GB1582346A

GB1582346A - Binocular viewer attachment for a microscope

Info

Publication number: GB1582346A
Application number: GB2735677A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Ernst Leitz Wetzlar GmbH
Current assignee: Ernst Leitz Wetzlar GmbH
Priority date: 1976-07-10
Filing date: 1977-06-30
Publication date: 1981-01-07
Also published as: CH615762A5; JPS539132A; DE2631118A1; FR2357919B1; FR2357919A1; JPS6216912U

Abstract

The binocular tube has a lower connecting piece (11) for mounting on a microscope tube and an upper connecting piece (12) for mounting of auxiliary units, e.g. a photometer. A deflecting prism (13, 14) having a partially transmitting reflecting surface (16) is arranged in the housing (10). Arranged to the side of the deflecting prism (13, 14) for the purpose of directly coupling a beam path of the auxiliary unit, e.g. a fiducial image, to the microscope beam path without using an intermediate tube are an optical system (18) and a triple mirror (19) which coaxially reflect the beam path (20), reflected at the deflecting prism (13, 14), of the auxiliary unit into the microscope beam path (15'), reflected at the same point, to the eyepieces (17). <IMAGE>

Description

(54) BINOCULAR VIEWER ATTACHMENT FOR A MICROSCOPE (71) We, ERNST LEITZ WETZLAB GMBH of 6330 Wetzlar, Postfach 2020, German Federal Republic, a limited liability company orgatrised tinder the laws of the German Federal Republic, do hereby declare the invention, for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement : The present invention relates to a binocular viewer attachment for a microscope and relates particularly to such an attachment which comprises a housing provided with a first stub housing element connectable to a microscope viewing tube and with a second housing element for connecting to the housing an accessory device, such as a photometer or a camera for example, and a deflecting prism mounted in the housing and provided with a partially transparent reflective surface.

If one wants to use such an attachment together with a photometer, then an intermediate tube is required, which contains the optical components necessary for the coupling of the photometer to the optical path of the microscope. The provision of such an intermediate tube gives rise not only to additional manufacturing effort, but it also increases the height of the resulting assembly, which is not always without problems.

According to the present invention there is provided a binocular viewer attachment for a microscope, the attachment comprising a housing provided with binocular viewing means, a first stub housing element connectable to the viewing tube of such microscope to receive light therefrom, a second stub housing element connectable to an accessory device, a deflecting prism mounted in the housing and provided with a partially transparent reflective surface disposed to reflect incident light along an imaging light path to said viewing means, an optical system, and a triple reflector element, the optical system and the triple reflector element each being mounted within the housing on a common optical axis coincident with an extension-rearwardly of the partially reflective surface - of the optical axis of the imaging light path from a point on said surface at which the optical axis of the imaging light path intersects the optical axis of the incident light path, and an exit surface on the deflecting prism extending substantially perpendicularly across the common optical axis.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be more particularly described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which: Fig. 1 shows a side elevational view of a binocular viewer attachment embodying the present invention; and Fig. 2 shows a perspective view of the attachment shown in Fig. 1.

Referring now to the accompanying drawing, as shown best in Fig. 1 a bincoular tube housing 10 is provided at its underside with a stub 11, by means of which it is mounted on the viewing tube 24, indicated in broken lines, of a microscope (not shown).

A stub 12 for the attachment of accessory devices is disposed on the upper side of the housing 10 as shown in the drawing.

For the purposes of illustration, a photometer 30 is shown as an accessory device, the significance of which will be described subsequently. Eye pieces 17 are mounted on an angled part of the tube housing as shown on the right in Fig. 1. A deflecting prism comprises two individual prisms 13 and 14 disposed in contact with one another and defining a partially transparent mirror surface 16 at their interface. This composite deflecting prism is mounted at an optical axis 15 of the stub 12. Part of the light flux derived from an object (not shown) is reflected at the surface 16 and, after further reflection at the base surface 14' of the prism 14, passes to the eye pieces 17. Moreover, an optical system 18 and a triple mirror 19 are disposed as shown in the housing 10. They are so arranged that their optical axes co-incide with the rearward prolongation 20 of the optical axis 15' mirrored by the partially reflective surface 16 at the penetration point at which the optical axis 15 of the incident light path intersects the reflective surface 16.

Furthermore, ra shutter lelement 21 is provided, which by means of drive means 22 may either be disposed in the observation ray path of the attachment or may be removed from it. Advantageously, the drive means 22 is electro-magnetically operable.

A photometer 30 which is capable of being mounted on the stub 12 of the binocular tube housing assembly, is shown as an example of an attachable device. The photometer 30 includes a pilot lamp 31, which can illuminate a measuring field diaphragm 34 by way of an optical system 32 and a mirror 33. The mirror 33 is movably mounted in such a manner that it can be brought selectably into two different relative positions with respect to the optical axis 15. In one position, it lies in the region of the optical axis 15 and thus in the optical ray path of the device. In its respective other position, the mirror does not extend into the optical path and therefore does not obstruct the optical path to a photo-electric receiver 35.

The measuring field diaphragm 34 is illuminated by means of the pilot lamp 31 and is imaged by way of the triple mirror 19 in intermediate image planes of the eye pieces 17 and is thus selectably visible by an observer using the two eye pieces 17 in dependence on the setting of the mirror 33.

