end position, said retaining projection releasing said tension lever means upon return to said initial position for releasing said camera after said predetermined interval of time.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
50 words
The camera as defined in claim 1 including electrically operated switching devices connected to said circuit board means and switched to operative state when said timing means becomes operative, said devices being switched to inoperative state when said timing means becomes inoperative at the end of said predetermined time interval.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
43 words
The camera as defined in claim 1 including a transmission member for moving said link means in and out of engagement with said timing means, said transmission member moving also said pawl means in and out of engagement with said release slide means.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
56 words
The camera as defined in claim 1 including a timing mechanism slide in said timing means; electromagnet means for retaining said timing mechanism slide in place after reaching its lowest position during the motion of said mechanism slide, said electromagnet releasing said timing mechanism slide after expiration of said predetermined time interval for releasing said camera.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
241 words
The camera as defined in claim 1 including a panel member for guiding said release slide means; means for rotatably mounting said tension lever on said release slide means; a stop projection engaged by said tension lever in inoperative positions; spring means for moving said tension lever against said stop projection; an actuating lug on said tension lever, said tension lever being of plastic material; feed pins cooperating with said actuating lug; an intermediate gear for holding said feed pins; a driving peg for said actuating lug; a transmission lever with pocket engaged by said driving peg; a lever arm for supporting said transmission lever at one end, said driving peg engaging said pocket during the last portion of angular movement of said tension lever; a second actuating lug on said tension lever; a stop projection on said second actuating lug; a stationary stop angle on said panel member so that said stop projections on said second actuating lug moves into proximity of said stationary stop angle due to angular motion of said tension lever, whereby during downward movement of said release slide means and said tension lever means, said projection on said second actuating lug becomes placed against said stationary stop angle on said panel member, said tension lever means remaining in tensioned position through said spring means and moving with its first-mentioned actuating lug out of the path of motion of said feed pins during release of said camera.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
207 words
The camera as defined in claim 5 including an auxiliary lever arm; an armature lever turned by said auxiliary lever arm; spring means connected to said armature lever, said armature lever being turned by said auxiliary lever arm; spring means connected to said armature lever, said armature lever being turned by said auxiliary lever arm against the action of said last-mentioned spring, said tension lever means when moving downward with said release slide means during the release of said camera, swinging said transmission lever through said driving peg in said transmission lever pocket and turning simultaneously said armature lever through said auxiliary lever arm; electromagnet means; an armature plate cooperating with said armature lever for pressing said armature lever against said electromagnet through said armature plate; a control cam on said transmission lever arm; a contact spring actuated by said control cam and secured to said circuit board means for executing a switching operation during turning of said armature lever; an auxiliary pawl mounted concentrically with said armature lever on said panel member, said auxiliary pawl being pressed against an angled edge of said armature lever; auxiliary contact spring means secured to said circuit board means and actuated by said auxiliary pawl for executing a switching operation.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
16 words
The camera as defined in claim 6 including a capacitor short circuited through said contact spring.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
90 words
The camera as defined in claim 1 including a guide arm on said stop slide means; a panel member with opening for guiding said guide arm, said stop slide means being of plastic material; sensing finger means on said stop slide means for sensing said perforations in said film; a locking projection on said guide arm, said tension lever means locking said stop slide means in initial position through said locking projection; and at least one contact spring on said stop slide means and cooperating with said circuit board means.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
81 words
The camera as defined in claim 1 including flashcube holder means; film feed wheel means for advancing said film; integral gear means mounted integral with said film feed wheel means; intermediate gear means for interconnecting said flashcube holder means and said film feed wheel means; feed pins uniformly arranged on said intermediate gear; and an actuating lug on said tension lever means, said feed pins extending into the path of motion of said actuating lug and cooperating with said actuating lug.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
48 words
The camera as defined in claim 9 including a contact surface portion on said tension lever means; a stationary stop member struck by said tension lever means through said contact surface portion only when said flash cube holder means has completed an angular rotational motion of 90* .
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
21 words
The camera as defined in claim 9 including friction clutch means between said film feed wheel means and said intermediate gear.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
204 words
The camera as defined in claim 5 including a locking surface portion on said tension lever means; a projection on said stop slide means engaged by said locking surface portion for locking said stop slide means in place at the end of the release movement of said camera, said stop angle releasing said tension lever means whereby said lever means moves into position for engaging said projection through said locking surface; an actuating projection on said tension lever means; shutter blade means with stop projection and pivotable about an axis for uncovering a shutter opening, said actuating projection striking against said stop projection on said shutter blade means and uncovering said shutter opening during return of said tension lever means; a locking projection; an arm on said tension lever means moved into proximity of said locking projection for retaining said shutter blade means in open position whereby said shutter opening is uncovered; electromagnet means; armature lever means cooperating with said electromagnet means for holding said shutter blade means in said open position until said electromagnet means releases said armature lever for return to its inoperative position whereby said shutter blade means is returned to its initial closed position for covering against said shutter opening.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
110 words
The camera as defined in claim 1 including a panel member with a U-shaped space for retaining said circuit board means parallel to the direction of motion of said stop slide means when sensing the edge of said film means; spring contact means mounted on said circuit board means; lever means pivotably mounted on said panel member, said spring contact means being angled so that they extend with their ends into the path of motion of said lever means on said panel member, said spring contact means being actuated so that said angled portions of said spring contact means engage said circuit board means through operation of said Lever means.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
69 words
The camera as defined in claim 1 including shutter blade means; a lever arm on said shutter blade means; locking pawl means cooperating with said lever arm for engaging said shutter blade means in the locking position of said locking pawl means; a stop projection on said shutter blade means; and an actuating projection on said tension lever means cooperating with said stop projection on said shutter blade means.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
40 words
The camera as defined in claim 1 including a transmission member; an automatic exposure switch member; and an indicator pin connected to one of said members and projecting out of said camera for indicating when said timing means is operative.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
31 words
The camera as defined in claim 15 including a view finder; and means within said viewfinder for indicating through said indicator pin that said camera is in automatic exposure operating state.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
75 words
The camera as defined in claim 1 including lamp means radiating light when said timing means in in operative state; means for directing said light from said lamp means in a cone-shaped beam so that the angle of dispersion of said light coincides with the exposure angle of the objective lens of said camera, whereby said lamp means is seen only from a position within said exposure angle of said objective lens of said camera.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
31 words
The camera as defined in claim 17 including means for adapting the angle of dispersion of said cone of light in longitudinal axis to varying exposure angles of said objective lens.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
60 words
The camera as defined in claim 1 including means with iris diaphragm markings for exposures of single persons; means for directing a ray of light at the center of the picture and having a small aperture angle; and means for producing a narrow beam of light at eye level over the width of the exposure angle for taking group exposure.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1975-08-15 | 1976-02-14 | 1976-08-15 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1979-08-15 | 1980-02-14 | 1980-08-15 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1983-08-15 | 1984-02-14 | 1984-08-15 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |