JPS61212819A - Semiconductor laser light source device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To adjust easily the position of a laser beam by arranging parallel plane plates which are variable in inclination to a beam on optical paths of mutually parallel laser beams. CONSTITUTION:Mutually parallel beams 31-34 from semiconductor lasers 11-14 are made incident on a converging lens 6 through collimator lenses 21-24, reflecting mirrors 41-44, and an optical deflector 5 to scan on a scanning surface 7. When parallel plane plates 51-54 on optical paths between the collimator lenses and reflecting mirrors are rotated around rotating shafts 60, adjacent beams vary in interval and when they are rotated around rotating shafts 62, upper/lower positions of the beams are adjusted, so that the four beams are aligned strictly in line. Therefore, the positions of the parallel laser beams are easily adjustable through the parallel planes 51-54 of simple structure.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of the Invention) The present invention relates to a semiconductor laser light source device used in a light beam scanning device, and more particularly, to a semiconductor laser light source device that focuses laser beams emitted from a plurality of semiconductor lasers to one point. The present invention relates to a semiconductor laser light source device.

(Technical Background and Prior Art of the Invention) Conventionally, light beam scanning devices that scan a light beam by deflecting it with an optical deflector have been widely used in, for example, various scanning recording devices, scanning reading devices, and the like. One of the means for generating a light beam in such a light beam scanning device
As one example, semiconductor lasers have been conventionally used. This semiconductor laser has many advantages, such as being smaller, cheaper, and consumes less power than gas lasers, and can be directly modulated by changing the drive current.

However, on the other hand, this semiconductor laser currently has a high output of 20 to 30'I when continuously oscillated.
The rLW is small and therefore it is used in light beam scanning devices that require high-energy scanning light, such as scanning recording devices that record on recording materials with low sensitivity (such as DRAW materials such as commercial films and amorphous films). is extremely difficult.

Also, some types of fluorophores are exposed to radiation (X-rays, α-rays, β-rays, γ-rays, etc.).
When the phosphor is irradiated with rays, electron beams, ultraviolet rays, etc., a portion of this radiation energy is accumulated in the phosphor, and when the phosphor is irradiated with excitation light such as visible light, the phosphor emits light according to the accumulated energy. It is known that luminous materials do not exhibit stimulated luminescence, and by using such stimulable phosphors, radiation image information of subjects such as the human body can be stored once in a storage layer with a layer of stimulable phosphors. This stimulable phosphor sheet is scanned with excitation light such as a laser beam to generate stimulated luminescent light, and the resulting stimulated luminescent light is read out photoelectrically to produce an image signal. obtained,
The applicant has already proposed a radiation image information recording and reproducing system that outputs the radiation image of the subject as a visible image to a recording material such as a photographic light-sensitive material, CRT, etc. based on this image signal (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 55-12429 No. 55-1
No. 16340, No. 55-163472, No. 56-11
No. 39, No. 56-104645, etc.). In this system, the use of a light beam scanning device using a semiconductor laser has been considered in order to read the image information by scanning the stimulable phosphor sheet on which radiation image information has been stored and recorded. In order to stimulate the phosphor to emit light, it is necessary to irradiate the phosphor with excitation light of sufficiently high energy. It is also extremely difficult to use it for reading image information in a system.

Therefore, as mentioned above, in order to obtain a sufficiently high-energy scanning beam from a semiconductor laser with low optical output, it is possible to use multiple semiconductor lasers and combine the laser beams emitted from these semiconductor lasers into one beam. . As shown in FIG. 4, for example, as a semiconductor laser light source device that synthesizes a plurality of laser beams, a plurality of semiconductor lasers 11.
12.13.14 were arranged, and each laser beam 31.32.33.34 emitted from these semiconductor lasers 11.12.13.14 was made into a parallel beam by a collimator lens 21.22.23.24. It has been considered that the light is passed through a focusing lens 6 at the top and focused at one point by the focusing lens 6. In addition, in the apparatus shown in FIG. 4, plane mirrors 41, 42, 43, 44
Laser beams 31-3 spaced apart from each other by
4 is deflected by an optical deflector 5 such as a galvanometer mirror, and focused to a spot S by a focusing lens 6,
The surface to be scanned 7 is scanned.

By the way, in the semiconductor laser light source device with the above configuration,
In order to avoid increasing the size of the focusing lens 6 and the optical deflector 5 for beam scanning, and to reduce the influence of aberrations of the focusing lens 6, the laser beams 31 to 34 are placed as close to each other as possible, and It is desirable to make the light incident on the optical deflector 5 and the focusing lens 6 in a state where the light is aligned in a - line. Therefore, the positions of each of the semiconductor lasers 11 to 14 and the collimator lenses 21 to 24 are made adjustable in the direction of changing the optical axis spacing (the direction of the arrow X in FIG. It is conceivable to finely adjust the injection position of ~34. However, these semiconductor lasers 11-1
4 and collimator lenses 21 to 24 are usually provided with adjustment mechanisms (t) for aligning their respective optical axes parallel to each other.
I) Therefore, if a position adjustment mechanism such as the one described above is added, this part will become extremely complicated and large.

