Microscope dark field illumination system

Abstract

The invention discloses a microscope dark field illumination system, which relates to the technical field of microscopes, and comprises a mounting sleeve detachably assembled on an objective lens and provided with a pressing piece; the LEDs are arranged on the mounting sleeve in a circumferential array shape; the TIR lens is arranged in the mounting sleeve and is used for adjusting the large-angle light of the LED into collimated parallel light; the free-form surface annular lens is arranged at the end part of the mounting sleeve, keeps a preset distance with the TIR lens, and is used for adjusting the light ray direction of the parallel light; wherein light spots refracted by the free-form surface annular lens form approximately circular light spots in the center of the objective table. The mounting sleeve of the dark field illumination system of the microscope is detachably assembled on the objective lens, so that the device is a dark field vertical illumination optical system which can be directly and externally mounted, the bright field objective lens is conveniently upgraded to the dark field objective lens without changing any original structure of the microscope, and the dark field illumination system is small in size, high in universality, convenient to assemble and disassemble and uniform in light spot.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the technical field of microscopes, and in particular to a microscope dark field illumination system. Background Art

[0002] Darkfield illumination in microscopy is a special illumination technique used to observe transparent or translucent samples, especially in biology and materials science. Unlike traditional brightfield microscopy, darkfield microscopy changes the way the light source is illuminated so that the background of the sample remains dark while the sample itself appears as a bright outline.

[0003] In conjunction with publication number CN105739075B, publication date 2018-10-02, a ring-shaped LED-based epi-bright-field microscope and its illumination method are disclosed, including a dark-field objective, an epi-bright-field illumination group, an epi-dark-field illumination group, a microscope frame group, a hinged head, and an electrical control group. The epi-dark-field illumination group is fixed inside the microscope frame group, and the epi-dark-field illumination group can be detachably arranged on the microscope frame group. The epi-dark-field illumination group is provided with a first power input port, and the electrical control group is provided with a first power output port. The dark-field objective includes a dark-field light hole, a dark-field condenser, and an imaging lens.

[0004] However, in the prior art including the above patent, a falling-type lens is used, which is expensive and needs to be used in combination with a dark-field objective lens. For ordinary microscopes, the dark-field objective lens needs to be replaced before it can be used, which is rather troublesome. Summary of the invention

[0005] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a microscope dark field illumination system for solving the above problems.

[0006] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides the following technical solutions: A microscope dark field illumination system comprises a mounting sleeve detachably mounted on an objective lens, on which a pressing member is arranged;

[0007] LEDs are arranged in a circular array on the mounting sleeve;

[0008] The TIR lens disposed in the mounting sleeve is used to adjust the large-angle light of the LED into collimated parallel light;

[0009] A free-form annular lens disposed at the end of the mounting sleeve and maintaining a predetermined distance from the TIR lens, and used to adjust the direction of the parallel light;

[0010] The light spot refracted by the free-form surface annular lens forms an approximately circular light spot in the center of the stage.

[0011] Preferably, the aperture of the mounting sleeve is larger than the objective lens, and there are multiple pressing members, which are driven to slide radially to move closer to each other or away from each other.

[0012] Preferably, a large gear is rotatably provided on the mounting sleeve, and a protrusion that slidably cooperates with the pressing piece is provided on the large gear.

[0013] Preferably, the mounting sleeve is provided with a small gear meshing with the large gear for transmission.

[0014] Preferably, a screw is provided on the mounting sleeve, and the pinion is threadedly connected to the screw.

[0015] Preferably, the pinion is provided with an airbag for maintaining the pinion at a predetermined height.

[0016] Preferably, the device further comprises a locking member for locking the pinion and sliding vertically relative to the mounting sleeve.

[0017] Preferably, a foldable suction cup is fixedly provided on the end surface of the pressing member, and the foldable suction cup is connected to the airbag.

[0018] Preferably, a transmission gear is rotatably provided on the pressing member, and a transmission rod for driving the transmission gear is fixedly provided on the end surface of the folding suction cup.

