JPH11225958A - Chin rest device for ophthalmologic instrument and ophthalmogic instrument - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To rapidly fix the height position of a head part by providing a chin rest device for fixing the height position of the head part of a subject, with a support part for variably supporting the height position of a chin rest part, an energizing means for energizing the chin rest part upward, and a fixing means for fixing the height position of the chin rest part. SOLUTION: When a chin rest device 40 is used, a subject brings the chin into contact with one of the hollows 41a, 41b of an upper face of a chip rest part, and the chin rest part 41 is pushed down against a coil spring 49 till the height of the subject is fitted to the position of a hole part formed on a ophthalomologic instrument. On this occasion, an inner face 42b of a sliding mechanism 42 is lowered, a small gear 50b engaged with a rack 501 is rotated, and a frictional plate 43e is also rotated. When a controller detects that a cornea reflection image is entered into an angle of view of a front eye observation optical system, and judges that the prealignment is completed, an electromagnetic clutch 43 is energized. Whereby the frictional plates 43b, 43e are closely kept into contact with each other, a penetration shaft 43d is made unrotatable, and a chin vest part is fixed to the height position.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a chin rest apparatus for an ophthalmologic apparatus for fixing a height position of a subject's head when observing or photographing an eye to be examined, and the chin rest apparatus. The present invention relates to an ophthalmic apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Ophthalmologic apparatuses include apparatuses for observing and / or photographing a site to be examined of an eye to be examined, such as a fundus photographing apparatus (fundus camera) and a corneal cell observation / imaging apparatus. In such an apparatus, it is important to position the observation / photographing optical system with the eye to be inspected. For this alignment, it is necessary to support the head of the subject so that the head is fixed at a predetermined position with respect to the ophthalmic apparatus. To that end, many ophthalmic devices are equipped with foreheads and chin rests. In particular, the chin rest adjusts and fixes the height of the head. In a conventional chin rest,
The chin rest is supported by a column extending in the vertical direction, and the chin rest moves up and down by the action of a helicoid by rotating the handle. The examiner roughly adjusts the height of the chin rest while watching the mark (eye height mark) on the forehead support and the position of the eye to be examined. Next, the subject fixes the head to the chin rest and forehead rest. Thereby, the head is positioned at the temporary position. Next, the examiner looks at the anterior ocular segment image of the eye to be inspected captured by the anterior ocular segment observation optical system of the ophthalmologic apparatus on a monitor screen and determines whether the position of the eye to be inspected is a position that does not hinder the subsequent alignment operation. to decide. Alignment refers to accurately aligning the optical axis of the observation / photographing optical system with respect to the subject's eye. Even if the head is fixed to the chin portion whose height has been roughly adjusted, in many cases, the eye to be examined is not at a position where the alignment operation can be performed without any trouble. Therefore, the examiner guides the examinee's eye by instructing the examinee, and finely adjusts the chin rest height by the examiner's detailed operation. According to such a procedure, the head of the subject is set at a position where the alignment operation can be performed without any trouble, and the process proceeds to the subsequent alignment operation according to the judgment of the examiner.

[0003]

As described above, the conventional chin rest requires a lot of operation and judgment by the examiner until the height position of the chin rest is finally set. In addition, much time was required until the chin rest was set at the final height position.

On the other hand, there is provided an automatic alignment device for automatically fine-adjusting the position of the observation / photographing optical system and accurately aligning (aligning) the optical axis of the observation / photographing optical system with the eye to be examined. An ophthalmologic apparatus has been proposed (for example, see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-88086). This is to adjust the position of the observation / photographing optical system while projecting the alignment index on the eye to be inspected by the alignment index projection means and observing the reflection image of the alignment index from the eye to be inspected with the anterior ocular segment observation optical system. The alignment is performed. Further, a preliminary alignment device that guides the position of the subject's eye to a predetermined range before alignment is performed by the alignment device has been proposed (for example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 4-302).
No. 91, JP-A-6-114006). Even in such an ophthalmic apparatus provided with an alignment device and a preliminary alignment device, if the position of the subject's head is not quickly fixed after the completion of the preliminary alignment, the subsequent automatic alignment will be hindered. This is because if the head moves significantly after the completion of the preliminary alignment, the anterior ocular segment observation optical system of the alignment apparatus cannot capture the alignment index reflection image. In order to quickly fix the position of the subject's head after the completion of the pre-alignment, it is conceivable to make the chin rest wait in advance near the height of the chin which will be set in the pre-alignment. This hinders the subject from performing preliminary alignment.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a chin rest apparatus which can quickly fix the height position of the head without requiring the examiner to operate and judge when setting the height position of the chin rest. An object of the present invention is to provide an ophthalmologic apparatus including the apparatus.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above problems, a chin rest apparatus for an ophthalmologic apparatus according to the present invention is used for fixing a height position of a subject's head when observing or photographing an eye to be examined. A chin rest apparatus for an ophthalmologic apparatus, comprising: a chin rest, a support part for supporting at least a height position of the chin rest, and an urging means for urging the chin rest upward. And fixing means for fixing the height position of the chin rest (claim 1).

