JP3490999B1 - One-handed camera with integrated dental monitor - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to provide a camera integrated with a monitor for narrow-section imaging, such as a dental camera, which can be easily operated by one person and can be easily transported and used anywhere. SOLUTION: A lens barrel (2) provided at one end for receiving light from a subject in a narrow portion, a photographing unit (8) for photographing an image of the subject received by the lens barrel, and a photographing unit photographed by the photographing unit. Camera body (1) having a monitor screen (3) provided at the other end opposite to the one end for displaying the displayed image to the operator.
0) and a handle portion (4) attached to the camera body for the operator to hold and operate the camera body with one hand.
A camera (1) integrated with a monitor for photographing a narrow part which can be held by one hand, characterized by comprising:

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a camera with a monitor for photographing a subject in a narrow area, and more particularly to a camera for photographing a narrow area which can be held by one hand and is integrated with a monitor.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A narrow area that cannot be easily observed by the human naked eye is photographed by an optical camera, a television camera or a digital camera, enlarged and displayed on a monitor screen, recorded in a storage device, or printed. Being able to print out on the device is very convenient for observing, diagnosing and recording narrow areas. As a camera with a monitor for photographing such a narrow portion, for example, there is a dental camera for photographing the teeth and the oral cavity of a patient used for dentistry.

As such a conventional dental camera,
JP-A-10-52401 and JP-A-2000-239
There is one disclosed in Japanese Patent No. The conventional examples disclosed in these publications are cylindrical dental cameras, and an imaging section for inserting and photographing in the oral cavity of a patient is provided on the thin one end side of the cylindrical camera. On the opposite side, a grip portion held by the operator and an antenna for wirelessly transmitting an image pickup signal to a large monitor device such as an external CRT monitor or a cable for wired transmission are provided. In these conventional dental cameras, the body of the camera is miniaturized in a tubular shape for insertion into the oral cavity, but images of the patient's teeth and oral cavity taken by the camera are external CRT images.
It is configured to be transmitted to and displayed on a relatively large monitor device such as a monitor.

Therefore, in these conventional dental cameras, one operator simultaneously inserts the dental camera into a narrow oral cavity and monitors an external monitor screen to diagnose an image of a diseased part displayed on the screen. However, it is difficult to perform a recording operation in the storage device or a print output operation by the printing device.

Therefore, these conventional dental cameras usually need to be used by two people.
That is, one person carries out an insertion operation into a patient's oral cavity with a dental camera, another person monitors an external monitor to diagnose an affected part image displayed on the screen, record operation to a storage device, or A print output operation is being performed by the printing device. Alternatively, a foot switch is provided, and a dental camera is held by one person alone to perform insertion operation into the patient's oral cavity, and an external monitor is monitored to diagnose the image of the affected area displayed and to be stored in the storage device by the foot switch. The printout operation is performed by the recording device or the printing device.

[0006]

In a camera with a monitor for photographing a subject in a narrow space such as the above-mentioned conventional dental camera, the monitor is a large monitor device such as an external CRT monitor device, and the camera Since it is installed separately, it requires manpower to operate the camera and to monitor the monitor screen. When using the foot switch to operate the dental camera and monitor the external monitor screen alone, the external monitor screen should be separated from the hand where the dental camera is inserted into the narrow part of the patient's mouth, etc. Therefore, in order to accurately display the necessary points such as the affected area on the monitor screen for observation, diagnosis, photographing or recording, the line of sight is often changed between the dental camera at hand and the external monitor. Precise operation, accurate observation, diagnosis of small affected areas such as teeth, etc.
Alternatively, there is a problem that a considerable skill is required to take a picture.

Further, in a camera with a monitor for photographing an object in a narrow space, such as a conventional dental camera, since the monitor device and the camera are separate bodies, the entire system becomes large and the portability is poor. There is a problem that it is not easy to use.

The present invention solves the conventional problems described above, and provides a monitor-integrated camera for narrow-part photography that can be easily operated by one person and can be easily carried and used anywhere. The purpose is to do.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention as set forth in claim 1, a lens barrel portion and a lens barrel provided at one end for receiving light from an object in a narrow portion. And a camera body having a monitor screen provided at the other end opposite to one end for displaying an image captured by the shooting unit to an operator. (EN) Provided is a narrow-part shooting monitor-integrated camera capable of being held by one hand, which is provided with a handle portion attached to the main body so that an operator holds and operates the camera body with one hand.

