Electronic imaging camera

• US 4,262,301 A
• Filed: 10/22/1979
• Issued: 04/14/1981
• Est. Priority Date: 03/30/1978
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Polaroid Corporation (PLR IP Holdings LLC)
• Original Assignee: Polaroid Corporation (PLR IP Holdings LLC)
• Inventors: Erlichman, Irving
• Primary Examiner(s): Konick, Bernard
• Assistant Examiner(s): McElheny, Jr., Donald
• Application Number:
  US06/086,656
• Time in Patent Office: 540 Days
• Field of Search: 358/4, 358/6, 358/76, 358/78, 358/127, 358/130, 358/229, 358/254, 358/296, 358/302, 358/303, 360/9, 360/10, 360/33, 360/35
• US Class Current: 386/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/0044 for image preview or review, e.g. to help the user position a sheet
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2112 using still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2137 with temporary storage before final recording, e.g. in a frame buffer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2154 the still video camera incorporating a hardcopy reproducing device, e.g. a printer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 Still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0077 Types of the still picture apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/00 Cameras or camera modules comprising electronic image sensors; Control thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/53 of electronic viewfinders, e.g. rotatable or detachable
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/63 by using electronic viewfinders
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/772 the recording apparatus and the television camera being placed in the same enclosure
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 358/906 Hand-held camera with recorder in a single unit

Abstract

A hand held, self-processing, electronic imaging camera for electronically recording an image of a scene, for providing a visual display of the recorded image on an electro-optical display device forming part of the camera such that the operator may audit or preview the recorded image and for printing out a hard copy print of the recorded image on a non-photosensitive image receiving sheet.

Claims

1. A hand held camera of a size and weight suitable to be held in the hand of an operator, said camera comprising:

a camera housing having a first and a second section;

a substantially planar electrically energizable electro-optical display device forming in part one wall of said first section;

means within one of said sections for receiving a battery;

means located within said first section in communicating relation with said second section for replaceably receiving at least one sheet of an image receiving material;

optical means, carried by said first section, for viewing, by an operator, a scene to be recorded and for focusing an image of the scene at a given plane, said optical means including an objective lens facing outwardly from a forward wall of said first section;

an electrically energizable photosensitive transducer, positioned within said first section at said given plane so as to have the optical image of the scene focused thereon by said objective lens, for converting the optical image into electronic image signals that represent the optical image in electronic data form;

electrically energizable means within said first section for receiving the electronic image signals representative of the optical image of the scene from said transducer and for storing the same;

an electrically energizable printer, within said second section, with which the sheet of image receiving material is adapted to be operatively associated and being responsive to the electronic image signals representative of the optical image of the scene applied thereto from said signal receiving and storing means for printing an image of the scene on the sheet of image receiving material; and

control means within said first section and including at least one manually actuatable actuator accessible from the exterior of said first section for coupling components of said camera to the battery to electrically energize said photosensitive transducer, said signal receiving and storing means and said electro-optical display device such that electronic image signals representative of the optical image of the scene are provided by said transducer to said signal receiving and storing means and are applied from said signal receiving and storing means to said electro-optical display device to provide thereon a visual display of the image viewable by the operator, said control means thereafter being selectively operable by the operator for electrically energizing the printer and applying the electronic image signals from said signal receiving and storing means to said printer to effect the printing of an image of the scene on the sheet of image receiving material by said printer.

2. The camera of claim 1 wherein said signal receiving and storing means is a planar structure;

said battery is a planar battery;

said display device is located in a rear wall of said housing; and

said signal receiving and storing means, said image receiving material receiving means and said battery receiving means are arranged in said first housing section between said forward wall and said display device in substantially parallel relation.

8. A camera as defined in claim 1 wherein said image receiving material replaceably receiving means includes means for receiving a cassette including a substantially thin box-like planar portion thereof holding a plurality of image receiving sheets and said means for replaceably receiving a magnetic tape cassette includes means for replaceably receiving a substantially thin planar magnetic tape cassette, and wherein said means for replaceably receiving the cassette of image receiving material and said means for replaceably receiving the magnetic tape cassette are arranged to respectively position the box-like planar portion of the cassette of image receiving material and the magnetic tape cassette in substantially parallel relation to each other and said display screen.

9. A camera as defined in claim 8 wherein said means for replaceably receiving the cassette of image receiving material is arranged to position the box-like planar portion of the cassette intermediate said display screen and the magnetic tape cassette.

