JP3049117B2 - Method and apparatus for taking out molded optical element - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for taking out a molded optical element which is fitted to a conveying member and molded.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, the following invention has been disclosed as a method for releasing an optical element formed by fitting a molding material into a conveying member from the conveying member.

For example, in the invention described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-56326, as shown in FIG.
And when the conveying member 72 reaches a required temperature together with the molding optical element 71, a gap is formed between the conveying member 72 and the molding optical element 71 due to a difference in thermal expansion and contraction so that the fitting is loosened. Determined in consideration of dimensions.

At the time of molding, the molding material or the molding optical element 71 is fitted and held by the conveying member 72, but after molding, the conveying member 72 and the molding optical element 71 change to a required temperature, and the respective heat A gap is formed between the two members due to the difference in expansion and contraction, the fitting is loosened, and the molded optical element 71 is free from the transport member 72.

[0005]

However, in the prior art, the difference between the linear expansion coefficients of the molding optical element 71 and the conveying member 72 causes the gap between the conveying member 72 and the molding optical element 71 to be utilized by utilizing a gap generated when both are cooled. Take out.

[0006] However, in the molding of a small-diameter optical element, the gap generated during the cooling becomes extremely small, making it impossible to substantially remove the optical element.

For example, a heating temperature of 750 is determined by a combination of a material SK11 (linear expansion coefficient: 8 × 10 ⁻⁶ ) of a molding optical element and a material WC alloy (linear expansion coefficient: 6.6 × 10 ⁻⁶ ) of a conveying member.
When cooled to 150 ° C. after molding at
The gap formed between the molding optical element 71 and the molding optical element 71 is 4.5 μm in the case of a molding optical element having a diameter of 5 mm, compared to 18 μm in the case of a molding optical element having a diameter of 20 mm. Is almost impossible to remove from the transport member 72.

FIG. 12 shows a state in which the gap between the conveying member 72 and the molding optical element 71 is small. When the molding optical element 71 is to be taken out from the conveying member 72 in the above state, the molding optical element 71 bites on the inner surface of the conveying member 72 as shown in FIG. 13, or the molding optical element 71 is damaged as shown in FIG. There is a problem.

Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and even if the molding optical element 71 has a small diameter, the molding optical element 71 can be taken out of the transport member 72 without being damaged. An object of the present invention is to provide a method and an apparatus for taking out a molded optical element.

[0010]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method of taking out a molded optical element whose outer peripheral surface is fitted and held in a carrying member from the carrying member. This is a method of rapidly heating to form a gap between the inner surface of the conveying member and the outer peripheral surface of the molding optical element, and then taking out the molding optical element from the inside of the conveying member.

Further, according to the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for taking out a molded optical element whose outer peripheral surface is fitted and held in a carrying member from the carrying member. The apparatus includes means for forming a gap between the inner surface of the member and the outer peripheral surface of the molding optical element, and means for removing the molding optical element from the inside of the transport member.

[0012]

Embodiment 1 Before describing a specific embodiment of the present invention, an outline of an apparatus for taking out a molded optical element according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3 are conceptual diagrams of an apparatus used for a method for taking out a molded optical element according to the present invention.

Reference numeral 1 denotes a molded optical element. The molded optical element 1 is placed inside a substantially cylindrical conveying member 2. A heating source 3 for heating the conveying member 2 is provided near the outer periphery of the conveying member 2. A molding optical element take-out means 4 that can move up and down is provided below the transport member 2.

The molded optical element 1 spreads in the outer peripheral direction, and is placed in the transport member 2 with almost no gap with respect to the inner surface of the transport member 2 including the difference in shrinkage during cooling. The member 2 is installed in the heating source 3 (see FIG. 1).

The conveying member 2 is rapidly heated by the heating source 3, the inner diameter of the conveying member 2 is expanded by a thermal expansion effect, and the sticking of the molding optical element 1 is released. (See FIG. 2).

Subsequently, the forming optical element take-out means 4 installed below the conveying member 2 operates, and the forming optical element 1 is taken out of the conveying member 2. At this time, since an interval between the conveying member 2 and the molding optical element 1 is secured by the action of the heating source 3, an excessive load is not applied to the molding optical element 1,
The molded optical element 1 can be taken out without being damaged (see FIG. 3).

Next, a specific embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 to 6 are sectional views showing an apparatus used in the present embodiment.

Reference numeral 11 denotes a molding optical element take-out device, which comprises a heating unit 12, a take-out unit 13, a fixed plate 14, and a base 15.