According to the present invention as set forth in claim 2, in the narrow-part photography monitor-integrated camera capable of holding one hand according to claim 1, the handle portion is provided with a power supply battery for the camera,
A removable memory card for storing the captured image, a shutter button for storing the captured image in the memory card, which can be operated by the operator's index finger on the same side as the lens barrel of the handle, and a handle Power switch and image page feed switch for displaying the image stored in the memory card on the monitor screen on the same side of the monitor screen, operation panel with power-on indicator and standby switch Provided is a monitor-integrated camera for photographing a narrow portion.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the camera for integral monitor of narrow area photography capable of holding one hand according to the first aspect, the lens barrel is white for illuminating an object in the narrow area. A color digital camera having a light emitting diode and a photographing section having a semiconductor photographing element for photographing an image of a subject from a lens barrel portion, and a monitor screen being a TFT color liquid crystal screen for displaying a photographed image of the subject in color. Provided is a camera integrated with a monitor for photographing a narrow part that can be held by one hand.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the narrow-part photography monitor-integrated camera capable of holding one hand according to the third aspect, the lens barrel portion has an outer diameter of about 0.8 cm or more. It has a length of 2.5 centimeters and a length of 1 to 15 centimeters, and the photographing section has a fixed focus lens with a large depth of field.
Provided is a monitor-integrated camera for narrow-part photography, which has a 5-inch to 3.5-inch color liquid crystal screen and has a total weight of less than 1 kilogram and can be held by one hand.

[0013]

According to the monitor-integrated camera for narrow-part photography capable of holding one hand of the present invention according to claim 1, while the operator holds and operates the handle portion of the monitor-integrated camera with one hand, Insert the lens barrel provided at one end of the camera body into the narrow part of the patient's mouth, etc., and at the same time, on the monitor screen facing the operator provided at the other end of the camera body, Images can be observed in real time. Since the lens barrel of the camera body and the monitor screen are located in almost the same direction as the operator's line of sight, the camera can be operated easily, and even if the monitor screen is small, the affected area is usually several times larger (2 to 3 times). The operator can easily observe the affected area because an image magnified approximately twice can be displayed.

In order to observe a hidden part such as the back side of a tooth with the one-hand-held narrow-part image-capturing monitor-integrated camera of the present invention, place a dental mirror in front of the lens barrel.
The hidden part is reflected on a mirror and displayed on the monitor screen. The dentist is accustomed to treating hidden parts such as the back of teeth with a dental drill while copying them on the dental mirror, so that one hand can be used to hold the narrow part monitor of the present invention. Holding an integrated camera and a dental mirror in the other hand to display and observe hidden areas in the patient's mouth on the monitor screen is similar to the method used by dentists. Can be used for The above-mentioned usage is the same when observing a narrow part other than the oral cavity of the patient, for example, the inside of the pipe.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a monitor-integrated camera for narrow-part photography capable of holding one hand, while an operator holds and operates the handle portion of the monitor-integrated camera with one hand, Insert the lens barrel provided at one end of the camera body into the narrow part of the patient's mouth, etc., and at the same time, on the monitor screen facing the operator provided at the other end of the camera body, When observing the image, press the shutter button provided on the handle on the same side as the lens barrel with the index finger of one hand holding the handle to store the image of the affected area displayed on the monitor screen. Can be stored on the card. This operation is as if
With a simple operation like holding a pistol with one hand and pulling the trigger, the image displayed on the monitor screen can be stored in the memory card for later processing.

The operation panel is provided on the handle portion on the same side as the monitor screen, and the power switch and the image page feed switch for displaying the image stored in the memory card on the monitor screen and the power supply are provided on the operation panel. When the operator wants to display the image on the monitor screen and store the image in the memory card, the white light emitting diode emits light at the same time when the power switch on the operation panel is turned on. The image on the monitor screen can be stored in the memory card by illuminating the subject and pressing the shutter button. When you press the standby switch, the white light emitting diode is turned off to enter the standby mode to prevent power consumption. After this,
When the operator wants to store the image in the memory card, he pushes the shutter button once, and the white light emitting diode emits light again from the standby mode to illuminate the subject. If you press the shutter button further, the image displayed on the monitor screen can be stored in the memory card. Furthermore, when the operator operates the image page feed switch on the operation panel, the playback mode is entered, and if the white light emitting diode is emitting light, it turns off, and the images stored in the memory card are displayed in order on the monitor screen. Send and display. By this operation, the operator can confirm that the image has been correctly stored in the memory card, and can explain the affected area and the treatment method to the patient while observing the image again with the patient on the monitor screen later.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a camera for integrating a narrow-part photographing monitor capable of holding one hand, wherein a white light-emitting diode is used as an irradiation source, and a color digital camera having a semiconductor image pickup element is used as a photographing unit. By using the semiconductor technology of the TFT color liquid crystal device as the screen and configuring a narrow-part photography monitor that has a small built-in power supply battery and that can be held in one hand, it is a small, lightweight, highly portable port that can be held in one hand. A camera with a built-in monitor for partial photography can be configured.

