CN113866975A

CN113866975A - Image acquisition device and lens switching method

Info

Publication number: CN113866975A
Application number: CN202010622333.3A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 王东强; 周慕昭; 姜斌; 李乐昌
Original assignee: Shenzhen Mindray Bio Medical Electronics Co Ltd
Current assignee: Shenzhen Mindray Bio Medical Electronics Co Ltd
Priority date: 2020-06-30
Filing date: 2020-06-30
Publication date: 2021-12-31

Abstract

The invention provides an image acquisition device and a lens switching method. The image acquisition apparatus includes: a lens conversion device provided with at least two lenses; and a driving device for driving the lens conversion device to move to a target position to realize switching between the at least two lenses, wherein the driving device comprises: an active portion rotatable about an axis; a driven part connected with the lens conversion device and provided with a gap with the driving part; and the control device controls the axial rotation of the driving part so that the driving part can continue to rotate around the axis along the first direction after the clearance is eliminated when the driving part rotates around the axis along the first direction, thereby pushing the driven part to rotate, and driving the lens conversion device to move to the target position in the rotation process of the driven part so as to accurately switch the lens.

Description

Image acquisition device and lens switching method

Technical Field

The invention relates to the field of microscopy, in particular to an image acquisition device and a lens switching method.

Background

When a cell image is microscopically observed and the cell image under a microscope is shot, a distribution map of a cell position needs to be shot under a low-power objective lens, and a clear image of a certain cell needs to be shot under a high-power objective lens.

Therefore, the present invention provides an image capturing apparatus and a lens switching method to solve the problems in the prior art.

Disclosure of Invention

In this summary, concepts in a simplified form are introduced that are further described in the detailed description. This summary of the invention is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.

To solve the problems in the prior art, according to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image capturing apparatus including:

the lens conversion device is provided with at least two lenses; and

a driving device for driving the lens conversion device to move to a target position to realize switching between the at least two lenses, wherein the driving device comprises:

an active portion rotatable about an axis;

a driven part connected with the lens conversion device and provided with a gap with the driving part; and

the control device controls the axial rotation of the driving part, so that the driving part can continue to rotate around the axis in the first direction after the gap is eliminated when the driving part rotates around the axis in the first direction, the driven part is pushed to rotate, and the driven part drives the lens conversion device to move to the target position in the rotating process.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a lens switching method applied to an image capturing apparatus, the image capturing apparatus including a lens conversion apparatus on which at least two lenses are disposed; and

an active portion rotatable about an axis;

a driven part connected with the lens conversion device and provided with a gap with the driving part;

the method comprises the following steps:

and controlling the driving part to rotate around the shaft along a first direction to eliminate the gap and then continuing to rotate around the shaft along the first direction, so that the driving part pushes the driven part to rotate, and the driven part drives the lens conversion device to move.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image pickup apparatus including: the lens conversion device is provided with at least two lenses; and

an active portion rotatable about an axis;

a control module, wherein the control module comprises a processor and stored executable program instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform:

According to the invention, by arranging a gap between the driving part and the driven part of the driving device, the driven part is pushed to move after the driving part rotates around the shaft along the first direction to eliminate the gap between the driving part and the driven part, and the return difference of the driving device is eliminated; and in the process of driving the driven part to move by the subsequent driving part, the driven part drives the lens conversion device to move to a target position under the control of the control device, so that the lens conversion device is accurately positioned, and finally, the lenses on the lens conversion device are accurately switched.

In the above-mentioned drive process, before the drive every time, make the initiative portion promote the motion of driven part again after the clearance between axis rotation elimination initiative portion and the driven part, can realize that the drive process eliminates drive arrangement's self return stroke difference every time, and accurate location can be repeated to camera lens conversion equipment, has improved the accuracy and the precision of the microscopic image who obtains.

Drawings

The following drawings of the invention are included to provide a further understanding of the invention. The drawings illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an image capture device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a lens conversion device on an image capture device according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of a driving device on an image capturing device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 4 is a schematic plan positional relationship between a driving part and a driven part in a driving device of an image pickup device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of a connection structure between a driving device and a lens conversion device of an image capturing device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic structural diagram of a blocking device of an image capturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of a first positioning device and a stopping device of the image capturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a schematic structural diagram of a first positioning element and a second positioning element of a lens positioning mechanism cooperating with each other when a lens conversion device is located at a target position according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 9A to 9D are schematic views illustrating a lens positioning mechanism for positioning a lens conversion apparatus during driving of a driving apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a schematic flow chart diagram of a shot switching method according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a schematic flow chart diagram of a shot switching method according to one embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 12A-12B are schematic diagrams illustrating a lens positioning mechanism positioning a lens in a lens switching method according to an embodiment of the invention;

fig. 13A-13C are schematic diagrams illustrating a lens positioning mechanism positioning a lens in a lens switching method according to an embodiment of the invention.

Detailed Description

In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a more thorough understanding of the present invention. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that the present invention may be practiced without one or more of these specific details. In other instances, well-known features have not been described in order to avoid obscuring the invention.

In order to thoroughly understand the present invention, a detailed description will be given in the following description to explain the image pickup apparatus and the lens switching method of the present invention. It is apparent that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of the particular arrangements known to those skilled in the art of microscopy. The following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the invention, however, the invention is capable of other embodiments in addition to those detailed.

It should be noted that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of exemplary embodiments according to the invention. As used herein, the singular is intended to include the plural unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms "comprises" and/or "comprising," when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

Exemplary embodiments according to the present invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. These exemplary embodiments may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to only the embodiments set forth herein. It is to be understood that these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the concept of these exemplary embodiments to those skilled in the art. In the drawings, the thicknesses of layers and regions are exaggerated for clarity, and the same elements are denoted by the same reference numerals, and thus the description thereof will be omitted.

As described above, when a cell image is microscopically observed and the cell image is photographed under a microscope, if the precision of the repetitive positioning when switching from the low power objective lens to the high power objective lens is poor, the cell may be deviated from the field of view of the high power objective lens, and a desired picture may not be photographed.

Example one

In order to solve the problems in the prior art, the present invention provides an image acquisition apparatus comprising:

the lens conversion device is provided with at least two lenses; and

an active portion rotatable about an axis;

Referring to fig. 1, a schematic structural diagram of an image acquisition apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

Referring to fig. 1, an image capturing apparatus 1 according to the present invention includes a lens conversion apparatus 11, at least two lenses are provided on the lens conversion apparatus 11, and switching between the at least two lenses can be achieved by movement of the lens conversion apparatus.

Illustratively, as shown in fig. 1, the lens conversion device 11 is provided with two lenses, a lens 111 and a lens 112, wherein the lens 111 is a low power objective lens and the lens 112 is a high power objective lens.

It should be understood that the present embodiment is only exemplary to provide two lenses on the lens conversion device, and those skilled in the art will understand that more lenses can be provided on the lens conversion device, and all of them are applicable to the present invention.

As shown in fig. 2, a schematic structural diagram of a lens switching apparatus 11 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. Illustratively, as shown in fig. 2, the lens conversion device 11 is provided as a circular converter 113, the lens 111 and the lens 112 are provided on the circumference of the circular converter 113, and the rotation of the circular converter 113 effects switching between the lens 111 and the lens 112.

