Abstract:
The present invention provides a camera in which a flash emission section is aligned with a self-timer light-emitting indicator section and the amount of slide of a slide door is minimized. The camera includes; a housing with an opening for an image-taking optical system and a first opening through which both the flash emission section and the self-timer light-emitting indicator section appear; and a slide door with a second opening having a cover partially attached thereto. The opening for the image-taking optical system, the first and second openings and the amount of slide of the slide door are arranged such that, when the slide door is closed, part of the first opening overlaps with part of the second opening and the overlapped part of the first opening is shielded by the cover provided in the second opening.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a camera that has an image-taking optical system and an image pickup device, and generates image data by forming object images on the image pickup device by the image-taking system. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Recently digital cameras, which generate image data by forming an object image on an image pickup device, have been rapidly spread and have become smaller, thinner and diversified in their designs. 
     Many of such digital cameras have a protection member, for example, a slide door that opens and closes such that it opens a front of an image-taking optical system during image-taking operation and in the other times covers the front, in order to protect the image-taking optical system that appears through the front of the camera. 
     Usually, on the front of a camera, not only an aperture through which an image-taking optical system appears is formed, but a flash emission section for emitting flash for image-taking operation is also disposed. Accordingly many cameras have a protection member configured so as to open and close the front of the flash emission section as well as the front of the image-taking optical system (see, for example, Japanese Patent Application Publication Nos. 2004-348059, 2004-348069). 
     Additionally some cameras have a self-timer mode in which actual image-taking is performed after a lapse of predetermined time, for example, 10 seconds after preparatory image-taking operation is conducted. Such a camera has, on its front, a self-timer light-emitting indicator such as a LED to notify a user that image-taking operation in the self-timer mode is about to be performed. 
     Here, in view of the design of a camera, it is conceivable to decrease the number of openings on a slide door of a camera by aligning a flash emission section with a self-timer light-emitting indicator. In this case, the slide door needs to have a wider opening for the flash emission section and the self-timer light-emitting indicator. 
     However, configuring the slide door to slide by its width makes the amount of slide large and thus the size of a camera large, which is contrary to the demand for a smaller camera. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides a camera in which a flash emission section is aligned with a self-timer light-emitting indicator section and the amount of slide of a slide door is minimized. 
     A camera according to the present invention has an image-taking optical system and an image pickup device, and generates image data by forming object images on the image pickup device by the image-taking optical system, the camera including: 
     a self-timer mode for performing actual image-taking predetermined seconds after preparatory image-taking operation; 
     a flash emission section that emits light in sync with image-taking; 
     a self-timer light-emitting indicator section which notifies a user that image-taking in the self-timer mode is about to start and is aligned with the flash emission section away from the image-taking optical system; 
     a housing having an opening for the image-taking optical system through which the image-taking optical system appears, and a first opening through which both the flash emission section and the self-timer light-emitting indicator section appear; and 
     a slide door which opens and closes the opening for the image-taking optical system by sliding laterally over a front of the housing, and which has a second opening with a cover with light-diffusing and transmitting property, the second opening being arranged in front of the flash emission section and the self-timer light-emitting indicator section with the cover arranged in front of the self-timer light-emitting indicator section, when the slide door is opened, 
     wherein the opening for the image-taking optical system, the first and second openings and the amount of slide of the slide door are arranged such that, when the slide door is closed, part of the first opening overlaps with part of the second opening and the overlapped part of the first opening is shielded by the cover provided in the second opening. 
     According to the present invention, the camera is configured such that, the flash emission section is aligned with the self-timer light-emitting indicator section and a cover with light-diffusing and transmitting property provided in the second opening of the slide door shields the self-timer light-emitting indicator section to compensate for decreased amount of slide of the slide door. Accordingly, the camera of the present invention can minimize the amount of slide of the slide door as well as meet the demand for compactness by aligning the self-timer light-emitting indicator section with the flash emission section. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a front of a camera viewed obliquely from above, with its slide door closed according to one embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the front of the camera viewed obliquely from above, with its slide door opened according to the one embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a back of the camera shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2  and viewed obliquely from above. 
