CN114915704B - Sleeve assembly, camera module, operation method of camera module and mobile electronic equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a sleeve assembly, a camera module, an operation method of the camera module and mobile electronic equipment. The sleeve assembly (1) comprises a lens barrel unit (10), and the lens barrel unit (10) comprises a lens barrel (11) used for bearing the optical lens (3) and a driving mechanism (12) used for driving the lens barrel (11) used for bearing the optical lens (3) to reciprocate. The driving mechanism (12) comprises a resonator (122), a piezoelectric element (123) arranged on the resonator (122) and a driven piece (121) capable of moving relative to the resonator (122), wherein the driven piece (121) is fixedly connected with the bottom of the lens barrel (11). Through the scheme that this application put forward, showing the overall structure height that has reduced the module of making a video recording, ensure simultaneously that the module of making a video recording can fast response imaging and adjustment demand such as focus, even if to heavier camera lens spare part, also can high-efficient realization micron-order lens cone accurate motion control and great adjustment stroke, from this high-efficient focal plane adjustment and high imaging quality.

Description

Sleeve assembly, camera module, operation method of camera module and mobile electronic equipment

Technical Field

The invention relates to a sleeve assembly, a camera module, an operation method of the camera module and mobile electronic equipment.

Background

The description herein provides background information related to the present invention only and does not necessarily constitute prior art.

Today, people have no way of living in mobile devices such as cell phones and tablet computers. Among them, the camera module technology for acquiring video or image has also been rapidly developed and advanced.

Currently, in the market, a camera module configured in a mobile electronic device (for example, a smart phone) needs to implement a multi-zoom shooting function. In order to realize multi-zoom shooting, a long-focus shooting module with a large effective focal length needs to be configured. However, the increase of the zoom multiple increases the total focal length of the tele camera module, so that the overall height of the camera module is increased, and the development trend of thinning of the electronic equipment is difficult to adapt.

In order to solve the technical contradiction between the high design of the camera module and the high-power zoom shooting function, most manufacturers adopt periscope type camera modules to replace the traditional vertical camera modules. Compared with the traditional vertical camera module, the periscope type camera module changes the imaging optical path through being provided with light turning elements such as a prism, a reflecting mirror and the like, thereby reducing the overall height size of the camera module and simultaneously meeting the optical design requirement of large effective focal length.

However, the periscope type camera module has a more complex structure in terms of structure, so that the cost and the process difficulty are increased; in the aspect of optical performance, although the periscope type camera module has a larger effective focal length, the effective focal length is a fixed value, and the adjustability of the optical performance is poor, so that a plurality of periscope type camera modules are matched with one another for electronic equipment to meet the requirement of people on the diversification of camera functions, and the cost and the process difficulty are further increased.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention aims to provide a telescopic sleeve assembly, an image pickup module comprising the telescopic sleeve assembly, mobile electronic equipment comprising the image pickup module and an operation method of the image pickup module.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sleeve assembly comprising a barrel unit, wherein the barrel unit comprises:

a lens barrel provided for carrying an optical lens; and

a driving mechanism provided for driving the lens barrel for carrying an optical lens to reciprocate, wherein the driving mechanism includes:

the frequency of the resonator is such that,

a piezoelectric element provided on the resonator, and

and the driven piece can move relative to the resonator, wherein the driven piece is fixedly connected with the bottom of the lens barrel.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the present invention, the resonator is capable of generating interaction forces with the follower in different vibration modes by applying different pulse voltages across the piezoelectric element.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the present invention, the resonator may drive the driven member and the lens barrel fixedly connected to the driven member to reciprocate by an interaction force between the resonator and the driven member.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the invention, the sleeve assembly further comprises a base for receiving the lens barrel unit, wherein a resonator of a drive mechanism of the lens barrel unit is fixed on the base of the lens barrel unit.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the present invention, the sleeve assembly further comprises a sleeve, the barrel of the barrel unit is nested in the sleeve, and is capable of driving the barrel of the barrel unit to reciprocate relative to the sleeve by the driving mechanism, so that the barrel of the barrel unit extends from and retracts into the sleeve, wherein the resonator of the driving mechanism of the barrel unit is fixed on the sleeve.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the invention, the sleeve assembly comprises a plurality of sleeves nested one within the other and telescopically movable relative to each other, wherein the barrel of the barrel unit is nested in an innermost sleeve and the resonator of the drive mechanism of the barrel unit is fixed on the innermost sleeve.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the invention, each sleeve is provided with a respective driver arranged for driving the corresponding sleeve into telescopic movement.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the invention, the driver of the sleeve is configured to be of the same type as the driving mechanism of the lens barrel unit, wherein the resonator of the driver of each inner sleeve is fixed to an adjacent outer sleeve.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the invention, the sleeve assembly further comprises a base for receiving the sleeve, wherein an outermost sleeve is nested in the base and is telescopically movable relative to the base, wherein a resonator of a driver of the outermost sleeve is fixed to the base.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the invention, the driver of the at least one sleeve and the driving mechanism of the lens barrel unit are configured in different types.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the invention, in the lens barrel unit, the resonator of the driving mechanism is capable of stepping the lens barrel by a distance of 1 to 3 μm.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the present invention, in the operating state of the sleeve assembly, all sleeves of the barrel and sleeve assembly of the barrel unit reach a maximum extended position with respect to an adjacent outer sleeve or base.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the present invention, in the non-operating state of the sleeve assembly, all sleeves of the barrel and sleeve assembly of the barrel unit are fully retracted into adjacent outer sleeves or seats, and the outermost sleeve is fully retracted into the seat of the sleeve assembly.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the present invention, the sleeve assembly includes a first sleeve and a second sleeve, wherein the apertures of the second sleeve, the first sleeve, and the barrel of the barrel unit sequentially decrease in order and are sequentially nested from the outer layer to the inner layer.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the invention, the sleeve assembly further comprises a drive circuit for powering a drive mechanism of the barrel unit and/or a driver of the sleeve and/or providing a control signal.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the present invention, the lens barrel unit is provided with a separate driving circuit for supplying pulse voltages of different frequencies to the piezoelectric element of the driving mechanism of the lens barrel unit.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the present invention, in the lens barrel unit, a follower of the driving mechanism is L-shaped, and an end of the follower away from the resonator is connected to an outer sidewall of a bottom of the lens barrel.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the invention, in the lens barrel unit, a follower of the driving mechanism is I-shaped, and an end of the follower away from the resonator is tangential to and connected with an outer sidewall of a bottom of the lens barrel.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the present invention, in the lens barrel unit, the resonator of the driving mechanism has at least two resonance arms disposed in axial symmetry.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the invention, a contact is provided on each resonant arm for movably clamping and driving the follower.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the invention, the sleeve assembly further comprises a motion guiding device defining a movement trajectory of the telescopic motion of the barrel unit and/or the sleeve.

According to some embodiments of the first aspect of the invention, the motion guiding means comprises balls and rails, or the motion guiding means comprises a slider and rails.

Through the sleeve assembly that this application proposed, can effectively reduce the device that includes this kind of sleeve assembly, for example the overall structure height of module of making a video recording. In addition, the sleeve assembly not only can quickly respond to adjustment requirements, but also can drive heavier lens parts, and realize accurate action control of the micron-sized lens barrel and larger adjustment travel of the lens barrel, so that the focal plane of the lens can be quickly and accurately adjusted to be approximately overlapped with a photosensitive chip (imaging surface), the working back focus requirement is met, and high imaging quality is ensured.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image capturing module, comprising:

the sleeve assembly;

the photosensitive chip is used for processing the light rays and forming image signals; and

an optical lens is installed in a lens barrel of a lens barrel unit of the sleeve assembly, and an optical axis of the optical lens is coaxial with an optical axis of the photosensitive chip.

