JP5073564B2 - Endoscope device for measurement and program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a measurement endoscope apparatus that performs measurement based on the principle of triangulation using image data, and a program for controlling the operation thereof.

  Industrial endoscopes are used for observation and inspection of internal scratches and corrosion of boilers, turbines, engines, chemical plants, water pipes, and the like. In an industrial endoscope, a plurality of types of optical adapters are prepared so that various observation objects can be observed and inspected, and the distal end portion of the endoscope is replaceable.

As the optical adapter, there is a stereo optical adapter that forms two left and right visual fields in the observation optical system. In Patent Document 1, a stereo optical adapter is used, and based on the coordinates of the right and left optical system ranging points when the subject image is captured by the left and right optical systems, the subject is three-dimensional using the principle of triangulation. An endoscope apparatus for measurement is described that obtains spatial coordinates and measures the distance between two points on a subject.
JP 2006-15117 A

  In the invention described in Patent Document 1, a user operates a joystick or the like provided in an endoscope apparatus while viewing a screen of a display device connected to the endoscope apparatus to set a measurement position (measurement point). Make input. A cursor indicating the measurement position is displayed on the image, and the cursor moves in the direction in which the joystick is tilted. When the user inputs an instruction to confirm a measurement point at a desired position, a measurement point icon is displayed at the cursor position, and the measurement point is set at that position. Subsequently, the next measurement point is input while moving the cursor in the same manner. However, for example, when measuring the distance between two points, the measurement of the distance between two points and the display of the measurement result are not performed unless the user determines both the measurement points.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and provides an endoscope apparatus and program that can reduce the burden of an operation for determining a measurement position and improve the efficiency of measurement work. Objective.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problem. An endoscope that photoelectrically converts a subject image to generate an imaging signal, an imaging signal processing unit that processes the imaging signal and generates image data, In a measurement endoscope apparatus comprising: a measurement unit that performs measurement based on the principle of triangulation using the image data; and a display signal generation unit that generates a display signal for displaying an image based on the image data. A position information input unit for inputting position information indicating a measurement position on the image, a confirmation instruction input unit for inputting a confirmation instruction for the measurement position, and the position information input to the position information input unit When the confirmation instruction is input to the confirmation instruction input unit, the display signal generation unit is controlled to fix the position of the displayed marker and display the next marker. Display system A measurement control unit that controls the measurement unit to perform measurement based on both the measurement position where the confirmation instruction is not input and the measurement position where the confirmation instruction is input It is the endoscope apparatus for measurement characterized by having provided.

  In the endoscope apparatus of the present invention, the measurement unit performs measurement based on both the measurement position where the confirmation instruction is not input and the measurement position where the confirmation instruction is input. And a mode switching unit that switches between the measurement mode and the second measurement mode in which the measurement unit performs measurement based only on the measurement position where the confirmation instruction is input.

  The endoscope apparatus according to the present invention further includes a recording unit that records the position information regarding the currently displayed mark, the state information indicating whether the confirmation instruction is input regarding the currently displayed mark, and the image data on a recording medium. It is further provided with a feature.

  The endoscope apparatus of the present invention further includes a reading unit that reads the position information, the state information, and the image data from the recording medium, and the display control unit is further read from the recording medium. A mark is displayed at the position indicated by the position information, the position of the mark where the confirmation instruction is input is fixed, and the position of the mark where the confirmation instruction is not input is input to the position information input unit. The display signal generation unit is controlled to update to a position indicated by the information.

  In the endoscope apparatus of the present invention, the measurement control unit further controls the timing at which the measurement unit executes measurement based on an elapsed time from a predetermined timing.

  Moreover, in the endoscope apparatus according to the present invention, the measurement control unit further determines a timing at which the measurement unit performs measurement based on a moving speed of the position indicated by the position information input to the position information input unit. It is characterized by controlling.

