Endoscope apparatus

• US 8,228,369 B2
• Filed: 03/24/2009
• Issued: 07/24/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Original Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Inventors: Fujimori, Noriyuki, Kojima, Kazuaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Wang, Liangche A
• Application Number:
  US12/409,684
• Publication Number:
  US 20090244259A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,218 Days
• Field of Search: 348/42, 348/45, 348/49
• US Class Current: 348/45
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/50 Constructional details
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/555 for picking-up images in sites, inaccessible due to their dimensions or hazardous conditions, e.g. endoscopes or borescopes

Abstract

An endoscope apparatus includes a polygonal camera module integrally formed at a wafer level by aligning and bonding a light collecting surface side of a lens wafer formed by laminating a plurality of optical wafers on which a plurality of optical parts are formed, and a device surface side of a sensor wafer on which a plurality of solid-state image pickup devices are formed, and then separating the aligned and bonded lens wafer and sensor wafer into individual pieces, wherein an endoscope functional portion is located in a region from an edge end portion of the camera module to an outer peripheral end of an outer shape portion.

Claims

1. An endoscope apparatus comprising

a polygonal camera module prepared as one of a plurality of polygonal camera modules, the plurality of polygonal camera modules being integrally formed at a wafer level by aligning and bonding a light collecting surface side of a lens wafer formed by laminating a plurality of optical wafers on which a plurality of optical parts are formed, and a device surface side of a sensor wafer on which a plurality of solid-state image pickup devices are formed, and then separating the plurality of polygonal camera modules integrally formed at the wafer level into individual polygonal camera modules,

wherein an endoscope functional portion is located in a region from an edge end portion of the camera module to an outer peripheral end of an outer shape portion.

2. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the endoscope functional portion constitutes an illumination portion for illuminating a test region with illumination light, and

wherein a reflective member is provided in an outside surface portion of the camera module at least on a test target side with respect to the illumination portion.

3. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the illumination portion is mounted on a same substrate on which the camera module is mounted.

4. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the illumination portion is one of an LED, an organic EL, an inorganic EL, and a light guide.

5. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 2, comprising an opening portion of at least an air feed and water feed portion or a forceps channel portion, constituting the endoscope functional portion different from the illumination portion.

6. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 3, comprising an opening portion of at least an air feed and water feed portion or a forceps channel portion, constituting the endoscope functional portion different from the illumination portion.

7. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 4, comprising an opening portion of at least an air feed and water feed portion or a forceps channel portion, constituting the endoscope functional portion different from the illumination portion.