JP4147167B2 - Variable magnification binoculars - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a variable power binocular, and more particularly, to an eyepiece zoom type variable power binocular that changes magnification by moving an adjusting concave lens and an eyepiece lens system synchronously.

  There are eyepiece zoom type binoculars as variable power binoculars capable of continuously changing the magnification. The eyepiece lens system in the eyepiece zoom type binoculars has a first lens (referred to as “Motodama”) located near the eyes and a second lens (“open”) located on the adjustment concave lens side. A third lens (“Nakadama”) disposed between the first lens and the second lens in some cases. ". ) May be provided. In the eyepiece zoom type binoculars having an eyepiece system formed by combining a plurality of lenses as described above, the magnification is continuously changed by moving at least the second lens closer to or away from the first lens. be able to. The eyepiece zoom binoculars have the feature that the size can be easily reduced because the magnification can be greatly changed by a small movement along the optical axis of the second lens. Therefore, most of the current variable power binoculars adopt the eyepiece zoom type.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an optical system of a conventional eyepiece zoom type variable magnification binoculars. FIG. 1A shows an optical system at a low magnification of 7 times (7x), and FIG. 1B shows an optical system at a high magnification of 15 times (15x). 1A and 1B, reference numeral 1 is an objective lens, 2 is an eyepiece lens, 3 is a prism system, 4 is a concave lens for adjustment, 5 is a field lens, 6 is an objective imaging plane, and 7 is an apparent surface. This is the image plane of the image. In the optical system of FIG. 1, the objective lens 1, the eyepiece lens 2, and the prism system 3 are fixed, whereas the adjusting concave lens 4 and the field lens 5 are along the optical axis of the optical system of FIG. It is configured to be movable. When the magnification is low in FIG. 1A, the adjusting concave lens 4 is in the position a, and the field lens 5 is in the position c. In order to change from the low magnification state of FIG. 1A to the high magnification state of FIG. 1B, the adjustment concave lens 4 is moved to the position b of FIG. To position d. The adjustment concave lens 4 and the field lens 5 are moved by rotating a zooming lever or zooming ring (not shown) of the variable power binoculars. When the zooming lever or the zooming ring is rotated, the adjusting concave lens 4 and the field lens 5 are displaced in conjunction with each other along the optical axis of the optical system of the variable power binoculars. When the user of the variable magnification binoculars wants to see a magnified image of the subject, the zooming lever or zooming ring may be rotated to a position where a desired magnification can be obtained.

  However, the above-described conventional variable power binoculars are configured to generate a variable power action by moving two lenses, an adjustment concave lens and a field lens, so that an image enlarged from a low magnification to a high magnification can be obtained. When viewing, it is difficult to clearly observe an enlarged image with high resolution because the image quality is likely to change due to a change in aberration. Further, since the movement of the eye relief is large between the low magnification side and the high magnification side, it may be difficult to see depending on the object. Furthermore, since conventional variable power binoculars require two lenses, an adjustment concave lens and a field lens, to be interlocked, the mechanical structure for interlocking these lenses is complicated, and its manufacture and assembly are not always easy. It wasn't.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a variable magnification binocular that can maintain a high resolving power from a low magnification to a high magnification with little change in image quality.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide variable power binoculars that can secure a wide field of view and that can widen the apparent field of view on the low magnification side.

  Furthermore, an object of the present invention is to provide a variable magnification binocular that can relatively reduce the movement of the eye relief on the low magnification side and the high magnification side, and can also ensure a long eye relief. It is in.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a variable power binocular that has a relatively simple mechanical structure and is easy to manufacture and assemble.

  Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent with reference to the following description.

As means for solving the problems,
Claim 1 is between an objective lens system, a prism system that converts an image passing through the objective lens system from an inverted image to an erect image, a focal point formed by the objective lens system, and the prism system, A concave lens for adjustment which is arranged to be movable on the optical axis formed by the objective lens system and the prism system, and the adjustment lens so as to approach or separate from the concave lens for adjustment on the optical axis. A variable power binocular characterized by comprising an eyepiece lens system arranged to be movable on the optical axis in synchronization with the movement of the concave lens,
Claim 2
The eyepiece lens system is formed so as to be movable on the optical axis so that the focal point of the eyepiece lens system coincides with the focal point of the objective lens system changed by the adjustment concave lens moving on the optical axis. The variable power binoculars according to claim 1.

