JPH0843708A - Binoculars - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To eliminate such inconvenience that the eyesight is unexpectedly changed by the operation of a mechanism for adjusting the eyesight in the case the mechanism is not used, to inhibit the adjustment of eyesight in a hous ing condition, and to permit the free adjustment of eyesight in a using condition. CONSTITUTION:The binoculars is provided with the mechanism for adjusting the eyesight by moving an eyepiece on a movable lens barrel 2 in an optical axis direction, and the eyesight adjusting ring 16 of the mechanism is provided on the upper surface of the lens barrel 2; on the other hand, an outer cover 22 provided on a fixed lens barrel 1 is formed in a shape that the ring 16 is covered in the housing condition in which the right and left lens barrels 1 and 2 are the closest, furthermore, the ring 16 is exposed to such an extent or more that the ring 16 can be operated from a cover end in the using condition that the right and left lens barrels 1 and 2 are relatively moved and are separated by a specified distance or more in comparison with the housing condition.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates mainly to horizontally movable binoculars, and more particularly, it provides a measure for preventing unexpected diopter adjustment when the left and right lens barrels are stored in the closest position. It is related to the binoculars taken.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, binoculars have a diopter corresponding to the visual acuity of a user by moving a part of an optical system such as an eyepiece or an objective lens so that the left and right lens barrels have the same focus state. It is equipped with a so-called diopter adjustment mechanism for adjusting to. Conventionally, such a diopter adjusting mechanism includes a diopter adjusting ring incorporated in, for example, an eyepiece window of a lens barrel, and in a state of focusing at infinity, the diopter adjusting ring is appropriately used. By rotationally displacing in the + or − direction by a manual operation, a part of the optical system moves in the optical axis direction in association with the movement of the ring, and the diopter adjustment is performed.

As another conventional example, in some binoculars having an automatic focusing function, the driving force of a motor is used to drive an optical system so that the diopter can be adjusted simply by operating a switch. It is known that it can be done automatically. As a device provided with such an automatic control type diopter adjustment mechanism, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-11195 discloses
It is disclosed that the means for adjusting the diopter is electrically controlled so that the diopter adjustment cannot be performed when the main switch is turned off.

[0004]

By the way, in the case of the former manual adjustment type binoculars, the diopter adjustment ring is provided in the eyepiece window where the user can easily touch it, and the user can see it at any time. Because it has a structure that allows you to adjust the diopter, when you are not using the binoculars, you may unknowingly touch the diopter adjustment ring, or other items may come into contact with the diopter adjustment ring, There is a high possibility that the diopter will change without the user's knowledge.

The change in diopter that can occur unexpectedly is not limited to the one provided with the diopter adjusting ring as in the above-mentioned conventional example, but in the case of the conventional binoculars using the manual adjusting method, The diopter adjustment member is exposed to the outside due to operability and the like, so that it can occur in any of them.

Further, like the latter binoculars disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-11195, the main switch has an O switch.
If the diopter adjustment mechanism does not operate as long as it is in the FF state, it is considered that the inconvenience that the diopter adjustment mechanism unexpectedly operates when not in use is prevented, but in reality,
An operation member for turning on / off the main switch, and an operation member for a user select switch for allowing the user to arbitrarily change the diopter adjustment data are provided by being exposed on a portion of the outer surface of the binoculars where the operation is easy. , Those operating members are moved unexpectedly without the user's knowledge,
As a result, the diopter may change.

The present invention has been made to solve the conventional problem that the diopter adjustment mechanism operates unexpectedly to change the diopter when not in use. The diopter adjustment is surely prohibited in the stored state. It is an object of the present invention to provide binoculars that are configured to allow free diopter adjustment in a used state.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, the binoculars of the present invention are provided with left and right lens barrels in which an optical system including an objective lens and an eyepiece lens is incorporated, and the left and right lens barrels are brought closest to each other. And the left and right lens barrels are relatively moved from the stored state to a usable state in which the left and right lens barrels are separated from each other by a certain distance or more than the stored state, and a part of the optical system incorporated in at least one of the lens barrels is moved. A diopter adjustment mechanism that adjusts the diopter by means of a diopter adjustment mechanism, and a diopter adjustment prohibition unit that is provided in the main body of the binoculars and mechanically prohibits the operation of the diopter adjustment mechanism when the main body is housed. Have

In the above arrangement, the diopter adjustment prohibiting means is
The operation unit of the diopter adjustment mechanism can be hidden when the binocular body is stored.

