JP5455543B2 - Electronic endoscope system and processor for electronic endoscope - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic endoscope system and an electronic endoscope processor, and more particularly to an electronic endoscope system and an electronic endoscope processor that can be used with an image processing apparatus connected thereto.

  In general, an electronic endoscope system for diagnosing or treating the inside of a body cavity of a patient is used to illuminate an observation site in the body cavity and an electronic endoscope that images the inside of the body cavity with a solid-state imaging device provided at a distal end portion. And an electronic endoscope processor for processing the image signal generated by the electronic endoscope and outputting the processed image signal to the monitor. In such an electronic endoscope system, illumination light supplied from a processor is irradiated from the front end of the electronic endoscope toward the body cavity, and reflected light reflected by the body cavity wall is photoelectrically converted by the imaging device. Then, the electric charge generated by the photoelectric conversion is read as an image signal, output to the processor, subjected to necessary image processing, and output to the monitor.

  In recent years, with the advancement of technology, new functions other than the photographing function, illumination function, image processing function, dimming function, etc., which are provided as basic functions in the electronic endoscope system as described above, have been developed. ing. However, in order to realize a new function other than the basic function in the conventional electronic endoscope system, the existing electronic endoscope or processor is modified to correspond to the new function, or a new function There was a problem in terms of cost and versatility. Therefore, in order to solve such a problem, Patent Document 1 discloses a new function using a conventional electronic endoscope system by connecting a peripheral device having a new function to the electronic endoscope system. It has been proposed to realize Specifically, in the endoscope system of Patent Document 1, a pressure measuring device is connected as a peripheral device to an image processing device of the endoscope system. In the pressure measuring device, the measured pressure value is superimposed on the image output from the image processing device and displayed on the monitor. Accordingly, it is possible to provide a pressure measurement result without the image processing apparatus having a pressure measurement function.

JP 2002-51975 A

  In particular, in the field of image processing technology, new image processing methods are developed every day, and high speed and precision are realized. In order to realize such a new image processing technique in an existing electronic endoscope system, as proposed in Patent Document 1, an image processing apparatus having a new image processing function is used as a peripheral device for electronic endoscope. It is conceivable to connect to a mirror system processor.

  Here, the endoscope system described in Patent Document 1 has a configuration in which a display device such as a monitor is connected to a connected peripheral device (pressure measurement device) to display an image on which measurement values and the like are superimposed. ing. However, in the case of such a configuration, it is necessary to convert the image signal into a video signal suitable for the display method of the monitor and output it to the monitor in the connected peripheral device. Therefore, it is necessary to provide an encoder for changing the output format of the image signal, an output terminal for connection to the monitor, and the like as provided in the processor in the existing electronic endoscope system on the peripheral device side. For example, when an image processing apparatus is connected to a processor as a peripheral device as described above, it is necessary to provide the image processing apparatus with an encoder, an output terminal, and the like, resulting in an increase in the number of parts and a corresponding increase in cost. There was a problem.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an electronic endoscope system, an electronic endoscope, and an electronic endoscope system that can share an output means for outputting to a display device or the like in a processor and an image processing apparatus. An object is to provide a processor.

  In order to solve the above problems, according to the present invention, an electronic endoscope that captures an image of a body cavity and generates an image signal, a processor to which the electronic endoscope is detachably connected, and a processor that is detachably connected to the processor. There is provided an electronic endoscope system comprising an image processing device and a display device. An image processing apparatus in an electronic endoscope system according to the present invention performs a first image processing on an image signal to generate a first video signal, and a first video signal to a processor. Video signal output means for outputting. The processor further includes: an image signal output unit that outputs the image signal to the image processing device; a second image processing unit that performs a second image process on the image signal to generate a second video signal; Display output means for outputting either the video signal or the second video signal to the display device.

  With this configuration, it is possible to output a video signal that has been subjected to image processing by the image processing apparatus, using the display output means included in the processor. As a result, the image processing apparatus does not need to include a display output unit, and a simple configuration can be realized.

  The first image processing may include at least one image processing different from the second image processing.

  The display output means outputs the first video signal to the display device when the image processing device is connected to the processor, and the second output when the image processing device is not connected to the processor. The video signal may be output to a display device. With this configuration, when the image processing apparatus is not connected to the processor, the image processing is performed by the second image processing unit. When the image processing apparatus is connected, the image is processed by the first image processing unit. It is possible to perform image processing according to the connection status of the image processing apparatus, such as performing processing.

