JP2014092710A - Imaging device and endoscope device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an imaging device suitable for downsizing while maintaining sufficient mobility necessary for a movable lens.SOLUTION: An imaging device 100 includes: a lens barrel portion 15; and an imaging unit 11 that picks up an observation image. Lens holding members 33 and 35 hold movable lenses L3 and L4 and include projections 41 and 43 projecting toward outside in a radial direction of the movable lenses. A cam barrel 49 includes, on a cylindrical peripheral surface, cam grooves 45 and 47 that engage with the projections of the lens holding members. A lens driving unit 13 is disposed out of a lens optical axis O and rotationally drives the cam barrel. The cam barrel includes a cylindrical gear unit 59 formed along a circumferential direction of the cam barrel in an outer surface tip area forward in an observation direction of the observation image. The lens driving unit is disposed forward in the observation direction with respect to an imaging element 21, rotationally drives the cam barrel through the cylindrical gear unit, and moves the movable lens along the cam barrel.

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus and an endoscope apparatus.

Endoscope apparatuses include those equipped with a pan-focus imaging device that can focus from near to far, and those equipped with an imaging device that can acquire a magnified image in proximity observation by changing the focal length. As shown in a cross-sectional view of the distal end portion of the endoscope, the endoscope shaft capable of changing the focal length widely uses a cam shaft 81 as its drive mechanism. According to this imaging apparatus, the cam shaft 81 is rotationally driven by transmitting the rotational driving force of the motor M via the gear 83, the intermediate shaft 85, and the like. The lens holding members 91 and 93 that hold the lenses 87 and 89 are supported by the cam shaft 81 and have pins 99 and 101 that are inserted into the cam grooves 95 and 97, respectively. When the cam shaft 81 is driven to rotate, the pins 99 and 101 move along the cam grooves 95 and 97 in the optical axis direction. As the pins 99 and 101 move, the lenses 87 and 89 held by the lens holding members 91 and 93 move to desired positions in the optical axis direction, respectively.
However, when the cam shaft 81 is used as a means for moving the lenses 87 and 89, there is a disadvantage that it is difficult to reduce the size of the imaging apparatus. That is, when the cam shaft 81 is reduced in diameter, the pins 99 and 101 inserted into the cam grooves 95 and 97 may be fixed to the cam grooves 95 and 97. Further, when the cam shaft 81 is reduced in diameter, the cam grooves 95 and 97 cannot be sufficiently deep.

As another example of moving a lens without using a cam shaft, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses a mechanism for moving a focusing lens using a piezo actuator. In this mechanism, a focusing operation is performed by moving a lens holder holding a focusing lens in the optical axis direction by a piezo actuator. However, when this mechanism is used to drive a zoom lens instead of a focusing lens, the driving force of the piezo actuator is relatively small and only one group of lenses can be moved, and the movable range is short. There is a disadvantage that the magnification cannot be secured sufficiently.
Further, Patent Document 2 includes a cam cylinder that houses a plurality of movable lenses therein and relatively moves the movable lens group in the optical axis direction by rotation, and the movable lens is driven by rotating the cam cylinder by a motor. A magnifying endoscope that zooms and moves the focal point is disclosed. This magnifying endoscope is configured to transmit a rotational driving force from a motor to a cam barrel via a rotation operation wire, and to move a movable lens in the optical axis direction along a cam groove formed in the cam barrel. ing. According to such a configuration, a necessary and sufficient variable magnification can be obtained without using a cam shaft.

Japanese Patent No. 4482418 JP 2011-98051 A

  In the magnifying endoscope of Patent Document 2, a motor is disposed in the operation unit of the endoscope apparatus, and the rotational driving force from the motor is passed through a rotation operation wire laid between the distal end of the endoscope insertion unit. It is configured to transmit to the cam cylinder. Therefore, a transmission loss occurs until the motor driving force is transmitted to the cam barrel, and the rotational response of the cam barrel is also reduced. Therefore, it is conceivable to arrange a motor at the distal end of the endoscope. However, in order to directly drive the cam barrel with the motor, it is necessary to provide a speed reduction mechanism between the motor and the cam barrel. It will be a factor that hinders the diameter reduction.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an imaging apparatus suitable for downsizing while maintaining necessary and sufficient movement performance with respect to a movable lens.

