Source: http://www.patentgenius.com/patent/6470145.html
Timestamp: 2019-01-23 01:58:34
Document Index: 45666979

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 12', 'arts 14', 'arts 14', 'art 12', 'art 12', 'art 12', 'art 16', 'art 16', 'art 12', 'art 14', 'art 16', 'art 18']

One-time-use camera with electronic flash having film identifying indicia - Patent # 6470145 - PatentGenius
One-time-use camera with electronic flash having film identifying indicia
6470145 One-time-use camera with electronic flash having film identifying indicia
Inventor: Matthias, et al.
Application: 09/229,692
Inventors: Churan-King; Maureen E. (Rochester, NY)
Horning; Randy E. (Leroy, NY)
Matthias; William T. (Rochester, NY)
U.S. Class: 362/16; 396/176; 396/6
Field Of Search: 396/6; 396/155; 396/176; 264/132; 283/74; 283/107; 362/14; 362/16; 362/17; 362/18
U.S Patent Documents: D117575; 3718815; 4079673; 4325104; 4412276; 4830892; 4882600; 5285228; 5634152; 5734929; 5761541
Other References: Cover for "Kodak Fun Saver 35" camera, serial Nos. KP 100904, P/N 3B0464, and ST 50.93, Jun. 1995..
Abstract: A one-time-use camera comprising a filmstrip, a concave-shaped flash reflector having a front open end, a flash illumination-producing flash tube inside the flash reflector, and a light-transmitting flash cover-lens over the front open end of the flash reflector, is characterized in that the flash cover-lens has film identifying indicia to identify the filmstrip which are light-transmitting to the same extent as the flash cover-lens in order to transmit flash illumination produced by the flash tube in concert with the flash cover-lens.
1. A one-time-use camera comprising a filmstrip, a concave-shaped flash reflector having a front open end, a flash illumination-producing flash tube inside said flashreflector, and a transparent light-transmitting flash cover-lens over said front open end of the flash reflector, is characterized in that: said flash cover-lens has integral raised transparent portions at least some of which are differently shaped fromthe others to form film identifying indicia to identify said filmstrip and all of which are light-transmitting to the same extent as the flash cover-lens in order to transmit flash illumination produced by said flash tube in concert with the flashcover-lens.
5. A one-time-use camera comprising a filmstrip, a concave-shaped flash reflector having a front open end, a flash illumination-producing flash tube inside said flash reflector, and a light-transmitting flash cover-lens over said front open endof the flash reflector, is characterized in that: said flash cover-lens has film identifying indicia to identify said filmstrip which are integrally-formed raised-portions of said flash cover-lens that project from an inside surface of the flashcover-lens.
6. A one-time-use camera as recited in claim 5, wherein said film-identifying indicia has the same transparency as said flash cover-lens in order to transmit flash illumination produced by said flash tube in concert with said flashcover-lens.
Reference is made to commonly assigned copending application Ser. No. 09,229,216, entitled ONE-TIME-USE CAMERA WITH ELECTRONIC FLASH HAVING FILM IDENTIFYING INDICIA WHICH CANNOT BE REMOVED WITHOUT DESTROYING FLASH and filed Jan. 13, 1999 in thenames of John R. Fredlund, Joseph A. Manico, Maureen E. Churan-King and William T. Matthias.
Film and cameras that are all in one, commonly referred to as single-use or one-time-use cameras, have become well known. The one-time-use camera is a simple point-and-shoot type comprising an opaque plastic main body part which supports aconventional film cartridge in a cartridge receiving chamber, an unexposed film roll prewound from the film cartridge onto a film take-up spool in a film supply chamber, a fixed-focus taking lens, a film metering mechanism with a rotatably supportedmetering sprocket that engages the filmstrip, a manually rotatable film winding thumbwheel rotatably engaged with a film spool inside the film cartridge, a single-blade shutter, a manually depressible shutter release button, a rotatable frame counter forindicating the number of exposures remaining to be made on the filmstrip, a direct see-through viewfinder having front and rear viewfinder lenses, and in some models an electronic flash. A pair of opaque plastic front and rear cover parts house the mainbody part between them to complete the camera unit. The rear cover part connects to the main body part and/or to the front cover part to make the main body part light-tight. A decorative cardboard outer box or label at least partially covers the cameraunit and has respective openings for the taking lens, etc.
