JP2011244884A - Endoscopic system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an endoscopic system capable of selecting initialization operation or continuation operation corresponding to the state of the endoscopic system.SOLUTION: A trouble detection part 201 detects the trouble of an image processing part 200 on the basis of the comparison result of a taken image with the image of the processing result of the image processing part 200 to output a trouble state signal showing a trouble state. A system state detection part 202 judges whether the body cavity is internally examined by the endoscopic system on the basis of system data showing the state of the endoscopic system to output a system state signal showing a judge result. A trouble processing part 203 judges whether the programmable integrated circuit in the image processing part 200 is initialized on the basis of the trouble state signal and the system state signal to output a control signal showing a judge result. The image processing part 200 performs initialization operation for initializing the programmable integrated circuit or continuation operation for continuing operation without initializing the programmable integrated circuit on the basis of the control signal.

Description

  The present invention relates to an endoscope system for imaging a region in a body cavity with an imaging element such as a CCD, performing image processing on the obtained image, and displaying and recording the image.

  In an endoscope system (endoscope device), the inside of a body cavity is imaged by an imaging element in an endoscope scope, and noise reduction is performed on the obtained captured image by an image processing unit built in the image processor device. Various image processing such as color correction, color enhancement, and edge enhancement are performed to generate an image suitable for diagnosis, and display and record the image. Generally, these image processing units are realized by a programmable integrated circuit such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array). The FPGA reads out circuit information from the circuit information ROM on the substrate when the power is turned on, stores it in the internal SRAM, and realizes a desired circuit by switching the internal wiring switch based on this circuit information.

  However, because the FPGA circuit configuration changes depending on the information in the SRAM, the circuit information in the SRAM changes due to external factors such as external noise, and the circuit configuration changes, making it impossible to output a normal image. There is a case. In such a case, the following method has been proposed as a method for returning to a normal state (see, for example, Patent Document 1). FIG. 15 shows a configuration of a processor device described in Patent Document 1. In this example, the captured image is input to the detection data addition circuit 1500. The detection data addition circuit 1500 adds known detection data to the input captured image and outputs the detection data addition image. This detection data-added image is input to an image processing circuit 1501 constituted by an FPGA.

  The image processing circuit 1501 performs various types of image processing on the detection data added image and outputs it as a display image. The display image is output to an external display device and input to the determination circuit 1502. The determination circuit 1502 determines whether or not the detection data added to the display image matches a known value, and outputs a determination result signal indicating the determination result. When the determination result signal indicates “match”, the initialization circuit 1503 does not operate, and the image processing circuit 1501 operates as it is (continuous operation). When the determination result signal indicates “mismatch”, the initialization circuit 1503 operates and outputs an initialization signal to the image processing circuit 1501. Upon receiving the initialization signal, the image processing circuit 1501 reads circuit information from the circuit information ROM 1504 again and returns to a normal state (initialization operation).

JP 2009-225851 A

  In an endoscopic system, if image display stops during endoscopic examination in a body cavity, the operator cannot confirm the orientation and bending state of the insertion section, and the insertion section is operated and pulled out from the body cavity. It becomes difficult. On the other hand, in the prior art, when an abnormality is detected in the image processing result, the image processing circuit is initialized. However, during the initialization, the operation of the image processing unit is stopped, so the image is not displayed, and the above operation is performed. Can no longer do. The prior art does not consider such a viewpoint.

  The present invention pays attention to this point of view, and for example, even when an abnormality is detected during an examination in a body cavity, the output of the image is continuously secured as much as possible. In order to enable initialization to return to the normal state when troubles that cause trouble occur, it is possible to select initialization operation or continuous operation according to the state of the endoscope system An object is to provide an endoscope system.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problems. A light source unit that generates illumination light for illuminating a site in a body cavity, and a site in the body cavity illuminated by the illumination light are captured by an image sensor. An endoscope system comprising: an imaging unit that captures an image and obtains a captured image; and an image processing unit that includes a programmable integrated circuit that performs predetermined processing on the captured image and outputs the processed image to a display unit. , Detecting a failure of the image processing unit based on a result of comparing the captured image from the imaging unit and an image of a processing result processed by the image processing unit, and a failure state signal indicating a failure state Based on the failure detection unit to be output and the system information indicating the status of the endoscope system, it is determined whether or not the endoscope system is being examined in the body cavity, and a system status signal indicating the determination result is output. System A failure detection unit that determines whether to initialize the programmable integrated circuit in the image processing unit based on the failure state signal and the system state signal, and outputs a control signal indicating the determination result And the image processing unit performs an initialization operation for initializing the programmable integrated circuit or a continuous operation for continuing the operation without initializing the programmable integrated circuit based on the control signal. An endoscope system characterized by the above.

  In the endoscope system of the present invention, the failure detection unit performs a process equivalent to the predetermined process performed by the image processing unit on the captured image and outputs the captured image as a converted image, and the conversion And an image comparison unit that compares the image with the processing result image and outputs the comparison result as the failure state signal.

  In the endoscope system of the present invention, the captured image conversion unit includes a CPU, and the CPU performs a process equivalent to the predetermined process by a process based on software, and the image comparison unit includes the captured image. The image processing apparatus further includes a storage unit that stores the processing result image corresponding to the converted image processed by the conversion unit, and after the processing by the captured image conversion unit is completed, and the processing stored in the storage unit The result image is compared.