The present invention has the following configuration.
(1) Imaging having a lens barrel portion that performs zooming operation of an observation image by moving at least one group of movable lenses along the lens optical axis, and an imaging element that images the observation image obtained through the movable lens An imaging device having a section,
A lens holding member that holds the movable lens and has a protruding portion that protrudes outward in the radial direction of the movable lens;
A cylindrical cam cylinder having a cam groove engaging with a protrusion of the lens holding member on a peripheral surface, the lens holding member being accommodated coaxially with the lens optical axis;
A lens driving unit disposed outside the optical axis of the lens for driving the cam cylinder to rotate,
The cam cylinder has a cylindrical gear portion formed along the circumferential direction of the cam cylinder at the outer peripheral surface tip region in the observation direction front of the observation image.
The lens driving unit is disposed in front of the imaging element with respect to the imaging element, and rotationally drives the cam cylinder via the cylindrical gear unit to move the movable lens along the cam groove.
(2) An endoscope apparatus including the imaging device at a distal end portion of an endoscope insertion portion.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to obtain an imaging apparatus suitable for miniaturization while maintaining necessary and sufficient movement performance with respect to the movable lens. Thereby, the diameter of the distal end of the endoscope insertion portion of the endoscope apparatus in which the imaging apparatus is mounted can be further reduced.

It is a figure for demonstrating embodiment of this invention, and is an external appearance perspective view of an imaging device. It is a side view of the imaging device seen from the V1 direction of FIG. It is AA sectional drawing of FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the lens holding member in an inner sleeve. It is a front view which shows typically the axial direction projection surface in the insertion part front-end | tip inserted in the body cavity of an endoscope apparatus. It is an external appearance perspective view of another imaging device. It is a side view of the imaging device seen from the V2 direction of FIG. It is BB sectional drawing of the imaging device shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the conventional endoscope front-end | tip part.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining an embodiment of the present invention, and is an external perspective view of the imaging apparatus, FIG. 2 is a side view of the imaging apparatus viewed from the direction V1 in FIG. 1, and FIG. FIG. Here, a description will be given as a configuration example in which the imaging device 100 is disposed at the distal end of the insertion unit in the endoscope device.

  As illustrated in FIG. 1, the imaging apparatus 100 mainly includes an imaging unit 11 and a lens driving unit 13. The imaging unit 11 includes a lens barrel 15, a holder 17 that holds the lens barrel 15, a triangular prism 19 that is fixed to the holder 17 and disposed on the rear end side of the optical path of the lens barrel 15, and an imaging element 21 (see FIG. 3) and a circuit board 23 on which electronic components are mounted. The lens driving unit 13 includes a rotation motor 25 held by the holder 17 and a pinion gear 27 attached to the rotation shaft of the rotation motor 25. In this specification, the subject side in the optical path of the observation light is referred to as the front, and the imaging element side is referred to as the rear.

  As shown in FIG. 2, in the imaging apparatus 100, the optical axis O of the imaging unit 11 and the rotation axis of the lens driving unit 13 are parallel to each other, and the circuit board 23 is placed in the normal direction of the substrate surface of the circuit board 23. The image pickup unit 11 and the lens driving unit 13 are disposed with the image sandwiched therebetween. In the following description, the same reference numerals are assigned to the same members, and the description thereof is simplified or omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the lens barrel 15 accommodates the lenses L1, L2, L3, L4, and L5 coaxially in order from the front of the optical path of the optical axis O. The lenses L1 and L2 are held by a lens holding member 31, the lens L3 is held by a lens holding member 33, the lens L4 is held by a lens holding member 35, and the lens L5 is held by a lens holding member 37, respectively. The lenses L1 and L2 (first optical member) and the lens L5 (second optical member) are large-diameter fixed lenses fixed in the optical axis direction, and the lens L3 and the lens L4 are movable in the optical axis direction. This is a movable lens with a small diameter.

  Each of the lenses L1 to L5 is shown as a single lens in the illustrated example, but may be composed of a plurality of lenses. The lens holding member 33 that holds the movable lens L3 and the lens holding member 35 that holds the movable lens L4 have pins (protrusions) 41 and 43 that protrude outward in the radial direction of the movable lenses L3 and L4, respectively.

