Canon Patent: Automatic Tilt-Shift Adjustment

A new Canon patent, regarding the operation of tilt-shift lenses: automatic setting.

Canon patent 2024-157119A (Japan published 11/7/2024) discusses methods and technology to automatically set the tilt in a tilt-shift lens, which is usually the most complicated settings for most users. From the patent literature:

• A lens device capable of changing the focusing range with a simple operation is provided.
• Description of the Related Art: Conventionally, lens barrels have been proposed that enable tilt photography to adjust the in-focus range, and shift photography to change the shooting angle of view and correct distortion. In tilt photography, it is possible to tilt the focusing plane so as to bring the entire object surface in focus well relative to a plane that is inclined from a plane perpendicular to the optical axis of the imaging optical system, or to tilt the focusing plane so as to bring the object surface into focus partially. Patent Document 1 discloses an imaging device that displays the in-focus range superimposed on an image so that the in-focus range can be easily visually confirmed when the image is partially in focus.
• In the configuration of Patent Document 1, when creating an image by expanding or contracting the focus range after tilting the focus plane, it is necessary to change the focus range by changing the tilt of the current focus plane. However, it is difficult to intuitively understand how to move the imaging optical system in order to change the focus range, so it is necessary to move the optical system once and check the change in the focus range before changing it to the desired focus range.
• SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT EMBODIMENT: An object of the present invention is to provide a lens device capable of changing the focus range with a simple operation.

More Canon patents are listed here.

[via asobinet]