Patent Publication Number: US-7710497-B2

Title: Visual presenter

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from the prior Japanese Patent Application No. 2006-155938, filed on Jun. 5, 2006, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the invention 
   The present invention relates to a visual presenter in which a pickup image of document placed on a stage of a base thereof is displayed on a monitor, a screen or the like. 
   2. Description of related art 
   Conventional visual presenters comprise a base having a stage on which document to be presented is placed and an image pickup camera mounted on a distal end of a camera support arm which is pivotally mounted the base. The camera support arm is caused to pivot so as to be moved from a storage location where the camera support arm lies to a setup location where the camera support arm stands up. The conventional visual presenters include a type in which a spring force is caused to act as an assisting force in order that a force applied to the camera support arm may be reduced when the camera support arm is caused to stand up. JP-A-H05-236203 discloses one of aforesaid type visual presenter, for example. Furthermore, another type of visual presenter is provided with a free stop function that can retain the cameral support arm at any location. JP-A-H07-288721 discloses one of this type visual presenter, for example. 
   However, the camera support arm cannot be retained at any location in the case of the type that the spring force acts as the assisting force. On the other hand, the type with the free stop function necessitates a large force to cause the camera support arm to pivot. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a visual presenter which can reduce a force applied when the camera support arm is moved from the storage location where the camera support arm lies to the setup location where the camera support arm stands up and which is provided with the free stop function effected when the camera support arm is caused to lie. 
   The present invention provides a visual presenter comprising an image pickup camera, a base having an upper surface on which a stage is formed, a camera support arm pivotally mounted on the base and having a distal end on which the image pickup camera is mounted, a pivot support including a support arm retaining bracket, a pivot having one end extending from the bracket and formed with a male thread, a disc spring fitted with the male thread and a nut brought into threading engagement with the male thread so that the disc spring is fastened to the bracket by the nut with a result that a predetermined brake force is effected and a free stop function is given to the pivot support, and a one-way clutch fitted with the pivot to allow the pivot support to be free against rotation causing the pivot support to stand up and to exert a clutching function against rotation causing the pivot support to lie, the camera support arm being pivotally mounted on the pivot support with the one-way clutch being interposed therebetween. 
   According to the above-described construction, the disc spring fitted with the pivot end is fastened by the nut so that the brake force is effected and the free stop function is given to the pivot support. The one-way clutch is fitted with the pivot to allow the pivot support to be free against rotation causing the pivot support to stand up and to exert a clutching function against rotation causing the pivot support to lie. The camera support arm is pivotally mounted on the pivot support with the one-way clutch being interposed therebetween. Consequently, an applied force can be reduced when the camera support arm is moved from a storage location where the camera support arm lies to the setup location where the camera support arm stands up. The camera support arm can be retained at any location by the free stop function when caused to lie. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become clear upon understanding of the description of embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a visual presenter in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, showing a set-up state; 
       FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the visual presenter in a storage state; 
       FIG. 3  is a partially eliminated exploded perspective view of a camera support arm; 
       FIG. 4  is a side view of the visual presenter, showing a slide support arm pushed out; 
       FIG. 5  is a side view of the visual presenter, showing the slide support arm brought in; 
       FIG. 6  is a partially eliminated exploded perspective view of an illumination lamp support arm; 
       FIG. 7  is a side view of the visual presenter, showing a set-up state of the visual presenter; 
       FIG. 8  is a side view of the image pickup camera and an illumination lamp chamber in the set-up state; 
       FIG. 9  is a plan view of a locking mechanism; and 
       FIG. 10  is a perspective view of an operation dial. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   One embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Referring to  FIG. 1 , a visual presenter of the embodiment is shown. The visual presenter  1  comprises a base  2 , an image pickup camera  3 , a camera support arm  4 , an illumination lamp  5  and a lamp support arm  6 . The base  2  has a rectangular shape and includes an upper surface formed with a stage  11  on which a document to be presented is placed. A pivot support  12  is mounted on a rear left corner of the base  2  to cause a camera support arm  4  to pivot to a storage location where the camera support arm  4  lies and a setup location where the camera support arm  4  stands up. The base  2  further includes an operation panel  13  located diagonally opposite to the pivot support  12  and projecting frontward. On an upper surface of the operation panel  13  are provided a zooming dial  14  incorporated with an auto-focus button various operation buttons and a liquid crystal panel  16 . 
