Source: http://www.google.com/patents/US6067194?dq=No.+6,411,949&ei=AUR7T-LGJqSr0AHy2aSiBg
Timestamp: 2014-07-28 07:04:43
Document Index: 368240072

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 11', 'art 11', 'art 11', 'art 11', 'art 11', 'art 22', 'art 22', 'art 22', 'art 22', 'art 22', 'art 11', 'art 49', 'art 49', 'art 49', 'art 49', 'art 58', 'art 58', 'art 58', 'art 58']

Patent US6067194 - Image stabilizing instrument - Google PatentsSearch Images Maps Play YouTube News Gmail Drive More »Sign in<nobr>Advanced Patent Search</nobr>PatentsAn image stabilizing instrument, for example for a binocular, in which synchronous image stability is achieved by fastening two objectives (2, 2') and two attached first reflecting optical elements (3, 3') to a stabilized frame (22), uni-axially pivoted in a cardanic part (11). Second optical elements...http://www.google.com/patents/US6067194?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US6067194 - Image stabilizing instrumentAdvanced Patent SearchPublication numberUS6067194 APublication typeGrantApplication numberUS 08/937,592Publication dateMay 23, 2000Filing dateSep 29, 1997Priority dateSep 29, 1997Fee statusLapsedPublication number08937592, 937592, US 6067194 A, US 6067194A, US-A-6067194, US6067194 A, US6067194AInventorsRolf StroembergOriginal AssigneeLeica Camera AgExport CitationBiBTeX, EndNote, RefManPatent Citations (12), Referenced by (8), Classifications (9), Legal Events (7) External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, EspacenetImage stabilizing instrumentUS 6067194 AAbstract An image stabilizing instrument, for example for a binocular, in which synchronous image stability is achieved by fastening two objectives (2, 2') and two attached first reflecting optical elements (3, 3') to a stabilized frame (22), uni-axially pivoted in a cardanic part (11). Second optical elements (4, 4') in each of two parts of the binocular are fastened to the cardanic part (11), which in turn is uni-axially pivoted in the binocular housing (9). The front window fastened to the housing is designed as a color-correcting lens (106) to correct for color aberration.
What is claimed is: 1. An image stabilizing optical instrument, comprising:a housing (9; 43); a cardanic part (11; 49) connected to the housing via a suspension for rotary motion about a first pivot axis (12; 50); and an objective lens system (2; 37), a first optical element (3; 38) including a reflecting surface, and a second optical element (4; 40) including at least one reflecting surface, along a light path, wherein at least some part of the objective lens system (2; 37) and the first optical element (3; 38) are fastened together to constitute a unit (22; 58) that is connected to the cardanic part (11; 49) via suspension for rotary motion about a second pivot axis (25; 44), the second optical element (4; 40) being fastened to the cardanic part (11; 49); the objective lens system having an unstabilized part (106) and a stabilized part, wherein the unstabilized part (106) has a difference in focal length between two wavelengths to at least partly compensate for chromatic aberration caused by refraction in the instrument when said stabilized part of the instrument is decentered. 2. An instrument according to claim 1, comprising:two objective lens systems each having an unstabilized part (106, 106') and a stabilized part (2, 2'; 37, 37'); two realizations of the first optical element (3, 3'; 38, 38'), each realization having at least one reflecting surface; and two realizations of the second optical element (4, 4'; 40, 40'), each realization having at least one reflecting surface; wherein at least part of the objective lens systems (2, 2'; 37, 37') and the two first optical elements (3, 3'; 38, 38') are connected together to comprise said unit (22; 58), which is connected to the cardanic part via a suspension for rotary motion about said second pivot axis (25; 44), both second optical elements (4, 4'; 40, 40') are fastened to the cardanic part, and the unstabilized part of the objective lens system (106, 106') is fastened to the housing. 3. An instrument according to claim 2, wherein incident and exit central rays of each of the two first optical elements differ by an angle of at least 15 degrees.
