CN113238433B

CN113238433B - Camera and dimming module

Info

Publication number: CN113238433B
Application number: CN202010098310.7A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 陈建岳; 张津恺
Original assignee: Chicony Electronics Co Ltd
Current assignee: Chicony Electronics Co Ltd
Priority date: 2020-01-22
Filing date: 2020-02-18
Publication date: 2022-07-22
Anticipated expiration: 2040-02-18
Also published as: TWI717200B; TW202129388A; CN113238433A

Abstract

A dimming module of a camera comprises a light source unit and a dimming unit. The light source unit comprises a plurality of light emitting pieces, the light emitting pieces are arranged around the camera lens of the camera, and the light emitting direction of each light emitting piece is parallel to the image capturing direction of the camera lens. The dimming unit is arranged on the light source unit and comprises a plurality of secondary optical pieces, and the plurality of secondary optical pieces correspond to the plurality of light-emitting pieces. Wherein each secondary optical part includes the printing opacity cover, and each luminous part holds and locates inside each printing opacity cover, and the inner wall of each printing opacity cover includes first leaded light inclined plane and second leaded light inclined plane, and the first slope on first leaded light inclined plane is different from the second slope on second leaded light inclined plane, and the light that each luminous part sent is through first leaded light inclined plane and second leaded light inclined plane deflection respectively.

Description

Camera and dimming module

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an electronic device, and more particularly, to a camera and a light adjusting module.

Background

Many cameras are matched with light sources to be used as auxiliary lighting, so that when the cameras capture images, the cameras can obtain clearer images through lighting of the light sources, and can shoot at night or in an environment with insufficient light.

In order to illuminate a specific area or angle, a light source of a camera generally employs a plug-in type light emitting element (for example, a DIP LED) having pins, and in a manufacturing process of the camera, the pins of the plug-in type light emitting element are first inserted onto a circuit board, and then are turned around by bending the pins and soldered and fixed, so that the plug-in type light emitting element faces to the specific angle to illuminate the specific area.

However, the above method not only requires a complicated process (for example, bending each light emitting device), but also causes errors in bending the leads, which makes it impossible to achieve a desired lighting effect. In addition, the light emitted from the plug-in type light emitting device to the specific area may be non-uniform, for example, the light further away from the plug-in type light emitting device may be more divergent, resulting in poor illumination effect and affecting the image quality.

Disclosure of Invention

In view of the foregoing, in one embodiment, a dimming module of a camera is provided, which is suitable for a camera and includes a light source unit and a dimming unit. The light source unit comprises a plurality of light emitting pieces, the light emitting pieces are arranged around the camera lens of the camera, and the light emitting direction of each light emitting piece is parallel to the image capturing direction of the camera lens. The dimming unit is arranged on the light source unit and comprises a plurality of secondary optical pieces, and the plurality of secondary optical pieces correspond to the plurality of light-emitting pieces. Wherein each secondary optical part includes the printing opacity cover, and each luminous part holds and locates inside each printing opacity cover, and the inner wall of each printing opacity cover includes first leaded light inclined plane and second leaded light inclined plane, and the first slope on first leaded light inclined plane is different from the second slope on second leaded light inclined plane, and the light that each luminous part sent is through first leaded light inclined plane and second leaded light inclined plane deflection respectively.

In an embodiment, a camera is provided, which includes a camera body and the dimming module. The camera body is provided with a camera lens. The dimming module is arranged in the camera body.

Therefore, according to the light adjusting module of the camera provided by the embodiment of the invention, each secondary optical element of the light adjusting unit respectively corresponds to each light emitting element, and the light emitted by each light emitting element can be deflected through the first light guide inclined surface and the second light guide inclined surface of the corresponding secondary optical element, so that the light adjusting unit can guide the light of each light emitting element to reach the required irradiation angle and intensity distribution, and the uniformity of illumination is optimized to improve the quality of image capture. In addition, each light-emitting component does not need to be additionally processed (such as bending pin turning), so that the labor cost and the time cost are greatly reduced.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the camera of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the dimming module of the present invention.