  The lens barrel 15 includes a cam barrel 49 having cam grooves 45 and 47 that engage with the pins 41 and 43 of the lens holding members 33 and 35, and an inner that is coaxially disposed inside the cam barrel 49. And a sleeve 51.

  The inner sleeve 51 is provided with a guide groove 53 for guiding the lens holding members 33 and 35 on the inner peripheral surface thereof in parallel with the optical axis O. In addition, lens holding members 31 and 37 are fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the inner sleeve 51, and the outer peripheral surface on the rear end side (the side opposite to the front in the observation direction of the observation image and indicating the right side in the drawing) is the holder. 17 is fixed.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the lens holding members 31, 33, 35, and 37 in the inner sleeve 51.
The lens holding members 33 and 35 are molded products made of a resin material or the like, and slide on the side surfaces opposite to the pins 41 and 43 engaged with the cam grooves 45 and 47 (see FIGS. 1 and 3), respectively. Portions 55 and 57 are provided. The sliding portions 55 and 57 are provided so as to protrude outward in the radial direction integrally with the lens holding members 33 and 35. The tips of the sliding portions 55 and 57 are inserted into the guide groove 53 of the inner sleeve 51, and slide in the optical axis direction in response to a zooming operation.

  The cam tube 49 is slidably provided on the outer periphery of the inner sleeve 51, and has a cylindrical gear portion 59 formed along the circumferential direction at the front end region of the outer peripheral surface in the front of the observation direction of the observation image. The cylindrical gear portion 59 meshes with the pinion gear 27 described above, and transmits the rotational driving force of the rotary motor 25 to the cam cylinder 49 via the pinion gear 27.

  When the cam cylinder 49 is rotationally driven by the pinion gear 27, the positions of the cam grooves 45 and 47 with which the pins 41 and 43 abut are changed according to the groove shape of the cam grooves 45 and 47, and the pins 41 and 43 are Move in the direction of the optical axis. In other words, the groove shapes of the cam grooves 45 and 47 are set so that the lens holding members 33 and 35 are moved to desired optical axis positions according to the rotation angle of the cam cylinder 49.

  The triangular prism 19 bends the optical axis of the lens barrel portion 15 at a right angle by the total reflection surface 19 a so that an optical image is formed on the image sensor 21.

  The circuit board 23 is connected to a flexible circuit board 30 on which electronic components 28 are mounted and lead wires 29 are soldered, and signals are exchanged between the image sensor 21 and the lens driving unit 13 and the outside. .

  According to the imaging apparatus 100 having the above-described configuration, when the rotation motor 25 is driven and the cam cylinder 49 is rotationally driven to a desired rotation angle in response to an operation by an operator or a command from a computer device programmed in advance, the cam cylinder 49 is rotated. The positions of the lens holding members 33 and 35 in the optical axis direction change according to the rotation angle of the lens and the shapes of the cam grooves 45 and 47, respectively. When these movable lenses L3 and L4 move in the optical axis direction, a zooming operation and a focusing operation are performed. In addition, the imaging element 21 is set with imaging conditions and imaging timing according to a command input in the same manner as described above.

  Since the imaging apparatus 100 having this configuration does not require the cam shaft to be disposed outside the lens axis, the imaging device 100 has an advantageous configuration for downsizing without causing problems such as pin fixation and cam groove depth limitations. In addition, since the cylindrical gear portion 59 is provided in the front end region of the outer peripheral surface in the front of the cam cylinder 49 in the observation direction, it extends from the position of the rotary motor 25 to the front end region where the cylindrical gear portion 59 of the cam cylinder 49 is disposed. Space is secured. If this space is used, a rotary motor having a longer overall length can be used, and the rotational driving force can be increased. When the rotational driving force of the rotary motor is increased, the rotational drive of the cam barrel 49 can be speeded up, and a more agile zooming operation and focusing operation are possible. Further, other members such as a reduction gear can be arranged in this space as necessary, and space efficiency is improved.

