JP2011036585A - Electronic endoscope and electronic endoscope system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electronic endoscope and an electronic endoscope system, capable of narrowing the diameter of the electronic endoscope and reducing noise even if a detection means such as a sensor is mounted at the distal end of the electronic endoscope. <P>SOLUTION: The electronic endoscope includes an insertion part to be inserted into the body of a patient, and a connection part to be connected to a processor. The electronic endoscope further includes: a photography means for photographing the inside of the body of the patient and generating image signals; the detection means for detecting the state of the distal end of the insertion part and generating output signals corresponding to the result of detection; and an analog/digital converting means for A/D converting the image signals and output signals and outputting digital signals composed of a bit string corresponding to the image signals and a bit string corresponding to the output signals; and a serializer for converting the digital signals output from the analog-digital converting means to serial signals and outputting the serial signals to the connection part at the distal end of the insertion part. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic endoscope and an electronic endoscope system using the electronic endoscope, and more particularly to an electronic endoscope including a detection unit such as a sensor at a distal end portion.

  Conventionally, an electronic endoscope that takes an image of an observation target with an image pickup device such as a CCD provided at the tip, and supplies light to illuminate the observation target to the electronic endoscope. There is known an electronic endoscope system including a processor that processes a captured image and outputs the processed image to a monitor. Such an electronic endoscope system is widely put into practical use in the medical field for performing observation and therapeutic treatment in a body cavity, or in the industrial field for performing observation or inspection of industrial parts.

  In these electronic endoscope systems, the temperature of the CCD at the distal end may increase when the observation site is at a high temperature or depending on the driving status of the CCD. In addition, when the temperature of the CCD rises as described above, there is a problem that noise accompanying an increase in dark current occurs, resulting in deterioration of the observed image and blackout. Furthermore, there are cases where the distal end portion of the electronic endoscope that has become high temperature comes into contact with the body cavity wall or the like of the patient to be observed, which is problematic in terms of safety.

  Therefore, for example, in Patent Document 1, when a temperature sensor is disposed at the tip of the insertion portion of the electronic endoscope and the temperature detected by the temperature sensor is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature, the exposure time is automatically adjusted. An endoscope system that performs the above has been proposed. According to such an endoscope system, even when the CCD becomes high temperature, noise can be reduced by adjusting the exposure time, and an image with good observability can be provided. Also, Patent Document 2 discloses an endoscope system in which a temperature sensor is arranged at the tip of an insertion portion of an electronic endoscope, as in Patent Document 1. In the endoscope system of Patent Document 2, when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature, it is possible to prompt the operator to stop observation by generating a warning sound and a warning display. It has become.

JP 2005-323984 A JP 2007-151594 A

  By the way, particularly in an electronic endoscope inserted into a patient's body in the medical field, it is desirable to make the insertion part of the electronic endoscope as small as possible from the viewpoint of alleviating the pain of the patient during observation. . However, in the electronic endoscope described in Patent Literature 1 and Patent Literature 2, a signal line for transmitting an output signal from the temperature sensor extends from the distal end of the insertion portion to the processor. Therefore, the diameter of the insertion part of the electronic endoscope had to be increased. Further, there is a problem that noise is generated due to interference between a signal line for transmitting an output signal from the temperature sensor and a signal line for transmitting an image signal from the CCD, thereby causing image degradation.

  Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and even when a detection means such as a sensor is provided at the tip of the electronic endoscope, the electronic endoscope can be reduced in diameter and reduced in noise. It is an object to provide a possible electronic endoscope and electronic endoscope system.

