Is Canon cooking up more compact pancake lenses? New patent hints at more compact f/2.8 prime lenses

Patents always get me excited as a rare glimpse into what camera brands are working on behind-the-scenes. This time, it’s Canon treating us to lens insights with the new patent revealing mock-ups for a series of f/2.8 lenses.

The f/2.8 lenses outlined in patent P2026-52804A, which was published by the Japan Patent Office on March 25, include a 10mm, 12mm, 18mm, and 28mm prime, all featuring highly compact, lightweight builds, likely to be pancake lenses.

Canon released its first RF mount pancake lens, the RF 28mm f/2.8 STM Lens, back in 2023. And although this lens was available before patent P2026-52804A was filed in 2024, its specification closely matches the 28mm design in the patent. However, Canon Rumors expects that the patents are for APS-C lenses, while the existing 28mm offers full-frame coverage.

The patent describes a retracting design. This means that once powered on, the front barrel of the lens stays in a fixed position, while focusing is handled by a small, lightweight internal focusing group.

While what we see in patent P2026-52804A looks similar to an existing lens, pancake lenses are popular choices right now for portability. If the lenses are in fact for APS-C, I suspect they would also be on the more affordable end.

The 28mm f/2.8 STM pancake lens produces an image taller than what the 28mm design detailed in the patent would produce, making the design in the patent better suited to APS-C and not full-frame cameras.

Of course, all of this is my educated guess and, while unlikely, Canon could be cooking up a new series of ultra-light prime lenses for its APS-C cameras. But if Canon releases another SMT pancake lens featuring a focal length outlined in patent P2026-52804A, then any remaining doubts should be squashed.

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