JP2000342532A - Endoscope system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To automatically erase unnecessary character information from a screen during using an endoscope. SOLUTION: In this system, a hanger switch SW3 is provided for a hanger UH provided for hanging an electronic endoscope 10. When the endoscope 10 is removed from the hanger UH in order to start treatment or examination, an OFF signal is outputted to a control circuit 31 from the hanger switch. Based on the OFF signal, the circuit 31 controls a character circuit, which outputs only a character signal corresponding to character information required to be displayed. Thus, unnecessary character information is erased from a monitor 41.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an endoscope apparatus for treating or examining an affected part by inserting a scope into a body cavity such as a stomach and displaying a body cavity image on a monitor. It relates to the display of character information such as the displayed patient name and doctor name.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional endoscope apparatus, a body cavity image obtained by inserting a scope into a body cavity is displayed on a monitor, and character information such as a patient name and an ID number of a patient name is displayed on the monitor together with the body cavity image. They can be displayed together. Then, when it is desired to delete unnecessary character information from the monitor screen during treatment or examination (when it is desired to hide the character information on the screen), the character information can be deleted by operating the keyboard. Thereby, only the body cavity image and the character information that needs to be displayed are displayed on the screen.

[0003]

However, when erasing unnecessary character information from the screen, that is, hiding the character information, the operator must perform the erasing operation himself before inserting the scope into the body cavity. In some cases, surgery or examination is started with the information forgotten to be erased. At this time, if the body cavity image is displayed on the entire screen, the character information overlaps with the body cavity image, and the character information may be an obstacle when observing the state of the affected part. Further, if it is attempted to delete the character information after the insertion of the scope and the start of the treatment or the like, the treatment or the like must be temporarily interrupted to delete the character information, which hinders the progress of the treatment or the like.

[0004] It is an object of the present invention to provide an endoscope apparatus capable of automatically deleting unnecessary character information from a screen when a scope is used for treatment or examination.

[0005]

An endoscope apparatus according to the present invention comprises:
A scope for irradiating the subject with light, and capturing a subject image formed by reflecting the light applied to the subject, an image display means for displaying the subject image captured by the scope on a screen, and character information. Character information display means to be displayed on the screen together with the subject image, scope use start detection means for detecting whether or not use of the scope has started to start treatment or examination, and use of the scope detected by the scope use start detection means And character information non-display means for erasing the character information displayed by the character information display means from the screen when the character information is displayed. Thus, when the start of use of the scope is automatically detected, the character information is erased from the screen, and the character information does not hinder the observation of the subject image.

It is desirable that the character information non-display means deletes unnecessary character information that does not need to be displayed on the screen during treatment or examination, from the character information. As a result, only the character information that does not need to be displayed is deleted from the screen. The unnecessary character information is, for example, character information including a doctor name, a hospital name, and a color bar.

It is desirable that the endoscope device has a hanger for mounting the scope when the scope is not used. At this time, the scope use start detecting means detects whether the scope is hung on the hanger, and if the scope is not hung on the hanger, determines that the use of the scope has been started. It is desirable to detect the onset. Thus, when the scope is removed from the hanger, the character information is automatically deleted from the screen.

[0008] The scope use start detecting means detects whether or not the brightness of the subject image changes, and when the brightness of the subject image changes, determines that the use of the scope has been started. It is desirable to detect the start of use. Thus, when the brightness of the subject image changes, the character information is automatically deleted from the screen.

The scope use start detecting means detects whether or not the subject image picked up by the scope has a motion, and judges that the use of the scope has been started when the subject image has a motion. It is desirable to detect the use start of the scope. Thus, when a movement occurs in the subject image, the character information is automatically deleted from the screen.

[0010] The scope use start detecting means detects whether or not the color of the subject image has a red component greater than the other color components, and if the red component is greater than the other color components. It is desirable to detect the start of use of the scope by determining that the use of the scope has been started.
Thus, when the red component of the subject image increases, the character information is automatically deleted from the screen.

It is desirable that the scope use start detecting means has a luminance value detecting means for detecting a luminance value of a subject image picked up by the scope.

A diaphragm provided for adjusting the amount of light to the subject based on the brightness value of the subject image detected by the brightness value detecting means automatically opens and closes so that the subject always emits an appropriate amount of light. It is desirable to do.

The scope use start detecting means detects whether or not the opening / closing amount of the iris exceeds a predetermined amount. If the iris opens and closes by a predetermined amount or more, it is determined that the use of the scope has been started. It is desirable to detect the onset. Accordingly, when the aperture is opened and closed beyond a predetermined amount due to a change in the brightness of the subject image, the character information is automatically deleted from the screen.

The scope use start detecting means detects the movement of the subject image based on the change amount of the brightness value of the subject image obtained by the brightness value detecting means, and changes the brightness value of the subject image, thereby detecting the movement of the subject image. Is detected, it is desirable to detect the start of use of the scope by determining that the use of the scope has been started. Thereby, when a movement occurs in the subject image and the luminance value of the subject image changes,
Character information is automatically deleted from the screen. At this time, the scope use start detecting means detects, for example, one of the subject images.
The movement of the subject image on the screen is detected by detecting whether or not the amount of change in the sum of the luminance values in the frame exceeds a predetermined amount.

It is desirable that the scope use start detecting means has a color component detecting means for detecting image signals corresponding to green, blue and red, respectively, for a subject image picked up by the scope.

