Camera trolley

Abstract

camera car with a chassis having wheels (12, 14) and a holding device for a camera attached to the chassis (10, 12, 14, 16), wherein the holding device (18, 20, 22) has a chassis-side and a camera-side arm (18, 20) which are coupled to each other in a scissor-like manner, and the chassis-side arm (18) is pivotable about a first axis (24) lying parallel to a plane through the contact points of the wheels with respect to the chassis, and the camera-side arm (20) is pivotable about a second axis (28) lying parallel to the first axis with respect to the chassis-side arm, characterized by the fact that the swivel angle (α) of the chassis-side arm (18) is greater than 90°, preferably greater than 106°, more preferably greater than 180°.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a camera carriage with a chassis having wheels and a holding device for a camera attached to the chassis, wherein the holding device has a chassis-side and a camera-side arm which are coupled to each other in a scissor-like manner, and the chassis-side arm is pivotable about a first axis parallel to a plane through the contact points of the wheels with respect to the chassis and the camera-side arm is pivotable about a second axis parallel to the first axis with respect to the chassis-side arm.

[0002] Camera dollies of the type mentioned above are known, for example from DE 10 2004 043 043 A1. According to this patent, a so-called low-reach boom position is provided, in which a camera mounting element is located at a level below the top of the chassis. Implementing this low-reach boom position is comparatively complex because, in addition to the chassis-side arm and the camera-side arm coupled to it in a scissor-like manner, further components are required to bridge the height difference in the low-reach boom position between the horizontally positioned arms and the camera mounting element.

[0003] The invention is based on the objective of further developing the camera carriage of the type mentioned above in such a way that the effort required to enable the low boom position is reduced.

[0004] According to the invention, the problem is solved by the fact that the pivoting angle of the chassis-side arm is greater than 90°, preferably greater than 106°, and more preferably greater than 180°.

[0005] The invention is based on the surprisingly simple insight that by increasing the swivel angle, which according to DE 10 2004 043 043 A1 is less than 90°, it is possible to achieve the low boom position with less effort simply by increasing the swivel angle of the chassis-side arm. This brings the second axis closer to the plane defined by the wheel contact points than the first axis. As a result, the distance between the first axis and the plane defined by the wheel contact points can be at least partially bridged without requiring any additional effort. A low boom position can therefore be achieved with less effort than in the case of DE 10 2004 043 043 A1.

[0006] To further increase the flexibility of the arrangement of the camera held by the holding device, it is further preferred according to the invention that there is an operating position in which a normal to the first and the second axis is perpendicular to the plane through the contact points of the wheels.

[0007] In other words, according to this design, in the aforementioned operating position, the two arms lie stretched out in a row behind one another, pointing vertically upwards or vertically downwards with respect to the chassis.

[0008] The reason why the swivel angle of the chassis-side arm of the camera carriage according to DE 10 2004 043 043 A1 is limited to less than 90° lies in the drive used, which is a hydraulic cylinder. Because the gearbox between the hydraulic cylinder and the arm is designed as a crank mechanism, dead spots occur that cannot be overcome. Furthermore, the upward swivel angle is limited to less than 90° because there is no drive available for swiveling back. Instead, gravity is used. Therefore, the chassis-side arm of the camera carriage according to DE 10 2004 043 043 A1 cannot assume the operating position in which a normal to the first and second axes is perpendicular to the plane through the contact points of the wheels, because gravity cannot provide a return or swivel motion from this operating position.Rather, this operating position represents a dead point, which is avoided in the known camera car.

[0009] Therefore, according to a further preferred embodiment of the invention, a rotating motor, in particular an electric motor, is provided for pivoting at least the chassis-side arm. Unlike the hydraulic cylinder, such a rotating motor has no dead center but can rotate a full 360°. It can also be operated in reverse to avoid relying on gravity for return, thus achieving the aforementioned operating position in which a normal to the first and second axes is perpendicular to the plane through the contact points of the wheels.

[0010] In this context, it is expressly pointed out that, according to the prior art, electric motors are often used to generate pressure or tension via the hydraulic cylinder. However, these electric motors are not used, in the context of the invention, to pivot the chassis-side arm. Rather, they serve only to provide the energy with which the actual drive, namely the hydraulic cylinder, is operated. They are therefore analogous to a battery for an electric motor.

[0011] According to current technology, parallelogram linkages or similar devices are typically used to couple the motor to the chassis-side arm and / or the camera-side arm. Such parallelogram linkages are complex and, moreover, make it difficult to achieve swivel angles greater than 90°.

[0012] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, it is therefore provided that a transmission for coupling the motor with the chassis-side arm and / or the camera-side arm comprises gears and / or at least one belt and / or at least one chain.

[0013] These gearboxes can also be implemented with extremely low backlash, thus enabling more precise positioning of the camera held by the mounting device than, for example, with a parallelogram linkage.

[0014] To further reduce the gear backlash, it is preferred according to the invention that at least two meshing gears of the transmission are helical.

