JP2013248096A - Digital microscope - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a digital microscope capable of moving a display means in a range where an observer can maintain a sense of direction.SOLUTION: A digital microscope 10 is a binocular digital microscope 10 and includes: a microscope body 11 having a pair of magnifying optical systems and a pair of photographing means for turning images of a body to be observed passing through the magnifying optical systems into electronic images respectively; and a pair of display means 30L and 30R for displaying the two images electronized by the photographing means respectively. Eyepiece barrels 31L and 31R including the display means 30L and 30R are connected movably to the microscope body 11 within a plane parallel to one plane including both eye positions of an observer performing observation, and the direction of the images displayed at the display means 30L and 30R always matches the direction of the body to be observed viewed with naked eyes from the position of the observer.

Description

  The present invention relates to a digital microscope that enables movement of a display unit within a range in which an observer can maintain a sense of direction with respect to an observation object.

  Surgery and dentistry may be performed while observing the enlarged surgical site with a microscope. In such a procedure, a stereomicroscope has been used in the past, but in that case, the position of the objective lens and the position of the eyepiece are fixed, so depending on the positional relationship between the subject and the microscope, There were times when it was necessary to perform treatment while looking into the eyepiece with a painful posture.

  In recent years, however, a digital microscope has been developed in which a display means (monitor) is mounted on an eyepiece tube, and an image of a surgical part taken by a camera is displayed on the monitor and a procedure can be performed while viewing the image. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1). In such a digital microscope, the camera and the monitor need only be electrically connected, so that the eyepiece tube with the monitor can be freely moved in the three-dimensional direction while the objective side is fixed. Can be. That is, unlike the stereoscopic optical microscope, the eyepiece tube can be moved, so that the practitioner can perform the treatment in an easy posture. In addition, since the image captured by the camera is digital data, it can be transmitted to the monitor wirelessly, so the eyepiece tube is head mounted so that the practitioner can move more freely. (See Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2).

  When performing a procedure while viewing an image of a surgical site displayed on a display unit such as a monitor, it is important that the distance or direction sense of the surgeon with respect to the surgical site does not occur. Therefore, in Patent Document 2, when the posture is changed, the projection lens can be adjusted in the front-rear direction so that the distance from the eyepiece position to the surgical site and the distance from the eyepiece position to the monitor image can be felt equally. It is disclosed. As a result, the practitioner can perform treatment without losing the sense of distance.

  However, when the practitioner wraps around the subject and performs the procedure, the display means moves together with the practitioner, and at this time, the orientation of the surgical part image displayed on the display means is fixed and always the same. In contrast, the relative positional relationship between the practitioner and the surgical site changes. Then, for example, what is located on the right side in the surgical part image may actually be located on the upper side or the lower side when viewed from the position of the practitioner. Note that the state where the image and the actual orientation do not match in this way is defined as a state in which the sense of direction of the practitioner (observer) is shifted.

  Furthermore, how to move the display means that causes a shift in the sense of direction of the practitioner will be described with reference to the drawings. 5A and 5B are plan views of the digital microscope in which the eyepiece tube is rotated around the Y axis, where FIG. 5A is a state before rotation, FIG. 5B is a state rotated clockwise, and FIG. 5C is a counterclockwise state. The state rotated around is shown. Here, the X axis is the left-right direction of the practitioner before movement, the Y axis is the vertical direction, and the Z axis is the perspective direction of the practitioner before movement. Further, since the display means 30L, 30R are provided in the back of the eyepiece tubes 31L, 31R, moving the eyepiece tubes 31L, 31R naturally moves the display means 30L, 30R.