  In general, the lenses L1 to L5 are often designed to have a larger diameter as the lenses arranged at both ends in the optical axis direction, and a smaller diameter as a lens arranged in the middle. For this reason, the front position in the observation direction where the lenses L1 and L2 of the cam cylinder 49 are arranged has a larger diameter than the pinion gear 27 because the outer diameter is relatively large. As a result, in this configuration, the gear ratio between the cylindrical gear portion 59 and the pinion gear 27 is increased, and the rotation of the rotary motor 25 can be decelerated without a complicated mechanism.

  Further, since the cam grooves 45 and 47 are formed in the cam cylinder 49 having a large outer diameter, a large space for arranging the cam grooves 45 and 47 can be obtained, and a plurality of cam grooves for moving the movable lens can be arranged. Further, a wide movable range in the optical axis direction can be set for each movable lens.

  The lens holding members 33 and 35 that hold the movable lenses L3 and L4 slide on two protrusions (pins 41 and 43 and sliding portions 55 and 57), respectively, so that the sliding surface is minimized. Therefore, compared with the case where the entire outer periphery of the lens holding members 33 and 35 is slid, the sliding area is reduced, and the lens holding members 33 and 35 can be moved stably and smoothly.

  Further, since the movable lenses L3 and L4 are designed to have a relatively small diameter, even if the projections (41, 43, 55, 57) are provided on the outer periphery of the lens holding members 33, 35 for holding them, the lens holding members 33, The outermost diameter size of 35 can be kept small. Therefore, the lens barrel portion 15 can be maintained with a small diameter without increasing the diameter of the cam tube 49 and the inner sleeve 51 that cover the outer periphery of the lens holding members 33 and 35.

  FIG. 5 is a front view schematically showing an axial projection surface at the distal end of the insertion portion to be inserted into the body cavity of the endoscope apparatus. At the distal end portion 61 of the insertion portion of the endoscope apparatus, an observation window 63 that is a lens L1, a pair of illumination windows 65 disposed on both sides of the observation window 63, and a nozzle opening toward the observation window 63 are disposed. An air supply / water supply nozzle 67 and a forceps port 69 are respectively disposed. Various pipe lines connected to each part are stored in the endoscope insertion part with high density along the axial direction.

  The imaging apparatus 100 is accommodated on the back side of the observation window 63 such that the observation window 63 in the insertion portion distal end portion 61 in the endoscope apparatus is positioned at the lens L1. At that time, the imaging device 100 is arranged in the direction in which the circuit board 23 is arranged on the outer peripheral edge side of the insertion portion distal end portion 61 from the observation window 63. By doing so, the outer peripheral side region DS of the insertion portion distal end portion 61 that was a dead space can be effectively used, and the space efficiency is improved.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the rear end of the rotary motor 25 is disposed in the front region of the image sensor 21 that normally becomes a dead space, preferably in the front region of the circuit board 23. By using this front region as a place where the rotation motor 25 and the pinion gear 27 are arranged, the rotation motor 25 and the pinion gear 27 overlap in the axial direction at the distal end portion of the insertion portion of the endoscope. Thereby, the axial direction projection area of the member accommodated in the insertion portion distal end portion is reduced, which can contribute to a reduction in the diameter of the insertion portion distal end portion 61.

Next, another configuration example of the imaging device will be described.
6 is an external perspective view of another imaging apparatus 200, FIG. 7 is a side view of the imaging apparatus 200 viewed from the direction V2 in FIG. 6, and FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB of the imaging apparatus 200 shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the holder 17 </ b> A of the imaging apparatus 200 having this configuration is an area where the rotation shaft 71 of the lens driving unit 13 is opposite to the circuit board 23 side with respect to the optical axis O of the lens barrel unit 15. The circuit board 23 is formed so as to be inclined from the substrate surface normal H by an angle φ (45 ° in the present configuration).

  In this way, even when the lens driving unit 13 is disposed at the outer peripheral position on the side opposite to the circuit board 23 of the imaging unit 11, the lens driving is performed in a dead space other than the outer peripheral region DS that is the dead space shown in FIG. The part 13 can be accommodated. Therefore, if the angle φ is arbitrarily selected according to the design of the insertion portion distal end portion of the endoscope apparatus, the lens driving portion 13 can be arranged in accordance with the dead space, and the space efficiency is improved.