When using the chin rest apparatus, first, the subject adjusts the height of the head while keeping the chin in contact with the chin rest. The height of the chin rest follows the vertical movement of the head. When the head is guided to a predetermined height position, the fixing means is operated to fix the chin rest at that height position. According to this device, when setting the height position of the chin rest, the operation / judgment of the examiner is unnecessary, and the height position of the chin rest is quickly fixed.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a chin rest apparatus for an ophthalmologic apparatus for fixing a height position of a subject's head when observing or photographing the subject's eye. A chin rest apparatus for an ophthalmic apparatus, comprising: a chin rest, a support part for supporting at least a height position of the chin rest, a driving means for raising the chin rest, and the chin rest Fixing means for fixing the height position of the chin, contact detecting means for detecting that the upper surface of the chin rest has come into contact with the chin of the subject, and, after activation of the driving means, the chin rest by the contact detecting means Control means for detecting the contact between the control means and the jaw of the subject, stopping the driving means, and operating the fixing means (claim 2).

According to this, after the subject adjusts his / her head to a predetermined height position, the driving means raises the chin rest. The fixing means operates at the moment when the upper surface of the chin rest contacts the chin of the subject, and the chin rest is fixed at the height position. This device also eliminates the need for the examiner's operation and judgment when setting the height position of the chin rest, and quickly fixes the height position of the chin rest.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ophthalmologic apparatus according to the present invention, a chin rest apparatus for an ophthalmic apparatus, an alignment index projecting unit for projecting an alignment index onto an eye to be inspected, and an eye to be inspected. An alignment apparatus for observing a reflection image of the alignment index from the apparatus with an anterior ocular segment observation optical system to perform alignment, and the reflection image can be observed by an anterior ocular segment observation optical system before alignment is performed by the alignment apparatus. A preliminary alignment device for guiding the subject's eye to the position;

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ophthalmologic apparatus according to the present invention, comprising: a chin rest apparatus for an ophthalmic apparatus; an alignment index projecting means for projecting an alignment index onto an eye to be inspected; An alignment apparatus for observing a reflection image of the alignment index from the optometry with an anterior ocular segment observation optical system to perform alignment, and before the alignment is performed by the alignment apparatus, the reflection image is formed by the anterior ocular segment observation optical system. A preliminary alignment device for guiding the subject's eye to a position where observation is possible, and a control device for operating the fixing device after the preliminary alignment by the preliminary alignment device is completed and before the alignment device starts alignment (claim 4) .

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ophthalmologic apparatus according to the present invention, a chin rest apparatus for an ophthalmologic apparatus, alignment index projecting means for projecting an alignment index onto an eye to be inspected, An alignment device for performing alignment by observing a reflection image of the alignment index from the optometry using an anterior segment observation optical system, and observing the reflection image with an anterior segment observation optical system before alignment is performed by the alignment device A preliminary alignment device that guides the subject's eye to a position where the preliminary alignment can be performed, wherein the control unit activates the driving unit after the preliminary alignment by the preliminary alignment device is completed and before the alignment device starts alignment. (Claim 5).