         FIG. 4  shows a front housing and a slide door attached to the front thereof of the camera shown in  FIGS. 1 through 3 . 
         FIG. 5  shows the front housing of  FIG. 4  with the slide door removed. 
         FIG. 6  shows a front of the front housing of the camera with the slide door removed therefrom. 
         FIG. 7  is a comparative example to show a structure of part of a wall formed at the top of a front housing according to one of conventional techniques. 
         FIG. 8  shows a structure of part of a wall formed at the top of the front housing according to the embodiment. 
         FIG. 9  is a perspective view of a rear side of a back housing. 
         FIG. 10  is an exploded perspective view of parts for attaching a strap to the back housing. 
         FIG. 11  is another exploded perspective view of the parts for attaching a strap to the back housing. 
         FIG. 12  is an exploded perspective view of parts for the back of the camera. 
         FIG. 13  is another exploded perspective view of the parts for the back of the camera. 
         FIG. 14  is a perspective view of the back housing with various buttons attached thereto. 
         FIG. 15  is a perspective view of the back housing with various buttons removed therefrom. 
         FIG. 16  is a perspective view of the back housing viewed from its inside. 
         FIG. 17  is a comparative example to show a structure of the periphery of an opening where a LCD panel is disposed according to one of conventional techniques. 
         FIG. 18  shows a structure of the periphery of an opening where a LCD panel is disposed according to the embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     An embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the attached drawings. 
       FIGS. 1 and 2  respectively show a perspective view of a front of a camera  10  viewed obliquely from above, with its slide door closed and opened according to one embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a back of the camera  10  shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2  and viewed obliquely from above. 
     The view of the camera  10  shown in  FIGS. 1 through 3  mainly consists of a front housing  11 , back housing  12  and a slide door  13 . 
     The front housing  11  further consists of a front  111 , a top  112  and a bottom  113  while the back housing  12  consists of a back  121  and sides  122  and  123 . The slide door  13  slides laterally in contact with the front  111  of the front housing  11 . 
     The slide door  13  can slide between a closed position shown in  FIG. 1  and an opened position shown in  FIG. 2 . The slide door  13  is configured such that, in the opened position it opens an opening  111   a  for image-taking operation and a front of an image-taking lens  14  that appears through the opening  111   a  while in the closed position it covers the opening  111   a  and the front of the image-taking lens  14 . 
     An oblong opening  131  is provided on an upper part of substantial center of the slide door  13 . Part of the opening  131 , which is closer to the image-taking lens  14 , is penetrated from its front to its back, while other part, which is farther away from the image-taking lens  14 , has a cover fitted thereto made of a member with light-diffusing and transmitting property such as opalescent acryl. When the slide door  13  is in the closed position shown in  FIG. 1 , the front  111  of the front housing  11  appears through the penetrated part  131   a  of the opening  131  of the slide door  13 . When the slide door  13  is in the opened position shown in  FIG. 2 , the opening  131  of the slide door  13  opens a front of a flash emission section  15  that emits light for image-taking with flash light. Meanwhile the camera  10  has a self-timer mode in which actual image-taking is performed 10 seconds after a shutter button  16  is depressed. When the slide door  13  is in the closed position, a LED for a self-timer is arranged behind the cover  132  with light-diffusing and transmitting property, which notifies a user that image-taking is about to start by blinking slowly for seven seconds after the shutter button  16  is depressed and then rapidly blinking for the remaining 3 seconds. 
     Additionally the front housing  11  has, on the top  112 , the shutter button  16 , a still/movie-shooting switching lever  17 , a mouthpiece  112   a  for transmitting sound to a built-in microphone, in addition to the opening  111   a  on the front  111  as described before. 
     The back housing  12  is fixed to the front housing  11  with four screws  18  on the right and left sides of the back housing  12 . An ear piece  122   a  for transmitting sound from a built-in speaker is provided on the side  122  of the back housing  12  near the image-taking lens  14  as shown in  FIG. 2 . Additionally, as shown in  FIG. 3 , an infrared communication section  19  is provided on the other side  123  of the back housing  12  for transmitting data of an image taken by the camera  10  via infrared communication. Under the infrared communication section  19 , holes  123   a  and  123   b  are formed for attaching a strap thereto. 