  In the endoscope system of the present invention, the failure detection unit calculates a feature amount of the captured image and outputs it as a first feature amount, and a feature of the image of the processing result A second feature quantity detector that calculates a quantity and outputs it as a second feature quantity; a feature that compares the first feature quantity and the second feature quantity and outputs a comparison result as the failure state signal; And a quantity comparison unit.

  In the endoscope system of the present invention, the system state detection unit calculates a feature amount of the captured image, and based on the calculated feature amount, whether or not the endoscope system is under examination in a body cavity. It has the 1st body cavity detection part which judges whether and outputs the 1st body cavity detection signal which shows a judgment result, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

  In the endoscope system of the present invention, the image processing unit compares the luminance level with a predetermined target level with a luminance level calculating unit that calculates a luminance level from the captured image, and emits light based on the comparison result. A light emission amount calculation unit that calculates a light amount and outputs light emission amount information indicating the light emission amount, the light source unit controls the light emission amount based on the light emission amount information, and the system state detection unit includes: And a second in-vivo detection unit that determines whether or not the amount of light indicated by the light-emission amount information is within a predetermined range and outputs the determination result as a second in-vivo detection signal. .

  In addition, the endoscope system of the present invention receives an operation performed by an operator for setting related to a diagnostic function, outputs an operation information indicating an operation result, and the diagnostic function based on the operation information. A third body cavity that further includes a setting unit configured to perform the setting, wherein the system state detection unit detects whether or not the diagnostic function is set based on the operation information, and outputs the detection signal as a third body cavity detection signal. It has an inside detection part.

  In the endoscope system of the present invention, the system state detection unit calculates a feature amount of the captured image, and based on the calculated feature amount, whether or not the endoscope system is under examination in a body cavity. A first intra-body-cavity detection unit that outputs a first intra-body-cavity detection signal indicating the determination result, and determines whether or not the luminescence amount indicated by the luminescence amount information is within a predetermined range, and the determination result A second intra-body-cavity detection unit that outputs as a second intra-body-cavity detection signal, and detects whether or not the diagnostic function is set based on operation information indicating a result of an operation performed by the operator for setting related to the diagnostic function And at least two intra-body-cavity detection units out of the third intra-body-cavity detection units that are output as the third intra-body-cavity detection signal, and an examination in the body cavity based on the first intra-body-cavity detection signal. If determined, or based on the second body cavity detection signal When it is determined that the light emission amount is within the predetermined range, or when it is determined that the diagnostic function is set based on the third in-vivo detection signal, an examination in the body cavity is being performed. A system state determination unit that outputs the system state signal indicating that the system state detection unit includes the second in-vivo detection unit, and the image processing unit detects a luminance level from the captured image. A luminance level calculation unit that calculates the emission level, a luminance level calculation unit that compares the luminance level with a predetermined target level, calculates a light emission amount based on the comparison result, and outputs the light emission amount information indicating the light emission amount The light source unit controls the light emission amount based on the light emission amount information, and when the system state detection unit includes the third body cavity detection unit, the operator sets for the diagnosis function Receive operations Attached, wherein the operation section for outputting the operation information indicating the operation results, further comprising a setting unit for setting according to the diagnostic functions based on the operation information.

  Further, in the endoscope system according to the present invention, when it is determined that the examination in the body cavity is being performed based on the first body cavity detection signal, or the light emission is performed based on the second body cavity detection signal. When it is determined that the amount is within the predetermined range, or when it is determined that the diagnostic function is set based on the third body cavity detection signal, the system state determination unit Output the system status signal indicating that the test is in progress, the fault status signal indicates the occurrence of a fault below a predetermined level, and the system status signal indicates that the test in the body cavity is being performed, the fault The processing unit determines not to initialize the programmable integrated circuit in the image processing unit.

  In the endoscope system of the present invention, when it is determined that the examination in the body cavity is not being performed based on the first body cavity detection signal, and the light emission amount is based on the second body cavity detection signal. Is determined to be outside the predetermined range, and when it is determined that the diagnostic function is not set based on the third body cavity detection signal, the system state determination unit When the system status signal indicating that the examination is not in progress is output, the fault status signal indicates the occurrence of a fault, and the system status signal indicates that the examination in the body cavity is not in progress, the fault processing unit is the image processing unit And determining that the programmable integrated circuit is initialized.

  According to the present invention, the endoscope system is based on the failure state detected based on the result of comparing the captured image from the imaging unit and the image of the processing result processed by the image processing unit, and the system information. Based on the result of determining whether or not the examination in the body cavity is in progress, it is determined according to the state of the endoscope system by determining whether or not to initialize the programmable integrated circuit in the image processing unit. Can be selected.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the endoscope system by the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the image processing processor apparatus which the endoscope system by the 1st Embodiment of this invention has. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of operation | movement of the failure process part which the endoscope system by the 1st Embodiment of this invention has. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the failure detection part which the endoscope system by the 1st Embodiment of this invention has. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the reference image generation part which the endoscope system by the 1st Embodiment of this invention has. It is a timing chart which shows operation | movement of the reference image production | generation part and failure detection part which the endoscope system by the 1st Embodiment of this invention has. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the system state detection part which the endoscope system by the 1st Embodiment of this invention has. It is a state transition diagram of an endoscope system by a 1st embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the image process part which the endoscope system by the 1st Embodiment of this invention has. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the light control part which the endoscope system by the 1st Embodiment of this invention has. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the failure detection part which the endoscope system by the 2nd Embodiment of this invention has. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the input image feature-value detection part which the endoscope system by the 2nd Embodiment of this invention has. In the 2nd Embodiment of this invention, it is a reference drawing which shows the image which each passed through the low-pass filter and the high-pass filter. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the feature-value comparison part which the endoscope system by the 2nd Embodiment of this invention has. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the conventional processor apparatus.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
First, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of an endoscope system (endoscope apparatus) according to the present embodiment. The endoscope system of the present embodiment includes an endoscope scope 100, a light source device 101, an image processing processor device 102, a display device 103, a recording device 104, an operation unit 105, and a system controller 106.

