Abstract:
A padded protective cup shaped covering sized to slip over a camera lens is disclosed. The covering is designed to fit on either the front portion of the lens or the lens mount. The protective covering has beveled side walls which allow it to fit easily on a variety of different lenses. The protective covering is made from two separate layers of material, an outer cup made from a firm yet flexible material, and the inner liner made from a soft pliable material. The soft inner liner allows the covering to easily adhere to the camera lens, and also provides impact protection. The outer cup provides additional impact protection. The outer cup also includes a domed top portion which provides a crumple zone or impact bumper. In one embodiment the outer cup has a clear optical grade lens or filer lens inserted or incorporated therein, which allows the camera user to take a photograph without removing the protective lens.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims priority to U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 61/269,602 filed on Jun. 26, 2009, now abandoned, and incorporated herein by reference. 
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
     Not Applicable 
     THE NAMES OF THE PARTIES TO A JOINT RESEARCH AGREEMENT 
     Not Applicable 
     INCORPORATION-BY-REFERENCE OF MATERIAL SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT DISC 
     Not Applicable 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a padded protective covering for protecting both the front and mount portions of a camera lenses. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Camera lenses are both fragile and expensive. Professional photographers often have many lenses, and these lenses can represent a significant investment. A camera lens is constructed of a number of elements. The primary component is a tube, called a lens barrel, which contains optical components including glass or crystal optical lenses, mirrors, and prisms inside. The optical lenses within the barrel provide a variety of optical properties that allow photographers to take a variety of different photographs. Camera lenses and their components are well known in the art. The specific components of camera lenses, except for the external structure as it connects with the present invention, form no part of this invention. The term camera lens as used herein means the entire component of the barrel with interior optical lenses. 
     At one end of the barrel there is a mount for attaching the camera lens to the camera, and at the other end, referred to as the front end, there is an optical lens. The optical lens itself is generally made of a glass or crystal compound. In some cases there are lenses made of clear optical grade plastics such as Lucite, but because of the optical properties required for photography, the vast majority of lenses are made from glass or crystal. This lens component is breakable and can be chipped or nicked if hit with something hard. The barrel is typically made of light steel, aluminum, or plastic, which is brittle and relatively easily damaged. The mount is typically made of thin metal and retained on the camera lens by a series of small screws. The mount is fragile and can be easily damaged. 
     Many camera lenses have a threaded filter ring at the end, which allows the addition of a filter optical lens that can provide some photographic enhancement features. Such filter lenses are well known in the art. The filter ring is on the inside circumference of the front of the barrel, so the lens filter mounts to the end of the barrel. This filter lens can provide some very minimal protection of the optical lens at the end of the camera lens, but because it is also glass it can be broken. 
     Many of the components of the camera lenses are fragile and easily damaged. As mentioned, lens barrels are typically made of aluminum or plastic, which can be somewhat brittle and can be easily damaged. Inside large camera lenses, such as telephoto lenses, there are numerous smaller optical lenses and often prisms and mirrors to achieve various optical and focal properties. The components are typically made of plastic, glass, and crystal and are quite fragile. There is a need, therefore, for ways to protect the camera lens, the glass optical lenses and the mounting components at the end of the camera lens. 
     Many photographers use their equipment in a wide variety of locations. Many sports, wild life, and news photographers use their equipment out of doors and often in very rugged terrain. In many situations the photographer carries the equipment through a wide variety of terrain. Most photographers have a variety of carrying cases for their equipment, and generally these cases are well padded. But in many situations the photographer will have equipment out and ready to use. Often the photographer will have at least one camera slung over his or her neck, ready to be used, and will also often have at least one replacement lens slung over the neck or shoulder. Because of the cost of these camera lenses there is a need for some form of protection. 
