Abstract: An image pickup lens comprises a first lens (L1) having a positive refractive power, an aperture stop (s3), a second lens (L2) having a negative refractive power and having a concave surface facing the image side, a third lens (L3) having a positive refractive power, and a fourth lens (L4) having a negative refractive power and having a concave surface facing the image side. The image pickup lens satisfies predetermined formulae.

Abstract: An objective lens a first optical path difference providing structure in which a first basic structure and a second basic structure are overlapped with each other. The first basic structure is a blaze-type structure which emits a Xth-order diffracted light flux, when the first light flux passes through the first basic structure, where the value of X is an odd integer. At least a part of the first basic structure arranged around an optical axis includes a step facing an opposite direction to the optical axis. The second basic structure is a blaze-type structure which emits a Lth-order diffracted light flux, when the first light flux passes through the second basic structure, where the value of L is an even integer. At least a part of the second basic structure arranged around the optical axis includes a step facing the optical axis.

Abstract: There is provided a zoom lens which is suitable for a digital still camera and a video camera and includes a small number of lenses, especially a zoom lens which has an angle of view of 75° or more at the wide-angle end and a variable power ratio of about ×10. The zoom lens includes a first lens group with positive refractive power, a second lens group with negative refractive power, a third lens group with positive refractive power, and, a fourth lens group with positive refractive power. The zoom lens varies power by changing an interval of each neighboring lens groups. The first lens group is composed of a negative lens and a positive lens. The third lens group is composed of an aperture stop, a cemented lens formed by a positive lens in a biconvex shape and a negative lens, and a positive lens.

Abstract: Provided is an optical element manufacturing method by which optical elements, such as a beam shaping element having a molded side surface, are highly efficiently and accurately manufactured by pressure-molding a molten glass drop. After supplying a lower molding die with the molten glass drop of a prescribed volume at a temperature higher than that of the molding die, the molten glass drop is pressure-molded by the molding die, and a free surface solidified without being in contact with the molding die is formed between a molded upper surface and the molded side surface. The volume of the molten glass drop to be supplied is 0.8 times or more but not more than 0.97 times the volume of a space configured by an extended molded upper surface, an extended molded side surface and the molded lower surface when the molded upper surface and the molded side surface are extended.

Abstract: Provided is a near field light generator to be utilized, effectively generating near field light with respect to a recording medium. Thus, disclosed is a near field light generator possessing a waveguide comprising a core and a cladding brought into contact with the core, to guide light having an electric field component perpendicular to an interface between the core and the cladding, and a metallic structure body provided on an outputting end face onto which light of the waveguide is output, to generate near field light by receiving light guided by the waveguide, wherein the metallic structure body is placed straddling the core and the cladding on the outputting end face in such a way that the metallic structure body receives the electric field component protruding from the interface to the cladding.

Abstract: A wafer lens (10) in which the warpage of a glass substrate included therein can be prevented, having a glass substrate (12), a first resin part (14) composed of a curable resin, and a second resin part (16) composed of a curable resin. In each of the first resin part (14) and the second resin part (16), two or more lens parts (14a, 16a) are formed. A lens part of each of the first and second resin parts is located at the most objective side. A volume of the first resin of the first resin part (14) and a volume of the second resin of the second resin part (16) satisfies 0.6?Vwa/Vwb?2.1, where “Vwa” and “Vwb” are volumes of an object and image side resin, respectively.

Abstract: Disclosed is a wafer lens in which the warpage of a glass substrate included therein can be prevented. Specifically disclosed is a wafer lens comprising a glass substrate, a first resin part composed of a curable resin, and a second resin part composed of a curable resin. In each of the first resin part and the second resin part, two or more lens parts are formed. The volume of the resin of the first resin part after the cutting and the volume of the resin of the second resin part after the cutting satisfy the condition 0.6?Vwa/Vwb?2.1, wherein “Vwa” indicates a volume of a resin on an object side and “Vwb” indicates a volume of a resin on an image side.

Abstract: A cellulose ester film containing a polyester represented by Formula (1) or (2), wherein an in-plane retardation value (Ro) is 0 to 5 nm and a retardation value in a thickness direction (Rt) is ?20 to 10 nm, Ro and Rt being measured at 23° C. and 55% RH: B1-(G-A-)mG-B1??Formula (1) wherein B1: monocarboxylic acid, G: dihydric alcohol, A: dibasic acid, B1, G and A contain no aromatic ring, m: repeat number, plural B1 may be the same or different, and plural G may be the same or different; and B2-(A-G-)nA-B2??Formula (2) wherein B2: monoalcohol, G: dihydric alcohol, A: dibasic acid, provided that none of B2, G and A contains an aromatic ring, n: repeat number, plural B2 may be the same or different, and plural G may be the same or different.

Abstract: A wide-angle optical system comprises a front lens group (11), and a rear lens group (12), with an aperture stop (13) interposed between. The front lens group (11) includes at least two negative lenses (111, 112) and at least one positive lens (113). At least one of the positive lenses included in the front lens group (11) has at least one aspherical surface. The front lens group (11) satisfies the conditional expression vdp<29 where vdp is the minimum value of the Abbe number of the positive lens(es) included in the front lens group (11).

Abstract: Disclosed is a reflective mirror for solar thermal power generation comprising a metal film and provided thereon, a substrate, the reflective mirror reflecting sunlight entering from a substrate side, featured in that the substrate is a film composed of a resin containing microfibrillated cellulose. The reflective mirror maintains a light collecting ability, particularly a specular reflectance highly and stably against variation of weather conditions, when sunlight is collected outdoors, is usable over a long period of time, and has high durability.

