JP2001083430A - Inverted microscope device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To eliminate an adverse effect exerted on an inverted microscope when an observation device such as a heavy image pickup device is arranged at an optical path under the inverted microscope. SOLUTION: This inverted microscope device is provided with the inverted microscope 50 obtained by arranging an objective lens under a sample and forming a light guiding aperture part 51 guiding light transmitted through the objective lens more downward at a bottom surface part, the observation device 60 arranged under the microscope 50 so as to observe an image of the sample by the light transmitted through the aperture part 51, a working table 70 having an aperture part 71 being larger than the external size of the observation device 60 and supporting at least the microscope 50 and a supporting member 80 having an optical path 81 guiding the light from the aperture part 51 to the observation device 60 and supporting the microscope 50 on a condition that it is placed on the table 70. Since the weight of the observation device 60 is supported by the supporting member 80, the adverse effect exerted on the microscope 50 by the heavy observation device 60 is eliminated.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an inverted microscope apparatus in which an objective lens is arranged below a specimen.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Inverted microscopes are widely used for research in various fields dealing with living cells such as medicine and biology. For example, there is measurement of action potential of cultured cells in microinsemination or electrophysiological experiments. In studies dealing with living cells, manipulators that perform fine operations such as grasping, stabbing, cutting, and injecting on living cells are frequently used. In such an operation, since a fine operation is performed on cells of several to several tens of μm, the held cells may come off or move out of the field of view of the microscope due to vibration accompanying the microscope operation or external vibration. And workability is remarkably reduced. In addition, in fields such as microcirculation in which a small animal is placed on a microscope stage and blood flow is measured, the rigidity of the stage and the microscope body is required to be improved.

As a structure for improving the rigidity, as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H8-43741, a central unit provided with an objective lens and a mechanism for raising and lowering the objective lens is provided. In some cases, a main body for housing and holding is provided in an inverted microscope, so that adjustment of an optical element including an objective lens is performed with the central unit removed from the main body. Then, after the adjustment of the optical element is completed, the central unit is assembled to the main body. In this way, since the optical adjustment of the entire microscope is performed outside the main body, the main body does not require a large work space for assembly and adjustment, and a rib for defining a space for accommodating the central unit is provided. Therefore, the rigidity is increased.

[0004]

In the field of life science research, with the development of high-sensitivity imaging devices, the development of fluorescent reagents, and the spread of laser microscopes, research on the detection of extremely weak light, such as weak fluorescence observation and weak photometry. Experiments are growing. In addition, a space on the desk surface for arranging the manipulation and the like is required. For this reason, a light source such as an observation device including an imaging device such as a cooled CCD camera or a laser scan unit is attached to the bottom of the inverted microscope.

[0005] However, the cool C having a large weight of several to several tens of kilograms.
In order to attach a CD camera or a laser scan unit to the bottom of the inverted microscope, it is necessary to increase the rigidity of the bottom of the inverted microscope. As a result, the shape of the main body becomes large, so that there is a problem that the effect described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H8-43741 cannot be achieved.
If it is not necessary to attach a cooled CCD camera or laser scan unit to the bottom of the inverted microscope,
A problem arises in that a body having a large shape becomes uselessly large.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of such a conventional problem, and is provided in an optical path below an inverted microscope.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an inverted microscope apparatus which can be mounted with high rigidity even when an imaging device such as a cooled CCD camera or a light source such as a laser scan unit is arranged.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, an objective lens is disposed below a sample, and a light guide opening for guiding light passing through the objective lens further downward. An inverted microscope provided on the bottom surface, an imaging unit arranged below the inverted microscope, and imaging the sample image by light passing through the light guide opening, and an opening larger than the outer shape of the imaging unit Is provided, at least a worktable on which the inverted microscope is supported, and an optical path for guiding light from the light guide opening to the imaging means is provided, and the inverted microscope is placed on the worktable. And a supporting member for supporting.

According to the present invention, since the support member supports the inverted microscope in a state where the support member is placed on the worktable, the support member can be mounted on the imaging means without being affected by the assemblability of the inverted microscope or the shape of the frame. Considering the weight, it is possible to mount a large-weight imaging means below the inverted microscope without increasing the shape to increase the rigidity of the bottom surface of the inverted microscope.

A second aspect of the present invention is the invention according to the first aspect, further comprising a positioning portion for making the optical axis of the inverted microscope coincide with the optical axis of the imaging means.