[0019] Preferably, a rubber roller for pressing the objective lens is rotatably provided at the end of the transmission gear.

[0020] In the above technical scheme, a microscope dark field illumination system provided by the present invention has the following beneficial effects: the mounting sleeve is detachably mounted on the objective lens, so that the device is a dark field epi-illumination optical system that can be directly installed externally, without changing any original structure of the microscope, and the bright field objective lens can be conveniently upgraded to a dark field objective lens, and the system has a small size, strong versatility, is easy to load and unload, and has a uniform light spot. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present application or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments recorded in the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can also be obtained based on these drawings.

[0022] Figure 1 An overall three-dimensional schematic diagram provided for an embodiment of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the mounting sleeve and objective lens structure provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the cross-sectional structure of the mounting sleeve and the objective lens provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the structure of a TIR lens and a free-form surface annular lens provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of the structure of a pressing member and a transmission gear provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of the structure of a pressing member and a connecting pipe provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of an optical path provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 8 A light spot effect diagram of a single LED provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Fig. 9 This is a diagram of the final light spot effect after superposition of multiple LEDs provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0031] Description of reference numerals:

[0032] 1. Objective lens; 2. Stage; 3. Mounting sleeve; 4. TIR lens; 41. LED; 5. Free-form annular lens; 6. Pressing member; 61. Slide groove; 62. Folding suction cup; 63. Transmission rod; 64. Rack; 65. Transmission gear; 66. Rubber roller; 7. Large gear; 71. Connecting pipe; 8. Small gear; 9. Screw; 10. Fixed seat; 11. Elastic member; 12. Locking member; 13. Airbag. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0033] In order to enable those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solution of the present invention, the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0034] like Figure 1-9 As shown, a microscope dark field illumination system includes an objective lens 1 and a stage 2, characterized in that it includes:

[0035] A mounting sleeve 3 detachably mounted on the objective lens 1, on which a pressing member 6 is provided;

[0036] LEDs 41 are arranged in a circular array on the mounting sleeve 3;

[0037] The TIR lens 4 is arranged in the mounting sleeve 3, and is used to adjust the large-angle light of the LED 41 into collimated parallel light;

[0038] A free-form surface annular lens 5 is disposed at the end of the mounting sleeve 3 and maintains a predetermined distance from the TIR lens 4, and is used to adjust the direction of the parallel light;

[0039] The light spot refracted by the free-form surface annular lens 5 forms a nearly circular light spot in the center of the stage 2 .

[0040] Specifically, the mounting sleeve 3 corresponds to the objective lens 1, and the mounting sleeve 3 is axially sleeved on the objective lens 1. The mounting sleeve 3 is assembled by supporting the objective lens 1 with the pressing piece 6. The above operation can be achieved by using a pressing piece 6 with certain deformation properties to deform the clamp objective lens 1, or by using a spring to support the pressing piece 6, or by a pressing element known to those skilled in the art.

[0041] Furthermore, LEDs 41 are evenly arranged along the circumference of the array, and the vertical projection of the light-emitting surface of each LED 41 corresponds to a TIR lens 4, i.e., a total reflection lens. This TIR lens 4 can adjust the large-angle light of LED 41 into collimated parallel light. The large-angle light is divided into two parts, one part is refracted through the convex surface in the middle, and the other part is totally reflected through the peripheral TIR surface. Both the convex surface and the TIR surface can be designed freely and comprehensively to improve the collimation efficiency of the light. The parallel light is adjusted in direction by the free-form surface lens ring 5, refracted out of the lens ring, and irradiated on the stage 2 as shown in FIG. Figure 7 As shown, each LED spot is not a uniform circular spot. Figure 8 As shown, after the light spots projected by multiple circularly arranged LEDs are superimposed, a nearly circular uniform light spot can be formed in the center of the working surface as shown in FIG. Fig. 9 shown.

