Abstract: An imaging lens includes, in order from an object side, a first lens having a negative power and including a concave image-side surface, a second lens having a positive power, a stop, a third negative lens, which is a biconcave lens, a fourth lens having a positive power, and a fifth lens having a positive power and including a convex image-side surface. The imaging lens satisfies the following conditional expressions: 0.18<(D4+D5)/f<0.44, and 0.18<D1/f where f denotes a focal length of an entire lens system, D1 denotes a thickness of a center of the first lens, D4 denotes a distance from an image-side surface of the second lens to the stop on an optical axis, and D5 denotes a distance from the stop to an object-side surface of the third lens on the optical axis.

Abstract: An objective optical system is formed of a diffractive optical element with a diffractive surface formed on a virtual plane and an objective lens for focusing three collimated light beams of three different wavelengths at three different numerical apertures onto desired positions of three different recording media with substrates that include different thicknesses, such as an AOD, a DVD, and a CD, that introduce different amounts of spherical aberration in the focused beams. The objective optical system provides compensating spherical aberration to the three light beams by varying the distance between the diffractive optical element and the objective lens with the recording medium being used. The objective optical system focuses second-order diffracted light of one wavelength and first-order diffracted light of the other two wavelengths. An optical pickup device includes the objective optical system, the recording media, and a light source that provides the three light beams.

Abstract: The imaging lens system includes a negative first lens disposed on a most object side, having a concave surface directed toward the object side and having a meniscus shape, a cemented lens LC disposed on a most image side and having a convex surface on its most object side, and an aperture diaphragm disposed just in front of the object side of the cemented lens. The system satisfies the following conditional expressions: 0.05<(R2?R1)/(R1+R2)<0.25 vd1 ?vd2 >15 where R1 and R2 denote radius of curvatures of object side and image side surfaces of the first lens, respectively, and vd1 and vd2 denote Abbe numbers of lenses, which are located on the most object side and on the most image side among lenses constituting the cemented lens, at the d-line, respectively.

Abstract: A color image readout lens comprises, in order from an object side: a first group comprising a positive lens convex toward the object side and a biconcave negative lens; a stop; a second group comprising one diffractive optical element that has at least one flat surface and has a diffractive structure formed on the flat surface; and a third group comprising a biconvex positive lens and a negative lens concave toward the object side.

Abstract: A laser beam output from a semiconductor laser light source 1 is transmitted through a cover glass 2 in the optical axis Z direction, is incident on a molded lens 4 in a state of divergent rays, is converted into convergent rays by the molded lens 4, and is applied onto a recording face 5 of the optical recording medium. A diaphragm 3 is arranged. An area of each lens surface onto which a luminous flux of the laser beam restricted by the diaphragm 3 is applied corresponds to an effective area. The following expression (1) is satisfied: d1?d0?0.04 mm??(1) where d0 denotes an effective aperture of one of the lens surfaces, and d1 denotes an outer diameter of the one of the lens surfaces.

Abstract: An objective lens for converging light emitted from a light source onto an optical recording medium to record and reproduce information consists of a single lens that has at least one aspheric surface. The following conditional expressions (1) and (2) are satisfied: ?0.90<R1/R2<?0.45??(1) 0.70<d/f<1.40??(2) where R1 denotes a radius of curvature (mm) of a light source side surface near an optical axis, R2 denotes a radius of curvature (mm) of an optical recording medium side surface near the optical axis, d denotes a thickness (mm) on an optical axis, and f denotes a focal length (mm).

Abstract: An objective lens for converging light emitted from a light source on an optical recording medium to record and reproduce information consists of a single lens having at least one aspheric surface. The following conditional expressions (1) to (3) are satisfied: N?1.75??(1) 0.5<f/f1<0.6??(2) 0.8<d/(NA·De)<1.0??(3) where N denotes a refractive index, f denotes a focal length (mm), f1 denotes a focal length (mm) of a light source side surface, d denotes a thickness (mm) on an optical axis, NA denotes a numerical aperture on an optical recording medium side, and De denotes an effective aperture (mm) of the light source side surface.

