Exposure calculation device for a camera

• US 5,541,706 A
• Filed: 03/29/1995
• Issued: 07/30/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 10/22/1992
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Inventors: Goto, Tetsuro
• Primary Examiner(s): ADAMS JR, RUSSELL E
• Application Number:
  US08/413,172
• Time in Patent Office: 489 Days
• Field of Search: 354/432, 354/427, 354/428, 354/482, 354/483, 354/402, 348/363
• US Class Current: 396/231
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 7/091 Digital circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 7/09976 the sensor being mounted in, before, or behind the porro-prism
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 7/09979 Multi-zone light measuring
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/621 for the control of blooming
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/625 for the control of smear

Abstract

In an exposure calculation device for a camera including a photometric sensor which performs photometry on the light from an object to be photographed and outputs a photometric signal related to the brightness thereof and a calculation device which calculates an exposure value based upon the photometric signal, the calculation device calculates the exposure value based upon the value obtained by subtracting a compensation value signal from the photometric signal from the object to be photographed. This compensation value signal is the stored photometric signal obtained when a condition change-over device is in its condition to prevent light from an object to be photographed from reaching the photometric device, i.e. is the signal value due to the noise component or generated as a function of temperature.

Claims

1. An exposure calculation device for a camera comprising a photometric means which performs photometry on the light from an object to be photographed and outputs a photometric signal related to the brightness thereof and a calculation means which calculates an exposure value based at least upon said photometric signal output from said photometric means, said exposure calculation device further comprising:

a condition change-over means by which a permission condition in which it permits light from an object to be photographed to reach said photometric means and a prevention condition in which it prevents light from an object to be photographed from reaching said photometric means are switched over; and

;

a storage means which stores a first photometric signal which is output by said photometric means when change to said permission condition is performed by said condition change-over means and a second photometric signal which is output by said photometric means when change to said prevention condition is performed by said condition change-over means;

wherein,

said calculation means calculates said exposure value based upon the value obtained by subtracting said second photometric signal from said first photometric signal.

2. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 1, further comprising a temperature detection means which detects the temperature in the camera, and wherein said calculation means, when the temperature detected by said temperature detection means is less than a certain predetermined temperature, calculates said exposure value based upon said first photometric signal without subtracting said second photometric signal therefrom.

3. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 1, wherein change to said prevention condition is performed by said condition change-over means in response to the turning on of power to the camera, and at this time the photometric signal output by said photometric means is stored in said storage means as said second photometric signal.

4. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 1, wherein:

said camera is a single lens reflex type camera;

said photometric means is provided in a viewfinder of said camera;

said condition change-over means includes a main mirror which can be switched over between a mirror down position which permits light from an object to be photographed to reach said photometric means and a mirror up position which prevents light from an object to be photographed from reaching said photometric means; and

;

said storage means, when a photograph is being taken and said main mirror is in its said mirror up position, stores the photometric signal output from said photometric means as said second photometric signal for preparation of the next photograph.

5. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 1, wherein, said photometry means comprises a photoelectric conversion portion having a plurality of regions arranged in a matrix form and converting the light incident to each of said regions into electric charge, and a CCD performing accumulation of electronic charge obtained by said photoelectric conversion portion.

6. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 4, wherein said condition change-over means includes an eyepiece closing said viewfinder, said eyepiece intercepts, when said main mirror is in said mirror up position, the light passing from said viewfinder to said photometry means.

7. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 1, wherein said condition change-over means includes a lens barrier protecting a photographic lens.

8. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 1, wherein said photometry means is provided outside of the body of said camera separate from a photographic light path.

9. An exposure calculation device for a camera comprising a photometric means which performs photometry on the light from an object to be photographed and outputs a photometric signal related to the brightness thereof and a calculation means which calculates an exposure value based at least upon said photometric signal output from said photometric means, said exposure calculation device further comprising:

a temperature detection means which detects the temperature in the camera; and

;

a noise component value detection means which obtains the value of the noise component in said photometric signal corresponding to the temperature detected by said temperature detection means;

wherein,

said calculation means calculates said exposure value based upon the value obtained by subtracting said noise component value obtained by said noise component value detection means from said photometric signal output from said photometric means.

10. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 9, wherein said noise component value detection means comprises a noise component value storage means which stores a plurality of values of the noise component in said photometric signal as previously determined in accordance with a plurality of temperatures, and the noise component value is read out from said noise component value storage means according to the temperature detected by said temperature detection means.

11. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 9, wherein, said photometry means comprises a photoelectric conversion portion having a plurality of regions arranged in a matrix form and converting the light incident to each of said regions into electric charge, and a CCD performing accumulation of electric charge obtained by said photoelectric conversion portion.

