JP5159580B2 - Imaging device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an AF sensor position adjustment mechanism in an imaging apparatus.

  Conventionally, various methods for measuring the distance from a camera to a subject by installing an AF sensor unit outside the imaging optical system have been developed. As a typical example, there is a passive AF method that uses two lenses and two distance measuring image sensors and performs measurement based on the principle of triangulation. In this case, it is necessary to adjust the orientations of the two pairs of optical systems by inclining a predetermined angle with respect to the optical axis direction of the imaging lens, and fix them to the apparatus. This is so-called parallax adjustment (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  Further, there has been proposed one in which the adjustment axis direction of the horizontal adjustment mechanism for parallax adjustment and the adjustment axis direction of the vertical adjustment mechanism are set in the same direction. 6 is an external view (three views) of the AF sensor mounting portion according to the conventional example viewed from the front side, side surface, and lower surface side, and FIG. 7 is an external view (perspective view) of the AF sensor mounting portion according to the conventional example viewed from the lower surface side. Figure).

In the above figure, 1 is an AF sensor unit, 2 is a lens unit for photographing which is a fixed cylinder constituting an imaging lens barrel, 103 is an eccentric pin for horizontal adjustment, 104 is a vertical adjustment screw, 5 is a fixing screw, 18 is This is an attachment portion of the AF sensor unit 1 to the lens unit 2. Reference numeral 122 denotes a horizontal adjustment axis direction that is adjusted by rotating the horizontal adjustment eccentric pin 103, 123 is a vertical adjustment axis direction that is adjusted by rotating the vertical adjustment screw 104, and 125 is arranged close to the imaging lens, and AF The circuit board is arranged in parallel with the horizontal direction of the sensor unit 1. A hatched portion 125a is a cutout portion of the circuit board 125 which becomes a space for rotationally adjusting the horizontal adjustment eccentric pin 103 and the vertical adjustment screw 104.
JP 2001-208536 A

  Conventionally, horizontal and vertical adjustment shafts are generally installed in the vertical direction. In relation to the position of the circuit board, the board is generally arranged on the opposite side to the adjustment direction, and the conventional example does not mention any position relation with the board.

  However, when considering downsizing of the imaging device, it is effective to arrange the AF sensor unit at any of the four corners of the imaging lens, and it is also necessary to arrange a circuit board in the vicinity thereof.

  In the above-described conventional example, the notch portion 125a of the circuit board 125, which is a space for rotational adjustment of the horizontal adjustment eccentric pin 103 and the vertical adjustment screw 104, is required, so that the shortage of the board area is put in another place. It is necessary to secure. As a result, there is a problem that the substrate outer shape becomes large, resulting in poor substrate material collection efficiency and wasteful notch space, which increases the cost of the substrate and increases the size of the product itself. .

  The present invention has been invented to solve the above problems by the following means.

A fixed cylinder constituting the imaging lens barrel, comprising: a AF sensor unit attached via the attachment portion, a circuit board disposed in proximity to the fixed tube to the fixed tube, the fixed tube the AF sensor unit horizontal adjustment mechanism for adjusting the horizontal direction against the, and an imaging apparatus having a vertical adjusting mechanism for adjusting the vertical direction, the adjustment axis of the horizontal adjustment mechanism, and adjustment shaft in the vertical direction adjusting mechanism Are arranged so that the directions of the respective adjustment axes are the same and parallel to the surface of the circuit board.

In yet another invention, comprising a fixed cylinder constituting the imaging lens barrel, an AF sensor unit attached to the fixed cylinder via an attachment portion, and a circuit board disposed in proximity to the fixed cylinder, An imaging apparatus including a horizontal adjustment mechanism that adjusts the AF sensor unit in a horizontal direction with respect to the fixed cylinder, and a vertical adjustment mechanism that adjusts the AF sensor unit in the vertical direction, the adjustment axis of the horizontal adjustment mechanism, and the vertical The adjustment axes of the direction adjustment mechanism are arranged so that the directions of the respective adjustment axes are the same direction and are parallel to the horizontal direction of the AF sensor unit .