Abstract: An objective optical system focuses light from a light source onto at least two different types of optical recording media having different substrate thicknesses in order to record or reproduce information on the optical recording media by using a variable refractive power element and an objective lens. The variable refractive power element may be a liquid crystal element with concentric zones that serves as a transparent plate having no convergence effect when no voltage is applied when selecting an AOD, DVD, or CD and as a converging lens when a voltage is applied when selecting a BD. Alternately, the variable refractive power element may electrically vary the refractive index of a nanoparticle dispersion or at least one liquid of a two-liquid lens element. A diffractive optical element may be used to assist in focusing light to four recording media. An optical pickup device includes the objective optical system.

Abstract: A laser beam output from a semiconductor laser light source 1 is transmitted through a cover glass 2 in the optical axis Z direction, is incident on a molded lens 4 in a state of divergent rays, is converted into convergent rays by the molded lens 4, and is applied onto a recording face 5 of the optical recording medium. A diaphragm 3 is arranged. An area of each lens surface onto which a luminous flux of the laser beam restricted by the diaphragm 3 is applied corresponds to an effective area. The following expression (1) is satisfied: d1?d0?0.04 mm??(1) where d0 denotes an effective aperture of one of the lens surfaces, and d1 denotes an outer diameter of the one of the lens surfaces.

Abstract: The imaging lens system includes a negative first lens disposed on a most object side, having a concave surface directed toward the object side and having a meniscus shape, a cemented lens LC disposed on a most image side and having a convex surface on its most object side, and an aperture diaphragm disposed just in front of the object side of the cemented lens. The system satisfies the following conditional expressions: 0.05<(R2?R1)/(R1+R2)<0.25 vd1?vd2>15 where R1 and R2 denote radius of curvatures of object side and image side surfaces of the first lens, respectively, and vd1 and vd2 denote Abbe numbers of lenses, which are located on the most object side and on the most image side among lenses constituting the cemented lens, at the d-line, respectively.

Abstract: An objective lens consists of a single lens element, and has a light source side surface formed into a convex surface having a large curvature and an optical recording medium side surface has a small curvature. The both surfaces are aspheric surfaces. Also, the objective lens satisfies the following expressions (1) to (3): 0.7<NA<0.98 ??(1) 0.70<d/f<1.40 ??(2) 0.48<X<0.55 ??(3). where NA denotes a numerical aperture of the objective lens on an optical recording medium side, d denotes a thickness of the objective lens on an optical axis in mm, and f denotes a focal length of the objective lens in mm. X is equal to (X1?X2)·(n?1)/(NA·f), where X1 and X2 denote values relating to sag amounts in the respective surfaces, and n denotes a refractive index.

Abstract: An objective lens 8 consists of a single lens element. A light source side surface 8a is formed into a convex surface having a large curvature, and an optical recording medium side surface 8b has a small curvature. Also, the objective lens satisfies the following expressions (1) and (2) ?A/?B<5.0 ??(1) 7.69??A/?B+19.33×bf?/f??9.45 ??(2) where ?A denotes an effective diameter (mm) of the light source side surface of the objective lens 8, ?B denotes an effective diameter (mm) of the optical recording medium side surface of the objective lens 8, bf? denotes a back focal length (mm) of the objective lens 8, and f? denotes a focal length (mm) of the objective lens 8.

Abstract: An objective lens consists of a single lens element. A light source side surface is formed into a convex surface having a large curvature, and an optical recording medium side surface has a small curvature. The both surfaces are formed into aspheric surfaces. Also, the objective lens satisfies the following expressions (1) to (3): 0.70<NA<0.98 ??(1) 0.70<d/f<3.00 ??(2) 0.50<g/d<0.80 ??(3) where NA denotes a numerical aperture of the objective lens on an optical recording medium side, d denotes a thickness, in mm, of the objective lens on an optical axis, and g is a distance, in mm, from a tangential plane that is perpendicular to the optical axis and is tangent to a vertex of the light source side surface of the objective lens, to a center of gravity of the objective lens.

