Optical apparatus
AssigneePilkington P. E. Limited
InventorPhilip J. Rogers
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Optical apparatus for biocular viewing of relatively low cost and light weight comprises a solid Cassegrain configuration in a solid meniscus element having a negative lens element cemented to its convex face and an associated corrector lens element which provide a magnified collimated image of an object for viewing by a pair of telescopes having light folding means to provide an exit pupil separation suitable for two eye viewing. At least some of the lens elements may be of plastics material and aspheric surfaces may be employed. The apparatus is particularly useful for night vision goggles having a single image intensifier tube.
Claims32
Optical apparatus for providing both eyes of an observer with a view of a single object comprising a catadioptric lens system and a pair of telescopes for viewing the image produced by that system, each of said telescopes comprising optical elements spaced from each other and from the catadioptric lens system by a medium which is neither solid nor liquid, there being means to fold the light path through each telescope so as to provide an exit pupil separation that is adequate for normal two eye viewing.
Optical apparatus for biocular viewing comprising a solid optical element having an internally convex reflecting surface area which internally reflects light received from an object to be viewed, said solid optical element further having internally concave reflecting surface areas which internally reflect light received from said internally convex reflecting surface area, the light then emerging from said solid optical element to each side of said internally convex reflecting surface area, a correcting lens element which transmits and refracts the emergent light, the solid optical element and the correcting lens element thus producing an image of the object, and a pair of telescopes, for viewing that image, each telescope comprising an objective lens spaced from said solid optical element and said correcting lens element by a medium which is neither solid nor liquid, and an eye-piece lens spaced from the objective lens by a medium which is neither solid nor liquid, and light path folding means between the objective lens and the eye-piece lens such that the exit pupil separation between the two telescopes is appropriate for two eye viewing, whereby an observer viewing with one eye through one and the other eye through the other telescope can see with each eye a magnified image of the object.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.