Telescopes and electronic eyepieces and eyepiece adapters for telescopes

Abstract

The present application discloses a telescope, which includes a microdisplay, a light combiner, a dichroic beam splitter and an image sensor, wherein the light combiner receives light from an objective lens and light from a microdisplay and mixes them; the dichroic beam splitter allows most of the visible light in the light mixed by the light combiner to enter a first optical path leading to an eyepiece, while at least part of the non-visible light and a small amount of visible light of a predetermined wavelength enter a second optical path leading to an image sensor; the image sensor obtains a detection image representing an optical image formed by the objective lens and an electronic image displayed by the microdisplay. The present application also discloses an electronic eyepiece and an eyepiece adapter for a telescope. According to an embodiment of the present invention, a detection image representing an optical image formed by a telescope objective lens and an electronic image displayed by the microdisplay can be obtained. This makes it possible to obtain registration information of the optical image and the electronic image, thereby solving the registration problem between the electronic image and the optical image.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the field of telescopes, in particular to a telescope and an electronic eyepiece and an eyepiece adapter used for the telescope. Background Art

[0002] A telescope is an optical instrument that uses lenses or concave mirrors and other optical devices to observe distant objects. When using a telescope for observation, the light from the distant object is refracted by the lens or reflected by the concave mirror, converges into an image, and then is seen through an eyepiece with a certain magnification.

[0003] In recent years, people have begun to introduce augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR) displays on telescopes, in which the optical image obtained through the telescope objective lens and the electronic image displayed on the display are mixed and output into the same optical path, and finally presented to the observer through the eyepiece. Whether the electronic image and the optical image are aligned has a great impact on the quality of augmented reality and mixed reality displays, but this has not been paid attention to and solved in the prior art. Summary of the invention

[0004] An object of the present invention is to provide a telescope, an electronic eyepiece and an eyepiece adapter for the telescope, which at least partially overcome the deficiencies of the prior art.

[0005] According to one aspect of the present invention, a telescope is provided, which includes a lens barrel and an objective lens contained in the lens barrel, the objective lens is used to form an optical image of an object observed by the telescope, and an eyepiece interface is provided on the lens barrel, wherein the telescope further includes:

[0006] microdisplays, used to display electronic images;

[0007] A light combining lens, which receives light from the objective lens and light from the microdisplay and mixes them, so that the optical image formed by the objective lens and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay can overlap in space and thus be observed together;

[0008] a dichroic beam splitter that receives the light mixed by the light combiner and selectively reflects and transmits the light according to the wavelength, so that most of the visible light enters a first optical path leading to the eyepiece interface, and at least part of the non-visible light and a small amount of visible light of a predetermined wavelength enters a second optical path; and

[0009] The image sensor is arranged in the second optical path, and receives the invisible light from the dichroic beam splitter and the visible light of a predetermined wavelength to obtain a detection image representing the optical image formed by the objective lens and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay.

[0010] Preferably, the telescope may further include a controller, and the controller calculates and obtains alignment information about the alignment of the optical image and the electronic image based on the detected image.

[0011] In some embodiments, the at least part of the non-visible light includes infrared light, the visible light of the predetermined wavelength is green light, and the dichroic beam splitter allows most of the green light to enter the first optical path and allows a small part of the green light to enter the second optical path.

[0012] In some other embodiments, the at least part of the non-visible light includes infrared light, the visible light of the predetermined wavelength is red light, and the dichroic beam splitter allows most of the red light to enter the first light path and allows a small part of the red light to enter the second light path. The visible light of the predetermined wavelength is red light with a wavelength greater than or equal to 690nm, preferably greater than or equal to 730nm.

[0013] In some embodiments, the controller may be configured to perform the following processes:

[0014] (1) turning off the display of the microdisplay and acquiring a first detection image through the image sensor;

[0015] (2) turning on the display of the microdisplay and acquiring a second detection image through the image sensor;

[0016] (3) performing image processing to obtain a difference image by subtracting the first detection image from the second detection image; and

[0017] (4) Calculating and comparing the first detection image and the difference detection image to obtain registration information about the registration of the optical image and the electronic image after they are mixed by the light combiner.

[0018] In some other embodiments, the image sensor is a color CMOS image sensor, and the controller may be configured to perform the following processing:

[0019] (1) With the display of the microdisplay turned on, a detection image is acquired through a color CMOS image sensor;

[0020] (2) performing image processing on the detection image, extracting image content corresponding to infrared light as a first detection image based on color, and extracting image content corresponding to visible light of the predetermined wavelength as a second detection image;

[0021] (3) performing image processing to obtain a difference image by subtracting the first detection image from the second detection image; and

[0022] (4) Calculating and comparing the first detection image and the difference image to obtain registration information about the registration of the optical image and the electronic image after they are mixed by the light combiner.

[0023] Preferably, the controller may also be configured to perform the following processing:

[0024] (a) calculating the astronomical coordinates of the telescope's orientation based on the first detection image; and

[0025] (b) generating an electronic image based on the astronomical coordinates for combining with the optical image to achieve augmented or mixed reality display, and controlling the microdisplay to display the electronic image.

[0026] Preferably, the controller can correct the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay according to the registration information so that the electronic image and the optical image formed by the objective lens are registered with each other.