According to the present invention, since the positioning section makes the optical axis of the inverted microscope coincide with the optical axis of the imaging means, the optical axis is made coincident by attaching a support member. For this reason, adjustment for matching the optical axes is not required, and operability is improved.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the imaging means includes a scanning optical system for two-dimensionally scanning a laser beam from a laser light source, and a scanning optical system.
The scanning unit includes a light receiving element that receives light from the sample that has been dimensionally scanned.

According to the present invention, the scan unit can be attached without increasing the shape of the inverted microscope to increase the rigidity of the bottom surface.

[0013]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS (Embodiment 1) FIGS.
1 shows an embodiment 1 of the present invention, FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view of this embodiment, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the interrelationship of optical systems in an inverted microscope, and FIG. 3 is a side view of the inverted microscope.

FIG. 1 shows an inverted microscope apparatus according to this embodiment.
As shown in FIG. 7, an inverted microscope 50 and an imaging device 6 as an observation device for observing the sample 9 set on the inverted microscope 50.
0, a work table 70, and a support member 80 that is placed on the work table 70 and supports the inverted microscope 50.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the inverted microscope 50 has the illumination housing 2 attached to the upper end of the mirror housing 1, and the light source 3 is housed in the illumination housing 2. The light 4a output from the light source 3 is polarized downward by the reflecting mirror 5 in the traveling direction. The light 4a bent downward is
The light passes through the field stop 6, enters the condenser lens 7, and is condensed on the sample 9 placed on the stage 8 by the condenser lens 7. The light that has passed through the sample 9 is
The light enters the objective lens 11 supported by the revolver 10 disposed below, and passes through the imaging lens 15 described later.

Behind the mirror housing 1, a fluorescent illumination housing 13 is attached as shown in FIG. A fluorescent light source 14 is housed in the fluorescent illumination housing 13. The light 4b output from the fluorescent light source 14 is incident on a fluorescent cube 12 having a built-in dichroic mirror inclined at 45 degrees with respect to the optical axis. The traveling direction of the light 4b output from the fluorescent light source 14 is changed upward by the fluorescent cube 12. The light 4b bent upward enters the objective lens 11, and the objective lens 11 condenses the light 4b on the sample 9 mounted on the stage 8. Then, the fluorescent light emitted from the sample 9 enters the objective lens 11 and the fluorescent cube 12 again.

Below the fluorescent cube 12, an imaging lens 15 for imaging light incident from the objective lens 11 at a focal length position is provided. In FIG.
Reference numerals a to 29 d denote positions where the primary image of the sample 9 is formed by the imaging lens 15, and light passing through the imaging lens 15 enters the first optical element 16.

As shown in FIG. 2, the first optical element 16 is composed of three first to third semi-transmissive prisms 16a, 16b, arranged in contact with each other in a direction perpendicular to the optical axis.
16c. Each transflective prism 16
Each of a to 16c has a semi-transmissive surface that transmits light incident from above and downwards, and that reflects light in directions orthogonal to the optical axis of the incident light and different from each other by 90 degrees.

The three transflective prisms 16a, 16b, 1
6c can be moved in three stages by a position adjustment knob 19 exposed on the outer wall of the lens housing 1. When the position adjusting knob 19 is operated to dispose the first semi-transmissive prism 16a on the optical path, the lights 4a and 4b are guided to the photographing optical path 17a to form an image at a position 29a. When the position adjusting knob 19 is operated to dispose the second semi-transmissive prism 16b on the optical path, the light beams 4a and 4b are guided to the photographing optical path 17b to form an image at a position 29b. When the position adjusting knob 19 is operated to dispose the third semi-transmissive prism 16c on the optical path, the light 4a, 4b is guided to the photographing optical path 17c and the position 29 is set.
An image is formed at c.

Light that has passed downward through any one of the transflective prisms 16a to 16c of the first optical element 16 is incident on the second optical element 22. The second optical element 22 is formed of, for example, a semi-transmissive mirror, and reflects the incident light in the direction of the observation optical path 23 and transmits the incident light as it is to the lower imaging optical path 17d.

The second optical element 22 is supported by a support stand 24 and can be inserted into and removed from the optical path. By operating an insertion / removal lever 25, the second optical element 22 is removed from the optical path. It is possible to draw out. When the second optical element 22 is pulled out of the optical path by the insertion / removal lever 25,
The light enters only the photographing optical path 17d without being guided to the observation optical path 23. Then, the light enters the imaging device 60 below from the observation optical path 17d. A light guide opening 51 is formed in the bottom surface 1a of the lens housing 1 as shown in FIG.