  The processor and the image processing apparatus further include communication means for communicating with each other, and the display output means determines whether the image processing apparatus is connected to the processor based on a communication result in the communication means. You may judge. With this configuration, it is possible to automatically detect the presence or absence of connection of the image processing apparatus and appropriately switch the output video signal.

  In addition, the processor further includes a switch that can be manually switched by a user, and the display output means switches either the first video signal or the second video signal to the display device based on the state of the switch. It may be output. With this configuration, the output video signal can be appropriately switched by a simple configuration and processing.

  The display output means converts the first video signal or the second video signal into a video signal suitable for a display method of the display device, and a first input to the video signal generation circuit. And a switching circuit that switches between the video signal and the second video signal. As described above, by switching the input to the video signal generation circuit, the image processing device and the processor can also share the processing unit that converts the video signal suitable for the display method of the display device.

  The image processing apparatus may further include an output unit for outputting the first video signal to a display device having a display method different from that of the display device. As a result, various display devices can be used in the electronic endoscope system.

  Furthermore, the electronic endoscope system may further include a recording device that is detachably connected to the processor. In this case, the display output unit may output either the first video signal or the second video signal to the recording device.

  According to the present invention, there is also provided an electronic endoscope processor to which an electronic endoscope, an image processing device, and a display device can be detachably connected, and an image signal generated by the electronic endoscope is output to the image processing device. Image signal output means for performing image processing on the image signal to generate a video signal, and display output means for outputting either the video signal or the video signal output from the image processing apparatus to the display device An electronic endoscope processor is provided.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, the output means to the display device included in the processor can be shared as the output means of the image processing apparatus, and the configuration of the image processing apparatus can be simplified.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an electronic endoscope system in an embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the processing block in the image processing circuit of the (a) processor of this invention, and the (b) image processing circuit of the image processing apparatus of this invention.

  Hereinafter, an electronic endoscope system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an electronic endoscope system 1 of the present embodiment. The electronic endoscope system 1 is a medical observation system for an operator to observe and diagnose the inside of a patient's body cavity. An electronic endoscope system 1 includes an electronic endoscope 10 for taking an image of a body cavity, a processor 20 to which the electronic endoscope 10 is detachably connected, and an image processing apparatus to be detachably connected to the processor 20. 30 and a monitor 40 also connected to the processor 20.

  The electronic endoscope 10 includes an insertion portion 10a made of a long flexible tube inserted into a patient's body, a grasping portion 10b grasped by an operator, and a connection portion electrically and optically connected to the processor 20. 10c. A light guide 101 for propagating light supplied from the processor 20 extends from the connection portion 10c of the electronic endoscope 10 to the distal end of the insertion portion 10a. In addition, a light distribution lens 102 for emitting light propagated by the light guide 101 to the observation site is formed at the distal end of the insertion portion 10a, and light reflected from the observation site is imaged on the light receiving surface of the image sensor. Objective lens 103, and CCD 104, which is a solid-state imaging device that generates an image signal based on the subject image formed on the light receiving surface.

  The processor 20 supplies drive power to the system controller 201 and the timing controller 202 for achieving drive control and synchronization of the entire electronic endoscope system 1, the lamp 203 for supplying illumination light to the electronic endoscope 10, and the lamp 203. A lamp power source 204 for supply and a diaphragm 205 for adjusting the amount of light emitted from the lamp 203 are provided. The processor 20 performs predetermined image processing on the image signal output from the electronic endoscope 10 to generate a video signal, and superimposes character information or the like on the image-processed image. OSD circuit 208, an encoder 209 for converting an image signal into a video signal in a format suitable for the monitor 40, and an output for outputting the video signal converted by the encoder 209 to a connected external device A terminal 210 is provided. The output terminal 210 outputs an NTSC signal corresponding to the NTSC system (including an RGB signal, a Y / C signal and a composite signal) and an SXGA signal corresponding to the SXGA system. It is composed of SXGA terminals 210S.