According to these ophthalmic devices, the head can be stably supported at the height position at that time quickly after the completion of the preliminary alignment. Therefore, after the preliminary alignment is completed, the reflection image of the alignment index does not deviate from the viewing angle of the anterior ocular segment observation optical system of the alignment apparatus.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a corneal cell photographing apparatus 1 which is one of the ophthalmologic apparatuses. The corneal cell imaging apparatus 1 is provided with a forehead 31 and a chin rest apparatus 40. The subject makes the forehead and chin abut on these, and fixes the position of the head. A hole 32 is provided in a housing of the corneal cell imaging device 1. An imaging system provided inside the housing observes and photographs the eye E through the hole 32.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram showing the configuration of the imaging system 3 of the corneal cell imaging device 1. As shown in FIG. The imaging system 3 is disposed on the machine frame 2 of the corneal cell imaging device 1. The machine frame 2 is moved with respect to the frame of the corneal cell imaging device 1 by a driving device (not shown). That is, it moves in the Z direction approaching / separating from the eye E, and in the X direction and the Y direction perpendicular to the Z direction and orthogonal to each other.

The photographing system 3 includes an illumination optical system 4 for illuminating the anterior eye of the eye E to be examined obliquely from the front with slit light, and the cornea by the slit light reflected on the surface of the anterior eye of the eye E. Imaging optical system 5 for imaging endothelial cells
And an anterior segment observation optical system 35 for observing the anterior segment of the eye E
An alignment optical system 6 for projecting, from the front, an alignment index light for aligning the imaging optical axis (alignment) toward the anterior segment of the eye E, and imaging the reflected corneal light; A focusing optical system 7 for making the focal point of the system 5 coincide with the corneal endothelium which is the imaging site.

The illumination optical system 4 has a strobe discharge tube 8 as a light source for illuminating the anterior segment, passes visible light therefrom through a slit 9, and passes this slit light to the cornea of the eye E by a projection lens 10. It is intended to converge. In the present embodiment, in order to make the optical path of the focusing optical system 7 described later identical to the optical path of the illumination optical system 4 halfway, the half mirror 1
1 is interposed. The half mirror 11 transmits the illumination light, which is visible light, and reflects the focus detection light, which will be described later, which is infrared light.

The photographing optical system 5 has a television camera 12 for photographing corneal cell tissue, and passes the slit light reflected by the cornea of the eye E through an objective lens 13, a mirror 14, and an imaging lens 15. After the TV camera 1
It leads to 2. In the present embodiment, since the optical path of the photographing optical system 5 is almost the same as a focusing optical system described later,
A half mirror 16 for branching the optical path is provided on the way. The half mirror 16 reflects illumination light, which is visible light, and transmits focus detection light, which will be described later, which is infrared light.

The anterior ocular segment observation optical system 35 is a television camera 1
2 and an anterior segment photographing lens 24, a half mirror 16 and an anterior segment photographing lens 2
4. Observe the anterior eye image of the eye E through the beam splitter 23.

The alignment optical system 6 has a light-emitting diode 17 as a light source for the alignment index light, and emits near-infrared light from the light-emitting diode 17 to mirrors 18 and 19.
The light is collimated by the condenser lenses 20, 21, the half mirror 22, and the beam splitter 23, and is illuminated from the front to the anterior eye of the eye E along the optical axis of the anterior eye observation optical system 35, Further, a reflection image (Purkinje image) of the alignment index light at the vertex of the eye E to be inspected is transmitted to the television camera 12 through the beam splitter 23, the anterior segment photographing lens 24, and the half mirror 16. The half mirror 22 reflects the alignment index light, which is near visible light, and transmits the later-described fixation index light, which is visible light.

The light receiving surface 12a of the television camera 12
The received image signal of the image formed in step (1) is displayed as a light spot on a monitor display (not shown). In this monitor display, the optical axis of the photographing optical system 5 is set at the center of the screen. The alignment is performed such that the machine frame 2 is moved to X or X by a signal from a control device (not shown) so that the light spot falls within a narrow range near the center of the screen.
This is done by being moved in the Y direction. The movement of the machine frame is performed by controlling the driving device by a control device.

The alignment optical system 6 has an eye E to be inspected.
A light-emitting diode 25 is also provided as a fixation light for determining the optical axis of the light in a fixed direction. Fixation index light from this fixation light 25 passes through the half mirror 22 and The eye E extends along the optical path.

The focusing optical system 7 has an illumination lamp 26 as a focusing light source and a focusing detection light receiving element 27.
The half mirror 11 converts the infrared light transmitted from the illumination lamp 26 through the condenser lens 28 into slit light along the optical path of the illumination optical system 4, irradiates the slit light to the eye E, and reflects the light on the anterior eye surface. The light is directed to the focus detection light receiving element 27 along the optical path of the photographing optical system 5. At this time, the anterior segment surface reflected light reaches the half mirror 16 along the optical path of the photographing optical system 5, passes through the half mirror 16, and is received by the focus detection light receiving element 27.