It should be understood that the embodiment is only exemplary when the lens conversion device is configured as a circular converter, and those skilled in the art will understand that the lens conversion device may be configured in other forms. Meanwhile, it should be understood that the embodiment that the switching between the two lenses on the lens conversion device is implemented by rotating the circular converter is also only an example, and those skilled in the art should understand that the lens conversion device can be set to move in any form, and the invention is applicable as long as the lens switching can be implemented by the movement of the lens conversion device.

With continued reference to fig. 1, the lens conversion device 11 is mounted on a lens barrel 14 fixedly connected to the arm 15, and an eyepiece viewing hole 16 and an image pickup device 161 are disposed above the lens barrel 14. The image capturing device 1 is further provided with a stage 13, and the stage 13 is fixedly provided on a base 17. In use, a user focuses the lens 111 of the low-power objective lens on a to-be-observed point on the objective table 13 through the eyepiece viewing hole 16, and obtains a shooting visual field by switching the lens 112 of the objective lens to an observation point where the lens 111 of the low-power objective lens is positioned by the lens conversion device 11 and completing focusing, and the image pickup device 161 realizes shooting of the shooting visual field.

It should be understood that the above-mentioned lens arm 15, lens barrel 14, eyepiece viewing hole 16, image capturing device 161, and object stage 13 are only exemplary, and the lens conversion device 11 may also include any other components known to those skilled in the art, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

Since the field of view becomes smaller when switching from the low power objective lens to the high power objective lens, when the positioning accuracy of the lens conversion device 11 is poor, the observation point may deviate from the field of view of the high power objective lens, and the image pickup device 161 may not capture an image of a desired observation point.

The image capturing device 1 according to the present invention further comprises driving means (not shown in fig. 1) for switching between the at least two lenses by driving the lens switching means to move to the target position.

Referring to fig. 3, a schematic structural diagram of the driving device 12 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

As shown in fig. 3, the driving device 12 includes a driving part 121 and a driven part 122, and a control device 123.

The driving part 121 is capable of rotating around an axis.

The driven part 122 is connected to the lens conversion device 11 and has a gap with the driving part 121.

The control device 123 controls the driving portion 121 to rotate around the shaft, so that when the driving portion 121 rotates around the shaft along the first direction, the driving portion 121 and the driven portion 122 can rotate around the shaft along the first direction after the gap between the driving portion 121 and the driven portion 122 is eliminated, thereby pushing the driven portion 122 to rotate, and driving the lens conversion device 11 connected with the driven portion 122 to move in the rotating process of the driven portion 122, thereby realizing switching between at least two lenses arranged on the lens conversion device 11.

Referring to fig. 4, a schematic plan positional relationship among the driving part, the driven part, and the control device in the driving device is shown.

As shown in fig. 4, a gap D is provided between the driving part 121 and the driven part 122, and after the control device 123 controls the driving part 121 to rotate around the shaft in the direction indicated by the arrow a to eliminate the gap D, the driving part 121 continues to be controlled to rotate around the shaft in the direction indicated by the arrow a, so that the driving part 121 can push the driven part 122 to rotate. Since the driven part 122 is connected to the lens conversion device 11 (not shown in fig. 4), the lens conversion device 11 can be moved while the driving part 121 pushes the driven part 122 to rotate.

Illustratively, the control device includes a driving motor, and as shown in fig. 3, the control device 123 is configured as a driving motor, the driving part 121 is fixed on a motor shaft 1231 of the driving motor, and the driving part 121 is rotated when the motor shaft 1231 of the driving motor rotates.

Illustratively, as shown in fig. 3, a timing pulley 124 is fixedly connected to the driven portion 122. The timing pulley 124 is connected to the lens conversion device 11, and the driven part 122 rotates the lens conversion device 11 through the timing pulley 124.

Referring to fig. 5, a schematic diagram of a connection structure of the driving device 12 and the lens conversion device 11 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

As shown in fig. 5, the driving device 12 is connected to the lens conversion device 11 through a timing belt 125, and when the timing pulley 124 on the driving device 12 is driven by the driven part 122 to rotate, the timing pulley 124 is driven by the timing belt 125 to further drive the lens conversion device 11 to rotate, so as to switch between at least two lenses disposed on the lens conversion device 11.

It should be understood that the form of the present embodiment that the driving device is connected to the lens conversion device through the synchronous belt for transmission is only an example, and those skilled in the art should understand that other connection transmission modes, such as chain and gear transmission, may also be used.

Because a gap is arranged between the driving part and the driven part, the driven part is pushed to move after the driving part rotates around the shaft along the first direction to eliminate the gap between the driving part and the driven part, and the return difference of the driving device is eliminated in the process; and in the process of driving the driven part to move by the subsequent driving part, the driven part drives the lens conversion device to move to a target position under the control of the control device, so that the lens conversion device is accurately positioned, and finally, the lenses on the lens conversion device are accurately switched. In the above-mentioned drive process, before the drive every time, make the initiative portion promote the motion of driven part again after the clearance between axis rotation elimination initiative portion and the driven part, can realize that the drive process eliminates drive arrangement's self return stroke difference every time, and accurate location can be repeated to camera lens conversion equipment, has improved the accuracy and the precision of the microscopic image who obtains.

Illustratively, the image capturing device according to the present invention further includes a blocking device, which provides a resistance to the driven part and pushes the driven part to rotate when the driving part provides a pushing force to the driven part which is greater than the resistance.

The blocking device is arranged, and resistance to the driven part provided by the blocking device can ensure that the driving part rotates around the shaft and eliminates a gap between the driving part and the driven part before the driven part is pushed to move. In the embodiment of the invention, the driving device and the lens conversion device are connected through the synchronous belt, the synchronous belt often shakes due to overlarge thrust of the driving part at the beginning of the movement of the synchronous belt, and the resistance is arranged on the driven part through the blocking device, so that the thrust of the driving part at the initial position for pushing the driven part to move is reduced, and the shaking of the synchronous belt is effectively avoided.

Illustratively, the blocking device includes a fixedly disposed elastic member configured to provide a pressure to the driven portion or the lens conversion device by its own elastic deformation, thereby providing a resistance to the driven portion. Since the lens conversion device is driven by the movement of the driven part, the pressure provided by the elastic member to the lens conversion device can also be used as resistance to the driven part. The blocking device is set as an elastic component, so that the structure setting is simplified. Illustratively, the elastic member is fixedly provided on the mirror arm 15.

Referring to fig. 6, a schematic structural view of a blocking device provided in an image capturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

As shown in fig. 6, the blocking device includes a spring plate 181 fixedly disposed and a protrusion 182 fixedly connected to the lens conversion device 11. The spring piece 181 has one end fixedly provided on the mirror arm 15 and the other end contacting the projection 182, and generates resistance to the lens changer 11 by applying elastic force to the projection 182, thereby providing resistance to the driven portion.