[0027] Preferably, the telescope may further include a relay lens, which is disposed in the optical path between the light combiner and the eyepiece interface, and is used to relay the optical image formed by the objective lens and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay to a target image plane near the eyepiece interface. In the case where the relay lens includes a plurality of lenses, the dichroic beam splitter may be disposed between two of the plurality of lenses.

[0028] According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electronic eyepiece for a telescope, comprising a housing, one end of the housing being provided with an object end interface for connecting to a telescope barrel, and the other end being provided with an optical eyepiece, the electronic eyepiece further comprising:

[0029] microdisplays, used to display electronic images;

[0030] a light combining lens that receives light from the objective lens and light from the microdisplay and mixes them so that the optical image formed by the telescope objective lens and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay can overlap in space and thus be observed together;

[0031] a dichroic beam splitter that receives the light mixed by the light combiner and selectively reflects and transmits the light according to the wavelength, so that most of the visible light enters a first optical path leading to the eyepiece interface, and at least part of the non-visible light and a small amount of visible light of a predetermined wavelength enters a second optical path; and

[0032] The image sensor is arranged in the second optical path, and receives the non-visible light from the dichroic beam splitter and the visible light of a predetermined wavelength to obtain a detection image representing the optical image formed by the telescope objective and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay.

[0033] According to another aspect of the present invention, there is also provided an eyepiece adapter for a telescope, the eyepiece adapter comprising a housing, one end of the housing being provided with an object end interface for connecting to a telescope barrel, and the other end being provided with an eyepiece interface for installing an eyepiece, wherein the eyepiece adapter further comprises:

[0034] microdisplays, used to display electronic images;

[0035] a light combining lens that receives light from the objective lens and light from the microdisplay and mixes them so that the optical image formed by the telescope objective lens and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay can overlap in space and thus be observed together;

[0036] a dichroic beam splitter that receives the light mixed by the light combiner and selectively reflects and transmits the light according to the wavelength, so that most of the visible light enters a first optical path leading to the eyepiece interface, and at least part of the non-visible light and a small amount of visible light of a predetermined wavelength enters a second optical path; and

[0037] The image sensor is arranged in the second optical path, and receives the non-visible light from the dichroic beam splitter and the visible light of a predetermined wavelength to obtain a detection image representing the optical image formed by the telescope objective and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay.

[0038] According to yet another aspect of the present invention, a telescope is provided, which includes a lens barrel, an objective lens disposed in the lens barrel, and the electronic eyepiece or eyepiece adapter as described above mounted on the lens barrel.

[0039] According to an embodiment of the present invention, by arranging a dichroic beam splitter and an image sensor in the optical path where the optical image from the objective lens and the electronic image from the microdisplay are mixed, at least part of the non-visible light and a small amount of visible light of a predetermined wavelength are separated from the visual observation optical path and the images corresponding to these lights are obtained, so that a detection image representing the optical image formed by the telescope objective lens and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay can be obtained. This makes it possible to obtain the registration information of the optical image and the electronic image, thereby solving the registration problem between the electronic image and the optical image. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0040] Other features, objects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the detailed description of non-limiting embodiments made with reference to the following drawings:

[0041] Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a telescope according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention;

[0042] Figure 2 is a flow chart of a control method that can be used in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0043] Figure 3 is a flow chart of another control method that can be used in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0044] Figure 4 Schematically shows the use of Figure 2 or Figure 3The first detection image, the second detection image and the difference image obtained by the control method shown;

[0045] Figure 5 is a schematic structural diagram of a telescope according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention;

[0046] Figure 6 is a schematic structural diagram of a telescope according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention;

[0047] Figure 7 is a schematic structural diagram of a telescope according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention; and

[0048] Figure 8 Schematic diagram of the structure of an electronic eyepiece and an eyepiece adapter according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0049] The present application will be further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It is to be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the relevant invention, rather than to limit the invention. For ease of description, only the parts related to the invention are shown in the accompanying drawings.

[0050] It should be noted that, in the absence of conflict, the embodiments and features in the embodiments of the present application can be combined with each other. The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and in combination with the embodiments.

[0051] First, refer to Figure 1 A telescope 100 according to a first embodiment of the present invention is introduced. Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the structure of the telescope 100. Figure 1 As shown, the telescope 100 includes a lens barrel 1 and an objective lens 2 accommodated in the lens barrel 1. The objective lens 2 is used to form an optical image (e.g., an image formed on the image) of an object (e.g., a constellation, a nebula, or other celestial body) observed by the telescope 100. Figure 1 The lens barrel 1 is provided with an eyepiece interface 100a for connecting the telescope eyepiece 3. As an example only, Figure 1 The telescope shown in the figure is a Newtonian reflecting telescope, in which the objective lens 2 includes a primary mirror 2a composed of a concave reflecting mirror and a secondary mirror 2b composed of a reflecting mirror. However, it should be understood that the present invention is not limited to a specific type of telescope, and the telescope according to the embodiment of the present invention may also have an objective lens composed of a lens, or may be a reflecting telescope of other types.

[0052] According to this embodiment, the telescope 100 further includes a micro display 11 , a light combining mirror 12 , a dichroic beam splitter 13 and an image sensor 14 .