  Furthermore, the processor 20 of this embodiment includes a connector 211 for connecting to the image processing apparatus 30 and a switching circuit 207 for switching a video signal input to the OSD circuit 208. The connector 211 is a control communication terminal 211 a for transmitting and receiving a control signal between the system controller 201 of the processor 20 and the system controller 301 of the image processing apparatus 30, and an image signal generated by the electronic endoscope 10. An image signal output terminal 211b for outputting to the processing device 30 and a video signal input terminal 211c for inputting a video signal generated by the image processing circuit 302 of the image processing device 30 are provided. The switching circuit 207 is a signal to input either the video signal output from the image processing circuit 206 or the video signal input via the video signal input terminal 211c to the OSD circuit 208 under the control of the system controller 201. Switch routes.

  The image processing apparatus 30 includes a system controller 301 that comprehensively controls each unit of the image processing apparatus 30, an image processing circuit 302 that generates an image signal by performing image processing to be described later on an input image signal, and the processor 20. A connector 303 connected to the connector 211 is provided. The connector 303 inputs an image signal output from the control communication terminal 303a and the image signal output terminal 211b for transmitting and receiving control signals between the system controller 201 of the processor 20 and the system controller 301 of the image processing apparatus 30. And a video signal output terminal 303 c for outputting a video signal subjected to image processing by the image processing circuit 302 of the image processing device 30 to the processor 20.

  The processor 20 and the image processing apparatus 30 are connected by connecting the connectors 211 and 303 directly or via a cable. Specifically, the control communication terminal 211a, the image signal output terminal 211b, and the video signal input terminal 211c of the connector 211 are connected to the control communication terminal 303a, the image signal input terminal 303b, and the video signal output terminal 303c of the connector 303, respectively. . As a result, the processor 20 and the image processing apparatus 30 can transmit and receive signals to and from each other.

  The monitor 40 includes a TV monitor 40T corresponding to an NTSC image and a PC monitor 40P corresponding to an SXGA image having a higher resolution than the TV monitor 40T. Here, both the TV monitor 40T and the PC monitor 40P may be connected to the processor 20, or only one of them may be connected. The TV monitor 40T and the PC monitor 40P are connected to the NTSC terminal 210N and the SXGA terminal 210S in the output terminal 210 of the processor 20, respectively, and display an image corresponding to the video signal output from each terminal.

  Next, in-body cavity observation in the electronic endoscope system 1 having the above-described configuration will be described. First, when the power of the processor 20 is turned on, driving power is supplied from the lamp power source 204 to the lamp 203 under the control of the system controller 201, and light is emitted from the lamp 203. The amount of light emitted from the lamp 203 is adjusted by a diaphragm 205 disposed in the optical path, and is incident on the light guide 101 of the electronic endoscope 10. The light incident on the light guide 101 is propagated through the light guide 101 and emitted from the distal end of the insertion portion 10 a via the light distribution lens 102.

  Then, the light reflected by the biological tissue in the body cavity is imaged on the light receiving surface of the CCD 104 via the objective lens 103. In the present embodiment, a single-plate simultaneous type is applied as a color imaging method, and yellow (Ye), cyan (Cy), magenta (Mg), and green (G) color elements are checked on the light receiving surface of the CCD 104. Complementary color filters (not shown) arranged in a pattern are arranged corresponding to each pixel on the light receiving surface. In the CCD 104, under the control of the system controller 201, an image signal of a subject image corresponding to the intensity of light transmitted through the complementary color filter is generated by photoelectric conversion, and an image signal for one frame is generated at predetermined time intervals. Data are sequentially read out by the color difference line sequential method. In this embodiment, an interline transfer type CCD is used, and image signals for one frame are sequentially read out at intervals of 1/30 seconds, for example, in correspondence with the vertical synchronization frequency of the NTSC system. 20 is sent.

  The image signal generated by the CCD 104 is sent to the image processing circuit 206 of the processor 20 and the image signal output terminal 211b of the connector 211. In the image processing circuit 206, each process shown in FIG. 2A is performed on the input image signal to generate a video signal. Specifically, in the image processing circuit 206, the image signal is first subjected to A / D conversion processing and converted into an 8-bit digital signal. Then, noise reduction processing is performed on the digitally converted image signal. Here, the noise component in the image signal is removed based on the correlation between the image signal for one frame and the image signal of the previous frame. Subsequently, in the enhancement process, contour enhancement in the image is performed according to a predetermined coefficient. Subsequently, gain adjustment processing is performed to adjust the white balance and RGB gain values of the image. Finally, gamma correction processing is performed, and gamma characteristics are corrected so that the image has natural brightness. The image processing block shown in FIG. 2A is an example, and other image processing can be performed. When each process in the image processing circuit 206 is completed, the generated video signal is input to the switching circuit 207.