  FIG. 8 is an explanatory view showing a developed view of the cam cylinder 49 and the cam grooves 45 and 47 of the cam cylinder 49. The cam cylinder 49 has cam grooves 45 and 47 corresponding to the number of movable lenses movable in the optical axis direction. The pins 41 and 43 provided in the lens holding members 33 and 35 are inserted into the cam grooves 45 and 47, and the pins 41 and 43 are moved in the optical axis direction according to the rotation operation of the cam cylinder 49. By providing a plurality of cam grooves having different shapes, it is possible to individually set movements in the optical axis direction for the plurality of movable lens groups.

  In the cam cylinder 49 of this configuration, buffer regions W1 and W2 extending in a direction orthogonal to the optical axis direction are provided in a part of the cam grooves 45 and 47 in the same rotation angle range. When the pins 41 and 43 are within the range of the buffer areas W1 and W2, the pins 41 and 43 do not move in the optical axis direction even when the cam cylinder 49 rotates. Thereby, the rotation error of the rotary motor is absorbed, and the axial positions of the pins 41 and 43, that is, the optical axis positions of the movable lenses L3 and L4 can be accurately matched.

  The buffer areas W1 and W2 are provided in any groove position between the minimum magnification position and the maximum magnification position, for example, for an intermediate magnification shooting mode between the minimum magnification and the maximum magnification. Observation at an intermediate magnification can be performed with a simple operation. In other words, according to the use and purpose of the endoscope device operator, such as a high magnification observation mode with a narrow depth of field with a single endoscope device and an intermediate magnification observation mode with a relatively wide depth of field. The observation mode can be easily used properly and the convenience of the surgeon can be improved.

  In this configuration, buffer areas W1 and W2 are provided at two locations, and for example, W1 corresponds to the standard observation mode and W2 corresponds to the intermediate magnification observation mode. According to this, the frequently used standard observation mode can be maintained without changing the photographing magnification even if the rotational position of the rotary motor 25 is shifted, and when returning from the other observation mode to the standard observation mode. Even if the rotational position shift occurs, it can be surely changed to the standard observation mode.

  Further, when the surgeon of the endoscope apparatus performs a zooming operation and the cam cylinder 49 is continuously driven to rotate in one direction, the buffer areas W1 and W2 provided in the cam grooves 45 and 47 are formed in the cam cylinder 49. When a specific zoom magnification is reached during rotation, the zoom magnification is fixed for a certain period. Thereby, the operator of the endoscope apparatus can gaze at the subject at a zoom magnification suitable for observation, and can prompt the operator to observe the state of the subject in more detail.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and the configurations of the embodiments may be combined with each other, or may be modified or applied by those skilled in the art based on the description of the specification and well-known techniques. The invention is intended and is within the scope of seeking protection. For example, the cylindrical gear portion is formed over the entire circumference of the cam cylinder, but may be formed on a part of the circumference. Further, the cylindrical gear portion may be configured to provide a gear on another member and transmit the rotational force from the gear to the cylindrical gear portion, in addition to being directly provided on the cam barrel. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the movable lens is mainly described as a lens for zooming operation, but the present invention can also be applied to a lens for focusing operation.

