JP2019050508A - Stereoscopic imaging apparatus and stereoscopic endoscope - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a stereoscopic imaging device with a diameter smaller than that of a conventional one.SOLUTION: A stereoscopic imaging apparatus 30 comprises: a first objective optical system 32 for obtaining a first image IM1 for plan view with a wide view angle and a second image IM2 for stereoscopy with a view angle β which is smaller than that of the first image IM1; a second objective optical system 33 for obtaining only a third image IM3 for stereoscopy which has a view angle γ that is equal to that of the second image IM2; and an imaging device 53 for detecting light condensed by the first objective optical system 32 and the second objective optical system 33. The second objective optical system 33 has a second outer diameter d2 which is smaller than a first outer diameter d1 of the first objective optical system 32.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a stereoscopic imaging apparatus and a stereoscopic endoscope.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an endoscope which can observe internal organs and the like in a body cavity or the inside of an engine by inserting an elongated insertion portion into a body cavity or an engine plant has been widely used.

  In recent years, as disclosed in, for example, Patent Document 1, a stereoscopic image pickup apparatus which is a stereoscopic image pickup apparatus having two optical systems and capable of obtaining a stereoscopic image from parallax of subject images by the optical systems is disclosed. It is known, and a stereoscopic endoscope equipped with this stereoscopic image pickup device has appeared.

JP 2003-5313 A

  By the way, a conventional stereoscopic imaging device mounted on an endoscope is built in the distal end portion of the insertion portion. Therefore, there is a demand for downsizing, in particular, reduction in diameter, in order to mount the stereoscopic imaging device in the insertion portion where reduction in diameter is desired.

  Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a stereoscopic imaging apparatus which can be made smaller in diameter than in the prior art, and a stereoscopic imaging in which this stereoscopic imaging apparatus can be mounted on the distal end of the insertion section to make further insertion parts thinner. It is in providing an endoscope.

  A stereoscopic imaging apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention is a first objective for obtaining a first image for wide-angle planar view and a second image for stereoscopic view having a smaller angle of view than the first image. An optical system, a second objective optical system having the same angle of view as the second image and acquiring only a third image for stereoscopic viewing, the first objective optical system and the second objective optical system An image pickup element for detecting light condensed by a system, and the second objective optical system has a second outer diameter smaller than a first outer diameter of the first objective optical system.

  A stereoscopic endoscope according to an aspect of the present invention is a first image for obtaining a first image for wide-angle planar view and a second image for stereoscopic view having a smaller angle of view than the first image. An objective optical system, a second objective optical system having the same angle of view as the second image and acquiring only a third image for stereoscopic viewing, the first objective optical system, and the second objective An imaging element for detecting light collected by an optical system, and the second objective optical system has a second outer diameter smaller than a first outer diameter of the first objective optical system A stereoscopic imaging device is mounted at the distal end of the insertion portion.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to reduce the diameter of the stereoscopic image pickup apparatus in the prior art, and to mount the stereoscopic image pickup apparatus on the distal end of the insertion section so that the diameter of the additional insertion section can be reduced. A mirror can be provided.

The perspective view which shows the whole structure of an endoscope Sectional view showing the configuration of the imaging unit Front view showing the configuration of the imaging unit Sectional view showing the angle of view of the observation image by the imaging unit A schematic view showing an imaging element and an image processing unit Sectional drawing which shows the structure of the imaging unit of a 1st modification Sectional drawing which shows the structure of the imaging unit of a 2nd modification Sectional drawing which shows the structure of the imaging unit of the 3rd modification Sectional drawing which shows the structure of the optical member which is an observation window of a 4th modification, and a frame member The perspective view which shows the optical member of the 4th modification Sectional drawing which shows the structure of the optical member which is an observation window of a 5th modification, and a frame member The perspective view which shows the optical member of the 5th modification Sectional drawing which shows the structure of the optical member which is an observation window of a 6th modification, and a frame member The perspective view which shows the optical member of the 6th modification

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
In the drawings used in the following description, the scale of each component is different in order to make each component have a size that can be recognized in the drawings, and the present invention is not limited to these drawings. The present invention is not limited only to the number of components described in the above, the shape of the components, the ratio of the size of the components, and the relative positional relationship of the respective components.

