Focal plane shutter and optical apparatus provided with same

This application is a continuation of and claims priority to International Patent Application No. PCT/JP2012/076588 filed on Oct. 15, 2012, which claims priority to Japanese Patent Application Nos. 2011-276020 filed on Dec. 16, 2011, and 2012-210058 filed on Sep. 24, 2012, subject matter of these patent documents is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

(i) Technical Field

The present invention relates to focal plane shutters and optical apparatuses provided with the same.

(ii) Related Art

There is known a focal plane shutter: including a board including an opening; a leading blade and a trailing blade opening and closing the opening; an actuator driving the trailing blade; and a drive member driving the trailing blade by receiving driving force of the actuator. Such a focal plane shutter is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication (Translation of PCT Application) No. 2002-043227.

The drive member that drives the trailing blade is swingably provided in the board. Further, the drive member is provided with a drive pin. The drive member swings such that the drive pin moves within an escape slot formed in the beard. This restricts the swinging range of the drive member. There is a case where a buffering member is provided at an end portion of the escape slot in order to absorb the impact when the drive pin abuts with the end portion of the escape slot. In this case, the following problem may occur.

In a charging operation before an exposure operation, the leading blade move to close the opening while the trailing blade is maintained away from the opening. In the state where the trailing blade is positioned away from the opening, the drive member that drives the trailing blade is maintained in abutment with the buffering member. In a case where the drive member is maintained in abutment with the buffering member for a predetermined period, the drive member might press the buffering member and a stop position of the drive member might be positionally displaced from the desired position. In this case, the rotational range of the drive member in the exposure operation is increased, and the moving distance of the trailing blade is increased. In this case, the exposure period might be longer than the desired period.

Further, when the drive member is maintained in abutment with the buffering member, the buffering member and the drive member might adhere to each other with weak force. In this case, in the exposure operation, the timing when the drive member moves out of contact with the buffering member might be delayed from the desired timing. In this case, the exposure period might also be longer than the desired period. In such as way, the exposure period might be varied.

Furthermore, in a case where the buffering member is not provided at the end portion of the escape slot, the following problem may occur. In the state where the trailing blade is positioned away from the opening before the exposure operation, the drive member that drives the trailing blade is maintained in abutment with the and portion of the escape slot as a portion of the board. When this state is maintained the drive member and the end portion of the escape slot might adhere to each other with weak force. In this case, the timing when the drive member moves out of contact with the end portion of the escape slot might also be delayed from the desired timing, and the exposure period might also be longer than the desired period. In such a way, the exposure period might be varied.

The above problem might occur, in a case where a focal plane shutter where the leading blade closes the opening and trailing blade moves away from the opening in an initial state before pushing a release button and the exposure operation is performed by pushing the release button.

It is thus object of the present invention to provide a focal plane shutter suppressing a variation in an exposure period, and an optical apparatus provided with the same.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a focal plane shutter including: a board including an opening; to leading blade and a trailing blade opening and closing the opening; a trailing blade actuator driving the trailing blade; a drive member driving the trailing blade by receiving driving force of the trailing blade actuator; and a buffering member abutting with the drive member in a state where the trailing blade recedes away from the opening, wherein the trailing blade actuator causes the drive member to move away from the buffering member from an abutting state therewith and to abet therewith again in a charging operation, and then starts an exposure operation.

FIG. 1A is a front view of a focal plane shutter according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 1B is an enlarged view around one end of an escape slot;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a camera including the focal plane shutter;

FIG. 3 is a timing chart of the focal plane shutter;

FIG. 4 illustrates a state where charging operation starts and both a leading blade and a trailing blade are moving toward an opening;

FIG. 5 illustrates the focal plane shutter in a state where the charging operation is finished;

FIG. 6 is a variation of a timing chart of the focal plane shutter;

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a camera including a focal plane shutter according to the second embodiment;

FIG. 8 is a timing chart of the focal plane shutter according to the second embodiment; and

FIG. 9 is a view of an image pickup element on the front view of the focal plane shutter according to the second embodiment in the initial state.