  The endoscope scope 100 has a built-in image capturing unit 107 that captures a part of a body cavity illuminated by illumination light with an image sensor and obtains a captured image, and is a part that is inserted into the body cavity. The light source device 101 generates illumination light for illuminating a site in the body cavity, and outputs the illumination light to the endoscope scope 100. At this time, the light source device 101 generates illumination light having a light amount proportional to the light emission amount information output from the image processing processor device 102. Specifically, the light source device 101 generates illumination light with a diaphragm amount, a light emission time, or a light emission level proportional to the light emission amount information.

  The image processing processor device 102 performs various image processing on the captured image from the endoscope scope 100, and outputs the processed image to the display device 103 as a display image and also outputs it to the recording device 104 as a recorded image. . The display device 103 displays a display image output from the image processing processor device 102. The recording device 104 records the recording image output from the image processing processor device 102 on a medium. The operation unit 105 includes an operation member for an operator to perform various operations of the endoscope system, receives an operation performed for setting related to a diagnostic function, and receives operation information based on the operation result to the system controller 106. Output. The system controller 106 performs various settings related to the diagnostic function in accordance with operation information from the operation unit 105 and controls each unit in the endoscope system.

  Next, a schematic operation of the endoscope system will be described. The endoscope scope 100 guides illumination light from the light source device 101 and illuminates a part in the body cavity. In addition, the imaging unit 107 built in the endoscope scope 100 captures a target region and outputs a captured image. The captured image is input to the image processor 102 and various image processing such as noise reduction, color correction, color enhancement, and contour enhancement is performed. After such image processing is performed, the processed image is output to the display device 103 or the recording device 104 as a display / recorded image. The system controller 106 changes, for example, image processing parameters of the image processing processor device 102 in order to obtain a diagnostic image desired by the operator.

  Next, the configuration of the image processor unit 102 will be described. FIG. 2 shows the configuration of the image processor unit 102. The image processing processor 102 includes an image processing unit 200 that performs various types of image processing, a failure detection unit 201, a system state detection unit 202, a failure processing unit 203, and circuit information for realizing a function corresponding to a failure. And a stored circuit information ROM 204. The image processing unit 200 is configured by a programmable integrated circuit such as an FPGA, and can be initialized based on circuit information stored in the circuit information ROM 204.

  The failure detection unit 201 detects the presence / absence of a failure in the image processing unit 200 and its level. More specifically, the failure detection unit 201 compares the input image of the image processing unit 200, that is, the captured image, with the output image of the image processing unit 200, that is, the display / recorded image, and determines whether there is a failure in the image processing unit 200. Is output as a failure detection signal. Furthermore, the failure detection unit 201 outputs a failure level based on the difference between the captured image and the display / recorded image as a failure level signal. These failure detection signals and failure level signals correspond to failure state signals indicating failure states.

  System information indicating the state of the endoscope system is input from the system controller 106 to the system state detection unit 202, and light emission amount information is input from the image processing unit 200. Based on these pieces of information, the system state detection unit 202 determines whether or not the endoscope system is in the state of being examined in the body cavity, and outputs a system state signal indicating the determination result.

  The failure processing unit 203 initializes the image processing unit 200 configured by a programmable integrated circuit based on the failure detection signal and the failure level signal from the failure detection unit 201 and the system state signal from the system state detection unit 202. It determines whether or not to perform, and outputs an image processing unit control signal for controlling the image processing unit 200 based on the determination result. Further, the failure processing unit 203 outputs a failure presence signal to the system controller 106 when a failure is detected. When a failure presence signal is input, that is, when a failure occurs, the system controller 106 displays characters on the display device 103 using an OSD (On Screen Display), generates a BEEP sound, and displays an LED or LCD on the operation panel. The occurrence of a failure is notified by such control. Details of the failure detection unit 201 and the system state detection unit 202 will be described later.

  Next, the operation of the failure processing unit 203 will be described. FIG. 3 shows the operation of the failure processing unit 203. First, the failure processing unit 203 determines whether there is a failure based on the failure detection signal from the failure detection unit 201 (step S300). When the failure detection signal indicates “invalid”, the failure processing unit 203 determines that there is no failure, and sets the image processing unit control signal to “continue operation” (step S301). At this time, the image processing unit 200 continues to operate without being initialized and outputs an image (continuous operation).

  When the failure detection signal indicates “valid”, the failure processing unit 203 determines that there is a failure, and compares the value of the failure level signal from the failure detection unit 201 with a predetermined threshold (step S302). When the value of the failure level signal is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value, that is, the failure level is a level at which it is difficult to recognize the display image of the display device 103 as an image, the failure processing unit 203 receives the image processing unit control signal. “Initialization” is set (step S303). At this time, the image processing unit 200 reads circuit information from the circuit information ROM 204, constructs the circuit again, and recovers to a normal state (initialization operation).

