Viewfinder optical system

• US 5,966,244 A
• Filed: 10/03/1997
• Issued: 10/12/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 10/03/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Minolta Corporation Limited (Konica Minolta Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Minolta Corporation Limited (Konica Minolta Inc.)
• Inventors: Ohmori, Shigeto, Mukai, Hiromu
• Primary Examiner(s): Nelms, David
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lester, Evelyn A.
• Application Number:
  US08/943,723
• Time in Patent Office: 739 Days
• Field of Search: 359/647, 359/661, 359/743, 359/569, 359/565, 359/571, 396/382
• US Class Current: 359/647
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 25/001 Eyepieces
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 5/1814 structurally combined with one or more further optical elements, e.g. lenses, mirrors, prisms or other diffraction gratings G02B5/189 takes precedence

Abstract

An eyepiece lens has a single lens element having a positive optical power, and the single lens element has a refractive power of an aspherical surface and a diffractive power. The eyepiece lens satisfies the following condition:

-0.0006<{1 /(fl·ν)}+φDOE/νDOE<0.0002

where fl represents the focal length resulting from both refractive effect and diffractive effect of the eyepiece lens, ν represents the Abbe number of the eyepiece lens, φDOE represents the power resulting from the diffractive effect of the eyepiece lens, and νDOE represents the Abbe-number-equivalent value resulting from the diffractive effect of the eyepiece lens.

Claims

1. An eyepiece lens consisting of a single lens element having a positive optical power, said single lens element having a refractive power of an aspherical surface and having a diffractive power,

wherein the following condition is fulfilled:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">-0.0006<

{1/(fl·

ν

)}φ

DOE/ν

DOE<

0.0002

where

fl represents a focal length resulting from both refractive effect and diffractive effect of the eyepiece lens,

ν

represents an Abbe number of the eyepiece lens,

φ

DOE represents a power resulting from the diffractive effect of the eyepiece lens, and

ν

DOE represents an Abbe-number-equivalent value resulting from the diffractive effect of the eyepiece lens.

2. An eyepiece lens as claimed in claim 1, wherein one surface of the eyepiece lens has both a refractive power of an aspherical surface and a diffractive power.

3. An eyepiece lens as claimed in claim 1, wherein the eyepiece lens is formed in a biconvex shape.

4. An eyepiece lens as claimed in claim 1, wherein the eyepiece lens is formed in a plano-convex shape.

5. An eyepiece lens as claimed in claim 4, wherein a flat surface of the eyepiece lens has a diffractive power.

6. An eyepiece lens consisting of a single lens element having a positive optical power, said single lens element having a refractive power of an aspherical surface and having a diffractive power,

wherein the following condition is fulfilled:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">-0.0006<

{1/(fl·

ν

)}+φ

DOE/ν

DOE<

0 0002

where

fl represents a focal length resulting from both refractive effect and diffractive effect of the eyepiece lens,

ν

represents an Abbe number of the eyepiece lens,

φ

DOE represents a power resulting from the diffractive effect of the eyepiece lens, and

ν

DOE represents an Abbe-number-equivalent value resulting from the diffractive effect of the eyepiece lens;

wherein the eyepiece lens is formed in a meniscus shape.

7. An eyepiece lens consisting of a single lens element having a positive optical power, said single lens element having a refractive power of an aspherical surface and having a diffractive power,

wherein the following condition is fulfilled:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">-0.0006<

{1/(fl·

ν

)}+φ

DOE/ν

DOE<

0.0002

where

fl represents a focal length resulting from both refractive effect and diffractive effect of the eyepiece lens,

ν

represents an Abbe number of the eyepiece lens,

φ

DOE represents a power resulting from the diffractive effect of the eyepiece lens, and

ν

DOE represents an Abbe-number-equivalent value resulting from the diffractive effect of the eyepiece lens;

wherein two surfaces of the eyepiece lens each have a diffractive power.

8. An eyepiece lens as claimed in claim 7, wherein the two surfaces have diffractive powers of opposite signs.

9. An eyepiece lens as claimed in claim 7, wherein the two surfaces have diffractive powers of a same sign.

10. An eyepiece lens consisting of a single lens element having a positive optical power, said single lens element having a refractive power of an aspherical surface and having a diffractive power;

wherein chromatic aberration resulting from the refractive power of an aspherical surface is substantially canceled by chromatic aberration resulting from the diffractive power; and

wherein the following condition is fulfilled;

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">-0.0006<

{1/(fl·

ν

)}+φ

DOE/ν

DOE<

0.0002

where

fl represents a focal length resulting from both refractive effect and diffractive effect of the eyepiece lens,

ν

represents an Abbe number of the eyepiece lens,

φ

DOE represents a power resulting from the diffractive effect of the eyepiece lens, and

ν

DOE represents an Abbe-number-equivalent value resulting from the diffractive effect of the eyepiece lens.

11. A real-type viewfinder optical system comprising:

an eyepiece lens system; and

an objective lens system;

wherein one of said eyepiece lens system and said objective lens system includes a lens element which has a surface having a diffractive power,

wherein the following condition is fulfilled;

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">0.01<

|φ

DOE/φ

e|<

0.16

where

φ

DOE represents a composite power of the surface having a refractive power and a surface having a diffractive power within the lens element, and

φ

e represents a composite power of surfaces having refractive powers and surfaces having diffractive powers within said one of said eyepiece lens system and said objective lens system having said lens element therein.

12. A real-type viewfinder optical system as claimed in claim 11, wherein said objective lens system includes said lens element which has a surface having a diffractive power and wherein the lens element which has a surface having a diffractive power within the lens element constitutes part of an outer covering of an optical apparatus.

13. A real-type viewfinder optical system as claimed in claim 11, wherein said eyepiece lens system has said lens element which has a surface having a diffractive power.

14. A real-type viewfinder optical system as claimed in claim 11, wherein said objective lens system has said lens element which has a surface having a diffractive power.

15. A real-type viewfinder optical system comprising an eyepiece lens system having a lens element which has a surface having a diffractive power,

wherein the following condition is fulfilled:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">0.01<

|φ

DOE/φ

e|<

0.16

where

φ

DOE represents a composite power of the surface having a refractive power and a surface having a diffractive power within the lens element, and

φ

e represents a composite power of surfaces having refractive powers and surfaces having diffractive powers within the entire eyepiece lens system;

wherein the surface having a diffractive power within the lens element constitutes part of an outer covering of an optical apparatus.

16. A real-type viewfinder optical system comprising:

an objective lens;

an objective-side inverting prism; and

an eyepiece-side inverting prism;

wherein;

said eyepiece-side inverting prism has a diffractive optical surface formed on a pupil side surface,

said pupil side surface of said eyepiece-side inverting prism has a curved surface, and wherein the following condition is fulfilled;

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">0.03<

rE·

φ

D/(1--N)<

0.1

where

rE represents the radius of curvature of the pupil side surface of the inverting prism,

φ

D represents the power of the diffractive optical surface DOE provided on the pupil side surface of the inverting prism, and

N represents the refractive index of the inverting prism.

17. A real-type viewfinder optical system in accordance with claim 16, wherein said curved surface is an aspheric surface.

18. A real-type viewfinder optical system in accordance with claim 16, wherein said objective-side inverting prism has a diffractive optical surface formed on an object side surface.