     The most common form of protection for the camera lens is the standard lens cap, which is a hard plastic covering that snaps into the filter ring at the end of the camera lens. An example of this type of cap can be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 4,600,278, to Saito. This provides a small degree of protection to the glass optical lens at the end of the camera lens, but does not protect the lens barrel and internal components from impact damage. This type of plastic lens cap also cannot protect the glass optical lens from an unusually hard impact. A second form of lens protection is a case or covering that covers the entire lens, and in some cases the camera body as well. An example is U.S. Pat. No. 4,549,589 to Nguyen. The &#39;589 patent discloses a case that fits over the body of the camera and has an attachment lens tube case that fits over the lens or lenses, and can be attached to the camera body case. This is useful for transporting the camera and camera lens, but is not convenient for protecting the camera lens while mounted on the camera body, and does not allow for easy placement or removal. 
     A third form of camera lens protector is the “hood” which is actually a tube mounted to the end of the camera lens. An example is U.S. Pat. No. 7,682,091 to Zeck. The tube extends from the end of the camera lens and so provides some protection for the glass optical lens at the front end. But it provides no impact resistance. Additionally this type of attachment makes the camera lens long and much more likely to impact hard surfaces during transportation. A final example of prior art lens covers is the “Soft Lens Cover” disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/221,277 to Elowitz, filed Aug. 1, 2008, and published in US 2010/0027120. This application discloses a soft, thin covering made of neoprene or other thin flexible material, that stretches over the end portion of the lens. In one variation the soft lens cover can contain a hard plastic insert to provide protection for the camera lens. This application is drawn to a single layer of very thin material that can be stretched over the end of the camera lens, and which will provide only a bare minimum of protection for the camera lens. This device is designed only for the front end of the camera lens and is not suitable for protection of the lens mount. Additionally, the plastic insert creates a hard surface directly against the end of the camera lens, which means that the force of an impact will be transferred directly to the camera lens. There is a need, therefore, for a means for protecting all components of expensive camera lenses. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention provides a protective lens cover made of padded material that is sized to fit easily and securely over the end of a camera lens. Because of the configuration of the lens cover it can be used to cover and protect both the front end of the camera lens, and the mount end of the camera lens. 
     The lens cover is made of two layers of padded material. The outer layer, referred to herein as the outer cup, is made of a firm yet flexible material such as Sanoprene or vinyl, and the inner layer, referred herein as the inner liner, is made of a softer material such as neoprene. The lens cover is in the shape of a beveled cylinder having a raised domed end. The bevel of the lens cover walls allows the cover to fit easily onto either the lens end or the mount end of the camera lens. The soft inner liner allows the cover to fit snuggly and securely without potentially damaging the delicate components of the camera lens or the finish of the lens barrel. The combination of the soft inner liner and the padded outer cup provides good shock absorption protection should the end of the camera lens impact something hard. Additionally, the domed end of the cover provides additional room or give in the event of impact at the front end of the lens, and provides additional shock absorption and protection to the camera lens. 
     In an alternate embodiment of the invention there is a clear optical grade polycarbonate disc at the top of the domed portion of the protective cover. This will allow a photographer to take a picture with the lens cover on the camera lens. The lens cover of this embodiment still provides excellent impact protection due to the padded components and the additional bumper space provided by the domed end portion of the lens cover. In a variation of this embodiment the clear disc is removable and replaceable with a standard filter lens. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is an exploded perspective view showing the components of the invention. 
         FIG. 2  is an exploded perspective view showing the underside of the components of the invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a cross sectional view of the invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective showing a camera with a camera lens and the lens cover of the invention. 
         FIG. 5  is a view of a camera lens with the lens cover of the invention. 
         FIG. 6  is an exploded view of an alternative embodiment of the invention having an incorporated clear lens. 
         FIG. 7  is a cross section view of one version of the alternate embodiment. 
         FIG. 8  is a cross sectional view of a second version of the alternate embodiment. 
         FIG. 9  is an exploded perspective view of a third version of the alternate embodiment. 
         FIG. 10   a  is a cut away view of a lens guard above a lens, and  FIG. 10   b  is a cut away view of the lens guard in place on the lens. 
         FIG. 11   a  is a cut away view of a lens guard above a lens, and  FIG. 11   b  is a cut away view of the lens guard in place on the lens. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein. It is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, and that there may be a variety of other alternate embodiments. The figures are not necessarily to scale, and some features may be exaggerated or minimized to show details of particular components. Therefore, specified structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for teaching one skilled in the art to employ the varying embodiments of the present invention. 
     The invention can best be seen in  FIG. 1 , an exploded perspective showing the components of the lens cover  60 . The lens cover  60  consists of an outer cup  10  with an inner liner  20  placed inside. The inner liner  20  is shaped the same and sized to fit within the outer cup  10 . There is also a tether  30  that attaches to the inner liner  20  to allow the lens cover  60  to be attached to a camera. 
     As seen in  FIGS. 1 &amp; 2 , the outer cup  10  is a thin walled beveled cylindrical shaped cup, with a beveled cup wall  11  that attaches to the dome wall  13 , which is then attached to the circular shaped cup top  14 . The outer cup  10  is generally made from a single piece of material and each component adjoins the other directly. The beveled cup wall  11  has an opening circumference  18  at the opening end, and a top circumference  16  at the top of the beveled cup wall  11 . The opening circumference  18  is slightly larger than the top circumference  16 , which gives the cylindrical cup wall  11  the bevel. The dome wall  13  attaches directly to the top circumference  16  and the circular cup top  14  attaches directly to the dome wall  13 . The beveled cup wall  11  creates a beveled cylindrical shape cup, a shape commonly referred to as frustoconical. The cup wall  11  is relatively thin, which creates an interior space  12  formed on the inside of the outer cup  10 . There is an inner surface formed on the inside of the cup wall. 
     In the preferred embodiment the diameter of the domed top  14  is a disc 2 inches in diameter. The cup wall  11  is 1.4 inches in height, and the domed wall  13  is 0.6 inches in height. The inside diameter of cup wall  11  where it meets the dome wall  13  is 3.73 inches, and the inside diameter of the cup wall at the bottom is 3.94 inches. The lens cover can be any size to fit corresponding lenses, so the diameters (and circumferences) of the components can vary as needed. 
     The outer cup  10  is made from a thin flexible yet firm material which can hold its shape and has impact resistance properties. In the preferred embodiment the outer cup  10  is made of a single piece of Sanoprene rubber, which is dip or injection molded into the appropriate beveled cylindrical cup shape. In other embodiments can be made of any other suitable molded soft plastic or vinyl including soft PVC, It is also possible and within the conception of the invention to make the outer cup  10  from leather, since this is a common material for camera equipment covering. In the most preferred embodiment the outer cup  10  is made from 2 mm thick Sanoprene rubber. This type of material is flexible and slightly compressible, but has enough stiffness to hold its form. The outer cup  10  can vary in thickness to produce appropriate strength and compression properties. The most common thickness for the outer cup  10  will be between 1.5 mm to 6 mm thick, although for larger lens covers  60  it is possible to be thicker. 
     As best seen in  FIG. 2 , the inner liner  20  is sized and shaped to correspond to, and fit inside, the interior space  12  of the outer cup  10 . The inner line  20  in place within the outer cup  10  can be seen in the cross section of  FIG. 3 . The inner liner  20  has a beveled liner wall  21  which is defined by a liner top  26  and a liner opening  28 , wherein the liner opening  28  has a circumference slightly larger than the circumference of the liner top  26  and this creates a beveled cylindrical shape to the inner liner  20 . The inner liner  20  also has a liner dome wall  23 , and a liner top  24 . When the inner liner  20  is in place inside the interior space  12  of the outer cup  10 , the liner wall  21  fits snuggly against the inner surface of the cup wall  11 , the liner dome wall  23  is snug against the dome wall  13 , and the liner to  24  is pressed against the cup top  14  with no space between the inner liner  20  and the outer cup  10 . In one embodiment the inner liner  20  is securely attached to the outer cup by conventional means, including gluing. It is also possible to mold the two components together. The inner liner  20  can be attached or adhered within the inner space  12  by any known conventional method. The liner wall  21  is made from a relatively thin piece of soft and pliable material. This creates a liner interior  25  space within the inner liner  20 . 
