JP2604942Y2 - Objective lens exchange mechanism - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an objective lens changing mechanism provided in an optical microscope and used for a function such as magnification switching.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 8 shows a basic configuration of a transmission illumination type optical microscope.

[0003] In this optical microscope, an eyepiece tube 2 is installed on the upper surface of the distal end of an arm 1 serving as a microscope main body, and a revolver 3 is supported at a position facing the eyepiece tube 2 on the lower surface of the arm. The revolver 3 includes a revolver main body and a turning ring, and holds a plurality of objective lenses 4 arranged in a circle around the turning ring. The rotation axis L1 of the turning ring is inclined by about 30 degrees with respect to the observation optical axis L2 of the microscope.

By rotating the rotation ring of the revolver 3 about the rotation axis L1, the objective lens 4 is selectively arranged on the observation optical axis L2, and magnification switching and the like can be performed.

Some revolvers 3 of optical microscopes have a positioning mechanism for positioning the objective lens 4 on the optical axis. FIG. 9 shows the configuration of a revolver having such a positioning mechanism, and FIG. 10 shows the details of the positioning mechanism. The revolver and the positioning mechanism shown in FIG. 1 are those described in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open Publication No. Sho 51-70545.

As shown in FIG. 1, a revolver main body 11 is fixed to a microscope main body, and a turning ring 1 is attached to the revolver main body 11.
2 are fitted. A press ring 13 engaged with the turning ring 12 is inserted between an outer peripheral portion of the revolver main body 11 and an inner peripheral portion of the turning ring 12.
Through the outer peripheral edge of the revolver main body 11.
A ball 14 is held at the center of rotation of the revolver body 11 and the turning ring 12, and a set screw 15 is inserted into the ball 14 from the back side of the revolver body 11.
Is pressed with a predetermined force. With the above structure,
The turning ring 12 is attached to the revolver body 11 with the balls 13, 1
4, it is held rotatably without swinging.

Further, as shown in FIG. 10, the positioning mechanism includes a click ball 16 attached to a tip end of a click spring 16 having a base end portion fixed to the revolver main body 11 by bonding or the like.
Is fixed, and the click ball 16 is pressed against the circumference of the rotating ring 12. A click groove 18 is formed on the circumference of the turning ring 12 so as to correspond to the mounting position of the objective lens.

In the above positioning mechanism, when the objective lens comes near the optical axis with the rotation of the rotation ring 12, the click groove 1
The click ball 16 is dropped into 8. as a result,
The turning ring 12 is fixed without swinging by the pressing force of the click spring 16, and the objective lens is positioned on the optical axis.

On the other hand, recently, not only observation of cells but also various cell operations (grasping, stabbing, injecting, cutting, etc.) have been performed by combining the above-mentioned optical microscope and micromanipulator.

FIG. 11 shows an arrangement example of an experimental apparatus in which an upright microscope and a micromanipulator are combined. In such an experimental apparatus, both the manipulator body 22 having the micropipette 21 and the objective lens held by the revolver need to be arranged close to the sample S mounted on the stage 23.

A controller 24 is connected to the manipulator main body 22, and converts the amount of rotation of the dials 25 a to 25 c provided in the controller 24 into minute linear motion and transmits the linear motion to the manipulator main body 22.

[0012]

In the experimental apparatus described above, when the revolver is rotated to switch the objective lens to a different magnification, the already mounted micromanipulator hinders the rotation of the revolver. In some cases, the rotated revolver or the objective lens comes into contact with a part of the micromanipulator, and the position of the micropipette shifts.

Further, in the positioning mechanism shown in FIG. 10, in order to obtain a restoring force for positioning, a pressing force is always applied to a click groove of a turning ring by a click spring when locked.
For this reason, a large vibration occurs when the click ball falls into the click groove. Due to this vibration, the tip of the pipette of the micropipette vibrates, and there is a possibility that cells to be operated come off.

The present invention has been made in view of the above situation, and has as its object to provide an objective lens exchange mechanism which can switch an objective lens without interfering with various parts arranged near a specimen. Aim.

[0015]

In order to achieve the above object, an objective lens exchange mechanism of the present invention includes a plurality of objective lenses, a fixing portion fixed to a microscope main body, an observation optical axis, and an observation light beam. A lens replacement member that holds the plurality of objective lenses in an arc so that the optical axes of the objective lenses intersect at a single point in a plane parallel to the axis; and
It can be moved in an arc shape in the arrangement direction of multiple objective lenses
So that the objective lens replacement member is supported by the fixing portion.
It is characterized by comprising a support member and a positioning mechanism for positioning one of the plurality of objective lenses on the observation optical axis. Further, the support member of the present invention is provided at a position where the optical axes of the objective lenses of the lens exchange member intersect at one point, and the support member can apply a pressing force to the lens exchange member and can be adjusted. Preferably, a further pressing member is further provided. Also, the positioning mechanism of the present invention is provided between the fixing part and the lens exchange member.
It is, preferably being adapted to independently perform fixing and releasing of the positioning and operation of the lens exchanging member.

