Thermally-responsive actuator assembly and corresponding thermally-compensated optical system

A thermally-compensated optical system (30) has a thermally-responsive actuator assembly (38) between first and second optical components (32, 34) arrayed along an optical axis. The actuator assembly has actuators (10) integrated into a collar encircling the optical axis. Each actuator has two inter...

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Hauptverfasser: DROR RAF, ODED LAHAV
Format: Patent
Sprache:eng ; heb
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Zusammenfassung:A thermally-compensated optical system (30) has a thermally-responsive actuator assembly (38) between first and second optical components (32, 34) arrayed along an optical axis. The actuator assembly has actuators (10) integrated into a collar encircling the optical axis. Each actuator has two interconnected beams (12a, 12b) from a first material and a rod (18) associated with the ends of both beams such that a distance between the ends is determined by a length of the rod. The rod is formed from a second material having a coefficient of thermal expansion different from that of the first material such that a variation in temperature causes deformation of the actuators, thereby varying a height of the actuators according to an effective coefficient of thermal expansion with a magnitude greater than that of both materials. This adjusts a relative position of the first and second components along the optical axis.