In the invention, in the movement process of controlling the driven part to drive the lens conversion device after the clearance between the driving part and the driven part is determined to be eliminated, the movement distance of the driving part is accurately controlled, so that the movement path of driving the driven part to drive the lens conversion device is accurately controlled, the lens conversion device is finally stopped at a target position, and the accurate switching of the lens is realized. The starting position of the driving part for pushing the driven part to move and the ending position of the driving part for stopping pushing the driven part to move need to be determined when the movement distance of the driving part is accurately controlled.

In one example according to the invention, the determination of the starting position of the driving part for pushing the driven part into motion can be carried out by a positioning device which is in communicative connection with the control device.

Illustratively, the control device comprises a first positioning device for positioning a starting position of the driving part for pushing the driven part to rotate. Specifically, the first positioning device is configured to: and positioning the initial position of the driving part for pushing the driven part to rotate, so that the control device controls the distance of the driving part continuing to rotate around the shaft along the first direction according to the initial position.

The initial position that promotes the motion of initiative portion after the clearance between its and the driven part is eliminated to initiative portion needs to be confirmed to the accurate location of the distance of motion of initiative, promote the initial position that initiative portion moved after the clearance between it and the driven part is eliminated to initiative portion at first positioner, through the initial position information of first positioner feedback, thereby make controlling means can accurate location initiative portion promote the initial position that initiative portion moved after eliminating the clearance between its and the driven part thereby accurate control initiative portion begins the distance that promotes the motion of driven part from the initial position, and then accurate control initiative portion promotes the distance that the driven part made the driven part drive lens conversion equipment motion, finally make lens conversion equipment stop at the target location.

Illustratively, the first positioning device includes a fixedly disposed photoelectric sensor and a blocking piece fixedly connected to the lens conversion device. In this embodiment, the first positioning device is used in cooperation with the stopping device to position the initial position where the driving portion pushes the driven portion to rotate.

Referring to fig. 7, a schematic view of the first positioning device coupled to the blocking device is shown, according to one embodiment of the present invention.

The photoelectric sensor 191 of the first positioning device and the elastic sheet 181 of the blocking device are fixedly arranged on the mirror arm 15, and the stop piece 192 of the first positioning device and the protruding structure of the blocking device are fixedly arranged on the lens conversion device 11. In the starting position the stop 192 blocks the light of the photosensor 191 from passing from the sensor emitting end to the receiving end, after the driving part eliminates the gap between the driving part and the driven part and overcomes the resistance force applied to the protrusion structure 182 by the elastic sheet 181 of the blocking device, at the moment of pushing the driven part to move, the driven part drives the lens conversion device to rotate, so that the upper baffle 192 of the lens conversion device 11 moves to enable the receiving end of the photoelectric sensor to receive the light emitted by the emitting end of the photoelectric sensor, the photoelectric sensor 181 transmits a signal to the control device, the control device confirms that the driven part is located at the initial position at the moment when receiving the signal, and then according to the initial position, the driving part continues to carry out accurate control on the path of the driving part which drives the driven part to drive the lens conversion device to move along the first direction by rotating around the shaft, and finally the lens conversion device is stopped at a target position.

It should be understood that the connection of the first positioning device and the blocking device in a matching manner is merely exemplary in this embodiment, and those skilled in the art will understand that the first positioning device is separately disposed on the driven portion of the lens conversion device or the driving device and is suitable for the present invention. It should be understood that the first positioning device is provided as the blocking plate and the photoelectric sensor in the embodiment, which is only an example, and those skilled in the art will understand that other sensors (such as a pressure sensor, etc.) may be provided to achieve the technical effects of the present invention.

In one example according to the invention, the determination of the end position of the driving part, which pushes the driven part into motion, can be carried out by a positioning device which is in communicative connection with the control device.

Illustratively, the control device comprises a second positioning device for determining the termination position of the movement of the driving part stopping pushing the driven part, and the second positioning device is arranged to:

and positioning a termination position at which the driving part pushes the driven part to rotate, so that the control device controls the driving part to stop rotating around the shaft according to the termination position. Specifically, when the driving part pushes the driven part to reach the end position, the second positioning device detects a signal that the driving part pushes the driven part to reach the end position, and sends the signal to the control device, and the control device controls the driven part to stop pushing the driven part according to the signal.

Similar to the aforementioned first positioning device for positioning the rotation starting position of the driving part pushing the driven part, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the second positioning device comprises a sensor in communication connection with the control device. When the driving part pushes the driven part to move to the termination position, a corresponding baffle plate arranged on the lens conversion device blocks a receiving end of the photoelectric sensor from receiving light emitted by an emitting end of the photoelectric sensor, the photoelectric sensor transmits a signal of blocked receiving of the receiving end to the control device, and the control device confirms that the driven part is located at the termination position at the moment when receiving the signal, and then controls the driving part to stop rotating according to the termination position.

In one example according to the present invention, the control device includes a driving motor for driving the driving part to rotate, and the determination of the termination position of the driving part for pushing the driven part to move may be performed by setting a driving course set in advance. Specifically, at the initial position where the driving part pushes the driven part to move, a preset driving of the driving motor is set to enable the driving motor to continue to drive the driving part to rotate for a preset distance, after the driving part pushes the driven part to rotate for the preset distance, the driving motor stops driving, and at the moment, the driving part is located at the end position where the driving part pushes the driven part to rotate.

Illustratively, the driving electric motor is provided as a stepping motor or a servo motor. The step-by-step driving motor is driven by a fixed unit step-by-step angular displacement or linear displacement, the driving process of the step-by-step driving motor is set by setting the step number of the operation of the step-by-step driving motor, so as to set the moving distance of the component driven to rotate by the step-by-step driving motor. The servo motor is driven by a fixed unit rotation angle, the rotation angle of the servo motor shaft is set by setting the rotation times of the servo motor shaft, and the driving process of the servo motor shaft is further set.

The stepping motor or the servo motor is adopted as the driving motor, so that the production cost of the image acquisition device can be reduced.

It is to be understood that the above determination of the termination position where the driving part pushes the driven part by the separately provided positioning means or by the driving motor setting a predetermined driving schedule is merely exemplary, and those skilled in the art will understand that any manner capable of achieving the determination of the termination position where the driving part pushes the driven part is applicable to the present invention.

When the driving part stops pushing the driven part, the driven part still has the speed of continuing to move due to the inertia effect. For this reason, according to an example of the present invention, a lens positioning mechanism is provided to further position the lens conversion apparatus to stop the lens conversion apparatus at the target position.

According to an example of the present invention, when the driving portion stops pushing the driven portion, the lens conversion apparatus is located at a target position; and when the second positioning device positions the termination position of the driving part stopping pushing the driven part, the driving part is controlled to stop pushing the driven part to move, and at the moment, the driven part drives the lens conversion device to move to the target position. At the moment, the lens positioning mechanism is arranged, so that the lens conversion device stops while the driving part stops pushing the driven part to move. Specifically, the lens positioning mechanism is used for positioning the lens conversion device in the movement process of the lens conversion device, so that the lens conversion device stops moving when the driven part drives the lens conversion device to move to the target position, and the lens conversion device is located at the target position while the driving part stops pushing the driven part at the target position.