[0053] The microdisplay 11 is used to display electronic images. For example, an LCD display, an OLED display, etc. can be used as the microdisplay 11. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the microdisplay 11 is preferably composed of an OLED display, because the image displayed by the microdisplay 11 is mixed with the optical image formed by the telescope objective 2 for display, and the optical image formed by the telescope objective 2 is usually low in brightness. Compared with, for example, an LCD display, an OLED display has better stray light suppression performance and can provide a darker display background, so it is conducive to providing a better augmented reality or mixed reality display effect.

[0054] like Figure 1 As shown, the light combining lens 12 receives the light from the objective lens 2 and the light from the micro display 11, and mixes them by transmitting and reflecting them respectively (or vice versa), so that the optical image formed by the objective lens 2 and the electronic image displayed by the micro display can overlap in space and be observed together. The light combining lens 12 is preferably a beam splitter prism, and the micro display 11 is arranged on one side thereof. In some cases, the micro display 11 can be attached to the side of the light combining prism 12 to achieve simple and reliable installation.

[0055] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a dichroic beam splitter 13 and an image sensor 14 are provided in the telescope 100, and are arranged downstream of the light combiner 12 along the optical path. The dichroic beam splitter 13 receives the light mixed by the light combiner 12, and selectively reflects and transmits it according to the wavelength, so that most of the visible light enters the first optical path leading to the eyepiece interface 100a, and at least part of the non-visible light and a small part / a small amount of visible light of a predetermined wavelength enters the second optical path leading to the image sensor 14. Here, it should be understood that "a small part / a small amount" is relative to "most of the part", and can also be determined by those skilled in the art according to the minimum requirement of the image sensor 14 for the amount of light.

[0056] The image sensor 14 receives the non-visible light and the visible light of a predetermined wavelength from the dichroic beam splitter 13 to obtain a detection image representing the optical image formed by the objective lens 2 and the electronic image displayed by the micro display 11 .

[0057] The inventors of the present invention have considered that: from a spectral point of view, the optical image from the objective lens 2 includes a continuous spectrum from non-visible light to visible light, while the spectrum of display devices, such as LCD displays and OLED displays that can be used to form the micro display 11, basically only includes visible light, so the non-visible light separated by the dichroic beam splitter 13 can be used to form an image representing the optical image only from the objective lens 2; at the same time, a small amount of visible light can be selectively separated, which can be used to form an image containing both information from the optical image from the objective lens 2 and information of the electronic image displayed by the micro display 11 while minimizing the impact on the optical image formed by the objective lens 2. Based on the above considerations, the above-mentioned beam splitting design is proposed according to an embodiment of the present invention, which enables the registration information of the optical image formed by the objective lens 2 and the electronic image displayed by the micro display 11 to be obtained when they are mixed and displayed based on the image detected by the image sensor 14.

[0058] At least part of the non-visible light separated by the dichroic beam splitter 13 is preferably infrared light. The visible light of a predetermined wavelength separated by the dichroic beam splitter 13 is preferably visible light of a single wavelength band, such as blue light, green light or red light.

[0059] In some embodiments, the visible light of the predetermined wavelength is preferably red light, preferably with a wavelength greater than or equal to 690 nm, and more preferably with a wavelength greater than or equal to 730 nm. The dichroic beam splitter 13 allows most of the red light of the predetermined wavelength to enter the first optical path leading to the eyepiece interface 100a, and allows a small portion of the red light of the predetermined wavelength to enter the second optical path leading to the image sensor 14. From the perspective of the formation process of the beam splitter film of the dichroic beam splitter 13, the wavelengths of red light and infrared light are adjacent, and the dichroic beam splitter 13 can be formed by forming a beam splitter film with a single passband covering the wavelengths of red light and infrared light, which is conducive to simplifying the design and manufacture of the dichroic beam splitter 13, ensuring the beam splitting effect, and improving the display quality of the telescope.

[0060] In some other embodiments, the visible light of the predetermined wavelength is preferably green light. The dichroic beam splitter 13 allows most of the green light to enter the first light path leading to the eyepiece interface 100a, and allows a small portion / a small amount of green light to enter the second light path leading to the image sensor 14. The inventor of the present invention has found through experiments that when the green light is separated, the optical image formed by the objective lens 2 observed through the eyepiece has better color balance performance.

[0061] According to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 1As shown, the telescope 100 may further include a controller 15. The controller 15 calculates and obtains registration information about the registration of the optical image from the objective lens 2 and the electronic image from the micro display 11 after being mixed by the light combining lens 12 based on the image detected by the image sensor 14. The controller 15 may include, for example, a memory and a processor as well as other circuits or mechanisms that support its functions.

[0062] Figure 2 and Figure 3 Flow charts of two different control methods for performing image registration based on the light splitting of the dichroic beam splitter 13 and the image detected by the image sensor 14 that can be used in embodiments of the present invention are respectively shown.

[0063] In the case where the image sensor 14 is a black and white sensor, the controller 15 may use Figure 2 The control method 200 shown in FIG. Figure 2 As shown, the control method 200 includes the following processing:

[0064] S210: Turn off the display of the micro display, and obtain a first detection image through the image sensor;

[0065] S220: Turn on the display of the microdisplay, and acquire a second detection image through the image sensor;

[0066] S230: performing image processing, subtracting the first detection image from the second detection image to obtain a difference image; and

[0067] S240: Calculate and compare the first detection image and the difference detection image to obtain registration information about the registration of the optical image and the electronic image after they are mixed by the light combining mirror.

