JP3206246U - A microscope equipped with a remotely operable camera - Google Patents

Abstract

A microscope including a remotely operable camera capable of improving usability is provided. A camera has a camera remote operation signal receiver for receiving a remote operation signal for controlling the function of the camera. The microscope 10 is provided with at least one microscope remote control signal receivers 11 and 12 for receiving a remote control signal of an external remote control unit for controlling the function of the camera. At least one microscope remote control signal receiver is connected to the microscope remote control signal transmitter 13 via a conductor or photoconductor, and the conductor or photoconductor is one of the microscope remote control signal receivers. The remote control signal received by the transmitter is transferred inside the microscope to the microscope remote control signal transmitter, and the microscope remote control signal transmitter sends out the remote control signal and supplies it to the camera remote control signal receiver. [Selection] Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a microscope having a camera that captures a microscopic image, the camera having a camera remote operation signal receiver that receives a remote operation signal for controlling the function of the camera.

  Such microscopes themselves are well known from the prior art. Usually, the microscope has a binocular tube that, together with the microscope objective lens, forms an enlarged image that can be observed by the user from the object to be observed. At this time, a part of the observation beam path reaching the user can be divided and guided to the camera port. A camera connected to the camera port captures one or more microscopic images of an object to be examined by a microscope. In many cases, a camera is connected to a monitor on which one or more images can be displayed in live mode, i.e. in real time, however, the stored image can also be recalled. Can also be displayed. When working using such a monitor, it may be possible to omit the above binocular tube and work exclusively using the camera monitor.

  The microscope considered here representatively positions at least one objective lens, in particular an objective lens revolver for selecting an appropriate objective lens, an incident or passing light illumination device, and an object to be observed. An upright microscope or an inverted microscope having a microscope stage for focusing, a focusing screw for focusing the object on the focus of the objective lens used, and the (optional) binocular tube described above It is a microscope.

  Furthermore, the microscope has the above-described camera which can be remotely operated, and the user can transmit a corresponding remote operation signal for controlling the camera function to the camera by using the remote operation unit.

  Depending on the relative position of the user with respect to the camera, more precisely, depending on the relative position of the remote control unit operated by the user, the remote operation of the camera may be better realized. I found out that it could be difficult. Remote operation within the scope of the present invention requires visual recognition of the receiver, for example by placing a camera on the back side of the microscope, or more generally on the side facing away from the user in the microscope. Alternatively, by placing the camera on the side of the microscope that is not facing the user, an obstacle located between the remote control unit and the camera may make it impossible to remotely control the camera. This is considered by many users not very comfortable.

  Therefore, the subject of this invention is improving the usability of the microscope provided with the camera which can be operated remotely.

  According to the present invention, the microscope described in claim 1 improves the usability of a microscope equipped with a remotely operable camera. A microscope system including a microscope according to the present invention and a remote operation unit that transmits a remote control signal for controlling the function of the camera of the microscope is also an object of the present invention. Advantageous embodiments emerge from the dependent claims and from the following description.

  The microscope according to the present invention has a camera for taking a microscopic image, and this camera has a camera remote operation signal receiver for receiving a remote operation signal for controlling the function of the camera. At least one microscope remote control signal receiver is arranged in the microscope, and this microscope remote control signal receiver receives a remote control signal of an external remote control unit for controlling the function of the camera. Further, a microscope remote control signal transmitter is disposed in the microscope. At least one microscope remote control signal receiver is connected to the microscope remote control signal transmitter via a conductor or a photoelectric conductor inside the microscope, and the conductor or photoelectric conductor is connected to the microscope remote control signal receiver. The remote control signal received by one of the two is transferred to the microscope remote control signal transmitter inside the microscope, and the microscope remote control signal transmitter sends the remote control signal to the camera remote control signal receiver. Supply.