The heating unit 12 has a transport member 16 on its inner periphery.
Has a substantially cylindrical shape so that can be stored. The heating unit 12 is provided on a base 15, and an induction heating coil 18 connected to a high-frequency power supply 17 is provided on the inner peripheral surface thereof.

A cylindrical hole 19 communicating with the through hole of the heating unit 12 penetrates through the base 15, and the take-out unit 13 is fitted into the cylindrical hole 19.

The take-out unit 13 comprises a guide tube 20 and a push-up shaft 21 which is fitted into the guide tube 20 and can move up and down. A cooling water conduit 23 through which cooling water 22 flows is provided inside the push-up shaft 21.

The fixing plate 14 has a pin 24
It is provided rotatably via.

The method of taking out the molded optical element using the apparatus having the above configuration is described in SK11 (linear expansion coefficient 8 × 1).
0 ^-6) carrier member 16 forming the optical element 25 having an outer diameter φ5mm is formed in the placed Fe-Mo alloy (coefficient of linear expansion 5.2 × 10 ^-6) inner peripheral portion of the heating unit 12 consisting of And, it is placed on the base 15. At this time, the molding optical element 25 is placed with a small gap (about 4 μm) with respect to the transport member 16 (see FIG. 4).

Then, the fixing plate 14 is rotated and the transport member 1 is rotated.
6 is pressed down. Next, the induction heating coil 18 is energized by the high-frequency power supply 17 and has a frequency of 10 kHz and a voltage of 40 kHz.
A high-frequency voltage of 0 V and an output of 30 kW is applied, and the conveying member 1
6 is rapidly heated to 800 ° C. in 2 seconds.

Then, the conveying member 16 and the forming optical element 25
Instantaneously becomes 750 ° C. Due to this rapid heating, the inner diameter 26 of the transport member 16 thermally expands and the transport member 1
A gap of 35 μm is formed between 6 and the shaping optical element 25 (see FIG. 5).

Subsequently, the push-up shaft 21 of the take-out unit 13 is raised by a drive source (not shown), and
6. The molded optical element 25 is taken out from 6. When the push-up shaft 21 rises, the cooling water 22 flowing inside the cooling water conduit 23
Reduces the effects of heat. Further, the displacement of the transport member 16 is prevented by the fixing plate 14 (see FIG. 6).

As described above, according to this embodiment, the conveying member 1
By forming a sufficient gap between the molding optical element 6 and the molding optical element 25, the molding optical element can be taken out without being damaged at the time of taking out.

[0028]

[Embodiment 2] FIGS. 7 to 10 are partial sectional views of an apparatus used in this embodiment.

Reference numeral 31 denotes a molding optical element take-out device, and this molding optical element take-out device 31 comprises heating units 32 and 2.
Laser oscillation unit 33, take-out unit 34,
It is composed of a holding plate 35 and a baize unit 36.

The heating unit 32 has a substantially cylindrical shape and is formed so that the transport member 37 can be stored in the inner peripheral portion. The heating unit 32 is installed on the base 38 of the base unit 36, and a through hole 40 is formed on the cylindrical wall surface of the heating unit 32 at a position facing the mounting position of the forming optical element 39 of the conveying member 37 in the circumferential direction 8 or the like. Eight pieces are drilled in a minute sense.

In each through hole 40, a laser light focusing lens 4 is provided.
1 and an optical fiber 42, and an optical fiber 4
2 is fixed by a fixed O-ring 43 at the entrance of the through hole 40, and the other end of the optical fiber 42 is connected to the laser oscillation unit 33.

The laser oscillation unit 33 has two units, and the laser oscillation unit 33 has a Y output of 2 KW.
It comprises an AG laser oscillation source 44, a beam splitter 45, and an optical connector 46. The end of the optical fiber 42 is connected to the optical connector 46.

The base unit 36 has a through hole at the center for accommodating the take-out unit 34. A counterbore portion is provided on the upper part of the base unit 36, and a sealing member 47 made of butyl rubber is installed in the counterbore portion. The sealing member 47 has a ring shape having a through hole at a central portion having a size through which the push-up shaft 48 can be inserted.

The take-out unit 34 is composed of a guide tube 49 and a push-up shaft 48 inserted inside the guide tube 49 so as to be vertically movable. A packing 50 is provided on the inner surface of the upper end of the guide tube 49. Thrust shaft 48
Has a tubular shape having a through hole 51 at the center, and the through hole 51 communicates with an air supply source (not shown). A push-up member 52 made of a polyimide resin is attached to the upper end of the push-up shaft 48. The guide tube 49 and the push-up shaft 48 are respectively connected to independent drive sources (not shown) and can be moved up and down.

The holding plate 35 has a pin 53
The seal plate 54 is attached to the conveying member pressing portion of the pressing plate 35.

