JP2014188095A - Remote diagnosis system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make it possible to remotely diagnose an image of an affected part of a remote patient via a network by using a three-dimensional imaging apparatus capable of obtaining a plane image and three-dimensional space coordinates corresponding to pixels.SOLUTION: A remote diagnosis system comprises a patient-side system and a diagnostician-side system, and displays three-dimensional image data on a display unit of the diagnostician-side system. The patient-side system comprises: an imaging apparatus for obtaining plane image data acquired by imaging a patient's affected part, and dot pattern data in a specified scope of the plane image data; and a first processing unit for generating three-dimensional image data from the plane image data and the dot pattern data, and sending the three-dimensional image data to a specified processing unit via a network. The diagnostician-side system comprises: a second processing unit for receiving via the network the three-dimensional image data sent from the patient-side system, and projecting the three-dimensional image data as plane data; and a display unit for displaying the plane data as three-dimensional image data.

Description

  The present invention relates to a remote diagnosis system, and in particular, enables a diagnosis and care support to be performed by observing an image of an affected area of a patient on a diagnostician side by connecting a geographically distant patient side and a diagnostician side via a network. Related to the system.

  With the spread of networks such as the Internet, it is widely accepted to send and receive high-definition images through the network. Devices that can be easily connected to a network, such as personal computers, digital cameras, and mobile devices, are used in daily life.

  Applying these devices to medical diagnosis can save time for patients to go to the hospital, especially for patients who have difficulty moving. It is expected that it will be possible to expand the scope of activities of specialists with only a few.

  However, doctors and patients have been diagnosed face-to-face so far, and when making a diagnosis through a network, the same diagnosis as face-to-face is not always possible. One reason for this is that when a patient is diagnosed face-to-face, the doctor naturally views the patient (affected area) stereoscopically, but the image information sent and received via the network is basically a two-dimensional image, that is, a two-dimensional image. Yes, it is impossible to observe stereoscopically.

  As a technology that enables stereoscopic viewing of a planar image, a method of displaying two parallax planar images on the display and observing with naked eyes through a lenticular lens arranged in front of the display, a method of observing with liquid crystal shutter glasses, etc. There is.

  Although it is possible to transmit a parallax plane image to a remote place through a network, the diagnostician observing the affected part image by any of the above methods is the definition of the image, introduction of high-priced equipment, or transmission of data. It is difficult to put it into practical use from the viewpoint of speed and the like.

JP-A-9-187432 JP 2001-344349 A JP 2002-351988 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-10848

  On the other hand, in recent years, there is a device (for example, a computer peripheral device called Microsoft's KINECT [registered trademark]) that captures a planar image and simultaneously acquires depth information for each pixel of the planar image. It is used as input means for the device.

  The inventor of the present invention is inexpensive for a stereoscopic imaging apparatus that can obtain such a virtual image and a virtual three-dimensional spatial coordinate corresponding to a pixel, and cannot generate a complete stereoscopic structure in all directions. It is possible to display three-dimensionally in the depth direction, and has come to be recognized as an effective means for specific telemedicine diagnosis that observes and diagnoses the state of the affected area of patients such as stoma patients and pressure ulcers.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a remote diagnosis system that can diagnose a diseased part image of a patient at a remote place through a network using a stereoscopic imaging device that can obtain a planar image and a virtual three-dimensional spatial coordinate corresponding to a pixel. It is to provide.

  A first aspect of a remote diagnosis system according to the present invention that achieves the above-described object is a planar image data obtained by imaging a diseased part of a patient, and an imaging device that acquires dot pattern data in a predetermined range of the planar image data; , A patient-side system having control means for generating stereoscopic image data in a three-dimensional coordinate space from the planar image data and the dot pattern data, and a diagnosis for receiving stereoscopic image data transmitted from the patient-side system through a network A medical system is included, and the stereoscopic image data is displayed on a display by the diagnostic medical system.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, in telemedicine diagnosis via a network, observation by a doctor close to a face-to-face medical diagnosis is possible, and further, the diagnostician side system 2 can detect the condition of a patient in real time at a remote place. Can be examined.

1 is a conceptual diagram of an embodiment of a remote diagnosis system according to the present invention. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of an apparatus structure similar to KINECT (trademark). It is a block diagram of a configuration example of a processing apparatus. It is a block diagram of a configuration example of a diagnostician side system. It is an example of a display of the virtual three-dimensional stereoscopic image displayed on a display. It is a figure which shows the state inserted in the pocket of the wound part (part enclosed with the black circle on the screen) which the tool stick | rod formed in the abdominal part. FIG. 7 is a display displayed in real time corresponding to an operation on the patient side system shown in FIG. 6. FIG.