  When the value of the failure level signal is less than the predetermined threshold, that is, the failure level is a level at which the display image of the display device 103 can be recognized as an image, the failure processing unit 203 is the system state detection unit 202. The system state is determined based on the system state signal from (step S304). When the system status signal indicates “under examination”, that is, when there is a high possibility that the endoscope scope is in the body cavity, the failure processing unit 203 sets the image processing unit control signal to “continue operation” (step S305). ). At this time, the image processing unit 200 continues to operate and ensures image output (continuous operation).

  When the system status signal indicates “not inspected”, the failure processing unit 203 sets the image processing unit control signal to “initialization” in the same manner as described above (step S306). At this time, the image processing unit 200 performs initialization (initialization operation). As described above, the image output is ensured so that the operator can continue the operation during the examination, that is, when a low-level failure occurs while the endoscope scope 100 is in the body cavity. When a high-level failure that cannot be visually recognized or a failure at the time of non-inspection occurs, the circuit is initialized to promptly recover to a normal state.

  Next, the configuration of the failure detection unit 201 will be described. FIG. 4 shows the configuration of the failure detection unit 201. The failure detection unit 201 includes a reference image generation unit 400, a delay output image frame memory 401, a delay output image memory controller 402, a delay output image comparison unit 403, and a delay output image correlation value calculation unit 404.

  The reference image generation unit 400 performs a process equivalent to the image processing performed by the image processing unit 200 on the captured image that is an input image of the image processing unit 200 to generate a reference image (converted image). The delayed output image frame memory 401 stores a display / recorded image that is an output image of the image processing unit 200 as a delayed output image. The delayed output image memory controller 402 controls writing / reading of data to / from the delayed output image frame memory 401.

  The delayed output image comparison unit 403 compares the reference image with the delayed output image stored in the delayed output image frame memory 401, and outputs the comparison result as a failure detection signal. More specifically, the delayed output image comparison unit 403 compares data for each pixel of the same coordinate for all pixels (or pixels thinned out at a constant rate) in the reference image and the delayed output image. When there is no pixel with different data between the two images, the delayed output image comparison unit 403 sets the comparison result to “match”. If there is even one pixel with different data between the two images, the delayed output image comparison unit 403 sets the comparison result to “mismatch”.

  The delayed output image correlation value calculation unit 404 calculates a correlation value between the reference image and the delayed output image stored in the delayed output image frame memory 401, and outputs a failure level signal based on the correlation value. More specifically, the delayed output image correlation value calculation unit 404 calculates a difference or ratio of data in units of pixels of the same coordinates for all pixels (or pixels thinned out at a constant rate) in the reference image and the delayed output image. To do. The delayed output image correlation value calculation unit 404 adds up the absolute values and ratios of the data differences for all the pixels for which the data differences and ratios are calculated, and sets the result as the correlation value of the entire image.

  Next, the configuration of the reference image generation unit 400 will be described. FIG. 5 shows the configuration of the reference image generation unit 400. The reference image generation unit 400 includes an input image frame memory 500, a CPU 501, a reference image frame memory 502, and a reference image memory controller 503.

  The input image frame memory 500 stores an input image that is a captured image. The CPU 501 reads an input image from the input image frame memory 500, performs processing equivalent to the image processing performed by the image processing unit 200 on the input image by processing based on software, and generates a reference image. In addition, the CPU 501 outputs a capture signal at the timing of capturing the input image, and outputs an inspection start signal at the timing when the reference image storage in the reference image frame memory 502 is completed. The reference image frame memory 502 stores the reference image generated by the CPU 501. The reference image memory controller 503 controls writing / reading of data to / from the input image frame memory 500 and the reference image frame memory 502.

  Next, operations of the reference image generation unit 400 and the failure detection unit 201 will be described. FIG. 6 shows operations of the reference image generation unit 400 and the failure detection unit 201. The captured image is input to the reference image generation unit 400 in synchronization with a vertical synchronization signal (not shown in FIGS. 4 and 5). The reference image memory controller 503 takes captured images into the input image frame memory 500 at a rate of once every several frames. The captured image is subjected to processing equivalent to the image processing performed by the image processing unit 200 by the CPU 501. The processing time is determined by the processing capability of the CPU 501, but generally the processing time is longer than the time during which the image processing unit 200 performs image processing. A reference image, which is an image obtained as a result of processing by the CPU 501, is stored in the reference image frame memory 502. The reference image memory controller 503 outputs the reference image at a timing synchronized with the examination start signal after the storage of the reference image is completed.

  The following description relates to the operation of the failure detection unit 201. The reference image generation unit 400 outputs a capture signal when capturing an input image as described above. When the capture signal is input, the delay output image memory controller 402 captures the display / record image of the frame into the delay output image frame memory 401. Subsequently, when the generation and storage of the reference image is completed in the reference image generation unit 400 and the output of the reference image is started, the reference image generation unit 400 outputs an inspection start signal.

  When the inspection start signal is input to the delayed output image memory controller 402, the delayed output image memory controller 402 makes the same image in synchronization with reading of the reference image from the reference image frame memory 502 in the reference image generation unit 400. Start reading the corresponding delayed output image. The delayed output image comparison unit 403 and the delayed output image correlation value calculation unit 404 perform image comparison and correlation value calculation. As described above, the delayed output image comparison unit 403 compares whether the reference image and the delayed output image match. When the comparison result is “match”, the delayed output image comparison unit 403 determines that there is no failure and outputs the failure detection signal as “invalid”. When the comparison result is “mismatch”, the delayed output image comparison unit 403 determines that there is a failure and outputs a failure detection signal as “valid”.