  In order to solve the above problems, according to the present invention, there is provided an electronic endoscope having an insertion portion to be inserted into a patient's body and a connection portion to be connected to the processor. Photographing means for photographing an image and generating an image signal, detection means for detecting the state of the distal end of the insertion portion and generating an output signal corresponding to the detection result, and A / D conversion of the image signal and the output signal, A / D conversion means for outputting a digital signal composed of a bit string corresponding to a signal and a bit string corresponding to an output signal, and a serializer for converting the digital signal output from the A / D conversion means into a serial signal and outputting the serial signal And an electronic endoscope characterized by comprising:

  By configuring in this way, the image signal and the output signal can be converted into a digital signal at the distal end of the insertion portion of the electronic endoscope and then transmitted to the connection portion, compared with a case where an analog signal is directly transmitted. Therefore, it is possible to reduce deterioration of the image signal due to transmission. In addition, a signal that passes through the flexible tube of the insertion section is configured by further converting the digital signal converted to include the bit string of the image signal and the output signal into a serial signal and then outputting the serial signal to the connection section. The number of lines can be reduced, and a reduction in diameter can be realized. Furthermore, noise interference between a plurality of signal lines can be prevented, and an observation image with less noise can be provided.

  Also, the upper bit of the digital signal output from the A / D conversion means corresponds to the image signal, the lower bit corresponds to the output signal, or the lower bit corresponds to the image signal, and the upper bit corresponds to the output signal. It may be a corresponding one. With this configuration, each signal can be easily separated in subsequent processing.

  The electronic endoscope includes a bias circuit for biasing the image signal and the output signal at the distal end of the insertion portion so that the image signal and the output signal have output values in different ranges, And an adder circuit for adding the image signal and the output signal subjected to. In this case, the digital signal may be obtained by A / D converting the signal added by the adding circuit by the A / D conversion means. With this configuration, each analog signal acquired at the tip of the insertion unit can be converted into a digital signal including a bit string corresponding to the image signal and a bit string corresponding to the output signal.

  The A / D conversion means includes a first A / D converter for A / D converting the image signal and a second A / D converter for A / D converting the output signal. It is good also as a structure. In this case, the digital signal may be composed of a signal A / D converted by the first A / D converter and a signal A / D converted by the second converter. . With this configuration, each analog signal acquired at the tip of the insertion unit can be converted into a digital signal including a bit string corresponding to the image signal and a bit string corresponding to the output signal.

  Further, the connection unit includes a deserializer that deserializes the serial signal and separates it into an image signal and an output signal, and an image signal processing unit that performs predetermined image processing on the image signal to generate a video signal. Also good. With this configuration, it is possible to separate the image signal and the output signal from the serial signal at the connection unit.

  The connection unit may further include a notification signal transmission unit that transmits a notification signal to the processor based on the output signal. By configuring in this way, it is possible to notify the processor 20 of various information based on the detection result by the detection means. This makes it possible to perform more detailed diagnosis and processing corresponding to various situations around the observation site.

  The detecting means is a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the distal end of the insertion portion, and the notification signal transmitting means is based on the output signal when the temperature of the distal end of the insertion portion is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature. A notification signal for notifying the processor may be transmitted. With this configuration, when the temperature at the distal end of the insertion section exceeds a predetermined temperature, the processor displays a message on the monitor to alert the surgeon or automatically cools the distal end. It is possible to perform various processes for the purpose.

  According to the present invention, any one of the electronic endoscopes described above, a light source for supplying illumination light to the electronic endoscope, and a video signal that is subjected to predetermined processing to be converted into a video signal that can be displayed on a monitor. Video signal processing means, a monitor for displaying an image corresponding to the video signal, and a display control means for displaying a message corresponding to the notification signal on the monitor when the notification signal is received. An electronic endoscope system is provided.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, even when a detection means such as a sensor is provided at the tip of the electronic endoscope, the electronic endoscope and the electronic endoscope capable of reducing the diameter of the electronic endoscope and reducing noise. An endoscopic system can be provided.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an electronic endoscope system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the input of the serializer in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic block diagram of the electronic endoscope system in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the input of the serializer in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

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

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an electronic endoscope system 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The electronic endoscope system 1 according to this embodiment includes an electronic endoscope 10, a processor 20, and a monitor 30. The electronic endoscope system 1 of this embodiment is a medical electronic endoscope system for performing observation and treatment in a patient's body.