In the following, plural embodiments will be described.

First Embodiment

In the following, the embodiment will be described with reference to drawings. FIG. 1A is a front view of a focal plane shutter 1 according to the present embodiment. The focal plane shutter 1 includes: a board 10 including an opening 11 ; a leading blade 20 A and a trailing blade 20 B opening and closing the opening 11 ; an arm 31 a and an assist arm 32 a for driving the leading blade 20 A; and an arm 31 b and an assist arm 32 b for driving the trailing blade 20 B.

The board 10 is made of a synthetic resin, and includes the opening 11 having a rectangular shape. Although the leading blade 20 A and the trailing blade 20 B each include plural blades, blades 21 a and 21 b are only illustrated and other blades are omitted in FIG. 1 A. Each of the blades 21 a and 21 b is made of a synthetic resin, and is formed into a thin shape. Further, each of the arms 31 a and 31 b and assist arms 32 a and 32 b is made of a synthetic resin and has a thin plate shape. These arms are swingably supported by the board 10 .

The focal plane shutter 1 includes a leading blade actuator 70 a (hereinafter, referred to as actuator) and a trailing blade actuator 70 b (hereinafter, referred to as actuator) as respective drive sources driving the leading blade 20 A and the trailing blade 20 B. The actuators 70 a and 70 b respectively include rotors 71 a and 71 b that are rotatable within a predetermined range in both directions. Each of the rotors 71 a and 71 b is a permanent magnet magnetized to have plural magnetic poles in the circumferential direction. The actuator 70 a includes a non-illustrative stator and a non illustrative coil wound therearound, beside the rotor 71 a . The energization of the coil excites the stator, so the rotor 71 a is rotated by the magnetic attractive force and repulsive force exerted between the stator and the rotor 71 a . Likewise, the actuator 70 b has the same arrangement. The rotors 71 a and 71 b are respectively secured with a leading blade drive lever (hereinafter referred to as a drive lever) 40 a and a trailing blade drive lever (hereinafter referred to as a drive lever) 40 b serving as drive members.

The rotation of the rotor 71 a causes the drive lever 40 a to swing within a predetermined range. The drive lever 40 a is formed with a drive pin 43 a at its end. The drive pin 43 a is fitted into a fitting hole of the arm 31 a . Further, the board 10 is formed with an escape slot 13 a releasing the drive pin 43 a and having an arc shape. The abutment of the drive pin 43 a with an end portion of the escape slot 13 a restricts the swingable range of the drive lever 40 a.

One end and the other end of the escape slot 13 a are respectively provided with buffering members 51 a and 52 a . The drive pin 43 a of the drive lever 40 a abuts with the buffering member 51 a or 52 a , thereby suppressing the drive lever 40 a from bounding. In the state where the leading blade 20 A recedes away from the opening 11 , the drive pin 43 a of the drive lever 40 a abuts with the buffering member 52 a . In the state where the leading blade 20 A closes the opening 11 , the drive pin 43 a of the drive lever 40 a abuts with the buffering member 51 a.

Likewise, the drive lever 40 b includes a drive pin 43 b fitting into a fitting hole of the arm 31 b . One end 13 b 1 and the other end of an escape slot 13 b are respectively provided with buffering members 51 b and 52 b . FIG. 1B is an enlarged view around the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b . Additionally, the drive lever 40 b is omitted in FIG. 1B . In the state where the trailing blade 20 B recedes from the opening 11 , the drive pin 43 b of the drive lever 40 b abuts with the buffering member 51 b . In the state where the trailing blade 20 B closes the opening 11 , the drive pin 43 b of the drive lever 40 b abuts with the buffering member 52 b . The buffering members 51 a , 52 a , 51 b , and 52 b are each made of rubber in the present embodiment. However, these members may be made of another material such as silicon having elasticity.

For example, in continuous shooting, the drive levers 40 a and 40 b reciprocate within a predetermined range in a short period. For this reason, both ends of the escape slots 13 a and 13 b are respectively provided with such buffering members, so the impact of the drive levers 40 a and 40 b can be absorbed.

