Imaging Lens Assembly With Light Blocking for Stable Miniaturized Optics
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Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge in the field of imaging lens assemblies is to achieve high optical quality while ensuring assembling feasibility and environmental tolerance, particularly in portable electronic devices and mobile transportations, where existing technologies struggle to balance these factors.
Innovation Solution
The proposed imaging lens assembly incorporates a plastic lens barrel with an annular light blocking structure and retainers, featuring strip-shaped wedge structures and specific diameter ratios, which enhance optical quality, reduce stray light interference, and improve environmental tolerance through buckling, thread engagement, or glue adhesion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a plastic lens barrel is used to reduce weight and cost, then manufacturing cost and weight are reduced, but environmental tolerance and assembling stability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a plastic lens barrel (polycarbonate material) combined with metal retainers (stainless steel) to create a composite structure. The plastic barrel provides cost advantage and lightweight properties, while the metal retainers compensate for environmental tolerance deficiencies by providing thermal stability and mechanical strength during assembly and operation.
2Volume of moving object
If the lens assembly is miniaturized to fit portable devices, then device compactness is improved, but assembling feasibility and precision deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The lens assembly is segmented into multiple components: plastic lens barrel, metal retainers, light blocking structure, and lens elements. This segmentation allows each component to be manufactured and assembled separately with precise tolerances, facilitating miniaturization while maintaining assembling feasibility through modular construction.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent specifies precise dimensional parameters and ratios (e.g., diameter ratios between retainers and light blocking structure, thickness ratios of wedge structures) to maintain assembling precision in miniaturized configurations. These parameter controls ensure that despite reduced overall size, the relative dimensions maintain the required precision for proper assembly and function.
3Stability of the object's composition
If retainers are added to fix lens elements, then assembling stability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple functions into the retainer components: they serve as both mechanical fasteners to secure lens elements and as structural support elements within the plastic barrel. This merging reduces the need for separate components, thereby improving assembling stability without proportionally increasing overall structural complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The retainers are designed as multi-functional elements that simultaneously provide mechanical retention, structural support, and alignment functions for lens elements. This multi-functionality reduces the total component count and simplifies the overall assembly process while maintaining high assembling stability.
4Manufacturing precision
If an annular light blocking structure is added to reduce stray light, then optical quality is improved, but device complexity and manufacturing difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The light blocking structure is merged with the plastic lens barrel as an integrated component rather than a separate part. This integration reduces assembly steps and structural complexity while maintaining the optical function of blocking stray light, thereby improving optical quality without proportionally increasing device complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
An imaging lens assembly has an optical axis, and includes a plurality of lens elements, an annular light blocking structure, a plastic lens barrel, an object-side retainer and an image-side retainer. The lens elements include an object-side lens element and an image-side lens element, and the object-side lens element, the annular light blocking structure and the image-side lens element are disposed in order along the optical axis from an object side of the imaging lens assembly to an image side of the imaging lens assembly. The annular light blocking structure includes a light blocking surface, an object-side surface, an image-side surface and a plurality of strip-shaped wedge structures. The plastic lens barrel includes an object-side portion, an image-side portion, an inner peripheral portion and an outer peripheral portion. The object-side retainer includes an object-side retaining portion and an object-side abutting portion.