Patent ID: 7974024

Claim:
A lens drive apparatus comprising: a base; a lens frame for holding a lens; a driving source secured to said base; a lead screw configured to be driven by said driving source so as to rotate; a nut threadably engaged with said lead screw and held unrotatably and movably with said lens frame; a main guide shaft having a first end part secured to said base so as to guide said lens frame along an optical axis, and having a second end part; an auxiliary guide shaft having a first end part secured to said base so as to guide said lens frame along said optical axis while inhibiting said lens frame from rotating about said main guide shaft, and having a second end part; and a cover, arranged so as to oppose said base, and being configured to mate with and secure said second end parts of said main and auxiliary guide shafts; wherein said lens frame has a lens holding part configured to hold said lens on a free end side projecting from an outer contour defined by said base and said cover; wherein, for positioning said base and said cover with respect to each other upon assembling, one of said base and said cover has a first positioning pin disposed near said main guide shaft and a second positioning pin disposed at a position distanced farther from said main guide shaft than said first positioning pin; wherein the other of said base and said cover has a first positioning hole arranged and configured to mate with said first positioning pin and a second positioning hole arranged and configured to mate with said second positioning pin; wherein said lens frame includes a mating part configured to slidably mate with said main guide shaft, an engaging part configured to slidably engage said auxiliary guide shaft, and said lens holding part formed on a side opposite from said engaging part so as to hold said mating part in a direction intersecting the optical axis; and wherein said mating part is formed such that a length thereof along said main guide shaft is longer than a distance from a center of said main guide shaft to a center of said lens being held by said lens holding part.