  On the other hand, the image signal sent to the image signal output terminal 211 b is sent from the image signal output terminal 211 b to the image signal input terminal 303 b and output to the image processing circuit 302. As described above, in the present embodiment, the image signal before the image processing is performed by the image processing circuit 206 of the processor 20 is processed by the image processing device 30 via the image signal output terminal 211b and the image signal input terminal 303b. It is transmitted to the circuit 302. As a result, the image processing apparatus 30 can perform image processing, which will be described later, on an image signal that has not been subjected to image processing, and the image processing included in the image processing apparatus 30 without being affected by unnecessary image processing. An effect can be appropriately obtained.

  In the image processing circuit 302, the input image signal is subjected to the image processing shown in FIG. 2B to generate a video signal. In FIG. 2B, processing different from the image processing circuit 206 in the processor 20 is indicated by a double line. As shown in FIG. 2B, also in the image processing circuit 302, the image signal is first subjected to A / D conversion processing. At this time, the image processing circuit 302 of the image processing apparatus 30 has a higher resolution than the image processing circuit 206 of the processor 20 and performs conversion into, for example, a 12-bit digital image signal. Then, noise reduction processing is performed on the digitally converted image signal. Again, compared with the noise reduction process in the image processing circuit 206 of the processor 20, the correlation between frames is processed at a higher speed, and the amount of delay due to the noise reduction process is reduced. Subsequently, enhancement processing is performed, and contour enhancement in the image is performed according to a predetermined coefficient.

  Further, in the image processing circuit 302 of the image processing apparatus 30, blood vessel enhancement processing is performed as an image processing function that is not provided in the image processing circuit 206 of the processor 20. In this process, the blood vessel portion is detected by RGB wavelength analysis or the like in the image signal, and the detected blood vessel portion is converted into an enhanced image. Subsequently, gain adjustment processing is performed, and white balance and RGB gain values of the image are adjusted. Thereafter, gamma correction processing corresponding to the 12-bit digital signal is performed, and gamma characteristics are corrected so that the image has natural brightness. Finally, a bit conversion process is performed to convert the 12-bit digital video signal into an 8-bit digital video signal. As will be described later, the video signal generated by the image processing circuit 302 is output to the processor 20, and processing for outputting to the monitor 40 is performed in the OSD circuit 208 provided in the processor 20. Here, the OSD circuit 208 of the processor 20 corresponds to an 8-bit digital signal as a basic function. For this reason, the OSD circuit 208 can perform processing by performing conversion processing from 12 bits to 8 bits in the image processing apparatus 30.

  Note that the image processing block shown in FIG. 2B is an example, and other image processing may be performed. Each process in the image processing circuit 302 may be performed based on a control signal transmitted from the system controller 201 of the processor 20 via the control communication terminals 211a and 303a. For example, when the operator manually inputs a gain value using a front panel (not shown) of the processor 20, a control signal based on the input content is sent from the system controller 201 to the system controller 301 of the image processing apparatus 30. Sent to. Then, the system controller 301 that has received the control signal performs gain adjustment processing based on the control signal. With this configuration, the image processing apparatus 30 can perform image processing desired by the operator.

  When each process in the image processing circuit 302 is completed, the generated video signal is sent to the video signal output terminal 303 c of the connector 303. Then, the video signal is output from the video signal output terminal 303 c to the switching circuit 207 via the video signal input terminal 211 c of the processor 20.

  In the switching circuit 207, the video signal input to the OSD circuit 208 is switched under the control of the system controller 201. In the present embodiment, the system controller 201 detects the connection status of the image processing apparatus 30 and switches the signal input to the OSD circuit 208 according to the connection status. Specifically, when the image processing device 30 is connected to the processor 20, the system controller 201 performs a video signal input via the video signal input terminal 211 c, that is, image processing in the image processing device 30. The switching circuit 207 is controlled to input the video signal to the OSD circuit 208. On the other hand, when the image processing device 30 is not connected to the processor 20, the switching circuit 207 is controlled so that the video signal subjected to image processing by the image processing circuit 206 of the processor 20 is input to the OSD circuit 208.

