Liquid Lens Thermal Expansion Compensation via Variable Plate Thickness
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Solution Overview
Problem
Liquid lenses face challenges in maintaining focal length stability due to thermal expansion, leading to changes in diopter, which complicates distortion correction in camera modules.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates a second plate with a varying thickness and an inclined surface, allowing for thermal expansion without significant curvature changes, and includes a third plate to prevent swelling, ensuring minimal diopter changes and reduced distortion coefficients.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If the liquid lens structure is made thinner to reduce device size, then the device size is reduced, but the glass layer becomes more prone to bending and diopter changes due to thermal expansion
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating a multi-region thickness distribution in the second plate (first region with first thickness, second region with second thickness, third region with third thickness). This non-uniform thickness distribution provides localized structural support where needed while maintaining overall thinness, preventing bending in the transparent lens region without excessive bulk elsewhere in the device.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a uniform two-dimensional plate structure to a three-dimensional multi-region thickness structure. By varying the thickness in the vertical dimension across different regions of the plate, the design achieves enhanced structural stability and thermal expansion resistance without increasing the overall device footprint in the horizontal plane.
2Reliability
If the glass layer thickness is increased to prevent bending and diopter changes, then diopter stability is improved, but the device size increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of uniformly increasing the glass layer thickness throughout the entire device, the patent applies thickness variation locally to specific regions. The first region has a greater thickness to prevent bending in the critical transparent lens area, while other regions maintain thinner profiles, thus achieving diopter stability without proportionally increasing overall device volume.
3Ease of manufacture
If a uniform thickness structure is used for simplicity, then manufacturing is easier, but thermal expansion causes bending and diopter changes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent moves from a uniform thickness design to a non-uniform multi-region thickness design. While this increases manufacturing complexity slightly, it provides targeted structural support in the first region where the transparent lens is located, preventing thermal expansion-induced bending and diopter changes that would occur with a uniform thin structure.
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 minimizes diopter changes and distortion coefficients, facilitating accurate focal length adjustment and image stabilization in camera modules, even under temperature variations.
Implementation Method 1
research has been conducted on a liquid lens configured to electrically adjust the curvature of an interface between two kinds of liquid
Implementation Method 2
capable of reducing the occurrence of a change in diopter due to the deformation of a structure, which contains a liquid included in a liquid lens, during thermal expansion of the liquid according to a change in temperature
Data Source
Figure 1a
Figure 1b
Figure 2a~2b
AI summary
A liquid lens comprises: a first plate in which a cavity for receiving a conductive liquid and a nonconductive liquid is disposed; a first electrode placed under the first plate; a second electrode placed on the first plate; a second plate placed on the second electrode; and a third plate placed under the first electrode, wherein the second plate includes: a first region disposed above the conductive liquid, having a first thickness, and including an optical axis; and a second region extending from the first region and having a second thickness, and the first thickness is greater than the second thickness.