Abstract:
This disclosure describes a modular bridging structure and a system for using that structure. The bridging structure has a channel configured to receive a portion of an elongate rail, the channel being configured to receive the elongate rail substantially perpendicularly to a longitudinal axis of the modular bridging structure, and a rail fastener securing the received rail within the channel. Additionally, the modular bridging structure has a leg receiver configured to receive an elongate leg section such that the leg section is attached through a bottom side of the modular bridging structure. There is a leg fastener that secures the received leg section to the modular bridging structure such that the securing point of the fastener is adjustable along a plurality of points along each leg section.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/319,682 filed Jun. 30, 2014 and entitled “SYSTEM FOR MOUNTING CAMERA EQUIPMENT,” which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/841,992 entitled “SYSTEM FOR MOUNTING CAMERA EQUIPMENT,” filed Jul. 2, 2013, and assigned to the assignee hereof and hereby expressly incorporated by reference herein. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     The present disclosure relates generally to equipment used in the motion picture industry to support and dynamically mount cameras and accessories for use during production. In particular, but not by way of limitation, the present disclosure relates to systems and apparatuses for mounting camera equipment that allow cameras to slide. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     In film production, it is often desirable to take a camera shot while moving the camera mount laterally, rather than keeping the camera still or simply rotating a camera about an axis. Such shots are generally known as dolly shots, and as specific kind of dolly shot where the camera slides smoothly alongside a moving subject are known as dynamic slider shots. Dolly shots, and particularly dynamic slider shots typically add to the production value of a film. 
     One current way of filming a dynamic slider shot is to use large pieces of mounting equipment that are secured to stationary objects. These known pieces of equipment typically require three or four members of the camera crew (known as “grips”) approximately one to one-and-a-half hours to set up. In addition, the equipment itself usually costs tens of thousands of dollars. The labor, time, and expense involved in setting up a dynamic slider shot are disadvantageous, and often prohibitive, to filmmakers with modest budgets. Additionally, existing slider systems usually come in set lengths of not more than four feet. Yet another problem that exists with currently available dolly shot equipment is that it is difficult to set up and use on non-level surfaces, especially those that exist in natural outdoor landscapes. Therefore, there exists a need for systems, methods, and apparatuses to remedy these deficiencies. 
     SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     Exemplary aspects of the present invention that are shown in the drawings are summarized below. These and other embodiments are more fully described in the Detailed Description section. It is to be understood, however, that there is no intention to limit the invention to the forms described in this Summary of the Invention or in the Detailed Description. One skilled in the art can recognize that there are numerous modifications, equivalents and alternative constructions that fall within the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the claims. 
     Some aspects of the disclosure may be characterized as a modular bridging structure. A modular bridging structure can include a first end, a second end, a top side and a bottom side. The modular bridging structure can include a channel configured to receive a portion of an elongate rail. The channel can be configured to receive the elongate rail substantially perpendicularly to a longitudinal axis of the modular bridging structure. The modular bridging structure can also include a rail fastener that secures the received rail within the channel. The modular bridging can also include a leg receiver configured to receive an elongate leg section such that the leg section is attached through a bottom side of the modular bridging structure, and a leg fastener securing the received leg section to the modular bridging structure such that the securing point of the fastener is adjustable along a plurality of points along each leg section. 
     Other aspects of the disclosure can be characterized as a system for mounting a camera. The system can include at least two modular bridging structures, wherein each modular bridging structure comprises channels for receiving rails and leg receivers for receiving legs. The system can also include at least two rails attached to the bridging structures. Additionally, the system can include at least two legs attached to each of the at least two bridging structures, wherein each of the legs is independently adjustable in height from the others. The system can also include a camera-mounting wheeled tray configured to roll along the rails, and a camera. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a top perspective view of an embodiment of the system, including modular bridging structures, rails, and a camera-mounting wheeled tray. 
         FIG. 2  is a top view of the camera-mounting wheeled tray. 
         FIG. 3  is a bottom view of the camera-mounting wheeled tray. 
         FIG. 4  is a bottom perspective view of the camera-mounting wheeled tray, showing tray safeties engaged in particular directions. 
         FIG. 5  is a bottom perspective view of the camera-mounting wheeled tray, showing tray safeties engaged in a different directions than in  FIG. 4 . 
