Latest Canon Patent Applications (celestial AF, improved viewfinder, IS on tilt-shift, telephoto)

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US Patent Application 20490158760 discusses how to get better autofocus performance when picturing objects in the sky, like the moon.

In recent years, the number of pixels in image capturing apparatuses such as cameras and videos has increased, a slight defocus state of an image has become conspicuous and, more precise focusing is desired. This is the same in shooting an image of celestial bodies (stars, moon, and so forth) in the night sky. 

Focusing on celestial bodies is performed by calculating a focus position at which an area represented by high brightness signals is strictly minimized when regarding each celestial body as a point light source. As stars and the moon which are subjects in astrophotography at night are located substantially at infinity and there are specific exposure settings for astrophotography, there is an independent shooting mode for astrophotography different from other scene modes. Hereinafter, a mode for shooting the moon as the main subject is referred to as a “moon shooting mode”. 

Normally, the focus position at which an object located substantially at infinity is in focus is uniquely determined by performing infinite focus adjustment in individual image capturing apparatus. However, due to a difference between temperature at a time of the infinite focus adjustment and temperature of the image capturing apparatus at a time of actually shooting a celestial body, a difference in posture, and so forth, the focus may shift during shooting. For this reason, it is necessary to often adjust focus even during shooting a celestial body whose distance from the image capturing apparatus does not substantially change during shooting. 

Japan Patent Application 2019-078959 describes am improved viewfinder which improves on aberrations and magnification while maintaining a long eyepoint.

[…] the focal length of the eyepiece is about 65 mm, and the finder magnification is about 0.8 or less when the standard lens with a focal length of 50 mm is mounted as a photographing lens. 
Therefore, in a camera using a so-called APS-C size sensor in which the size of the image circle is smaller than a 35 mm film, the finder image becomes smaller than the conventional silver halide film camera. 
Further, in the prior art disclosed in Patent Document 2, although the finder magnification is as high as about 1 time, it is difficult to sufficiently correct axial chromatic aberration and lateral chromatic aberration. 
Therefore, an object of the present invention, while increasing the magnification while maintaining high optical performance, is to provide a finder optical system capable of ensuring long eye point. 

Japan Patent Application 2019-078903 describes how to implement an image stabilisation system on a tilt-shift lens while also lowering the power consumption.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a lens apparatus capable of reducing the power consumption while being able to shoot under an eyebrow and correct the shake, and an image pickup apparatus using the same. 
To achieve the above object, a lens device of the present invention, 
  – an optical system comprising a plurality of lenses, 
  – the shake correction lens of the plurality of lenses the optical system A – driving unit for moving in a direction crossing the optical axis;

A tilt unit for tilting the optical system and a control unit for controlling the drive unit are provided, and the control unit is configured to make the tilt amount of the optical system generated by the tilt unit smaller than a predetermined tilt amount. When the first tilt amount and the shake amount applied to the optical system are the first shake amount larger than a predetermined shake amount, the shake correction lens is in a direction crossing the optical axis. The drive unit is controlled to move in a direction intersecting the optical axis with a first drive amount smaller than the maximum drive amount of the shake correction lens 
  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an imaging apparatus using the lens apparatus and which capable of reducing power consumption as well as a possible tilt shooting and shake correction . 

Japan Patent Application 2019-078948 describes various optical formulas for telephoto lenses and how to reduce chromatic aberrations.

  • focal length 392.55 
  • f-number 2.90 
  • half angle of view 3.15 
  • image height 21.64 
  • total lens length 372.00 
  • BF 60.70 
  • focal length 292.46 
  • f-number 2.90 
  • half angle of view 4.23 
  • image height 21.64 
  • lens total length 273.98 
  • BF 62.03 
  • focal length 488.82 
  • F number 4.10 
  • half angle of view 2.53 
  • image height 21.64 
  • lens total length 411.90 
  • BF 71.62 
  • focal length 778.70 
  • F number 5.83
  • Half angle of view 1.59 
  • image height 21.64 
  • lens total length 486.03 
  • BF 71.54

US Patent Application 20190155003 describes optical formulas for more telephoto lenses. As with the previous patent application, here too reduction of chromatic aberrations is discussed.

In an ultra-telephoto lens, generally, the longer the focal length, the more axial chromatic aberration or magnification chromatic aberration occurs. As a technique for excellently correcting these types of chromatic aberration, a technique for increasing the number of lenses placed on an object side and causing the lenses to share the action of correcting chromatic aberration is known. However, the effective diameter of a lens placed on the object side of the ultra-telephoto lens is likely to be large. Thus, if an attempt is made to correct chromatic aberration by the above technique, the weight of an imaging optical system increases. 

Canon Might Have a 50mm f/1.8 and a 28mm f/1.8 For The EOS R System On Their Agenda, Patent Suggests

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Canon patent application 2019-0113711 (USA) describes the optical formula for an RF 50mm f/1.8 and RF 28mm f/1.8 lens, both for the Canon EOS R full frame mirrorless system.

Focal length 48.50
F-number 1.85
Half angle of view (degrees) 24.04
Image height 21.64
Total lens length 95.00 
BF 15.80

Focal length 28.80
F-number 1.85
Half angle of view (degrees) 36.91
Image height 21.64
Total lens length 80.30 
BF 7.00 

It’s likely Canon will launch these non-L lenses sooner than later. Both are popular focal lengths on full frame, and it’s also likely Canon is set to offer some less expensive (aka budget) lenses for the EOS R system.