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a substrate arrangement that can be miniaturized in an imaging apparatus including an AF sensor unit that needs to be adjusted in the horizontal and vertical directions with respect to the imaging lens barrel. it can.

  Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described.

  1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, and FIG. 5 are views showing a lens unit of a video camera having an AF sensor according to the first embodiment. 1 is an external perspective view of the AF sensor mounting portion as viewed from the front side and the side surface, FIG. 2 is an external perspective view of the AF sensor mounting portion as viewed from the bottom surface side, and FIG. It is the external appearance three side view seen from the lower surface side. 4 is an exploded view of the AF sensor mounting portion, and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the AF sensor mounting portion taken along the cross-sectional line AA in FIG.

  In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes an AF sensor unit, and 2 denotes a photographing lens unit which is a fixed cylinder constituting an imaging lens barrel. 3 is a vertical adjusting eccentric pin that is a vertical adjusting mechanism, 4 is a horizontal adjusting screw that is a horizontal adjusting mechanism, 5 is a fixing screw, 6 is a leaf spring, 7 is a spectacle lens, 8 is an AF sensor holder, and 9 is a washer. It is. Also, 10 is an AF unit holder, 11 is an AF sensor, 12 is a flexible substrate, 13 is an eccentric pin boss, 14 is a vertical adjustment screw boss, 15 is a fixing screw boss, 16 is an adjustment direction, 17 is an elongated hole, 18 Is an attachment portion installed integrally with the AF unit holder 10. Here, the mounting portion 18 is made of an elastic member such as resin or metal. Reference numeral 19 denotes a mounting seat that is installed integrally with the lens unit 2, and the eccentric pin boss 13, vertical adjustment screw boss 14, and fixing screw boss 15 are installed together. Reference numeral 20 denotes a screw penetration hole (a), and 21 denotes a screw penetration hole (b).

  Reference numeral 22 denotes an adjustment axis direction of a vertical rotation jig for rotating the eccentric pin 3 for adjusting the vertical inclination, and reference numeral 23 denotes a horizontal rotation jig for rotating the horizontal adjustment screw 4 for adjusting the horizontal inclination. This is the adjustment axis direction.

  Reference numeral 25 denotes a circuit board of the camera body arranged in the vicinity of the imaging lens, and is mounted with a control circuit for controlling information from the AF sensor, a lens unit for photographing, and the like.

Here, referring to FIG. 4, the component configuration in the first embodiment will be described.
First, the configuration of the AF sensor unit 1 will be described.

  First, the eyeglass lens 7 is bonded and fixed to the lens holder 10. At this time, the eyeglass lens 7 and the lens holder 10 are manufactured with a predetermined accuracy, and position adjustment is not particularly required.

  On the other hand, the AF sensor holder 8 is a box-shaped resin member, and the AF sensor 11 is bonded and fixed at a predetermined position. The AF sensor 11 is mounted on a flexible substrate 12, and the flexible substrate 12 is connected to a circuit board 25 (FIGS. 1, 2, and 3) of the camera body.

  Further, the AF sensor holder 8 to which the AF sensor 11 is bonded and fixed is bonded and fixed to the lens holder 10 via a focus adjusting washer 9. At this time, the position is adjusted in order to align the optical axis of the spectacle lens 7 and the center of the AF sensor 11, and then the bonding is performed. Although details of this adjustment method are not described, it is a general method to place a chart in front of the eyeglass lens 7 and output the waveform of the AF sensor 11 from the flexible substrate 12 for adjustment. At this time, the focus adjusting washer 9 prepares several thicknesses, and selects the thickness by checking the waveform of the AF sensor 11 so that a good focus can be obtained. The AF sensor unit 1 is completed through the above steps.

Next, a method for fixing the AF sensor unit 1 to the lens unit 2 will be described.
Here, when considering miniaturization, it is efficient to dispose the AF sensor unit fixing portion at one of the diagonal four corners of the cylindrical imaging lens barrel.