  Such a remote control signal is sent from a corresponding remote control unit. This remote control unit for controlling camera functions is usually available with the camera. According to the present invention, the microscope is provided with at least one microscope remote control signal receiver and a microscope remote control signal transmitter. In the usual case, only one microscope remote control signal transmitter is sufficient, however, two or more such transmitters may be arranged in the microscope. The number of microscope remote control signal receivers substantially follows the structure of the microscope and the position of the camera connected to the microscope, as described below. According to the present invention, the at least one microscope remote control signal receiver and the microscope remote control signal transmitter are connected to operate electronically, whereby the remote control received by the microscopic remote control signal receiver is received. The signal is sent from the microscope remote control signal transmitter and received in particular by the camera remote control signal receiver.

  Thus, according to the present invention, a remote control signal directed to a camera is first received by one or more microscope remote control signal receivers and further forwarded to a microscope remote control signal transmitter, followed by the microscope remote control signal. A remote operation signal is transmitted from the operation signal transmitter to the camera remote operation signal receiver. In this way, the remote control signal can “bypass” the obstacle, however, if necessary, the remote control signal can be appropriately processed. Therefore, this measure prevents the operation of the microscope camera from being inconvenient due to obstacles that hinder the transmission of remote control signals.

  Remote control signals today typically use electromagnetic radiation in the infrared spectral range. It is preferable when the remote operation signal is an IR (IR = infrared) signal. In principle, laser signals, signals originating from other spectral ranges, or ultrasound signals can also be used.

  The present invention realizes the placement of the camera at the location of the microscope that is not directly visible to the user, more precisely, not directly visible from the remote control unit operated by the user. For this time, an arbitrary side different from the user side of the microscope is suitable for the time being. For example, the camera can be mounted on the side wall of the microscope without limiting the realization of the remote control of the camera, or more generally, on the side of the microscope that is at least not facing the user. In such a case, it is preferred that at least one microscope remote control signal receiver is located on the user side of the microscope and the microscope remote control signal transmitter is located on the side of the microscope where the camera is located. It is. It has proved advantageous to mount the camera on the back side of the microscope opposite the user side.

  Therefore, the arrangement of the microscope remote control signal receiver on the user side ensures that the remote control signal of the user of the remote control unit reaches this receiver. The placement of the microscope remote control signal transmitter on the same side of the microscope as the camera is on ensures that the remote control signal will eventually reach the camera.

  In particular, the microscope has a user side and a back side opposite to the user side, in which case the camera is located on the back side of the microscope and receives at least one microscope remote control signal. The instrument is located on the user side, and the microscope remote control signal transmitter is located on the back side of the microscope.

  The existing microscope stage can also be an obstacle for transmission of remote control signals. In such a case, the microscope includes a microscope stage, at least one first microscope remote control signal receiver disposed above the microscope stage, and at least one second disposed below the microscope stage. It is advantageous to have a microscope remote control signal receiver.

  The microscope remote control signal transmitter is advantageously connected to at least one microscope remote control signal receiver via an electronic device, by which the remote control signal is not obstructed and according to standards. Therefore, the microscope remote control signal transmitter can also be transmitted as per the standard without degrading the signal. At that time, the electronic apparatus adjusts the remote operation signal at the time of transmission from the microscope remote operation signal receiver to the microscope remote operation signal transmitter to a predetermined signal level.

  Thus, the remote control signal passes through the microscope and is transferred from one or more microscope remote control signal receivers to the microscope remote control signal transmitter. That is, the camera connected to the microscope always receives a signal with very good signal strength. The camera remote control signal receiver in the camera is in particular located in an unobstructed view to the microscope remote control signal transmitter.

  When remotely operating the camera of the microscope according to the present invention, if each receiver is located in an unobstructed view to the transmitter of the remote control signal, i.e. to the remote control unit, or between them If there is sufficient signal strength at the receiver even though an obstacle has occurred in some cases, the remote control signal is also transmitted to the camera remote control signal by at least one microscope remote control signal receiver. It can also be received by a receiver. Therefore, a casing cover is arranged between the camera remote control signal receiver and the microscope remote control signal transmitter, and the casing cover is connected to the microscope remote control signal transmitter with respect to the camera remote control signal receiver. It is very advantageous if it provides an unobstructed field of view and the camera remote control signal receiver is further shielded against remote control signals incident directly from an external remote control unit. I understood.