   Referring now to  FIG. 3 , the pivot support  12  includes a support arm retaining bracket  18  fixed to the base  2 , a central pivot part  20  fitted into the bracket and a pivot end  24  protruding from the bracket. A disc spring  26  and a washer  27  are fitted with the pivot end  24 . A stuffing nut  28  is brought into threading engagement with a male screw  25  provided on an outer circumference of the pivot end  24  so that the central pivot part  20  is fastened to the bracket  18 . The central pivot part  20  has the other end in which a support arm pivot  23  incorporated with a one-way clutch  22  is fitted. Furthermore, a central pivot  19  is fitted in the center of the pivot part  20 . The central pivot  19  has an end held on the bracket  18  by a pivot holder  17 . In the aforesaid pivot support  12 , the nut  28  is tightened such that the disc spring  26  is flexed, whereupon a washer  27  and a flange  21  of the central pivot part  20  are fastened to the bracket  18 . As a result, a predetermined brake force acts between the washer  27  and the bracket  18  and between the flange  21  of the central pivot part  20  and the bracket  18 . In this state, the central pivot part  20  is pivotable relative to the bracket  18 . 
   The camera support arm  4  comprises a pivot support arm  31  and a slide support arm  33  as shown in  FIG. 4 . The pivot support arm  31  comprises support arm covers  32   a  and  32   b  and is fastened to the support arm pivot  23 . The slide support arm  33  comprises support arm covers  34   a  and  34   b  and is slidably inserted through a distal opening  31   a  into the pivot support arm  31 . Furthermore, a sliding mechanism  35  sliding the slide support arm  33  is incorporated in the pivot support arm  31 . The sliding mechanism  35  comprises a belt transmission  36 , a gear rack part  46  and a slider  49 . 
   The belt transmission  36  comprises a larger-diameter gear  37 , smaller-diameter gear  38  and a toothed belt  39  extending between these gears  37  and  38  as shown in  FIGS. 4 and 5 . The larger-diameter gear  37  is rotatably fitted into a gear shaft support arm  40  which is inserted through the central pivot  19  further extending through the pivot support arm  31 . The gear shaft support arm  40  has a flange  41  formed integrally thereon. The smaller-diameter  38  is rotatably mounted on a gear shaft  42  mounted on the support arm cover  32   a . Through the gear shaft support arm  40  are inserted a washer  43 , a disc washer  44  and a retainer plate  45 . The retainer plate  45  is fastened to the flange  41  of gear shaft support arm  40  such that the disc washer  44  is flexed, whereby a predetermined brake force is exerted on the larger-diameter gear  37 . As a result, the larger-diameter gear  37  and the gear shaft support arm  40  are adapted to be rotated relative to each other. The gear rack part  46  includes a gear  47  coaxially mounted on the smaller-diameter gear  38  which is rotatably inserted into the gear shaft  42 . The gear rack part  46  further includes a rack  48  mounted on the slider  49  which will be described later. 
   A rail holder  50  is fixed to the support arm cover  32   a . A guide rail  51  which guides the slider  49  is mounted on the rail holder  50 . The slider  49  is guided by the guide rail  51  thereby to be slid along the pivot support arm  31 . The slider  49  is coupled via a slider holder  53  to a coupling part  52  formed on a proximal end of the support arm cover  34   a  of the slide support arm  33 . The rack  48  of the gear rack part  46  is mounted on the coupling part  52  so as to be in mesh engagement with the gear  47 . A right-angle bent part  54  is formed integrally on a distal end of the slide support arm  33 . The right-angle bent part  54  has a distal end provided with a horizontal pivot part (not shown) on which a camera support  55  to which the image pickup camera  3  is mounted is further mounted. When the image pickup camera  3  assumes a setup location where it stands up, the camera support  55  faces an upper part of the stage  11  provided on the upper surface of the base  2 , automatically setting up the image pickup camera  3  at a predetermined location. 
   Referring now to  FIG. 6 , the lamp support arm  6  is pivotally mounted on a shaft  56  further mounted on a side of the pivot support arm  31 . The lamp support arm  6  comprises support arm covers  57   a  and  57   b . The shaft  56  is mounted on a shaft support plate  58  fixed to the support arm cover  57   a . Through the shaft  56  are inserted a spacer  59 , a shaft cover  60 , a spacer  61  and a wave washer  62  sequentially in this order. The shaft  56  has an end fastened to a retainer plate  63  fixed to an inner wall of the support arm cover  32   b  of the pivot support arm  31 . As a result, the wave washer  62  is pressed such that a predetermined brake force is effective against pivot of the pivot support arm  31  and the lamp support arm  6  relative to each other. Thus, the lamp support arm  6  can be retained at any angle. This is referred to as “free stop function.” 