Abstract: To provide a drive unit and a drive module which include a shape memory alloy as a drive source to move a driven member and are capable of the high-precision movement of the driven member to a reference position. A drive unit and a drive module can be provided by controlling, in the drive unit and the drive module which include the shape memory alloy as the drive source to move the driven member, the shape memory alloy so that the resistance of the shape memory alloy is equal to the resistance when the driven member is located at the reference position.

Abstract: To convert a pixel value obtained from a non-reference photoelectric conversion characteristic into a pixel value obtained from a reference photoelectric conversion characteristic without variation, and to prevent generation of fixed pattern noise in an image. An image sensor 3 is constituted of pixels having photoelectric conversion characteristics, in which a linear characteristic is on the low luminance side with respect to an inflection point, and a logarithmic characteristic is on the high luminance side with respect to the inflection point. A conversion information storage 68 stores, as conversion information, coefficients “c”, “d”, “e”, and “f” of two kinds of linear functions (y=c·log(x)+d, and y=e·log(x)+f), which are approximation equations expressing the logarithmic characteristic of each of the pixels, where y designates a pixel value, and x designates a luminance value of incident light.

Abstract: A vibratory driving device includes a shaft-like driving member, an electromechanical transducer which can incline the driving member and which also can displace the driving member in the axial direction of the driving member, a movable member which slidably engages on the driving member, a driving circuit which can apply to the electromechanical transducer a frictional driving voltage displacing the driving member back and forth with a speed varying asymmetrically in the axial direction to slidingly displace the movable member with respect to the driving member and a periodic inclination driving voltage oscillating the driving member, a resonance frequency meter which measures a resonance frequency of the inclining oscillation of the driving member, and a position estimator which estimates a position of the movable member based on the resonance frequency.

Abstract: The present invention provides an optical compensation film, which has excellent visibility such as light leakage, uneven color tone and front contrast, and can simultaneously realize retardation and wavelength dispersion. The optical compensation film is characterized by containing a cellulose ester, the following polymer (a), and the following compound (b). (a) A polymer produced by copolymerizing an ethylenically unsaturated monomer having in its molecule a partial structure represented by Formula (1) with at least one ethylenically unsaturated monomer. (b) An esterified compound produced by esterifying all or a part of OH groups in a compound (A) having one furanose structure or one pyranose structure, or an esterified compound produced by esterifying all of or a part of OH groups in a compound (B) containing nor less than 2 and not more than 12 structures of at least one of a furanose structure or a pyranose structure.

Abstract: A shape measuring device to measure a shape of a workpiece, wherein the shape measuring device includes: the probe; a probe support shaft to pivotally support the probe; and a probe drive device to which the probe support shaft is attached to contact the probe with a measuring position of the workpiece and to move relatively the workpiece and the probe; wherein the probe is a sphere pivotally supported by the probe support shaft and has a cut face which is a shape cut so as to be nearly vertical to the probe support shaft and a shape measurement of a workpiece surface is carried out in such a manner that the cut face of the probe is faced with a face intersecting a face containing the measuring position of the workpiece surface, and a surface of the sphere is contacted with the measuring position of the workpiece.

Abstract: A lens barrel having: an imaging optical system including, a moving lens group movable in a direction of an optical axis, a first aperture disposed on an object side of the moving lens group, and a second aperture disposed on an image plane side of the moving lens group; a first optical path regulating section formed on the image plane side of the first aperture; and a second optical path regulating section integrally formed with a holding frame for holding the moving lens group, wherein the first optical path regulating section and the second optical path regulating section are configured to block, of light fluxes that pass through the first aperture to enter the second aperture, those that do not pass through the second lens group as a moving lens.

Abstract: An optical scanner capable of preventing breakage of a shaft section due to stress concentration is provided. A mirror frame 13 is shaped so as to enclose a mirror 11, and holds the mirror 11, via torsion bars 121 and 122, so as to be vibratable. A unimorph 15 is constituted by four unimorphs 151, 152, 153, and 154 formed on upper left, lower left, upper right, and lower right sides, and holds the mirror frame 13, via a shaft section 14, so as to be vibratable. The shaft section 14 has a connection section 144. On the mirror frame 13, an adjustment member 16 for increasing a moment of inertia m1 of the mirror frame 13 is provided.

Abstract: This invention provides a process for producing an optical film, which, even when a film is produced by casting using a melt casting film forming method so that the central part in the widthwise direction is thick, can finally realize a flat film having an even thickness and good flatness and possessing excellent optical properties. The production process of an optical film can meet recent demands for reduced film thickness, increased film width, and improved film quality in protective films for liquid crystal polarizing plates. The production process of an optical film by a melt casting film forming method is characterized in that, in an MD stretching step, an unstretched film after nipping is stretched in a transfer direction (MD direction) of the same film by a factor of not less than 1.1 and not more than 3.

Abstract: Disclosed are a cellulose acetate film characterized by comprising cellulose acetate that has a degree of acetylation of 51.0-56.0% and a compound represented by Formula (1) and having a total average degree of substitution of 6.1-6.9, a polarizing plate capable of maintaining excellent visibility, and a liquid crystal display device having excellent visibility and viewing angle characteristics. (In Formula (1), R1 to R8 may be the same or different and each represents an (un)substituted alkylcarbonyl or an (un)substituted aryl carbonyl).

Abstract: An injection mold composed of a movable mold and a fixed mold. The movable mold has bases, a heat insulating layer and a surface processed layer, and the fixed mold has a base. A heat insulator is provided on the inner circumferential surface of the base of the movable mold at a part forming a wall of a cavity. The heat insulating layer is in the rear of the surface processed layer, and therefore, the transfer accuracy of a fine configuration of the surface processed layer is improved. Additionally, since the heat insulator is provided adjacent to the fine configuration, heat radiation from resin is inhibited, and the transfer accuracy of the fine configuration is further improved.