  The electronic endoscope 10 includes an insertion portion 100 that is inserted into a patient's body and a connection portion 130 that is electrically and optically connected to the processor 20. The insertion portion 100 includes a long flexible tube 120 and a distal end portion 110 provided at the distal end of the flexible tube 120. A light guide 111 for propagating light supplied from the processor 20 extends from the connection portion 130 to the distal end portion 110 of the electronic endoscope 10. Further, a light distribution lens 112 for emitting the light propagated by the light guide 111 to the observation site, and an object for forming an image of the light reflected by the observation site on the light receiving surface of the image sensor are provided at the tip 110. A lens 114 and a CCD 113 that is a solid-state imaging device that generates an analog image signal based on a subject image formed on the light receiving surface are disposed.

  In addition, the electronic endoscope 10 according to the present embodiment includes a temperature sensor 115 for detecting the temperature of the distal end portion 110 in the vicinity of the CCD 113. Furthermore, bias circuits 116a and 116b for biasing the analog image signal generated by the CCD 113 and the analog output signal output from the temperature sensor 115, respectively, are provided at the distal end portion 110 of the electronic endoscope 10. Each of the analog signals output from the circuits 116a and 116b is added and output to the A / D converter 118, an A / D converter 118 for converting the added analog signal into a digital signal, and A A serializer 119 for converting the digital signal converted by the / D conversion unit 118 into a serial signal is provided.

  In addition, a deserializer 131 and a deserializer for converting a serial signal transmitted from the serializer 119 through the flexible tube 120 into an original signal (parallel digital signal) are connected to the connection unit 130 of the electronic endoscope 10. A pre-stage processing unit 132 that performs predetermined image processing on the digital image signal converted in 131 to generate a video signal, and a video signal generated in the pre-processing unit 132 is converted into an analog signal to perform post-processing on the processor 20 Based on the D / A conversion unit 133 output to the unit 204, the digital output signal converted by the deserializer 131, the CPU 134 that communicates with the system controller 201 of the processor 20, the model information of the electronic endoscope 10, etc. are stored A predetermined pulse signal is sent to the EEPROM 135 and the A / D converter 118 at the tip 110. The timing generator 136 for feeding is provided.

  The processor 20 includes a system controller 201 that performs overall control of the processor 20, a light source 202 that generates observation light to be supplied to the electronic endoscope 10, and a light guide for the electronic endoscope 10 that converges the light emitted from the light source 202. A condensing lens 203 coupled to 111 and a post-processing unit 204 that performs a predetermined process on the video signal received from the electronic endoscope 10 to generate a video signal and outputs the video signal to the monitor 30. The monitor 30 is a display device that displays a subject image corresponding to the video signal generated by the post-processing unit 204.

  Next, the operation of each part of the electronic endoscope system 1 will be described along with the flow of in-vivo observation in the electronic endoscope system 1. First, when the operator turns on the power of the processor 20 and turns on the light source 202 under the control of the system controller 201, the insertion unit 100 of the electronic endoscope 10 is introduced into the patient's body. The light source 202 is composed of a high-intensity lamp such as a xenon lamp or a halogen lamp. The light emitted from the light source 202 enters the incident end of the light guide 111 provided in the electronic endoscope 10 via the condenser lens 203. The light incident on the incident end of the light guide 111 is emitted from the light distribution lens 112 disposed at the distal end portion 110 through the connection portion 130 and the flexible tube 120 to the observation site in the body. Then, the emitted light is reflected by the observation site and imaged on the light receiving surface of the CCD 113 via the objective lens 114.

  In this embodiment, a single-plate simultaneous type is applied as a color imaging method, and yellow (Ye), cyan (Cy), magenta (Mg), and green (G) color elements are checked on the light receiving surface of the CCD 113. Complementary color filters (not shown) arranged in a pattern are arranged corresponding to each pixel on the light receiving surface. In the CCD 113, an image signal corresponding to the intensity of the light transmitted through the complementary color filter is generated by photoelectric conversion, and the image signal for one frame is sequentially read out by a color difference line sequential method at predetermined time intervals. In this embodiment, an interline transfer type CCD is used, and analog image signals for one frame are sequentially read out at intervals of 1/30 seconds, for example, corresponding to the vertical synchronization frequency of the NTSC system. It is output to the bias circuit 116a.

