Camera barrel mechanism

1. A portable electronic device comprising:

a camera mount comprising:

a camera barrel assembly configured to have a camera affixed thereto, the camera barrel assembly being rotatably coupled with one of a front panel, a rear panel, or a chassis of an enclosure so that the camera is disposed with an aperture facing external to the enclosure; and

a set of cantilever springs affixed to one of the front panel, the rear panel, or the chassis of the portable electronic device and biased against the camera barrel assembly,

wherein in an unrotated state, the camera barrel assembly is aligned so that the camera is disposed with an aperture of the camera facing external to the portable electronic device and generally normal to a face of the portable electronic device,

wherein the set of cantilever springs is biased against the camera barrel assembly to provide rotational friction on the camera barrel assembly, the set of cantilever springs having sufficient compliance to allow the camera to retract into a body of the portable electronic device upon encountering an external force,

wherein the set of cantilever springs, when unflexed, lies within a first plane that is parallel to the face of the portable electronic device, said first plane being positioned at a first distance from the face of the portable electronic device, wherein the camera barrel assembly comprises at least one actuation plate mounted to the camera barrel assembly via a plurality of mounting tabs, such that, in the unrotated state, the at least one actuation plate lies in a second plane that is parallel with the face of the portable electronic device, said second plane being positioned at a second distance from the face of the portable electronic device, said second distance being greater than said first distance.

2. The portable electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the external force includes one of a force resulting from the portable electronic device being dropped or a force of impact to one of a face of the camera, a face of the camera barrel assembly, or a face of the portable electronic device.

3. The portable electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the set of cantilever springs having sufficient compliance to allow the camera to retract into a body of the portable electronic device includes one or more cantilever springs of the set of cantilever springs having sufficient compliance to rotate the camera barrel assembly and the camera to the unrotated state of the camera barrel assembly.

4. The portable electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the set of cantilever springs having sufficient compliance to allow the camera to retract into a body of the portable electronic device includes one or more cantilever springs of the set of cantilever springs having sufficient compliance to translate the camera barrel assembly and the camera to a position within the body of the portable electronic device.

5. The portable electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the camera barrel assembly is rotatable about a first axis to at least one of a first rotated state by a first angle or a second rotated state by a second angle.

6. The portable electronic device of claim 5 , wherein when the camera barrel assembly is rotated to the first rotated state by the first angle, at least a first spring of the set of cantilever springs is positionally configured to make contact with a first actuation plate of the at least one actuation plate, such that the first actuation plate causes at least the first spring to flex.

7. The portable electronic device of claim 6 , wherein upon encountering the external force, at least the first spring is configured to return to its unflexed position, which causes the first actuation plate to rotate the camera barrel assembly to its unrotated state.

8. The portable electronic device of claim 5 , wherein when the camera barrel assembly is rotated to the second rotated state by the second angle, at least a second spring of the set of cantilever springs is positionally configured to make contact with a contact cavity of the camera barrel assembly, such that the contact cavity causes at least the second spring to flex, said second spring having a flat portion and a curved portion extending from one end of a flat portion of the second spring toward the contact cavity, which is positioned between a front face of the camera barrel assembly and the set of cantilever springs, wherein the flat portion lies in one of the first plane or a third plane adjacent to the first plane.

9. The portable electronic device of claim 8 , wherein upon encountering the external force, at least the second spring is configured to return to its unflexed position, which causes the contact cavity to rotate the camera barrel assembly to its unrotated state.

10. The portable electronic device of claim 5 , wherein the camera barrel assembly further comprises a gimbal structure configured to rotate about the first axis and to rotate about a second axis to at least one of a third rotated state by a third angle or a fourth rotated state by a fourth angle, said second axis being orthogonal to the first axis.

11. The portable electronic device of claim 10 , wherein when the camera barrel assembly is rotated to one of the third rotated state by the third angle or the fourth rotated state by the fourth angle, at least one of a third spring or a fourth spring of the set of cantilever springs is positionally configured to make contact with a second of the at least one actuation plate, such that the second plate causes the at least one of the third spring or the fourth spring to flex.

12. The portable electronic device of claim 11 , wherein upon encountering the external force, the at least one of the third spring or the fourth spring is configured to return to its unflexed position, which causes the second actuation plate to rotate the camera barrel assembly to its unrotated state.

13. The portable electronic device of claim 10 , wherein the camera mount further comprises at least one motor coupled to the gimbal structure, the at least one motor being configured to provide motorized rotation of the camera barrel assembly about at least one of the first and second axes.

14. The portable electronic device of claim 1 , wherein, in the unrotated state, a front face of the camera barrel assembly is recessed with respect to the face of the portable electronic device, and wherein, when in a rotated state, a portion of the front face of the camera barrel assembly extends beyond the face of the portable electronic device.

15. A method comprising:

providing a camera mount within a portable electronic device, the camera mount comprising:

a camera barrel assembly configured to have a camera affixed thereto, the camera barrel assembly being rotatably coupled with one of a front panel, a rear panel, or a chassis of the portable electronic device, wherein in an unrotated state, the camera barrel assembly is rotated so that the camera is disposed with an aperture of the camera facing external to the portable electronic device and generally normal to a face of the portable electronic device; and

a set of cantilever springs affixed to one of the front panel, the rear panel, or the chassis of the portable electronic device and biased against the camera barrel assembly to provide rotational friction on the camera barrel assembly, the set of cantilever springs having sufficient compliance to allow the camera to retract into a body of the portable electronic device upon encountering an external force, wherein the external force includes one of a force resulting from the portable electronic device being dropped or a force of impact to one of a face of the camera, a face of the camera barrel assembly, or a face of the portable electronic device;

flexing, in response to encountering the external force, at least one spring of the set of cantilever springs from a flexed state to an unflexed state; and

rotating, in response to flexing the at least one spring of the set of cantilever springs from the flexed state to the unflexed state, the camera barrel assembly about at least one of a first axis and a second axis from a rotated state to the unrotated state, said second axis being orthogonal to the first axis.

16. The method of claim 15 , further comprising:

rotating the camera barrel assembly from the unrotated state to the rotated state, about the at least one of the first axis and the second axis; and

flexing, in response to rotating the camera barrel assembly from the unrotated state to the rotated state, the at least one spring of the set of cantilever springs from the unflexed state to the flexed state.

17. A camera mount, comprising:

a camera barrel assembly configured to have a camera affixed thereto, the camera barrel assembly being rotatably coupled with one of a front panel, a rear panel, or a chassis of an enclosure so that the camera is disposed with an aperture facing external to the enclosure; and

a set of cantilever springs affixed to the chassis of the enclosure and biased against the camera barrel assembly,

wherein in an unrotated state, the camera barrel assembly is aligned so that the camera is disposed with an aperture of the camera facing external to the enclosure and generally normal to a face of the enclosure,

wherein the set of cantilever springs is biased against the camera barrel assembly to provide rotational friction on the camera barrel assembly, the set of cantilever springs having sufficient compliance to allow the camera to retract into a body of the enclosure upon encountering an external force,

wherein the set of cantilever springs, when unflexed, lies within a first plane that is parallel to the face of the enclosure, said first plane being positioned at a first distance from the face of the enclosure, wherein the camera barrel assembly comprises at least one actuation plate mounted to the camera barrel assembly via a plurality of mounting tabs, such that, in the unrotated state, the at least one actuation plate lies in a second plane that is parallel with the face of the enclosure, said second plane being positioned at a second distance from the face of the enclosure, said second distance being greater than said first distance.