JP2002182117A - Optical microscope - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an optical microscope in which the handling time and labor for attachment and detachment of a member shielding vertical illuminating light can be saved and the forgetting to mount the shielding member can be prevented. SOLUTION: Mounting parts P1-P4 on which filter units can be mounted are disposed on a turret 6. When the mounting part P2 on which the filter units 7a-7c are not mounted is positioned in the vertical illuminating optical path by rotatively driving the turret 6 with a driving means 50, a shutter plate 31 is disposed in the vertical illuminating optical path and the light 22 of vertical illuminating light source 5 is intercepted. On the other hand, when the filter units 7a-7c are mounted on ports P1-P3, the shutter plate 31 is opened and a vertical illuminating observation can be performed by positioning either of the filter units 7a-7c in the vertical illuminating optical path.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an optical microscope used in the fields of living organisms, medicine, semiconductors and metals, and to an optical microscope capable of performing epi-illumination observation.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a microscope provided with a transmission illumination system and an epi-illumination system, the illumination system can be switched to transmission illumination or epi-illumination in accordance with a sample to be observed, and observation can be performed. One such microscope is an epifluorescence microscope. In an epi-illumination fluorescence microscope, light of a wavelength component (referred to as excitation light) effective for fluorescence observation is extracted from illumination light of a reflection illumination lamp (ultra high pressure mercury lamp or the like) using an excitation filter, and the excitation light is converted into light of an objective lens. The specimen is illuminated by being reflected by a dichroic mirror arranged on the axis. The specimen is previously stained with a staining substance, and when irradiated with excitation light, fluorescence is emitted from the staining substance in the tissue of the specimen. The fluorescence passes through the above-described dichroic mirror, and is guided to the observation optical system after the fluorescence having a wavelength unnecessary for observation is removed by an absorption filter provided on the optical axis of the objective lens.

Usually, such a microscope is provided with a plurality of filter optical systems so as to correspond to a plurality of fluorescent wavelengths, and by arranging one of them on the optical axis of an objective lens, a desired fluorescent light can be obtained. Observe about For example, as shown in FIG. 11, an excitation filter, an absorption filter and a dichroic mirror are incorporated in a cassette holder 48 to form a filter unit 7, and a plurality of such filter units 7 are mounted on a turret 6. When performing epi-fluorescence observation, the turret 6 is rotated and one of the filter units 7 is disposed on the optical axis 19 of the objective lens.

FIG. 11 is a view showing a setting for performing transmission illumination observation. The port P2 of the turret 6, on which the incident fluorescence observation filter unit 7 is not mounted, is positioned on the objective lens optical axis 19 for transmission illumination. Observe. A shielding plate 100 is attached to the cassette non-mounting port P2 so that the illumination light 22 from the epi-illumination light source 5 does not enter the objective lens optical axis 19 side. Transmission illumination light source 17
Is irradiated on the sample 11 through the total reflection mirror 47 and the condenser lens 16, and the light transmitted through the sample 11 passes through the objective lens 2, and then passes along the optical axis 19 to the lower portion of the turret frame 6 a. The light passes through the formed opening 6b, the opening 6c of the port P2, and the opening 6d formed above the turret frame 6a in this order, and is guided to an observation optical system (not shown). Instead of attaching the shielding plate 100 to the port P2, a dummy cassette holder 48 is mounted as shown in FIG. 12 to prevent the illumination light 22 of the epi-illumination light source 5 from entering the objective lens optical axis 19. Sometimes.

[0005]

Conventionally, in such a microscope, observation is performed by attaching a shield plate 100 or a dummy cassette holder 48 as an epi-illumination shielding member to the cassette non-mounting port P2 of the turret 6. It is supposed to be. However, every time the filter unit 7 is attached to or detached from the turret 6, it takes time to remove or attach the shielding plate 100 and the dummy cassette holder 48.

An object of the present invention is to provide an optical microscope which can save the trouble of attaching and detaching a member for shielding incident illumination light and prevent forgetting to attach a shielding member.

