JP2009071663A - Movement mechanism and imaging apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a movement mechanism capable of moving a movement section in parallel with the driving direction of a driving section without using a plurality of driving sections and without depending on the driving of the driving section itself, and an imaging apparatus using the movement section. <P>SOLUTION: The movement mechanism is provided, in which the movement section is connected to a fixed section by a beam having a spring property, and the driving section moves the movement section, so that the movement section can thereby be moved in parallel with the driving direction of the driving section without using a plurality of driving sections and without depending on the driving of the driving section itself. The imaging apparatus using the movement mechanism can be provided. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a moving mechanism and an imaging apparatus, and more particularly, to a moving mechanism that moves a moving part connected by a fixed part and a beam in parallel with the driving direction of the driving part by the spring property of the beam, and an imaging apparatus using the moving mechanism. About.

  In recent years, ultra-small micro camera units (hereinafter referred to as MCUs) equipped with a high-power zoom lens, an autofocus function, and a camera shake correction function have been mounted on mobile phones and the like. In an ultra-small imaging device such as an MCU, a space that can be used for realizing an autofocus function and a camera shake correction function is limited, and the point is how to improve the performance within the limited space. At this time, there is a method of moving an image sensor that is smaller and lighter than the imaging optical system.

  In order to achieve high performance in the method of moving the image sensor, for example, in the auto focus function, it is necessary to move the image sensor in parallel to the optical axis of the imaging optical system of the MCU. It is necessary to move the element in parallel in a plane perpendicular to the optical axis of the imaging optical system of the MCU.

Therefore, for example, in order to achieve the autofocus function, a method has been proposed in which a plurality of small electrostatic drive actuators are prepared, and the image sensor is moved in parallel with the optical axis of the optical system by the spring force of each actuator ( For example, see Patent Document 1).
JP 2005-237174 A

  However, in the method of Patent Document 1, it is necessary to arrange many small actuators under a very small area on the back surface of the image sensor. If the number of actuators to be arranged is small, the image pickup device tilts or snakes due to variations in the driving force of the actuators and the autofocus performance deteriorates.

  Moreover, in order to arrange many actuators, it is necessary to manufacture the actuators more finely, and the manufacturing problems are great. Further, when the actuator is downsized, the generated force is weakened, the driving distance is reduced, and the image pickup device cannot be moved.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and without using a plurality of driving units, without depending on driving of the driving unit itself, the moving unit can be moved in parallel with the driving direction of the driving unit. It is an object of the present invention to provide a moving mechanism that can be used and an imaging apparatus using the moving mechanism.

  The object of the present invention can be achieved by the following constitution.

1. A fixed portion having a recess composed of at least a bottom surface and a side surface;
A plate-shaped moving part for mounting the moved part;
A drive unit that is provided between the back surface of the surface of the moving unit on which the moving unit is mounted and the bottom surface of the recess, and moves the moving unit in a direction perpendicular to the bottom surface of the recess;
A moving mechanism comprising: a plurality of beams having one end fixed to the moving portion, the other end fixed to a side surface of the recess, and spring properties in a direction in which the moving portion is moved.

2. The plurality of beams are cantilevered support beams whose one ends are fixed at different positions in the thickness direction of the same end surface of the moving unit,
2. The moving mechanism according to 1, wherein the plurality of beams, end surfaces of the moving unit, and side surfaces to which the plurality of beams of the concave portion are fixed form a parallelogram.

  3. 2. The moving mechanism according to 1, wherein one end of each of the plurality of beams is fixed to at least one pair of opposing end surfaces of the moving unit, and the other end is fixed to the opposing side surfaces of the concave portion.

4). The moved part is an electronic circuit part formed in a semiconductor manufacturing process,
The moving part and the plurality of beams are formed of the same main material as the moved part,
The moving mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein at least a part of the moved part is joined to the moving part by a direct joining technique.

5). The moved portion, the moving portion, and the plurality of beams are housed in the recess,
A sealing portion covering the recess,
The moving mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the concave portion is sealed by the fixing portion and the sealing portion.

  6). The moving mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein a wiring for connecting the moved portion and the outside is formed on at least one of the moving portion and the plurality of beams.

7). A flat plate-like first moving part for mounting the moved part;
A first fixed portion provided to surround at least three sides of the first moving portion in the same plane as the first moving portion;
A plurality of first drive units disposed between the first moving unit and the first fixed unit, the first driving unit moving the first moving unit with respect to the first fixed unit in the same plane; One end is fixed to the same end surface of the first moving part, the other end is fixed to the first fixing part, and a plurality of first elements are provided with a spring property in a direction in which the first moving part is moved. And
A second fixing portion having a recess composed of at least a bottom surface and a side surface;
The first fixing portion is disposed between the first fixing portion and the second fixing portion, and the first fixing portion is moved in the same plane with respect to the second fixing portion, and the moving direction of the first moving portion is A plurality of second drive units that move in a vertical direction;
One end is fixed to the same end surface of the first fixing portion, the other end is fixed to a side surface of the second fixing portion, and a plurality of spring properties are provided in a direction in which the first fixing portion is moved. A moving mechanism comprising a second beam.

