JP2009128482A - Microscope device and its control method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a microscope device which suppresses hysteresis caused by inertia when rotating a rotation type optical element, and rotates the optical element to an instructed position with good reproducibility. <P>SOLUTION: The microscope device includes the predetermined rotatable optical element which is present on an optical axis and is configured to adjust optical environment, a rotating means which rotates the optical element, and a control means which controls the rotating means to control so that the rotating direction of the optical element is a first rotating direction at least when stopping the rotation of the optical element. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a method of driving a microscope rotating system component such as a continuous ND filter used in a microscope or an inspection apparatus.

At present, microscopes are widely used for biological processes as well as industrial inspection processes. The microscope includes many rotating parts such as a motor-driven objective lens, a filter, and a diaphragm switching device. Then, by rotating these rotating parts and positioning a desired optical element on the optical path, a desired observation method, brightness, and the like are set.
JP 2006-301067 A JP-A-5-341197 JP 2006-178337 A

  For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a microscope apparatus that uses a disk-shaped ND filter in which a coarse and dense pattern is formed in the rotation direction, and adjusts the amount of light applied to the sample by rotating the ND filter. . A stepping motor is mainly used for adjusting the ND filter.

  However, an inertial force is applied to control the rotation of the rotating component, and even when driven to the same indicated position, clockwise (CW: Clockwise, hereinafter referred to as CW) and counterclockwise (CCW: Counter clockwise, hereinafter) In the case of CCW), the inertial force applied in the stop position is in the reverse direction, and hysteresis occurs and a positional shift occurs.

  FIG. 16 shows an example of occurrence of hysteresis. The figure shows that when the CCW and the CW are driven and positioned at the target designated position, a positional deviation occurs between the positions. For example, when a positional shift in the rotation direction of an optical component that changes the transmittance like an ND filter occurs, the reproducibility of the light amount is lost, and the luminance of the obtained image changes.

  In recent years, with the miniaturization of semiconductor patterns, the positioning accuracy required for a microscope apparatus or an inspection apparatus itself has been further increased. For this reason, a change in image luminance caused by the above-described hysteresis is not allowed.

Various control devices that eliminate the positional shift caused by hysteresis have been proposed based on the actual situation, and many proposals have been made to improve these control devices.
For example, Patent Document 2 proposes a rotational motion detection device that is provided with an ND filter rotation amount detection sensor unit for feeding back the rotation amount of an ND filter and improves position reproducibility.

  However, with this rotational motion detection device, it is impossible to eliminate the influence of hysteresis caused by rotationally controlling the ND filter as described above with CW / CCW. Therefore, after the ND filter is driven, the generated positional deviation must be corrected every time.

  Further, in Patent Document 2, when a lens is moved in the optical axis direction by a stepping motor, hysteresis occurs due to backlash, and the position is controlled by a control device that can return the lens to the initial position even when the initial position of the lens is shifted. Is corrected. However, this control device cannot correct the position unless it returns to the initial position.

Generally, positioning accuracy can be improved by decelerating with a gear (reduction gear). However, the configuration becomes complicated.
In view of the above problems, the present invention provides a microscope apparatus that suppresses hysteresis caused by inertia when rotating a rotary optical element and rotates the optical element to an indicated position with good reproducibility.

  A microscope apparatus according to the present invention exists on an optical axis and rotates a predetermined optical element for adjusting an optical environment, a rotating means for rotating the optical element, and stops at least the rotation of the optical element. And a control means for controlling the rotation means to control the rotation direction of the optical element in the first rotation direction.

  The microscope apparatus further includes a rotation position designating unit capable of designating a rotation position of the optical element, and the control unit rotates the optical element in the first rotation direction so that the optical element in the rotation direction is rotated. Positioning is performed from a current position to a position designated by the rotation position designation means.

  The microscope apparatus further includes a rotation position designating unit capable of designating a rotation position of the optical element, and the control unit is configured to determine a current position of the optical element in a rotation direction and a position designated by the rotation position designating unit. According to the relative positional relationship, the optical element is rotated in the first rotation direction to be positioned at the designated position, and is rotated in a second rotation direction that is opposite to the first rotation direction. Then, after passing through the designated position once, the control is switched to control to rotate to the designated position by rotating in the first rotation direction.

  The microscope apparatus further includes a light shielding unit that opens and closes on the optical axis and arbitrarily blocks a light beam, and the control unit closes the light shielding unit and rotates the optical element, and then rotates the light shielding unit. It is characterized by opening.

  The microscope apparatus further includes a light shielding unit that opens and closes on the optical axis to arbitrarily block a light beam, and the control unit interlocks with a rotation operation of the optical element and rotates the optical element to block the light shielding. Control is performed to close the means.

  The microscope apparatus further includes storage means for storing an observed observation image, and display means for displaying the observation image, and the control means stores the stored observation image when the light shielding means is closed. Is continuously displayed on the display means.

  The microscope apparatus further includes a rotation position designating unit capable of designating a rotation position of the optical element, and the control unit is configured to determine a current position of the optical element in a rotation direction and a position designated by the rotation position designating unit. When the optical element is rotated in the first rotation direction according to the relative positional relationship to rotate the first movement amount corresponding to the specified position from the current position, the first movement amount is used. Control that stops at a position where a predetermined amount of movement has been subtracted and then rotates again in the first direction and positions to the designated position, and in a second rotational direction that is opposite to the first rotational direction. When rotating and rotating the first movement amount corresponding to the current position to the designated position, the designated position is passed through the predetermined movement amount and stopped, and then rotated in the first direction. Said Wherein the switching and control for positioning into position.

In the microscope apparatus, the optical element is an ND filter forming a dense pattern in a rotation direction.
In the microscope apparatus, the ND filter is an ND filter in which at least two dense patterns are formed.

  According to the present invention, there is provided a control method for a microscope apparatus capable of adjusting an optical environment by rotating a predetermined optical element existing on an optical axis, at least when stopping the rotation of the optical element. The rotation direction is controlled by the first rotation direction.

  In the control method of the microscope apparatus, when the rotation position of the optical element is specified, the optical element is rotated in the first rotation direction and positioned from the current position of the optical element in the rotation direction to the specified position. It is characterized by that.

