JP2007252440A - Imaging system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an imaging system which can shorten a period of time being consumed for a treatment which is performed for a biological tissue compared to a conventional one. <P>SOLUTION: This imaging system has a first light source section which emits a first light having a wavelength band of an infrared region, a light source controlling section which performs a pulse driving control for periodically turning on and off the first light source section, and a light emitting section which can be inserted in a blood vessel. The imaging system also has an illuminating section which emits the first light having been emitted by the first light source section in the light emitting section, and an imaging section which captures the image of the blood vessel at a position approximately facing the illuminating section. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an imaging system, and more particularly to an imaging system capable of obtaining a blood vessel running state.

  In recent years, by irradiating a living tissue with infrared light having a wavelength band corresponding to the light absorption characteristics of hemoglobin existing in blood, information relating to the inside of the living tissue can be obtained, for example, the number of hemoglobin in blood, blood vessels Devices capable of obtaining a traveling state and the like have been proposed.

  For example, an imaging system proposed in Patent Document 1 has been proposed as a device capable of obtaining information related to the inside of a living tissue as described above.

The imaging system proposed in Patent Document 1 illuminates a living tissue or the like as a subject by emitting infrared light emitted from a light source device from a distal end portion of an endoscope, and the illuminated living tissue or the like Is obtained using a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) provided at the distal end of the endoscope, it is possible to obtain the state of blood vessel running as information relating to the inside of the living tissue.
JP 2004-358051 A

  However, the imaging system proposed in Patent Document 1 is configured to capture an image of reflected light of infrared light irradiated on a biological tissue or the like as a subject. For this reason, when the imaging system proposed in Patent Document 1 is used, infrared light applied to a living tissue or the like as a subject is scattered, for example, in fat or the like existing inside the living tissue. As a result, it becomes difficult to obtain the state of blood vessel running that exists in the deep part of the living tissue, and as a result, the problem that the time spent for the treatment performed on the living tissue becomes longer takes place. ing.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described points, and an object of the present invention is to provide an imaging system capable of reducing the time spent for a treatment performed on a living tissue as compared with the conventional art.

  A first imaging system according to the present invention performs a first light source unit that emits first light having a wavelength band in an infrared region, and pulse drive control that periodically turns on and off the first light source unit. A light source control unit; a light-emitting unit that can be inserted into a blood vessel; and an illumination unit that emits the first light emitted by the first light source unit in the light-emitting unit; and the illumination unit And an image pickup unit for picking up an image of the blood vessel at a position substantially opposite to the blood vessel.

  The second imaging system according to the present invention further includes a second light source unit that emits second light having a wavelength band in a visible region in the first imaging system, and the light source control unit includes the second light source unit. In addition to the pulse drive control, the emitted light amount control for reducing the light amount of the second light emitted from the second light source unit as compared with the light amount of the first light emitted from the first light source unit is performed. It is characterized by performing.

  According to the imaging system of the present invention, it is possible to reduce the time spent for a treatment performed on a living tissue as compared with the related art.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
1 and 2 relate to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a main part of the imaging system according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the permeability characteristics of blood and fat in a living tissue.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the imaging system 1 according to the first embodiment can be inserted into a living body, captures an image of a subject such as a living tissue 101 existing in the living body, and displays the subject image. An endoscope 2 that is output as an imaging signal, a light source device 3 that supplies illumination light for illuminating the subject, signal processing corresponding to the imaging signal output from the endoscope 2 is performed, and the signal processing is performed. A camera control unit 4 (hereinafter referred to as CCU) 4 that outputs the captured image signal as a video signal, and a monitor that displays an image of the subject imaged by the endoscope 2 based on the video signal output from the CCU 4 5 and a fiber bundle 8 that emits illumination light supplied from the light source device 3 as main parts.

  The endoscope 2 includes an optical endoscope 6 that forms and transmits an image of a subject such as a living tissue 101 and a camera head 7 that captures the image of the subject transmitted by the optical endoscope 6. It is configured.