On the other hand, when the second optical element 22 is inserted into the optical path, it enters both the observation optical path 23 and the photographing optical path 17d. The second optical element 22 is the first optical element 1
Similarly to 6, the above-mentioned insertion / removal mechanism allows the observer to replace a semi-transmissive mirror having another optical characteristic or a mirror with 100% reflection, that is, a total reflection mirror, as necessary. In addition, as a modification, a support 24 and an insertion / removal lever 25 that hold the optical element 22 from the bottom surface 1a of the lens housing 1
May be attached to the bottom surface so as to be able to splash from the optical path. Even with this splash mechanism, it is possible to switch between the case where the incident light is reflected in the direction of the observation optical path 23 and the case where the light is transmitted only to the lower imaging optical path 17d.

In the photographing optical path 17b, a primary image is formed in the focus type photographic lens 30a. The primary image is magnified by the photographic lens 30a and forms a secondary image on the film surface 29. The image of the sample 9 is recorded on the film surface 29.

On the other hand, the light guided to the observation optical path 23 passes through an image forming position 29e, and then travels to an observation lens barrel 27 via a relay lens system 26 composed of a plurality of group lenses, and becomes parallel light for observation. The light enters the imaging lens 27a in the lens barrel 27 and forms an image at a predetermined position 29f in the observation lens barrel 27. For this reason,
The observer can observe an enlarged image of the sample 9 formed at the position 29f via the eyepiece 27b.

The inverted microscope 50 described above is mounted on a work table 70 via a support table 80. The worktable 70 has the imaging device 6
An opening 71 larger than the outer shape of “0” is formed, and the imaging device 60 can be inserted into and removed from the opening 70. The work table 70 supports at least the inverted microscope 50, and can also support an application device such as a manipulator in addition to the inverted microscope 50. Further, the work table 70 may be provided with a vibration isolator (not shown).

The support member 80 supports the inverted microscope 50 while being placed on the worktable 70. The support member 80 has a flange 82 larger than the opening 71 of the worktable 70, and the flange 82 is placed on the worktable 70.
A mounting cylinder 83 is suspended downward from the flange 82, and the imaging device 60 is mounted on the mounting cylinder 83. An optical path 81 that guides light from the light guide opening 51 of the inverted microscope 50 to the imaging device 60 penetrates through the flange portion 82 and the mounting cylinder portion 83, thereby observing an image of the sample 9 of the imaging device 60. can do. Such a support member 80 merely mounts the inverted microscope 50, and the inverted microscope 5
Regardless of the size of 0, it is formed of a material having sufficient rigidity.

The mounting positions of the inverted microscope 50, the support member 80, and the imaging device 60 are adjusted so that the focal position 29d of the imaging optical path 17d and the imaging surface position of the imaging device 60 coincide. For this adjustment, for example, positioning in the optical axis direction can be performed by inserting a spacer (not shown) between the inverted microscope 50 and the support member 80. In addition, in the direction orthogonal to the optical axis direction, it can be performed by moving the inverted microscope 50 and the support member 80 in the XY plane, or by moving the support member 80 and the imaging device 60 in the XY plane. .

First, the image pickup device 60 is mounted on the mounting tube 83 of the support member 80, and in this mounted state, the image pickup device 60 is attached to the opening 7 of the worktable 70.
1 and the flange 82 of the support member 80 is placed on the workbench 70. After that, the inverted microscope 50 is placed on the flange 82 of the support member 80. At the time of this mounting, adjustment is performed in the optical axis direction and the direction orthogonal to the optical axis as described above.

In such an embodiment, the inverted microscope 5
Reference numeral 0 denotes a structure that is mounted and supported on a support member 80 mounted on a work table 70, and the support member 80 is mounted on the inverted microscope 5.
Since it is disposed outside of the optical microscope 0, it is not affected by the assemblability of the lens housing 1 of the inverted microscope 50 or the shape of the lens housing 1. Therefore, the shape and the material can be made in consideration of the weight of the imaging device 60. For this reason, even if the heavy imaging device 60 is arranged below the inverted microscope 50,
The lens housing 1 of the inverted microscope 50 is not distorted, does not adversely affect the optical system in the lens housing 1, and correct illumination and observation can be performed.

When the lower image pickup device 60 is not used, it is only necessary to remove the support member 80, so that it is not necessary to change the shape of the lens housing 1 depending on the image pickup optical path to be used. Further, after the imaging device 60 is attached to the support member 80, the support member 80 and the inverted microscope 50 are installed from above the work table 70, so that work from beneath the work table 70 becomes unnecessary, and assembling workability is improved. .