  Since the eyeballs 40L and 40R of the practitioner are always looking through the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R, as shown in FIGS. 5B and 5C, the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R are moved around the Y axis. When rotated, the eyeballs 40L and 40R (operator) also rotate around the Y axis in accordance with the movement. At this time, since the positional relationship between the display means 30L, 30R and the eyeballs 40L, 40R does not change before and after the rotation, the images seen by the practitioner do not change and are the same images. However, the relative orientation of the microscope main body 11 and the actual surgical part as viewed from the position of the practitioner changes. Therefore, when the eyepiece tubes 30L and 30R are rotated from the state shown in FIG. 5A to the states shown in FIGS. 5B and 5C, the operator feels a difference in direction.

  6A and 6B are front views of the digital microscope in which the eyepiece tube is rotated around the Z axis, where FIG. 6A is a state before rotation, FIG. 6B is a state rotated 45 ° clockwise, and FIG. The state rotated 90 degrees clockwise is shown. The directions of the XYZ axes are the same as those in FIG.

  When the eyepiece tubes 30L and 30R are rotated as shown in FIGS. 6B and 6C, the practitioner tilts his neck and looks into the eyepiece tubes 30L and 30R. At this time, the display means 31L and 31R rotate around the Z axis and change their orientation, and the orientation of the surgical part viewed with the naked eye from the position of the practitioner does not change. Occurs.

JP-A-3-39711 Japanese Patent No. 3429529

  As described above, when the display means (the eyepiece tube) can be freely moved three-dimensionally, the direction of the surgical part image displayed on the display part and the actual direction of the surgical part viewed with the naked eye from the position of the practitioner May cause a difference in the sense of direction of the practitioner and make the treatment difficult.

  In view of such circumstances, the present invention provides a digital microscope that allows the display means to move within a range in which an observer can maintain a sense of direction.

  In order to achieve the above object, the digital microscope of the present invention is a binocular digital microscope, which converts a pair of magnification observation optical systems and an image of an object to be observed that passes through the magnification observation optical systems, respectively, into electronic images. A pair of imaging means, and a pair of display means for displaying each of the two images digitized by the imaging means, the display means for both of the observers being observed. It is movably connected to the microscope main body in a plane parallel to one plane including the eye position, and the object viewed with the naked eye from the orientation of the image displayed on the display means and the position of the observer This is characterized in that the direction of the observation body always matches.

  At this time, the display means may be connected to the microscope main body so as to be movable in the normal direction of one plane including the observer's binocular position, and the observer main body may be connected to the microscope main body. A structure may be adopted in which a central axis parallel to a line connecting both eyes is provided and the display means is rotatably attached around the central axis.

  According to the digital microscope of the present invention, by restricting the movement of the display means within a certain plane or rotation direction, the orientation of the image displayed on the display means and the observation object viewed with the naked eye from the position of the observer Since the direction always matches, there is an effect that the observer can maintain the sense of direction even if the display means is moved.

It is the figure which represented the structure of the digital microscope simply. It is the figure which the practitioner observes the operation part using a digital microscope. It is a front view of the digital microscope of the present invention, and the positions of the eyepiece tube are respectively (a) the center, (b) the left, (c) the right, (d) the top, (e) the bottom, f) is the case of the lower left. It is a side view of the digital microscope of this invention, (a) shows a mode that an ocular tube is moved to a Z-axis direction, (b) shows a mode that an ocular tube is rotated around an X-axis. It is a top view of the digital microscope which rotated the eyepiece tube around the Y axis, (a) is the state before rotation, (b) is the state rotated clockwise, (c) is rotated counterclockwise. Indicates the state. It is a front view of the digital microscope which rotated the eyepiece tube around the Z-axis, (a) is the state before rotation, (b) is the state rotated 45 ° clockwise, (c) is 90 clockwise. Indicates the rotated state.

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

  FIG. 1 is a diagram simply showing the configuration of a digital microscope. The digital microscope 10 of the present invention is a binocular microscope used in surgery, dental treatment, and the like. Therefore, the practitioner 41 corresponds to the observer, and the surgical part 50 corresponds to the observed body. An image of the surgical part 50 obtained by the pair of magnification observation optical systems 20L and 20R is converted into an electronic image by the imaging means 24L and 24R, and the image is displayed by the display means 30L and 30R. The display means 30L , 30R are movably attached to the microscope main body 11 under certain restrictions.

