Camera assembly for electronic devices

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10027946-B2
Application number	US-201514969552-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 15, 2015
Priority date	Dec 15, 2015
Publication date	Jul 17, 2018
Grant date	Jul 17, 2018

Abstract

In accordance with embodiments herein an electronic device is provided comprising a housing, a display, and a camera assembly including a camera and an articulating support that includes a base and a main leg joined to the base. The base and main leg movably coupled to the housing wherein movement of the articulating support defines camera alignment paths followed by the camera when moving between a retracted position and active positions.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An electronic device, comprising:
a display provided in a housing;
a retention bracket provided on the housing of the display, the retention bracket including a cavity that defines a translation path and a rotational path; and
a camera assembly including a camera and an articulating support that includes a base and a main leg, the base to slide within the cavity along the translation path defined by the cavity in the retention bracket, the main leg joined to the base in a manner to rotate about the rotational path defined by the cavity in the retention bracket, wherein the translation path and the rotational path form camera alignment paths followed by the camera in association with the camera moving between a retracted position and active positions.

2. The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the cavity defines the rotational path such that the main leg is located at least partially behind the display proximate a back wall of the housing when in the retracted position.

3. The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the base is elongated along a base longitudinal axis and is held in the cavity provided in the base retention bracket and wherein the base slides within the cavity along the translation path, corresponding to the longitudinal axis, between i) a retracted position within the cavity and ii) an extended position projecting from the cavity and beyond an edge of the housing, the translation path representing one of the alignment paths.

4. The electronic device of claim 3 , wherein the cavity defines the translation path such that the main leg is located proximate to a back wall of the housing when the base is in the retracted position within the cavity and the main leg is located laterally outward from an edge of the housing when the base is in the extended position.

5. The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the display is positioned within and defines a display plane that includes the display, wherein the base slides along the translation path until the main leg clears an edge of the display and wherein the main leg rotates along the edge of the display through the display plane when following the rotational path.

6. The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the articulating support further comprises an upper lever arm coupled to the main leg by a hinge that defines a pivot path having a range of motion that at least partially crosses in front of a front face of the display, the pivot path representing one of the alignment paths, the pivot path rotating about a pivot axis extending along a length of the main leg.

7. The electronic device of claim 6 , wherein the hinge includes a multi-action hinge that rotates the lever arm relative to the main leg about the pivot path, the multi-action hinge tilting the camera about a swivel path, the swivel path rotation about a swivel axis that extends along a length of the extension arm, the swivel path representing one of the alignment paths.

8. The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the camera comprises a 3D camera.

9. The electronic device of claim 8 , further comprising memory and one or more processors coupled to the camera, wherein the one or more processors execute program instructions stored in the memory to perform a 3D scanning operation of an object of interest in a field of view of the 3D camera.

10. The electronic device of claim 8 , further comprising memory and one or more processors coupled to the camera, wherein the one or more processors execute program instructions stored in the memory to perform gesture detection of an object of interest in a field of view of the 3D camera.

11. The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the articulating support moves the camera between active positions that include one or more of:
i) a birds eye view in which the main leg is oriented in a generally horizontal direction or approximately perpendicular relative to a front face of the display,
ii) a frontal scene view in which the main leg is oriented in a generally vertical or common direction with the front face of the display,
iii) an intermediate position to provide an overview in which the main leg is oriented at an intermediate angle relative to the front face of the display.

12. A method comprising:
providing an electronic device having a housing with a display therein, the electronic device comprising a camera assembly including a camera and an articulating support that includes a base and a main leg joined to the base;
providing a cavity in the housing of the display, wherein the cavity defines a translation path and a rotational path as camera alignment paths;
movably coupling the base to slide within the cavity along the translation path defined by the cavity; and
movably coupling the main leg to rotate about the rotational path defined by the cavity, wherein the base to slide along the translation path and the main leg to rotate about the rotational path in association with the camera moving between a retracted position and active positions.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the cavity defines the rotational path such that the main leg is located at least partially behind the display when in the retracted position.

14. The method of claim 12 , wherein the base is elongated along a base longitudinal axis, the method further comprising holding the base in the cavity provided in the housing wherein the base slides within the cavity along the translation path, corresponding to the longitudinal axis, between i) a retract position within the cavity and ii) an extended position projecting from the cavity, the translation path representing one of the alignment paths.

15. The method of claim 12 , further comprising locating the main leg proximate to a back wall of the housing when the base is in the retracted position within the cavity and locating the main leg laterally outward from an edge of the housing when the base is in the extended position.

16. The method of claim 12 , further comprising moving the articulating support along a rotational path that traverses a display plane defined by the display, the rotational path representing one of the alignment paths.

17. The method of claim 12 , further comprising movably coupling an upper lever arm to the main leg to define a pivot path having a range of motion that at least partially crosses in front of a front face of the display, the pivot path representing one of the alignment paths, the pivot path rotating about a pivot axis extending along a length of the main leg.

18. The method of claim 17 , wherein the upper lever arm is coupled to the main leg in a manner that enables rotation of the lever arm relative to the main leg about the pivot path, and enables tilting the camera about a swivel path, the swivel path rotation about a swivel axis that extends along a length of the upper lever arm, the swivel path representing one of the alignment paths.

19. The method of claim 12 , further comprising performing a 3D scanning operation of an object of interest in a field of view of the camera.

20. The method of claim 12 , wherein the camera alignment paths support movement of the camera between active positions that include one or more of:
i) a birds eye view in which the main leg is oriented in a generally horizontal direction or approximately perpendicular relative to a front face of the display,
ii) a frontal scene view in which the main leg is oriented in a generally vertical or common direction with the front face of the display,
iii) an intermediate position to provide an overview in

Assignees

• Lenovo Singapore Pte Ltd

Inventors

• Ent Ali Kathryn
• Osborne Christopher Miles
• Truong Cuong Huy
• Hill David Wayne

Classifications

• G06F1/1607

  Arrangements to support accessories mechanically attached to the display housing (G06F1/1603, G06F1/1605 take precedence) · CPC title

• H04N13/207 Primary

  using a single two-dimensional [2D] image sensor · CPC title

• H04N2213/001

  Constructional or mechanical details · CPC title

• G06F1/1686

  the I/O peripheral being an integrated camera · CPC title

• H04N13/0207 Primary

  Electricity · mapped topic