[0015] For the same reason, a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention provides that the gearbox has a worm drive. Such a worm drive can be used to achieve a large reduction ratio, so that, when using a high-speed motor, particularly precise positioning of the camera held by the holding device is possible.

[0016] According to the invention, the pivot angle of the chassis-side arm is preferably greater than 180°, but need not necessarily reach 360°. For reasons of simplification and / or space saving, the invention may therefore provide that at least one gear of the transmission is segmented.

[0017] In film technology, it is often required that a camera's height be adjusted, but not its distance from the object being filmed. Therefore, according to a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention, the transmission couples the two arms and the chassis in such a way that a camera attached to the mounting device, in response to a pivoting of the chassis-side arm about the first axis, moves only in a direction perpendicular to the plane through the contact points of the wheels.

[0018] In other words, in this embodiment of the invention, pivoting the chassis-side arm only causes the camera held by the holding device to move up or down.

[0019] According to the invention, the first axis can, in principle, be held arbitrarily on the chassis. However, in a preferred embodiment of the invention, the first axis is held immovably with respect to the chassis. This can also simplify embodiments of the invention in which, when the chassis-side arm pivots about the first axis, the camera held by the camera device moves only in a direction perpendicular to the plane through the contact points of the wheels.

[0020] The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to a preferred embodiment and the accompanying drawing. Fig. 1 schematically a partial sectional view of a preferred embodiment of the camera carriage according to the invention, Fig. 2 a perspective partial view of the chassis of the camera car after Fig. 1, Fig. 3a schematically a top view of part of the camera carriage according to the Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, Fig. 3b a sectional view along line BB in Fig. 3a, Fig. 3c a perspective partial view from Fig. 3a and the Fig. 4a to c the same views as the Fig. 3a to c, but in a different operating state.

[0021] The camera carriage shown in the drawing includes a chassis 10 and wheels, two of which are designated by reference numerals 12 and 14. The camera carriage can be moved both on the floor and on rails. Furthermore, the camera carriage includes a push bar 16, which allows it to be moved or slid by an operator.

[0022] Chassis 10, wheels 12 and 14, and push rod 16 belong to the chassis of the camera car. The chassis may include other components.

[0023] A mounting device for a camera is attached to the chassis, comprising in particular a chassis-side arm 18, a camera-side arm 20, and a camera bracket 22. The chassis-side arm 18 is pivotable about a first axis 24. The first axis 24 lies parallel to a plane through the contact surface of the wheels 12, 14. This plane slopes downwards in the illustration. Fig. 1 together with the ground 26. The first axle 24 is fixed with respect to the chassis 10.

[0024] The camera-side arm 20 is pivotable about a second axis 28. The second axis 28 is parallel to the first axis 24 and is fixed with respect to the chassis-side arm 18.

[0025] The camera support 22 is pivotable about a third axis 30 relative to the camera-side arm 20. The third axis 30 is fixed to the camera-side arm 20.

[0026] The camera carriage includes an electric motor 32, which serves as a drive for performing the aforementioned panning movements. In particular, it serves to move the camera carrier 22 by appropriately pivoting the chassis-side arm 18 and the camera-side arm 20 in the direction of a normal to the ground 26. A gearbox is used for this purpose.

[0027] It should be noted at this point that the embodiment shown in the drawing has two chassis-side arms, which in the view according to Fig. The two chassis-side arms lie congruently one behind the other, which is why only the chassis-side arm 18 is visible. The camera-side arm 20 lies between the two chassis-side arms. The two chassis-side arms therefore jointly serve to support and move the camera-side arm 20. Since the two chassis-side arms are identical, only one of the two arms will be described below.

[0028] Two gear trains are connected to the electric motor 32, each serving to pivot one of the two chassis-side arms. The power is divided between the two gear trains by two V-belts, one of which is assigned to each gear train. The V-belt of the gear train described below is in Fig. Figure 1 is shown and designated with the reference number 34. A shaft 36 is connected to the V-belt 34 with its associated pulley, and a worm gear 38 is connected to the shaft. Gears 40, 42, 44, 46, 48, 50, 52, 54, 56, and 58 are coupled to the worm gear 38, forming a gear train in that order. The camera carrier 22 can be moved towards the ground 26 by means of the electric motor 32 via this gear train.

[0029] Gear 42 is rotaryally coupled to the chassis-side arm 18. Gear 50 is rotaryly coupled to the camera-side arm 20. All other gears are rotatably mounted on their respective axes. When the motor 32 is switched on, the chassis-side arm 18 pivots about the first axis 24. Due to the gear coupling shown, the camera-side arm 20 also pivots, but about the second axis 28. Furthermore, due to the additional coupling, gear 58, with the camera mount 22 fixed to it, pivots relative to the camera-side arm 20 about the third axis 30. The overall gear ratio is such that the camera mount moves only in the direction of a normal to the ground 26.