[0068] In process S210, after the display of the microdisplay 11 is turned off, the first detection image acquired by the image sensor 14 only contains the information of the optical image formed by the objective lens 2. "Turning off the display of the microdisplay" here can be directly turning off the microdisplay 11, can be controlling the microdisplay 11 to display a pure black image, or can be achieved by using, for example, a shading mechanism (not shown) to shield the light entering the light combining mirror 12 from the microdisplay 11. Correspondingly, in process 220, "turning on the display of the microdisplay" is not limited to a specific implementation method, which will not be described in detail here. In process S210

[0069] In process S220 , after the display of the microdisplay is turned on, the second detection image acquired by the image sensor 14 includes both the information of the optical image formed by the objective lens 2 and the information of the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay 11 .

[0070] Next, in process S230, the first detection image and the second detection image are processed, so that the first detection image containing only optical image information is subtracted from the second detection image containing optical image and electronic image information, and a difference image representing the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay 11 can be obtained.

[0071] Then, in process S240 , by comparing the first detection image and the difference image, information on whether the optical image and the electronic image are aligned after being mixed by the light combining mirror 12 can be obtained.

[0072] When the image sensor 14 is a color CMOS image sensor, the controller 15 may use Figure 3 The control method 300 shown in FIG. Figure 3 As shown, the control method 300 includes the following processing:

[0073] S310: When the display of the microdisplay is turned on, a detection image is acquired through a color CMOS image sensor;

[0074] S320: performing image processing on the detection image, extracting image content corresponding to infrared light as a first detection image according to color, and extracting image content corresponding to visible light of the predetermined wavelength as a second detection image;

[0075] S330: performing image processing, subtracting the first detection image from the second detection image to obtain a difference image; and

[0076] S340: Calculate and compare the first detection image and the difference image to obtain registration information about the registration of the optical image and the electronic image after they are mixed by the light combiner.

[0077] It can be seen that the processes S330 and S340 of the control method 300 are the same as the processes S230 and S240 of the control method 200, except that the way of acquiring the first detection image and the second detection image in the control method 300 is different from that in the control method 200: in the control method 200, in order to obtain the first detection image and the second detection image, it is necessary to control the display of the microdisplay 11 to be turned on and off and to acquire images twice; whereas in the control method 300, a single image acquisition is performed using a color CMOS image sensor in process S310, and then the first detection image and the second detection image are acquired through image processing in process S320.

[0078] The control method 300 is implemented based on a color CMOS image sensor. Since the color CMOS sensor can not only sense visible light of different wavelengths to obtain images of corresponding colors, but also sense infrared light, and the image corresponding to infrared light is white, it can be distinguished from the image with corresponding colors corresponding to visible light. Therefore, the information corresponding to light of different wavelengths in the image acquired in the process S310 can be extracted separately according to the color. As described above, in the process S320, image content corresponding to infrared light, such as white, can be extracted as the first detection image. Since the infrared light comes from the optical image formed by the objective lens 2 and the spectrum of the electronic image of the micro display 11 does not contain infrared light, the first detection image represents the optical image formed by the objective lens 2; at the same time, in the process S320, image content corresponding to visible light of a predetermined wavelength, such as green, can be extracted as the second detection image. Since the spectrum of the optical image formed by the objective lens 2 and the spectrum of the electronic image displayed by the micro display 11 both contain green light, the second detection image represents both the optical image and the electronic image.

[0079] Next, in process S330 , similar to process S230 of the control method 200 , the first detection image is subtracted from the second detection image to obtain a difference image, which represents the electronic image of the micro display 11 .

[0080] Then, in process S340 , by comparing the first detection image and the difference image, information on whether the optical image and the electronic image are aligned after being mixed by the light combining mirror 12 can be obtained.

[0081] For ease of understanding, just as an example, Figure 4 Schematically shows the use of Figure 2 or Figure 3 The control method shown here obtains a first detection image, a second detection image and a difference image (the images are all shown here as grayscale images in a white background). Figure 4 Image (a) is an example of a first detection image (excluding the marking information of feature F1), in which multiple star points are displayed; image (b) is an example of a second detection image (excluding the marking information of feature F2), and it can be seen that compared with the first detection image, the second detection image contains more star points, and many star points are obviously "ghosting" effects caused by misalignment; image (c) is a difference image obtained by subtracting the first detection image from the second detection image; picture (d) schematically shows an example of comparing the first detection image and the difference image to obtain registration information, that is: finding corresponding features (such as the same star point) F1, F2 in the first detection image and the difference image, and by comparing the positions of feature F1 and feature F2, the position deviation between the first detection image and the difference image can be obtained, thereby obtaining the registration information between the optical image and the electronic image.

[0082] It should be understood that in order to obtain the registration information, when executing the control method 200 or 300, the electronic image displayed by the micro display 11 is an image that is expected to have an alignment relationship with the optical image from the objective lens 2. As an example only, the electronic image can be an image of the optical image collected by the image sensor 14, or it can be an image obtained after the image of the optical image is processed (for example, noise reduction and brightness enhancement). The control methods 200 and 300 can be executed in the process of calibrating the telescope, or can be executed in the process of observing with the telescope according to the needs of the enhanced or mixed reality display to be achieved by the telescope.