With the above configuration, the rotation of the rotor 71 a causes the drive lever 40 a to swing, thereby enabling the arm 31 a to swing. Therefore, the leading blade 20 A moves to open or close the opening 11 . Likewise, the rotation of the rotor 71 b causes the drive lever 40 b to swing, thereby enabling the arm 31 b to swing. Therefore, the trailing blade 20 B moves to open or close the opening 11 .

A description will be given of a configuration of a camera equipped with the focal plane shutter 1 FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the camera equipped with the focal plane shutter 1 . The camera includes the focal plane shutter 1 ; a control portion 300 ; and an image pickup element 400 . The control portion 300 controls an operation of the whole camera and includes a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM. Additionally, the camera includes lenses, not illustrated in FIG. 2 , for adjusting a focal length.

The control portion 300 controls energization states of the coils of the actuators 70 a and 70 b . The image pickup element 400 changes an object image formed by the light passing through the opening 11 into electric signals. The image pickup element 400 is, for example, a CCD or a CMOS.

Additionally, there is not provided a set member for respectively positioning the leading blade 20 A and the trailing blade 20 B at charging positions. This is because the leading blade 20 A and the trailing blade 20 B can be positioned at the charging positions by the rotors 71 a and 71 b that are rotatable in both directions.

Next, a description will be given of the one of the focal plane shutter 1 . FIG. 3 is a timing chart of the focal plane shutter 1 . FIG. 1A illustrates an initial state of the focal plane shutter 1 . In the initial state, as illustrated in FIG. 1A , the leading blade 20 A and the trailing blade 20 B recedes away from the opening 11 .

A release button of the camera is pushed to start a charging operation. When the charging operation starts, the coil of the actuator 70 a is energized, so the leading blade 20 A moves to close the opening 11 . Further, the coil of the actuator 70 b is energized so as to temporally move the trailing blade 20 B toward the opening 11 . After that, the current direction in the coil of the actuator 70 b is changed before the trailing blade 20 B fully closes the opening 11 , so that the trailing blade 20 B moves away from the opening 11 . FIG. 4 illustrates the state where the charging operation starts and both the leading blade 20 A and the trailing blade 20 B are moving toward the opening 11 .

After that, the energization of the coils of the actuators 70 a and 70 b is stopped in the state where the leading blade 20 A closes the opening 11 and the trailing blade 20 B are positioned away from the opening 11 . In such a way, the charging operation is finished. FIG. 5 illustrates the focal plane shutter 1 in the state where the charging operation is finished. In addition, the blades 21 a to 24 a of the leading blade 20 A are illustrated in FIG. 5 .

When a predetermined rest period elapses after the charging operation, an exposure operation starts. When the exposure operation starts, the coil of the actuator 70 a is energized, and the leading blade 20 A moves to open the opening 11 . After a predetermined period elapses from the time when the coil of the actuator 70 a is energized, the coil of the actuator 70 b is energized, so the trailing blade 20 B moves to close the opening 11 . When the leading blade 20 A moves fully away from the opening 11 and the trailing blade 20 B fully closes the opening 11 , the energization of the coils of the actuators 70 a and 70 b are stopped. In such a way, the exposure operation is finished. A period from the time when the leading blade 20 A starts moving to open the opening 11 to the time when the trailing blade 20 B fully closes the opening 11 is referred to as an exposure period.

After the exposure operation is finished, the data are read by the RAM of the control portion 300 or memory of the camera side. Next, the coil of the actuator 70 b is energized, and the trailing blade 20 B moves away from the opening 11 . Thus, the state returns to the initial state illustrated in FIG. 1A .