     On the back  121  of the back housing  12 , provided are Telephoto/Wide (T/W) switching lever  20 , antiskid members  21 , shooting/replay switching lever  22 , function button  23 , navigation button  24 , OK button  25 , Disp/Back button  26 , and LCD panel  27  for screen display. 
     The T/W switching lever  20  is for controlling focal distance of the image-taking lens  14  of  FIG. 2 . The antiskid members  21  guide a thumb of a user&#39;s right hand and prevent it from slipping, so that the user can securely hold the camera  10  during shooting without making the mistake of pressing an undesired button. The antiskid members  21  are formed of opalescent member with light-diffusing and transmitting property such as silicone rubber, and consists of three parts slightly protruding from the surface of the back  121 . The innermost  21   a  of the three parts has a LED behind thereof that illuminates when the camera  10  is charged. 
     Additionally, the shooting/replay switching button  22  alternatively changes to the shooting mode or the replay mode by one press. 
     When the function button  23  is depressed, a menu is displayed on the LCD panel  27 . The menu is changed by using right/left buttons of the navigation button  24  and then an item of the menu is selected by using up/down buttons of the navigation button  24 . Setting of the selected item, for example, ISO sensitivity, with/without flash and other detailed item for shooting/replay mode, is performed by pressing the OK button  25 . 
     Further, the Disp/Back button  26  is pressed, for example, when the display mode of images displayed on the LCD panel  27  is to be changed to “display only one image” or to “display some thumbnail images in a line,” and when immediately preceding image is to be displayed. 
       FIG. 4  shows the front housing  11  and the slide door  13  attached to the front  111  thereof of the camera  10  shown in  FIGS. 1 through 3 ,  FIG. 5  shows the front housing  11  with the slide door  13  removed therefrom and  FIG. 6  shows a front of the front housing  11  of the camera  10  with the slide door removed therefrom. Incidentally, drawing is omitted for components which are supposed to be disposed behind the openings on the front  111  of the front housing  11 . 
       FIG. 5  shows openings  112   b  and  112   c  formed in the top  112  of the front housing  11  respectively for the shutter button  16  and the still/movie-shooting switching lever  17 , in addition to the mouth piece  112   a  described before.  FIG. 5  also shows openings formed in the front  111  of the front housing  11 , including an opening  111   b  for the flash emission section  15  and a LED  31  for a self-timer of  FIG. 6  in addition to the opening  111   a  described before. 
     When the slide door  13  is moved to the open position shown in  FIG. 2 , the penetrated part  131   a  of the opening  131  of the slide door  13  is arranged in front of the flash emission section  15  and the cover  132  with light-diffusing and transmitting property is arranged in front of the LED  31  for a self-timer. On the other hand, when the slide door  13  is in the closed position shown in  FIG. 1 , the penetrated part  131   a  of the opening  131  is arranged in front of a shield  111   c  that extends in a cantilever-beam form within the opening  111   b  of the front  111  of the front housing shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 . Thus, part of the front housing  11  (the shield  111   c ) can be seen from the penetrated part  131   a  of the opening  131  of the slide door  13 . On the other hand, the other part of the opening into which the cover  132  is fitted overlaps with part of the flash emission section  15 , so that the flash emission section  15  cannot be seen from the front of the camera  10 . 
     Accordingly, the camera  10  according to the embodiment can minimize the amount of slide of the slide door  13  despite that the flash emission section  15  is aligned with the LED  31  for a self-timer, can shield the flash emission section  15  when the slide door  13  is closed, and thus is compact and excellent in its design. 
     Now, explanation will be made on the structure of portions enclosed with circles A and B shown in  FIG. 4 . 