Fig. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a first embodiment of a dimming module according to the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a side view of a first embodiment of the dimming module of the present invention.

Fig. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view of a first embodiment of the dimming module of the present invention.

Fig. 6 is a partially enlarged view of fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a partially enlarged and light-guiding schematic view of fig. 5.

Fig. 8 is a schematic light guide diagram of a dimming module according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 9 is a side view of a third embodiment of a dimming module according to the present invention.

Fig. 10 is a partial cross-sectional view of fig. 9.

Fig. 11 is a partial cross-sectional view of a fourth embodiment of the dimming module of the present invention.

List of reference numerals:

1: camera

2: light modulation module

6 region of

10 light source unit

11 first surface

12 second surface

13 lens setting area

14 substrate

15 luminous element

20 light modulation unit

21 secondary optical element

22 first end

23 second end of

24. 24A, 24B light-transmitting cover

241. 241A, 241B a first light guide slope

242. 242A, 242B a second light directing slope

243, a joining part

244 inner side

245 outside of

246 side of the main body

25 optical microstructure

27 transparent cover

3: camera body

30 casing

31 camera shooting port

32 camera lens

N is the normal central axis

O optical axis

L1-L4 light ray

Detailed Description

Various embodiments are described in detail below, however, the embodiments are only used as examples and do not limit the scope of the invention to be protected. In addition, the drawings in the embodiments omit some elements to clearly show the technical features of the invention. The same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like elements.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the camera of the present invention. Fig. 2 to 4 are a perspective view, an exploded perspective view and a side view of a first embodiment of the dimming module of the present invention. As shown in fig. 1, a camera 1 of the present embodiment includes a light-adjusting module 2 and a camera body 3. In some embodiments, the Camera 1 may be a Network monitoring Camera (IP Camera/Network Camera), Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV), analog monitoring Camera, or the like. The camera 1 may be installed in various locations (e.g., nursery, office, shop, road, etc.) for security monitoring or recording personnel activities.

As shown in fig. 1 to 4, the camera body 3 includes a housing 30 and a camera lens 32, the housing 30 is a hollow shell and has a camera opening 31, and the camera lens 32 is located in the housing 30 and faces the camera opening 31. External light can enter the interior of the housing 30 through the camera port 31, so that the camera lens 32 can capture external images. The light modulation module 2 is mounted on the housing 30 and includes a light source unit 10 and a light modulation unit 20. The light source unit 10 includes a substrate 14 and a plurality of light emitting members 15 disposed around an imaging lens 32, wherein the substrate 14 includes a first surface 11 and a second surface 12 opposite to each other. In the embodiment, the substrate 14 is a circuit board, each Light-emitting element 15 is a Light-emitting diode (LED), and each Light-emitting element 15 is fixed on the first Surface 11 by Surface-mount technology (SMT); the normal direction of the first surface 11 of the substrate 14 is parallel to the image capturing direction of the imaging lens 32 (e.g., the Y-axis direction shown in fig. 3), and the light emitting direction of each light emitting element 15 is parallel to the image capturing direction of the imaging lens 32. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the light emitting direction of the light emitting member 15 is the maximum light intensity direction of the light emitting member 15. In the present embodiment, the number of the light emitting members 15 is four, but the number of the light emitting members 15 may be configured differently according to the implementation requirement.

As shown in fig. 3, the substrate 14 has a lens setting area 13 for mounting an imaging lens 32. In the embodiment, the lens setting area 13 is a central opening for the camera lens 32 to pass through, so as to prevent the camera lens 32 from being blocked and being able to capture external images, but this is not a limitation. In some embodiments, the lens setting area 13 of the substrate 14 may also be a solid area for the camera lens 32 to be directly assembled and facing the camera port 31.