[0018]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the accompanying drawings, like parts are designated by like reference numerals for the sake of brevity. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, a dental camera will be described. However, the contents of the embodiment described below are not limited to the dental camera, and those skilled in the art can easily use other narrow cameras. The present invention can be applied to a narrow-part photography monitor-integrated camera that can be used to photograph a part, for example, the inside of a pipe.

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway schematic perspective view showing the structure of a dental camera 1 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The dental camera 1 has a substantially pistol shape, and a cylindrical lens barrel portion 2 is provided at one end on the front side.
The other end of the lens barrel portion 2 opposite to the one end is attached to the dental camera body 10 having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. A monitor screen 3 is provided on the rear side of the camera body 10 opposite to the lens barrel section 2.
Is provided. The monitor screen 3 is, for example, 2.5
Inch to 3.5 inch equivalent color TFT
(Thin film transistor) A monitor screen of a liquid crystal device.
In FIG. 1, a handle portion 4 of the dental camera 1 corresponding to a pistol handle having a size that can be held by one hand extends from the lower side of the camera body 10.

The lens barrel 2 has a substantially tubular shape, and has a diameter of about 0.8 cm to about 2.5 cm and a length of about 1 cm to about 15 cm. Have. A transparent plastic filter 5 is provided at the front end of the lens barrel portion 1 so as to pass visible light bidirectionally while separating the outside from the internal space of the lens barrel portion 1. An illumination light source for the white light emitting diode 6 is provided in the lens barrel portion 1 and illuminates the outside through the filter 5. Inside the lens barrel portion 2, there is provided a photographing portion including a digital camera 8 having a fixed focus lens 7 having a large depth of field. The digital camera 8 serving as a photographing unit is a device such as a CCD (charge-coupled device) having a size of about 6 millimeters centimeters and about 300,000 pixels for light received by the lens 7 from an external subject through the filter 5. An image is formed on the semiconductor image sensor (9 in FIG. 3). The image of the subject captured by the semiconductor image sensor 9 is converted into an electric signal, sent to the control circuit 11 in the camera body 10 and processed, and then, in real time as a color image on the monitor screen 3 of the TFT color liquid crystal device. Is displayed in. The image of the subject on the monitor screen 3 is several times, for example, 2-3 times,
It is displayed in a larger size than it actually is.

In FIG. 1, the handle portion 4 extending from the lower side of the camera body 10 is large enough to be held by one hand as described above, and has a rechargeable power source battery 1 inside.
2 is housed and supplies the power required by the entire dental camera 1. In FIG. 1, on the same side as the monitor screen 3 of the handle portion 4, an operation panel 13 and a memory card 14 including a removable nonvolatile semiconductor memory element are inserted.
A discharge port 15 is provided. Further, in FIG. 1, on the same side as the lens barrel portion 2 of the handle portion 4, there is provided a shirt button 16 that can be pushed down by the index finger of one hand of the operator who holds the handle portion 4. When the shutter button 16 is pressed, the image data displayed on the monitor screen 3 is stored in the memory card 14.

As shown in FIG. 2, the operation panel 13 includes
The power switch 21 of the dental camera 1, a power-on indicator light 22 that indicates that the power is on, an image page reverse feed switch 23 and a forward feed switch that display an image stored in the memory card 14 on the monitor screen 3. 24, and a standby switch 25 for turning off the light emission of the white light emitting diode to enter the standby mode when pressed to prevent unnecessary power consumption.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically showing the circuit configuration of the dental camera 1 of the present embodiment shown in FIG.
When the power switch 21 on the operation panel 13 is pressed to turn it on, electric power is supplied from the rechargeable power battery 12 to the entire dental camera 1, the power-on indicator light 22 is turned on, and the white light inside the lens barrel 2 is turned on. The light emitting diode 6 emits light and serves as an irradiation source for illuminating the subject in the narrow portion through the transparent filter 5.

The light received from the subject through the transparent filter 5 is a semiconductor of a CCD (charge coupled device) having 300,000 pixels in a 6 mm square in the lens barrel 2 by the lens 7 of the digital camera 8. An image is formed on the image sensor 9 and converted into an electric signal. The electric signal from the semiconductor image pickup device 9 is processed by the control circuit 11 and then enlarged to a size several times (2 to 3 times) larger than the actual size on the monitor screen 3 of the TFT (thin film transistor) color liquid crystal device. Displayed as a color image. In this way, when the image of the subject received by the lens barrel portion 2 is displayed in real time as a through image on the monitor screen 3 of the dental camera 1, this image can be recorded in the memory card 14 and recorded. Enter the mode. At this time, if the shutter button 16 is pressed by the index finger of one hand of the operator holding the handle portion 4,
One screen portion of the image being displayed on the monitor screen 3 is electrically written and stored in the removable memory card 14 composed of the nonvolatile semiconductor memory element by the control circuit 11. At this time, the shooting date and time of the image (the date and time when the shirt button 16 shown by the clock mechanism (not shown) included in the dental camera 1 is pressed) and the image number (memory card 14).
The order in which the images are stored in) is also stored in the memory card 14 together with the images.

When the user presses the shutter button 16 after confirming the image to be stored on the monitor screen 3, the control circuit 11 indicates that the image is being stored on the monitor screen 3 for the writing process, and when the writing process ends normally. In order to confirm the written image, the written image just stored is read out for about 1 second and displayed on the monitor screen 3. After that, a through image of the subject from the photographing unit 8 is displayed on the monitor screen 3. This informs the operator that the next shirt operation can be performed. When the writing of the image is completed, the memory card 14 updates the image number by one and sets the page number to 1 in order to write the next new image.
Only forward one. The operator can store the images displayed on the monitor screen in the memory card 14 by pressing the shirt button 16 one after another.

If the operator keeps the power switch 21 turned on, the shutter operation is performed for a certain period of time, for example, 30 seconds.
Otherwise, the control circuit 11 automatically stops the light emission of the white light emitting diode 6 to enter the standby mode in order to prevent the power supply battery 12 from being consumed. When the standby switch 25 is pressed while the white light emitting diode 6 is emitting light, the white light emitting diode 6 stops emitting light and enters the standby mode, so that the power supply battery 12 can be prevented from being consumed.
The operator can press the shutter button 16 once to cause the white light-emitting diode 6 to emit light again and exit the standby mode to enter the recording mode. After that, when the shutter button 16 is pressed, the monitor screen 3 is displayed. The image displayed above is stored in the memory card 14.

When the image page reverse feed switch 23 or the forward feed switch 24 on the operation panel 13 is pressed, the dental camera 1 enters the reproduction mode, and if the white light emitting diode 6 is emitting light, it stops emitting light and the control circuit The image 11 stored in the memory card 14 is displayed on the monitor screen 3 by reversing the stored order or reading out the stored order. When the image stored in the memory card 14 is displayed on the monitor screen 3, the image capturing date and time and the image number are displayed on the monitor screen 3 in order to distinguish from the image of the subject displayed in real time from the image capturing unit 8. It may be displayed. Also in the reproduction mode, when the operator presses the shutter button 16 once, the white light emitting diode 6 emits light again, exits the reproduction mode and enters the recording mode.

The removable memory card 14 is removed from the insertion / exhaust port 15 of the memory card 14 and mounted on an external large monitor device (not shown) to remove the memory card 1.
The image stored in the memory card 14 is further enlarged and displayed on the external monitor screen for use in diagnosis, and the image stored in the memory card 14 is attached to an external printer device (not shown) so that the image quality is improved. You can also print it out and save it for your records. At that time, the memory card 1
By displaying or printing the image shooting date and time and the image number of the image stored in the external monitor 4, the images taken by the dental camera 1 can be organized and displayed or printed.

FIG. 4 shows a method of using the dental camera 1 of this embodiment. For example, the operator holds the handle portion 4 of the dental camera 1 with the right hand 41 and inserts the tip of the lens barrel portion 2 of the dental camera 1 into the oral cavity 32 of the patient 31. At this time, for the sake of hygiene and prevention of contamination, the dental camera 1
The lens barrel portion 2 and the lens barrel portion 2 side of the camera body 10 are provided with a transparent plastic cover (not shown) which is disposable for each patient so as not to come into direct contact with the patient or be exposed to saliva or the like. When the site to be observed in the oral cavity 32 of the patient 31 cannot be directly displayed on the monitor screen 3 by the lens barrel 2 of the dental camera 1, the operator holds the grip of the dental mirror 33 with the left hand 42, for example. The image reflected by the mirror 33 is received by the lens barrel portion 2 and is enlarged and displayed on the monitor screen 3 by several times. The operator views the through-the-lens image in the oral cavity 32 displayed on the monitor screen 3 in real time, and holds the image that seems necessary by gripping the handle portion 4 of the dental camera 1 with the index finger of the right hand 41. By pressing the shirt button 16 of the handle portion 4, the data can be written and stored in the memory card 14.

