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US 2003/0146980 A1Published application
Image sensing apparatus utilizing pixel-shifting
AssigneeCanon Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorKOICHI SHIMADA
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Two plane parallel plates, orthogonally intersecting each other, are provided in front of a CCD device. The plane parallel plate is supported by its two ends which are deviated from an optical path. Each end of the plane parallel plate includes an armature made of soft electromagnetic iron, and two electromagnets are provided in the optical axis direction, while sandwiching each armature. By the on/off state of the two electromagnets, the armature can control the optical device in three angled positions, thus the optical device can have three shift positions with respect to the optical axis. Therefore, by virtue of the optical devices, an optical path can be determined by selecting a shift position of said optical device from nine shift positions (3×3).
Claims93
An image sensing apparatus comprising:
- image sensing means for photoelectrically converting an optical image formed on an image sensing surface and outputting a sensed image signal;
- an optical device for shifting an incident position of light incident upon the image sensing surface of said image sensing means;
- a plurality of regulating members, abutting against a plurality of ends of said optical device, for regulating a position of each of the ends in respective optical axis directions, thereby controlling a first inclination angle of said optical device in a first direction with respect to an optical axis of said optical device and a second inclination angle of said optical device in a second direction which is perpendicular to the first direction;
- and
- optical device shifting means for shifting said optical device in order to have each of the plurality of ends of said optical device abut against each of said plurality of regulating members and holding each of the ends,
- wherein the incident position of light incident upon the image sensing surface is shifted in vertical direction of the image sensing surface by changing the first inclination angle of said optical device, and the incident position of light incident upon the image sensing surface is shifted in horizontal direction of the image sensing surface by changing the second inclination angle of said optical device.
3 more elements
An optical apparatus comprising:
- an optical device for shifting an incident position of light incident upon an image sensing surface;
- a plurality of regulating members, abutting against a plurality of ends of said optical device, for regulating a position of each of the ends in respective optical axis directions, thereby controlling a first inclination angle of said optical device in a first direction with respect to an optical axis of said optical device and a second inclination angle of said optical device in a second direction which is perpendicular to the first direction;
- and
- optical device shifting means for shifting said optical device in order to have each of the plurality of ends of said optical device abut against each of said plurality of regulating members and holding each of the ends.
1 more element
An optical apparatus comprising:
- an optical device for shifting an incident position of light incident upon an image sensing surface;
- a plurality of recesses for supporting said optical device while leaving at least a predetermined shift range in an optical axis direction of said optical device, by having a plurality of ends of said optical device respectively inserted with a play;
- a plurality of regulating surfaces, formed respectively in said plurality of recesses and abutting against the plurality of ends of said optical device respectively, for regulating a position of each of the ends in respective optical axis directions, thereby controlling a first inclination angle of said optical device in a first direction with respect to the optical axis of said optical device and a second inclination angle of said optical device in a second direction which is perpendicular to the first direction;
- and
- driving means for driving the ends of said optical device so that the ends abut against respective regulating surfaces in each of said recesses,
- wherein the incident position of light incident upon the image sensing surface is shifted in vertical direction of the image sensing surface by changing the first inclination angle of said optical device with respect to the first direction, and the incident position of light incident upon the image sensing surface is shifted in horizontal direction of the image sensing surface by changing the second inclination angle of said optical device with respect to the second direction.
3 more elements
An optical apparatus comprising:
- an optical device for shifting an incident position of light incident upon an image sensing surface;
- a plurality of regulating members, abutting against a plurality of ends of said optical device, for regulating a position of each of the ends in respective optical axis directions, thereby controlling an inclination position of said optical device;
- and
- driving means for driving said optical device in order to have said optical device abut against said plurality of regulating members;
- wherein said plurality of regulating members comprise a plurality of regulating surfaces which abut against respective ends to regulate a position of the ends,
- an inclination position of said optical device is determined by changing a combination of an end of said optical device and a regulating surface being abutted thereto, thereby controlling said optical device in a plurality of inclination angles, and
- a number of regulating surfaces provided in one end of the plurality of ends of said optical device is different from that provided in the other end of said optical device.