  The optical endoscope 6 includes a rigid insertion portion 61 that can be inserted into a living body, a gripping portion 62 provided on the rear end side of the insertion portion 61, a rear end side of the gripping portion, and a camera head 7. And an eyepiece 63 that can be attached and detached.

  The optical endoscope 6 is provided at the distal end portion of the insertion portion 61 and is inserted into the objective optical system 64 that forms an image of a subject such as the biological tissue 101 and the insertion portion 61 and the grip portion 62. A relay optical system 65 that transmits the image of the subject formed by the objective optical system 64, and an eyepiece optical system 66 that is provided in the eyepiece 63 and collects the image of the subject transmitted by the relay optical system 65. And have.

  Since the optical endoscope 6 has the above-described configuration, the user can look into the eyepiece optical system 66 while the camera head 7 is not attached to the eyepiece 63, and can view the objective optical system 64 within the visual field region. It is possible to perform observation with the naked eye on a desired observation site existing in

  The camera head 7 captures an image of the subject imaged by the imaging optical system 71, and an imaging optical system 71 that forms an image of the subject such as the living tissue 101 condensed by the eyepiece optical system 66. And an image sensor 72 that outputs the signal.

  The image sensor 72 has sensitivity in an infrared region exceeding a wavelength of at least 1200 nm, for example, Ex. It is formed of a semiconductor detection element (photovoltaic semiconductor detection element) such as InGaAs, InAs, or InSb.

  The light source device 3 emits light having a wavelength band of 750 nm or more, which is a wavelength band having a relatively low light transmittance in blood and a relatively high light transmittance in fat. And a lamp control unit 32 as a light source control unit that controls lighting and extinguishing of the lamp 31, and only light having a wavelength band of 750 nm or more among light emitted from the lamp 31 is transmitted and collected, and illumination light And a condensing optical system 33 for supplying to the fiber bundle 8.

  A fiber bundle 8 as an illumination unit includes a connector part 81 that can be attached to and detached from the light source device 3, a fiber in which one end is disposed inside the connector part 81 and the other end extends from the connector part 81. Part 82.

  The fiber portion 82 as the light emitting portion has a configuration in which, for example, a plurality of optical fibers are coated with a member such as a resin having high transparency and flexibility. In other words, the fiber part 82 has a configuration capable of emitting the illumination light supplied from the light source device 3 from the whole excluding the part arranged inside the connector part 81, for example.

  Further, the fiber portion 82 can be inserted into the living tissue 101 and has a slender shape with an outer diameter of 1 mm or less, for example, as a shape that can be inserted into the blood vessel 103 existing inside the living tissue 101. Is formed.

  The CCU 4 performs a sampling process to perform a process for converting an imaging signal output from the endoscope 2 into a digital image signal, and a signal process such as a fast Fourier transform for the image signal. After removing noise, the image signal is converted into an analog video signal and output, and an image sensor drive that outputs a drive signal for driving the image sensor 72 of the camera head 7 Part 43.

  Next, the operation of the imaging system 1 will be described.

  First, the user turns on the power of each part of the endoscope 2, the light source device 3, the CCU 4, and the monitor 5, and puts each part in a driving state.

  Thereafter, the user places the optical endoscope 6 at a position where the living tissue 101 existing at a desired observation site falls within the visual field region of the objective optical system 64 with the camera head 7 attached to the eyepiece 63. To do. Then, the user inserts at least a part of the fiber portion 82 into the blood vessel 103 that is the target of obtaining the blood vessel running state, which is present inside the living tissue 101, in a state where the connector portion 81 is attached to the light source device 3. By performing the above-described operations by the user, the objective optical system 64 and a part of the fiber unit 82 are positioned substantially opposite to each other with the fat 102 existing so as to cover the blood vessel 103 as shown in FIG. Placed in.

  The lamp control unit 32 of the light source device 3 performs pulse drive control, which is control for periodically turning on and off the lamp 31 in the driving state.