According to some embodiments of the second aspect of the present invention, the camera module further includes a circuit board, and the photosensitive chip is disposed on the circuit board.

According to some embodiments of the second aspect of the invention, the driving circuit of the sleeve assembly is disposed on and electrically connected with the wiring board.

According to some embodiments of the second aspect of the invention, the optical lens comprises a plurality of sub-lenses, wherein at least one sub-lens is mounted within a barrel of a barrel unit of the sleeve assembly and/or at least one sub-lens is mounted in a sleeve of the sleeve assembly.

According to some embodiments of the second aspect of the present invention, in the non-operating state of the sleeve assembly, a safety gap is provided between the optical lens and the photosensitive chip.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, a mobile electronic device is provided, which includes the aforementioned camera module.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for operating the camera module, including the steps of:

applying a pulse voltage with a first frequency to a piezoelectric element of a driving mechanism of the lens barrel unit, so that the resonator is in a first vibration mode, and driving the lens barrel to move towards the object side of the optical lens through a driven piece fixedly connected with the bottom of the lens barrel, thereby enabling the optical lens to extend towards the object side of the optical lens along the optical axis direction of the optical lens relative to the photosensitive chip;

And applying a pulse voltage with a second frequency to a piezoelectric element of a driving mechanism of the lens barrel unit, so that the resonator is in a second vibration mode, and the driven piece fixedly connected with the bottom of the lens barrel drives the lens barrel to move towards the image side of the optical lens, thereby retracting the optical lens towards the image side of the optical lens along the optical axis direction of the optical lens relative to the photosensitive chip.

According to some embodiments of the fourth aspect of the present invention, the drive mechanism of the barrel unit of the sleeve assembly and the driver of the sleeve assembly are controlled such that both the barrel of the barrel unit and the sleeve of the sleeve assembly reach a maximum extended position into an operating state of the sleeve assembly.

According to some embodiments of the fourth aspect of the present invention, the drive mechanism of the barrel unit of the sleeve assembly and the driver of the sleeve assembly are controlled such that both the barrel of the barrel unit and the sleeve of the sleeve assembly reach a fully retracted position into a non-operational state of the sleeve assembly.

Through the camera module and the operation method thereof provided by the application, the total structural height of the camera module is obviously reduced, meanwhile, the camera module can rapidly respond to the adjustment requirements of imaging, focal length and the like, even for heavier lens parts, the accurate action control of the lens barrel with the micron level and the larger adjustment stroke of the lens barrel can be efficiently realized, so that the focal plane of the lens can be rapidly and accurately adjusted to be approximately overlapped with a photosensitive chip (imaging surface), the working back focus requirement is met, and the camera module is ensured to have high imaging quality.

Drawings

The technical scheme of the present invention will be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and examples. In the drawings, like reference numerals are used to refer to like parts unless otherwise specified. Wherein:

FIG. 1 is a simplified schematic cross-sectional view of some embodiments of a sleeve assembly set forth herein;

FIG. 2 is a simplified schematic cross-sectional view of further embodiments of the sleeve assembly set forth herein, wherein the sleeve assembly is in a fully extended operative state;

FIG. 3 is a simplified schematic cross-sectional view of another condition of the sleeve assembly shown in FIG. 2, wherein the sleeve assembly is in a fully contracted, non-operative condition;

FIG. 4 is a top view of some embodiments of a barrel unit of a sleeve assembly as set forth herein;

FIG. 5 is a top view of further embodiments of a barrel unit of the sleeve assembly set forth herein;

FIG. 6 is a top view of further embodiments of a barrel unit of the sleeve assembly as set forth herein;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of some embodiments of a barrel unit of a sleeve assembly as set forth herein;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of some embodiments of sleeve assemblies presented herein;

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of some embodiments of the drive mechanism proposed herein;

FIG. 10 is a simplified schematic cross-sectional view of the drive mechanism of FIG. 9;

FIGS. 11-13 are schematic diagrams illustrating the principle of operation of the resonator of the drive mechanism of the present application;

FIG. 14 is a schematic view of some embodiments of the drive mechanism proposed herein;

FIG. 15 is a schematic view of another embodiment of a driving mechanism according to the present application;

FIG. 16 is a schematic view of another embodiment of a driving mechanism according to the present application;

FIG. 17 is a schematic view of a multi-layer piezoelectric element of the driving mechanism according to the present application;

FIG. 18 is a schematic cross-sectional view of some embodiments of camera modules set forth herein;

FIG. 19 is a simplified schematic cross-sectional view of still other embodiments of a camera module as set forth herein, with a sleeve assembly of the camera module in a fully extended operative state;

fig. 20 is a simplified schematic cross-sectional view of another state of the camera module shown in fig. 19, wherein the sleeve assembly of the camera module is in a fully retracted, non-operative state.

List of reference numerals

1. A sleeve assembly 125, a first joint;

10. a lens barrel unit; 126. A second joint;

11. a lens barrel; 2. A photosensitive chip;

12. A driving mechanism; 13. A first sleeve;

121. a follower; 131. A first follower;

1211. a rod separating part; 132. A first resonator;

1212. a transmission member; 14. A second sleeve;

122. a resonator; 141. A second follower;

1221. a resonating arm; 142. A second resonator;

1222. a contact portion; 20. A base;

1223. a contact surface; 32. driver(s)

123. A piezoelectric element; 21. A bottom;

124. a multilayer piezoelectric element; 22. A mounting port;

1241. a piezoelectric unit; 3. optical lens

Detailed Description

The inventive concept will now be described in further detail with reference to specific examples. It is noted that the examples set forth herein are only for the purpose of clearly illustrating the inventive concepts of the present invention and are not to be construed as limiting the invention. The technical features of the sleeve assembly, the camera module, the mobile electronic device and the operation method of the camera module related herein can be arbitrarily combined or replaced within the framework of the inventive concept as long as the natural law or the technical specification is not violated, and the technical features are within the scope of the inventive concept.

It is pointed out that the embodiments shown in the drawings are only for the purpose of illustrating and explaining the inventive concept in detail and image, which are not necessarily drawn to scale in terms of size and structure nor are they to be construed as limiting the inventive concept.

Terms of orientation such as up, down, left, right, front, rear, front, back, top, bottom, etc. mentioned or possible to be mentioned in the present specification are defined with respect to the configurations shown in the respective drawings, which are relative concepts, and thus may be changed according to different positions and different use states thereof. These and other directional terms should not be construed as limiting terms.

The sleeve assembly proposed herein includes a barrel unit, wherein the barrel unit includes a barrel and a drive mechanism. The lens barrel is arranged for bearing the optical lens. The driving mechanism is arranged for driving the lens barrel for carrying the optical lens to reciprocate.

The driving mechanism may include a resonator, a piezoelectric element disposed on the resonator, and a follower. The follower may be fixedly connected to the barrel, in particular to the bottom of the barrel. Alternatively, the resonator may be fixedly connected with the lens barrel, in particular with the bottom of the lens barrel.

By applying different pulse voltages to the piezoelectric element, the resonator is able to generate interaction forces with the follower in different vibration modes. The mutual acting force between the resonator and the driven piece can generate relative motion between the resonator and the driven piece, so that the driven piece or the resonator fixedly connected with the lens barrel can drive the lens barrel to reciprocate.

In the following embodiments, the mode that the driven member is fixedly connected with the lens barrel and drives the lens barrel to move is taken as an example, but obviously, the positions and the connection relation of the resonator and the driven member can also be exchanged, and the mode that the resonator is fixedly connected with the lens barrel and drives the lens barrel to move is adopted, which is within the scope of the disclosure of the present application.

Fig. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of some embodiments of a sleeve assembly as set forth herein.

