Optical system utilizing a transversely movable plate for focusing

Claim 2

A five element, variable focus, photographic objective comprising: four fixed elements of form positive, negative, negative, positive positioned in line along an optical axis, said first positive and negative fixed elements being structured to in combination be collimating, and said second negative and positive fixed elements being structured to in combination be convergent, said second negative element having one surface of predetermined rotational shape and another surface which is a nonrotational asphere in shape; and a refracting plate following said first fixed negative element of said objective and movable laterally across said optical axis, said refracting plate having at least one surface which is a nonrotational asphere in shape and faces said aspheric surface of said second negative fixed element, said aspheric surface of said refracting plate being operative to in combination with said opposed fixed aspheric surface of said second fixed negative element to provide said objective with a continuous range of dioptric power as said refracting plate moves across said optical axis over a predetermined range of distance.

Claim 3

The photographic objective of claim 1 wherein said aspheric surfaces of said refracting plate and said third fixed negative element are mathemetically described by a preselected polynomial equation of at least fifth order.

Claim 4

The photographic objective of claim 2 wherein said polynomial equation contains at least the following terms: X=A.sub.1 YZ.sup.2 +A.sub.2 YZ.sup.4 +A.sub.3 Y.sup.3 +A.sub.4 Y.sup.3 Z.sup.2 +A.sub.5 Y.sup.5 wherein X, Y, and Z are mutually orthogonal coordingate axes having origins at the respective vertices of said aspheric surfaces, X being the depth from a reference plane through a vertex and along said optical axis, and Y and Z being perpendicular to said X-axis.

Claim 5

The objective of claims 1 or 2 further comprising an aperture stop centrally located between said second and third negative elements and wherein said fixed elements of said objective are generally symmetrically arranged with respect to said central aperture stop to minimize certain aberrations including distortion, lateral color, coma and certain other higher order aberrations.

Claim 6

A multi-element, variable focus photographic objective comprising: a forward group of refracting elements fixed in line along an optical axis and configured and arranged with respect to one another so that light emerges from the last of said elements collimated or nearly collimated; a rearward group of refracting elements fixed along said optical axis; and a pair of refracting plates located between said forward and rearward groups in the path of collimated bundles of rays emergent from said forward group and including a fixed plate and a plate transversly moveable across said optical axis, said fixed plate having one surface of predetermined rotational shape and another surface which is a nonrotational asphere in shape, said fixed plate rotational surface and said second group of elements being configured and arranged with respect to one another to be optically convergent, said moveable plate having at least one surface which is a nonrotational asphere in shape and faces said aspheric surface of said fixed plate, said aspheric surface of said moveable plate and said opposed aspheric surface of said fixed plate being structured to cooperate with one another to provide said objective with a continuous range of dioptric power in correspondence with the movement of said moveable plate across said optical axis over a predetermined range of distance.

Claim 7

A multi-element, variable focus photographic objective comprising: a forward group of refracting elements fixed in line along an optical axis and configured and arranged with respect to one another so that light emerges from the last of said elements collimated or nearly collimated; a rearward group of refracting elements fixed along said optical axis; and a pair of refracting plates located between said forward and rearward groups in the path of collimated bundles of rays emergent from said forward group and including a fixed plate and a plate transversly moveable across said optical axis, said fixed plate having one surface of predetermined rotational shape and another surface which is a nonrotational asphere in shape, said fixed plate rotational surface and said second group of elements being configured and arranged with respect to one another to be optically convergent, said moveable plate having at least one surface which is a nonrotational asphere in shape and faces said aspheric surface of said fixed plate, said aspheric surface of said moveable plate and said opposed aspheric surface of said fixed plate being structured to cooperate with one another to provide said objective with a continuous range of dioptric power in correspondence with the movement of said moveable plate across said optical axis over a predetermined range of distance.

Claim 8

The photographic objective of claim 5 wherein said aspheric surfaces of said refracting plates are mathematically described by a preselected polynomial equation of at least fifth order.

Claim 9

The photographic objective of claim 6 wherein said polynomial equation contains at least the following terms: X=A.sub.1 YZ.sup.2 +A.sub.2 YZ.sup.4 +A.sub.3 Y.sup.3 +A.sub.4 Y.sup.3 Z.sup.2 +A.sub.5 Y.sup.5 wherein X, Y, and Z are mutually orthogonal coordinate axes having origins at the respective vertices of said aspheric surfaces, X being the depth from a reference plane through a vertex and along said optical axis, and Y and Z being perpendicular to said X-axis.