The scope use start detecting means compares the information amounts of the image signals corresponding to green, blue and red detected by the color component comparing and detecting means, and changes the information amount of the image signal corresponding to red to green and blue. Detecting whether it is greater than the sum of the information amount of the corresponding image signal and the predetermined information amount,
By determining that the use of the scope has been started when the information amount of the image signal corresponding to red is greater than that obtained by adding a predetermined amount of information to the information amount of the image signal corresponding to green and blue, It is desirable to detect the use of the scope. Thus, when the information amount of the image signal corresponding to red is larger than the information amount of the image signal corresponding to green and blue and the predetermined information amount, the character information is automatically erased from the screen. You.

It is desirable that the endoscope apparatus has manual setting means for arbitrarily setting character information to be hidden on the screen. Thus, the user can himself select the character information to be deleted while using the scope. The setting of the character information to be hidden is performed by, for example, a keyboard operation.

An endoscope apparatus according to the present invention includes a scope for irradiating a subject with light and capturing an image of a subject formed by reflecting the light applied to the subject, and a subject image captured by the scope. Image display means for displaying on a screen, character information display means for displaying character information on a screen together with a subject image, and use of a scope for detecting whether or not a scope is being used for treatment or examination State detecting means, and character information non-display means for erasing character information displayed by the character information displaying means from the screen only during a period in which the scope using state detecting means detects that the scope is in use. It is characterized by. As a result, the character information is erased from the screen while the scope is being used, and the character information does not hinder the observation of the subject image.

It is desirable that the character information non-display means deletes unnecessary character information that does not need to be displayed on the screen during treatment or examination, from the character information. As a result, only the character information that does not need to be displayed is deleted from the screen.

It is desirable that the endoscope device has a hanger for mounting the scope when the scope is not in use. At this time, the scope use state detecting means detects whether the scope is hung on a hanger and determines that the scope is in a state where the scope is being used during a period in which it is detected that the scope is not hung on the hanger. By doing so, it is desirable to detect the use state of the scope. Thereby, the character information is automatically deleted from the screen only during the period when the scope is removed from the hanger.

The scope use state detecting means detects whether or not the color of the subject image has a red component greater than the other color components, and determines whether the red component is greater than the other color components. It is desirable to detect the use state of the scope by determining that the scope is in use state. As a result, the character information is automatically deleted from the screen only during the period when the red component of the subject image increases.

It is preferable that the scope use state detecting means has a color component detecting means for detecting an image signal corresponding to green, blue and red with respect to a subject image picked up by the scope.

The scope use start detecting means compares the information amounts of the image signals corresponding to green, blue and red detected by the color component comparison detecting means, and changes the information amount of the image signal corresponding to red to green and blue. Detecting whether it is greater than the sum of the information amount of the corresponding image signal and the predetermined information amount,
By determining that the scope is in a state in which the amount of information of the image signal corresponding to red is greater than the amount of information of the image signal corresponding to green and blue and a predetermined amount of information is added to the scope, respectively, It is desirable to detect the use state of the scope. As a result, the character information is automatically erased from the screen only during a period in which the information amount of the image signal corresponding to red is larger than the information amount of the image signal corresponding to green and blue and the predetermined information amount. Is done.

[0024]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an endoscope apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a view showing the entire endoscope apparatus according to the first embodiment. This endoscope apparatus is an apparatus for treating or examining the condition of an affected part by inserting a scope into a body cavity such as the stomach and displaying an image of the body cavity on a monitor.

As shown in FIG. 1, the electronic scope 10
The electronic scope 10 is connected to the processor 20 including the light source device, and an image in the body cavity is displayed on the monitor 41 via the processor 20 by inserting the electronic scope 10 into the body cavity. In addition, the processor 20, the keyboard 42, and the printer 43 are arranged in the cart K, and the hanger U
H is attached to the side of cart K.

The electronic scope (scope) 10 is hung on a hanger HU in a state where it is not used without being inserted into a body cavity. When starting treatment or examination, the scope 10 is detached from the hanger UH.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an electric circuit of the endoscope apparatus according to the first embodiment.

Light emitted from the light source 21 in the processor 20 is incident on the incident end 11a of the ride guide cable 11 provided in the electronic scope 10 via the condenser lens 22. The light incident on the light guide cable 11 is
The light exits from the exit end 11b of the light guide cable 11,
The light is radiated to the body cavity S via the light distribution lens 12. A stop 23 is provided between the condenser lens 22 and the light guide cable 11 in order to adjust the amount of light applied to the body cavity S. The stop 23 is controlled by a stop adjustment circuit 24.

An image of the body cavity S obtained by reflecting the light applied to the body cavity S
An image is formed on the image sensor 14 which is a CD. A mosaic filter corresponding to each color of red (R), blue (B), and green (B) is provided on the image sensor 14, and an image signal corresponding to each color is photoelectrically converted on the image sensor 14 by photoelectric conversion. appear. The image signal generated by the photoelectric conversion is
The image signal is read out by the video signal processing circuit 25 and
Image signal for one frame in the video signal processing circuit 2
Sent to 5. Image signals for one screen are sequentially read out at predetermined time intervals (here, 1/30 second).

