Canon Patent Applications: Internal Camera ND filter

[sanj]

It keeps getting better.

 

[EOS 4 Life]

Panasonic recently patented their own version of this, but theirs uses a eVND.

I prefer fixed but I can imagine a day when eVND catches up with fixed in terms of quality.
Sony made a bold statement by putting eVND inside a $25K USD camera.

 

[EOS 4 Life]

It pays for a firm like Canon to patent even ideas it's not pursuing, just to lock the competition out from trying them.

I can't see how it would.
Also, they can't patent an idea.
It would just give the idea to the competition to try and get around the patent.
I am willing to be the competition has similar ideas anyway that would result in different patents.

 

[EOS 4 Life]

Of course it may be easier if the body didn’t have a mechanical shutter as the z8/9. R5c doesn’t have ibis so it would be an ideal candidate

A cinema camera does not need a mechanical shutter but Canon does like to emphasize that the R5 C is a hybrid cinema camera.
IMHO the ideal candidate would be the rumored C50.

 

[Sporgon]

You also stress electronic circuits and bulbs, and actively reduce the lifespan of the strobe; HSS should be considered, imho, an emergency measure for that single time you forgot the filter pouch at home.

I just shot a nice series of portraits this afternoon in full sunlight, at the max x-sync shutter, with a 3 stop ND, had to close just a third of a stop from f1.4 to f1.6 to get the perfect exposure.

R6, 85 Art, 1/250s, 100iso, f1.6, ND8
Strobe was an AD200 at 1/16 power, with a 110cm umbrella with diffusion

View attachment 211684

Nice shot. You can’t beat lighting an image properly.

 

[EOS 4 Life]

This would be huge, granted you have to have the light. Losing a full stop for a "quality" ND on the fly.... GOLD.

The ND filter moves completely out of the way.
You would only lose light when you want to,

 

[Sporgon]

You also stress electronic circuits and bulbs, and actively reduce the lifespan of the strobe; HSS should be considered, imho, an emergency measure for that single time you forgot the filter pouch at home.

I’ve use HSS on my 580s for years and years and they are still going strong !!

 

[neuroanatomist]

I can't see how it would.
Also, they can't patent an idea.
It would just give the idea to the competition to try and get around the patent.
I am willing to be the competition has similar ideas anyway that would result in different patents.

Your inability to see the reason is irrelevant. Filing blocking patents is a common practice for good reason.

How Valuable are Patent Blocking Strategies? - Review of Industrial Organization

Firms use patents for blocking competitors’ innovation activities. Offensive blocking is a practice whereby firms patent alternatives of a focal invention preempting technological substitutes produced by competitors. Defensive blocking entails the creation of patent portfolios that block...

link.springer.com

 

[GMCPhotographics]

There are many ND filters on the market and i've only found one brand that is truely (or close to true) neutral. Most have a strong colour cast.

 

[Walrus]

There are many ND filters on the market and i've only found one brand that is truely (or close to true) neutral. Most have a strong colour cast.

...tell us which brand it is then ahaha! Or it's a well kept secret? is it B+W? Heliopan?

I use only ND's and CPL's, and I admit that, while of course I keep an eye also on colour cast, I mainly look to the level of resolution loss, going for filters that do not degrade the image, or do it only when pixel peeping at 200%. Colour cast if it's not harsh can be easily balanced in post.

I found the sweet spot with quality and price with Marumi's "DHG" and "DHG Super" filter series; the image suffer no degradations whatsoever, and colour cast are mostly non existent. I also have two cheaper Hoya ND's, one is "ND Pro" and the other is a basic "HMC" (the cheapest featuring multi coatings; it was the filter used for the portrait I posted yesterday in this very thread), and a Kenko Smart CPL, and they also feature good and unaltered resolution, and no particular colour cast.

 

[GMCPhotographics]

...tell us which brand it is then ahaha! Or it's a well kept secret? is it B+W? Heliopan?

I use only ND's and CPL's, and I admit that, while of course I keep an eye also on colour cast, I mainly look to the level of resolution loss, going for filters that do not degrade the image, or do it only when pixel peeping at 200%. Colour cast if it's not harsh can be easily balanced in post.

I found the sweet spot with quality and price with Marumi's "DHG" and "DHG Super" filter series; the image suffer no degradations whatsoever, and colour cast are mostly non existent. I also have two cheaper Hoya ND's, one is "ND Pro" and the other is a basic "HMC" (the cheapest featuring multi coatings; it was the filter used for the portrait I posted yesterday in this very thread), and a Kenko Smart CPL, and they also feature good and unaltered resolution, and no particular colour cast.

I have B+W ND’s and found them to have a very strong copper colour cast. I’ve been using Heliopan ND’s for about 12 years and they are excellent. They also have a colour cast, but it’s quite pleasing and offers a nice look.

Meike’s drop in ND’s are remarkable and by far the most neutral, even their 10 stopper. It’s one of the main reasons I’m remaining with my Ef lenses.

 

[John MacLean Photography]

I have B+W ND’s and found them to have a very strong copper colour cast. I’ve been using Heliopan ND’s for about 12 years and they are excellent. They also have a colour cast, but it’s quite pleasing and offers a nice look.

Meike’s drop in ND’s are remarkable and by far the most neutral, even their 10 stopper. It’s one of the main reasons I’m remaining with my Ef lenses.

Yes, the older B+W series had a strong cast. The newer ones are very neutral. I posted this test of them almost 7 years ago. https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10158072604950405&type=3

 

[SwissFrank]

Also, they can't patent an idea.

Well, I'd say every patent is of an invention, and inventions are ideas, so every patent is of an idea. If you're point is that there are ideas that aren't inventions, fair enough, but it doesn't seem germane to the topic.

It would just give the idea to the competition to try and get around the patent.

Sure, but think: those options are present without the patent... but without the patent, the patented idea is ALSO available to the competition. Really man, look at the patent filings! There are millions upon millions of patents that aren't ultimately used by the filer. Either successful companies like Canon that are so smart at making cameras are nonetheless idiots to be patenting things for NO reason, or, that there IS a reason. You may not think the reason is the reason I give, but you have to either think there is SOME reason, or, that Canon is composed of idiots.

I can't see how it would.

If you don't work in a technology business it might not be that obvious, no.

I am willing to be the competition has similar ideas anyway that would result in different patents.

Yep, and they're patenting them too, for the reasons that you don't understand.

 

[EOS 4 Life]

If you don't work in a technology business it might not be that obvious, no.

I do.
There are people whose jobs are R and D.
They patent the results of their research whenever they can.
I can't fathom how "so no one else will come up with it" comes into the picture.

 

[SwissFrank]

I do.
There are people whose jobs are R and D.
They patent the results of their research whenever they can.
I can't fathom how "so no one else will come up with it" comes into the picture.

Whatever man, let's be friends, no reason to fight over it.

 

[AlanF]

Well, I'd say every patent is of an invention, and inventions are ideas, so every patent is of an idea. If you're point is that there are ideas that aren't inventions, fair enough, but it doesn't seem germane to the topic.

You can patent the results of an idea but not the idea itself.

 

[Jethro]

I can't fathom how "so no one else will come up with it" comes into the picture.

So no-one else can patent something close enough to what you have come up with, such that you would have to pay them if you choose to use it in an actual product in the future. Or to 'block' off the use (and patenting) of relatively small variations (which are relevant to patent attorneys) thereby preventing direct steals of your innovation by the opposition.