[0083] Preferably, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the controller 15 is further configured to perform control according to the above-acquired registration information so that the optical image from the objective lens 2 and the electronic image from the microdisplay 11 are registered with each other. Preferably, the controller 15 can correct the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay 11 to achieve the registration. Of course, it should be understood that the controller 15 can also control the position of, for example, the microdisplay 11, the light combining mirror or other components to adjust the registration, and the present invention is not limited in this respect.

[0084] In addition, according to the embodiment of the present invention, the controller 15 may also be configured to perform the following processing:

[0085] (a) calculating the astronomical coordinates of the telescope orientation based on the first detection image; and

[0086] (b) generating an electronic image based on the astronomical coordinates for combining with the optical image to achieve an augmented or mixed reality display, and controlling the microdisplay 11 to display the electronic image.

[0087] In processing (a), for example, star point information contained in the optical image formed by the telescope objective 2 can be identified and extracted from the first detection image, and then the astronomical coordinates of the telescope's direction can be directly calculated based on multiple star points through star point recognition (also known as star map recognition).

[0088] In process (b), the astronomical coordinates are used to generate an electronic image that is combined with the optical image to achieve an augmented or mixed reality display. For example, based on the astronomical coordinates that the telescope is facing, information about the sky region or celestial body can be obtained, and an electronic image containing information introducing the sky region or celestial body can be formed.

[0089] Return to reference Figure 1 Preferably, the telescope 100 may further include a relay lens 16 disposed in the optical path between the light combiner 12 and the eyepiece interface 100a, for relaying the optical image formed by the objective lens 2 and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay 11 to the target image plane IM2 near the eyepiece interface 100a. Figure 1 In the example shown, the relay lens 16 is disposed between the light combining mirror 12 and the dichroic beam splitter 13 , but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0090] Figure 5 1 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a telescope 100A according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The telescope 100A according to the second embodiment of the present invention has substantially the same structure as the telescope 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and the main difference is that the relay lens 16 of the telescope 100A includes a plurality of lenses, and the dichroic beam splitter 13 is disposed between two of the plurality of lenses of the relay lens 16. This arrangement of the telescope 100A is conducive to realizing a more compact optical system.

[0091] In addition, if Figure 5 As shown, the telescope 100A may also include a first adapter lens group 17 for the image sensor 14 and / or a second adapter lens group 18 for the microdisplay 11. The first adapter lens group 17 is mainly used to adjust the size of the real image imaged onto the sensing surface of the image sensor 14 to adapt to the size of the sensing surface of the image sensor 14. Similarly, the second adapter lens group 18 is mainly used to adjust the size of the electronic image mixed with the optical image from the objective lens by imaging the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay 11, so that the electronic image can match the size of the optical image. The provision of the first adapter lens group 17 and the second adapter lens group 18 allows greater flexibility in selecting the image sensor 14 and the microdisplay 11, which is conducive to reducing costs.

[0092] Figure 6 FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a telescope 100B according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention. Figure 6 As shown, the telescope 100B includes a lens barrel 1 and an objective lens 2 accommodated in the lens barrel 1. The objective lens 2 is used to form an optical image of an object observed by the telescope 100B. The lens barrel 1 is provided with an eyepiece interface 100a for connecting an eyepiece 3. Figure 6 In the example shown, the objective 2 is constituted by a lens.

[0093] Like the telescope 100 and the telescope 100A, the telescope 100B further includes a microdisplay 11, a light combiner 12, a dichroic beam splitter 13 and an image sensor 14, wherein the microdisplay 11 is used to display an electronic image; the light combiner 12 receives light from the objective lens 2 and light from the microdisplay 11 and mixes them, so that the optical image formed by the objective lens 2 and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay 11 can overlap in space and thus be observed together; the dichroic beam splitter 13 receives the light mixed by the light combiner 2, and selectively reflects and transmits according to the wavelength, so that most of the visible light enters the first optical path leading to the eyepiece interface 100a, and at least part of the non-visible light and a small amount of visible light of a predetermined wavelength enter the second optical path leading to the image sensor 14; and the image sensor 14 receives the non-visible light and the visible light of the predetermined wavelength to obtain a detection image representing the optical image formed by the objective lens 2 and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay 11. The telescope 100B may also include a controller 15, which is used to implement, for example, the same control method and control processing as described above in conjunction with the first embodiment, which will not be repeated here.

[0094] The telescope 100B according to this embodiment is different from the telescope 100 according to the first embodiment and the telescope 100A according to the second embodiment mainly in that the telescope 100B does not include the relay lens 16 disposed between the light combining mirror 12 and the eyepiece interface 100a. The telescope 100B may include a projection lens 19 disposed between the micro display 11 and the light combining mirror 12, for projecting the electronic image displayed by the micro display 11 onto the target image plane IM near the eyepiece interface 100a. The optical image formed by the objective lens 2 is also ultimately imaged on the target image plane IM.

[0095] In the telescope according to the embodiment of the present invention described above, components such as the light combiner and the dichroic beam splitter are arranged in the telescope barrel, but the present invention is not limited thereto. In particular, when modifying an existing telescope, it is preferred to provide an augmented reality and / or mixed reality display function and an image registration function through an electronic eyepiece or an eyepiece adapter according to the embodiment of the present invention. For example, Figure 7 As schematically shown, a telescope 100C according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention comprises a lens barrel 1 , an objective lens 2 disposed in the lens barrel 1 , and an electronic eyepiece 10 or an eyepiece adapter 10 ′ according to an embodiment of the present invention mounted on the lens barrel 1 .

