Canon Kabushiki Kaisha

Ohtsuka Patent Office

Canon Kabushiki Xaisha

Shigeo Ogura

Nobuhiro Takeda

Toshikazu Yanai

Kenichi Kimura

Yoshihiro Uchino

Toshiya Kurihashi

Makoto Sekita

Tsunefumi Tanaka

Takeshi Akiyama

Norihiro Nanba

Hiroshi Saruwatari

Keisuke Araki

Nobuo Fukushima

Nobuo Tezuka

Ichiro Onuki

Ryosuke Miyamoto

Yoshihiro Honma

Yasuyuki Yamazaki

Masato Kosugi

Kenichi Shinbori

Masashi Hori

Eriko Kawanami

Shinji Sakai

Masahiro Takei

Kenji Takahashi

Akihiro Fujiwara

Sadahiko Tsuji

Makoto Kondo

Eiji Ohara

Hiroyuki Wada

Hiroyuki Ogino

Shigeki Okauchi

Sunao Kurahashi

Akimasa Nishimura

Kazuhiko Etoh

A reflecting-type optical system according to the invention includes an optical element composed of a transparent body having an entrance surface, an exit surface and at least three curved reflecting surfaces of internal reflection. A light beam coming from an object and entering at the entrance surface is reflected from at least one of the reflecting surfaces to form a primary image within the optical element and is, then, made to exit from the exit surface through the remaining reflecting surfaces to form an object image on a predetermined plane. In the optical system, 70% or more of the length of a reference axis in the optical element lies in one plane.

Reflecting type optical system

In an image sensing apparatus of this embodiment, a variable angle prism for preventing a camera shake is used to attain a pixel shift. Consequently, low resolution images free from a blur and high-resolution images obtained by the pixel shift can be selectively obtained with an extremely simple arrangement. Whether a resolution increasing function is to be executed is properly determined in accordance with photographing conditions. Therefore, the resolution increasing function has no adverse effect on other functions. In addition, a power-saving effect can be enhanced since an unnecessary resolution increasing function is not performed. Since the resolution can be further increased by using a conventional camera shake preventing device, a larger amount of a high-frequency component can be detected. Consequently, focus detection can be performed accurately.

Image sensing apparatus

A reflecting type of zoom optical system comprises a plurality of optical elements each of which includes a transparent body and two refracting surfaces and a plurality of reflecting surfaces formed on the transparent body and is arranged so that a light beam enters the transparent body from one of the two refracting surfaces, repeatedly undergoes reflection by the plurality of reflecting surfaces, and exits from the other of the two refracting surfaces, and/or a plurality of optical elements on each of which a plurality of reflecting surfaces made from surface reflecting mirrors are integrally formed, and each of which is arranged so that an entering light beam repeatedly undergoes reflection by the plurality of reflecting surfaces and exits from the optical element. In the reflecting type of zoom optical system, an image of an object is formed via the plurality of optical elements and zooming is performed by causing at least two optical elements from among the plurality of optical elements to vary their relative positions.

Reflecting type of zoom lens

A display element has a plurality of pixels and is constructed to display image information by modulating light passing through each pixel. The display element has the following for each of the pixels: a mask having a shield portion in part; and a first fluid and an electroconductive or polar, second fluid being immiscible with each other. An amount of the light passing through the mask is regulated in such a way that a voltage applied to the second fluid of each pixel is varied to alter the shape of an interface between the first fluid and the second fluid, so as to increase or decrease light incident to the shield portion of the mask.

Display element and display device having it

There is provided an optical apparatus which has excellent assembly performance, can suppress an increase in cost, and attain a decrease in thickness. The optical apparatus includes a board ( ) having a photographing optical system and a mechanical system mounted on its surface. A plurality of opening portions ( ) are formed in the board ( ). The opening portion ( ) is sealed with a sealing member such as a glass member to allow a light beam to pass and prevent dust and the like from entering the storage space for parts between the board ( ) and a shield case ( ). The photographing optical system mounted on the board ( ) includes a stop unit ( ) for adjusting the light amount of an object image guided through the opening portion ( ), and prism-like optical members (G G G G ), each consisting of, e.g., a glass or plastic material and having a sculptured surface as a reflecting surface. Light emerging from the optical member (G ) is received by a solid-state image sensing element ( ) mounted on the lower surface of the board ( ) through the opening portion ( ).