Claim 10

A multi-element, variable focus photographic objective having constructional data substantially in conformance with the following table: ______________________________________ Separation Surface Radius Medium Air N.sub.d V.sub.d ______________________________________ 1 0.3663 0.0650 1.678 55.2 2 30.77 0.0522 3 -0.6963 0.0200 1.596 39.2 4 0.5257 0.0240 5 plano 0.0180 1.592 30.8 6 plano* 0.0020 7 4.085* 0.0180 1.592 30.8 8 0.4439 0.0356 9 0.7821 0.0600 1.670 47.1 10 -0.4856 ______________________________________ *nonrotational aspheric wherein the surfaces of said elements are numbered in the order in which light is encountered in traveling from object to image space, N d is the index of refraction, V d is the Abbe number, said radii and separations are normalized with respect to a predetermined focal length, f o =113.86 mm, of said objective, surfaces 6 and 7 include a nonrotational aspheric surface replacing their base radii given in the above table of constructional data, surfaces 5 and 6 define an element of said objective which is adapted to move transverse to the optic axis of said objective and, in combination with the opposed fixed nonrotational aspheric surface of surface 7, provide said objective with a continuous range of dioptic power as said element moves across said objective optic axis, said radius of 4.085 for surface 7 given in the above constructional data being the dioptric equivalent vertex radius of surface 7 normalized by said predetermined focal length, f o , and wherein said aspheric surfaces are given by a polynomial equation of the form: X=A.sub.1 YZ.sup.2 +A.sub.2 YZ.sup.4 +A.sub.3 Y.sup.3 +A.sub.4 Y.sup.3 Z.sup.2 +A.sub.5 Y.sup.5 wherein the coefficients thereof, normalized to f o , are: A 1 =1.4125 A 2 =-0.2176 A 3 =0.4766 A 4 =0.1210 A 5 =-0.3849

Claim 11

A multi-element, variable focus photographic objective having constructional data substantially in conformance with the following table: ______________________________________ Separation Surface Radius Medium Air N.sub.d V.sub.d ______________________________________ 1 0.3663 0.0650 1.678 55.2 2 30.77 0.0522 3 -0.6963 0.0200 1.596 39.2 4 0.5257 0.0240 5 plano 0.0180 1.592 30.8 6 plano* 0.0020 7 4.085* 0.0180 1.592 30.8 8 0.4439 0.0356 9 0.7821 0.0600 1.670 47.1 10 -0.4856 ______________________________________ *nonrotational aspheric wherein the surfaces of said elements are numbered in the order in which light is encountered in traveling from object to image space, N d is the index of refraction, V d is the Abbe number, said radii and separations are normalized with respect to a predetermined focal length, f o =113.86 mm, of said objective, surfaces 6 and 7 include a nonrotational aspheric surface replacing their base radii given in the above table of constructional data, surfaces 5 and 6 define an element of said objective which is adapted to move transverse to the optic axis of said objective and, in combination with the opposed fixed nonrotational aspheric surface of surface 7, provide said objective with a continuous range of dioptic power as said element moves across said objective optic axis, said radius of 4.085 for surface 7 given in the above constructional data being the dioptric equivalent vertex radius of surface 7 normalized by said predetermined focal length, f o , and wherein said aspheric surfaces are given by a polynomial equation of the form: X=A.sub.1 YZ.sup.2 +A.sub.2 YZ.sup.4 +A.sub.3 Y.sup.3 +A.sub.4 Y.sup.3 Z.sup.2 +A.sub.5 Y.sup.5 wherein the coefficients thereof, normalized to f o , are: A 1 =1.4125 A 2 =-0.2176 A 3 =0.4766 A 4 =0.1210 A 5 =-0.3849

