Gaze Attracting Camera Housing with Frictional Engagement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Photographers face challenges in capturing portraits of inattentive subjects, such as young children and pets, as they often fail to maintain gaze towards the camera lens, due to limited attention span and lack of understanding of the photography process, leading to frustrating results with movement and positioning issues when trying to attract their attention.
Innovation Solution
A camera engageable housing with a frictional engagement system that allows for easy attachment to various electronic devices, featuring a holder for gaze-attracting objects like toys or balls, which can be adjusted and moved to maintain the subject's attention on the camera lens, enabling hands-free photography.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a photographer waves an object or holds food/toy to attract the subject's attention, then the subject's gaze may be attracted toward the camera, but the photographer's hand movement ruins the photo and positioning is difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The device separates the gaze-attracting object from the camera body, allowing the object to be positioned independently at the lens location while the camera is held separately. This segmentation enables the object to attract the subject's gaze without requiring the photographer's hand to be in the frame, thus preventing hand movement from ruining the photo.
Solution Approach 2:
The housing acts as an intermediary device that holds the gaze-attracting object in precise alignment with the camera lens. This intermediary structure provides stable positioning of the object relative to the lens, eliminating the need for the photographer to manually position and hold the object during the shot.
2Volume of moving object
If the camera lens size is reduced and placement is made odd to make cameras smaller and more portable, then device portability is improved, but positioning a gaze-attracting object inline with the lens becomes impossibly hard
Solution Approach 1:
The housing extends outward from the camera body in a perpendicular dimension, creating a separate spatial plane for positioning the gaze-attracting object. This dimensional extension allows the object to be aligned with the lens without interfering with the compact camera body design, solving the positioning difficulty caused by small, oddly-placed lenses.
Solution Approach 2:
The housing serves as an intermediary structure that bridges the gap between the compact camera body and the required positioning of the gaze-attracting object. It provides a dedicated mounting location that ensures proper alignment with the lens regardless of the lens's position on the small camera body.
3Ease of operation
If the object is positioned behind the camera to avoid blocking the viewfinder, then the photographer can look through the viewfinder, but the object cannot attract the subject's gaze toward the lens
Solution Approach 1:
The device segments the camera system into two functional components: the camera body for capturing images and the extended housing for holding the gaze-attracting object. This segmentation allows the object to be positioned in front of the lens where it can attract the subject's gaze, while the photographer's view through the viewfinder remains unobstructed since the object is mounted on the extended housing rather than blocking the camera body.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution effectively maintains the subject's gaze towards the camera lens, improving the chances of capturing clear and focused photos by utilizing familiar objects to attract attention and allowing for hands-free operation, adaptable to different camera devices and sizes.
Implementation Method 1
configured on a first end for engagement to one or a plurality of electronic and film cameras in a frictional engagement therewith in a gap defined between opposing projecting members
Data Source
AI summary
A device for holding a gaze-attracting object in a position adjacent to an electronic photographic device such as a digital camera or smart phone is provided. The device includes a body having one or a plurality first projecting members extending across a gap from a secondary projecting member. The device is positionable to an as-used position with a digital camera or smartphone engaged within the gap. Holding members projecting from the body opposite the gap, maintain an object therebetween and adjacent to the lens of the camera or smartphone or other digital photo device.