Patent ID: 6665493
Filing Date: 2003-12-16
Classification: G03B

Abstract:
A camera film feed device for enabling freely loadable placement of a film magazine having a takeup shaft on which a film is wound and a film feeding opening from which a film leader protrudes, said film feed device comprising:a magazine chamber in which said film magazine is loaded; a fork which engages with said takeup shaft of said film magazine loaded into the magazine chamber; a takeup spool which is positioned on a side of a photographing aperture opposite said magazine chamber, and which takes up said film; a sprocket which is positioned between said magazine chamber and said takeup spool; a control circuit which controls operations of said fork, said takeup spool, and said sprocket; a tip detection sensor, positioned near said magazine chamber, which detects a tip of said film; and an electrically overwritable nonvolatile memory, wherein, when said film magazine is loaded into said magazine chamber, the control circuit starts an operation by the fork to rewind said film into said film magazine, and when said film is rewound to a prescribed position, the control circuit stops said rewind operation, and then starts an operation by said sprocket to feed said film to said takeup spool, wherein said control circuit stops said rewind operation based on an output from said tip detection sensor, wherein said tip detection sensor comprises an infrared light-emitting diode and a phototransistor which receives the infrared light from the light-emitting diode after reflection by an object, and wherein said control circuit stores the output of said phototransistor in said memory with a prescribed timing.