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

  FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of an embodiment of a remote diagnosis system according to the present invention.

  A patient-side system 1 placed on the patient 1A side is connected to a diagnostic physician-side system 2 placed on the diagnostic physician 2A side through a network 3 such as the Internet.

  The patient side system 1 includes a stereoscopic imaging device 10 and a processing device 11. On the other hand, the diagnostician-side system 2 includes a processing device 20, and the processing device 20 includes a display 21 that displays a processing result of the processing device 20 and an input device 22 that gives a command to the processing device 20.

  The stereoscopic imaging device 10 of the patient-side system 1 is a device that can generate stereoscopic image data. As an example, KINECT (registered trademark) which is an input device of Microsoft Corporation can be cited. A schematic configuration of the stereoscopic imaging apparatus 10 is shown in FIG.

  The stereoscopic imaging device 10 images a predetermined range including the affected area of the patient 1A, and the digital camera 100 that generates planar image data of the affected area and the infrared dot radiation source are arranged in a predetermined pattern, and the range is narrower than the predetermined range. An infrared radiation unit 101 for projecting infrared rays of a dot matrix with infrared dots, an infrared imaging unit 102 for capturing an infrared dot matrix image projected onto the affected area by the infrared radiation unit 101, the digital camera 100, and the infrared radiation unit 101, connected to the infrared imaging unit 102, a control unit 105 that controls the digital camera 100, the infrared radiation unit 101, and the infrared imaging unit 102, and connected to the control unit 105, by the digital camera 100 The captured plane image data and the infrared imaging unit 102 capture the image. And a buffer memory 104 for storing the infrared dot matrix data. Conversion of the planar image data and the infrared dot matrix data into a stereoscopic image by the control unit 105 is executed by the following process.

  The conversion to the stereoscopic image by the control unit 105 causes distortion in the projected infrared dot matrix image, for example, corresponding to the unevenness of the subject, that is, the affected part of the imaging target. From this distortion, the depth direction size of each infrared dot constituting the infrared dot matrix in the three-dimensional space is determined. That is, the shape of the triangle formed by the infrared dot radiation source, the infrared imaging unit 102 and the infrared dot projected onto the subject is deformed from the reference plane in accordance with the unevenness of the subject. Thereby, the coordinate position of the infrared dot in the three-dimensional coordinates virtually set in the space is determined. Accordingly, the three-dimensional image data of the affected part in the three-dimensional space is obtained by transforming the plane image data captured by the digital camera 100 by a general CG (computer graphic) technique corresponding to the coordinate position of each infrared dot. A three-dimensional image is displayed by projecting this onto the display plane.

  Such conversion processing into a stereoscopic image can be executed by the control unit 105 of the stereoscopic imaging device 10 or by the processing device 11 or 20.

  Note that by moving the position of the stereoscopic imaging apparatus 10, that is, the viewpoint position in the three-dimensional space, it is possible to change the orientation of the generated stereoscopic image by moving the viewpoint position in the space to be imaged.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of the processing device 11. The configuration of the processing devices 11 and 20 is the same as that of a general personal computer, and has a CPU 110 as a main processing unit. The CPU 110 executes an application program (also stored in the storage device 111) related to the present invention based on an OS (operation system) stored in the storage device 111 such as an HDD.

  The processing device 11 inputs stereoscopic image data from the control unit 105 of the stereoscopic imaging device 10 through the interface 116. Under the control of the CPU 110, the stereoscopic image data for each frame is stored in the buffer memory 112, simultaneously drawn in the video RAM 113, and displayed on the display 114.

  Further, the stereoscopic image data is sent to the diagnostician system 2 in real time through the network 3 by the communication processing unit 117.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a configuration example of the diagnostician side system 2. The processing device 20 has substantially the same configuration as the processing device 11 of the patient side system 1.

  The CPU 200 is used as a main control unit, and overall control is performed based on an OS (operation system) stored in the storage device 111. The communication processing unit 203 receives the image data of the affected part transmitted from the patient side system 1 through the network 3 in real time.

  The received image data is stored in the buffer memory 202, drawn on the video memory 204 by the CPU 200, and displayed on the display 21.

  The processing device 20 can also receive a command from the input device 22 connected to the processing device 20, transmit the command to the processing device 11 through the network 3, and move the position of the stereoscopic imaging device 10, that is, the viewpoint position in the three-dimensional space. it can.

