JP2000019618A - camera - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Problem] If the display illumination time of the external display device is set to a certain long time regardless of the posture of a camera, the battery is wasted. SOLUTION: In a camera having an external display means 13 for displaying camera information and an illuminating means 14 for illuminating the external display means, an attitude detecting means 6 for detecting an attitude of a camera body, and an attitude detecting means Lighting time setting means 1 for setting the lighting duration time of the lighting means in accordance with the detected posture of the lighting means.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a camera having a posture detecting function, and more particularly, to a camera which controls illumination of an external display unit and operation of a mirror device in accordance with a result of posture detection.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A camera has an external display means for displaying various camera information such as a photographing mode to notify a photographer. As the illuminating means for illuminating the external display means with a backlight or the like, those which are turned on / off by a switch operation, those which are turned off after a lapse of a predetermined time after being turned on, or those which are determined to be dark based on photometric data. In some cases, the light turns on automatically when it is turned on, and turns off automatically when it is judged bright.

[0003] Further, among those, which automatically turn on / off by photometric data, there is one which automatically turns off upon detecting that the photographer has looked into the finder.

[0004] In a camera, various settings such as a photographing mode can be arbitrarily changed by a photographer operating an operation member. Further, there is a camera in which a predetermined setting can be changed only by operating the second operation member after operating the first operation member. By employing such a setting method, it is possible to assign a plurality of functions to the second operation member, and it is possible to change many types of settings with a small number of operation members. In addition, by requiring a two-step operation to change the setting, it is possible to avoid inconveniences such as an inadvertent movement of the operating member to change the setting.

[0005] After the first operating member is operated, while waiting for the second operating member to be operated, it is necessary to drive the switch sense circuit and the display device, so that the current consumption increases. . Therefore, in order to save energy, after the first operation member is operated, if a predetermined time elapses without operating the second operation member, the setting change is performed even if the second operation member is automatically operated. Generally, it is not necessary to drive a switch sense circuit, a display device, or the like as an impossible state.

FIG. 26 shows a conventional single-lens reflex camera. This camera is provided with a main mirror 804 for guiding a subject image and subject information from a photographing lens 803 to an eyepiece 807 and a photometric sensor 808 through a finder optical system. The main mirror 804 is rotatably disposed between the taking lens 803 and a shutter 810 that controls an exposure amount when exposing a subject image from the taking lens 803 to the film 811. When observing a subject before photographing, an observation position (down position) in which the main mirror 804 guides the subject image from the photographing lens 803 to the eyepiece 807.
And enables observation and photometry of the subject.

A part of the center of the main mirror 804 is a half mirror. Further, the main mirror 80
A sub-mirror 805 is rotatably mounted on 4, and a part of subject information from the photographing lens 803 passes through a half mirror portion of the main mirror 804, and is guided to the focus detection unit 812 via the sub-mirror 805. .

[0008] At the time of photographing, in order to expose the subject image from the photographing lens 803 onto the film 811, the main mirror 8 is used to prevent the subject image from being vignetted by the mirror.
04 and the sub-mirror 805 are turned upward and retracted, and at the same time, are pushed up to the exposure position (up position) that closes the finder optical system. And then shutter 8
Exposure is performed by operating.

After the exposure, the main mirror 80
4 and the sub-mirror 805 are returned to the observation position (down position) before photographing, and the subject is observed for the next photographing.
Photometry and focus detection operation can be performed.

The main mirror 804 is urged downward (toward the down position) by a spring (not shown).
After the exposure is completed, the member that pushes the main mirror 804 to the up position is released, whereby the main mirror 804 is released.
Is rotated downward (in the direction of the down position) by the urging force of the spring, and is set to the observation position shown in FIG.
Also, the sub-mirror 805 is set almost simultaneously to the position before photographing. As shown in FIG. 26B, a posture detection sensor 813 for detecting the posture of the camera body 801 is attached to the camera body 801.

In the camera constructed as described above, after the exposure is completed, the time until the mirrors 804 and 808 enter a standby state before photographing in which photometry and focus detection can be started (the mirror starts operating and the After the exposure is completed, a predetermined time (mirror stabilization timer) has elapsed from the start of the mirror-down operation, and the next photometry and focus detection are performed.

Since the main mirror 804 and the sub-mirror 808 have a constant mass, these mirrors may be in the standby state before photographing depending on the relationship between the biasing direction of the spring force and the direction of gravity, ie, the posture of the camera. The time to become varies. Therefore, a mirror stabilization timer is set based on the maximum value of the experimental values.

Further, recently, a higher continuous shooting frame speed is required. Therefore, by setting a plurality of mirror stabilization timers and applying a posture detection device such as that proposed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H6-74766 and selecting a mirror stabilization timer suitable for the photographing posture of the camera,
It is conceivable to perform the fastest continuous shooting operation suitable for the posture.

FIGS. 27 and 28 show an operation flowchart and a control circuit of the camera for selecting a mirror stabilization timer suitable for the shooting posture of the camera.

When the release button is half-pressed and the switch A951 is turned on (# 801), the CPU 9
80 performs the photometric calculation based on the output of the photometric circuit 953 (# 802), and detects the attitude based on the output of the attitude detection sensor 813 (# 803). Further, a focus detection operation based on the output of the focus detection circuit 854 (# 804),
Lens drive control based on the calculation result in step # 804 is also performed (# 805). Thereafter, when the release button is fully pressed and the switch B952 is turned on (# 8)
06), see the signal from the charge signal generation circuit 960. When the end of charging is detected (# 807), the coil of the first tension magnet 983 is energized (# 808). Thereby, the main mirror 804 (and the sub mirror 80)
5) performs an up operation (# 809), and at the same time, the aperture 956 of the lens is stopped down to a predetermined position (# 81).
0).

Further, a film feed signal generating circuit 961
, It is determined whether or not the film feeding has been completed (# 811). If the film feeding has been completed, the shutter 810 is operated (# 812), and the film feeding to the film 811 is started. The exposure ends (# 813).

When the exposure is completed, the main mirror 804
(And the sub-mirror 805) (# 81
4), return of aperture 956 to open (# 815), charging of shutters and the like (# 816), film feeding (# 81)
7) is started.

Thereafter, it is determined whether the posture of the camera body 801 is reversed (inverted posture) or other than the reversed direction based on the result of the posture detection in step # 803 (# 811).
To set the mirror stabilization timer (# 819, # 82)
0). That is, a short mirror stabilization timer A (# 819) is set when the direction is other than the reverse including the normal posture, and a long mirror stability timer B (# 820) is set when the direction is the reverse.

Then, if the switch A 951 continues to be ON (# 801), the photometric calculation for the next photographing (# 802), the focus detection calculation (# 804), the posture detection (# 803) and The lens is driven (# 805), and if the switch B52 is ON, it is determined that continuous shooting is performed.
After confirming that charging has been completed (# 80
7), energize the coil of the first tensioning magnet 983 (#
808), the mirror is raised (# 809). At the same time, the stop 956 is stopped down to a predetermined aperture diameter (# 810). Further, when it is confirmed that the film feeding has been completed (# 811), the shutter 810 is operated (# 812), and the second exposure to the film 811 is performed (# 813).

[0020]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Among the cameras of the above-mentioned prior art-1, the lighting of which is automatically turned on may be automatically turned on even when the lighting is not required. There is a problem that the battery is wasted. In this regard, when switching on / off by operating a switch, it is possible to prevent useless lighting of illumination. However, even in this case, if the photographer forgets to turn off the light, the battery is wasted. Therefore, as a countermeasure, it is necessary to turn off the light using a timer. Furthermore, if this timer is too long, it causes wasteful consumption of the battery. Therefore, it is desirable to set the timer as short as possible within a range where the display can be checked.

However, the time required for confirming the display differs depending on the attitude of the camera. Conventionally, the timer is set to a long fixed time so that the display can be sufficiently checked regardless of the posture of the camera, and when the camera posture is such that the display can be checked in a short time, Battery was wasted.

In the camera of the prior art-2, if the time (predetermined time) for waiting for the operation of the second operation member after the operation of the first operation member is too long, the battery may be wasted. Therefore, it is desirable to set the distance as short as possible within a range in which the second operation member can be operated.

However, the time required for operating the second operation member differs depending on the posture of the camera. Conventionally, the predetermined time is set to a long constant time so that the second operation member can be sufficiently operated regardless of the posture of the camera, which is a cause of wasted battery consumption. .

-1 In the camera of the prior art, as described in the above description of operation, the switch B52 is set to ON by setting the mirror stabilization timer after exposure is completed (# 818).
There is a time difference between the time when the posture of the camera is detected and the time when the mirror stabilization timer is set, since the detection is performed based on the posture (# 803) detected before the operation. In this case, particularly when the posture of the camera changes drastically, the posture of the camera at the time of detecting the posture and the posture of the camera at the time of setting the timer often differ (for example, when photographing a rapidly moving subject such as a bird or an airplane). In this case, there is a possibility that wrong control is performed in the camera. In other words, the camera is in the normal posture (the horizontal posture in which the pentaprism faces upward), but in the reverse posture (the inverted posture in which the pentaprism faces downward).
The camera speed is reduced due to the control corresponding to, and the control corresponding to the normal posture is performed even though the camera is in the reverse posture. The result may not be obtained.

On the other hand, there is a case where the camera attitude does not affect the frame speed depending on the photographing mode of the camera. For example, in the case of single-shot shooting, since photometry and focus detection of the next frame are not performed consecutively with shooting of the previous frame, there is no need to perform posture detection and set the mirror stabilization timer.

Further, even in the case of continuous shooting, such as in the case of low-speed continuous shooting, where the drive of the lens aperture to the opening side is completed later than the mirror stabilization timer, the posture detection is performed and the mirror stabilization timer is performed. There is no need to control the setting of. This is because photometry and focus detection cannot be started until the drive of the lens aperture to the opening side is completed.