More Canon patent applications are listed here. Some particularly interesting patent applications we think might get into production in the next few years are these:

Future Canon Cameras Might Have Pop-Up Flash With LED, Patent Suggests

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Interesting Canon patent application (2019-056787, Japan). The patent describes a pop-up flash with LEDs. This is interesting for videographers or anyone needing a continuous light source for their work.

From the patent literature:

[…] when using LED which carries out a continuous light as a light source of a lighting system, the measure against the heat which occurs from LED serves as problem. If the measure against heat is not performed sufficiently, LED deteriorates for a short time and there is a possibility that it may become impossible for light volume to be deteriorated or to switch on the light. If it is a lighting system removable to a camera like a Patent document 2, in order to radiate heat in the heat which occurs from LED, it is possible to provide a radiation substrate with a large area, but in the type which has a pop-up function, it is difficult to provide a radiation substrate with a large area near the LED. 

Then, in a lighting system movable to the stowed position and usage position which used LED as the light source, an object of the present invention is to enable it to radiate heat in the heat which suppresses enlargement and occurs from LED. 

[Means for solving problem] 
 
To achieve the above objects, the lighting system concerning the present invention, The radiation substrate which has a light-emitting part which uses LED as a light source, and a housing, is a lighting system with the aforementioned light-emitting part movable to the stowed position stored by the aforementioned housing and the usage position projected from the aforementioned housing, and carries out surface mounting of the aforementioned LED, It has a projection surface which ejects the light from the aforementioned LED, and a reflective surface which turns the light from the aforementioned LED to the aforementioned projection surface, and it reflects, and the aforementioned radiation substrate is arranged in the surface which is not parallel to the aforementioned projection surface. 

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This patent might indeed go into production sooner than later.

More Canon patent applications are listed here. Some particularly interesting patent applications we think might get into production in the next few years are these:

Canon Patent For 85mm f/1.2, 100mm f/1.4, 24-70mm f/2.8, and 28-85mm f/2-2.8 Lenses for Mirrorless

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Another Canon patent application spotted by Hi Lows Note.

Patent application 2019-49646A and 2019-49645A describes optical formulas for 85mm f/1.2, 100mm f/1.4, 24-70mm f/2.8, and 28-85mm f/2-2.8 lenses for mirrorless cameras.

Focal length: 86.5 mm
F number: 1.24
Image height: 21.64 mm
Lens length: 135.0 mm
Back focus: 13.5 mm

Focal length: 100.0 mm
F number: 1.46
Image height: 21.64 mm
Lens length: 142.0 mm
Back focus: 14.1 mm

Zoom ratio: 2.75
Focal length: 24.71 – 45.00 – 67.90 mm
F number: 2.88
Half angle of view: 41.21- 25.68 – 17.67
Image height: 21.64 mm
Lens length: 143.89 – 161.78 – 179.68 mm
Back focus: 13.42 – 27.34 – 38.58 mm

Zoom ratio: 3.04
Focal length: 28.00 – 53.77 – 85.00 mm
F number: 2.00 – 2.60 – 2.88
Half angle of view: 37.69 – 21.92 – 14.28
Image height: 21.64 mm
Lens length: 158.50 – 176.83 – 195.16 mm
Back focus: 16.00 – 28.52 – 41.05 mm

Canon Patent For Stacked Sensor Technology

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Canon patent application US20190096931 describes a stacked sensor. If you want to lear more about how a stacked sensor works, this article might help.

From the patent literature:

In CCD type and amplification-type solid-state image pickup devices used for digital still cameras, camcorders, and the like, in order to obtain high definition images, the sizes of pixels are required to be reduced. However, as the sizes of pixels are reduced more and more, a light receiving area of a photoelectric converter, in a pixel, detecting light is decreased, and the sensitivity is decreased. 

Canon Patent For 8-15mm Fisheye Lens For APS-C Mirrorless

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Canon patent application US20190094490 describes the optical formula for an 8-15mm fisheye lens. Given the back focus distance this is most likely a lens for the EOS M system.

From the patent literature:

In order for a zoom lens to have a wide angle of view and achieve high optical performance across the entire zoom range and the entire object distance range, it is important to appropriately set the elements constituting the zoom lens. For example, it is important to appropriately set the zoom type (the number of lens units and the refractive power of each lens unit), the lens configuration, and the lens unit selected for focusing, and so on. 

If these configurations are not appropriate, achieving a wide angle of view will increase the size of the whole system and also increase the variations of various aberrations caused by zooming and focusing. It will therefore be difficult to achieve high optical performance across the entire zoom range and the entire object distance range. 

For example, for a fisheye zoom lens having an imaging half angle of view of 85 degrees or more, a meniscus lens having an extremely strong negative refractive power needs to be disposed closest to the object side within the first lens unit in order to take light rays into the zoom lens from such a wide angle of view. Generally, lenses in a first lens unit not only have strong refractive powers but also have large effective diameters. Thus, when it comes to a fisheye zoom lens, its first lens unit is heavy and large as well. Then, if the entirety or part of the first lens unit (the closest lens unit to the object side) is used as a focus lens unit, quick focusing will be difficult.