  The input device 22 may be a keyboard, and can specify the direction of movement for each predetermined key. As another example, the input device 22 may be a mouse, and by clicking an arrow displayed on the display 21, the moving direction can be designated.

  As another example, the input device 22 may be a microphone, and the direction and distance of movement can be specified according to a specific sound pattern. Examples of the input device 22 may be used individually or in combination, but are not limited to these examples.

  FIG. 5 is a display example of a virtual three-dimensional stereoscopic image displayed on the display 21. The image content is an image of a wound part (a part surrounded by a black circle on the screen) formed on the abdomen of a piglet as a material, assuming a pseudo-decubitus. The dark part of the side part of the display image of the display 21 is an area outside the irradiation range of the infrared dot matrix and is a part where nothing is displayed because there is no data in the depth direction.

  FIG. 6 is a real image of a piglet as a document, in which a tool bar with an LED light source attached to the tip is inserted into a pocket of a wound portion (a portion surrounded by a black circle on the screen) formed in the abdomen.

  FIG. 6 shows how the tool bar inserted into the pocket is operated in order to observe the depth of the pocket and the state of the periphery of the pocket in a wider range.

  FIG. 7 is a display displayed in real time corresponding to the operation in the patient side system 1 shown in FIG. 6, and an image of the affected part is displayed on the display 21 of the diagnostician side system 2. In FIG. 7, it can be understood that the state of the pocket is stereoscopically viewed.

  Furthermore, when a doctor related to the diagnostician-side system 2 looks at the display 21 and wants to observe from the angle at which the affected area is shifted, the doctor operates the touch sensor formed on the display 21 to view the three-dimensional coordinate viewpoint. Is input through the interface 211 or input means 22 such as a keyboard.

  This instruction is sent to the patient side system 1 through the communication processing unit 203. As described above, in the patient side system 1, the camera position (viewpoint coordinates) in the virtual three-dimensional space is moved in accordance with the instruction from the diagnostician side system 2, and the changed stereoscopic image data is transferred to the patient side system 1. , It is retransmitted to the diagnostic physician side system 2. As a result, the diagnostician-side system 2 can display a stereoscopic image whose angle has been changed in real time.

  As described above, in the present invention, a stereoscopic image can be created from the depth information based on the two-dimensional planar image data and infrared dot matrix data, so that the state of the affected area can be pseudostereoscopically viewed.

  In addition, since the depth information data by the infrared dot matrix is generated in the imaging range of the imaging camera 100 and in a range narrower than that range, the necessary stereoscopic image data corresponding to the affected area is not enlarged.

  Thereby, since the image data sent from the patient side system 1 to the diagnostician side system 2 is not enlarged, the transmission time is not increased. Therefore, the diagnostician side system 2 can examine the patient's condition in real time at a remote place.

  That is, since the stereoscopic observation of the affected part can be performed in the remote medical diagnosis via the network, the observation by the doctor close to the face-to-face medical diagnosis becomes possible. This can be expected to contribute to the spread of telemedicine diagnosis.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Patient side system 10 Stereoscopic imaging device 11 Processing apparatus 2 Diagnostic physician side system 20 Processing apparatus 21 Display 22 Input device 3 Network

Claims (3)

Planar image data obtained by imaging a diseased part of a patient, an imaging device that acquires dot pattern data in a predetermined range of the planar image data, and first image data generated from the planar image data and dot pattern data. A patient-side system having a processing device that transmits the stereoscopic image data to a specific processing device through a network;
A second processing device that receives stereoscopic image data transmitted from the patient-side system through a network, projects the stereoscopic image data onto plane data, and generates projection data; and a display that displays the projection data as an image A remote diagnosis system, comprising: In claim 1,
The dot pattern is a pattern of a plurality of infrared dots emitted from an infrared dot radiation source arranged in a predetermined pattern, and the imaging device is emitted from an infrared dot radiation source arranged in the predetermined pattern An infrared radiation portion that radiates the pattern of the plurality of infrared dots to the affected area; and an infrared imaging portion that images the pattern of the infrared dots,
A remote diagnosis system characterized by that. In claim 1,
The diagnostic physician-side system further includes an input device for issuing an instruction to change the viewpoint position of the stereoscopic image data that is the basis of the projection data displayed on the display,
The second processing device of the diagnostician-side system transmits an instruction to change the viewpoint position in response to an instruction from the input device to the patient-side system, and the patient-side system determines the viewpoint position. In response to the instruction to change, the stereoscopic image data is changed and sent to the diagnostician system.
A remote diagnosis system characterized by that.