  1 is a perspective view showing the entire configuration of the endoscope, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the imaging unit, FIG. 3 is a front view showing the configuration of the imaging unit, and FIG. 4 is an angle of view of an observation image by the imaging unit FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing an imaging device and an image processing unit.

First, with reference to FIG. 1, an example of the configuration of a stereoscopic endoscope according to the present invention will be described.
The endoscope 1 as a stereoscopic endoscope of the present embodiment is configured to be capable of being introduced into a subject such as a human body and to optically image a predetermined observation site in the subject.

  The subject into which the endoscope 1 is introduced is not limited to the human body, and may be another living body, or an artificial object such as a machine or a construction.

  The endoscope 1 includes an insertion portion 2 introduced into the inside of a subject, an operation portion 3 positioned at a proximal end of the insertion portion 2, and a universal cord 4 extending from a side portion of the operation portion 3. Mainly composed.

  The insertion portion 2 includes a distal end portion 10 disposed at the distal end, a bendable curved portion 9 disposed at the proximal end side of the distal end portion 10, and an operation portion 3 disposed at the proximal end side of the curved portion 9. A flexible tube portion 8 having flexibility to be connected to the front end side of the is continuously connected.

  The endoscope 1 may have a form called a so-called rigid endoscope which does not have a flexible portion in the insertion portion 2.

  The distal end portion 10 is provided with an imaging unit 30 as a stereoscopic imaging device which is an endoscope optical unit in which an imaging module is built. In addition, the operation portion 3 is provided with an angle operation knob 6 for operating the bending of the bending portion 9.

  An endoscope connector 5 connected to the external device 20 is provided at the proximal end of the universal cord 4. The external device 20 to which the endoscope connector 5 is connected is connected to an image display unit 21 such as a monitor via a cable.

  The endoscope 1 also includes a universal cable 4, a composite cable 15 inserted into the operation unit 3 and the insertion unit 2, and an optical fiber bundle (not shown) for transmitting illumination light from a light source unit provided to the external device 20. )have.

  The composite cable 15 is configured to electrically connect the endoscope connector 5 and the imaging unit 30. By connecting the endoscope connector 5 to the external device 20, the imaging unit 30 is electrically connected to the external device 20 via the composite cable 15.

  Supply of current from the external device 20 to the imaging unit 30 and communication between the external device 20 and the imaging unit 30 are performed via the composite cable 15.

  The external device 20 is provided with an image processing unit 20a. The image processing unit 20 a generates a video signal based on the imaging element output signal output from the imaging unit 30 and outputs the video signal to the image display unit 21. That is, in the present embodiment, the optical image (the endoscopic image) captured by the imaging unit 30 is displayed on the image display unit 21 as a video.

  In addition, the endoscope 1 is not limited to the structure connected to the external apparatus 20 or the image display part 21, For example, the structure which has a part or all of an image processing part or a monitor may be sufficient.

  Also, the optical fiber bundle is configured to transmit the light emitted from the light source unit of the external device 20 to the illumination window as the illumination light emitting unit of the distal end portion 10. Furthermore, the light source unit may be disposed at the operation unit 3 or the distal end portion 10 of the endoscope 1.

Next, the imaging unit 30, which is a stereoscopic imaging device of the present embodiment, will be described in detail below.
As shown in FIG. 2, the imaging unit 30 includes a lens unit 40 and an imaging element unit 50.

  The lens unit 40 includes a first fixed frame 41 as a frame member for holding one optical member 31 serving as an observation window provided on the object side, a first objective lens group 32 as a first objective optical system, and The second fixed frame 42 as a frame member for holding the second objective lens group 33 which is the second objective optical system, and the fixed lens 34 of the objective optical system provided behind the first objective lens group 32 And an adjusting lens frame 43 as a frame member for holding a part of the fixed lens 34 and the adjusting lens 35, and an adjusting lens 35 of an objective optical system provided behind the second objective lens group 33; There is.

  The first fixing frame 41 is fixed by an adhesive so as to externally fit the second fixing frame 42.

  In the second fixed frame 42, a spacer 36 is provided between the first objective lens group 32 and the second objective lens group 33. The spacer 36 is a hard member and formed as a rectangular plate member.

