Patent: 1.03x Magnification APS-C Viewfinder

[Canon Rumors]

<div name="googleone_share_1" style="position:relative;z-index:5;float: right; /*margin: 70px 0 0 0;*/ top:70px; right:120px; width:0;"><g:plusone size="tall" count="1" href="http://www.canonrumors.com/2014/06/patent-1-03x-magnification-aps-c-viewfinder/"></g:plusone></div><div style="float: right; margin:0 0 70px 70px;"><a href="https://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="vertical" data-url="http://www.canonrumors.com/2014/06/patent-1-03x-magnification-aps-c-viewfinder/">Tweet</a></div>
As we get closer to the replacement of the EOS 7D, we’re starting to see some patents that will probably point to some features in the upcoming camera. The <a href="http://www.canonrumors.com/2014/06/patent-canon-5-layer-uv-ir-rgb-sensor/" target="_blank">recent sensor patent is interesting</a>, as well as this viewfinder patent. We had <a href="http://www.canonrumors.com/2014/06/more-eos-7d-talk-cr1/" target="_blank">heard previously about the possibility of a 1.15x</a> magnification viewfinder on the next flagship APS-C camera, which would have been equal to the size of a full frame 100% coverage viewfinder.</p>
<p>This viewfinder is slightly larger than the one on the EOS 7D.</p>
<p>A note about the sensor patent, we have heard that Canon is holding back some sensor patents until the camera is announced to the public, as all patent information is public domain. We’ll see if that turns out to be the case.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.canonrumors.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/103viewfinder.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-16808" src="http://www.canonrumors.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/103viewfinder.jpg" alt="103viewfinder" width="484" height="190" /></a></p>
<p><strong>Patent Information (Google Translated)</strong></p>
<ul style="color: #444444;">
<li>Patent Publication No. 2014-115451
<ul>
<li>Publication date 2014.6.26</li>
<li>Filing date 2012.12.10</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Example 9
<ul>
<li>-3 -1 +1 Viewfinder diopter</li>
<li>Focal length f = 46.84 48.38 49.99mm</li>
<li>Eye point 22.00mm</li>
<li>1.03 1.03 1.02x magnification</li>
<li>Pentagonal prism</li>
<li>Condenser lens made of glass</li>
<li>Eyepiece lens system with the exception of the condenser lens, 4-group structure of the positive and negative positive negative</li>
<li>In turn, resin (single-sided aspherical surface), glass, resin (single-sided aspherical surface), the material is glass</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Patent Publication No. 2014-115452
<ul>
<li>Publication date 2014.6.26</li>
<li>Filing date 2012.12.20</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Example 1
<ul>
<li>-3.00 -1.00 +1.00 Diopter</li>
<li>Focal length f = 62.22 59.69 57.39mm</li>
<li>Eye Relief 19.9mm</li>
<li>Maximum image height 12.4mm</li>
<li>Pupil diameter φ15mm</li>
<li>Magnification 0.87x</li>
<li>Pentagonal mirror</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p>Source: [<a href="http://egami.blog.so-net.ne.jp/2014-06-29" target="_blank">EG</a>]</p>
<p><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;">c</span>r</strong></p>

 

[Don Haines]

"A note about the sensor patent, we have heard that Canon is holding back some sensor patents until the camera is announced to the public, as all patent information is public domain"

Remember this next time someone says that something is not possible because they have not seen the patent......

 

[LetTheRightLensIn]

"A note about the sensor patent, we have heard that Canon is holding back some sensor patents until the camera is announced to the public, as all patent information is public domain"

Remember this next time someone says that something is not possible because they have not seen the patent......

....IF a cool new sensor DOES appear and that doesn't make use of anything in the patents so far.

 

[Chaitanya]

That higher magnification viewfinder will really useful especially for macro work. I really like the viewfinder on the Fuji X-T1.

 

[rrcphoto]

<p>A note about the sensor patent, we have heard that Canon is holding back some sensor patents until the camera is announced to the public, as all patent information is public domain. We’ll see if that turns out to be the case.</p>

Keep in mind that patent law changed, and it's the date of submission that counts now. so this is less of a case now than what it would have been in years past.

 

[Lee Jay]

Looks pretty conventional.

Still wondering about (hoping for?) a hybrid viewfinder.

 

[Mt Spokane Photography]

"A note about the sensor patent, we have heard that Canon is holding back some sensor patents until the camera is announced to the public, as all patent information is public domain"

Remember this next time someone says that something is not possible because they have not seen the patent......

US Patents are published 18 months after submission. This is not something the inventor can control, unless he delays submission, but once he submits it, the clock starts.

Of course, a patent never needs to be submitted at all, some companies shroud their inventions in secrecy and never seek patent protection. This often works for manufacturing processes. Once a manufacturing process is patented, it can be easy to work around the patent and achieve the same thing.

http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/s1120.html

 

[Lee Jay]

18 months? My last one took over six years from submission to award.

 

[Woody]

Tells us (i) Canon still believes in OVF (so more DSLRs on the horizon...) (ii) Canon has not stopped innovating.

....IF a cool new sensor DOES appear and that doesn't make use of anything in the patents so far.

I don't think there was a Canon patent for the original dual pixel AF in 70D although there is one for an improved version:
http://egami.blog.so-net.ne.jp/2013-11-11

Other patents for on-sensor phase detect autofocus:
Nikon: http://www.pointsinfocus.com/blog/news/nikon-patents-the-future-of-autofocus/
Olympus: http://egami.blog.so-net.ne.jp/2013-09-25
Interestingly, both Nikon and Olympus do not have sensor manufacturing capabilities themselves.

It appears that Canon does not always file patents for technologies they want to protect...

 

[Don Haines]

"A note about the sensor patent, we have heard that Canon is holding back some sensor patents until the camera is announced to the public, as all patent information is public domain"

Remember this next time someone says that something is not possible because they have not seen the patent......

US Patents are published 18 months after submission. This is not something the inventor can control, unless he delays submission, but once he submits it, the clock starts.

Of course, a patent never needs to be submitted at all, some companies shroud their inventions in secrecy and never seek patent protection. This often works for manufacturing processes. Once a manufacturing process is patented, it can be easy to work around the patent and achieve the same thing.

http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/s1120.html

CANON is holding back some sensor patents.....

Just because they have the paperwork ready to submit it, it doesn't mean that they will.

Also a patent can be awarded and kept secret. The classic example of this involved cryptography patents awarded to NSA and kept secret.

 

[jrista]

"A note about the sensor patent, we have heard that Canon is holding back some sensor patents until the camera is announced to the public, as all patent information is public domain"

Remember this next time someone says that something is not possible because they have not seen the patent......

Very interesting. Wonder if that's why Canon's basically been in a "dead zone" as far as sensor patent news is concerned for the last couple of years...

 

[jrista]

18 months? My last one took over six years from submission to award.

The 18-month turnaround is just the typical. There are some patents on thermistor-controlled voltage regulators that I was looking at this weekend (trying to build myself a cold box for my DSLRs that is regulated by temperature feedback) that were granted in the early 70's that sometimes took many years from date of filing to actually be awarded. I found that to be the case with quite a number of patents, many of which were from some pretty major corporations (like 3M).