  The delayed output image correlation value calculation unit 404 calculates the correlation value between the reference image and the delayed output image as described above. The delayed output image correlation value calculation unit 404 compares the calculated correlation value with a predetermined threshold, and if the correlation value is less than the threshold, the correlation is low, that is, the delayed output image is significantly degraded with respect to the reference image. The failure level signal is output as “high”. On the contrary, if the correlation value is equal to or greater than the threshold value, it is determined that the images are similar, that is, a level that can be visually recognized, and the failure level signal is output as “low”.

  As described above, the processing result by the CPU 500 and the processing result by the image processing unit 200 are compared once every several frames. The CPU 500 may also be used as another CPU in the system (for example, this CPU when the CPU is used in the system controller 106). The data stored in each frame memory does not need to store all the pixels, and for example, it is possible to reduce the capacity by thinning out / cutting out.

  Next, the configuration of the system state detection unit 202 will be described. FIG. 7 shows the configuration of the system state detection unit 202. The system state detection unit 202 includes a diagnostic function setting determination unit 700, a dimming state determination unit 701, a body cavity color determination unit 702, an in-focus determination unit 703, and a system state determination unit 704.

  The determination results of the diagnostic function setting determination unit 700, the dimming state determination unit 701, the body cavity color determination unit 702, and the focus determination unit 703 are input to the system state determination unit 704. Since each determination result is not reliable information for determining that the endoscope scope 100 is inserted into a body cavity, the system state determination unit 704 combines these pieces of information to increase the determination accuracy, (Whether or not the examination is in progress, in other words, whether or not the endoscope scope is in the body cavity).

  FIG. 8 shows the state transition of the endoscope system. The transition from “Non-examination” to “In-examination” indicates, for example, that a diagnostic operation has been performed, that the illumination amount is within a predetermined control range, is in focus, and the color in the body cavity is detected. Is done when any of the things happen. In addition, when the amount of illumination is maximized, out of focus, and the color within the body cavity has not been detected for a predetermined time or more, “in examination” to “not in examination” Transition to. The system state determination unit 704 determines the system state based on the signal from each determination unit, and outputs a system state signal in conjunction with the state transition.

  Next, the operation of each determination unit will be described. Operation information is input to the diagnostic function setting determination unit 700 via the system controller 106. The diagnosis function setting determination unit 700 detects information related to an operation related to a diagnosis, for example, an operation for performing an image processing for emphasizing a blood vessel or an affected part on an image, among the operation information based on various operations, and based on the information, It is determined whether or not the setting related to the diagnostic function is performed, and the determination result is output to the system state determination unit 704 as a diagnostic function setting determination signal (third body cavity detection signal). When the setting related to the diagnostic function is performed, the diagnostic function setting determination unit 700 sets the diagnostic function setting determination signal to “diagnostic function setting”, and when the setting related to the diagnostic function is not performed, the diagnostic function setting determination unit 700 performs the diagnosis. The function setting judgment signal is “diagnostic function not set”.

  The dimming state determination unit 701 determines whether the light emission amount indicated by the light emission amount information is within a predetermined range based on the light emission amount information output from the image processing unit 200 to the light source device 101, and the determination result Is output as a dimming state determination signal (second body cavity detection signal). Hereinafter, generation of light emission amount information in the image processing unit 200 will be described. FIG. 9 shows the configuration of the image processing unit 200. As described above, the image processing unit 200 performs various processes for obtaining a diagnostic image such as noise reduction, color correction, color enhancement, and edge enhancement on a captured image. Parameters for each process are given from the system controller 106. The image processing unit 200 includes a noise reduction processing unit 900, a color correction unit 901, a color enhancement unit 902, an outline enhancement unit 903, and a light control unit 904.

  The noise reduction processing unit 900 performs noise reduction processing on the captured image. The color correction unit 901 performs color correction processing on the captured image. The color enhancement unit 902 performs color enhancement processing on the captured image. The contour enhancement unit 903 performs contour enhancement processing on the captured image. The light control unit 904 generates light emission amount information from the captured image after the noise reduction processing. FIG. 10 shows the configuration of the dimmer 904. The light control unit 904 includes a luminance level calculation unit 1000 and a light emission amount calculation unit 1001.

  The luminance level calculation unit 1000 calculates the luminance level of the input image, that is, the captured image. The light emission amount calculation unit 1001 compares the luminance level with a predetermined target level, calculates a light emission amount to be emitted based on the comparison result, and outputs light emission amount information indicating the light emission amount. At this time, the light emission amount is controlled so as to obtain an appropriate light emission amount. That is, the light emission amount is decreased when the luminance level of the image is high, and the light emission amount is increased when the luminance level is low.

  The dimming state determination unit 701 in the system state detection unit 202 is examining the endoscopic system in the body cavity depending on whether or not the light emission amount information output from the dimming unit 904 is out of the control range. It is determined whether or not. When the endoscope scope 100 captures a subject in or near the body, the light emission amount is within the control range, but the illumination light does not reach the imaging target when the imaging target is far away such as outside the body. The light emission amount is out of the control range and becomes the maximum illumination amount. Therefore, when the light emission amount indicated by the light emission amount information is within a predetermined range corresponding to the light emission amount in the body cavity, the light adjustment state determination unit 701 sets the light adjustment state determination signal to “inside the body cavity” and emits light. When the light emission amount indicated by the amount information is outside the predetermined range, the dimming state determination signal is set to “outside the body cavity”.

