JP2009060925A - Capsule medical instrument - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To secure the internal space of a capsule endoscope by optimizing the location of an antenna. <P>SOLUTION: An annular light emitting device board 25 is mounted within a capsule shell. The left end face 25L of the light emitting device board 25 faces a left dome part of the transparent capsule shell. Light emitting devices 26 are arranged in the circumferential direction C around the longitudinal axis X of the capsule shell on the left end face 25L of the light emitting device board 25. A plurality of antennas 17 are mounted inside the light emitting device board 25. Each antenna 17 is disposed between two adjacent light emitting devices 26 in the circumferential direction C. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a capsule medical device such as a capsule endoscope in which an arrangement position of an antenna for transmitting or receiving an image signal or the like is optimized.

  In recent years, a swallowable capsule endoscope has been put into practical use as an endoscope for photographing the inside of a body such as the gastrointestinal tract. In a capsule endoscope, a subject illuminated by a light emitting element is imaged by an imaging element to generate an image signal. The image signal is transmitted to the outside via the transmitting antenna and is observed as a subject image by a user such as a doctor.

As described in Patent Document 1, an outer shell of a capsule endoscope is formed such that one end of a cylindrical body is covered with a hemispherical transparent dome portion and the other end is covered with an opaque dome portion. The light emitting element and the imaging element are provided so as to face the transparent dome, and the transmitting antenna is disposed inside the opaque dome.
Special table 2003-526268 gazette

  However, the transmitting antenna is usually mounted on an antenna substrate, and when combined with this substrate, the internal space of the capsule endoscope is largely occupied. For this reason, the capsule endoscope is inevitably large, and there is a problem that it causes great pain to the patient during swallowing. In addition, due to the occupation of the internal space by the antenna or the like, there is a problem that the battery cannot be made sufficiently large and the driving time of the endoscope cannot be made sufficiently long.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of these problems, and by improving the arrangement position of the antenna, it is possible to reduce the size of the capsule endoscope and to secure a sufficient space for the battery inside. An object is to provide a possible capsule endoscope.

  A capsule medical device according to the present invention is provided with a capsule outer shell, a light emitting element for irradiating illumination light from the inside of the capsule outer shell to the outside, and the light emitting element attached to the capsule outer shell. The light-emitting element substrate includes a light-emitting element substrate and an antenna that wirelessly transmits a predetermined signal to the outside of the capsule outer shell or wirelessly receives a predetermined signal from the outside.

A plurality of light emitting elements are arranged in the circumferential direction around the axis of the capsule outer shell, and the antenna is preferably formed of a conductive wire and disposed at a position different from the light emitting elements in the axial direction.
In this case, it is preferable that a relatively small number of conductors are wired at positions corresponding to the light emitting elements in the circumferential direction and relatively large at positions shifted from the light emitting elements in the circumferential direction.

  For example, when a plurality of antennas are arranged in the circumferential direction, each antenna is preferably arranged at a position shifted in the circumferential direction from each light emitting element. As a result, a relatively small number of conductive wires are wired at positions corresponding to the light emitting elements in the circumferential direction, and relatively large numbers can be wired at positions displaced from the light emitting elements in the circumferential direction. Each of the plurality of antennas is preferably arranged between adjacent light emitting elements in the circumferential direction.

  The antenna may be arranged in a plane on an orthogonal plane orthogonal to the axial direction of the capsule outer shell. In this case, for example, the conductors are relatively arranged by meandering at a position shifted from the light emitting element. It is preferable to wire as many as possible. For example, the light emitting element substrate and the antenna are formed in an annular shape around the axis of the capsule outer shell. In this case, the antenna is wound around the outer peripheral surface of the light emitting element substrate, for example. Note that the antenna may be provided inside the light-emitting element substrate.

  In the present invention, since the antenna substrate does not have to be provided by mounting the antenna on the light emitting element substrate, the capsule endoscope is miniaturized, and the space for the battery is sufficiently provided inside the capsule endoscope. It becomes possible to secure.

The present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a capsule endoscope according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The capsule endoscope 10 includes a capsule outer shell 12 for sealing the inside, and an imaging unit 14, a battery 15, and a transmission unit 16 provided inside the capsule outer shell 12. The capsule endoscope 10 is a capsule medical device that is used to observe the inside of the body after being swallowed.