The illumination optical system 4 and the focusing optical system 7 have a reflection point at which the slit light for focus detection is reflected such that the slit light just enters the light receiving point of the light receiving element 27 for focus detection. The illumination optical system 4 is configured to be a converging point of the slit light.

Then, the machine frame 2 is moved in the Z direction, and the movement of the machine frame 2 in the Z direction is stopped by a signal due to the fact that the slit light is received by the focus detecting light receiving element 27 (focusing is performed). Can be This focusing operation may be performed in parallel with the alignment operation, or may be performed after the alignment is completed.

In the alignment optical system 6, an aperture member (hereinafter, referred to as an illuminator) 29 is provided on the optical path of the condenser lens 21 on the eye E side. Shumon 29
Is formed with an opening that looks slightly larger than the fixation light 25 when the subject looks at the fixation light 25. In this case, the fixation lamp 25 becomes a so-called illuminating star for the illuminator 29. The preliminary alignment device includes the illuminator 29 and an optical system from the fixation lamp 25 to the eye E.

When the subject looks at the fixation light 25 through the illuminator 29, the eye to be examined is positioned so that the fixation light 25 coincides with the illuminator 29. The corneal vertex of the optometry E is in a state of approaching. Therefore, the corneal reflection image of the alignment index light can be received by the television camera 12 that is capturing the anterior ocular segment image.
Therefore, it is preferable to perform alignment continuously from a state where the subject's eye E is guided to a position where the subject can see the fixation lamp 25 through the sight gate 29, that is, a state where the preliminary alignment is completed.

The illuminator 29 may be configured so that its opening is expanded and contracted by, for example, switching display of liquid crystal patterns arranged concentrically. With this configuration, it becomes easier to guide the subject's eye in a fixed position and in a fixed direction.

The illuminator 29 does not need to be fixed on the optical axis from the fixation lamp 25 to the eye E. For example, the illuminator is projected by an optical system or the illuminator is illuminated. It is also possible to configure so that it can enter and retract on the axis. By doing so, the degree of freedom in the configuration of the device is increased, and the enlargement and shrinkage of the opening are further facilitated.

The above-mentioned opening portion is not only a portion in which a space is actually formed but also a portion having a small diameter which is spatially closed as described above and which can transmit the entire wavelength range of light. Is also good. Therefore, for example, a light-transmissive portion or an optical filter portion to be described later is formed by printing or the like around a portion except for a portion (corresponding to the small-diameter hole) that allows light to pass through transparent synthetic resin or glass. Can.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram showing the configuration of the chin rest apparatus 40. FIGS. 4A and 4B are diagrams for showing the structure of the chin rest apparatus 40 in detail. FIG. 4A is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 3, and FIG. Longitudinal section along
(C) is a side view seen from the direction of arrow C in FIG. 3.

The chin rest device 40 is mainly composed of a chin rest portion 41, a sliding mechanism 42, an electromagnetic clutch 43, a bearing device 44, a contact plate 45, and a coil spring 49. The electromagnetic clutch 43 and the bearing device 44 are fixed to the frame 33 of the corneal cell imaging device 1. The sliding mechanism 42 includes an outer cylinder 42a and an inner cylinder 42b slidably provided in the outer cylinder 42a in a vertical direction.
The sliding mechanism 42 corresponds to a support part in claims. The lower end of the outer cylinder 42a is connected to the frame 33 via the mounting plate 46.
It is fixed to. The chin rest 41 is fixed to the upper end of the inner cylinder 42b. Two depressions 41 are provided on the upper surface of the chin rest 41.
Although a and 41b are formed, the portions where the jaws abut are provided corresponding to the case where the eye E is the left eye and the case where the eye E is the right eye. That is,
When the eye to be examined is the left eye, the chin is brought into contact with the depression 41a, and when the eye to be examined E is the right eye, the chin is brought into contact with the depression 41b. An attachment plate 45 is provided below the attachment plate 46 with a spacer 47 interposed therebetween. The coil spring 49 is interposed between the inner cylinder 42b and the contact plate 45, and urges the inner cylinder 42b upward with respect to the contact plate 45. The rod-shaped member 48 is provided for guiding a coil spring 49 that expands and contracts, and the lower end thereof is fixed to the plate 45.