  The body cavity color determination unit 702 in the system state detection unit 202 extracts each color component as a feature amount of the captured image, and determines whether or not the endoscope system is under examination in the body cavity based on each color component. Then, a body cavity color determination signal (first body cavity detection signal) indicating the determination result is output. As is generally known, the image in the body cavity is dominated by the red lineage. Therefore, the body cavity color determination unit 702 sets the body cavity color determination signal to “inside the body cavity” when the red component is greater than or equal to a predetermined value, and sets the body cavity color determination signal as “body cavity” when the red component is less than the predetermined value. "Outside".

  The focus determination unit 703 in the system state detection unit 202 extracts the spatial frequency component in the image as the feature amount of the captured image, and the endoscope system is in the inspection in the body cavity based on the spatial frequency component. And a body cavity color determination signal (first body cavity detection signal) indicating the determination result is output. When the subject is far away, the low frequency component is dominant because the subject is not in focus. For this reason, the focus determination unit 703 compares the detection result with a predetermined threshold, and when the detection result is equal to or greater than the threshold, the focus determination unit 703 determines that the focus state is in the body cavity, and the focus determination signal is “inside the body cavity”. If the detection result is less than the threshold value, it is determined that the subject is out of focus, that is, outside the body cavity, and the focus determination signal is “outside body cavity”.

  In addition, it is desirable to provide a timer or a counter in each determination unit, and to further increase the accuracy of the determination depending on whether a predetermined state has continued for a predetermined time or a predetermined number of times.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the failure detection unit 201 outputs a failure detection signal indicating whether or not the image processing unit 200 has failed and a failure level signal indicating the degree of the failure. In addition, the system state detection unit 202 detects a state in which the operator of the endoscope system is inspecting in the body cavity or a state similar thereto, and outputs a system state signal. The failure processing unit 203 detects a failure state and an endoscope system state based on the failure detection signal, the failure level signal, and the system state signal. When the endoscope system is under examination and the failure level is low, the failure processing unit 203 continues the operation without initializing the image processing unit 200 to ensure image output. Further, when a failure has occurred and the failure level is high, that is, when a failure has occurred at a level where an image cannot be visually recognized even during the inspection or when the inspection is not in progress, the failure processing unit 203 performs image processing. The unit 200 can be initialized and quickly returned to a normal state. Thus, the initialization operation or the continuous operation can be selected according to the state of the endoscope system.

  The reference image generation unit 400 performs a process equivalent to the image processing unit 200 on the captured image, and generates a reference image. The delayed output image comparison unit 403 and the delayed output image correlation value calculation unit 404 compare the reference image with the processing result image processed by the image processing unit 200, and determine whether the image processing unit 200 has a failure and the level of the failure. To detect. At this time, since the accuracy of detection in the spatial direction of the image is improved by comparing the entire image rather than comparing a part of the image (such as a non-displayed portion), the presence / absence and level of the failure can be accurately detected. can do.

  In addition, since the CPU 501 in the reference image generation unit 400 performs image processing for generating a reference image by software, desired image processing can be realized without providing a dedicated circuit. In addition, the processing result image processed by the image processing unit 200 is temporarily stored in the delay output image frame memory 401 and compared with the reference image, so that the delay caused by the processing of the CPU 501 can be dealt with.

  Further, the system state detection unit 202 improves the accuracy of the system state determination by determining the system state by combining a plurality of pieces of information related to whether or not the endoscope system is under examination in the body cavity. be able to.

(Second Embodiment)
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. The basic configuration of the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment. In the second embodiment, the configuration of the failure detection unit 201 in the image processing processor device 102 is different. FIG. 11 shows the configuration of the failure detection unit 201 of the present embodiment.

  The failure detection unit 201 includes an input image feature amount detection unit 1100, an output image feature amount detection unit 1101, and a feature amount comparison unit 1102. The input image feature amount detection unit 1100 and the output image feature amount detection unit 1101 detect a predetermined feature amount from the input image, that is, the captured image, and the output image, that is, the processing result image of the image processing unit 200. The feature amount comparison unit 1102 generates a failure detection signal and a failure level signal by comparing the difference between the feature amounts detected by the feature amount detection units.

  In the present embodiment, a spatial frequency component is extracted as a feature amount, and the determination is performed. FIG. 12 shows the configuration of the input image feature quantity detection unit 1100. The input image feature amount detection unit 1100 includes a high-pass filter 1200, a low-pass filter 1201, a high-frequency component extraction unit 1202, and a low-frequency component extraction unit 1203. The input image is input to each of a high-pass filter 1200 that passes a spatial frequency component higher than a predetermined frequency and a low-pass filter 1201 that passes a spatial frequency component lower than a predetermined frequency. Further, these outputs are input to a high frequency component extraction unit 1202 and a low frequency component extraction unit 1203, and each component (amplitude, etc.) is extracted as a high frequency component and a low frequency component. The configuration of the output image feature amount detection unit 1101 is the same as described above.

  FIG. 13 shows an example of an image that has passed through a low-pass filter and an image that has passed through a high-pass filter. 13A is an image before being input to each filter, FIG. 13B is an image that has passed through a low-pass filter, and FIG. 13C is an image that has been passed through a high-pass filter. is there. As described above, for example, when a failure occurs in the image processing unit 200 and low-frequency information or high-frequency information is lost, the low-frequency image can be visually recognized as long as the low-frequency image information is reproduced. If these components are not reproduced (only high-frequency components), it becomes difficult to visually recognize them.