  This shielding casing cover is not permeable to remote operation signals, so that the remote operation signal can reach the camera remote operation signal receiver only through the aforementioned opening Has been. In the casing cover, the opening is formed and arranged so that the microscope remote control signal receiver (camera remote control signal receiver) is located in an unobstructed view to the microscope remote control signal transmitter. Thus, remote control signals from other transmitters can be effectively shielded or at least significantly suppressed. In this way, no malfunction or undefined camera state can occur due to the superposition of various transmitter remote control signals during operation of the microscope according to the present invention. A further advantage is that the surface of the camera remote control signal receiver and the surface of the microscope remote control signal transmitter are protected from dust and other foreign objects, thus ensuring a good signal connection between them for a long time. That is.

  It is understood that the features described above and below are not limited to the combinations described, and can be used in other combinations or alone without departing from the scope of the present invention. .

  The invention is schematically illustrated in the drawing on the basis of an embodiment, and the invention will be described in the following with reference to the drawing.

1 schematically shows a front perspective view of one embodiment of a microscope according to the invention with a remotely operable camera. The microscope shown in FIG. 1 is shown with a side view. 3 shows a modified embodiment of the microscope shown in FIG. FIG. 3 shows a microscope partially broken to show an electronic device provided inside the microscope.

  Hereinafter, FIGS. 1 to 4 will be described comprehensively. The same reference numerals represent the same components.

  FIG. 1 schematically shows one embodiment of a microscope 10 which is an inverted microscope. The transmitted light illumination device is provided with reference numeral 14. The illumination beam path of the transmitted light illumination device 14 is directed to the microscope stage 16 of the microscope 10. An object to be inspected (not shown) is disposed in the transmitted light opening 16 a in the microscope stage 16. Below the microscope stage 16, an objective lens revolver 17 is provided for selecting an appropriate objective lens (the objective lens itself is not shown). The object to be inspected is located at the focal point of the selected objective. For this purpose, the microscope 10 has a focus adjustment screw 18 for adjusting the position of the microscope stage 16 in the direction of the objective lens. The binocular tube of the microscope 10 is given the reference number 19. The binocular tube 19 allows the user to directly visually recognize an enlarged image of the object to be examined. Furthermore, the binocular tube allows the user to properly position the object with respect to the objective lens and to select the object area of interest.

  FIG. 2 schematically shows the same microscope as shown in FIG. 1 in a side view. The transmitted light illumination device 14 is supported on the support column 15. The camera 30 of the microscope 10 is attached to the back side of the microscope 10, more precisely, to the back side of the main casing 20 of the microscope 10. This back side of the microscope 10 is provided with a reference number 22. Reference numeral 21 is attached to the front side or the user side of the microscope. In the illustrated case, the user side is the binocular tube 19 side. When such a binocular tube 19 is not provided, in the microscope, the side that provides the user with equipment that realizes control of the microscope and control of the camera is the user side. That is, based on the fact that the camera 30 is provided, as described above, the binocular tube 19 can be omitted in principle. The camera 30 is connected to a monitor (not shown), which displays a microscopic image, and more preferably displays other related information. By controlling the camera 30 accordingly, a live image can be displayed on the monitor, but a stored image can also be displayed.

