JP2008237916A - Solid-state imaging device and endoscope unit with it - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable the simple positioning and fixing of an objective optical system with high precision by housing it into a recess while allowing the miniaturization. <P>SOLUTION: The endoscope unit includes an endoscope with a housing part formed at the tip part of the inserting part and the solid-state imaging device 1 separate from the endoscope which is housed and arrayed in the housing part of the endoscope. The solid-state imaging device is provided with a substrate cabinet which is opened in the direction of its tip and forms the recess 7 for housing the objective optical system 23, a light emitting element 4 which is arrayed at the tip of a wall part surrounding the recess in the substrate cabinet and a solid-state imaging element 5 which is disposed on the base end side of the objective optical system in the recess and has a photosensitive part adapted to receive an object image light emitted from the light emitting element to be converted to electricity. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a solid-state imaging device in which a solid-state imaging element and a light-emitting element are provided on the same substrate, and an endoscope apparatus including the solid-state imaging device.

  In recent years, endoscopes have been widely used in the medical field and the industrial field. In this endoscope, in addition to an optical endoscope that employs an image guide that transmits an optical image formed by an objective lens, a charge coupled device (abbreviated as CCD) is formed at a position where the image is formed by the objective lens. There is an electronic endoscope in which a solid-state image sensor such as) is arranged, and an image signal captured by the solid-state image sensor is processed and displayed on a monitor.

In order to reduce the size of the electronic endoscope, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-153097 discloses a solid-state image sensor provided with a light emitting element.
This publication discloses a solid-state imaging device in which an imaging device unit and a light emitting device unit are provided on the same semiconductor substrate.

  However, in the conventional example of the above publication, when an apparatus having a function of performing illumination and imaging like an electronic endoscope is to be configured, it is necessary to further provide an objective optical system, etc. In addition to being time consuming, adjustments such as optical axis misalignment when assembled are necessary, and it is difficult to accurately position them.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described points, and an object of the present invention is to provide a solid-state imaging device and an endoscope apparatus including the solid-state imaging device that can be positioned and fixed easily and accurately and are suitable for downsizing. .

  The endoscope apparatus of the present invention is separate from the endoscope in which the storage portion is formed at the distal end portion of the insertion portion and the endoscope, and is housed and disposed in the storage portion of the endoscope. A solid-state imaging device, wherein the solid-state imaging device has a substrate casing that is open toward the distal end and has a recess for accommodating the objective optical system, and a wall around the recess in the substrate casing. A solid-state element having a light-emitting element disposed at a distal end of the light-receiving unit and a light-sensitive part disposed on the proximal end side of the objective optical system in the concave portion and receiving and subjecting subject image light emitted from the light-emitting element to photoelectric conversion And an imaging device.

  In the solid-state imaging device which is separate from the endoscope in which the storage portion is formed at the distal end portion of the insertion portion of the present invention and is housed and disposed in the storage portion of the endoscope, toward the distal direction A substrate housing having an opening and a recess for accommodating the objective optical system, a light emitting element disposed at a distal end portion of the wall around the recess in the substrate housing, and a base end of the objective optical system in the recess And a solid-state imaging device having a photosensitive portion that receives and image-converts subject image light emitted from the light emitting device.

  According to the present invention, the size can be reduced, and the objective optical system can be housed in the recess and can be positioned and fixed easily and accurately.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
1 to 5 relate to a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 shows a configuration of a solid-state imaging device of the first embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a front view and a perspective view of a solid-state imaging device portion. 3 shows a cross-sectional view of the solid-state imaging device with the objective optical system attached, FIG. 4 shows the structure of the objective optical system in the first modification, and FIG. 5 shows the solid-state imaging device in the second modification. Show.

  As shown in FIG. 1, in the solid-state imaging device 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention, for example, a charge imaging element (abbreviated as CCD) chip 3 is provided at the center of a CCD substrate 2. For example, a solid-state imaging device (a charge-coupled device in a specific example) 5 is integrally provided with light emitting diodes (abbreviated as LEDs) 4 as a plurality of light emitting devices on both upper and lower sides (left and right in FIG. 2). The CCD substrate 2 is made of a heat-resistant ceramic or other insulating material, but may be made of a semiconductor substrate.

  The CCD chip 3 has, for example, a square plate shape, and a mosaic filter 6a that optically separates colors is attached to a light receiving surface as a photosensitive portion that receives light on the front surface of the CCD chip 3 and performs photoelectric conversion. Is protected by a cover glass 6b.

