Photography – Having camera indicator – Nonmechanical visual display
Reexamination Certificate
2000-02-22
2001-05-29
Perkey, W. B. (Department: 2851)
Photography
Having camera indicator
Nonmechanical visual display
C396S296000, C396S378000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06240257
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a viewfinder device which displays a visual field frame by a liquid crystal or the like in a picture plane.
2. Description of the Related Art
Those are known which dispose a visual field frame in the light path of a real image viewfinder, forming a viewfinder visual field by means of obstructing the peripheral portion of a subject light beam. In this kind of prior art device, the visual field frame portion, by means of displaying a blacked-out configuration, can be clearly recognized if the subject luminosity is bright, but in a case that the subject luminosity is dark, the boundary of the visual field frame and the visual field becomes indistinct, and this can become an obstacle to setting the composition.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has as its object to provide a viewfinder device with which, regardless of the luminosity of the subject, it is possible to clearly identify the visual field.
When described in correspondence with
FIGS. 3 and 4
, which show one embodiment, a first invention, equipped with a display element
11
(
11
a
-
11
d
) which displays a visual field frame in the picture plane by means of obstructing the subject light beam, consisting of a material which scatters light, and irradiating means
14
which irradiates light to the display element
11
, constituted such that light from the irradiating means
14
being scattered by the display element so as to be passed through to the eyepiece side, by this means solves the abovementioned problem.
The second invention is equipped with a first display element
11
a
which displays a first visual field frame in a picture plane by means of obstructing the subject light beam, consisting of a material which scatters light, and a second display element
11
b
-
11
d
which displays a second visual field frame in the visual field frame defined by the first visual field frame by means of obstructing the subject light beam, consisting of a material which scatters light when in a light obstructing state, and is capable of changing over between a light transmitting state and a light obstructing state, and a changeover means
62
which changes over the second display element
11
b
-
11
d
between a light obstructing state and a light transmitting state, and an irradiation means
14
which irradiates light to the first and second display elements; and is constituted such that the light from the irradiation means
14
, scattered by the first and second display elements
11
a
-
11
d
, is guided toward the eyepiece side.
When described in correspondence with
FIG. 12
, the third invention is equipped with a first visual field frame display element
11
a
′ which, consisting of a material which scatters light, displays a first visual field frame in a picture plane by means of obstructing the subject light beam, and a second visual field frame display element
11
b
-
11
d
which, consisting of a material which scatters light when in a light obstructing state, displays a second visual field frame in the visual field frame defined by the first visual field frame by means of obstructing the subject light beam, and is capable of changing over between a light transmitting state and a light obstructing state, and, consisting of the same material as the second visual field frame display element, and a first warning display means
11
e
arranged in a clearance formed notching a portion of the first visual field frame display element
11
a
′, and a second warning display element
11
e
′ which performs a warning similar to the first warning display element
11
e
and is arranged in a clearance formed by cutting out a portion of the second visual field frame display element
11
b
-
11
d
, and a changeover means
62
(
FIG. 4
) which changes over the second display element
11
b
-
11
d
and the first and second warning display elements
11
e
,
11
e
′ between a light obstructing state and a light transmitting state, and a control means
61
which controls the changeover means
62
such that, in the case that a warning is performed when the second visual field frame display element is in the transmitting state, the first warning display element is set as a light obstructing state and the second warning display element
11
e
′ as a light transmitting state, in the case that a warning is performed when the second visual field frame display element is in the light obstructing state, the second warning display element
11
e
′ is set in a light obstructing state.
The fourth invention is equipped with a light obstructing visual field frame member
4
, which has an aperture in order to form a visual field in a viewfinder picture plane and, consisting of a material which scatters light, a display element
11
b
for visual field frame use, disposed more on the eyepiece side than the visual field frame member
4
, and a light guide member
14
which guides light to the display element
11
b
. The display element
11
b
, when seen from the eyepiece side, positioning in the neighborhood of the boundary portion with the visual frame within the region obstructed by means of the visual field frame member
4
, light guided by the light guide means
14
is guided to the eyepiece side, scattered by the display element
11
b.
The fifth invention is equipped with a visual field frame member
4
which has an aperture in order to form a visual field in a viewfinder picture plane and, consisting of a material which scatters light, a display element
11
e
for visual field frame use, disposed more on the eyepiece side than the visual field frame member
4
, and a light guide member
14
which guides light to the display element
11
e
. The display element
11
e
, when seen from the eyepiece side, its one portion is covered by means of the visual field frame member
4
, and the other portion is positioned such as to expose from the aperture of the visual field frame member
4
, is constituted such that light from the light guiding means
14
, and scattered by the display element
11
e
, is guided to the eyepiece side.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4576458 (1986-03-01), Cho et al.
patent: 5666576 (1997-09-01), Ohtake
patent: 5752107 (1998-05-01), Hasushita et al.
patent: 5930539 (1999-07-01), Tanaka
patent: 6002887 (1999-12-01), Chiba et al.
Machida Kiyosada
Nishizawa Akio
Nikon Corporation
Perkey W. B.
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