As shown in fig. 3 to 4, the imaging lens 32 has a normal center axis N (an axial direction of the normal center axis N in the present embodiment is parallel to a Y-axis direction in fig. 1 to 3), and an imaging direction of the imaging lens 32 is the axial direction of the normal center axis N. The light emitting elements 15 are disposed around the normal center axis N at equal intervals, that is, the shortest distances from the light emitting elements 15 to the normal center axis N are the same, but the embodiment is not limited thereto. In some embodiments, the positions of the light emitting elements 15 may be configured differently according to actual requirements, for example, the light emitting elements 15 are disposed on the same side of the lens arrangement region 13, or the light emitting elements 15 are configured at an equal angle (e.g., 30 °, 45 ° or 60 °) with the normal central axis N as the center, or the light emitting elements 15 may be arranged in an irregular manner.

As shown in fig. 1 to 4, the light adjusting unit 20 is disposed on the light source unit 10 and includes a plurality of secondary optical elements 21, the plurality of secondary optical elements 21 correspond to the plurality of light emitting elements 15, and the light emitted by each light emitting element 15 is deflected by the corresponding secondary optical element 21, so that the light emitted by each light emitting element 15 can only irradiate a specific area of the image capturing range of the camera 1, for example, only irradiate one quadrant of the image capturing range of the camera 1. In some embodiments, the dimming unit 20 is arranged side by side with the light source unit 10 in the image capturing direction of the imaging lens 32, and the dimming unit 20 is located in front of the light source unit 10. The light control unit 20 further includes a transparent cover 27, the transparent cover 27 is disposed on one side of the first surface 11 of the substrate 14, the plurality of secondary optical members 21 extend from the surface of the transparent cover 27 and are respectively corresponding to the light emitting members 15, and the plurality of secondary optical members 21 are respectively disposed around the normal central axis N at equal intervals. In the present embodiment, the transparent cover 27 and each secondary optical element 21 are integrally formed (for example, the transparent cover 27 and each secondary optical element 21 are integrally injection-molded), the transparent cover 27 covers the plurality of light-emitting elements 15, and the plurality of secondary optical elements 21 are located between the substrate 14 and the transparent cover 27 and respectively correspond to the plurality of light-emitting elements 15.

As shown in fig. 1 to 4, in the present embodiment, each secondary optical element 21 includes a transparent cover 24, and each transparent cover 24 has a first end 22 and a second end 23 opposite to each other in the axial direction, where the axial direction of each transparent cover 24 is the same as the image capturing direction (i.e. the direction of the normal central axis N) of the camera lens 32, and the first end 22 of each secondary optical element 21 is adjacent to the first surface 11 and covers each light emitting element 15, so that each light emitting element 15 is accommodated in each transparent cover 24, and the second end 23 of each transparent cover 24 is far away from the first surface 11 and connected to the surface of the transparent cover 27.

In some embodiments, the transparent cover 27 and each transparent cover 24 are made of a transparent material, for example, the transparent material may be Polycarbonate (PC), acrylic Plastic (PMMA), or glass material, so that the light emitted from each light emitting element 15 can be transmitted by the plurality of secondary optical elements 21 and the transparent cover 27 and irradiated outward from the camera port 31, thereby achieving the effect of auxiliary illumination.

In some embodiments, the dimming cell 20 may be directly fixed to the substrate 14, for example, each secondary optical element 21 is fixed to the first surface 11 of the substrate 14 by adhesion or embedding. Alternatively, the dimming cell 20 may be assembled and fixed to the housing 30 of the video camera 1, which is not limited.

Referring to fig. 4 to 6, fig. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view of a first embodiment of the dimming module of the present invention, and fig. 6 is a partial enlarged view of a region 6 of fig. 5, in this embodiment, fig. 5 is a cross-section taken along a line a-a of fig. 4, the line a-a extends along a radial direction perpendicular to the normal central axis N, and the line a-a cuts two of the light-transmissive covers 24. As shown in fig. 5 and 6, the inner wall of each light-transmissive cover 24 includes a first light-guiding inclined plane 241 and a second light-guiding inclined plane 242, and a first slope of the first light-guiding inclined plane 241 is different from a second slope of the second light-guiding inclined plane 242, that is, a slope of the first light-guiding inclined plane 241 may be greater than or less than a slope of the second light-guiding inclined plane 242.