  In the control method of the microscope apparatus, when the rotation position of the optical element is designated, the optical element is moved to the first position according to the relative positional relationship between the current position of the optical element and the designated position in the rotation direction. Rotate in the rotational direction and position to the designated position, or rotate in the second rotational direction opposite to the first rotational direction and pass the designated position once, then the first rotation It rotates to a direction and it positions to the said designated position, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

In the control method of the microscope apparatus, the light shielding mechanism that opens and closes on the optical axis and arbitrarily blocks the light beam is closed and the optical element is rotated, and then the light shielding mechanism is opened.
In the control method of the microscope apparatus, in conjunction with the rotation operation of the optical element, control is performed to close the light shielding mechanism that opens and closes on the optical axis and arbitrarily blocks the light beam with the rotation of the optical element. To do.

  In the control method of the microscope apparatus, when the rotation position of the optical element is designated, the optical element is moved to the first position according to the relative positional relationship between the current position of the optical element and the designated position in the rotation direction. When the first movement amount corresponding to the current position to the specified position is rotated by rotating in the rotation direction, the first movement amount is subtracted from the first movement amount and then stopped at a position, and then the first movement amount is again obtained. The first position corresponding to the position from the current position to the designated position by rotating in the direction of 1 and positioning to the designated position, and the second direction of rotation opposite to the first direction of rotation. In the case of rotating the movement amount, the control is performed by switching the control to position the specified position by rotating in the first direction after passing through the specified position by the predetermined amount of movement and stopping.

  According to the present invention, when a rotatable optical element used in a microscope is rotated, the occurrence of hysteresis can be suppressed to move it to the indicated position with good reproducibility.

A microscope apparatus according to an example of an embodiment of the present invention includes a predetermined optical element, a rotation unit, and a control unit.
The optical element exists on the optical axis and is rotatable to adjust the optical environment. The optical element is, for example, an ND filter in the present embodiment.

The rotating means can rotate the optical element. The rotating means corresponds to, for example, the ND filter motor 1007 in this embodiment.
The control unit controls the rotation unit to control the rotation direction of the optical element in the first rotation direction at least when the rotation of the rotating component is stopped. For example, the control means corresponds to the control unit 1009 in the present embodiment.

  With such a configuration, when the rotatable optical element used in the microscope is rotated, the occurrence of hysteresis can be suppressed to move it to the designated position with good reproducibility.

  The microscope apparatus may further include a rotation position designation unit that can designate a rotation position of the optical element. For example, in this embodiment, the rotational position designation means corresponds to a GUI related to the ND filter adjustment application.

  In the case of having a rotation position designation means, the control means rotates the optical element in the first rotation direction and positions the current position of the optical element in the rotation direction to a position designated by the rotation position designation means. can do.

With this configuration, the position reproducibility of the ND filter 2001 is improved by driving control in a certain direction, so that the light quantity setting reproducibility is improved.
Further, in the case of having a rotation position designation means, the control means changes the optical element according to the relative positional relationship between the current position of the optical element in the rotation direction and the position designated by the rotation position designation means. Rotation in a first rotation direction and positioning to the designated position, and rotation in a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction and once passing through the designated position It is also possible to switch between the control for rotating in the direction of rotation 1 and positioning to the designated position.

With this configuration, by controlling the ND filter with CW / CCW, the amount of pulses to the designated position can be reduced and the adjustment time of the ND filter can be shortened.
The microscope apparatus may further include a light shielding unit that opens and closes on the optical axis and arbitrarily blocks the light flux. The light shielding means corresponds to the light source shutter 1006 in the present embodiment, for example.

In the case of having a light shielding means, the control means can open the light shielding means after closing the light shielding means and rotating the optical element.
With this configuration, since the ND filter is rotated after the light source shutter is closed, light does not hit the sample during rotation, and damage to the sample can be prevented.

  In the case where the light shielding means is provided, the control means can perform control for closing the light shielding means together with the rotation of the optical element in conjunction with the rotation operation of the optical element. By comprising in this way, the time which closes a light source shutter can be shortened more.

  The microscope apparatus may further include a storage unit and a display unit. The storage means stores the observed observation image. For example, in the present embodiment, the storage means corresponds to the RAM 5002 or a graphic memory (not shown). The display means displays the observation image. The display means corresponds to, for example, a monitor. In this case, the control means can continue to display the stored observation image on the display means when closing the light shielding means.

With this configuration, the field of view does not suddenly become dark and the observation image cannot be seen.
In the case where the microscope apparatus includes the rotational position designating unit, the control unit performs the following control according to the relative positional relationship between the current position of the rotating component and the position designated by the rotational position designating unit. You may switch. One of them rotates the optical element in the first rotation direction according to the relative positional relationship between the current position of the optical element in the rotation direction and the position specified by the rotation position specifying means, and In the case of rotating the first movement amount corresponding to the specified position from the first position, after stopping at a position obtained by subtracting a predetermined movement amount from the first movement amount, the rotation is again performed in the first direction and the designation is performed. This is control for positioning to a position. When the other is rotated in a second rotation direction that is opposite to the first rotation direction and rotated by a first movement amount corresponding to the specified position from the current position, the specified position is In this control, a predetermined amount of movement is passed and stopped, and then rotated in the first direction to be positioned at the designated position.

With this configuration, by making the drive amount to the designated position the same, the position reproducibility of the ND filter is improved, and thus the light quantity setting reproducibility is improved.
The optical element may be an ND filter that forms a dense pattern in the rotation direction. The ND filter is formed by forming at least two dense patterns. With this configuration, by forming a plurality of coarse and dense patterns on one ND filter, it is possible to reduce the amount of pulses to the designated position and shorten the adjustment time of the ND filter.

Hereinafter, an example of the embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail.
<First Embodiment>
In the present embodiment, a microscope system that controls driving of rotating parts only in a certain rotation direction will be described. Further, a microscope system that rotates the rotating component while being shielded from light by a light shielding means in order to prevent the sample from being irradiated with light when the rotating component is rotated will be described.

FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of a microscope system in the present embodiment. The microscope 1 is an apparatus that observes an optically magnified image of a sample 1002 mounted on a stage 1001.
The microscope 1 includes a light source unit 1003, a dimming box 1004, an illumination unit 1012, an objective lens OB, a CCD camera 1013, a stage 1001 on which a sample is placed, and a control unit 1009.

  The light source unit 1003 is for irradiating the sample 1002 with light. The light source unit 1003 has a light source (not shown) such as a halogen lamp, a xenon lamp, or an LED.

  Light emitted from the light source unit 1003 is emitted from the dimming box 1004 via an optical system (not shown) in the dimming box 1004, a light source shutter 1006, and an ND filter 1005.

  The light emitted from the dimming box 1004 is introduced into the illumination unit 1012 through the optical fiber 1011. The light introduced into the illumination unit 1012 is condensed on the sample 1002 by the objective lens OB through an optical system (not shown).

  The reflected light from the sample 1002 is imaged again on the light receiving element of the CCD camera 1013 via the objective lens OB and the illumination unit 1012. In this way, an optical image of the sample 1002 can be observed.

  Here, the dimming box 1004 includes an ND filter 1005 and a light source shutter 1006. The ND filter 1005 is for adjusting the amount of light to the sample 1002. The light source shutter 1006 is for blocking light from the light source. The light source shutter 1006 and the ND filter 1005 have stepping motors 1007 and 1008, respectively. Each stepping motor 1007 and 1008 is connected to the control unit 1009. The stepping motors 1007 and 1008 are driven by an excitation pattern current output from a motor driving unit 1010 described later.

  The light adjusted by the ND filter 1005 is guided to the illumination unit 1012 by the optical fiber 1011. The illumination unit 1012 includes an optical system (not shown). The illumination unit 1012 irradiates the sample 1002 with light using an optical system, and condenses the reflected light on the CCD camera 1013 using the same optical system. In the CCD camera 1013, the optical image is converted into an electric signal and transmitted to the control PC 1014. An image of the sample 1002 is displayed on the GUI of the control PC.

  FIG. 2 shows an ND filter 2001 in the present embodiment. The figure shows a rotary ND filter for adjusting light by rotating to an arbitrary position around a rotation axis at a position different from the optical axis.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the ND filter 2001 is formed with an opening pattern in which the density changes between 0 ° and 300 ° in a rotation direction at a constant ratio. By rotating the ND filter 2001 and arranging an arbitrary opening pattern on the optical axis, the light transmittance can be changed.

  Further, when the ND filter 2001 is rotated in the CCW direction, the opening pattern changes from coarse to dense on the optical path, that is, the light transmittance is reduced. Further, a portion between 300 ° and 360 ° is an unused portion, which is a light shielding portion through which light does not pass. The ND filter 2001 is provided with a notch 2002 for initializing the rotational position. The position of the notch 2002 may be provided at any position from 0 ° to 360 ° on the outer edge of the ND filter 2001.

  FIG. 3 shows a configuration of the light source shutter 1006 in the present embodiment. The light source shutter 1006 includes a stepping motor 1007, a light shielding unit 3001, and a sensor 3002.

  In the light source shutter 1006, the light shielding unit 3001 is rotated by driving a stepping motor 1007 around a rotation axis different from the optical axis. The light source shutter 1006 is configured to open in the CW direction (light path open) and close in the CCW direction (light path cutoff).

  The sensor 3002 detects whether the light shielding unit 3001 is disposed on the optical path 3003, and acquires the open / closed state of the light source shutter 1006. Thereby, it is possible to arbitrarily block light from the light source.

  Further, in conjunction with the rotation operation of the ND filter 2001, the light to the illumination unit 1012 is blocked while the ND filter 2001 is rotating. Whether or not to perform the shutter interlocking operation when the ND filter 2001 rotates can be set by a GUI mode setting unit 4006 in FIG. 5 described later.

  The light shielding unit 3001 has a sufficient light shielding unit area with respect to the cross-sectional area of the optical path 3003. At the same time, the rotation angle (opening / closing stroke) of the light shielding unit 3001 is increased by driving the stepping motor so as to ensure a sufficient distance.

  FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of the control unit 1009 in this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the control unit 1009 mainly includes a CPU, a memory, and a motor drive unit 1010. The control unit 1009 is connected to the control PC 1014 via a serial I / F. The control unit 1009 drives the ND filter motor 1007 and the light source shutter motor 1008 according to a command from the control PC 1014.

  The control unit 1009 includes a CPU main body 5001, RAM 5002, ROM 5003, command I / O 5005a, ND filter I / O 5005b, light source shutter I / O 5005c, ND filter driver 5006b, and light source shutter driver 5006c.

  The CPU main body 5001 receives a command from the control PC 1014, acquires the indicated position of the ND filter 1005, and sends the pulse amount and direction. In the present embodiment, conversion is performed with 1 pulse = 1 °.

The RAM 5002 temporarily stores data necessary for controlling the system. The ROM 5003 stores a program necessary for controlling the system.
The ND filter driver 5006b is for driving the ND filter motor 1005. The light source shutter driver 5006c is for driving the light source shutter motor 1006.

  The ND filter I / O 5005b stores the current position of the ND filter 1005 and receives the drive amount and direction from the CPU 5001, and then sends a pulse and a rotation direction to the ND filter driver 5006b to send a signal indicating the completion of driving of the ND filter 1005 to the CPU 5001. The interface to send.

  The light source shutter I / O 5005c is an interface that receives a drive amount and direction from the CPU 5001, and then sends a pulse and a rotation direction to the light source shutter driver 5006c to receive a detection signal from the sensor 3002 of the light source shutter 1006.

  FIG. 5 shows a GUI related to the ND filter adjustment application in the control PC 1014 in this embodiment. This GUI mainly includes an adjustment button 4001, an ND filter dimming unit 4002, a current position display unit 4003, an indicated position indication unit 4004, an image display unit 4005, and a mode setting unit 4006.

  An adjustment button 4001 is a button for transmitting an ND filter adjustment command. The ND filter light control unit 4002 is a slide bar that determines the designated position of the ND filter. The current position display unit 4003 displays the current position of the ND filter 2001. The designated position indicator 4004 displays the value of the designated position of the ND filter 2001 in conjunction with the ND filter dimming unit 4002. The image display unit 4005 displays an image of the sample 1002.

