JP2005066356A - Electronic endoscope - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electronic endoscope which can be in reduced diameter, excels in portability, and can monitor by a pixel count or a pixel configuration asked for according to an inspection situation or inspection purpose. <P>SOLUTION: An electronic endoscope 10 has a C-MOS image sensor 24 as a picture element. It consists of an imaging adapter 2a equipped with an LED 22a for lighting as an illumination unit 22, with this imaging adapter 2a detachable at the tip, an insert 3 which interpolates electric cables 31, 32, 33 which supply power to the C-MOS 24 and the LED 22a for lighting, and an operation part 4 which is arranged at the rear anchor section of this insert 3, further at least, has an image output terminal area 42 which is outputted from the C-MOS 24 and outputs a picture signal transmitted the electric cable 33 to an indicating means, and a current limiting circuit 43 for restricting a current value to supply to the LED 22a for lighting. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic endoscope that includes an imaging device and a light source unit in an adapter, and is configured by mounting the adapter on a distal end portion of an insertion unit.

  In recent years, endoscopes that can observe various organs in a body cavity by inserting an elongated insertion part into a body cavity, or can perform various treatments using a treatment instrument inserted into a treatment instrument channel as necessary are widely used. Has been. Also in the industrial field, industrial endoscopes are widely used for observing and inspecting internal scratches and corrosion of boilers, turbines, engines, chemical plants, and the like.

  The endoscope used as described above includes an electronic endoscope (hereinafter abbreviated as an endoscope) in which an imaging element such as a CCD that photoelectrically converts an optical image into an image signal is disposed at the distal end portion of an insertion portion. is there. In this endoscope, an image signal of an observation image formed on the image sensor is transmitted to a signal processing unit of a camera control unit (hereinafter abbreviated as CCU), which is an external device, and a video signal is generated. In this configuration, an endoscopic image is displayed on the screen for observation.

  In recent years, endoscopes used in the medical field have a variety of observation sites with the development of endoscopic medicine, and pixel configurations corresponding to the observation sites (for example, differences in pixel size, differences in NTSC / PAL, etc.) There is a need for an endoscope provided with an image sensor. On the other hand, even in industrial endoscopes, there are various types of pipes, such as pipes, that are to be observed, ranging from thick to thin, so that they can be replaced with the tip of the endoscope to accommodate different diameters and inspection purposes. Various optical adapters to be attached were prepared to cope with various inspections.

  However, in the conventional endoscope apparatus, since the drive circuit and the signal processing circuit of the image sensor are fixed, there is a drawback that only endoscopes using the same type of image sensor of the same type can be used. It was. That is, when an endoscope having a different CCD pixel configuration or an endoscope having a different insertion portion length is connected to the CCU, a desired endoscopic image is displayed on the monitor screen from an image signal transmitted from the CCD. I could not.

  In order to eliminate this drawback, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-260527 prepares a plurality of CCUs corresponding to different types of endoscopes, and attaches the plurality of CCUs in a video processing apparatus in a replaceable manner. An endoscopic device that allows the use of different electronic scopes is shown. However, it cannot be applied to an existing endoscope apparatus, that is, a type in which the video processing apparatus is not adapted to exchange the CCU, and the video processing apparatus can be replaced by making the CCU exchangeable. There was a problem of increasing the size.

  In order to solve this problem, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-176882 discloses that a plurality of endoscopes having different types of image sensors can be connected to a CCU corresponding to at least one of the different types of image sensors. An endoscopic system is shown. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-360 discloses an imaging system that achieves cost reduction that can be handled by a single CCU with respect to a probe having an imaging device having a different imaging method.

Furthermore, in order to prevent the optimal endoscopic image display from being disabled due to the difference in the insertion section length or the shortening of the length of the signal cable inserted through the endoscope insertion section due to repair / adjustment, etc. Some are provided with a cable length correcting means for responding to changes in the length of the insertion portion or the cable length.
JP 63-260527 A JP-A-5-176882 JP-A-7-360

  However, it is necessary to provide the cable length correcting means, or to cope with the difference between the CCD provided at the distal end as in the endoscope system disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-176882 and the imaging system disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-360. Therefore, not only is the configuration of the CCU complicated and expensive, but also an increase in the size of the CCU has become a big problem particularly in an industrial endoscope that is desired to be portable.

  Further, there has been a demand for an endoscope apparatus that can perform inspection by changing the number of pixels or changing the pixel configuration during the inspection without increasing the size of the apparatus.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides an electronic endoscope that can be reduced in diameter, is excellent in portability, and can be observed with a desired number of pixels and pixel configuration according to the inspection situation and inspection purpose. The purpose is to do.