A rack 50a extending in the vertical direction is formed on the side surface of the inner cylinder 42b. Then, a part of the rack 50a is exposed from a notch 42e (see FIG. 4C) formed in the outer cylinder 42a. Electromagnetic clutch 43
Are a mounting portion 43a fixed to the frame 33, a friction plate 43b fixed to the mounting portion 43a,
3b, one end of which is pivotally supported by a bearing 43c.
A through shaft 43d is provided rotatably with respect to 3b, and a friction plate 43e fixed to the through shaft 43d. The other end of the through shaft 43d is supported by a bearing device 44. In the electromagnetic clutch 43, the two friction plates 43b and 43e are not in contact with each other when the power is not supplied, so that the through shaft 43d is rotatable. However, when the electromagnetic clutch 43 is energized, the electromagnetic force is applied to the through shaft 43d.
4B is driven rightward in FIG. 4B, and the friction surfaces of the two friction plates 43b and 43e are pressed against each other to be in a clamped state. Therefore, the through shaft 43d cannot rotate. A small gear 50b is fixed to the center of the through shaft 43d. The small gear 50b is formed by the notch 42e of the rack 50a.
It is engaged with the part exposed from. Also, the inner cylinder 42b
A pin 42c is projected from the side surface of the
c is a long hole 42 formed in the outer cylinder 42a in a vertical direction.
d. The rotation of the inner cylinder 42b with respect to the outer cylinder 42a and the vertical sliding range are restricted by the pin 42c and the elongated hole 42d.

Next, how the chin rest apparatus 40 is used in the corneal cell photographing apparatus 1 will be specifically described. When the subject's head is not placed on the chin rest 41, the chin rest 41 is at a high position as shown in FIG. However, in this state, the resilience of the coil spring 49 is substantially balanced with the total weight of the chin rest 41 and the inner cylinder 42b.
The chin rest 41 can be pushed down with a small force. First, the subject places his / her chin in contact with one of the depressions 41 a and 41 b on the upper surface of the chin rest 41, and the height of the subject's eye E is changed to the height of the hole 32.
The chin rest 41 is pushed down until it reaches the height position. At this time, the electromagnetic clutch 43 is not energized. Therefore, when the chin rest 41 is pressed down, the inner cylinder 42b is lowered,
The small gear 50b meshing with the rack 50a rotates,
The friction plate 43e also rotates. And the subject is the fixation lamp 25
You can search for a position where you can see while moving your head up and down. The subject has to look at the fixation lamp 25 through the opening of the sight gate 29. Therefore, the subject is
5 is located near the optical axis of the anterior ocular segment observation optical system 35, and the viewing angle of the anterior ocular segment observation optical system 35 contains the corneal reflection image of the alignment target light. . The image signal of the television camera 12 is sent to a control device (not shown). When the control device detects that the corneal reflection image has entered the visual angle of the anterior ocular segment observation optical system 35, it determines that the preliminary alignment has been completed, and energizes the electromagnetic clutch 43. Then, the friction plates 43b and 43e of the electromagnetic clutch 43
They come into pressure contact with each other, and the through shaft 43d cannot rotate. Since the rack 50a and the small gear 50b are engaged with each other, when the through shaft 43d is not rotatable, the inner cylinder 42b cannot be vertically moved from its height position. Thus, the chin rest 41 is fixed at the current height position, and the subject's head is supported in a stable state. Here, the electromagnetic clutch 43 corresponds to the fixing means described in the claims. Then, in this state, automatic alignment by the alignment apparatus is started. What is the alignment device?
5, an alignment optical system 6, the above-mentioned driving device and the like. After the completion of the pre-alignment, the height position of the chin contact portion 41 is instantaneously fixed, so that the automatic alignment can be started while the head is fixed at the position at the time of the pre-alignment completion. Then, when the automatic alignment and the focusing by the focusing optical system 7 are performed, and the imaging of the corneal cells of the eye to be examined by the imaging optical system 5 is completed, the power supply to the electromagnetic clutch 43 is stopped and the clamp is released. .

