JPH08248323A - Aligning mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide an aligning mechanism which is not an obstacle at the time of executing operation other than aligning operation and by which the aligning operation is easily and surely executed without causing misalignment inadvertently. CONSTITUTION: This aligning mechanism 4 for a ring slit is provided with an operation member freely attached to/detached from a condenser lens and capable of being held and fixed in the condenser lens when it is attached, and a hexagon wrench part 26a arranged in the operation member and directly fitted in a screw so that plural screws 18 may be turned by a desired amount in a desired direction. The operation member is provided with a pair of cylindrical members 24 slidably holding an aligning knob 26, freely attached to/detached from a turret seat 4a, and held and fixed on the turret seat when it is attached; a fitting part 26c slidably held by the cylindrical member and supporting the hexagon wrench part so as to be freely fitted in/pulled out from the screw; and a compression coil spring 28 provided in the cylindrical member and always energizing the hexagon wrench part in a direction to separate from the screw.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a centering mechanism for an optical device such as a field stop of a microscope or a condenser lens.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a centering mechanism of this type, there is known a mechanism applied to a microscope turret condenser disclosed in, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 3-157609 (hereinafter referred to as first prior art). This first conventional technique is shown in FIG.
As shown in (a) and (b), a hollow cylindrical round dovetail portion 2 having a round dovetail 2a that can be attached to a microscope body (not shown) formed on the upper portion, and a round dovetail portion 2 attached to the lower portion The disk-shaped centering mechanism 4 for ring slits and the condenser lens portion 6 attached to the lower part of the centering mechanism 4 for ring slits are provided.

A disk-shaped turret seat 4a, to which a condenser lens portion 6 is screwed, is attached to the ring slit centering mechanism 4.
And a turret 4b rotatably arranged on the turret seat 4a, and a turret lid 4c for dustproofing the turret condenser and having a lower portion of the round dovetail portion 2 screwed thereto.
Are provided. The turret lid 4c is fastened to the turret seat 4a with screws 8 (see FIG. 7B).

As shown in FIG. 7B, the turret 4b
Has a hole 4d formed concentrically with the center of rotation R. The turret seat 4 is formed in the hole 4d.
The stepped rotary shaft 10 screwed into a is inserted. As a result, the turret 4b is restricted from moving in the thrust direction and the radial direction with respect to the rotation center R,
It is configured to be slidably rotatable around the rotary shaft 10. The turret 4b has a knurled portion 4 on its outer peripheral surface.
e is formed, and it becomes possible to rotate the turret 4b in a desired direction by operating the knurled portion 4e.

Further, the turret 4b is provided with a plurality of ring slits 12 which are located at the front focal plane position of the condenser lens portion 6 and are arranged concentrically with the rotation center R at regular intervals. These ring slits 12
Are appropriately selected and used for performing a phase-difference microscope corresponding to the aperture of the objective lens (not shown). Therefore, by rotating the turret 4b via the knurled portion 4e, a desired ring slit 12 is formed between the round dovetail portion 2 and the condenser lens portion 6 and the optical axis A is formed.
It is possible to selectively position the above.

Next, the ring slit centering mechanism 4 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG.
The plurality of ring slits 12 are respectively adhered and fixed to a plurality of ring slit frames 14 provided on the turret 4b, and these ring slit frames 14 are formed on the turret 4b concentrically with respect to the rotation center R, respectively. It is provided in the plurality of opened holes 4f.

The plurality of ring slit frames 14 are constantly urged in the direction of the optical axis A by the leaf springs 16, and the turret 4b resists the elastic force of the leaf springs 16 and the respective ring slits. A pair of screws 18 capable of pressing the frame 14 to the optical axis A are screwed together so as to be slidable in the optical axis A direction.
The screw holes 20 into which these screws 18 are screwed are respectively
The centering tool 22 is configured to be insertable, and specifically, the hexagonal wrench portion 22 provided at the tip of the centering tool 22.
a is inserted into the screw 18 through the screw hole 20, and the centering tool 2
By rotating 2 the ring slit frame 14 can be moved against the elastic force of the leaf spring 16 to center the ring slit 12.