Claim 3
The variable power binoculars according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the eyepiece lens system is a combination lens.

  According to the variable power binoculars having such a configuration, unlike the conventional eyepiece zoom type binoculars, the entire eyepiece lens system composed of a plurality of combined lenses is moved together, so that the imaging position of the apparent image is Constant for eyepiece system. Therefore, the aberration caused by moving at least one of the lenses constituting the eyepiece lens system as in conventional variable power binoculars is reduced, and therefore the change in image quality is reduced, and the single magnification from low to high magnification. The resolution similar to that of binoculars can be maintained constant without deteriorating.

  In general, the field of view is also called a field of view. Apparent field of view refers to the angle of the apparent elephant made by binoculars, that is, the angle at the eye point of the emitted light. In the present invention, since the entire eyepiece lens system is moved integrally, the difference between the apparent field of view at the low magnification and the apparent field of view at the high magnification can be reduced, and therefore the eyepiece system having a large apparent field of view. Can be designed. In particular, in the conventional zoom method, if the apparent field of view at the time of high magnification is increased, the apparent field of view at the time of low magnification is narrowed to less than 40 ° if the magnification is reduced by moving the lenses constituting the eyepiece lens system. As a result, at low magnification, the field of view was very narrow and difficult to see, but according to the present invention, the apparent field on the low magnification side and the apparent field on the high magnification side are almost constant. Even if the eyepiece lens system is designed so that the apparent field of view is 50 ° or more, the apparent field of view of 50 ° or more can be ensured even if the magnification is reduced by moving the whole eyepiece lens system integrally.

  Furthermore, in the conventional zoom system, the movement of the eye relief is large because the focal length of the eyepiece lens system itself is different between a low magnification and a high magnification by moving one lens constituting the eyepiece lens system. Therefore, depending on the object, there are cases where it is difficult to see, but according to the present invention, the fluctuation length of the eye relief can be made relatively small, so that it is possible to clearly observe an object that has been difficult to see conventionally. It is possible, and it becomes easy to secure a long eye relief.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

  FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an optical system of the eyepiece zoom type variable power binoculars of the present invention. 2A shows an optical system at a low magnification of 8 times (8x), and FIG. 2B shows an optical system at a high magnification of 12 times (12x). 2A and 2B, reference numeral 8 is an objective lens, 9 is an eyepiece lens system, 10 is a prism system, 11 is a concave lens for adjustment comprising a concave lens, 12 is an objective imaging plane, and 13 is an apparent image. This is the imaging plane. In the optical system of FIG. 2, the objective lens 8 and the prism system 10 are fixed. On the other hand, the eyepiece lens system 9 and the adjusting concave lens 11 are configured to be displaceable along the optical axis of the variable power binoculars. The adjusting concave lens 11 is disposed between the prism system 10 of the variable power binoculars and the objective imaging plane 12. When the magnification is low in FIG. In order to change from the low magnification state of FIG. 2A to the high magnification state of FIG. 2B, the adjustment concave lens 11 is moved to the position f, and the eyepiece lens is adjusted in accordance with the moved objective imaging position. The system 9 is displaced from the position g in FIG. 2 (A) to the position h in FIG. 2 (B). That is, the focal length of the objective lens 8 is increased by moving the adjusting concave lens 11 on the optical axis. The eyepiece lens system 9 is moved on the optical axis so that the focal point of the eyepiece lens system 9 coincides with the focal point of the objective lens 8 having a long focal length. The imaging position of the apparent image viewed from the eye point is the focal plane of the eyepiece lens system 9, and the focal length of the eyepiece lens system 9 itself does not change. For this reason, even if the magnification of the binoculars is changed, the size of the apparent field of view is kept substantially constant.

  That is, in the variable power binoculars of the present invention, at the time of zooming, the objective focal length and the objective imaging position are changed by moving the adjusting concave lens 11, and at the same time, the objective imaging position changed by the movement of the adjusting concave lens 11 is changed. Accordingly, the entire eyepiece lens system 9 is moved. That is, the eyepiece lens system 9 that has been fixed in the past is moved. In this way, the magnification of the variable power binoculars is changed by moving the adjusting concave lens 11 and the whole eyepiece lens system 9.

