Abstract:
There is disclosed a snug, form fitting skin for a camera to protect against trauma like dust, dirt, scratches and water. There is additionally disclosed a rigid housing for such skin-encased camera.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     This invention relates to cameras for underwater use.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     This invention addresses some of the problems with diving with conventional digital cameras. Such problems relate to water and pressure.  
         [0003]     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0004]     There is provided a waterproof camera combination, comprising: (a) a camera with a plurality of function members, a viewing screen and a front lens; and (b) a synthetic skin that encases said camera by snugly fitting around said camera to provide a water-tight enclosure thereof and is of a thickness and elasticity to allow said functions buttons to be operated by a user pressing the corresponding portion of said skin. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0005]     All Figures herein are drawn for ease of explanation of the basic teachings of the present invention only; the extensions of the Figures with respect to number, position, relationship, and dimensions of the parts to form the preferred embodiment are explained or are within the skill of the art after the following teachings of the present invention have been read and understood. Further, the exact dimensions and dimensional proportions to conform to specific pressure, force, weight, strength, and similar requirements will likewise be within the skill of the art after the following teachings of the present invention have been read and understood. A better understanding of the present invention can be obtained when the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment is considered in conjunction with the following Figures, in which:  
         [0006]      FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of a digital camera and a skin therefor according to this invention.  
         [0007]      FIG. 2  is a back perspective view of the skin of  FIG. 1 .  
         [0008]      FIG. 3  is a back perspective view of the skin with the back plate removed.  
         [0009]      FIG. 4  is a back perspective view with a camera to be inserted into the skin.  
         [0010]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the camera partially inserted into the skin.  
         [0011]      FIG. 6  is another perspective view of the camera partially inserted into the skin.  
         [0012]      FIG. 7  is a back perspective view of the skin-encased camera about to be inserted into its housing.  
         [0013]      FIG. 8  is a back perspective view of the skin-encased camera inserted into the front portion of its housing.  
         [0014]      FIG. 9  is three views of a spacer and dial actuator fitted within the skin.  
         [0015]      FIG. 10  is three views of a spacer and slide actuator fitted within the skin. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
     Notice Regarding Copyrighted Material  
       [0016]     A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.  
         [0017]     As seen in  FIGS. 1 and 4 - 6 , camera  50  is of a conventional digital type with a viewing window  51  (e.g. a LCD screen) for the user, front lens  52 , and a plurality of camera function members generally identified as  53  and flash unit  54  (e.g. flash and red-eye reduction LED). Camera function members  53  include buttons to depress (e.g. shutter button, power button, four-way toggle) and members to rotate or slide (e.g. dial switch, jog dial, slider).  
         [0018]     As seen in  FIGS. 1-8 , skin  100  is molded to provide a snug, form-fitting, “second skin” for encasing digital camera  50 . Skin  100  is made of a synthetic, water-proof material (e.g. silicon rubber) and provides to camera  50  waterproofing and protection against sand, dirt, scratches. Skin  100  also provides to camera  50  (by itself or within housing  200 , explained below) absorptive cushioning against minor impacts. Camera  50  fitted with skin  100  (as shown in  FIGS. 7-8 ) is considered to be “skin-encased” and will be termed herein as an “encased camera”.  
         [0019]     All the contours of camera  50  (e.g. finger grips, front lens  52 , plurality of function members  53 ) are accommodated by skin  100  in a snug fit. Skin  100  is slightly thicker in some places (e.g. contour  104 , explained below) and is sufficiently thin elsewhere to permit easy manipulation by the user of all key camera function members  53  by pressing the corresponding portion of skin  100  (and also by manipulation of, for example, spring-loaded buttons in another embodiment of this invention, as described below). Most clearly shown in  FIGS. 2-3 , portions of skin  100  may be raised slightly to accommodate camera function members which protrude slightly from camera  50 .  
         [0020]     Skin  100  has semi-rigid or rigid lens port  101  with tempered glass, to accommodate front lens  52  of camera  50  when encased.  