As shown in fig. 5 and 6, in the present embodiment, each light-transmissive cover 24 includes an inner side 244 and an outer side 245 opposite to each other, the inner side 244 is adjacent to the normal central axis N relative to the outer side 245, and the first light guiding inclined surface 241 of each light-transmissive cover 24 is closer to the inner side 244 relative to the second light guiding inclined surface 242, that is, the first light guiding inclined surface 241 of each light-transmissive cover 24 is closer to the normal central axis N and the camera lens 32 relative to the second light guiding inclined surface 242. In addition, in the embodiment, an absolute value of the slope of the first light guide slope 241 is smaller than an absolute value of the slope of the second light guide slope 242, but this is not a limitation. In some embodiments, the number of light directing ramps on each inner wall of the light-transmissive cover 24 can also be more than two, for example, each inner wall of the light-transmissive cover 24 can include three light directing ramps, and at least two of the three light directing ramps have different slopes.

According to the above embodiment of the present invention, the light-transmitting covers 24 of the secondary optical elements 21 of the light-adjusting unit 20 are respectively covered outside the light-emitting elements 15, and the first light-guiding inclined surfaces 241 and the second light-guiding inclined surfaces 242 of the inner walls of the secondary optical elements 21 have different slopes, so that the secondary optical elements 21 can guide the light emitted by the light-emitting elements 15 to achieve the required illumination angle and intensity distribution. For example, as shown in fig. 7, wherein fig. 7 is a partial enlarged and light-guiding schematic view of fig. 5, in the present embodiment, since the slope of the first light-guiding slope 241 of each light-transmitting cover 24 is different from the slope of the second light-guiding slope 242, after each light-emitting element 15 emits light to irradiate the first light-guiding slope 241 and the second light-guiding slope 242, different refraction effects are generated, for example, when each light-emitting element 15 irradiates the first light-guiding slope 241, the light (for example, the light L1 in fig. 7) can be refracted to transmit in the direction of the camera lens 32 and irradiate to a predetermined area and position, so that the light irradiation areas of the light-emitting elements 15 can be partially overlapped in the image-taking direction of the camera lens 32, thereby increasing the brightness in the image-taking direction of the camera lens 32. The slope of the second light guiding slope 242 enables the light (e.g. light L2 in fig. 7) to be refracted and transmitted in a direction away from the camera lens 32 when each light-emitting element 15 irradiates the second light guiding slope 242, and then irradiate to a predetermined area and position.

Referring to fig. 7 and 8, fig. 8 is a schematic light guide diagram of a dimming module according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The present embodiment is different from the above-mentioned embodiment of fig. 7 at least in that the absolute value of the slope of the first light guiding slope 241A of each light-transmitting cover 24A of the present embodiment is larger than the absolute value of the slope of the first light guiding slope 241 of each light-transmitting cover 24 of the embodiment of fig. 7, and the absolute value of the slope of the second light guiding slope 242A of each light-transmitting cover 24A is larger than the absolute value of the slope of the second light guiding slope 242 of each light-transmitting cover 24 of the embodiment of fig. 7. Therefore, when each light emitting element 15 emits light to irradiate the first light guiding inclined surface 241A, the irradiation area and position of the refracted light (for example, light L3 shown in fig. 8) can be closer to the image capturing direction of the camera lens 32, so that the overlapping portion of the light irradiation areas of the light emitting elements 15 in the image capturing direction of the camera lens 32 is increased, the brightness of the image capturing direction of the camera lens 32 is improved, and the situation of insufficient central brightness after image capturing is avoided. Similarly, when each light-emitting element 15 emits light to illuminate the second light guiding inclined plane 242A, the illumination area and position of the refracted light (for example, light L4 in fig. 8) can be further away from the camera lens 32, so as to adjust the illumination area and position of each light-emitting element 15 according to the use requirement.