The video signal processing circuit 25 performs noise removal and the like on the read image signal corresponding to each color, and converts the image signal from an analog signal to a digital signal. Further, a luminance signal is obtained from the image signal, and the luminance signal is sent from the video processing circuit 25 to the CPU 29. Among the digitized image signals, an image signal corresponding to red R is sequentially transmitted to an R memory 26a, an image signal corresponding to green G is transmitted to a G memory 26b, and an image signal corresponding to blue B is sequentially transmitted to a B memory 26c. Is temporarily stored in each memory.

The image signals corresponding to each color stored in the R memory 26a, the G memory 26b, and the B memory 26c are synchronized by the timing circuit 28 and sent to the video processing circuit 27. The video processing circuit 27 performs image processing such as white balance adjustment and gamma correction on the synchronized image signal, and further converts the digital signal into an analog signal. The analogized image signal is output from the video processing circuit 27.

The character signal sent from the character circuit 30 and the analog image signal sent from the video processing circuit 27 are selectively output to the monitor 41 and the printer 43 by switching the switches 32 and 33.
As a result, the character information is superimposed on the monitor 41. That is, when the timing for outputting the character signal is adjusted by the switch 32 and the image signal sent from the video processing circuit 27 does not correspond to the position where the character information is displayed on the monitor 41, the switch 32 is set to the video processing circuit 27. Connected to
The image signal is sent to the monitor 41 as it is. On the other hand, when the image signal sent from the video processing circuit 27 corresponds to the position where the character information is displayed, the switch 32 is connected to the character circuit 30, and the character signal is output to the monitor 41. However, the character signal is a signal corresponding to the character information displayed on the monitor 41. Such a switching operation is also performed by the switch 33, and the printer paper (print paper) in the printer 43
The switch 33 is switched so that the character information is displayed at a predetermined position. As described above, by switching the switches 32 and 33, the character information such as the patient name and the doctor name is displayed on the monitor 41 together with the image of the body cavity S.
In addition, by setting the printer 43 in a printable state, the body cavity S including the character information is displayed.
Is recorded on the printer paper. Switches 32, 3
The switching operation of No. 3 is controlled by the character control circuit 31 through the character circuit 30, and the character control circuit 31 performs the switching operation of the switches 32 and 33 based on the signal sent from the timing circuit.

Regarding the driving of the diaphragm 23, in the present embodiment, an automatic light control for automatically opening and closing the diaphragm 23 so as to always irradiate the proper amount of light to the body cavity S is applied. Based on the signal, a signal for opening and closing the aperture 23 is sent from the CPU 29 to the aperture adjustment circuit 24.

Unnecessary character information that is not displayed on the monitor 41 can be set on the keyboard 42. When the keyboard 42 is operated, a signal relating to the setting of non-display is input to the character control circuit 31 in the CPU 29. Is done. Data on unnecessary character information is C
The data is temporarily stored in a memory (RAM) 40 in the PU 29, and is read as needed. Panel switch 39
Is a switch for executing an operation related to image recording of the body cavity S on the printer 43 and the like.

The hanger switch HSW is a hanger UH
The switch signal is input from the hanger switch HSW to the character control circuit 31. When the electronic scope 10 is removed from the hanger UH to perform treatment or examination by inserting the electronic scope 10 into the body cavity S, the hanger switch HSW is turned off, and an OFF signal is input to the character control circuit 31. The start of use of the electronic scope 10 is detected based on the OFF signal.

The character control circuit 31 outputs a control signal to the character circuit 30 and the switches 32 and 33 based on the OFF signal sent from the hanger switch HSW. Only a character signal corresponding to character information other than unnecessary character information set by operating the keyboard 42 is transmitted to the character circuit 30.
Output from That is, when the image signal sent from the video processing circuit 27 corresponds to the display position of the unnecessary character information, the switches 32 and 33 are not connected to the character circuit 30 and remain connected to the video processing circuit 27. Becomes By controlling the character circuit 30 and the switch 32 by such a character control circuit 31, only the character information that needs to be displayed is displayed on the monitor 4.
At 1, the character information is displayed at a predetermined place, and unnecessary character information is deleted from the monitor 41. Similarly, by controlling the character circuit 30 and the switch 33 by the character control circuit 31, only the character information that needs to be displayed is displayed at a predetermined position on the printer paper.

The timing circuit 28 outputs synchronizing signals to the character control circuit 31, video processing circuit 27, R memory 26a, G memory 26b, B memory 26c, and video signal processing circuit 25.

The RTC (Real T) provided in the CPU 29
In the ime clock 38, data relating to the current date and time is read out, and the character circuit 30 outputs a character signal corresponding to the date and time. This allows
Character information such as date and time is displayed on the monitor 41.

The electronic scope 10 is provided with a forceps tube (not shown) for inserting forceps to be used for treatment.

FIG. 3 shows that the electronic scope 10 is a hanger UH
FIG. 4 is a view showing a screen of the monitor 41 when treatment or examination is not started in a state where the electronic scope 10 is detached from the hanger and inserted into the body cavity S. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a screen of a monitor 41.

As shown in FIG. 3, an image picked up by the electronic scope 10 is displayed on the screen W of the monitor 41, and various character information is displayed along with the image.
In the present embodiment, the patient name S
1, character information such as gender S2, age S3, and ID number S4 are displayed, and a doctor name S5, date S6, and time S7 are displayed at the lower right of the screen W.
A hospital name S8 is displayed at the top center of the screen W, and a color bar CL is displayed below the screen W. The color bar CL is used when adjusting the monitor 41.