  The adjustment concave lens 11 and the eyepiece lens system 9 are moved by rotating a zooming lever or zooming ring (not shown) of the variable power binoculars. When the zooming lever or zooming ring is rotated, the adjusting concave lens 11 and the eyepiece lens system 9 are displaced in conjunction with each other along the optical axis of the optical system of the variable power binoculars. When the user of the variable magnification binoculars wants to see an enlarged image of the subject, the zooming lever or zooming ring may be rotated to a position where a desired magnification can be obtained.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(Example 1)
3 to 13 show a first embodiment of the variable power binoculars of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 3, the variable power binocular 20 is a prism binocular, and its main body is configured by rotatably connecting arm portions 23 and 24 of mirror bodies 21 and 22 by a central axis 25. A central roller 26 is fitted to the central shaft 25 so as to be able to rotate forward and backward. An objective lens 27, an eyepiece lens system 28, and a Porro prism 29 are attached to each of the mirror bodies 21 and 22, and light incident from the objective lens 27 passes through the Porro prism 29 and reaches the eyepiece lens system 28. The Porro prism 29 is an upright prism. An adjusting concave lens 30 is disposed between the eyepiece lens system 28 and the Porro prism 29, respectively. The eyepiece lens system 28 and the adjusting concave lens 30 are supported by a zoom mechanism 31 built in the mirror bodies 2 and 3, and are displaced along the optical axis 32 by interlocking with the zoom mechanism 31.

  FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a portion of the magnification changing mechanism 31 in FIG. 3, and FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the magnification changing mechanism 31. 6 to 13 are diagrams showing main components of the zoom mechanism. The magnification changing mechanism 31 includes an eyepiece outer cylinder 33 (see FIG. 6) fixed to the eyepieces of the mirror bodies 21 and 22, and a cam inner cylinder 34 (see FIG. 7) rotatably mounted in the eyepiece outer cylinder 33. The adjusting concave lens 30 is disposed in the cam inner cylinder 34 so as to be reciprocally movable along the optical axis 32. The adjusting concave lens 30 is fixed to a support cylinder 35, and the support cylinder 35 is slidable in the direction of the optical axis 32 along the inner surface of the cam inner cylinder 34. A pin 36 protrudes from the side surface of the support cylinder 35, and the pin 36 engages with the vertical groove 39 of the eyepiece outer cylinder 33 through the cam groove 37 of the cam inner cylinder 34. Reference numeral 38 indicates a cam groove formed on the peripheral surface of the eyepiece outer cylinder 33. A longitudinal groove 40 is also formed on the circumferential surface of the cam inner cylinder 34. A pin 41 is inserted into the vertical groove 40, and a contact holder 42 (see FIG. 8) is slidably mounted on the cam inner cylinder 34. The pin 41 is fixed by being screwed into a screw hole 43 formed on the peripheral surface of the in-contact holder 42.

  An eyepiece inner tube 44 (see FIG. 9) is fitted and fixed to the eyepiece holder 42, and eyepiece groups 28a, 28b, 28c, and 28d constituting the eyepiece lens system 28 are fixed to the eyepiece inner tube 44. Yes. The inner holder 42 is slidable within the range of the vertical groove 40 of the cam inner cylinder 34, and at this time, the eyepiece inner cylinder 44 moves along the optical axis 32 together with the inner holder 42. A cam inner cylinder retainer 45 (see FIG. 10) is screwed onto the outer periphery of the eyepiece outer cylinder 33, and the cam inner cylinder retainer 45 engages with an upper end portion of the cam inner cylinder 34 to prevent the cam inner cylinder 34 from coming off. . An annular groove 45a is formed on the inner surface of the cam inner cylinder retainer 45, and a seal ring 46 is attached to the annular groove 45a.

  The outer support cylinder 47 (see FIG. 11) is fitted to the outer periphery of the cam inner cylinder retainer 45, and a screw hole 48 is formed in the peripheral surface of the outer support cylinder 47. A screw 49 is screwed into the screw hole 48, and the external support cylinder 47 is fixed to the cam inner cylinder retainer 45 by the screw 49. A pop-up ring 50 (see FIG. 12) is slidably fitted on the outer periphery of the external support cylinder 47. Vertical grooves 51 are formed on the peripheral surface of the pop-up ring 50, and the screws 49 are screwed into the screw holes 48 of the external support cylinder 47 via these vertical grooves 51. Reference numeral 52 is an annular groove formed on the peripheral surface of the pop-up ring 50, and a seal ring 53 is attached to the annular groove 52. A rubber viewing port 54 (see FIG. 13) is fitted on the outer periphery of the pop-up ring 50, and the rubber viewing port 54 can be pulled out of the binoculars 20 together with the pop-up ring 50. The state in which the rubber mouth 54 is pulled out together with the pop-up ring 50 is shown by an imaginary line in FIG.

