JP3269520B2 - X-ray fluoroscope - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an X-ray fluoroscopic apparatus, and more particularly to an X-ray fluoroscopic apparatus employing a distributed control system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an X-ray fluoroscopic apparatus which employs a distributed control method, each apparatus constituting the system is divided into functional units such as a fluoroscopic table, an X-ray control apparatus, an X-ray imaging apparatus, and a console. It divides into several units, controls each device in each unit, and performs unified control of the whole system by exchanging control instructions and data with other units. . The controller provided in each unit has a function of controlling each device in the unit and a function of communicating with (a controller of) another unit via a communication line.

[0003] Since the controllers of these units are mutually connected via a communication line to perform N: N interactive communication, units having transmission rights communicate with each other such as 1: 1 or 1: all others. And the transmission right is circulated between the units. The controller of one unit that has received the transmission right communicates the control command or data to be transmitted, if any, and after that, sends the transmission right to the controller of the next unit and transmits it. If there is no data, the transmission right is immediately sent to the controller of the next unit.

[0004] Since the unitized operation console is usually installed in an operation room separate from the examination room, it is not possible to easily perform various operations on the fluoroscope near the fluoroscope. Therefore, a portable console (also called a switch panel) may be provided separately from the above console. Since this portable console is small in size and not large enough to mount a controller on itself, the controller included in the see-through table unit monitors the contact input of the switch. ing.

[0005]

However, in the conventional distributed control type X-ray fluoroscopic apparatus, when the portable table is provided separately, as described above, if there are a plurality of places where the operation of the fluoroscopic table is requested, there is a problem. However, the processing on the see-through table becomes difficult, and there is a case where a large load is imposed on the control. That is, in the fluoroscopy table, the top plate on which the subject is placed is rotated or moved, or the position of the X-ray tube or the image intensifier is changed. In this case, the safety of the subject is taken into consideration. It is necessary to make a branch according to various conditions while making various decisions such as giving priority to the upper stop operation, and the operation and its control are very complicated. Therefore, for example, if an operation request is input from another place while performing one operation, all of the judgments such as whether to interrupt and respond to the new request and what the priority order is, etc. This must be performed by a controller provided in the unit, and the load on the fluoroscopy table unit may be large, which may hinder control.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above, the present invention has been made so that, when an operation request command can be given to a fluoroscopy table from a plurality of locations, the load on the fluoroscopy table unit is reduced and operation is not hindered. It is another object of the present invention to provide a distributed control X-ray fluoroscopic apparatus.

[0007]

According to the present invention, at least three units, ie, a fluoroscopy table, an X-ray imaging apparatus, and a console, are provided. A controller having control means for controlling and communication means for communicating with other units is provided in each unit, and each of these units communicates with other units via a communication line to thereby provide a distributed control system as a whole system. In the X-ray fluoroscopic apparatus configured to perform the control described above, the controller of the unit of the fluoroscopic table includes a portable console for inputting the operation command of the fluoroscopic table separately from the console. Connected and the controller of the fluoroscopy table unit transmits a status signal indicating the operation state of the fluoroscopy table to each unit of the X-ray imaging apparatus and the console. Means for rejecting transmission of a new operation request command when the controller of each unit of the X-ray imaging apparatus and the console recognizes that the fluoroscopic table is operating in response to the status signal. It is characterized by having.

A status signal indicating the operation state of the unit of the fluoroscopic table is transmitted to another unit, that is, X.
It is transmitted to each unit of the radiography device and console. Then, in the other units, it is determined whether or not to transmit a new operation request command according to the status signal. Therefore, when one or more operations are performed in the fluoroscopy table, the operation state is also notified to the X-ray imaging apparatus and the console unit, and the X-ray imaging apparatus and the console unit are operated. When there is a new operation request input, it is possible to determine that a new operation request command is not output to the operating fluoroscopic table unit. Therefore, the determination as to whether or not to issue an operation request command to the fluoroscopic table unit and the operation based on the determination can be performed in each unit of the X-ray imaging apparatus and the operation console in a distributed manner. The load is reduced. The controller of the fluoroscope unit controls operations such as rotation and movement of the top plate and changes in the position of the X-ray tube, etc., and the control is very complicated and the load is large.
In particular, when a portable operation console is connected, the operation command of the see-through table is issued from a plurality of places, so that the load becomes larger. Since the load on the controller of the fluoroscopic table unit, which is large in this way, is reduced, it is possible to concentrate on its own operation control, and it is possible to perform a stable operation, so that the operation is not hindered. Will be done.