4 more elements
An optical apparatus comprising:
- an optical device for shifting an incident position of light incident upon an image sensing surface;
- a regulating member for controlling an inclination position of said optical device by abutting against an end of said optical device and regulating a position of the end in an optical axis direction;
- and
- shifting means for shifting said optical device in order to have said optical device abut against the regulating member,
- wherein said shifting means comprises:
- first driving means for reciprocally driving an end of said optical device in the optical axis direction;
- and
- second driving means for driving the other end of said optical device in a direction substantially perpendicular to the optical axis direction, and
- said regulating member comprises:
- a first position regulating surface for regulating a shift position of the end of said optical device by abutting against the end, when the end is driven by said first driving means in the optical axis direction;
- and
- a second position regulating surface for regulating a position of the end of said optical device with respect to the optical direction by abutting against the end, when the end is driven by said second driving means in a direction perpendicular to the optical axis direction.
9 more elements
An optical apparatus comprising:
- a horizontally shifting optical device for shifting an incident position of light incident upon an image sensing surface in horizontal direction of the image sensing surface;
- a vertically shifting optical device for shifting an incident position of light incident upon an image sensing surface in vertical direction of the image sensing surface;
- a plurality of regulating members, abutting against each of a plurality of ends of said horizontally shifting optical device and vertically shifting optical device, for regulating a position of each of the ends in respective optical axis directions, thereby controlling an inclination position of said optical device;
- and
- driving means for driving said horizontally shifting optical device and said vertically shifting optical device so that said horizontally shifting optical device and vertically shifting optical device abut against said plurality of regulating members,
- wherein said plurality of regulating members regulate an inclination position of said horizontally shifting optical device in six steps in the horizontal direction, and regulate an inclination position of said vertically shifting optical device in three steps in the vertical direction.
3 more elements
An optical apparatus comprising:
- an optical device for shifting an incident position of light incident upon an image sensing surface;
- a plurality of regulating members, abutting against said optical device, for regulating a position with respect to the optical axis direction, thereby controlling an inclination position of said optical device with respect to an optical axis direction;
- and
- driving means for driving said optical device to regulate said optical device at a position of said regulating members,
- said plurality of regulating members comprising:
- first and second regulating members for positioning said optical device by engaging with said optical device in the optical axis direction;
- and
- a third regulating member, situated between the first and second regulating members, for positioning said optical device by engaging with said optical device in a direction substantially perpendicular to said optical axis direction,
- wherein said optical device is regulated in the optical axis direction at least in three inclination positions.
6 more elements
An optical apparatus comprising:
- image sensing means for photoelectrically converting an optical image formed on an image sensing surface and outputting a sensed image signal;
- an optical device for shifting an incident position of light incident upon the image sensing surface;
- a plurality of regulating members, provided on both ends of said optical device opposite to each other, for regulating a position of each of the ends in an optical axis direction, thereby controlling an inclination angle of said optical device in a first direction with respect to an optical axis of said optical device and an inclination angle of said optical device in a second direction which is perpendicular to the first direction;
- a plurality of electromagnetic driving means for driving said optical device to have said optical device abut against said plurality of regulating members;
- and
- control means for shifting in vertical direction of the image sensing surface an incident position of light by operating said electromagnetic driving means to change an inclination angle of said optical device with respect to the first direction, and shifting in horizontal direction of the image sensing surface an incident position of light by operating said electromagnetic driving means to change an inclination angle of said optical device with respect to the second direction,
- wherein said control means controls said electromagnetic driving means such that said electromagnetic means generates one magnetic circuit in each of the ends of said optical device, and that regulating surfaces to which the ends abut respectively are determined by the magnetic circuit.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.