[0010]

According to the above construction, since the operation of the diopter adjustment mechanism is mechanically prohibited by the function of the diopter adjustment inhibiting means in the stored state, the operation portion of the diopter adjustment mechanism is intentionally or accidentally moved. The inconvenience of being caused is surely prevented.
Further, when the binoculars body is deformed from the housed state to the used state, the distance between the left and right lens barrels is widened, and the prohibited state of the diopter adjustment prohibiting means is released, so that the operating portion of the diopter adjusting mechanism can be freely operated. . Therefore, when used by the same user, it is not necessary to perform the diopter adjustment once and then the readjustment.

[0011]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, a focus adjusting operation member is arranged on one of the lens barrels, and the other lens barrel is configured to be linearly movable with respect to the one lens barrel in a direction orthogonal to the optical axis. The present invention is applied to mobile binoculars, FIGS. 1 to 5 show the stored state, FIG. 6 shows the left and right lens barrels, and FIGS. 7 to 10 show the used state. In these figures, reference numerals 1 and 2 denote left and right lens barrels constituting the binocular body, one lens barrel 1 is configured as a fixed lens barrel, and the other lens barrel 2 is a movable lens barrel. It is configured to be linearly movable in the horizontal direction in which it approaches and separates from the cylinder 1.

The binoculars body composed of the left and right lens barrels 1 and 2 is moved from the movable lens barrel 2 to move the left and right lens barrels 1 and 2 from the closest storage state, as shown in FIG. , The left and right lens barrels 1 and 2 can be deformed to the maximum interpupillary distance state in which the distance between them is maximized, and the interpupillary distance can be adjusted during use as illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8. It is configured.

As shown in the sectional views of FIGS. 3 to 5 and the exploded view of FIG. 6, guide rods 3a, 3b, 3 are provided on the side surface of the movable lens barrel 2.
Several c (3d) (four in this embodiment) are provided in a protruding manner, while the guide rods 3a, 3b ... Slid at the positions facing the guide rods 3a, 3b. Guide holes 4a, 4b, 4c, 4d ... Which can be freely inserted are provided.

Further, among the guide rods 3a, 3b ... At least one (two in the figure) is formed with the key groove 5, while it corresponds to the guide rods 3a, 3b in which the key groove 5 is formed. Pins 6 projecting into the guide holes 4a and 4b are provided at the open ends of the guide holes 4a and 4b on the fixed lens barrel 1 side, and the pin 6 of the fixed lens barrel 1 is inserted into the key groove 5 of the movable lens barrel 2. When 6 is fitted, the left and right lens barrels 1 and 2 are configured to move in parallel to the left and right while keeping the optical axes in parallel.

Each key groove 5 has, for example, a shape in which the upper half of the guide rods 3a, 3b having a square cross section is cut out flat, and its length is at least the same as the maximum pupil distance adjustment range. , Or slightly longer than that, but is not limited to this.

The lens barrels 1 and 2 are shown in FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 5, the movable lens barrel 2 is closest to the fixed lens barrel 1 and is in a stored state. In this case, as shown in FIG. 11 (A), the guide rods 3a, 3b ... Of the movable lens barrel 2 are inserted into the innermost portions of the guide holes 4a, 4b.

Next, when the interpupillary distance is adjusted, the movable lens barrel 2 is pulled out from the fixed lens barrel 1 by grasping both lens barrels 1 and 2 with the left and right hands and moving them in a direction in which they are appropriately brought into and out of contact with each other. Be done. At this time, the guide rods 3a, 3b ... Of the movable lens barrel 2 are allowed to slide in the guide holes 4a, 4b. Done. In FIG. 11B, the guide rods 3a and 3b have guide holes 4a and 4a.
It shows a state in which it is pulled out to the maximum from b.

Thus, the guide rods 3a, 3b are formed with the key groove 5 for restricting the stroke width, and the fixed lens barrel 1 is fitted in the key groove 5.
Since the pin 6 protruding from the above is fitted, both ends of the key groove 5 are prevented from coming into contact with the pin 6 and both lens barrels 1 and 2 are prevented from coming off, and the stroke width during the interpupillary adjustment Is regulated.

In this embodiment, four guide rods 3a,
3b, 3c, and 3d are provided only on the fixed lens barrel 1, and the movable lens barrel 2 is provided.
Although only the guide holes 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d are provided in the above, if the total number of the guide rods 4a, 4b, ... Is two or more, the barrels 1 and 2 can be prevented from swinging during the parallel movement. be able to. In addition, several guide rods 3 are provided from the lens barrels 1 and 2 on both sides.
a, 3b ... Are provided in a protruding manner, and each guide rod 3a, 3b ...
May be provided with guide holes 4a, 4b.