The shutter element 21 has the task of preventing the passage of extraneous light through the two eye pieces 17 during the measurement by the photometer of light received from the microscope. One thus expediently couples the motions of the mirror 33 and the diaphragm 21 in such a manner that these are alternately introduced into the optical ray path or removed from it. As shown by broken lines in Fig. 2, solenoid 23 provides drive for displacing the diaphragm 21.

What has been described here has appreciable advantages compared with the initially mentioned arrangement with an intermediate tube. For one thing, one manages with a minimum of reflections, which is favourable for the brightness and thus the measurement accuracy. The adjustment is simple. For the other thing, the binocular viewer attachment described above permits in simplest manner the attachment of other devices with the reflecting-in of marks or with diaphragms of most diverse opening or spatial position into the intermediate image planes of the eye pieces.

WHAT WE CLAIM IS: 1. A binocular viewer attachment for a microscope, the attachment comprising a housing provided with binocular viewing means, a first stub housing element connectable to the viewing tube of such microscope to receive light therefrom, a second stub housing element connectable to an accessory device, a deflecting prism mounted in the housing and provided with a partially transparent reflective surface disposed to reflect incident light along an imaging light path to said viewing means, an optical system, and a triple reflector element, the optical system and the triple reflector element each being mounted within the housing on a common optical axis coincident with an extension-rearwardly of the partially reflective surface-of the optical axis of the imaging light path from a point on said surface at which the optical axis of the imaging light path intersects the optical axis of the incident light path, and an exit surface of the deflecting prism extending substantially perpendicularly across the common optical axis.

2. An attachment as claimed in claim 1, comprising a shutter element mounted in the housing to be selectably displaceable to control light reaching the viewing means.

3. An attachment as claimed in claim 2, comprising electro-magnetically operable means for displacing the shutter element.

4. An attachment as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the second stub housing element is connectable to an accessory device comprising either a photometer or a camera.

5. A binocular viewer attachment for a microscope, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawing.

6. A microscope comprising a binocular viewer attachmentFas claimed in any one of the preceding claims.

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. shown) is reflected at the surface 16 and, after further reflection at the base surface 14' of the prism 14, passes to the eye pieces 17. Moreover, an optical system 18 and a triple mirror 19 are disposed as shown in the housing 10. They are so arranged that their optical axes co-incide with the rearward prolongation 20 of the optical axis 15' mirrored by the partially reflective surface 16 at the penetration point at which the optical axis 15 of the incident light path intersects the reflective surface 16. Furthermore, ra shutter lelement 21 is provided, which by means of drive means 22 may either be disposed in the observation ray path of the attachment or may be removed from it. Advantageously, the drive means 22 is electro-magnetically operable. A photometer 30 which is capable of being mounted on the stub 12 of the binocular tube housing assembly, is shown as an example of an attachable device. The photometer 30 includes a pilot lamp 31, which can illuminate a measuring field diaphragm 34 by way of an optical system 32 and a mirror 33. The mirror 33 is movably mounted in such a manner that it can be brought selectably into two different relative positions with respect to the optical axis 15. In one position, it lies in the region of the optical axis 15 and thus in the optical ray path of the device. In its respective other position, the mirror does not extend into the optical path and therefore does not obstruct the optical path to a photo-electric receiver 35. The measuring field diaphragm 34 is illuminated by means of the pilot lamp 31 and is imaged by way of the triple mirror 19 in intermediate image planes of the eye pieces 17 and is thus selectably visible by an observer using the two eye pieces 17 in dependence on the setting of the mirror 33. The shutter element 21 has the task of preventing the passage of extraneous light through the two eye pieces 17 during the measurement by the photometer of light received from the microscope. One thus expediently couples the motions of the mirror 33 and the diaphragm 21 in such a manner that these are alternately introduced into the optical ray path or removed from it. As shown by broken lines in Fig. 2, solenoid 23 provides drive for displacing the diaphragm 21. What has been described here has appreciable advantages compared with the initially mentioned arrangement with an intermediate tube. For one thing, one manages with a minimum of reflections, which is favourable for the brightness and thus the measurement accuracy. The adjustment is simple. For the other thing, the binocular viewer attachment described above permits in simplest manner the attachment of other devices with the reflecting-in of marks or with diaphragms of most diverse opening or spatial position into the intermediate image planes of the eye pieces. WHAT WE CLAIM IS:

1. A binocular viewer attachment for a microscope, the attachment comprising a housing provided with binocular viewing means, a first stub housing element connectable to the viewing tube of such microscope to receive light therefrom, a second stub housing element connectable to an accessory device, a deflecting prism mounted in the housing and provided with a partially transparent reflective surface disposed to reflect incident light along an imaging light path to said viewing means, an optical system, and a triple reflector element, the optical system and the triple reflector element each being mounted within the housing on a common optical axis coincident with an extension-rearwardly of the partially reflective surface-of the optical axis of the imaging light path from a point on said surface at which the optical axis of the imaging light path intersects the optical axis of the incident light path, and an exit surface of the deflecting prism extending substantially perpendicularly across the common optical axis.