Abstract: A curved Fresnel lens is provided. The Fresnel lens includes a grooved surface and a smooth surface. The grooved surface includes a plurality of concentric sloped facets and a plurality of concentric draft facets. Pairs of concentric draft facets and concentric sloped facets form a plurality of concentric grooves in the grooved surface. The concentric sloped facets are configured to focus light toward an eye of a nominal user. At least some of the concentric draft facets are congruent with conical surfaces of respective imaginary light cones that have corresponding vertices that originate from respective focal points, wherein each imaginary light cone extends through the Fresnel lens at an angle based in part on an index of refraction of the Fresnel lens and extends beyond the grooved surface into free space.

Abstract: An exemplary lens module includes a substrate, a housing, a carrier, and a barrel. The housing is hollow, and disposed on the substrate. The carrier is received in the housing. The carrier defines a through hole. The barrel is received in the housing. The barrel includes a receiving body, a focusing portion, a connection portion, and a groove. The focusing portion is at a top end of the receiving body. The connection portion is at a bottom end of the receiving body. The groove spans from the top end of the receiving body to the connection body. The receiving body is received in the through hole of the carrier. The connection portion is mechanically connected to the carrier. A top end of the connection portion is exposed by the groove.

Abstract: An apparatus for directing a light path sequentially between multiple positions. A rotary switch rotates a light beam from a prism relative to a plurality of optical elements arranged radially on a switch body. In one embodiment, a prism rotates in the switch body, causing the light beam to sweep through the optical elements. In another embodiment, the switch body rotates about a prism transmitting the light beam. In various embodiments, the optical elements include a photodetector, a filter and a photodetector pair, a reflector, and a filter and a reflector.

Abstract: The present invention relates, in general, to a light modulator having a variable blaze diffraction grating and, more particularly, to a light modulator having a variable blaze diffraction grating, in which a diffraction member rotates due to piezoelectric force so as to incline a reflective surface.

Abstract: A zoom lens barrel includes a stationary cylindrical member, a rotatable cam ring and a linearly-guided member concentrically provided in that order from the outside of the zoom lens barrel, a first cam mechanism which is provided between the rotatable cam ring and the linearly-guided member to move the linearly-guided member in an optical axis direction without rotating upon rotation of the rotatable cam ring, and a second cam mechanism provided between the stationary cylindrical member and the rotatable cam ring to move the rotatable cam ring in an optical axis direction upon rotation of the rotatable cam ring. The second cam mechanism causes the rotatable cam ring to rotate while moving in the optical axis direction so that the amount of movement of the rotatable cam ring in the optical axis direction with respect to the angle of rotation thereof is nonlinear.

Abstract: This sliding track for optical apparatus provides a system for mounting and easily moving lens cells and/or other portions of an optical apparatus that are co-axially arranged with respect to an optical axis of the apparatus along said optical axis while maintaining axial alignment. It does so by positioning the lens cells on two linear precision rods placed parallel to the optical axis of the lens cells and optical apparatus. Low-friction plastic inserts are mounted to or in the moving lens cells so that they support said cells on the parallel rods and provide a low friction sliding contact that does not require lubrication. Low-friction plastic holding pads are mounted via springs to the moving cells and are biased against the opposite side of the parallel rods so as to hold the moving cells firmly in position against the parallel rods, but without hampering the cells from sliding smoothly along the rods.

Abstract: Described in this application is a method of making a continuous lenticular image label web and a process for making a plurality of lenticular labels using a continuous lenticular image label web. In addition, a continuous lenticular image label web is described and detailed. Several advantages accrue from the methods described, including reduced time and cost to manufacture lenticular image labels. Advantageously, on-serting of lenticular labels is not required.

Abstract: A surface emitting device includes a light guiding plate, a light source, and a prism sheet. The light guiding plate is provided with prism portions each having a slight inclined plane and a steep inclined plane arranged closer to one edge than the slight inclined plane. A plurality of light refracting portions each having a refractive surface and a reflective surface are provided on an incident surface of the prism sheet. Light introduced into the light guiding plate from the light source is emitted from the slight inclined plane and is then incident on the light refracting portion. The light is introduced into the prism sheet by the refracting surface and is then reflected from the reflective surface to be emitted.

Abstract: Systems configured to provide illumination of a specimen during inspection are provided. One system includes catoptric elements configured to direct light from a light source to a line across the specimen at an oblique angle of incidence. The catoptric elements include positive and negative elements configured such that pupil distortions of the positive and negative elements are substantially canceled. Another system includes a dioptric element and a catoptric element. The dioptric element and the catoptric element are configured to direct light from a light source to a line across the specimen at an oblique angle of incidence. The dioptric and catoptric elements are also configured such that pupil distortions of the dioptric and catoptric elements are substantially canceled.

Abstract: A stack of laminated transparent lenses consists of two alternating optically clear materials in intimate contact. The materials are a plastic lens and clear adhesive. The adhesive is uninterrupted. The lens and the adhesive have refraction mismatch of less than 0.2. A tab portion is part of each lens acts as an aid in peeling away the outermost lens after contamination of the lens layer during racing conditions. The lens stack can be mounted to the posts on the face shield or laminated directly to a windshield.