         [0021]     Skin  100  has a clear (e.g. acrylic) plate  102  that is positioned so as to provide the user a clear view of camera viewing window  51  when camera  50  is encased. Skin  100  has a hole  103  defined by a double-lipped, grooved contour  104  (best seen in  FIG. 3 ) that insertably (and also removably) accepts and holds plate  102  into a water-tight friction fit, as seen in  FIG. 2 . Plate  102  and associated contoured hole  103  are dimensioned at least to permit the user a complete view of camera viewing window  51 . Furthermore, plate  102  (and associated hole  103 ) should be of a size sufficient to permit camera  50  to be inserted therethrough completely so that camera  50  can be snugly fitted completely by skin  100  as a “second skin”, much like a diver dons a wetsuit, as seen in  FIGS. 4-6 ). The “second skin”  100  can be removed (i.e. camera  50  is “un-encased”) by the reverse process, i.e. removing plate  102  from contoured hole  103 , and then removing camera  50  through hole  103 .  
         [0022]     Skin  100  is made conventionally (by injection or compression molding) from conventional materials such as silicon rubber or other synthetic material of like properties. The average thickness of skin  100  is about 0.5 millimeters but as mentioned above, is thicker in some places and thinner in other places. Skin  100  must be flexible enough to permit (through pulling and stretching, as shown in  FIGS. 5-6 ), the insertion of camera  50  into skin  100  through hole  103  and subsequent manual manipulation of camera  50  relative to skin  100  to conclude with the snugly fitting “second skin”, as described above.  
         [0023]     Skin  100  may be transparent, translucent or coloured as desired (conventionally through the application of pigments in the skin molding process), with two advantageous exceptions. First, as seen in  FIG. 1 , skin  100  has a clear portion  105  for a flash from camera flash unit  54 . Secondly, skin  100  is darkened around lens port  101  (as seen in  FIG. 1 , and not in other drawings for simplicity of presentation therein) to block the light that would otherwise travel from flash unit  54  through skin  100  and adversely affect the intake of light through camera lens  52 .  
         [0024]     Encased camera  50  is usable with aforementioned protections (against sand, dirt, scratching, moisture and like traumas) in a wide range of environments (e.g. in rough terrain or shallow water). For diving to greater depths with encased camera  50 , there is provided rugged housing  200 , as seen in  FIGS. 7 and 8 . Housing is made of two half shells or portions  201  (front) and  202  (back), hinged on one side and clampable tightly by conventional buckle-type clamping fasteners at the other side. Each half portion  201  and  202  can be formed as a molded product of synthetic resin (e.g. polycarbonate) or other synthetic material that is impermeable to water and resistant to pressure. Conventional O-ring or other sealing mechanisms are provided with half portions  201  and  202  so as to define a water-free space for encased camera  50  when half portions  201  and  202  are clamped closed.  
         [0025]     Portion  201  has lens port  204  to accommodate lens port  101  of encased camera  50 . Lens port  204  has an interior (of housing  200 ), inwardly and slightly opening cylindrical, semi-rigid plastic cowl or hood  203 , as seen in  FIG. 7 . Hood  203  gently guides and accepts lens port  101  of encased camera  50  when front and back portions  201  and  202  are clamped closed. Hood  203  is dark to block light from camera flash unit  54  traveling through/along portion  201  of housing  200  if housing  200  is translucent or transparent, again to prevent adverse effects of such light on the proper intake of light into camera front lens  52 . Hood  203  also assists in the moisture-sealing about lens port  101  when encased camera  50  is within clamped housing  200 , by providing a plastic, sealing cushion for lens port  101  to abut against.  
         [0026]     Portion  202  has an internal rectangular plastic ring or presser  205  positioned so that when encased camera  50  is placed within housing  200  and back portion  202  is clamped to front portion  201 , presser  205  presses the perimeter of grooved contour  104  for urging a water-tight fit of plate  102  relative to hole  103 .  
         [0027]     As seen in  FIGS. 7 and 8 , webbing  206  and other infrastructures within housing  200  snugly receive, align and hold properly encased camera  50  relative to hood  203  and lens port  204 , and relative to camera function actuators  207  (explained below).  