  FIG. 14 shows the configuration of the feature amount comparison unit 1102. The feature amount comparison unit 1102 includes a high frequency difference comparison unit 1400, a low frequency difference comparison unit 1401, a failure determination unit 1402, and a failure level determination unit 1403. The high frequency difference comparison unit 1400 receives the high frequency component of the input image extracted by the input image feature value detection unit 1100 and the high frequency component of the output image extracted by the output image feature value detection unit 1101. . The high frequency difference comparison unit 1400 compares both and calculates the difference between the two. The low frequency difference comparison unit 1401 receives the low frequency component of the input image extracted by the input image feature value detection unit 1100 and the low frequency component of the output image extracted by the output image feature value detection unit 1101. . The low-frequency difference comparison unit 1401 compares the two and calculates the difference between the two.

  The failure determination unit 1402 compares the difference between the high frequency component and the difference between the low frequency components for each of the input image and the output image with a predetermined threshold value, and determines whether there is a failure. That is, if any difference between the high-frequency component and the low-frequency component is less than the threshold value, the input image and the output image are considered to be substantially the same, so the failure determination unit 1402 sets the failure detection signal to “invalid”. If one or both of the differences are equal to or greater than the threshold, the failure determination unit 1402 sets the failure detection signal to “valid”.

  The failure level determination unit 1403 determines the failure level based on the difference between the low frequency components calculated by the low frequency difference comparison unit 1401. As described above, if the low-frequency component is reproduced, it can be visually recognized as an image. Therefore, if the difference between the low-frequency values is less than the threshold value, the failure is at a level where the image can be visually recognized. That is, the failure level determination unit 1403 sets the failure level signal to “low”. On the other hand, if the difference between the low frequency values is equal to or greater than the threshold, the failure level determination unit 1403 sets the failure level signal to “high”.

  In addition, since the frequency component is changed by performing edge enhancement processing or the like in the image processing unit 200, for example, only the components in a predetermined band (frequency range) are used as the above-described high-pass filter 1200 and low-pass filter 1201. It is also possible to use a band-pass filter that allows passage and to perform a more accurate determination using frequency components that are less affected by edge enhancement processing or the like. In this case, it is desirable to adaptively change the spatial frequency band and the threshold used by the high-frequency difference comparison unit 1400 and the low-frequency difference comparison unit 1401 according to the processing parameters of the image processing unit 200.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, when a failure occurs in the body cavity, the image output is secured as much as possible so that the operation can be continued. Initialization can be performed to quickly recover to a normal state. Also, the input image feature quantity detection unit 1100 and the output image feature quantity detection unit 1101 detect a predetermined feature quantity from the input image and the output image, and the feature quantity comparison unit 1102 compares the feature quantity, and based on the difference. By detecting the presence / absence and level of a failure, the detection can be easily performed.

  As described above, the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the specific configuration is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and includes design changes and the like without departing from the gist of the present invention. .

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Endoscope scope, 101 ... Light source device, 102 ... Image processor apparatus, 103 ... Display apparatus, 104 ... Recording apparatus, 105 ... Operation part, 106 ... System controller (setting unit), 107 ... imaging unit, 200 ... image processing unit, 201 ... failure detection unit, 202 ... system state detection unit, 203 ... failure processing unit, 204 ... Circuit information ROM, 400... Reference image generation unit (captured image conversion unit) 401... Delayed output image frame memory (storage unit) 402... Delayed output image memory controller, 403. Image comparison unit (image comparison unit) 404... Delayed output image correlation value calculation unit (image comparison unit) 500... Input image frame memory 501. Image frame memory, 503... Reference image memory controller, 700... Diagnostic function setting determination unit (third body cavity detection unit), 701... Dimming state determination unit (second body cavity detection unit) 702 ... Body cavity color determination unit (first body cavity detection unit), 703 ... Focus determination unit, 704 ... System state determination unit, 900 ... Noise reduction processing unit, 901 ... Color correction unit, 902 ... color enhancement unit, 903 ... outline enhancement unit, 904 ... light control unit, 1000 ... luminance level calculation unit, 1001 ... emission amount calculation unit, 1100 ... Input image feature quantity detection unit (first feature quantity detection unit), 1101... Output image feature quantity detection unit (second feature quantity detection unit), 1102... Feature quantity comparison unit, 1100. Image feature amount detection unit, 1200... High-pass filter 1201 ... Low-pass filter, 1202 ... High-frequency component extraction unit, 1203 ... Low-frequency component extraction unit, 1400 ... High-frequency difference comparison unit, 1401 ... Low-frequency difference comparison unit, 1402 ... Fault determination unit, 1403 ... Fault level determination unit, 1500 ... Detection data addition circuit, 1501 ... Image processing circuit, 1502 ... Determination circuit, 1503 ... Initialization circuit, 1504 ..Circuit information ROM

Claims (10)