[0042] In the above technology, the mounting sleeve 3 is detachably mounted on the objective lens 1, so that the device is a dark-field epi-illumination optical system that can be directly installed externally without changing any original structure of the microscope. It is convenient to upgrade the bright-field objective lens to a dark-field objective lens, and it has a small size, strong versatility, easy loading and unloading, and a uniform light spot.

[0043] As an embodiment further provided by the present invention, the diameter of the mounting sleeve 3 is larger than that of the objective lens 1, and there are multiple pressing members 6, and the multiple pressing members 6 are driven to slide radially to move closer to each other or away from each other.

[0044] Specifically, since the light spot formed by a single LED 41 is an uneven light spot, multiple LEDs 41 need to be superimposed in a circular array to form a uniform light spot. During the assembly process, if the mounting sleeve 3 is assembled by a conventional interference sleeve method, the mounting sleeve 3 will be deformed and skewed, so that the arrangement of the LEDs 41 is not a uniform circular array, and the illumination of the stage 2 will not be uniform, which will affect the observation result. Therefore, the diameter of the mounting sleeve 3 is made larger than the objective lens 1 to prevent the objective lens 1 from squeezing the inner wall of the mounting sleeve 3, and then the multiple pressing members 6 are slid radially, so that the multiple pressing members 6 always slide synchronously during the assembly process, and keep the active state of moving toward the center of the circle at the same time, or moving away from the periphery at the same time, so as to ensure that the pressing member 6 is always consistent with the axis of the objective lens 1, and play a centering role.

[0045] In the above technology, the electric telescopic rod or the hydraulic rod can be set by a program, or other driving mechanisms known to those skilled in the art.

[0046] As another embodiment further provided by the present invention, a large gear 7 is rotatably provided on the mounting sleeve 3 , and a convex block that slidably cooperates with the pressing member 6 is provided on the large gear 7 .

[0047] Specifically, the mounting sleeve 3 is provided with a pinion 8 meshing with the large gear 7, a fixing seat 10 is fixedly provided on the mounting sleeve 3, the pinion 8 is arranged on the fixing seat 10, and a slide groove is provided on the pressing member 6. After the user sleeves the mounting sleeve 3 on the port of the objective lens 1, the user manually rotates the pinion 8 to drive the large gear 7 to rotate, thereby driving the protrusion to slide in the slide groove, and driving the pressing member 6 to move through the sliding fit. At this time, the moving directions and moving speeds of the multiple pressing members 6 are consistent, which can effectively realize the centering and fixing of the objective lens 1.

[0048] As another embodiment further provided by the present invention, a screw rod 9 is provided on the mounting sleeve 3 , and the pinion gear 8 is threadedly connected to the screw rod 9 .

[0049] Specifically, the pinion 8 is provided with an airbag 13 for keeping the pinion 8 at a predetermined height, the screw 9 is fixedly arranged on the fixing seat 10, and the airbag 13 is arranged on the fixing seat 10. When the airbag 13 is inflated, the airbag 13 maintains contact with the end face of the pinion 8, and the pinion 8 is threadedly connected with the screw 9. When the user rotates the pinion 8, the pinion 8 is driven to move vertically upward along the screw 9 and squeeze the airbag 13, so that the airbag 13 shrinks. When the user releases his hand and no longer rotates the pinion 8, the deformation potential energy in the airbag 13 is released and presses the pinion 8 to a predetermined height, thereby achieving the effect of automatic reset and reducing the operation of manual reset by personnel.

[0050] As another embodiment further provided by the present invention, it also includes a locking member 12 for locking the pinion 8 and sliding vertically relative to the mounting sleeve 3.