[0016]

According to the objective lens changing mechanism of the present invention, a plurality of objective lenses are provided.
A lens exchange member in which lenses are arranged in an arc
By moving the object in an arc in the direction of the
So that one of the lenses is positioned on the observation optical axis
are doing. For this reason, the space occupancy is greatly reduced as compared with the case where the revolver is rotated in a plane orthogonal to the observation optical axis, and interference with various components arranged near the sample is also reduced.

Further , the support member of the present invention is a lens exchange section.
Pressing member at the position where the optical axis of each objective lens of the material crosses at one point
By providing a
Can give pressure. Also, the objective lens of the present invention
The exchange mechanism includes a positioning mechanism that includes a fixed portion and a lens exchange member.
Between the lens replacement member and the
The positioning can be fixed and released
You.

[0018]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. FIG. 1 shows an outline of a first embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an upright microscope, and FIGS. 2 to 4 show a configuration of a main part of the embodiment.

In the erecting microscope shown in FIG. 1, an eyepiece tube 31 is provided on an upper surface of a distal end portion 30a of an arm 30 serving as a microscope main body. Reference numerals 32a and 32b denote eyepieces attached to the eyepiece tube 31.

A mounting member 33 for a revolver is provided on the lower surface of the arm tip 30a facing the eyepiece tube 31.
Are detachably fixed by, for example, screws. The mounting member 33 has an opening 34 for an optical path that penetrates up and down at the center and a dovetail groove 35 at the lower surface. A fixing screw 36 screwed into the mounting member 33 from the side surface.
Can protrude from the side surface of the dovetail groove 35.

A fixing member 37 is detachably supported by the mounting member 33 through a dovetail groove 35. A lens replacing member 38 is mounted on the fixing member 37 in a predetermined direction, in this embodiment, from the observer side. It is supported rotatably in the front-back direction when viewed. The fixed member 37 and the lens exchange member 38 constitute an objective lens exchange mechanism. FIG. 2 shows the fixing member 3.
7 and a side view of the lens exchange member 38, and a cross section taken along line AA shown in FIG. 3 is shown in FIG.

The fixing member 37 is a box-shaped member having a trapezoidal side surface. Openings 40 a and 40 b are provided at the center of the upper surface and the lower surface of the fixing member 37 at positions concentric with the opening 34 of the mounting member 33. On the upper surface of the fixing member 37, as shown in FIG. 4, the outer shape is square, an opening circle is formed in the center, and a pair of opposing side surfaces is fitted into the dovetail groove 35. The formed engaging member 41 is arranged. This engagement member 41 is
With the opening aligned with the opening 40a, four screws 42a arranged squarely around the opening.
Are fixed to the upper surface of the fixing member by .about.42d. By fixing the engaging member 41 to the dovetail groove 35 of the mounting member 33, the fixing member 37 is fixed to the microscope main body side.

The lens exchange member 38 has a U-shape when viewed from the front, and has an objective lens OB on the bottom surface.
Two openings 43 for attaching the OB2 are formed along the rotation direction. A screw groove for attaching an objective lens is formed on the inner periphery of the opening 43.

Since the bottom surface of the lens exchange member 38 is bent at the center in the rotation direction, the two objective lenses OB1 and OB2 are arc-shaped in the rotation direction, that is, pass through an observation optical axis described later. It is held radially in the direction of rotation about the fulcrum.

A fixing member 37 is inserted through an upper opening of the lens exchange member 38, and the both sides of the lens exchange member 38 and the fixing member 37 are rotatably supported by fulcrum portions 44 and 45. The fulcrum portions 44 and 45 are provided between the ball receivers 46a and 46b on the fixed member 37 side, the ball receivers 47a and 47b on the lens replacement member 38 side, and between the fixed member 37 and the lens replacement member 38. Are constituted by balls 48a and 48b as supporting members. Each of the ball receivers 46a, 46b, 47a, 47b is made of a high-hardness material such as stainless steel, for example, and has a conical concave surface at its tip for holding the ball.

The one ball receiver 47b on the lens exchange member 38 side is used as a pressing member, and is externally screwed into a screw hole 49 formed on the side surface of the lens exchange member 38. By screwing the ball receiver 47b with a predetermined force, the lens exchange member 38
7 is held without swinging.

