US 7,468,835 B2
Microscopy system and method
Christian Luecke, Oberkochen (Germany); Alfons Abele, Schwaebisch Gmuend (Germany); Dirk Brunner, Aalen (Germany); Frank Rudolph, Aalen (Germany); Fritz Straehle, Heubach (Germany); Joachim Steffen, Westhausen (Germany); and Michael Wirth, Aalen (Germany)
Assigned to Carl Zeiss Surgical GmbH, Oberkochen (Germany)
Filed on Aug. 06, 2004, as Appl. No. 10/913,035.
Claims priority of application No. 103 36 475 (DE), filed on Aug. 08, 2003.
Prior Publication US 2005/0046933 A1, Mar. 03, 2005
Int. Cl. G02B 21/22 (2006.01)
U.S. Cl. 359—376  [351/216; 348/79; 359/377] 6 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A microscopy system for generating a magnified stereoscopic representation of an object, the system comprising:
an objective lens for transforming an object-side imaging beam emerging from an object plane of the objective lens into an image-side imaging beam;
an ophthalmoscopic lens which is selectively disposable in a beam path between the object and the object plane of the objective lens to generate an inverted image of the object in a region of the object plane;
a left camera configured to be supplied with light of a left beam portion of the image-side imaging beam, for detecting an image of the object from a left viewing direction;
a right camera configured to be supplied with light of a right beam portion of the image-side imaging beam, for detecting an image of the object from a right viewing direction;
a left display for generating a representation of the object to be supplied to a left eye of a user;
a right display for generating a representation of the object to be supplied to a right eye of the user; and
a controller configured to be operated in a first mode of operation to receive the image detected by the left camera and to supply an inverted representation of the image detected by the left camera to the right display, and to receive the image detected by the right camera and to supply an inverted representation of the image detected by the right camera to the left display,
wherein the controller is further configured to operate in a second mode of operation to receive the image detected by the left camera and to supply a non-inverted representation of the image detected by the left camera to the left display, and to receive the image detected by the right camera and to supply a non-inverted representation of the image detected by the right camera to the right display,
wherein the ophthalmoscopic lens is removable from the beam path between the object and the object plane of the objective lens,
wherein in the first mode of operation, the ophthalmoscopic lens is disposed in the beam path between the object and the object plane of the objective lens, and in the second mode of operation, the ophthalmoscopic lens is not disposed in the beam path between the object and the object plane of the objective lens,
a left ocular, a right ocular, and at least one optical component configured to provide a beam path for supplying light of the left beam portion to the left ocular and supplying light of the right beam portion to the right ocular,
a beam splitter for splitting the light of the left beam portion for supply to both the left ocular and the left camera, and for splitting the light of the right beam portion for supply to both the right ocular and the right camera,
a beam switch configured to have a first switching state in which the light of the left beam portion is blocked and not supplied to the left ocular and in which the representation generated by the left camera is supplied to the left ocular, and in which the light of the right beam portion is blocked and not supplied to the right ocular and in which the representation generated by the right camera is supplied to the right ocular, and wherein the beam switch is configured to have a second switching state in which the light of the left beam portion is supplied to the left ocular, and the light of the right beam portion is supplied to the right ocular, wherein the controller is configured to switch the beam switch into the first switching state in the first mode of operation, and to switch the beam switch into the second switching state in the second mode of operation.