[0096] Figure 8 Schematic diagram of the structure of an electronic eyepiece and an eyepiece adapter according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the present application, the electronic eyepiece refers to a telescope eyepiece device that is combined with an optical eyepiece and is detachably combined with a telescope lens barrel through an interface, and the eyepiece adapter refers to an adapter device that can be detachably combined with a telescope lens barrel and an optical eyepiece through an object receiving end interface and an eyepiece interface, respectively.

[0097] like Figure 8 As shown, the eyepiece adapter 10 ′ according to the embodiment of the present invention comprises a housing 10 a , one end of the housing 10 a is provided with an object end interface 10 b for connecting to the telescope tube 1 , and the other end is provided with an eyepiece interface 10 c for installing the optical eyepiece 3 .

[0098] The electronic eyepiece 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention can be composed of an eyepiece adapter 10' combined with an optical eyepiece 3 through an eyepiece interface 10c, or can be composed of the eyepiece adapter 10' without the eyepiece interface 10c and fixedly connected to the optical eyepiece 3. In short, the electronic eyepiece 10 includes a housing 10a, one end of which is provided with an object end interface 10b for connecting to a telescope barrel, and the other end is provided with the optical eyepiece 3.

[0099] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the electronic eyepiece 10 and the eyepiece adapter 10A' further include a micro display 11, a light combining mirror 12, a dichroic beam splitter 13 and an image sensor 14, wherein:

[0100] The micro display 11 is used to display electronic images;

[0101] The light combining lens 12 receives the light from the objective lens 2 and the light from the micro display 11, and mixes them by transmitting and reflecting them respectively (or vice versa), so that the optical image formed by the objective lens 2 and the electronic image displayed by the micro display can overlap in space and thus be observed together;

[0102] The dichroic beam splitter 13 receives the light mixed by the light combiner 12, and selectively reflects and transmits the light according to the wavelength, so that most of the visible light enters the first optical path leading to the eyepiece interface 100a, and at least part of the non-visible light and a small part / a small amount of the visible light of the predetermined wavelength enters the second optical path leading to the image sensor 14; and

[0103] The image sensor 14 receives the non-visible light and the visible light of a predetermined wavelength from the dichroic beam splitter 13 to obtain a detection image representing the optical image formed by the objective lens 2 and the electronic image displayed by the micro display 11 .

[0104] The microdisplay 11, light combiner 12, dichroic beam splitter 13 and image sensor 14 in the electronic eyepiece 10 and the eyepiece adapter 10A' have the same structure, setting method and function as the microdisplay, light combiner, dichroic beam splitter and image sensor in the telescope according to the embodiment of the present invention introduced above, and will not be repeated here.

[0105] Preferably, if Figure 8As shown, the electronic eyepiece 10 and the eyepiece adapter 10A' may further include a controller 15. The controller 15 calculates and obtains registration information about the registration of the optical image from the objective lens 2 and the electronic image from the micro display 11 after being mixed by the light combiner 12 based on the image detected by the image sensor 14. The structure, setting mode, and control method and processing executed by the controller 15 in the electronic eyepiece 10 and the eyepiece adapter 10A' may refer to the controller in the telescope according to the embodiment of the present invention, and will not be described in detail here.

[0106] In addition, preferably, the electronic eyepiece 10 and the eyepiece adapter 10A' may also include a relay lens 16 disposed in the optical path between the light combining lens 12 and the optical eyepiece 3 / eyepiece interface 10c, for relaying the optical image formed by the telescope objective and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay 11 to the target image plane IM2 near the optical eyepiece 3 / eyepiece interface 10c. Figure 8 In the example shown, the relay lens 16 is disposed between the light combining mirror 12 and the dichroic beam splitter 13, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Figure 5 Similar to the structure shown, the dichroic beam splitter 13 can be arranged between two lenses of the plurality of lenses included in the relay lens 16. This is conducive to realizing a more compact optical system.

[0107] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present application and an explanation of the technical principles used. Those skilled in the art should understand that the scope of the invention involved in the present application is not limited to the technical solution formed by a specific combination of the above technical features, but should also cover other technical solutions formed by any combination of the above technical features or their equivalent features without departing from the inventive concept. For example, the above features are replaced with (but not limited to) technical features with similar functions disclosed in the present application.

Claims

1. A telescope, comprising a lens barrel and an objective lens contained in the lens barrel, the objective lens being used to form an optical image of an object observed by the telescope, the lens barrel being provided with an eyepiece interface, wherein the telescope further comprises: microdisplays, used to display electronic images; a light combining lens, which receives the light from the objective lens and the light from the microdisplay and mixes them, so that the optical image formed by the objective lens and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay can overlap in space and thus be observed together; a dichroic beam splitter that receives the light mixed by the light combiner and selectively reflects and transmits the light according to the wavelength, so that most of the visible light enters a first optical path leading to the eyepiece interface, and at least part of the non-visible light and a small amount of visible light of a predetermined wavelength enters a second optical path; and An image sensor is arranged in the second optical path, and receives the non-visible light from the dichroic beam splitter and the visible light of a predetermined wavelength to obtain a detection image representing the optical image formed by the objective lens and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay.