  The capsule outer shell 12 has a main body portion 12A having an elongated cylindrical shape, and a left dome portion 12B and a right dome portion 12C that are connected to the left end portion and the right end portion of the main body portion 12A, respectively, and have a hemispherical shape bulging outward. And is formed into a slender and rotating body around the longitudinal axis X. In the capsule outer shell 12, the left dome portion 12 </ b> B is made of a transparent material having optical transparency, and other portions are made of an opaque material.

  The imaging unit 14 is formed by integrating a lens barrel 20, an imaging element substrate 23, and a light emitting element substrate 25. The lens barrel 20 is a cylindrical frame having a holding hole 20A formed on the longitudinal axis X of the capsule outer shell 12, and the objective lens system 21 is held inside the holding hole 20A. The optical axis of the objective lens system 21 coincides with the longitudinal axis X of the capsule outer shell 12.

  The light emitting element substrate 25 is formed as a plate-shaped annular body surrounding the lens barrel 20, and the central axis thereof coincides with the longitudinal axis X. The left end surface 25L of the light emitting element substrate 25 is formed in a planar shape, and is disposed on substantially the same plane as the left end 20L of the lens barrel 20. The left end surface 25L of the light emitting element substrate 25 and the left end 20L of the lens barrel 20 are disposed to face the inner wall 12E of the left dome portion 12B of the capsule outer shell 12.

  A plurality of light emitting elements 26 made of LEDs are attached to the left end face 25 </ b> L of the light emitting element substrate 25. In addition, an antenna 17 (see FIG. 2) is provided inside the light emitting element substrate 25 as described later. Thereby, the light emitting element 26 and the antenna 17 are each arrange | positioned in a different position in the longitudinal axis X direction.

  The light emitting element substrate 25 and the lens barrel 20 are fixed to the left surface 23 </ b> L of the imaging element substrate 23 via the connection portion 27. An image sensor 24 is attached to the left surface 23L of the image sensor substrate 23 so as to be disposed behind the optical axis of the objective lens system 21.

  The batteries 15 have an outer diameter substantially equal to the inner diameter of the capsule outer shell 12, and two batteries 15 are arranged along the longitudinal axis X on the right side of the imaging unit 14. The battery 15 supplies power to the imaging unit 14 and the transmission unit 16. A transmission unit 16 is disposed on the right side of the battery 15. The transmission unit 16 is connected to the imaging unit 14 by a conducting wire 28.

  The illumination light irradiated from the light emitting element 26 is irradiated to an external subject (for example, a living tissue) through the left dome portion 12B. The subject irradiated with the illumination light is imaged as a subject image by the image pickup device 24 by the objective lens system 21, and the image pickup device 24 generates an image signal corresponding to the subject image. The image signal is subjected to image processing by an image processing circuit (not shown) provided on the image pickup device substrate 23, and then output to the transmission unit 16 via the conductor 28. In the transmission unit 16, the image signal is converted into a transmission image signal so that the image signal can be transmitted to the outside. The transmission image signal is output to the antenna 17 (see FIG. 2) via the lead wire 28 and is wirelessly transmitted from the antenna 17 to the outside of the capsule outer shell 12.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the light emitting element substrate according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2, the plurality of light emitting elements 26 attached to the left end surface 25 </ b> L of the light emitting element substrate 25 are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction C with the longitudinal axis X as the center. Similarly, the plurality of antennas 17 provided inside the light emitting element substrate 26 are also arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction C. Each antenna 17 is arranged between the light emitting elements 26 adjacent in the circumferential direction C, whereby each antenna 17 is arranged so as to be shifted from the position where the light emitting element 26 is arranged in the circumferential direction C. The antennas 17 and the light emitting elements 26 are alternately provided in the circumferential direction C.

  Each antenna 17 is a loop antenna formed by winding a conductive wire 41 such as a metal wire in an isosceles trapezoidal shape around an axis parallel to the longitudinal axis X. In the isosceles trapezoid formed by each antenna 17, the short side 17A is disposed on the inner peripheral side of the light emitting element substrate 25 and the long side 17B is disposed on the outer peripheral side among a pair of parallel opposite sides. In the present embodiment, the plurality of antennas 17 are connected in parallel by a conductor (not shown) or the like, but may be connected in series.

  FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the light emitting element substrate according to the first embodiment. In the present embodiment, the light emitting element substrate 25 is configured by laminating first to third substrates 25A to 25C formed in an annular shape along the longitudinal axis X in order from the right dome side 12C side. A hole 25H is formed in the second substrate 25B at a position corresponding to each antenna 17. When the first to third substrates 25A to 25C are stacked, the hollow portion 25E is formed inside the hole 25H. The antennas 17 are disposed in the respective hollow portions 25E, whereby each antenna 17 is accommodated inside the light emitting element substrate 25. Each antenna 17 is fixed on the first substrate 25A.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the antenna 17 is accommodated in the light emitting element substrate 25, so that a space for arranging the antenna is not required, and an antenna substrate for mounting the antenna 17 is provided. There is no need. Therefore, the capsule endoscope can be reduced in size, and a sufficient space for the battery 15 can be secured inside the capsule outer shell 12.

  Furthermore, in the present embodiment, each antenna 17 is arranged at a position shifted from the light emitting element 26 in both the axis X direction and the circumferential direction C, and therefore the light emitting element 26 may hinder the transmission of the image signal. Reduced. Further, since a plurality of antennas 17 are provided, an image signal can be transmitted in multiple directions, so that it is easy to transmit the image signal to the receiving device regardless of the orientation of the capsule endoscope 10.

  In the present embodiment, an example in which a loop antenna is used as the antenna 17 has been described. However, other antennas such as a dielectric antenna may be used. In the present embodiment, the antenna 17 is a transmitting antenna that transmits a signal from the inside of the capsule outer shell 12 to the outside. However, the antenna 17 may be a receiving antenna for receiving a signal from the outside. good.

  4 and 5 show a light-emitting element substrate according to the second embodiment. In the first embodiment, the antenna 17 is provided inside the light emitting element substrate 25, but in this embodiment, the antenna 17 is attached to the outer peripheral surface 25U of the light emitting element substrate 25. Hereinafter, the difference between the second embodiment and the first embodiment will be described.

  In the present embodiment, an endless outer peripheral groove 25 </ b> V extending in the circumferential direction C is formed on the outer peripheral surface 25 </ b> U of the light emitting element substrate 25. On the groove bottom surface of the outer peripheral groove 25V, the conducting wire 41 is wound along the circumferential direction C, and the antenna 17 having an annular shape about the longitudinal axis X is formed. An outer periphery 17U of the antenna 17 is disposed on a circumferential surface that is substantially the same as the outer peripheral surface 25U of the light emitting element substrate 25.

  In the present embodiment, the antenna 17 having a long antenna length can be provided by winding the antenna 17 around the outer peripheral surface 25U of the light emitting element substrate 25. In addition, since it is not necessary to provide an antenna substrate or a special space for arranging the antenna, it is possible to reduce the size of the capsule endoscope 10 and the like.

  FIG. 6 shows a light emitting device substrate according to the third embodiment. In the second embodiment, the antenna 17 is wound around the bottom surface of the outer circumferential groove 25 </ b> V. However, in the present embodiment, the antenna 17 is embedded in the light emitting element substrate 25. Hereinafter, the difference between the present embodiment and the second embodiment will be described.

  Also in the present embodiment, the antenna 17 is formed by winding the conductive wire 41 around the longitudinal axis X in the circumferential direction C. The antenna 17 is embedded in the light emitting element substrate 25 in the vicinity of the outer peripheral surface 25U so that the outer periphery 17U is exposed to the outer peripheral surface 25U of the light emitting element substrate 25. In addition, the outer periphery 17U of the antenna 17 is arrange | positioned on the circumferential surface substantially the same as the outer peripheral surface 25U.

  The light emitting element substrate 25 in the present embodiment is formed by stacking a plurality of substrates. Here, when the substrate is laminated on another substrate, the conductor 41 for one turn is laminated and molded together with the substrate, and the antenna 17 is formed by repeating the lamination of the conductors 41 for one turn. The In addition, when the conducting wire 41 is laminated, the conducting wires are connected to each other, thereby forming the antenna 17 as one conducting wire. The antenna 17 may not be exposed on the outer peripheral surface 25U, and may be completely embedded in the light emitting element substrate 25.

