Hi friends, Here below you'll find the text on an article by me, published in Spotmatic magazine No.33, about new developments by Pentax. Is it of any interest to the current discussion about Photokina stuff?
Bye, Dario Bonazza -------------------------------- http://www.dariobonazza.com Pentax patents: possible preview of new technology developments By Dario Bonazza Some Pentax patents could give us some ideas about new developments to come. Some of them (numbers beginning with 2002) were posted to the internet Pentax Discuss Mailing List by Henry Chu, from Hong Kong, while others were found by me, by searching the data base engine of US Patent Office. No. 20020102105 is a photometric device (also see US 6175693). It's a metering system that works more or less like the Nikon RGB system in F5, but retaining the traditional Pentax 6-segment metering system. Other interesting patents (US 6370333, US 6393219) are for a multipoint autofocus system. No. 20020089257 is an ultrasonic-motor control system. Finally, Pentax is working on USM motor! During the years, Pentax also filed several patents about image stabilization devices (even before Canon), and more were registered lately (US 6374048, US 6389228, US 6392804, US 6415105). All of the above patents can be signs of a new generation SLR under development. There is also a patent for a new lens bayonet (US 6421192). Unfortunately I cannot understand which kind of camera it could suit. Another patent (US 6388738) deals with a rangefinder. This could be the long rumored Pentax rangefinder system, but I'll only believe it when I'll see it. No. 20020101525 is a digital image interpolating device. According to Henry Chu's description, Pentax is working on an image processing system for reducing chromatic blur in a traditional mosaic type G-R-G-B CCD sensor. Are they planning not to use the multi-layer Foveon X3 sensor for the long awaited Pentax D-SLR or is this for improving the image quality in lower class digital cameras? No. 20020097994 is a photographic lens of 118mm f/2.5 with inner focusing system. The design deals with compactness and small filter diameter. Looks like another "Limited" lens. Then, at long last, several patents are about a prism viewfinder (US 6392820) for a 645 style medium format camera with interchangeable back, for a medium format camera with interchangeable back (US 6402396) and for a camera using either film or CCD (6337955, US 6366323, US 6374060, US 6426777). It is interesting that some of these patents deal with a 35mm film camera, while others with a rollfilm camera. Summing-up, in a not so far future we can expect improvements in digital cameras, new Limited lenses, a new generation 35mm/CCD SLR system, probably introducing a new lens series, and a new medium format camera also accepting digital backs. Okay, most of these products were already rumored during the last months, and they were also expected just for common sense, but these patents are the best confirmation that all these innovations are truly under development at Pentax, not just hopes. It is likely we'll see something at Photokina next September, and something more at PMA next Spring. Looks like Pentax is working harder than during the last decade, after all.
