Four-Lens Imaging System with Gap Maintainer for Compact Wide-Angle Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge is to design an imaging lens that achieves a wide angle of view with high performance while maintaining a compact and thin size, minimizing distortion, and protecting the lens surface from scratches and contamination, which existing lenses fail to achieve due to oblique light incidence and increased lens diameter for ambient light.
Innovation Solution
The imaging lens is composed of four sequentially arranged lenses with specific refractive powers and configurations, including a first lens with negative power, a second and third lens with positive power, and a fourth lens with negative power, along with an aperture stop and a gap maintaining member to maintain gaps between lenses, ensuring optimal light transmission and surface protection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If the lens diameter is increased to secure ambient light for wide angle of view, then the light gathering capability is improved, but the compact design is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The optical system is divided into multiple lens elements (first lens with negative power, second and third lenses with positive power, and fourth lens with negative power) with specific arrangement and spacing. This segmentation allows each element to contribute differently to light gathering and image formation, achieving wide angle of view with improved ambient light capture while maintaining a compact overall diameter through optimized element distribution rather than a single large lens
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple lens elements are nested within a compact optical structure where the first lens is positioned closest to the object, followed by the second, third, and fourth lenses in sequence toward the image sensor. The gap maintaining member enables precise nesting of these elements in a space-efficient arrangement, allowing the optical system to achieve wide angle coverage without increasing the overall lens diameter
2Volume of moving object
If the imaging lens is compacted to reduce size, then the compact design is improved, but the light transmission performance is worsened due to oblique light incidence
Solution Approach 1:
Different lens elements are assigned specific refractive powers (negative, positive, positive, negative) and the gap maintaining member establishes precise local spacing between elements. This local optimization of optical properties at each element position ensures that even in a compact configuration, light transmission performance is maintained by compensating for oblique incidence effects through the combined action of differently powered elements
Solution Approach 2:
The optical system uses a composite arrangement of lens elements with different refractive powers and materials, where the first lens (negative power), second lens (positive power), third lens (positive power), and fourth lens (negative power) work together. This composite structure allows the compact lens to maintain reliable light transmission by distributing optical functions across multiple elements rather than relying on a single element
3Adaptability or versatility
If the lens surface is exposed to achieve wide angle of view, then the viewing angle is improved, but the surface protection is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The gap maintaining member serves as an intermediary structure positioned between the lens elements, creating a protective barrier arrangement. This intermediary component allows the optical system to achieve wide angle of view through its structural design while simultaneously protecting the lens surfaces from scratches and contamination by establishing a controlled spacing and protective configuration
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 allows for a wide angle of view with low distortion and effective protection against scratches and contamination, while maintaining a compact design by optimizing the refractive indices, Abbe numbers, and surface shapes of the lenses.
Implementation Method 1
the first lens has a negative refractive power, the second lens and the third lens have a positive refractive power, and the fourth lens has a negative refractive power
Data Source
AI summary
An embodiment provides an imaging lens comprising first to fourth lenses that are sequentially arranged from an object side towards an image side and satisfying mathematical formula 1, wherein the first lens has negative refractive power, the second lens and the third lens have positive refractive power, and the fourth lens has negative refractive power. −40.0<R1+R2<−20.0 where R1 is the curvature radius of the object side surface of the first lens, and R2 is the curvature radius of the image side surface of the first lens.