  This solid-state image sensor 5 portion is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, a cylindrical recess 7 serving as an objective optical system mounting portion (or a positioning and fixing portion of the objective optical system) is provided in the front part of the light receiving surface of the CCD chip 3.

  In this case, for example, a square light receiving surface is provided such that the center position of the CCD chip 3 coincides with the center position of the CCD chip 3, and the recess 7 is formed on the CCD substrate 2 so that the center axis of the recess 7 coincides with the center axis. Is provided.

  The LEDs 4 arranged on both sides of the CCD chip 3 are provided on the CCD substrate 2 so as to protrude forward from the light receiving surface and to be embedded, for example, in the CCD substrate 2 so as to be located near the front surface of the CCD substrate 2. The LED lead 9 extending from the LED 4 passes through the CCD substrate 2 and protrudes from the back surface of the CCD substrate 2.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a CCD lead 11 protruding from the back surface of the CCD substrate 2 is connected to a signal line 13 constituting the integrated cable 12 and a circuit substrate 14 disposed on the back surface of the CCD substrate 2. There is something to be done.

  Electronic components such as an IC 16 and a capacitor 17 sealed with a sealing resin 15 are mounted on the circuit board 14, and the output signal of the CCD chip 3 is amplified by current or impedance by passing through the circuit of the circuit board 14. Conversion is performed to prevent the output signal from being attenuated when the signal is transmitted through the signal line 13 connected to the circuit board 14 to ensure a good S / N.

  The CCD lead 11, the circuit board 14, etc. are covered with a conductive shield frame 18 whose front end is fixed to the outer periphery of the rear end of the CCD substrate 2, and this interior space is filled with an insulating filler 19 and the outside is heated. It is covered with an insulating covering member 20 such as a shrinkable tube.

For example, a white light emitting LED is used as the LED 4 in the present embodiment. As schematically shown in FIG. 1, the white light emitting LED is arranged in the blue light emitting LED 21a that emits blue light in the LED package, and is disposed in front of the blue light emitting LED 21a. A white fluorescent plate 21b that emits white light by entering light is provided, and an illumination lens 22 such as a convex lens is provided in front of the white fluorescent plate 21b.
The LED package is made of metal and has a function of blocking light so that light does not leak to the side.

  In the present embodiment, the solid-state image pickup device 5 is provided with a cylindrical recess 7, and as an objective optical system (for example, composed of a first lens 23 a and a second lens 23 b) as shown in FIG. 1 or FIG. 3. The lens group 23 can be easily positioned and fixed.

That is, when the objective lens group 23 is attached, as shown in FIG. 3, a second annular spacer 24a having a predetermined interval is fitted into the recess 7 and fitted into the recess 7. The objective lens group 23 can be easily positioned and fixed easily by fitting the lens 23b and further inserting the next spacer 24b and fitting the first lens 23a with an adhesive or the like.
Note that the illumination lens 22 provided in the LED 4 is a lens having characteristics suitable for illuminating the imaging range of the objective lens group 23.

  The solid-state imaging device 1 can be housed in the distal end portion of the insertion portion of the electronic endoscope, thereby forming an imaging means that performs illumination and imaging in a small size. The general cable 12 is inserted through the electronic endoscope and connected to a video processor as a signal processing device (not shown).

  In this video processor, an LED power supply unit connected to the LED 4 via the general cable 12, a drive circuit for outputting a drive signal to the CCD chip 3, and a photoelectrically converted signal from the CCD chip 3 It is connected to a video signal processing circuit that generates a standard video signal by amplification or the like.

  Then, the LED power supply unit supplies, for example, a DC light emission power source to the LED 4 to emit white light, and a subject such as an affected part illuminated by the white light is mosaic-filtered on the light receiving surface of the CCD chip 3 by the objective lens group 23. A signal that has been color-separated by 6a, imaged and photoelectrically converted is converted into a standard video signal by a video signal processing circuit, and a subject image is displayed in color on a monitor device (not shown).

  In this embodiment, a solid-state image pickup having a small solid-state image pickup element 5 provided with a CCD chip 3 as a solid-state image pickup element having a photosensitive part that receives light on the same CCD substrate 2 and performs photoelectric conversion, and an LED 4 that emits light. Since the apparatus 1 is formed, when the electronic endoscope is housed in the distal end portion, the distal end portion can be reduced in size.

