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 A
high-strength, electroconductive engineering plastic, with excellent electromagnetic shield capabilities,
was adopted for the camera body. The body protects the system's precision internal mechanical and electronic
mechanisms from being disturbed.
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--- Wouldn't some
people think it's a little cheap to give this camera a plastic body? Oshima: Since we've put out a black model in addition to the silver one, I don't think that applies any
more. If it's a matter of personal preference then, yes, some people may be a little disappointed. But I'd like
to emphasize that this camera is light and extremely robust.--- Would you mind elaborating on that a little? Oshima: With this camera, we finally succeeded in using an
"electroconductive resin" that we had experimented with on numerous occasions.--- Why electroconductive? Kojima: Our aim was to create an "electromagnetic shield"
that stops external radio waves from harming the electronic circuitry inside the camera, and also prevents radio
waves from leaking outside. Of course, have been doing this since the age of the film camera, but this kind of
shield becomes all the more important with a digital camera.--- Does this mean that if there is no shield, the camera will suddenly take a picture,
for example, when you use your mobile phone? Oshima: Yes, that sort of thing could happen. This wasn't a problem with the EOS 10D, because its body
was made of a magnesium alloy. For the EOS D30 and the EOS D60, we fabricated an electroconductive layer by adding
a metal coating to an inner plastic surface. This was actually a fairly labor-intensive process.--- Speaking of body materials, the external surface of the camera is pretty smooth,
but the inside surface has quite a complicated shape, hasn't it? Wouldn't it be cumbersome to apply a coating
on such a shape? Also, I get the feeling that coating the inside surface of the camera on its own would not be
easy, even though plated metal is meant to make surface processing easier. Oshima: The steps before and after this process were quite labor-intensive, which of course has an effect
on price. But we knew that if it was possible to add electroconductive properties to resin it would lead to a
reduction in overall costs, even though the material itself is a little expensive. It was an absolutely essential
material for making the Digital SLR Camera EOS DIGITAL Rebel/EOS 300D a reality.--- What was the most crucial stage in developing the material? Oshima: We decided on the material after we had made the metal mold.--- What! Isn't that the opposite of the normal order of doing things? Isn't it a case
of deciding on the shape, deciding on the material, and then making the metal mold? Oshima: Of course, we originally wanted to do it that way. But, when we conducted tests with the material
we had originally intended to use, the camera body broke so we had to change the order.--- You're referring to collision and drop tests? Oshima: That's right. On top of the normal drop tests, we do things like hold the strap and twirl the
camera around, and bash it against a metal pipe.Matsushima: I joined Canon because I like cameras, but these tests came as the biggest shock to me. (Laughs)
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"The Digital
SLR Camera EOS DIGITAL Rebel/EOS 300D is an SLR camera with unprecedented strength." (Oshima)
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Oshima: There are various levels of impact in these tests. Some cause no damage, some cause damage that
does not affect performance, and some cause damage that does affect performance, however, no injury is caused
to people as a result of sharp fragments flying into the air. The original material we had lined up did not pass
these tests.--- But you said that the metal mold had been made and the production people were waiting... Oshima: We were in a great hurry. We put in a request to a materials manufacturer, who supplied us with
another material. This one was strong. It not only performed as an electromagnetic shield, but it also passed
all of the strength tests. It was so strong that the body remained unscathed, even when the lenses broke. As
a result, the Digital SLR Camera EOS DIGITAL Rebel/EOS 300D is an SLR camera with unprecedented strength.--- It would have helped if you had that material all along. Oshima: Yes. But let's not dwell on that. (Smiles wryly)--- But as a user of the Digital SLR Camera EOS DIGITAL Rebel/EOS 300D, I feel comfortable
knowing that it is robust. I think I'll change my preference to plastic from now on. (Laughs) |
