Objective lens system for endoscopes

• US 5,119,238 A
• Filed: 10/12/1990
• Issued: 06/02/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 10/13/1989
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Olympus Optical Company Ltd. (Olympus Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Olympus Optical Company Ltd. (Olympus Corporation)
• Inventors: Igarashi, Tsutomu
• Primary Examiner(s): Sugarman, Scott J.
• Application Number:
  US07/596,501
• Time in Patent Office: 599 Days
• Field of Search: 350/469, 350/450, 350/432-435
• US Class Current: 359/714
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 13/06 Panoramic objectives; So-called "sky lenses" including panoramic objectives having reflecting surfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 13/18 with lenses having one or more non-spherical faces, e.g. for reducing geometrical aberration G02B13/002 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 13/22 Telecentric objectives or lens systems
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 23/243 Objectives for endoscopes
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 9/34 having four components only
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 9/60 having five components only

Abstract

A nearly telecentric objective lens system for endoscopes comprising an aperture stop, and a lens unit which has a positive refractive power and is arranged after said aperture stop, wherein said aperture stop is located at the front focal point of said positive lens unit and a single aspherical surface or a plurality of aspherical surfaces are arranged only in said positive lens unit. Distortion is corrected favorably in the objective lens system for endoscopes.

Claims

1. An objective lens system for endoscopes, comprising, in order from the object side:

a front lens unit including a negative lens component and a positive lens component;

an aperture stop; and

a rear lens unit having a positive refractive power;

wherein

said aperture stop is disposed substantially at a front focal point of said rear lens unit; and

at least said rear lens unit includes an aspherical surface satisfying the following condition (1);

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">E'"'"'(n.sub.i-1 -n.sub.i)>

0 (1)

wherein the reference symbol E'"'"' represents the aspherical surface coefficient of fourth order, the reference symbol n_i-1 designates the refractive index of a medium disposed on the object side of said aspherical surface, and the reference symbol n_i denotes the refractive index of the medium disposed on the image side of said aspherical surface.

2. An objective lens system for endoscopes according to claim 1 further satisfying the following condition (2):

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">ω

≦

I/f≦

0.9 tan (ω

/0.9) (2)

wherein the reference symbol ω

represents the half field angle of said objective lens system, the reference symbol I designates the maximum image height and the reference symbol f denotes the focal length of the objective lens system as a whole.

8. An objective lens system according to claim 2, 6 or 7 satisfying the following condition (3):

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">Σ

E.sub.i '"'"'(n.sub.i-1 -n.sub.i)·

f.sup.3 >

0.001(3)

9. An objective lens system for endoscopes according to claim 2, 6 or 7 satisfying the following condition (4):

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">Σ

E.sub.i '"'"'(n.sub.i-1 -n.sub.i)·

f.sub.3 >

0.01(4)

10. An objective lens system for endoscopes according to claim 2, 6 or 7 satisfying the following condition:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">f(n.sub.i-1 -n.sub.i)/r.sub.i '"'"'≧

0.1

Wherein the reference symbol r_i '"'"' represents the radius of curvature of said aspherical surface as measured in the vicinity of the optical axis.

11. An objective lens system for endoscopes according to claim 2, 6 or 7 wherein the lens unit arranged after said aperture stop consists of three lens components having positive refractive powers.

12. An objective lens system for endoscopes according to claim 11 wherein the lens unit arranged after said aperture stop comprises a cemented doublet.

13. An objective lens system for endoscopes according to claim 2, 6 or 7 wherein an average value of the refractive indices of the lens components is larger than 1.65.

14. An objective lens system for endoscopes according to claim 2, 6 or 7 wherein the negative lens component and the positive lens component arranged in said front lens unit satisfy the following conditions:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">n>

1.7

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">v>

45

wherein the reference symbol n represents the refractive index of said negative lens component and the reference symbol v designates the Abbe'"'"'s number of said positive lens component.

3. An objective lens system for endoscopes comprising, in the order from the object side, a front lens unit comprising a negative lens component, an aperture stop and a rear lens unit having a positive refractive power:

said aperture stop being located substantially at the front focal point of said positive lens unit; and

said rear lens unit comprising at least one aspherical surface at a location satisfying the following conditions (5) and (6);

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">|hm/r.sub.s |>

0.5 (5)

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">|hc/I/51 >

0.5 (6)

wherein the reference symbol h_m represents the height of the marginal ray on said aspherical surface, the reference symbol hc designates the height, on said aspherical surface, of the principal ray to attain to the maximum image height, the reference symbol r_s denotes the radius of the aperture of said aperture stop, and the reference symbol I represents the maximum image height.

4. An objective lens system for endoscopes according to claim 3 wherein said aspherical surface satisfies the following condition (1):

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">E.sub.i '"'"'(n.sub.i-1 -n.sub.i)>

0 (1)

wherein the reference symbol E_i '"'"' represents an aspherical surface coefficient of fourth order, the reference symbol n_i-1 designates the refractive index of a medium disposed on the object side of said aspherical surface, and the reference symbol n_i denotes the refractive index of the medium disposed on the image side of said aspherical surface.

5. An objective lens system for endoscopes according to claim 3 wherein said front lens unit further comprises a positive lens component.

6. An objective lens system for endoscopes comprising, in order from the object side;

a front lens unit comprising a negative lens component;

an aperture stop; and

a rear lens unit having a positive refractive power;

wherein

said aperture stop is disposed substantially at the front focal point of said rear lens unit; and

at least said rear lens unit including an aspherical surface satisfying the following conditions (1) and (2);

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">E.sub.i '"'"'(n.sub.i-1 -n.sub.i)>

0 (1)

ω

≦

I/f≦

0.9 tan (ω

/0.9) (2)

wherein the reference symbol E_i '"'"' represents an aspherical surface coefficient of fourth order, the reference symbol n_i-1 designates the refractive index of a medium disposed on the object side of said aspherical surface, the reference symbol n_i denotes the refractive index of a medium disposed on the image side of said aspherical surface, the reference symbol ω

represents a half field angle of said objective lens system, the reference symbol I designates maximum image height and reference symbol f denotes focal length of the objective lens system as a whole.

7. An objective lens system for endoscopes comprising, in order from the object side;

a front lens unit;

an aperture stop; and

a rear lens unit having a positive refractive power;

wherein;

said aperture stop is disposed substantially at the front focal point of said rear lens unit; and

only said rear lens unit includes an aspherical surface satisfying the following conditions (1) and (2);

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">E.sub.i '"'"'(n.sub.i-1 -n.sub.i)>

0 (1)

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">ω

≦

I/f≦

0.9 tan (ω

/0.9) (2)

wherein the reference symbol E_i '"'"' represents an aspherical surface coefficient of fourth order, the reference symbol n_i-1 designates the refractive index of a medium disposed on the object side of said aspherical surface, the reference symbol n_i denotes the refractive index of a medium disposed on the image side of said aspherical surface, the symbol ω

represents a half field angle of said objective lens system, the reference symbol I designates maximum image height and the reference symbol f denotes focal length of the objective lens system as a whole.