  When the lamp 31 emits light based on the pulse drive control, the light source device 3 supplies light having a wavelength band of 750 nm or more to the fiber bundle 8 as pulsed illumination light. That is, the light source device 3 emits light in a wavelength band of 750 nm or more in a pulse shape, so that the light transmittance in the blood flowing inside the blood vessel 103 is relatively low and the light transmittance in the fat 102 is relatively low. Illumination light is further supplied to the fiber bundle 8 by adding the characteristic that light in the wavelength band of 750 nm or more, which is very high, to the characteristic that light scattering is difficult to occur.

  The fiber unit 82 illuminates the blood vessel 103 from the inside while blinking based on the pulsed illumination light supplied from the light source device 3.

  The image of the blood vessel 103 illuminated by the illumination light emitted from the fiber portion 82 passes through the fat 102 and is formed in the objective optical system 64, and passes through the relay optical system 65, the eyepiece optical system 66, and the imaging optical system 71. After being imaged by the image sensor 72, it is output to the CCU 4 as an imaging signal.

  The imaging signal output to the CCU 4 is processed by the sampling processing unit 41 and the signal processing unit 42 and then output to the monitor 5 as a video signal. Thereby, the image of the living tissue 101 and the blood vessel 103 in which the state of the blood vessel running of the blood vessel 103 becomes clear is displayed on the monitor 5 as an image. Then, the surgeon or the like can perform the treatment on the living tissue 101 in a shorter time than before while viewing the images of the living tissue 101 and the blood vessels 103 displayed on the monitor 5.

  In the present embodiment, the light source device 3 is, for example, from 1300 nm, which is a wavelength band in which the difference between the light transmittance in the fat 102 and the light transmittance in the blood flowing through the blood vessel 103 becomes large, as shown in FIG. A band pass filter 39 that transmits only light in at least one of a wavelength band up to 1600 nm or a wavelength band from 1700 nm to 2100 nm is provided on the light emission side of the condensing optical system 33. There may be.

  When the light source device 3 includes the band-pass filter 39, the monitor 5 displays an image of the living tissue 101 and the blood vessel 103 in which the blood vessel 103 is further clarified.

(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 3 relates to a second embodiment of the present invention. In addition, about the component similar to 1st Embodiment, description is abbreviate | omitted using the same code | symbol.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a main part of an imaging system according to the second embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the imaging system 1A of the second embodiment can be inserted into a living body, captures an image of a subject such as a living tissue 101 existing in the living body, and displays the subject image. An endoscope 2A that is output as an imaging signal, a light source device 3A that supplies illumination light for illuminating the subject, signal processing corresponding to the imaging signal output from the endoscope 2A, and the signal processing Supplied from the CCU 4A that outputs the captured image signal as a video signal, the monitor 5 that displays an image of the subject imaged by the endoscope 2A based on the video signal output from the CCU 4A, and the light source device 3A The main part includes a fiber bundle 8 that emits illumination light.

  The endoscope 2A includes an optical endoscope 6A that forms and transmits an image of a subject such as a living tissue 101, and a camera head 7A that captures the image of the subject transmitted by the optical endoscope 6A. It is configured.

  The optical endoscope 6A includes a rigid insertion portion 61 that can be inserted into a living body, a gripping portion 62 provided on the rear end side of the insertion portion 61, a rear end side of the gripping portion, and a camera head 7 And an eyepiece 63 that can be attached and detached.

  The optical endoscope 6A is provided at the distal end portion of the insertion portion 61 and is inserted into the objective optical system 64 that forms an image of a subject such as the living tissue 101, and the insertion portion 61 and the grip portion 62. A relay optical system 65 that transmits the image of the subject formed by the objective optical system 64, and an eyepiece optical system 66 that is provided in the eyepiece 63 and collects the image of the subject transmitted by the relay optical system 65. And have.

  Furthermore, the optical endoscope 6A is inserted into the light guide cable 67 that transmits the illumination light supplied from the light source device 3A to the endoscope 2A, the insertion portion 61, and the grip portion 62, and is inserted from the light source device 3A. The light guide 68 includes a light guide 68 that transmits illumination light supplied through the light guide cable 67 to the distal end portion of the insertion portion 61.