  Further, since the concave portion 7 for fitting and storing the objective optical system installed in front of the photosensitive portion is provided on the CCD substrate 2, the objective optical system can be positioned and fixed easily and accurately in the concave portion 7.

  For this reason, even in the case of a small objective optical system, positioning and fixing can be easily performed, installation adjustment can be made almost unnecessary, assembly can be performed with the required accuracy with little effort, and deterioration of image quality can be prevented. it can. On the other hand, in the conventional example, the size can be reduced, but the positioning means is not taken into consideration, so that it takes time to adjust the mounting (the size can be reduced, but with this, a slight misalignment is also large in the imaging characteristics. It is likely to affect the image quality.)

  Further, since the LEDs 4 in which the illumination lenses 22 are integrated on both sides of the periphery of the objective optical system are integrally disposed on the CCD substrate 2, it is not necessary to further assemble the illumination lenses.

  Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the objective optical system can be positioned and fixed with high accuracy, for example, the solid-state imaging device 1 can be miniaturized and the optical axis deviation can be reduced, so that variations can be reduced and obtained by imaging. Image quality can be ensured (high quality image quality can be maintained).

  Note that the ring-shaped peripheral edge portion where the spacers 24a and 24b in the second lens 23b of FIG. 3 abut may be planar so that the objective lens group 23 can be accurately positioned and fixed. If it does in this way, positioning can be performed more accurately. Further, a structure that can be positioned and fixed more easily and accurately as described below may be used.

   For example, the first modification shown in FIG. 4 may be used. In this modification, the first lens 23a is a first lens 23a 'in which the spacer 24b of FIG. 3 is integrally attached, and the second lens 23b is a second lens in which the spacer 24a of FIG. 3 is integrally attached. The lens 23b 'is used. If it is made like this modification, it can assemble more easily with respect to the effect of a 1st embodiment. Further, the deviation of the optical axis can be further reduced. Also in this case, the portion of the second lens 23b that contacts the spacer 24b may be a flat surface.

  FIG. 5 shows a mounting structure of the objective optical system in the second modification. In the second modification, the objective optical system is a single lens unit 31. That is, the first lens 23 a and the second lens 23 b constituting the objective lens group 23 are fixed to the lens frame 32 in advance by the spacer 33 at predetermined positions.

  Therefore, according to the second modification, as shown in FIG. 5, the lens unit 31 may be fitted into the recess 7 and fixed with an adhesive or the like. This second modification can be positioned and fixed with high accuracy without the need for assembly and fixing.

  In the above description, the LED 4 is described as a white LED that emits white light. However, LEDs that emit light in red, green, and blue may emit light simultaneously to obtain white illumination light, and light may be emitted in red, green, and blue. You may make it obtain the surface-sequential illumination light which makes LED to light-emit one by one.

(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 6 shows a solid-state imaging device 41 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The solid-state imaging device 41 of the present embodiment basically has a structure in which cooling means is provided in the first embodiment.

In the solid-state imaging device 41 shown in FIG. 6, a heat absorption side substrate 43 provided on one surface of the Peltier element 42 is fixed to the back surface of the CCD substrate 2 of the solid-state imaging device 5.
The heat radiation side substrate 44 on the other surface of the Peltier element 42 is connected to a Peltier element power supply line 45 provided on the integrated cable 12.

  Since the heat absorption side substrate 43 is attached to the back surface of the CCD substrate 2 in the present embodiment, the CCD lead 11 protruding from the back surface of the CCD substrate 2 in FIG. As in the case of FIG. 1, the signal line 13 and the circuit board 14 are connected.

  Further, since the CCD leads 11 are provided on the upper and lower surfaces of the CCD substrate 2, in this embodiment, a CCD holder 46 is provided on the outer periphery of the CCD substrate 2, shielded by the shield frame 18, and covered outside by the covering member 20. I am doing so. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, and the same members are denoted by the same reference numerals and the description thereof is omitted.

  According to the present embodiment, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, it is possible to effectively prevent the CCD chip 3 of the solid-state imaging device 5 from rising in temperature due to heat generated when the LED 4 emits light. It is possible to effectively prevent the characteristic deterioration or destruction of No. 3.

  That is, when the CCD chip 3 and the LED 4 are provided on the CCD substrate 2, the LED 4 generates heat, and the heat is conducted to the CCD chip 3 side, and the temperature of the CCD chip 3 may exceed the use range. As a result, the temperature rise of the CCD chip 3 can be suppressed.