[0008]

However, a general centering mechanism represented by the ring slit centering mechanism applied to the microscope turret condenser of the first prior art holds the centering tool 22. Since there is no means for fixing, the centering tool 22 will come off if the operating hand is inadvertently released.

In addition, for example, in the case of a microscope, there are a field stop, an aperture stop, an objective lens, a condenser lens, a lamp such as a light source, etc. as the centering adjustment part of the optical device. In general, centering adjustment of an optical device including optical components is often performed while looking through an eyepiece lens. In this case, the centering operation member such as the centering tool or the centering screw or the hand of the operator himself is not visible during the centering adjustment operation, and is in the so-called groping state, so the centering tool is erroneously If the hand is removed from the centering tool, the centering tool may come off the optical device. For this reason, in the case of an optical component having a high centering adjustment frequency such as the ring slit applied to the first conventional technique, the centering adjustment must be frequently performed every time the observation position or the objective lens is changed. Without it, the operability is extremely poor.

Further, in the case of the optical device using the turret type centering member as shown in the first prior art, the centering tool is left in a state in which the centering tool is fitted in the centering member. Interferes with the fixed portion (corresponding to the turret seat 4a in the case of a condenser lens), and the centered member cannot be slidably rotated. Therefore, each time the centered member is slidably rotated, the centering tool must be removed once, and the operability becomes extremely complicated. In particular, in the case of the ring slit applied to the first conventional technique, the size of the ring slit is determined according to the type of magnification of the objective lens, and therefore the ring slit is changed every time the observation magnification is changed. The centering must be adjusted and the operability becomes more complicated.

Therefore, in order to solve such a problem, for example, Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 57-19688 (hereinafter referred to as the second
(Referred to as the prior art), a condenser lens in which a condenser lens and a centering operation member of the ring slit are integrated is disclosed.

The second conventional technique will be specifically described below with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10 (a). In the description of the second conventional technique, the same components as those of the first conventional technique are designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

That is, the turret seat 4a is provided with a pair of cylindrical members 24 protruding in the radial direction from the optical axis A. Each of these cylindrical members 24 has the same axis as the axis of the screw 18. The stepped holes 24a and 24b which it has are formed penetratingly.

The centering knob 26 has a screw 1 at the tip thereof.
The hexagonal wrench portion 26a that can be directly fitted into the hexagonal hole (not shown) of the head 8 has a knurled portion 26b at its base end.
, Each of which is provided with a stepped hole 2 in the center thereof.
A fitting portion 26c slidably fitted in the 4a and a flange portion 26d biased by the compression coil spring 28 arranged in the stepped hole 24b are provided.

As described above, by applying the biasing force of the compression coil spring 28 to the flange portion 26d, the centering knob 26 is always provided with the hexagon wrench portion 26a.
Of the hexagonal hole is kept pressed.

Further, in order to prevent the centering knob 26 from coming off from the turret seat 4a by the pressing force of the compression coil spring 28, the centering knob shaft 26e is inserted in the central portion thereof and the movement amount of the flange portion 26d is restricted. Locking lid 30
Are screwed into the cylindrical member 24.

With this arrangement, when the centering of the ring slit 12 is performed, the microscopist manually operates the knurled portion 26b of the centering knob 26 to attach the hexagon wrench portion 26a to the compression coil spring 28. It is inserted into the hexagonal hole of the head of the screw 18 against the power.

While maintaining this state, the microscopist rotates the hexagonal wrench portion 26a and the screw 18 while pressing the centering knob 28 via the knurled portion 26b, thereby centering the ring slit 12. I do.

At this time, even if the user releases his hand by mistake, the centering knob 26 is held by the turret seat 4a through the cylindrical member 24, and therefore is not detached from the condenser lens, and the ring slit 12 is again provided. It is possible to continue the centering operation of.