That is, in these shooting modes,
At least the posture detection for setting the mirror stabilization timer leads to wasted power consumption of the camera.

-3 Further, in a camera in which a mirror stabilization timer is set according to the camera attitude, for example, the mirror stability is determined when the camera is in a normal attitude and when the camera is in a lens-down attitude (an attitude in which the photographing lens faces the ground). The timer will be different. For this reason, when the continuous shooting frame speed is different, the continuous shooting frame speed becomes faster or slower due to a slight change in the attitude of the camera when performing continuous shooting while tracking the moving subject near the switching of each position with the camera. Or the photographer may feel uncomfortable.

As described above, a first object of the present invention is to provide a camera which is capable of minimizing unnecessary lighting, waiting for operation, and wasting battery power due to unnecessary posture detection. It is.

A second object of the present invention is to perform the fastest continuous shooting operation suitable for the camera posture, but to make the photographer uncomfortable when performing continuous shooting with a slight change in the camera posture. The object is to provide a camera that does not give the camera.

[0031]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a camera having external display means for displaying camera information and illumination means for illuminating the external display means.
There are provided attitude detecting means for detecting the attitude of the camera body, and illumination time setting means for setting the illumination duration time of the illuminating means according to the attitude detected by the attitude detecting means.

Specifically, when the detected posture is the normal posture, the illumination duration is set to the first time, and when the detected posture is another posture, the illumination duration is set to the second time longer than the first time. I do.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a camera for changing a predetermined setting according to an operation of a second operation member within a predetermined time after an operation of a first operation member.
There are provided attitude detecting means for detecting the attitude of the camera body, and time setting means for setting the predetermined time in accordance with the attitude detected by the attitude detecting means.

Specifically, when the detected posture is the normal posture, the predetermined time is set to the first time, and when the detected posture is another posture, the predetermined time is set to the second time longer than the first time. I do.

That is, in the first and second aspects of the present invention, when the camera is in a camera posture (reverse posture, vertical posture, or the like) in which it is difficult to confirm the display contents or operate the second operation member, the lighting duration or the operation is not changed. In the case of a camera posture (normal posture) in which the display time or the operation of the second operation member can be confirmed in a relatively short time while the waiting time is long (the second time) so that the display confirmation and the operation can be reliably performed. Reduces the display illumination time and the operation waiting time to prevent wasteful battery consumption.

In the first and second aspects of the present invention, the photographer may be able to arbitrarily restrict the time setting operation by the time setting means.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, a movable mirror which enters the photographing optical path during the photographing preparation operation and retracts outside the photographing optical path during the photographing operation, posture detecting means for detecting the posture of the camera body, and this posture Timing setting means for setting the start timing of the next photographing preparation operation after the end of the previous photographing operation in accordance with the posture detected by the detecting means. After the end of the operation, the operation is performed before the start of the next photographing preparation operation, and the timing setting means sets the start timing.

That is, by detecting the posture of the camera immediately before the setting of the start timing, the start timing of the photographing preparation operation corresponding to the posture of the camera can be reliably obtained. This avoids a situation in which the frame speed becomes slow or accurate photometry and focus detection cannot be performed.

In the third aspect of the present invention, the predetermined start timing (the first shooting mode) is not dependent on the first shooting mode such as the high-speed shooting mode in which the start timing is set in accordance with the detected attitude by the timing setting means. Mode setting means for selectively setting a second shooting mode such as a low-speed shooting mode in which a slowest start timing that can be set in the mode is set may be provided. As a result, the operation of setting the start timing based on the posture detection by the timing setting means can be made unnecessary, and the posture detection operation itself can be made unnecessary (that is, the posture detection means is made inactive), thereby preventing unnecessary consumption of the battery. It is possible to do.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, a movable mirror which enters the photographing optical path during the photographing preparation operation and retracts outside the photographing optical path during the photographing operation, posture detecting means for detecting the posture of the camera body, and this posture A timing setting means for setting a start timing of the next photographing preparation operation after the end of the previous photographing operation in accordance with the posture detected by the detecting means. The posture is a predetermined posture (for example,
When the posture changes from the normal posture to another posture, the start timing is changed from the start timing corresponding to the predetermined posture to the start timing corresponding to the other posture, and when the posture is the other posture, the subsequent camera body is set. Irrespective of the posture, the start timing is maintained and set to the start timing corresponding to the other posture.

That is, during continuous shooting, when the camera posture changes from a normal posture in which the mirror stabilization time is early to another posture in which the mirror stabilization time is late, the start timing of the preparatory operation is delayed and the fastest continuous motion suitable for the posture is performed. While the photographing operation is enabled, the start timing of the preparatory operation is not advanced even if the posture is changed from another posture to the normal posture, etc., and the continuous photographing frame speed is kept constant to give the photographer discomfort. That can be prevented.

In this case, after the detected posture becomes the other posture during the continuous photographing (the posture detection becomes unnecessary), the posture detecting means is deactivated to prevent useless consumption of the battery. You may do so.

[0043]

(First Embodiment) FIG. 1 shows an electric circuit of a camera according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 shows the appearance (plan view) of the camera. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a microcomputer for controlling the movement of each part of the camera. Reference numeral 2 denotes a lens control circuit that drives and controls a motor for adjusting the focus of the photographing lens 16 and a motor for controlling the aperture blades (both are not shown). The lens control circuit 2 receives the LCOM from the microcomputer 1
While receiving the signal, serial communication is performed via DBUS. Drive information of both motors is received by serial communication, and drive control of both motors is performed based on the information.
At the same time, various information (focal length, etc.) of the lens is sent to the microcomputer 1 by serial communication.

Reference numeral 3 denotes a liquid crystal display circuit, which drives an external liquid crystal display device 13 and a finder liquid crystal display device 12 for informing the photographer of each photographing information of the camera, for example, shutter speed, aperture value, ISO sensitivity, number of films and the like. I do. The external liquid crystal display circuit 13 includes the microcomputer 1
Performs serial communication via DBUS while receiving the DPCOM signal from the external liquid crystal display device 13 according to the data.
Then, the liquid crystal display device 12 in the finder is driven.

Here, the external liquid crystal display device 13 is arranged on the upper surface of the camera as shown in FIG. The external liquid crystal display device 13 has a semi-transmissive reflection member (not shown) that reflects external light and transmits light from the back to some extent. Below, the configuration is such that the display can be visually recognized by the transmitted light of the illumination device 14. An illumination device 14 is disposed immediately below the external liquid crystal display device 13. Lighting device 14
Is configured to have an illumination member such as an EL or LED driven by the liquid crystal display circuit 3.

Reference numeral 4 denotes a switch sense circuit, which reads the state of a switch for the photographer to set each photographing condition and the state of the switch indicating the state of the camera, and sends them to the microcomputer 1. The switch sense circuit 4 sends switch data to the microcomputer 1 by serial communication via DBUS while receiving the SWCOM signal.

Reference numeral 5 denotes a flash light emission dimming control circuit which controls a flash emission and a flash stop function by TTL light control. While receiving the STCOM signal, the flash emission dimming control circuit 5 performs serial communication with the microcomputer 1 via DBUS, receives data related to flash control, and performs various controls.

Reference numeral 6 denotes a focus detection circuit, which is a line sensor for performing a focus detection operation (autofocus) in a plurality of focus detection areas two-dimensionally arranged by a phase difference detection method, and for storing and reading out the data. It is a unit made up of a circuit and is controlled by the microcomputer 1.

Reference numeral 7 denotes an attitude detection circuit, which comprises a plurality of attitude detection sensors 20 to 23 described later and an attitude detection sensor drive circuit (not shown), and is controlled by the microcomputer 1. The microcomputer 1 determines the attitude of the camera body 15 from the output of the attitude detection circuit 7 and uses it for control of focus detection, setting of exposure conditions, setting of the illumination duration of the lighting device 14, and the like.

Reference numeral 8 denotes a photometry circuit for performing photometry of a subject. The photometric output is sent to the microcomputer 1 under the control of the microcomputer 1. The microcomputer 1 performs A / D conversion of the sent photometric output and uses it for setting exposure conditions (aperture, shutter speed).

Reference numeral 9 denotes a shutter control circuit which controls the running of a shutter first curtain and a rear curtain (not shown) according to a control signal of the microcomputer 1.

A feed motor control circuit 10 feeds (winds up and rewinds) the film in accordance with a control signal from the microcomputer 1.

SW1 is a switch which is turned on by half-pressing the release button 17 shown in FIG.
Then, the microcomputer 1 performs a shooting preparation operation (photometry,
Focus detection / display).

SW2 is a switch which is turned on by fully pressing the release button 17. When this switch is turned on, the microcomputer 1 starts an exposure operation (photographing operation). The X contact is turned on at the timing when the travel of the shutter front curtain is completed.
N, and serves to notify the flash emission dimming control circuit 5 of the flash emission timing.

SW3 is the camera mode (TV priority, AV
This switch is for switching between priority, manual, program, etc.), and is turned on when the mode change button 19 shown in FIG. 2 is pressed.

Reference numeral 11 denotes an electronic dial for changing a TV value, an AV value, a mode and the like, and is arranged near the release button 17 as shown in FIG. For example, SW3
When the electronic dial 11 is rotated while the button is ON, the mode changes to TV priority → AV priority → manual → program → TV
Priority → AV priority → Manual → Program…
The mode set by the photographer is set. When the electronic dial 11 is rotated in the reverse direction, the program → manual → A
The mode is changed in the order of V priority → TV priority → program →.

Further, if the electronic dial 11 is rotated when the TV priority mode is set by the mode change switch SW3 and the electronic dial 11, an arbitrary TV value of the photographer can be set. When the AV priority mode is set by the mode change switch SW3 and the electronic dial 11, by rotating the electronic dial 11, an arbitrary AV value of the photographer can be set.