  Here, whether or not the image processing apparatus 30 is connected is automatically determined based on the result of communication between the system controller 201 of the processor 20 and the system controller 301 of the image processing apparatus 30 performed via the control communication terminals 211a and 303a. Detected. Specifically, when the image processing apparatus 30 is connected to the processor 20, the system controller 301 of the image processing apparatus 30 transmits a control signal including information about the device itself to the system controller 201 of the processor 20. The system controller 201 determines whether or not the image processing apparatus 30 is connected to the processor 20 based on whether or not a control signal is received, and controls the switching circuit 207.

  When the image processing apparatus 30 is connected to the processor 20, the video signal generated by the image processing circuit 302 is input to the OSD circuit 208. Then, the OSD circuit 208 scales the image corresponding to the display method of the monitor 40, predetermined character information (date and time, type of endoscope, comment inputted by the operator, etc.) on the image corresponding to the received video signal. ) And is output to the encoder 209. The encoder 209 converts the video signal on which characters are superimposed, and generates a video signal such as an RGB signal, an NTSC signal including a Y / C separation signal and an NTSC composite signal, and an SXGA signal based on the SXGA standard. Each video signal generated by the encoder 209 is output to the output terminal 210.

  The RGB signal, Y / C separation signal, and NTSC composite signal converted by the encoder 209 are output to the NTSC terminal 210N, and the SXGA signal is output to the SXGA terminal 210S. A subject image based on each video signal is displayed on the TV monitor 40T connected to the NTSC terminal 210N and / or the PC monitor 40T connected to the SXGA terminal 210S. The subject image displayed on each monitor 40T and / or 40P at this time reflects the image processing effect in the image processing apparatus 30.

  On the other hand, when the image processing apparatus 30 is not connected to the processor 20, a video signal subjected to image processing by the image processing circuit 206 of the processor 20 is input to the OSD circuit 208. In the OSD circuit 208, scaling and superimposition of character information are performed and output to the encoder 209 as described above. Then, the encoder 209 generates a video signal such as an RGB signal, an NTSC signal including a Y / C separation signal and an NTSC composite signal, and an SXGA signal based on the SXGA standard. And / or 40P. The subject image displayed on each monitor 40T and / or 40P at this time reflects the image processing effect that the processor 20 has as a basic function.

  As described above, in the electronic endoscope system 1 of the present embodiment, the image signal output terminal 211 b for outputting the image signal to the image processing device 30 and the video signal generated by the image processing device 30 are input to the processor 20. A video signal input terminal 211c for inputting the image signal, an image signal input terminal 303b for inputting the image signal to the image processing apparatus 30, and a video signal output terminal 303c for outputting the video signal generated by the image processing apparatus 30. Is provided. Then, the image processing apparatus 30 outputs a video signal generated by subjecting the image signal to image processing different from that of the processor 20 to the processor 20, and an OSD circuit 208, an encoder 209, and The output terminal 210 is used to output to the monitor 40. Accordingly, the image processing apparatus 30 does not need to include an output unit for generating and outputting a video signal suitable for the display method of the monitor 40 such as the OSD circuit 208, the encoder 209, and the output terminal 210, and has a simple configuration. Can be realized.

  Further, by providing the switching circuit 207 inside the processor 20, the video signal input to the OSD circuit 208 can be switched according to the connection status of the image processing apparatus 30 to the processor 20. Therefore, when the image processing apparatus 30 is not connected to the processor 20, the video signal that has been subjected to image processing by the image processing circuit 206 provided in the processor 20 can be output to the monitor. Images can be provided.