  Note that a temperature sensor may be provided at a position near the CCD chip 3 on the CCD substrate 2 and the cooling operation of the Peltier element 42 may be controlled by the temperature sensor. For example, the cooling operation of the Peltier element 42 is normally turned off, and the cooling operation of the Peltier element 42 may be turned on when the temperature exceeds a certain level.

  In addition, when the cooling operation of the Peltier element 42 is always ON and the temperature still exceeds a certain level, the light emission of the LED 4 is restricted (low light emission or light emission is stopped), and accordingly Controls CCD imaging and signal processing functions.

FIG. 7 shows a main part in the first modification. In this first modification, the solid-state imaging device 5 extends rearward so that the CCD lead 11 penetrates, for example, the Peltier element 42 on the back surface of the CCD substrate 2, similar to the first embodiment.
A Peltier element power supply line 45 is connected to the heat dissipation side substrate 44 of the Peltier element 42.

  FIG. 8 shows a solid-state imaging device 51 of a second modification. This second modification employs a solid-state imaging device 5 ′ in which LED 4 is LED 4 ′ in FIG. 6 and this LED 4 ′ is formed adjacent to the light receiving surface of the CCD chip 3, and an illumination lens group attached by a CCD holder 46. The lens frame 52 to which the lens group 53 and the objective lens group 23 are attached and the CCD substrate 2 are fixed.

  In the second modification, the LED 4 ′ has a structure that does not include, for example, the illumination lens 22 in the LED 4 of FIG. 1. Other configurations are the same as those in FIG. 6, and the same members are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted.

  In this solid-state imaging device 51, the CCD substrate 2 itself does not have the concave portion 7 for positioning and fixing the objective optical system, and means for positioning and fixing the objective optical system and the illumination optical system is formed by the CCD holder 46. Accordingly, also in this case, the objective optical system in front of the light receiving surface of the CCD chip 3 can be accurately positioned, and the illumination optical system in front of the LED 4 can be accurately positioned.

  It should be noted that a groove portion may be provided on one of the inner peripheral surface of the CCD holder 46 and the outer peripheral surface of the lens frame 52, and a convex portion that fits into the groove may be provided on the other to enable circumferential positioning. .

FIG. 9 shows the structure of the distal end portion 61 of the insertion portion 60 of the electronic endoscope that can be switched between direct view and side view.
A direct-view objective lens group 62 and a direct-view illumination lens group 63 are disposed adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction at the distal end portion 61, and a solid-state imaging device 64 is disposed at a rear position on these optical axes.

The solid-state imaging device 64 is provided with a CCD chip 66 and an LED 67 adjacent to a CCD substrate 65, and the light receiving surface of the CCD chip 66 is covered with a cover glass 68.
The center of the light receiving surface of the CCD chip 66 is located at the rear position on the optical axis of the direct-view objective lens group 62, and the LED 67 emits light at the rear position on the optical axis of the direct-view illumination lens group 63. It arrange | positions so that the center of a part may be located.

  Also, prisms 70 and 71 attached to the prism frame 69 are detachably disposed between the direct-view objective lens group 62 and the CCD chip 66 and between the direct-view illumination lens group 63 and the LED 67. . These two prisms 70 and 71 are arranged so as to be shifted in the longitudinal direction of the tip portion 61.

Further, on the side portion of the distal end portion 61, for example, the side portion on the upper side, the side-view objective lens group 72 and the side-view illumination lens group 73 (reference numerals) are arranged so that the optical axes thereof face the side portions. The lens indicated by reference numeral 73 'moves adjacent to the prism frame 69).
A rod lens 74 is disposed on the front surface of the LED 67.

  As shown in FIG. 9, in a state where the prism frame 69 is disposed at a position where the prisms 70 and 71 face the light receiving surface of the CCD chip 66 and the LED 67, the illumination light is emitted in the side view direction and the side view direction is changed. The camera is ready for imaging.

FIG. 10 shows a schematic view seen from the front end surface in this state.
The prisms 70 and 71 are positioned on the optical axes of the direct-view objective lens group 62 and the direct-view illumination lens group 63. In this state, the light of the LED 67 is emitted to the side and the side is imaged. In FIG. 10, a nozzle 75 is provided adjacent to the direct-view objective lens group 62, and a channel 76 is provided adjacent to the direct-view illumination lens group 63.