2. The telescope according to claim 1, further comprising a controller, wherein the controller calculates and obtains registration information about the registration status of the optical image and the electronic image based on the detection image.

3. The telescope of claim 2, wherein: The at least part of the non-visible light includes infrared light, the visible light of the predetermined wavelength is green light, and the dichroic beam splitter allows most of the green light to enter the first optical path and allows a small part of the green light to enter the second optical path.

4. The telescope of claim 2, wherein: The at least part of the non-visible light includes infrared light, the visible light of the predetermined wavelength is red light, and the dichroic beam splitter allows most of the red light to enter the first optical path and allows a small part of the red light to enter the second optical path.

5. The telescope of claim 4, wherein: The visible light of the predetermined wavelength is red light with a wavelength greater than or equal to 690 nm.

6. The telescope of claim 5, wherein: The visible light of the predetermined wavelength is red light with a wavelength greater than or equal to 730 nm.

7. The telescope of claim 2, wherein: The controller is configured to perform the following processing: Turning off the display of the microdisplay, and acquiring a first detection image through the image sensor; Turning on the display of the microdisplay, and acquiring a second detection image through the image sensor; performing image processing to subtract the first detection image from the second detection image to obtain a difference image; as well as The first detection image and the difference detection image are calculated and compared to obtain registration information about the registration of the optical image and the electronic image after being mixed by the light combining mirror.

8. The telescope of claim 2, wherein: The image sensor is a color CMOS image sensor, and the controller is configured to perform the following processing: When the display of the microdisplay is turned on, acquiring a detection image through the color CMOS image sensor; Performing image processing on the detection image, extracting image content corresponding to infrared light as a first detection image according to color, and extracting image content corresponding to visible light of the predetermined wavelength as a second detection image; performing image processing to subtract the first detection image from the second detection image to obtain a difference image; as well as The first detection image and the difference image are calculated and compared to obtain registration information about the registration of the optical image and the electronic image after being mixed by the light combining mirror.

9. The telescope according to claim 7 or 8, wherein: The controller is also configured to perform the following processing: Based on the first detection image, calculating the astronomical coordinates of the telescope's orientation; and An electronic image is generated based on the astronomical coordinates for combining with the optical image to achieve augmented or mixed reality display, and the microdisplay is controlled to display the electronic image.

10. The telescope according to claim 7 or 8, wherein: The controller corrects the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay according to the registration information so that the electronic image is registered with the optical image formed by the objective lens.

11. The telescope as described in any one of claims 1 to 8 further includes a relay lens, which is arranged in the optical path between the light combiner and the eyepiece interface, and is used to relay the optical image formed by the objective lens and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay to a target image plane near the eyepiece interface.

12. The telescope of claim 11, wherein: The relay lens includes a plurality of lenses, and the dichroic beam splitter is disposed between two of the plurality of lenses.

13. An electronic eyepiece for a telescope, comprising a housing, one end of the housing being provided with an object receiving end interface for connecting to a telescope barrel, and the other end being provided with an optical eyepiece, the electronic eyepiece further comprising: microdisplays, used to display electronic images; a light combining lens that receives light from the telescope objective and light from the microdisplay and mixes them so that the optical image formed by the telescope objective and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay can overlap in space and thus be observed together; a dichroic beam splitter that receives the light mixed by the light combiner and selectively reflects and transmits the light according to the wavelength, thereby allowing most of the visible light to enter a first optical path leading to the optical eyepiece, and at least part of the non-visible light and a small amount of visible light of a predetermined wavelength to enter a second optical path; and An image sensor is arranged in the second optical path, which receives the non-visible light from the dichroic beam splitter and the visible light of a predetermined wavelength to obtain a detection image representing the optical image formed by the telescope objective and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay.

14. The electronic eyepiece as described in claim 13 further includes a controller, which calculates and obtains alignment information about the alignment between the optical image and the electronic image based on the detection image.

15. The electronic eyepiece according to claim 14, wherein: The at least part of the non-visible light includes infrared light, the visible light of the predetermined wavelength is green light, and the dichroic beam splitter allows most of the green light to enter the first optical path and allows a small part of the green light to enter the second optical path.

16. The electronic eyepiece according to claim 14, wherein: The at least part of the non-visible light includes infrared light, the visible light of the predetermined wavelength is red light, and the dichroic beam splitter allows most of the red light to enter the first optical path and allows a small part of the red light to enter the second optical path.

17. The electronic eyepiece according to claim 16, wherein: The visible light of the predetermined wavelength is red light with a wavelength greater than or equal to 690 nm.

18. The electronic eyepiece according to claim 16, wherein: The visible light of the predetermined wavelength is red light with a wavelength greater than or equal to 730 nm.

19. The electronic eyepiece according to claim 14, wherein: The controller is configured to perform the following processing: Turning off the display of the microdisplay, and acquiring a first detection image through the image sensor; Turning on the display of the microdisplay, and acquiring a second detection image through the image sensor; performing image processing to subtract the first detection image from the second detection image to obtain a difference image; as well as The first detection image and the difference image are calculated and compared to obtain registration information about the registration of the optical image and the electronic image after being mixed by the light combining mirror.