The dental camera 1 of the present invention can be easily reduced in size and weight by using the latest semiconductor technology such as the white light emitting diode 6, the CCD image pickup device 9, the TFT color liquid crystal device 3, the memory card 14 and the like. Therefore, the total weight including the rechargeable battery can be reduced to 1 kg or less. Therefore, the operator can easily hold and operate the dental camera 1 of the present invention with one hand. further,
The dental camera 1 of the present invention can be manufactured relatively inexpensively using the latest semiconductor technology. Therefore, for example, one dental camera 1 according to the present invention is attached to each dental treatment table,
Used by the dentist for treatment, diagnosis, recording, or
It can also be used to explain the treatment method while displaying the image taken by the patient on the monitor screen of the dental camera.

The preferred embodiment of the narrow-part photography monitor-integrated camera capable of holding one hand according to the present invention has been described above, but it is understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be easily made from the above description. it can. For example, the image capturing unit can use a small television camera instead of the digital camera. Further, in addition to the dental camera, it can be used as a camera with a built-in monitor for narrow area photography capable of holding one hand for inspecting a narrow area such as inspecting the inside of piping.

[0032]

As described above, according to the narrow-part photography monitor-integrated camera of the present invention which can be held by one hand, the lens barrel portion for receiving light from the subject and the monitor screen are integrally formed by one hand with the handle portion. To hold and operate,
Furthermore, since the lens barrel and the monitor screen are arranged in the same direction as seen from the operator, the operator can operate the camera with one hand while looking at the image of the subject displayed on the monitor screen without changing the line of sight. It is possible and easy to use. further,
It is small and lightweight and has excellent portability, so it can be easily used by one person anywhere at any time.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway perspective view schematically showing the configuration of a narrow-part shooting monitor-integrated camera capable of being held by one hand according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a portion of an operation panel of the narrow-part shooting monitor-integrated camera shown in FIG. 1, which can be held by one hand.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically showing a circuit configuration of a narrow-part shooting monitor-integrated camera shown in FIG. 1 that can be held by one hand.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view showing one method of using the narrow-part shooting monitor-integrated camera shown in FIG. 1 that can be held by one hand.

[Explanation of symbols] 1 dental camera 2 lens barrel 3 monitor screen 4 handle 6 White light emitting diode 7 lenses 8 digital cameras 9 CCD semiconductor image sensor 10 camera body 12 power battery 13 Operation panel 14 memory card 16 Shutter button

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ identification code FI H04N 5/907 H04N 5/907 B 7/18 7/18 U (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) A61B 1/00-1/32 G02B 23/24-23/26 G03B 15/02 G03B 17/02 H04N 5/225 H04N 5/907 H04N 7/18

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A lens barrel portion provided at one end for receiving light from a subject in a narrow portion, a photographing unit for photographing an image of the subject received by the lens barrel unit, and an image photographed by the photographing unit. A camera body having a monitor screen provided on the other end opposite to the one end for displaying to the operator, and an operator holding and operating the camera body attached to the camera body with one hand. And a removable memory card for storing the captured image.
On the same side as the lens barrel of the handle.
The captured image that can be operated with a finger is stored in the memory card.
There is a shutter button for storing inside and a memory card on the same side of the handle as the monitor screen.
Display the image stored in the screen on the monitor screen
A camera with a built-in dental monitor that can be held by one hand , which is equipped with an image page feed switch . 2. A color having a white light-emitting diode for illuminating a subject in the narrow portion, and a semiconductor photographing device for photographing an image of the subject from the lens barrel, wherein the lens barrel portion has a white light emitting diode. The dental monitor integrated camera according to claim 1, wherein the dental monitor is a digital camera, and the monitor screen is a TFT color liquid crystal screen that displays a captured image of the subject in color. 3. The lens barrel portion has an outer shape of about 0.8 cm to 2.5 cm and a length of 1 cm to 15 cm, and the photographing unit is fixed with a large depth of field. The one-hand-held dental monitor integrated camera according to claim 2, wherein the camera has a focusing lens, the monitor screen is a 2.5-3.5 inch color liquid crystal screen, and the total weight is less than 1 kilogram. .