Since the electronic scope 10 is not in use, an image captured while the electronic scope 10 is hung on the hanger UH is displayed on the screen W. During the standby state, the user can operate the keyboard 42 to adjust the image quality of the screen W using the color bar CL and to set unnecessary character information to be deleted from the screen W. Here, doctor name S5, hospital name S
8. Set the color bar CL as unnecessary character information.

When the electronic scope 10 is removed from the hanger and inserted into the body cavity S to start treatment or examination, an image of the body cavity S is displayed on the entire screen W as shown in FIG. At this time, unnecessary character information such as doctor name S5, hospital name S8, and color bar CL is deleted,
The diseased part J is displayed on the screen W without overlapping the color bar CL. Thereby, the state of the affected part J can be easily confirmed.

As described above, in this embodiment, when the use of the electronic scope 10 is started, unnecessary character information that does not need to be displayed is deleted from the screen W.

The setting of unnecessary character information by the operator is performed by operating the movement keys, function keys, and enter key on the keyboard 42.
When the function key F5 is operated, the character information S1 to S8 and the character information "color bar" representing the color bar CL are displayed side by side on the screen W. Unnecessary character information is pressed by the up / down movement key (↑ ↓). Selected. Then, by pressing the enter key, character information not to be displayed is set. When the function key F5 is operated again, a screen W shown in FIG. 3 is displayed. When canceling the setting of the unnecessary character information, the function key F5 is pressed, the unnecessary character information set is selected by the moving key, and the setting is canceled by pressing the backspace key.

When the deleted unnecessary character information is displayed again on the screen W after the treatment or the examination is completed, the function key F1 of the keyboard 42 is operated.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation for erasing unnecessary character information.

In step 101, with the electronic scope 10 hung on the hanger UH, the hanger switch H
It is determined whether the SW (see FIG. 2) is in the ON state. If it is determined that the hanger switch HSW is not in the ON state, that is, it is determined that the electronic scope 10 has been removed from the hanger UH, the process proceeds to step 102. When it is determined that the hanger switch HSW is in the ON state, Step 101 is repeatedly performed until the hanger switch HSW is turned off.

In step 102, data relating to the unnecessary character information that has been set (here, doctor name S 5, hospital name S 8, color bar CL) is read from the RAM 40. In step 103, the character control circuit 31 controls the character circuit 30 and the switch 3
2, 33 are controlled. That is, the video processing circuit 27
(See FIG. 1)), when the image signal corresponding to the position of the unnecessary character information on the screen W, the switch 32 is not connected to the character circuit 30,
Connected to video processing circuit 27. The switch operation is performed on the switch 33 in the same manner as the switch operation of the switch 32.

In step 104, only the character signal corresponding to the character information to be displayed is output to the monitor 41 by the switching operation of the switch 32.
Only character information excluding unnecessary character information is
The image is displayed on the screen W together with the image of the body cavity S. When the unnecessary character information is erased from the screen W, the erase operation ends. Similarly, when printing is performed by the printer 43, only necessary character information is printed on printer paper.

As described above, according to the first embodiment, when the electronic scope 10 is detached from the hanger UH and the hanger switch HSW is turned off, it is determined that the use of the electronic scope 10 has been started, and the character circuit 3
0 and the switches 32 and 33 are the character control circuit 31
, Unnecessary character information is erased from the screen W. That is, by switching the switches 32 and 33, unnecessary character information is not displayed, and only the character information that needs to be displayed is displayed on the screen W or printer paper. Thus, by detecting that the electronic scope 10 is detached from the hanger UH, the start of use of the electronic scope 10 is automatically detected, and unnecessary character information can be erased from the screen W. Therefore, there is no need to operate the keyboard 42 to delete unnecessary character information, and there is no fear that the character information will obstruct the observation of the image of the body cavity S by forgetting to delete the character information.

By operating the keyboard 42, unnecessary character information to be deleted from the screen W can be arbitrarily set. Therefore, the operator can himself select the character information to be deleted. In addition, doctor's name S
5. Character information other than the hospital name S8 and the color bar CL may be set as unnecessary character information. Also,,
When using the electronic scope 10, all character information may be deleted from the screen W.

Next, an endoscope apparatus according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. In the second embodiment, when a sharp change occurs in the brightness of the image of the body cavity S captured by the electronic scope 10, it is determined that the use of the scope has been started. Is the same as in the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an electric circuit in the endoscope apparatus according to the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, an aperture adjustment determination circuit 34 is provided instead of the hanger switch HSW.

Before the treatment or examination is started, the image of the body cavity S displayed on the screen W is a dark image because the distance between the subject and the tip of the electronic scope 10 is large and light does not irradiate the subject much. Become. Therefore, the aperture 21 is set to the open state so that the image of the body cavity S is displayed brightly. When treatment or examination is started and the electronic scope 10 is inserted into the body cavity S, the electronic scope 1
Since the distance between the tip of 0 and the body cavity S is short, the amount of light applied to the body cavity S sharply increases, and the image of the body cavity S sharply (close to twice) becomes bright. At this time, the aperture 21 is automatically stopped in order to prevent the light from irradiating the body cavity S more than necessary and the image of the body cavity S from becoming too bright.

