JP4464152B2 - Subcutaneous state display device, program, and subcutaneous state display method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention is suitable for use in measuring the thickness of subcutaneous fat. The present invention is an invention made for use in the measurement of the thickness of subcutaneous fat, but can also be widely used for observing the subcutaneous state.

  A technique for observing a subcutaneous state using ultrasonic waves is widely known. Compared to the case of using X-rays, it is not necessary to consider the influence of radiation, and since the subcutaneous state can be easily observed, it is widely used.

FIG. 12 is a diagram schematically showing a subcutaneous state observed by ultrasonic waves. As shown in FIG. 12, linear images and dot images extending in various directions can be observed. These images do not always faithfully represent the subcutaneous state, and may be, for example, images that appear as a result of irregular reflection of ultrasonic waves by water bubbles or bubbles under the skin (for example, Patent Document 1). 2, 3).
JP 2001-212111 A JP 2003-235848 A JP 2003-325517 A

  In such a conventional ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, an expert having expert knowledge analyzes the subcutaneous image as shown in FIG. 12 and collects desired information. For example, when measuring the sebum thickness, the sebum thickness is estimated by distinguishing the sebum image from the muscle image based on the past rich experience.

  During this appraisal work, the appraiser selects elements necessary for measuring sebum thickness and unnecessary elements from his / her own head from the image shown in FIG. 12, and the fictitious image drawn in the appraiser's head. The appraisal is based on the images. In such an appraisal operation, if an element unnecessary for the appraisal can be automatically removed from the image shown in FIG. 12 in advance, the appraisal operation becomes easy.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a subcutaneous state display device which is performed in such a background and can extract and display a desired element from an image representing a subcutaneous state.

  The first aspect of the present invention is based on means for transmitting / receiving ultrasonic waves to / from a specific area under the human body via an ultrasonic probe, the intensity of ultrasonic waves received by the means for transmitting / receiving, and the transmission time of the received waves. Subcutaneous state display device comprising: means for collecting information on the subcutaneous state of the specific range based on the elapsed time of the pixel as pixel luminance information; and means for generating an image signal based on the luminance information collected by the collecting means It is.

  Here, a feature of the present invention is that the luminance is within a predetermined range with respect to a direction specified in advance from the luminance information collected by the collecting means, and is a predetermined number. Means for extracting a pixel row including the above-described pixels, and means for generating the image signal include means for generating an image signal based on the pixel row extracted by the extracting means.

  For example, when it is desired to observe the sebum thickness, the skin layer is substantially parallel to the epidermis. Therefore, in this case, a direction parallel to the epidermis is designated, and a pixel row having substantially the same brightness in this direction and including a predetermined number of pixels or more is extracted. The pixel row extracted in this way includes a lot of information necessary for observing the sebum thickness, and hardly includes information unnecessary for observing the sebum thickness.

  Thereby, the sebum thickness appraiser can improve the accuracy of the appraisal or shorten the appraisal time. In addition, by using an image that contains a lot of information necessary for observing sebum thickness and contains almost no unnecessary information for observing sebum thickness, it does not rely on an expert who has expertise. It is also advantageous when a device for automatically measuring the sebum thickness is configured by a patterned image analysis procedure.

  Or, conversely, by displaying the remaining pixel rows from which the pixel rows in the direction parallel to the epidermis necessary for displaying the skin layer are displayed, it is easy to observe the foreign substance under the skin. You can also. That is, a foreign substance that cannot exist under normal skin often exists in a shape different from that of a normal skin layer. Such a foreign substance is easily found by displaying the remaining pixel rows from which the pixel rows in the direction parallel to the epidermis are removed.

  Although an example of extracting a pixel column in a direction parallel to the skin has been described here, a pixel column in an arbitrary direction, such as a pixel column in a direction perpendicular to the skin or a pixel column in an oblique direction, is necessary. Can be extracted. It is also possible to extract a pixel column by simultaneously specifying a plurality of directions such as a parallel direction and a vertical direction with respect to the skin.

  Also, a desired image can be obtained by arbitrarily designating the luminance range of pixels or the number of pixels included in a pixel column. For example, it is possible to obtain an advantageous image for capturing the specimen globally by extracting the luminance range by limiting it to a relatively strong one. On the contrary, by extracting the range of luminance including those having relatively low luminance, it is possible to obtain an advantageous image for examining the specimen in detail.

  In addition, by extracting a relatively large number of pixels included in the pixel column, it is possible to obtain an image that is advantageous for capturing the specimen globally. On the other hand, by extracting with a relatively small number of pixels included in the pixel row, it is possible to obtain an advantageous image for examining the specimen in detail.

  In this way, since the luminance or the number of pixels to be extracted can be arbitrarily set, an optimal image can be obtained according to the purpose.

  The second aspect of the present invention relates to means for transmitting / receiving ultrasonic waves to / from a specific area under the human body via an ultrasonic probe, the intensity of ultrasonic waves received by the means for transmitting / receiving, and the transmission time of the received waves. Subcutaneous state display device comprising: means for collecting information on the subcutaneous state of the specific range based on the elapsed time of the pixel as pixel luminance information; and means for generating an image signal based on the luminance information collected by the collecting means It is a program applied to.

  Here, the feature of the present invention is that the information processing apparatus is installed in the information processing apparatus so that the information is collected in the direction specified in advance from the luminance information collected by the collecting means. An image signal based on a pixel string extracted by the function of extracting the pixel string including a predetermined number of pixels having luminance within a predetermined range and the function of generating the image signal in the means for generating the image signal And the function to generate

  The third aspect of the present invention is the information processing apparatus-readable recording medium on which the program of the present invention is recorded. By recording the program of the present invention on the recording medium of the present invention, the information processing apparatus can install the program of the present invention using this recording medium. Alternatively, the program of the present invention can be directly installed in the information processing apparatus via a network from a server holding the program of the present invention.

  Accordingly, it is possible to realize a subcutaneous state display device that can extract and display a desired element from an image representing a subcutaneous state using a general-purpose information processing device.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a step of transmitting / receiving an ultrasonic wave via an ultrasonic probe to a specific subcutaneous area of a human body, an intensity of an ultrasonic wave received by the step of transmitting / receiving, and a transmission time of the received wave. A method for collecting the information on the subcutaneous condition in the specific range as pixel luminance information based on the elapsed time and a step for generating an image signal based on the luminance information collected by the collecting step It is.

  Here, a feature of the present invention is that the brightness is within a predesignated range with respect to a predesignated direction from the brightness information collected by the collecting step, and a predesignated number. The step of extracting a pixel row including the above-described pixels is executed, and as the step of generating the image signal, a step of generating an image signal based on the pixel row extracted by the extracting step is executed.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the subcutaneous state display apparatus which can extract and display a desired element from the image showing a subcutaneous state is realizable.

  A subcutaneous state display device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a subcutaneous state display device of this embodiment.

  In the embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 1, an ultrasonic transmission / reception unit 1 that transmits / receives ultrasonic waves to / from a specific area under the human body via an ultrasonic probe 10, and an ultrasonic wave received by the ultrasonic transmission / reception unit 1. Based on the intensity of the sound wave and the elapsed time from the transmission time of the received wave, the information collecting unit 2 that collects information on the subcutaneous state in the specific range as the luminance information of the pixel, and the luminance information collected by the information collecting unit 2 It is a subcutaneous state display device 5 that includes an image signal generation unit 4 that generates an image signal based on the image signal.

  Here, the feature of the present embodiment is that the luminance is within a predetermined range with respect to a direction specified in advance from the luminance information collected by the information collecting unit 2 and is specified in advance. An information extraction unit 3 that extracts a pixel column including a number of pixels or more is provided, and the image signal generation unit 4 includes a unit that generates an image signal based on the pixel column extracted by the information extraction unit 3. .

  The information extraction unit 3 extracts a pixel row in accordance with the direction of the pixel row desired to be extracted and the luminance of the pixel and the number of pixels included in the pixel row, which are input by operating the keyboard 11 or the mouse 12. The subcutaneous state is displayed on the monitor 13 based on the image signal generated by the image signal generation unit 4.

  FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of the subcutaneous state display device of the present embodiment realized by a personal computer. As shown in FIG. 2, the present embodiment can be realized as a program applied to a subcutaneous state display device. That is, by installing in an information processing apparatus such as the personal computer 40, the information processing apparatus is designated in advance from the function corresponding to the information collecting unit 2 and the luminance information collected by the information collecting unit 2. A function corresponding to the information extracting unit 3 for extracting a pixel row including a predetermined number of pixels whose luminance is within a predetermined range with respect to the specified direction, and corresponding to the image signal generating unit 4 The present embodiment is realized as a program characterized by realizing a function and a function of causing the image signal generation unit 4 to generate an image signal based on a pixel column extracted by a function corresponding to the information extraction unit 3 be able to.

  This program is recorded on a recording medium such as the CD-ROM 30 and installed in the information processing apparatus, or installed in the information processing apparatus via a communication line, so that the information collecting unit 2 and the information extracting unit are installed in the information processing apparatus. Corresponding functions can be realized in the unit 3 and the image signal generation unit 4, respectively. As a result, a subcutaneous state display device can be realized by preparing the ultrasonic transmission / reception device 20, the personal computer 40, and peripheral devices (keyboard 11, mouse 12, monitor 13).

  Next, a pixel row extraction procedure by the information extraction unit 3 will be described. A desired image can be obtained by giving an instruction to the information extraction unit 3 with the keyboard 11 or the mouse 12 and designating the direction of the pixel column to be extracted, the luminance range of the pixel, and the number of pixels included in the pixel column. For example, it is possible to obtain an advantageous image for capturing the specimen globally by extracting the luminance range by limiting it to a relatively strong one. On the contrary, by extracting the range of luminance including those having relatively low luminance, it is possible to obtain an advantageous image for examining the specimen in detail.

  In addition, by extracting a relatively large number of pixels included in the pixel column, it is possible to obtain an image that is advantageous for capturing the specimen globally. On the other hand, by extracting with a relatively small number of pixels included in the pixel row, it is possible to obtain an advantageous image for examining the specimen in detail.

  As described above, since the direction of the pixel row to be extracted and the luminance and number of pixels can be arbitrarily set, an optimal image can be obtained according to the purpose. As for the direction of the pixel row to be extracted, a plurality of directions such as a parallel direction and a vertical direction with respect to the epidermis can be designated at the same time. Here, the direction of the pixel row to be extracted is a direction parallel to the skin, and the number of pixels included in the pixel row to be extracted is 10 or more.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of an extracted pixel column. The size of ○ in the figure represents the intensity of luminance. As shown in FIG. 3, when 10 or more pixels having substantially the same luminance are arranged in a direction parallel to the epidermis, the information extraction unit 3 extracts this pixel row.

  4 and 5 are diagrams illustrating an example of pixel columns that are not extracted. As shown in FIG. 4, the information extraction unit 3 does not extract this pixel row even when ten or more pixels having different luminances are arranged in the parallel direction with respect to the epidermis. In addition, as shown in FIG. 5, when less than 10 pixels having substantially the same luminance are arranged in a direction parallel to the skin except for the central three columns, the information extraction unit 3 extracts this pixel column. do not do.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a pixel column extracted by the information extraction unit 3. As shown in FIG. 6, only pixel examples satisfying a predetermined condition are extracted from the pixel column shown in FIG. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating pixel columns that are not extracted by the information extraction unit 3. When the pixel column that has not been extracted by the information extraction unit 3 is extracted, the pixel column shown in FIG. 7 is obtained.

  A flowchart of the pixel column extraction procedure is shown in FIG. A pixel row in the designated direction is extracted (step 1). In the example of FIG. 5, the designated direction is a direction parallel to the epidermis. A pixel column including pixels whose luminance is in a range designated in advance is extracted from the pixel columns extracted in this way (step 2). As a result, pixel rows including pixels having different luminances as shown in FIG. 4 are excluded. Further, a pixel row including a predetermined number or more of pixels is extracted (step 3). In the example of FIGS. 3 and 5, a pixel row including 10 or more pixels is extracted. When the inspection is completed for all the pixels in this way (step 4), an image signal is generated based on the extracted pixel row (step 5). As step 5, an image signal can be generated based on the pixels that have not been extracted.

  FIG. 9 is an example in which the image signal generated based on the pixel columns extracted in steps 1 to 4 in FIG. 8 is displayed on the monitor 13, and the original image is the image shown in FIG. FIG. 10 is an example in which an image signal generated based on the pixels not extracted in steps 1 to 4 in FIG. 8 is displayed on the monitor 13, and the original image is the image shown in FIG. FIG. 11 is an example in which the designated direction is a direction perpendicular to the epidermis, and the image signal generated based on the pixel column extracted in steps 1 to 4 in FIG. 8 is displayed on the monitor 13, and the original image is shown in FIG. 12 is an image shown in FIG.