In this embodiment, a case where a fixed portion is arranged on the lower left side when viewed from the front of the imaging lens barrel is shown.
The fixing portion 5 of the AF sensor unit 1 is passed through the plate spring 6 to the fixing screw boss 15 provided on the mounting seat 19 of the lens unit 2, and the fixing screw 5 is passed through the hole (a) 20 of the AF unit holder 10. The sensor unit 1 is fixed. Next, the vertical adjustment eccentric pin 3 is inserted into the hole of the eccentric pin boss 13 provided in the lens barrel through the long hole 17 of the AF unit holder 10. At this time, the eccentric pin 3 and the hole are light press-fitting fits, and once inserted, they do not come out easily, but the rotation direction can be rotated with a light force.

  Further, the horizontal adjustment screw 4 is inserted into the hole of the horizontal adjustment screw boss 14 provided in the lens barrel through the hole (b) 21 of the AF unit holder 10 and tightened by a predetermined amount. Here, the hole (b) 21 is a loose hole having a sufficient gap with respect to the diameter of the screw, and is a gap that can sufficiently satisfy the adjustment amount in the vertical adjustment described later.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the leaf spring 6 is configured to always urge the lens holder 10 in the <+ Z> direction (FIG. 1).

  The circuit board 25 is arranged on a plane parallel to the horizontal direction (XZ plane) of the AF unit so that a large area can be secured below the imaging lens barrel 2. With this configuration, there is no interference with the vertical rotation jig from the axial direction 22 of the vertical rotation jig and the horizontal rotation jig from the axial direction 23 of the horizontal rotation jig. Therefore, it is not necessary to cut out the circuit board 25 for the vertical rotation jig from the axial direction 22 of the vertical rotation jig and the horizontal rotation jig from the axial direction 23 of the horizontal rotation jig. When the substrate is cut out, the area of the substrate is insufficient. Therefore, it is necessary to increase the area in other portions, and it is necessary to increase the cost of the substrate and increase the outer shape of the product. However, since it is not necessary to cut out the substrate in the present invention, the substrate area can be used effectively, and the outer shape of the product can be reduced without increasing the cost of the substrate.

  In the above configuration, the parallax adjustment method will be described with reference to FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.

  First, by rotating the eccentric pin 3 with the vertical rotation jig from the axial direction 22 of the vertical rotation jig, the AF sensor unit 1 is adjusted for the inclination in the θ1 direction (vertical inclination) on the XY plane. . Here, the eccentric pin 3 has a shape in which the center of the eccentric pin head portion and the center of the lower shaft are shifted by a predetermined amount. For this reason, by rotating the eccentric pin 3 with the vertical rotation jig, the portion of the eccentric pin head pushes the elongated hole 17 of the AF unit holder 10 and the elongated hole 17 portion is displaced by δ1 in the arrow direction. Therefore, the AF sensor unit 1 rotates by δθ1 around the center of the fixing screw 5 (coordinate origin 0). At this time, the AF sensor unit 1 is already fastened to the mounting seat 19 by the fixing screw 5. However, since the rotation center in the θ1 direction is the same as the center position of the fixing screw 5, the eccentric pin 3 is rotated with a relatively light torque. Is possible.

  Next, the horizontal adjustment screw 4 is rotated with the horizontal rotation jig from the axial direction 23 of the horizontal rotation jig to adjust the inclination of the AF sensor unit 1 in the θ2 direction (horizontal inclination) on the XZ plane. Do. At this time, when the horizontal adjustment screw 4 is rotated in FIG. 5, the mounting portion 18 is pushed by the head portion of the horizontal adjustment screw 4 and slightly moves in the arrow direction by δ2. Accordingly, the fixing screw fastening portion (XY origin 0) in FIG. 5 is used as a fulcrum, and the δθ2 is slightly bent as shown by the dotted line, and the entire AF sensor unit can be rotated to adjust in the θ2 direction. Note that the initial shape of the attachment portion 18 in a state where the horizontal adjustment screw 4 is removed is a shape indicated by a two-dot chain line, that is, a slightly upward shape in the drawing. Therefore, it is possible to adjust upward in the drawing. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the above-described leaf spring 6 always urges the lens holder 10 upward in the drawing, and this operation will be described. Basically, since the adjustment amount δ2 is very small, the adjustment mechanism can be established only by the elasticity of the mounting portion 18. However, if the adjustment mechanism is left at a high temperature or is dropped or vibrated, the mounting portion 18 is slightly creeped or deformed. Occurs, causing a slight positional shift of the AF sensor. Accordingly, the leaf spring 6 is essential when the AF sensor needs to be positioned with high accuracy, such as a camera having a telephoto lens.