A signal relating to the opening / closing amount (driving amount) of the diaphragm 23 is input to the diaphragm adjustment determining circuit 34, and the opening / closing amount of the diaphragm 23 is detected. When the opening / closing amount of the aperture 23 exceeds a certain opening / closing amount, a signal relating to the start of use of the electronic scope 10 is sent to the character control circuit 31 in the CPU 29. Based on this signal, the character circuit 30 and the switches 32 and 33 are controlled by the character control circuit 31, and unnecessary character information is deleted from the screen W.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the erasing operation of the character information. Electronic scope 10 is hanger U
When the power of the endoscope apparatus is turned on in a state where the endoscope is set to H, the aperture 21 is initially set to the open state.

In step 201, it is determined whether or not the diaphragm 23 is open. If it is determined that the diaphragm 23 is in the open state, the process proceeds to step 202. If it is determined that the aperture 23 is not in the open state, step 201 is repeatedly executed until the aperture 23 is in the open state.

In step 202, it is determined whether or not the driving of the diaphragm 23 has been started. If it is determined that the driving of the aperture 23 has been started, the process proceeds to step 203. Aperture 23
Is determined to have not been started yet, Step 202 is repeatedly executed until the diaphragm 23 is driven.

In step 203, it is determined whether or not the driving of the diaphragm 23 has been stopped. If it is determined that the driving of the diaphragm 23 has been stopped, the process proceeds to step 204. Aperture 23
Is determined to be in the state of being driven, Step 203 is repeatedly executed until the driving of the diaphragm 24 is stopped.

In step 204, the opening / closing amount P of the diaphragm 23
Is determined to exceed the use opening / closing amount P0. The used opening / closing amount P0 is the minimum opening / closing amount when the opening / closing amount P is the opening / closing amount accompanying the start of use of the electronic scope 10, and is obtained by the following equation. Here, PA indicates the total opening / closing amount of the diaphragm 23 (opening / closing amount from the open state to the closed state). P0 = PA / 2 (1) If it is determined that the opening / closing amount of the aperture 23 exceeds the use opening / closing amount P0, a signal regarding the start of use of the electronic scope 10 is sent from the aperture adjustment determination circuit 34 to the character control. The signal is sent to the circuit 31 and proceeds to step 205. When it is determined that the opening / closing amount of the aperture 23 does not exceed the used opening / closing amount P0, the process returns to step 201.

The execution of steps 205 to 207 is the same as the execution of steps 102 to 104 in FIG. When steps 205 to 207 are executed, the erasing operation ends.

As described above, according to the second embodiment, it is determined that the use of the electronic scope 10 has been started when the diaphragm 21 has been driven beyond the use opening / closing amount P0, and the signal regarding the start of use of the electronic scope 10 is obtained. Is the aperture adjustment determination circuit 3
4 to the character control circuit 31. Based on this signal, unnecessary character information is erased from the screen W (not displayed), and only the necessary character information is displayed on the screen W.
Alternatively, it is displayed on printer paper. That is, by detecting the change in the brightness of the subject image due to the insertion of the electronic scope 10 into the body cavity S by driving the diaphragm 23, the use start of the electronic scope 10 is automatically detected, and unnecessary Character information can be deleted from the screen W.

In this embodiment, when the opening / closing amount P of the diaphragm 23 exceeds the used opening / closing amount P0 (half of the previous opening / closing amount PA), it is determined that the use of the electronic scope 10 has been started. However, the opening / closing amount PA is not limited to half.

In order to detect a change in the brightness of the subject image,
Instead of the opening / closing amount of the aperture 23, a change in the luminance signal (average value) for one frame may be directly detected.

An endoscope apparatus according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. In the third embodiment, when a movement occurs in a subject image captured by the electronic scope 10, it is determined that the use of the scope has been started. Other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment. It is.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing an electric circuit of the endoscope apparatus according to the third embodiment. In the third embodiment, a video change determination circuit 35, a determination memory 36, and a Y memory 37 are provided instead of the hanger switch HSW. The determination memory 36 and the Y memory 37 are connected to the timing circuit 28.

Before the treatment or examination is started, the electronic scope 10 is hung on the hanger UH, and the same subject image is displayed on the screen W of the monitor 41, and no movement occurs in the subject image. When treatment or examination is started and the electronic scope 10 is held by the operator, the tip of the electronic scope 10 is shaken, so that the subject image captured by the electronic scope 10 moves.

When a motion occurs in the subject image, the image signal of the subject image before the motion and the image signal of the subject image after the motion do not match. That is, the image signal changes before and after the movement of the subject image occurs. Here, the movement of the subject image is detected based on the change in the luminance signal.

The video signal processing circuit 25 is stored in the Y memory 37.
Are sequentially stored for each frame. The stored luminance signals for one frame are sequentially sent to the video change determination circuit 35. The discrimination memory 36 also has 1
The luminance signals for the frames are sequentially input from the Y memory 37, but the stored luminance signals are delayed by a time (1/30 second) for scanning one frame by the timing adjustment by the timing circuit 28, and the image change determination circuit Sent to 35. Accordingly, in the video change determination circuit 35, the luminance signal for one frame input to the Y memory 37 and the luminance signal for one frame at the time of the previous scan output from the determination memory 37 (hereinafter, referred to as the previous luminance signal). Are input at the same timing.