         FIG. 6  is a side perspective view of two modular bridging structures connected to two rails and four adjustable legs. 
         FIG. 7  is a side perspective view of the system in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 8  is a side view of the camera-mounting wheeled tray mounted on the rails. 
         FIG. 9  is a side perspective view of  FIG. 8 , showing particularly a friction brake apparatus on the tray. 
         FIG. 10  is a front view of the modular bridging structure. 
         FIG. 11  is a front perspective view of  FIG. 10 . 
         FIG. 12  is a bottom view of  FIG. 10 . 
         FIG. 13  is a side perspective view of three modular bridging structures connected to two rails on one side of each support structure. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any embodiment described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments. 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , shown is a dynamic slider shot system  10 . The system  10  shown is comprised of a camera-mounting wheeled tray  11  (referred to herein as “tray”) with wheels  12 , rails  25 , legs  35 , and two modular bridging structures  40 . The modular bridging structures  40  act as a rigid bar between the rails, and also serve to connect the rails  25  and legs  35  in a bridge-like configuration. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 2, 3, and 4 , shown is the tray  11  with wheels  12 . The tray  11  has a substantially flat planar surface, and a top side  16  and bottom side  17 . In the embodiment shown, there are four wheels  12 , two of which are located at a first end  13  and two of which are located at a second end  14  of the tray  11 . However, different embodiments may have fewer or more than four wheels, and they may be located in places other than the ends of the tray. The wheels  12  are attached to axes  18 , and the axes are substantially parallel to the flat planar surface of the tray  11 . The wheels  12  rotate around the respective axes  18  to which they are attached, and rotate at substantially a right angle in relationship to the flat planar surface of the tray  11 . 
       FIGS. 3 and 4  show guide wheels  15  attached to the bottom side  17  of the tray  11 . The guide wheels  15  are attached to axes  19 . The axes  19  are substantially perpendicular to the flat planar surface of the tray  11 . The guide wheels  15  rotate in a substantially parallel orientation in relation to the flat planar surface of the tray  11 . In the embodiment shown, there are four guide wheels  15  on the tray  11 , but in other embodiments there may be fewer or more guide wheels  15 . 
       FIGS. 2 and 3  show a threaded bolt  20  which is used for securing a friction brake, which will be described presently. The tray  11  has a circular opening  30  located substantially in the middle of the tray  11 . This opening  30  can be a film industry standard opening with a four-inch diameter known as a Mitchell mount, and can be used for mounting a camera. Surrounding the opening is a circumferential flange  24 , which contains a plurality of through holes  23  that are used for mounting various ball heads, which are common attachment points for various cameras. The plurality of through holes  23  allow for the attachment of cameras ranging from large professional studio versions to small personal versions. The circumferential flange  24  may be configured in various ways to support various kinds of cameras available in the industry, and may include features such as ridges, different geometric shapes, and radially extending channels, for example. The tray  11  also has a plurality of through holes  21  on the surface that are used for camera accessories and mounting options. 
     Referring specifically to  FIGS. 4 and 5 , tray safeties  26  are located on the bottom of the. The embodiment depicted shows two tray safeties  26 , but other embodiments may have more or fewer. The tray safeties  26  have vertical sections  28  which are substantially perpendicular to the flat planar surface of the tray  11 , and horizontal sections  27 , which are substantially parallel to the flat planar surface of the tray  11 . The vertical sections  28  can rotate at their points of attachment to the tray. Alternatively, the horizontal sections  27  can rotate at their points of attachment to the vertical sections  27 . The horizontal sections  27  are disposed at a distance from the flat planar surface of the tray that allows a rail section to be received, with very little additional clearance, between the flat planar surface and the horizontal section  27 . When horizontal section  27  is rotated over a rail section, it prevents the tray  11  from being lifted off of the rails by an unbalanced weight that would otherwise make the tray  11  topple over. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 6 , shown is a system in which two modular bridging structures  40  are joined together with rail sections  42  and leveling legs  44 . Each modular bridging structure  40  has a plurality of rail channels that are configured to receive rail sections  42 . In the embodiment shown, each modular bridging structure  40  has two rail channels  43 . In one embodiment, the rail channels  43  are sized to snugly fit commonly found structures that can be used as the rail sections  42 . Rail sections  42  can be made of any suitable, substantially rigid material that fits within the rail channels  43 . Examples are PVC pipe or cylindrical aluminum fencing rails found at hardware stores. Rail sections  42  can be any length the user desires, limited only by the structural support necessary for the weight of the equipment. Long rail sections that are required to support standard camera equipment should be strong and rigid enough that they do not bend substantially under the weight of the camera and tray. Commonly found PVC pipe and aluminum fencing pipes would ideally fit within the rail channels  43 , although a variety of rail channel sizes and rail section sizes are contemplated. A rail channel  43  that is sized to fit commonly found sizes of pipes would allow a filmmaker to travel to a film set with just the modular bridging structure  40  and the tray  11  and buy inexpensive, common materials for the rails and legs at hardware stores near the location. 
