Camera having barrier member capable of smoothly moving

Details Camera having barrier member capable of smoothly moving Camera having barrier member capable of smoothly moving

1999-06-15

2001-10-23

Gray, David M. (Department: 2851)

Photography

Folding or collapsible camera

Having axially moving lens

C396S448000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06305852

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a camera and, more particularly, to a camera having a barrier member that can smoothly move between a position at which a photographing lens is exposed and a position at which the photographing lens is covered.
In a small, handy camera, i.e., a so-called compact camera, the above barrier member has been widely used as a member for protecting the photographing lens in an unused state in place of a detachable lens cap that one looses too often.
As such a barrier member, for example, the barrier member in Jpn. UM Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 58-163938 is widely known.
In the camera disclosed in Jpn. UM Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 58-163938, a pair of cam grooves are formed in upper and lower portions of the camera body to guide a protective member serving as a barrier member to the first position at which the member covers the lens and the second position at which the lens is exposed.
The protective member has two pairs of pins that respectively engage with the upper and lower cam grooves at two positions in each groove.
Click portions for temporarily fixing the corresponding pair of pins when the protective member is placed at the first position and guide portions that allow the protective member to move outward along the optical axis of the lens by allowing the corresponding pair of pins to move outward along the optical axis of the lens while the protective member moves from the first position to the second position are formed in each of the upper and lower cam grooves.
In the camera disclosed in Jpn. UM Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 58-163938, however, while the protective member moves from the first position to the second position, the pair of pins corresponding to the entrances of the guide portions in the upper and lower cam grooves may be caught in the grooves. As a consequence, the protective member may not smoothly move to the first position.
In addition, according to the prior art, the protective member cannot be moved to the first position in some case.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a camera having a barrier member that can smoothly move between an exposing position and a covering position so as to solve the above problem in the prior art.
In order to achieve the above object, according to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a camera comprising:
a camera body having a photographing lens;
a barrier member mounted on the camera body to be movable between a position at which the photographing lens is exposed and a position at which the photographing lens is covered;
at least two pairs of support portions which are placed in pairs at opposing positions on two sides of the photographing lens and contribute to support the barrier member; and
at least four rail portions each separately engaged with at least the two pairs of support portions on the two sides of the photographing lens.
In the camera having the barrier member according to the present invention, which has the above arrangement, at least two pairs of support portions engaged with at least the four rail portions contribute to support for the barrier member.
With this arrangement, the barrier member can smoothly move between the exposing position and the covering position.
In the camera having the barrier member according to the present invention, which is characterized by the above arrangement, the two pairs of support portions are formed on the barrier member, and the four rail portions are preferably formed by using members, other than the barrier member, including the camera body.
In addition, when the barrier member is located at the covering position, one pair of the two pairs of support portions formed on the barrier member is preferably located near the photographing lens as a first position, and the other pair is preferably located at a second position located farther from the photographing lens than the first position.
Furthermore, two of the four rail portions are formed in the camera body at positions on the two sides of the photographing lens, and the remaining two rail portions are formed by members arranged between the camera body and the barrier member.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out hereinafter.


REFERENCES:
patent: 3599553 (1971-08-01), Hansen et al.
patent: 4019192 (1977-04-01), Miyagawa
patent: 4367028 (1983-01-01), Tomatsuri et al.
patent: 4522478 (1985-06-01), Kando et al.
patent: 4556304 (1985-12-01), Fukuda
patent: 5805947 (1998-09-01), Miyamoto et al.
patent: 5943521 (1999-08-01), Lamphron et al.
patent: 6036376 (2000-03-01), Owashi et al.
patent: 58-163938 (1983-11-01), None

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