After each picture is taken with the one-time-use camera, the photographer manually rotates the thumbwheel in a film winding direction to similarly rotate the film spool inside the film cartridge. This winds an exposed frame of the filmstripinto the film cartridge. The rewinding movement of the filmstrip the equivalent of slightly more than one frame width rotates the metering sprocket in engagement with the filmstrip to decrement the frame counter to its next lower-numbered setting and topivot a metering lever into engagement with the thumbwheel in order to prevent further manual rotation of the thumbwheel. Manually depressing the shutter release button to take another picture pivots the metering lever out of engagement with thethumbwheel to permit renewed rotation of the thumbwheel. When the maximum number of exposures available on the filmstrip have been made, and the filmstrip is completely wound into the film cartridge, the one-time-use camera is given to a photofinisherwho tears the outer box off the camera unit, separates the rear cover part from the main body part, and removes the film cartridge with the exposed filmstrip from the cartridge receiving chamber. Then, he removes the exposed filmstrip from the filmcartridge to develop the negatives and make prints for the customer. At least some of the used camera parts may be recycled, i.e. reused, to remanufacture the camera.
There is a known problem in the recycling, i.e. reuse, of used camera parts, in that the reused parts may become worn or damaged and therefore should not be reused. Thus, it has been suggested that any worn or damaged parts be purposelyfractured to render them visibly different during disassembly of the one-time-use camera to retrieve the exposed film. This allows the worn or damaged parts to be readily identified to be discarded, and prevents them from being erroneously reused.
The cross-referenced application discloses a one-time-use camera comprises a filmstrip and an electronic flash with a concave-shaped flash reflector having a front open end, a flash illumination-producing flash tube inside the flash reflector,and a light-transmitting flash cover-lens over the front open end of the flash reflector. The flash reflector has film identifying indicia visible from outside the camera to identify the filmstrip, which are light-reflecting to the same extent as theflash reflector in order to reflect flash illumination produced by the flash tube in concert with the flash reflector. The flash reflector is adhered to the flash tube to prevent the flash reflector from being separated from the flash tube withoutbreaking the flash tube, whereby removal of the film identifying indicia in effect destroys the electronic flash.
A one-time-use camera comprising a filmstrip, a concave-shaped flash reflector having a front open end, a flash illumination-producing flash tube inside the flash reflector, and a light-transmitting flash cover-lens over the front open end of theflash reflector, is characterized in that:
the flash cover-lens has film identifying indicia to identify the filmstrip which are light-transmitting to the same extent as the flash cover-lens in order to transmit flash illumination produced by the flash tube in concert with the flashcover-lens.
FIG. 5 is a cross-section elevation view of the flash cover lens as seen in the direction of the arrow line 5--5 in FIG. 4.
The invention is disclosed as being embodied preferably in a one-time-use camera. Because the features of a one-time-use camera are generally known, the description which follows is directed in particular only to those elements forming part ofor cooperating directly with the disclosed embodiment. It is to be understood, however, that other elements may take various forms known to a person of ordinary skill in the art.
Referring now to the drawings, FIGS. 1-5 show a one-time-use camera 10 which includes a plastic opaque main body part 12 and a pair of plastic opaque front and rear cover parts 14 and 16 which house the main body part between them. The front andrear cover parts 14 an 16 are connected to one another and to the main body part 12 via known hook-in-hole connections (not shown) such as disclosed in prior art U.S. Pat. No. 5,815,740 issued Sep. 29, 1998, and prior art U.S. Pat. No. 5,349,510issued Sep. 20 , 1994.
As is known, the main body part 12 has a rearwardly open cartridge receiving chamber 18 for a conventional film cartridge 20 and a rearwardly open film supply chamber 22 for a rotatably supported film supply spool on which is prewound anunexposed film roll (not shown). See FIG. 1. A rearwardly open backframe opening (not shown) is located between the cartridge receiving chamber 18 and the film supply chamber 22 for exposing successive imaging sections (frames) of a filmstrip 24 whichconstitutes the unexposed film roll.