   Referring  FIG. 7 , the lamp support arm  6  is abutted against a protrusion  64  provided on the side of the support arm cover  32   b  thereby to be pushed, so that the lamp support arm  6  is caused to pivot in synchronization with the pivot support arm  31 , standing up. The lamp support arm  6  has a distal end formed integrally with a right-angle bent part  65 . An illumination lamp chamber  66  is defined in the right-angle bent part  65 . When the pivot support arm  31  assumes the setup location where the camera support arm  4  stands up, the lamp chamber  66  is adapted to face an upper part of the stage  11  provided on the upper surface of the base  2 , assuming a location slightly lower than the rear side of the image pickup camera  3  set up or the side toward which the camera support arm  4  is caused to pivot thereby to stand up. Accordingly, the lamp chamber  66  has an illuminating window  67  which is inclined so that a front  67   a  is located higher than a rear  67   b  in order that a central part of the stage  11  may be illuminated (see  FIG. 8 ). 
   A locking mechanism  68  for locking the pivot support arm  31  is provided in he base  2  so as be adjacent to the central pivot part  20  of the pivot support arm  31  as shown in  FIG. 9 . The locking mechanism  68  retains the pivot support arm  31  at a storage location when the arm has been caused to pivot thereby to lie. The locking mechanism  68  comprises an operation dial  69 , an actuating member  70 , an engaging member  71  and a lock pin  72 . The operation dial  69  is mounted on a vertical shaft  74  provided on the bracket  73  so as to be caused to pivot a predetermined angle. The operation dial  69  appears on the upper surface of the base  2 . The operation dial  69  has an engagement notch  75  formed in the underside thereof. The actuating member  70  includes an engaging piece  76  engaging the notch  75  so that the actuating member  70  is reciprocated by the pivoting of the operation dial  69 . The actuating member  70  is guided by a guide (not shown) provided on the bracket  73 . The actuating member  70  is formed with an engagement notch  77  which is engaged with a synchronizing piece  78  fixed to the lock pin  72 . 
   The lock pin  72  is supported between shaft support pieces  79   a  and  79   b  provided on the bracket  79  so as to be moved in parallel with the direction in which the actuating member  70  is moved. When the operation dial  69  is caused to pivot, the distal end of the lock pin  72  protruding from the side of base  2  is inserted into a lock hole  80  of the pivot support arm  31  in synchronization with the moving actuating member  70 , thereby bring locked in position. The distal end of the lock pin  72  is adapted to correspond to the lock hole  80  when the pivot support arm  31  assumes the storage location. 
   The above-described pivot support  12 , the pivot holder  17 , the central pivot  19 , the central pivot part  20 , the one-way clutch  22 , the support arm pivot  23  are each hollow. Each of the retainer plates  45  and  63  have respective central through holes so that wiring harness can be inserted through the holes for the purpose of ensuring electrical connection. 
   A control unit (not shown) is provided in the base to execute a predetermined control manner based on operation of various operation buttons  15  and the like on the operation panel  13 . Electrical connection can be ensured by wiring harness between the control unit and a control circuit unit (not shown) of the image pickup camera  3 . The wiring harness is inserted through the hollow pivot support  12 , central pivot  19 , one-way clutch  22  and the like sequentially and arranged in the pivot support arm  31 , the slide support arm  35  and the lamp support arm  6 . Furthermore, various connecting sockets and the like are provided on the rear and sides of the base  2  for connection to a power supply and external equipment. 
   The operation of the visual presenter  1  will now be described. When the visual presenter  1  is in the storage state, both camera and lamp support arms  4  and  6  lie over the left side of the base  2 , as shown in  FIG. 2 . The right-angle bent part  54  and camera support  55  of the camera support arm  4  lie over the front of the base  2 . The image pickup camera  3  mounted on the camera support  55  is located in a space defined by the front of the base  2  and a side of the operation panel  13 . The right-angle bent part  65  in which the lamp chamber  66  is located over a front part of the upper surface of the base  2 . 
   The visual presenter  1  will be transferred from the above-described storage state to the setup state as follows. Firstly, when locked at the storage location by the locking mechanism  68 , the camera support arm  4  is unlocked. In this case, the operation dial  69  is caused to pivot so that the actuating member  70  is moved. The distal end of the lock pin  72  is withdrawn from the lock hole  80  into the base  2  by a synchronizing member (not shown) operable in synchronization with the actuating member  70 . Subsequently, the pivot support arm  31  of the camera support arm  4  is caused to pivot thereby to stand up. The pivot support arm  31  is formed with the protrusion  64  on the side of the support arm cover  32   b . The lamp support arm  6  abuts against and pushes the protrusion  64 , thereby being caused to pivot. 