  First, the user designates the position of the ND filter 2001 at an arbitrary position from 0 ° to 300 ° using the ND filter dimming unit 4002, and then presses the ND adjustment button 4001. Then, the control PC 1014 issues a command for instructing driving to the position of the value designated by the ND filter dimming unit 4002.

  The mode setting unit 4006 includes a sample protection mode ON / OFF button 4007, which can set whether to drive the ND filter 2001 and the light source shutter 1006.

  The operation of the present embodiment configured as described above will be described. First, the microscope 1 is turned on. Then, the CPU 5001 rotates the ND filter 2001 and detects the notch 2002 by the sensor 3002. Simultaneously with this detection, the rotation of the stepping motor 1007 is stopped, and the notch 2002 of the ND filter 2001 is stopped at the sensor position.

  Here, the current position of the ND filter I / O 5005b is set to zero. When the ND filter adjustment application is started after the initialization is completed, the current position of the ND filter 2001 is acquired from the control unit 1009 and the value is displayed on the current position display unit 4003. Thereafter, 0 ° is displayed on the ND filter dimming unit 4002 of the GUI, 0 ° is displayed on the current position display unit 4003, 0 ° is displayed on the indication position indication unit 4004, and a sample of the mode setting unit 4006 is displayed. Protection is displayed OFF.

  When the user views the image on the image display unit 4005 and determines that the image is dark or too bright, the user can move the slider of the ND filter dimming unit 4002 to an appropriate indication position for observation. At this time, the designated position of the designated position display unit 4004 is displayed in conjunction with the slider position of the ND filter dimming unit 4002. When the designated position is determined and the adjustment button 4001 is pressed, a command for driving the ND filter 2001 using the designated position as an argument is sent to the control unit 1009 as follows.

MOVE_ND “Indicated position”
The operation of the CPU 5001 when receiving this command will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

FIG. 6 shows a processing flow of the CPU 5001 in this embodiment (when the ND filter is driven by the control of only the CCW).
First, the CPU 5001 acquires the designated position of the ND filter 2001 from the command I / O 5005a (S1). Thereafter, the CPU 5001 acquires the current position of the ND filter 2001 from the ND filter I / O 5005b, subtracts the acquired current position from the designated position, and substitutes it into the relative drive amount A (S2).

  The CPU 5001 compares the relative drive amount A with 0 (S3). If the relative drive amount A is 0 or more (S3 is Y), the CPU 5001 outputs the number of pulses of the relative drive amount A and the rotation direction CCW to the ND filter I / O 5005b (S4). Thereafter, the CPU 5001 waits until an ND filter drive completion signal is received from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when received (S5 is Y), the processing of this sequence ends.

  On the other hand, if the relative drive amount A is 0 or less (S3 is N), the CPU 5001 adds the number of pulses for one turn of the ND filter to the relative drive amount A and substitutes it into the relative drive amount B (S6). Then, the CPU 5001 outputs the number of pulses of the relative drive amount B and the rotation direction CCW to the ND filter I / O 5005b (S7).

Thereafter, the CPU 5001 waits until an ND filter drive completion signal is received from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when received (S5 is Y), the processing of this sequence ends.
According to the flow of FIG. 6, the reproducibility of the light amount setting is improved by improving the position reproducibility of the ND filter 2001 by driving control in a certain direction.

  By the way, when the relative drive amount A is 0 or less (S3 is N), the ND filter rotates by the number of pulses of the relative drive amount B, so that the optical path always passes through the portion where the transmittance is 100% to the sample 1002. There are cases where more light than necessary is irradiated. Therefore, when it is desired to prevent the sample 1002 from being exposed to light when the ND filter is rotated, the ON button of the sample protection ON / OFF button 4007 is pressed. When the user presses the ND filter adjustment button 4001, first, the image acquisition from the CCD camera 1013 is stopped and the current image display unit 4005 is fixed. Then, a command for driving the ND filter in conjunction with the light source shutter 1006 is sent to the control unit 1009 as follows.

MOVE_ND_SHUT “pointing position”
The operation of the CPU when receiving this command will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 7 shows a processing flow of the CPU 5001 in this embodiment (in the case of an interlocking operation of the ND filter and the shutter). First, the CPU 5001 acquires the designated position of the ND filter 2001 from the command I / O 5005a (S1), and then the CPU 5001 obtains the current position of the ND filter 2001 from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and obtains the current position from the designated position. Then, it is substituted for the relative drive amount A (S2).

  Then, the CPU 5001 compares the relative drive amount A with 0 (S3). If the relative drive amount A is 0 or more (S3 is Y), the CPU 5001 outputs the number of pulses of the relative drive amount A and the rotation direction CCW to the ND filter I / O 5005b (S4). Thereafter, the CPU 5001 waits until an ND filter drive completion signal is received from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when received (S5 is Y), the processing of this sequence ends.

  On the other hand, if the relative drive amount A is 0 or less (S3 is N), the CPU 5001 adds the number of pulses for one turn of the ND filter to the relative drive amount A and substitutes it into the relative drive amount B (S6). Then, the CPU 5001 outputs the rotation direction CCW and the number of pulses to the light source shutter I / O 5005c (S11).

  Next, the CPU 5001 acquires a detection signal of the sensor of the light source shutter 1006 from the light source shutter I / O 5005c (S12). If the light source shutter 1006 is closed (S9 is Y), the CPU 5001 outputs the number of pulses of the relative drive amount B and the rotation direction CCW to the ND filter I / O 5005b (S7).

  The CPU 5001 waits until receiving the ND filter drive completion signal from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when received (S14 is Y), outputs a rotation direction CW and a pulse for opening the light source shutter 1006 to the light source shutter I / O 5005c (S15). ).

  Thereafter, the CPU 5001 acquires again a detection signal from the sensor of the light source shutter 1006 from the light source shutter I / O 5005c (S16). If the light source shutter 1006 is open (S17 is Y), the processing of this sequence is finished. . When the sequence is finished, the control PC 1014 continues to acquire an image from the CCD camera 1013 and display it on the image display unit 4045. The image is stored in the RAM 5002 or a graphic memory (not shown). As a result, the visual field suddenly becomes dark and the observation image cannot be seen.