  Finally, a screw lock adhesive is applied to the heads of the vertical adjustment eccentric pin 3, the horizontal adjustment screw 4, and the fixing screw 5 to restrict rotational deviation due to vibration drop, and the adjustment is completed. Regarding the application of the screw lock adhesive, since the AF unit position does not move unless the screw is adjusted after adjustment, there is no need to wait for the adhesive to harden, and the process time does not increase.

With the above configuration, according to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.
The circuit board 25 is disposed on a plane parallel to the horizontal direction (XZ plane) of the AF unit, and the vertical rotation jig from the axial direction 22 of the vertical rotation jig and the axial direction of the horizontal rotation jig. 23 does not interfere with the horizontal rotation jig from No. 23. Therefore, it is not necessary to cut out the circuit board 25 for the vertical rotation jig from the axial direction 22 of the vertical rotation jig and the horizontal rotation jig from the axial direction 23 of the horizontal rotation jig. When the substrate is cut out, the area of the substrate is insufficient. Therefore, it is necessary to increase the area in other portions, and it is necessary to increase the cost of the substrate and increase the outer shape of the product. However, since it is not necessary to cut out the substrate in the present invention, the substrate area can be used effectively, and the outer shape of the product can be reduced without increasing the cost of the substrate.

External perspective view of AF sensor mounting portion according to the first embodiment Another external perspective view of the AF sensor mounting portion according to the first embodiment Three-sided appearance of AF sensor mounting portion according to the first embodiment Exploded view of AF sensor mounting portion according to the first embodiment Sectional drawing of AF sensor attachment part by 1st Example Three-sided external view of AF sensor mounting part according to conventional example External perspective view of AF sensor mounting portion according to conventional example

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 AF sensor unit 2 Lens unit 3 Eccentric pin for vertical adjustment 4 Horizontal adjustment screw 5 Fixing screw 6 Leaf spring 7 Glasses lens 8 AF sensor holder 9 Washer 10 AF unit holder 11 AF sensor 12 Flexible board 13 Eccentric pin boss 14 Vertical adjustment Screw boss 15 Fixing screw boss 16 Adjustment direction 17 Long hole 18 Mounting portion 19 Mounting seat 20 Screw penetration hole (a)
21 Screw through hole (b)
22 Axial direction of vertical rotating jig 23 Axial direction of horizontal rotating jig 25 Circuit board 103 Eccentric pin for horizontal adjustment (conventional example)
104 Vertical adjustment screw (conventional example)
122 Axial direction of horizontal rotating jig (conventional example)
123 Axial direction of vertical rotation jig (conventional example)
125 Circuit board (conventional example)
125a Notch of circuit board 125 (conventional example)

Claims (2)

A fixed cylinder constituting the imaging lens barrel, comprising: a AF sensor unit attached via the attachment portion, a circuit board disposed in proximity to the fixed tube to the fixed tube, the fixed tube the AF sensor unit horizontal adjustment mechanism for adjusting the horizontal direction against the, and an imaging apparatus having a vertical adjusting mechanism for adjusting the vertical direction, the adjustment axis of the horizontal adjustment mechanism, and adjustment shaft in the vertical direction adjusting mechanism Is arranged so that the directions of the respective adjustment axes are the same and parallel to the surface of the circuit board. A fixed cylinder that constitutes the imaging lens barrel; an AF sensor unit that is attached to the fixed cylinder via a mounting portion; and a circuit board that is disposed in proximity to the fixed cylinder, wherein the AF sensor unit is connected to the fixed cylinder An imaging device including a horizontal adjustment mechanism that adjusts horizontally and a vertical adjustment mechanism that adjusts vertically, wherein the adjustment axis of the horizontal adjustment mechanism and the adjustment axis of the vertical adjustment mechanism are The image pickup apparatus is arranged such that the directions of the adjustment axes are the same and are parallel to the horizontal direction of the AF sensor unit.

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