(Objective of the Invention) Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor laser light source device that can easily adjust the positions of a plurality of mutually parallel laser beams that are incident on a focusing lens. be.

(Structure of the Invention) As described above, the semiconductor laser light source device of the present invention is a semiconductor laser that combines laser beams emitted from a plurality of semiconductor lasers, collimated, and made parallel to each other into one point by a focusing lens. The light source device is characterized in that a parallel plane plate supported so as to be able to change its inclination with respect to the laser beam is disposed in each optical path of each of the laser beams.

(Embodiments) Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on embodiments shown in the drawings.

1.2 and 3 show one embodiment of the semiconductor laser light source device of the present invention. As shown in FIG.
4 are arranged with their beam emission axes aligned parallel to each other, and each of these semiconductor lasers 11, 12, 13, 14 is provided with a collimator lens 21, 22, 23, 24 at λ1.
Anti-Q・1 mirror 41, 42, 43, 44 is installed CJ. The laser beams 31.32.33.34 emitted from each semiconductor laser 11.12.13.14 are
The remetering lenses 21.22.23.24 convert them into parallel beams, and these parallel beams pass through the reflecting mirror 41.4.
2.43.44, and is deflected by the optical deflector 5, which rotates back and forth in the direction of the arrow in the figure. The deflected laser beams 31 to 34 enter a common focusing lens 6,
The focusing lens 6 focuses the combined beam into one composite beam spot 1-S, and each of the beams is focused on the respective spora 1-S. [If the surface to be scanned 7 is placed at the position where the spot S is irradiated, the surface to be scanned 7 will be
The laser beams 31 to 34 obtained by I=J Hj from the respective semiconductor lasers 11 to 14 are combined and scanned in the direction of arrow B by a high-energy scanning beam. Note that the surface to be scanned 7 is usually a flat surface, and a 1゛θ lens is used as the focusing lens 6 on the lζth plane.

Here, as a characteristic part of the apparatus of the present invention, between the collimator lenses 21 to 24 and the reflecting mirrors 41 to 44, the optical path of each laser beam 31 to 34 includes a parallel plane plate 51 that transmits and covers one norther beam 31 to 34, respectively. .52.03.
54 are arranged. As shown in FIG. 2, the parallel plane plate 51 is supported rotatably around a horizontal rotation axis 62 by a support 61 that is rotatable around a vertical axis 1160. . The rotation shafts 60 and 62 are connected to a known fine rotation mechanism (not shown), and when these rotation shafts 60 and 62 are rotated, the parallel plane plate 51 is tilted with respect to the laser beam 37. Rotate to change.

Note that other parallel plane plates 52 to 54 not shown in the enlarged drawings are also
It is supported in the same way as the parallel plane plate 51 described above.

As shown in the plan view of FIG. 3, when the parallel plane plate 51 is rotated about the rotation axis 60, the laser beam 31 is refracted so that the distance between adjacent laser beams 32 changes. Become. Therefore, by adjusting the rotating position of this parallel plane plate 51, the laser beam 31 emitted from the mirror 41 can be brought as close as possible to the adjacent laser beam 32, and will not be eclipsed by the reflecting mirror 42. It can be set at such a position (Z-direction position in FIG. 1). The positions of the other laser beams 32 to 34 can also be adjusted in the same manner as described above by adjusting the rotational positions of the parallel plane plates 52 to 54, respectively.

Further, by rotating the parallel plane plate 51 about the rotation shaft 62, the vertical position of the laser beam 31 (the position in the Y direction in FIG. 1) can be adjusted.

The other laser beams 32 to 34 are each parallel to 8
By operating the plane plates 52 to 54, the vertical position can be adjusted as described above, making it possible to align the four laser beams 31 to 34 exactly in one line.

In the present invention, the focusing lens 6 may be a single lens, or may be a combination of a plurality of lenses.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above in detail, according to the semiconductor laser light source device of the present invention, the intervals between the plurality of laser beams incident on the focusing lens and the optical deflector can be easily adjusted, and the distance between these laser beams can be easily adjusted. Adjustments to align them in line can also be easily made. Moreover, since the above adjustment is performed by a parallel plane plate with a simple structure placed in the laser beam optical path, the structure around the half-laser or remeter lens does not become complicated.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a semiconductor laser light source device according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view showing in detail a parallel plane plate used in the above embodiment device, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the above embodiment device FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an example of a conventional semiconductor laser light source device. 6...Focusing lens 11.12.13.14...Semiconductor laser 21.22
．． 23.24...Collimator lens 31.32.33
．． 34... Laser beam 51.52.53.54...
・Parallel plane plates 60, 62...Rotation axis of parallel plane plate 6
1...Support device No. 47), 4443 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 1999-1999 G1-2
12819(5) Figure, 42 41

Claims (1)

[Claims] In a semiconductor laser light source device that focuses laser beams emitted from a plurality of semiconductor lasers, which are collimated and made parallel to each other, to one point by a focusing lens,
A semiconductor laser light source device characterized in that a parallel plane plate supported so as to be able to change an inclination with respect to the beam is disposed in each optical path of each of the laser beams.