[0051] Specifically, the locking member 12 includes a trapezoidal block fixed at the end, and the locking member 12 is slidably set on the fixed seat 10, and elastic members 11 are set on both sides of the locking member 12 to push the locking member 12 upward, driving the trapezoidal block to be inserted between the teeth of the pinion 8, thereby locking the pinion 8. The default height of the locking member 12 is higher than the highest point of the bottom surface of the pinion 8. Since both sides of the trapezoidal block are inclined surfaces, when the user rotates the pinion 8, the teeth squeeze the inclined surfaces on the trapezoidal block, causing the trapezoidal block to slide down due to the teeth, and the elastic member 11 deforms and bends. When the teeth are offset from the trapezoidal block, the elastic member 11 recovers and drives the locking member 12 to slide up and lock the pinion 8. At this time, when the user lets go, due to the lack of the user's rotational force, the rotational force of the pinion 8 pushed by the airbag 13 is not enough to overcome the supporting force of the elastic member 11 on the locking member 12, so that the pinion 8 is still locked by the locking member 12. At this time, the inner diameter formed by the pressing member 6 is fixed, so that the mounting sleeve 3 can adapt to the objective lens 1 of different outer diameters through the pressing member 6. When the pinion 8 needs to be reset, the locking member 12 is slid downward to displace the height of the pinion 8, and the pinion 8 is reset by the airbag 13 after being blocked by the locking member 12.

[0052] As another embodiment further provided by the present invention, a folding suction cup 62 is fixedly provided on the end surface of the pressing member 6 , and the folding suction cup 62 is in communication with the airbag 13 .

[0053] Specifically, the airbag 13 is connected to the pinion 8 in rotation, and in the default state, the pinion 8 is pulled to a predetermined height, and the airbag 13 is connected to the folding suction cup 62 through a fixed connecting pipe 71. When the pinion 8 rotates forward and moves along the screw 8 to the side away from the airbag 13, it drives the multiple pressing members 6 to approach the center of the circle and press the outer wall of the objective lens 1, and at this time, the folding suction cup 62 is driven to abut against and fold against the outer wall of the objective lens 1. At the same time, the pinion 8 stretches the airbag 13, so that the airbag 13 is in a negative pressure state, so that the airbag 13 sucks the air in the folding suction cup 62, so that the folding suction cup 62 is closely attached to the outer wall of the objective lens 1, and further plays a fixing role. When the installation sleeve 3 is released, the pinion 8 is rotated in the opposite direction, so that the pinion 8 moves to the other side close to the airbag 13, so that the stretching of the airbag 13 is restored, and the gas in the airbag 13 is squeezed into the folding suction cup 62, so that the folding suction cup 62 and the objective lens 1 are no longer abutted.

[0054] As another embodiment further provided by the present invention, a transmission gear 65 is rotatably provided on the pressing member 6 , and a transmission rod 63 for driving the transmission gear 65 is provided on the end surface of the folding suction cup 62 .

[0055] Specifically, the end of the transmission gear 65 is rotatably provided with a rubber roller 66 for pressing the objective lens 1, the transmission rod 63 is slidably provided on the pressing member 6, and the end of the transmission rod 63 is fixedly provided with a rack 64 meshing with the transmission gear 65. In the process of the pressing member 6 approaching the objective lens 1, the end surface of the folding suction cup 62 is gradually driven to abut against the objective lens 1, and folded by the reaction force of the objective lens 1. At this time, the end surface of the folding suction cup 62 approaches the pressing member 6, and drives the transmission rod 63 to slide relative to the pressing member 6. The transmission rod 63 drives the rack 64 to slide, thereby driving the transmission gear 65 to rotate, and the transmission gear 65 drives the rubber roller 66 to press against the side wall of the objective lens 1 to prevent the installation sleeve 3 from sliding. When the folding suction cup 62 is not pushed by the objective lens 1, it recovers under its own elastic force, drives the transmission rod 63 to slide and move away from the pressing member 6, and rotates the transmission gear 65 until it is not pressed against the objective lens 1.