In the video change determination circuit 35, the Y memory 37
A change in the luminance signal, which is the difference between the luminance signal sent from the controller and the previous luminance signal sent from the discrimination memory 36, is obtained. Is determined to have started, and a signal regarding the start of use of the electronic scope 10 is sent to the character control circuit 31. Based on this signal, the character circuit 30 and the switches 32 and 33 are controlled by the character control circuit 31, and unnecessary character information is deleted from the monitor 41.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the operation of erasing character information. Here, a frame sequentially scanned at a certain time interval is referred to as an n-th frame (n
= 1, 2,...). Here, the value of the luminance signal to be compared is a luminance signal for one frame. That is, it is the value of the sum of the luminance signals of the pixels in the image sensor 14.

In step 301, the luminance signal of the (n−1) -th frame is input to the discrimination memory 36 and the Y memory 37. In step 302, the luminance signal of the n-th frame is sent from the Y memory 37 to the video change determination circuit 35, and the n-th frame is stored in the determination memory 36.
The luminance signal of the first frame (previous luminance signal) is sent to the video change determination circuit 35.

In step 303, the image change determination circuit 3
5, the luminance signal change amount ΔG is obtained. However,
The luminance signal change amount ΔG is a difference between the sum of the luminance signals of each pixel in the n-th frame and the sum of the luminance signals of each pixel in the (n-1) -th frame. Then, it is determined whether or not the luminance signal change amount ΔG exceeds the movement change amount GT. Here, the motion change amount GT is set to 20% of the sum of the luminance signals of the n-th frame. That is, it is assumed that the subject image has moved when the sum of the luminance signals differs from the sum of the luminance signals at the time of the previous scanning by 20% or more. If it is determined that the luminance signal change amount ΔG exceeds the movement change amount GT, a signal regarding the start of use of the electronic scope 10 is sent to the character control circuit 31, and the process proceeds to step 304. When it is determined that the luminance signal change amount ΔG does not exceed the movement change amount GT, the process returns to step 301.

When steps 301 to 303 are repeatedly executed, the change amount ΔG of the sum of the luminance signals is obtained each time one frame is scanned, and it is sequentially detected whether or not the movement of the subject image has occurred (see FIG. 10). .

The execution of Steps 304 to 306 is performed according to Steps 102 to 1 in FIG. 5 in the first embodiment.
04 is the same as the execution. When steps 304 to 306 are executed, the erasing operation ends.

As described above, according to the third embodiment, in the video change determination circuit 35, the sum of the luminance signal of one frame scanned last time and the sum of the luminance signal of one frame scanned next time are calculated. If the difference (the luminance signal change amount ΔG) exceeds the movement change amount GT, it is determined that the subject image has moved, and the start of use of the electronic scope 10 is detected. As described above, by detecting the movement of the subject image from the change in the luminance signal caused by the movement of the electronic scope 10 for treatment or examination, the start of use of the electronic scope 10 is automatically detected, and an unnecessary character is detected. Information can be deleted from the screen W (not displayed), and only necessary character information can be displayed on the screen W or on printer paper.

Instead of detecting the movement of the subject image on the basis of the amount of change in the luminance signal, a green G having a value close to the luminance signal is used.
The movement of the subject image may be detected based on the image signal corresponding to the image signal. Alternatively, the motion of the subject image may be detected by obtaining a motion vector.

An endoscope apparatus according to a fourth embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. In a fourth embodiment,
The configuration is such that it is determined that the use of the scope has been started when the red component in the subject image is greater than the other color components, and the other configurations are the same as in the first embodiment. .

FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing an electric circuit of the endoscope apparatus according to the fourth embodiment. In the fourth embodiment, a video signal determination circuit 44 is provided instead of the hanger switch HSW.

The video signal discrimination circuit 44 includes the R memory 26
a, red from G memory 26b and B memory 26c, respectively.
Image signals corresponding to green and blue are sequentially input frame by frame.

The surface inside the body cavity S has a red color due to the influence of blood vessels, and when the electronic scope 10 is inserted into the body cavity S, the image of the captured subject becomes an image having many red components. The video signal discriminating circuit 44 compares the information amount of the image signal corresponding to the red R with the information amounts of the image signals corresponding to the green G and the blue B. When the information amount becomes larger than the information amount of blue B, it is determined that the use of the electronic scope 10 has been started, and the electronic scope 1
A signal regarding the start of use of 0 is sent to the character control circuit 31. Based on this signal, the character circuit 30 and the switches 32 and 33 are controlled, and unnecessary character information is deleted from the screen W.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing an operation of deleting character information. Here, the information amount of the image signal corresponding to each color is assumed to be the information amount for one frame.

In step 401, an image signal for one frame corresponding to R, G, B is input to the video signal discriminating circuit 41. In step 402, the information amount RI of the image signal corresponding to the red R and the information amounts GI and BI of the image signal corresponding to the green G and the blue B are compared as shown by the following equations. RI ≧ GI + S1 (2) RI> BI + S2 (3) If it is determined that the information amount RI corresponding to red satisfies both the equations (2) and (3), step 403. Move on to If the information amount RI corresponding to red does not satisfy at least one of the expressions (2) and (3), step 40
Return to 1. Here, the information amount constants S1 and S2 are:
Both are RI / 2. That is, the information amount RI corresponding to red is two times greater than the information amounts GI and BI corresponding to green and blue.
If the number is twice as large, it is determined that the use of the electronic scope 10 has been started.