8). The moved part is an electronic circuit part formed in a semiconductor manufacturing process,
The first moving part, the first fixed part, the plurality of first beams, and the plurality of second beams are formed of the same main material as the moved part,
8. The moving mechanism according to 7, wherein at least a part of the moved part is joined to the first moving part by a direct joining technique.

9. The moved portion, the first moving portion, the first fixed portion, the plurality of first drive portions, the plurality of first beams, the plurality of second drive portions, and the plurality of second portions. Is housed in the recess,
A sealing portion covering the recess,
The moving mechanism according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the concave portion is sealed by the fixing portion and the sealing portion.

  10. Wiring for connecting the moved part and the outside to at least one of the first moving part, at least one of the plurality of first beams, the first fixed part and the plurality of second beams. 10. The moving mechanism according to any one of 7 to 9, wherein

  11. The moving mechanism according to claim 6 or 10, wherein the wiring is formed by printing.

12 An imaging optical system;
The moving mechanism according to any one of 1 to 11,
An image pickup apparatus, wherein the moved part is an image sensor.

  According to the present invention, the moving unit and the fixed unit are connected by a beam having a spring property, and the moving unit is moved by the driving unit, so that it depends on driving of the driving unit itself without using a plurality of driving units. Accordingly, it is possible to provide a moving mechanism capable of moving the moving unit in parallel with the driving direction of the driving unit and an imaging apparatus using the moving mechanism.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described based on the illustrated embodiment, but the present invention is not limited to the embodiment. In the drawings, the same or equivalent parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

  First, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a first embodiment of a moving mechanism in the present invention, and FIG. ) Is a plan view, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA ′ of FIG.

  1A and 1B, the moving mechanism 100 includes a fixed portion 111, a moved portion 151, a moving portion 161, four beams 171, four beam support portions 175, a driving portion 121, and the like.

  The moving part 161 is a rectangular plate having rigidity, and is connected to the four beams 171 at each central part of the four sides of the rectangle and is integrally formed. The moving part 161 and the four beams 171 are accommodated in the recessed part 113 of the fixed part 111, and the moving part 161 is in contact with the inner wall of the recessed part 113 of the fixed part 111 via the four beams 171.

  The beam 171 has a shape in which the width of the portion connected to the moving portion 161 and the fixed portion 111 is narrow and the center portion is wide. A slit 173 (a cross-shaped slit in FIG. 1A) is provided at the center of the beam 171, thereby imparting a spring property in the drive direction of the drive unit 121 (Z direction in FIG. 1B). Yes.

  The moved portion 151 is an electronic circuit manufactured by a semiconductor manufacturing process such as an image sensor, an acceleration sensor, a position sensor, a temperature sensor, or an integrated circuit in which these and peripheral circuits are integrated. The moving unit 161 is mounted on one plane, and at least a part of the moving unit 161 is fixed to the moving unit 161. The fixing method will be described later.

  The driving unit 121 is disposed between the back surface of the moving unit 151 mounting surface of the moving unit 161 and the fixed unit 111, and moves the moving unit 161 in the Z direction in FIG. As the drive unit 121, for example, a laminated piezoelectric element, an electrostatic actuator, or the like is conceivable, but the drive unit 121 is not limited thereto, and many other actuators can be used. Details will be described later.

  A beam support portion 175 for lifting the moving portion 161 and the four beams 171 from the bottom surface of the concave portion of the fixing portion 111 by the height of the driving portion 121 is provided at a portion of the beam 171 contacting the inner wall of the fixing portion 111. ing. The beam support portion 175 is formed integrally with the moving portion 161 and the four beams 171, and is formed at a right angle in the −Z direction in the drawing at a portion in contact with the inner wall of the fixed portion 111 of the beam 171. A method of forming the moving part 161, the four beams 171 and the beam support part 175 will be described later.

  The moved portion 151, the moving portion 161, the four beams 171, the four beam support portions 175, and the driving portion 121 are all housed in the recess 113 of the fixed portion 111 and sealed by a sealing member 131 such as a cover glass. Has been. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent dust from adhering to the surface of the moved portion 151, biting of foreign matter into the beam 171 and corrosion of each portion due to humidity.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating an operation state of the moving mechanism 100 illustrated in FIG. 1.