SW4 is a switch for illuminating the illumination member of the illumination device 14, and is turned on when the illumination button 18 shown in FIG. 2 is pressed. When this switch is turned on, the microcomputer 1 transmits a command to make the lighting member shine to the liquid crystal display circuit 3, and the liquid crystal display circuit 3 having received the command drives the lighting device 14 to drive the external liquid crystal display device 13.
Lighting. When the switch SW4 is turned on while the external liquid crystal display device 13 is illuminated, the liquid crystal display circuit 3 turns off the illumination.

SW5 is a custom setting switch (setting regulating means), which is turned on when the custom setting button 30 shown in FIG. 2 is pressed. By a combination of the operation of the switch and the operation of the electronic dial 11, it is possible to perform a custom setting for performing various settings according to a user's preference, such as a change in a function of an operation member of the camera. In the present embodiment, it is possible to set whether the illumination time of the external display is automatically changed or fixed by the custom setting.

Next, the configuration of the attitude detection sensor attached to the camera will be described with reference to FIG. FIG.
FIG. 3A is a plan view of the attitude detection sensor, and FIG.
FIG. 3C is a cross-sectional view along the line CC in FIG. 3A, and FIG. 3C is a cross-sectional view along the line DD in FIG. Reference numeral 24 denotes a sensor main body formed of resin. The sensor body 24 has a groove 24a
Are formed, and a steel ball 25 is disposed in the groove 24a. The steel ball 25 can freely roll in the groove 24a.

As shown in FIG. 3C, the groove 24a has a uniform width slightly larger than the diameter of the steel ball 25 when viewed from the direction of the cross section DD. Groove 2
4a is formed in a substantially V-shape having a first slope 24c and a second slope 24d in a cross section CC, and a light projecting window 24e of a photodiode 26 and a phototransistor near a V-shaped apex 24b. 27 light receiving windows 24f are formed to face each other. The angle θ of the V-shaped portion of the groove 24a is about 90 °. A lid 28 is adhered to the upper part of the sensor main body 24, and a steel ball 25 is sealed in the groove 24a.

In this description, to explain the direction of the attitude detection sensor, the lower surface of the attitude detection sensor in FIG. 3B is referred to as surface A, and the lower surface in FIG. The surface is referred to as surface B.

Next, the operation of the posture detection sensor will be described with reference to FIG.
This will be described with reference to FIG. Note that FIG. 4A shows a state in which the B surface of the posture detection sensor is down, and FIG. 4B shows a state in which the A surface of the posture detection sensor is down.

When the posture detecting sensor is in the state shown in FIG. 4A, the steel ball 25 rolls in the groove 24a downward in the figure due to gravity. Therefore, the optical path between the light projecting window 24 e of the photodiode 26 and the light receiving window 24 f of the phototransistor 27 is not blocked by the steel ball 25.

On the other hand, when the posture detecting sensor is in the state shown in FIG. 4B, the steel ball 25 rolls in the groove 24a in the downward direction in the figure, that is, in the direction of the vertex 24b by gravity. Therefore, the optical path between the light emitting window 24 e of the photodiode 26 and the light receiving window 24 f of the phototransistor 27 is blocked by the steel ball 25. Generally, when the vertex 24b is located at the lowest position among the grooves 24a, the steel ball 25 is
4b, the light projecting window 24 of the photodiode 26
e and the light path between the light receiving window 24f of the phototransistor 27 is blocked.

Hereinafter, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4B, a state in which the steel ball 25 is located near the apex portion 24b and blocks the optical path between the photodiode 26 and the phototransistor 27 will be described. Called "1". Further, as shown in FIG. 4A, a state in which the steel ball 25 is not located near the vertex 24b and does not block the optical path between the photodiode 26 and the phototransistor 27 is referred to as "0".

Photodiode 26 in attitude detection sensor
The phototransistor 27 is driven by a posture detection sensor drive circuit in the posture detection circuit 7. The microcomputer 1 controls the photodiode 26 and the phototransistor 27 through the attitude detection sensor drive circuit, detects the output of the phototransistor 27, and determines whether the attitude detection sensor is in the “0” state based on the detected output. It is determined whether the state is “1”.

Actually, since the steel ball 25 has rolling resistance, when the first slope 24c is at a position lower than the second slope 24d and is substantially horizontal, the second slope 24
When d is at a position lower than the first slope 24c and is substantially horizontal, or when both the first slope 24c and the second slope 24d are substantially horizontal, the steel ball 2
5 may or may not be located near the vertex 24b. That is, the state of the posture detection sensor becomes an undefined state in which it is not known whether the state becomes “0” or “1”.

Next, the arrangement of the posture detecting sensors 20 to 23 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5A is a view of the arrangement of the posture detection sensor as viewed from the front of the camera.
(B) is an enlarged view of a portion E in (a). FIG.
(C) is an enlarged view of a portion F in (a).

When viewed from the front of the camera body 15, the posture detection sensors 20 and 21 are disposed at the lower left with respect to the photographing optical axis and below the shutter driving mechanism (not shown), respectively. The posture detection sensors 22 and 23 are arranged on the upper right side with respect to the photographing optical axis and in the upper part of the patrone chamber (not shown).

Further, the orientation of each sensor will be described. The posture detection sensor 20 is arranged with the surface A of the sensor facing left in front of the camera and the surface B facing downward. In addition, the posture detection sensor 21 is arranged with the surface A of the sensor facing the right side of the front of the camera and the surface B facing downward.

The attitude detection sensor 22 is a sensor A
The surface is arranged below the camera, and the surface B is arranged toward the front of the camera. Further, the posture detection sensor 23 is disposed with the surface A of the sensor facing the front side of the camera and the surface B facing rightward when facing the front of the camera.

Next, the state of each sensor corresponding to each posture of the camera will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7A. As shown in FIG. 6A, when the camera is in the normal posture, the posture detection sensor 20 (S1 in FIG. 7) is “0”, the posture detection sensor 21 (S2 in FIG. 7) is “0”, and the posture detection sensor 22 (S3 in FIG. 7) is in the state of "1". The posture detection sensor 23 (S4 in FIG. 7) is in the above-mentioned indeterminate state.

As shown in FIG. 6B, when the camera is in the reverse posture, the posture detection sensor 20 is "0", the posture detection sensor 21 is "0", and the posture detection sensor 22 is "0". The posture detection sensor 23 is in an undefined state.

As shown in FIG. 6C, when the camera is in the lens-up position, the position detection sensors 20 and 21 are in an indeterminate state. The posture detection sensor 22 is "0", and the posture detection sensor 23 is "0".

As shown in FIG. 6D, when the camera is in the lens lower posture, the posture detection sensor 20 and the posture detection sensor 21 are in an indefinite state, the posture detection sensor 22 is "0", and the posture detection sensor 23 is "0". 1 ".

As shown in FIG. 6 (e), when the camera is in the grip posture (vertical posture), the posture detection sensor 20 is "0", the posture detection sensor 21 is "1", and the posture detection sensor 22 is indeterminate. The posture detection sensor 23 is in the state of “0”.

As shown in FIG. 6 (f), when the camera is in the grip lower posture (vertical posture), the posture detection sensor 20 is "1", the posture detection sensor 21 is "0", and the posture detection sensor 22 is undefined. The posture detection sensor 23 is in the state of “0”.

Here, the four attitude detection sensors 20 to 23
There should be 16 combinations of states, but only 12 states are shown in the above description. Hereinafter, four combinations of states of the posture detection sensor, which are not described, will be described with reference to FIG.

1. The state of the posture detection sensors 20 to 23 is
In the case of "1", "1", "1", "0" in this order: the possibility that both the posture detection sensor 20 and the posture detection sensor 21 become "1" depends on whether the camera is in the upper lens position or the lower lens position. This is the case of the posture. However, in these two postures, the posture detection sensor 22 is always in the state of “0”.
In other words, the combination of the posture detection sensors as described above cannot be normal, and when such a combination occurs, it is considered that there is an abnormality in the posture detection sensors 20 to 23 or the posture detection sensor drive circuit.

2. The state of the posture detection sensors 20 to 23 is
In the case of "1", "0", "1", "1" in this order: the combination of such states may occur when the camera is in the normal posture, the posture under the lens, and the posture under the grip. When the first slope 24c in the attitude detection sensor 20, the first slope 24c in the attitude detection sensor 22, and the second slope 24d in the attitude detection sensor 23 are all in an undefined state in which they are almost horizontal. is there.

3. The state of the posture detection sensors 20 to 23 is
In the case of "0", "1", "1", "1" in this order: the combination of such states may occur when the camera is positioned between the normal posture, the lower lens posture, and the upper grip position. The first slope 24c in the posture detection sensor 21;
This is when both the first slope 24c in the attitude detection sensor 22 and the first slope 24c in the attitude detection sensor 23 are in an indeterminate state in which both are substantially horizontal. 4. The states of the posture detection sensors 20 to 23 are “1”,
For “1”, “1”, “1”: For the same reason as described above, such a combination of posture detection sensors is not possible, and if such a combination of states occurs, it is considered that there is an abnormality in the posture detection sensors 20 to 23 or the posture detection sensor drive circuit. Can be

Next, the operation of the camera of this embodiment (mainly the operation of the microcomputer 1) will be described with reference to FIG. The operation starts in step S1, and proceeds to step S2.

In step S2, the external liquid crystal display device 13
It is determined whether the lighting device 14 that illuminates is illuminating or not illuminating. At this point, if it is determined that lighting is being performed, the process proceeds to step S4, and if it is determined that lighting is not being performed, the process proceeds to step S3.