Herein, the actuator 70 b is energized to temporally move the trailing blade 20 B toward the opening 11 in the charging operation. If such operation of the trailing blade 20 B in accordance with the present invention is not performed, it is seen from the timing chart of FIG. 3 that the trailing blade 20 B only performs the exposure operation for fully closing the opening 11 and finishing taking a picture after the release button is pushed. Further, in a normally open type focal plane shutter where the opening 11 is fully opened after the camera is turned on, it is supposed that the first operation of the trailing blade 20 B after the camera is turned on is the exposure operation for fully closing the opening 11 and finishing taking a picture. Thus, regardless of the frequency of turning on the camera, that is, even in a case where the camera is not turned on for a predetermined period, it is preferable that the exposure operation of the trailing blade 20 B is stable. This is because the variation in the exposure operation of the trailing blade 20 B directly leads to the variation in the exposure period and causes the variation in image quality.

In a case where the camera is not turned on for a predetermined period, in the focal plane shutter 1 according to the present invention, the drive pin 43 b of the drive lever 40 b is maintained in abutment with the buffering member 51 b for a predetermined period. As mentioned above, in the charging operation after the release button is pushed, as illustrated in FIG. 4 , the coil of the actuator 70 b is energized such that the trailing blade 20 B moves toward the opening 11 , and is energized in the opposite direction afterward. Therefore, in the charging operation, the drive pin 43 b of the drive lever 40 b temporally moves away from the buffering member 51 b , and then abuts therewith again.

Herein, a description will be given of a problem that might occur when the drive pin 43 b of the drive lever 40 b is maintained in abutment with the buffering member 51 b for a certain period. In this case, the drive pin 43 b might press the buffering member 51 b , so the stop position of the drive lever 40 b might be positionally displaced from the desired position. In this case, the rotational range of the drive lever 40 b increases, so the movable range of the trailing blade 20 B increases. When this problem occurs in the exposure operation, the exposure period might be longer than the desired exposure period.

Also, the drive pin 43 b and the buffering member 51 b might adhere to each other with weak force. For example, in a case where the buffering member 51 b is a rubber in the present embodiment, the drive pin 43 b and the buffering member 51 b might adhere to each other by oil from the rubber or lubricating oil ingredients containing minute impurities such as dust in the focal plane shutter. In this case, the drive lever 40 b has to move away from the buffering member 51 b against the adhesive force therebetween so as to drive the trailing blade 20 B. For this reason, the timing when the drive pin 43 b of the drive lever 40 b moves away from the buffering member 51 b might be delayed relative to the desired timing. Likewise, when this problem occurs in the exposure operation, the exposure period might be longer than the desired period. In the above way, an exposure period might be varied.

In the present embodiment, in the charging operation, the drive pin 43 b of the drive lever 40 b is temporally moved away from the buffering member 51 b from the state where the drive pin 43 b abuts therewith, and then the drive pin 43 b abuts therewith again. For example, in a case where the buffering member 51 b is largely deformed by being pushed by the drive pin 43 b , conceivably, the drive pin 43 b of the drive lever 40 b is moved away from the buffering member 51 b once, whereby the buffering member 51 b is restored to the original shape by its elastic restoring force while the drive pin 43 b is away from the buffering member 51 b . Therefore, the drive pin 43 b abuts the buffering member 51 b after the buffering member 51 b is restored to the original shape once, whereby the drive lever 40 b can be set at the desired stop position.

Also, in a case where the drive pin 43 b and the buffering member 51 b adhere to each other with weak force, the drive pin 43 b is moved away from the buffering member 51 b once, which can suppress the adherence. This can prevent the timing when the drive pin 43 b starts moving away from the buffering member 51 b from being retarded, in the exposure operation after the charging operation. Accordingly, a variation in the exposure period can be suppressed. This can suppress a variation in the image quality.

Additionally, in the charging operation, after the control portion 300 energizes the coil of the actuator 70 b in the predetermined direction and the drive pin 43 b is moved away from the buffering member 51 b , the control portion 300 energizes the coil in the opposite direction. The coil of the actuator 70 b is energized in the opposite direction, so that the drive pin 43 b abuts with the buffering member 51 b again immediately, whereby the drive lever 40 b abuts therewith in the stable manner.

