Patent ID: 7099573

Claim:
A zoom lens camera comprising: an optical-element drive mechanism for driving optical elements of a photographing optical system along an optical axis thereof to perform a zooming operation in a ready-to-photograph state, and a retracting operation in which said photographing optical system is retracted to change from said ready-to-photograph state to a retracted state; and a zooming-associating mechanism for associating at least one zooming-associated driven member with said zooming operation so that said zooming-associated driven member is driven by said optical-element drive mechanism in association with said zooming operation in said ready-to-photograph state, and for releasing said association of said zooming-associated driven member with said zooming operation during a transitional state between said ready-to-photograph state and said retracted state; wherein said zooming-associating mechanism includes at least three rotational members which are coaxially positioned on a common rotational axis to be rotatable thereon relative to one another, wherein said three rotational members include a master rotational member and a slave rotational member which are positioned at opposite ends of said common rotational axis, respectively, said master rotational member being associated with said optical-element drive mechanism to rotate, said slave rotational member driving said zooming-associated driven member by a rotation thereof, wherein each opposed surfaces of any two adjacent rotational members of said three rotational members include a rotation transfer portion, said rotation transfer portions being engaged with each other at predetermined relative angular positions thereof so that said any two adjacent rotational members integrally rotate, said any two adjacent rotational members being allowed to rotate relative to each other at relative angular positions thereof other than said predetermined relative angular positions, and wherein said slave rotational member rotates together with said master rotational member after relative rotations among said any two adjacent rotational members occur in sequence when said photographing optical system changes from said retracted state to said ready-to-photograph state.