In step S3, the lighting device 14 is turned ON / OFF.
It is determined whether the switch SW4 to be turned off has been operated. Here, when it is determined that the switch SW4 has been operated, the process proceeds to step S5, and when it is determined that the switch SW4 has not been operated, the process proceeds to step S14, and the flow ends as it is.

In step S4, it is determined whether the switch SW4 has been operated. Here, when it is determined that the switch SW4 has been operated, the process proceeds to step S12, and when it is determined that the switch SW4 has not been operated, the process proceeds to step S13.

In step S5, the driving of the lighting device 14 is turned on by communicating with the liquid crystal display circuit 3.

In step S6, the timer t is reset and the timer t is started.

In step S7, it is determined whether or not the lighting time of the external display is set to be fixed by the above-described custom setting. Here, when it is determined that the lighting time is set to be fixed, the process proceeds to step S9, and otherwise, the process proceeds to step S8.

In step S8, the four posture detection sensors 2
The states of 0 to 23 are checked, and when it is determined that the camera body 15 is in the normal posture, the process proceeds to step S9, and when it is determined that the camera body 15 is not in the normal posture, the process proceeds to step S10.
Specifically, the states of the posture detection sensors 20 to 23 are “0”, “0”, “1”,
When it is detected that the camera is “0” or “0”, “0”, “1”, “1”, it is determined that the camera is in the normal posture, and the process proceeds to step S9. )
te is set to a first time (for example, 6 seconds). If another state is detected, the process proceeds to step S10, and the display illumination end timer te is set to a second time (for example, 10 seconds) longer than the first time.

At this time, as shown in FIG. 7B, “1”, “1”, “1”, “0”
Alternatively, when an abnormal combination of states of the posture detection sensors such as “1”, “1”, “1”, and “1” is detected, the process proceeds to step S10, and the display illumination end timer is lengthened for safety. To do it.

In step S11, the timer t is compared with the display illumination end timer te. If t ≧ te, the process proceeds to step S12. If not, the process proceeds to step S14.

In step S12, communication with the liquid crystal display circuit 3 is performed to turn off (turn off) the driving of the illumination device 14, reset the timer t, and end the flow (step S14).

In step S13, SW1 to SW3, S
It is checked whether or not an operation switch of the camera such as W5 has been operated. If it is determined that the operation switch has been operated, the process proceeds to step S6.

As described above, in this embodiment, when the posture of the camera is the normal posture, the illumination of the external liquid crystal display device 13 continues for the first time from the predetermined operation, and the other postures In the case of, the illumination of the external liquid crystal display device 13 continues for a second time (> first time) from the predetermined operation. For this reason, according to the present embodiment, in a camera posture other than the normal posture in which the confirmation of the display content by the external liquid crystal display device 13 takes a relatively long time, the photographer can surely confirm the display content even in the dark. In a normal posture in which the display contents can be checked in a short time, the lighting can be turned off in a short time to prevent useless consumption of the battery.

In this embodiment, the case where the liquid crystal display device is used as the external display means has been described. However, the present invention can be applied to the case where any external display means such as a dial index and a mechanical counter is used. it can.

Further, in the present embodiment, a case has been described where two types of illumination durations are set when the camera is in the normal attitude and when the camera is in other attitudes. Any appropriate combination can be taken according to the configuration of the detection sensor, the position and the configuration of the display device, and the like.

(Second Embodiment) FIG. 9 shows an electric circuit of a camera according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Note that the optical configuration of the camera of this embodiment and the method of detecting the attitude are the same as those of the first embodiment, and therefore, in the description of this embodiment, the same reference numerals are used as in the first embodiment. Also, among the electric circuits of the camera of the present embodiment, the same components as those of the electric circuit described in the first embodiment will
The same reference numerals are given as in the embodiment.

The first embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that a sub electronic dial 31 is provided in addition to the electronic dial (main electronic dial) 11 and a focus detection area selecting SW 6 connected to the switch sense circuit 4 is provided. Different from form.

In the electric circuit of this embodiment, SW1 is O
When N, the microcomputer 1 starts a photographing preparation operation (photometry / focus detection / display) and starts a photometry timer. During the photometry timer, exposure information and the like are displayed on the display in the viewfinder and on the external display, and operations such as exposure correction and program shift can be performed. Further, in the present embodiment, when the program is set as a mode by the mode change switch SW3 and the main electronic dial 11, if the main electronic dial 11 is rotated during the photometry timer, the combination of the AV value and the TV value is changed. A changing program shift can be performed.

SW6 (first operation member) is a focus detection area selection switch for selecting a focus detection area for focusing from among the plurality of focus detection areas described in the first embodiment.
It is turned on by pressing the focus detection area selection button 32 shown in FIG. And, when SW6 is ON or O
By rotating the main electronic dial (second operation member) 11 within a predetermined time after N, the focus detection area for focusing from the plurality of focus detection areas is moved in the lateral direction,
You can choose.

When the manual operation is set as the mode by the mode change switch SW3 and the main electronic dial 11, when the sub electronic dial 31 is rotated, an arbitrary AV value of the photographer can be set.

Also, in the case where an automatic exposure mode such as AV priority or TV priority is set as a mode by the mode change switch SW3 and the main electronic dial 11, when the sub electronic dial 31 is rotated during the photometric timer. For example, an arbitrary exposure correction value of the photographer can be set.

Further, when the automatic exposure mode such as the AV priority or the TV priority is set as the mode by the mode change switch SW3 and the main electronic dial 11 and is not in the above-mentioned photometry timer, the exposure correction is carelessly performed. To prevent the value from changing, the exposure correction value does not change even if the sub electronic dial 31 is rotated.

By rotating the sub electronic dial (second operation member) 31 during or within a predetermined time after the switch SW6 is turned on, the focus detection area for focusing from the plurality of focus detection areas is shifted in the vertical direction. Can be moved to and selected.

Further, the custom setting switch SW5 in the present embodiment is different from the function described in the first embodiment in that
It has a function to set whether the duration of the photometry timer is automatically changed or fixed.

The camera according to the present embodiment is also provided with four attitude detection sensors for detecting the attitude of the camera body 15. The configuration, operation and attitude detection method based on these sensors are described in the first embodiment. This is the same as the camera of the first embodiment.

Next, the operation of the camera of this embodiment (mainly the operation of the microcomputer) will be described with reference to FIG. The operation starts in step S51, and proceeds to step S52.

In step S52, it is determined whether the photometry timer is running or not. Here, if it is determined at this point that the photometry timer is being executed, the process proceeds to step S62.
The process proceeds to step S53 if it is determined that the photometry timer is not in progress.

At step S53, it is determined whether or not the switch SW1 has been operated. Here, the switch SW1
If it is determined that has been operated, the process proceeds to step S54,
If it is determined that the switch SW1 has not been operated, the process proceeds to step S63, and the flow ends.

In step S54, a photographing preparation operation such as photometry, focus detection, and display is started, and a photometry timer is started. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S55.

At step S55, the timer t is reset and the timer t is started. In step S56, it is determined whether or not the duration of the photometry timer is set to be fixed by the above-described custom setting. Here, if it is determined that the duration of the photometric timer is set to be fixed, the process proceeds to step S58; otherwise, the process proceeds to step S57.

In step S57, the state of the four attitude detection sensors 20 to 23 is checked.
If it is determined that 5 is not the normal posture, the process proceeds to step S59. Specifically, the state of the posture detection sensors 20 to 23 is
"0", "0", "1",
If it is detected that the camera is "0" or "0", "0", "1", or "1", it is determined that the camera is in the normal posture, and the process proceeds to step S58. Set to time (for example, 6 seconds). If another state is detected, the process proceeds to step S59, where the photometry timer duration te is set to a second time longer than the first time (for example, 10 seconds).
Seconds).

At this time, “1”, “1”, “1”, “0” or “1”,
If a combination of abnormal posture detection sensor states such as “1”, “1”, and “1” is detected, step S
Proceed to 60 to extend the photometric timer duration for safety.

In step S60, the timer t is compared with the photometry timer continuation time te. If t ≧ te, the flow proceeds to step S61, and if not, the flow proceeds to step S63.

In step S61, the photometric timer ends and the timer t is reset.

In step S62, it is checked whether or not the operation switches of the camera, such as SW1 to SW6, have been operated. If it is determined that the operation switches have been operated, the process proceeds to step S55. If it is determined that the switches have not been operated, the process proceeds to step S60.

As described above, in this embodiment, if the camera is in the normal posture, the photometry timer continues for the first time from the predetermined operation, and if the camera is in the other posture, The photometric timer continues for a second time (> first time) from a predetermined operation. Therefore, when the camera is in the normal posture in the state where the automatic exposure mode is set, the exposure correction can be performed by operating the sub electronic dial 31 for the first time after the switch SW1 is turned on. During the second time after the switch SW1 is turned on, the exposure correction can be performed by operating the sub electronic dial 31.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, in a camera posture other than the normal posture where operation of the sub electronic dial 31 takes a relatively long time, the sub electronic dial 31 is surely provided to the photographer.
(I.e., exposure compensation) can be performed, while in the normal posture in which the operation of the sub electronic dial 31 can be reliably performed in a short time, the operation of the sub electronic dial 31 is waited in a short time, and the display accompanying the operation is performed. Is terminated, and wasteful consumption of the battery can be prevented.

In the present embodiment, a case has been described where two types of photometry timer durations are set when the camera is in the normal orientation and when the camera is in other orientations. However, the combination of the camera orientation and the photometry timer duration is as follows. Any appropriate combination can be taken according to the configuration of the posture detection sensor, the position and the configuration of the second operation member, and the like.

Further, in the present embodiment, the case where the exposure compensation setting is changed by operating the sub electronic dial after the operation of the switch SW1 has been described. Accordingly, the present invention can be applied to all cases where various settings (focus detection areas and modes) are changed.