The control portion 300 may not energize the coil of the actuator 70 b in the opposite direction. For example, in the charging operation, after the drive pin 43 b is moved away from the buffering member 51 b by energizing the coil of the actuator 70 b in the predetermined direction, the energization may be stopped without energizing the coil of the actuator 70 b in the opposite direction. In this case, the energization period of the actuator 70 b is set, such that the rotor 71 b is rotated reversely by its detent torque and the drive pin 43 b abuts with the buffering member 51 b again after the energization of the coil of the actuator 70 b is stopped. This can reduce the power consumption.

FIG. 6 is a timing chart of a variation of the focal plane shutter 1 . As illustrated in FIG. 6 , in the charging operation, the energization of the coil of the actuator 70 b may be started after the energization of the coil of the actuator 70 a is started. In such a way, the timing when the energization of the coil of the actuator 70 a is started is made different from the timing when the energization of the coil of the actuator 70 b is started, which can reduce the load on the control portion 300 controlling the energization of both the coils, as compared with a case where both the coils are energized simultaneously.

The coil of the actuator 70 b has only to be energized in the charging operation before the exposure operation or the pause period. The pause period is provided for stabilizing the positions of the drive levers 40 a and 40 b.

The above has described the case where the drive pin 43 b of the drive lever 40 b is maintained in abutment with the buffering member 51 b for a certain period, but the buffering member 51 b may not be provided. In other words, the focal plane shutter according to the present invention has the same effect, even if the drive pin 43 b of the drive lever 40 b abuts with the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b as a part of the board 10 in the state where the trailing blade 20 B recedes from the opening 11 .

In a case where the drive pin 43 b of the drive lever 40 b is maintained in abutment with the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b formed at the part of the board 10 for a certain period, the drive pin 43 b and the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b might adhere to each other with weak force. This is conceivably because the drive pin 43 b and the one end 13 b 1 of the escapes slot 13 b might adhere so each other by lubricating oil ingredients containing minute impurities such as dust in the focal plane shutter. In this case, the drive lever 40 b has to move away from the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b against the adhesive force therebetween so as to drive the trailing blade 20 B. In particular, in a case where the drive pin 43 b is maintained in abutment with the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b for a long term, the timing when the drive pin 43 b of the drive lever 40 b moves away from the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b might be delayed relative to the desired timing. When this problem occurs in the exposure operation, the exposure period might be longer than the desired period.

Like the case of employing the buffering member 51 b , in the present embodiment, in the charging operation, the drive pin 43 b of the drive lever 40 b is temporally moved away from the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b from the state where the drive pin 43 b abuts therewith, and then the drive pin 43 b abuts therewith again. Thus, the drive pin 43 b is moved away from the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b once, thereby suppressing the adherence. In the exposure operation after the charging operation, the timing when the drive pin 43 b is moved away from the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b can be prevented from being delayed, suppressing the variation in the exposure period. It is therefore possible to suppress the variation in the image quality.

Also, in the charging operation, after the control portion 300 energizes the coil of the actuator 70 b in the predetermined direction and the drive pin 43 b is moved away from the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b , the control portion 300 energizes the coil in the opposite direction. The coil of the actuator 70 b is energized in the opposite direction, so that the drive pin 43 b abuts with the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b again immediately, and the drive lever 40 b can abut therewith in the stable manner.

Also, the control portion 300 may not energize the coil of the actuator 70 b in the opposite direction. For example, in the charging operation, after the drive pin 43 b is moved away from the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b by energizing the coil of the actuator 70 b in the predetermined direction, the energization of the actuator 70 b may be stopped, so that the rotor 71 b is rotated reversely by its detent torque and the drive pin 43 b abuts with the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b again. This can reduce the power consumption.

Second Embodiment

Next, the focal plane shutter 1 according to the second embodiment will be described below. Additionally, the components similar to those components according to the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals, and a duplicate description will be omitted. FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a camera including the focal plane shutter according to the second embodiment. This camera includes: a power switch 500 for turning on the camera; a lens detection portion 600 for detecting that a lens unit L installed in the camera is attached and detached. A control portion 300 a can detect that the power switch 500 is pushed.