  The above is the embodiment of the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the technical idea of the present invention. For example, in the above embodiment, the connectors 211 and 303 are provided with the control communication terminals 211a and 303a for control communication, and image transmission and reception are performed between the system controller 201 of the processor 20 and the system controller 301 of the image processing apparatus 30. It is determined whether or not the processing device 30 is connected to the processor 20. The video signal input to the OSD circuit 208 in the switching circuit 207 is switched according to the connection status, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a switch may be configured to control the switching circuit 207 so that a video signal input to the OSD circuit 208 is switched by providing a switch on the front panel of the processor 20 and manually switching the switch by an operator. Furthermore, for example, the keyboard of the processor 20 can be operated to set the path of the video signal input to the OSD circuit 208 in advance and stored in a memory (not shown) of the system controller 201. With this configuration, the processing of the system controllers 201 and 301 can be simplified and the load can be reduced.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the processor 20 is configured to output video signals of the systems (NTSC system and SXGA system) that are supported as basic functions. However, in the image processing apparatus 30, the processor 20 is not compatible. A configuration may be adopted in which a video signal corresponding to a display method (for example, high resolution such as WSXGA or QXGA) is output. In this case, the image processing apparatus 30 may be provided with an OSD circuit, an encoder, and an output terminal for generating a new video signal. With this configuration, when a monitor corresponding to an existing method provided in the processor 20 is used as the display device, a video signal is output using the OSD circuit, encoder, and output terminal provided in the processor 20. When a monitor corresponding to another new method is used, a video signal can be output using an OSD circuit, an encoder, and an output terminal included in the image processing apparatus 30. As a result, various display devices can be used, and the number of parts can be reduced by sharing the output unit that can be shared.

  In the electronic endoscope system 1 of the above embodiment, the monitor 40 is connected to the output terminal 210 of the processor 20. In addition to the monitor 40, the video signal output from the processor 20 is also received. A recording apparatus for recording may be connected.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Electronic endoscope system 10 Electronic endoscope 20 Processor 30 Image processing apparatus 40 Monitor 104 CCD
201, 301 System controller 206, 302 Image processing circuit 211, 303 Connector 207 Switching circuit 208 OSD circuit 209 Encoder 210 Output terminal

Claims (9)

An electronic endoscope that captures an image of a body cavity and generates an image signal, a processor to which the electronic endoscope is detachably connected, and an image processing device and a display device that are detachably connected to the processor An electronic endoscope system comprising:
The image processing apparatus includes:
First image processing means for applying a first image processing to the image signal to generate a first video signal;
Video signal output means for outputting the first video signal to the processor,
The processor is
Image signal output means for outputting the image signal to the image processing device;
Second image processing means for applying a second image processing to the image signal to generate a second video signal;
Display output means for outputting either the first video signal or the second video signal to the display device;
Switching means for switching between the first video signal and the second video signal input to the display output means;
Control means for controlling the switching means;
With
The electronic endoscope system is characterized in that the image processing apparatus is externally connected to the processor .   The electronic endoscope system according to claim 1, wherein the first image processing includes at least one image processing different from the second image processing. The control means outputs the first video signal to the display device when the image processing device is connected to the processor, and when the image processing device is not connected to the processor. The electronic endoscope system according to claim 1, wherein the switching unit is controlled to output the second video signal to the display device. The processor and the image processing apparatus further include communication means for communicating with each other,
The electronic endoscope system according to claim 3, wherein the control unit determines whether the image processing apparatus is connected to the processor based on a communication result in the communication unit. The processor further comprises a switch manually switchable by a user,
The control means controls the switching means so as to output either the first video signal or the second video signal to the display device based on a state of the switch. Or the electronic endoscope system of Claim 2. The display output means includes
A video signal generation circuit for converting the first video signal or the second video signal into a video signal suitable for a display method of the display device;
An output terminal connected to the display device;
The electronic endoscope system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising:   7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising output means for outputting the first video signal to a display device having a display method different from that of the display device. The electronic endoscope system according to any one of the above. A recording device detachably connected to the processor;
The electronic apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the display output means outputs either the first video signal or the second video signal to the recording device. Endoscope system. An electronic endoscope processor in which an electronic endoscope, an image processing device, and a display device are detachably connectable,
Image signal output means for outputting an image signal generated by the electronic endoscope to the image processing device;
Video signal receiving means for receiving, from the image processing device, a first video signal obtained by performing first image processing on the image signal;
Image processing means for applying a second image processing to the image signal to generate a second video signal;
Display output means for outputting either the first video signal or the second video signal to the display device;
Switching means for switching between the first video signal and the second video signal input to the display output means;
Control means for controlling the switching means;
With
The processor for electronic endoscope, wherein the image processing apparatus is externally connected to the processor for electronic endoscope.

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