  The light guide cable 67 is provided with a light guide connector portion 67a having a configuration that can be attached to and detached from the light source device 3A on one end side. The light guide cable 67 has a configuration on the other end side that can be attached to and detached from a base 62 a provided on the side portion of the grip portion 62.

  The camera head 7A captures an image of the subject imaged by the imaging optical system 71 and an imaging optical system 71 that forms an image of the subject such as the living tissue 101 condensed by the eyepiece optical system 66, and captures the image. The imaging unit 75 is configured to have a signal output as a signal, and an observation mode switching switch 76 that outputs an observation mode switching instruction signal for switching the observation mode in the imaging system 1A.

  The observation mode changeover switch 76 is operated by a user to change the observation mode in the imaging system 1A, the normal observation mode in which an image of the subject can be obtained substantially the same as the observation with the naked eye, and the blood vessel at a desired observation site. An observation mode switching instruction signal for switching to any one of the infrared light observation modes in which the traveling state can be obtained is output.

  The imaging unit 75 includes an imaging device 72 having the same configuration as that of the first embodiment, an imaging device 73 configured by a CCD (charge coupled device) or the like, and an observation mode switching instruction output from the observation mode switching switch 76. Based on the signal, the image pickup device 72 includes an image pickup device switching unit 74 that places one of the image pickup devices 72 and 73 at the image forming position of the image pickup optical system 71.

  When the imaging element switching unit 74 detects that the observation mode in the imaging system 1A is the normal observation mode based on the observation mode switching instruction signal output from the observation mode switching switch 76, for example, the imaging element switching unit 74 moves the imaging element 72 to the imaging optical system. The image sensor 73 is disposed at a position deviating from the image forming position 71 and the image sensor 73 is disposed at the image forming position of the image pickup optical system 71. Further, for example, when the imaging element switching unit 74 detects that the observation mode in the imaging system 1A is the infrared light observation mode based on the observation mode switching instruction signal output from the observation mode switching switch 76, the imaging element 73 is detected. Is disposed at a position deviating from the imaging position of the imaging optical system 71, and the imaging element 72 is disposed at the imaging position of the imaging optical system 71.

  The light source device 3 includes a lamp 31 having the same configuration as that of the first embodiment, a condensing optical system 33 having the same configuration as that of the first embodiment, and a light source that emits light having a visible wavelength band. A lamp 34 as a unit, a condensing optical system 35 that condenses the light emitted from the lamp 34 and supplies it to the light guide cable 67 as illumination light, and a lamp that controls turning on and off of the lamp 31 and the lamp 34 And a control unit 32A.

  When the lamp control unit 32A detects that the observation mode in the imaging system 1A is the normal observation mode based on the observation mode switching instruction signal output from the observation mode changeover switch 76 via the CCU 4A, for example, the lamp control unit 32A Control is performed to turn off the lamp 34 and turn on the lamp 34 continuously. Further, when the lamp control unit 32A detects that the observation mode in the imaging system 1A is the infrared light observation mode based on the observation mode switching instruction signal output from the observation mode changeover switch 76 via the CCU 4A, for example. Then, pulse drive control, which is control for periodically turning on and off the lamp 31, is performed. Further, the lamp control unit 32A emits the light amount emitted from the lamp 34 from the lamp 31 while monitoring the light amount of each light emitted from the lamp 31 and the lamp 34 as needed in the infrared light observation mode. The emitted light quantity control for the lamp 31 and the lamp 34, which is a control for reducing the quantity of illumination light to be performed, is performed together with the pulse drive control.

  The CCU 4A performs a sampling process to perform a process for converting an imaging signal output from the endoscope 2A into a digital image signal, and a signal process such as a fast Fourier transform for the image signal. To remove the noise and then convert the image signal into an analog video signal and output the image signal, and the image pickup devices 72 and 73 included in the image pickup unit 75 of the camera head 7. And an image sensor driving unit 43A that outputs a drive signal.

  Next, the operation of the imaging system 1A will be described.

  First, the user turns on the power of each part of the endoscope 2A, the light source device 3A, the CCU 4A, and the monitor 5, and puts these parts in a driving state. It is assumed that the respective units are set in the normal observation mode immediately after the driving state.

  Thereafter, the user places the optical endoscope 6A at a position where the living tissue 101 existing at a desired observation site falls within the visual field region of the objective optical system 64 with the camera head 7A attached to the eyepiece 63. To do.

  When the lamp control unit 32A of the light source device 3A detects that the observation mode in the imaging system 1A is the normal observation mode based on the observation mode switching instruction signal, the lamp 31 is turned off and the lamp 34 is continuously turned on. Control for. When the lamp control unit 32A performs the above-described control, the light source device 3A supplies light in the visible wavelength band to the light guide cable 67 as illumination light in the normal observation mode.

  In addition, when the imaging element switching unit 74 of the camera head 7A detects that the observation mode in the imaging system 1A is the normal observation mode based on the observation mode switching instruction signal, the imaging element 72 moves the imaging position of the imaging optical system 71. The image sensor 73 is disposed at an image forming position of the image pickup optical system 71.

  Illumination light having a visible wavelength band is emitted to the living tissue 101 via the light guide cable 67 and the light guide 68. The objective optical system 64 forms an image of the living tissue 101 illuminated with illumination light having a wavelength band in the visible region.

  The image of the living tissue 101 imaged in the objective optical system 64 passes through the relay optical system 65, the eyepiece optical system 66, and the imaging optical system 71, and is imaged by the imaging element 73 disposed at the imaging position of the imaging optical system 71. After being imaged, it is output to the CCU 4A as an imaging signal.

  The imaging signal output to the CCU 4A is processed by the sampling processing unit 41 and the signal processing unit 42, and then output to the monitor 5 as a video signal. As a result, an image of the living tissue 101, which is an image of the subject that is substantially the same as that observed with the naked eye, is displayed on the monitor 5.

  The user arranges the optical endoscope 6 at a position where a desired observation site falls within the visual field region of the objective optical system 64 while viewing the image of the biological tissue 101 displayed on the monitor 5. Then, the user inserts at least a part of the fiber portion 82 into the blood vessel 103 that is the target of obtaining the blood vessel running state, which exists in the living tissue 101, in a state where the connector portion 81 is attached to the light source device 3A. When the user performs each operation described above, the objective optical system 64 and a part of the fiber unit 82 are positioned substantially opposite to each other with the fat 102 existing so as to cover the blood vessel 103 as shown in FIG. Placed in. After performing each operation described above, the user switches the observation mode in the imaging system 1A from the normal observation mode to the infrared light observation mode by operating the observation mode switch 76.

  When operated by the user, the observation mode changeover switch 76 provides an observation mode switching instruction signal for switching the observation mode in the imaging system 1A from the normal observation mode to the infrared light observation mode, and lamp control of the light source device 3A. Output to the image sensor switching unit 74 of the unit 32A and the camera head 7A.

  When the lamp controller 32A of the light source device 3A detects that the observation mode in the imaging system 1A is the infrared light observation mode based on the observation mode switching instruction signal, the lamp control unit 32A performs the above-described pulse drive control on the lamp 31. The emitted light amount control described above is performed on the lamp 31 and the lamp 34. When the lamp controller 32A performs the control described above, in the infrared light observation mode, light having a wavelength band of 750 nm or more is supplied to the fiber bundle 8 in a pulsed manner as illumination light, and the 750 nm or more is supplied. The light in the visible wavelength band having a smaller light quantity than the light in the wavelength band is supplied to the light guide cable 67.

  In addition, when the imaging element switching unit 74 of the camera head 7A detects that the observation mode in the imaging system 1A is the infrared light observation mode based on the observation mode switching instruction signal, the imaging element 73 is connected to the imaging optical system 71. The image sensor 72 is arranged at a position deviating from the image position, and the image sensor 72 is arranged at the image formation position of the image pickup optical system 71.

  The fiber unit 82 illuminates the blood vessel 103 from the inside while blinking based on the pulsed illumination light supplied from the light source device 3.

