Garret Brown Patents

gco

gco

Veteran
For anyone interested here are a few Steadicam Patents.
Caveat: the USPTO website is notoriously finicky. If you do not get an entire image, use refresh.

Cam Stabilizing Support
http://patimg2.uspto.gov/.piw?docid=US005579071&PageNum=1&IDKey=28B4418EFF95&HomeUrl=http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1%2526Sect2=HITOFF%2526d=PALL%2526p=1%2526u=%25252Fnetahtml%25252FPTO%25252Fsrchnum.htm%2526r=1%2526f=G%2526l=50%2526s1=5,579,071.PN.%252B5,435,515.PN.%252B5,229,798.PN.%252B5,113,768.PN.%2526OS=PN/5,579,071%252BOR%252BPN/5,435,515%252BOR%252BPN/5,229,798%252BOR%252BPN/5,113,768%2526RS=PN/5,579,071%252BOR%252BPN/5,435,515%252BOR%252BPN/5,229,798%252BOR%252BPN/5,113,768

Iso-Elastic Support
http://patimg1.uspto.gov/.piw?Docid=05435515&homeurl=http%3A%2F%2Fpatft.uspto.gov%2Fnetacgi%2Fnph-Parser%3FSect1%3DPTO1%2526Sect2%3DHITOFF%2526d%3DPALL%2526p%3D1%2526u%3D%25252Fnetahtml%25252FPTO%25252Fsrchnum.htm%2526r%3D2%2526f%3DG%2526l%3D50%2526s1%3D5,579,071.PN.%252B5,435,515.PN.%252B5,229,798.PN.%252B5,113,768.PN.%2526OS%3DPN%2F5,579,071%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,435,515%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,229,798%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,113,768%2526RS%3DPN%2F5,579,071%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,435,515%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,229,798%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,113,768&PageNum=&Rtype=&SectionNum=&idkey=NONE&Input=View+first+page

Stabilizing Support (JR.)
http://patimg2.uspto.gov/.piw?Docid=05229798&homeurl=http%3A%2F%2Fpatft.uspto.gov%2Fnetacgi%2Fnph-Parser%3FSect1%3DPTO1%2526Sect2%3DHITOFF%2526d%3DPALL%2526p%3D1%2526u%3D%25252Fnetahtml%25252FPTO%25252Fsrchnum.htm%2526r%3D3%2526f%3DG%2526l%3D50%2526s1%3D5,579,071.PN.%252B5,435,515.PN.%252B5,229,798.PN.%252B5,113,768.PN.%2526OS%3DPN%2F5,579,071%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,435,515%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,229,798%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,113,768%2526RS%3DPN%2F5,579,071%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,435,515%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,229,798%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,113,768&PageNum=&Rtype=&SectionNum=&idkey=NONE&Input=View+first+page

Cable Suspesion
http://patimg2.uspto.gov/.piw?Docid=05113768&homeurl=http%3A%2F%2Fpatft.uspto.gov%2Fnetacgi%2Fnph-Parser%3FSect1%3DPTO1%2526Sect2%3DHITOFF%2526d%3DPALL%2526p%3D1%2526u%3D%25252Fnetahtml%25252FPTO%25252Fsrchnum.htm%2526r%3D4%2526f%3DG%2526l%3D50%2526s1%3D5,579,071.PN.%252B5,435,515.PN.%252B5,229,798.PN.%252B5,113,768.PN.%2526OS%3DPN%2F5,579,071%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,435,515%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,229,798%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,113,768%2526RS%3DPN%2F5,579,071%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,435,515%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,229,798%252BOR%252BPN%2F5,113,768&PageNum=&Rtype=&SectionNum=&idkey=NONE&Input=View+first+page

Foldable/Adjustable Hinge (Merlin)
note: click on "images" (unable to get direct link to patent image at this time)
http://appft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PG01&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.html&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=%2220060262274%22.PGNR.&OS=DN/20060262274&RS=DN/20060262274
 
gco said:
For anyone interested here are a few Steadicam Patents.
Caveat: the USPTO website is notoriously finicky. If you do not get an entire image, use refresh.
Click to expand...

Good grief, Charlie 'Garrett' Brown... those are some mighty long hypertext links you be throwin' around. garrettcam

Yes, G. Brown is the man. I foresee a Mikko/Garrett photo in this thread's near future...
 
Oh?

This one...
mikko+garrett.jpg

One of my first times flying the Flyer at IBC'04

Or this one...
Garrett-Mikko_Dueling3.jpg

The $60,000 Ultra2's boom range is no match for the $800 Merlin at NAB'06!

Or perhaps you mean this one...
PlayerSale.jpg

Selling the Lego Steadicam "Player" to Big G at NAB'06


:laugh:


Garrett has more patents than you can shake a stick at. Some of them so simple and clever that they make your head spin.

- Mikko
 
mikkowilson said:
Oh?
:laugh:
Garrett has more patents than you can shake a stick at. Some of them so simple and clever that they make your head spin.
- Mikko
Click to expand...
Thats a key element in great inventorship, simple and clever. Its also a fundamental engineering principle; efficiency. Look at the Merlin hinge for example.
He definitely has quite a few going back to the early 90s at least. Some like the iso-elastic support get pretty deep into motion dynamics.
Did you see the one with the cable support?
I'm wondering if that was used for a movie made with Sean Connery in the Amazon rain forest--dont remember the name. They did a suspended gliding shot at just under tree top level. It was beautiful. Wonder if it was Garretts rig.

btw---great pics!

PS sorry for the long links. They were abbreviated when I previewed them.
 
Terry_Lasater said:
Good grief, Charlie 'Garrett' Brown... those are some mighty long hypertext links you be throwin' around. garrettcam
..
Click to expand...

looked at that link and think i just answered my own question.
Doh!,
 
gco said:
I'm wondering if that was used for a movie made with Sean Connery in the Amazon rain forest--dont remember the name. They did a suspended gliding shot at just under tree top level. It was beautiful. Wonder if it was Garretts rig.
Click to expand...

The movie was probably Medicine Man. I remember reading about their using some kind of cable system, like a (skycam?)
 
There are multiple cable rigs - as you can see on his site linked above www.garrettcam.com / www.garrettbrown.com - invented - at least in part, by Garrett

There's Flycam and Super-Flycam which are (relativly normal) one-dimensional cable cams with the camera balanced on the cable in the same way that a Steadicam is balanced on it's gimble - resulting in stable shots. They have been used in all sorts of stuff.

Then there's Skycam, which is more complicatedand far cooler: The camera is supported by 4 fiber-optic cables coming from motorized reels in the 4 corners of the shooting area (Normally a sports stadium).
As the reels pull and "push" (let out) the cables, they can move the camera anywhere in 3D space. Eg: if they all pull, the camera goes up, all let out, it goes down, 2-pull and 2-push the camera moves horizontally, etc..
The system is controlled by a group of computers that allow a "pilot" to "fly" the camera on the wires. A 2nd operator operates the camera itself, which is mounted balanced - again, Steadicam style - suspended by the cables.
It's most visibly used to offer the "3rd person" / "above the action" shots for American Football on TV, also commonly used for other sports like the Olympics.

There are links on Garrett's site to more info on all that stuff.

I highly recomend his "Moving camera" article that at the top of the site too.


- Mikko ... wants a Molecam
 
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