(Third Embodiment) FIG. 12 shows a camera according to a third embodiment of the present invention. Reference numeral 101 denotes a camera body, and reference numeral 102 denotes a lens barrel that holds a shooting lens 103. Reference numeral 104 denotes a main mirror, which is an oblique position (down) in the photographing optical path, reflects an incident light from the photographing lens 103 upward (a finder optical system and a photometric system), and retracts outside the photographing optical path ( Up) and swings between a photographing position where the vignetting of light entering the photosensitive member 111 from the photographing lens 103 does not occur.
A central portion of the main mirror 104 is formed by a half mirror, and a sub mirror 105 is rotatably mounted behind the half mirror.

The sub-mirror 105 reflects the light beam transmitted through the main mirror 104 at the observation position toward a focus detection device 112 provided below the camera body. When the main mirror 104 is moved up to the retracted position, the sub-mirror 105 rotates in the closing direction with respect to the main mirror 104 to prevent vignetting of light incident on the photosensitive member 111.

Reference numeral 106 denotes a penta roof prism, 107 denotes an eyepiece, 109 denotes a photometric lens for forming an image on the photometric sensor 108, and 110 denotes a shutter.

Numeral 111 denotes a photosensitive member, which is a silver halide film,
It is composed of a solid-state imaging device such as a CCD or MOS type or an imaging tube such as a vidicon.

In FIG. 17, reference numeral 117 denotes a release button, and reference numerals 120 to 123 denote posture detecting sensors (posture detecting means) for detecting the posture of the camera body 101.

In the camera constructed as described above, the main mirror 104 is urged downward (toward the retracted position) by a spring (not shown), and resists the urging force of the spring by a push-up member (not shown) during exposure. And set to the shooting position. The sub-mirror 105 is also urged by a spring (not shown) in a direction in which it is opened with respect to the main mirror 105. During exposure, the sub-mirror 105 is closed by a push-up member against the urging force of the spring. Set.

After the exposure with the main mirror 104 and the sub-mirror 105 at the retracted position is completed, the subject observation / reading operation is immediately performed as the next photographing preparation operation.
In order to perform photometry and focus detection, the main mirror 104 and the sub-mirror 105 are returned to the observation position by an exposure end signal. That is, by releasing the push-up member that pushes the main mirror 104 to the retracted position in response to the exposure end signal, the main mirror 104 is rotated downward by the urging force of the spring and set to the observation position, and the sub-mirror 105 Also the main mirror 1 by the biasing force of the spring
04 rotates in the opening direction. As a result, FIG.
The state before photographing as shown in (a) is obtained, and observation, photometry, and focus detection of the subject can be performed.

Next, the configuration of the electric circuit of the camera will be described. In FIG. 13, a microcomputer (C
PU) 180, an attitude detection sensor drive circuit 196,
The photometry circuit 153, the automatic focus detection circuit 154, and the motor drive circuits 190 and 191 for driving the motor 1 (181) for charging the shutter and the like and the motor 2 (182) for feeding the film are connected. . Also, the first
The coil of the tensioning magnet 183 is energized to release the locking of a lever (not shown) that flips up the main mirror 104, and the tensioning magnet drive circuit 192 for raising the main mirror 104, the shutter drive circuit 193, and photographing. Lens drive circuit 1 for driving focus adjustment of lens 103
94 and an aperture drive circuit 195 are connected.

A switch A (151) is a photometric switch that is turned on by the first stroke operation (half-press operation) of the release button 117 shown in FIG. 14 to start photometric and focus detection operations. The switch B (152) is turned on by the second stroke operation (full press operation) of the release button 117.
Release switch.

In such an operation sequence of the camera, the main mirror 104 is output after the exposure end signal is output.
Is stably set at the observation position, and the sub-mirror 10
The time until 5 is in a stable open state (that is, the time until the main mirror 104 and the sub-mirror 105 are driven by the spring and the bounce stops and stops: this is hereinafter referred to as a mirror stabilization time) depends on the camera posture. Change. Main mirror 104 and sub mirror 10
5 have their own weights, and the relationship between the biasing direction of the springs that drive them and the direction of their own weight (the direction in which gravity is applied) changes depending on the camera attitude, so that the mirrors are driven and bounced at different times. This is because it has an effect.

FIG. 14 shows a detailed movement when the main mirror 104 moves from the photographing position to the observation position after the exposure end signal is output. FIG. FIG. 14B shows the movement when the camera is in the normal posture in which the photographing lens 10 is upward.
FIG. 14 shows the movement when the lens 3 is in the downward lens position.
(C) shows the movement when the penta roof prism 406 is in the reverse posture in which it faces downward.

In each posture, the photographing position (in the figure, “U
P), the main mirror 104 (and the sub-mirror 105) starts to move down to the observation position (“D” in the figure).
OWN ”), the main mirror 10 is
4 bounces several times, the bounce subsides, and eventually stops. Photometry and focus detection become possible only in this stationary state. The time from the start of driving of the main mirror 104 to the standstill, that is, the mirror stabilization times ta, tb, and tc can be experimentally obtained. Here, the mirror stabilization time tb when the lens is in the lower position shown in FIG. 7B and the mirror stabilization time t when the mirror is in the reverse position shown in FIG.
Although c is almost the same, it is much longer than the mirror stabilization time ta in the normal posture shown in FIG. Although not shown in FIG. 14, the mirror stabilization time in the vertical position as shown in FIGS. 18 (e) and 18 (f) and the vertical position as shown in FIGS. Experimental data that is almost the same as the mirror stabilization time ta has been obtained.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, the camera posture is divided into two posture groups based on the above-mentioned experimental data of the mirror stabilization time, and two mirror stabilization timers corresponding to each of these two posture groups are set.

Specifically, the normal posture (FIG. 14A or FIG.
8 (a), the above-lens posture (the posture shown in FIG. 18 (c)) and the vertical posture (the posture shown in FIGS. 7 (e) and 7 (f)) as the posture A group, and the mirror stability timer T1 ( For example, 50 msec) is set. In addition, the lens lower posture (the posture shown in FIGS. 14B and 18D) and the reverse posture (the posture shown in FIGS. 14C and 17B) are posture B.
As a group, a mirror stabilization timer T2 (for example, 80 msec) longer than T1 is set.

In the present embodiment, the start timing of the photometry and focus detection is determined based on one of the two timers according to the detection posture of the camera, and photographing is performed.

Next, a method of detecting the attitude of the camera body 101 using the attitude detection sensors 120 to 123 will be described. First, FIG. 15 shows the posture detection sensors 120 to 123.
Is shown. 15A is a plan view of the attitude detection sensor, FIG. 15B is a cross-sectional view taken along line CC in FIG. 15A, and FIG. 15C is a line DD in FIG. It is sectional drawing along the line.

Reference numeral 124 denotes a sensor main body formed of resin. A groove 124a is formed in the sensor main body 124, and a steel ball 125 is disposed in the groove 124a. The steel ball 125 can freely roll in the groove 124a.

The groove 124a has a uniform width slightly larger than the diameter of the steel ball 125 when viewed from the section DD as shown in FIG. 15C. Also,
The groove portion 124a has a first slope 124 in the cross section CC.
c and a second inclined surface 124d. The light emitting window 124e of the photodiode 126 and the phototransistor 127 are located near the apex 124b of the V character.
124f are formed to face each other. Groove 12
The angle θ of the V-shaped portion 4a is about 90 °. Sensor body 1
24, a lid 128 is adhered to the groove 12
A steel ball 125 is sealed in 4a.

In this description, to explain the direction of the attitude detection sensor, the lower surface of this attitude detection sensor in FIG. 15B is referred to as an A surface, and the lower surface of FIG. The surface is referred to as surface B.

Next, the operation of the posture detection sensors 120 to 123 will be described with reference to FIG. Note that FIG.
16A shows a state in which the B surface of the posture detection sensor is facing down, and FIG. 16B shows a state in which the A surface of the posture detection sensor is facing down.

When the posture detection sensor is in the state shown in FIG. 16A, the steel ball 125 rolls down in the groove 124a in the figure by gravity. Therefore, the light emitting window 124e of the photodiode 126 and the light receiving window 1 of the phototransistor 127 are provided.
The optical path between 24f is not blocked by the steel ball 125.

On the other hand, when the posture detecting sensor is in the state shown in FIG. 16B, the steel ball 125 rolls in the groove 124a in the downward direction in the figure, that is, in the direction of the vertex 124b by gravity. For this reason, the light emitting window 124 of the photodiode 126
The optical path between e and the light receiving window 124f of the phototransistor 127 is blocked by the steel ball 125. Generally, when the apex portion 124b is at the lowest position in the groove portion 124a, the steel ball 125 rolls near the apex portion 124b, and a gap between the light emitting window 124e of the photodiode 126 and the light receiving window 124f of the phototransistor 127 is formed. It will block the light path.

Hereinafter, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 16B, the steel ball 125 is located near the apex 124b.
A state in which the optical path between the photodiode 126 and the phototransistor 127 is blocked is referred to as “1”. Also, as shown in FIG. 16A, a state where the steel ball 125 is not located near the apex portion 124b and does not block the optical path between the photodiode 26 and the phototransistor 127 is referred to as “0”.

Photodiode 12 in attitude detection sensor
6 and the phototransistor 127 are connected to the attitude detection circuit 107.
It is driven by a posture detection sensor driving circuit in the inside. The microcomputer 101 controls the photodiode 126 and the phototransistor 127 through the attitude detection sensor drive circuit, detects the output of the phototransistor 127, and sets the attitude detection sensor to “0” based on the detection output.
It is determined whether the state is “1” or “1”.