The execution of steps 403 to 405 is the same as the execution of steps 102 to 104 in FIG. 5 in the first embodiment. When steps 403 to 405 are executed, the erasing operation ends.

As described above, according to the fourth embodiment,
In the video signal determination circuit 44, the information amount RI of the image signal corresponding to red is compared with the information amounts GI and BI of the image signal corresponding to green G and blue B, and the information amount RI of the image signal is (2). If the expression (3) is satisfied, it is determined that the use of the electronic scope 10 has been started, and the start of use of the electronic scope 10 is detected. Thus, by detecting that the red component of the subject image is larger than the other color components, the start of use of the electronic scope 10 is automatically detected, and unnecessary character information is erased from the screen. be able to.

The fifth embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In the fifth embodiment, unnecessary character information is deleted from the screen only while the electronic scope 10 is removed from the hanger UH. The other configuration is the same as that of the first embodiment, and the description of the block diagram is omitted.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing an erasing operation for erasing unnecessary character information only while the electronic scope 10 is being used.

The execution of steps 501 to 504 is the same as the execution of steps 101 to 104.
When 0 is removed from the hanger UH, unnecessary character information is erased from the screen, and only the necessary character information is displayed on the screen W or printer paper.

At step 505, the hanger switch H
It is determined whether the SW is in the OFF state. That is, the treatment or examination is not completed yet and the electronic scope 10
It is determined whether or not is used. When the hanger switch HSW is in the ON state, that is, when the electronic scope 10 is again put on the hanger UH after the treatment or examination is completed, it is determined that the hanger switch SW is in the ON state. If it is determined that the hanger switch HSW is not ON, step 505 is repeatedly executed until the hanger switch HSW is turned ON.

At step 506, based on the ON signal from the hanger switch HSW input to the character control circuit 31, the character circuit 30 and the switch 3
2 and 33 are controlled by the character control circuit 31, and a character signal corresponding to all character information is output to the monitor 41 and the printer 43. Then, in step 507, the character information that has been deleted while the electronic scope 10 is being used is displayed on the screen W again. When the unnecessary character information that has been erased is displayed again on the screen W, the erase operation ends.

As described above, in the fifth embodiment, unnecessary character information is deleted from the screen W only during the period in which the hanger switch HSW is in the OFF state (not displayed). The state of the electronic scope 10 can be automatically detected by determining that the electronic scope 10 is being used while the electronic scope 10 is being removed from the hanger UH. Therefore, it is not necessary to operate the keyboard 42 to display the color bar CL and the like on the screen W again after the treatment or the examination is completed.

The sixth embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In the sixth embodiment, regarding the color of the subject image,
Unnecessary character information is erased from the screen only during a period in which the red component is larger than the other color components.
The other configuration is the same as that of the fourth embodiment, and the description of the block diagram is omitted.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing an erase operation in the sixth embodiment.

Steps 601 to 605 are executed as shown in FIG.
The information amount RI according to the red color R of the subject image is the same as the execution of steps 401 to 405 of
When the amount of information becomes larger than the information amounts GI and BI corresponding to the green G and blue B to which 2 has been added, unnecessary character information is deleted from the screen W.

The execution of steps 606 and 607 is the same as the execution of steps 601 and 602. That is, image signals corresponding to one frame of red, green, and blue are sequentially input to the video signal determination circuit 44, and the information amount R corresponding to red is
It is determined whether I satisfies both equations (2) and (3). If it is determined that the information amount RI does not satisfy the expressions (2) and (3), the process proceeds to step 607. If it is determined that the information amount RI still satisfies the expressions (2) and (3), the process returns to step 606.

The execution of steps 608 and 609 is the same as the execution of steps 506 and 507 in FIG. 13 in the fifth embodiment. When the unnecessary character information that has been erased is displayed again on the screen W, the erase operation ends.

As described above, according to the sixth embodiment, unnecessary character information is erased from the screen W only while the information amount RI of the image signal corresponding to the red R satisfies the equations (2) and (3). You. The use state of the electronic scope 10 can be automatically detected by judging that the state in which the red color component of the subject image is larger than the other color components is the state in which the electronic scope 10 is used. .

[0100]

As described above, according to the present invention, when a scope is used for treatment or examination, unnecessary character information can be automatically deleted from the screen.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of an endoscope apparatus viewed from the front.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an electric circuit of the endoscope apparatus according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a screen on which a subject image before an electronic scope is used is displayed.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a screen on which a subject image is displayed when using an electronic scope.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation of erasing unnecessary character information.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an electric circuit of the endoscope apparatus according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an operation of erasing unnecessary character information.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating an electric circuit of an endoscope apparatus according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of erasing unnecessary character information.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a difference in a luminance signal between consecutive frames.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing an electric circuit of an endoscope apparatus according to a fourth embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing an operation of erasing unnecessary character information.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing an operation of erasing unnecessary character information.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing an operation of erasing unnecessary character information.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 10 electronic scope 41 monitor 42 keyboard HSW hanger switch UH hanger W screen 34 aperture adjustment determination circuit 35 video change determination circuit 36 determination memory 37 Y memory 44 video signal determination circuit

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 2H040 BA23 CA04 CA10 EA02 GA05 GA11 4C061 AA01 CC06 DD03 LL02 MM02 NN01 NN05 PP12 RR02 RR15 SS21 TT01 WW10 WW14

