  CCD BVI photometry is presented for 7 previously unstudied star clusters
projected toward the inner side of the Galaxy: Trumpler 23, Lynga 3, Collinder
307, Ruprecht 134, ESO552SC16, AL 5 and Kronberger 3. Color magnitude diagrams
of the cluster regions allow us to conclude that Lynga 3 and ESO552SC16, are
not clusters, but groups of bright stars probably located in the
Carina-Sagittarius spiral arm. AL 5 and Kronberger 3 are so embedded in a dense
stellar field that we cannot confirm their nature. Trumpler~ 3 and Ruprecht 134
are two intermediate-age open clusters located well inside the solar ring which
deserve further attention. Finally, Collinder 307 is an obscured younger
cluster (250 Myr) located in the Carina-Sagittarius spiral arm. Our results
emphasize the difficulty to search for open clusters in the inner regions of
the Galaxy due to the richness of the field and the patchy nature of the
interstellar absorption, but at the same time significantly contribute to a
better understanding of this complicated regions of the Milky Way.