     Each rail channel  43  has at least one hole through the side of the channel that allows a rail fastener  45  to engage with the rail section  42  and tighten it within the rail channel  43 . Each modular bridging structure  40  also has leg holes at each end to receive legs  44 . There are three different types of leg holes on each modular bridging structure  40  in the embodiment depicted. Referring briefly to  FIG. 10 , there are bottom leveling leg holes  55 , top leveling leg holes  56 , and standard leg holes  57 . Bottom leveling leg holes  55  and top leveling leg holes  56  comprise the ends of a leg receiver  49  that receives leveling legs  44 . They are called “leveling” legs because they can be adjusted such that the modular bridging structure  40 , rail sections  42 , and tray  11  can stay level in relation to a set plane even if the terrain beneath the length of the rails is uneven. The leg receiver  49  allows the leveling legs to pass through the top of the modular bridging structure  40  in case a particular leveling leg  44  needs to be shortened. Leveling legs  44  can be made of any suitable, substantially rigid material. Examples are PVC pipe or cylindrical aluminum fencing rails commonly found at hardware stores. Such materials come in standard sizes and would ideally be sized to fit snugly within the bottom and top leveling holes  55  and  56 , although leveling legs of different sizes are contemplated. Adjustment knobs  52  are provided to secure the leveling legs  44  within the leg receiver  49 . Adjustment knobs  52  in this embodiment are two large thumb screws which may be tightened manually. Adjustment knobs  52  may be loosened such that the end of the screw disengages completely with the leveling leg  44 , or tightened such that the end of the screw engages with the leveling leg  44  such that the leg cannot move within the leg receiver. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 7 , shown is the tray  11  with wheels  12  and  15  mounted in an operable position on the rail sections  42 , between two modular bridging structures  40 . The tray safeties  26  are positioned such that the horizontal sections  27  hover over the rail sections  42 , which would effectively prevent the tray  11  from tipping over if it were bearing an unbalanced load. However, since the horizontal sections  27  do not touch the rail, they simultaneously allow the tray  11  to roll unimpeded along the rail sections  42  between the modular bridging structures  40 . 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 8 and 9 , shown is the tray  11  mounted as in  FIG. 7 , with a view of the friction brake  20 . In this embodiment depicted, the friction brake  20  is comprised of an L-bracket  80  which is fixedly mounted on the tray  11 . A threaded bolt  81  is attached to the L-bracket  80 . In some embodiments, the end of the threaded bolt  81  can be smooth or beveled, such that when the threaded bolt  81  is fully tightened, the pressure it puts on the rail section  42  is sufficient to prevent the tray  11  from sliding at all. When the threaded bolt  81  is not fully tightened, it does not create any contact with the rail section  42 , and the tray  11  can slide freely. Alternatively, in other embodiments, there can be a brake pad (not shown) attached to the end of the threaded bolt  81  that sits between the bracket  80  and the rail section  42 . This brake pad can be made of, for example, polyurethane, but other suitable braking materials can be used. The threaded bolt  81  can be manually adjusted to create pressure between the brake pad and the rail section  42 . Sometimes, users will construct the dynamic slider shot rail system so that one end is higher than the other, creating an incline. The user may want to allow the tray and mounted camera to move down the rails using gravity rather than manually pushing or pulling the tray and camera. This allows the equipment to accelerate uniformly. The friction brake  20  can be to adjust the fall rate, or speed, of the tray and camera down the rail system. The threaded bolt  81  that is configured with a brake pad can also be tightened enough so the tray  11  is secured in a stationary position. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 10 , shown is the modular bridging structure  40  with a bubble level  160 . The bubble level  160  can be used to visually confirm whether the modular bridging structure  40  is level in relation to at least one plane. Also shown are the standard leg holes  57  allow the modular bridging structure  40  to be used with legs and stands that are currently available in the industry. In the embodiment depicted, the standard leg holes  57  allow legs to be inserted until the top of the leg abuts the structure underneath the rail channel  43 . A user may want to use standard leg holes  57  with commercially-available legs on a surface that is level. A user may also want to use the standard leg holes  57  on an industry standard vehicle-mounted camera platform. Examples of vehicle mounted platforms are those commonly known as “lunch trays” mounted on the sides of cars (the cars being commonly known as “picture vehicles”), or those platforms mounted on top of a truck, (the trucks commonly known as “shot makers”). Because the modular bridging structure  40  has both standard leg holes and leg receivers  49 , a user can use the same modular bridging structure  40  for level dolly shots, inclined dolly shots, vehicle-mounted shots, and many other kinds of shots. This functionality can reduce the amount of equipment the user needs over the course of a variety of film projects. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 11 , this embodiment of the modular bridging structure depicts a total of four outer leg holes  110 ,  111 ,  112 , and  113 . Leg holes  110  and  111  are positioned to receive a leg section (not shown). In this embodiment, the top leg hole  110  is offset from the bottom leg hole  111 , with the top leg hole  110  being disposed closer to the center of the modular bridging structure  40  than the bottom leg hole  111 . It is contemplated that these leg holes could be aligned vertically, with no offset, or at a greater angle than shown in this embodiment, or that the leg angle created by the offset of the holes could be adjustable. The presently depicted embodiment allows for stability of the rail system when long legs are used. When a user wants to position the slider shot several feet off the ground, the angle of the legs is desirable to create a wider base of support the higher the modular bridging structure  40  is connected. In the embodiment depicted, leg holes  112  and  113  are situated in relation to each other in a similar manner as leg holes  110  and  111 . 
     Referring now to  FIG. 12 , a bottom view of the embodiment in  FIG. 11  is shown. Leg holes  110  and  111  from  FIG. 11  comprise the ends of one leg receiver  115 . Similarly, leg holes  112  and  113  comprise the ends of another leg receiver  116 . A longitudinal axis runs through the midline of the modular bridging structure  40  from the first end  120  to the second end  130 , through a center through hole  125 . Leg receivers  115  and  116  are offset on opposing sides of this longitudinal axis. This offset configuration prevents long leg sections from hitting each other high above the modular bridging section  40 . A user may desire particularly long leg sections in order to take slider shots many feet off the ground, as mentioned earlier. If the user wants to take shots lower to the ground, the user may use the same long leg sections, but position the modular bridging structure  40  lower, without having the top ends of the leg sections hit each other. 
       FIG. 13  shows two rail sections  42  received by three modular bridging structures  40  on one side. A small gap  150  exists between the two rail sections  42  in the middle of the rail channel  43 , showing that one rail channel  43  can receive two ends of two rail sections  42 . Users may use as many modular bridging structures as they desire in order to create slider tracks of varying lengths. Users will not be limited to standard lengths of existing commercially-available slider tracks, which are often limited to two, three, four, or feet in length. 
     The center through hole  125  can be used to attach the modular bridging structure  40  to various industry standard stands, some of which are known as JR and combo stands. Side through holes  135  can be used to mount other industry standard stands such as tripods or mono pods. In the present embodiment, there are two side through holes  135 , but additional industry standard through holes are contemplated in other embodiments. Such standard mounting holes allow the modular bridging structure  40  to be used in various combinations with adjustable legs sections, JR stands, combo stands, mono pods, and tripods, which in turn allows users to maximize the equipment they already have. For example, if a user had a plurality of modular bridging structures  40 , and a fixed amount of rail and leg sections, but decided on the set to extend the rails a bit longer, he or she could use the leg sections to create an extra length of rail, and substitute an industry standard tripod for the legs under one of the modular bridging structures. 
     The previous description of the disclosed embodiments is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the present invention. Various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Thus, the present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.