Actually, since the steel ball 25 has rolling resistance, when the first slope 124c is at a position lower than the second slope 124d and is substantially horizontal, the second slope 124d is When the first slope 124c and the second slope 124d are substantially horizontal when located at a position lower than the first slope 124c, or when the first slope 124c and the second slope 124d are both substantially horizontal, the steel ball 125 is positioned near the apex 124b. There is a case where it is located and a case where it is not located. That is, the posture detection sensor is in an indefinite state in which it is not known whether the state is “0” or “1”.

Next, the arrangement of the posture detecting sensors 120 to 23 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 17 (a)
FIG. 17B is a view of the arrangement of the posture detection sensors as viewed from the front of the camera, and FIG. 17B is an enlarged view of a portion E in FIG. FIG. 17C is an enlarged view of a portion F in FIG.

When viewed from the front of the camera body 101, the posture detection sensor 120 is disposed at the lower left with respect to the photographing optical axis, and the posture detection sensor 121 is disposed below the shutter driving mechanism (not shown). The posture detection sensor 122 is disposed on the upper right side with respect to the photographing optical axis, and the posture detection sensor 123 is disposed above the patrone chamber (not shown).

Further, the orientation of each sensor will be described. The posture detection sensor 120 is arranged with the surface A of the sensor facing left in front of the camera and the surface B facing downward. In addition, the posture detection sensor 121 is disposed with the surface A of the sensor facing the right side of the front of the camera and the surface B facing downward.

The posture detecting sensor 122 is arranged with the surface A of the sensor facing the lower side of the camera and the surface B facing the front side of the camera. Further, the posture detection sensor 123 is arranged with the surface A of the sensor facing the front side of the camera and the surface B facing rightward when facing the front of the camera.

Next, the state of each sensor corresponding to each posture of the camera will be described with reference to FIG. 18 and FIG. As shown in FIG. 18A, when the camera is in the normal posture, the posture detection sensor 120 (S1 in FIG. 19) is “0”, the posture detection sensor 121 (S2 in FIG. 19) is “0”, and the posture detection sensor 122 (S3 in FIG. 19) is in the state of "1". The posture detection sensor 123 (S4 in FIG. 19) is in the undefined state.

As shown in FIG. 18B, when the camera is in the reverse posture, the posture detection sensor 120 is "0", the posture detection sensor 121 is "0", and the posture detection sensor 122 is "0". The posture detection sensor 123 is in an indeterminate state.

As shown in FIG. When the camera is in the on-lens posture, the posture detection sensor 120 and the posture detection sensor 121 are in an indeterminate state. Attitude detection sensor 1
22 is “0”, and the posture detection sensor 123 is “0”.

As shown in FIG. 18D, when the camera is in the lens-down position, the position detection sensor 120 and the position detection sensor 121 are in an indefinite state, and the position detection sensor 1
22 is “0”, and the posture detection sensor 23 is “1”.

As shown in FIG. 18 (e), when the camera is in the grip-up posture (vertical posture), the posture detection sensor 12
0 is “0”, the posture detection sensor 121 is “1”, the posture detection sensor 122 is indefinite, and the posture detection sensor 123 is “0”.

As shown in FIG. 18 (f), when the camera is in the grip lower posture (vertical posture), the posture detection sensor 12
0 is “1”, the posture detection sensor 121 is “0”, the posture detection sensor 122 is indefinite, and the posture detection sensor 123 is “0”.

Here, the four attitude detection sensors 120-1
There should be 16 combinations of 23 states,
In the above description, only 12 states are shown. Hereinafter, four combinations of states of the posture detection sensor, which are not described, will be described with reference to FIG.

[0158] 1. When the states of the posture detection sensors 120 to 123 are “1”, “1”, “1”, and “0” in this order: there is a possibility that both the posture detection sensor 120 and the posture detection sensor 121 become “1”. Is the case where the camera is in the lens up position or the lens down position. However, in these two postures, the posture detection sensor 122 is always in the state of “0”. That is, the combination of the posture detection sensors as described above cannot be normal, and when such a combination occurs, it is considered that there is an abnormality in the posture detection sensors 120 to 123, the posture detection sensor drive circuit, and the like.

[0159] 2. When the states of the posture detection sensors 120 to 123 are “1”, “0”, “1”, and “1” in this order: a combination of such states may occur because the camera is in the normal posture and the lens The first slope 124 in the posture detection sensor 120 is a posture between the lower posture and the grip lower posture.
c, when the first slope 124c in the attitude detection sensor 122 and the second slope 124d in the attitude detection sensor 123 are both in an indeterminate state in which they are almost horizontal.

[0160] 3. When the states of the posture detection sensors 120 to 123 are “0”, “1”, “1”, and “1” in this order: a combination of such states may occur because the camera is in a normal posture and a lens. The first slope 1 in the posture detection sensor 121 is a posture between the lower posture and the grip upper posture position.
24c, first slope 124c in attitude detection sensor 122
And the first slope 124c in the attitude detection sensor 123 is in an undefined state in which both are substantially horizontal.

4. When the states of the posture detection sensors 120 to 123 are “1”, “1”, “1”, and “1” in order:
For the same reason as above, such a combination of posture detection sensors is not possible, and if such a combination of states occurs, it is considered that there is an abnormality in the posture detection sensors 120 to 123 or the posture detection sensor drive circuit. Can be

Next, the high-speed shooting operation of the camera configured as described above will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 20 and the timing chart of FIG.

First, when the power of the camera (not shown) is turned on, it is determined whether the shooting mode is the high-speed shooting mode or the low-speed shooting mode (# 101). Then, release button 117
Is half-pressed and the switch A151 is turned on (# 10
2), the CPU 180 detects this, starts the operation of the photometric circuit 153, and performs photometric calculation from the output (# 1)
03). At the same time, the operation of the focus detection circuit 154 is started, and focus detection calculation is performed from the output (# 10).
4) The operation of the lens drive circuit 155 for adjusting the focus of the lens is started based on the calculation result, and the lens is driven (# 105).

Next, when the release button 17 is fully pressed and the switch B52 is turned on (# 106), the CPU 180
Detects this, confirms the end of charging by a signal from the charge signal generating circuit 160 (# 107), and then energizes the coil of the first tensioning magnet 183 to jump up the main mirror 104 (not shown). Is released (# 108). As a result, the main mirror 104 is moved up to retract to the shooting position. At the same time, the lens stop 156 is operated to a predetermined aperture diameter to stop down the lens (# 109).

When the mirror up switch 157 for detecting completion of the up operation of the main mirror 104 is turned on (# 1)
10), the end of the film feeding is confirmed by the signal from the film feeding signal generating circuit 161 (# 111). When the operation of the lens aperture 156 and the operation of the lens driving circuit 155 are completed, the shutter 10 is operated (open / close). Operation) to expose the film (photosensitive member) 111 (# 11).
2).

When the exposure end signal is output from the exposure end signal generation circuit 59 upon the end of the operation of the shutter 110 (# 113), the motor 1 (181) is operated to perform the charging operation of the shutter and the like (# 114). ),
The motor 2 (182) is operated to feed the film (# 115).

Further, in order to lower the main mirror 104 at the same time, a member (not shown) pushing the mirror 104 to the up position is released, and the main mirror 10 is moved.
4 is started (# 116). The aperture 156 of the lens is also returned to the open state (# 117), and the timer count for the mirror stabilization timer is started (# 118).

Next, the posture of the camera body 101 is detected by the posture detection sensors 120 to 123 (# 119), and a set posture group (posture group A / posture B group) is selected according to the detected posture. (# 120). Here, in the case of the posture A group, the mirror stabilization timer is set to T1 (50 ms) (# 121). In the case of the posture B group, the mirror stabilization timer is set to T2 (80 ms) (# 12
2).

When the mirror stabilization timer has elapsed (# 12)
3) It is determined whether or not the switch A151 continues to be ON (# 102). If the switch A151 has continued, the continuous shooting is repeated as the continuous shooting, and the number of continuously shot frames is advanced.

As described above, in the present embodiment, when the posture of the camera changes from the posture A group to the posture B group during high-speed shooting, the mirror stabilization timer is changed from T1 to T2. When the group changes to the posture A group, the mirror stabilization timer is changed from T2 to T1. As a result, the mirror stabilization timer is set according to the camera posture, and the fastest high-speed shooting is possible in each posture.

Further, in this embodiment, the detection of the camera posture for selecting the mirror stabilization timer is performed after the end of the previous shooting operation and before the next shooting preparation operation, that is, the start of the next shooting preparation operation. Since the adjustment is performed immediately before the selection of the mirror stabilization timer for determining the timing, even if the posture of the camera changes during the photographing operation, the optimal mirror stabilization timer is selected.

Next, the low-speed photographing operation will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 22 and the timing chart of FIG.

First, if the photographing mode determined in # 101 is the low-speed photographing mode, this routine is entered (# 151). Then, release button 11
7 is half-pressed and the switch A151 is turned on (# 5
2), the CPU 180 detects this, starts the operation of the photometric circuit 153, and performs photometric calculation from the output (# 1)
53). At the same time, the operation of the focus detection circuit 154 is started, and focus detection calculation is performed from the same output (# 15).
4). Then, based on the calculation result, the operation of the lens drive circuit 155 for adjusting the focus of the lens is started,
The lens is driven (# 155).

Next, when the release button 117 is fully pressed and the switch B152 is turned on (# 156), the CPU
180 detects this and receives a signal from the charge signal generation circuit 60 to confirm the end of charging (# 15).
7), energize the coil of the first tensioning magnet 183,
The locking operation of the lever (not shown) for flipping up the main mirror 104 is released, and the up operation of the main mirror 104 is started (# 158).

At the same time, when it is confirmed that the lens drive started in # 155 has been completed (# 159), the lens aperture 156 is operated to a predetermined aperture diameter to stop down the lens (# 160).