In the above-described embodiment, the completion of the pre-alignment is detected by the control device, and the control device activates the electromagnetic clutch 43 as the fixing means. However, instead of activating the fixing means (the electromagnetic clutch 43) by the control device, the fixing means may be manually activated. Specifically, for example, an operation switch for starting the fixing means may be provided. Since the image of the anterior segment captured by the television camera 12 is displayed on the monitor display, the operator of the corneal cell photographing apparatus 1 determines the completion of the pre-alignment while watching the display, and operates the operation switch to change the fixing means. Start it.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing another embodiment of the chin rest apparatus. FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view for showing the structure of the chin rest apparatus 60 in detail. This chin rest device 6
Numeral 0 is applied to the corneal cell photographing apparatus as shown in FIG. 1, and the constitution of the photographing system of this corneal cell photographing apparatus is the same as that of FIG. The chin rest apparatus 60 mainly includes a chin rest 61
, A contact detection unit 70, a sliding mechanism 62, a driving mechanism 66
And a control device (not shown). Chin 61
Are rotatably supported by the contact detection unit 70 on a shaft 70a. Two depressions 61a and 61b are formed on the upper surface of the chin contact portion 61, similarly to the chin contact portion 41 of FIGS. Two micro switches 70c and 70d are fixed to the base 70b of the contact detection unit 70, and the chin rest 61 is maintained in a horizontal state by the elastic force of the actuator of the micro switches 70c and 70d. The two microswitches 70c and 70d are two recesses 61a and 6
1b. Sliding mechanism 62
Is composed of an outer cylinder 62a and an inner cylinder 62b slidably provided in the vertical direction inside the outer cylinder 62a. The lower end of the outer cylinder 62a is fixed to the frame 73 of the corneal cell photographing apparatus. A base 70b of the contact detection unit 70 is fixed to an upper end of the inner cylinder 62b. Drive mechanism 6
Reference numeral 6 denotes a motor 66a, a reduction gear 66b connected to the shaft of the motor 66a to reduce the number of revolutions, a gear mechanism including two gears 66c and 66d, and a male screw formed on the outer periphery fixed to the gear 66d. Screw shaft 66e and inner cylinder 6
A nut 66f is fixed to the inner peripheral surface of 2b and screwed with a screw shaft 66e. The screw shaft 66e and the nut 66f constitute a feed screw mechanism. Reduction gear 6
6b is fixed to the frame 73 at the lower end.
The rotation of 6a is transmitted to the screw shaft 66e via the reduction gear 66b and the gear mechanism. Therefore, the inner cylinder 62b can be moved up and down by controlling the rotation of the motor 66a. The motor 66a is controlled by the control device. A pin 62c projects outward from the side surface of the inner cylinder 62b. The tip of this pin 62c is
And protrudes from a long hole 62f formed in the vertical direction.
The rotation of the inner cylinder 62b with respect to the outer cylinder 62a is restricted by the pins 62c and the elongated holes 62f. In addition, the outer cylinder 6
In the vicinity of 2a, photocouplers 62d and 62
e is fixed, and the pin 62c and the photocoupler 62
The vertical sliding range of the inner cylinder 62b with respect to the outer cylinder 62a is regulated by d and 62e. That is, the inner cylinder 62
The height position of the pin 62c corresponds to the height of the photocoupler 62.
The position is limited between a position where the height coincides with the height d and a position where the height of the pin 62c coincides with the height of the photocoupler 62e. When the pin 62c enters between the photocouplers 62d and 62e, the photocouplers 62d and 62e detect this, a detection signal is sent from the photocouplers 62d and 62e to the control device, and the control device stops the rotation of the motor 66a. Thus, the movement of the inner cylinder 62b is stopped.

