CN219533589U - Optical unit and image pickup apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

The utility model provides an optical unit and an image pickup apparatus. The heat from the heat source can be released to the outside by a simple and inexpensive structure. An imaging device (1) is provided with: an imaging element (16); an LED (10); a circuit board (20) on which the image pickup element (16) and the LEDs (10) are mounted; a heat radiation shielding member (30) configured to be in thermal contact with the circuit board (20); and a case that houses the circuit board (20) and the heat radiation shielding member (30) in a housing space formed inside. An opening (51) is formed in the housing (2) and communicates with the outside from the storage space. The heat radiation shielding member (30) includes a plate-like portion (71) that extends so as to close the opening (51) of the housing (2) and is exposed to the outside from the opening (51).

Description

Optical unit and image pickup apparatus

Technical Field

The present utility model relates to an optical unit and an image pickup apparatus, and more particularly to an image pickup apparatus including an image pickup element.

Background

In general, an optical unit constituting an image pickup apparatus or the like includes a heat generation source, and it is required to efficiently release heat generated by the heat generation source to the outside. For this reason, for example, it is also conceivable to integrally mold a heat transfer member on an inner wall of a housing of the imaging device, and to transfer heat generated by a heat source to a terminal for transmitting an image signal via the heat transfer member to dissipate the heat (for example, refer to patent document 1). However, in such a conventional structure, since the heat transfer member needs to be integrally molded on the inner wall of the case, the structure is easy to be complicated, and the manufacturing cost thereof tends to be high.

Patent document 1: international publication No. 2015/198598

Disclosure of Invention

The present utility model has been made in view of the above-described problems of the related art, and an object of the present utility model is to provide an optical unit and an imaging device capable of releasing heat from a heat source to the outside by a simple and inexpensive structure.

A first aspect of the present utility model provides an optical unit, including: at least one optical component comprising a heat generating source; a circuit board mounted with the at least one optical component; a contact portion configured to be in thermal contact with the circuit board; and a housing that houses the at least one optical component, the circuit board, and the contact portion in a housing space formed inside, and that is formed with at least one opening that communicates from the housing space to the outside, the contact portion including a plate-like portion that extends so as to close the at least one opening of the housing and is exposed to the outside from the at least one opening.

An optical unit according to a second aspect of the present utility model is the optical unit according to the first aspect, wherein the contact portion is formed of a conductive material and is configured to be electrically connected to a ground portion of the circuit board.

An optical unit according to a third aspect of the present utility model is the optical unit according to the second aspect, wherein the contact portion further includes a side piece extending from a peripheral edge portion of the plate-like portion toward the circuit board.

An optical unit according to a fourth aspect of the present utility model is the optical unit according to the first aspect, wherein the contact portion further includes an elastic connection portion that is elastically deformable and connects the circuit board and the plate-like portion.

An optical unit according to a fifth aspect of the present utility model is the optical unit according to the first aspect, wherein the at least one optical component includes at least one of a light emitting diode, a power supply control unit, and a serializer.

An optical unit according to a sixth aspect of the present utility model is the optical unit according to the first aspect, wherein the at least one optical component includes an image pickup element.

A seventh aspect of the present utility model provides an image pickup apparatus comprising the optical unit of the sixth aspect.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a front perspective view showing an image pickup apparatus as an optical unit in one embodiment of the present utility model.

Fig. 2 is a rear perspective view of the image pickup apparatus shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the image pickup apparatus shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the image pickup apparatus shown in fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is an exploded perspective view of a part of the image pickup apparatus shown in fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view of the image pickup apparatus shown in fig. 1.

Description of the reference numerals

1: an imaging device (optical unit); 2: a housing; 3: a cover member; 4: a connector connecting portion; 10: an LED;12: a lens; 14: a lens barrel; 16: an image pickup element; 20: a circuit board; 21: a connector; 25: a pattern portion; 30: a heat radiation shielding member (contact portion); 31: a clamping piece; 51: an opening; 60: a spring member (elastic connection portion); 61: a top; 62: a fixing part; 63: an intermediate portion; 64: a bending portion; 71: a plate-like portion; 72: side panels.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, an embodiment of an imaging device as an optical unit according to the present utility model will be described in detail with reference to fig. 1 to 6. In fig. 1 to 6, the same or corresponding components are denoted by the same reference numerals, and overlapping description thereof is omitted. In fig. 1 to 6, the scale and the dimensions of each component are exaggerated, and some components are omitted. In the following description, unless otherwise specified, terms such as "first" and "second" are used merely to distinguish components from each other, and do not denote a particular order or sequence.