When the centering operation of the ring slit 12 is not performed, the centering knob 26 is disengaged from the screw 18 by the pressing force of the compression coil spring 28, and the tip of the hexagonal wrench portion 26a has a turret 4b. Since it is positioned in the position avoided by the above, the microscopist can operate the knurled portion 4e to rotate the turret 4b in a desired direction without receiving interference from the centering knob 26. Therefore, each time the observation magnification is changed, the center knob 2
The complexity of having to remove 6 is eliminated.

By the way, generally, an inverted microscope is shown in FIG.
As shown in (b), a frame 32, a stage 34, a transillumination unit 36, a condenser lens 38, an observation unit 40, and an objective lens 44 arranged on the optical axis A of a revolver 42 arranged below the stage 34. The advantage is that the space around the sample 46 placed on the optical axis A of the stage 34 is wide.

In particular, a manipulator for cell manipulation using a glass needle having a tip of about 1 μm so as to cut or open cells to inject a substance, or for cell stimulation used in the field of electrophysiology. When setting an electrode, a glass electrode for measuring the membrane potential of a cell membrane, which is called the patch clamp method which has been actively used in recent years, it is important that the space around the sample 46 is wide.

FIG. 10B shows, as an example, a glass electrode 5 connected to a patch amplifier 48 for amplifying a membrane voltage.
The state where 0 is set is shown. In such a configuration, when operating or performing electrical measurement on any one point of the cell, the glass needle or the glass electrode 50 is set in an inverted and inclined state to some extent in terms of ease of setting.

Therefore, when the condenser lens in which the condenser lens and the centering operation section are integrated is used as in the second conventional technique, the setting of the glass electrode 50 and the like is an obstacle and a working space is secured. The problem arises that you can't.

Further, for example, a condenser lens of a microscope,
In the case of a centered member such as a field diaphragm of an epi-illumination device, a lamp such as a light source, etc., which does not need to be readjusted once the centering is adjusted once, during the operation other than the centering adjustment, Misalignment may occur when the centering operation member is accidentally touched.

The present invention has been made in order to solve such a problem, and its purpose is to prevent a heart misalignment without causing an obstacle during an operation other than the centering operation, and to prevent a heart misalignment. It is an object of the present invention to provide a centering mechanism capable of performing a centering operation easily and reliably.

[0027]

In order to achieve such an object, the centering mechanism of the present invention includes a centered means having a plurality of centered members that can be set in any optical device, and An elastic pressing member that is provided in the centered means and presses the plurality of centered members in a predetermined direction, and is configured to be attachable to and detachable from the optical device. Centering means for holding the centered member in a predetermined position by pressing the centered member in a predetermined direction against the pressing force.

[0028]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION A centering mechanism according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. The basic structure of the centering mechanism of the present embodiment is substantially the same as that of FIGS. 7 (b) and 10 (a). Description will be omitted, and only the characteristic part of the present embodiment will be described in detail.

FIGS. 1A and 1B show an example in which the centering mechanism of this embodiment is applied to a condenser lens. In such a condenser lens, a round dovetail portion 2 having a round dovetail 2a that can be attached to a microscope body (not shown) is formed on an upper portion thereof, and a turret attached to a lower portion of the round dovetail portion 2. Type disk-shaped ring slit centering mechanism 4 and this ring slit centering mechanism 4
And a condenser lens portion 6 attached to the lower part of the.

Such a condenser lens is applied to, for example, a phase contrast microscope of an inverted microscope, and the centering mechanism 4 for the ring slit is the front focus position on the optical axis A of the condenser lens unit 6. And a plurality of ring slits 12 arranged concentrically around the optical axis A at regular intervals.
And a plurality of ring slit frames 14 for fixing these ring slits 12, and an elastic pressing member or leaf spring 16 for pressing these ring slit frames 14 in the focal plane perpendicular to the optical axis A toward the optical axis A direction. , So that the ring slit frame 14 is moved against the elastic force of the leaf spring 16 to perform the centering of the ring slit 12, it is slidably screwed in a direction opposite to the elastic force of the leaf spring 16. Multiple (specifically,
A pair of screws 18 are provided, and the ring slit centering mechanism 4 is further provided with an operation member that is detachable from the condenser lens and that can be held and fixed to the condenser lens when it is inserted. And a hexagon wrench portion 26a that can be directly fitted into the screw 18 so as to rotate the plurality of screws 18 in a desired direction by a desired amount.

