Adjustable pinhole device for a confocal microscope

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of adjustable pinhole devices of confocal microscope, including base, two blade mounting seat, blade fixedly arranged on blade mounting seat and drive mechanism for driving blade mounting seat to move, blade is provided with original light hole, superposition constitutes light hole pinhole, characterized in that drive mechanism includes driving cam, bearing mounting seat and bearing arranged on bearing mounting seat, bearing mounting seat is provided with elastic device to make bearing adhere to driving cam, blade mounting seat is provided with guiding device, blade mounting seat and bearing mounting seat are connected with each other by the cooperation of sliding pivot and sliding groove, advantage is that the movement of bearing seat is promoted using the transfer of driving cam, and by the cooperation of sliding pivot and sliding groove and the combination with guiding device, the movement of bearing mounting seat is converted into the linear movement of blade to two sides, the light hole pinhole is enlarged or reduced, center offset is reduced, light utilization is improved, and repeat precision is high.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a confocal microscope, in particular to an adjustable pinhole device of the confocal microscope. Background Art

[0002] Existing confocal microscopes such as Figure 1 As shown, the apparatus comprises: a laser source 101, a semi-transparent and semi-reflective mirror 102, an objective lens 103, a sample 104, a pinhole device 105, and a light detection device 106. The laser source 101 is used to emit laser light; the semi-transparent and semi-reflective mirror 102 can be a dichroic mirror. In the path of the laser light from the laser source 101 to the sample 104, the semi-transparent and semi-reflective mirror 102 is used to allow the laser light to pass through and reach the objective lens 103, and the objective lens 103 focuses the laser light on the surface of the sample 104. Under the action of the laser light, the sample 104 generates fluorescence, which passes through the objective lens 103 and is focused on the other side of the objective lens 103. The semi-transparent and semi-reflective mirror 102 reflects the fluorescence so that the fluorescence is focused at the location of the pinhole device 105. In this way, the fluorescence generated by the sample on the focal plane of the objective lens 103 on the sample side can pass through the pinhole device 105 and be received by the light detection device 106.

[0003] The pinhole design effectively prevents background noise from contaminants (such as dust fluorescence, contamination from the back of the specimen, fluorescence from glass, common airborne dust particles, and fluorescence contamination from the scanner's optical components). For typical confocal imaging, only the central portion of the diffraction-limited signal is permitted to pass through the pinhole; this central portion is called the "Airy disk." The size of the Airy disk depends on the wavelength (color), numerical aperture (NA), objective magnification, and the magnification of the microscope's internal optical system. Therefore, different pinhole diameters are required for different colors and objectives with different NAs and magnifications, resulting in a confocal microscope with an adjustable pinhole diameter.

[0004] The Chinese invention patent with the publication number CN 104849212 A discloses a pinhole device such as Figure 2As shown, the pinhole device comprises: a stepper motor 110, two movable sliders 200, two wafer loading platforms 300 and two wafers 120, the front end of the screw rod of the stepper motor 110 is provided with a pin-shaped nut 100, the first side of the two movable sliders 200 is arranged on the same bearing 500, the two movable sliders 200 can rotate around the bearing 500, the wafers 120 are arranged on the wafer loading platforms 300, the wafer loading platforms 300 are arranged on the movable sliders 200 respectively, one hole 130 is arranged in each of the two wafers 120, the pinhole 140 is formed by the upper and lower superposition of the holes 130 of the two wafers 120, and the size of the pinhole 140 is determined by the size of the superposition area of the holes 130 of the two wafers 120; the linear motion of the pin-shaped nut 100 is controlled by the stepper motor 110, and the two movable sliders 200 are rotated, and the size of the pinhole 140 is adjusted by the rotation of the movable sliders 200. The technical scheme adopts a stepper motor as a drive, realizes electric control, and is easy to accurately position and control.

[0005] However, there is usually a gap between the stepper motor screw rod and the nut, which will cause a repeated gap when the small hole is opened and closed, so that the software control can only be one-way control or needs to increase the compensation gap. In addition, when the two movable sliders rotate, they will not only be opened to both sides of the motor, but also have a displacement in the direction of the motor movement, which will cause the center of the small hole to deviate when the small hole is opened and closed. SUMMARY

[0006] The technical problem to be solved by the present application is to provide an adjustable pinhole device for a confocal microscope with small center deviation and high repeat accuracy.

[0007] The technical scheme adopted by the present application to solve the above technical problem is: an adjustable pinhole device for a confocal microscope, comprising a base, two blade mounting seats, blades fixedly arranged on the blade mounting seats, and a driving mechanism for driving the blade mounting seats to move, the blades are provided with original light transmission holes, and two original light transmission holes are superimposed to form a light transmission pinhole, the driving mechanism comprises a driving cam, a bearing mounting seat and a bearing arranged on the bearing mounting seat, the bearing mounting seat is provided with an elastic device to make the bearing tightly adhere to the driving cam, the blade mounting seat is provided with a guide device, and the blade mounting seat and the bearing mounting seat are connected with each other through the cooperation of a sliding shaft and a sliding groove, when the driving cam rotates to push the bearing to drive the bearing mounting seat to move, the bearing mounting seat drives the blade mounting seat to move linearly to both sides under the action of the guide device, so as to expand or reduce the light transmission pinhole.

[0008] Compared with the existing technology, the advantage of the present invention is that the movement of the bearing seat is promoted by the rotation of the driving cam, and the movement of the bearing mounting seat is converted into linear movement of the blade to both sides through the mutual cooperation of the sliding shaft and the sliding groove and the combination with the guide device, thereby expanding or shrinking the light-transmitting aperture; the aperture device of the present invention is continuously adjustable, the center offset is reduced, the light utilization rate is improved, and two-way control can be realized to improve repeatability.

[0009] The adjustable aperture device of the present invention is used to adjust the aperture size. When the side length of the square aperture ranges from 0 to 300 microns, the minimum adjustment step can reach 0.6 microns, the center offset can basically reach less than 4 microns, and the repeatability can reach within 5 microns.

[0010] Preferably, the guide device includes a fixed block fixed to the base, the fixed block being provided with a guide groove, and the blade mount being provided with at least one guide post, the guide post being inserted into the guide groove. The blade mount is typically provided with two guide posts to ensure smoother and more reliable movement of the blade mount.

[0011] Preferably, the sliding shaft is arranged on the blade mounting seat, and the sliding groove is arranged on the bearing mounting seat. Alternatively, the sliding groove is arranged on the blade mounting seat, and the sliding shaft is arranged on the bearing mounting seat.

[0012] Preferably, the elastic device is an elastic pick, one end of which is fixedly arranged on the base, and the bearing mounting seat is fixedly connected to the free end of the elastic pick.

[0013] Preferably, the driving cam is driven by a steering gear, the steering gear is fixedly mounted on the base, and the driving cam is fixedly arranged on the steering gear wheel of the steering gear.

[0014] Preferably, the outer contour line of the driving cam whose radius increases continuously and evenly with the angle is an Archimedean curve, and the bearing is tightly attached to the Archimedean curve position of the driving cam. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the structure of an existing confocal microscope;

[0016] Figure 2 It is a structural diagram of an adjustable orifice device in the prior art;

[0017] Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the adjustable aperture device of the present invention;

[0018] Figure 4The three-dimensional structure diagram of the adjustable small hole device without the fixed block of the present application;

[0019] Figure 5 The top view of the adjustable small hole device without the fixed block of the present application when the small hole is zero;

[0020] Figure 6 The top view of the adjustable small hole device without the fixed block of the present application when the small hole is maximum.

[0021] Figures 3-6 The reference signs in the figure are as follows: 1, base; 2, steering engine; 3, driving cam; 4, guide column; 5, guide groove; 6, fixed block; 7, elastic pusher; 8, bearing mounting seat; 9, bearing; 10, sliding shaft; 11, sliding groove; 12, blade mounting seat; 13, blade; 14, light passing small hole; 15, steering engine rotating wheel. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0022] The present application is further described in detail below with reference to the embodiments of the drawings.

[0023] Embodiment: as Figures 3-6As shown, an adjustable pinhole device for a confocal microscope includes a base 1, a steering gear 2, a driving cam 3, a fixed block 6, two elastic paddles 7, two bearing mounting seats 8 and two blade mounting seats 12, wherein the two ends of the elastic paddle 7 are a fixed end and a free end respectively, the fixed end is fixedly connected to the base 1, and the bearing mounting seat 8 is fixedly mounted on the free end of the elastic paddle 7. Therefore, the bearing mounting seat 8 can make a small-angle arc movement around the fixed end of the elastic paddle 7; the steering gear 2 is fixedly mounted on the base 1, the driving cam 3 is fixedly mounted on the steering gear wheel 15 of the steering gear 2, and a section of the outer contour line of the driving cam 3 whose radius continuously and evenly increases with the angle is an Archimedes curve, and the bearing 9 is arranged on the bearing mounting seat 8. With the help of the elastic paddle 7, the bearing 9 is tightly attached to the Archimedes curve position of the driving cam 3. When the steering gear 2 drives the driving cam 3 to rotate, the bearing 9 is pushed to drive the bearing mounting seat 8 to make a small-angle arc movement around the fixed end of the elastic paddle 7; the blade 13 is fixedly mounted on the blade mounting seat 12, and the end of the blade 13 A notch is provided in the part as the original light-through hole, and the original light-through holes on the two blades 13 overlap with each other to form a light-through hole 14; a sliding shaft 10 is provided on the blade mounting seat 12, and a sliding groove 11 is provided on the bearing mounting seat 8. The blade mounting seat 12 and the bearing mounting seat 8 are connected to each other through the cooperation of the sliding shaft 10 and the sliding groove 11. The fixing block 6 is fixedly set on the base 1, and a guide groove 5 is provided on the fixing block 6. Two guide columns 4 are provided on the blade mounting seat 12. The guide columns 4 are inserted into the guide groove 5 to guide the moving direction of the blade mounting seat 12. When the servo 2 rotates, the driving cam 3 rotates to push the bearing 9 to drive the bearing mounting seat 8 to make a small-angle arc movement around the fixed end of the elastic paddle 7. Through the sliding shaft 10 and the sliding groove 11 that cooperate with each other, the bearing mounting seat 8 applies a driving force to the blade mounting seat 12. Under the guiding action of the guide columns 4 and the guide groove 5 that cooperate with each other, the blade mounting seat 12 drives the blade 13 to move linearly to both sides, so that the light-through hole 14 is expanded or reduced.

[0024] In the above embodiment, the positions of the sliding groove 11 and the sliding shaft 10 can be interchanged, that is, the sliding shaft 10 can be set on the bearing mounting seat 8 and the sliding groove 11 can be set on the blade mounting seat 12.

[0025] The working principle of the adjustable aperture device of the present invention is as follows:

[0026] When the driving cam 3 is at the initial position, the light-passing hole 14 is also at the initial position. Figure 5 As shown, the diameter of the circumscribed circle of the light-transmitting aperture 14 is 0 at this time; the cam 3 is driven by the rotation control of the servo 2 to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise to control the opening and closing of the blade 13. When the servo 2 rotates counterclockwise, the blade 13 opens to both sides, and the size of the light-transmitting aperture 14 increases. Figure 6As shown, at this time the shape of the light transmission aperture 14 is square, and the maximum circumscribed circle diameter of the light transmission aperture 14 is 300 microns; when the steering engine 2 rotates clockwise, the blades 13 are folded in the middle, at this time the size of the light transmission aperture 14 is reduced, and when the steering engine 2 is rotated to the initial angle, the light transmission aperture 14 is closed.

Claims

1. An adjustable pinhole device for a confocal microscope, comprising a base, two blade mounts, blades fixedly mounted on the blade mounts, and a drive mechanism for driving the blade mounts to move, wherein the blades are provided with original light holes, and two original light holes are superimposed to form a light hole, characterized in that The driving mechanism includes a driving cam, a bearing mounting seat and a bearing arranged on the bearing mounting seat. The bearing mounting seat is provided with an elastic device to make the bearing tightly attached to the driving cam. The blade mounting seat is provided with a guide device. The blade mounting seat and the bearing mounting seat are connected to each other through the cooperation of a sliding shaft and a sliding groove. When the driving cam rotates to push the bearing to drive the bearing mounting seat to move, the bearing mounting seat drives the blade mounting seat to make the blade move back and forth in a straight line to both sides under the action of the guide device, thereby expanding or shrinking the light-transmitting hole.

2. The adjustable aperture device for a confocal microscope according to claim 1, characterized in that The guide device comprises a fixed block fixedly arranged on the base, the fixed block is provided with a guide groove, and the blade mounting seat is provided with at least one guide column, and the guide column is inserted into the guide groove.

3. The adjustable aperture device for a confocal microscope according to claim 2, characterized in that Two guide columns are provided on the blade mounting seat.

4. The adjustable aperture device for a confocal microscope according to claim 1, characterized in that The sliding shaft is arranged on the blade mounting seat, and the sliding groove is arranged on the bearing mounting seat.

5. The adjustable aperture device for a confocal microscope according to claim 1, characterized in that The elastic device is an elastic pick, one end of which is fixedly arranged on the base, and the bearing mounting seat is fixedly connected to the free end of the elastic pick.

6. The adjustable aperture device for a confocal microscope according to claim 1, characterized in that The driving cam is driven by a steering gear, the steering gear is fixedly mounted on the base, and the driving cam is fixedly arranged on the steering gear rotating wheel of the steering gear.

7. The adjustable aperture device for a confocal microscope according to claim 1, characterized in that The outer contour line of the driving cam whose radius increases continuously and evenly with the angle is an Archimedean curve, and the bearing is tightly attached to the Archimedean curve position of the driving cam.

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