Improvements in Photographic Apparatus.
Year: 1889

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Photographic Apparatus.
I, VICTOR JULES EMILE DAMOIZEAU of 17 Rue St. Ambroise, Paris in the
Republic of France Gentlemau do hereby declare the nature of this Invention and
in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This Invention relates to the construction of a novel photographic apparatus which
is capable of taking in any desired angle or even the entire horizon for producing
panoramic views for plans landscapes and the like.
And in order that iny said invention may be fully understood I shall now proceed
more particularly to describe the same and for that purpose shall refer to the several
Figures on the annexed sheets of drawings the same letters of reference indicating
corresponding parts in all the Figures.
Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings represents in elevation an example of an
apparatus constructed according to this Invention. Figure 3 represents the apparatus
in longitudinal section, Figure 2 represents a horizontal section and Figure 4 is a
plan of the lower parts.
This apparatus enables the required effect to be obtained under the most advan-
tageous conditions. The apparatus is supported on an ordinary stand or tripod the
head of which is provided with a flat platform P on the centre R of which is pivoted
a carriage. C supported on the one hand by two rollers G and on the other hand by
a roller M connected with a clockwork motion M driving all the mechanism.
This carriage is constructed with two inoveable slides cl and moved in opposite
directions and to equal extents by means of a pinion N and two racks cr and c
To the first slide cl there is fixed by means of catches hooks or the like, the
camera proper the front or lens carrier hereinafter described being attached to the
slide c¹ in a similar manner.
The apparatus is also provided with a camera forming a magazine composed of two
parts divided or separated at g fig. 2 and constructed with a moveable board at the
back carrying a sharp point p fixed to a spring so that by pressing on an external
button or knob the sensitive sheet or material can be pricked before and after the
operation so as to obtain marks by which the negatives can be separated in the dark
room. Two moveable plates or flaps & d' worked from the outside by two toothed
quadrants hh act as diaphragms so as to regulate with mathematical precision the
time during which the light is allowed to act on the sensitized surface. The front
part of the camera carries the bellows which folds up into the camera when the
latter is taken off for being taken to the dark room where the negatives are
removed.
In the hinder part of the camera there is a driving cylinder or drum F worked
by the clockwork and transmitting the requisite lateral motion to the film. The rate
of this movement is always in proportion to the distance travelled over by the
focal plane of the lens as it turns about the vertical axis or centre of rotation of the
apparatus.
Two rollers or bobbins K K¹ are arranged in the back of the camera one being
the roller carrying the sensitive material or film and the other receiving the film
after exposure.
A counter on the top of the camera enclosed in the upper part indicates the quantity
of film exposed and that remaining available for exposure.
This counter is composed of two superposed toothed wheels. One of the wheels-
the under one-has one tooth more than the other. Both wheels are driven by the
same pinion which is fixed on the driving drum F. The diameter of the latter
being a known quantity, the developement of its circumference or path travelled