  In the structure shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the user can control the camera by remote control. For this reason, the user can operate the remote control unit 33 adjusted according to the camera, for example. The remotely operable camera has a remote operation signal receiver. The remote control signal receiver is usually built into the camera. Hereinafter, this receiver is referred to as a camera remote control signal receiver 31. This camera remote control signal receiver 31 is shown schematically in the drawing, however, since it is usually integrated in the camera casing, it cannot be seen directly. The remote operation, particularly the remote operation that functions by the IR signal as the remote operation signal, requires a view that is free of obstacles to the receiver. In the illustrated microscope structure, since the camera remote control signal receiver 31 is provided on the back side 22 of the microscope 10, the remote control signal coming from the user side 21 is prevented from propagating by the pedestal or the main casing 20. Often done. As a result, the signal strength can be greatly reduced, and the signal can often disappear completely. In such a case, the user first locates the exact position of the camera 30 and then uses his remote control unit 33 to locate the IR receiver provided on the camera 30 as accurately as possible. You must try to measure. Many users find this inconvenient. Therefore, the microscope shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 has two microscope remote control signal receivers 11 and 12 provided in the microscope 10 itself. It should be noted that a single receiver is sufficient, however, it is considered meaningful to have more than two such receivers. The microscope remote control signal receivers 11 and 12 are arranged in the microscope 10 so that they enter the field of view up to the remote control unit 33 operated by the user. In the illustrated case, one of the microscope remote control signal receivers 11 is arranged in a region above the microscope stage 16 and the other receiver 12 is arranged below the microscope stage 16. . This arrangement is very suitable because the microscope stage 16 may function as an obstacle to the remote control signal. That is, if the corresponding remote control unit 33 is operated in the vicinity of the pedestal leg or the main casing 20, the corresponding remote control signal is received by the lower microscope remote control signal receiver 12 with a high probability. The In contrast, when the remote operation unit 33 is operated at the height of the binocular tube 19, the remote operation signal is received by the upper microscope remote operation signal receiver 11 with high probability.

  Remote control signals received by one or more microscope remote control signal receivers 11, 12 are sent to a microscope remote control signal transmitter 13 via an electronic device (see embodiment of FIG. 4). The microscope remote control signal transmitter 13 itself transmits this signal. This microscope remote control signal transmitter 13 is provided in the field of view to the camera 30, more precisely, in the field of view to the camera remote control signal receiver 31 provided in the camera. For this purpose, the microscope remote control signal transmitter 13 is provided in the vicinity of the camera 30 on the back side 22 of the microscope 10. In this way, the microscope remote operation signal transmitter 13 transmits a remote operation signal corresponding to the signal originally transmitted from the remote operation unit 33 to the camera remote operation signal receiver 31. In this way, the function of the camera is controlled. Therefore, the structure described here realizes reliable control of the camera 30 without depending on the presence of obstacles or the geometry of the microscope 10. That is, a very comfortable and user-friendly operation of the camera 30 is realized.

  3 shows a structure in which the microscope 10 shown in FIG. 2 is slightly modified. In this structure, only the region between the camera 30 and the microscope remote control signal transmitter 13 is slightly changed. Yes. From FIG. 3, the casing cover or shielding part 32 can be seen. The casing cover 32 is provided with a camera remote control signal except for an opening formed and arranged so that the camera remote control signal receiver 31 is located in an unobstructed view to the microscope remote control signal transmitter 13. The receiver 31 is surrounded. In the illustrated case, the casing cover 32 is a tubular shielding part. On one side of the tubular shield 32, a microscope remote control signal transmitter 13 (correspondingly no longer visible in FIG. 3) is provided, on the other side of the tubular shield 32, A camera remote control signal receiver 31 incorporated in the camera 30 is provided. The casing cover or shielding unit 32 ensures that the camera remote operation signal receiver 31 provided in the camera receives only the signal from the microscope remote operation signal transmitter 13. Other signals are effectively shielded. In particular, a signal that can be transmitted by the remote control unit 33 itself and possibly reaching the camera 30 is blocked. Corresponding remote control signals may be superimposed in some cases with a slight offset in time, which in some circumstances may result in signals that may no longer be meaningfully processed or interpreted by the camera electronics. . Possible consequences include camera malfunction or control defects. The illustrated casing cover or shield 32 effectively prevents this.