  In parallel with the generation of the analog image signal by the CCD 113, the temperature sensor 115 detects the temperature of the tip portion 110. The temperature sensor 115 is an IC type temperature sensor, and outputs a voltage value corresponding to the detected temperature to the bias circuit 116b as an analog output signal.

  In the bias circuit 116a and the bias circuit 116b, a bias is applied so that an input analog signal falls within a predetermined output range. Here, each bias circuit is provided so that an analog image signal output from the CCD 113 and an analog output signal output from the temperature sensor 115 take values in different output ranges in preparation for input to a serializer 119 described later. A predetermined bias is applied at 116a and 116b.

  The processing in the bias circuits 116a and 116b will be described with a specific example. For example, when the input range of the A / D converter 118 is 0 V to +10 V, the bias circuit 116 a is predetermined so that the output value takes a value in the range of 0 V to +3 V with respect to the analog image signal generated by the CCD 113. The bias voltage is applied. In this case, the bias voltage is appropriately set according to the rated output voltage of the CCD 113. In the bias circuit 116b, a predetermined bias voltage is applied to the analog output signal output from the temperature sensor 115 so that the output value takes a value in the range of + 3V to + 7v. The bias voltage in this case is also set as appropriate according to the rated output voltage of the temperature sensor 115. In this way, each parameter is arbitrarily set based on the input range of the A / D conversion unit 118 and the ratings of the CCD 113 and the temperature sensor 115.

  The analog signals biased by the bias circuits 116 a and 116 b are added by the adder circuit 117 and output to the A / D converter 118. The A / D converter 118 performs A / D conversion on the input analog signal and converts it to a digital signal. Specifically, the A / D converter 118 samples and quantizes an analog signal at a predetermined sampling frequency and a predetermined number of bits (for example, 12 bits) corresponding to the clock pulse supplied from the timing generator 136. Then, the 12-bit digital signal converted by the A / D conversion unit 118 is output to the serializer 119.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a digital signal input to the serializer 119. As described above, the A / D converter 118 receives a signal obtained by adding the analog image signal and the analog output signal. The analog image signal and the analog output signal are biased so as to have voltage values in different predetermined ranges. Therefore, in the 12-bit digital signal output from the A / D converter 118, the lower 5 bits (that is, bits corresponding to 0V to + 3V) indicate the image signal generated by the CCD 113, and the upper 7 bits (+ 3V to + 7V). A bit corresponding to) indicates an output signal from the temperature sensor 115. As a result, as shown in FIG. 2, digital bit data corresponding to the analog image signal is output from the output pins 0 to 4 of the A / D converter 118, and the analog output signal is output from the output pins 5 to 11. Corresponding digital bit data is output and input to the input pins 0 to 11 of the serializer 119, respectively. By changing parameters in the bias circuit or the like, in the 12-bit digital signal input to the serializer 119, the upper 5 bits are used as an image signal generated by the CCD 113, and the lower 7 bits are output signals from the temperature sensor 115. It is possible to arbitrarily change the bit string distribution.

  The serializer 119 converts the input 12-bit digital signal into a 1-bit serial signal that is temporally continuous. The converted serial signal is transmitted through the signal line passing through the flexible tube 120 and input to the deserializer 131 of the connection unit 130.

  In the deserializer 131 to which a serial signal is input, processing reverse to the processing in the serializer 119 is performed. That is, a 1-bit serial signal that is continuous in time is converted into a digital signal composed of 12 bits. In the 12-bit digital signal, the lower 5 bits correspond to the image signal generated by the CCD 113, and the upper 7 bits correspond to the output signal output from the temperature sensor 115. Therefore, the deserializer 131 further performs a process of separating the 12-bit digital signal into a 5-bit image signal and a 7-bit output signal. Specifically, among the 12-bit parallel digital signals deserialized by the deserializer 131, the lower 5 bits are output to the pre-processing unit 132 as an image signal having a value of 0 to 31, and the upper 7 bits are set to 0 to 0. It is output to the CPU 134 as a 7-bit output signal having a value of 127.