  According to the flow of FIG. 7, when the relative drive amount A is 0 or less, the light source shutter 1006 is closed and then the ND filter is rotated, so that the sample is not exposed to light during rotation and damage to the sample is prevented. be able to.

In the present embodiment, the case where the CCW of the ND filter 2001 is dimmed has been described. However, even when the CCW is dimmed, the control can be similarly performed in the sequence of FIG.
According to the first embodiment (control of only the ND filter CCW), the reproducibility of the light amount setting is improved by improving the position reproducibility of the ND filter 2001 by drive control in a certain direction. Further, by closing the light source shutter 1006 when the ND filter is being driven, it is possible to prevent the sample from being irradiated with excessive light. In addition, when the ND filter is adjusted during observation, there is no sudden increase in the amount of light.

  As a modification of the first embodiment, when the rotation direction CCW and the number of pulses are output to the light source shutter I / O 5005c in FIG. 7 (S11), the number of pulses of the relative drive amount B and the rotation direction CCW are converted into the ND filter I. The time for closing the light source shutter may be shortened by simultaneously outputting to / O5005b (S7).

  The coarse / dense pattern of the ND filter 2001 of the first embodiment is not limited to the range of 0 to 300 °, and it can be reduced even if the range of the coarse / dense pattern is widened to 0 to 330 ° or 0 to 90 °. May be.

Further, the ND filter 2001 of the first embodiment is not limited to the configuration in which the transmittance decreases in the CCW direction, and may be configured to be sparse and increase in the transmittance in the CCW direction.
<Second Embodiment>
In the present embodiment, a microscope system that controls the driving of a rotating component on which n patterns that change the optical environment are controlled only in a certain rotational direction will be described. In the present embodiment, description of the same parts as those in the first embodiment is omitted.

  FIG. 8 shows an ND filter 6001 in the present embodiment. The ND filter 6001 forms the same dense pattern between 0 to 180 ° and 180 to 360 ° in the rotation direction. By rotating the ND filter 6001, the transmittance of light passing through the dimming box 1004 is changed, and it is dense in the CCW direction, that is, the transmittance of light decreases. The ND filter 6001 is initialized to determine the initial position when the power is turned on, and the initial position is determined by detecting the notch 6002 with a sensor (not shown).

  Here, the ND filter adjustment will be described. When the user looks at the image on the image display unit 4005 and is dark or too bright, the user adjusts the ND filter dimming unit 4002 to a value suitable for observation. At this time, the value of the indicated position display unit 4004 changes in conjunction with the slider position of the ND filter dimming unit 4002. When the designated position is determined and the adjustment button 4001 is pressed, a command for driving the ND filter 6001 with the designated position as an argument is sent to the control unit 1009 as follows.

MOVE_ND “Indicated position”
The operation of the CPU 5001 when receiving this command will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 9 shows a processing flow (in the case of a two-part ND filter) of the CPU 5001 in the present embodiment. First, the CPU 5001 acquires the designated position of the ND filter 6001 from the command I / O 5005a (S21). Thereafter, the CPU 5001 acquires the current position of the ND filter 6001 from the ND filter I / O 5005b, subtracts the acquired current position from the designated position, and substitutes it into the relative drive amount A (S22).

  The CPU 5001 compares the relative drive amount A with 0 (S23). If the relative drive amount A is 0 or more (S23 is Y), the CPU 5001 outputs the number of pulses of the relative drive amount A and the rotation direction CCW to the ND filter I / O 5005b (S24). Thereafter, the CPU 5001 waits until receiving an ND filter drive completion signal from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when received (S25 is Y), the processing of this sequence ends.

  On the other hand, if the relative drive amount A is equal to or less than 0 (N in S23), the CPU 5001 adds the number of pulses corresponding to a half turn of the ND filter to the relative drive amount A and substitutes it into the relative drive amount B (S26). Then, the CPU 5001 outputs the number of pulses of the relative drive amount B and the rotation direction CCW to the ND filter I / O 5005b (S27). Thereafter, the CPU 5001 waits until an ND filter drive completion signal is received from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when received (S25 is Y), the processing of this sequence is finished.

According to the second embodiment, by forming two coarse and dense patterns on one ND filter, it is possible to reduce the amount of pulses to the designated position and shorten the adjustment time of the ND filter.
In the present embodiment, a two-part ND filter is used as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and an n-part ND filter may be used. In this case, in S26, the number of pulses corresponding to 1 / n rounds of the ND filter is added to the relative drive amount A and substituted into the relative drive amount B.

<Third Embodiment>
In the present embodiment, in accordance with the relative positional relationship between the current position of the rotating component and the position designated by the user, control for rotating in the first direction and positioning to the designated position, and the first rotation direction A microscope system that rotates in the opposite direction to overrun the designated position and drives again in the first rotational direction to position the designated position will be described. In the present embodiment, only parts different from the first embodiment will be described.

  First, the configuration of the ND filter will be described. The ND filter 2001 used in the present embodiment forms a dense pattern between 0 and 300 ° in the rotation direction. Then, by rotating the ND filter 2001, the transmittance of light passing through the dimming box 1004 is changed, and it is dense in the CCW direction, that is, the transmittance of light decreases. The ND filter 2001 is initialized to determine the initial position when the power is turned on, and the initial position is determined by detecting the notch 2002 by a sensor (not shown).

In this embodiment, the ROM 5003 of the control unit 1009 stores 10 pulses of overrun amount as an example.
Next, adjustment of the ND filter will be described. When the user looks at the image on the image display unit 4005 and is dark or too bright, the user adjusts the ND filter dimming unit 4002 to a value suitable for observation. At this time, the value of the indicated position display unit 4004 changes in conjunction with the slider position of the ND filter dimming unit 4002. When the designated position is determined and the adjustment button 4001 is pressed, a command for driving the ND filter 2001 using the designated position as an argument is sent to the control unit 1009 as follows.

