JPH03223834A - Drip-proof type camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To smoothly carry out the moving action of a photographing lens- barrel by adhesively and watertightly fixing one end of a water-proof member on the inside around opening part and the other end on the photographing lens-barrel inserted into the water-proof member itself and attaching a ring member to the side surface of the water-proof member at a prescribed interval. CONSTITUTION:One end of the cylindrical water-proof member 41 made of rubber expanded/contracted in a shape of bellows, etc., is adhesively and watertightly fixed on the back surface of the opening part 40a of a lens-barrel supporting part 40,a nd the other end of the water-proof member 41 is adhesively and watertightly fixed on the flange part 14a of the photographing lens barrel 14 inserted into the water-proof member 41 itself from the inside of a camera. Plural large aperture ring members 42 are attached at a prescribed interval to the inside surface of the water-proof member 41, and a small aperture ring member 43 is attached to its outside surface. Thus, the watertightness of the photographing lens-barrel 14 with respect to a camera main body is held, and the photographing lens-barrel 14 is smoothly moved.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a so-called everyday waterproof type drip-proof camera, and more particularly to a drip-proof camera having a photographic lens barrel that can move forward and backward in the optical axis direction.

"Prior Art and its Problems" The present applicant has created a breath hole in the camera body that communicates the inside and outside of the camera in a camera whose internal volume changes greatly due to zooming, etc. We proposed a drip-proof camera that is equipped with a water-based filter to make it possible to make cameras whose internal volumes vary widely. This drip-proof camera can perform zooming or focusing without increasing or decreasing operating force due to changes in internal volume by balancing the air pressure inside and outside the camera using the breath hole.

By the way, in the above-mentioned drip-proof camera, the photographing lens barrel is slidably supported and attached to an opening formed in the front wall of the camera body. An O-ring made of rubber or the like is attached to the opening and brought into close contact with the outer surface of the photographic lens barrel to prevent water from entering through the gap between the photographic lens barrel and the opening.

However, according to this, the photographing lens barrel advances and retreats with the O-ring pressed against it, which increases the load during this operation, and in severe cases, it may become difficult for the photographic lens barrel to operate smoothly during zooming, etc. Failure to do so may cause problems. Furthermore, since the photographic lens barrel slides onto the O-ring while maintaining watertightness, the shape of its outer surface requires high precision, which is disadvantageous in that it takes time and effort to process.

``Object of the Invention'' The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and is a preventive measure that ensures watertightness between the photographic lens barrel and the opening and smoothes the forward and backward movements of the photographic lens barrel. The aim is to obtain a droplet camera.

"Summary of the Invention J The present invention provides a drip-proof camera as described above, in which an opening is provided in the front wall of a camera body configured in a watertight manner, and a photographing lens barrel is inserted into the opening so as to be movable forward and backward in the optical axis direction. One end of a cylindrical waterproof member that expands and contracts like a bellows is tightly fixed to the inner surface around the opening in a watertight manner, and the other end of this waterproof member is inserted into the camera of the photographic lens barrel inserted into the waterproof member. It is characterized in that it is closely fixed to the side end portion in a watertight manner, and further, ring members are attached to the side surface of the waterproof member at predetermined intervals.

Therefore, when the photographic lens barrel moves forward and backward in the optical axis direction, the waterproof member can be regularly expanded and contracted in a bellows-like manner while being supported by the ring member, and can be made to follow the photographic lens barrel. Thereby, the photographing lens barrel can be smoothly moved forward and backward while reliably maintaining watertightness with respect to the opening (camera body).

“Embodiments of the invention” The invention will now be described with reference to the illustrated embodiments.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the appearance of a drip-proof camera 1o to which the present invention is applied.

A camera body 12 of the drip-proof camera 10 is configured to be watertight, and a photographing lens barrel 14 is provided in a watertight manner. This photographic lens barrel 14 is operated by a pair of zoom switches 30 and 32 installed on the top surface of the camera body 12.
Zooming is performed by moving forward and backward in the optical axis direction, and as a result, the internal volume within the camera body 12 including the photographing lens barrel 14 changes.

The photographic lens barrel 14 is inserted into the opening 40a,
In the figure, 38 and 45 are lenses, and 46 are A and F-AE units, which are configured to freely move forward and backward in the optical axis direction. And when wide-angle, the shooting lens barrel 1
4 is drawn into the lens barrel support section 40, and the lens 38
and 45 have a positional relationship as shown in FIG. 1A. Also tele (
When (telephoto), the photographing lens barrel 14 protrudes from the lens barrel support 40 in the optical axis direction, and the lenses 38 and 45 are
The positional relationship will be as shown in the figure. A protective glass 15 that protects the lens 46 and the like is fitted into the front end of the photographic lens barrel 14 in a watertight manner.

The front wall 12a of the camera body 12 has the opening 40a.
A cylindrical lens barrel support portion 40 is formed to protrude forward. This lens barrel support part 40 has an inner diameter that corresponds to the diameter of the photographing lens barrel 14 inserted into the opening 40a.
The outer diameter of the

On the back side of the opening 40a in the lens barrel support section 40, a waterproof member 41 made of rubber or the like, which has a cylindrical shape larger than the outer diameter of the photographic lens barrel 14 and expands and contracts like a bellows, has one end tightly fixed in a watertight manner. has been done. A flange portion 14a is formed at the rear end portion of the photographic lens barrel 14. The other end of the waterproof member 41 is tightly fixed in a watertight manner to the flange portion 14a of the photographing lens barrel 14, which is inserted into the waterproof member 41 from the inside of the camera.