Optical apparatus and image sensing apparatus mounted on the same surface of a board

An optical element has a first fluid and an electroconductive or polar, second fluid immiscible with each other, which are confined in a sealed space created between a first support and a second support. The first fluid and the second fluid have respective light transmittances different from each other. By varying a voltage applied to the second fluid, the shape of an interface between the first fluid and the second fluid is altered, so as to change an amount of light passing through the optical element.

Optical element and optical device having it

There is provided an optical apparatus which has excellent assembly performance, can suppress an increase in cost, and attain a decrease in thickness. The optical apparatus includes a board ( ) having a photographing optical system and a mechanical system mounted on its surface. A plurality of opening portions ( ) are formed in the board ( ). The opening portion ( ) is sealed with a sealing member such as a glass member to allow a light beam to pass and prevent dust and the like from entering the storage space for parts between the board ( ) and a shield case ( ). The photographing optical system mounted on the board ( ) includes a stop unit ( ) for adjusting the light amount of an object image guided through the opening portion ( ), and prism-like optical members (G , G , G , G ), each consisting of, e.g., a glass or plastic material and having a sculptured surface as a reflecting surface. Light emerging from the optical member (G ) is received by a solid-state image sensing element ( ) mounted on the lower surface of the board ( ) through the opening portion ( ). The board may be made up of a plurality of base members which are comprised of different materials joined together.

Optical apparatus for forming an object image on a sensing element

An image sensing apparatus has an image sensing unit and a display unit. The image sensing unit has an optical system for photographing an object and an image sensing element. The display unit has a liquid crystal display device for performing an image display on the basis of a video output from the image sensing unit. A film fixing unit holds the image sensing unit and the display unit at a predetermined distance and also forms a mounting unit for mounting the object on the display surface of the display unit. A film holder for holding a film as an object is mounted on the mounting unit, and a film photographing operation is performed by the image sensing unit while using the display unit as an illumination device.

A zoom lens comprises a plurality of optical elements each of which includes a transparent body having two refracting surfaces and a plurality of reflecting surfaces and is arranged so that a light beam enters the transparent body from one of the two refracting surfaces, repeatedly undergoes reflection, and exits from the other of the two refracting surfaces, and/or a plurality of optical elements on each of which a plurality of reflecting surfaces made from front surface mirrors are integrally formed, and each of which is arranged so that an entering light beam repeatedly undergoes reflection by the plurality of reflecting surfaces and exits from the optical element. In the zoom lens, the optical element which the light beam from an object enters first has an entrance pupil positioned on an object side of a first reflecting surface, and an image of the object is formed via the plurality of optical elements and zooming is performed by causing at least two optical elements from among the plurality of optical elements to vary their relative positions.

An image pickup apparatus wherein plural elements simultaneously pick up the image and the state of the incident light includes a plurality of image pickup elements for generating an object image signal on the basis of a signal output from at least one of the plurality of image pickup elements, and for generating an incident light state signal on the basis of a signal from another image pickup element having substantially the same photographing region as a photographing region of said at least one image pickup element which generates the object image signal. A read-out period for one frame of said at least one image pickup element which generates the object image signal being different from the read-out period for one frame of said another image pickup signal which generates the incident light state signal.

Image pickup apparatus wherein plural elements simultaneously pick up the image and the state of the incident

A reflecting-type optical system according to the invention includes an optical element composed of a transparent body having an entrance surface, an exit surface and at least three curved reflecting surfaces of internal reflection. A light beam coming from an object and entering at the entrance surface is reflected from at least one of the reflecting surfaces to form a primary image within the optical element and is, then, made to exit from the exit surface through the remaining reflecting surfaces to form an object image on a predetermined plane, In the optical system, 70% or more of the length of a reference axis in the optical element lies in one plane.

An image pickup device includes a decision circuit for comparing a signal amount stored in each pixel of a solid-state image pickup element with a predetermined signal amount which is set in advance, thereby deciding which of the two signal amounts is larger, a time measuring circuit for measuring a time required for the signal amount stored in each pixel to reach the predetermined signal amount, and an operating circuit for operating the stored signal of the pixel whose stored signal amount is found to be larger than the predetermined signal amount by the decision circuit, on the basis of the time information obtained from the time measuring circuit.

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Shigeo Ogura