To sum up, in the embodiment of the present invention, the light emitted by each light emitting element 15 is deflected by the first light guiding inclined surface 241 and the second light guiding inclined surface 242 of each light transmissive cover 24 to irradiate on the predetermined illumination area to increase the brightness, and in addition, the light of each light emitting element 15 can reach the required irradiation angle and position by the guidance of the first light guiding inclined surface 241 and the second light guiding inclined surface 242 to irradiate on the predetermined area of the image capturing range, so that the overall brightness of the predetermined illumination area is uniform and the image capturing quality is greatly improved. For example, the light-emitting elements 15 can be respectively irradiated on different quadrants of the predetermined illumination area, and the light of each light-emitting element 15 can be respectively guided by the first light guiding inclined surface 241 and the second light guiding inclined surface 242 of the corresponding light-transmitting cover 24, so that part of the light emitted by the light-emitting elements 15 can be overlapped at the quadrant boundary, thereby avoiding the problem of over-dark at the quadrant boundary and making the brightness of the predetermined illumination area uniform.

In addition, in the embodiment of the invention, the light illumination is controlled by covering the light-transmitting covers 24 of the secondary optical elements 21 of the light-adjusting unit 20 outside the light-emitting elements 15, so that the light-emitting elements 15 do not need to be processed additionally (for example, bending the pins to turn). As shown in fig. 6 and 7, each light emitting element 15 of the present embodiment employs a Surface mount Technology (Surface Mounted LED) to quickly mount each light emitting element 15 on the first Surface 11 of the substrate 14 by an automated machine, so as to greatly reduce labor and time costs.

In some embodiments, the present invention can further adjust the position of each light emitting element 15 in each light transmissive cover 24 to adjust the illumination angle and intensity distribution of the light emitted from each light emitting element 15 to the camera opening 31. As shown in fig. 6, in the present embodiment, each light emitting element 15 is eccentrically disposed inside each light transmissive cover 24, for example, each light emitting element 15 is close to the second light guiding inclined surface 242 of each light transmissive cover 24 and relatively far from the first light guiding inclined surface 241, so as to form an eccentric arrangement, and further, the angles of the light emitting elements 15 irradiating the first light guiding inclined surface 241 and the second light guiding inclined surface 242 are changed to generate different refraction effects, thereby changing the irradiation angle and intensity distribution irradiating the camera opening 31. In some embodiments, each light emitting element 15 may also be close to the first light guiding slope 241 and relatively far from the second light guiding slope 242.

As shown in fig. 6, in the present embodiment, a connection portion 243 is disposed between the first light guiding inclined surface 241 and the second light guiding inclined surface 242 of the light-transmissive cover 24, that is, one end of the first light guiding inclined surface 241 and one end of the second light guiding inclined surface 242 are connected to each other, and the connection portion 243 is located in the light emitting direction of each light-emitting element 15 and is deviated from the optical axis O of each light-emitting element 15, wherein the optical axis O of each light-emitting element 15 is parallel to the normal central axis N of the camera lens 32, so that the present invention can also change the deviation position of the connection portion 243 relative to each light-emitting element 15 to change the angle of each light-emitting element 15 irradiating on the first light guiding inclined surface 241 and the second light guiding inclined surface 242 to generate different refraction effects, thereby changing the irradiation angle and intensity distribution irradiating the camera lens 31. In other embodiments, the connecting portion 243 of the first light guiding inclined surface 241 and the second light guiding inclined surface 242 may also be located on the optical axis O of each light emitting element 15.

In some embodiments, at least one of the first light guiding slope 241 or the second light guiding slope 242 of each light-transmitting cover 24 can be further inclined toward other directions, so that the light emitted from each light-emitting element 15 can be refracted to generate different refraction effects. As shown in fig. 9 and 10, fig. 9 is a side view of a third embodiment of the light modulation module of the present invention, fig. 10 is a partial cross-sectional view of fig. 9, and fig. 10 is a cross-section taken along a line B-B of fig. 9, wherein the line B-B extends along a horizontal direction perpendicular to the normal central axis N and the line a-a of fig. 4, and the line B-B cuts one of the light-transmissive covers 24B. As shown in fig. 9 and 10, each light-transmitting cover 24B includes two opposite lateral sides 246, and the two lateral sides 246 are connected between the inner side 244 and the outer side 245, in the present embodiment, the first light-guiding inclined surface 241B of each light-transmitting cover 24B is further inclined toward one of the lateral sides 246 (i.e., the horizontal direction), so that the light emitted from each light-emitting element 15 can be transmitted and irradiated to different regions and positions after being refracted by the first light-guiding inclined surface 241B compared with the embodiment of fig. 1 to 6. In other embodiments, the second light guiding slope 242B of each light-transmitting cover 24B may also be inclined toward one of the lateral sides 246 (i.e., the horizontal direction), which will not be described herein.