  In FIG. 2, the drive unit 121 expands and contracts in the Z direction in the figure by a signal from an external drive circuit (not shown). Since the moving unit 161 is a rigid flat plate, the moving unit 161 moves in the Z direction in synchronization with the expansion and contraction of the driving unit 121. At this time, since the four sides of the moving portion 161 are connected to the fixed portion 111 by the four beams 171 having spring properties in the Z direction, the moving portion 161 has its surface due to the balance of the spring properties of the four beams 171. With the moved portion 151 mounted thereon, it is moved in parallel to the Z direction without tilting.

  FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing another embodiment of the beam support portion 175 shown in FIG.

  In FIG. 3, the beam support portion 175 as shown in FIG. 1 is not provided, and instead, a projection 115 for supporting the beam 171 is provided on the inner wall portion of the fixed portion 111. The integrally formed moving portion 161 and beam 171 are inserted into the recessed portion 113 of the fixed portion 111 from the + Z direction in the figure, the back surface of the moving portion 161 is in contact with the upper surface of the drive portion 121, and the fixed portion 111 of the beam 171 is inserted. A portion in contact with the inner wall of the projection contacts the upper surface of the projection 115. The back surface of the moving unit 161 and the upper surface of the driving unit 121, and the portion of the beam 171 in contact with the inner wall of the fixing unit 111 and the upper surface of the projection 115 are fixed by, for example, bonding. In the example shown in FIG. 3, the operation of the moving mechanism 100 is the same as that shown in FIG.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment of the present invention, when the moving unit 161 is moved in the Z direction by the expansion and contraction of the driving unit 121, the four sides of the moving unit 161 are connected to the fixed unit 111. Due to the spring balance of the four beams 171 that are present, the moving part 161 can be moved in parallel to the Z direction without being inclined, and the moved part 151 mounted on the surface of the moving part 161 is also not inclined. Can be moved parallel to the Z direction.

  Further, the moved portion 151, the moving portion 161, the four beams 171 and the driving portion 121 are all housed in the recess 113 of the fixed portion 111 and are sealed by a sealing member 131 such as a cover glass. Further, it is possible to prevent dust from adhering to the surface of the moved portion 151, biting of foreign matter into the beam 171 and corrosion of each portion due to humidity.

  Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 is a schematic view showing a second embodiment of the moving mechanism in the present invention, FIG. 4 (a) is a plan view, FIG. FIG. 4C is a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC ′ of FIG.

  4A, 4 </ b> B, and 4 </ b> C, the moving mechanism 100 includes a fixed portion 111, a moved portion 151, a moving portion 161, two beams 181, two beams 183, and four protruding portions 115. And a drive unit 121 and the like.

  The moving part 161 is a rectangular plate having rigidity, and is connected to the two beams 181 and the two beams 183 at four locations on the end surface of one side of the rectangle, and is integrally formed. The moving part 161 and the two beams 181 and the two beams 183 are housed in the recess 113 of the fixed part 111, and the moving part 161 is connected to the fixed part 111 via the two beams 181 and the two beams 183. Are fixed to four protrusions 115 of the recess 113.

  The two beams 181 and the two beams 183 are so-called cantilever support beams, and are supported by portions fixed to the four protruding portions 115. The other ends of the two beams 181 and the two beams 183 are integrally formed with the moving unit 161 at four positions on one end face of the rectangular side of the moving unit 161.

  As shown in FIG. 4B, the positions of the two beams 181 and the two beams 183 are shifted from each other in the thickness direction of the end surface of the moving unit 161. As a result, the two beams 181 and the two beams 183 form a so-called parallel leaf spring and have a spring property in the driving direction of the driving unit 121 (Z direction in FIG. 4C). Here, for example, a total of four beams of the two beams 181 and the two beams 183 have the same shape, whereby the spring properties of the four beams can be made the same.

  As in the first embodiment, the moved portion 151 is a semiconductor manufacturing device such as an image sensor, an acceleration sensor, a position sensor, a temperature sensor, or an integrated circuit in which these and peripheral circuits are integrated. It is an electronic circuit manufactured by a process, is mounted on one plane of the moving part 161, and at least a part of the moving part 161 is fixed to the moving part 161. The fixing method will be described later.

  Similarly to the first embodiment, the drive unit 121 is also disposed between the back surface of the moving unit 151 mounting surface of the moving unit 161 and the fixed unit 111, and the moving unit 161 is arranged in the Z direction in FIG. Move to. As the drive unit 121, for example, a multilayer piezoelectric element, an electrostatic actuator, and the like are conceivable as in the first embodiment, but the present invention is not limited to this, and many other actuators can be used. Details will be described later.