The operating member applied to the present embodiment has a pair of cylindrical members 24 slidably holding a centering knob 26 as shown in FIG. On the other hand, it is detachable, and is configured to be held and fixed to the turret seat 4a at the time of insertion.

That is, as shown in FIG. 1B, the operating member is slidably held by the cylindrical member 24 and the cylindrical member 24, and the hexagonal wrench portion 26a is screwed.
A fitting portion 26c that removably supports and a compression coil spring 28 that is provided on the cylindrical member 24 and constantly biases the hexagonal wrench portion 26a in a direction of separating from the screw 18.

Further, in the ring slit centering mechanism 4 applied to the present embodiment, the cylindrical member 24 is detachable, and a stepped screw is attached to the turret seat 4a so that the cylindrical member 24 is held and fixed at the time of insertion. A fitting hole 4g is formed, and a threaded portion 24c that can be screwed into the screwing hole 4g is formed on the outer periphery of the distal end of the cylindrical member 24.

According to this structure, when performing the centering of the ring slit 12, the microscopist manually operates the knurled portion 26b of the centering knob 26 to attach the hexagon wrench portion 26a to the compression coil spring 28. It is inserted into the hexagonal hole of the head of the screw 18 against the power.

While maintaining this state, the microscopist rotates the hexagon wrench portion 26a and the screw 18 while pressing the centering knob 28 via the knurled portion 26b, and thereby the centering of the ring slit 12 is performed. I do.

At this time, even if the user releases his or her hand by mistake, the centering knob 26 is held by the turret seat 4a through the cylindrical member 24, so that it does not come off from the condenser lens and the ring slit 12 again. It is possible to continue the centering operation of.

When the centering operation of the ring slit 12 is not performed, the centering knob 26 is disengaged from the screw 18 by the pressing force of the compression coil spring 28, and the tip end portion of the hexagonal wrench portion 26a is turret 4b. Since it is positioned in the position avoided by the above, the microscopist can operate the knurled portion 4e to rotate the turret 4b in a desired direction without receiving interference from the centering knob 26. Therefore, each time the observation magnification is changed, the center knob 2
The complexity of having to remove 6 is eliminated.

Since the other constituents are the same as those shown in FIGS. 7 (b) and 10 (a), the description thereof will be omitted.
Further, according to the configuration of the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, after removing the cylindrical member 24 from the turret seat 4a, the centering knob 26 itself is directly fitted into the screw 18 via the hexagonal wrench portion 26a. Then, the ring 18 can be centered by rotating the screw 18.

In this case, the centering knob 26 is not held by the condenser lens, and is removed from the condenser lens after the centering operation of the ring slit 12 is completed. At this time, since the ring slit centering mechanism 4 does not have the cylindrical member 24, for example, it does not interfere with the setting of the manipulator or the glass electrode 50 (see FIG. 10B).

If, for example, a handy type centering tool (not shown) is used instead of the centering knob 26, the manipulator and the glass electrode 50 (see FIG. 10 (b)) that have already been set will be damaged. It is also possible to easily perform the centering operation of the ring slit 12 without doing so.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the microscopist can select the centering operation of the two types of ring slits 12. That is, when the centering operation of the ring slit 12 is frequently performed, the operability is prioritized and the method of FIG. 1B is selected, and when an experiment using a manipulator or a glass electrode is performed. By selecting the method shown in FIG. 2, a working space for sample operation can be secured.

Next, a centering mechanism according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In the description of this embodiment, the same components as those in the first embodiment will be designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 1B, in the first embodiment, the cylindrical member 24 is attached and detached by screwing the threaded portion 24c into the screwing hole 4g of the turret seat 4a. However, as shown in FIG. 3, in the present embodiment, the cylindrical member 24 is configured to be attached and detached by magnetic action.