As shown in fig. 1, in the present embodiment, the sleeve assembly 1 includes a lens barrel unit 10, wherein the lens barrel unit 10 includes a lens barrel 11 and a driving mechanism 12. The optical lens 3 is mounted in the lens barrel 11. The driving mechanism 12 is provided for driving the lens barrel 11 for carrying the optical lens 3 to reciprocate, typically along the optical axis direction of the optical lens 3.

Specifically, the driving mechanism 12 includes a resonator 122 and a piezoelectric element 123 provided on the resonator 122. With different pulse voltages, e.g. different frequencies, the piezoelectric element 123 may be excited to produce a piezoelectric effect and to bring the resonator 122 into different vibration modes. The driving mechanism 12 further includes a follower 121, one end of which is fixedly connected to the lens barrel 11, and the other end of which is movably connected to the resonator 122. The resonator 122 may drive the follower 121 and the lens barrel 11 fixedly connected to the follower 121 to reciprocate.

As shown in fig. 1, the sleeve assembly 1 may further include a base 20 for accommodating the lens barrel unit 10. The resonator 122 of the drive mechanism 12 may be fixed to the base 20 of the sleeve assembly 1, for example by the end remote from the follower 121 being fixed to the inner bottom 21 of the base 20. The resonator 122 of the driving mechanism 12 drives the follower 121 and the lens barrel 11 fixedly connected to the follower 121 to reciprocate with respect to the base 20, preferably in the optical axis direction of the optical lens 3, so that the lens barrel 11 is fully or partially extended from the base 20 or retracted into the base 20. The follower 121 may be fixedly connected to a bottom of the lens barrel 11, which is an end of the lens barrel 11 in the optical axis direction of the optical lens 3 near the image side, that is, an end near the mount 20. The bottom of the barrel 11 may be a barrel end surface region or a side surface portion adjacent to the end surface. The follower 121 is fixedly connected with the bottom of the lens barrel 11, so that the maximum telescopic movement stroke of the lens barrel 11 is realized through the driving mechanism 12, and the follower 121 forms an optimized driving force arm.

Alternatively, the sleeve assembly 1 may not include the base 20. In this case, the resonator 122 of the driving mechanism 12 may be fixed to another base structure that does not need to move with the optical lens, so as to drive the follower 121 and the lens barrel 11 fixedly connected to the follower 121 to reciprocate, for example, relative to the photosensitive chip of the image capturing module, preferably along the optical axis direction of the optical lens 3, so as to adjust the distance between the lens barrel 11 and the carried optical lens 3 relative to the photosensitive chip 2 of the image capturing module.

The follower 121 is connected at one end to the resonator 122 and at the other end to the barrel 11, in the exemplary embodiment of fig. 1 for example to the bottom 21 of the barrel 11. By applying, for example, pulse voltages of different frequencies to the piezoelectric element 123 of the driving mechanism 12, the resonator 122 can drive the follower 121 and the lens barrel 11 fixedly connected to the follower 121 to reciprocate in different vibration modes, whereby the lens barrel 11 can fully or partially extend out of the base 20 and retract into the base 20. In this way, the overall constructional height of the device, for example a camera module, comprising such a sleeve assembly 1 can be effectively reduced. Furthermore, by the driving mechanism 12 of the lens barrel unit 10, on the one hand, it is possible to quickly respond to the adjustment requirement of, for example, the lens focal plane or the focal length, and on the other hand, it is possible to realize accurate step control in the micrometer scale. For example, the resonator 122 of the driving mechanism 12 can step the lens barrel 11 by a minute distance of about 1 to 3 μm using a piezoelectric effect.

By adjusting the lens barrel 11, the lens can be retracted, and the focal plane of the lens can be adjusted to be approximately overlapped with the photosensitive chip (imaging surface), so that the back focus requirement of work can be met. For achieving higher quality adjustment, a plurality of driving mechanisms 12 may be optionally provided to drive one lens barrel 11 together, as needed. For example, 2, 3, 4 and more driving mechanisms 12 may be considered. The plurality of driving mechanisms 12 can be uniformly arranged around the lens barrel 11, achieving balance and more accurate motion control.

Fig. 2 and 3 are simplified schematic cross-sectional views of further embodiments of sleeve assemblies presented herein. In accordance with the concepts of the present application, the sleeve assembly 1 may also include one or more sleeves configured as one or more layers of nested sleeves that enclose and house the barrel unit 10 and may be extended and retracted relative to one another.

According to some embodiments, only one sleeve may be provided, which externally surrounds the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 in the form of a concentric sleeve, and is capable of reciprocating with respect to the barrel 11. By the drive mechanism 12 of the barrel unit 10, the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 can fully or partially extend and retract into the sleeve, generally forming a telescopic sleeve assembly.

In the case where the sleeve assembly 1 includes only one sleeve, the lens barrel 11 of the lens barrel unit 10 is nested in the sleeve, and the lens barrel 11 of the lens barrel unit 10 can be driven to reciprocate relative to the sleeve by the driving mechanism 12, so that the lens barrel 11 of the lens barrel unit 10 is extended from and retracted into the sleeve. The resonator 122 of the drive mechanism 12 of the lens barrel unit 10 can be fastened to a single sleeve, for example to the inner bottom of this sleeve. Accordingly, this sleeve may have its own driver 32, see more particularly below. If the actuator 32 of this sleeve takes the same form as the drive mechanism 12 of the barrel unit 10, the resonator 122 of the actuator 32 may be fixed to the base 20 of the sleeve assembly 1 or, in the case where the base 20 is not included, directly to another fixed base structure.

According to other embodiments, a plurality of sleeves may be provided, for example configured as a series of circular or square sleeves of different diameters, which may be mounted concentrically one over the other to form a layer-by-layer nested sleeve combination in which the sleeves are telescopically movable relative to one another, for example with the inner sleeve extending from and retracting into the adjacent outer sleeve. The innermost sleeve may nest and enclose the barrel unit 10, in particular the barrel 11 of the nested barrel unit 10. Here, the resonator 122 of the driving mechanism 12 of the lens barrel unit 10 may be fixed to the innermost sleeve. The resonator of the actuator of the outermost sleeve may be fixed to the base 20 of the sleeve assembly 1 or, in case the base 20 is not included, directly to another fixed basic structure.

In the embodiment of fig. 2 and 3, the construction of some embodiments of the sleeve assembly is illustrated with 2 sleeves 13, 14. It will be apparent that the number of sleeves of the sleeve assembly is not limited to 1 or 2, but may include a greater number of sleeves depending on the layer-by-layer nested sleeve configuration described in detail. In the illustrated embodiment, the sleeve assembly 1 includes a first sleeve 13 and a second sleeve 14, wherein the apertures of the second sleeve 14, the first sleeve 13 and the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 are sequentially reduced in order, and are sequentially stacked and nested from the outer layer to the inner layer.

Fig. 2 shows that the sleeve assembly 1 comprises 2 sleeves 13, 14 and is in a fully extended operating state. Fig. 3 shows the corresponding sleeve assembly 1 in a fully contracted inactive state. As shown, the barrel unit 10 of the sleeve assembly 1 is nested within the inner sleeve 13, the inner sleeve 13 is nested within the outer sleeve 14, and the outer sleeve 14 is nested within the base 20, wherein the barrel 11, the inner sleeve 13, the outer sleeve 14, and the base 20 of the barrel unit 10 are adjacent and are capable of reciprocal movement relative to one another.

Each sleeve may be provided with a separate actuator 32, the actuator 32 being capable of actuating the corresponding sleeve in a reciprocating motion relative to the sleeve or base of the adjacent outer layer to effect extension and retraction from the sleeve or base of the adjacent outer layer into the sleeve or base of the adjacent outer layer. According to some embodiments, the driver 32 may be a conventional magnet driver or electromagnetic driver for driving the lens, such as a voice coil motor or the like.