When both the ON signal of the mirror-up switch 157 for detecting the completion of the up-operation of the main mirror 104 and the end of driving of the lens aperture are confirmed (# 16)
1) The shutter 110 is operated (open / close operation) to expose the film 111 (# 162).

When the exposure completion signal is output from the exposure completion signal generating circuit 59 by the completion of the operation of the shutter 110 (# 163), the motor 1 (181) is operated to start the charging operation of the shutter and the like (# 164). ). Thereafter, when it is confirmed that the charging operation of the shutter and the like has been completed (# 165), the motor 2 (182) is operated to feed the film (# 166).

In order to lower the main mirror 114, a member (not shown) pushing the mirror 104 to the up position is released, and the lowering of the main mirror 104 is started (# 167). Also, the lens aperture 15
6 is also returned to the open state (# 168), and the timer count for the mirror stabilization timer is started (# 16).
9).

In the low-speed shooting mode, the operations of driving the lens (# 155), stopping down the lens (# 160), charging (# 164), and feeding the film (# 166) are not performed simultaneously.

On the other hand, at the same time as the start of the charging operation of # 164, in order to lower the main mirror 104, a member (not shown) pushing the mirror 104 to the up position is released, and the lowering of the main mirror 104 is started. (# 167). The aperture 156 of the lens is also returned to the open state (# 168), and the counting of the mirror stabilization timer is started (# 169).

Next, a mirror stabilization timer is set. Here, the posture detection sensor 12 of the camera body 101 is set.
No posture detection is performed by 0 to 123, and the mirror stability timer is set to T2 (80 ms) in any posture (# 170).

Then, after the mirror stabilization timer has elapsed (# 171), if the switch A151 is kept ON, the continuous shooting is repeated and the number of continuously shot frames is advanced as continuous shooting.

As described above, in the present embodiment, even if the posture of the camera changes between the posture group A and the posture B group during the low-speed shooting, at least the posture detection for selecting the mirror stabilization timer is not performed. Always set the mirror stabilization timer to long T
Set to 2. After that, the photographing preparation operation is performed to photograph the next frame.

Here, as can be seen from the time chart of FIG. 23, in low-speed shooting, there is no change in the frame speed even if the mirror stabilization timer is constant regardless of the camera attitude. Therefore, in a shooting condition in which a change in the attitude of the camera does not affect the frame speed, such as continuous low-speed shooting, it is not necessary to drive the attitude detection sensors 120 to 123 or operate the CPU 180 for the attitude detection. Thus, wasteful consumption of the battery can be prevented.

(Fourth Embodiment) FIG. 24 is a flowchart of a continuous shooting operation in a camera according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 25 is a timing chart of the continuous shooting operation. Note that the optical configuration of the camera of this embodiment, the configuration of the electric circuit, and the method of detecting the posture are described in
Since the third embodiment is the same as the third embodiment, the same reference numerals as those in the third embodiment are used in the description of the present embodiment.

In FIG. 24, when the power supply of a camera (not shown) is turned on, a continuous shooting counter for the number of frames for continuous shooting is set to 0 as an initial setting (ST201).

Subsequently, when the release button 117 is half-pressed to turn on the switch A151 (ST202), C
The PU 180 detects this, starts the operation of the photometric circuit 53, and performs photometric calculation from the output (ST203).
At the same time, the operation of the focus detection circuit 154 is started, and a focus detection calculation is performed from the output (ST204). Then, based on the calculation result, the operation of the lens drive circuit 155 for adjusting the focus of the lens is started to drive the lens (ST205).

Next, when the release button 17 is fully pressed and the switch B152 is turned on (ST206), the CPU
180 detects this and confirms the end of charging by a signal from the charge signal generating circuit 60 (ST20).
7), energize the coil of the first tensioning magnet 183,
The locking of a lever (not shown) for flipping up the main mirror 104 is released (ST208), and the main mirror 104 is moved up to the shooting position. At the same time, the lens stop 156 is operated to stop down to a predetermined aperture diameter (S
T209).

The mirror up switch 157 for detecting the completion of the up operation of the main mirror 104 is turned on (ST21).
0), the end of the film feeding is confirmed by a signal from the film feeding signal generating circuit 61 (ST211), and when the operation of the lens aperture 156 and the operation of the lens driving circuit 155 are confirmed, the shutter 210 is opened. By operating (opening / closing operation), the film (photosensitive member) 111 is exposed (ST212). When the operation of the shutter 210 is completed and an exposure end signal is received from the exposure end signal generation circuit 59 (ST213), the motor 1 (181) is operated to perform a charging operation of the shutter and the like (ST21).
4) Further, the motor 2 (182) is operated to feed the film (ST215).

At the same time, in order to lower the main mirror 104, a member (not shown) pushing the mirror 104 up to the up position is released to start down the main mirror 104 (ST16) and a timer for a mirror stabilization timer. Start counting. Further, at the same time, the aperture 156 of the lens is returned to the open state (ST21).
7).

Next, the continuous shooting counter is increased (S
T218). Thus, at the end of the exposure of the first frame of continuous shooting, the continuous shooting counter becomes 1.

Next, it is determined whether or not the continuous shooting counter is 1 (ST219). When the counter is 1, that is, for the first frame of the continuous shooting, the posture detecting hand sensors 120 to 123 detect the posture of the camera body 101. Is determined, and a set of postures (posture A group / posture B group) is selected according to the detected posture (ST220).

In the case of the posture A group, the mirror stabilization timer is set to T1 (50 ms) (ST221). Also,
In the posture B group, the mirror stabilization timer is set to T2 (80
ms) (ST222).

Then, when the mirror stabilization timer has elapsed (ST223), if the switch A151 has been kept ON, the operation of the photometric circuit 153 for the next photographing is started, and photometric calculation is performed from the same output (ST223). ST20
3). At the same time, the operation of the focus detection circuit 154 is started, and focus detection calculation is performed from the output (ST20).
4) Based on the calculation result, the operation of the lens driving circuit 155 for adjusting the focus of the lens is started to drive the lens (ST205).

Next, it is determined whether or not the switch B152 is ON (ST206). If the switch B152 is continuous, it is determined that continuous photographing is to be performed, and the end of charging is confirmed by a signal from the charge signal generation circuit 60. (ST20
7), energize the coil of the first tensioning magnet 183,
The main mirror 104 is moved up (ST20)
8). At the same time, the lens stop 156 is operated to stop down to a predetermined aperture diameter (ST209).

The mirror up switch 157 for detecting completion of the up operation of the main mirror 104 is turned on (ST21).
0), the end of the film feeding is confirmed by a signal from the film feeding signal generating circuit 61 (ST211), and when the operation of the lens aperture 156 and the operation of the lens driving circuit 155 are completed, the shutter 110 is operated (opening / closing operation). Then, the film 111 is exposed for the second time (ST21).
2).

When the operation of the shutter 110 is completed and an exposure completion signal is output from the exposure completion signal generating circuit 159 (ST213), the motor 1 (181) is operated to perform a charging operation of the shutter and the like (ST213). ST21
4) The film is fed by operating the motor 2 (182) (ST215).

At the same time, in order to lower the main mirror 104, a member (not shown) pushing the mirror 104 up to the up position is released to start the down operation of the main mirror 104, and the timer count for the mirror stabilization timer is increased. It starts (ST216). further,
The lens aperture 156 is also returned to the open state (ST21).
7).

Here, the continuous shooting counter is raised again (S
T218) Then, it is determined whether or not the continuous shooting counter is 1 (ST219). If it is not 1, that is, in the case of the second and subsequent frames, the set value of the mirror stabilization timer at the time of photographing the previous frame is checked (ST224). If T1 is set, the posture detection is performed in ST220 as in the previous frame. Go and reset the mirror stabilization timer. On the other hand, when T2 is set, the mirror stability timer is maintained at T2 without performing the posture detection.

Thereafter, the switch A 151 and the switch B
If 152 is continuously ON, as continuous shooting,
In the same manner, repeated shooting is performed to advance the number of continuous shooting frames.

When the switch B152 is turned off (ST206), it is determined that the continuous shooting has been interrupted, and ST2 is determined.
Returning to 01, the continuous shooting counter is set to 0 as an initial setting. When the switch B152 is turned on again,
As described above, continuous shooting is performed from the first frame.

As described above, in this embodiment, when the posture of the camera changes during the continuous shooting operation, when the posture changes from the group of postures A to the group of posture B, the mirror stabilization timer is changed from T1 to T2. In this case, the mirror stabilization timer is maintained at T2. For this reason, even if the attitude of the camera changes from the attitude B group to the A group during continuous shooting, it is possible to prevent the frame speed from being carelessly changed. Therefore, especially when the camera is held near the switching between the positions where the continuous shooting frame speed of the camera changes (for example, the normal position and the lens-down position),
Once switching to a slower frame speed, a slower frame speed that does not affect photometry and focus detection can be maintained.

Further, in the present embodiment, after the camera is in the posture of the posture group B during the continuous photographing operation, the posture is not detected. For this reason, it becomes unnecessary to drive the posture detection sensors 120 to 123 or operate the CPU 180 for posture detection, and it is possible to prevent unnecessary consumption of the battery.

In the third and fourth embodiments,
A case has been described in which various camera postures are classified into two posture groups and a mirror stability timer is set for each posture group. However, three or more posture groups are classified or a mirror stability timer is set for each camera posture. You may do so.

In the first to fourth embodiments, the case where the steel ball type attitude detecting means is used has been described. However, another type of attitude detecting means such as a mercury type may be used.