         [0028]     The exterior of housing  200  has heavy-duty corner bumpers, finger/hand gripping surfaces for the ease of the diver, and other conventional members (not shown for simplicity of presentation in the drawings).  
         [0029]     Camera function members  53  which are a depressible button have a corresponding actuator button  207  fitted on housing  200 , conventionally spring-loaded and sealed against water intrusion, and perhaps ergonomically advantageous (e.g. oversized) for use by a diver underwater.  
         [0030]     Camera function members  53  which are rotatable (e.g. dial) are rotated by the diver with following actuator. As seen in  FIG. 9  (but not shown in the other drawings of skin  100  for simplicity of presentation), spacer  500  is lodged within skin  100 , and rotatably houses a combination of external turning wheel  501  attached to internal cap  502  that friction fits against a dial button (not shown) of encased camera  50 . Wheel and cap combination  501  and  502  are made of metal, stiff rubber or similar sufficiently rigid material.  
         [0031]     Camera function members  53  which are slidable, are slided by the diver with following actuator. As seen in  FIG. 10  (but not shown in the other drawings of skin  100  for simplicity of presentation), spacer  550  is lodged at the corner of the top and side portions of skin  100  proximate a slide dial  531  of camera  50 . Spacer  550  rotatably supports an external turning wheel  551  which turns a friction wheel  552  that abuts slide dial of  531  and laterally moves slide dial  531  in a pinion style interaction when wheel  551  is turned by the user.  
         [0032]     Spacers  500  and  550  are “insert molded” into skin  100  as it itself is being molded. Spacers  500  and  550  can be made of metal or non-metallic material (such as thermoset plastic) as long as that material retains its shape (e.g. does not melt) in the temperature range that the silicon rubber is being molded. To make skin  100 . The support provided by spacers  500  and  550  includes O-rings and other conventional mechanisms to resist water leakage.  
         [0033]     Herein above, reference has been made to a “digital camera”, and a typical camera in terms of “form factor” representation has been illustrated in the Figures. This invention (and in particular, the skin and the housing thereof), are customizable to a wide range of cameras. Nothing herein is meant to limit this invention to a digital camera for still shots. For example, video cameras (or those having both still picture and video functionality) are within the teachings and spirit of this invention. Furthermore, skin  50  can be adapted for a wide range of cameras where the camera function members are operated by a depression, rotation or sliding movement. There might be some limitations for a camera where a very substantial projection must be accommodated (e.g. flash unit that pops up substantially or a lever switch that swings out substantially from the camera). But in these cases, skin  100  can be adapted to have a rigid or semi-rigid structure to accommodate the projection (e.g. along the lines of skin lens port  204  for lens port  101  of camera front lens  52 ).  
         [0034]     One example of aforementioned adaptation is for cameras equipped with a zoom version of front lens  51 . Skin  100  lens port  204  can be adapted by equipping it with a silicon skin bellows to surround the projected front lens  51  (not shown for simplicity of illustration) and which expands from an initial rest position and contracts, in response to the projection or retraction of the zoom lens.  
         [0035]     Plate  102  made be of glass or transparent plastic but also may be made conventionally to provide a small magnification for the ease of the diver relative to camera viewing window  51 .  
         [0036]     Without skin  100 , a camera within a housing like housing  200 , would suffer from condensation and consequent damage to the electronics of the camera. Skin  100  provides protection against moisture condensation within housing  200 .  
         [0037]     Where used in the various figures of the drawings, the same numerals designate the same or similar parts. Furthermore, when the terms “top”, “bottom”, “first”, “second”, “inside”, “outside”, “edge”, “side”, “front”, “back”, “length”, “width”, “inner”, “outer”, and similar terms are used herein, it should be understood that these terms have reference only to the structure shown in the drawings as it would appear to a person viewing the drawings and are utilized only to facilitate describing the invention.  
         [0038]     Although the method and apparatus of the present invention has been described in connection with the preferred embodiment, it is not intended to be limited to the specific form set forth herein, but on the contrary, it is intended to cover such alternatives, modifications, and equivalents, as can be reasonably included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.