For example, the drivers of the sleeves 13, 14 may both be conventional drivers, and only the lens barrel 11 of the lens barrel unit 10 is driven by the driving mechanism 12 proposed in the present application. In this case, only the lens barrel unit 10 of the sleeve assembly 1 includes the driving mechanism 12 using the piezoelectric effect, which makes full use of the conventional driver to achieve the rapid rough adjustment of the large stepping distance on the one hand, and the fine adjustment of the fine stepping distance of the driving mechanism 12 on the other hand, in combination with the characteristic that the driving mechanism 12 is adapted to drive the heavier components, thereby achieving rapid, accurate and stable lens adjustment of the image pickup module as a whole, ensuring high-quality imaging.

Alternatively, part or all of the sleeve driver 32 may be configured to have the same configuration as the driving mechanism 12 of the lens barrel unit 10, i.e., the driver 32 may also include a resonator 122, a follower 121 movably connected to the resonator 122, and a piezoelectric element 123 provided on the resonator 122. See the embodiment shown in fig. 2 and 3.

Specifically, for an inner sleeve, one end of the resonator 122 of the own driver 32 may be fixed to the sleeve of the adjacent outer layer, the other end may be movably connected to the follower 121, and the follower 121 may be fixedly connected to the sleeve itself, particularly to the bottom of the sleeve, at the other end remote from the resonator 122. In other words, the resonator 122 of the driver 32 of each inner sleeve 13 can be fixed to the adjacent outer sleeve 14, while the follower 121 is fixedly connected to the sleeve itself, so that the structural arrangement rules are equally applicable in the case of using 3, 4 or more sleeves.

For the outermost sleeve, the resonator 122 of the own driver 32 may be fixed to the base 20 of the sleeve assembly 1 or directly to other fixed infrastructure without the base 20 being included. Likewise, the follower 121 is movably connected at one end to the resonator 122 of the own drive 32 and at the other end to the outermost sleeve itself, in particular to the bottom of the sleeve. The features and technical effects described above in connection with the connection of the follower 121 of the driving mechanism 12 and the lens barrel 11 are equally applicable to the driver 32, and will not be described here again.

The previous description of the operation and technical effects of the drive mechanism 12 of the barrel unit 10 applies equally to the driver 32 of the sleeve itself. With different pulse voltages, e.g. different frequencies, the piezoelectric element 123 may be excited to produce a piezoelectric effect and to bring the resonator 122 into different vibration modes. The resonator 122 of the driver 32 of the inner sleeve 13 may drive the driven member 121 and the inner sleeve 13 fixedly connected to the driven member 121 to reciprocate relative to the adjacent outer sleeve 14, preferably in the direction of the optical axis of the optical lens 3, so that the inner sleeve 13 extends completely or partially from the outer sleeve 14 or is retracted into the outer sleeve 14. Also, outer sleeve 14 may extend fully or partially from base 20 or retract into base 20.

In the operating state of the sleeve assembly 1, the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 and all sleeves of the sleeve assembly 1 reach a maximum extended position with respect to the adjacent outer sleeve or base 20. Specifically, in the embodiment of fig. 2, the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 is fully extended from the sleeve 13, the sleeve 13 is fully extended from the sleeve 14, and the sleeve 14 is fully extended from the base 20. In the embodiment of fig. 2 and 3, the sleeve assembly 1 comprises 2 sleeves and thus extends outwardly from the base 20 to an extended length in the range of about 18.6mm to 28.6mm to a maximum extended position.

In the non-operating state of the sleeve assembly 1, the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 and all sleeves of the sleeve assembly 1 are fully retracted into the adjacent outer sleeve or base 20. Specifically, in the embodiment of fig. 3, the lens barrel 11 of the lens barrel unit 10 is fully retracted into the sleeve 13, the sleeve 13 is fully retracted into the sleeve 14, and the sleeve 14 is fully retracted into the base 20. According to some embodiments, in the non-operative state of the sleeve assembly 1, the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 and all the sleeves are completely housed in the base 20, in particular the outer surfaces of the barrel 11, the layers of sleeves and the base 20 are flush.

According to some embodiments, the lens barrel 11 of the lens barrel unit 10 drives the optical lens 3 to retract, thereby adjusting the focal plane of the optical lens 3 to be approximately coincident with the photosensitive chip (imaging surface) to meet the back focus requirement of work. Alternatively, the optical lens 3 is a fixed focus lens, so that the lens barrel 11 is in an operating state when it is fully extended, at which time the optical lens 3 reaches a fixed focal length, and in a non-operating state when it is fully retracted, thereby reducing the overall module height. These features of fixed focus optical lens 3 are equally applicable where the sleeve assembly described below further comprises one or more sleeves.

According to some embodiments, the sleeve assembly 1 further comprises a drive circuit for powering the drive mechanism 12 of the barrel unit 10 and/or the driver 32 of the sleeve and/or providing control signals.

The drive mechanism 12 of the lens barrel unit 10 and/or the driver 32 of the sleeve may also be provided with separate drive circuits, respectively, which may provide different power modes and/or control signals to the corresponding drive mechanism 12 and/or 32.

For example, in the sleeve assembly 1, a first electrode of the piezoelectric element 123 may be electrically connected to a first end of a driving circuit, and a second electrode may be electrically connected to a second end of the driving circuit, the driving circuit being configured to supply pulse voltages of different frequencies to the piezoelectric element 123.

According to some embodiments, the sleeve assembly may further comprise a motion guiding means defining a movement trajectory, in particular a linear reciprocating motion, of the telescopic motion of the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 and/or of the sleeve. For example, the motion guide means may comprise balls and rails, or comprise a slider and rails.

It should be noted that in the embodiment of fig. 1 to 3, the follower 121 is fixedly connected to the bottom of the lens barrel 11 and drives the lens barrel 11 to move telescopically, while the resonator 122 is fixed to an adjacent external sleeve, or directly to the base 20 of the sleeve assembly 1, or directly to another fixed base structure. However, the positions and connection relations between the resonator 122 and the follower 121 may be exchanged, that is, the resonator 122 is fixedly connected to the bottom of the lens barrel 11 and drives the lens barrel 11 to move telescopically, while the follower 121 is fixed on an adjacent external sleeve, or directly fixed on the base 20 of the sleeve assembly 1, or directly fixed on other fixed base structures, which can also drive the corresponding functions of the mechanism 12, and can be combined with other technical features described in the foregoing and the following to form a complete technical solution, which are all within the scope of the disclosure of the present application.

Fig. 4 to 6 are top views of some embodiments of the lens barrel unit 10 of the sleeve assembly 1 proposed in the present application.

As shown in fig. 4, in the lens barrel unit 10, the follower 121 of the driving mechanism 12 is L-shaped, and one end of the follower 121 away from the resonator 122 is connected to the outer side wall of the bottom of the lens barrel 11.

As shown in fig. 5, in the lens barrel unit 10, the follower 121 of the driving mechanism 12 is I-shaped, and one end of the follower 121 away from the resonator 122 is tangent to and connected to the outer side wall of the bottom of the lens barrel 11.

As shown in fig. 6, in the lens barrel unit 10, the follower 121 of the driving mechanism 12 is I-shaped, and one end of the follower 121 away from the resonator 122 is connected to the bottom of the lens barrel 11 through the transmission member 1212. The driver 1212 may take any suitable form depending on the design requirements.

Fig. 7 shows a perspective view of some embodiments of the barrel unit 10 of the sleeve assembly. Here, the lens barrel 11 of the lens barrel unit 10 is configured in a cylindrical shape, for example, and the follower 121 may be configured in a suitable form as described above and fixedly connected to the lens barrel 11. Alternatively, the follower 121 may be indirectly fixedly connected with the lens barrel 11 through the driving member 1212, which facilitates flexible assembly with lens barrels of different specifications. In different vibration modes of the resonator 122, the follower 121 together with the lens barrel 11 can be driven by the resonator 122 to reciprocate, for example, upward or downward (Y-direction) in the drawing plane.