  Subsequently, the pre-processing unit 132 performs a predetermined process on the input image signal to generate a video signal including a color difference signal and a luminance signal. Examples of the predetermined processing include matrix processing, gain adjustment and resolution adjustment for each color, white balance and black balance adjustment, gamma correction, enhancement processing, and the like. The video signal generated by the upstream processing unit 132 is output to the D / A conversion unit 133. In the D / A conversion unit 133, the input video signal is converted into an analog signal and output to the subsequent processing unit 204 of the processor 20.

  In the post-processing unit 204 of the processor 20, the luminance signal component in the received video signal is subjected to noise reduction processing or the like, and the NTSC composite video signal obtained by multiplexing the luminance signal, the color difference signal, and the decoded synchronization signal with reduced noise. Video signals are generated. Then, the video signal is output from the processor 20 to the monitor 30, and a subject image corresponding to the video signal is displayed on the monitor 30. Thereby, the surgeon and the diagnosing person can observe the state in the body cavity of the patient from the subject image displayed on the monitor 30 and perform treatment while referring to the subject image.

  On the other hand, the CPU 134 calculates the temperature of the tip 110 based on the obtained output signal of the temperature sensor 115. Then, the CPU 134 determines whether or not the calculated temperature is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature. The predetermined temperature used for the determination is appropriately set (for example, 60 degrees) in consideration of the temperature characteristics of the CCD 113 and the safety aspect, and is stored in the EEPROM 135 in advance. And when the temperature of the front-end | tip part 110 is more than predetermined temperature, CPU134 sends the notification signal for notifying the system controller 201 of the processor 20 that the temperature of the front-end | tip part 110 is more than predetermined temperature. Send.

  When the system controller 201 receives the notification signal from the CPU 134, the system controller 201 causes the monitor 30 to display a message for notifying the surgeon that the distal end portion 110 of the electronic endoscope 10 is hot. Thereby, when the temperature of the front-end | tip part 110 becomes more than predetermined temperature, it becomes possible to alert a surgeon and to urge observation stop etc. In addition, when the temperature of the distal end portion 110 is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature, for example, a water jet (not shown) provided in the electronic endoscope 10 is operated to discharge water from the distal end portion 110. It is good also as a structure which reduces the temperature of the front-end | tip part 110 by this. Furthermore, it is possible to perform processing such as lowering the drive frequency of the CCD 113 or lowering the amount of observation light emitted from the light source 202. Thereby, when the temperature of the front-end | tip part 110 becomes high, the temperature of the front-end | tip part 110 can be lowered automatically.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the image signal generated by the CCD 113 and the output signal from the temperature sensor 115 are converted into a digital signal at the distal end portion 110 and then transmitted to the connection portion 130. ing. As described above, by transmitting the digital signal into the flexible tube 120, it is possible to reduce the deterioration of the image signal due to the transmission as compared with the case of transmitting the analog signal directly.

  In the present embodiment, before the conversion to a digital signal, the analog output signal and the analog image signal are biased so as to have voltage values in different output ranges and added. . Then, by digital conversion of the addition signal, it is possible to obtain a digital signal including bit strings respectively corresponding to the analog output signal and the analog image signal. Further, by converting the digital signal thus converted into a serial signal and then transmitting the signal through the flexible tube 120, the number of signal lines passing through the flexible tube 120 can be reduced. It becomes possible to realize the diameter. In addition, noise interference between a plurality of signal lines can be prevented, and an observation image with less noise can be provided.

  Next, the electronic endoscope system 1a according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the electronic endoscope system 1a of the present embodiment. The electronic endoscope system 1a of the present embodiment has two A / D converters in place of the bias circuits 116a and 116b and the adder circuit 117 in the first embodiment at the distal end portion 110a of the electronic endoscope 10. 118a and 118b are provided. Since the configuration other than the A / D conversion units 118a and 118b is the same as that of the electronic endoscope system 1 in the first embodiment, the same components as those of the electronic endoscope system 1 are illustrated in FIG. The same reference numbers are assigned and detailed description is omitted.

