Patent GB-918075-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to photographic cameras
IPC: G03B17/42
Filed: 1959-10-09
Abstract: 918,075. Photographic cameras. GAUTHIER G.m.b.H., ALFRED. Oct. 9, 1959 [Dec. 24, 1958], No. 34218/59. Class 98 (1). A photographic camera has setting members for lens aperture, exposure time and focusing distance, and a driving mechanism is provided adapted to be switched on and off manually, for adjusting at least one of these members. In the camera shown in Fig. 1 the lens focusing ring 3 has teeth which engage a reduction gear 13 through which ring 3 is rotated in either direction by an electric motor 12 controlled by a switch 17. As the ring 3 rotates a cam 6 mounted on it rotates a movable mirror 8 of a range finder comprising mirrors 10, 8. A friction clutch 14 is inserted in the gearing 13 so that the ring 3 may be adjusted manually without interference from the motor 12. In the camera shown in Fig. 6, either a lens aperture setting ring 29 or a focusing ring 3 may be rotated by an electric motor 12(M) as required, the motor being connected by geartrains to either of the rings. The camera is designed so that rotation of either ring 29 or an exposure time-setting ring 24 causes a rod 33 to move which in turn acts through parts 35, 37, 39, 42, 43 and causes a pointer 31 to move relative to an exposure meter pointer 32, thereby enabling the ring 24 or 29 to be set correctly. Motor 12 is connected through gearwheels 58, 59 and rod 57 to a gear-wheel 60. The rod 57 is mounted on rods 53, 54 which are rotatable about pivots 55, 56 so that wheel 60 may be brought into engagement with a gearwheel 51, or gear 58 brought into engagement with wheel 47 (not shown) as well as with wheel 59. The gear-wheel 51 meshes with another wheel 52 which is connected through a friction clutch 116 to a gear 65 which meshes with teeth 65 on the setting ring 29. Gear-wheel 47 is similarly connected to teeth on the setting ring 3. Two two-way switches 59, 70 are provided to control the motor when it drives setting rings 29, 3, respectively. The rods 53, 54 are normally set so that gear 60 meshes gear 51 and setting ring 29 is connected to the motor which is operated by switch 69. However, when switch 70 is operated it causes a rod 73 to move longitudinally which acts through a rotatable lever 74 to move a rod 66 in a direction out of the paper (Fig. 6) the rod 66 being connected to the rod 54 and thus causes rods 53, 54 to move until gear-wheels 60, 61 are disconnected, and gearwheels 47, 58 are connected so that switch 70 can control, through the motor, the setting ring 3. This arrangement ensures that both setting rings cannot be operated at once. Alternatively, an electric locking device for the switches may be used. In the embodiment shown in Fig. 10 a spring motor is used for rotating, through a gear train, a focusing ring. The shutter is cocked by rotating a disc 78 in the direction shown and a pin 81 thereon rotates a lever 79 pivoted at 80 so that it rotates a segment 84 and tensions a spring 87. When pin 81 moves out of the path of arm 79a of lever 79 segment 88 is locked in place by a pinion 112a which is connected through gearing to said segment. A gear-wheel 102 connected indirectly to a setting ring as described above is mounted on a rod 94 which is pivoted at 95. By rotating the rod, wheel 102 is brought into engagement with gear-wheel 90 or gear-wheel 88 and this determines the direction of rotation of wheel 102, when the locking pinion 112a is moved from teeth 110. As rod 94 is rotated it acts on cam 114d or on cam 114e mounted on a lever 114 to rotate the lever anticlockwise and hence cause lever 112 to rotate about pivot 111 and move 112a away from teeth 110 so that the spring motor can operate. Specification 867,998 is referred to.