As described above, the following items are disclosed in this specification.
(1) Imaging having a lens barrel portion that performs zooming operation of an observation image by moving at least one group of movable lenses along the lens optical axis, and an imaging element that images the observation image obtained through the movable lens An imaging device having a section,
A lens holding member that holds the movable lens and has a protruding portion that protrudes outward in the radial direction of the movable lens;
A cylindrical cam cylinder having a cam groove engaging with a protrusion of the lens holding member on a peripheral surface, the lens holding member being accommodated coaxially with the lens optical axis;
A lens driving unit disposed outside the optical axis of the lens for driving the cam cylinder to rotate,
The cam cylinder has a cylindrical gear portion formed along the circumferential direction of the cam cylinder at the outer peripheral surface tip region in the observation direction front of the observation image.
The lens driving unit is disposed in front of the imaging element with respect to the imaging element, and rotationally drives the cam cylinder via the cylindrical gear unit to move the movable lens along the cam groove.
(2) The imaging apparatus according to (1),
The lens driving unit is an image pickup apparatus arranged in front of the observation direction from a circuit board on which the image pickup element is mounted.
(3) The imaging device according to (1) or (2),
The lens driving unit is an imaging device that is a rotary motor.
(4) The imaging apparatus according to any one of (1) to (3),
The lens barrel has a guide groove along the optical axis direction,
The lens holding member is an imaging apparatus having a sliding portion that protrudes outward in the radial direction of the movable lens and has a tip inserted into the guide groove.
(5) The imaging apparatus according to any one of (1) to (4),
The imaging device having the number of the cam grooves corresponding to the number of groups of the movable lenses.
(6) The imaging apparatus according to any one of (1) to (5),
A first optical member having a larger diameter than the movable lens is disposed in front of the lens holding member in the observation direction,
A second optical member having a larger diameter than the movable lens is disposed behind the lens holding member opposite to the front in the observation direction,
An imaging apparatus in which the cam cylinder is disposed between the first optical member and the second optical member so as to cover the lens holding member.
(7) The imaging apparatus according to any one of (1) to (6),
The image pickup apparatus, wherein the cam cylinder has a buffer region extending in a direction orthogonal to the lens optical axis direction within a range from a start point to an end point of the cam groove.
(8) The imaging apparatus according to (7),
The said cam groove is an imaging device which has the said buffer area | region in two places.
(9) An endoscope apparatus comprising the imaging device according to any one of (1) to (8) at a distal end portion of an endoscope insertion portion.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Image pick-up part 13 Lens drive part 15 Lens barrel part 17 Holder 21 Image pick-up element 23 Circuit board 25 Rotation motor 27 Pinion gear 31, 33, 35, 37 Lens holding member 41, 43 Pin 45, 47 Cam groove 49 Cam cylinder 51 Inner sleeve 53 Guide groove 55, 57 Projection part 59 Cylindrical gear part 61 Insertion part front end 100, 200 Imaging device O Optical axis L1, L2, L3, L4, L5 Lens DS Outer peripheral side area W1, W2 Buffer area

Claims (9)

A lens barrel unit that performs zooming operation of an observation image by moving at least one group of movable lenses along the lens optical axis, and an imaging unit that includes an imaging element that captures the observation image obtained through the movable lens. An imaging device,
A lens holding member that holds the movable lens and has a protruding portion that protrudes outward in the radial direction of the movable lens;
A cylindrical cam cylinder having a cam groove engaging with a projection of the lens holding member on a peripheral surface, the lens holding member being accommodated coaxially with the lens optical axis;
A lens driving unit disposed outside the optical axis of the lens for driving the cam barrel to rotate,
The cam cylinder has a cylindrical gear portion formed along the circumferential direction of the cam cylinder at the outer peripheral surface tip region in the observation direction front of the observation image,
The lens driving unit is disposed in front of the imaging element with respect to the imaging element, rotationally drives the cam cylinder via the cylindrical gear unit, and moves the movable lens along the cam groove. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1,
The lens driving unit is an image pickup apparatus arranged in front of the observation direction from a circuit board on which the image pickup element is mounted. The imaging device according to claim 1 or 2,
The lens driving unit is an imaging apparatus which is a rotary motor. An imaging apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The lens barrel has a guide groove along the optical axis direction,
The lens holding member is an image pickup apparatus having a sliding portion that protrudes outward in the radial direction of the movable lens and has a tip inserted into the guide groove. An imaging apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein
The imaging device having the number of the cam grooves corresponding to the number of groups of the movable lenses. An imaging apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
A first optical member having a larger diameter than the movable lens is disposed in front of the observation direction of the lens holding member,
A second optical member having a larger diameter than the movable lens is disposed behind the lens holding member opposite to the front in the observation direction;
An imaging apparatus in which the cam cylinder is disposed between the first optical member and the second optical member so as to cover the lens holding member. The imaging apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The image pickup apparatus, wherein the cam cylinder includes a buffer region extending in a direction orthogonal to the lens optical axis direction within a range from a start point to an end point of the cam groove. The imaging apparatus according to claim 7,
The cam groove has the buffer area at least at two places.   An endoscope apparatus comprising the imaging device according to any one of claims 1 to 8 at a distal end portion of an endoscope insertion portion.

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