Omnidirectional camera and lens hood

• US 8,885,016 B2
• Filed: 03/22/2012
• Issued: 11/11/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Topcon
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Topcon
• Inventors: Sasagawa, Jun, Yamada, Hirokazu
• Primary Examiner(s): Perungavoor, Sath V
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chang, Daniel
• Application Number:
  US13/426,666
• Publication Number:
  US 20120242786A1
• Time in Patent Office: 964 Days
• Field of Search: 348/36, 348/143, 348/E05.026, 396/534
• US Class Current: 348/36
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 11/04 Hoods or caps for eliminating unwanted light from lenses, viewfinders or focusing aids
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 17/00 Details of cameras or camera bodies; Accessories therefor lens hoods or caps G03B11/04
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 17/55 with provision for heating or cooling, e.g. in aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 37/04 with cameras or projectors providing touching or overlapping fields of view
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/45 for generating image signals from two or more image sensors being of different type or operating in different modes, e.g. with a CMOS sensor for moving images in combination with a charge-coupled device [CCD] for still images
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/55 Optical parts specially adapted for electronic image sensors; Mounting thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/698 for achieving an enlarged field of view, e.g. panoramic image capture
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/90 Arrangement of cameras or camera modules, e.g. multiple cameras in TV studios or sports stadiums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/181 for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources

Abstract

An omnidirectional camera comprises a camera assembly 2 having two or more horizontal camera units 6 provided radiantly and a cover 4 for accommodating the camera assembly, and in the omnidirectional camera, a lens hole 37, through which an objective lens of the horizontal camera units come out, is formed on the cover, a lens hood 38 is provided on the cover concentrically with the lens hole, the lens hood has a shape of surface which does not intercept a field angle of the horizontal camera units, and a maximum height of the lens hood is larger than a protruding amount of the objective lens from the cover.

Claims

1. An omnidirectional camera, comprising a camera assembly having two or more horizontal camera units provided radially and a cover for accommodating said camera assembly,

wherein said horizontal camera has a wide angle lens unit and a rectangular image pickup element which acquires an image through said wide angle lens unit,

wherein a lens hole, through which an objective lens of said horizontal camera units come out, is formed on said cover, a lens hood is provided on said cover concentrically with said lens hole, wherein an outer surface of said lens hood is square, with a concave curved surface formed along a diagonal line in a diagonal direction on a surface of said lens hood, wherein four portions separated by said concave curved surface are created, and a height of a portion parallel to a short side of said image pickup element is lower than a height of a portion parallel to a long side of said image pickup element,

said lens hood has a shape of surface which does not intercept a field angle of said horizontal camera units,

and a height of said portion parallel to said long side of said image pickup element is larger than a protruding amount of said objective lens from said cover.

2. The omnidirectional camera according to claim 1, wherein said camera assembly has a vertical camera unit directed to a vertical direction and said vertical camera has the same structure as said horizontal camera unit.

3. The omnidirectional camera according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein said camera assembly has seals so as to form a liquid-tight structure and said cover has a ventilation.

4. A lens hood which is provided concentrically with lens units of a wide angle camera unit, wherein a shape of an outer surface of said lens hood is square,

with a concave curved surface formed along a diagonal line in a diagonal direction on a surface of said lens hood, wherein four portions separated by said concave curved surface are created, and a height of a portion parallel to a short side of a rectangular image pickup element is lower than a height of a portion parallel to a long side of said image pickup element,

wherein said lens hood has a shape which does not intercept a field angle of said wide angle camera unit, and a height of said portion parallel to said long side of said image pickup element is higher than a forward end of said lens units.