  The image of FIG. 9 shows the skin layer prominently, and is an image that is easy to observe when observing the sebum thickness. By recognizing such a skin layer, the accuracy of observation of sebum thickness by an expert having expert knowledge can be improved, or the examination time can be shortened. In addition to the appraisal by the appraiser, an image that is advantageous for improving the observation accuracy can be obtained for an apparatus that automatically observes the sebum thickness by a patterned image analysis procedure.

  The image in FIG. 10 shows an image from which the skin layer has been removed, and is an image in which it is easy to find a foreign substance that should not originally exist in the skin layer.

  The image in FIG. 11 is an example in which a pixel row in the direction perpendicular to the epidermis is extracted, and it can be seen that a dot-like image is further removed from the image in FIG.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the subcutaneous state display apparatus which can extract and display a desired element from the image showing a subcutaneous state is realizable. As a result, it is possible to improve the accuracy of appraisal by expert appraisers or shorten the appraisal time, and it is advantageous for realizing an apparatus for automatically observing sebum thickness using a patterned image analysis procedure. An image signal can be obtained.

The block diagram of the subcutaneous condition display apparatus of a present Example. The block diagram of the subcutaneous condition display apparatus of a present Example implement | achieved with the personal computer. The figure which shows an example of the pixel row | line | column extracted. The figure which shows an example of the pixel row which is not extracted. The figure which shows an example of the pixel row which is not extracted. The figure which shows the pixel row | line extracted by the information extraction part. The figure which shows the pixel row | line | column which is not extracted by the information extraction part. The flowchart of a pixel row extraction procedure. The figure which shows the example which displayed on the monitor the image signal produced | generated based on the pixel row | line extracted by steps 1-4. The figure which shows the example which displayed on the monitor the image signal produced | generated based on the pixel which was not extracted by step 1-4. The figure which shows the example which displayed on the monitor the image signal produced | generated based on the pixel row | line extracted by step 1-4 with the designated direction as a perpendicular direction with respect to the epidermis. The figure which shows typically the subcutaneous state observed by the ultrasonic wave.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Ultrasonic transmission / reception part 2 Information collection part 3 Information extraction part 4 Image signal generation part 5 Subcutaneous state display apparatus 10 Ultrasonic probe 11 Keyboard 12 Mouse 13 Monitor 20 Ultrasonic transmission / reception apparatus 30 CD-ROM
40 Personal computer

Claims (4)

Means for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves via a ultrasonic probe to a specific area under the human body;
Means for collecting information on the subcutaneous state of the specific range as pixel luminance information based on the intensity of the ultrasonic wave received by the means for transmitting and receiving and the elapsed time from the transmission time of the received wave;
A subcutaneous state display device comprising: means for generating an image signal based on the luminance information collected by the collecting means;
Means for extracting, from the luminance information collected by the collecting means, a pixel row including a predetermined number of pixels whose luminance is in a predetermined range with respect to a predetermined direction. Prepared,
The means for generating the image signal comprises means for generating an image signal based on the pixel column extracted by the extracting means. Means for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves via a ultrasonic probe to a specific area under the human body;
Means for collecting information on the subcutaneous state of the specific range as pixel luminance information based on the intensity of the ultrasonic wave received by the means for transmitting and receiving and the elapsed time from the transmission time of the received wave;
In a program applied to a subcutaneous state display device comprising: means for generating an image signal based on the luminance information collected by the collecting means;
By installing on an information processing device,
A function of extracting a pixel row including a predetermined number of pixels whose luminance is within a predetermined range with respect to a predetermined direction from the luminance information collected by the collecting unit; ,
A program for causing the means for generating the image signal to generate an image signal based on the pixel column extracted by the extracting function.   A recording medium readable by the information processing apparatus on which the program according to claim 2 is recorded. Transmitting and receiving ultrasound through an ultrasound probe to a specific area under the human body;
Collecting the information on the subcutaneous state of the specific range as the luminance information of the pixel based on the intensity of the ultrasonic wave received by the transmitting and receiving step and the elapsed time from the transmission time of the received wave;
In the subcutaneous condition display method, performing the step of generating an image signal based on the luminance information collected by the collecting step,
Extracting from the luminance information collected in the collecting step a pixel row whose luminance is in a predetermined range with respect to a predetermined direction and including a predetermined number of pixels or more. Run,
A subcutaneous state display method characterized in that, as the step of generating the image signal, a step of generating an image signal based on the pixel sequence extracted by the extracting step is executed.

Images