Obviously, in the case where the sleeve driver 32 is configured in the same structure as the driving mechanism 12 of the lens barrel unit 10, the cylinder of the lens barrel 11 originally shown in fig. 7 of the lens barrel unit 10 may also be the sleeve of the sleeve assembly 1. Also, in different vibration modes, the resonator 122 drives the driven member 121 to reciprocate together with the sleeve, thereby achieving extension and contraction of the sleeve.

Fig. 8 illustrates a perspective view of some embodiments of a sleeve assembly, in which a cylindrical shape illustrated by a dotted line may represent the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10, and the follower 121 may be configured in a suitable form as described above and fixedly coupled with the barrel 11. In the different vibration modes of the resonator 122, the follower 121 together with the lens barrel 11 can be driven by the resonator 122, for example, to move upward in the drawing plane, representing extension, or downward in the drawing plane, representing contraction.

As shown, one or more sleeves may be nested externally about the barrel unit 10, depending on design or performance requirements. Thus, the outer sleeve surrounds the inner sleeve or barrel 11 and is reciprocally movable relative to one another to effect extension and retraction of the sleeve combination. In particular, a greater number of outer sleeves may be provided in a layer-by-layer nested configuration around the inner sleeve, where the sleeves are not limited to cylindrical shapes, but may be cube-shaped as shown, or any other suitable regular or irregular shape.

The structural form of the drive mechanism is exemplarily described below with reference to fig. 9 and 10. Fig. 9 is a schematic structural view of some embodiments of the drive mechanism proposed in the present application, and fig. 10 is a simplified schematic cross-sectional view of the drive mechanism shown in fig. 9. As shown, the resonator 122 may include a plurality of resonant arms 1221 connected to each other by a connection portion, and integrally have at least two resonant arms 1221 arranged in axial symmetry, for example, configured in a tuning fork shape. Each of the resonator arms 1221 is provided with a contact portion 1222 and a piezoelectric element 123, and the contact portions 1222 of the plurality of resonator arms 1221 are configured to movably hold the driven member 121.

The piezoelectric element 123 is made of a material having a piezoelectric effect, such as single crystal or polycrystalline ceramics. When the frequency of the external electric field coincides with the natural frequency of the piezoelectric element 123, the piezoelectric element 123 enters a resonance state, causing the resonance arm 1221 to vibrate, and the resonance arm 1221 then drives the follower 121 to displace by the force action between the contact portion 1222 and the follower 121. By applying different pulse voltages, different vibration modes can be generated, thereby realizing different movement modes, and the specific action principle will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Specifically, since the number of the resonant arms 1221 is plural, the number of the piezoelectric elements 123 of the driving mechanism 12 may be plural accordingly. Alternatively, the first electrodes of the piezoelectric elements 123 are electrically connected in parallel and then electrically connected to the first electrode of the driving circuit, and the second electrodes of the piezoelectric elements 123 are electrically connected in parallel and then electrically connected to the second electrode of the driving circuit.

In the illustrated embodiment, the follower 121 is configured as a round rod, one end of which is movably held by the contact portions 1222 of the plurality of resonant arms 1221 so as to be capable of reciprocating in the Y-axis direction of the illustrated rectangular coordinate system under the force of the resonant arms 1221. Optionally, the curvature of the contact surface 1223 is smaller than the curvature of the side peripheral surface of the follower 121, so that there is sufficient pre-tightening force between the two, and sufficient friction force is generated on the follower 121 to drive the follower 121 to move.

For example, the follower 121 may be configured as an L-shaped round rod, and the other free end thereof remote from the resonator 122 may be fixedly connected to the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 or fixedly connected to the sleeve of the sleeve assembly 1, thereby driving the reciprocating motion thereof in the Y-axis direction of the rectangular coordinate system shown.

Alternatively, the follower 121 may be a multi-prismatic rod, or have a profiled cross section, etc.

It is apparent that the specific structural forms of the resonator 122, the piezoelectric element 123, and the follower 121 and their mutual positional relationship can be appropriately selected according to the design structure and product performance within the concept of the present application, and are not limited to the forms illustrated herein.

The manner and principle of action that the resonator 122 may produce upon actuation of the piezoelectric element 123 will be briefly described later in connection with fig. 11, 12 and 13. In short, the resonator 122 can be put in different vibration states by exciting it with the piezoelectric element 123.

Fig. 11 shows a typical state at the first excitation frequency. On the one hand, the resonant arms 1221 vibrate in the longitudinal direction (Y direction), and on the other hand, vibrate close to each other or away from each other (X direction). The contact portion 1222 is made to perform an elliptical motion with a corresponding rotational direction according to which of the two vibrations is prioritized over the other vibration. Whereby the contact 1222 may apply a force in the positive or negative Y direction to the follower 121.

Fig. 12 corresponds to a state at a second excitation frequency different from the first excitation frequency. At this time, the contact portions 1222 vibrate mainly in the X direction and strike each other. Whereby the follower 121 is movably guided and movable by an external force.

Fig. 13 corresponds to a third, different excitation frequency, at which point the resonant arm 1221 can perform a torsional movement about the longitudinal direction (Y-direction) and drive the follower 121 in a corresponding manner.

The surface of the contact portion 1222 of the resonance arm 1221 that contacts the follower 121 is a contact surface 1223. Alternatively, the shape of the contact surface 1223 may match the shape of the side peripheral surface of the corresponding follower 121, thereby achieving more accurate force transmission and motion control between the follower 121 and the resonant arm 1221.

In the present embodiment, the number of the resonant arms 1221 is two and the two resonant arms 1221 are disposed opposite to each other with a space therebetween. The follower 121 is rod-shaped and is disposed perpendicularly to the resonating arm 1221. In other embodiments, the number of resonant arms 1221 may be three, four, or more.

By selecting different pulse voltages, particularly voltages having different frequencies, different vibration excitation modes of the resonant arm 1221 can be achieved, thereby driving the follower 121 to achieve different modes of motion, including changes in direction of motion, speed, step distance, and frequency of motion. The present application is not limited to the specific form of the drive mechanism 12 given as an example embodiment, but the structural form and combination thereof may be appropriately selected according to design and performance.

Fig. 14 shows a schematic structural view of some embodiments of the drive mechanism 12. As shown in fig. 14, the follower 121 of the driving mechanism 12 is configured with a plurality of sub-rod portions 1211 near one end of the resonator 122, and for example, includes the sub-rod portions 1211 corresponding to the number of the resonant arms 1221 of the driving mechanism 12, for example, the number of the sub-rod portions 1211 is two. Alternatively, the force and reaction forces generated between each sub-rod 1211 and the corresponding resonant arm 1221 may form an interference fit between the sub-rod 1211 and the resonant arm 1221, such as by pre-forming a pre-stress of a shape or material properties. Thereby, even when the driving mechanism 12 is not energized, a self-locking effect is formed between the follower 121 and the resonant arm 1221, which is advantageous for achieving accurate control and adjustment of the movement pattern.

Fig. 15 shows a schematic structural view of further embodiments of the drive mechanism 12. As shown, the inner and outer sides of the resonant arm 1221 may be provided with piezoelectric elements 123, respectively, for example in a symmetrical arrangement, which facilitates a uniform and balanced driving of the follower 121 in different movement patterns.