The lens detection portion 600 is mounted on a lens mount portion in the camera. The lens detection portion 600 includes a switch pushed by the lens unit installed in the lens mount portion, and outputs information on whether or not the switch is pushed to the control portion 300 a . Moreover, the switch of the lens detection portion 600 may serve as a lens detachment button that is pushed for detachment of the lens unit L from a camera body. The lens detection portion 600 is always active during turning on the camera.

FIG. 6 is a timing chart of the focal plane shutter 1 according to the second embodiment. As for the focal plane shutter 1 according to the second embodiment, in the initial state, the leading blade 20 A closes the opening 11 , and the trailing blade 20 B recedes from the opening 11 . That is, the focal plane shutter 1 according to the second embodiment is a normally closed type where the opening 11 is closed after turning on the camera. FIG. 9 is a front view of the focal plane shutter 1 according to the second embodiment in the initial state.

When the release switch of the camera is pushed, the coil of the actuator 70 b is energized to move the trailing blade 20 B toward the opening 11 , and then the coil is energized in the opposite direction. Therefore, before the exposure operation, the drive pin 43 b of the drive lever 40 b temporally moves away from the buffering member 51 b , and then abuts therewith again. Likewise, after the coil of the actuator 70 a is energized to move the leading blade 20 A away from the opening 11 , the coil is energized in the opposite direction. Therefore, before the exposure operation, the drive pin 43 a of the drive lever 40 a temporally moves away from the buffering member 51 a , and then abuts therewith again. After that, the actuators 70 a and 70 b starts in the exposure operation. Also as for the focal plane shutter 1 according to the second embodiment, the variation in the exposure period can be suppressed. This can suppress the variation in the image quality.

FIG. 9 is a view of the image pickup element 400 on the front view of the focal plane shutter 1 according to the second embodiment in the initial state. The image pickup element 400 is slightly smaller than the opening 11 . For this reason, even in a state where the opening 11 is partially opened by moving the blade 21 a of the leading blade 20 A, when the whole of the leading blade 201 covers the image pickup element 400 , the light does not enter the image pickup element 400 . Thus, in the second embodiment, the driving amount of the actuator 70 a before the exposure operation is set in such a range that the leading blade 201 is capable of blocking the light entering the image pickup element 400 . Thus, even when the driving of the actuator 70 a causes the leading blade 20 A to partially open the opening 11 before the exposure operation, the light does not nave only to enter the image pickup element 400 . Additionally, in FIG. 8 , a size of the image pickup element 400 is illustrated instead of a size of the opening 11 .

Also, as illustrated in FIG. 8 , the driving timings of the actuators 70 a and 70 b are different from each other before the exposure operation. This reduces the load on the control portion 300 a . Further, the actuators 70 a and 70 b may drive at the same time.

Furthermore, the control portion 300 a performs the above operation, when the camera is turned on. For example, in a case where the camera is kept turned off for a long time, the drive pins 43 a and 43 b are maintained for a long time in respective abutment with the buffering members 51 a and 51 b as illustrated in FIG. 9 . For this reason, the exposure period might be varied in shooting right after the turning on. In the present embodiment, even when the camera is turned on, the actuators 70 a and 70 b are driven to cause the drive pins 43 a and 43 b to move away from the buffering members 51 a and 51 b , respectively. It is therefore possible to suppress the variation in the exposure period when the shooting is performed afterward.

Further, the control portion 300 a performs the above operation before the exposure operation, when the lens unit L is detached from the camera. After the lens unit L is detached from the camera, the shooting is not performed typically. The above operation is performed in this period, thereby suppressing the variation in the exposure period in shooting. In addition, when it is detected that the lens unit L is attached to the camera, the above operation may be performed.

Additionally, as for the operation performed in turning on the camera or in detaching the lens unit L from the camera, the driving amounts of the actuators 70 a and 70 b may be set in such a range that the leading blade 20 A and the trailing blade 20 B influence the image pickup element 400 . In this case, the exposure operation is not performed after this operation. Thus, even if this operation causes the image pickup element 400 to receive the light to make data, the data has only to be erased.