Illustratively, the lens positioning mechanism is configured to: in the moving process of the lens conversion device, the lens positioning mechanism provides resistance for preventing the lens conversion device from continuously moving, so that the lens conversion device stops moving when the driven part drives the lens conversion device to move to a target position.

Illustratively, the lens positioning mechanism includes a stop piece disposed at the target position, and when the resistance provided by the lens positioning mechanism to the lens conversion device is greater than or equal to the pushing force of the driving part pushing the driven part at the moment when the control device controls the driving part to stop, the driven part also stops along with the stop of the driving part, and at this moment, the position at which the lens conversion device stops is the target position.

According to an example of the present invention, the lens conversion device is not located at the target position when the driving part stops pushing the driven part, that is, the lens conversion device is located at the first positioning position different from the target position when the second positioning device positions the termination position where the driving part stops pushing the driven part, and at this time, the lens positioning mechanism is provided to move the lens conversion device from the first positioning position to the target position.

Illustratively, the lens positioning mechanism is configured to:

in the moving process of the lens conversion device, the lens positioning mechanism provides resistance for preventing the lens conversion device from continuously moving so as to position the lens conversion device.

According to an example of the present invention, the lens positioning mechanism is provided with:

when the lens positioning mechanism positions the lens conversion device, the lens conversion device comprises a first positioning position and the target position, wherein,

in the first positioning position, the driving part stops pushing the driven part, and,

when the lens conversion device moves from the first positioning position to the target position, the movement distance of the driven part is smaller than or equal to the gap.

Since the gap is provided between the driving portion and the driven portion of the driving device in the image capturing device according to the present invention, when the driving portion stops pushing the driven portion, the driven portion has a continuous movement speed due to an inertia effect, in this embodiment, when the lens positioning structure is configured to position the lens conversion device located at the first positioning position when the driving portion stops pushing the driven portion, and when the lens conversion device moves from the first positioning position to the target position, the movement distance of the driven portion is less than or equal to the gap, that is, the lens conversion device is driven to gradually stop while the driven portion gradually stops in the process of continuously moving within the distance of the gap, so as to ensure that the stopping process of the lens conversion device is performed slowly and stably, and effectively improve the switching stability of the lens conversion device.

Illustratively, the lens positioning mechanism includes a first positioning element and a second positioning element, and the first positioning element and the second positioning element are fixedly connected to the lens conversion device, and the lens positioning mechanism is configured to:

when the lens conversion device moves from the first positioning position to the target position, the first positioning element applies a gradually decreasing force to the second positioning element.

After the driving part stops moving, the first positioning element applies gradually reduced force to the second positioning element to gradually stop the lens conversion device and the driven part, so that the stopping process of the lens conversion device is further stabilized, the stopping process of the lens conversion device is further slowed down, and the lens conversion device is stably stopped at the target position.

Further, illustratively, the lens positioning mechanism is configured to:

when the force applied by the lens positioning mechanism to the lens conversion device is larger than the force applied by the lens positioning mechanism to the lens conversion device at the target position, the lens positioning mechanism can move the lens conversion device towards the target position.

Through the lens positioning mechanism arranged above, after the driven part drives the lens conversion device to move to the target position under the action of inertia and then further cross the target position, the lens conversion device can be restored to the target position under the action of the lens positioning mechanism.

Further, illustratively, the lens positioning device is configured to:

the first positioning element comprises an elastic component extending in a second direction, and the second direction is intersected with the moving direction of the lens conversion device;

the second positioning element has a shape that mates with an end of the first positioning element in the second direction; wherein the elastic member is provided:

when the lens barrel shifting device moves from the first positioning position to the target position, the elastic deformation of the elastic member in the second direction gradually decreases to generate a gradually decreasing elastic force to the second positioning element, and,

when the elastic force of the elastic component is larger than the elastic force at the target position, the lens conversion device can be moved towards the target position.

An exemplary description of a lens positioning mechanism in an image capturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is provided below with reference to fig. 2, 8, and 9A to 9D.

As shown in fig. 2, the image pickup apparatus 1 includes a lens positioning mechanism 20 that positions the lens conversion apparatus 11, and the lens positioning mechanism 20 positions the lens conversion apparatus 11 so that the lens conversion apparatus 11 stops at a target position.

With continued reference to fig. 2, the lens positioning mechanism 20 includes a first positioning element 201 and a second positioning element 202. The first positioning element 201 includes a fixed elastic member 2011 and a steel ball 2012 (not shown) fixed on the elastic member 2011. The second positioning element 202 is a V-groove provided on the lens conversion apparatus 11.

Fig. 8 is a schematic structural diagram illustrating a first positioning element and a second positioning element in a lens positioning structure cooperating when a lens conversion device is located at a target position according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 8, the first positioning element 201 according to the present embodiment includes an elastic member 2011 and a steel ball 2012, which are matched with the second positioning element 202 configured as a V-shaped groove, at this time, the axis of the V-shaped groove of the second positioning element 202 is coincident with the axis of the steel ball 2012, and the lens conversion device is located at the target position.

The positioning principle of the lens positioning mechanism according to the present embodiment is further explained with reference to fig. 9A to 9D. In fig. 9A to 9D, (1) shows a schematic diagram of a relative position of the lens conversion device and the driving device during the movement, and (2) shows a schematic diagram of a relative position of the first positioning element and the second positioning element of the lens positioning mechanism during the movement.

Referring to fig. 9A, an initial position is shown in which the control device controls the driving part 121 to perform the axial rotation, wherein a gap D is provided between the driving part 121 and the driven part 122 as shown in (1) of fig. 9A. At this time, as shown in (2) in fig. 9A, the steel ball 2012 on the lens positioning mechanism is located at the right side of the V-shaped groove of the second positioning element 202, away from the V-shaped groove, and the elastic member 2011 has an initial length L1 under the action of the gravity of the steel ball 2012.

Referring to fig. 9B, after the control device controls the driving part 121 to rotate around the axis in the direction indicated by the arrow a and then the gap between the driving part 121 and the driven part 122 is eliminated, the driving part 121 is located at the initial position where the driving part 122 starts to push. At this time, the gap D between the driving part 121 and the driven part 122 is eliminated as shown in (1) in fig. 9B. As shown in (2) in fig. 9B, the steel ball 2012 of the lens positioning mechanism is at the initial position from the right side of the V-shaped groove of the second positioning element 202, and the elastic member 2011 has an initial length L1 under the gravity of the steel ball 2012.