  The inside of the objective-side mirror 21 close to the surgical unit 50 is a pair of magnification observation optical systems 20L and 20R, and includes an objective lens 22, a pair of imaging lenses 23L and 23R, and a pair of cameras 24L as imaging means. 24R is provided in order from the operation part 50 side. That is, the image of the surgical part 50 passes through the imaging lenses 23L and 23R from the objective lens 22 and is converted into an electronic image by the cameras 24L and 24R. The portion up to here is referred to as a microscope main body 11.

  The cameras 24L and 24R and the monitors 30L and 30R as display means are electrically connected, and the two digitized images are displayed on the pair of display means 30L and 30R, respectively. The display means 30L and 30R are mounted inside the pair of eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R, and the left and right eyeballs 40L and 40R respectively observe the display means 30L and 30R by looking into the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R. In addition, the image of the operation part 50 can be stereoscopically viewed.

  Next, FIG. 2 is a diagram in which the practitioner observes the surgical site using a digital microscope. The digital microscope 10 is installed so that the objective-side mirror body 21 is directly above the surgical part 50. Since monitors 30L and 30R are mounted in the back of the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R, the monitors 30L and 30R can be seen when the practitioner 41 looks into the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R. Since the lengths of the two eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R are the same, if the practitioner 41 looks into the eyeballs 41L and 41R close to the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R, the digital microscope 10 is naturally positioned in front of the practitioner 41. It will be. At that time, the surgical part 50 is also positioned in front of the practitioner 41. Then, the images displayed on the monitors 30L and 30R stand at the position of the practitioner 41, and are images obtained by enlarging the operation part 50 viewed from directly above. That is, in this case, the orientation of the image of the surgical unit 50 displayed on the monitors 30L and 30R as display means matches the direction of the surgical unit 50 viewed with the naked eye from the position of the practitioner 41. Will not occur.

  Since the cameras 24L and 24R need only be electrically connected to the monitors 30L and 30R as display means, the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R including the monitors 30L and 30R can be moved with respect to the microscope body 11. Connection structure that can be. That is, by making the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R movable, the practitioner 41 can perform the procedure while viewing the image of the surgical unit 50 in an easy posture. However, even if the posture is easy, since the treatment becomes difficult if the sense of direction of the practitioner 41 is misaligned, the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R can be moved within a range in which the sense of direction can be maintained. There is a need.

  Here, description will be made assuming that the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R are moved with respect to the microscope body 11 without changing the position of the mirror body 21. Since the display means 30L and 30R are mounted inside the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R, moving the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R has the same meaning as moving the display means 30L and 30R. is there. The interval between the two eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R can be adjusted in accordance with the practitioner 41. However, since the two eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R are connected, the two eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R can be connected simultaneously. It will move in the same direction.

  In the present invention, the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R are movably attached within the plane PP ′ parallel to one plane PP including both the eyeballs 40L and 40R of the practitioner 41. Can maintain. The plane PP will be described below as a vertical plane, but is not particularly limited to the vertical plane, and may be a plane including both eyes. Hereinafter, the movable range of the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R will be described in more detail.

  FIG. 3 is a front view of the digital microscope of the present invention, in which the position of the eyepiece tube is respectively (a) the center, (b) the left, (c) the right, (d) the top, (e) Is the lower case, and (f) is the lower left case. In FIG. 3, the X, Y, and Z directions are the left and right directions of the operator 41, the Y axis is the vertical direction, and the Z axis is the perspective direction of the operator 41, as described above. In other words, the horizontal direction in the vertical plane including the positions of both eyes of the practitioner 41 is the X axis, the vertical direction is the Y axis, and the normal direction of the vertical plane is the Z axis.