  An electronic endoscope according to the present invention includes at least a C-MOS image sensor as an image pickup device, an image pickup adapter including an illumination LED as an illumination unit, and the image pickup adapter is detachable at a tip. The C-MOS image sensor In order to limit the illumination LED as the illumination unit and the current value supplied to the illumination LED, the insertion unit in which an electric cable connected to each of the illumination LEDs is inserted and the imaging adapter are integrally disposed. And a centering device that is detachably attached to the distal end portion of the insertion portion and positions the distal end portion at a predetermined position.

  According to this configuration, a desired endoscopic image on the monitor screen is obtained by selectively attaching the imaging adapter directly or via the centering device to the distal end portion of the insertion portion in accordance with the inspection situation and the inspection purpose. To obtain optimal observations. Further, by providing a current limiting circuit in the tip ring device, the operation unit can be simplified.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an electronic endoscope that can be reduced in diameter, has excellent portability, and can perform observation with a desired number of pixels and pixel configuration according to the inspection situation and inspection purpose.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
1 to 8 relate to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of an electronic endoscope apparatus provided with the electronic endoscope of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is various configuration examples of an imaging adapter. FIG. 3 illustrates a configuration example of an electronic endoscope, FIG. 4 illustrates a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the electronic endoscope, and FIG. 5 illustrates another configuration example of the electronic endoscope. FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining another configuration example of the electronic endoscope, FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining another configuration example of the electronic endoscope, and FIG. 8 is an insertion of the electronic endoscope shown in FIG. It is a figure explaining the example of a structure when a director is extended. 2A illustrates a first configuration example of the imaging adapter, FIG. 2B illustrates a second configuration example of the imaging adapter, and FIG. 2C illustrates a first configuration of the imaging adapter. FIG. In the present embodiment, the electronic endoscope is described as an industrial endoscope.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the endoscope apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment has a built-in C-MOS (abbreviation of Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor) image sensor as an illumination LED and an imaging device described later. An electronic endoscope (hereinafter abbreviated as “endoscope”) 10 capable of detachably arranging a plurality of types of imaging adapters 2 having different configurations depending on the inspection situation and inspection purpose, and the endoscope The display unit 12 is mainly composed of a display device 12 such as a CRT monitor, which is a display means connected to a video cable 11 extending from the operation unit 4 that also serves as a holding unit of the mirror 10.

  The C-MOS is suitable for high density and is characterized by operating with a small electric power. The C-MOS includes, for example, a drive signal generation unit, a noise reduction circuit, an output signal level stabilization circuit, and an A / D converter. All the functions as a camera are mounted, and a video signal is output to the display device 12 from the imaging adapter 2 of this embodiment in which this C-MOS (see reference numeral 24 in FIG. 2) is arranged. The C-MOS 24 is driven by a battery such as a dry battery or a rechargeable battery provided in the operation unit 4 (see reference numeral 41 in FIG. 3 or FIG. 4). Reference numeral 15 denotes an insertion portion extension member used when extending the insertion portion length described later.

Examples of the imaging adapter 2 include those shown in FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 2C.
The imaging adapter 2a shown in FIG. 2A has an illumination unit 22 configured by arranging a plurality of LEDs that illuminate an observation site on the distal end side 21, and an observation illuminated by illumination light emitted from the illumination unit 22. A C-MOS image sensor (hereinafter abbreviated as C-MOS) 24 that captures an observation image of a part is provided, and an adapter side first LED connection as an electrical connection portion is provided on the outer surface of the imaging adapter 2, for example, a base end surface 25. Part 26 and adapter side C-MOS connection part 27 are provided. An objective lens 23 for forming an observation image on the imaging surface is disposed on the front surface of the C-MOS 24.

  The imaging adapter 2b shown in FIG. 2B has a configuration in which an illumination unit 22A is disposed with a C-MOS 24 interposed therebetween, and the illumination light quantity is increased as compared with the imaging adapter 2a. By providing the illumination unit 22A sandwiched therebetween, the outer dimension is larger than that of the imaging adapter 2a.

  An imaging adapter 2c shown in FIG. 2 (c) is configured by integrally arranging the imaging adapter 2b on a centering device 28 provided with a lighting unit 22B for increasing lamps. With this configuration, the amount of illumination light further increases.