[0007]

The present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1, 2 and 7 to 9 showing an embodiment of the present invention. (1) According to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the invention of claim 1 extracts the epi-illumination light source 5 and extracts only light of a desired wavelength from the light of the epi-illumination light source 5 and emits the extracted light to the sample 11. The mounting units P1 to P4, which are applied to an optical microscope having a filter unit 7a to be attached and detachably provided, and the mounting units P1 to P4 in response to removal of the filter unit 7a from the mounting units P1 to P4. The light from the epi-illumination light source 5 is prevented from entering the P4, and the mounting portions P1 to P4
In response to the mounting of the filter unit 7a to the
The above object is achieved by providing shutter mechanisms 31 to 35 for permitting the light from the epi-illumination light source 5 to enter the light sources 1 to P4. (2) Explaining with reference to FIG. 2, the invention according to claim 2 is the optical microscope according to claim 1, wherein
To P4, and a turret 6 that is rotatably provided and can selectively position any one of the plurality of mounting portions P1 to P4 in the incident illumination optical path. (3) Explaining in association with FIGS. 1, 2 and 5,
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the optical microscope according to the first aspect, a turret 6 having a plurality of mounting portions P1 to P4, a driving unit 50 that rotationally drives the turret 6, and a turret 6 that is rotationally driven by the driving unit 50. And mounting parts P1 to P
And control means 51 for selectively positioning any one of the light sources 4 in the epi-illumination light path. (4) Explaining in association with FIG. 1, FIG. 7 and FIG.
The invention according to claim 4 is characterized in that the epi-illumination light source 5 and the epi-illumination light source 5
Mounting units P1 to P4, which are applied to an optical microscope including filter units 7a to 7c that extract only light having a desired wavelength from the light 22 and emit the light to the sample 11, and in which the filter units 7a to 7c are detachably provided. And the epi-illumination light source 5
Shutter mechanisms 62 and 63 capable of blocking and non-blocking of light entering the mounting portions P1 to P4 from above, and detecting means 60 and 61 for detecting mounting and non-mounting of the filter units 7a to 7c on the mounting portions P1 to P4. When the detection units 60 and 61 detect the mounting of the filter units 7a to 7c, the shutter mechanisms 62 and 63 are opened to allow the light 22 of the epi-illumination light source 5 to enter the mounting units P1 to P4. Means 60, 61
When the non-attachment of the filter units 7a to 7c is detected, the control unit 64 that closes the shutter mechanisms 62 and 63 to cut off the light 22 achieves the above object. (5) Explaining in connection with FIGS. 1, 7, 8 and 9, the invention of claim 5 is the optical microscope according to claim 4, wherein the turret 6 has a plurality of mounting portions P1 to P4.
And a driving unit 50 for driving the turret 6 to rotate, and a driving unit 50 for rotating the turret 6 to rotate the
And a control means 51 for selectively positioning any one of P1 to P4 in the epi-illumination light path.

[0008] In the section of the means for solving the above problems, the drawings of the embodiments of the present invention are used to make the present invention easy to understand, but the present invention is not limited to the embodiments of the present invention. Not something.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. -First Embodiment- FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a first embodiment of an optical microscope according to the present invention, and is a schematic configuration diagram of an epi-fluorescence microscope. FIG.
Is provided with an epi-illumination light source 5 for epi-illumination fluorescence observation and a trans-illumination light source 17 for transmission illumination observation. Generally, an ultra-high pressure mercury lamp or the like that emits ultraviolet light is used as the epi-illumination light source 5, and a halogen lamp or the like is used as the transmission illumination light source 17.

Light emitted from the epi-illumination light source 5 is transmitted to a filter unit 7a disposed on the objective lens optical axis 19 via a field stop, a relay lens, and the like (not shown) provided in the epi-illumination device 4. Incident. Filter unit 7
a is a cassette holder 48 in which an excitation filter 8a, a dichroic mirror 9a, and an absorption filter 10a are mounted. The excitation filter 8a is a filter that selectively transmits only light (excitation light) in a wavelength band in which the fluorescent dye contained in the specimen 11 mounted on the stage 3 emits fluorescence most efficiently.