That is, as shown in FIG. 3, stepped holes 52a and 52b having the same axis as the axis of the screw 18 are formed through the turret seat 4a applied to the present embodiment. In the hole 52b, a magnet 54 is mounted so that the fitting portion 26c can be inserted and removed so that the hexagonal wrench portion 26a is directly fitted into the hexagonal hole (not shown) in the head of the screw 18.

Further, the cylindrical member 24 applied to this embodiment is made of a magnetic material, and its outer peripheral surface can be fitted into the stepped hole 52b. According to such a configuration, the cylindrical member 24 is provided with the stepped hole 52.
Since the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical member 24 is magnetically attracted to the magnet 54 arranged in the stepped hole 52b when it is fitted into the a and 52b, the cylindrical state member 24 is fixed to the turret seat 4
It will be removably sucked and fixed to a.

The rest of the configuration and operation are similar to those of the first embodiment, so the description thereof will be omitted. As described above, according to the present embodiment, the cylindrical member 24 having the centering knob 26 can be attached / detached to / from the condenser lens by a magnetic action with one touch, so that an experiment using, for example, a manipulator or a glass electrode is performed. In this case, the cylindrical member 24 can be removed with one touch so as not to disturb the experiment. Further, when the center operation of the ring slit 12 is performed, the cylindrical member 24 can be quickly and surely attached to the condenser lens with one touch, and thus the center operation of the ring slit 12 can be efficiently performed. Become.

Next, a centering mechanism according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In the description of this embodiment, the same components as those in the above-described embodiment will be designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

That is, as shown in FIG. 4A, the condenser lens to which the centering mechanism of the present embodiment is applied has a round dovetail 2a which can be attached to the microscope body (not shown) formed on the upper portion thereof. A hollow cylindrical round dovetail portion 2, a disc-shaped ring slit centering mechanism 4 attached to a lower portion of the round dovetail portion 2, and a condenser lens portion attached to a lower portion of the ring slit centering mechanism 4. And 6 are provided.

Such a condenser lens has a numerical aperture (N) on the illumination side so that high-resolution observation can be performed.
Since A) is large, the working distance (WD) of the condenser lens is short. Therefore, the condenser lens is arranged closer to the sample 46 than the position of the ring slit 12 in the optical axis A direction. As a result, since the glass electrode 50 connected to the patch amplifier 48 has a disadvantageous configuration, the ring slit centering mechanism 4 applied to the present embodiment has the following disadvantages. Unlike the embodiment described above,
Only the single ring slit 12 can be arranged.

As shown in FIG. 4 (b), the ring slit centering mechanism 4 has therein a ring slit 12, a ring slit frame 14, a leaf spring 16, and an opening which have the same functions as those of the above-described embodiment. The centering mechanism main body 56 in which the hole 4f and the pair of screws 18 are arranged and arranged is provided.

In such a structure, in order to perform the centering operation of the ring slit 12, the condenser lens applied to this embodiment has stepped holes 56a and 56b formed in the centering mechanism main body 56. A centering knob 26 is provided which is directly fitted into the screw 18 via the screw 18 and is configured to perform the centering operation of the ring slit 12 by rotating the screw 18. Incidentally, the stepped holes 56a, 56b
Are screw holes 20 coaxially with the screw holes 20 of the screw 18, respectively.
It is formed to communicate with a larger diameter.

Centering knob 26 applied to the present embodiment
Has a knurled portion 26b attached to the base end thereof and a hexagonal wrench portion 26 at its tip end via a flange portion 26f.
It is provided with a centering knob shaft 26e to which a is attached, and a ring-shaped magnet 58 slidably arranged between the flange portion 26f and the centering knob shaft 26e. In addition,
The magnet 58 includes a flange portion 26f and a knurl portion 2
Since it is sandwiched between 6b and 6b, it does not come off from the centering knob 26.

The flange portion 26f has a stepped hole 56
It is configured so that it can be fitted into a, and in the fitted state, it is configured to slide rotationally and linearly in the stepped hole 56a. Further, the magnet 58 has a stepped hole 5
It is configured so that it can be fitted into 6b.