Fig. 1 is a front perspective view and fig. 2 is a rear perspective view of an imaging device 1 as an optical unit according to an embodiment of the present utility model. The imaging device 1 in the present embodiment is described as an imaging device used in a Driver Monitoring System (DMS) for monitoring the state of a driver (for example, a decrease in attention, a sign of drowsiness) of an automobile, but the imaging device of the present utility model can be used for other applications.

As shown in fig. 1 and 2, the imaging device 1 includes a rectangular parallelepiped housing 2 and a cover member 3 attached to the front of the housing 2. In fig. 1, the cover member 3 is not shown for ease of understanding. Inside the housing 2, for example, 2 LEDs (light emitting diodes) 10 as light sources emitting near infrared light and a lens barrel 14 holding at least one lens 12 therein are housed. The housing 2 includes, for example, a mounting portion 7 for mounting the imaging device 1 to a body of an automobile. In the present embodiment, for convenience, the +z direction in fig. 1 is referred to as "front" or "front", and the-Z direction is referred to as "rear" or "rear".

Fig. 3 and 4 are exploded perspective views of the image pickup apparatus 1. As shown in fig. 3 and 4, the cover member 3 includes a plurality of engagement pieces 31 extending in the-Z direction and elastically deformable in the Y direction, and rectangular engagement holes 32 are formed in the engagement pieces 31. The housing 2 is formed with a plurality of claw portions 5 corresponding to the engagement pieces 31 of the cover member 3, and the cover member 3 is attached to the housing 2 by engaging the claw portions 5 with the engagement holes 32 of the engagement pieces 31 of the cover member 3.

A circuit board 20 on which the LED10 and the imaging element 16 are mounted and a heat radiation shielding member 30 formed by bending a plate-like member are housed in a housing space formed inside the housing 2. The circuit board 20 extends in the X direction as a whole, and a connector 21 is mounted on the rear surface of the circuit board 20. The circuit board 20 is formed with a through-insertion hole 24 through which the screw 42 is inserted, and the screw 42 is inserted through the through-insertion hole 24 and screwed into the screw hole 6 formed in the housing 2, whereby the circuit board 20 is fixed to the housing 2.

The image pickup device 16 is disposed on a surface on which light passing through the lens 12 of the lens barrel 14 forms an image, and is configured to receive the light passing through the lens 12. A through-insertion hole 22 through which the screw 41 is inserted and a positioning hole 23 through which the positioning protrusion 15 formed on the lens barrel 14 is inserted are formed on the circuit board 20. The lens barrel 14 is positioned with respect to the circuit board 20 by inserting the positioning protrusion 15 of the lens barrel 14 into the positioning hole 23 of the circuit board 20, and the lens barrel 14 is fixed to the circuit board 20 by inserting the screw 41 into the insertion hole 22 of the circuit board 20 and screwing the screw 41 into the screw hole 17 formed in the lens barrel 14.

The cover member 3 is formed of a material that transmits light emitted from the LED 10. In the present embodiment, in order to emit near-infrared light from the LED10 and acquire an image of the near-infrared light in the image pickup element 16, a visible light cut filter that cuts off light in the visible light wavelength region can be used as the cover member 3 in order to reduce the influence of visible light on the image obtained by the image pickup element 16.

A plurality of openings (circular openings in the present embodiment) 51 are formed in the rear surface of the housing 2. The housing 2 has a cylindrical connector connecting portion 4 extending rearward (-Z direction). The connector 21 of the circuit board 20 is inserted and accommodated in the connector connecting portion 4. The connector connecting portion 4 can be connected to a counterpart connector (not shown) from the rear of the housing 2. By connecting the connector 21 and the counterpart connector to the connector connecting portion 4, a signal obtained by the image pickup element 16 is output to the outside, and a control signal is input to the LED10 from the outside. With such a configuration, while light (illumination light) is emitted from the LED10 to illuminate an object to be photographed (for example, a driver), the object to be photographed illuminated with the light can be photographed by the image pickup device 16.