Fig. 16 shows a schematic structural diagram of a further exemplary embodiment of the drive mechanism 12, in which the piezo element 123 is arranged outside the resonator arm 1221. The piezoelectric element 123 may be a single-layer piezoelectric element. The piezoelectric element 123 may be connected to the resonant arm 1221 by a conductive adhesive, which may be an adhesive to which silver oxide or conductive micro-metal spheres are added. Alternatively, the piezoelectric element 123 may be coated or formed layer by layer on the resonant arm 1221, or the piezoelectric element 123 may be conductively connected to the resonant arm 1221 by an electrolytic technique.

Fig. 17 shows a schematic structural view of the multilayer piezoelectric element of the driving mechanism 12. Here, the piezoelectric element may be a multilayer piezoelectric element 124, and the multilayer piezoelectric element 124 includes a plurality of piezoelectric units 1241, and a conductive layer made of silver, nickel, or platinum is provided between each of the two piezoelectric units 1241. The plurality of piezoelectric units 1241 are staggered and have a thickness in the range of 10 to 20 μm, and the multi-layer piezoelectric element 124 has an advantage of lower operating voltage than a single-layer piezoelectric element. For example, a single-layer piezoelectric element with the thickness of 0.25mm can reach an operating electric field only by 100V voltage, and a 20-layer multi-layer piezoelectric element with the thickness of 12.5 mu m can operate at 5V voltage, so that the piezoelectric element is more convenient to use.

Some embodiments of the camera module of the present application are exemplarily described below in conjunction with fig. 18, 19, and 20. The features, configurations, modes of action, technical effects, etc. described above in connection with the sleeve assembly 1, with respect to the sleeve, are equally applicable to the camera modules described below including the sleeve assembly 1, unless otherwise specified.

Fig. 18 shows a schematic cross-sectional view of some embodiments of camera modules, where the camera module comprises the aforementioned sleeve assembly 1 with only one lens barrel unit 10, without the inclusion of an additional sleeve. The lens barrel unit 10 is accommodated in the base 20. The resonator 122 of the drive mechanism 12 may be fixed to the base 20 of the sleeve assembly 1.

The base 20 includes a bottom 21. The base 20 further includes a sufficient accommodation space to accommodate at least one lens barrel unit 10. The base 20 is also provided with a mounting opening 22, through which mounting opening 22 the lens barrel 11 of at least one lens barrel unit 10 can be extended out of the base 20 or retracted into the base 20. The shape and size of the mounting port 22 match the shape and size of the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 to facilitate mounting of the barrel 11 and other sleeves through the mounting port 22. In the present embodiment, the lens barrel 11 and the mounting port 22 are circular. The base 20 may be square or circular in shape.

As shown, a photo-sensing chip 2 for processing light and forming an image signal may be mounted on the bottom 21 of the base 20. Optionally, the camera module may further include a circuit board, and the photosensitive chip 2 is disposed on the circuit board. The circuit board may also be disposed on the bottom 21 of the base 20 or otherwise secured in the camera module in a conventional manner. The driving circuit of the sleeve assembly 1 may also be provided together on the wiring board and electrically connected thereto.

The optical lens 3 is mounted in a barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10. For example, the optical lens 3 may be mounted in the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 by a usual manner such as screwing, clamping, or cementing.

The optical axis of the optical lens 3 is coaxial with the optical axis of the photosensitive chip 2. In the non-operating state of the image pickup module, the lens barrel 11 of the lens barrel unit 10 is retracted into the base 20. At this time, a safety gap is provided between the optical lens 3 and the photosensitive chip 2. In other words, when the sleeve assembly 1 is shortened to the shortest, a distance is still kept between the optical lens 3 and the photosensitive chip 2, so that interference is avoided to influence the imaging function.

Fig. 19 and 20 show further embodiments of camera modules, where the camera module comprises the aforementioned sleeve assembly 1, which not only comprises the lens barrel unit 10, but may also comprise additional one or more sleeves 13, 14.

As shown in the figure, the optical lens 3 is mounted in the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 of the sleeve assembly 1, and the optical lens 3 may be extended toward the object side of the optical lens 3 or retracted toward the image side of the optical lens 3 along the optical axis of the optical lens 3 by the driving of the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10. Accordingly, the sleeves 13 and 14 of the sleeve assembly 1 can extend or retract synchronously or asynchronously, so that the distance between the optical lens 3 of the camera module and the photosensitive chip 2 is increased or reduced, multiple zooming of the camera module is realized, and more photographing requirements are met.

The image pickup module shown in fig. 19 is in an operating state in which all of the first and second sleeves 13 and 14 and the lens barrel 11 of the lens barrel unit 10 are all extended. Specifically, the lens barrel 11 of the lens barrel unit 10 is fully extended from the sleeve 13, the sleeve 13 is fully extended from the sleeve 14, and the sleeve 14 is fully extended from the base 20.

Here, the shape and size of the outermost sleeve 14 may be equal to or smaller than the shape and size of the mounting opening 22 of the base 20, so that the lens barrel unit 10 of the sleeve assembly 1 and the sleeve can be extended or retracted from the base 20 through the mounting opening 22.

According to the present application, in case the sleeve assembly of the camera module comprises 2 sleeves, namely the first sleeve 13 and the second sleeve 14, the maximum height dimension of the telescopic sleeve assembly ranges from about 18.6mm to 28.6mm. The maximum height dimension of a camera module comprising such a sleeve assembly may be about 23mm to 31mm. And when in the inactive state, the minimum height dimension of the telescopic sleeve assembly ranges from 6mm to 9mm. The minimum height dimension of a camera module comprising such a sleeve assembly may be about 8mm to 12mm.

The sleeve assembly of the image pickup module shown in fig. 20 is in a non-operating state, when the first and second sleeves 13 and 14 and the lens barrel 11 of the lens barrel unit 10 are all retracted. Specifically, the lens barrel 11 of the lens barrel unit 10 is fully retracted into the sleeve 13, the sleeve 13 is fully retracted into the sleeve 14, and the sleeve 14 is fully retracted into the base 20. Optionally, the outer surfaces of the lens barrel 11, the sleeves of the layers, the base 20 and the corresponding outer housing surfaces of the camera module are all flush, which is advantageous in simplifying the camera module structure and realizing a modular design.

In the embodiment of fig. 19 and 20, the structure of some embodiments of the sleeve assembly is illustrated with 2 sleeves, namely the first sleeve 13 and the second sleeve 14. Here, the sleeve assembly 1 includes a first sleeve 13 and a second sleeve 14, wherein the apertures of the second sleeve 14, the first sleeve 13, and the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 are sequentially reduced and sequentially stacked and nested from the outer layer to the inner layer. It will be apparent that the number of sleeves of the sleeve assembly is not limited to 1 or 2, but may include a greater number of sleeves depending on the layer-by-layer nested sleeve configuration described in detail.

It is noted that the sleeve 13 may be exemplified herein as an inner layer sleeve or an innermost layer sleeve, while the sleeve 14 may be exemplified as an outermost layer sleeve. The features described above in connection with the two sleeves 13, 14 are thus equally applicable to other sleeve assemblies comprising more than 2 sleeves, for example 3, 4, 5 or even more sleeves, in particular to the respective innermost and outermost sleeves.

In the embodiment of fig. 19 and 20, the sleeve assembly 1 comprises a first sleeve 13 and a second sleeve 14. Wherein the first sleeve 13 comprises and a first driver comprising a first follower 131 and a first resonator 132. The second sleeve 14 includes a second driver including a second follower 141 and a second resonator 142. The apertures of the second sleeve 14, the first sleeve 13 and the lens barrel 11 are sequentially reduced and sequentially stacked and nested from the outer layer to the inner layer. In addition, the first sleeve 13 and the second sleeve 14 may be respectively configured with suitable through holes at both ends, so as to facilitate the sleeve nesting and telescoping movements.

