Fluorescent microscope

• US 7,397,602 B2
• Filed: 12/21/2004
• Issued: 07/08/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 01/08/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Original Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Inventors: Endo, Hideaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Allen; Stephone B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chapel; Derek S
• Application Number:
  US11/018,480
• Publication Number:
  US 20050152029A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,295 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 359/388
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/16 adapted for ultraviolet illumination ; Fluorescence microscopes G02B21/0076 takes precedence

Abstract

A fluorescent microscope is provided which includes a light source having a small light emitting element, an illumination optical system which leads light from the light source onto a specimen, an observation optical system to which fluorescence emitted from the specimen is led, an imager which images the fluorescence led to the observation optical system, and a controller which controls turning on and turning off of the small light emitting element synchronously with imaging timing of the imager.

Claims

1. A fluorescent microscope comprising:

a transmitted illumination optical system which includes a transmitted illumination light source and performs transmitted illumination;

an LED light source which turns on and off in response to a rectangular drive signal at high speed;

a fluorescence excitation optical system which leads light from the LED light source onto a specimen to perform epifluorescent illumination;

an observation optical system to which fluorescence emitted from the specimen or transmitted light that has passed through the specimen is led;

an imager which images the fluorescence or the transmitted light led to the observation optical system; and

a controller which;

(i) controls the LED light source to be turned on during a first period and turned off during a second period when performing the epifluorescent illumination, wherein the first period includes a photometry period in which photometry is performed to calculate an optimal exposure time during photographing and a photographing period in which photographing is performed with the calculated optimal exposure time, and wherein the second period includes a period from after ending of the photometry period to starting of the photographing period, and (ii) controls the LED light source to be turned off while continuously lighting the transmitted illumination light source when performing the transmitted illumination.

2. The fluorescent microscope according to claim 1, further comprising a fluorescence observation detector which detects whether or not an observer is performing fluorescence observation,

wherein the controller controls the turning on and turning off of the LED light source by a driver of the LED light source in accordance with an output of the fluorescence observation detector.

3. The fluorescent microscope according to claim 2, wherein the observation optical system comprises an eyepiece, and the fluorescence observation detector detects whether or not the observer is performing the fluorescence observation with the eyepiece.

4. The fluorescent microscope according to claim 3, wherein the fluorescence observation detector comprises a proximity sensor.

5. The fluorescent microscope according to claim 1, wherein, when a same specimen is photographed plural times, the controller turns off the LED light source during an idle period from after a first photographing period to starting of a next photographing period, and turns on the LED light source during the next photographing period in performing the epifluorescent illumination.

6. A fluorescent microscope comprising:

a first LED light source which turns on and turns off in response to a rectangular drive signal at high speed;

a fluorescence excitation optical system which includes a dichroic mirror and leads light from the first LED light source onto a specimen;

a transmitted illumination unit, having a second light source for transmitted illumination that is different from the first LED light source, which illuminates the specimen with light from the second light source;

an observation optical system to which transmitted light that has passed through the specimen or fluorescence emitted from the specimen and passed through a barrier filter is led;

an imager which images the transmitted light or fluorescence led to the observation optical system; and

a controller which controls the first LED light source to be turned off while continuously lighting the second light source with the dichroic mirror and barrier filter evacuated from the observation optical system when performing a transmitted illumination observation using the second light source, controls the second light source to be turned off with the dichroic mirror and barrier filter inserted into the observation optical system when performing a fluorescence observation using the first LED light source, controls the first LED light source to be turned on during a first period, and controls the first LED light source to be turned off during a second period, wherein the first period includes a photometry period in which photometry is performed to calculate an optimal exposure time during photographing and a photographing period in which photographing is performed with the calculated optimal exposure time, and wherein the second period includes a period from after ending of the photometry period to starting of the photographing period.

7. The fluorescent microscope according to claim 6, further comprising a fluorescence observation detector which detects whether or not an observer is performing fluorescence observation,

wherein the controller controls the turning on and turning off of the first LED light source by a driver of the first LED light source in accordance with an output of the fluorescence observation detector, controls an image timing and an exposure time of an imager, and controls the turning on and turning off of the second light source by a driver of the second light source.

8. The fluorescent microscope according to claim 7, wherein the observation optical system comprises an eyepiece, and the fluorescence observation detector detects whether or not the observer is performing the fluorescence observation with the eyepiece.

9. The fluorescent microscope according to claim 8, wherein the fluorescence observation detector comprises a proximity sensor.

10. The fluorescent microscope according to claim 6, wherein, when a same specimen is photographed plural times, the controller turns off the first LED light source during an idle period from after a first photographing period to starting of a next photographing period, and turns on the first LED light source during the next photographing period, in performing the fluorescence observation.