[0030] Since the electric motor 32 is a rotating motor that can rotate 360° and more, and since all the aforementioned gear components can also rotate 360° and more, the chassis-side arm 18 can also complete a full rotation about the first axis 24 and thus assume any desired swivel angle. In particular, a Fig. The normal 60 shown on the first and second axes 24, 28 can be pivoted by any angle α. If the camera carriage according to the invention is positioned as shown in Fig. 1 shown on the floor 26, the normal 60 can be in a position in which it is perpendicular to the floor 26, wherein the in Fig. The angle β shown is 90°, and the boom can be adjusted to a low-reach position where the angle β is 107.5°. At this angle, the chassis-side arm 18 strikes the ground 26.

[0031] In contrast, if the camera carriage according to the invention is mounted on a base, allowing sufficient downward freedom of movement in the area of ​​arms 18, 20, the rim-side arm 18 can be adjusted by any angle α, in particular vertically upwards with β = 90° and vertically downwards with β = -90°. This achieves a maximum boom extension position without the need to attach additional components to the camera carrier 22.

[0032] In the embodiment shown in the drawing, gears 38, 40, 42, 52, 54, 56, and 58 each have helical teeth. These helical teeth reduce backlash in the gearbox, enabling very precise control of the movement of the camera carrier 22. Within the scope of the invention, the other gears of the gearbox can also be designed with helical teeth. Depending on the requirements, however, gearbox components formed by gears in the illustrated embodiment can also be replaced by belt drives. Chain drives can also be used. The choice of gearbox depends not only on the required precision of the control but also on other factors, such as weight, cost, ease of repair, etc.

[0033] If a full 360° swivel of the chassis-side arm 18 is not required, at least individual gears can be segmented and, for example, only extend over 190°. This saves material and installation space.

[0034] The Fig. Figure 2 shows the chassis 10 without wheels and without the two arms 18 and 20. Two half-shells 62 and 64 serve to attach the chassis-side arm 18. Grooves 66 and 68, or a projection 70, serve for the rotary coupling with the chassis 10 on one side and the motor 32 on the other. During assembly, a pin (not shown in the drawing) engages in the grooves 66 and 68. This pin is rotaryally coupled to the gear 42 and serves to transmit the torque of the motor 32. During assembly, the projection 70 engages in a corresponding recess on the chassis-side arm 18 and serves to define the first axis 24 about which the chassis-side arm 18 can pivot, so that the motor 32 can pivot the chassis-side arm 18 about the first axis 24. A screw 72 serves to lock the two half-shells 62 and 64 together. A screw 74, which leads into the projection 70, serves for axial locking.

[0035] To assemble and disassemble the two arms 18, 20, the two arms are locked together. A locking unit 76, located in the Fig. 3 and Fig. 4 is shown. This shows Fig. 3 the locked state, while Fig. Figure 4 shows the unlocked state. The locking unit 76 is arranged on the camera-side arm 20 and has locking pins 78, 80 which engage in corresponding recesses on the chassis-side arms 18 for locking.

[0036] The features of the invention disclosed in the above description, claims and drawing can be essential for the realization of the invention in its various embodiments, both individually and in any combination.

Claims

[1] Camera car with a chassis having wheels (12, 14) and a holding device for a camera attached to the chassis (10, 12, 14, 16), wherein the holding device (18, 20, 22) has a chassis-side and a camera-side arm (18, 20) which are coupled to each other in a scissor-like manner, and the chassis-side arm (18) is pivotable about a first axis (24) lying parallel to a plane through the contact points of the wheels with respect to the chassis, and the camera-side arm (20) is pivotable about a second axis (28) lying parallel to the first axis with respect to the chassis-side arm, characterized by , that the swivel angle (α) of the chassis-side arm (18) is greater than 90°, preferably greater than 106°, more preferably greater than 180°. [2] Camera carriage according to claim 1, characterized by, that there is an operating position in which a normal (60) to the first and second axles (24, 28) is perpendicular to the plane through the contact points of the wheels (12, 14). [3] Camera carriage according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by a rotating motor (32) for pivoting at least the chassis-side arm, in particular an electric motor. [4] Camera carriage according to claim 3, characterized by , that a transmission (34 to 58) for coupling the motor (32) with the chassis-side arm (18) and / or the camera-side arm (20) has gears and / or at least one rope and / or at least one belt. [5] Camera carriage according to claim 4, characterized by , that at least two meshing gears (40 to 58) of the transmission (34 to 58) are helical. [6] Camera carriage according to claim 4 or 5, characterized by , that the gearbox (34 to 58) has a worm drive (38). [7] Camera carriage according to one of claims 4 to 6, characterized by , that at least one gear of the transmission (34 to 58) is segmented. [8] Camera carriage according to any one of claims 4 to 7, characterized by , that the transmission (34 to 58) couples the two arms (18, 20) and the chassis (10, 12, 14, 16) in such a way that a camera attached to the holding device (18, 20, 22) moves in response to a pivoting of the chassis-side arm (18) about the first axis (24) only in the direction perpendicular to the plane through the contact points of the wheels (12, 14). [9] Camera car according to any of the preceding claims, characterized by , that the first axle (24) is held immovably with respect to the chassis (10, 12, 14, 16).

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