I want to mention again patent application 20110080659 filed by Nikon on September 30th, 2010 for a 18mm f/2.8 DX lens (28mm equivalent) because I think this could be the lens used in their upcoming high-end APS-C compact camera. As I already mentioned back in 2011 when I covered this patent, this lens is not designed for F-mount – the […]
Nikon latest patent filed in Japan is for a 58mm f/1.4 lens: Patent application: 2013-19993 Patent release date: January 31, 2013 Patent filing date: July 8, 2011 Focal length: 58.0216mm Aperture: 1.450 Half angle of view: 20.82° Image height: 21.6mm Lens length: 93.67772mm Backfocus: 38.71868mm Lens design: 9 elements in 5 groups, two aspherical elements
The latest Nikon patent from Japan is for a hybrid viewfinder (OVF & EVF) – something similar was filed few years ago. The patent describes an OVF/EVF switch as well as the ability to display zoomed-in or zoomed-out live view from the scene in the OVF:
Patent 2012-247687 is for a new full frame 16-35mm f/2.8 VR lens with 5 aspherical surfaces and 3 ED elements (the current 16-35mm f/4 lens has 3 aspherical surfaces and 2 ED elements).
Nikon filed a patent (2012-257100) in Japan for a semi-transparent, see-through, rotating LCD screen. The idea behind this patent is to overlay the camera’s live view on a semi-transparent LCD display. This will allow a better tracking of fast moving objects and the photographer will be able to observe the entire scene beyond what is being shown in […]
Nikon filed a patent (2012-220827) in Japan for a Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 lens. Egami reports that this lens was designed for a mirrroless APS-C based camera. It will be interesting to see in the next few months if more similar patents will show up online. I seriously doubt that Nikon will introduce a new mirrorless camera system […]
This is probably the most interesting Nikon patent since I started my coverage in 2008: last year Nikon filed a patent (2012-242615) in Japan for a digital back that will transform a 35mm film SLR camera into a DSLR. The sensor is attached to the camera’s back panel and by replacing it, you will be able to get […]
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