  The protruding portion 115 of the fixing portion 111 has the same configuration as shown in FIG. 3, supports the portions of the two beams 181 and the two beams 183 that are in contact with the inner walls of the fixing portion 111, and is fixed by a method of bonding. ing. Of course, the same configuration as that of the beam support portion 175 shown in FIG. 1 may be adopted.

  The moving part 151, the moving part 161, the two beams 181 and the two beams 183, the four projecting parts 115, and the driving part 121 are all housed in the concave part 113 of the fixed part 111 and sealed with a cover glass or the like. It is sealed by a stop member 131. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent dust from adhering to the surface of the moved portion 151, biting of foreign matter into the two beams 181 and two beams 183, corrosion of each portion due to humidity, and the like.

  FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating an operation state of the moving mechanism 100 illustrated in FIG. 4.

  In FIG. 5, the drive unit 121 expands and contracts in the Z direction in the figure by a signal from an external drive circuit (not shown). Since the moving unit 161 is a rigid flat plate, the moving unit 161 moves in the Z direction in synchronization with the expansion and contraction of the driving unit 121. At this time, as described in FIG. 4, the spring properties of the four beams 181 and 183 are the same, so that the four beams are balanced by the balance of the four beam spring properties. The moving part 161 is moved so that the parallelogram formed by the end face of the moving part 161 to which the four beams are fixed and the inner wall 113 of the fixing part 111 to which the four beams are fixed is maintained. Therefore, the moving part 161 is moved in parallel with the Z direction without tilting in a state where the moved part 151 is mounted on the surface thereof.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment of the present invention, when the moving unit 161 is moved in the Z direction by expansion and contraction of the driving unit 121, one side of the moving unit 161 is connected to the fixed unit 111. The two beams 181 and 183, which are cantilever supporting beams, can be moved in parallel to the Z direction without tilting the movable portion 161 without being tilted. The moved part 151 mounted on the can also be moved parallel to the Z direction without being inclined.

  Further, the moved portion 151, the moving portion 161, the two beams 181, the two beams 183, the driving portion 121, and the like are all housed in the concave portion 113 of the fixed portion 111, and a sealing member 131 such as a cover glass. Therefore, it is possible to prevent dust from adhering to the surface of the moved part 151, biting of foreign matter into the beams 181 and 183, corrosion of each part due to humidity, and the like.

  Next, an example of an imaging apparatus including the moving mechanism 100 according to the first or second embodiment described above will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an example of the imaging apparatus 10 including the moving mechanism 100 according to the second embodiment described above.

  In FIG. 6, the moving part 151, the moving part 161, the two beams 181, the two beams 183, and the driving part 121, which are imaging elements, are housed in the recess 113 of the fixed part 111, which is an imaging element package. Yes. The opening of the fixed portion 111 is sealed by a sealing member 131 that is an infrared light (IR) cut filter, and constitutes the moving mechanism 100 that is an autofocus unit of the imaging device 10 that is the MCU described above. Yes.

  On the moving mechanism 100, the imaging optical system 300 of the imaging apparatus 10 in which the imaging lenses 301 and 303 are fixedly housed in the lens barrel 311, for example, the optical axis 305 of the imaging optical system 300 is connected to the moved portion 151. It is arranged so as to coincide with the center of the pixel portion. The fixing unit 111 and the lens barrel 311 are connected by, for example, bonding or the like, and constitute the imaging device 10 that is an MCU.

  During the autofocus operation of the imaging apparatus 10, for example, based on the image signal of the moved unit 151 that is an image sensor, the autofocus circuit (not shown) detects the focus state on the imaging surface of the moved unit 151 and the moved unit 151. The direction of movement is determined. Based on the movement direction determined by the autofocus circuit, the drive unit 121 is expanded and contracted in the Z direction in the figure by a signal from an external drive circuit (not shown), and the moved part 151 is moved in the Z direction by the principle described in FIG. Translated. As a result, the relative positional relationship between the imaging optical system 300 and the moved portion 151 that is an imaging element is changed. The series of operations described above are repeated, and the autofocus operation of the imaging device 10 is performed.

  FIG. 6 shows an example of the imaging apparatus 10 including the moving mechanism 100 of the second embodiment, but the same applies even when the moving mechanism 100 of the first embodiment is used.

  As described above, according to the imaging apparatus 10 including the moving mechanism 100 of the first or second embodiment, the moving unit that is an imaging element is moved by the moving mechanism 100 of the first or second embodiment. 151 can be moved in parallel without being inclined with respect to the optical axis 305, so that it is possible to provide the high-quality image pickup apparatus 10 that is free from image blurring.