  Further, in the endoscope apparatus according to the present invention, the display signal generation unit displays the image at the position indicated by the position information input to the position information input unit based on the image data. The display control unit further controls the display magnification of the image at the position indicated by the position information in accordance with the moving speed of the position indicated by the position information input to the position information input unit. And

  In addition, the present invention is based on an endoscope that photoelectrically converts a subject image to generate an imaging signal, an imaging signal processing unit that processes the imaging signal to generate image data, and a principle of triangulation using the image data. A computer that controls a measurement endoscope apparatus that includes a measurement unit that performs measurement and a display signal generation unit that generates a display signal for displaying an image based on the image data. A position information input unit for inputting position information to be indicated, a confirmation instruction input unit for inputting a confirmation instruction for the measurement position, and a mark displayed at the position indicated by the position information input to the position information input unit When the confirmation instruction is input to the confirmation instruction input unit, the display control unit that fixes the position of the currently displayed mark and controls the display signal generation unit to display the next mark, and Confirmation instruction A program for causing a measurement control unit to control the measurement unit to perform measurement based on both the measurement position that has not been input and the measurement position to which the confirmation instruction has been input. .

  According to the present invention, since the measurement can be performed based on both the measurement position where the confirmation instruction is not input and the measurement position where the confirmation instruction is input, the operation of inputting the confirmation instruction is performed. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the burden of the operation for determining the measurement position and to improve the efficiency of the measurement work.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows the overall configuration of a measurement endoscope apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the measuring endoscope apparatus 1 includes an endoscope 2 and an apparatus main body 3 connected to the endoscope 2. The endoscope 2 includes an elongated insertion unit 20 and an operation unit 6 for performing operations necessary for performing various operation controls of the entire apparatus. The apparatus body 3 includes a monitor 4 (liquid crystal monitor) that is a display device that displays an image of a subject imaged by the endoscope 2 and operation control contents (for example, a processing menu), and a control unit 10 (FIG. 2). And a housing 5 having a reference).

  The insertion portion 20 is configured by connecting a hard distal end portion 21, a bending portion 22 that can be bent vertically and horizontally, and a flexible tube portion 23 having flexibility in order from the distal end side. Various optical adapters such as a stereo optical adapter having two observation fields and a normal observation optical adapter having one observation field are detachably attached to the distal end portion 21.

  As shown in FIG. 2, an endoscope unit 8, a CCU 9 (camera control unit), and a control unit 10 are provided in the housing 5, and the proximal end portion of the insertion portion 20 is attached to the endoscope unit 8. It is connected. The endoscope unit 8 includes a light source device (not shown) that supplies illumination light necessary for observation, and a bending device (not shown) that bends the bending portion 22 that constitutes the insertion portion 20. .

  An imaging element 28 is built in the distal end portion 21 of the insertion portion 20. The image sensor 28 photoelectrically converts the subject image formed through the optical adapter to generate an image signal. An imaging signal output from the imaging device 28 is input to the CCU 9. The imaging signal is converted into a video signal (image data) such as an NTSC signal in the CCU 9 and supplied to the control unit 10.

  In the control unit 10, a video signal processing circuit 12, to which a video signal is input, a ROM 13, a RAM 14, a card I / F 15 (card interface), a USB I / F 16 (USB interface), and an RS-232C I / F 17 (RS -232C interface) and a CPU 18 that executes these various functions based on a main program and performs operation control.

  The RS-232C I / F 17 is connected to the CCU 9 and the endoscope unit 8, and to the operation unit 6 that performs control and operation instructions for the CCU 9 and the endoscope unit 8. When the user operates the operation unit 6, communication necessary for controlling the operation of the CCU 9 and the endoscope unit 8 is performed based on the operation content.

  The USB I / F 16 is an interface for electrically connecting the control unit 10 and the personal computer 31. By connecting the control unit 10 and the personal computer 31 via the USB I / F 16, various instruction control such as an endoscopic image display instruction and image processing at the time of measurement is performed on the personal computer 31 side. And control information and data necessary for various processes between the control unit 10 and the personal computer 31 can be input / output.

  Further, the memory card 32 can be freely attached to and detached from the card I / F 15. By attaching the memory card 32 to the card I / F 15, in accordance with control by the CPU 18, control processing information and image information stored in the memory card 32 are taken into the control unit 10, or control processing information or It is possible to record data such as image information in the memory card 32.