Next, the operation of the chin rest apparatus 60 will be specifically described while explaining the use state of the corneal cell photographing apparatus.
Initially, the chin rest 61 is at the lowest position in the movable height range. This position is such that the pin 62c enters between the photocouplers 62d. At this time, the subject's chin is not in contact with the chin rest 61, and the chin rest 61 is in a horizontal state as shown in FIG. In this state, the subject looks through the hole formed in the housing of the corneal cell photographing apparatus with the right eye or the left eye, and moves his / her head up and down to a position where the fixation lamp 25 can be visually recognized through the gate 29. Search while At this time, since the chin rest 61 is on standby at the lowest position in the movable height range, it does not hinder the subject from adjusting the head position. Then, when the subject can visually recognize the fixation lamp 25, the corneal reflection image of the alignment target light enters the viewing angle of the anterior ocular segment observation optical system 35. The image signal of the television camera 12 is sent to the control device. When detecting that the corneal reflection image has entered the visual angle of the anterior ocular segment observation optical system 35 based on the image signal of the television camera 12, the control device determines that the preliminary alignment has been completed and rotates the motor 66 a. As a result, the inner cylinder 62b rises, and the chin rest 61 also rises. When the subject's chin contacts the upper surface of the chin rest 61, one of the two micro switches 70c and 70d is pressed. Micro switch 70
c and 70d are connected to the control device. When detecting the operation of the microswitch, the control device short-circuits the terminal of the motor 66a and stops the rotation. Then, even if it is pressed by the chin, the chin rest 61 cannot be lowered. This is because the resistance of the motor 66a due to the short circuit of the terminal acts in addition to the action of the screw shaft 66e and the nut 66f to prevent the feed screw mechanism from rotating in the reverse direction and the resistance of the reduction gear 66b. That is, the feed screw mechanism, the speed reducer 66b, and the motor 66a whose terminals are short-circuited function as fixing means for fixing the height position of the chin contact portion 61. With this, the chin rest 61
Is fixed at the height position at that time, and the height position of the subject's head is fixed, resulting in a stable state. Then, in this state, alignment by the alignment apparatus is started.
When the completion of the pre-alignment is detected by the control device, the chin contact portion 61 immediately rises to fix the head at the current height position. Thus, automatic alignment can be performed while the head is fixed at the position at the time of completion of the preliminary alignment. When the automatic alignment and the focusing by the focusing optical system 7 are performed, and the imaging of the corneal cells of the eye to be examined by the imaging optical system 5 is completed, the motor 66a rotates and the chin rest 61 is moved to the initial standby position. Return.

In the above-mentioned chin rest apparatus 60, the members constituting the driving mechanism 66 function as fixing means for fixing the height position of the chin rest 61. A fixing means independent of the mechanism may be provided.

FIG. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view showing another example of the contact detection device. The contact detection unit in FIG. 6 is configured by micro switches 70c and 70d and the like.
, The touch sensors 82a and 82b may be used. The chin rest 81 is directly fixed to the upper end of the inner cylinder 62b, and the touch sensors 82a and 82b are embedded in the surface of the depression of the chin rest 81. Touch sensors 82a, 8
Since 2b is connected to the control device, the control device can know that the chin of the subject has contacted the chin rest portion 81.

In the above description, the sight gate 29 is used as the preparatory alignment apparatus. However, the preparatory alignment apparatus places the eye to be examined at a position where the corneal reflection image of the alignment index can be observed by the anterior ocular segment observation optical system. Any type may be used as long as it induces.
For example, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. Hei 4-30291, the reflection optical system is made to coincide with the optical axis of the ophthalmic apparatus so that light emitted from the anterior segment of the eye to be examined returns to the eye as substantially parallel light flux. An arrangement may be used in which the subject is positioned in front of the subject's eye so that the subject himself or herself performs positioning of the subject's own eye. Also, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-114006, the subject observes the fixation target light source through a tube member having a mirror-polished inner surface, and performs self-alignment so that the light source image is not blurred. May be used.

[0042]

As described above, according to the chin rest apparatus for an ophthalmologic apparatus according to the present invention, the examinee adjusts the position of his / her subject's eye to the optical system to the head position which is set. Since the parts are combined, the examiner does not need to operate or judge when setting the height position of the chin rest, and the chin rest can be quickly set to the final height position.

Further, according to the ophthalmologic apparatus of the present invention, the head can be quickly fixed at the current height position after the completion of the pre-alignment, and after the pre-alignment is completed, the head is viewed from the viewing angle of the anterior ocular observation optical system of the alignment apparatus. The reflection image of the alignment index does not deviate. In addition, when the subject performs the preliminary alignment, the chin rest does not interfere.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an oblique view of a corneal cell photographing apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram illustrating a configuration of an imaging system of the corneal cell imaging device.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of a chin rest apparatus.

FIG. 4 is a view for showing the structure of the chin rest apparatus in detail;
3A is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 3, and FIG.
FIG. 3C is a longitudinal sectional view taken along line B, and FIG. 3C is a side view as seen from the direction of arrow C in FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram showing another embodiment of a chin rest apparatus.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view of the chin rest apparatus.