  In addition to the above, the configuration of the imaging adapter 2 includes those having different numbers of pixels of the C-MOS 24 and those having different pixel configurations.

  Moreover, the installation position of the adapter side C-MOS connecting portion 27 provided in the imaging adapters 2a, 2b, 2c... Is the same from the center position for any adapter 2a, 2b, 2c. On the other hand, the installation positions of the adapter-side LED connection portions 26, 26a, and 26b are determined for the respective illumination units 22, 22A, and 22B.

  Furthermore, the centering device 28 is detachably attached to the insertion portion 3 in the imaging adapter 2c.

  Although not shown, the imaging adapter 2 and the insertion portion 3 are detachably connected and fixed by fixing means such as screws.

The configuration of the electronic endoscope 10 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the electronic endoscope 10 is configured, for example, by connecting and fixing the imaging adapter 2 a to the distal end surface of the insertion portion 3.

  On the distal end surface side of the insertion portion 3, the insertion portion side electrically connected to the adapter-side first LED connection portion 26 and the adapter-side C-MOS connection portion 27 provided on the proximal end surface 25 of the imaging adapter 2a, respectively. A first LED connection part 36 and an insertion part side C-MOS connection part 37 are provided, and these connection parts 36 and 37 are electrically connected to the connection parts 26 and 27 of the imaging adapter 2a.

  In the insertion portion 3, the insertion portion side C-MOS connecting portion 37 and a battery 41 which is a power supply portion provided in the operation portion 4 are electrically connected to supply driving power to the C-MOS 24. The lighting power supply is connected to one or a plurality of illumination LEDs 22a constituting the illumination unit 22 by electrically connecting the drive cable 31 that is an electrical cable, the first LED connection unit 36 on the insertion unit side, and the battery 41. And an electric cable for transmitting a video signal generated by the C-MOS 24 extending from the insertion portion side C-MOS connecting portion 37 to a video output terminal portion to be described later. A signal transmission cable 33 that is a cable is inserted therethrough.

  In the operation unit 4, the constant voltage circuit 42 that stabilizes the power supplied to the C-MOS 24 and the lighting cable 32 that connects the battery 41 and the lighting unit 22 are positioned in the middle of the operation unit 4. A current limiting circuit 43 is provided for limiting the current value supplied to the illumination unit 22 to a predetermined value.

  Further, for example, an end portion of the operation unit 4 is provided with a video output terminal unit 45 to which a video cable 11 for transmitting a video signal output from the C-MOS 24 to the display device 12 is detachably connected. The signal transmission cable 33 is electrically connected to the video output terminal portion 45 via a resistor 44.

  In addition, the code | symbol 36a is an insertion part side 2nd LED connection part electrically connected to the adapter side 2nd LED connection part 26a provided in the said imaging adapter 2b, and the code | symbol 34 is the insertion part side 2nd LED connection part 36a. It is an illumination cable that electrically connects the battery 41 to supply illumination power to the illumination LED that constitutes the illumination unit 22A of the imaging adapter 2b.

  With this configuration, when the imaging adapter 2b is connected and fixed to the distal end surface of the insertion portion 3 as shown in FIG. 5, an illumination cable is connected to an illumination LED (not shown) of the illumination portion 22A provided in the imaging adapter 2b. 34. Illumination power is supplied from the battery 41 through the insertion portion side second LED connection portion 36a and the adapter side second LED connection portion 26a without passing through the current limiting circuit 42. In other words, the battery 41 shown in the figure is set such that an optimal current is supplied to the illumination unit 22A provided in the imaging adapter 2b. Therefore, when the imaging adapter 2 a is provided on the distal end surface of the insertion portion 3, illumination power is supplied to the illumination unit 22 through the current limiting circuit 42 in order to limit the current value. In this way, by changing the supply circuit for each imaging adapter, an excessive current is prevented from flowing through the illumination unit 22 when the imaging adapter 2a is mounted.

  In order to enable the imaging adapter 2c to be connected to the insertion portion 3, as shown in FIG. 6, the adapter-side third LED connection portion 26b provided on the centering device 28 is further electrically connected to the distal end surface of the insertion portion 3. An insertion portion side third LED connection portion 36b to be connected to is provided. As a result, illumination power is supplied to the illumination units 22A and 22B of the imaging adapter 2c to illuminate a wide range brightly. In this case, the first, second, and third current limiting circuits 42a, 42b, and 42c are provided in the respective illumination cables 32, 34, and 35 that are inserted through the operation unit 4, and the illumination units 22A and 22B. In addition, excessive current is prevented from flowing through the illumination unit 22.