[0056] Working principle: After the user sleeves the installation sleeve 3 onto the port of the objective lens 1, the user manually rotates the pinion 8 to drive the large gear 7 to rotate. When the pinion 8 rotates forward and moves along the screw 8 to the side away from the airbag 13, it drives the multiple pressing members 6 to approach the center of the circle and press against the outer wall of the objective lens 1. At this time, the folding suction cup 62 is driven to abut against and fold against the outer wall of the objective lens 1. The end surface of the folding suction cup 62 approaches the pressing member 6 and drives the transmission rod 63 to slide relative to the pressing member 6. The transmission rod 63 drives the rack 64 to slide, thereby driving the transmission gear 65 to rotate, and the transmission gear 65 drives the rubber roller 66 to press against the side wall of the objective lens 1. At this time, when the user lets go, due to the lack of the user's rotational force, the rotational force of the pinion 8 pushed by the airbag 13 is insufficient to overcome the supporting force of the elastic member 11 on the locking member 12, so that the pinion 8 is still locked by the locking member 12. When the mounting sleeve 3 is released, the pinion 8 is rotated in the opposite direction so that the pinion 8 moves toward the other side close to the airbag 13, thereby restoring the stretching of the airbag 13 and squeezing the gas in the airbag 13 into the folding suction cup 62, so that the folding suction cup 62 and the objective lens 1 no longer abut each other. When the folding suction cup 62 is not pushed by the objective lens 1, it recovers under its own elastic force, drives the transmission rod 63 to slide and move away from the pressing member 6, and rotates the transmission gear 65 until it is no longer pressed against the objective lens 1.

[0057] The above description is only by way of illustration of certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention. It is undoubted that those skilled in the art can modify the described embodiments in various ways without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the above drawings and descriptions are illustrative in nature and should not be construed as limiting the scope of protection of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A microscope dark field illumination system, comprising an objective lens (1) and a stage (2), characterized in that: include: A mounting sleeve (3) detachably mounted on the objective lens (1), on which a pressing piece (6) is provided; LEDs (41) are arranged in a circular array on the mounting sleeve (3); A TIR lens (4) disposed in the mounting sleeve (3) and used to adjust the large-angle light of the LED (41) into collimated parallel light; A free-form surface annular lens (5) is arranged at the end of the mounting sleeve (3) and maintains a predetermined distance from the TIR lens (4), and is used to adjust the direction of the parallel light; The light spot refracted by the free-form surface annular lens (5) forms a nearly circular light spot in the center of the stage (2).

2. A microscope dark field illumination system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The diameter of the mounting sleeve (3) is larger than that of the objective lens (1), and the number of the pressing members (6) is multiple, and the multiple pressing members (6) are driven to slide radially to move closer to each other or away from each other.

3. A microscope dark field illumination system according to claim 2, characterized in that: A large gear (7) is rotatably arranged on the installation sleeve (3), and a convex block which is slidably matched with the pressing piece (6) is arranged on the large gear (7).

4. A microscope dark field illumination system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The mounting sleeve (3) is provided with a small gear (8) which meshes with the large gear (7) for transmission.

5. A microscope dark field illumination system according to claim 4, characterized in that: The mounting sleeve (3) is provided with a screw rod (9), and the pinion gear (8) is threadedly connected to the screw rod (9).

6. A microscope dark field illumination system according to claim 5, characterized in that: The pinion gear (8) is provided with an air bag (13) for keeping the pinion gear (8) at a predetermined height.

7. A microscope dark field illumination system according to claim 4, characterized in that: It also includes a locking member (12) for locking the pinion (8) and sliding vertically relative to the mounting sleeve (3).

8. A microscope dark field illumination system according to claim 5, characterized in that: A folding suction cup (62) is fixedly provided on the end surface of the pressing member (6), and the folding suction cup (62) is connected to the air bag (13).

9. A microscope dark field illumination system according to claim 8, characterized in that: A transmission gear (65) is rotatably arranged on the pressing member (6), and a transmission rod (63) for driving the transmission gear (65) is fixedly arranged on the end surface of the folding suction cup (62).

10. A microscope dark field illumination system according to claim 9, characterized in that: The end of the transmission gear (65) is rotatably provided with a rubber roller (66) for pressing the objective lens (1).

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