The excitation light transmitted through the excitation filter 8 a is reflected downward by a dichroic mirror 9 a disposed on the optical axis 19 of the objective lens, and enters the objective lens 2. The objective lens 2 collects the excitation light and forms an image of the above-described field stop on the sample 11. As a result, fluorescence is emitted from the specimen 11 illuminated by the excitation light. The fluorescent light that has entered the objective lens 2 is converted into a parallel light beam by the objective lens 2, and the parallel light beam passes through the dichroic mirror 9a and then enters the absorption filter 10a.

The parallel light flux is filtered by the absorption filter 10a to remove fluorescent light having a wavelength unnecessary for observation, is condensed by the second objective lens 14, and forms a fluorescent image on the image forming surfaces 44 and 45.
When observing with the naked eye, the fluorescent image formed on the imaging surface 44 is observed through the eyepiece 15, and when taking a photograph, the fluorescent image is captured by the camera 13 mounted on the straight tube portion 46. The imaging surface 45 of the fluorescent image to be photographed coincides with the film surface of the camera 13.

The specimen 11 is stained with various fluorescent dyes according to the object to be observed, and each fluorescent dye has a different emission characteristic. Therefore, the turret 6 has a plurality of filter units 7a to 7c having different wavelength characteristics (FIG. 2).
(See (a)), and the observation is performed by switching the filter units 7a to 7c according to the fluorescent specimen 11. That is, the excitation filter 8b, the dichroic mirror 9b, and the absorption filter 10b mounted on the filter unit 7b have optical characteristics different from those of the excitation filter 8a, the dichroic mirror 9a, and the absorption filter 10a mounted on the filter unit 7a.

When the turret 6 is rotationally driven by the turret drive unit 50 and rotated about the axis 20 by 180 degrees,
The filter unit 7b is disposed on the optical axis 19 of the objective lens. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 51 denotes a turret control unit that controls the turret driving unit 50. Each time the operation switch S1 is turned on, the turret 6 is driven to rotate by 90 degrees.
In the present embodiment, the exchange type of the filter units 7a to 7c is the turret type, but is not limited to this.

On the other hand, in the case of observation by transmission illumination, illumination light emitted from the transmission illumination light source 17 is totally transmitted through a field stop and a relay lens (not shown) provided on the transmission illumination optical axis 21. The light enters the reflection mirror 47. The illuminating light is reflected by the total reflection mirror 47 upward in the figure and then collected by the condenser lens 16 to illuminate the sample 11 from below the stage. The light transmitted through the sample 11 is
Then, an image is formed by the second objective lens 14 and sample images are formed on the imaging surfaces 44 and 45.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are diagrams for explaining the arrangement of the filter units at the time of epifluorescence observation. FIG. 2A is a sectional view showing the arrangement of the filter units, and FIG. 2B is a sectional view of the turret 6 to which the filter units are attached. It is. In addition, FIG.
Is a view related to the AA cross section of FIG. In the example shown in the present embodiment, the turret 6 is formed with four ports P1 to P4 for mounting a filter unit, and the ports P1 to P4 are provided around the axis 20 at intervals of 90 degrees.

In the example shown in FIG. 2, the filter unit 7a is connected to the port P1 and the filter unit 7b is connected to the port P3.
However, the filter unit 7c is mounted on the port P4. The port P2 is in a non-attached state. The turret 6 is rotatably mounted on a shaft 20 fixed to the turret frame 6a, and is rotationally driven by a drive mechanism (not shown). The turret frame 6a is formed with openings 6b and 6d centered on the objective lens optical axis 19. On the other hand, each of the ports P1 to P4 of the turret 6 is also provided with an opening 6c. When the ports P1 to P4 are positioned on the objective lens optical axis 19, the center of the opening 6c and the objective lens optical axis 19
And almost match. Reference numeral 31 denotes a shutter plate, which is provided in each of the ports P1 to P4. Each shutter plate 31 is fixed to a rotatable shaft 32. The shutter plate 31
The opening and closing mechanism will be described later.