  When the heat generation of the illumination LED does not adversely affect the observation or when the centering device 28 has confirmed sufficient heat dissipation, the centering device is used for the purpose of simplifying the operation unit 4 as shown in FIG. The current limiting circuit 42c may be provided in the marginal space on the 28th side.

The operation of the endoscope 10 configured as described above will be described.
First, the user selects the imaging adapter 2 in which the C-MOS 24 and the illumination unit 22 having a desired number of pixels and pixel configuration are incorporated according to the diameter size of the piping to be observed and the inspection purpose, and the insertion unit 3. Attach to. Further, the video cable 11 is connected to the display device 12 and the video output terminal unit 45.

  Next, a switch (not shown) provided in the operation unit 4 is operated to supply power to the C-MOS 24 and the illumination unit 22. Then, the video signal output after image processing by the C-MOS 24 is transmitted to the display device 12, and an endoscopic image of the observation site illuminated by the illuminating unit 22 is displayed on the screen for observation or the like. .

  Here, when the endoscopic image is observed, if the desired image cannot be obtained, the imaging adapter 2 is replaced as appropriate for observation.

  If the imaging unit 2a cannot reach the target observation site due to the short length of the insertion portion of the electronic endoscope 10, the insertion portion extension member 15 is attached for observation.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the insertion portion extension member 15 has the adapter side C-MOS connection portion 27, the adapter side first LED connection portion 26, the adapter side second LED connection portion 26a, and the adapter side third LED connection portion at both ends. 26b and the insertion part side C-MOS connection part 37, the insertion part side first LED connection part 36, the insertion part side second LED connection part 36a, and the insertion part side third LED connection part 36b as an electrical connection part for electrical connection A C-MOS connection portion 17, an extension LED connection portion 16, an extension second LED connection portion 16a, and an extension third LED connection portion 16b are provided. The connecting portions are electrically connected to each other by a drive cable 31a, lighting cables 32a, 34a, and 35a, and a signal transmission cable 33a, which are corresponding electric cables.

  That is, when the insertion portion extension member 15 is connected and fixed between the imaging adapter 2a and the insertion portion 3, the extension C-MOS connection portion 17 on the one end side of the insertion portion extension member 15 and the extension first LED connection portion. 16, the second LED connection part 16a for extension, the third LED connection part 16b for extension and the adapter side C-MOS connection part 27 of the imaging adapter 2a, the adapter side first LED connection part 26, the adapter side second LED connection part 26a, the adapter side second The 3LED connection portion 26b is electrically connected, while the other end C-MOS extension portion 17, the first extension LED connection portion 16, the second extension LED connection portion 16a, and the third extension LED connection portion. 16b is electrically connected to the insertion portion side C-MOS connection portion 37, the insertion portion side first LED connection portion 36, the insertion portion side second LED connection portion 36a, and the insertion portion side third LED connection portion 36b. It is. As a result, it is possible to supply the power to the C-MOS 24 and the illuminating units 22, 22A, 22B and to transmit the video signal output from the C-MOS 24 to the video output end 45. The electronic endoscope 10 extended by the member 15 is configured.

  A plurality of insertion portion extending members having different lengths may be prepared. Further, by providing an attachment / detachment portion for attaching the insertion portion extension member 15 on the operation portion side as much as possible, the insertion portion length can be changed during the operation.

  As described above, the electronic endoscope is configured by detachably providing the imaging adapter having the structure for outputting the video signal and the imaging adapter provided with the light source unit according to the characteristics of the imaging element at the distal end portion of the insertion portion. Thus, it is possible to always display a good endoscopic image on the screen of the display device regardless of not only the change in the number of pixels and the pixel configuration but also the change in the length of the insertion portion.

  In addition, the user can freely set the length of the insertion section and select an imaging adapter to be attached according to the examination target site and the observation purpose, and bother the related person's hands with the endoscope image desired by the user. It is possible to easily obtain a good observation.

  Furthermore, by using a battery in which the power source of the image sensor and the illumination LED is provided in the operation unit, an endoscope having excellent portability can be provided.

  In addition, the current limiting circuit is provided in the operation unit, so that the power limiting circuit can be omitted from the imaging adapter to reduce the size and diameter of the imaging adapter, and an excessive current flows through the imaging adapter to generate heat. This can be surely prevented.

  Although the endoscope is described as an industrial endoscope in the present embodiment, the endoscope is not limited to an industrial endoscope, and this configuration is applied to a medical endoscope. You may do it. Moreover, although the said power supply part is made into the battery, a power supply part is not limited to a battery, An external power supply etc. may be sufficient. When the power source is an external power source, the configuration of the operation unit can be further simplified by controlling the current value on the external power source side. Further, the display means is not limited to the CRT monitor, and may be a liquid crystal monitor as an external device, a liquid crystal monitor provided integrally with the base end portion of the operation unit, or the like. Moreover, the structure which provides the objective lens and illumination part provided in an imaging unit not in a front end surface but in a side part etc. may be sufficient.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

[Appendix]
According to the embodiment of the present invention as described above in detail, the following configuration can be obtained.

(1) An imaging adapter including at least a C-MOS image sensor as an imaging element and an illumination LED as an illumination unit;
This imaging adapter is detachable at the tip, and an insertion part in which an electric cable connected to the C-MOS image sensor and the illumination LED is inserted, and
In order to limit the current value supplied to the LED for illumination and the video output terminal portion that is disposed at the base end portion of the insertion portion and outputs at least the video signal output from the C-MOS image sensor to the display means. An operation unit equipped with a current limiting circuit of
An electronic endoscope comprising:

(2) The electronic endoscope according to appendix 1, wherein the C-MOS image sensor includes a plurality of types of imaging adapters having different numbers of pixels or different pixel sizes, and the imaging adapters are detachable from a distal end portion of the insertion portion.

(3) The electronic endoscope according to appendix 1 or appendix 2, wherein the imaging adapter includes a plurality of types of imaging adapters having different configurations of the illumination unit, and the imaging adapter is detachable from a distal end portion of the insertion unit.

(4) On the outer surface of the imaging adapter, the electrically conductive adapter-side C-MOS connecting portion and the adapter-side LED for supplying power to the C-MOS image sensor and the illumination LED constituting the illumination portion, respectively. The electronic endoscope according to supplementary note 2 or supplementary note 3 provided with a connecting portion.

(5) The endoscope apparatus according to appendix 4, wherein the installation position of the adapter-side LED connection portion provided on the outer surface of the imaging adapter differs depending on the configuration of the illumination unit.

(6) The outer surface of the insertion portion is provided with an insertion portion side C-MOS connection portion and an insertion portion side LED connection portion that are in contact with the adapter side C-MOS connection portion and the adapter side LED connection portion, respectively. Endoscopic device.

(7) Additional remark 5 or additional remark 6 which provided the some insertion part side LED connection part corresponding to each installation position of the adapter side LED connection part provided in the multiple types of imaging adapter in the outer surface of the said insertion part Endoscope device.

(8) The endoscope apparatus according to appendix 1, wherein a battery is provided as a power source for the C-MOS image sensor and the illumination LED in the operation unit.

(9) The endoscope apparatus according to supplementary note 1, including an insertion portion extension member that electrically connects the imaging adapter and the insertion portion to extend an insertion portion length.

1 to 7 relate to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an electronic endoscope apparatus including the electronic endoscope of the present invention. The figure explaining the example of various composition of an imaging adapter The figure explaining the example of composition of an electronic endoscope Block diagram illustrating the configuration of an electronic endoscope The figure explaining the other structural example of an electronic endoscope The figure explaining another structural example of an electronic endoscope The figure explaining the other structural example of an electronic endoscope The figure explaining the structural example when the insertion part length of the electronic endoscope shown in FIG. 3 is extended.

Explanation of symbols

2a ... Imaging unit
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 3 ... Insertion part 4 ... Operation part 10 ... Electronic endoscope 22 ... Illumination part
22a ... LED for illumination
24 ... C-MOS image sensor 27 ... Adapter side C-MOS connection
31 ... Drive cable
32 ... Lighting cable 33 ... Signal transmission cable 37 ... Insertion side C-MOS connection part
41 ... Battery 43 ... Current limiting circuit 45 ... Image output end Agent Patent attorney Susumu Ito

Claims (1)

An imaging adapter including at least a C-MOS image sensor as an imaging element and an illumination LED as an illumination unit;
This imaging adapter is detachable at the tip, and an insertion part in which an electric cable connected to the C-MOS image sensor and the illumination LED is inserted, and
The imaging adapter is integrally disposed, and includes an illumination LED as an illumination unit and a current limiting circuit for limiting a current value supplied to the illumination LED, and is detachably attached to the distal end of the insertion unit. A centering device for positioning the part at a predetermined position;
An electronic endoscope comprising:

Images