  Further, since the moving mechanism 100 is sealed by the fixed portion 111 and the sealing member 131, the adhesion of dust to the surface of the moved portion 151, the biting of foreign matter into the beam 171 or the beams 181 and 183, Thus, corrosion of each part due to humidity can be prevented, and a highly reliable imaging device 10 can be provided.

  Next, an example of a method for taking out the power supply of the moved portion 151 that is an image sensor and the wiring for an image signal or the like will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a method for taking out the wiring of the moved portion 151 to the outside. FIG. 7 shows only the moved portion 151, the moving portion 161, and the beams 181 and 183 in the second embodiment of the moving mechanism 100 shown in FIG.

  In FIG. 7, for example, eight bonding pads 151a for wiring such as a power source and an image signal formed by a semiconductor manufacturing process are provided on a moved portion 151 that is an image sensor. . A bonding pad 161 a is also provided at a position on the moving portion 161 facing the bonding pad 151 a of the moved portion 151, and the wiring 161 b is drawn from the bonding pad 161 a to the end of the beam 181. The bonding pads 151a and 161a facing each other are connected by a bonding wire 155.

  The wiring 161b at the end of the two beams 181 is connected to the wiring on the fixed portion 111, which is an image sensor package, by, for example, a conductive adhesive, and thereby the moved portion 151 that is an image sensor and the image sensor package. Is connected to a circuit outside the fixed portion 111, and signals are exchanged.

  The bonding pad 161a and the wiring 161b on the moving part 161 and the beam 181 may be formed by a semiconductor manufacturing process, for example, or may be formed by a printing method such as an inkjet method.

  By providing the bonding pad 161a and the wiring 161b on the moving part 161 and the beam 181 as described above, there is no need to connect a bonding wire between the moving part 151 to be moved and the fixed part 111. It is possible to prevent the danger that the bonding wire is swayed and broken along with the movement, thereby contributing to the improvement of the reliability of the moving mechanism 100. The wiring formation method described above can also be applied to the third embodiment of the present invention described later with reference to FIG.

  Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 8A and 8B are schematic views showing a third embodiment of the moving mechanism according to the present invention. FIG. 8A is a plan view showing a state before the movement, and FIG. 8B is a plane showing a state after the movement. FIG. In the first and second embodiments, the mechanism for moving the moved portion 151 in the Z direction is shown. In the third embodiment, the planar moved portion 151 is moved in the plane direction. The mechanism to be performed will be described.

  8A, the moving mechanism 200 includes a fixed portion 211, a moved portion 151, a first moving portion 261, two first beams 293, two first driving portions 223, and a second moving portion 200. The moving unit 263, two second beams 295, two second driving units 225, and the like are included.

  The first moving unit 261 is a rectangular plate having rigidity, and is connected to one end of the two first beams 293 at two ends of the end surface of one side of the rectangle. The other end of the two first beams 293 is one of the second moving portions 263 which is a flat plate having a rectangular shape surrounding the first moving portion 261 and the two first beams 293. Connected to the edge. The second moving portion 263 is connected to one end of the two second beams 295 at two positions on both ends of the end surface of one side thereof. The other ends of the two second beams 295 are in contact with the inner wall side surface of the recess 213 of the fixing portion 211 and are fixed by bonding or the like. The first moving portion 261, the two first beams 293, the second moving portion 263, and the two second beams 295 are integrally formed.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the two first driving units 223 have driving forces opposite to each other in the X direction in FIG. 8 in two gaps between the first moving unit 261 and the second moving unit 263. Arranged to act in the direction. As shown in FIG. 8, the two second driving units 225 have driving forces opposite to each other in the Y direction in FIG. 8 in two gaps between the second moving unit 263 and the inner wall side surface of the fixed unit 211. Arranged to act in the direction.

  As in the first and second embodiments, the moved portion 151 is, for example, an image sensor, an acceleration sensor, a position sensor, a temperature sensor, or other sensors, or an integrated circuit in which these and peripheral circuits are integrated. The electronic circuit is manufactured by a semiconductor manufacturing process, and is mounted on the surface of the first moving unit 261, and at least a part of the electronic circuit is fixed to the first moving unit 261. The fixing method will be described later.

  The moved part 151, the first moving part 261, the two first beams 293, the two first driving parts 223, the second moving part 263, the two second beams 295, and the two The second drive unit 225 is all housed in the recess 113 of the fixed unit 111 and is sealed by a sealing member such as a cover glass (not shown). This prevents dust from adhering to the surface of the moved portion 151, foreign matter biting into the two first beams 293 and the two second beams 295, and corrosion of each portion due to humidity. Can do.

  In FIG. 8B, when a driving signal is applied such that one of the two first driving units 223 expands and the other contracts by an external circuit (not shown), the two first beams 293 are applied. Acts as a parallel leaf spring, and the first moving portion 261 is translated in the X direction.