Returning to FIGS. 1 to 5, 7a and 7b are objective lens units provided in front of the respective lens barrels 1 and 2, 8 is a prism, and 9 is an eyepiece. In addition, at the front and rear ends of the fixed lens barrel 1, support walls 1a, 1 extending toward the movable lens barrel 2 are provided.
b is integrally formed, and a focus ring 11 is rotatably mounted in a shaft insertion hole 10 formed in the front support wall 1a in a state in which the front-rear movement is restricted.

The focus ring 11 is formed by attaching an operation ring 11b to the tip of a screw shaft 11a, and the screw shaft 11a has a screw hole 1 provided at the base end of a lead shaft 12.
It is screwed to 2a, and the lead shaft 12 is moved forward and backward in the optical axis direction by rotating the operation ring 11b with fingers. The tip of the lead shaft 12 is fixed to the objective lens unit 7a on the fixed lens barrel 1 side via a horizontal rod 13, and extends from the objective lens unit 7b on the movable lens barrel side via a horizontal cylinder shaft 14. It is fitted on the rod 15 so as to be slidable in the left-right direction.

In the non-use state, as shown in FIG. 12 (A), the axial rod 15 of the objective lens unit 7b projects into the horizontal cylindrical shaft 14 of the lead shaft 12, and also in FIG. 12 (B). As shown, the movable lens barrel 2 is fixed to the fixed lens barrel 1 by adjusting the interpupillary distance.
When it is separated from, the axial rod 15 is in a state of largely protruding from the horizontal cylindrical shaft 14, but in any case, the objective lens unit 7b of the movable lens barrel 2 is kept in the coupled state with the lead shaft 12.

In the focus adjusting mechanism having such a structure, when the operation ring 11b of the focus ring 11 is rotated to move the lead shaft 12 back and forth, the objective lens units 7a and 7b move relative to the eyepiece lens 9 in accordance with the movement. Move in the front-back direction, and focus adjustment is performed by this.

In the above structure, in this embodiment, the focus adjustment operation between the left and right optical systems, which is generally called diopter adjustment, can be surely prohibited in the stored state, and the free diopter adjustment is permitted in the used state. By providing the diopter adjustment prohibiting means, it is possible to prevent the diopter adjustment mechanism from inadvertently operating to change the diopter unexpectedly when not in use.

As shown in FIG. 13, the diopter adjusting mechanism in this embodiment is incorporated in the movable lens barrel 2, and by rotating the diopter adjusting ring 16 as an operating portion, the eyepiece 9 is moved to the optical axis. It is configured to move back and forth in the direction to adjust the diopter. That is, the eyepiece lens 9 is held by the eyepiece lens holding frame 17. The eyepiece lens holding frame 17 has a gear holding piece 18 extending forward from one side portion thereof, and a linear gear 19 is integrally formed on the gear holding piece 18.

The diopter adjusting ring 16 is provided with an operating knob 20 which is arranged so as to project on the upper surface of the movable lens barrel 2, and a circular gear 21 is provided coaxially with the operating knob 20. It is always meshed with the linear gear 19 of the lens holding frame 17, so that when the operation knob 20 is rotated, the rotation of the circular gear 21 is converted into the forward / backward linear movement of the linear gear 19, and the eyepiece lens holding frame. 17 is guided by a guide (not shown) to move in the optical axis direction, and the diopter adjustment is performed.

The diopter adjustment prohibiting means mechanically prohibits the operation of the diopter adjusting ring 16 when the left and right lens barrels 1 and 2 are accommodated, and is provided in the fixed lens barrel 1 and is equipped with binoculars. In the housed state of the main body, the diopter adjustment ring 16 is hidden so that the diopter adjustment operation is prohibited.

That is, a rectangular plate-shaped outer cover 22 extending toward the movable lens barrel 2 is integrally provided on the upper surface of the fixed lens barrel 1. The outer cover 22 is, as shown in FIGS. In the storage state in which the movable lens barrel 2 is closest to the fixed lens barrel 1, the movable lens barrel 2 is formed to have a size capable of concealing a portion beyond the middle of the diameter of the movable lens barrel 2. Then, with respect to the exterior cover 22, the operation knob 2 of the diopter adjustment ring 16
0 is arranged in a region on the upper surface of the movable lens barrel 2 which is entirely covered by the exterior cover 22 in the housed state.

Further, the outer cover 22 has a shape in which the concealing portion 22a of the diopter adjusting ring 16 is projected above the other portions so as not to interfere with the diopter adjusting ring 16 in the housed state.