  The video signal processing circuit 12 displays a composite image obtained by combining the endoscopic image supplied from the CCU 9 and the graphic operation menu, so that the graphic image signal based on the operation menu and the CCU 9 generated by the control of the CPU 18 are displayed. The processing for synthesizing the video signals from the video and the processing necessary for displaying on the screen of the monitor 4 are performed, and the display signal is supplied to the monitor 4. Further, the video signal processing circuit 12 can simply perform processing for displaying an endoscopic image or an image such as an operation menu alone. Therefore, an endoscope image, an operation menu image, a composite image of the endoscope image and the operation menu image, and the like are displayed on the screen of the monitor 4.

  The CPU 18 executes the program stored in the ROM 13 to control various circuit units and the like so as to perform processing according to the purpose, thereby controlling the operation of the entire measurement endoscope apparatus 1. The RAM 14 is used by the CPU 18 as a work area for temporarily storing data.

  3 is a perspective view of the distal end portion 21 of the insertion portion 20 included in the endoscope 2, and FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the distal end portion 21 includes a distal end portion main body 39 and an optical adapter 46 that can be attached to and detached from the distal end portion main body 39. The distal end surface of the distal end portion 21 is provided with two illuminations 24 made of LEDs, for example, and an observation window 25 for capturing a subject image. As shown in FIG. 4, the observation window 25 provided in the distal end portion body 39 constituting the distal end portion 21 is closed with a cover glass 30, and a pair of objective optical systems, that is, a right side is interposed inside the observation window 25 through a lens frame 36. An objective optical system for image 26R and an objective optical system for left image 26L are attached.

  The lens frame 36 extends rearward, and a front-stage optical system 27a of a common image transmission optical system 27 is attached. The image sensor 28 is fixed to the image sensor fixing frame 37 housed in the hole on the rear end side of the lens frame 36. A rear side optical system 27b of the image transmission optical system 27 is attached to the front side of the image pickup surface of the image pickup element 28 via a lens frame. Further, the outer periphery of the front end side of the front end portion main body 39 is covered with a cylindrical cover member 38, and the cover member 38 is fixed to the front end portion main body 39 with screws. An O-ring for sealing is inserted between the cover member 38 and the tip end body 39 to form a watertight structure.

  Images by the objective optical system 26R and the objective optical system 26L are formed at different positions on the left and right on the image sensor 28 via the image transmission optical system 27. That is, a right imaging optical system that is an optical system including the objective optical system 26R and the image transmission optical system 27 and a left imaging optical system that is an optical system including the objective optical system 26L and the image transmission optical system 27 are configured. . The imaging signal photoelectrically converted by the imaging device 28 is supplied to the CCU 9 via the endoscope unit 8 and converted into a video signal, and then supplied to the video signal processing circuit 12.

  Further, the front side of the image sensor 28 is protected by a cover glass 47, and the cover glass 47 faces the cover glass 48 on the optical adapter 46 side. A fixing ring 49 is provided on the outer peripheral surface on the rear end side of the optical adapter 46, and is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the rear end endoscope of the fixing ring 49 on the male screw portion provided on the outer peripheral surface of the distal end body 39. By attaching the female screw part, it can be detachably attached. A positioning concave portion is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the distal end surface of the distal end main body 39, and a positioning pin is provided on the optical adapter 39 side. When the optical adapter 39 is attached, positioning in the circumferential direction is performed by the concave portion and the pin. .

  Next, a measurement method using the measurement endoscope apparatus 1 will be described. In the production process, the optical data peculiar to each optical adapter 46 shown in the following (a1) to (e) is measured for each optical adapter 46 with different individuals. The optical data is recorded on a recording medium such as a memory card. The optical data recorded on the memory card has a one-to-one correspondence with the characteristics of the optical adapter 46 and is handled as one combination after shipment. The optical data of this embodiment is as follows. The details of the optical data are described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-49638, and the description thereof is omitted.

(A1) Geometric distortion correction table for the two objective optical systems (a2) Geometric distortion correction table for the image transmission optical system (b) Focal lengths of the left and right imaging optical systems (c) Left and right imaging optical systems (D) Optical axis position coordinates on the images of the left and right imaging optical systems (e) Position when the images of the left and right imaging optical systems are imaged on the master image sensor information

  Hereinafter, a method for measuring optical data will be described with reference to FIG. The production measurement jig 51 can be mounted with an optical adapter 46, and includes a master imaging unit 52, a CCU 53, a personal computer 31, and a chart 54.

  The master imaging unit 52 has the same structure as the distal end portion main body 39 of the endoscope 2. The CCU 53 is connected to the master imaging unit 52 through a signal line. The personal computer 31 has a memory card slot 54 to which the memory card 33 can be attached and detached, and performs image processing on image data from the CCU 53. The chart 54 has a lattice pattern for analyzing the optical characteristics of the optical adapter 46.

  When optical data is captured using the production measurement jig 51, first, as shown in FIG. 5, the optical adapter 46 is attached to the master imaging unit 52, and the image of the chart 54 is captured via the optical adapter 46. Image processing is performed by the personal computer 31 based on the image data, and the optical data (a1) to (e) are obtained and recorded in the memory card 33.

  The optical adapter 46 after collecting the specific optical data is attached to the endoscope 2, and the measurement endoscope apparatus 1 performs the following processes (1) to (8) to measure various dimensions. (Stereo measurement) can be performed. Note that details of stereo measurement are described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-49638, and thus description thereof is omitted.

(1) Read the optical data (a1) to (e) from the memory card 33.
(2) A white subject is imaged using the measurement endoscope apparatus 1.
(3) Using the data of (e) and the imaging data of (2), the displacement of the image position due to the combination of the optical adapter 46 and the endoscope 2 is obtained.
(4) A conversion table for performing geometric distortion correction for the endoscope 2 is created using the data of (3) and the data of (1).
(5) The to-be-measured object which is a subject is imaged by the endoscope 2 and an image is captured.
(6) The coordinates of the captured image are converted based on the conversion table created in (4).
(7) Based on the coordinate-converted image, the three-dimensional coordinates of an arbitrary point are obtained by the imaging data matching in (2) above.
(8) Various dimension measurements are performed based on the three-dimensional coordinates.

  The processes (1) to (4) are executed once for the combination of the endoscope 2 and the optical adapter 46. The optical data and conversion table obtained as a result are recorded in the memory card 33 as environment data. In the next and subsequent stereo measurements, instead of executing the processes (1) to (4), the environment data is read from the memory card 33 and the processes (5) to (8) are executed. When a user owns a plurality of endoscopes 2 or optical adapters 46 and exchanges these to perform measurement, the combinations (1) to (4) described above are performed for each combination of the endoscope 2 and the optical adapter 46. This process is executed to record environmental data.

  When performing a stereo measurement, when the user operates the menu screen shown in FIG. 6 and selects environment data corresponding to the combination of the endoscope 2 and the optical adapter to be used, the environment data is stored in the memory card 33 for measurement. It is read into the endoscope apparatus 1. If the CPU 18 can identify the type of endoscope 2 or optical adapter being used, environmental data that is not used may not be displayed on the menu screen, or selection on the menu screen may be omitted. Is possible. Further, when the user selects deletion of environment data on the menu screen, it is also possible to delete one or a plurality of environment data selected by the user or all unnecessary environment data from the memory card 33.

  In the process (5), a noise removal filter may be applied to the captured image as necessary. As a result, failure of pattern matching processing (details will be described later) due to noise can be reduced, matching errors can be reduced, and measurement accuracy can be improved. For example, when a median filter that selects a median value of pixel values in a 3 × 3 pixel range is used as the noise removal filter, noise can be reduced while preserving contour information necessary for measurement.

  Next, the operation of the measurement endoscope apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 7 shows the overall operation of the measuring endoscope apparatus 1. When the measurement endoscope apparatus 1 is activated, the CPU 18 performs initialization (step SA). Subsequently, the CPU 18 monitors a signal input from the operation unit 6 via the RS232C I / F 17 and determines whether or not the zoom switch for changing the image magnification is ON (step SB). If the zoom switch is ON, the CPU 18 instructs the video signal processing circuit 12 to change the magnification of the electronic zoom process for enlarging the image (step SC). Thereafter, the process proceeds to step SD. If the zoom switch is OFF in step SB, the process proceeds to step SD.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 monitors a signal input from the operation unit 6 via the RS232C I / F 17 and determines whether or not the brightness switch for changing the brightness of the image is ON (step SD). If the brightness switch is ON, the CPU 18 instructs the video signal processing circuit 12 to change the brightness of the entire image (step SE). Thereafter, the process proceeds to step SF. If the brightness switch is OFF in step SD, the process proceeds to step SF.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 monitors a signal input from the operation unit 6 via the RS232C I / F 17 and determines whether or not a live switch for changing the measurement mode to the live mode is ON (step). SF). The measurement endoscope apparatus 1 can operate in a plurality of operation modes (live mode, recording mode, measurement mode, and reproduction mode). The live mode is a mode in which an image (moving image) captured by the endoscope 2 is displayed in real time. The recording mode is a mode for recording still image data captured by the endoscope 2 on the memory card 32.

  The measurement mode is a mode in which measurement such as measurement between two points is executed based on still image data captured by the endoscope 2. The reproduction mode is a mode in which image data recorded on the memory card 32 is read and an image is displayed. When the live switch is ON when operating in any one of the recording mode, the measurement mode, and the reproduction mode, the CPU 18 changes the operation mode to the live mode, and the measurement endoscope apparatus 1 Each part is instructed to operate in the live mode (step SG). Thereafter, the process proceeds to step SH. If the live switch is OFF in step SF, the process proceeds to step SH.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 monitors a signal input from the operation unit 6 via the RS232C I / F 17 and determines whether or not the menu switch is ON (step SH). When the menu switch is ON, the CPU 18 generates a graphic image signal for displaying the operation menu and outputs it to the video signal processing circuit 12 (step SI). Thereafter, the process proceeds to step SJ. If the menu switch is OFF in step SH, the process proceeds to step SJ.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 monitors a signal input from the operation unit 6 via the RS232C I / F 17 and determines whether or not the LED switch for turning on the LED in the optical adapter is ON (step SJ). . If the LED switch is ON, the CPU 18 instructs the endoscope unit 8 to start the illumination device (step SK). Thereafter, the process proceeds to step SL. If the LED switch is OFF in step SJ, the process proceeds to step SL.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 monitors a signal input from the operation unit 6 via the RS232C I / F 17 and determines whether or not the recording switch for image recording is ON (step SL). When the recording switch is ON, the CPU 18 changes the operation mode to the recording mode, and records the image data captured from the video signal processing circuit 12 in the memory card 32 via the card I / F 15 (step SM). Details of step SM will be described later. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step SN. If the recording switch is OFF in step SL, the process proceeds to step SN.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 monitors a signal input from the operation unit 6 via the RS232C I / F 17 and determines whether or not the reproduction switch for image reproduction is ON (step SN). When the reproduction switch is ON, the CPU 18 changes the operation mode to the reproduction mode, reads the image data from the memory card 32 via the card I / F 15, and outputs it to the video signal processing circuit 12 (step SO). ). Details of step SO will be described later. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step SP. If the regeneration switch is OFF at step SN, the process proceeds to step SP.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 monitors a signal input from a signal line (not shown) connected to the distal end portion 21 of the insertion portion 20, and determines whether or not the optical adapter is attached (step SP). When the optical adapter is mounted, the CPU 18 determines the type of the optical adapter, reads the environmental data corresponding to the type from the memory card 32 via the card I / F 15 and stores it in the RAM 14 (step SQ ). The type of the optical adapter is determined by, for example, detecting a resistance value that varies depending on the type of the optical adapter provided in the optical adapter. Subsequently, the menu screen shown in FIG. 6 is displayed, and environment data corresponding to the combination of the endoscope 2 and the optical adapter is set according to a user instruction. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step SR. If the optical adapter is not attached in step SP, the process proceeds to step SR.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 monitors a signal input from the operation unit 6 via the RS232C I / F 17 and determines whether or not the measurement switch for stereo measurement is ON (step SR). If the measurement switch is ON, the CPU 18 changes the operation mode to the measurement mode and performs stereo measurement (step SS). Details of step SS will be described later. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step ST. If the measurement switch is OFF in step SR, the process proceeds to step ST.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 monitors a signal input from the operation unit 6 via the RS232C I / F 17 and determines whether or not the power switch for power supply is OFF (step ST). When the power switch is OFF, the measurement endoscope apparatus 1 ends the operation. If the power switch is ON in step ST, the process returns to step SB.