Referring to fig. 9C, it is shown that after the control device controls the driving part 121 to push the driven part 122 to move continuously for a predetermined distance, the driving part 121 stops pushing the driven part 122 to move, and the driving part 121 is located at the end position where the driving part 122 stops pushing the driven part 122. At this time, as shown in (1) of fig. 9C, the lens conversion device 11 is located at the first positioning position, and after the second positioning member 202 provided on the lens conversion device is moved toward the first positioning member 201 as shown in (2) of fig. 9C, the right inner side surface of the V-groove of the second positioning member 202 of the lens positioning mechanism is brought into contact with the steel ball 2012 of the first positioning member 201. At this time, since a gap is provided between the driving part 121 and the driven part 122, the driving part 121 stops pushing the driven part 122, the driven part 122 can still continue to move under the inertia effect, and the lens conversion device still has a speed in the direction of moving toward the target position. Meanwhile, as the steel ball 2012 is in contact with the right inner side surface of the V-shaped groove, the elastic member 2011 above the steel ball 2012 is extruded to generate elastic deformation and has a deformation length L2, the elastic member 2011 exerts a downward acting force on the steel ball 2012, so that an acting force perpendicular to the right inner side surface is exerted on the V-shaped groove on the second positioning element 202 by the steel ball 2012, and the second positioning element 202 continues to move towards the target position under the acting force exerted on the right side surface by the steel ball 2012.

Referring to fig. 9D, it is shown that the driven portion 122 continues to move under the inertia effect and the force applied by the steel balls 2012 to the V-groove of the second positioning member 202, so that the lens positioning mechanism positions the lens conversion apparatus 11 at the target position. At this time, as shown in (1) in fig. 9D, the lens conversion apparatus 11 is located at the target position; as shown in (2) in fig. 9D, the axis of the V-shaped groove of the second positioning element 202 coincides with the axis of the steel ball 2012, and the elastic member 2011 is deformed and reduced to have a deformation length L3; the acting force of the steel ball 2012 on the two inner side surfaces of the V-shaped groove is the same, so that the lens positioning mechanism is positioned at the target position.

In the above process, the elastic member 2011 changes from the telescopic state with the length L1 to the contracted state, wherein the length L3> L2 of the elastic member in the contracted state in the process from fig. 9C to fig. 9D, that is, the deformation amount of the elastic member 2011 gradually decreases in the process from fig. 9C to fig. 9D, so that the acting force of the steel ball 2012 on the second positioning element 202 also gradually decreases, and since the elastic member 2011 always has a tendency to decrease the deformation amount thereof, when the elastic force of the elastic member is greater than that at the target position, the lens conversion device can be moved toward the target position, and when the lens conversion device is located at the target position, the elastic member 2011 can prevent the lens conversion device from further moving, so that the lens conversion device 11 is stably positioned at the target position.

It should be understood that the embodiment of using the elastic member and the steel ball as the first positioning element and using the V-shaped slot disposed on the lens conversion device as the second positioning element are only exemplary, and those skilled in the art will understand that other forms of elastic members and lens positioning mechanisms cooperating with the elastic members may be further provided to achieve the positioning of the lens conversion device.

Heretofore, an exemplary description has been given of a structure of an image pickup apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which a driven part is urged to move after a gap between a driving part and the driven part is eliminated by a driving part provided with the gap between the driving part and the driven part of a driving apparatus by a process of the driving part rotating around an axis in a first direction, which eliminates a return difference of the driving apparatus itself; and in the process of driving the driven part to move by the subsequent driving part, the driven part drives the lens conversion device to move to a target position under the control of the control device, so that the lens conversion device is accurately positioned, and finally, the lenses on the lens conversion device are accurately switched. The control device controls the driven part to drive the lens conversion device to move to the target position, and the blocking device is arranged to ensure that the gap between the driving part and the driven part is eliminated. The lens positioning mechanism is arranged to stop the slave lens conversion device when the driving part stops pushing the driven part, or to move the lens conversion device to a target position after the driving part stops pushing the driven part to rotate, and finally the purpose of switching between at least two lenses when the lens conversion device moves to the target position is achieved.

Example two

The invention also provides a lens switching method applied to the image acquisition device, wherein the image acquisition device comprises the following steps:

the lens conversion device is provided with at least two lenses; and

an active portion rotatable about an axis;

the method comprises the following steps:

and controlling the driving part to rotate around the shaft along a first direction to eliminate the gap and then continuing to rotate around the shaft along the first direction, so that the driving part pushes the driven part to rotate, and the driven part drives the lens conversion device to move to a target position.

Because a gap is arranged between the driving part and the driven part, the driven part is pushed to move after the driving part is controlled to rotate around the shaft along the first direction to eliminate the gap between the driving part and the driven part, and the return difference of the driving device is eliminated in the process; the subsequent driving part pushes the driven part to move continuously through the accurate control driving part, the driving part is controlled to push the driven part to drive the lens conversion device to move to a target position, the accurate positioning of the lens conversion device is achieved, accurate switching between lenses on the lens conversion device is finally achieved, and switching between at least two lenses of the lens conversion device is finally achieved. In the control method process, before each drive, the driving part rotates around the shaft to eliminate the gap between the driving part and the driven part and then pushes the driven part to move, so that the return stroke difference of the driving device can be eliminated in each drive process, the lens conversion device can repeat accurate positioning, and the accuracy and precision of the acquired microscopic image are improved.

Illustratively, the image capturing device is configured as described in the first embodiment, and includes a control device for controlling the movement of the active portion.

In one example according to the invention, after the driving part rotates around the shaft to eliminate the gap between the driving part and the driven part, the driving part is controlled to continue rotating around the shaft for a first distance and then stop, so as to realize accurate control of the movement of the driving part for continuously pushing the driven part (namely, accurate control of the movement of the driving part for continuously pushing the driven part is realized by controlling the distance of the driving part for continuously rotating around the shaft).

Referring to fig. 10, a schematic flowchart of a lens switching method applied to an image capturing device according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown, in which a process of controlling the active portion to perform pivoting in a first direction to eliminate the gap and then continuing to perform the pivoting in the first direction is specifically shown.

For example, as shown in fig. 10, the process of controlling the active portion to perform the pivoting in the first direction to eliminate the gap and then continuing to perform the pivoting in the first direction includes:

step S1: and controlling the active part to perform the axial rotation along the first direction.

The first direction is a direction in which the driving part pushes the driven part to rotate so as to drive the lens conversion device to move towards the target position.

Step S12: and detecting the position of the lens conversion device and/or the driven part, and when the position of the lens conversion device and/or the driven part changes, controlling the driving part to continue to rotate around the shaft for a first distance along the first direction and then stop rotating around the shaft, so that the driving part pushes the driven part to rotate to drive the lens conversion device to move to a first positioning position.

For example, after the driving part rotates around the shaft to eliminate the gap between the driving part and the driven part, a starting position (i.e., a starting position at which the driving part pushes the driven part to move) at which the driving part continues to rotate around the shaft for a first distance along the first direction is controlled by a first positioning device for positioning the starting position at which the driving part pushes the driven part to rotate. The first positioning device detects the position of the lens conversion device and/or the driven part, when the position of the lens conversion device and/or the driven part changes, the driving part moving along the first direction eliminates the gap between the driving part and the driven part, at the moment, the movement of the driving part continuing to move along the first direction is controlled, and the driving part is controlled to continue to rotate around the shaft along the first direction for a first distance and then stops rotating around the shaft.

Further, illustratively, controlling the driving part to continue rotating the driving part in the first direction about the axis by the first distance is achieved by setting a driving process of the driving motor after detecting that the driving part eliminates the gap between the driving part and the driven part.

