DROPLET OBSERVATION DEVICE AND DROPLET DISCHARGE DEVICE

To provide a droplet observation device which can suppress the variation in a volume measurement value without being affected by the shadow of a droplet discharge head even when the droplet discharge head is long in an optical axis direction of an optical system observing droplets and when a blocking way of an imaging optical path by the plurality of droplet discharge heads changes.SOLUTION: A droplet observation device 1 comprises: an illumination unit 2 which emits illumination light L toward droplets Q with a direction orthogonal to a discharge direction of the droplets discharged from a droplet discharge port N as an optical axis Lx; an imaging unit 3 which images the droplet irradiated with the illumination light on the optical axis; and a position detection unit 5 which detects the relative positions between the imaging unit and the droplet discharge head. The imaging unit comprises: an upper light shielding plate 34 which shields light in a region on the upper side in the vertical direction with respect to the optical axis in a light flux incident on the imaging unit; a lower light shielding plate 35 which shields light in a region on the lower side in the vertical direction with respect to the optical axis; and a light shielding plate position adjustment unit 4 which adjusts the positions of the upper light shielding plate and the lower light shielding plate on the basis of the relative positions detected by the position detection unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2 【課題】液滴を観察する光学系の光軸方向に液滴吐出ヘッドが長い場合や複数の液滴吐出ヘッドによる撮像光路の遮り方が変わる場合でも、液滴吐出ヘッドの影の影響を受けず、体積測定値の変動を抑制できる、液滴観察装置を提供すること。【解決手段】液滴吐出口Ｎから吐出させた液滴Ｑの吐出方向と直交する方向を光軸Ｌｘとして、当該液滴に向けて照明光Ｌを照射する照明部２と、光軸上で照明光が照射された液滴を撮像する撮像部３と、撮像部と液滴吐出ヘッドとの相対位置を検出する位置検出部５とを備え、撮像部は、当該撮像部に入射する光束のうち、光軸よりも鉛直方向上側の領域を遮光する上側遮光板３４と、光軸よりも鉛直方向下側の領域を遮光する下側遮光板３５と、位置検出部で検出された相対位置に基づいて、上側遮光板および下側遮光板の位置を調節する、遮光板位置調節部４とを備えた液滴観察装置１。【選択図】図２