  Finally, FIG. 4 shows the microscope 10 shown in FIG. 3 in which a part of the main casing 20 is broken around the microscope remote control signal transmitter 13. An electronic device 40 is shown with the components shown schematically, which is a good signal without the microscope remote control signal transmitter 13 degrading the original remote control signal. Photoconductors that can include the signals of one or more microscope remote control signal receivers 11 and 12 via electrical conductors or glass fibers and / or photocouplers so that they can be transmitted with intensity 41 can be transferred to the microscope remote control signal transmitter 13. Suitable circuits for this are known to those skilled in the art. In some cases, the resulting attenuation of the remote control signal can be compensated by corresponding signal amplification by the electronic device 40.

  It is noted that for the sake of completeness, the structure described here is also suitable for an upright microscope equipped with a remotely operable camera. Finally, it should be noted that the measures mentioned here are also meaningful when the camera is provided on the side wall of the microscope casing 20. In principle, the measures proposed here are always meaningful if the remotely operable camera is not located in an unobstructed view directed towards the user side 21 of the microscope 10.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Microscope 11 Microscope remote control signal receiver 12 Microscope remote control signal receiver 13 Microscope remote control signal transmitter 14 Transmitted light illumination device 15 Support column 16 Microscope stage 16a Transmitted light opening 17 Objective lens revolver 18 Focus adjustment screw 19 Binocular tube 20 Main casing 21 User side 22 Back side 30 Camera 31 Camera remote control signal receiver 32 Casing cover 33 External remote control unit 40 Electronic device 41 Conductor or photoelectric conductor

Claims (8)

In a microscope (10) provided with a camera (30) for taking a microscopic image,
The camera (30) has a camera remote control signal receiver (31) for receiving a remote control signal for controlling the function of the camera (30);
The microscope (10) has at least one microscope remote control signal receiver (11, 12) for receiving a remote control signal of an external remote control unit (33) for controlling the function of the camera (30); ) And a microscope remote control signal transmitter (13),
The at least one microscope remote control signal receiver (11, 12) is connected to the microscope remote control signal transmitter (13) via a conductor or photoconductor (41); The photoconductor (41) transfers a remote operation signal received by one of the microscope remote operation signal receivers (11, 12) to the microscope remote operation signal transmitter (13) inside the microscope, The microscope remote operation signal transmitter (13) transmits the remote operation signal and supplies it to the camera remote operation signal receiver (31).   The microscope (10) according to claim 1, wherein the remote control signal is an IR signal. The microscope (10) has a user side (21) and a side (22) different from the user side (21), and is different from the user side (21) of the microscope (10). The camera (30) is arranged on the side (22),
The at least one microscope remote control signal receiver (11, 12) is disposed on the user side (21), and the microscope remote control signal transmitter (13) is disposed on the camera (30). 3. Microscope (10) according to claim 1 or 2, arranged on the side (22) being arranged.   The side (22) of the microscope (10) different from the user side (21) is a back side (22) located on the opposite side of the microscope (10) from the user side (21). The microscope (10) according to claim 3.   The microscope (10) includes a microscope stage (16), at least one first microscope remote control signal receiver (11) disposed above the microscope stage (16), and the microscope stage (16). 5. The microscope (10) according to claim 1, comprising at least one second microscope remote control signal receiver (12) disposed below the microscope. The microscope remote control signal transmitter (13) is connected to the at least one microscope remote control signal receiver (11, 12) via an electronic device (40) arranged inside the microscope,
The electronic device (40) transmits the remote operation signal at a predetermined signal level during transmission from one of the microscope remote operation signal receivers (11, 12) to the microscope remote operation signal transmitter (13). The microscope (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the microscope (10) is adjusted. A casing cover (32) is disposed between the camera remote control signal receiver (31) and the microscope remote control signal transmitter (13), and the casing cover (32) is configured to transmit the camera remote control signal. With respect to the receiver (31), an unobstructed view to the microscope remote control signal transmitter (13) is realized,
7. The camera remote control signal receiver (31) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further shielded against a remote control signal incident directly from the external remote control unit (33). The described microscope (10).   A microscope (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 7, and a remote operation unit for transmitting a remote operation signal for controlling the function of the camera (30) of the microscope (10). A microscope system characterized by comprising:

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