As shown, one end of the first follower 131 is connected to the first sleeve 13, and the first resonator 132 is fixedly connected to the inner bottom of the second sleeve 14. The piezoelectric elements of the first resonator 132 are supplied with pulse voltages of different frequencies, so that the first follower 131 drives the first sleeve 13 to extend or retract into the second sleeve 14 through the mounting opening 22. For example, the piezoelectric element of the first resonator 132 is supplied with a pulse voltage of a first frequency, the first resonator 132 is in a first vibration mode, and the first resonator 132 drives the first sleeve 13 to move in a first direction through the first follower 131, that is, the first sleeve 13 protrudes out of the second sleeve 14. The piezoelectric element of the first resonator 132 is supplied with a pulse voltage of a second frequency, the first resonator 132 is in a second vibration mode, and the first resonator 132 drives the first sleeve 13 to move in a second direction through the first follower 131, that is, the first sleeve 13 is retracted into the second sleeve 14.

One end of the second follower 141 is connected to the second sleeve 14, and the second resonator 142 is fixedly connected to the bottom 21 of the base 20. The piezoelectric element of the second resonator 142 is provided with pulse voltages of different frequencies, so that the second follower 141 drives the second sleeve 14 to extend or retract into the base 20. For example, the piezoelectric element of the second resonator 142 is provided with a pulse voltage with a third frequency, the second resonator 142 is in the first vibration mode, and the second resonator 142 drives the second sleeve 14 to move along the first direction through the second follower 141, that is, the second sleeve 14 extends out of the base 20. The piezoelectric element of the second resonator 142 is provided with a pulse voltage of a fourth frequency, the second resonator 142 is in a second vibration mode, and the second resonator 142 drives the second sleeve 14 to move along the second direction through the second follower 141, that is, the second sleeve 14 is retracted into the base 20. The aforementioned first frequency, second frequency, third frequency, and fourth frequency may be selected to be the same or different according to design needs.

Each sleeve may be provided with a separate actuator 32, see in particular the description of the actuator characteristics of the sleeve above.

According to some embodiments, the sleeve assembly of the camera module further comprises a motion guiding means defining a movement trajectory of the telescopic motion of the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 and/or the sleeve. For example, the motion guide means may comprise balls and rails, or comprise a slider and rails. Alternatively, balls and rails may be provided on two adjacent sleeves, or on the barrel 11 and the innermost sleeve of the barrel unit 10, respectively, or a slider and a rail may be provided, respectively, so that the relative reciprocating movement between the barrel 11 and the innermost sleeve or between the sleeves is effected by the movement engagement of the balls and the rails, or the movement engagement of the slider and the rail, for example.

According to some embodiments, the optical lens 3 is a fixed focus lens. The lens barrel 11 and all the sleeves 13, 14 are in the working state of the camera module when fully extended, reaching the fixed focal length of the optical lens 3, and in the non-working state of the camera module when fully retracted, thereby reducing the overall height of the module and realizing different focal length requirements by utilizing limited structural space.

According to other embodiments, the optical lens 3 may comprise a plurality of sub-lenses, wherein at least one sub-lens is mounted within the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 of the sleeve assembly 1, while other sub-lenses may be mounted in other sleeve or sleeves, e.g. in the innermost sleeve 13 or in the outermost sleeve 14, depending on optical performance requirements. In this case, the optical lens 3 may be a zoom lens, and thus the imaging module can be zoomed by the combined action of the lens barrel 11 and/or the sleeve.

In addition, the application also relates to mobile electronic equipment, which comprises the camera module.

According to the operation method of the camera module provided by the application, the following method steps can be implemented according to any sequence as required:

applying a pulse voltage with a first frequency to the piezoelectric element 123 of the driving mechanism 12 of the lens barrel unit 10, so that the corresponding resonator 122 is in a first vibration mode and drives the lens barrel 11 fixedly connected with the driven piece 121 to move towards the object side of the optical lens 3 through the corresponding driven piece 121, and the optical lens 3 extends towards the object side of the optical lens 3 along the optical axis direction of the optical lens 3 relative to the photosensitive chip 2, and the mechanical back focus is increased to reach the working focal length;

A pulse voltage of a second frequency is applied to the piezoelectric element 123 of the driving mechanism 12 of the lens barrel unit 10, so that the corresponding resonator 122 is in a second vibration mode and the lens barrel 11 fixedly connected with the follower 121 is driven to move towards the image side of the optical lens 3 by the corresponding follower 121, thereby retracting the optical lens 3 towards the image side of the optical lens 3 along the optical axis direction of the optical lens 3 relative to the photosensitive chip 2, reducing the mechanical back focus, reducing the total lens length TTL (Total Track Length) and reducing the overall height dimension.

According to some embodiments of the proposed method of operation, the drive mechanism 12 of the barrel unit 10 of the sleeve assembly 1 and the driver 32 of the sleeve assembly 1 are controlled such that both the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 and the sleeve of the sleeve assembly 1 reach a maximum extended position into an operational state of the sleeve assembly 1.

It is also possible to control the drive mechanism 12 of the barrel unit 10 of the sleeve assembly 1 and the driver 32 of the sleeve assembly 1 so that both the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 and the sleeve of the sleeve assembly 1 reach the fully retracted position, into the non-operating state of the sleeve assembly 1

By executing the operation method of the camera module provided by the application, for example, by applying proper pulse voltage, the extension and shortening of the sleeve assembly 1 are controlled by controlling the driver of the sleeve and/or the driving mechanism of the lens barrel, thereby adjusting the focal plane of the optical lens 3 to be approximately overlapped with the photosensitive chip (imaging surface), achieving the back focus requirement of work and ensuring high-quality imaging.

In some embodiments, a pulsed voltage of a first frequency may be applied to the piezoelectric element 123 of the drive mechanism 12 of the barrel unit 10 at time intervals such that all of the sleeves of the sleeve assembly 1 and the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 sequentially protrude from the inner layer to the outer layer or from the outer layer to the inner layer.

In other embodiments, the piezoelectric element 123 of the driving mechanism 12 of the lens barrel unit 10 may be applied with a pulse voltage of a second frequency at intervals, so that all the sleeves of the sleeve assembly 1 and the lens barrel 11 of the lens barrel unit 10 are sequentially retracted from the inner layer to the outer layer or from the outer layer to the inner layer. The pulse voltage of the first frequency and the pulse voltage of the second frequency may be appropriately selected according to the structure and performance, or may be the same or different.

Alternatively, it is also possible to extend and/or retract all the sleeves of the sleeve assembly and the barrel 11 of the barrel unit 10 at the same time.

By the operation method of the camera module, under the condition that the total structural height of the camera module is obviously reduced, the camera module can still be ensured to execute quick and accurate response actions, and high imaging quality is ensured. In particular, control of the barrel unit 10 of the sleeve assembly can quickly respond to adjustment requirements, and can realize micron-sized precise motion control to drive heavier lens components. For example, the imaging module can step the lens barrel 11 by a distance of about 1 to 3 μm.

It should be noted that the technical solutions presented herein are not limited to what has been described in the above description, and that a person skilled in the art may make numerous variations and modifications to the above-described embodiments without departing from the inventive idea of the present invention, which variations and modifications are all within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims (28)

1. A sleeve assembly (1), characterized in that the sleeve assembly (1) comprises a barrel unit (10), wherein the barrel unit (10) comprises:

a lens barrel (11) provided for carrying an optical lens (3); and

a driving mechanism (12) provided for driving the lens barrel (11) for carrying the optical lens (3) to reciprocate, wherein the driving mechanism (12) includes:

a resonator (122),

a piezoelectric element (123) provided on the resonator (122), and

a follower (121) movable relative to the resonator (122), wherein the follower (121) is fixedly connected with the bottom of the lens barrel (11);

the sleeve assembly (1) comprises a plurality of sleeves (13, 14), the plurality of sleeves (13, 14) being nested one within the other and being telescopically movable relative to each other, wherein a barrel (11) of the barrel unit (10) is nested in an innermost sleeve, and a resonator (122) of a drive mechanism (12) of the barrel unit (10) is fixed on the innermost sleeve;

Each sleeve is respectively provided with a driver (32), the drivers (32) comprise resonators (122), followers (121) and piezoelectric elements (123), one end of each resonator (122) of the driver (32) of each inner sleeve is fixed on the adjacent outer sleeve, the other end of each resonator is movably connected with the followers (121) of the driver of the inner sleeve, and the followers (121) of the driver (32) of the inner sleeve are fixedly connected with the inner sleeve.