Claims (21)

[Claims] 1. A scope that irradiates a subject with light and that captures a subject image formed by reflecting the light illuminating the subject, and displays the subject image captured by the scope on a screen. Image display means, character information display means for displaying character information on the screen together with the subject image, scope use start detection means for detecting whether or not use of the scope has started to start treatment or examination; Character information non-display means for deleting the character information displayed by the character information display means from the screen when the use start of the scope is detected by the scope use start detection means. Endoscope device. 2. The character information non-display means for deleting unnecessary character information that does not need to be displayed on the screen during treatment or during examination from the character information. 2. The endoscope device according to 1. 3. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the unnecessary character information is character information including a doctor name, a hospital name, and a color bar. 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a hanger to be mounted when the scope is not in use, and wherein the scope use start detecting unit detects whether or not the scope is hung on the hanger. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when it is not hung on a hanger, the use start of the scope is detected by determining that the use of the scope has been started. 5. The scope use start detecting means detects whether or not the brightness of the subject image changes. If the brightness of the subject image changes, it is determined that the use of the scope has been started. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the start of use of the scope is detected. 6. The scope use start detecting means detects whether or not the subject image picked up by the scope has a motion, and when the subject image has a motion, uses the scope. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a start of use of the scope is detected by determining that the scope has been started. 7. The scope use start detecting means detects whether or not a red component is larger than another color component with respect to the color of the subject image, and the red component is compared with the other color component. 2. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the number of the scopes is larger, the use start of the scope is detected by determining that the use of the scope has been started. 8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the scope use start detecting means includes a brightness value detecting means for detecting a brightness value of the subject image picked up by the scope.
An endoscope apparatus according to claim 1. 9. A diaphragm provided for adjusting the amount of light radiated to the subject based on the luminance value of the subject image detected by the luminance value detecting means so that the subject always irradiates the subject with a proper amount of light. 9. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the endoscope apparatus automatically opens and closes. 10. The scope use start detecting means detects whether or not the opening / closing amount of the aperture exceeds a predetermined amount, and judges that the scope has been started when the aperture opens and closes by a predetermined amount or more. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the start of use of the scope is detected. 11. A method according to claim 11, wherein said scope use start detecting means detects a movement of said subject image based on a change amount of said subject image brightness value obtained by said brightness value detecting means, and said brightness value of said subject image changes. 9. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 8, wherein when the movement of the subject image is detected, the use start of the scope is detected by determining that the use of the scope has been started. . 12. The scope use start detecting means detects whether or not a change amount of a sum of luminance values in one frame of the subject image exceeds a predetermined amount, thereby detecting the subject image on the screen. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the movement is detected. 13. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said scope use start detecting means sets a green color for said subject image picked up by said scope.
The endoscope apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a color component detecting unit that detects image signals corresponding to blue and red, respectively. 14. The apparatus according to claim 14, wherein said scope use start detecting means detects said green, blue, and blue colors detected by said color component comparison and detecting means.
Comparing the information amount of the image signal corresponding to red, the information amount of the image signal corresponding to the red is larger than the information amount of the image signal corresponding to the green and blue and a predetermined information amount added respectively. Whether or not the information amount of the image signal corresponding to the red color is larger than the information amount of the image signal corresponding to the green color and the blue color and a predetermined amount of information is added, and 14. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 13, wherein a start of use of the scope is detected by determining that use has been started. 15. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising manual setting means for arbitrarily setting character information to be hidden on the screen. 16. A scope for irradiating a subject with light and capturing an image of a subject formed by reflecting the light applied to the subject, and displaying the subject image captured by the scope on a screen. Image display means, character information display means for displaying character information on the screen together with the subject image, and scope use state for detecting whether or not the scope is in use because of treatment or examination Detecting means, and character information non-display means for deleting the character information displayed by the character information display means from the screen only during a period in which the scope is detected as being in use by the scope use state detecting means; An endoscope apparatus comprising: 17. The character information non-display unit according to claim 16, wherein unnecessary character information that does not need to be displayed on the screen during treatment or examination is deleted from the character information. Endoscope device. 18. A method according to claim 18, wherein said scope has a hanger mounted when not in use, and said scope use state detecting means detects whether or not said scope is hung on said hanger. The endoscope according to claim 16, wherein the use state of the scope is detected by determining that the scope is in use during a period in which it is detected that the scope is not hung. apparatus. 19. The scope use state detecting means detects whether or not a red component is larger than another color component with respect to the color of the subject image, and converts the red component into another color component. 17. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the use state of the scope is detected by determining that the scope is in use for a longer period of time. 20. The scope use state detection means, wherein the subject image picked up by the scope is green,
17. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 16, further comprising color component detection means for detecting an image signal corresponding to blue and red. 21. A method according to claim 19, wherein said scope use start detecting means detects said green, blue, and blue colors detected by said color component comparing and detecting means.
Comparing the information amount of the image signal corresponding to red, the information amount of the image signal corresponding to the red is larger than the information amount of the image signal corresponding to the green and blue and a predetermined information amount added respectively. Whether or not the scope uses a longer period of time when the information amount of the image signal corresponding to the red color is larger than the information amount of the image signal corresponding to the green and blue colors plus a predetermined information amount. 21. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 20, wherein the use state of the scope is detected by determining that the scope has been used.