12. An exposure calculation device for a camera comprising a photometric means which performs photometry on a plurality of divided regions to which the light from an object to be photographed is incident and outputs a photometric signal related to the brightness of said region, and a calculation means which calculates an exposure value based at least upon said photometric signals output from said photometric means, said exposure calculation device further comprising:

a classification means which quantizes at a predetermined resolution the photometric signals obtained by performing photometry upon an object to be photographed having a uniform brightness, and then classifies said plurality of regions into a plurality of groups of regions each having the same quantized photometric signal value; and

;

a storage means which, for each of said groups of regions classified by said classification means, stores one compensation value corresponding to the magnitude of said photometric signal;

wherein,

said calculation means compensates according to said compensation values the photometric signals obtained by performing photometry by said photometric means for an object to be photographed, and calculates an exposure value based upon said photometric signals after compensation.

13. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 12, wherein said classification means calculates the difference between the average value of the photometric signals from said photometric means for all of said plurality of regions and each of said photometric signals, and then classifies into the same group of regions all of said regions for which said difference is substantially identical, and wherein for each of said groups of regions said storage means stores said difference as said one compensation value.

14. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 12, wherein said exposure calculation device further comprising a classification switch and when said classification switch is operated, said classification is performed.

15. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 12, wherein, said photometry means comprises a photoelectric conversion portion having a plurality of regions arranged in a matrix form and converting the light incident to each of said regions into electric charge, and a CCD performing accumulation of electric charge obtained by said photoelectric conversion portion.

16. An exposure calculation device for a camera comprising a photometric means which performs photometry on a plurality of divided regions to which the light from an object to be photographed is incident and outputs a photometric signal related to the brightness of said region and a calculation means which calculates an exposure value based at least upon said photometric signal output from said photometric means, said exposure calculation device further comprising:

storage means which stores compensation values for each of said photometry outputs, said compensation values assigned to a plurality of groups of regions into which said plurality of regions are classified, each of said regions in the same group having the same characteristics, in accordance with characteristic difference between individual ones of the photometry outputs from said plurality of regions,

wherein said calculation means compensates said photometry signal obtained by performing photometry on an object to be photographed by said photometry means according to said compensation value,

said compensation value being assigned to the group including the region from which said photometry signal is outputted and stored in said storage means for each regions,

said calculation means calculates an exposure value in accordance with the photometry signal thus compensated.

17. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 16, wherein, said photometry means comprises a photoelectric conversion portion having a plurality of regions arranged in a matrix form and converting the light incident to each of said regions into electric charge, and a CCD performing accumulation of electric charge obtained by said photoelectric conversion portion.

18. An exposure calculation device for a camera comprising a photometric means which performs photometry on a plurality of divided regions to which the light from an object to be photographed is incident, and outputs a photometric signal related to the brightness of said region, and a calculation means which calculates an exposure value based at least upon said photometric signals output from said photometric means, said exposure calculation device further comprising:

a compensation means which decides whether or not said plurality of photometric signals includes an excessive value signal having a brightness higher than a predetermined value, and which performs, when said plurality of photometric signals does include such an excessive value signal having a brightness higher than a predetermined value, compensation by reducing the values of said excessive value signal and of the signals from a plurality of regions in the neighborhood of the region corresponding to said excessive value signal by predetermined amounts;

wherein,

said calculation means calculates an exposure value based upon the values of said photometric signals after compensation by said compensation means.

19. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 18, wherein said compensation means performs compensation by reducing the value of said excessive value signal having a brightness higher than said predetermined value and the values of the signals output from a plurality of regions surrounding the region corresponding to said excessive value signal.

20. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 18, wherein said compensation means replaces the value of said excessive value signal having a brightness higher than said predetermined value with a predetermined value which is less than the maximum value.

21. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 18, wherein said compensation means performs said compensation by multiplying the values of said signals in said plurality of regions surrounding the region corresponding to said excessive value signal having a brightness higher than said predetermined value by a predetermined compensation coefficient which is less than unity.

22. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 21 wherein, the closer is one of said regions surrounding the region corresponding to said excessive value signal having a brightness higher than said predetermined value to said excessive value signal region, the smaller is its said compensation coefficient.

23. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 18, wherein, said photometry means comprises a photoelectric conversion portion having a plurality of regions arranged in a matrix form and converting the light incident to each of said regions into electric charge, and a CCD performing accumulation of electric charge obtained by said photoelectric conversion portion.

24. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 18, wherein said compensation means performs compensation by reducing the value of said excessive value signal having a brightness higher than said predetermined value and the values of the signals present in at least a plurality of regions extending along a single predetermined direction from the region corresponding to said excessive value signal.

25. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 24, wherein said compensation means replaces the value of said excessive value signal having a brightness higher than said predetermined value with a predetermined value which is less than the maximum value.

26. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 24, wherein said compensation means performs said compensation by multiplying the values of said signals in said plurality of regions surrounding the region corresponding to said excessive value signal having a brightness higher than said predetermined value by a predetermined compensation coefficient which is less than unity.

27. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 26, wherein, the closer is one of said regions surrounding the region corresponding to said excessive value signal having a brightness higher than said predetermined value to said excessive value signal region, the smaller is its said compensation coefficient.

28. An exposure calculation device for a camera according to claim 24, wherein, said photometry means comprises a photoelectric conversion portion having a plurality of regions arranged in a matrix form and converting the light incident to each of said regions into electric charge, and a CCD performing accumulation of electric charge obtained by said photoelectric conversion portion.

29. An exposure calculation apparatus for a camera comprising a photometric member, which performs photometry on the light from an object to be photographed and outputs a photometric signal related to the brightness thereof, and a calculation device, which calculates an exposure value based at least upon said photometric signal output from said photometric member, said exposure calculation apparatus further comprising:

a condition change-over device that switches between a permission condition in which light from an object to be photographed is permitted to reach said photometric member and a prevention condition in which light from an object to be photographed is prevented from reaching said photometric member; and

a storage device that stores a first photometric signal output by said photometric member when said condition change-over device switches to said permission condition and a second photometric signal output by said photometric member when said condition change-over device switches to said prevention condition, wherein

said calculation device calculates said exposure value based upon the value obtained by subtracting said second photometric signal from said first photometric signal.

30. An exposure calculation apparatus for a camera comprising a photometric member, which performs photometry on the light from an object to be photographed and outputs a photometric signal related to the brightness thereof, and a calculation device, which calculates an exposure value based at least upon said photometric signal output from said photometric member, said exposure calculation apparatus further comprising:

a temperature detection device that detects the temperature in the camera; and

a noise component value detection device that obtains the value of the noise component in said photometric signal corresponding to the temperature detected by said temperature detection device, wherein

said calculation device calculates said exposure value based upon the value obtained by subtracting said noise component value obtained by said noise component value detection device from said photometric signal output from said photometric member.

31. An exposure calculation apparatus for a camera comprising a photometric member, which performs photometry on a plurality of divided regions to which the light from an object to be photographed is incident and outputs a photometric signal related to the brightness of said region, and a calculation device, which calculates an exposure value based at least upon said photometric signals output from said photometric member, said exposure calculation apparatus further comprising:

a classification device that quantizes at a predetermined resolution the photometric signals obtained by performing photometry upon an object to be photographed having a uniform brightness, and then classifies said plurality of regions into a plurality of groups of regions each having the same quantized photometric signal value; and

a storage device that, for each of said groups of regions classified by said classification device, stores one compensation value corresponding to the magnitude of said photometric signal, wherein

said calculation device compensates according to said compensation values the photometric signals obtained by performing photometry by said photometric member for an object to be photographed and calculates an exposure value based upon said photometric signals after compensation.

32. An exposure calculation apparatus for a camera comprising a photometric member, which performs photometry on a plurality of divided regions to which the light from an object to be photographed is incident and outputs a photometric signal related to the brightness of said region, and a calculation device, which calculates an exposure value based at least upon said photometric signals output from said photometric member, said exposure calculation apparatus further comprising:

storage device that stores compensation values for each of said output photometry signals, said compensation values assigned to a plurality of groups of regions into which said plurality of regions are classified, each of said regions in the same group having the same characteristics, in accordance with characteristic difference between individual ones of the output photometry signals from said plurality of regions,

wherein said calculation device compensates said photometry signal obtained by performing photometry on an object to be photographed by said photometric member according to said compensation value,

said compensation value being assigned to the group including the region from which said photometry signal is outputted and stored in said storage device for each region, and

said calculation device calculates an exposure value in accordance with the photometry signal thus compensated.

33. An exposure calculation apparatus for a camera comprising a photometric member, which performs photometry on a plurality of divided regions to which the light from an object to be photographed is incident and outputs a photometric signal related to the brightness of said region, and a calculation device, which calculates an exposure value based at least upon said photometric signals output from said photometric member, said exposure calculation apparatus further comprising:

a compensation device that decides whether said plurality of photometric signals includes an excessive value signal having a brightness higher than a predetermined value, and that performs, when said plurality of photometric signals does include such an excessive value signal having a brightness higher than a predetermined value, compensation by reducing the values of said excessive value signal and of the signals from a plurality of regions in the neighborhood of the region corresponding to said excessive value signal by predetermined amounts, wherein

said calculation device calculates an exposure value based upon the values of said photometric signals after compensation by said compensation device.