20. The electronic eyepiece of claim 14, wherein: The image sensor is a color CMOS image sensor, and the controller is configured to perform the following processing: When the display of the microdisplay is turned on, acquiring a detection image through the color CMOS image sensor; Performing image processing on the detection image, extracting image content corresponding to infrared light as a first detection image according to color, and extracting image content corresponding to visible light of the predetermined wavelength as a second detection image; performing image processing to subtract the first detection image from the second detection image to obtain a difference image; as well as The first detection image and the difference image are calculated and compared to obtain registration information about the registration of the optical image and the electronic image after being mixed by the light combining mirror.

21. The electronic eyepiece according to claim 18 or 19, wherein: The controller is also configured to perform the following processing: Based on the first detection image, calculating the astronomical coordinates of the telescope's orientation; and An electronic image is generated based on the astronomical coordinates for combining with the optical image to achieve augmented or mixed reality display, and the microdisplay is controlled to display the electronic image.

22. The electronic eyepiece according to claim 18 or 19, wherein: The controller modifies the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay according to the registration information so that the electronic image is registered with the optical image formed by the telescope objective.

23. The electronic eyepiece as described in any one of claims 13-20 further includes a relay lens, which is arranged in the light path between the light combining lens and the optical eyepiece, and is used to relay the optical image formed by the telescope objective and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay to a target image plane near the optical eyepiece.

24. An eyepiece adapter for a telescope, the eyepiece adapter comprising a housing, one end of the housing being provided with an object end interface for connecting to a telescope barrel, and the other end being provided with an eyepiece interface for installing an optical eyepiece, wherein: The eyepiece adapter also includes: microdisplays, used to display electronic images; a light combining lens that receives light from the telescope objective and light from the microdisplay and mixes them so that the optical image formed by the telescope objective and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay can overlap in space and thus be observed together; a dichroic beam splitter that receives the light mixed by the light combiner and selectively reflects and transmits the light according to the wavelength, so that most of the visible light enters a first optical path leading to the eyepiece interface, and at least part of the non-visible light and a small amount of visible light of a predetermined wavelength enters a second optical path; and An image sensor is arranged in the second optical path, which receives the non-visible light from the dichroic beam splitter and the visible light of a predetermined wavelength to obtain a detection image representing the optical image formed by the telescope objective and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay.

25. The eyepiece adapter of claim 24, further comprising a controller, which calculates registration information regarding the registration of the optical image and the electronic image based on the detected image.

26. The eyepiece adapter of claim 25, wherein: The at least part of the non-visible light includes infrared light, the visible light of the predetermined wavelength is green light, and the dichroic beam splitter allows most of the green light to enter the first optical path and allows a small part of the green light to enter the second optical path.

27. The eyepiece adapter of claim 25, wherein: The at least part of the non-visible light includes infrared light, the visible light of the predetermined wavelength is red light with a wavelength greater than or equal to 690nm, and the dichroic beam splitter allows most of the red light to enter the first optical path and allows a small part of the red light to enter the second optical path.

28. The eyepiece adapter of claim 27, wherein: The visible light of the predetermined wavelength is red light with a wavelength greater than or equal to 730 nm.

29. The eyepiece adapter of claim 25, wherein: The controller is configured to perform the following processing: Turning off the display of the microdisplay, and acquiring a first detection image through the image sensor; Turning on the display of the microdisplay, and acquiring a second detection image through the image sensor; performing image processing to subtract the first detection image from the second detection image to obtain a difference image; as well as The first detection image and the difference image are calculated and compared to obtain registration information about the registration of the optical image and the electronic image after being mixed by the light combining mirror.

30. The eyepiece adapter of claim 26, wherein: The image sensor is a color CMOS image sensor, and the controller is configured to perform the following processing: When the display of the microdisplay is turned on, acquiring a detection image through the color CMOS image sensor; Performing image processing on the detection image, extracting image content corresponding to infrared light as a first detection image according to color, and extracting image content corresponding to visible light of the predetermined wavelength as a second detection image; performing image processing to subtract the first detection image from the second detection image to obtain a difference image; as well as The first detection image and the difference image are calculated and compared to obtain registration information about the registration of the optical image and the electronic image after being mixed by the light combining mirror.

31. An eyepiece adapter as claimed in claim 29 or 30, wherein: The controller is also configured to perform the following processing: Based on the first detection image, calculating the astronomical coordinates of the telescope's orientation; and An electronic image is generated based on the astronomical coordinates for combining with the optical image to achieve augmented or mixed reality display, and the microdisplay is controlled to display the electronic image.

32. An eyepiece adapter as claimed in claim 29 or 30, wherein: The controller modifies the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay according to the registration information so that the electronic image is registered with the optical image formed by the telescope objective.

33. The eyepiece adapter as described in any one of claims 24-30 further includes a relay lens, which is arranged in the light path between the light combining lens and the optical eyepiece, and is used to relay the optical image formed by the telescope objective and the electronic image displayed by the microdisplay to a target image plane near the optical eyepiece.

34. A telescope, comprising a lens barrel, an objective lens arranged in the lens barrel, and the electronic eyepiece according to any one of claims 13 to 23 or the eyepiece adapter according to any one of claims 24 to 33 mounted on the lens barrel.

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