     Part of the top  112  of the front housing  11  that extends from the front  111  in a curve is in contact with the rear of the slide door  13 . Here, the part of the top  112  together with the front  111  is called a contact surface  114 . On the top and bottom ends of the contact surface  114 , provided are walls  112   d  and  111   d  that are erect with respect to the contact surface  114  and face to extend along top and bottom end surfaces  133  and  134  of the slide door  13 . Now, further explanation will be made on the wall  112   d  as a representative. 
       FIGS. 7 and 8  both show a structure of part of the wall  112   d  disposed at the top  112  of the front housing  11 , but  FIG. 7  is a comparative example according to one of conventional techniques while  FIG. 8  is according to the embodiment. 
       FIGS. 7 and 8  show the front housing  11  in solid lines and the slide door  13  in chain lines. Part (a) of  FIG. 7  and Part (a) of  FIG. 8  are perspective views while Part (b) of  FIG. 7  and Part (b) of  FIG. 8  are side views. 
     On the front housing  11 , the wall  112   d  is formed, which is erect relative to the contact surface  114  and faces to extend along the top end surface  133  of the slide door  13 . 
     Incidentally, the front housing  11  of the present embodiment is formed by extrusion molding. A protrusion of a mold, which is a recess of a product, wears out from use. Therefore, the shape of the wall  112   d  shown in Part (a) of  FIG. 7 , which is assumed to be formed by a mold initially put into use, will change due to worn-out protrusion of the mold and fill a recess between the wall  112   d  and the contact surface  114  as shown in a dotted line of Part (b) of  FIG. 7 . Consequently, the top surface  133  of the slide door  13  does not fit to the wall  112   d,  resulting in a gap between them and deteriorating the design of the camera. In the worst case, a camera cannot be assembled properly to become an imperfect product and eventually the life of its mold is shortened. 
     On the other hand, according to the camera of the present embodiment of  FIG. 8 , a groove  112   e  is formed in the wall  112   d,  which is in contact with the contact surface  114  and recessed away from and extending along the top surface  113  of the slide door  13 . 
     Presence of the groove  112   e  secures fitting of the slide door  13  to the front housing  11  even when the edge of groove  112   e  is partially filled due to a worn-out protrusion of a mold. In addition, as the groove  112   e  is formed at the bottom of the wall  112   d  (closer to the contact surface  114 ), it is not readily noticeable in the appearance of the camera and is desirable in terms of the camera design. 
       FIG. 9  is a perspective view of a rear side of the back housing  12  and  FIGS. 10 and 11  are exploded perspective view at different angles of parts for attaching a strap to the back housing. 
     As shown in  FIG. 9 , on the side  123  of the back housing  12 , formed are an opening  123   c  provided with the infrared communication section  19  shown in  FIG. 10  and a pair of holes  123   a  and  123   b  for attaching a strap thereto. Additionally, four holes for screws  123   d,    123   e,    122   d  and  122   e  are formed on the side  123  and the other side  122  of the back housing  12  in order to secure the back housing  12  to the front housing  11 . 
     The holes  123   a  and  123   b  for a strap are fitted with a protection member  32  shown in  FIGS. 10 and 11 , a back of which a retaining member  33  is further attached to. 
     The protection member  32  has holes  321   a  and  321   b  corresponding to the holes  123   a  and  123   b.  The holes  321   a  and  321   b  respectively have walls  322   a  and  322   b  that are formed around and erect relative to their peripheries. Height of the walls  322   a  and  322   b  are same as thickness of the back housing  12  while depth of the holes  321   a  and  321   b  corresponds to the sum of thickness of the back housing  12  and the protection member  32 . 
     In the embodiment, walls  322   a  and  322   b  of the protection member  32  are fitted to the holes  123   a  and  123   b  for a strap on the side  123  of the back housing  12 . Incidentally, the back housing  12  is made as thin as it allows for holding required strength in order to meet the demand for compactness and reduction in weight and cost. Therefore, if a strap is in direct contact with the holes  123   a  and  123   b,  the strap is likely to be damaged and cut during use. 
     In the present embodiment, however, the protection member  32  is fitted to the holes  123   a  and  123   b,  so that a strap contacts inner walls of the holes  321   a  and  321   b  of the protection member  32  and is prevented from damage. 