  The spacer 36 is set to a predetermined thickness. The spacer 36 doubles as a light shielding member or a reflection preventing member.

The spacer 36 is disposed in a gap between the first objective lens group 32 and the second objective lens group 33 provided adjacent to each other in the direction orthogonal to the longitudinal axis direction along the optical axes O1 and O2. There is.
The first objective lens group 32 and the second objective lens group 33 are brought closer to the outer diameter direction of the inner peripheral surface of the second fixed frame 42 by the spacer 36. Then, the first objective lens group 32 and the second objective lens group 33 are fixed to the second fixed frame 42 together with the spacer 36 by the adhesive.

  As a result, the first objective lens group 32 and the second objective lens group 33 provided adjacent to each other by the spacer 36 are respectively positioned at predetermined positions, and the first objective lens group 32 and the second objective lens group 33 are arranged. The optical axes O1 and O2 have a high accuracy, and the fitting play is reduced, and the occurrence of eccentricity can be suppressed.

  Further, contact between the first objective lens group 32 and the second objective lens group 33 which are objective optical systems provided adjacent to each other by the spacer 36 can be surely prevented. The spacer 36 is not limited to a hard member, and may be formed of a material such as silicon or rubber.

  The adjusting lens frame 43 is fixed by an adhesive so as to be fitted to the proximal end portion of the second fixing frame 42.

  The image pickup device unit 50 has an image pickup device holding frame 51 fitted to the base end of the lens unit 40, a cover glass 52 held and fixed to the image pickup device holding frame 51, and a light receiving unit 54 attached to the cover glass 52. And one imaging element 53 that has been worn.

  The image pickup device 53 is a very small electronic component, and a plurality of elements for outputting an electric signal according to incident light at a predetermined timing are arranged in a planar light receiving unit, and, for example, A form called (charge coupled device), a CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) sensor or the like, or other various forms are applied.

  Note that the imaging unit 30 first focuses the shooting light passing through the first objective lens group 32, and then finely adjusts the adjustment lens frame 43 back and forth (F-B direction) to adjust the adjustment lens 35. The focusing of the imaging light passing through the second objective lens group 33 is performed by shifting the position of.

  By the way, as the first objective lens group 32 and the second objective lens group 33 of the present embodiment, objective optical systems having different outer diameters are used.

  Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the second outer diameter d2 of the second objective lens group 33 is smaller than the first outer diameter d1 of the first objective lens group 32 (see FIG. 2 and FIG. 3). d1> d2) is set.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the outer shape center C1 of the optical member 31 is set so as to be shifted to the optical axis O1 side with respect to the parallax center C2 which is the middle point of the distance between the optical axes O1 and O2. ing. That is, the parallax center C2 with respect to the outer shape center C1 of the optical member 31 is set to be eccentric to the optical axis O2 side.

  As a result, the imaging unit 30 according to the present embodiment can be made smaller in size and smaller in outer diameter, and contributes to the reduction in diameter of the distal end portion 10 of the insertion portion 2 of the endoscope 1.

  That is, in the imaging unit 30, 3D (stereoscopic) observation is used during treatment with the endoscope 1, and there is an influence of distortion (distortion) and aberration around the observation image, and the angle of view in the 3D image is limited. Therefore, the minimum required outer diameter of the objective optical system is set.

  Specifically, when a planar 2D observation image (planar view image) is obtained, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the first objective lens group 32 and the fixed lens 34 detected by the light receiving unit 54 of the imaging device 53. In this case, a 2D image of the first image IM1 cut out in a rectangular shape is generated by the image processing unit 20a in a predetermined range in the image of the light of the optical axis O1 collected by the.

  The first image IM1 is an observation image of a wide angle of view of, for example, 170 ° by the first objective lens group 32 and the fixed lens 34. That is, the first outer diameter d1 of the first objective lens group 32 for obtaining the first image IM1 having a wide angle of view is set.

  On the other hand, when obtaining a three-dimensional 3D observation image, the image of the light of the optical axis O1 collected by the first objective lens group 32 and the fixed lens 34 detected by the light receiving unit 54 of the imaging device 53 has a predetermined range. Here, the second image IM2 cut out in a rectangular shape by the image processing unit 20a and an image of the light of the optical axis O2 collected by the second objective lens group 33 and the adjusting lens 35 into a predetermined range Here, the processing unit 20a generates a 3D image synthesized using the parallax of the third image IM3 cut out in a rectangular shape.

