Ball-Shaped Camera Housing for Constant Focal Distance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Vehicle-mounted camera systems with fixed pivot points for camera housings and lenses often fail to maintain a constant distance to visual targets, leading to suboptimal focusing.
Innovation Solution
A camera system featuring a ball-shaped structure within the housing that allows the camera lens to remain at a constant distance from the target by using a mount with a receptacle and a set screw or locking ring to selectively engage and disengage the camera housing, enabling rotation while maintaining focus.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the camera housing and camera lens rotate together about a pivot point spaced away from the camera housing, then the camera system can be mounted to windshields with adjustable positioning, but the camera lens distance to the visual target changes during rotation resulting in suboptimal focusing
Solution Approach 1:
The camera system is divided into separate functional components: the camera lens is isolated within a ball-shaped structure that can rotate independently from the main camera housing. This segmentation allows the lens to maintain its focal distance while the housing provides adjustable positioning through the mounting structure.
Solution Approach 2:
A ball-shaped intermediate structure serves as a mediator between the rotating camera housing and the fixed focal point requirement. This ball-shaped structure allows rotational movement while constraining the camera lens to maintain a constant distance from the visual target, effectively decoupling the rotation function from the focusing requirement.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the camera lens is moved closer to or farther from the visual target during rotation, then the camera housing can achieve different viewing angles, but the focusing quality deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements dynamic independence between the camera housing rotation and the camera lens position. The ball-shaped structure enables the housing to rotate dynamically for angle adjustment while the lens remains statically positioned at the optimal focal distance, allowing viewing angle changes without compromising focus quality.
Data Source
AI summary
A camera system includes a camera housing having a ball-shaped structure and a camera lens disposed within the ball-shaped structure. The camera system also includes a mount including a receptacle to hold the camera housing and at least one element configured to selectively engage and disengage the camera housing to fix a rotational position of the camera housing relative to the mount. The camera housing is configured to rotate relative to the mount.