In the diopter adjustment prohibiting means of this embodiment having the above-mentioned structure, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the diopter adjusting ring facing the outer surface of the movable lens barrel 2 in the housed state of the binoculars body. The outer cover 16 has a shape that is inserted into the concealing portion 22a of the outer cover 22 and is entirely concealed, so that the operation of the diopter adjustment ring 16 is mechanically prohibited.

From this state, the movable lens barrel 2 is slid to change the form of the binocular body to the state where the left and right lens barrels 1 and 2 are closest to each other during use as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. Then, the operation knob 20 of the diopter adjustment ring 16 is exposed from the concealing portion 22a of the exterior cover 22 to the outside more than halfway, and thereby the prohibition state of the diopter adjustment operation is released. It is ready to operate.

Further, as shown in FIG. 9, the left and right lens barrels 1,
In the state where 2 is maximally separated, the entire diopter adjustment ring 16 is exposed from the concealing portion 22 a of the exterior cover 22. Therefore, the diopter adjustment ring 16 is maintained in the operable state in the entire range of the use state, and the diopter adjustment operation at the time of use can be arbitrarily performed with any eye width.

Thus, in this embodiment, the exterior cover 2
Since the diopter adjustment prohibition function is realized without adding a special configuration by devising the shapes of the 2 and the diopter adjustment ring 16 and the disposition site, without substantially increasing the manufacturing cost, It is possible to reliably prevent the possibility of unexpected operation or erroneous operation of the diopter adjustment ring 16. The configuration of the diopter adjustment inhibiting means in the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment as long as it can mechanically inhibit the operation of the diopter adjustment mechanism when the binoculars are not used. .

For example, in FIG. 13, the linear gear 19 and the circular gear 21 are made detachable so that the linear gear 19 and the circular gear 21 can be separated from each other by moving to the housed state, or when moved to the housed state, the diopter adjusting ring 16 brings the eyepiece into view. Various structures are included in the present invention, such as a structure in which a friction member is pressed against some part of the mechanism reaching the lens holding frame 17.

[0035]

As described above, according to the present invention, the operation of the diopter adjusting mechanism is mechanically prohibited by the function of the diopter adjusting mechanism in the stored state, so that the operating portion of the diopter adjusting mechanism is There is no inconvenience of being moved intentionally or accidentally. Further, when the binoculars body is deformed from the housed state to the used state, the distance between the left and right lens barrels is widened, and the prohibited state of the diopter adjustment prohibiting means is released, so that the operating portion of the diopter adjusting mechanism can be freely operated. . Therefore,
When used by the same user, once the diopter adjustment has been performed, it is reliably prevented that the diopter shifts when not in use, thereby eliminating the need to make the adjustment again.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an appearance of a stored state of binoculars according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view thereof.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a storage state in a partially broken manner.

4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the section line AA in FIG.

5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the section line BB in FIG.

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing the left and right lens barrels.

FIG. 7 is a plan view showing a usage state in which the left and right lens barrels are separated from each other to the middle.

FIG. 8 is a front view thereof.

FIG. 9 is a front view showing a usage state in which the left and right lens barrels are maximally separated from each other.

10 is a sectional view corresponding to FIG.

FIG. 11 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of an essential part showing a change in a combined state of the left and right lens barrels.

FIG. 12 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of another essential part showing a change in the coupled state of the left and right lens barrels.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view schematically showing a diopter adjustment mechanism.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 lens barrel (binoculars body) 2 lens barrel (binoculars body) 7a objective lens unit 7b objective lens unit 9 eyepiece 16 diopter adjustment ring (operation part) 17 eyepiece holding frame (part of diopter adjustment mechanism) 19 linear Gear (part of diopter adjustment mechanism) 21 Circular gear (part of diopter adjustment mechanism) 22 Exterior cover (diopter adjustment prohibition means)

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A left and right lens barrel in which an optical system including an objective lens and an eyepiece lens is incorporated, and the left and right lens barrels are moved closer to each other, and the left and right lens barrels are relatively moved to be more constant than the housed state. Provided on the binocular body, a binocular body which can be deformed into a use state separated by a distance or more, a diopter adjusting mechanism incorporated in at least one lens barrel to move a part of the optical system to adjust diopter. Binoculars comprising: a diopter adjustment prohibiting unit that mechanically prohibits an operation of the diopter adjusting mechanism when the main body is housed. 2. The binoculars according to claim 1, wherein the diopter adjustment prohibiting means conceals the operation portion of the diopter adjustment mechanism in the housed state of the binocular body.