  Similarly, when a drive signal is applied so that one of the two second drive units 225 expands and the other contracts by an external circuit (not shown), the two second beams 295 are parallel leaf springs. As a result, the first moving unit 261 and the second moving unit 263 are translated in the Y direction.

  By simultaneously applying the drive signals to the two first drive units 223 and the two second drive units 225 described above, the driven unit 151 fixed on the first moving unit 261 It is possible to translate in the X and Y directions in the XY plane of the figure.

  As described above, according to the third embodiment of the present invention, when the first moving unit 261 is moved in the X and Y directions by the expansion and contraction of the first driving unit 223 or the second driving unit 225. Due to the spring balance of the two first beams 293 or the two second beams 295, the moving unit 261 can be moved in parallel in the X and Y directions without tilting. The moved portion 151 mounted on the surface can also be moved parallel to the X and Y directions without being inclined.

  Furthermore, the moved part 151, the first moving part 261, the two first beams 293, the two first driving parts 223, the second moving part 263, the two second beams 295 and 2 Since the individual second driving units 225 are all housed in the recesses 113 of the fixing unit 111 and sealed by a sealing member such as a cover glass, dust adheres to the surface of the moved unit 151. It is possible to prevent foreign matter from getting caught in the two first beams 293 and the two second beams 295, corrosion of each part due to humidity, and the like.

  Next, an example of an imaging apparatus including the moving mechanism 200 according to the third embodiment described above will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an example of the imaging apparatus 20 including the moving mechanism 200 according to the third embodiment described above.

  In FIG. 9, a moving part 151, which is an image sensor, a first moving part 261, two first beams 293, two first driving parts 223, a second moving part 263, and two first moving parts. The two beams 295 and the two second drive units 225 are housed in the recess 213 of the fixed unit 211 that is an image sensor package. The opening of the fixed portion 211 is sealed by a sealing member 131 that is an infrared light (IR) cut filter, and constitutes the moving mechanism 200 that is the camera shake correction unit of the imaging device 20 that is the MCU described above. ing.

  On the moving mechanism 200, the imaging optical system 300 of the imaging apparatus 20 in which the imaging lenses 301 and 303 are fixedly housed in the lens barrel 311 is, for example, in a state where the moving mechanism 200 is not driven. The optical axis 305 of the system 300 is arranged so as to coincide with the center of the pixel portion of the moved portion 151. The fixing unit 211 and the lens barrel 311 are connected by, for example, bonding or the like, and constitute the imaging device 20 that is an MCU.

  At the time of camera shake correction operation of the imaging apparatus 20, for example, based on a camera shake signal from a camera shake detection unit (not shown), the movement direction and the movement amount of the moved portion 151 are determined by a camera shake correction circuit (not shown). Based on the moving direction and moving amount determined by the camera shake correction circuit, two first driving units 223 and two second driving units 225 are driven by signals from an external driving circuit (not shown). According to the principle described in FIG. 8, the moved portion 151 is translated in the X and Y directions. As a result, the relative positional relationship between the imaging optical system 300 and the moved portion 151 that is the imaging element in the direction perpendicular to the optical axis 305 is changed, and the camera shake correction operation of the imaging device 20 is performed.

  As described above, according to the imaging apparatus 20 including the moving mechanism 200 of the third embodiment, the moved portion 151 that is an imaging element is moved to the optical axis 305 by the moving mechanism 200 of the third embodiment. Since it can be moved in parallel in a plane perpendicular to the optical axis 305 without being tilted, it is possible to provide a high-quality image pickup apparatus 10 that is free from image blurring or tilting.

  Furthermore, since the moving mechanism 200 is sealed by the fixed portion 211 and the sealing member 131, dust adheres to the surface of the moved portion 151, the two first beams 293, and the two second portions. Biting of foreign matter into the beam 295, corrosion of each part due to humidity, and the like can be prevented, and the imaging device 10 with high reliability can be provided.

  By combining the first or second embodiment and the third embodiment described above, the moved portion 151 that is an image sensor is placed in a plane perpendicular to the optical axis 305 of the image pickup optical system 300 (in the X direction and Y direction) and the optical axis 305 direction (Z direction) can be freely translated, and both functions of camera shake correction and autofocus can be achieved with high performance.

  Here, a method of forming a structure such as a moving part or a beam in the first to third embodiments will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a method of forming the moving part 161, the four beams 171, the slits 173, and the four beam support parts 175 in the first embodiment shown in FIG. The technique used here is a so-called microfabrication technique (hereinafter referred to as a MEMS technique) applying a semiconductor manufacturing process.