MOVE_ND “Indicated position”
The operation of the CPU 5001 when receiving this command will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 10 shows a processing flow of the CPU 5001 in the present embodiment. First, the CPU 5001 acquires the designated position of the ND filter 2001 from the command I / O 5005a (S31). Thereafter, the CPU 5001 acquires the current position of the ND filter 2001 from the ND filter I / O 5005b, subtracts the current position from the designated position, and substitutes it into the relative drive amount A (S32).

  The CPU 5001 compares the relative drive amount A with 0 (S33). If the relative drive amount A is 0 or more (S33 is Y), the CPU 5001 outputs the number of pulses of the relative drive amount A and the rotation direction CCW to the ND filter I / O 5005 (b) (S34). Thereafter, the CPU 5001 waits until an ND filter drive completion signal is received from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when received (S35 is Y), the processing of this sequence ends.

  On the other hand, if the relative drive amount A is 0 or less (N in S33), the CPU 5001 acquires 10 pulses of the overrun amount from the ROM 5003, and acquires the overrun obtained by multiplying the relative drive amount A by (-1). An amount of 10 pulses is added and substituted for the relative drive amount B (S36). The CPU 5001 outputs the number of pulses of the relative drive amount B and the rotation direction CW to the ND filter I / O (S37).

  Next, the CPU 5001 waits until receiving an ND filter drive completion signal from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when received (S38 is Y), outputs 10 pulses of overrun amount and the rotation direction CCW to the ND filter I / O 5005b. (S39).

  Next, the CPU 5001 waits until it receives an ND filter drive completion signal from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when it is received (S40 is Y), it ends the processing of this sequence.

  According to the present embodiment, in addition to the effects of the first and second embodiments, the ND filter is controlled by CW / CCW, thereby reducing the pulse amount to the indicated position and shortening the ND filter adjustment time. be able to.

<Fourth embodiment>
In the present embodiment, the rotation is performed in the first direction according to the relative positional relationship between the current position of the rotating component on which the n patterns that change the optical environment are formed and the position specified by the user. A control for positioning to the designated position and a microscope system that rotates in the direction opposite to the first rotation direction, overruns the designated position, drives again in the first rotation direction, and positions to the designated position will be described. In the present embodiment, only parts different from the first embodiment will be described. In the present embodiment, only parts different from the third embodiment will be described.

First, the configuration of the ND filter will be described. The ND filter 6002 used in the fourth embodiment uses the ND filter 6002 used in the second embodiment.
Next, adjustment of the ND filter will be described. When the user looks at the image on the image display unit 4005 and is dark or too bright, the user adjusts the ND filter dimming unit 4002 to a value suitable for observation. At this time, the value of the indicated position display unit 4004 changes in conjunction with the slider position of the ND filter dimming unit 4002. When the designated position is determined and the adjustment button 4001 is pressed, a command for driving the ND filter 6002 using the designated position as an argument is sent to the control unit 1009 as follows.

MOVE_ND “Indicated position”
The operation of the CPU 5001 when receiving this command will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 11 shows a processing flow of the CPU 5001 in the present embodiment. First, the CPU 5001 acquires the designated position of the ND filter 6002 from the command I / O 5005a (S41). Thereafter, the CPU 5001 acquires the current position of the ND filter 6002 from the ND filter I / O 5005b, subtracts the current position from the designated position, and substitutes it into the relative drive amount A (S42).

  The CPU 5001 compares the relative drive amount A with 0 (S43). If the relative drive amount A is greater than 0 (Y in S43), the CPU 5001 obtains the current position and the ROM 5003 by subtracting the value obtained by adding the indicated position to the drive amount of the ND half turn from the drive amount of the ND filter one turn. The value of overrun amount × 2 is added and substituted into the relative drive amount B (S44). Then, the CPU 5001 substitutes the value of the relative drive amount A for the relative drive amount C (S45).

  On the other hand, if the relative drive amount A is 0 or less (N in S43), the CPU 5001 multiplies the relative drive amount A by (-1) and substitutes the value obtained by adding the overrun amount × 2 into the relative drive amount B. (S46). Then, the CPU 5001 adds the indicated position to the driving amount of the ND filter half circumference, and substitutes the value obtained by subtracting the current position into the relative driving amount C (S47).

  If the relative drive amount B is greater than the relative drive amount C (S48 is Y), the CPU 5001 outputs the number of pulses of the relative drive amount C and the rotation direction CCW to the ND filter I / O 5005b (S49). Thereafter, the CPU 5001 waits until receiving an ND filter drive completion signal from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when received (S50 is Y), the processing of this sequence ends.

  On the other hand, if the relative drive amount B is equal to or less than the relative drive amount C (N in S48), the CPU 5001 acquires 10 pulses of the overrun amount from the ROM 5003, and acquires the drive amount obtained by multiplying the relative drive amount A by (-1). The 10 pulses of the overrun amount are added and substituted for the relative drive amount D (S51). The CPU 5001 outputs the number of pulses of the relative drive amount D and the rotation direction CW to the ND filter I / O 5005 (b) (S52).

  Next, the CPU 5001 waits until receiving an ND filter drive completion signal from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when received (S53 is Y), outputs 10 pulses of overrun amount and the rotation direction CCW to the ND filter I / O 5005b. (S54).

  Next, the CPU 5001 waits until it receives an ND filter drive completion signal from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when it is received (S55 is Y), it ends the processing of this sequence.

  In S44 and S46, the relative drive amount B for CW is calculated. In S45 and S47, the relative drive amount C for CCW is calculated. In S48, it is determined which drive amount of CW / CCW is smaller. Yes.

  12A and 12B are diagrams for explaining the CW / CCW drive amount in the present embodiment. In these figures, for example, when the current position is a position of 10 ° (corresponding to a position of 10 pulses) and a position of 120 ° (corresponding to a 120 pulse position) is set as a designated position (S43 is Y), CW FIG. 12A shows the total drive (FIG. 12A) when driving to the indicated position by CCW to the indicated position after being overrun by controlling in FIG. 12 and the total drive amount (FIG. 12B) when driving to the indicated position by CCW. Yes.