   The support arm pivot  23  of the pivot support arm  31  is fitted in the one-way clutch  22  further fitted in the central pivot part  20  of the pivot support  12 . The one-way clutch  22  is set so as to be free against rotation which stands up the pivot support arm  31 . Accordingly, the camera support arm  4  can be caused to stand up by a relatively smaller force. On the other hand, the one-way clutch  22  fulfills the clutching function against rotation which causes the pivot support arm  31  to lie. Accordingly, when the pivot support arm  31  is caused to lie, the central pivot part  20  is rotated relative to the bracket  18  against the brake force by the clutching function of the one-way clutch  22 . The camera support arm  4  can be retained at any angle by the free stop function due to frictional resistance at this time. 
   Upon the pivoting of the pivot support arm  21 , the sliding mechanism  35  is actuated to slide the slide support arm  33 . The larger-diameter gear  37  of the belt transmission  36  of the sliding mechanism  35  is rotatably fitted in the gear shaft support  40  which is inserted through the central pivot  19  further extending through the pivot support arm  31 . When the pivot support arms  21  is caused to pivot in the standing direction, the larger-diameter gear  37  and the gear shaft support  40  are caused to pivot in the direction opposed to the pivoting direction of the pivot support arm  21 . The rotation is transmitted by the toothed belt  39  to the smaller-diameter gear  38 , which is rotated in the same direction as the larger-diameter gear  37 . The rack  48  of the gear rack  46  is moved by rotation of the gear  47 . Since the rack  48  is mounted on the slider holder  53  of the slide support arm  33  to which the slider  49  is coupled, the slide support arm  33  is pushed out of the distal opening  31   a  of the pivot support arm  21 , whereupon the image pickup camera  3  is automatically set up at a predetermined location (see  FIG. 4 ). 
   When the pivot support arm  21  is to be caused to lie, the larger-diameter gear  37  and the gear shaft support  40  are caused to pivot in the direction opposed to the pivoting direction of the pivot support arm  21 , whereby the slide support arm  33  is automatically drawn into the pivot support arm  21  (see  FIG. 5 ). When the visual presenter is subjected to an unexpected external force that slides the slide support arm  33 , the larger-diameter gear  37  and the gear shaft support  40  are rotated relative to each other so that the toothed belt  39  is prevented from being overloaded, whereby the toothed belt  39  is prevented from breakage. 
   Furthermore, when the camera support arm  4  stands up, the lamp support arm  6  stands up synchronously. When the pivot support arm  21  assumes the setup location, the lamp chamber  66  is located in the rear of the image pickup camera  3  so as to be slightly lower than the image pickup camera  3 . Since the illuminating window  67  of the lamp chamber  66  is inclined so that the front  67   a  thereof is located higher than the rear  67   b  thereof, the central part of the stage  11  can be illuminated as shown in  FIG. 8 . Additionally, when a presentation is conducted using the visual presenter  1 , the operation panel  13  faces a presenter&#39;s side, the illuminating window  67  is out of sight of audience. Consequently, the audience can be prevented from dazzle. 
   The lamp support arm  6  operable in synchronization with the pivot support arm  21  comprises the shaft  56  which is inserted through the spacer  59 , the shaft cover  60 , the spacer  61  and the wave washer  62 . Since the wave washer  62  is pressed, the predetermined brake force is applied to the lamp support arm  6  when the pivot support arm  31  is caused to pivot relative to the lamp support arm  6 . Thus the lamp support arm  6  has the free stop function. Consequently, the lamp support arm  6  can be located at any location in the rear of the camera support arm  4 . 
   When the pivot support arm assumes the storage location where the camera and lamp support arms  4  and  6  lie, the operation dial  69  is turned so that the lock pin  72  is engaged into the lock hole  80  formed in the pivot support arm  31  to be locked. As a result, the image pickup cameras can be prevented from inadvertent pivoting during transportation of the visual presenters. 
   As obvious from the foregoing description, the disc spring  26  and the washer  27  both fitted with the pivot end  24  are fastened by the nut  25  so that the brake force is effected and the free stop function is given to the pivot support  12 . The one-way clutch  22  is fitted with the pivot  23  to allow the pivot support  12  to be free against rotation causing the pivot support  12  to stand up and to exert a clutching function against rotation causing the pivot support  12  to lie. The camera support arm  4  is pivotally mounted on the pivot support  12  with the one-way clutch  22  being interposed therebetween. Consequently, an applied force can be reduced when the camera support arm  4  is moved from a storage location where the camera support arm  4  lies to the setup location where the camera support arm  4  stands up. The camera support arm  4  can be retained at any location by the free stop function when caused to lie. 
   The foregoing description and drawings are merely illustrative, of the principles of the present invention and are not construed in a limiting sense. Various changes and modifications will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. All such changes and modifications are seen to fall within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.