Camera system

• US 4,992,820 A
• Filed: 10/13/1989
• Issued: 02/12/1991
• Est. Priority Date: 01/21/1985
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Minolta Camera Kabushiki Kaisha
• Original Assignee: Minolta Camera Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Tanijuchi, Nobuyuki, Yoshida, Tadahiro, Nakai, Masaaki, Omaki, Takanobu, Nakasa, Masayuki, Kikukawa, Yoshiiku, Kitaura, Mashio
• Primary Examiner(s): PERKEY, WILLIAM B
• Application Number:
  US07/421,619
• Time in Patent Office: 487 Days
• Field of Search: 354/410, 354/412, 354/442, 354/458, 354/217, 354/295, 354/173.1, 354/173.11
• US Class Current: 396/222
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 17/36 Counting number of exposures of film strips G03B1/66
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 7/093 for control of exposure time

Abstract

A camera system including a camera body and a camera accessory attachable to the camera body, such as an interchangeable back lid, an interchangeable lens, a flash device and so on, is disclosed. In the system, a plurality of circuits provided in plurality of camera accessories are controlled by a microcomputer provided in the camera body. Data is transmitted between the microcomputer and the circuits using a serial data bus and synchronizing clock line connected therebetween. The circuit to receive the data sent from the microcomputer, or the circuit which should send the data to the microcomputer are selected by the microcomputer through chip select lines provided between the microcomputer and each circuit.

Claims

1. A camera accessory attachable to a camera body, comprising:

means for receiving light measuring data which indicate a light measuring amount measured in the camera body;

means for setting a frame number to be photographed successively to produce a frame number signal indicating the set frame number;

means for setting a shifting amount of an exposure value between successive frames to produce a shifting amount signal indicating the set shifting amount;

means for counting a frame number which has been photographed to produce a count signal indicating the counted frame number;

means for calculating an exposure value used at a next photographing in accordance with the light measuring data, the frame number signal, the shifting amount signal and the count signal; and

means for transmitting the calculated exposure value towards the camera body in order to control the exposure amount in accordance with the calculated exposure value.

2. A camera accessory as claimed in claim 1, further comprising means for discriminating a switch provided for starting shutter release operation of the camera body when being operated, means for discriminating whether a remaining frame number reaches zero in accordance with the frame number signal and the count signal, and means for producing an interrupting signal in order to interrupt the shutter release operation of the camera body when the remaining frame number is discriminated to be zero while the switch is being operated.