FIG. 4 shows a modification of this embodiment, in which a laser scan unit 90 having a light source and a mechanism as an image pickup device is arranged below the light guide opening 51 of the inverted microscope 50 instead of the image pickup device 60. I have. The laser scan unit 90 can use a scan unit used for a laser microscope as it is, and a laser line filter 91 that transmits a laser beam of a specific wavelength among laser beams from a laser light source (not shown). And mirrors 92 and 93 for deflecting the optical path in the X direction and the Y direction to perform two-dimensional scanning. Further, a half mirror 96 and a pinhole 94 are provided, and a light receiving element 95 is arranged behind the pinhole 94. Note that a dichroic mirror may be used instead of the half mirror 96.

By mounting such a laser scan unit 90 on the support member 80 and supporting the laser scan unit 90 on the inverted microscope 50 by the support member 80, the weight of the laser scan unit 90 adversely affects the optical system in the lens barrel housing 1. And correct illumination and observation can be performed, and assembly can be easily performed.

(Embodiment 2) FIG. 5 shows Embodiment 2 of the present invention. In this embodiment, the support member 80 has a structure for positioning the inverted microscope 50 and the imaging device 60. That is, the positioning ring 84 is formed on the upper surface of the flange portion 83 of the support member 80. The positioning ring 84 is provided so as to be positioned around the imaging optical path 17d. The positioning ring 84 fits into the light guide opening 51 opened in the bottom surface 1a of the lens housing 1 so that the optical axis of the support member 80 is adjusted. It acts so as to match the imaging optical path 17d.

A positioning hole 85 is formed in the inside of the mounting tube 83 of the support member 80. In contrast,
A positioning projection 61 that fits into the positioning hole 85 is formed on an upper portion of the imaging device 60 attached to the attachment cylinder 83. The positioning projection 61 and the positioning hole 85
Are provided so that the optical axis of the imaging device 60 is matched with the imaging optical path 17d by fitting each other. In addition, these positioning holes 85 and positioning projections 6
The fitting length of 1 is such that the imaging surface of the imaging device 60 is
This is set so as to coincide with the focal position 29d of d.

In such an embodiment, the imaging device 60
Is attached to the support member 80, and thereafter, the inverted microscope 50 is merely mounted on the support member 80, so that the optical axes of the support member 80 and the imaging device 60 can coincide with the observation optical path 17d of the inverted microscope 50. For this reason, optical adjustment at the time of assembly becomes unnecessary.

In this embodiment, a positioning ring having the same function as the positioning ring 84 may be formed on the bottom surface 1a of the lens housing 1.
A positioning projection that performs the same operation as that described above may be formed in the mounting cylinder 83, and a positioning hole that performs the same operation as the positioning hole 85 may be formed in the imaging device 60. The structure is not limited to the positioning based on the fitting, but may be a structure in which the optical axes are matched by engaging a pin or a hook.

[0037]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, since the supporting member is supported on the work table while supporting the inverted microscope, the rigidity of the bottom surface of the inverted microscope is increased. It is possible to attach a large-weight imaging means below the inverted microscope without increasing the size. In addition, since the support member and the inverted microscope are installed on the worktable after the imaging means is mounted on the support member, work from beneath the worktable is eliminated, and assembling workability is improved.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the adjustment for making the optical axes coincide is unnecessary, and the operability is improved.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the scan unit can be mounted without increasing the shape of the inverted microscope to increase the rigidity of the bottom surface.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing the entire first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a mutual relationship between optical systems of an inverted microscope.

FIG. 3 is a side view showing the inside of the inverted microscope.

FIG. 4 is a side view showing a modification of the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the second embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 50 inverted microscope 51 light guide opening 60 imaging device 70 work table 80 support member 90 laser scan unit

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An inverted microscope in which an objective lens is disposed below a sample, and a light guide opening for guiding light passing through the objective lens further downward is provided on a bottom portion, and the inverted microscope is disposed below the inverted microscope. Imaging means for imaging the sample image by light passing through the light guide opening; an opening provided with an opening larger than the outer shape of the imaging means; and a workbench at least supporting the inverted microscope; An inverted microscope device, provided with an optical path for guiding light from a light opening to the imaging means, and a support member for supporting the inverted microscope while being placed on the work table. . 2. The inverted microscope apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a positioning unit that matches an optical axis of the inverted microscope with an optical axis of the imaging unit. 3. A scanning unit comprising: a scanning optical system for two-dimensionally scanning a laser beam from a laser light source; and a light receiving element for receiving light from a sample two-dimensionally scanned by the scanning optical system. The inverted microscope apparatus according to claim 1, wherein