When performing epi-fluorescence observation, the turret 6 is rotated and one of the filter units 7a to 7c is disposed on the optical axis 19 of the objective lens 2. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, when the port P1 on which the filter unit 7a is mounted is positioned on the objective lens optical axis 19, the illumination light 22 of the epi-illumination light source 5 receives the objective lens through the excitation filter 8a and the dichroic mirror 9a. 2 and is focused on the specimen 11 by the objective lens 2.

On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, when the port P2 without the filter unit is positioned on the optical axis 19 of the objective lens, the illumination light 22 of the epi-illumination light source 5 emits the shutter light. Shutter plate 31
Further entry to the left side of the drawing (that is, the objective lens optical axis 19 side) is prevented. When the transmitted illumination light source 17 is turned on in this state, the sample 11 is illuminated by the transmitted illumination light 23, and the light transmitted through the sample 11 is converted into parallel light by the objective lens 2. The light emitted from the objective lens 2 is transmitted through the apertures 6b, 6c, 6
After passing in the order of d, the light is guided to an observation optical system (not shown).

FIG. 4 is a view showing the mechanism of the shutter plate 31 in detail. FIG. 4A shows the shutter plate 31 of the port P2 in FIG.
Is a diagram viewed from the shaft 20 side, and (b) is BB of (a).
It is sectional drawing. The shutter plate 31 is fixedly mounted so that one end thereof is wound around a shaft 32, one end of the shaft 32 is rotatably inserted into a recess 6 f formed in the turret 6, and the other end is rotatably supported by a support member 34. Supported. The support member 34 is attached to the turret 6 by bolts 49.

The torsion spring 3 provided on the shutter plate 31
Numeral 3 urges the shutter plate 31 to rotate in the R1 direction in FIG. 4B. A stopper 35 is provided on the support member 34.
The shutter plate 31 urged in the R1 direction by the torsion spring 33 is moved by the stopper 35 in FIG.
It stops at the position shown in (b). Each port P1 to P4 of the turret 6 has a dovetail groove 6e as shown in FIG.
Are formed, and the filter units 7a to 7c are fixed to the turret 6 using the dovetail grooves 6e as described later.

FIG. 5 shows a filter unit 7 connected to port P1.
FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an opening and closing operation of a shutter plate 31 when a is detached. Cassette holder 48 of filter unit 7a
Is formed with an engaging portion 48a called “present”, and the engaging portion 48a is formed in the dovetail groove 6e of the turret 6 (FIG. 4).
4A and moves in the R3 direction, the leading end of the cassette holder 48 comes into contact with the shutter plate 31, and the shutter plate 31 is driven to rotate in the R2 direction opposite to the R1 direction in FIG. 4B. Is done.

FIG. 6 shows a filter unit 7a connected to port P1.
(A) shows a state in which the objective lens 2 is mounted.
It is the top view seen from the side, (b) is the arrow C view of (a). When the filter unit 7a is mounted on the port P1, the shutter plate 31 is rotated in the R2 direction from a position in contact with the stopper 35 to a position rotated by approximately 90 degrees. As shown in FIG. 6B, the engaging portion 48a of the cassette holder 48 is engaged with the groove 6e of the turret 6.

As described above, in the microscope of the present embodiment,
The filter unit 7 is connected to the ports P1 to P4 of the turret 6.
When a to 7c are mounted, the shutter plate 31 is moved to the position with the mounting of the filter unit 7a as shown in FIG. Conversely, filter unit 7a is connected to ports P1
When the shutter plate 31 is removed from the position P4, the shutter plate 31 automatically returns to the position, thereby preventing the incident illumination light 22 from entering the objective lens optical axis 19 as shown in FIG.

Therefore, unlike the conventional microscope, there is no need to attach and remove a shielding member (a shielding plate or a dummy cassette holder) when attaching and detaching the filter unit.
Operability is improved. Further, it is not possible to forget to attach the shielding member as in the related art. Further, in the related art, the removed shielding member may be lost. However, in the microscope according to the present embodiment, the shutter plate 31 is provided on the turret 6, so that it is not lost. In the above-described embodiment, the microscope in which the turret 6 is electrically driven has been described as an example. However, the present invention can be applied to a microscope in which the turret is manually rotated.