[0206]

As described above, in the first invention of the present application, the illumination duration of the external display means is set in accordance with the camera posture. (Posture, vertical posture, etc.), the display content can be surely confirmed by increasing the illumination duration time. Therefore, display confirmation can be reliably performed in any camera posture. On the other hand, in the case of a camera posture (normal posture or the like) in which display contents can be confirmed in a relatively short time, the illumination continuation time can be shortened to prevent wasteful battery consumption.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the operation waiting time of the second operation member after the operation of the first operation member is set according to the camera posture. In the case of (reverse posture, vertical posture, etc.), the operation waiting time is lengthened, and the operation of the second operation member can be reliably performed. Therefore, the operation can be reliably performed in any camera posture. On the other hand, when the camera is in a camera posture (normal posture or the like) in which the second operation member can be operated in a relatively short time, the operation waiting time can be shortened to prevent wasteful battery consumption in the operation waiting state. it can.

In the first and second aspects of the present invention, if the user can arbitrarily regulate the setting for changing the time corresponding to the camera posture, the battery consumption can be suppressed and the display visibility or operability can be improved. The user can freely select which of the enhancement and the priority is given.

Further, according to the third aspect of the present invention, since the detection of the posture of the camera is performed immediately before the setting of the start timing, the start timing of the photographing preparation operation corresponding to the posture of the camera can be reliably obtained. As a result, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the frame speed becomes slow or accurate photometry and focus detection cannot be performed.

In the third aspect of the present invention, if a mode in which the start timing according to the camera attitude is set and a mode in which the start timing is fixed to the predetermined start timing regardless of the camera attitude can be selected, the camera attitude can be changed. By setting the latter mode under shooting conditions that do not affect the shooting frame speed, the setting operation of the start timing based on the camera posture can be unnecessary or the posture detection operation itself can be unnecessary,
Useless consumption of the battery can be prevented.

Further, according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, when the camera posture changes from a normal posture in which the mirror stabilization time is early to another posture in which the mirror stabilization time is later during the continuous photographing, the start timing of the preparation operation is changed. Since the delay is delayed, the fastest continuous shooting operation suitable for the posture can be performed. on the other hand,
Since the start timing of the preparatory operation is not advanced even if the posture changes from another posture to the normal posture, the continuous photographing frame speed can be maintained constant, and it is possible to prevent the photographer from feeling uncomfortable.

[0212] In the fourth aspect of the present invention, after the detected posture becomes the other posture during the continuous photographing (the posture detection becomes unnecessary), the posture detecting means is deactivated, so that the battery is not operated. Wasteful consumption can be prevented.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an electric circuit configuration of a camera according to an embodiment of the first invention of the present application.

FIG. 2 is an external plan view of the camera.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration of a posture detection sensor used in the camera.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the attitude detection sensor.

FIG. 5 is a layout diagram of the attitude detection sensor.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of each posture of the camera.

FIG. 7 is a table showing the relationship between the posture of the camera and the state of a posture detection sensor.

FIG. 8 is an operation flowchart of the camera.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing a synchronous circuit configuration of a camera according to an embodiment (second embodiment) of the second invention of the present application.

FIG. 10 is an external plan view of the camera according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 11 is an operation flowchart of the camera according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 12 is an embodiment of the third invention of the present application (third embodiment);
FIG. 1 is an optical configuration diagram of a camera.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing an electric circuit configuration of the camera according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a relationship diagram between a posture and a mirror-down operation of the camera according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing a configuration of a posture detection sensor used in the camera of the third embodiment.

FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the posture detection sensor according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a layout diagram of a posture detection sensor according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 18 is an explanatory diagram of each posture of the camera according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 19 is a table showing the relationship between the posture of the camera and the state of a posture detection sensor according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 20 is an operation flowchart of the camera according to the third embodiment during high-speed shooting.

FIG. 21 is a timing chart of a high-speed shooting operation of the camera according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 22 is an operation flowchart of the camera according to the third embodiment during low-speed shooting.

FIG. 23 is an operation timing chart of the camera according to the third embodiment during low-speed shooting.

FIG. 24 is an embodiment of the fourth invention of the present application (fourth embodiment);
9 is an operation flowchart of the camera at the time of low-speed shooting.

FIG. 25 is an operation timing chart of the camera of the fourth embodiment.

FIG. 26 is a configuration diagram of a conventional camera.

FIG. 27 is an operation flowchart of a conventional camera.

FIG. 28 is a block diagram showing an electric circuit configuration of a conventional camera.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1,180 microcomputer (CPU) 2 lens control circuit 3 liquid crystal display circuit 4 switch sense circuit 5 strobe light emission dimming control circuit 6,154 focus detection circuit 7 attitude detection circuit 8,153 photometry circuit 9 shutter control circuit 10 feed motor Control circuit 11 (Main) electronic dial 12 Liquid crystal display device in viewfinder 13 External liquid crystal display device 14 Lighting device 15, 101 Camera body 16, 103 Lens 17, 117 Release button 18 Lighting button 19 Mode change button 20 to 23, 120 to 123 Attitude detection sensors 24, 124 Sensor main bodies 24a, 124a Grooves 24b, 124b Apex portions 24c, 124c First slope 24d, 124d Second slope 24e, 124e Projection window 24f, 124f Light reception window 25, 125 Steel ball 26, 126 Pho Photodiode 27,127 phototransistor 28,128 lid 30 custom setting button 31 sub electronic dial 32 focus detection area selection button 104 main mirror 105 sub mirror 106 penta roof prism 107 eyepiece lens 108 photometric sensor 109 photometric lens 110 shutter 111 film 112 focus detecting device

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Tsuyoshi Tokura 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Shoji Umihara 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Non-corporation (72) Inventor Shintaro Oshima 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Koji Tamura 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Yuji Nikaido 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo F-term in Canon Inc. (reference) 2H102 AA00 BA22 BA27 BB08 CA04 2H105 EE16

Claims (22)

[Claims] 1. A camera having external display means for displaying camera information, and illuminating means for illuminating the external display means, a posture detecting means for detecting a posture of a camera body, and a detection by the posture detecting means. A lighting time setting means for setting a lighting duration time of the lighting means according to a posture. 2. The camera according to claim 1, wherein the illumination time setting means sets a shorter illumination duration when the detected attitude is a normal attitude than when the detected attitude is another attitude. . 3. The illumination time setting means sets the illumination duration to a first time when the detected attitude is a normal attitude, and sets the illumination duration to the first time when the detected attitude is another attitude. The camera according to claim 2, wherein the second time is set to be longer than the second time. 4. The camera according to claim 1, further comprising a setting restricting unit that restricts an operation of setting an illumination continuation time of the illumination time setting unit. 5. A posture detector for detecting a posture of a camera body in a camera in which a predetermined setting is changed in response to an operation of a second operation member within a predetermined time after an operation of a first operation member. And a time setting means for setting the predetermined time in accordance with the posture detected by the posture detecting means. 6. The time setting means sets the predetermined time to a first time when the detected posture is the normal posture, and sets the predetermined time longer than the first time when the detected posture is another posture. The camera according to claim 5, wherein the second time is set. 7. The camera according to claim 5, wherein the predetermined setting is a setting related to exposure control. 8. The camera according to claim 7, wherein the predetermined setting is an exposure correction value setting. 9. The camera according to claim 5, wherein the predetermined setting is a setting relating to a shooting mode. 10. The setting according to claim 5, wherein the predetermined setting is a setting relating to selection of a focus detection area.
The camera according to. 11. The camera according to claim 5, further comprising a setting regulating unit for regulating an operation of setting the predetermined time by the time setting unit. 12. A movable mirror that enters into a photographing optical path during a photographing preparation operation and retracts outside the photographing optical path during a photographing operation.
In a camera having a posture detecting means for detecting the posture of the camera body and a timing setting means for setting a start timing of the next photographing preparation operation after the end of the previous photographing operation according to the detected posture by the posture detecting means, The camera, wherein the timing setting means detects the posture of the camera body by the posture detecting means after the end of the previous photographing operation and before the start of the next photographing preparation operation. 13. A first photographing mode in which a start timing according to a detected attitude is set by the timing setting means and a second photographing mode in which a predetermined start timing is set irrespective of the timing setting means. 13. The camera according to claim 12, further comprising a mode setting unit. 14. The timing setting means according to claim 2, wherein:
14. The camera according to claim 13, wherein when the photographing mode is set, the posture detecting unit is deactivated. 15. The camera according to claim 13, wherein the first shooting mode is a high-speed shooting mode, and the second shooting mode is a low-speed shooting mode. 16. The method according to claim 16, wherein the predetermined start timing is the first start timing.
16. The camera according to claim 13, wherein the start timing is later than the fastest start timing that can be set in the shooting mode. 17. A movable mirror that enters into a photographing optical path during a photographing preparation operation and retracts outside the photographing optical path during a photographing operation.
In a camera having a posture detecting means for detecting the posture of the camera body and a timing setting means for setting a start timing of the next photographing preparation operation after the end of the previous photographing operation according to the posture detected by the posture detecting means, The timing setting unit is configured to, when the posture detected by the posture detecting unit changes from the predetermined posture to another posture during continuous shooting, change the start timing from the start timing corresponding to the predetermined posture to the start corresponding to the other posture. Timing, and when the detected posture is the other posture, the start timing is maintained and set to the start timing corresponding to the other posture regardless of the posture of the camera body thereafter. . 18. The timing setting device according to claim 17, wherein the posture detecting device is disabled after the posture detected by the posture detecting device becomes the other posture during continuous photographing. The camera according to. 19. The camera according to claim 17, wherein a start timing corresponding to the other posture is later than a start timing corresponding to the predetermined posture. 20. The camera according to claim 17, wherein the predetermined posture is a normal posture. 21. The camera according to claim 12, wherein the photographing preparation operation is a photometry and a focus detection operation. 22. The movable mirror includes a first mirror that guides the photographing light to the photometric unit when entering the photographing optical path, and a second mirror that guides the photographing light to the focus detecting unit. The camera according to any one of claims 12 to 21, characterized in that: