Camera having flexible display

• US 7,184,086 B2
• Filed: 02/24/2003
• Issued: 02/27/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 02/25/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Konica Corporation (Konica Minolta Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Konica Corporation (Konica Minolta Inc.)
• Inventors: Tamura, Tomoaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu; Ngoc-Yen
• Assistant Examiner(s): LAM, HUNG H
• Application Number:
  US10/372,698
• Publication Number:
  US 20030160892A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,464 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 348/333.06
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1652 the display being flexible, e.g. mimicking a sheet of paper, or rollable
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0268 including a flexible display panel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/531 being rotatable or detachable
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/63 by using electronic viewfinders
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/651 for reducing power consumption by affecting camera operations, e.g. sleep mode, hibernation mode or power off of selective parts of the camera

Abstract

A camera includes a columnar camera main body portion having a photographing lens, and a flexible display for displaying an image of an object to be photographed through the photographing lens, in which one end of the flexible display is attached to the camera main body portion, and which is provided so as to be taken-up into the camera main body portion.

Claims

1. A camera comprising:

(a) a columnar camera main body portion having a photographing lens;

(b) a flexible display for displaying an image of an object to be photographed through the photographing lens, in which one end of the flexible display is attached to the camera main body portion, and which is adapted to be taken-up into the camera main body portion;

(c) a first detector for detecting that the display taken-up into the camera main body portion is fed-out;

(d) a second detector for detecting that the display is perfectly taken-up into the camera main body portion; and

(e) a controller for taking-in a signal of the first detector and the second detector, and for driving the display,

wherein when the display is not perfectly taken-up in a fixed period of time after a signal from the second detector is taken in and the taking-up is started, the controller stops the taking-up and puts the camera in a power saving mode.

2. The camera of claim 1, further comprising a feed-out device for feeding out the display from the camera main body portion, wherein after the display is taken-up, the controller drives the feed-out device according to a condition change.

3. The camera of claim 2, wherein the condition change is any one of a time when an interval photographing is conducted, a time when a reserved photographing is conducted, a time when a trigger signal from the outside is inputted, or a time when an interval reproducing is conducted.