The heat radiation shielding member 30 has a plate-like portion 71 extending along the XY plane and side pieces 72 extending in the +z direction from the peripheral edge portion of the plate-like portion 71. The plate-like portion 71 is formed with a through-insertion hole 73 through which the connector 21 extending from the circuit board 20 is inserted. The plate-like portion 71 extends so as to close the opening 51 of the housing 2, and has substantially the same size as the circuit board 20. The heat radiation shielding member 30 is preferably formed of a material having high thermal conductivity and conductivity (for example, a metal such as copper, aluminum, or nickel).

Here, as shown in fig. 5, a pattern portion 25 formed of copper foil or the like is formed on the back surface of the circuit board 20, and a spring member 60 (elastic connection portion) capable of elastic deformation is mounted on the pattern portion 25. The pattern portion 25 of the circuit board 20 is electrically connected to the electrical component mounted on the circuit board 20 and the ground portion of the connector 21. The spring member 60 is preferably made of a material having high thermal conductivity and conductivity (for example, a metal such as copper, aluminum, or nickel) like the heat radiation shielding member 30. The spring member 60 is fixed to the pattern portion 25 of the circuit board 20 by, for example, solder or the like.

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view of the image pickup apparatus 1. As shown in fig. 5 and 6, the spring member 60 includes a top portion 61 that contacts the plate-like portion 71 of the heat radiation shielding member 30, a fixing portion 62 that is connected and fixed to the pattern portion 25 of the circuit board 20, an intermediate portion 63 that extends between the top portion 61 and the fixing portion 62 in parallel with the top portion 61 and the fixing portion 62, and a bending portion 64 that connects between the top portion 61 and the intermediate portion 63 and between the intermediate portion 63 and the fixing portion 62, respectively, and the spring member 60 has a cross section that is bent in a substantially S-shape. With this structure, the spring member 60 can be elastically deformed in the Z direction, and the top portion 61 of the spring member 60 is elastically contacted with the plate-like portion 71 of the heat radiation shielding member 30. By such a spring member 60, the pattern portion 25 of the circuit board 20 and the plate-like portion 71 of the heat radiation shield member 30 are thermally and electrically connected to each other. Thus, in the present embodiment, the spring member 60 and the heat radiation shielding member 30 are contact portions that thermally contact the circuit board 20.

In the imaging device 1, the imaging element 16 and the LED10 stored in the storage space in the housing 2 may serve as a heat source. For example, when the image pickup element 16 exceeds the junction temperature due to heat generated in the LED10 or heat generated by the image pickup element 16, the image pickup element 16 cannot operate correctly. According to the present embodiment, heat generated by the LEDs 10 and the image pickup element 16 on the circuit board 20 is transferred to the plate-like portion 71 of the heat radiation shielding member 30 via the spring member 60, and is released to the outside via the portion exposed from the opening 51 of the housing 2. In this way, heat from the heat source on the circuit board 20 is effectively released to the outside, and thus, it is possible to suppress the optical components such as the image pickup device 16 from becoming high-temperature and causing malfunction.

Further, since the plate-like portion 71 of the heat radiation shielding member 30 extends so as to close the opening 51 of the housing 2, external light can be prevented from entering the interior of the housing 2 through the opening 51 of the housing 2. Therefore, the influence of the light outside the image pickup device 1 on the image pickup element 16 in the housing 2 can be reduced.

Further, by forming the spring member 60 and the heat radiation shielding member 30 constituting the contact portion as described above from conductive materials and electrically connecting the spring member 60 to the pattern portion 25 of the circuit board 20, the spring member 60 and the heat radiation shielding member 30 can be equipotential with the ground portion of the circuit board 20. As a result, the spring member 60 and the heat radiation shielding member 30 provide an electromagnetic shielding effect, and the image pickup device 16, the LED10, and other electronic components on the circuit board 20 housed in the housing space inside the housing 2 can be effectively protected from electromagnetic noise.

In the present embodiment, since the heat radiation shield 30 includes the side pieces 72 extending from the peripheral edge portion of the plate-like portion 71 toward the circuit board 20 (+z direction), the region surrounded by these side pieces 72 can also be protected from electromagnetic noise.

In the present embodiment, since the circuit board 20 and the plate-like portion 71 of the heat radiation shielding member 30 are connected by the elastically deformable spring member 60, even if the distance between the circuit board 20 and the plate-like portion 71 of the heat radiation shielding member 30 slightly varies due to manufacturing errors, the circuit board 20 and the plate-like portion 71 of the heat radiation shielding member 30 can be connected more reliably by the elastic deformation of the spring member 60.