FIG. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view showing another example of the contact detection device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Corneal cell imaging device 2 Machine frame 3 Imaging system 4 Illumination optical system 5 Imaging optical system 6 Alignment optical system 7 Focusing optical system 8 Strobe discharge tube 9 Slit 10 Projection lens 11 Half mirror 12 Television camera 13 Objective lens 14 Mirror 15 Connection Image lens 16 Half mirror 17 Light emitting diode 18, 19 Mirror 12a Light receiving surface 20, 21 Condensing lens 22 Half mirror 23 Beam splitter 24 Anterior segment photographing lens 25 Light emitting diode (fixation light) 26 Illumination lamp 27 Light receiving for focusing detection Element 28 Condensing lens 29 Light gate 31 Forehead 32 Hole 33 Frame 35 Anterior eye observation optical system 40 Chin holder 41 Chin contact 41a, 41b Indentation 42 Sliding mechanism 42a Outer cylinder 42b Inner cylinder 42c Pin 42d Long hole 42e Notch 43 Electromagnetic clutch 43a Mounting part 4 b friction plate 43c bearing 43d penetrating shaft 43e friction plate 44 bearing device 45 contact plate 46 mounting plate 47 spacer 48 rod-shaped body 49 coil spring 50a rack 50b small gear 60 chin rest device 61 chin contact portion 61a, 61b recess 62 sliding mechanism 62a outside Cylinder 62b Inner cylinder 62c Pin 62d, 62e Photocoupler 62f Long hole 66 Drive mechanism 66a Motor 66b Reduction gear 66c Gear 66d Gear 66e Screw shaft 66f Nut 70 Contact detector 70a Shaft 70b Base 70c, 70d Micro switch 73 Frame 81 Jaw contact 82a, 82b Touch sensor

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A chin rest apparatus for an ophthalmic apparatus for fixing a height position of a subject's head when observing or photographing a subject's eye, comprising: a chin rest; A chin rest for an ophthalmologic apparatus, comprising: a support portion for supporting a height position so as to be changeable; an urging means for urging the chin portion upward; and a fixing means for fixing the height position of the chin portion. apparatus. 2. A chin rest apparatus for an ophthalmologic apparatus for fixing a height position of a subject's head when observing or photographing an eye to be examined, comprising: a chin rest; A support portion for supporting the height position so as to be changeable, a driving means for raising the chin rest,
Fixing means for fixing the height position of the chin rest, contact detecting means for detecting that the upper surface of the chin rest has contacted the chin of the subject, and contact detecting means after activation of the driving means A chin rest apparatus for an ophthalmologic apparatus, comprising: control means for detecting contact between the chin rest and a chin of a subject, stopping the driving means, and operating the fixing means. 3. A chin rest apparatus for an ophthalmologic apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, an alignment index projecting means for projecting an alignment index on an eye to be inspected, and an anterior ocular segment observation optical system for reflecting a reflection image of the alignment index from the eye to be inspected. An alignment device that performs alignment by observing with a system, and a preliminary alignment device that guides the subject's eye to a position where the reflected image can be observed by the anterior ocular segment observation optical system before alignment is performed by the alignment device. Ophthalmic equipment. 4. A chin rest apparatus for an ophthalmologic apparatus according to claim 1, an alignment index projecting means for projecting an alignment index onto an eye to be inspected, and a reflection image of the alignment index from the eye to be inspected by an anterior ocular segment observation optical system. An alignment device that performs observation and alignment; a preliminary alignment device that guides the subject's eye to a position where the reflected image can be observed by the anterior segment observation optical system before alignment is performed by the alignment device; After the preliminary alignment by the device is completed, and before the alignment by the alignment device is started,
An ophthalmologic apparatus comprising control means for operating the fixing means. 5. A chin rest apparatus for an ophthalmologic apparatus according to claim 2, an alignment index projecting means for projecting an alignment index onto the eye to be inspected, and a reflection image of the alignment index from the eye to be inspected by an anterior ocular segment observation optical system. An alignment device for performing alignment by observing; and a preliminary alignment device for guiding the subject's eye to a position where the reflected image can be observed by the anterior segment observation optical system before alignment is performed by the alignment device; An ophthalmologic apparatus, wherein the means activates the driving means after completion of the pre-alignment by the pre-alignment apparatus and before starting the alignment by the alignment apparatus.