Centering mechanism body 5 applied to the present embodiment
6 is made of a magnetic material such as iron, and when the flange portion 26f is fitted into the stepped hole 56a, the stepped hole 56b is formed.
By the magnetic action of the magnet 58 fitted in the centering knob 26, the centering knob 26 is detachably fixed to the centering mechanism main body 56 by suction.

According to this structure, the centering knob 26
After magnetically attracting and fixing to the centering mechanism main body 56, the knurled portion 26b is rotated, so that the centering operation of the ring slit 12 can be performed as in the above-described embodiment.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the centering knob 26 can be attached / detached to / from the centering mechanism main body 56 by a magnetic action with one touch, so that an experiment using, for example, a manipulator or a glass electrode is performed. In this case, the cylindrical member 24 can be removed with one touch so as not to disturb the experiment. Further, when the center operation of the ring slit 12 is performed, the cylindrical member 24 can be quickly and surely attached to the condenser lens with one touch, and thus the center operation of the ring slit 12 can be efficiently performed. Become. Further, since the ring slit centering mechanism 4 applied to the present embodiment is configured so that only the single ring slit 12 can be arranged, it is easy to set the glass electrode 50 connected to the patch amplifier 48. In addition to being able to perform the work, it is possible to secure a work space for operating the sample 46. Furthermore, in the condenser lens in which only the single ring slit 12 is arranged as in the present embodiment, the configuration can be simplified, so that the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

Next, a centering mechanism according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6. In the description of this embodiment, the same components as those in the above-described embodiment will be designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 5 (a) shows a state in which the condenser lens to which the centering mechanism of this embodiment is applied is set in the inverted microscope shown in FIG. 10 (b). In FIG. 5A, only the main configuration is shown.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, in the condenser lens applied to the present embodiment, the optical axis A is formed in the slide groove 60 formed on the lower side of the hollow cylindrical round dovetail portion 2.
A slide switching type ring slit centering mechanism 64 having a slider 62 configured to be slidable in a direction orthogonal to is provided.

In the slider 62, first to third opening holes 66a, 66b, 66c formed at regular intervals,
These first to third opening holes 66a, 66b, 66c
First to third ring slit frames 68 arranged in
a, 68b, 68c and first to third ring slits 70a, 70b, 70c fixed to the first to third ring slit frames 68a, 68b, 68c are provided, and the pair of screws 18 By moving the first to third ring slit frames 68a, 68b, 68c against the elastic force of the leaf spring 16 through the center, the first to third ring slits 70a, 70b, 70c are centered. It is configured to be able to do.

The centering mechanism of this embodiment has the first
A click mechanism 72 for positioning the third ring slits 70a, 70b, 70c on the optical axis A is provided. The click mechanism 72 is engaged with click grooves 62a, 62b, 62c formed in the slider 62. By combining the first to third ring slits 7,
0a, 70b, 70c can be selectively positioned on the optical axis A.

The operation of such a centering mechanism is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5, after the centering knob 26 is detachably attracted and fixed to the slider 62 by the magnetic action of the magnet 58, the knurled portion 26b is rotated to perform the same operation as in the third embodiment. Ring slit 12
You can perform centering operations. The center knob 26
Since the specific configuration of is similar to that of the third embodiment, the description thereof will be omitted by referring to FIG. In addition, in FIG. 6B, as an example, the first
Only the centering operation of the ring slit 70a of the above is shown, but the other second and third ring slits 70b and 70c are shown.
With respect to the above, the centering operation can be similarly performed by the same operation as described above.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, since the centering knob 26 can be attached / detached to / from the slider 62 by a magnetic action with one touch, for example, when an experiment using a manipulator or a glass electrode is performed, the experiment is performed. The centering knob 26 can be removed with one touch so as not to get in the way. Further, when the centering operation of the first to third ring slits 70a, 70b, 70c is performed, the centering knob 26 can be quickly and surely attached to the slider 62 with one touch, and thus the first to the third.
The centering operation of the ring slits 70a, 70b, 70c can be efficiently performed. Furthermore, since the centering mechanism of the present embodiment is the slide switching type ring slit centering mechanism 64 that is slidable in the direction orthogonal to the optical axis A, the setting of the glass electrode 50 connected to the patch amplifier 48 can be performed. Sample 46 can be easily performed
It is also possible to secure a work space for operating the. Furthermore, in the slide switching type ring slit centering mechanism 64 as in the present embodiment, for example, the first and second
Since the slider 62 can be switched while the centering knob 26 is attached at a position corresponding to the ring slits 70a and 70b, the plunger mechanism as applied to the turret type centering mechanism becomes unnecessary. Therefore, the structure of the centering mechanism can be simplified, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