2. Sleeve assembly (1) according to claim 1, wherein the resonator (122) is capable of generating interaction forces with the follower (121) in different vibration modes by applying different pulse voltages on the piezoelectric element (123).

3. Sleeve assembly (1) according to claim 2, wherein the resonator (122) is capable of driving the follower (121) and a barrel (11) fixedly connected to the follower (121) to reciprocate by an interaction force between the resonator (122) and the follower (121).

4. A sleeve assembly (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the sleeve assembly (1) further comprises a base (20) for accommodating the lens barrel unit (10), wherein a resonator (122) of a drive mechanism (12) of the lens barrel unit (10) is fixed on the base (20) of the lens barrel unit (10).

5. Sleeve assembly (1) according to claim 1, wherein the driver (32) is arranged for driving the corresponding sleeve into telescopic movement.

6. Sleeve assembly (1) according to claim 5, wherein the driver (32) of the sleeve is configured of the same type as the driving mechanism (12) of the barrel unit (10).

7. Sleeve assembly (1) according to claim 6, wherein the sleeve assembly (1) further comprises a base (20) for receiving the sleeve, wherein an outermost sleeve is nested in the base (20) and is telescopically movable relative to the base (20), and a resonator of a driver (32) of the outermost sleeve is fixed on the base (20).

8. Sleeve assembly (1) according to claim 5, wherein the driver (32) of at least one sleeve is configured differently from the driving mechanism (12) of the barrel unit (10).

9. A sleeve assembly (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein in the barrel unit (10) the resonator (122) of the drive mechanism (12) is capable of stepping the barrel (11) a distance of 1-3 μm.

10. Sleeve assembly (1) according to claim 7, wherein in the operating state of the sleeve assembly (1), the barrel (11) of the barrel unit (10) and all sleeves of the sleeve assembly (1) reach a maximum extended position with respect to the adjacent outer sleeve or base (20).

11. Sleeve assembly (1) according to claim 7, wherein in the non-operative state of the sleeve assembly (1) the barrel (11) of the barrel unit (10) and all sleeves of the sleeve assembly (1) are fully retracted into the adjacent outer sleeve or seat, and the outermost sleeve is fully retracted into the seat (20) of the sleeve assembly (1).

12. Sleeve assembly (1) according to claim 7, wherein the sleeve assembly (1) comprises a first sleeve (13) and a second sleeve (14), wherein the apertures of the second sleeve (14), the first sleeve (13) and the barrel (11) of the barrel unit (10) decrease in sequence and are nested in sequence from the outer layer to the inner layer.

13. Sleeve assembly (1) according to claim 5, wherein the sleeve assembly (1) further comprises a drive circuit for powering a drive mechanism (12) of the barrel unit (10) and/or a driver (32) of the sleeve and/or providing a control signal.

14. Sleeve assembly (1) according to claim 5, wherein the lens barrel unit (10) is provided with separate drive circuits for providing different frequencies of pulsed voltages to the piezoelectric elements (123) of the drive mechanism (12) of the lens barrel unit (10).

15. A sleeve assembly (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein in the barrel unit (10), a follower (121) of the driving mechanism (12) is L-shaped, and an end of the follower (121) remote from the resonator (122) is connected to an outer side wall of a bottom of the barrel (11).

16. A sleeve assembly (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein in the barrel unit (10), a follower (121) of the drive mechanism (12) is of type I, and an end of the follower (121) remote from the resonator (122) is tangential to and connected to an outer side wall of the bottom of the barrel (11).

17. A sleeve assembly (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein in the lens barrel unit (10), the resonator (122) of the drive mechanism (12) has at least two resonance arms (1221) arranged in axial symmetry.

18. Sleeve assembly (1) according to claim 17, wherein a contact (1222) is provided on each resonator arm (1221), said contact (1222) being for movably clamping and driving the follower (121).

19. Sleeve assembly (1) according to claim 1, wherein the sleeve assembly (1) further comprises a motion guiding means defining a movement trajectory of the telescopic motion of the barrel (11) of the barrel unit (10) and/or the sleeve.

20. Sleeve assembly (1) according to claim 19, wherein the movement guiding means comprise balls and rails or the movement guiding means comprise a slider and rails.

21. A camera module, comprising:

sleeve assembly (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 20;

a photosensitive chip (2) for processing light and forming an image signal; and

an optical lens (3) is mounted in a lens barrel (11) of a lens barrel unit (10) of the sleeve assembly (1) and has an optical axis coaxial with the optical axis of the photosensitive chip (2).

22. The camera module of claim 21, wherein the camera module further comprises a circuit board, the light sensing chip (2) being provided on the circuit board.

23. Camera module according to claim 22, wherein the drive circuit of the sleeve assembly (1) is arranged on and electrically connected to the wiring board.

24. The camera module according to claim 21, wherein the optical lens (3) comprises a plurality of sub-lenses, wherein at least one sub-lens is mounted within a barrel (11) of a barrel unit (10) of the sleeve assembly (1) and/or at least one sub-lens is mounted in a sleeve of the sleeve assembly (1).

25. Camera module according to claim 21, wherein in the non-operating state of the sleeve assembly (1) a safety gap is present between the optical lens (3) and the light-sensitive chip (2).

26. A mobile electronic device comprising a camera module according to any one of claims 21 to 25.

27. A method of operating an imaging module according to any one of claims 21 to 25, comprising the steps of:

applying a pulse voltage of a first frequency to a piezoelectric element (123) of a driving mechanism (12) of the lens barrel unit (10), so that the resonator (122) is in a first vibration mode and drives the lens barrel (11) to move towards the object side of the optical lens (3) through a driven piece (121) fixedly connected with the bottom of the lens barrel (11), and the optical lens (3) is protruded towards the object side of the optical lens (3) along the optical axis direction of the optical lens (3) relative to the photosensitive chip (2);

a pulse voltage with a second frequency is applied to a piezoelectric element (123) of a driving mechanism (12) of the lens barrel unit (10), so that the resonator (122) is in a second vibration mode and drives the lens barrel (11) to move towards the image side of the optical lens (3) through a driven piece (121) fixedly connected with the bottom of the lens barrel (11), and the optical lens (3) is retracted towards the image side of the optical lens (3) along the optical axis direction of the optical lens (3) relative to the photosensitive chip (2).

28. Method of operating a sleeve assembly (1) according to claim 27, wherein the drive mechanism (12) of the barrel unit (10) of the sleeve assembly (1) and the driver (32) of the sleeve assembly (1) are controlled to bring both the barrel (11) of the barrel unit (10) and the sleeve of the sleeve assembly (1) to a maximum extended position, into an operating state of the sleeve assembly (1), and/or

And controlling a driving mechanism (12) of a lens barrel unit (10) of the sleeve assembly (1) and a driver (32) of a sleeve of the sleeve assembly (1) to enable the lens barrel (11) of the lens barrel unit (10) and the sleeve of the sleeve assembly (1) to reach a fully retracted position and enter a non-working state of the sleeve assembly (1).

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