  Further, from this state, when the prism frame 69 is moved to the other side as indicated by a dotted line shown in FIG. 10, the direct viewing direction can be illuminated and imaged. The prism frame 69 can be moved by driving an operation wire (not shown) or a motor (not shown).

  Further, as shown in FIG. 9, the CCD lead 78 protruding from the back surface of the solid-state imaging device 64 is connected to the signal line 80 of the cable 79 and the circuit board 81. Electronic components such as an IC 83 and a capacitor 84 sealed with a sealing resin 82 are mounted on the circuit board 81. The circuit board 81 is connected to the signal line 80.

According to this electronic endoscope, a direct view and a side view can be observed with a small size by a switching operation. Therefore, it can be used for a wide range of applications with a single electronic endoscope.
Note that embodiments and the like configured by partially combining the above-described embodiments and the like also belong to the present invention.

[Appendix]
1. In a solid-state imaging device provided with a solid-state imaging device having a photosensitive part that receives and photoelectrically converts light on the same substrate, and a light-emitting device that emits light,
A solid-state imaging device, wherein a concave portion for accommodating an objective optical system installed in front of the photosensitive portion is provided on the substrate, and a light emitting element is disposed around the concave portion.
2. 2. The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1, wherein a Peltier element is integrally provided on the substrate.

3. In a solid-state imaging device provided with a solid-state imaging device having a photosensitive part that receives and photoelectrically converts light on the same substrate, and a light-emitting device that emits light,
A solid-state imaging device in which a Peltier element is integrally provided on the substrate.
4). In a solid-state imaging device provided with a solid-state imaging device having a photosensitive part that receives and photoelectrically converts light on the same substrate, and a light-emitting device that emits light,
A solid-state imaging device, wherein a concave portion for positioning and fixing an objective optical system installed in front of the photosensitive portion is provided on the substrate.

5. In a solid-state imaging device provided with a solid-state imaging device having a photosensitive part that receives and photoelectrically converts light on the same substrate, and a light-emitting device that emits light,
A solid-state imaging device comprising a ring-shaped member for positioning and fixing an objective optical system installed in front of the photosensitive portion and an illumination optical system arranged in front of the light emitting element.

1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of a solid-state imaging device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The front and perspective view which show a solid-state image sensor part. Sectional drawing of the solid-state image sensor of the state which attached the objective optical system. The side view which shows the structure of the objective optical system in a 1st modification. Sectional drawing which shows the solid-state image sensor in a 2nd modification. Sectional drawing which shows the structure of the solid-state imaging device of the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. Sectional drawing which shows the structure of the solid-state image sensor in the 1st modification of 2nd Embodiment. Sectional drawing which shows the structure of the solid-state imaging device of the 2nd modification of 2nd Embodiment. The figure which shows the structure of the front-end | tip part of the electronic endoscope which can switch direct view and side view. Schematic seen from the front of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Solid-state imaging device 2 ... CCD board 3 ... CCD chip 4 ... LED
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 5 ... Solid-state image sensor 6b ... Cover glass 7 ... Concave 9 ... LED lead 11 ... CCD lead 12 ... General cable 13 ... Signal line 14 ... Circuit board 18 ... Shield frame 19 ... Filler 20 ... Covering member 21a ... Blue light emitting LED
21b ... White fluorescent plate 22 ... Illumination lens 23 ... Objective lens group 24a, 24b ... Spacer

Claims (2)

An endoscope in which a storage portion is formed at the distal end of the insertion portion;
A solid-state imaging device that is separate from the endoscope and is housed and disposed in the housing portion of the endoscope;
Comprising
The solid-state imaging device
A substrate housing that opens toward the distal end and that has a recess for accommodating the objective optical system;
A light emitting element disposed at a front end of the wall around the recess in the substrate housing;
A solid-state imaging device that is disposed on the base end side of the objective optical system in the concave portion and includes a photosensitive portion that receives and photoelectrically converts subject image light emitted from the light emitting device;
An endoscope apparatus comprising: In the solid-state imaging device which is separate from the endoscope in which the storage portion is formed at the distal end portion of the insertion portion and is stored and disposed in the storage portion in the endoscope,
A substrate housing that opens toward the distal end and that has a recess for accommodating the objective optical system;
A light emitting element disposed at a front end of the wall around the recess in the substrate housing;
A solid-state imaging device that is disposed on the base end side of the objective optical system in the concave portion and includes a photosensitive portion that receives and photoelectrically converts subject image light emitted from the light emitting device;
A solid-state imaging device comprising:

Images