Also, as illustrated in FIG. 8 , after the control portion 300 a energizes the coils of the actuators 70 a and 70 b in the predetermined direction so that the drive pins 43 a and 43 b move away from the respective buffering members 51 a and 51 b , the coils are energized in the opposite direction. However, the present invention is not limited to this arrangement. The control portion 300 a may not energize the coils of the actuators 70 a and 70 b in the opposite direction, and the detent torques of the rotors 71 a and 71 b may permit the drive pins 43 a and 43 b to return to the original positions, respectively.

The above description has been given of the case where the drive pins 43 a and 43 b are maintained in abutment with the respective buffering members 51 a and 51 b for a certain period. However, the buffering members 51 a and 51 b may be not provided. In other words, the focal plane shutter according to the present embodiment has the same effect. In a case where the drive pins 43 a and 43 b respectively abut with the end portions of the escape slots 13 a and 13 b serving as a part of the board 10 in the state where the leading blade 20 A closes the opening 11 and the trailing blade 20 B recedes from the opening 11 .

While the exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated in detail, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and other embodiments, variations and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

The focal plane shutter according to the present embodiment is applicable to optical apparatuses such as still cameras, and digital cameras.

Also, the above embodiment has described the blades and the arms which are thin and made of a synthetic resin. However, they may have thin plate shapes made of metal. In the above embodiment, each of the leading blade and the trailing blade each includes four blades, but is not limited to this. Each of the leading blade and the trailing blade may include from two to five blades.

Further, the above embodiment has described the case where the drive pin 43 b of the drive lever 40 b abuts with the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b of the board 10 in the state where the trailing blade 20 B recedes from the opening 11 . However, the present invention is not limited to this case. The drive lever has only to abut with a part of the board 10 different from the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b . The drive pin 43 a also has the same configuration.

Only in the second embodiment of the above embodiments, the description has been given of the case where driving of the actuators 70 a and 70 b respectively permit the drive pins 43 a and 43 b to move away from the buffering members 51 a and 51 b in turning on the camera or detaching the lens unit. However, the present invention is not limited to this case. In other words, in the block diagram of the camera in the first embodiment illustrated in FIG. 2 , there may be provided a power switch for turning on the camera, a lens unit mounted on the camera, and a lens detection portion for detecting the attachment and the detachment of the lens unit to and from the camera. In this case, when the camera is turned on or when the lens unit is attached or detached, the trailing blade actuator 70 b may cause the drive pin 43 b to move away from the buffering member 51 b or the one end 13 b 1 of the escape slot 13 b.

Finally, several aspects of the present invention are summarized as follows.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a focal plane shutter including: a board including an opening; a leading blade and a trailing blade opening and closing the opening; a trailing blade actuator driving the trailing blade; a drive member driving the trailing blade by receiving driving force of the trailing blade actuator; and a buffering member abutting with the drive member in a state where the trailing blade recedes away from the opening, wherein the trailing blade actuator causes the drive member to move away from the buffering member from an abutting state therewith and to abut therewith again in a charging operation, and then starts an exposure operation.

In such a way, the drive member is temporally moved away from the buffering member in the charging operation, the drive member can stop at a desired position, and the timing when the drive member is moved away from the buffering member can be prevented from being delayed. This can suppress the variation in the exposure period.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a focal plane shutter including: a board including an opening; a leading blade and a trailing blade opening and closing the opening; a trailing blade actuator driving the trailing blade; and a drive member driving the trailing blade by receiving driving force of the trailing blade actuator; wherein the drive member abuts with a portion of the board in a state where the trailing blade recedes away from the opening, and the trailing blade actuator causes the drive member to move away from the portion of the board from an abutting state therewith and to abut therewith again in a charging operation, and then starts an exposure operation.

In such a way, the drive member is temporally moved away from the part of the board in the charging operation, so the timing when the drive member is moved away from the part of the board can be prevented from being delayed. This can suppress the variation in the exposure period.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an optical apparatus having the above focal plane shutter.