[0009]

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an X-ray fluoroscopic apparatus employing a distributed control method according to the present invention. Here, as shown in FIG. 1, four units are divided into a fluoroscopy table unit 11, an X-ray control unit 21, an X-ray imaging unit 31, and a console unit 41. Controllers 12, 22, 32, 42 are provided. These controllers 12, 22, 32, and 42 have a communication function as well as a function of controlling various devices included in the unit. The controllers 12, 22, 32, and 42 are connected to a ring-shaped communication line 51 and communicate with each other. It is configured to communicate with

The fluoroscopy table unit 11 comprises a top plate on which a subject is placed and a mechanism for rotating or moving the same.
Further, an image intensifier is provided which holds the X-ray tube and is arranged to face the X-ray tube with the top plate interposed therebetween. A TV camera is connected to this image intensifier via an optical system, and these are also held on a see-through table. A drive device for rotating / moving the top plate and moving the X-ray tube / image intensifier is also provided.

The X-ray control unit 21 includes an X-ray high voltage generator and a device for setting and controlling the generated voltage and the like, and supplies the generated voltage and current to the X-ray tube of the fluoroscopic table unit 11. .

The X-ray photographing apparatus unit 31 is composed of a so-called rapid photographing apparatus or the like, and sends the film to the input side of the image intensifier at a designated timing to photograph the film. This X-ray imaging apparatus is mechanically attached to a fluoroscopy table.

The console unit 41 includes a keyboard for input and various switches, a display monitor device, and displays states such as various settings. Further, an image display device that receives an X-ray image video signal from a TV camera included in the fluoroscopic table unit 11 and displays an X-ray fluoroscopic image is provided.

A controller provided in each unit controls various devices in each unit and performs communication via a communication line 51. Here, the communication line 51 performs communication of control commands and data, and the transmission of the X-ray power and the transmission of the X-ray image video signal are separately performed.

Further, the see-through table unit 11 is provided with a switch panel 13 which is a portable console. The switch panel 13 has, for example, four push button switches 14 to 17, as shown in FIG. 2, for raising and lowering the top plate, for sliding in the head and foot direction of the top plate, and for the top plate, respectively. For sliding in the left and right directions, and for video (such as an image intensifier or a TV camera). This switch panel 13 is connected to the controller 12 of the fluoroscopic table unit 11 by a cable,
Each of the switches 14 to 1 of the switch panel 13 is screwed or hooked to an appropriate panel surface of the fluoroscopy table, and a doctor or a technician stands immediately beside the fluoroscopy table.
By operating the device 7, it is possible to perform any desired top plate driving or the like.

Although a controller may be separately built in the switch panel 13, here, only the switches 14 to 17 are used. I have. Therefore, in this case, various drive commands to the controller 12 of the fluoroscopic table unit 11 are sent from the controller 42 of the console unit 41, and the controller 12 of the fluoroscopic table unit 11 monitors the contacts of the switch panel 13 by itself. And the one entered.

The controllers 12, 22, 32, 42
For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the CPU 61, a memory such as a ROM 62 and a RAM 63, a DMA controller 64, a timer 65, an input / output interface 66, a communication interface 67 and the like are connected to a bus 68. The input / output interface 66 includes, for example, a driving device for rotating / moving the top plate, a driving device for moving the X-ray tube / image intensifier, an image intensifier, and a TV camera. Various devices such as a device that controls the
It is stored in M62 or the like. In addition, here, the switches 14 to 17 of the switch panel 13 are connected to the input / output interface 66 so that their contacts are constantly monitored and read, and a program for that is stored in the ROM 62 or the like. ing. Further, a communication control program is also stored in the ROM 62 or the like, and the CPU 61 starts the communication control program and starts a control program of each device based on control commands and control data received from other units, thereby starting various types of devices. Perform control.

The communication between the units is performed in such a manner that the unit having the transmission right communicates with the other units in a ratio of 1: 1 or 1: all other units. This transmission right is circulated between the units. The following operations are performed in the controller. When the controller of a certain unit receives the transmission right, it checks whether there is any data or command to be transmitted, transmits it if there is any, and sends the transmission right to the next unit after completion. If there is no data to be transmitted, it is checked whether the system is stationary. This is determined by a flag of data received with the transmission right attached. When it is determined that the system is stationary, the timer 65 is started, and it is checked whether or not the timer time has elapsed. If not, the presence or absence of transmission data or the like is checked at that time. Performs the same operation as described above. When the time expires, the transmission right is sent to the next unit.

