Micro Lens Manufacturing Using Soft Mold Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional micro lens manufacturing methods face challenges in achieving precise shape and alignment of lens surfaces due to uneven hardening and difficulties in compensating for mold and substrate shrinkage, leading to thick micro lenses that require additional spacers in camera modules, increasing manufacturing costs and time.
Innovation Solution
A micro lens manufacturing apparatus and method that uses a first and second mold to form lens profiles on both surfaces of a lens substrate with a single hardening process, eliminating the need for additional spacers by integrating a spacer portion with the lens element, allowing for accurate alignment and reduced thickness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If ultraviolet curable material is coated on both surfaces of lens substrate and hardened separately with metal molds, then lens profiles can be formed on both surfaces, but the top lens focuses ultraviolet rays during bottom surface hardening causing uneven hardening and imprecise shape
Solution Approach 1:
A transparent soft mold is introduced as an intermediary between the metal mold and the ultraviolet curable material on the bottom surface. This soft mold acts as a mediator that prevents ultraviolet rays focused by the top lens from directly hardening the bottom surface material unevenly, while still allowing the formation of the desired lens profile through controlled compression and subsequent hardening
Solution Approach 2:
The top lens profile is formed and hardened first before forming the bottom lens profile. This preliminary action sequence ensures that the top lens structure is already in place and stable before the bottom surface processing begins, allowing the soft mold to control the hardening process without interference from the top lens's optical focusing effect
2Manufacturing precision
If separate manufacturing methods are used for micro lenses and spacers, then accurate distance between neighboring micro lenses can be maintained, but additional cost and time are required for manufacturing
Solution Approach 1:
The spacer structure is merged with the lens element by forming the spacer as an integral part of the same ultraviolet curable material that forms the lens profiles. The soft mold is designed to simultaneously form both the lens profiles and the spacer structure in a single compression and hardening operation, eliminating the need for separate spacer manufacturing and assembly processes
Solution Approach 2:
The ultraviolet curable material serves multiple functions: it forms both the optical lens profiles and the mechanical spacer structure. The soft mold performs multiple functions by simultaneously shaping the lens surfaces and creating the spacer geometry, consolidating what would traditionally require separate manufacturing steps into a single universal process
3Reliability
If lens substrate with zero reflective power is interposed between top and bottom lens elements, then optical performance is maintained, but overall thickness of micro lens becomes thick
Solution Approach 1:
The lens substrate that would normally be interposed between the top and bottom lens elements is extracted or removed from the structure. Instead of having a separate substrate layer with zero reflective power, the lens elements are formed directly on opposite surfaces of the same substrate without requiring an additional intermediate substrate layer, thereby reducing overall thickness while maintaining optical functionality
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 approach enables simultaneous formation and hardening of lens profiles on both surfaces, reducing manufacturing time and cost, and eliminates the need for additional spacers in camera modules, resulting in thinner micro lenses with precise alignment.
Implementation Method 1
curable material to the bottom surface of the lens substrate is hardened by applying ultraviolet rays from the top surface of the lens substrate
Data Source
AI summary
Micro lens manufacturing apparatus, a micro lens manufacturing method, a micro lens, and a camera module employing the micro lens are provided. First mold is manufactured in correspondence with a first lens profile of a lens element. Second mold is manufactured in correspondence with a second lens profile of the lens element. Second mold is aligned on a surface of a lens substrate having a hollow hole formed thereon. Material for the lens element is supplied into the hollow hole of the lens substrate. First mold is aligned on the other surface of the lens substrate having the hollow hole and compressed to form the first and second profiles of the lens element. Formed lens element hardened. First and second molds are separated from each other. Therefore, time and cost for manufacturing the micro lens are reduced, and the accurate alignment between the first and second lens profiles is achieved.