     Additionally, a path  331  is formed on the retaining member  33  for guiding a strap, for example, from the hole  123   a  to the  123   b  to facilitate attaching the strap. The retaining member  33  also has an opening  332  formed therein for having components of the infrared communication section  19  protruding through the opening  332  to the rear side of the back housing  12  and holding the periphery of the components by pressure. Further, the retaining member  33  has holes  333   a  and  333   b  linked to holes  123   d  and  123   e  for screws formed on the side  123  of the back housing  12 . Accordingly, the retaining member  33  as well as the back housing  12  are secured to the front housing  11  by screws  18  shown in  FIG. 3 , so that the components of the infrared communication section  19  and the protection member  32  for a strap can be firmly fitted to the respective openings  123   c,    123   a  and  123   b  by the retaining member  33 . 
       FIGS. 12 and 13  are respectively an exploded perspective view at different angles of parts for the back of the camera  10 . 
       FIGS. 12 and 13  show a prefabricated structure of the antiskid members  21  and buttons to be arranged on the back  121  of the camera  10  including: the T/W switching lever  20 , the shooting/replay switching lever  22 , the function button  23 , the navigation button  24 , the OK button  25  and the Disp/Back button  26 . Specifically, an operator panel  41  with the buttons and the antiskid members  21  arranged thereon is placed inside the back housing  12 . Inside the operator panel  41  a sensor substrate  42  is placed, inside of which a fixing member  43  is further placed to secure the sensor substrate  42  and the operator panel  41  to the inside of the back housing  12 . 
     The antiskid members  21  and the buttons arranged on the operator panel  41  are placed so as to be fitted into openings formed in the back housing  12 . For example, the three protrusions constituting the antiskid members  21  are fitted into their respective openings  125  formed in the back housing  12 . 
     The antiskid members  21  are configured such that the innermost protrusion  21   a  has a recess  21   b  into which a LED  421  on the sensor substrate is fitted. The antiskid members  21  are formed of members with light-diffusing and transmitting property. Therefore, the antiskid members  21  not only guide a thumb of a user&#39;s right hand and prevent slip of the thumb, but also indicates that the camera is being charged. This feature contributes to reduction in size of a camera. 
     Additionally, a shield  126  is provided inside the back housing  12  as shown in  FIG. 12 , and thus when the LED  421  is lit it lights only the innermost protrusion  21   a.    
       FIG. 14  is a perspective view of the back housing  12  with various buttons attached thereto,  FIG. 15  is a perspective view of the back housing  12  with various buttons removed therefrom, and  FIG. 16  is a perspective view of the back housing  12  viewed from its inside. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 15 and 16 , a large opening  127  is formed for the LCD panel  27  in the back housing  12 . A frame  128  is formed on the periphery of the opening  127 . The frame  128 , at the outside of the back housing  12 , is recessed (with decreased thickness) from an adjacent section  129 , but is flush with the adjacent section  129  at the inside of the back housing  12 . 
       FIG. 17  is a comparative example to show a structure of the periphery of an opening where a LCD panel is arranged according to one of conventional techniques and  FIG. 18  shows a structure of the periphery of the opening  127  where the LCD panel  27  is arranged according to the present embodiment. 
     As shown in  FIG. 17 , conventionally a frame  128 ′ at its inside is protruded from an adjacent section  129 ′ as the frame  128 ′ at the outside is recessed from the adjacent section  129 ′. In this case, space behind the frame  128 ′ cannot be fully made use of due to protrusion, which is problematic in terms of realizing a compact camera. 
     On the other hand, according to the present embodiment, the frame  128  is formed by compressing part of a plate with uniform width. Thus, the frame  128  at the inside is flush with the adjacent section  129  although it has a recess from the adjacent section  129  at the outside. 
     Accordingly, the frame  128  allows space for components as well as supports the LCD panel securely by its recess. Although the frame  128  becomes thinner by its recess, its strength is maintained supported by the thicker adjacent section  129  in contact with its periphery.