Endoscope and manufacturing method of endoscope

• US 9,826,890 B2
• Filed: 02/18/2015
• Issued: 11/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/27/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: I-Pro Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Osada, Akinori, Sanada, Takafumi, Hanada, Yasuyuki, Haraguchi, Naoyuki, Suzuki, Takahisa, Tanaka, Tooru, Nagayasu, Hiroshi
• Primary Examiner(s): NEAL, TIMOTHY JAY
• Application Number:
  US14/625,394
• Publication Number:
  US 20150238069A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,014 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00096 Optical elements
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/0011 Manufacturing of endoscope parts
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/05 characterised by the image sensor, e.g. camera, being in the distal end portion
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 23/2423 of the distal end
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 23/2476 Non-optical details, e.g. housings, mountings, supports
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 7/025 using glue

Abstract

An endoscope which promotes downsizing and cost reduction, and a manufacturing method of an endoscope are provided. For this reason, in an endoscope, a lens unit containing a lens in a lens tube, an image capturing element of which an image capturing surface is covered with element cover glass, and an adhesive resin fixing the lens unit of which an optical axis of the lens is coincident with the center of the image capturing surface to the element cover glass with a separation portion are disposed.

Claims

1. An endoscope, comprising:

a lens unit containing a lens in a lens tube, the lens including an optical axis;

an image capturing element including an image capturing surface which is covered with an element cover glass, the optical axis of the lens being coincident with a center of the image capturing surface;

an adhesive resin fixing an image capturing element side of the lens in the lens unit to the element cover glass and fixing an image capturing element side of the lens tube to the element cover glass, the adhesive resin being a light transmitting material;

a separation portion between the lens unit and the element cover glass; and

a mold resin covering the image capturing element and at least a part of the lens unit, the mold resin being a light blocking material.

2. The endoscope of claim 1,

wherein the separation portion is filled with an adhesive resin.

3. The endoscope of claim 1,

wherein an air layer transmitting light from the lens is disposed in the separation portion.

4. The endoscope of claim 1,

wherein the image capturing element side of the lens includes a concave surface or a convex surface.

5. The endoscope of claim 4,

wherein the separation portion is filled with the adhesive resin, and

a refractive index of the lens and a refractive index of the adhesive resin have a refractive index difference greater than or equal to a predetermined value.

6. The endoscope of claim 4,

wherein the lens unit is adhered and fixed to the image capturing element with a distance of a predetermined range in an optical axis direction in the separation portion.

7. The endoscope of claim 1,

wherein an outermost surface of the lens on the image capturing element side of the lens is magnesium fluoride.

8. The endoscope of claim 1,

wherein an outermost surface of the lens on the image capturing element side of the lens is any one of a metal oxide, metal, silicon oxide, silicon carbide, and silicon.

9. The endoscope of claim 1,

wherein an outermost surface of the lens on the image capturing element side of the lens is a silane coupling agent.

10. A manufacturing method of an endoscope, comprising:

applying a UV thermosetting resin to at least one of a lens unit containing a lens in a lens tube, the lens including an optical axis, and an image capturing element which includes an image capturing surface covered with an element cover glass;

supporting the lens unit;

positioning the optical axis of the lens unit and a center of the image capturing surface of the image capturing element by referring to an image captured by the image capturing element while moving the image capturing element supported on an XYZ stage;

adjusting a position of the lens unit relative to the image capturing element along the optical axis of the lens unit;

temporarily fixing the lens unit to the image capturing element with the UV thermosetting resin by ultraviolet irradiation;

permanently fixing an image capturing element side of the lens in the lens unit to the element cover glass of the image capturing element and permanently fixing an image capturing side of the lens tube to the element cover glass of the image capturing element with the UV thermosetting resin by heat treatment, the heat treated UV thermosetting resin being a light transmitting material; and

covering the image capturing element and at least a part of the lens unit with a mold resin, the mold resin being a light blocking material.

11. A manufacturing method of an endoscope, comprising:

applying a UV thermosetting resin to at least one of a lens unit containing a lens in a lens tube, the lens including an optical axis, and an image capturing element which includes an image capturing surface covered with an element cover glass;

arranging a right and left camera including a first camera and a second camera of which optical axes are coincident with each other between the image capturing element and the lens unit;

moving the center of an image capturing surface of the image capturing element onto the center of a screen by referring to a projected image captured by the first camera;

moving the center of the lens unit onto the center of the screen by referring to a projected image captured by the second camera;

adjusting a distance in a direction along the optical axis of the lens unit and the image capturing element by referring to a projected image captured by the image capturing element after retracting the right and left camera;

temporarily fixing the lens unit to the image capturing element with the UV thermosetting resin by ultraviolet irradiation;

permanently fixing an image capturing element side of the lens in the lens unit to the element cover glass of the image capturing element and permanently fixing an image capturing side of the lens tube to the element cover glass of the image capturing element with the UV thermosetting resin by heat treatment, the heat treated UV thermosetting resin being a light transmitting material; and

covering the image capturing element and at least a part of the lens unit with a mold resin, the mold resin being a light blocking material.