The transmission signal also includes a status signal indicating the operation state (busy, end, etc.) of the fluoroscopic table. This status signal is transmitted by the controller 12 of the fluoroscopic table unit 11 after checking the operating state of various devices on the fluoroscopic table and transmitted by each unit. For example, suppose that a certain one of the push button switches 14 to 17 of the switch panel 13 is pressed to slide the top board left and right. At this time, the controller 12 of the fluoroscopy table unit 11 reads the contact input, issues a command for the operation to the table driving device, and starts the operation. At the same time, it transmits a status signal indicating that it is operating. This status signal is transmitted to all the other units 21, 31 and 41 by circulating through the communication line 51.

The controllers 22, 32, and 42 of the other units 21, 31, and 41 recognize that the fluoroscopic table is operating by receiving the status signal. Therefore, for example, even if another operator performs an operation such as moving the tabletop on the console, the controller 42 of the console unit 41 can refuse to transmit the operation request command.

As described above, the operation state of the fluoroscopic table can be recognized by the controller of another unit by the status signal. Therefore, when an operation request command of the fluoroscopic table is issued from the controller of another unit, it is issued by its own judgment. Can not be. Therefore, during operation of the fluoroscope,
When a new operation request command is issued from another unit, it is possible to determine whether or not to issue the command in a distributed manner by the controller of the unit and protect the current operation. It becomes possible. In addition, such judgment and the operation of command transmission / rejection based on it,
Controllers 22, 3 of other units 21, 31, 41
It can be easily realized by the programs stored in the CPU 61 and the ROM 62 of the CPUs 2 and 42.

Thus, the controller 12 of the fluoroscopy table unit 11 can concentrate on the control of the current operation, and is relieved from the load of communication processing such as reception of commands and the like from the other units 21, 31, and 41. There is no need to take time to process other commands or the like during the operation, so that control becomes easier and the operation becomes stable. Then, when the current operation is completed and no other operation is performed, the controller 12 of the fluoroscopic table unit 11 sets the other units 21, 31,
A signal for commanding the release of the busy status is transmitted to 41. At this time, the operation request command of the fluoroscopic table can be transmitted from the controllers 22, 32, and 42 of the other units 21, 31, and 41 to the controller 12 of the fluoroscopic table unit 11.

Although the case where the switch panel 13 is provided has been described above, even when such a switch panel 13 is not provided, the operation console unit 4 is provided.
The present invention is also applicable to a case where a plurality of places for issuing a command for requesting the operation of the fluoroscopic table unit 11 are provided in a plurality of places, such as a case where two or more places are provided. Also, how to divide into units is not limited to four as in this example,
A configuration in which the fluoroscopy table unit includes an X-ray control device to form three units can be adopted. In addition, the specific configuration and the like can be variously changed without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0024]

As described above, according to the X-ray fluoroscopic apparatus of the present invention, a portable console is connected to the controller of the fluoroscopic unit, and an operation request command can be given to the fluoroscopic table from a plurality of locations. In the case where the configuration is made possible, the operation state of the fluoroscopic table is transmitted to other X-ray imaging apparatus units and the console unit, and the determination as to whether or not to issue a fluoroscopic table operation request command in another unit is made by a distributed control method. As a result, the controller of the fluoroscopic table is relieved from the load of communication and the load of processing other inputs during the operation, and can concentrate on the control of the operation. Improved and stable operation can be expected.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing a switch panel.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a controller.

[Explanation of symbols]

11 fluoroscopy table unit 21 X-ray control device unit 31 X-ray imaging device unit 41 console unit 12, 22, 32, 42 controller 13 switch panel 14-17 push button switch 61 CPU 62 ROM 63 RAM 64 DMA controller 65 timer 66 Output interface 67 Communication interface 68 Bus

────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-9-38044 (JP, A) JP-A-8-117216 (JP, A) JP-A-6-334673 (JP, A) JP-A-5- 260064 (JP, A) JP-A-2-162937 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) A61B 6/00-6/14 H04L 12/42-12/437

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] At least three units are provided: a fluoroscopy table, an X-ray imaging apparatus, and a console. The control unit controls each device in each unit and the communication unit communicates with another unit. A controller is provided in each unit, and each unit communicates with another unit via a communication line to perform control of a distributed control system as a whole system. The controller of the unit is connected to a portable console for inputting the operation command of the fluoroscopic table separately from the console, and the controller of the fluoroscopic unit controls the operation state of the fluoroscopic table. Means for transmitting a status signal to the X-ray imaging apparatus and each unit of the console, and a controller for each unit of the X-ray imaging apparatus and the console. An X-ray fluoroscopic apparatus, wherein the roller has means for rejecting transmission of a new operation request command when the roller recognizes that the fluoroscopic table is operating according to the status signal.