Abstract: An objective optical system is formed of a diffractive optical element with a diffractive surface formed on a virtual plane and an objective lens for focusing three light beams of three different wavelengths at three different numerical apertures onto desired positions of three different recording media with substrates that include different thicknesses, such as an AOD, a DVD, and a CD, that introduce different amounts of spherical aberration in the focused beams. The objective optical system provides compensating spherical aberrations to the three light beams, two of which are incident on the objective optical system as collimated beams and one of which is incident as a diverging beam. The objective optical system focuses second-order diffracted light of one wavelength and first-order diffracted light of the other two wavelengths. An optical pickup device includes the objective optical system, the recording media, and a light source that provides the three light beams.

Abstract: An image reading lens is provided and includes: first, second and third lens groups arranged on the object side with respect to the aperture stop; and fourth, fifth and sixth lens groups arranged on the image side. At least all positive lenses, in each lens group, satisfy conditional expression (1) below. At least two positive lenses of the first to third lens groups and at least two positive lens of the fourth to sixth lens groups satisfy the conditional expression (2) below. In the conditional expressions, ?d represents Abbe number at the d-line, and ??g,d represents abnormal dispersion. ?d>60.0??(1) ??g,d>0.

Abstract: A color image readout lens comprises, in order from an object side: a first group comprising a positive lens convex toward the object side and a biconcave negative lens; a stop; a second group comprising one diffractive optical element that has at least one flat surface and has a diffractive structure formed on the flat surface; and a third group comprising a biconvex positive lens and a negative lens concave toward the object side.

Abstract: An objective lens consists of two lens elements of different materials that are cemented. The lens surfaces that are cemented includes a phase function so that the cemented surface forms a optical diffractive surface that enables the objective lens to focus incident light of three different wavelengths with different numerical apertures onto different optical recording media. Three conditions are satisfied so as to achieve optimum imaging. The optical diffractive surface is shaped so that the order of the diffracted light of the shortest wavelength ?1 having the largest diffracted intensity is zero and different from the order of the diffracted light of the second wavelength ?2 having the largest diffracted intensity, and the order of the diffracted light of the first wavelength ?1 having the largest diffracted intensity is also different from the order of the diffracted light of the third wavelength ?3 having the largest diffracted intensity.

Abstract: An objective optical system includes a diffractive optical element on the light source side of an objective lens for focusing incident light of three different wavelengths with two different numerical apertures onto three different optical recording media. The diffractive optical element is formed of two lens elements made of different materials that are cemented together at a diffractive surface. Three conditions are satisfied so as to achieve optimum imaging. The diffractive surface may be shaped so that the order of the diffracted light of the shortest wavelength ?2 having the largest diffracted intensity is different from the order of the diffracted light of the second wavelength ?2 having the largest diffracted intensity, and the order of the diffracted light of the first wavelength ?1 having the largest diffracted intensity is also different from the order of the diffracted light of the third wavelength ?3 having the largest diffracted intensity.

Abstract: A lens is equipped with a reference mounting surface that is abutted to a surface of a lens support member at the time of mounting the lens, wherein the reference mounting surface is arranged between a plane which is normal to the optical axis of the lens and includes a principal point on the incident light side of the lens and a plane which is normal to the optical axis of the lens and includes a principal point on the outgoing light side of the lens.

Abstract: An image reading lens is provided and includes: first, second and third lens groups arranged on the object side with respect to the aperture stop; and fourth, fifth and sixth lens groups arranged on the image side. At least all positive lenses, in each lens group, satisfy conditional expression (1) below. At least two positive lenses of the first to third lens groups and at least two positive lens of the fourth to sixth lens groups satisfy the conditional expression (2) below. In the conditional expressions, vd represents Abbe number at the d-line, and ??g,d represents abnormal dispersion. vd>60.0 ??(1) ??g,d>0.