page_text: over its indicated through the pinion on the wheel which has fewest teeth. This
latter is graduated or divided so as to mark metres and centimetres for example.
A fourth cylinder F¹ presses on the driving cylinder so as to obviate slips which
would affect the sharpness of the image and at the same time draws the sensitive
material to the receiving roller K. Two flat or helical springs keep the driving drum
in close contact with the rollers K and F.
The two rollers can hold about ten metres of paper or enough for forty exposures
or ordinary negatives or from 8 to 10 complete panoramas. With gelatine from
25 to 30 metres and upwards can be stored up being sufficient for from 100 to 120
ordinary negatives or about 20 complete panoramas all in a most compact space and
not weighing more than about 300 grammes.
The number of proofs which can be taken with the lengths above indicated
evidently depends on the focal length or distance of the lenses employed. The ends
of the sensitive material are attached to the rollers in a simple and effective manner
hereinafter described facilitating this operation which has to be performed in the
dark room.
Each roller or bobbin is composed of two thin brass tubes adjusted to turn with
slight friction one on the other. A tolerably wide slot or opening is made in each
tube for about ths of their length. The end of the paper is easily inserted in these
openings when they coincide and then by turning one tube within the other the
The rollers are
paper is firmly secured between the edges of the opening.
interchangeable and a spring is employed to steady the movement of the
roller K¹.
With a set of four lenses of focal lengths varying from say 12 to 30 centimetres
all conditions likely to occur can be provided for.
It is indispensable that the optical centres of these different lenses which are all
used in the same' mounting should all be in the same place in the mounting in order
to avoid having to readjust the apparatus at each change of lenses. The mounting
which is permanently attached to the sliding front is provided with an opening
extending about half way round the circumference so as to enable the lenses to be
readily changed. This opening is closed by a sliding tube when not in use.
The back of the camera is closed by a board which can be removed in order to
expose the interior when required in order to adjust the apparatus. This board carries
two tablets a d¹ on which the particulars of the exposures can be recorded.
A spring S acts as a brake for starting and stopping the motor or clockwork.
The front or support of the lens is secured to the horizontal slide cat A¹ figure 3
and comprises a vertical board () supporting the other parts and provided on the
inner side with a recess for the reception of the front end of the bellows when the
camera is set up. On the front side of this board is a slide 01 carrying the lens
mounting and sliding vertically on two ribs or dovetailed slips n n figure 2 being
moved by means of a pinion e and a rack figures 2 and 3 so as to enable the
lens to be adjusted vertically.
As the optical centres of the lenses attached to the apparatus may not all be situated
in the same place relatively to the centre of rotation an adjusting screw V is provided
for the purpose of enabling the front and lens to be moved nearer to or farther from
the centre of rotation as required in order to maintain the image in the proper focal
plane.
The theoretical principle of the apparatus is based on the synchronism which exists
between the movement of the optical centre of the lens and that of the sensitive
material which is enrolled and drawn continuously across the back of the lens in
such a manner as to obtain a perfectly sharp definition throughout the whole of the
view.
The slide 0 to which the lens is attached also carries an automatic shutter which
only opens when the clockwork is started.
The shutter is composed of two distinct parts. The first part consists of a sliding
"shutter ob figure 2 connected to the starting lever Lat the side of the camera so as
to fully open the passage for the light. This sliding shutter is in the form of a plate

page_text: perforated by a rectangular opening which is covered when the apparatus is not in
action but is drawn forward so as to uncover the lens when the lever is moved for
starting the mechanism.
The second part of the shutter is composed of the two hinged plates or flaps d d
herein before referred to which are placed inside the camera close to the sensitive
surface. These two flaps are connected together by the two external toothed quadrants
and serve to limit the admission of light either before or during the exposure. In the
latter case an endless screw or worm driven by a flexible shaft rotated by hand imparts
motion to the aforesaid toothed gear and regulates the opening of the two flaps during
the exposure.
The lever L on the outside and to the right of the camera is employed for starting
the clockwork apparatus and at the same time opens the shutter to which it is con:
nected by a cord attached to the lever in a similar manner to a blind cord for example.
The shutter is returned into its first position on the stopping of the apparatus by
means of a helical spring in the frame holding the lens.
Thus one and the same operation suffices for starting the apparatus and opening the
shutter which is closed in like manner when the motor is stopped by means of the
spring S. With the arrangement adopted in this apparatus the time of exposure may
be more accurately deterinined than has ever hitherto been possible with any other
sbutter. By knowing the duration in seconds of an entire revolution of the apparatus
the length of the circumference produced by the radius or focal distance of the lens
and also the opening left between the two plates d d' the exact time is easily calculated
that it would take for any point on the horizon to travel from one side of the opening
to the other. Another method of regulating the time of the exposure consists in a
brake working on one side of the spindles of the clockwork movement by means of a
spring adjusted from outside and so arranged that the speed of the clockwork is
regulated according to the tension of the spring.
The clockwork M consists of the dise or roller M attached to a spring barrel and
travelling on the platform P always in the plane tangential to the circle described by
the focus of the lens. This roller which serves to ineasure the distance traversed and
controls the movement of the sensitized paper is furnished with teeth forming a crown
wheel on its side. It imparts motion to the conductor cylinder or roller F through two
horizontal gear wheels one of which by means of suitable gearing drives a suitable
flier or regulator. All this mechanism is boxed in and protected from shocks and
dust which would be liable to interfere with the working of the apparatus.
The pivoted carriage C carries the two parts, front and back, of the apparatus which
have to be moved nearer together or farther apart in focussing. This operation is
performed before exposure either directly or by aid of a small supplementary camera
or chamber. The position of the said two parts may also be changed during the
exposure so as to lengthen or shorten the focal distance as required. This operation
is performed in a similar manner to the working of the shutter by means of an endless
screw or worin worked by a flexible shaft rotated by hand and driving the racks for
racking the parts in or out.
A compass is placed at the front of the carriage and enables the bearings of the
apparatus to be noted in preparing plans as berinafter explained.
A level N is placed on the base of the front and is indispensible for procuring
accurate views free froin distortion.
With this apparatus a topographical plan for example of a district within range of
the lens may be constructed by choosing a base line of such a length that the direction
of one of the most distant points seen in the horizon situated say at X for example in
the accompanying diagram Figure 5 forms when viewed from A and from B for
example at the ends of the base line A B angles whose difference is clearly discernible
(the greater the difference the greater will be the correctness of the result).
From the points A and B two complete panoramas are taken both of which include
the same points in the horizon. On referring to the diagram it will be readily under-
stood that the exact position of any points at a b c d e f h for example representing
objects included in the views taken can he ascertained and transferred to a horizontal