In the method of taking out the forming optical element using the apparatus having the above-described configuration, first, the carrying member 37 on which the forming optical element 39 is mounted is placed on the inner peripheral portion of the heating unit 32 and on the base 38. . The transport member 37 is made of WC (coefficient of linear expansion: 5.6 × 10 ⁻⁶ ), and has a laminated structure in which the formed optical element mounting portion is sandwiched between two heat insulating plates 55. The mounted optical element 39 is made of SK11 (linear expansion coefficient: 8 × 10 ⁻⁶ ) and has an outer diameter of φ5 mm. The molding optical element 39 is placed with a small gap (about 4 μm) with respect to the transport member 37.

The laser light oscillated from the YAG laser oscillation source 44 of the laser oscillation unit 33 is applied to the beam splitter 4.
At 5, the light is branched into four optical paths and transmitted to the fiber 42 via the optical connector 46. The laser beam transmitted to the optical fiber 42 is transmitted to the condenser lens 20 via the laser optical path 56 while repeating total reflection in the laser optical fiber 42, and then is condensed and irradiated to the transport member 37 (see FIG. 8).

The transmission, focusing, and irradiation of the laser light proceed simultaneously from one laser oscillation unit 33 to four optical paths.
Since two units 3 are provided, the condensing irradiation on the transport member 37 is performed simultaneously at eight locations.

By the simultaneous multi-point simultaneous irradiation, the conveying member 37 is
Is rapidly heated to 600 ° C. in 2 seconds, and the temperature difference between the conveying member 37 and the molding optical element 39 instantaneously becomes 550 ° C. Due to the rapid heating, the inner diameter of the conveying member 37 near the forming optical element mounting portion is thermally expanded, and a gap of 10 μm is formed between the conveying member 37 and the forming optical element 39.

The holding plate 35 rotates, and the sealing plate 5
4 tightly seals the upper surface of the transport member 37. Guide tube 4
9 and the push-up shaft 48 are raised, and the packing 50 is brought into close contact with the sealing member 47 of the base unit 36 to form the sealed space 57 with the guide tube 49. An evenly distributed pressure fluid (air) 58 is supplied from the through-hole 51 in the push-up shaft 48, and pushes the molding optical element 39 upward. When the molded optical element 39 is pushed upward by 1 to 2 mm, the supply of the equally distributed pressure fluid 58 is stopped (see FIG. 9).

The push-up shaft 48 continues to rise, and the push-up member 52 comes into contact with the molding optical element 39 pushed up by the uniform pressure fluid 58 and pushes it up further. When the molding optical element 39 comes into contact with the seal plate 54 of the holding plate 35, the raising of the push-up shaft 48 stops. At this time, the push-up member 52 and the seal plate 54
Since both are made of rubber and plastic, the molded optical element 39 can be taken out without damaging the molded optical element 39 (see FIG. 10).

According to this embodiment, since the laser beam is used as the heating source, it is possible to efficiently heat only the necessary portion of the conveying member. In addition, since an evenly distributed pressure fluid is also used in the initial stage of removal with the largest removal resistance,
It is possible to more reliably prevent the molded optical element from being damaged or adhered.

[0043]

As described above, according to the method and the apparatus for taking out a molded optical element according to the present invention, almost no gap is formed between the conveying member and the molded optical element even after cooling and shrinking after molding. Even in the case of a small optical element, the molded optical element can be taken out without damage by removing the molded optical element with the inner diameter expanded by heating the conveying member by the rapid heating means, and the quality in molding the optical element can be improved. Greatly contributes to improvement and automation.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing the first embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a partial sectional view showing a second embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a partial sectional view showing a second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a partial sectional view showing a second embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a partial sectional view showing a second embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a conventional example.

FIG. 12 is a sectional view showing a conventional example.

FIG. 13 is a sectional view showing a conventional example.

FIG. 14 is a sectional view showing a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Molding optical element 2 Conveying member 3 Heat source 4 Molding optical element take-out means

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A method for taking out a molded optical element whose outer peripheral surface is fitted and held in a carrying member from the carrying member, wherein the carrying member is rapidly heated, and the inner surface of the carrying member is A method for removing a molded optical element, comprising: forming a gap between the molded optical element and an outer peripheral surface of the molded optical element; 2. A device for taking out a molded optical element whose outer peripheral surface is fitted and held in a transport member from a transport member, wherein the transport member is rapidly heated to form an inner surface of the transport member. A device for taking out a molded optical element, comprising: means for forming a gap between the molding optical element and the outer peripheral surface; and means for taking out the molded optical element from inside the transport member.