In the present embodiment, the image pickup apparatus 1 in which the image pickup device 16 and the LED10 are mounted on the circuit board 20 has been described as an example, but the present utility model is not limited to the image pickup apparatus, and may be applied to any optical unit as long as it has at least one optical member including a heat generating source. In addition, not only the image pickup device 16 and the LED10 described above, but also a power supply control unit, a serializer, and the like can be used as a heat source.

The number of openings 51 formed in the case 2 is not particularly limited as long as it is 1 or more, and in order to maximize heat dissipation from the heat source on the circuit board 20, it is preferable to form 1 or more openings 51 so that the opening area is as large as possible within the range where the strength of the case 2 is maintained.

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present utility model, an optical unit capable of releasing heat from a heat source to the outside by a simple and inexpensive structure is provided. The optical unit has: at least one optical component comprising a heat generating source; a circuit board mounted with the at least one optical component; a contact portion configured to thermally contact the circuit board; and a housing that houses the at least one optical component, the circuit board, and the contact portion in a housing space formed inside. At least one opening communicating from the storage space to the outside is formed in the housing. The contact portion includes a plate-like portion extending so as to close the at least one opening of the housing and exposed to the outside from the at least one opening.

According to this configuration, since the plate-like portion of the contact portion is exposed to the outside from the opening of the housing, heat generated by the heat generating source mounted on the circuit board can be transferred to the contact portion and released to the outside from the exposed portion of the plate-like portion of the contact portion. Therefore, the optical component can be prevented from becoming high in temperature and causing malfunction. Further, since the plate-like portion of the contact portion extends so as to close the opening of the housing, external light can be suppressed from entering the interior of the housing from the opening of the housing. Therefore, the influence of external light on the optical components in the housing can be reduced.

Preferably, the contact portion is formed of a conductive material and is electrically connected to a ground portion of the circuit board. In this case, since the contact portion and the ground portion of the circuit board are equipotential, the electronic components on the circuit board housed in the housing space inside the housing can be effectively protected from electromagnetic noise.

Preferably, the contact portion further includes a side piece extending from a peripheral edge portion of the plate-like portion toward the circuit board. By forming such side panels, the region surrounded by the side panels can be protected from electromagnetic noise, and the region protected against electromagnetic noise can be enlarged.

The contact portion may further include an elastically deformable elastic connection portion that connects the circuit board and the plate-like portion. By using such an elastic connection portion, even if the distance between the circuit board and the plate-like portion of the contact portion varies slightly due to manufacturing errors, the circuit board and the plate-like portion of the contact portion can be connected more reliably by elastic deformation of the elastic connection portion of the contact portion.

The at least one optical component may include at least one of an image pickup device, a light emitting diode, a power supply control unit, and a serializer.

According to the present utility model, there is provided an image pickup apparatus constituted by the above-described optical unit.

The preferred embodiments of the present utility model have been described, but the present utility model is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and may be implemented in various modes within the scope of the technical ideas.

Claims (7)

1. An optical unit, characterized in that,

the optical unit has:

at least one optical component comprising a heat generating source;

a circuit board mounted with the at least one optical component;

a contact portion configured to be in thermal contact with the circuit board; and

a housing which houses the at least one optical component, the circuit board, and the contact portion in a housing space formed inside, and which is formed with at least one opening communicating from the housing space to the outside,

the contact portion includes a plate-like portion that extends so as to close the at least one opening of the housing and is exposed to the outside from the at least one opening.

2. An optical unit as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that,

the contact portion is formed of a conductive material and is configured to be electrically connected to a ground portion of the circuit board.

3. An optical unit as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that,

the contact portion further includes a side piece extending from a peripheral edge portion of the plate-like portion toward the circuit board.

4. An optical unit as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that,

the contact portion further includes an elastic connection portion capable of elastic deformation, and the elastic connection portion connects the circuit board and the plate-like portion.

5. An optical unit as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that,

the at least one optical component includes at least one of a light emitting diode, a power control section, and a serializer.

6. An optical unit as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that,

the at least one optical component includes an image pickup element.

7. An image pickup apparatus, characterized in that,

the imaging device is constituted by the optical unit according to claim 6.