  The illumination light having a visible wavelength band is emitted to the living tissue 101 through the light guide cable 67 and the light guide 68. At this time, the illumination light having the wavelength band of the visible region has an effect of improving the contrast between the image of the blood vessel 103 that is a target for obtaining the blood vessel traveling state and an image other than the blood vessel 103, that is, a fiber. It acts as background light for light in the wavelength band of 750 nm or more emitted in a pulse form from the section 82.

  The image of the blood vessel 103 illuminated by the illumination light emitted from the fiber portion 82 passes through the fat 102 and is formed in the objective optical system 64, and passes through the relay optical system 65, the eyepiece optical system 66, and the imaging optical system 71. After the image is picked up by the image pickup device 72 arranged at the imaging position of the image pickup optical system 71, it is output to the CCU 4A as an image pickup signal.

  The imaging signal output to the CCU 4A is processed by the sampling processing unit 41 and the signal processing unit 42, and then output to the monitor 5 as a video signal. Thereby, the image of the living tissue 101 and the blood vessel 103 in which the state of the blood vessel running of the blood vessel 103 becomes clear is displayed on the monitor 5 as an image. Then, the surgeon or the like can perform the treatment on the living tissue 101 in a shorter time than before while viewing the images of the living tissue 101 and the blood vessels 103 displayed on the monitor 5.

  In the present embodiment, the light source device 3A is, for example, from 1300 nm, which is a wavelength band in which the difference between the light transmittance in the fat 102 and the light transmittance in the blood flowing through the blood vessel 103 becomes large, as shown in FIG. A band pass filter 39 that transmits only light in at least one of a wavelength band up to 1600 nm or a wavelength band from 1700 nm to 2100 nm is provided on the light emission side of the condensing optical system 33. There may be.

  When the light source device 3 </ b> A includes the band-pass filter 39, the monitor 5 displays an image of the living tissue 101 and the blood vessel 103 in which the state of blood vessel traveling of the blood vessel 103 is further clarified.

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

1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a main part of an imaging system according to a first embodiment. The figure which shows the transmittance | permeability characteristic of the blood and fat in a biological tissue. The figure which shows an example of a structure of the principal part of the imaging system which concerns on 2nd Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1, 1A ... Imaging system, 2, 2A ... Endoscope, 3, 3A ... Light source device, 4, 4A ... CCU, 5 ... Monitor, 6, 6A ... Optical type Endoscope, 7, 7A ... camera head, 8 ... fiber bundle, 31, 34 ... lamp, 32, 32A ... lamp controller, 33, 35 ... condensing optical system, 39・ ・ ・ Bandpass filter, 41 ... Sampling processing unit, 42 ... Signal processing unit, 43, 43A ... Image sensor drive unit, 61 ... insertion unit, 62 ... gripping unit, 62a ..Base, 63 ... eyepiece, 64 ... objective optical system, 65 ... relay optical system, 66 ... eyepiece optical system, 67 ... light guide cable, 67a ... light guide Connector portion, 68... Light guide, 71... Imaging optical system, 72, 73. Element, 74 ... Imaging element switching part, 75 ... Imaging unit, 76 ... Observation mode changeover switch, 81 ... Connector part, 82 ... Fiber part, 101 ... Living tissue, 102. ..Fat, 103 ... blood vessels

Claims (2)

A first light source that emits first light having a wavelength band in the infrared region;
A light source control unit that performs pulse drive control to periodically turn on and off the first light source unit;
An illuminating unit that has a light emitting unit that can be inserted into a blood vessel, and emits the first light emitted from the first light source unit in the light emitting unit;
An imaging unit that captures an image of the blood vessel at a position substantially facing the illumination unit;
An imaging system comprising: And a second light source that emits second light having a visible wavelength band,
The light source control unit performs emission light amount control for reducing a light amount of the second light emitted from the second light source unit as compared with a light amount of the first light emitted from the first light source unit. The imaging system according to claim 1, wherein the imaging system is performed together with the pulse drive control.

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