(Example 2)
14 to 27 show a second embodiment of the variable power binoculars of the present invention. In FIG. 14 to FIG. 27, the constituent elements denoted by the same reference numerals as those used in FIG. 3 to FIG. 13 are the same constituent elements. FIG. 15 is an enlarged view of a portion of the magnification changing mechanism 60 in FIG. 14, and FIG. 16 is an exploded perspective view of the magnification changing mechanism 60. FIGS. 17 to 27 are diagrams showing main components of the zooming mechanism 60, respectively. The zoom mechanism 60 includes an eyepiece outer cylinder 61 (see FIG. 17) fixed to the eyepieces of the mirror bodies 21 and 22, and a cam inner cylinder 62 (see FIG. 18) rotatably mounted in the eyepiece outer cylinder 61. The adjusting concave lens 30 is disposed in the cam inner cylinder 62 so as to be capable of reciprocating along the optical axis 32. The adjusting concave lens 30 is fixed to the support cylinder 35, and the support cylinder 35 is slidable in the direction of the optical axis 32 along the inner surface of the cam inner cylinder 62. A pin 36 protrudes from the side surface of the support cylinder 35, and the pin 36 engages with the vertical groove 64 of the eyepiece outer cylinder 61 through the cam groove 63 of the cam inner cylinder 62. Reference numeral 65 indicates a cam groove formed on the peripheral surface of the eyepiece outer cylinder 61. A cam groove 66 is also formed on the peripheral surface of the cam inner cylinder 62. The pin 41 is inserted into the cam groove 66, and the in-contact holder 42 (see FIG. 8) is slidably mounted on the cam inner cylinder 62. The pin 41 is fixed by being screwed into a screw hole 43 formed on the peripheral surface of the in-contact holder 42.

  An eyepiece inner tube 44 (see FIG. 9) is fitted and fixed to the eyepiece holder 42, and eyepiece groups 28a, 28b, 28c, and 28d constituting the eyepiece lens system 28 are fixed to the eyepiece inner tube 44. Yes. The inner holder 42 is slidable along the cam groove 66 of the cam inner cylinder 62. At this time, the eyepiece inner cylinder 44 moves along the optical axis 32 while rotating together with the inner holder 42. A cam inner cylinder holder 67 (see FIG. 19) is screwed onto the outer periphery of the eyepiece outer cylinder 61, and the cam inner cylinder holder 67 engages with the upper end portion of the cam inner cylinder 62 to prevent the cam inner cylinder 62 from coming off. . An annular groove 67a is formed on the inner surface of the cam inner cylinder retainer 67, and a seal ring 46 is attached to the annular groove 67a.

  The outer support cylinder 68 (see FIG. 20) is fitted to the outer periphery of the cam inner cylinder retainer 67, and a screw hole 69 is formed in the peripheral surface of the outer support 68. A screw is screwed into the screw hole 69, and the external support cylinder 68 is fixed to the cam inner cylinder retainer 67 by this screw. A pin insertion port 70 is also formed on the peripheral surface of the external support cylinder 68, and a pin 71 is implanted in the pin insertion port 70. These pins 71 engage with cam grooves 73 of the twist ring 72 (see FIG. 21), and a rubber port 74 (see FIG. 22) is fitted to the outer periphery of the twist ring 72. The rubber ring 74 is pushed out of the binoculars 20 as the twist ring 72 rotates. The state where the rubber viewing port 74 is pushed out is shown by an imaginary line in FIG. In FIG. 14, reference numeral 75 indicates a variable power ring.

  As described above, according to the variable power binoculars of the present invention, the image formation position of the apparent image is constant with respect to the eyepiece system regardless of the variable power operation, so that the change in image quality is reduced. The effect that the resolving power equivalent to single magnification binoculars can be maintained from low magnification to high magnification is produced.