The waterproof member 41 has a plurality of large diameter ring members 4 on its inner surface.
2 are mounted at predetermined intervals and 1 is mounted, for example, by insert molding. A small-diameter ring member 43 having a smaller diameter than the large-diameter ring member 42 is attached to the outer surface of the waterproof member 41 by, for example, insert molding so as to be located in the center of the large-diameter ring members 42 . As a result, the waterproof member 41 protects the photographic lens barrel 14 from the space S between the inner surface of the lens barrel support 40 and the outer surface of the photographic lens barrel 14.
The watertightness of the photographic lens barrel 14 to the camera body 12 is maintained while regularly changing the shape following the advance and retreat of the camera body 12. The large diameter ring member 42 and the small diameter ring member 43 are made of a rigid material such as metal or synthetic resin.

On the other hand, a release button 28 is located on the top surface of the camera body 12.
is provided. Further, a rear cover 34 is installed on the rear surface of the camera body 12 so as to be openable and closable. The front wall 12a in front of the camera body 12 includes a light projection window 20 that emits infrared light for distance measurement, a light receiving window 22 that receives infrared light reflected by the subject, and a finder objective window 24. A strobe light emitting window 26 is provided. Furthermore, a breather hole 36 (FIG. 1A) is formed below the light emitting window 26 of the front wall 12a, and in front of this breather hole 36, a breathable and water-impermeable filter 17 is attached to the breather hole 36. A protective cover 35 is installed to protect the. This protective cover 35 has a large number of communication grooves 35a formed along its circumference, and these communication grooves 35a allow the air-permeable non-water filter 36 to come into contact with the outside air.
Protects from scratches and damage. Note that numeral 39 in FIG. 1 indicates internal structural members of the camera, which are various members for making the camera function, such as electronic parts and electronic circuit boards.

According to the drip-proof camera IO having the above structure, when the photographing lens barrel 14 is moved forward or backward with respect to the camera body 12, the internal volumes within the body 12 and the photographing lens barrel 14 change. Then, air corresponding to the amount of change flows into the protective cover 3.
It enters and exits into the camera body 12 through the large number of communication grooves 35a of No. 5, the air-not-water-permeable filter 17, and the breath hole 36.

Therefore, the operating force for moving the photographic lens barrel 14 forward and backward does not vary due to changes in the internal pressure within the body 12 and the photographic lens barrel 14.

When the photographic lens barrel 14 moves back and forth in the optical axis direction, the waterproof member 41 follows this movement, since the other end of the waterproof member 41 is closely fixed to the flange portion 14a. At this time,
The waterproof member 41 expands and contracts in a bellows shape while its inner and outer surfaces are supported by the large-diameter ring member 42 and the small-diameter ring member 43. Therefore, the waterproof member 41 does not protrude sideways (regularly expands and contracts. Therefore, the bent waterproof member 41 is caught between the photographing lens barrel 14 and the opening 40a, etc. 14 will not occur, and any damage to the waterproof member 41 will be reliably prevented.Furthermore, this waterproof member 4
1 expands and contracts within the space S surrounded by the lens barrel support portion 40 and the photographing lens barrel 14, thereby preventing the problem of deterioration due to exposure to sunlight.

"Effects of the Invention" As described above, according to the drip-proof camera of the present invention, one end of the waterproof member is attached to the inner surface around the opening, and the other end is attached to the photographing lens barrel inserted into the waterproof member in a watertight manner. Because it is tightly fixed and ring members are attached at specified intervals to the side of the waterproof member,
When moving the photographic lens barrel forward and backward in the optical axis direction, the waterproof member can be regularly expanded and contracted in a bellows shape while being supported by the ring member. Therefore, it is possible to reliably maintain the watertightness of the photographic lens barrel with respect to the camera body, reduce the resistance when moving the lens barrel forward and backward, and move the photographic lens barrel smoothly forward and backward. Watertightness can be maintained if one end and the other end of the waterproof member are in close contact with the periphery of the opening and the end of the photographic lens barrel, respectively, so it is possible to maintain watertightness when taking pictures, as in the case of sliding contact with the O-ring. High precision is not required on the outer surface of the lens barrel, making processing easier.
Cost reduction can also be achieved.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1A is a cross-sectional view showing the essential parts of a drip-proof camera according to the present invention, FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the photographing lens barrel of FIG. 1A is projected forward, and FIG. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the appearance of such a drip-proof camera. lO...Splash-proof camera, 12...Camera body, 12
a...Front wall, 14...Photographing lens barrel, 14a...
・Flange part, 17... Ventilation impermeable filter, 40
... Lens barrel support part, 40a... Opening part, 41.
...Waterproof member, 42.43... Large diameter ring member, small diameter ring member (ring member).

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) In a drip-proof camera in which an opening is provided in the front wall of a watertight camera body, and a photographing lens barrel is inserted into the opening so that it can move forward and backward in the optical axis direction, the inner surface around the opening One end of a cylindrical waterproof member that expands and contracts like a bellows is tightly fixed in a watertight manner, and the other end of this waterproof member is watertightly attached to the inner end of the camera of the photographic lens barrel inserted into the waterproof member. A drip-proof camera, further comprising ring members attached at predetermined intervals to a side surface of the waterproof member. (2) The drip-proof camera according to claim 1, wherein the ring member is attached to the waterproof member by insert molding.