  S44 is an operation when controlling by CW. This operation will be described with reference to FIG. 12A. First, the ND filter position 8001 is rotated by CW to the ND filter position 8002.

Next, 10 pulses are overrun from the ND filter position 8002 and rotated to the ND filter position 8003.
Next, the drive amount returned by the CCW overrun from the ND filter position 8003 is returned to the ND filter position 8004. The relative drive amount B is 80 (= 60 + 10 + 10).

  S45 is an operation when controlling by CCW. This operation will be described with reference to FIG. 12B. It drives by CCW from the ND filter position 8005 to the ND filter position 8006. The relative drive amount C is 120.

  From the above, when the relative drive amount B <relative drive amount C, the process proceeds to N in the process of S48, and when driving from the 10 pulse position to the 120 pulse position, it is determined that the drive time of the CW control is shorter than the CCW control. . Thus, by determining the rotation direction with a short drive time, the time required for adjusting the ND filter can be shortened.

  According to the present embodiment, in addition to the effects of the third embodiment, the ND filter adjustment time can be shortened by using the ND filter 6002 used in the second embodiment.

  In the present embodiment, a two-part ND filter is used as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and an n-part ND filter may be used.

<Fifth embodiment>
In the present embodiment, a microscope system will be described in which, when rotating to a designated position, regardless of the CW rotation direction and the CCW rotation direction, the microscope system is temporarily stopped at a predetermined position and then rotated again to the designated position. In the present embodiment, description of the same parts as those in the first embodiment is omitted.

In the present embodiment, final drive amount = 10 pulses is stored in the ROM 5003 of the control unit 1009 as an example.
Next, the adjustment of the ND filter will be described. When the user views the image on the image display unit 4005 and determines that the image is dark or too bright, the user can move the slider of the ND filter dimming unit 4002 to an appropriate indication position for observation. At this time, the designated position of the designated position display unit 4004 is displayed in conjunction with the slider position of the ND filter dimming unit 4002. When the designated position is determined and the adjustment button 4001 is pressed, a command for driving the ND filter 2001 using the designated position as an argument is sent to the control unit 1009 as follows.

MOVE_ND “Indicated position”
The operation of the CPU 5001 when receiving this command will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 13 shows a processing flow of the CPU 5001 in the present embodiment. First, the CPU 5001 acquires the designated position of the ND filter 2001 from the command I / O 5005a (S61). Thereafter, the CPU 5001 acquires the current position of the ND filter 2001 from the ND filter I / O 5005b, subtracts the current position from the designated position, and substitutes it into the relative drive amount A (S62).

  Then, the CPU 5001 compares the relative drive amount A with 0 (S63). If the relative drive amount A is equal to or greater than 0 (Y in S63), the CPU 5001 acquires 10 pulses of the final drive amount from the ROM 5003, and calculates a relative value obtained by subtracting 10 pulses of the final drive amount from the number of pulses of the relative drive amount A. Substitute for drive amount B (S64). The CPU 5001 outputs the number of pulses of the relative drive amount B and the rotation direction CCW to the ND filter I / O 5005b (S65).

  Thereafter, the CPU 5001 waits until receiving an ND filter drive completion signal from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when received (S68 is Y), outputs 10 pulses of the final drive amount and the rotation direction CCW to the ND filter I / O 5005b. (S69).

  Thereafter, the CPU 5001 waits until receiving an ND filter drive completion signal from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when received (S70 is Y), ends the processing of this sequence.

  On the other hand, if the relative drive amount A is 0 or less (N in S63), the CPU 5001 acquires 10 pulses of the final drive amount from the ROM 5003, and sets the final drive amount of 10 to the number of pulses of (−1 × relative drive amount A). A pulse is added and substituted for the relative drive amount C (S66). The CPU 5001 outputs the number of pulses of the relative drive amount C and the rotation direction CW to the ND filter I / O 5005b (S67).

  Thereafter, the CPU 5001 waits until receiving an ND filter drive completion signal from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when received (S68 is Y), outputs 10 pulses of the final drive amount and the rotation direction CCW to the ND filter I / O 5005b. (S69).

  Thereafter, the CPU 5001 waits until receiving an ND filter drive completion signal from the ND filter I / O 5005b, and when received (S70 is Y), ends the processing of this sequence.

  According to the present embodiment, in addition to the effects of the third embodiment, the position reproducibility of the ND filter 2001 is improved by making the drive amount to the designated position the same, thereby reproducing the light amount setting. Sexuality is improved.

  In the second embodiment, the ND filter 6001 has two patterns with the same density between 0 to 180 ° and 180 to 360 ° in the rotation direction, but is not limited to two. It may be formed by four.

  In the third embodiment, the overrun amount when rotating at CW is 10 pulses. However, the overrun amount may be reduced or increased to 5 pulses or 20 pulses. At this time, the control unit 1009 needs a non-volatile memory 5004 for storing the overrun amount as shown in FIG. Further, the GUI of the control PC 1014 requires an overrun amount setting unit as shown in FIG. The user first designates an arbitrary overrun amount from 0 to 20 by the overrun amount adjustment unit 4010 in the overrun amount setting unit 4008. Next, when the overrun amount setting button 4009 is pressed, the control PC 1014 sends the value specified by the overrun amount setting unit 4008 to the control unit 1009 command I / O. The control unit 1009 CPU writes the overrun amount value in the nonvolatile memory 5004.

  In the first, second, and third embodiments, the actuator used to drive the ND filter is not limited to the stepping motor 1007, and may be a DC motor. Further, the driving object is not limited to the ND filter, and may be a rotating component such as a rotary shutter. The numerical values used in the first to fifth embodiments are examples, and are not limited to these numerical values.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various configurations or embodiments can be taken without departing from the gist of the present invention.