In FIG. 10A, a silicon oxide film (SiO ₂ ) called a sacrificial layer 403 is selectively stacked on a substrate 401 made of silicon (Si). In FIG. 10B, a structural layer 405 made of silicon (Si) having high conductivity doped with impurities is stacked on the substrate 401 and the sacrificial layer 403.

  In FIG. 10C, the structural layer 405 is selectively etched up to the sacrificial layer 403 to form the moving portion 161, the four beams 171 and the slit 173. In FIG. 10D, the substrate 401 is selectively etched up to the sacrificial layer 403 to form four beam support portions 175. In FIG. 10 (e), the sacrificial layer 403 is finally removed by the sacrificial layer etching technique, so that the moving part 161, the four beams 171, the slit 173, and the four beams in the first embodiment shown in FIG. A portion 175 can be formed.

  The moving part and the beam in the second embodiment shown in FIG. 4 and the third embodiment shown in FIG. 8 can also be formed by the same method.

  Next, a method for fixing the moved portion 151 to the moving portion 161 in the present embodiment will be described. As described above, the moved portion 151 in the present embodiment includes, for example, silicon (such as an imaging device, an acceleration sensor, a position sensor, a temperature sensor, and an integrated circuit in which these and peripheral circuits are integrated). This is an electronic circuit manufactured by a semiconductor manufacturing process using Si) as a main material. Further, as described with reference to FIG. 10, the moving unit 161 is also manufactured by MEMS technology using silicon (Si) as a main material.

  As described above, there is a direct bonding technique as a technique for bonding chips or components manufactured by a semiconductor manufacturing process or a MEMS technique using silicon (Si) or the like as a material. Direct bonding technology is a method in which chips and parts are directly bonded to each other using the attractive force between the surfaces of the same kind of material without using an adhesive, and the strength, distortion and inclination after bonding, This method is excellent in simplicity, space saving, and the like. In the present embodiment, since both the moved portion 151 and the moving portion 161 are made of silicon (Si), bonding by a direct bonding technique is possible, and the above-described advantages can be obtained.

  As for the direct bonding technology, for example, [National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology “Wafer Direct Bonding Technology” http: // stuff. aist. go. jp / takagi. hideki / waferbonding. html (searched on August 27, 2007)] and the like.

  As described above, by manufacturing chips and components using silicon (Si) or the like by a semiconductor manufacturing process or MEMS technology, the chips or components can be bonded by direct bonding technology, and the strength and strain after bonding can be increased. Advantages such as a small inclination, simple joining, and space saving can be obtained.

  Finally, the drive unit 121 in the present invention will be described. In the present invention, the driving unit 121 performs the first movement between the moving unit 161 and the fixed unit 111 as in the first and second embodiments, or as in the third embodiment, for example. As long as it can be arranged in the gap between the portion 261 and the second moving portion 263 and the gap between the second moving portion 263 and the inner wall side surface of the fixed portion 211, it does not depend on the type of the actuator, and the above-described stacked type A wide variety of actuators can be used, including piezoelectric elements and electrostatic actuators.

  From the actuators described in [Nagata et al., “Frontiers of Soft Actuator Development (Aiming at Realization of Artificial Muscle)” (NTS, Inc., first published on October 1, 2004)] Here are some examples of actuators that can be used in the invention.

(1) Ion conduction actuator (p. 96)
(2) Conductive polymer actuator (p. 96)
(3) Electric field driven polymer actuator (Fig. 12 on page 207)
(4) Liquid crystal gel actuator (Id. 217)
(5) Pneumatic soft actuator (page 294)
(6) Electric field drive type metal actuator (Fig. 11 on page 349)
The actuator shown here is only an example, and the present invention is not limited to the actuator described above.

  Depending on the material of the actuator, if the main material is silicon (Si), the actuator can be joined using the direct joining technique described above, or it can be deposited on the silicon (Si) structure by means such as vapor deposition. The actuator itself can also be formed. Moreover, if it is a different material, it can attach by methods, such as adhesion | attachment.

  As described above, according to the present invention, the moving unit and the fixed unit are connected by a beam having spring properties, and the moving unit is moved by the driving unit, without using a plurality of driving units. It is possible to provide a moving mechanism capable of moving the moving unit in parallel with the driving direction of the driving unit and an imaging apparatus using the moving mechanism without depending on the driving of the driving unit itself.