A through hole having a thread groove formed on the inner periphery is formed on one side surface below the lens exchange member 38, and a screwing means such as a multi-thread screw is formed on the outer periphery. The positioning shaft 52 is screwed. A lever 53 is fixed to one end of the positioning shaft 52. A conical concave surface for holding a positioning ball described later is formed on the end surface of the other end of the positioning shaft 52. The positioning shaft 52 and the lever 53 constitute a positioning member.

On the other hand, on the opposite side surface of the fixing member 37,
The positioning ball 5 is located at two positions on the arc through which the tip of the positioning shaft 52 passes and opposed to each other across the observation optical axis.
1a and 51b are held respectively. The positional relationship between the positioning balls 51a and 51b and the positioning shaft 52 is such that when the positioning ball 51a and the positioning shaft 52 face each other, the objective lens OB2 is positioned on the optical axis,
1b and the positioning axis 52 face each other when the objective lens OB
1 is located on the optical axis. That is, a plurality of positioning balls are arranged at the same distance and the same angle from the fulcrum portions 44 and 45 in accordance with the number of mountable objective lenses. These positioning shaft 52, lever 53, ball 51
a and 51b constitute a locking mechanism.

At the lower end of the lens exchange member 38, a knob 56 for moving the exchange member is provided. Further, on the side surface of the fixing member 37, a pair of movement restricting members 5 is provided so as to sandwich the optical axis below the fulcrum of the lens exchange member 38.
4, 55 are provided. The movement restricting members 54, 5
5 is a positioning ball 51 when the positioning member is tightened.
Is fixed at a position where the concave surface at the tip of the positioning shaft 52 is called.

In this embodiment constructed as described above, the objective lenses OB1, OB1,
When the OB2 is mounted, the objective lenses OB1 and OB2 are held at the same position from the fulcrum, that is, on an arc. The lens exchanging member 38 holding each objective lens has a fulcrum 44,
With the center at 45, the objective lens is moved in the arrangement direction of the plurality of objective lenses (the direction of arrow B shown in FIG. 2) in a plane including the observation optical axis.

For example, when the objective lens to be arranged on the optical axis is switched from OB1 (the state shown in FIG. 2) to OB2, the lever 53 of the positioning member is turned in the unlocking direction.
When the lever 53 is turned in the unlocking direction, the positioning shaft 52 is screwed in a direction away from the ball 51, and when the ball 51 is completely removed from the concave surface at the tip of the positioning shaft, the fixing of the lens exchange member 38 by the positioning member is released. Is done.

Next, the knob 56 is gripped and the lens exchange member 3
8 is operated to move the objective lens OB2 to the observation optical axis side. When the objective lens OB2 slightly passes the observation optical axis, the lens exchange member 38 comes into contact with the movement restricting member 55. When the lever 53 is rotated in the tightening direction in this state, the positioning shaft 52 is screwed toward the ball 52a, and the conical concave surface at the tip of the positioning shaft 52 calls the ball 52a to position the objective lens OB2 on the observation optical axis. Is done.
The same operation is performed when the objective lens arranged on the optical axis is switched from OB2 to OB1.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the mounting member 33
A lens exchange member 38 configured to hold a plurality of objective lenses is fixed to a fixing member 37 attached to the fulcrum portion 44,
45 to rotatably support the plane including the observation optical axis via 45,
Since a plurality of objective lenses are held on an arc along the direction of rotation, the space occupied by the switching of the objective lenses can be greatly reduced as compared with the conventional revolver type. As a result, it is possible to greatly reduce the possibility that the objective lens will interfere with various components arranged near the sample when the objective lens is switched.

Further, in this embodiment, the position of the lens exchange member 38 is regulated without using the elastic force of the spring, and the engagement is released without interlocking with the rotational movement of the lens exchange member 38. There is an advantage that almost no vibration occurs when the lens replacement member 38 is moved.

Further, according to the present embodiment, the movement restricting member 5
4, 55, and the positioning shaft 52 and the positioning balls 51a, 51b are aligned with each other. Therefore, there is no fear that the objective lens is positioned at a position shifted from the optical axis.

In the above embodiment, if the movement restricting member is made of a material that hardly transmits vibration, for example, an elastic body,
Propagation of vibration to a micropipette or the like can be further suppressed. Note that an elastic body may be formed only on the surface of the movement restricting member. Next, a modified example of the locking mechanism that engages with the lens exchange member to position the objective lens will be described with reference to FIG.