  The second image IM2 and the third image IM3 for generating a 3D image are respectively obtained by the first objective lens group 32 and the fixed lens 34 or the second objective lens group 33 and the adjusting lens 35 by the objective optical system. The two angles of view β and γ are the same (β = γ) and are narrower than the 2D image. For example, it is an observation image of the field angles β and γ of 140 °.

  Therefore, the first objective lens group 32 and the fixed lens 34 are used in both 2D images and 3D images, and the first outer diameter d1 is set so as to obtain a 2D image with a wide angle of view. The second outer diameter d2 of the second objective lens group 33 and the adjustment lens 35, which are used only when obtaining, is set small.

  In addition, the imaging unit 30 of this Embodiment becomes a structure which can switch two modes, 2D observation and 3D observation, by the image process part 20a.

  Then, at the time of 2D observation, the first image IM1 obtained by the light of the optical axis O1 collected by the objective optical system having a large outer diameter, here the first objective lens group 32 and the fixed lens 34, is used. At the time of observation, the third image IM3 obtained by the light of the optical axis O2 collected by the objective optical system having a small outer diameter, here the second objective lens group 33 and the adjusting lens 35, and the first objective lens here The second image IM2 cut out at the same angle of view β as the angle of view γ of the first image IM1 to the third image IM3 obtained from the light of the optical axis O1 collected by the group 32 and the fixed lens 34 is used It is a structure.

  As described above, the imaging unit 30 mounted on the distal end portion 10 of the insertion portion 2 in the endoscope 1 has a configuration similar to the conventional configuration in which two objective optical systems having the same specifications and outer diameters are arranged. In the 2D observation, an objective optical system not used is set to an outer diameter at which an angle of view of 3D observation can be obtained, and the diameter is reduced (miniaturized).

  Therefore, the diameter of the distal end portion 10 on which the imaging unit 30 is mounted can be reduced, and the diameter of the insertion portion 2 of the endoscope 1 can also be reduced (reduced in size).

(First modification)
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the imaging unit of the first modified example.
As shown in FIG. 6, the imaging unit 30 may be configured to have optical members 31 a and 31 b which are two observation windows corresponding to the first objective optical system 32 and the second objective optical system 33.

(Second modification)
FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the imaging unit of the second modified example.
As shown in FIG. 7, the imaging unit includes a first imaging element 53 a having a light receiving unit 54 a that detects light of the optical axis O1 of the first objective optical system 32, and an optical axis of the second objective optical system 33. And a second imaging element 53b having a light receiving unit 54b that detects the light of O 2.

  The second imaging element 53b may be a light receiving unit 54b that can detect the third angle of view γ, and therefore, the second imaging element 53b may be smaller than the first imaging element 53a.

(Third modification)
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of an imaging unit of the third modified example.
As shown in FIG. 8, the imaging unit 30 also has a configuration in which the optical systems of the first objective optical system 32 and the second objective optical system 33 are connected to form an integral lens surface of two systems. Good.

(The 4th modification)
FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the optical member and the frame member that are the observation window of the fourth modification, and FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing the optical member of the fourth modification.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the optical member 31 is fixed and held so that the projection 41 a protruding in the inner diameter direction of the first fixing frame 41 which is a frame member and the back surface do not abut and tilt.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the optical member 31 has an abutment surface A at the edge portion around the center of the outer diameter on the back surface so as to abut on the projection 41a to define the posture.

  The contact surface A is provided at a position including both of the two regions divided by the line X passing through the outer shape center C1 of the optical member 31.

  Therefore, the optical member 31 can be fixed to the first frame member 41 without being inclined because the contact surface A abuts on the protrusion 41 a when assembled to the first fixed frame 41.

  The optical member 31 has a first concave surface 31a on the first optical axis O1 side and a second concave surface 31b on the second optical axis O2 side, and the proximal end side of the second concave surface 31b A circular step portion 31c is formed on the

(Fifth modification)
FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of an optical member that is an observation window of the fifth modification and a frame member, and FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing the optical member of the fifth modification.

