Manufacturing method of image pickup apparatus for endoscope, image pickup apparatus for endoscope, and endoscope

A method of manufacturing a plurality of image pickup apparatuses, each for use with an endoscope, the method comprising:

• manufacturing two optical wafers each comprising a glass wafer, at least one of the two optical wafers being a hybrid lens wafer including a plurality of resin lenses formed on the glass wafer, and
• providing a spacer wafer including a plurality of spacers formed with an inorganic material between the two optical wafers;
• directly bonding the spacer wafer to the two optical wafers to form a plurality of hermetically sealed spaces in which the plurality of resin lenses is respectively disposed, the bonding being at a temperature lower than a softening point of the plurality of resin lenses;
• disposing a plurality of image pickup members, each having an image sensor, on the bonded wafer respectively corresponding to the plurality of lenses;
• and
• cutting the two bonded optical wafers with the plurality of image pickup members disposed thereon to form a plurality of the image pickup apparatuses such that each of the plurality of image pickup apparatuses comprise:
• an optical member comprising two glass plates respectively formed from the two glass wafers, at least one of which having a resin lens of the plurality of resin lenses;
• plate and
• a spacer of the plurality of spacers disposed between the two glass plates, and an image pickup member of the plurality of image pickup members.