10. The camera of claim 8 wherein said means for receiving a source of electrical power includes means for receiving a substantially thin planar battery with the battery positioned in substantially parallel relationship with the box-like portion of the cassette of image receiving material, the magnetic tape cassette and said display screen.

11. The camera of claim 10 wherein said means for replaceably receiving the cassette of image receiving material and said means for replaceably receiving the battery are arranged to position the box-like planar portion of the cassette of image receiving material and the battery intermediate said display screen and the magnetic tape cassette.

12. The camera as defined in claim 8 wherein a major portion of said printer is located below a relative thin peripheral portion of the box-like planar portion of the cassette of image receiving material.

13. The camera of claim 12 wherein said control means includes a substantially flat circuit box disposed within said housing on the opposite side of said box-like planar portion of the cassette of image receiving material from said major portion of said printer with its major surfaces disposed substantially perpendicular to the major surfaces of the box-like planar portion of the cassette of image receiving material.

3. A hand held camera comprising:

a camera housing having an upper section and a lower section, said upper section including oppositely spaced generally planar forward and rear walls, said rear wall being formed in part by a thin substantially planar electrically energizable electro-optical display device;

means within said upper section for receiving a source of electrical power;

means located within said upper section in communicating relation with said lower section for replaceably receiving at least one sheet of an image receiving material;

optical means, mounted on said upper section, for viewing, by an operator, a scene to be recorded and for focusing an image of the scene, said optical means including an objective lens facing outwardly from said forward wall;

an electrically energizable photosensitive transducer, positioned within said upper section to have an optical image of the scene focused thereon by said objective lens, for converting the optical image into electronic image signals that represent the optical image in electronic data form;

electrically energizable means within said upper section for receiving the electronic image signals representative of the optical image of the scene from said transducer and for storing the same;

an electrically energizable printer, within said lower section, with which the sheet of image receiving material is adapted to be operatively associated and being responsive to the electronic image signals representative of the optical image of the scene applied thereto from said signal receiving and storing means for printing an image of the scene on the sheet of image receiving material;

control means within said upper section and including at least one manually actuable actuator accessible from the exterior of said upper section for coupling components of said camera to the source of electrical power to electrically energize said photosensitive transducer, said signal receiving and storing means and said electro-optical display device such that electronic image signals representative of the optical image of the scene are provided by said transducer to said signal receiving and storing means and are applied from said signal receiving and storing means to said electro-optical display device to provide thereon a visual display of the image viewable by the operator, said control means thereafter being selectively operable by the operator for electrically energizing the printer and applying the electronic image signals from said signal receiving and storing means to said printer to effect the printing of an image of the scene on the sheet of image receiving material by said printer; and

said signal receiving and storing means, said image receiving material receiving means and said power source receiving means being arranged in said upper housing section between said forward wall and said display device in substantially parallel relation.

4. The camera of claim 3 wherein said housing includes means for defining an image receiving sheet exit slot therein adjacent said printer and said image receiving material receiving means includes means for receiving a plurality of image receiving sheets arranged in stacked relation and said printer includes means for sequentially advancing individual ones of the image receiving sheets from an initial position in the stack to a position wherein at least a portion extends through said image receiving sheet exit slot in said housing, said printer serving to print an image of a scene on each image receiving sheet so advanced thereby.

5. The camera of claim 3 further including means for separating the optical image of the scene focused by said objective lens into three primary color components, said photosensitive transducer being configured to convert the three primary color components of the optical image into three primary color electronic image signals and said printer being configured to be responsive to the three primary color electronic image signals for printing a full color image represented by the three primary color electronic image signals on the image receiving sheet.

6. The camera of claim 3 wherein said signal receiving and storing means includes a memory being operable such that electronic image signals are applied therefrom to said electro-optical display device on a repeating basis to effect the displaying of the image thereon, and a magnetic recording and playback device, having a magnetic recording medium operatively associated therewith, for recording electronic image signals on said recording medium for storage and for playing back the recorded electronic image signals and applying these signals to said printer to effect the printing of the image on the sheet of image receiving material.

7. The camera of claim 6 wherein said magnetic recording medium includes a magnetic tape housed in a magnetic tape cassette and said camera further includes means for replaceably receiving said magnetic tape cassette to locate said magnetic tape therein in operative association with said magnetic recording and playback device, said control means additionally including means for controlling the operation of said magnetic recording and playyback device whereby electronic image signals representative of optical images of a plurality of scenes may be sequentially recorded on said magnetic tape and thereafter sequentially played back to apply the recorded image signals to said memory which in turn provides these image signals to said electro-optical display device for displaying the images which these signals represent.