  FIG. 7 shows a light emitting element substrate according to the fourth embodiment. In the present embodiment, the difference from the first embodiment is that the antenna 17 is formed in a plane along the orthogonal plane R orthogonal to the axis X and embedded in the light emitting element substrate 25. is there.

  In the present embodiment, the antenna 17 is formed on the orthogonal plane R by wiring one thin film wire-like conducting wire 41 in a predetermined pattern. The conductor 41 is wired radially outward while meandering so that a plurality of U-shapes are arranged along the radial direction at each position between the light emitting elements 26 adjacent to each other in the circumferential direction C. A meandering pattern 42 is formed by linearly extending inward. Between the adjacent meandering patterns 42, the conducting wire 41 extends in an arc shape along the circumferential direction, and connects two adjacent meandering patterns 42.

  With the above configuration, in the present embodiment, in the circumferential direction C, the conductive wires 41 are wired in a relatively small amount at positions that coincide with the light emitting elements 26, and relatively wired at positions that are displaced from the light emitting elements 26. Is done. In other words, in the circumferential direction C, the antenna length per unit area is relatively shortened at a position coinciding with the light emitting element 26, and at a position shifted from the light emitting element 26, the antenna length per unit area is relatively small. become longer. Therefore, also in this embodiment, as in the first embodiment, the possibility that the light emitting element 26 hinders the transmission of the image signal from the antenna 17 can be reduced. In the present embodiment, the light emitting element substrate 25 is formed by stacking a plurality of substrates, but the conductive wire 41 is formed by stacking, for example, between two substrates.

It is sectional drawing of the capsule endoscope in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is the perspective view which saw through a part which shows the light emitting element substrate in 1st Embodiment. It is sectional drawing of the light emitting element substrate in 1st Embodiment. It is the perspective view which saw through a part which shows the light emitting element substrate in 2nd Embodiment. It is the side view which notched a part which shows the light emitting element substrate in 2nd Embodiment. It is the side view which notched a part which shows the light emitting element substrate in 3rd Embodiment. It is the perspective view which saw through a part which shows the light emitting element substrate in 4th Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Capsule endoscope 12 Capsule outer shell 17 Antenna 25 Light emitting element board | substrate 26 Light emitting element

Claims (9)

Capsule outer shell,
A light emitting element for irradiating illumination light from the inside of the capsule outer shell to the outside;
A light emitting element substrate provided inside the capsule outer shell and to which the light emitting element is attached;
A capsule medical device, comprising: an antenna provided on the light emitting element substrate, and wirelessly transmitting a predetermined signal to the outside of the capsule outer shell or wirelessly receiving a predetermined signal from the outside. A plurality of the light emitting elements are arranged in the circumferential direction around the axis of the capsule outer shell, and the antenna is formed of a conductive wire and is arranged at a position different from the light emitting element in the axial direction,
The conductor wire is wired in a relatively small amount at a position that coincides with the light emitting element in the circumferential direction, and is wired in a relatively large amount at a position shifted from the light emitting element in the circumferential direction. Item 14. A capsule medical device according to Item 1.   The capsule medical device according to claim 2, wherein a plurality of the antennas are arranged along the circumferential direction, and are arranged at positions shifted from the respective light emitting elements in the circumferential direction.   The capsule medical device according to claim 3, wherein each of the antennas is disposed between the light emitting elements adjacent in the circumferential direction.   3. The capsule medical device according to claim 2, wherein the antenna is planarly arranged on an orthogonal plane orthogonal to the axial direction of the capsule outer shell.   6. The capsule medical device according to claim 5, wherein a relatively large number of the conducting wires are wired by meandering at a position shifted from the light emitting element.   2. The capsule medical device according to claim 1, wherein the light emitting element substrate and the antenna are formed in an annular shape around an axis of the capsule outer shell.   5. The capsule medical device according to claim 4, wherein the antenna is wound around an outer peripheral surface of the light emitting element substrate. The capsule medical device according to claim 1, wherein the antenna is provided inside the light emitting element substrate.

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