From the housing 9 extends a U-shaped bridge 16, on which the inner parts of two ball bearings 13 and 14 are mounted. The outer parts of the two ball bearings 13 and 14 are fastened to a cardanic part 11. Thus the cardanic part is uni-axially pivoted in the housing 9 along the horizontal pivot axis 12 defined by the ball bearings 13 and 14. The horizontal pivot axis 12 is perpendicular to the optical axes 15 and 15' of the oculars. The mirrors 4 and 4' are fastened to the cardanic part 11 via bridges 21 and 21'. The objectives 2 and 2' as well as the mirrors 3 and 3' are connected via beams 17, 18 and 19, all of which comprise a stabilized unit 22. The stabilized unit 22 is pivoted in the cardanic part 11 via a bridge 20 which is attached to the inner parts of two ball bearings 23 and 24 (the ball bearing 24 is not shown because it is located right below the first ball bearing 23). The ball bearings 23 and 24 define a vertical pivot axis 25. The outer parts of the ball bearings 23 and 24 are fastened to the cardanic part 11. From the fact that the cardanic part 11 in turn is pivoted in the housing 9 about the horizontal pivot axis 12, it follows that the stabilized part 22 is bi-axially pivoted in relation to the housing 9. Thus, the stabilized part 22 is allowed to turn about any axis perpendicular the optical axes of the oculars 15 and 15'. A mechanical stop comprising a cylinder 26 fastened to the housing 9 and a small rod 27 fastened to the stabilized part 22 limits the span of rotation of the stabilized part 22 to about �6 degrees relative to the housing 9. For centered optics ("stabilization off") the stabilized part 22 is locked to the housing 9 via some mechanism which is not shown here. In this situation the optical axes of the objectives are kept parallel to the optical axes of the oculars, like shown in FIG. 1.
What happens at the use of the binocular is the following. Suppose that the binocular housing 9 exhibits a sinusoidal movement of magnitude �3 degrees in the horizontal plane due to unwanted movements, and that the cardan pivoted part is not locked to the centered position (i.e., "stabilization on"). The objectives 2 and 2' and the mirrors 3 and 3' are released from the movements of the housing via the vertical pivot axis 25, and thus stabilized in the horizontal plane. The mirrors 4 and 4' are fastened to the cardanic part 11 and must therefore follow the movements of the housing 9. Thus they are non-stabilized in the horizontal plane. The horizontally non-stabilized mirrors 4 and 4' now direct the light towards the proceeding optics in such a way that synchronous image stability (i.e. the images in the two halves of the binocular are always coinciding) is achieved for movements in the horizontal plane.
What happens at the use of the binocular is the following. Suppose that the binocular housing 9, due to unwanted rattling, exhibits a sinusoidal movement of magnitude �3 degrees in the vertical plane only. The objectives 2 and 2', the mirrors 3 and 3' as well as the mirrors 4 and 4' are all released from the vertical movements of the housing via the horizontal pivot axis 12. They are not taking part in the movement of the housing and are thus stabilized. Since the focal points 31 and 31' in the real embodiment (as opposed to the sketch in FIG. 1) must be located comparatively close to the horizontal pivot axis 12, and hence remain almost stationary relative to the same axis, a stable image may be observed through the optical elements proceeding along the light path. The operation in this case differs from that in U.S. Pat. No. 4,542,962. However, the advantages related to the stabilized objectives remain.
The cardanic part 49 is uni-axially pivoted in the housing 43 about an axis 50, defined by the ball bearings 51 and 52. This horizontal pivot axis 50 is perpendicular to the optical axes of the objectives and intersects these. The Barlow lenses 39 and 39' as well as the Schmidt prisms 40 and 40' are fastened to the cardanic part 49. The objectives 37 and 37' are mechanically attached to the plane mirrors 38 and 38' via bridges 53, 54 and 55, all of which comprise a stabilized unit 58. This stabilized unit 58 is pivoted in the cardanic part 49 via ball bearings 59 and 60, which define a vertical pivot axis 44. (The ball bearing 60 is not shown because it is located right below the ball bearing 59.) The pivoting of the cardanic part 49 in the housing 43 makes the stabilized part 58 bi-axially pivoted in relation to the housing 43. Thus, the stabilized part 58 is allowed to turn about any axis perpendicular to the optical axes 34 and 34' of the oculars 42 and 42', respectively. Like the embodiment in FIG. 1, the span of rotation of the stabilized part 58 is limited to about �6 degrees in relation to the housing 43 via some mechanics (not shown). For centered optics ("stabilization off") the stabilized part 58 is locked to the housing 43 via some mechanism which is not shown here. In this situation, the optical axes of the objectives are kept parallel to the optical axes of the oculars. Thus, the pivoting mechanism is essentially the same as in the embodiment exhibited in FIG. 1.
Patent CitationsCited PatentFiling datePublication dateApplicantTitleUS2829557 *Jan 17, 1950Apr 8, 1958Homer JensenStabilized optical sighting deviceUS3475073 *Nov 7, 1966Oct 28, 1969Optical Res & Dev CorpAccidental-motion compensation by triple reflectionUS3582180 *Sep 30, 1968Jun 1, 1971Gross DanielDevice for stabilizing the images of optical instruments against movement caused by vibration of the instrumentUS4235506 *Jul 20, 1978Nov 25, 1980Fuji Photo Optical Co., Ltd.Image stabilized optical systemUS4542962 *Jun 18, 1982Sep 24, 1985Stroemberg RolfImage-stabilized optical instrument, such as telescope and camerasUS5029995 *Dec 21, 1989Jul 9, 1991Carl-Zeiss-StiftungTelescope having image field stabilization by cardanically journalled inverting systemsUS5122908 *Apr 21, 1989Jun 16, 1992Tinsley Laboratories, Inc.Non-linear controller functions for inertial optical stabilizersUS5237450 *Aug 21, 1990Aug 17, 1993Stroemberg RolfInertial stabilizing systemUS5521758 *Nov 9, 1994May 28, 1996Canon Kabushiki KaishaVariable-magnification optical system capable of image stabilizationUS5644413 *Jul 12, 1995Jul 1, 1997Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.Optical head for adjusting a positional relation between the information medium and the optical headJPH02284113A * Title not availableSE503932A * Title not available* Cited by examinerReferenced byCiting PatentFiling datePublication dateApplicantTitleUS6388666 *Oct 27, 1998May 14, 2002Imax CorporationSystem and method for generating stereoscopic image dataUS7330313 *Jun 7, 2006Feb 12, 2008Hensoldt AgTelescopeUS7642741Apr 22, 2006Jan 5, 2010Sidman Adam DHandheld platform stabilization system employing distributed rotation sensorsUS8179078Dec 6, 2009May 15, 2012Sidman Adam DHandheld or vehicle-mounted platform stabilization systemDE102012200519A1Jan 13, 2012Jul 18, 2013Carl Zeiss Sports Optics GmbhOptisches System zur Abbildung eines ObjektsWO2007082691A2 *Jan 12, 2007Jul 26, 2007Zeiss Carl Surgical GmbhStereoscopic optical systemWO2013104654A2 *Jan 9, 2013Jul 18, 2013Carl Zeiss Sports Optics GmbhOptical system for imaging an objectWO2013104657A1Jan 9, 2013Jul 18, 2013Carl Zeiss Sports Optics GmbhOptical system for imaging an object* Cited by examinerClassifications U.S. Classification359/557, 359/554, 359/407International ClassificationG02B27/64, G02B23/18Cooperative ClassificationG02B27/646, G02B23/18European ClassificationG02B23/18, G02B27/64VLegal EventsDateCodeEventDescriptionJul 10, 2012FPExpired due to failure to pay maintenance feeEffective date: 20120523May 23, 2012LAPSLapse for failure to pay maintenance feesJan 2, 2012REMIMaintenance fee reminder mailedSep 26, 2007FPAYFee paymentYear of fee payment: 8Nov 6, 2003FPAYFee paymentYear of fee payment: 4Jun 15, 1999ASAssignmentOwner name: LEICA CAMERA AG, GERMANYFree format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:STABLE EYES AB;REEL/FRAME:010023/0892Effective date: 19990409Mar 18, 1998ASAssignmentOwner name: LEICA CAMERA AG, GERMANYFree format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:STROEMBERG, ROLF;REEL/FRAME:009044/0111Effective date: 19971117Owner name: STABLE EYES AB, SWEDENRotateOriginal ImageGoogle Home - Sitemap - USPTO Bulk Downloads - Privacy Policy - Terms of Service - About Google Patents - Send FeedbackData provided by IFI CLAIMS Patent Services©2012 Google