For example, as shown in the first embodiment, the control device includes a driving motor for driving the driving part to rotate, and at a starting position where the driving part pushes the driven part to move, a first distance is set for the driving motor to perform a predetermined driving operation so that the driving motor continues to drive the driving part to rotate.

In the embodiment, the starting position of the driving part for pushing the driven part to move and the distance of the driving part for continuing to rotate around the shaft from the starting position are accurately controlled, so that the process of the driving part for pushing the driven part to move around the shaft is accurately controlled.

Illustratively, the driving electric motor is provided as a stepping motor or a servo motor. The stepping motor or the servo motor is adopted as the driving motor, so that the production cost of the image acquisition device can be reduced.

In one example according to the present invention, after the driving part rotates around the shaft to eliminate the gap between the driving part and the driven part, the movement position of the driving part which continues to push the driven part to drive the lens conversion device to move around the shaft is detected, and when the lens conversion device is detected to move to the first position, the driving part is controlled to stop rotating around the shaft, so as to realize accurate control of the driving part which continues to push the driven part to move (that is, accurate control of the driving part which continues to push the driven part to move is realized by controlling the position of the driving part which continues to push the driven part to move).

Referring to fig. 11, a schematic flowchart of a lens switching method applied to an image capturing device according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown, in which a process of controlling the active portion to perform pivoting in a first direction to eliminate the gap and then continuing to perform the pivoting in the first direction is specifically shown.

For example, as shown in fig. 11, the process of controlling the active portion to perform the pivoting in the first direction to eliminate the gap and then continuing to perform the pivoting in the first direction includes:

step S1: controlling the active part to perform the axial rotation along the first direction;

step S22: and detecting the position of the lens conversion device, and controlling the driving part to stop rotating around the shaft when the lens conversion device reaches a first positioning position along the movement direction.

For example, after the driving part rotates around the shaft to eliminate the gap between the driving part and the driven part, a starting position where the driving part continues to rotate around the shaft in the first direction (i.e., a starting position where the driving part pushes the driven part to move) is controlled by a first positioning device for positioning the starting position where the driving part pushes the driven part to rotate.

For example, after the driving portion rotates around the shaft to eliminate the gap between the driving portion and the driven portion, the second positioning device disposed at the first positioning position is used to detect the movement position at which the driving portion continues to rotate around the shaft to push the driven portion to drive the lens conversion device to move. The second positioning device detects the position of the lens conversion device and/or the driven part, and when the position of the lens conversion device and/or the driven part reaches a preset first positioning position, the driving part is controlled to stop rotating around the shaft, and at the moment, the driving part is located at the end position for pushing the driven part to move.

Since the starting position and the ending position of the movement of the driving part pushing the driven part are determined in the embodiment, the accurate control of the process of the driving part pushing the driven part to move around the shaft is realized.

It should be understood that, after the driving part rotates around the shaft to eliminate the gap between the driving part and the driven part, the distance of the driving part continuing to rotate around the shaft or the position of the driving part continuing to rotate around the shaft is controlled to achieve precise control of the process of the driving part continuing to rotate around the shaft to push the driven part to move, which is merely exemplary, and those skilled in the art will understand that any method capable of achieving precise control of the motion of the driving part continuing to push the driven part is suitable for the present invention.

In one example according to the present invention, the first position is a target position of the lens conversion apparatus.

The first positioning position is set as a target position, that is, after the driving part rotates around the shaft to eliminate a gap between the driving part and the driven part, the driving part continues to rotate around the shaft to push the driven part to move, so that when the driven part drives the lens conversion device to move to the target position, the driving part stops rotating around the shaft. At this time, the lens conversion device is positioned at the target position, namely, the switching between the lenses on the lens conversion device is realized. In the switching process, the driving part continues to rotate around the shaft to push the driven part to move accurately after the driving part rotates around the shaft to eliminate the gap between the driving part and the driven part, namely, the process that the driving part starts to push the driven part to drive the lens switching device to move to the target position is accurately controlled, and the accurate positioning of the lens switching device is realized.

For example, when the driving part pushes the driven part to drive the lens conversion device to move to the target position, the lens positioning mechanism stops the axial rotation of the driving part and simultaneously stops the lens conversion device at the target position.

In one example according to the present invention, the first location position is different from the target position. At this time, the lens conversion device is stopped at the target position by further positioning control of the lens conversion device, and the lens positioning device is positioned to the target position.

Illustratively, the first positioning location is set as: the driven portion rotates by a distance less than or equal to the gap when the lens holder moves from the first positioning position to the target position. The lens conversion device comprises a driving part, a driven part and a driving part, wherein the driving part is arranged on the driving part, the driven part is arranged on the driving part, the driving part is arranged on the driven part, the driven part is arranged on the driven part, and the driven part is arranged on the driven part.

Since the gap is provided between the driving portion and the driven portion of the driving device in the image capturing device according to the present invention, when the driving portion stops pushing the driven portion, the driven portion has a speed of continuous movement due to inertia, in this embodiment, when the lens positioning structure is configured to position the lens converting device located at the first positioning position when the driving portion stops pushing the driven portion, and the lens converting device is moved from the first positioning position to the target position, the movement distance of the driven portion is less than or equal to the gap, that is, the lens converting device is driven to gradually stop while the driven portion is gradually stopped in the process of continuous movement of the driven portion within the distance of the gap.

Illustratively, the lens conversion device is stopped at the target position by applying a force to the lens conversion device that prevents the lens conversion device from continuing to move.

The lens conversion device is applied with a force for preventing the lens conversion device from continuously moving, so that the speed of the lens conversion device is gradually reduced under the condition of resistance in the process of moving forwards to the target position, the stopping process of the lens conversion device is slowly and stably carried out, and the switching stability of the lens conversion device is effectively improved.

Illustratively, the lens conversion device is stopped at the target position by applying a gradually decreasing force to the lens conversion device.

By applying a gradually decreasing force to the lens conversion device, the lens conversion device and the driven part are gradually stopped, the stopping process of the lens conversion device is further stabilized, and the stopping process of the lens conversion device is further slowed down, so that the lens conversion device is stably stopped at the target position.

Further, for example, the gradually decreasing force can drive the lens conversion device to move from the first positioning position to the target position.

When the driving part stops pushing the driven part, under the action of inertia, the driven part continues to drive the lens conversion device to move forward from the first fixed position, when the speed of the driven part is zero, the lens conversion device still does not reach the target position, the lens conversion device can be driven to move from the first fixed position to the target position by setting gradually reduced force, and the lens conversion device can be further driven to move forward to finally reach the target position.

Meanwhile, when the driving motor drives the driving part in a preset driving process, when the driving motor is a stepping driving electrode or a servo motor, the driving precision of the stepping driving electrode or the servo motor is low (the stepping driving motor drives the driven part in a fixed unit stepping angular displacement or linear displacement, the minimum driving precision is the unit stepping angular displacement or linear displacement; the servo motor drives the driven part in a fixed unit rotation angle, the minimum driving precision is the unit rotation angle), the distance of the movement of the lens conversion device when the driving part stops pushing the driven part exceeds the distance of the lens conversion device from the target position when the driving part starts pushing the driven part to move (namely the first positioning position reached by the movement of the lens conversion device exceeds the target position), and at the moment, the lens conversion device is driven to move from the first positioning position to the target position by gradually reduced force, the situation that the lens conversion device is not accurately positioned under the condition can be avoided.