Second Embodiment FIGS. 7 to 9 show an optical microscope according to a second embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 7 and 8 are diagrams corresponding to FIGS. 2 and 3 of the first embodiment, respectively.
Is a cross-sectional view showing the arrangement of the filter units, and (b) is a cross-sectional view of the turret 6 on which the filter units are mounted. 2 and 3 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and different portions will be mainly described below.

In this embodiment, the epi-illumination device 4 (FIG. 1)
), A shutter 62 is provided, and the on / off control of the incident illumination light incident on the objective lens shaft 19 is performed by the shutter 62. The shutter 62 is driven in the R4 direction by a shutter driving unit 63. The turret frame 6a is provided with a cassette detection sensor 61 for detecting the filter units 7a to 7c. A sensor target 60 is provided in the cassette holder 48 of each of the filter units 7a to 7c. When the filter unit 7a is disposed on the objective lens optical axis 19 as shown in FIG. Is detected.

When a detection signal is output from the cassette detection sensor 61, the shutter 62 is moved to the position (open state) shown in FIG.
Is driven. As a result, the incident illumination light 22 enters the filter unit 7 a disposed on the objective lens optical axis 19, and the sample 11 is illuminated by the incident illumination light 22. For example, a Hall element is used as the cassette detection sensor 61, and a magnet is used as the sensor target 60.

On the other hand, when the transmitted illumination observation is performed, FIG.
Port P with no filter unit attached
2 is positioned on the objective lens optical axis 19, and the transmitted illumination light source 17 is turned on. The transmitted illumination light 23 is applied to the sample 11 via the reflection mirror 47 and the condenser lens 16,
The light transmitted through the sample 11 is sent to an observation optical system (not shown) via the objective lens 2. At this time, since the cassette detection sensor 61 does not detect the sensor target 60, no detection signal is output from the cassette detection sensor 61. In this case, the shutter 62 is driven on the epi-illumination optical axis 18, and the shutter 62 is closed. As a result, the incident illumination light 22 from the incident illumination light source 5 is blocked by the shutter 62 and cannot enter the turret 6.

FIGS. 9A and 9B are block diagrams showing a control system of the shutter 62. FIG. 9A shows a first example, and FIG. 9B shows a second example. In the first example of FIG. 9A, the open / closed state of the shutter 62 is detected by the shutter detection sensor 65, and the information is sent to the controller 64. Controller 64
Controls opening and closing of the shutter 62 by the shutter driving unit 63 based on the signal of the cassette detection sensor 61. That is, when the detection signal from the cassette detection sensor 61 is received, the shutter 62 is opened as shown in FIG. 7, and when the detection signal is not received, the shutter 6 is opened as shown in FIG.
Close 2.

On the other hand, in the second example of FIG. 9B, a manual shutter open / close switch 66 is further provided. When the shutter open / close switch 66 is turned on by the observer, the controller 64 performs the same operation as in the above-described first example. However, when the shutter open / close switch 66 is turned off, the shutter 62 is kept closed regardless of whether or not the detection signal from the cassette detection sensor 61 is received. For example, the filter units 7a to 7
When replacing the shutter c, the shutter open / close switch 6
6 is turned off and the replacement work is performed. In this case, since the shutter 62 is always closed, the reflected illumination light
The replacement work can be performed safely without leaking to the side.

Third Embodiment In the first and second embodiments described above, a plurality of filter units 7a to 7c are mounted on a turret 6, and one of the filter units 7a to 7c is used as an objective lens. Axis 1
9 to perform epi-illumination observation
In the third embodiment, the present invention is applied to an optical microscope in which only one filter unit is mounted. FIG.
0 is a diagram showing a third embodiment of the optical microscope according to the present invention, and is a diagram showing a portion similar to FIG. 2 (b). 10A shows a case where the filter unit 7a is mounted, and FIG. 10B shows a state where the filter unit 7a is not mounted. The same parts as those in FIG. 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

The microscope according to the present embodiment has a configuration in which only one filter unit can be mounted. In FIG. 10, the filter unit 7a is mounted on the cassette mounting section 70. The mounting structure of the filter unit 7a to the cassette mounting portion 70 is the same as that of the turret 6 described above, and the cassette mounting portion 70 has a dovetail groove 70a into which the engaging portion 48a of the cassette holder 48 is inserted. ing. The openings 70b, 70c, and 70d formed in the cassette mounting portion 70 correspond to the openings 6b, 6b in FIG.
These are the same as c and 6d.