     In the preferred embodiment, the inner liner  20  is made from Neoprene (polychloroprene), or other similarly soft but flexible and pliable material, including, but not limited to rubber, latex rubber, and other similar synthetic rubber polymer substitutes such as Nitrile (butadiene acrylonitrile), or Butadyl (carboxylated acrylonitrile butadiene rubber with polymer additives). In the preferred embodiment the inner liner  20  is made from 8 mm thick neoprene. It is possible for the material of the inner liner  20  to range in thickness from 2 mm to 8 mm thick. The softness of the material provides impact resistance. It also allows the inner liner  20  to move and form around the components of the camera lens  50  and is soft enough so that it does not harm the components of the camera lens  50 . 
     The lens cover  60  also includes a tether  30 , as seen in  FIG. 4 , which is used to attach the lens cover  60  to the camera. The tether  30  has a cover end  32 , which is attached to the lens cover  60 , and a camera end  34  which can be attached to the camera. In the preferred embodiment the cover end  32  is attached to the inner liner  20  between the inner liner  20  and the outer cap  10  by means of sewing or gluing. The camera end  34  will generally have a loop  35  which will allow easy attachment to an attachment point on the camera. Such attachment points on cameras are well known in the art. 
     As can be seen in  FIGS. 4 &amp; 5 , the lens  50  has a slightly tapered front end  51 . This taper is created by the focus ring  52  being slightly larger in circumference than the lens barrel  53 . The beveled feature of the liner wall  21  and the cup wall  11  is designed to roughly correspond to the taper at the front end  51  of the camera lens  50 . The mount end  54  of the camera lens  50  also has a slight taper due to the lens mount itself. The liner interior  25  is sized to roughly correspond to the circumference of the lens barrel  53 . The neoprene or other soft material of the inner liner  20  allows the lens cover  60  to fit over and snuggly attach to either the front end  51  or the mount end  54  of the camera lens  50 , but have enough give so that it does not harm the delicate components of either end of the lens. 
     The lens cover  60  is designed to provide good impact protection for the camera lens  50 . This will also protect the camera itself because the camera lens  50  is attached to the camera by an inflexible camera mount. The lens cover  60  provides impact protection by two means. The first means is the soft material from which the lens cover  60  is constructed. Neoprene is a soft spongy material, which allows it to give when it comes into contact with components of the camera lens  50 , thus allowing it to form around either the front end  51  or the mount end  54  of the camera lens  50 . The neoprene also provides shock absorption should the lens cover  60  come into contact with a hard material. In addition the outer cup  10  is made from a semi-soft material, such as Sanoprene, which also has give, and also provides additional impact protection. Finally, when the lens cover  60  is in place on the camera lens  50  the domed cup top  14  extends slightly from the end of the camera lens  50 . This provides a crumple zone, or room for movement should the extreme end of the lens cover  60  come into contact with a hard surface or material. The additional room provides additional shock absorption in the event that the domed cup top  14  bumps or hits something hard. 
     Camera lenses come in a wide variety of sizes, from short and squat close up lenses, to long telephoto lenses that at the extreme can be a couple of feet long. The lens cover  60  can be produced in a variety of sizes to fit on the end of any size camera lens. Most lenses have a fairly standard circumference, which are generally describe by the diameter. There are three fairly standard diameter lenses, 58 mm, 77 mm, and 82 mm, but lens diameters can range from 30 mm up to 88 mm. The lens cover  60  of the preferred embodiment is sized to fit these most common lens sizes, but the lens cover  60  can be made in any size to fit any size camera lens. One advantage of the beveled walls and the flexible material is that it can fit some fairly close lens sizes. For example it is possible for the same lens cover  60  to fit both the 77 mm and the 82 mm lens. As shown in  FIGS. 10   a  &amp;  10   b , and  11   a  &amp;  11   b , the lens cover  60  will merely sit further up on the bigger lens. Because of the bevel of the walls  11  and  21 , the lens cover  60  will be larger than the diameter of the front end  51  of the camera lens  50  but will engage the front of the camera lens  50  as the lens cover  60  moves onto the lens  50 . The camera lens mount, which is well known in the art, is also tapered, and the lens cover  60  can be used to cover the lens mount. Many camera lens barrels  53  are relatively cylindrical so the front end  51  of the lens and the mount end  54  of the lens are approximately the same size. That means that a lens cover  60  that fits the front of the camera lens will also be the appropriate size to cover the lens mount as well. 