In one example according to the present invention, the lens conversion apparatus is positioned by the lens positioning mechanism as shown in fig. 2, 8, and 9A to 9D described in the first embodiment.

Specifically, as shown in fig. 2, the image pickup apparatus 1 includes a lens positioning mechanism 20 that positions the lens conversion apparatus 11, and the lens positioning mechanism 20 positions the lens conversion apparatus 11 so that the lens conversion apparatus 11 stops at the target position.

Referring to fig. 8, the first positioning element according to the present embodiment includes a resilient member 2011 and a steel ball 2012 matching with the second positioning element 202 configured as a V-groove. When the axis of the V-groove of the second positioning member 202 and the axis of the steel ball 2012 coincide, the lens conversion apparatus is located at the target position.

In this embodiment, since the moving distance of the driven part is less than or equal to the gap when the lens conversion device moves from the first positioning position to the target position, the first positioning position includes two cases: first, in step S12 or S22, during the pivoting of the active part in the first direction, the lens conversion device starts moving until reaching the first positioning position, and a path of the movement of the lens conversion device is a first path, which is smaller than a distance from the target position when the lens conversion device starts moving; secondly, in step S12 or S22, during the process of the active part rotating around the axis in the first direction, the lens conversion device starts to move to reach the first positioning position, and the path of the movement of the lens conversion device is a second path, and the second path is greater than the distance from the target position when the lens conversion device starts to move. In both cases, different methods are required for positioning the lens conversion device, and the positioning method of the lens conversion device in both cases will be described below with reference to fig. 12A to 12B and fig. 13A to 13C.

The first case is first explained with reference to fig. 12A-12B:

when the driving part stops pushing the driven part when the lens conversion device reaches the first positioning position from the beginning of the movement in the process of the driving part rotating around the shaft along the first direction in the above step S12 or S22, the driving part stops moving due to the gap between the driving part and the driven part, and the driven part still has the speed of continuing to move forward, and the lens conversion device continues to move under the driving of the driven part in the moving direction towards the target position because the first path of the movement of the lens conversion device is smaller than the distance from the target position when the lens conversion device starts to move.

Referring to fig. 12A, a schematic diagram of a relative position relationship between the first positioning element and the second positioning element on the lens conversion device when the lens conversion device is located at the first positioning position is shown. At this time, the second positioning member has a velocity toward the target position (as indicated by an arrow V1 in the figure), and the right inner side surface of the V-groove of the second positioning member 202 of the lens positioning mechanism is in contact with the steel ball 2012 of the first positioning member 201. Elastic piece 2011 above steel ball 2012 is extruded to generate elastic deformation and has a deformation length of L2, elastic piece 2011 has a downward acting force on steel ball 2012, so that an acting force perpendicular to the right inner side surface is applied to the V-shaped groove on second positioning element 202 by steel ball 2012, and second positioning element 202 continues to move towards the target position under the acting force applied to the right side surface by steel ball 2012.

Referring to fig. 12B, it is shown that under the action of inertia and the force applied by the steel ball 2012 to the V-shaped groove of the second positioning element 202, the driven portion 122 drives the lens positioning device to move continuously until the axis of the V-shaped groove of the second positioning element 202 coincides with the axis of the steel ball 2012, and the lens conversion device 11 is located at the target position. At this time, the elastic member 2011 is deformed less, and has a deformation length L3; the acting force of the steel ball 2012 on the two inner side surfaces of the V-shaped groove is the same, so that the lens positioning mechanism is positioned at the target position.

In the above process, the elastic members are all in the contracted state, and in L3> L2, namely, the deformation amount of the elastic member 2011 is gradually reduced in the process of moving the lens conversion device from the first positioning position to the target position, so that the acting force of the steel ball 2012 on the second positioning element 202 is also gradually reduced, since the elastic member 2011 always has a tendency of reducing the deformation amount thereof, when the elastic force of the elastic member is greater than that in the target position, the lens conversion device can be moved towards the target position, and when the lens conversion device is located in the target position, the elastic member 2011 can prevent the lens conversion device from further moving, so that the lens conversion device 11 is stably positioned at the target position.

The second case is explained below with reference to fig. 13A to 13C:

when the second path of movement of the lens conversion device from the start of the movement of the lens conversion device to the arrival at the first positioning position is greater than the distance from the target position at the start of the movement of the lens conversion device in the process of the active part pivoting in the first direction in step S12 or S22 described above, the lens conversion device has moved to the crossing of the target position. Since the clearance between the driving part and the driven part is eliminated during the movement of the driving part pushing the driven part, there is no clearance between the driving part and the driven part when the driving part stops pushing the driven part in the first positioning position, and since the driving part prevents the driven part from moving in the reverse direction, the lens conversion device cannot move in the reverse direction back to the target position, for this reason, in this embodiment, after performing step S12 or S22, the method further includes:

step S3: after the driving part stops the pivoting in the first direction, the driving part is controlled to perform the pivoting in the direction opposite to the first direction for a third distance, and then the pivoting is stopped, wherein the third distance is at least equal to the distance that the driven part rotates when the lens fixing device moves from the first positioning position to the target position, and the third distance is smaller than or equal to the gap.

Referring to fig. 13A, a schematic diagram of a relative position relationship between the first positioning element and the second positioning element on the lens conversion device when the lens conversion device moves to the first positioning position beyond the target position is shown. At this time, the second positioning member has a speed in the direction away from the target position (as indicated by arrow V2 in the figure), and the left inner side surface of the V-shaped groove of the second positioning member 202 of the lens positioning mechanism is in contact with the steel ball 2012 of the first positioning member 201. Elastic piece 2011 above steel ball 2012 is extruded to generate elastic deformation and has deformation length L2, elastic piece 2011 has a downward acting force on steel ball 2012, so that an acting force perpendicular to the left inner side surface of steel ball 2012 is applied to the V-shaped groove on second positioning element 202, and second positioning element 202 stops moving under the acting force applied to the left side surface of steel ball 2012.

Referring to fig. 13B, a schematic diagram of the relative position relationship between the first positioning element and the second positioning element on the lens conversion device after controlling the active part to rotate around the shaft in the direction opposite to the moving direction in the aforementioned step S12 or S22 for a third distance is shown, wherein the third distance is set as: at least equal to a distance that the driven part rotates when the lens holder moves from the first positioning position to the target position, the third distance being less than or equal to the gap. At this time, since the distance of the reverse movement of the driving portion is less than or equal to the gap, the driving portion cannot push the driven portion to move, and the driven portion cannot drive the lens conversion device to move away from the state shown in fig. 13B, that is, the left inner side surface of the V-shaped groove of the second positioning element 202 of the lens positioning mechanism still contacts with the steel ball 2012 of the first positioning element 201.

