What is cylinder lens? Cylindrical lens optics is a common type of aspheric lens. The intersections of the meridian and sagittal cross-sections are the intersection of the two arcs and the two parallel straight lines. If the imaging properties of the two sections are described by spherical systems, one section has optical power, while the other section has no optical power. When a parallel laser beam passes through the spherical cylindrical lens, the focal point can be pulled into a line in one direction. This feature of cylindrical lens optics has its specific use in some special occasions.

For example, in some missile laser systems, multiple small radius spherical cylindrical lens are used for imaging. The optical cylinder lens have several shape types, such as plano convex cylindrical lens, plano concave cylindrical lens, meniscus cylindrical lens, etc. About cylindrical lens optics, how is it manufactured? As professional high precision cylindrical lens manufacturer and supplier in China, JUKA Optical takes you to understand its processing technique.

1. The Processing Method of Cylindrical Lens Optics

1) Rough Grinding for Cylinder Lens

About the rough grinding of cylindrical lens optics with small radius, it usually glue a square blank to the tire to form a cylinder and then the process outer circle to obtain a cylindrical surface. For optical parts with a thickness equal to or greater than the radius of curvature of the cylinder, it is generally rough ground into an overall cylinder. After the fine grinding and polishing are completed, then grind the extra parts. Rough grinding of cylinders can use conventional cylindrical grinding machines, and smaller diameter cylinders can use centerless grinding machines.

When the number of cylindrical mirrors is not large, you can also manually grind the four corners of the square blank on the rough grinder. Then install the cylinder on the main shaft of the instrument lathe, and then install a flat iron plate inclined at a certain angle to the horizontal plane on the lathe tool holder to process the outer circle. The width of the plate is about 1/5 ~ 2/5 of the length of the column, and it should be moved left and right by manual or additional connecting level mechanism. For rough grinding of spherical cylindrical lens with a radius of curvature above medium, it can use a milling machine to form.

2) Fine Grinding for Spherical Cylindrical Lens

For the fine grinding of small radius optical cylindrical lens, when the number is not large, it can still use the method of manually grinding adding instrument lathes. Only need to change the fine abrasive. When the quantity is large, it can use the method of upper and lower flat dies and sandwiching separator. The upper flat die is about 20% to 40% smaller than the lower flat die. The thickness of the separator is generally about 1mm smaller than the diameter of the cylinder. During the fine grinding process , the cylinder should be turned regularly to avoid taper. Another way to fix the separator is to change the outer retaining ring to the middle mandrel.

For a cylinder lens with a medium radius, after milling and forming, it is often glued to the tire to form a mirror column for fine grinding.

For concave spherical cylindrical lens and large-radius cylindrical lens optics that are not suitable for gluing into cylinders, it often glue the mirror disc firstly. Then use the corresponding cylindrical mold to finish grinding on the special cylindrical machine.

3) Polishing for Optical Cylinder Lens

The movement of polishing is similar to fine grinding. Generally, a layer of felt with a thickness of about 3 ~ 5mm is stuck on the polishing die. The length of the polishing die is about 1/3 of the length of the cylinder. Figure 1 shows the processing method of the small cylindrical lens. The polishing mold is usually made by sticking a layer of wool on the flat mold.

2.The Application and Use of Cylindrical Lens Optics

Cylinder lenses are widely used in several manufacturing industries and industries such as electronic optical metrology verification, laser scanners, spectroscopy, laser diode output cosmetics, and light film lighting fixture microscope imaging.

1) Shape the collimated light source into a linear light source

This is the most wide use of cylindrical lens optics. For example, it can convert a spot light spot into a line spot, or change the height of the image without changing the desired width.

2) The collimation of diode output beam

The laser diode output beam diverges in an asymmetric form. Its collimation work is more challenging. For example, for a diode light source with a divergence angle θ1xθ2 = 10 ° x40 °, if it only uses a standard spherical lens, it can only be collimated in a single direction, and divergence or convergence will occur in the other direction. Using a cylinder lens can resolve the problem into two one-dimensional directions. By using two mutually orthogonal cylinder lenses in combination, two directions can be collimated simultaneously.

With the rapid development of high technology, cylindrical lens optics and spherical cylindrical lens are more and more widely used.