1 shows a schematic configuration of a microscope system according to a first embodiment. 1 shows an ND filter 2001 according to a first embodiment. The structure of the light source shutter 1006 in 1st Embodiment is shown. The block diagram of the control part 1009 in 1st Embodiment is shown. 3 shows a GUI related to an ND filter adjustment application in the control PC 1014 according to the first embodiment. The processing flow of CPU5001 in 1st Embodiment (when an ND filter is driven by control of only CCW) is shown. The processing flow of the CPU 5001 in the first embodiment (in the case of an interlocking operation of an ND filter and a shutter) is shown. An ND filter 6001 in the second embodiment is shown. The processing flow (in the case of a 2-part dividing ND filter) of CPU5001 in 2nd Embodiment is shown. The processing flow of CPU5001 in 3rd Embodiment is shown. The processing flow of CPU5001 in 4th Embodiment is shown. It is a figure for demonstrating the drive amount of CW in 4th Embodiment. It is a figure for demonstrating the drive amount of CCW in 4th Embodiment. The processing flow of CPU5001 in 5th Embodiment is shown. The block diagram of the control part 1009 in the modification of 5th Embodiment is shown. 20 shows a GUI related to an ND filter adjustment application in the control PC 1014 in a modification of the fifth embodiment. An example of the occurrence of hysteresis is shown.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Microscope 1001 Stage 1002 Sample 1003 Light source unit 1004 Light control box 1005 ND filter 1006 Light source shutter 1007 ND filter motor 1008 Light source shutter motor OB Objective lens 1009 Control part 1010 Motor drive part 1011 Optical fiber 1012 Illumination unit 1013 CCD camera 1014 Control PC
2001 ND filter 2002 Notch 3001 Light-shielding part 3002 Sensor 5001 CPU main body 5002 RAM
5003 ROM
5005a Command I / O
5005b ND filter I / O
5005c Light source shutter I / O
5006b ND filter driver 5006c Light source shutter driver 5004 Non-volatile memory

Claims (15)

A predetermined optical element that is on the optical axis and is rotatable to adjust the optical environment;
A rotating means for rotating the optical element;
Control means for controlling the rotation means to control the rotation direction of the optical element in a first rotation direction when at least rotating the optical element is stopped;
A microscope apparatus comprising: The microscope apparatus further includes a rotational position designating unit capable of designating a rotational position of the optical element,
The control means rotates the optical element in the first rotation direction, and positions the current position of the optical element in the rotation direction to a position designated by the rotation position designation means. The microscope apparatus according to 1. The microscope apparatus further includes a rotational position designating unit capable of designating a rotational position of the optical element,
The control means rotates the optical element in the first rotation direction according to the relative positional relationship between the current position of the optical element in the rotation direction and the position designated by the rotation position designation means. Control for positioning to a designated position, and rotation in a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction, once passing through the designated position, and then rotation in the first rotation direction for the designation The microscope apparatus according to claim 1, wherein control for positioning to a position is switched. The microscope apparatus further includes a light shielding unit that opens and closes on the optical axis and arbitrarily blocks the light beam,
The microscope apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit opens the light shielding unit after closing the light shielding unit and rotating the optical element. The microscope apparatus further includes a light shielding unit that opens and closes on the optical axis and arbitrarily blocks the light beam,
2. The microscope apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit performs control for closing the light shielding unit as the optical element rotates in conjunction with a rotation operation of the optical element. The microscope apparatus further includes:
Storage means for storing the observed observation image;
Display means for displaying the observed image;
With
6. The microscope apparatus according to claim 4, wherein, when the light shielding unit is closed, the control unit continues to display the stored observation image on the display unit. The microscope apparatus further includes a rotational position designating unit capable of designating a rotational position of the optical element,
The control means rotates the optical element in the first rotation direction according to the relative positional relationship between the current position of the optical element in the rotation direction and the position designated by the rotation position designation means. When rotating the first movement amount corresponding to the specified position from the current position, stop at a position obtained by subtracting a predetermined movement amount from the first movement amount, and then rotate again in the first direction. In the case of rotating the first movement amount corresponding to the specified position from the current position by rotating the control to position to the specified position and the second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction. 2. The microscope apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit switches between control for causing the designated position to pass through the predetermined movement amount and stopping the same and then rotating the first position in the first direction to position the designated position. . The microscope device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the optical element is an ND filter forming a dense pattern in a rotation direction. The microscope apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the ND filter is an ND filter in which at least two dense patterns are formed. A control method of a microscope apparatus capable of adjusting a optical environment by rotating a predetermined optical element existing on an optical axis,
A control method for a microscope apparatus, wherein at least the rotation of the optical element is stopped, the rotation direction of the optical element is controlled in the first rotation direction. In the control method of the microscope apparatus, when the rotation position of the optical element is specified, the optical element is rotated in the first rotation direction and positioned from the current position of the optical element in the rotation direction to the specified position. The method for controlling a microscope apparatus according to claim 10. In the control method of the microscope apparatus, when the rotation position of the optical element is designated, the optical element is moved to the first position according to the relative positional relationship between the current position of the optical element and the designated position in the rotation direction. Rotate in the rotational direction and position to the designated position, or rotate in the second rotational direction opposite to the first rotational direction and pass the designated position once, then the first rotation The method for controlling a microscope apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the microscope apparatus is positioned in the designated position by rotating in a direction. The method for controlling the microscope apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the light shielding mechanism is opened after the optical element is rotated by closing a light shielding mechanism that opens and closes on the optical axis and arbitrarily blocks a light beam. Method for controlling the microscope apparatus. In the control method of the microscope apparatus, in conjunction with the rotation operation of the optical element, control is performed to close a light shielding mechanism that opens and closes on the optical axis and arbitrarily blocks a light beam with the rotation of the optical element. The method for controlling a microscope apparatus according to claim 10. In the control method of the microscope apparatus, when the rotation position of the optical element is designated, the optical element is moved to the first position according to the relative positional relationship between the current position of the optical element and the designated position in the rotation direction. When the first movement amount corresponding to the current position to the specified position is rotated by rotating in the rotation direction, the first movement amount is subtracted from the first movement amount and then stopped at a position, and then the first movement amount is again obtained. The first position corresponding to the position from the current position to the designated position by rotating in the direction of 1 and positioning to the designated position, and the second direction of rotation opposite to the first direction of rotation. When the movement amount is rotated, the control is switched between passing the specified position through the predetermined movement amount and stopping the rotation, and then rotating the first position in the first direction and positioning to the designated position. The method for controlling a microscope apparatus according to claim 10.