Nidec Sankyo Corporation

Kabushiki Kaisha Sankyo Seiki Seisakusho

Alps Electric Co., Ltd.

Sankyo Seiki Mfg. Co., Ltd

Hisahiro Ishihara

Shinji Minamisawa

Tadashi Takeda

Katsushige Yanagisawa

Kiyoshi Miyazaki

Toshiyuki Karasawa

Yuichi Takei

Tatsuki Wade

Akihiro Nagata

Shinroku Asakawa

Yoshihiro Hamada

Hayato Naito

Yoshio Hayashi

Ryoji Komatsu

Toshifumi Tsuruta

Taminori Masuzawa

Ikuo Kasuga

Jun Yamashita

Kazuo Higashiura

Katsuya Moriyama

Yasuo Fujimori

Noriyuki Satoh

The lens drive device is equipped with a first supporting body that holds the lens and is movable in the direction of the optical axis, a second supporting body that holds the first supporting body, a fixed body that holds the second supporting body in a manner enabling movement in directions that are roughly orthogonal to the optical axis direction, a first drive mechanism for driving the first supporting body, a second drive mechanism for driving the second supporting body in a first direction, and a third drive mechanism for driving the second supporting body in a second direction. The first supporting body is supported by the second supporting body by means of first supporting members (), which are formed from an elastic material; and the second supporting body is supported by the fixed body by means of second supporting members, which are formed from an elastic material.

Lens drive device

A lens drive device may include a first holding body, a second holding body, a fixed body which holds the second holding body, a first drive mechanism to drive the first holding body, a second drive mechanism to drive the second holding body, a third drive mechanism structured to drive the second holding body in a different direction than the second drive mechanism, an elastic member having a fixed part which is fixed to the second holding body and a deformable part, and plural wires in a substantially straight line shape with one end side fixed to the deformable part and the other end side fixed to the fixed body.

Provided is an optical unit with shake correction function wherein it is possible to accurately swing the movable module even when a flexible wiring substrate is connected to the fixing element and movable module. In an optical unit with shake correction function, folding portions, the extending direction of which is reversed towards the vicinity of the swinging support point of a movable module, are provided at the midway portion of a flexible wiring substrate that is connected to the movable module and to a fixing element. In the folding portions, the overlapping portions of the flexible wiring substrate are fixed.

Optical unit with shake correcting function with flexible circuit board having folded-back portions

Provided is an optical unit with a blur correction function, wherein even when a photoreflector and a drive mechanism for blur correction are provided in a movable module provided with an optical element, sizes in an optical axis direction and a direction crossing the optical axis direction can be prevented from increasing. In an optical unit () with a blur correction function, a drive mechanism () for blur correction is provided between the outer peripheral surface of an image capturing unit () and a fixed body () (upper cover ()), and a first photoreflector () and a second photoreflector () are provided between a bottom portion (substrate ()) of the image capturing unit () and the fixed body () (lower cover ()), between which a swing support () is provided. The first photoreflector () is provided in a position overlapping in the direction of an optical axis (L) with an axis line (X0) out of two axis lines (X0, Y0) when the image capturing unit () is swung, and the second photoreflector () is provide in a position overlapping in the direction of the optical axis (L) with the axis line (Y0).

Optical unit with shake correcting function

An optical unit may include a fixed body, a movable module which holds an optical element, a swing support point which swingably supports the movable module, and a shake correction drive mechanism structured to swing the movable module with the swing support point as a swing center. The swing support point may be structured of an abutted portion of two members in an optical axis direction between a bottom part of the movable module and a bottom part of the fixed body. At least one of the two members may be made of elastic material.

Provided is an optical unit comprising a shake detecting sensor which is less likely to unnecessarily vibrate even with the optical unit being designed to have a thinner profile. At a first step in the assembly of an optical unit provided with a shake correction mechanism, a module cover is mounted on a fixed body with a spring member therebetween and a movable module driving mechanism is provided between the module cover and the fixed body. At a second step, an image-capturing unit is inserted into the interior of the module cover by way of a fixed-body-side opening portion and a module-cover-side opening portion, and at a third step, a holding member is attached to a module cover.

Optical unit and its manufacturing method

An optical unit may include a fixed body; a movable module which holds an optical element; a swing support point which swingably supports the movable module; a shake correction drive mechanism which swings the movable module with the swing support point as a swing center around two axial lines intersecting an optical axis direction of the optical element between an outer peripheral face of the movable module and the fixed body; a first photo reflector provided between a bottom part of the movable module and the fixed body at a position superposing on one of the two axial lines and that detects displacement of the movable module; and a second photo reflector provided between the bottom part of the movable module and the fixed body at a position superposing on the other of the two axial lines and that detects displacement of the movable module.