Claim 12

A multi-element, variable focus photographic objective having constructional data substantially in conformance with the following table: ______________________________________ Separation Surface Radius Medium Air N.sub.d V.sub.d ______________________________________ 1 0.3663 0.0650 1.678 55.2 2 30.77 0.0522 3 -0.6963 0.0200 1.596 39.2 4 0.5257 0.0240 5 plano 0.0180 1.592 30.8 6 plano* 0.0020 7 4.085* 0.0180 1.592 30.8 8 0.4439 0.0356 9 0.7821 0.0600 1.670 47.1 10 -0.4856 ______________________________________ *nonrotational aspheric ______________________________________ Separation Surface Radius Medium Air N.sub.d V.sub.d ______________________________________ 1 0.3663 0.0650 1.678 55.2 2 30.77 0.0522 3 -0.6963 0.0200 1.596 39.2 4 0.5257 0.0240 5 plano 0.0180 1.592 30.8 6 plano* 0.0020 7 4.085* 0.0180 1.592 30.8 8 0.4439 0.0356 9 0.7821 0.0600 1.670 47.1 10 -0.4856 ______________________________________ *nonrotational aspheric wherein the surfaces of said elements are numbered in the order in which light is encountered in traveling from object to image space, N d is the index of refraction, V d is the Abbe number, said radii and separations are normalized with respect to a predetermined focal length, f o =113.86 mm, of said objective, surfaces 5, 6 and 7 include a nonrotational aspheric surface replacing their base radii given in the above table of constructional data, surfaces 5 and 6 define an element of said objective which is adapted to move transverse to the optic axis of said objective and, in combination with the opposed fixed nonrotational aspheric surface of surface 7, provide said objective with a continuous range of dioptic power as said element moves across said objective optic axis, said radius of 4.503 for surface 7 given in the above constructional data being the dioptic equivalent vertex radius of surface 7 normalized by said predetermined focal length, f o , and wherein said aspheric surfaces are given by a polynomial equation of the form: X=A.sub.1 YZ.sup.2 +A.sub.2 YZ.sup.4 +A.sub.3 Y.sup.3 +A.sub.4 Y.sup.3 Z.sup.2 +A.sub.5 Y.sup.5 wherein the coefficients thereof, normalized to f o , are: ______________________________________ Surface 5 6 7 ______________________________________ A1 -0.3570 0.3570 0.7140 A2 0.1859 -0.1859 -0.3719 A3 -0.1221 0.1221 0.2443 A4 0.0016 -0.0016 -0.0032 A5 0.0862 -0.0862 -0.1723 ______________________________________

Claim 13

A multi-element, variable focus photographic objective having constructional data substantially in conformance with the following table: ______________________________________ Separation Surface Radius Medium Air N.sub.d V.sub.d ______________________________________ 1 0.3663 0.0650 1.678 55.2 2 30.77 0.0522 3 -0.6963 0.0200 1.596 39.2 4 0.5257 0.0240 5 plano 0.0180 1.592 30.8 6 plano* 0.0020 7 4.085* 0.0180 1.592 30.8 8 0.4439 0.0356 9 0.7821 0.0600 1.670 47.1 10 -0.4856 ______________________________________ *nonrotational aspheric ______________________________________ Separation Surface Radius Medium Air N.sub.d V.sub.d ______________________________________ 1 0.3663 0.0650 1.678 55.2 2 30.77 0.0522 3 -0.6963 0.0200 1.596 39.2 4 0.5257 0.0240 5 plano 0.0180 1.592 30.8 6 plano* 0.0020 7 4.085* 0.0180 1.592 30.8 8 0.4439 0.0356 9 0.7821 0.0600 1.670 47.1 10 -0.4856 ______________________________________ *nonrotational aspheric wherein the surfaces of said elements are numbered in the order in which light is encountered in traveling from object to image space, N d is the index of refraction, V d is the Abbe number, said radii and separations are normalized with respect to a predetermined focal length, f o =113.86 mm, of said objective, surfaces 5, 6 and 7 include a nonrotational aspheric surface replacing their base radii given in the above table of constructional data, surfaces 5 and 6 define an element of said objective which is adapted to move transverse to the optic axis of said objective and, in combination with the opposed fixed nonrotational aspheric surface of surface 7, provide said objective with a continuous range of dioptic power as said element moves across said objective optic axis, said radius of 4.503 for surface 7 given in the above constructional data being the dioptic equivalent vertex radius of surface 7 normalized by said predetermined focal length, f o , and wherein said aspheric surfaces are given by a polynomial equation of the form: X=A.sub.1 YZ.sup.2 +A.sub.2 YZ.sup.4 +A.sub.3 Y.sup.3 +A.sub.4 Y.sup.3 Z.sup.2 +A.sub.5 Y.sup.5 wherein the coefficients thereof, normalized to f o , are: ______________________________________ Surface 5 6 7 ______________________________________ A1 -0.3570 0.3570 0.7140 A2 0.1859 -0.1859 -0.3719 A3 -0.1221 0.1221 0.2443 A4 0.0016 -0.0016 -0.0032 A5 0.0862 -0.0862 -0.1723 ______________________________________