  In-vivo observation in the present embodiment is performed in a flow substantially similar to that in the first embodiment. However, in the present embodiment, the analog image signal generated by the CCD 113 is output to the A / D conversion unit 118a. The A / D converter 118a samples and quantizes the analog signal at a predetermined sampling frequency and a predetermined number of bits (for example, 8 bits) according to the clock pulse supplied from the timing generator 136, and 8 A bit digital signal is output.

  In parallel with the generation of the analog image signal, an analog output signal corresponding to the temperature of the tip portion 110a is generated from the temperature sensor 115 and output to the A / D conversion unit 118b. Then, the A / D converter 118b samples and quantizes the analog signal at a predetermined sampling frequency and a predetermined number of bits (for example, 8 bits) according to the clock pulse supplied from the timing generator 136, and 8 A bit digital signal is output. Each digital signal converted by the A / D conversion units 118 a and 118 b is output to the serializer 119.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining a digital signal input to the serializer 119. In the present embodiment, both the digital signal converted by the A / D conversion unit 118a and the digital signal converted by the A / D conversion unit 118b are input by dividing one input port of the serializer 119. . Specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 4, an 8-bit digital signal output from the A / D conversion unit 118 a is input to the input pins 0 to 7 of the serializer 119, and the input pins 8 to 15 of the serializer 119 are An 8-bit digital signal output from the A / D converter 118b is input. As a result, the digital signal corresponding to the image signal generated by the CCD 113 and the output signal output from the temperature sensor 115 is input to the serializer 119 as one digital signal represented by 16 bits. In the above example, in the 16-bit digital signal input to the serializer 119, the lower 8 bits are the image signal generated by the CCD 113 and the upper 8 bits are the output signal from the temperature sensor 115. However, the serializer 119 By switching the input to, the upper 8 bits can be used as an image signal generated by the CCD 113, and the lower 8 bits can be used as an output signal from the temperature sensor 115.

  Subsequently, the serializer 119 converts the 16-bit digital signal into a 1-bit serial signal that is temporally continuous. The converted serial signal is transmitted through the signal line passing through the flexible tube 120 and input to the deserializer 131 of the connection unit 130. Thereafter, the deserializer 131 converts the temporally continuous 1-bit serial signal into a digital signal composed of 16 bits. In the 16-bit digital signal, the lower 8 bits are an image signal generated by the CCD 113, and the upper 8 bits are an output signal from the temperature sensor 115. Therefore, the deserializer 131 further performs a process of separating the 16-bit digital signal into an image signal and an output signal.

  The image signal separated by the deserializer 131 is output to the pre-stage processing unit 132, converted into a video signal, and output to the processor 20 via the D / A conversion unit 133. On the other hand, the output signal from the temperature sensor 115 separated by the deserializer 131 is output to the CPU 134, and based on the temperature calculated by the CPU 134, notification processing similar to the first embodiment is performed.

  As described above, also in the present embodiment, the image signal generated by the CCD 113 and the output signal from the temperature sensor 115 are converted into digital signals at the distal end portion 110a and then transmitted to the connection portion 130, thereby directly. Compared with the case of transmitting an analog signal, it is possible to reduce the deterioration of the image signal due to the transmission. In this embodiment, the output signal and the image signal are separately A / D converted by the A / D converters 118a and 118b, and each digital signal is divided as an input port of the serializer 119 and input as one digital signal. It is the composition which makes it. Thereby, a digital signal including a bit string corresponding to each of the analog output signal and the analog image signal can be converted into a serial signal, and the number of signal lines passing through the flexible tube 120 can be reduced. Further, in this embodiment, it is not necessary to perform processing such as bias and addition on the output signal and the image signal, respectively, so that signal deterioration can be further prevented.

The above is the embodiment of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the technical idea of the present invention. For example, in the above embodiment,
Although the temperature sensor 115 is provided at the distal end portion 110 of the electronic endoscope 10 to detect the temperature of the distal end portion 110, various sensors such as a PH sensor, a pressure sensor, and an acceleration sensor can also be provided. It is. In this case, the CPU 134 can receive the output signals of these sensors and transmit a notification signal to the system controller 201 so that the measurement values and messages corresponding to the output signals are displayed on the monitor 30. As described above, by providing various sensors on the distal end portion 110 close to the observation site, various situations around the observation site can be detected, and more detailed diagnosis can be performed.