  As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the optical member 31 may have a stepped shape in which the second concave surface 31b on the second optical axis O2 side is cut away toward the outer shape.

  Also in this configuration, the contact surface A is secured to include both of the two regions divided by the line X passing through the outer shape center C1 of the optical member 31.

  Accordingly, the optical member 31 can be fixed to the first frame member 41 without being inclined by the contact of the contact surface A with the projection 41 a.

(Sixth modification)
FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of an optical member that is an observation window of the sixth modification and a frame member, and FIG. 14 is a perspective view showing the optical member of the sixth modification.

  As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the second concave surface 31b on the second optical axis O2 side may have a configuration in which a part of the optical member 31 is formed up to the outer peripheral portion.

  Also in this configuration, the contact surface A is secured to include both of the two regions divided by the line X passing through the outer shape center C1 of the optical member 31.

  Accordingly, the optical member 31 can be fixed to the first frame member 41 without being inclined by the contact of the contact surface A with the projection 41 a.

  Although the flexible endoscope is illustrated in the present embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this, and it is a technique which can be applied to a surgical rigid endoscope and an industrial endoscope. .

  The invention described in the above embodiment is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention at the implementation stage. Furthermore, the above embodiments include inventions of various stages, and various inventions can be extracted by appropriate combinations of a plurality of disclosed configuration requirements.

  For example, even if some of the configuration requirements are removed from all the configuration requirements shown in the embodiment, the configuration requirements can be eliminated if the problems described can be solved and the described advantages can be obtained. The configuration can be extracted as the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... 3D endoscope 2 ... insertion part 3 ... operation part 4 ... universal cord 5 ... endoscope connector 6 ... angle operation knob 8 ... flexible tube part 9 ... curve part 10 ... tip part 15 ... composite cable 20 ... External device 20a ... Image processing unit 21 ... Image display unit 30 ... Imaging unit 31 ... Optical member 32 ... First objective lens group 33 ... Second objective lens group 34 ... Fixed lens 35 ... Adjustment lens 36 ... Spacer 40 ... Lens Unit 41 ... First fixed frame 42 ... Second fixed frame 43 ... Adjustment lens frame 50 ... Image sensor unit frame 51 ... Image sensor holding frame 52 ... Cover glass 53 ... Image sensor 54 ... Light receiver d1 ... First outer diameter d2: second outer diameter IM1: first image IM2: second image IM3: third image O1, O2: optical axis α, β, γ: angle of view

Claims (8)

A first objective optical system for obtaining a first image for wide-angle planar view and a second image for stereoscopic view having a smaller angle of view than the first image;
A second objective optical system having the same angle of view as the second image and obtaining only a third image for stereoscopic viewing;
An imaging element for detecting light collected by the first objective optical system and the second objective optical system;
Equipped with
The stereoscopic imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the second objective optical system has a second outer diameter smaller than a first outer diameter of the first objective optical system.   The stereoscopic vision imaging apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising one observation window provided on the object side of the first objective optical system and the second objective optical system.   The center of the outline of the observation window is the first optical axis with respect to the parallax center which is the middle point between the first optical axis of the first objective optical system and the second optical axis of the second optical system. The stereoscopic imaging apparatus according to claim 2, characterized in that it is eccentric to the side. A frame member fixedly holding the observation window;
The observation window has an abutment surface that abuts on the frame member around an outer center of the observation window,
The said contact surface is provided in the position containing both of two area | regions divided | segmented by the line which passes along the said external shape center, It abuts on the said frame member, The said Claim 2 or 3 characterized by the above-mentioned. Stereoscopic imaging device.   The stereoscopic imaging apparatus according to claim 1, comprising two observation windows provided on the object side of the first objective optical system and the second objective optical system.   The stereoscopic imaging according to claim 1, wherein two of the imaging elements for individually detecting the light collected by the first objective optical system and the second objective optical system are provided. apparatus.   A stereoscopic endoscope characterized in that the stereoscopic imaging device according to any one of claims 1 to 6 is mounted at the distal end portion of the insertion portion.   The image processing unit is provided with an image processing unit that cuts out the second image from the first image in planar view in stereoscopic view and combines the second image with the third image. The stereoscopic endoscope according to claim 7.

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