     The tether  30  is designed to attach the lens cover  60  to the camera.  FIG. 4  shows the lens cover  60  attached to the camera by means of the tether  30 . In use a photographer will attach the camera end  34  of the tether  30  to the camera, and slip the lens cover  60  over the front end  51  of the camera lens  50 . The beveled walls  11  and  21  will allow the lens cover  60  to fit over the end of the camera lens  50  and then the end of the camera lens will press into the soft inner liner  20 . This will provide protection to the camera lens  50  as the photographer moves around. In most cases the camera is worn over the photographer&#39;s neck so that the camera lens  50  protrudes out from the photographer&#39;s chest. In many cases this means that the camera lens  50  is in a position to impact objects while the photographer is walking or moving. When in place the lens cover  60  provides a great deal of impact protection to the camera and camera lens  50 . And when the photographer wants to take a picture, the lens cover  60  can be slipped off the end of the camera lens  50  and it will be held at the end of the tether  30  and in easy reach for replacement. 
       FIG. 5  shows the lens cover  60  in place to be secured onto the camera lens  50 . Most camera lenses  50  have a relatively uniform diameter lens barrel  53 . This means that the lens cover  60  can fit on either the mount end  54  or the front end  51  of the camera lens  50 . As a result,  FIG. 5  does not distinguish which end of the camera lens  50  that the lens cover  60  is attached to. 
     An alternate version of the invention is shown in  FIGS. 6 ,  7 ,  8  &amp;  9 . In this variation of the invention there is an optical grade clear polycarbonate lens  17  integrated into the domed top  14  of the outer cup  10 . In this embodiment the inner liner  20  does not have a liner top  24 . The clear lens  17  is sufficiently clear to allow sufficient light to enter the camera lens  50  and allow a photographer to take a picture with the lens cover  60  in place. The domed top  14  portion is particularly important in this configuration since the inner liner  20  does not include the liner top  24  to provide padding at the end of the camera lens  50 . If the end of the lens cover  60  comes into contact with a hard object, the domed top  14  will have compression room to provide shock absorption. 
       FIG. 7  is a cross section showing the clear lens  17  inserted into a circular opening  19  in the dome top  14 . The domed top  14  is circular, and the circular opening  19  is centered within the domed top  14 . The cross section of  FIG. 7  shows one variation of this alternate embodiment. In this embodiment the clear lens  17  is molded into place inside the domed top  14  of the outer cup  10 . It is well known in the art to mold various plastic and polymer components together. The clear lens  17  is a piece of circular optical grade clear polycarbonate placed in the center of the domed top  14 , and molded into place. In a second variation, shown in  FIG. 8 , the domed top  14  has a circular circumferential lip  15  and the clear lens  17  is inserted against the lip  15  and secured in place. The clear lens  17  can also be glued into place within the circumferential lip  15 . In this embodiment the photographer can take pictures through the clear lens  17  when the lens guard  60  is in place on the end of the camera lens  50 . 
     In a variation of this embodiment, shown in  FIG. 9 , the circular opening  19  is sized to accommodate a standard filter lens  70 . Filter lenses  70  are well known in the art and come in standard diameters. In this variation of the invention the circular opening  19  can be the appropriate diameter to allow the standard filter lens to be inserted and held in place. Filter lenses have a threaded portion and screw into the front end  51  of the camera lens  50 . It is possible, and within the conception of the invention, to incorporate a threaded lens mount into the circular opening  19  of the lens cover  60  to allow the lens cover  60  to accommodate a wide variety of filters  70 . 
     The present invention is well adapted to carry out the objectives and attain both the ends and the advantages mentioned, as well as other benefits inherent therein. While the present invention has been depicted, described, and is defined by reference to particular embodiments of the invention, such reference does not imply a limitation to the invention, and no such limitation is to be inferred. The depicted and described embodiments of the invention are exemplary only, and are not exhaustive of the scope of the invention. Consequently, the present invention is intended to be limited only be the spirit and scope of the claims, giving full cognizance to equivalents in all respects.