{{Short description|Japanese manufacturer}} {{Coord|35|46|33.1|N|139|41|18.2|E|display=title}} thumb|Nidec logo [[File:日本電産コパル本社.jpg|thumb|Head office of Nidec Precision (Copal)<br />in Tokyo]]{{Cleanup rewrite|date=March 2026}} The {{nihongo|'''Nidec Precision Corporation'''|ニデックプレシジョン株式会社|Nidekku Pureshijon Kabushiki-gaisha}}, or The ex. {{nihongo|'''Nidec Copal Corporation'''|日本電産コパル株式会社|Nihon Densan Koparu Kabushiki-gaisha}}, or '''Copal''', is a Japanese manufacturer of optical, electronic and mechanical equipment, primarily for the photographic industry. It has been a subsidiary of Nidec Corporation since 1998, and was formerly known as the '''Copal Corporation'''. The company began operation in 1946, with small-scale production of photographic shutters;<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nidec.com/en/nidec-precision/ |title=Nidec Precision Corporation Official Site |author=Nidec Precision Corporation |access-date=2026-03-29 |archive-date=2025-01-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250130134434/https://www.nidec.com/en/nidec-precision/ |url-status=live }}</ref> these are still one of the company's best-known products.
In the 1960s the company began producing the well-known Copal Square vertically travelling metal blade focal plane shutter, which was very successful and was used in cameras by many prominent manufacturers.
The ''Copal Square-S'', for example used in the Konica T3s (1973-1978)<ref>[https://buhla.de/Foto/Konica/eT3Daten.html buhla.de, Konica Autoreflex T3 Technical Data and Features, Retrieved 7 November 2020].</ref><ref>[https://buhla.de/Foto/Konica/eT3NDaten.html buhla.de, Konica Autoreflex T3N 1975-1978, Technical data and features. Retrieved 7 November 2020].</ref> and the Nikkormat FT,<ref name="met-shutters">[http://www.konicafiles.com/6-technical-questions/-konica-and-the-copal-shutter konicafiles.com, Metal shutters. Retrieved 7 November 2020]</ref> is very reliable. It works over a wide temperature range.<ref>[https://buhla.de/Foto/Konica/eT3Haupt.html buhla.de, Konica Autoreflex T3 1973-1975. Retrieved 7 November 2020].</ref> The electronically controlled Copal ''Square E'' (1968) was used in the Yashica TL Electro X, the Canon EF, the Nikkormat EL. For Minolta XE and the Leica R3 the Copal-Leitz Shutter ''CLS'' was developed in 1972. For the professional Nikon F4 built 1988 until 1996 the Copal ''Square'' was developed and reached 1/8000 s and 1/250 s with flash.<ref name="met-shutters" />
In 2020 Nidec Copal has round about 6,450 employees<ref>[https://www.nidec.com/en/nidec-copal/corporate/about/outline/ nidec.com, Company Profile, retrieved 8 November 2020].</ref> and manufactures devices, that are used in automobiles, optical products and Tablets beside shutters for digital cameras.<ref name="nidec2020">[https://www.nidec.com/en/nidec-copal/corporate/about/business/ nidec.com, ''Business Summary'', retrieved 8 November 2020].</ref><ref>[https://www.nidec.com/en/nidec-copal/product/search/category/B107/M106/S105/NCPL-Shutter-for-digitalcamera/?apB=A_B105&apM=A_B105_A_M101 nidec.com, Shutter for digital camera, retrieved 13 November 2020] (english).</ref>
== References == <references/>
== External links == *{{official|https://www.nidec-copal.com/}} {{Japanese Electronics Industry}}
Category:Manufacturing companies of Japan Category:Photography equipment manufacturers of Japan
{{Japan-manufacturing-company-stub}}