Liquid lens chip, driving apparatus and driving method thereof

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10261309-B2
Application number	US-201715476733-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 31, 2017
Priority date	Dec 12, 2016
Publication date	Apr 16, 2019
Grant date	Apr 16, 2019

Abstract

A liquid lens chip, a driving apparatus and a driving method thereof are provided. The driving apparatus includes a carrier and a driver. The carrier is configured to carry a liquid lens and has a plurality of electrode pairs in contact with the liquid lens. The driver provides a periodic first driving signal to a selected electrode pair of the electrode pairs during a first time period according to a scan control signal to change a shape of the liquid lens. The driver further provides a periodic second driving signal to an opposite electrode pair opposite to the selected electrode pair during a second time period to recover the shape of the liquid lens which has been changed during the first time period.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A driving apparatus of a liquid lens, comprising:
a carrier carrying the liquid lens and comprising a plurality of electrode pairs that are in contact with the liquid lens; and
a driver providing a periodic first driving signal to a selected electrode pair of the electrode pairs during a first time period according to a scan control signal to change a shape of the liquid lens, and providing a periodic second driving signal to an opposite electrode pair opposite to the selected electrode pair during a second time period to recover the shape of the liquid lens that has been changed, wherein the driver comprises:
a controller generating a scan enabling signal and the scan control signal according to a scan instruction;
a periodic signal generator coupled to the controller and generating the first driving signal and the second driving signal according to the scan enabling signal; and
a selector coupled to the controller, the periodic signal generator, and the electrode pairs and, according to the scan control signal, enabling the first driving signal to be provided to the selected electrode pair during the first time period and enabling the second driving signal to be provided to the opposite electrode pair during the second time period.

2. The driving apparatus of the liquid lens according to claim 1 , wherein the first driving signal and the second driving signal have the same or different waveforms, amplitudes, frequencies, and phases.

3. The driving apparatus of the liquid lens according to claim 1 , wherein the driver and the carrier are disposed on a chip or respectively disposed on different chips.

4. The driving apparatus of the liquid lens according to claim 1 , wherein the driver is coupled to the electrode pairs on the carrier via a plurality of package wires.

5. The driving apparatus of the liquid lens according to claim 1 , wherein the first time period and the second time period are continuous time periods.

6. The driving apparatus of the liquid lens according to claim 1 , wherein the electrode pairs comprise:
a first direction electrode pair; and
a second direction electrode pair arranged opposite to the first direction electrode pair,
wherein during the first time period, the first direction electrode pair receives the first driving signal and the shape of the liquid lens is changed along a first direction; and during the second time period, the second direction electrode pair receives the second driving signal, wherein when the second direction electrode pair receives the second driving signal, the shape of the liquid lens that has been changed is recovered along a second direction, and wherein the first direction and the second direction are opposite to each other.

7. The driving apparatus of the liquid lens according to claim 6 , wherein the electrode pairs further comprise:
a third direction electrode pair; and
a fourth direction electrode pair arranged opposite to the third direction electrode pair,
wherein during a third time period, the third direction electrode pair receives the first driving signal and the shape of the liquid lens is changed along a third direction; and during a fourth time period, the fourth direction electrode pair receives the second driving signal, wherein when the fourth direction electrode pair receives the second driving signal, the shape of the liquid lens that has been changed is recovered along a fourth direction, and wherein the third direction and the fourth direction are opposite to each other, and the first direction is substantially perpendicular to the third direction.

8. The driving apparatus of the liquid lens according to claim 6 , wherein during the first time period, when the first direction electrode pair receives the first driving signal, the second direction electrode pair does not receive the second driving signal; and during the second time period, when the second direction electrode pair receives the second driving signal, the first direction electrode pair does not receive the first driving signal.

9. The driving apparatus of the liquid lens according to claim 1 , wherein the carrier comprises:
a plurality of electrode pairs arranged opposite to one another and together surrounding the liquid lens, wherein each of the electrode pairs has a plurality of extension parts that extend in a direction toward the liquid lens, wherein the liquid lens is in contact with the extension parts of each of the electrode pairs and is electrically connected with the electrode pairs.

10. A driving method of a liquid lens, adapted for a driver, wherein the driver comprises a controller, a periodic signal generator coupled to the controller, and a selector coupled to the controller and the periodic signal generator, the driving method comprising:
disposing a plurality of electrode pairs to be in contact with the liquid lens and to be coupled to the selector;
providing a periodic first driving signal by a driver to a selected electrode pair of the electrode pairs during a first time period according to a scan control signal to change a shape of the liquid lens; and
providing a periodic second driving signal by the driver to an opposite electrode pair opposite to the selected electrode pair during a second time period to recover the shape of the liquid lens that has been changed;
wherein step of providing the periodic first driving signal by the driver and step of providing the periodic second driving signal by the driver comprises:
generating a scan enabling signal and the scan control signal by the controller according to a scan instruction;
generating the first driving signal and the second driving signal by the periodic signal generator according to the scan enabling signal; and
enabling the first driving signal to be provided to the selected electrode pair during the first time period according to the scan control signal and enabling the second driving signal to be provided to the opposite electrode pair during the second time period according to the scan control signal by the selector.

11. The driving method of the liquid lens according to claim 10 , wherein the first driving signal and the second driving signal have the same or different signals waveforms, amplitudes, frequencies, and phases.

12. The driving method of the liquid lens according to claim 11 , wherein the first time period and the second time period are continuous time periods.

Assignees

• Univ Nat Tsing Hua

Inventors

• Tseng Fan-Gang
• Wang Pen-Cheng
• Hu Po-Wei
• Ho Hsien-Lung

Classifications

• G02B26/004 Primary

  based on a displacement or a deformation of a fluid · CPC title

• G02B3/14

  of variable focal length · CPC title