  The detailed configuration and detailed operation of each component constituting the moving mechanism and the imaging apparatus according to the present invention can be changed as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

It is a schematic diagram which shows 1st Embodiment of the moving mechanism in this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the operation state of the moving mechanism shown in FIG. It is a schematic diagram which shows other embodiment of the beam support part shown in FIG. It is a schematic diagram which shows 2nd Embodiment of the moving mechanism in this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the operation state of the moving mechanism shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows one example of the imaging device provided with the moving mechanism of 2nd Embodiment. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of the method of taking out the wiring of a to-be-moved part outside. It is a schematic diagram which shows 3rd Embodiment of the moving mechanism in this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows one example of the imaging device provided with the moving mechanism of 3rd Embodiment. It is a schematic diagram which shows the formation method of the moving part, four beams, a slit, and four beam support parts in 1st Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

10 imaging device 100 moving mechanism (autofocus unit)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 111 Fixed part 113 Recessed part (fixed part) 115 Projection part 121 Drive part 131 Sealing member 151 Moved part 151a Bonding pad 155 Bonding wire 161 Moving part 161a Bonding pad 161b Wiring 171 Beam 173 Slit 175 Beam support part 181 Beam 183 Beam 20 Imaging device 200 Moving mechanism (camera shake correction unit)
211 Fixed part 213 Concave part (of fixed part) 223 First drive part 225 Second drive part 261 First moving part 263 Second moving part 293 First beam 295 Second beam 300 Imaging optical system 301 Imaging Lens 303 Imaging lens 305 Optical axis (of imaging optical system) 311 Lens barrel 401 Substrate 403 Sacrificial layer 405 Structure layer

Claims (12)

A fixed portion having a recess composed of at least a bottom surface and a side surface;
A plate-shaped moving part for mounting the moved part;
A drive unit that is provided between the back surface of the surface of the moving unit on which the moving unit is mounted and the bottom surface of the recess, and moves the moving unit in a direction perpendicular to the bottom surface of the recess;
A moving mechanism comprising: a plurality of beams having one end fixed to the moving portion, the other end fixed to a side surface of the recess, and spring properties in a direction in which the moving portion is moved. The plurality of beams are cantilevered support beams whose one ends are fixed at different positions in the thickness direction of the same end surface of the moving unit,
The moving mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of beams, end surfaces of the moving unit, and side surfaces to which the plurality of beams of the concave portion are fixed form a parallelogram. 2. The moving mechanism according to claim 1, wherein one end of each of the plurality of beams is fixed to at least one pair of opposing end surfaces of the moving unit, and the other end is fixed to the opposing side surfaces of the recess. . The moved part is an electronic circuit part formed in a semiconductor manufacturing process,
The moving part and the plurality of beams are formed of the same main material as the moved part,
The moving mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein at least a part of the moved portion is joined to the moving portion by a direct joining technique. The moved portion, the moving portion, and the plurality of beams are housed in the recess,
A sealing portion covering the recess,
5. The moving mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the concave portion is sealed by the fixing portion and the sealing portion. The moving mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein a wiring for connecting the moved portion and the outside is formed on at least one of the moving portion and the plurality of beams. A flat plate-like first moving part for mounting the moved part;
A first fixed portion provided to surround at least three sides of the first moving portion in the same plane as the first moving portion;
A plurality of first drive units disposed between the first moving unit and the first fixed unit, the first driving unit moving the first moving unit with respect to the first fixed unit in the same plane; One end is fixed to the same end surface of the first moving part, the other end is fixed to the first fixing part, and a plurality of first elements are provided with a spring property in a direction in which the first moving part is moved. And
A second fixing portion having a recess composed of at least a bottom surface and a side surface;
The first fixing portion is disposed between the first fixing portion and the second fixing portion, and the first fixing portion is arranged in the same plane with respect to the second fixing portion, and the moving direction of the first moving portion is A plurality of second drive units that move in a vertical direction;
One end is fixed to the same end surface of the first fixing portion, the other end is fixed to a side surface of the second fixing portion, and a plurality of spring properties are provided in a direction in which the first fixing portion is moved. A moving mechanism comprising a second beam. The moved part is an electronic circuit part formed in a semiconductor manufacturing process,
The first moving part, the first fixed part, the plurality of first beams, and the plurality of second beams are formed of the same main material as the moved part,
The moving mechanism according to claim 7, wherein at least a part of the moved portion is joined to the first moving portion by a direct joining technique. The moved portion, the first moving portion, the first fixed portion, the plurality of first drive portions, the plurality of first beams, the plurality of second drive portions, and the plurality of second portions. Is housed in the recess,
A sealing portion covering the recess,
The movement mechanism according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the concave portion is sealed by the fixing portion and the sealing portion. Wiring for connecting the moved part and the outside to at least one of the first moving part, at least one of the plurality of first beams, the first fixed part, and the plurality of second beams. The moving mechanism according to claim 7, wherein the moving mechanism is formed. The moving mechanism according to claim 6, wherein the wiring is formed by printing. An imaging optical system;
A moving mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 11,
An image pickup apparatus, wherein the moved part is an image sensor.

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