The driving part is controlled to rotate around the shaft in the direction opposite to the moving direction in the foregoing step S12 or S22, in order to provide a gap for the driven part to move reversely, under the action of the force exerted by the steel ball 2012 shown in fig. 13A on the inner side surface of the V-groove on the second positioning element 202, the second positioning element 202 can move toward the target position (i.e., in the direction opposite to V2 in fig. 13A), and finally move to the target position.

Referring to fig. 13C, it is shown that under the force applied by steel ball 2012 to the inner side surface of the V-shaped groove on second positioning element 202, second positioning element 202 moves toward the target position until the axis of the V-shaped groove of second positioning element 202 coincides with the axis of steel ball 2012, and at this time, lens conversion device 11 is located at the target position. At this time, the elastic member 2011 is deformed less, and has a deformation length L3; the acting force of the steel ball 2012 on the two inner side surfaces of the V-shaped groove is the same, so that the lens positioning mechanism is positioned at the target position.

EXAMPLE III

The present invention also provides an image acquisition apparatus, comprising:

the lens conversion device is provided with at least two lenses; and

an active portion rotatable about an axis;

a control module, wherein the control module comprises a processor and executable program instructions stored thereon, which when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform the method of embodiment two.

The present invention has been illustrated by the above embodiments, but it should be understood that the above embodiments are for illustrative and descriptive purposes only and are not intended to limit the invention to the scope of the described embodiments. Furthermore, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and that many variations and modifications may be made in accordance with the teachings of the present invention, which variations and modifications are within the scope of the present invention as claimed. The scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims and equivalents thereof.

Claims

1. An image acquisition apparatus, characterized by comprising:

the lens conversion device is provided with at least two lenses; and

an active portion rotatable about an axis;

2. The image capturing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a blocking device that provides a resistance force to the driven portion, and when the driving portion provides a pushing force to the driven portion that is greater than the resistance force, the driving portion pushes the driven portion to rotate.

3. The image capturing device of claim 2, wherein the blocking device comprises a fixedly disposed resilient member configured to:

the driven part or the lens conversion device is provided with pressure through the elastic deformation of the driven part or the lens conversion device, so that resistance is provided for the driven part.

4. The image capturing device as claimed in claim 3, wherein the blocking device comprises a spring plate and a protrusion structure fixedly connected to the lens conversion device;

one end of the spring piece is fixedly arranged, and the other end of the spring piece is in contact with the protruding structure and provides pressure for the protruding structure.

5. The image capturing device of claim 1, wherein the control device includes a positioning device configured to:

positioning a starting position at which the driving part pushes the driven part to rotate, so that the control device controls the distance of the axial rotation of the driving part along the first direction according to the starting position; and/or

And positioning a termination position at which the driving part pushes the driven part to rotate, so that the control device controls the driving part to stop rotating around the shaft according to the termination position.

6. The image capturing device as claimed in claim 5, wherein the positioning device comprises a fixed photoelectric sensor and a blocking plate fixedly connected to the lens conversion device.

7. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 1 or 5, further comprising a lens positioning mechanism for positioning said lens conversion apparatus to stop said lens conversion apparatus at said target position during movement of said lens conversion apparatus.

8. The image capturing apparatus of claim 7, wherein the lens positioning mechanism is configured to:

9. The image capturing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the lens positioning mechanism is configured to:

10. The image capturing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the lens positioning mechanism includes a first positioning element fixedly provided and a second positioning element fixedly connected to the lens conversion apparatus, and wherein the lens positioning mechanism is configured to:

the first positioning element applies a decreasing force to the second positioning element when the lens conversion device moves from the first positioning position to the target position.

11. The image capturing apparatus of claim 10, wherein the lens positioning mechanism is configured to:

12. The image capturing apparatus according to claim 11,

13. The image capturing apparatus according to claim 12,

the first positioning element comprises an elastic element with one end fixedly arranged and a steel ball connected with the other end of the elastic element,

the second positioning element comprises a V-shaped clamping groove arranged on the lens conversion device, the axial direction of the V-shaped clamping groove is consistent with the deformation direction of the elastic piece, and the V-shaped clamping groove comprises a first side surface and a second side surface; wherein,

when the first side surface or the second side surface is in contact with the steel ball, the lens conversion device is located at the first positioning position;

when the V-shaped clamping groove moves to be overlapped with the axis of the steel ball and is contacted with the first side surface and the second side surface, the lens conversion device is located at the target position.

14. The image capturing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the control device includes a driving motor, and the driving portion is connected to a motor shaft of the driving motor.

15. The image capturing device of claim 14, wherein the drive motor comprises a stepper motor.

16. A lens switching method is applied to an image acquisition device and is characterized in that the image acquisition device comprises a lens conversion device, and at least two lenses are arranged on the lens conversion device; and

an active portion rotatable about an axis;

the method comprises the following steps:

17. The method of claim 16, wherein said controlling said active portion to pivot in a first direction to eliminate said gap and then continue to pivot in said first direction comprises:

controlling the active part to perform the axial rotation along the first direction;

and detecting the position of the lens conversion device and/or the driven part, and when the position of the lens conversion device and/or the driven part is changed, controlling the driving part to continue to rotate around the shaft for a first distance along the first direction so that the driving part pushes the driven part to rotate to drive the lens conversion device to move to a first position and then stops rotating around the shaft.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein said causing the active portion to pivot in a first direction to eliminate the gap and then continuing to pivot in the first direction comprises:

and detecting the position of the lens conversion device, and controlling the driving part to stop rotating around the shaft when the lens conversion device reaches a first positioning position along the movement direction.

19. The method of claim 17 or 18, wherein the first location position is the target position.

20. The method according to claim 17 or 18, wherein the first positioning location is different from the target location, wherein the first positioning location is arranged to: the distance by which the driven portion rotates when the lens holder moves from the first positioning position to the target position is less than or equal to the gap, the method further comprising:

positioning the lens conversion device to stop the lens conversion device at the target position.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein in the step of positioning the lens conversion device, the lens conversion device is stopped at the target position by applying a force to the lens conversion device that resists further movement of the lens conversion device.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein in the step of positioning the lens conversion device, the lens conversion device is stopped at the target position by applying a gradually decreasing force to the lens conversion device.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the decreasing force is capable of moving the lens shifting device from the first positioning position to the target position.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein during the pivoting of the active portion in the first direction, the lens conversion device moves from a start position to the first position, and a path of the lens conversion device is a first path, and the first path is smaller than a distance from the target position when the lens conversion device starts moving.

25. The method according to claim 23, wherein during said pivoting of said active part in said first direction, said lens transfer device moves from a start to a first position, and a path of said lens transfer device is a second path, said second path being greater than a distance from said target position when said lens transfer device starts moving; wherein the step of positioning the lens conversion apparatus further comprises:

after the driving part stops the pivoting in the first direction, the driving part is controlled to perform the pivoting in the direction opposite to the first direction for a third distance, and then the pivoting is stopped, wherein the third distance is at least equal to the distance that the driven part rotates when the lens fixing device moves from the first positioning position to the target position, and the third distance is smaller than or equal to the gap.

26. An image acquisition apparatus, characterized by comprising:

the lens conversion device is provided with at least two lenses; and

an active portion rotatable about an axis;