page_text: plane, as lines drawn to each point form with the bise line A B triangles the bases of
which are known as well as the adjacent angles at A and B.
It is important to retain the same compass bearings in both operations. The
apparatus when charged and the spring wound up is always ready for operating.
The cycle of operations consists in a movement of the lever for starting and another
for stopping the apparatus, then pricking the sensitized roll of material, this may be
repeated immediately and so on until the counter shews that all the sensitive material
in the magazine is used up. A case of the size of an ordinary military knapsack
holds the whole apparatus which may be carried in the hand or by a strap over the
shoulders or on to the back. With the apparatus above described an arrangement
may be provided whereby the rolls of sensitive material may be changed in full
daylight. This is an important consideration since it greatly increases the stock of
sensitive film or sensitive material that can be carried and renders it unnecessary to
take the apparatus to a dark room in order to replenish the magazine.
With this object, the construction of the rollers or bobbins K K¹ remains the saine
but the film undergoes a slight modification, a sheet of black paper being pasted to
each of its ends, of a length (say 50 centimetres) sufficient to envelope the roll of
film about three times.
To place a roller in position in full daylight, the camera is opened and the roller
put in its usual position, a sufficient length of black paper is unrolled to allow its
end to be attached to the roller on which the sensitive material is rolled after
exposure,
The apparatus is then closed and the black paper is unwound until the sensitive
material reaches the centre of the camera which can be ascertained by looking through
a small opening in the back provided with a shutter.
•
After the shutter has been closed, the apparatus is ready for working until the
roll on the bobbin is exhausted. As the sensitive part of the roll terininates in a
sheet of black paper, the sensitive part is automatically wrapped up in the black paper
by the action of the apparatus after the final exposure and thus it is possible to with-
draw the roll from the inside of the camera in daylight in the same way as it was
placed in position.
With this arrangement, care must be taken to set the counter so that it indicates
correctly the amount of sensitive material actually used, in order to avoid risk of
opening the apparatus before the roll is properly covered by the black paper at
the end.
The above arrangement is equally applied to all photographic apparatus, which
employs sensitive material wound on rollers or bobbins.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said Inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is
1. The construction of the carriage with its two racks cr, c₁ worked by the
common pinion N which permits the use of a lens of any focus and insures an equal
and simultaneous displacement of the camera and of the front substantially as herein-
before described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
2. The general arrangement and construction of the camera forming a magazine
containing the folded bellows and capable of being taken off in one piece substantially
as herein before described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
3. In the camera proper constructed as above set forth the arrangement and use
of cylinders K K and rollers F F and lever L which secure the regular rolling up
and unrolling of the sensitive material as well as the means for driving them from
the motor which actuates.the carriage at the same time substantially as hereinbefore
described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
4. In the camera described the employment of two quadrants h h for determining
the aperture of the diaphragm and regulating the time of exposure substantially as
berein before described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
5. The combination with the camera described of the spring pricker p for making

page_text: the register-marks on the sensitive material and of the counter constantly indicating
the amount of the sensitive material that has been used substantially as hereinbefore
described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
6. The means for working the shatter simultaneously with the other parts and for
closing the same automatically when the carriage stops substantially as herein before
described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
7. The construction of the front with slides for obtaining a horizontal and vertical
displacement with a wide range of motion substantially as herein before described
and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
8. The special construction of the lens mounting which forms one with the sliding
front and which is furnished with an opening to permit the lenses to be changed
substantially as herein before described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
9. l'he synchronous moving of the optical centre of the lens and the roll of sensitive
material which is unwound at the back of the lens substantially as hereinbefore
described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
10. The addition to the extremities of the sensitive roll of black paper or fabric
or the like which covers the sensitive material when rolled up so that it may be
withdrawn from the camera or placed in position therein in open daylight substantially
as bereinbefore described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
11. The general arrangements and combinations of parts constituting the improve-
ments in photographic apparatus substantially as herein before described and illustrated
in the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 4th day of November 1889.