A light source unit that generates illumination light for illuminating a site in the body cavity, an imaging unit that captures an image of a site in the body cavity illuminated by the illumination light with an imaging device, and a predetermined process for the captured image An endoscopic system having an image processing unit configured by a programmable integrated circuit that outputs a processed image to a display unit,
A failure of the image processing unit is detected based on a comparison result between the captured image from the imaging unit and an image of a processing result processed by the image processing unit, and a failure state signal indicating a failure state is output. A fault detection unit to
Based on system information indicating the state of the endoscope system, it is determined whether or not the endoscope system is being examined in a body cavity, and a system state detection unit that outputs a system state signal indicating the determination result;
A failure processing unit that determines whether to initialize the programmable integrated circuit in the image processing unit based on the failure state signal and the system state signal, and outputs a control signal indicating a determination result;
The image processing unit performs an initialization operation for initializing the programmable integrated circuit based on the control signal, or a continuous operation for continuing the operation without initializing the programmable integrated circuit. Endoscopy system. The failure detection unit
A captured image conversion unit that performs processing equivalent to the predetermined processing performed by the image processing unit on the captured image and outputs the captured image as a converted image;
An image comparison unit that compares the converted image with the processing result image and outputs a comparison result as the failure state signal;
The endoscope system according to claim 1, further comprising: The captured image conversion unit is configured by a CPU, and the CPU performs a process equivalent to the predetermined process by a process based on software,
The image comparison unit further includes a storage unit that stores the processing result image corresponding to the converted image processed by the captured image conversion unit, and after the processing by the captured image conversion unit is completed, The endoscope system according to claim 2, wherein the processing result image stored in the storage unit is compared. The failure detection unit
A first feature amount detection unit that calculates a feature amount of the captured image and outputs the calculated feature amount as a first feature amount;
A second feature amount detection unit that calculates a feature amount of the image of the processing result and outputs it as a second feature amount;
The endoscope system according to claim 1, further comprising: a feature amount comparison unit that compares the first feature amount with the second feature amount and outputs a comparison result as the failure state signal. .   The system state detection unit calculates a feature amount of the captured image, determines whether the endoscope system is under examination in a body cavity based on the calculated feature amount, and indicates a determination result. The endoscope system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising: a first body cavity detection unit that outputs a body cavity detection signal. The image processing unit
A luminance level calculation unit for calculating a luminance level from the captured image;
A light emission amount calculating unit that compares the luminance level with a predetermined target level, calculates a light emission amount based on the comparison result, and outputs light emission amount information indicating the light emission amount;
The light source unit controls the light emission amount based on the light emission amount information,
The system state detection unit determines whether or not the light emission amount indicated by the light emission amount information is within a predetermined range, and outputs a determination result as a second body cavity detection signal. The endoscope system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the endoscope system is provided. An operation unit that receives an operation performed by an operator for setting related to a diagnostic function, and outputs operation information indicating an operation result;
A setting unit configured to perform settings related to the diagnostic function based on the operation information;
The system state detection unit includes a third in-vivo detection unit that detects the presence / absence of setting of the diagnostic function based on the operation information and outputs the detection result as a third in-body detection signal. The endoscope system according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The system state detection unit
The feature amount of the captured image is calculated, and based on the calculated feature amount, it is determined whether or not the endoscope system is under examination in the body cavity, and a first body cavity detection signal indicating the determination result is output A first body cavity detection unit
A second intra-body-cavity detection unit that determines whether or not the luminescence amount indicated by the luminescence amount information is within a predetermined range, and outputs the determination result as a second intra-body-cavity detection signal;
A third in-vivo detection unit that detects the presence / absence of setting of the diagnosis function based on operation information indicating a result of an operation performed by the operator for setting related to the diagnosis function, and outputs the detection result as a third in-body detection signal At least two of the body cavity detection units,
When it is determined based on the first in-vivo detection signal that the examination in the body cavity is being performed, or on the basis of the second in-vivo detection signal, the light emission amount is determined to be within the predetermined range. Or when it is determined that the diagnostic function is set based on the third body cavity detection signal, the system state outputs the system state signal indicating that the examination in the body cavity is being performed. A determination unit,
When the system state detection unit includes the second body cavity detection unit, the image processing unit compares a luminance level with a predetermined target level with a luminance level calculation unit that calculates a luminance level from the captured image. A light emission amount calculation unit that calculates a light emission amount based on the comparison result and outputs the light emission amount information indicating the light emission amount, and the light source unit controls the light emission amount based on the light emission amount information. And
When the system state detection unit has the third in-vivo detection unit, an operation unit that receives an operation performed by an operator for setting related to a diagnostic function and outputs the operation information indicating an operation result; and the operation The endoscope system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a setting unit configured to perform settings related to the diagnosis function based on information. When it is determined based on the first in-vivo detection signal that the examination in the body cavity is being performed, or on the basis of the second in-vivo detection signal, the light emission amount is determined to be within the predetermined range. The system state indicating that the system state determination unit is in the inspection of the body cavity when the diagnosis function is determined based on the third body cavity detection signal. Output signal,
The failure processing unit does not initialize the programmable integrated circuit in the image processing unit when the failure status signal indicates the occurrence of a failure below a predetermined level and the system status signal indicates that a body cavity examination is being performed. The endoscope system according to claim 8, wherein the endoscope system is determined. When it is determined based on the first in-vivo detection signal that the examination in the body cavity is not in progress, and on the basis of the second in-vivo detection signal, the light emission amount is determined to be out of the predetermined range. And when it is determined that the diagnostic function is not set based on the third in-vivo detection signal, the system state determination unit outputs the system state signal indicating that the inspection in the body cavity is not in progress. Output,
The failure processing unit determines to initialize the programmable integrated circuit in the image processing unit when the failure status signal indicates the occurrence of a failure and the system status signal indicates that the examination in the body cavity is not in progress. The endoscope system according to claim 8.