  Further, it is possible to provide a plurality of these sensors at the distal end portion 110 of the electronic endoscope 10. When a plurality of sensors are provided as described above, the output port in the A / D conversion unit 118 may be further divided, or a plurality of A / D conversion units may be provided. With this configuration, it is possible not only to transmit the output signal of the sensor without affecting the image signal, but also to reduce the diameter without having to increase the number of signal lines passing through the flexible tube 120. It is possible to transmit output signals from a plurality of sensors while maintaining the above.

  In the above embodiment, the connection unit 130 of the electronic endoscope 10 includes the processing units such as the deserializer 131 and the timing generator 136. However, the processing unit may include these processing units. In this case, the serial signal output from the serializer 119 can be transmitted to the processor 20 as it is.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Electronic endoscope system 10 Electronic endoscope 100 Insertion part 110 Tip part 115 Temperature sensor 116a, 116b Bias circuit 117 Addition circuit 118 A / D conversion part 119 Serializer 120 Flexible tube 130 Connection part 131 Deserializer 132 Pre-processing part 134 CPU
136 Timing Generator 20 Processor 201 System Controller 202 Light Source 204 Post-Processing Unit 30 Monitor

Claims (9)

An electronic endoscope having an insertion portion to be inserted into a patient's body and a connection portion connected to a processor,
At the tip of the insertion part,
Imaging means for imaging the patient's body and generating an image signal;
Detecting means for detecting the state of the tip of the insertion portion and generating an output signal corresponding to the detection result;
A / D conversion means for A / D converting the image signal and the output signal, and outputting a digital signal composed of a bit string corresponding to the image signal and a bit string corresponding to the output signal;
An electronic endoscope comprising: a serializer that converts the digital signal output from the A / D conversion unit into a serial signal and outputs the serial signal to the connection unit.   2. The electronic endoscope according to claim 1, wherein an upper bit of a digital signal output from the A / D conversion unit corresponds to the image signal, and a lower bit corresponds to the output signal.   2. The electronic endoscope according to claim 1, wherein a lower bit of a digital signal output from the A / D conversion unit corresponds to the image signal, and an upper bit corresponds to the output signal. The electronic endoscope is attached to the distal end of the insertion portion.
A bias circuit for biasing the image signal and the output signal so that the image signal and the output signal have output values in different ranges;
An adder circuit for adding the biased image signal and the output signal;
The digital signal is obtained by A / D conversion of a signal added by the adding circuit by an A / D conversion means, according to any one of claims 1 to 3. The electronic endoscope as described. The A / D converter comprises a first A / D converter for A / D converting the image signal, and a second A / D converter for A / D converting the output signal. ,
The digital signal includes a signal that has been A / D converted by the first A / D converter and a signal that has been A / D converted by the second converter. The electronic endoscope according to any one of claims 3 to 4. The connecting portion is
A deserializer that deserializes the serial signal and separates the image signal and the output signal;
Image signal processing means for generating a video signal by performing predetermined image processing on the image signal;
The electronic endoscope according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising:   The electronic endoscope according to claim 6, wherein the connection unit further includes notification signal transmission means for transmitting a notification signal to the processor based on the output signal. The detection means is a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the tip of the insertion portion,
The notification signal transmitting means transmits a notification signal for notifying the processor to the effect when the temperature of the distal end of the insertion portion is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature based on the output signal. The electronic endoscope according to 7. An electronic endoscope according to claim 7 or claim 8,
A light source for supplying illumination light to the electronic endoscope;
Video signal processing means for performing predetermined processing on the video signal and converting it into a video signal that can be displayed on a monitor;
A monitor for displaying an image corresponding to the video signal;
An electronic endoscope system comprising: display control means for displaying a message corresponding to the notification signal on the monitor when the notification signal is received.

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