The present invention is not limited to the configuration of each of the above-described embodiments, and can be variously modified without adding new matter. For example, as a method for attaching and detaching the centering knob 26, it is possible to appropriately select a method such as a press-fitting method or a snap fitting method, which can be easily held and fixed. Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, an example in which the centering mechanism is applied to the condenser lens is shown, but various examples such as a field stop of a microscope, an aperture stop, an objective lens, an optical axis adjusting lens, a lamp such as a light source, etc. It can be applied to the centering adjustment part of the optical device.

[0065]

According to the present invention, the centering operation can be performed easily and surely without causing an obstacle during an operation other than the centering operation and without causing a misalignment. It is possible to provide a delivery mechanism.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1A is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which a centering mechanism according to a first embodiment of the present invention is attached to a condenser lens, and FIG. 1B is a schematic view of the configuration of the centering mechanism. FIG.

FIG. 2 is a view showing another usage pattern of the centering mechanism according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of a centering mechanism according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4A is a perspective view showing a state in which the centering mechanism according to the third embodiment of the present invention is attached to a condenser lens, and FIG. 4B is a schematic view of the configuration of the centering mechanism. FIG.

FIG. 5A is a perspective view showing a state in which a centering mechanism according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention is attached to a condenser lens, and FIG. 5B is a schematic view of the configuration of the centering mechanism. FIG.

FIG. 6A is a side view showing a state in which a centering mechanism according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention is attached to a condenser lens, and FIG. 6B is an operation explanatory view of the centering mechanism.

7A is a perspective view of a centering mechanism of a first conventional technique, and FIG. 7B is a sectional view thereof.

8 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of the centering mechanism shown in FIG.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a second prior art centering mechanism.

10A is a sectional view schematically showing the configuration of the centering mechanism shown in FIG. 9, and FIG. 10B is a partial perspective view of a general inverted microscope.

[Explanation of symbols]

4 ... Centering mechanism for ring slit, 4a ... Turret seat,
18 ... Screw, 24 ... Cylindrical member, 26 ... Centering knob, 2
6a ... hexagonal wrench part, 26c ... fitting part, 28 ... compression coil spring.

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A centered means having a plurality of centered members that can be set in an arbitrary optical device, and an elasticity that is provided in the centered means and presses the plurality of centered members in a predetermined direction. The pressing member and the optical device are configured to be attachable to and detachable from each other, and when the centering operation is performed, the centered member is pressed in a predetermined direction against a pressing force of the elastic pressing member to a predetermined position. A centering mechanism for holding the centering means. 2. The centering means includes a plurality of screws capable of pressing the centered member in a predetermined direction and holding the centered member in a predetermined position, and being capable of being attached to the optical device at the time of centering operation. And an operation member configured to be detachable from the optical device when the operation is completed, and to press the centered member in a predetermined direction through the plurality of screws to hold the centered member in a predetermined position during the centering operation. The centering mechanism according to claim 1, wherein: 3. A centered means having a plurality of centered members that can be selectively set on the optical axis of an arbitrary condenser lens, and a plurality of centered members provided on the centered means. And an elastic pressing member that presses in the direction of the optical axis, and is configured to be attachable to and detachable from the condenser lens so that the centered member can be optically moved against the pressing force of the elastic pressing member during the centering operation. A centering mechanism that presses in the axial direction and holds it at a predetermined position.