In some embodiments, at least one of the first light guiding inclined surface 241 or the second light guiding inclined surface 242 of each light-transmissive cover 24 may further have an optical microstructure 25 on a surface thereof, for example, as shown in fig. 11, which is a partial cross-sectional view of the light-dimming module according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention, the difference between this embodiment and the embodiments of fig. 1 to 6 is that the second light guiding inclined surface 242 of each light-transmissive cover 24 further has a saw-toothed optical microstructure 25 to increase the light guiding area of the second light guiding inclined surface 242, so that the overall design of the light-dimming module 2 can be thinner without affecting the light guiding effect of the second light guiding inclined surface 242, and similarly, the optical microstructure 25 may also be disposed on the first light guiding inclined surface 241, which is not repeated herein.

In some embodiments, the optical microstructures 25 can also be a light guide film, a diffusion film, or a light guide dot, which is not limited.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments, it should be understood that various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Claims

1. A camera dimming module suitable for a camera, the camera dimming module comprising:

the light source unit comprises a plurality of light emitting pieces, the light emitting pieces are arranged around the camera lens of the camera, and the light emitting direction of each light emitting piece is parallel to the image capturing direction of the camera lens; and

a light adjusting unit disposed on the light source unit and including a plurality of secondary optical members corresponding to the light emitting members, respectively;

each secondary optical element comprises a light-transmitting cover, each light-emitting element is accommodated in each light-transmitting cover, the inner wall of each light-transmitting cover comprises a first light guide inclined plane and a second light guide inclined plane, the absolute value of the first slope of the first light guide inclined plane is different from the absolute value of the second slope of the second light guide inclined plane, and light rays emitted by each light-emitting element are deflected through the first light guide inclined plane and the second light guide inclined plane respectively;

a linking part is arranged between the first light guide inclined plane and the second light guide inclined plane of each light-transmitting cover, and the linking part is positioned in the light emitting direction of each light-emitting piece and deviates from the optical axis of each light-emitting piece.

2. The dimming module of a video camera of claim 1, wherein said camera lens includes a normal center axis, each said light transmissive cover includes opposing inner and outer sides, said inner side being adjacent to said normal center axis relative to said outer side, said first light directing ramp of each said light transmissive cover being closer to said inner side relative to said second light directing ramp.

3. The dimming module of a camera of claim 2, wherein an absolute value of the first slope of the first light guiding slope is smaller than an absolute value of the second slope of the second light guiding slope.

4. The dimming module of claim 2, wherein each of the light-transmissive covers includes a side connected between the inner side and the outer side, and the first light guiding slope or the second light guiding slope is inclined toward the side.

5. The dimming module of claim 1, wherein a surface of at least one of the first light guiding slope or the second light guiding slope of each light-transmissive cover is further provided with an optical microstructure.

6. The dimming module of a video camera of claim 1, wherein the light source unit comprises a substrate, the substrate comprises a first surface and a second surface opposite to the first surface, and the light emitting element is fixed on the first surface.

7. The dimming module of a video camera of claim 1, wherein the dimming cell comprises a transparent cover, the secondary optic extending from a surface of the transparent cover.

8. The dimming module of a video camera of claim 1, wherein each of said light emitting members is eccentrically disposed within each of said light transmissive covers.

9. A camera, characterized in that the camera comprises:

a camera body having a camera lens; and

the dimming module of any of claims 1-8, disposed within the camera body.