Abstract: A plastic lens of a multilayer film structure forms an organosiloxane-based hard coating film formed on a surface of a lens substrate as a first layer, an inorganic oxide-based antireflection film formed on the hard coating film as a second layer, and a water-repellent thin film obtained by polycondensing an organosilicon compound and formed on the antireflection film as a third layer, pencil hardness of the surface of the lens on which these plural layer films are formed being from 3H to 7H, and an initial falling angle of oleic acid on the surface of the lens on which these plural layer films are formed being 20° or less.

Abstract: An optical system with mechanical adjustment provides for the rotation and/or translation of one or more optical phase filters to variably select an extended depth of field, aberration-tolerance, and/or anti-aliasing properties of an optical imaging system. By adjusting the amount of phase induced on the wavefront, a user may select image quality selectively. The system may further automatically counter change of focus and/or aperture to maintain substantially constant image properties. Typically, two phase filters are used and moved concurrently to achieve desired image properties.

Abstract: An optical recording/reproducing apparatus is arranged so that, upon recording or reproducing a recording medium having a plurality of recording layers, the gap of the lens groups at the time of forming a converged light spot on this first recording layer is DIS(1), the gap of the lens groups at the time of forming the converged light spot on the N-th layer (the farthest layer from the surface of the recording medium) is DIS(N) and the neutral point of the spherical-aberration correcting mechanism is set at a position satisfying the following expression: lens group gap dst(3)=((DIS (1)+DIS(N))/2.

Abstract: A solid-state imaging device includes a semiconductor substrate, a light shielding section having an aperture for partially shielding light incident on a surface of the semiconductor substrate, a light reception section for converting the light which is incident on the surface of the semiconductor substrate through the aperture to an electric charge, and a passivation section having a substantially flat top surface and overlying the light shielding section, the light reception section and the aperture.

Abstract: An optical system of an optical pick-up for a plurality of types of optical discs with a corresponding plurality of light sources. A first coupling lens that is used at least for the first optical disc, and an objective lens that is used for the plurality of types of optical discs. A beam for the first optical disc emitted by the plurality of light sources passes through the first coupling lens and is incident on the objective lens as a diverging beam. The diverging beam being given spherical aberration by the coupling lens. When the objective lens shift occurs, a coma component relating to the spherical aberration of the diverging beam which is shifted with respect to the objective lens due to the shift of the objective lens is canceled by a coma generated by the objective lens and the cover layer of the first optical disc.

Abstract: The invention is an apparatus for lengthening the path of a light beam. The apparatus includes an at least partially enclosed chamber having a first opening and a second opening. A first reflective surface is disposed within the chamber and is obliquely oriented with respect to an incoming path of the beam. The beam reflects off of the first reflective surface after the beam enters the chamber through the first opening. Second and third reflective surfaces are disposed within the chamber and are generally parallel to the incoming path of the beam. The beam is reflected a plurality of times between the second and third reflective surfaces after the beam is reflected by the first reflective surface. A fourth reflective surface is disposed within the chamber and is obliquely oriented with respect to the incoming path of the beam. The fourth reflective surface directs the beam through the second opening after the beam has been reflected a plurality of times between the second and third reflective surfaces.

Abstract: In a charge amount detection circuit, one part of circuit elements constituting a low pass filter circuit and one part of circuit elements constituting a voltage amplifier circuit are commonly use. A charge sensitive amplifier is followed by the low pass filter circuit and the voltage amplifier circuit, respectively, in this order. Since the low pass filter circuit is provided so as to share one part of circuit elements of the voltage amplifier circuit, it is possible to suppress the enlargement of the chip size due to the provision of LPF as much as possible so as to suppress the rise of the chip cost as much as possible.

Abstract: A system for measuring dimensions of cuboid objects may be used to measure dimensions of boxes travelling on a conveyor. The system has a pair of digital cameras which obtain images of one or more lines projected by a projector on upper surfaces of the objects. The height of the upper surfaces can be determined by triangulation. Lengths and widths of the upper surfaces are measured by locating endpoints of the projected lines and fitting rectangles to the located endpoints. The system does not require rigid mounting of the projector relative to the cameras. A third camera may be used to determine speed and direction of the conveyor motion.

Abstract: A multi-input, multi-output vibration control system for a lithography system. The system provides an actuator, and a sensor useful for controlling vibrations in systems for fabricating electronics equipment. The system includes a processor programmed with a multi-input, multi-output control technique such as a linear quadratic Gaussian, H-infinity or mu synthesis. The actuator may comprise one or more plates or elements of electroactive material bonded to an electroded sheet.

Abstract: The present invention provides a distance-measuring device has an AF area sensor that includes an image pick up element formed on a semiconductor substrate for receiving two images having a parallax therebetween, and a photo reception signal processing circuit formed on the semiconductor substrate for processing signals corresponding to light received by the image pick up element. On the basis of sensor data (outline data) obtained by integration executed in the AF area sensor in an outline detection mode, the distance-measuring device detects a main subject in a photography screen, sets a distance-measuring area including the main subject, and measures a distance to the main subject.