  In addition, according to the variable power binoculars of the present invention, since the entire eyepiece lens system is moved during the variable power operation, the apparent field of view is constant, so that a wide field of view can be secured. In particular, in the conventional zoom method, since the apparent field on the low magnification side is generally less than 40 °, the field of view is very narrow and difficult to see. According to the present invention, the apparent field of view on the low magnification side and the high magnification are high. Since the apparent visual field on the side becomes constant, an apparent visual field of 50 ° or more can be secured even on the low magnification side.

  Furthermore, since the movement of the eye relief is large on the low magnification side and the high magnification side in the conventional zoom method, it may be difficult to see depending on the object. However, according to the variable power binoculars of the present invention, the movement of the eye relief is relatively Since it can be made small, it is possible to clearly see an object that has been difficult to see conventionally, and it is easy to ensure a long eye relief.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an optical system of a conventional eyepiece zoom type variable power binoculars. FIG. 1A is a diagram showing an arrangement of lens systems at a low magnification, and FIG. It is a figure which shows arrangement | positioning of the lens system at the time of. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the optical system of the variable magnification binoculars of the present invention. FIG. 2A is a diagram showing the arrangement of the lens system at a low magnification, and FIG. 2B is a diagram at a high magnification. It is a figure which shows arrangement | positioning of this lens system. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the first embodiment of the variable power binoculars of the present invention. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a portion II surrounded by an ellipse in FIG. FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the zoom mechanism of the zoom binoculars according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 6A is a side view of the ocular outer cylinder, FIG. 6B is a plan view of the ocular outer cylinder, and FIG. 6C is a side view of the main part of the ocular outer cylinder. 7A is a side view of the cam inner cylinder, FIG. 7B is a plan view of the cam inner cylinder, and FIG. 7C is a side view of the main part of the cam inner cylinder. FIG. 8A is a side view of the inner holder, and FIG. 8B is a plan view of the inner holder. FIG. 9A is a side view of the eyepiece inner cylinder, and FIG. 9B is a plan view of the eyepiece inner cylinder. FIG. 10A is a side view of the cam inner cylinder restraint, and FIG. 10B is a plan view of the cam inner cylinder restraint. FIG. 11A is a side view of the external support cylinder, and FIG. 11B is a plan view of the external support cylinder. 12A is a side view of the pop-up ring, and FIG. 12B is a plan view of the pop-up ring. FIG. 13A is a side view of the rubber port, and FIG. 13B is a plan view of the rubber port. FIG. 14 is a sectional view of a second embodiment of the variable power binoculars of the present invention. FIG. 15 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a part XIV surrounded by an ellipse in FIG. FIG. 16 is an exploded perspective view of a zoom mechanism of the zoom binoculars according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 17A is a side view of the eyepiece outer cylinder, and FIG. 17B is a plan view of the eyepiece outer cylinder. 18A is a side view of the cam inner cylinder, FIG. 18B is a plan view of the cam inner cylinder, and FIG. 18C is a side view of the main part of the cam inner cylinder. FIG. 19A is a side view of the cam inner cylinder retainer, and FIG. 19B is a plan view of the cam inner cylinder retainer. 20A is a side view of the external support cylinder, and FIG. 20B is a plan view of the external support cylinder. FIG. 21A is a side view of the twist ring, FIG. 21B is a plan view of the twist ring, and FIG. 21C is a side view of the main part of the twist ring. FIG. 22A is a side view of the rubber port, and FIG. 22B is a plan view of the rubber port.

Explanation of reference signs

8 Objective lens 9 Eyepiece lens system 10 Prism system 11 Concave lens for adjustment (concave lens)
12 12 is an objective imaging plane 13 Apparent image imaging plane 20 Variable magnification binoculars 27 Objective lens 28 Eyepiece system 29 Porro prism 30 Adjusting concave lens 31 Variable magnification mechanism

Claims (3)

  An objective lens system, a prism system that converts an image passing through the objective lens system from an inverted image to an erect image, and a focal point formed by the objective lens system and the prism system, the objective lens system and The adjustment concave lens is movably arranged on the optical axis formed by the prism system, and is synchronized with the movement of the adjustment concave lens so as to approach or separate from the adjustment concave lens on the optical axis. And an eyepiece lens system movably arranged on the optical axis.   The eyepiece lens system is formed so as to be movable on the optical axis so that the focal point of the eyepiece lens system coincides with the focal point of the objective lens system changed by the adjustment concave lens moving on the optical axis. The variable power binoculars according to claim 1. The variable power binoculars according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the eyepiece lens system is a combination lens.

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