US 6,351,609 B1Granted

Built-in retractable flash of a camera

AssigneeAsahi Kogaku Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha

InventorsTetsuo Hosokawa, Katsuhiko Nozaki

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Abstract

A built-in retractable flash of a camera includes a light emitter to be movable between a retracted position and a light emission position; a lock lever mechanism having a lock lever, supported on a base plate, which is movable between a lock position for holding the light emitter at the retracted position and an unlock position; an electromagnetic member which controls the position of the lock lever; a position adjustment mechanism for adjusting the position of the electromagnetic member on the base plate; and first and second securing devices for securing the base plate to the camera body. The first securing device secures only the base plate to the camera body. The second securing device secures the base plate and the electromagnetic member to the camera body after the relative position between the base plate and the electromagnetic member is adjusted by the position adjustment mechanism.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A built-in retractable flash of a camera comprising:

a light emitter which is supported on a camera body to be movable between a retracted position and a light emission position raised from said camera body;
a lock lever mechanism having a lock lever which is movable between a lock position, wherein said lock lever engages with said light emitter to hold said light emitter in said retracted position, and an unlock position, wherein said lock lever allows said light emitter to move to said light emission position, said lock lever being biased toward said lock position;
a base plate of said lock lever mechanism on which said lock lever is supported;
an electromagnetic member provided on said base plate, said electromagnetic member being adapted to control the position of said lock lever between said lock position and said unlock position;
a position adjustment mechanism for adjusting the position of said electromagnetic member on said base plate;
and
a first and a second securing device for securing said base plate to said camera body;
wherein said first securing device secures only said base plate to said camera body;
and
wherein said second securing device secures both said base plate and said electromagnetic member to said camera body after the relative position between said base plate and said electromagnetic member is adjusted by said position adjustment mechanism.

7 more elements

A built-in retractable flash of a camera comprising:

a light emitter which is supported on a camera body to be movable between a retracted position and a light emission position raised from said camera body;
a lock lever which is rotatable between a lock position, wherein said lock lever engages with said light emitter to hold said light emitter in said retracted position, and an unlock position, wherein said lock lever allows said light emitter to move to said light emission position;
a first biasing member for biasing said lock lever to said lock position;
an unlocking lever which is rotatable between a lock-allowing position, which allows said lock lever to rotate to said lock position, and an unlocking-operation position, which rotates said lock lever to said unlock position;
a second biasing member for biasing said unlocking lever to said unlocking-operation position, a biasing force of said second biasing member being stronger than a biasing force of said first biasing member;
a base plate on which said lock lever and said unlocking lever are rotatably supported;
an electromagnetic member which holds said unlocking lever in said lock-allowing position against said biasing force of said second biasing member;
and
wherein said electromagnetic member is secured to said camera body together with said base plate via a common securing screw.

6 more elements

A built-in retractable flash of a camera, comprising:

a light emitter which is supported on a camera body to be movable between a retracted position and a light emission position raised from said camera body;
a lock lever which is rotatable between a lock position, wherein said lock lever engages with said light emitter so as to lock said light emitter in said retracted position, and an unlock position, wherein said lock lever disengages with said light emitter in order to allow said light emitter to move said light emission position;
a first biasing member for biasing said lock lever to said lock position;
an unlocking lever which is rotatable between a lock-allowing position, which allows said lock lever to be positioned in said lock position, and an unlocking-operation position, wherein said lock lever rotates to said unlock position;
a second biasing member for biasing said unlocking lever to said unlocking-operation position, wherein a biasing force of said second biasing member is stronger than a biasing force of said first biasing member;
first and second rotational shafts which rotatably support said lock lever and said unlocking lever respectively;
and
an electromagnetic member which holds said unlocking lever in said lock-allowing position when electricity is not supplied to said electromagnetic member, and releases said unlocking lever so as to rotate to said unlocking-operation position when electricity is supplied to said electromagnetic member;
wherein said first and second rotation shafts extend in parallel in a direction of the axes thereof, and are spaced from one another in a direction perpendicular to said axes.

6 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.