The lens drive device is equipped with a first supporting body that holds the lens and is movable in the direction of the optical axis, a second supporting body that holds the first supporting body, a fixed body that holds the second supporting body in a manner enabling movement in directions that are roughly orthogonal to the optical axis direction, a first drive mechanism for driving the first supporting body, a second drive mechanism for driving the second supporting body in a first direction, and a third drive mechanism for driving the second supporting body in a second direction. The first supporting body is supported by the second supporting body by means of first supporting members which are formed from an elastic material; and the second supporting body is supported by the fixed body by means of second supporting members, which are formed from an elastic material.

A photographic optical device may include a reflection type optical sensor comprising a light emitting element and a light receiving element; a support body to which the reflection type optical sensor is fixed; a camera module comprising a lens and an imaging element; a shake correction mechanism structured to swing the camera module; a resistor configured to convert an output current of the light receiving element to an output voltage; a home position voltage creating means configured to create a home position voltage; a comparator configured to compare the home position voltage with a predetermined reference voltage; and a variable current source configured to control an electric current supplied to the light emitting element based on an output signal from the comparator. A relative position of the camera module with respect to the support body may be detected by the reflection type optical sensor.

Photographic optical device, photographic optical system and distance variation amount detecting device

Disclosed is an optical unit with a shake correction function which is capable of suppressing interference with swinging of a movable module due to the rigidity of a wiring material and a repelling force generated when the wiring material is deformed, even when the wiring material is extended from the movable module. The optical unit uses a flexible wiring board as the wiring material for electrically interconnecting the movable module and outside. In the flexible wiring board, the connecting portion of a movable-side connecting section and an extending unit is provided, in the optical axis direction, on a side where the swing center of the movable module is positioned with respect to the position of the center of supporting a spring member to the movable module. The swing center, the connecting portion, and a fixed-side connecting section are at the same position in the optical axis direction.

An imaging optical device may include a movable module having a lens drive device on which a lens and an imaging element are mounted; a support body for supporting the movable module; a rocking drive mechanism for rocking the movable module; and a plate spring for rockably supporting the movable module. The plate spring is provided with a holding section for holding the movable module, a fixed section fixed to the support body, and a spring section for connecting the holding section and the fixed section to each other. The spring section can deform in the direction perpendicular to the optical axis and in the direction of the optical axis.

Photographic optical device

A photographic optical device may include a movable module having a camera module on which a lens and an imaging element are mounted, a support body, and a shake correction mechanism. The movable module may be provided with a sensor for detecting an inclination of the camera module and a cover member which structures an outer peripheral face of the movable module. The shake correction mechanism may be provided with a swing drive mechanism for swinging the movable module so that the optical axis is inclined. The swing drive mechanism may be provided with a drive magnet and a drive coil.

An optical unit with shake correcting function may include a movable module on which an optical element is mounted, a fixed body which supports the movable module, a shake detection sensor which detects a shake of the movable module, a shake correction magnetic drive mechanism which swings the movable module on the fixed body on a basis of a detection result of the shake detection sensor to correct the shake of the movable module, and a spring member which is connected with the fixed body and the movable module. A stopper mechanism may be structured between the movable module and the fixed body, and the stopper mechanism may moving ranges of the movable module due to the shake.

Optical unit with shake correction function, optical apparatus, and method of manufacturing optical unit with shake correction function

An optical unit with shake correcting function may include a movable module having a lens, a fixed body supporting the movable module, a shake detection sensor for detecting shake of the movable module, and at least one pair of magnetic drive mechanism for shake correction which is structured on both sides of the movable module so that the movable module is swung with respect to the fixed body on the basis of detection result of the shake detection sensor to correct the shake of the movable module. The magnetic drive mechanism for shake correction is disposed so that a shake correction magnet is held by the fixed body and a shake correction coil is held by the movable module. Further, a shake correction coil may be disposed in a first region, where magnetic lines of force generated by a shake correction magnet are directed in directions generally going away from a supporting point part and/or a second region where magnetic lines of force generated by the shake correction magnet are directed in directions generally going toward the supporting point part.

Provided is a photographing optical device, which is able to reliably correct an unintentional movement by hand of a user by improving the constitution of a camera unit driving mechanism for correcting the deflection of a camera unit. In order that a camera unit is made to be rocked to correct the unintentional movement, a photographing optical device includes a first camera unit drive mechanism and a second camera unit drive mechanism, which are so disposed at two side portions sandwiching a pivot portion therebetween as to make a pair. In these camera unit drive mechanisms, camera unit driving magnets are held on the side of the camera unit as a movable body side, and camera unit driving coils are held on the side of a stationary body. The camera unit is pushed toward the pivot portion by a gimbal spring.

Growing community of inventors

Nagano, Japan

Hisahiro Ishihara