  FIG. 3A shows the case where the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R are located in the center of the digital microscope 10, but depending on the size of the subject (the surgical unit 50) and the method of installing the digital microscope 10 on the subject. In the position, the posture of the practitioner 41 may be difficult.

  Therefore, by moving the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R in the X-axis direction as shown in FIGS. 3B and 3C and the Y-axis direction as shown in FIGS. You can make it easier. And if it is only such a movement, it can be said that the direction of the operation part 50 seen with the naked eye from the position of the practitioner 41 hardly changes before and after the movement. Further, even when these movements are combined and moved to the lower left position as shown in FIG. 3F, for example, there is almost no change in the direction of the surgical section 50 viewed from the position of the practitioner 41 with the naked eye. That is, moving the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R in the XY plane moves the monitors 30L and 30R provided in the interior of the XY plane. At that time, the operator 41 shifts in the sense of direction. Will not occur.

  4A and 4B are side views of the surgical digital microscope according to the present invention, in which FIG. 4A shows a state in which the eyepiece tube is moved in the Z-axis direction, and FIG. 4B shows a state in which the eyepiece tube is rotated around the X-axis. The directions of the X axis, Y axis, and Z axis are the same as those in FIG.

  The eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R are moved in the direction of the dotted arrows as shown in FIG. 4A, that is, in the Z-axis direction that is the normal direction of the plane PP, or parallel to the X-axis as shown in FIG. Even if the direction of rotation is the rotation axis 32 and the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R and the microscope body 11 are connected and rotated, there is no deviation in the sense of direction of the practitioner 41. This is because the direction of the image of the surgical unit 50 and the direction of the surgical unit 50 viewed with the naked eye from the position of the practitioner 41 will not be different even if they are moved as described above. The direction of the X axis coincides with the direction of the line connecting both eyes of the practitioner 41 under observation.

  On the other hand, when the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R (display means 30L and 30R) are rotated with the Y-axis direction or the Z-axis direction as the rotation axis, the direction sense of the practitioner 41 is displaced as described above. is there. In other words, in order to maintain the sense of direction, the display means 30L and 30R may be configured to be unable to rotate with respect to the microscope body 11 with the Y-axis direction or the Z-axis direction as the rotation axis. .

  In addition, when the practitioner 41 moves around the surgical unit 50 and performs a procedure, in order to avoid a deviation in the sense of direction, the display means 30L and 30R (the eyepiece tubes 31L and 31R) with respect to the microscope body 11. Instead of rotating, the digital microscope 10 as a whole can be rotated. This is because the orientation of the image displayed on the display means 30L and 30R matches the orientation of the surgical unit 50 viewed with the naked eye from the position of the practitioner 41 even if rotated.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Digital microscope 11 Microscope main body 20L, 20R Magnification observation optical system 21 Mirror body 22 Objective lens 23L, 23R Imaging lens 24L, 24R Camera (imaging means)
30L, 30R monitor (display means)
31L, 31R Eyepiece tube 40L, 40R Eyeball 41 Practitioner (observer)
50 Surgery (observed body)

Claims (3)

A binocular digital microscope,
A microscope main body comprising a pair of magnification observation optical systems and a pair of imaging means for electronically imaging each image of the object passing through the magnification observation optical system,
A pair of display means for displaying each of the two images digitized by the imaging means,
The display means is connected to the microscope main body so as to be movable in a plane parallel to one plane including the binocular positions of the observer under observation, and the orientation of the image displayed on the display means And a direction of the observed object viewed with the naked eye from the position of the observer always matches.   2. The digital microscope according to claim 1, wherein the display unit is connected to the microscope main body so as to be movable in a normal direction of one plane including the positions of both eyes of the observer.   The center of the microscope is provided with a central axis parallel to a line connecting the eyes of the observer, and the display means is attached to be rotatable around the central axis. Digital microscope.

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