Patent ID: 9261683
Filing Date: 2016-02-16
CPC Classification: G02B,G03B

Claim Text:
1. A zoom lens comprising a plurality of lens groups arranged at inter-group spacings along an optical axis between an object side and an image side, the zoom lens being configured such that magnification is varied by change of the inter-group spacings to be caused by movement of the lens groups along the optical axis, the lens groups comprising, in an order from the object side, a first group of positive power, a second group of negative power, a third group of positive power, and a fourth group of negative power, wherein for varying magnification from a wide-angle end to a telephoto end, the first group is configured to be moved toward the object side, the second group is configured to be moved toward the image side, the third group is configured to be moved toward the object side, and the fourth group is configured to be moved toward the object side, and the following conditional equations (1) to (3) are satisfied: where f f y′max represents the maximum image height; and where an inter-lens group spacing is an inter-lens spacing t satisfying a conditional equation (0): 0.14<t/y′max of inter-lens spacings t in the third group, the third group comprises, from the order from the object side, a positive lens group, a negative lens group, and a positive lens group, and the following conditional equation (4) is satisfied: where f f the positive lens group on the object side in the third group comprises lenses from, calculation of t/y′max being performed in an order from a lens having the strongest negative power in the third group toward the object side, a first lens having an inter-lens spacing t with an adjacent lens of or larger than t/y′max=0.14 up to a lens closest to the object side in the third group, the negative lens group in the third group includes a negative lens having the strongest power in the third group, and comprises lenses from a lens that is next by one to the image side from, calculation of t/y′max being performed in the order from the negative lens toward the object side, a first lens having an inter-lens spacing t with an adjacent lens of or larger than t/y′max=0.14 up to a lens that is next by one to the object side from, calculation of t/y′max being performed in an order from the negative lens toward the image side, a first lens having an inter-lens spacing t with an adjacent lens of or larger than t/y′max=0.14, and the positive lens group on the image side in the third group comprises lenses from, calculation of t/y′max being performed in the order from the lens having the strongest negative power in the third group toward the image side, a first lens having an inter-lens spacing t with an adjacent lens of or larger than t/y′max=0.14 up to a lens closest to the image side in the third group.