The cassette mounting section 70 is provided with the same shutter plate 31 as in the first embodiment. However,
In the first embodiment, the shaft 32 is provided so as to extend in the vertical direction. However, in the present embodiment, the shaft 32 is provided so as to extend in the horizontal direction (front and back sides of the paper).
Other configurations of the shutter portion are the same as those shown in FIG.

FIG. 10B shows a case where transmission illumination observation is performed, and the filter unit 7a is not mounted on the cassette mounting section 70. At this time, the shutter plate 31 is urged in the R1 direction by a torsion spring 33 (not shown), and is positioned at the position (closed state) by the stopper 35 (see FIG. 4). As a result, the illumination light 2 from the epi-illumination light source 5
Reference numeral 2 denotes an objective lens optical axis 1 which is blocked by a shutter plate 31.
There is no approach to the 9 side.

On the other hand, when performing epi-illumination observation, FIG.
The filter unit 7a is mounted on the cassette mounting section 70 as shown in FIG. Cassette holder 48 of the present embodiment
Is provided with a projection 71 on the end face on the side where the excitation filter 8a is provided (that is, on the side of the epi-illumination light source 5). When the filter unit 7a is mounted from the left side in the figure, the shutter plate 31 positioned at the position is driven to rotate in the R2 direction by the projection 71 formed on the cassette holder 48, and is opened (positioned). As a result, the incident illumination light 22 enters the filter unit 7a disposed on the objective lens optical axis 19, and the sample 11 is illuminated.

As described above, in this embodiment, the shutter plate 31 automatically opens and closes according to whether the filter unit 7a is mounted or not, so that the same effects as in the first embodiment can be obtained. . Also, in the case of a microscope having only one filter unit 7a as shown in FIG. 10, an electrically controlled shutter mechanism as described in the second embodiment is applied instead of the shutter plate 31. May be.

In the correspondence between the embodiment described above and the elements of the claims, the condenser lens 16 and the total reflection mirror 47 are a transmission illumination optical system, the cassette mounting section 70 and the ports P1 to P4 are mounting sections, Shutter plate 3
1, the shaft 32, the torsion spring 33, the support member 34, and the stopper 35 are the shutter mechanisms of the first and second aspects, the turret drive unit 50 is a drive unit, the turret control unit 51 is a control unit, and the controller 64 is a control unit. The sensor target 60 and the cassette detection sensor 61 serve as detection means, and the shutter 62 and the shutter drive unit 63 serve as a third embodiment.
, Respectively.

[0039]

As described above, according to the present invention,
At the time of transmitted illumination observation, the shutter mechanism automatically permits and blocks entry of incident illumination light into the mounting portion according to attachment and detachment of the filter unit to and from the mounting portion. for that reason,
It is possible to save the trouble of attaching and detaching the shielding member as in the related art, to prevent forgetting to attach the shielding member, and to easily switch between the epi-illumination observation and the transmitted illumination observation.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of an optical microscope according to the present invention, and is a schematic configuration diagram of an epi-illumination fluorescence microscope.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are diagrams illustrating the arrangement of the filter units during epi-illumination observation, wherein FIG. 2A is a cross-sectional view illustrating the arrangement of the filter units, and FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view of a turret 6 to which the filter units are attached. .

FIGS. 3A and 3B are diagrams illustrating the arrangement of the filter units during transmission illumination observation. FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view illustrating the arrangement of the filter units, and FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view of a turret 6 to which the filter units are attached. .

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a mechanism of a shutter plate 31 in detail;
(A) is a diagram of the shutter plate 31 viewed from the shaft 20 side,
(B) is BB sectional drawing of (a).