A film winding thumbwheel (not shown), rotatably supported on the main body part 12, protrudes outwardly from a slot (not shown) in the rear cover part 16 and has a depending coaxial stem in coaxial engagement with an exposed top end of a filmspool inside the film cartridge 20. Manual winding rotation of the film winding thumbwheel counter-clockwise in FIG. 1 similarly rotates the film spool inside the film cartridge 20 to wind each exposed imaging section of the filmstrip 24 into the filmcartridge.
The rear cover part 16 has a door cover portion 26 over the cartridge receiving chamber 18 and a remaining cover portion 28. A fracture line of weakness 30 which divides the door cover portion 26 and the remaining cover portion 28 permits thedoor cover portion to be pivoted open relative to the remaining cover portion in order to remove the film cartridge 20 from the cartridge receiving chamber 18. The film cartridge 20 is to be removed from the cartridge receiving chamber 18 when themaximum number of exposures available on the filmstrip 24 have been made and the filmstrip is completely wound into the film cartridge.
A built-in electronic flash 32 comprises a generally flat flash circuit board 34 supported on the main body part 12, a concave-shaped flash reflector 36 located (partly) in a rectangular hole 38 in the flash circuit board, a flashillumination-producing flash tube 40 positioned within the flash reflector against a rearmost curved inner side 42 of the flash reflector, and a light-transmitting transparent (or alternately translucent) plastic flash cover-lens 44 positioned over afront open end 46 of the flash reflector. See FIG. 2.
The flash tube 40 is filled with an ionizable gas, and it has an inline pair of anode and cathode main electrodes 48 and 50 at its opposite ends which protrude from respective side openings 52 in the flash reflector 36 and are connected to acapacitor 54 on the flash circuit board 34. See FIGS. 1 and 2. The resistance of the gas in the flash tube 40 is normally too high to permit a direct discharge. For firing the flash tube 40, there is provided a third electrode, i.e. a triggeringelectrode, (not shown) for example a triggering wire that is connected to a rearmost outer side 56 of the flash reflector 36 using solder, tape or the like. When the triggering electrode applies a triggering voltage to the flash reflector 36, the gas inthe flash tube 40 is ionized, thus lowering its resistance and allowing the capacitor 54 to discharge its stored energy through the flash tube in the form of a brilliant flash of light.
The flash reflector 36 is shaped to concentrate the flash illumination produced by the flash tube 40 and to direct the flash illumination to the front open end 46 of the reflector, through the flash cover-lens 44, and towards the subject to beilluminated.
The flash cover-lens 44 has two identical resilient side-hooks 58 (only one shown in FIGS. 1 and 2) that are snugly received in corresponding openings 60 in the flash circuit board 34 to affix the flash cover-lens directly to the flash circuitboard. Film identifying indicia 62, such as "Kodak Film Inside", to identify the filmstrip 24 constitute integrally-formed raised-portions 64 of the flash cover-lens 44 that project from a flat inside surface 66 of the flash cover-lens. See FIGS. 3-5. Each one of the raised portions 64 is an individual letter of the alphabet that collectively forms the message "Kodak Film Inside". The raised portions 64 are light-transmitting to the same extent, i.e. have the same transparency, as the remainder ofthe flash cover-lens 44 in order to transmit the flash illumination produced by the flash tube 40 in concert with the flash coverlens.
The invention has been described with reference to a preferred embodiment. However, it will be appreciated that variations and modifications can be effected by a person of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope of theinvention. For example, instead of the film identifying indicia 62, being raised-portions 64 of the flash cover-lens 44 that project from the flat inside surface 66 of the flash cover-lens, they can be depressions in the flat inside surface.
PARTS LIST 10. one-time-use camera 12. mainbodypart 14. front cover part 16. rear cover part 18. cartridge receiving chamber 20. film cartridge 22. film supply chamber 24. filmstrip 26. door cover portion 28. remaining cover portion 30. fracture line of weakness 32. electronic flash 34. flash circuit board 36. flash reflector 38. hole 40. flash tube 42. rearmost inner side 44. flash cover-lens 46. front open end 48. anode electrode 50. cathode electrode 52. side openings 54. capacitor 56. rearmost outer side 58. side-hooks 60. openings 62. film identifying indicia 64. raised-portions 66. flat inside surface
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