The positioning member 60 according to the present modification has a large diameter portion 61 having a diameter large enough to be easily rotated.
And a small diameter portion 62 having the same diameter as a through screw formed on the side surface of the lens exchange member 38. A cylindrical space is formed along the central axis of the positioning member 60, and an opening 62 a having a smaller diameter than the cylindrical space is formed at an end surface of the small diameter portion 62.
Are formed. In the cylindrical space, a ball receiving pin 63 having a conical concave surface for receiving the positioning ball 51 at the tip, an elastic body 64 for urging the ball receiving pin 63 toward the positioning pin, and an elastic body 64 Set screws 65 are arranged respectively.

A thread groove is formed on the outer periphery of the small-diameter portion 62, and the small-diameter portion 62 is screwed into a through hole on the side surface of the lens exchange member, as in the above-described embodiment. And small diameter part 6
The distal end of the ball receiving pin 63 protrudes from the second distal end opening 62a.

Gaps a and b are provided between the outer periphery of the ball receiving pin 63 and the inner surface of the cylindrical space, and between the outer periphery of the tip end of the ball receiving pin 63 and the inner periphery of the opening 62a. I have. The gaps a and b are the positioning balls 51
Is set so as to be larger than the positional deviation of

The length of the small diameter portion 62 in the axial direction is set so that the ball receiving pin 63 does not press the positioning ball 51 with an excessively large pressing force. That is, the length is such that the end surface of the large diameter portion 61 contacts the side surface 38a when the pressing force reaches a certain level.

In such a positioning member 60, when the large-diameter portion 61 is rotated in the tightening direction when the lens exchange member 38 comes into contact with the position regulating member, the positioning member 6 is rotated.
0 is screwed in the tightening direction. Thus, the concave end of the ball receiving pin 63 receives the positioning ball 51.

At this time, the positional deviation caused by the processing accuracy of the positioning ball 51 is absorbed by the above-mentioned gaps a and b, which are moved by the centripetal force by the deviation of the ball receiving pin 63. Then, the ball receiving pin 63 is pressed in the tightening direction by the pressing force of the elastic body 64, and the concave surface at the tip end of the ball receiving pin 63 engages with the positioning ball 51 to position the objective lens on the optical axis. Since the end surface of the large-diameter portion 61 is in contact with the side surface 38a to regulate the position, a constant pressing force is always applied to the positioning ball 51.

According to this modification, since excessive tightening can be prevented, the fixing member 37 can be prevented from being deformed by the positioning member, and the light of the objective lens caused by the deformation of the fixing member 37 can be prevented. There is no misalignment.

In addition, since the positioning member 51 is configured to absorb the positional deviation (variation in the distance from the fulcrum, etc.) of the positioning balls 51, it is possible to prevent the positioning member from being twisted and the replacement member from being deformed. Can be. Next, a reference example of the present invention will be described. FIGS. 6A and 6B show a reference example of the present invention , and this reference example is applied to the upright microscope shown in FIG.

In this embodiment , a fixing member 70 attached to the mounting member 33 of the microscope shown in FIG.
And a lens exchange member 71 movably supported in a plane including the observation optical axis.

The fixing member 70 has a plate shape that is long in one direction. An engaging member 72 that fits into the dovetail groove 35 of the mounting member 33 is provided on the upper surface of the fixing member 70 as in the first embodiment.
Are fixedly provided by a plurality of screws 73a to 73d (73c and 73d are not shown). On the lower surface of the fixing member 70, a dovetail groove 74 is formed in the longitudinal direction.

The lens replacement member 71 has a rectangular shape having a U-shaped cross section with an open upper surface. The dovetail grooves 74 on the lower surface of the fixing member are provided
Is formed. Further, two openings are formed on the bottom surface of the lens exchange member 71 in the dovetail forming direction corresponding to the mounting position of the objective lens. On the inner peripheral surface of each opening on the bottom surface of the lens replacement member 71, a multi-thread screw with little play and eccentricity is formed. Each holding member 76 having the same shape is screwed into each of these openings.

Each holding member 76 has a columnar optical path formed at the center and a flange 77 formed at the upper end. A screw groove for attaching an objective lens is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the tip of the holding member 76. A turning ring 78 is fixed to the outer periphery of the tip of the holding member 76. Each holding member 76 has such a length that a predetermined space is provided between the lower surface 71b of the lens exchange member 71 and the rotating ring 78 when the flange 77 is in contact with the bottom surface 71a of the lens exchange member 71. Have.

