Canon Patent: Automatic Shutter Mode Switch (mechanical/electronic)

September 2, 2021
Canon Patents
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Drawing from the patent literature

And yet another very interesting Canon patent application spotted by asobinet.com. What about your camera switching automatically the shutter mode?

Canon patent application 2021-129230 discusses technology and methods to automatically switch from mechanical shutter to electronic shutter based on parameters. From the patent literature:

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a lens device, an image pickup device, a camera system, and a program capable of taking an image with an optimum shutter method without a user manually changing a setting.
Conventionally, an imaging device that realizes imaging by using a mechanical shutter and an electronic shutter in combination has been proposed. In Patent Document 1, flicker detection is performed based on a signal output from an image sensor, and based on the result, imaging is selected to select whether to use a mechanical shutter or an electronic shutter in the second and subsequent imaging of continuous imaging. The device is disclosed. When flicker occurs, the image pickup apparatus of Patent Document 1 uses an electronic shutter to improve the efficiency of the image pickup operation, thereby improving the frame speed during continuous shooting.
However, the shooting conditions in which it is preferable to use a mechanical shutter or an electronic shutter depend on requirements other than the frame speed. For example, when imaging is performed at a shutter speed at which the effect of rolling shutter distortion is large, it is desirable to use a mechanical shutter. Further, when imaging is performed at a shutter speed in which the shutter impact is sustained during the imaging period, it is desirable to use an electronic shutter in order to suppress image blurring. On the other hand, there are some users who like the sound and shooting sensation when using the mechanical shutter.
An object of the present invention is to provide a lens device, an image pickup device, a camera system, and a program capable of taking an image with an optimum shutter method without manually changing a setting by a user.

If I got it right the shutter switch is triggered by shutter speed and also by the tracked shooting distance:

The lens device is a lens device which can be mounted on an imaging device which picks up an image of a subject and an imaging device which has a mechanical shutter. A determination unit is provided with a determination unit which determines which of the mechanical shutter and the electronic shutter is to be used for starting imaging of an imaging device using information on an imaging device and information on a current imaging condition, and notifies the imaging device of a determination result.

Interesting fact: there is another Canon patent that discusses how to automatically silence the shutter based on subject and distance.

More Canon patents are listed here. Some particularly interesting patent applications we think might get into production are these: