Five-Lens Imaging System with Aspheric Fifth Element

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

There is a demand for imaging lenses that can achieve high imaging performance across a wide angle of view while being compact in size, particularly for devices like cellular phones and smartphones, where the existing lenses are too long and not optimized for high resolution.

Innovation Solution

The imaging lens is composed of five lenses with specific refractive powers and shapes, including a first lens with positive refractive power and a meniscus shape convex toward the object side, a second and third lens with negative refractive power, a fourth lens with positive refractive power, and a fifth lens with negative refractive power and aspheric surfaces, optimized to satisfy certain conditional expressions for focal lengths, which allows for a reduction in total length while maintaining high resolution performance.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If the imaging lens is composed of five or six lenses to achieve high resolution performance, then the imaging performance is improved, but the total length of the lens increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveimaging performanceVSAvoidtotal length of lens

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSLength of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies parameter changes by optimizing the refractive powers, focal lengths, and curvature radii of the five lens elements to satisfy specific conditional expressions. By carefully controlling these optical parameters, the lens achieves high imaging performance with only five elements, avoiding the need for six or more elements that would increase length.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The patent utilizes aspheric surfaces on the fifth lens element to correct optical aberrations more effectively than spherical surfaces alone. This allows for compact lens design while maintaining high resolution performance, as the aspheric shapes enable better light control with fewer elements.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #14Spheroidality (Curvature)

2Measurement precision

If the number of lenses is increased to six or more to improve resolution, then the imaging performance is enhanced, but the device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

ImproveresolutionVSAvoidnumber of lenses

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent achieves high resolution with five lenses by optimizing specific parameters including the ratio of focal lengths and refractive powers. The conditional expressions constrain these parameters to ranges that maximize imaging performance while minimizing the number of lens elements required.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The aspheric surfaces on the fifth lens provide advanced aberration correction capabilities that would otherwise require additional lens elements. This reduces the total number of lenses from six or more to just five, simplifying the overall device structure.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #14Spheroidality (Curvature)

3Length of moving object

If the total length of the lens is decreased for miniaturization, then the device size is reduced, but the imaging performance deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvetotal length of lensVSAvoidimaging performance

Core Design Contradiction:

Length of moving objectVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The aspheric surfaces on the fifth lens element enable effective aberration correction in a compact configuration. This allows the lens to maintain high imaging performance despite the reduced total length, as the aspheric shapes compensate for the limitations of the shorter optical path.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #14Spheroidality (Curvature)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent optimizes the distribution of refractive powers and focal lengths across the five lens elements to achieve compact dimensions. The conditional expressions ensure that the optical parameters are tuned to maintain high resolution performance even with the reduced overall length.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

This configuration achieves high resolution performance from the central to peripheral angles of view while significantly reducing the total length of the lens, enabling the capture of high-quality images with a compact lens system.

Implementation Method 1

an imaging lens which is composed of five lenses of: a first lens L1 that has a positive refractive power and has a meniscus shape which is convex toward the object side; a second lens L2 that has a negative refractive power; a third lens L3 that has a negative refractive power; a fourth lens L4 that has a positive refractive power; and a fifth lens L5 that has a negative refractive power and has aspheric shapes

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectRefraction: Refraction

Data Source

PatentUS9235030B2Imaging lens and imaging apparatus including the imaging lens

Publication Date: 2016.01.12 JIANGXI JINGCHAO OPTICAL CO LTD

AI summary

An imaging lens substantially consists, in order from an object side, five lenses of a first lens that has a positive refractive power and has a meniscus shape which is convex toward the object side, a second lens that has a negative refractive power, a third lens that has a negative refractive power, a fourth lens that has a positive refractive power, and a fifth lens that has a negative refractive power and has an object side surface and an image side surface which have aspheric shapes. Further, the imaging lens satisfies predetermined conditional expressions.