On the lower surface of the fixed member 70, when the objective lenses OB1 and OB2 held by the lens replacement member 71 come to a position on the observation optical axis, both ends in the moving direction of the lens replacement member 71 are provided. Stopper pins 79 that come into contact with each other are provided. Further, positioning holes 81a and 81b having a V-shaped cross section are formed on the side surface of the lens replacement member 71. Then, a positioning screw 82 is screwed in from the optical axis position on the side surface of the fixing member 70, and can be engaged with the V groove 81 located at the optical axis position.

The objective lenses OB1 and OB2 are held at the respective openings on the bottom surface of the lens exchange member 71 via the respective holding members 76. The objective lenses OB1 and OB2 are arranged on a straight line, and can move in the arrangement direction in a plane including the observation optical axis. This reference configured in this way
In the example , the plurality of objective lenses OB1 and OB2 are linearly held by the lens exchange member 71 via the respective holding members 76. The lens replacement member 71 is guided by the dovetail groove 74 of the fixing member 70 and moves in the direction in which the objective lenses are arranged. The lens replacement member 71 comes into contact with, for example, a stopper pin 79 and stops.

The lens replacement member 71 is connected to a stopper pin 79
When the positioning screw 82 is screwed into the side surface of the fixing member 70 in a state where the lens replacement member 7 is in contact with the lens replacement member 7, the tip of the positioning screw 82 is inserted into the positioning hole 81 a at the opposing position.
1, ie, the objective lens OB1 is positioned on the optical axis.

When replacing the objective lens, the turning ring 78 of the objective lens OB1 arranged on the optical axis is turned to move the holding member 76 upward (in the direction of arrow C in FIG. 6). This is because, as shown in FIG. 7, when observing the raw sample Sa placed in the petri dish 90, the objective lens OB1 must be raised to a position higher than the depth of the petri dish 90 and then horizontally moved unless the objective lens OB1 is moved. This is because the side wall 91 of the petri dish 90 gets caught. If the stage is lowered, the micromanipulators and the like that have been set up must be rearranged, which is troublesome.

Next, the positioning screw 82 is loosened, the lens replacement member 71 is again moved in the opposite direction along the dovetail groove 74 of the fixing member 70, and stopped when it comes into contact with another stopper pin. Then, the positioning screw 82 is screwed into the side surface of the fixing member 70, and the tip end of the positioning screw 82 is inserted into the positioning hole 81b at the opposing position.
B2 is positioned on the optical axis.

As described above, according to the present embodiment , the fixing member 70
Movably supports the lens exchange member 71 in the linear direction,
Since a plurality of objective lenses are held by the lens exchange member 71 in the direction of movement thereof, the space occupied by objective lens exchange can be reduced as compared with the conventional revolver-rotating type, as in the first embodiment. Further, since the lens replacement member 71 is fixed by the positioning screw 82 screwed from the fixing member 70, the occurrence of vibration at the time of positioning and at the time of releasing the positioning can be prevented, as in the first embodiment. . The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment,
Various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[0055]

As described above in detail, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide an objective lens changing mechanism capable of switching an objective lens without interfering with various components arranged near the specimen.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an objective lens changing mechanism according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the objective lens exchanging mechanism shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line AA shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a top view of the objective lens exchanging mechanism shown in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of a positioning member according to a modification.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view and a bottom view of the objective lens changing mechanism according to the reference example of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory view of an operation of the objective lens exchange mechanism according to the reference example of the present invention at the time of objective lens exchange.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a conventional optical microscope.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a revolver provided in a conventional optical microscope.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a positioning mechanism provided in a conventional optical microscope.

FIG. 11 is a schematic view of an experimental apparatus in which an optical microscope and a micromanipulator are combined.

Claims (3)

(57) [Scope of request for utility model registration] 1. A plurality of objective lenses, a fixing part fixed to a microscope main body, and the plurality of objective lenses intersecting at one point in a plane including an observation optical axis and parallel to the observation optical axis. A lens exchanging member that holds the objective lenses in an arc shape, and the lens exchanging member is arranged in a direction in which the plurality of objective lenses are arranged
The objective lens exchanging section so as to be movable in an arc shape
An objective lens exchange mechanism , comprising: a support member for supporting a member on the fixing portion ; and a positioning mechanism for positioning one of the plurality of objective lenses on the observation optical axis. 2. The support member is provided at a position where the optical axes of the objective lenses of the lens exchange member intersect at a single point. The support member applies a pressing force to the lens exchange member and adjusts it. Possible pressing members
2. The objective lens exchange mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising: 3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the positioning mechanism is provided between the fixing portion and the lens replacement member, and fixes and releases the positioning independently of the operation of the lens replacement member. 2. The objective lens exchange mechanism according to claim 1, wherein: