Patent ID: 7492538

Claim:
A camera module, comprising: a lens unit which constitutes an optical system of the camera module; a holder which houses the lens unit and is displaceable along an optical axis direction of the lens unit, the holder having a cylindrical shape having upper and lower cylindrical end portions; a coil provided on the holder; a yoke and magnets provided on the yoke for providing a magnetic field to the coil; upper and lower leaf springs for supporting the holder so that the holder is displaceable along the optical axis direction of the lens unit, each of the upper and lower springs including an outer annular portion, an inner annular portion provided inside the outer annular portion and attached to the lower cylindrical end portions of the holder, and a plurality of bridge portions coupled between the outer annular portion and the inner annular portion for displaceably supporting the inner annular portion with respect to the outer annular portion, each of the bridge portions having an inner annular portion side end portion coupled to an outer periphery of the inner annular portion; and an imaging element provided below the lens unit; wherein at least one of the inner annular portions of the upper and lower leaf springs are respectively attached to the corresponding cylindrical end portions of the holder through first and second attachment means, in which each of the first and second attachment means is configured so that the inner annular portion is mechanically engaged with and attached to the cylindrical end portion of the holder, the inner annular portion of the lower leaf spring is attached to the lower cylindrical end portion of the holder through the first attachment means, wherein the first attachment means comprises: a first means for engaging the inner annular portion of the lower leaf spring with the lower cylindrical end portion of the holder so that the inner annular portion does not rotate with respect to the holder in one of circumferential directions thereof, and a second means for holding the inner annular portion of the lower leaf spring against the holder so that the inner annular portion does not move in a direction parallel to the optical axis direction of the lens unit as well as does not rotate in the other circumferential direction in a state that the first means is in an engaged state, and wherein the inner annular portion of the upper leaf spring is attached to the upper cylindrical end portion of the holder through the second attachment means, wherein the second attachment means comprises: a ring-shaped member detachably attached to the upper cylindrical end portion of the holder, and the ring-shaped member is configured so that that the inner annular portion of the upper leaf spring is fixedly held between an end surface of the upper cylindrical end portion of the holder and an inner surface of the ring-shaped member when the ring-shaped member stopper is attached to the upper cylindrical end portion of the holder.