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an opening and closing operation of a shutter plate 31 when a filter unit 7a is attached to and detached from a port P1.

FIGS. 6A and 6B are diagrams showing a mounting state of the filter unit 7a to the port P1, wherein FIG. 6A is a plan view seen from the objective lens 2 side, and FIG.

FIGS. 7A and 7B are diagrams illustrating the arrangement of filter units during epi-illumination observation according to the second embodiment, wherein FIG. 7A is a cross-sectional view illustrating the arrangement of filter units, and FIG. FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a turret 6.

8A and 8B are diagrams illustrating an arrangement of a filter unit during transmission illumination observation in the second embodiment, where FIG. 8A is a cross-sectional view illustrating an arrangement of the filter unit, and FIG. FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a turret 6.

FIGS. 9A and 9B are block diagrams illustrating a control system of a shutter 62. FIG. 9A illustrates a first example, and FIG. 9B illustrates a second example.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are diagrams showing a third embodiment of the optical microscope according to the present invention, wherein FIG. 10A shows a case where the filter unit 7a is mounted, and FIG. 10B shows a state where the filter unit is not mounted.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing settings for performing transmission illumination observation.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a case where a dummy cassette holder is mounted during transmission illumination observation.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Microscope main body 2 Objective lens 3 Stage 4 Epi-illumination device 5 Epi-illumination light source 6 Turret 7, 7a-7c Filter unit 8 Excitation filter 9 Dichroic mirror 10 Absorption filter 11 Fluorescent specimen 12 Eyepiece tube 13 Camera 14 Second objective lens 15 Eyepiece Lens 16 Condenser lens 17 Transmission illumination light source 18 Epi-illumination illumination optical axis 19 Objective lens optical axis 20 Axis 21 Transmission illumination optical axis 22 Epi-illumination illumination light 23 Transmission illumination light 31 Shutter plate 50 Driving means 51 Control means 60 Sensor target 61 Cassette detection sensor 62 Shutter 63 Shutter drive unit 64 Control unit P1 to P4 Port (mounting unit)

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An optical microscope comprising: an epi-illumination light source; and a filter unit that extracts only light having a desired wavelength from the light of the epi-illumination light source and emits the extracted light to a sample, wherein the filter unit is detachably provided. Attachment section, in response to removal of the filter unit from the attachment section, to prevent light from the epi-illumination light source from entering the attachment section, and in response to attachment of the filter unit to the attachment section. An optical microscope provided with a shutter mechanism for permitting light from the epi-illumination light source to enter the mounting portion. 2. The optical microscope according to claim 1, wherein the optical microscope has a plurality of the mounting portions and is rotatably provided.
An optical microscope, comprising: a turret capable of selectively positioning any one of the plurality of mounting portions in the epi-illumination light path. 3. The optical microscope according to claim 1, wherein the turret includes a plurality of the mounting portions, a driving unit that rotationally drives the turret, and a turret that is rotationally driven by the driving unit to rotate the turret. Control means for selectively positioning any one of the incident-light illumination optical paths in the incident-light illumination optical path. 4. An optical microscope comprising an epi-illumination light source and a filter unit that extracts only light having a desired wavelength from the light of the epi-illumination light source and emits the light to a sample, wherein the filter unit is detachably provided. A mounting unit, for blocking light entering the mounting unit from the epi-illumination light source
A shutter mechanism capable of non-blocking; detecting means for detecting mounting / non-mounting of the filter unit on the mounting portion; and opening of the shutter mechanism when the mounting of the filter unit is detected by the detecting means. A control unit that permits the light of the epi-illumination light source to enter the mounting unit, and closes the shutter mechanism to block the light when the detection unit detects that the filter unit is not mounted. An optical microscope, comprising: 5. The optical microscope according to claim 4, wherein the turret includes a plurality of the mounting portions, a driving unit that rotationally drives the turret, and a turret that is rotationally driven by the driving unit to rotate the turret. Control means for selectively positioning any one of the incident-light illumination optical paths in the incident-light illumination optical path.