  Next, details of step SS (stereo measurement) will be described. Hereinafter, measurement between two points is taken as an example. FIG. 8 shows a measurement screen displayed on the monitor 4 during stereo measurement. A left image 800 and a right image 801 corresponding to the left and right subject images captured by the optical adapter are displayed on the measurement screen shown in FIG. As described above, the user inputs the measurement position (measurement point) while operating the joystick provided in the operation unit 6 while viewing the measurement screen displayed on the monitor 4. On the image, cursors 810 and 811 serving as marks indicating the measurement positions are displayed and moved in the direction in which the joystick is tilted. When the user performs an operation of pushing the joystick at a desired position and inputs an instruction to determine the measurement point, the measurement point is fixed at the positions of the cursors 810 and 811 at that time. When the measurement points are confirmed, the cursors 810 and 811 are changed to “x” mark icons (marks) indicating the confirmed measurement points.

  FIG. 8 shows a state where the first measurement point is determined and the second measurement point is input. An icon marked with “×” is displayed at the first measurement points 820 and 821. When inputting the first measurement point, a cursor similar to the cursors 810 and 811 is displayed, and the cursor moves in the direction in which the user tilts the joystick. In the zoom windows 830 and 831, enlarged images near the cursors 810 and 811 are displayed. In FIG. 8, the vicinity of the cursors 810 and 811 is enlarged and displayed twice. Areas 812 and 813 around the cursors 810 and 811 indicate areas displayed in the zoom windows 830 and 831. By inputting the measurement point while viewing the enlarged images displayed in the zoom windows 830 and 831, the position of the measurement point can be set more accurately. The measurement mode 840 indicates the measurement between two points. An operation instruction 841 indicates an instruction to input a second measurement point to the user.

  An object distance 842 indicates the distance to the subject. The object distance indicator 843 visually indicates the object distance 842. The longer the object distance, the larger the number of displayed indicators. A measurement result 844 shows the result of the measurement between two points. In the conventional two-point measurement, measurement is not performed unless both measurement points are confirmed. However, in this embodiment, measurement is performed even when the second measurement point is not confirmed, and the measurement result is displayed. The Since the measurement is repeatedly executed, if the cursor is moved by operating the joystick, the measurement result is updated in real time according to the movement of the cursor. As a result, the measurement is performed without the user performing an operation for determining the second measurement point, so that the operation burden on the user can be reduced.

  As described above, by performing measurement even in a state where the measurement point is not fixed, the measurement work becomes efficient. However, since measurement is frequently performed, the processing load on the CPU 18 increases. Therefore, if measurement is performed even when the measurement points are not fixed for all measurement modes, when measurement is performed based on a large number of measurement points (for example, area calculation), the measurement takes time and is used by the user. It becomes difficult. Therefore, in this embodiment, in the measurement between two points where the processing load is relatively light, the measurement is executed even when the measurement point is not fixed, and in the measurement such as area calculation where the processing load is heavy, all the measurement points are fixed. It is assumed that the measurement is executed in the state.

  The color, shape, and moving speed of the cursor on the measurement screen can be appropriately selected by the user by operating the menu screen shown in FIG. Regarding the moving speed of the cursor, it is possible to select the maximum speed from among three types of high speed, medium speed, and low speed. FIG. 10 shows the moving speed of the cursor. In FIG. 10A, the moving speed of the cursor is constant from the time when the user tilts the joystick until the time T1 elapses, and when the time T1 elapses, the moving speed of the cursor becomes the maximum speed. In FIG. 10B, the moving speed of the cursor is constant from the time when the user tilts the joystick until the time T1 elapses. When the time T1 elapses, the moving speed increases with time according to the set maximum speed. Increases at the end and remains constant at maximum speed.

  Hereinafter, a specific procedure for stereo measurement will be described. First, a first operation example will be described with reference to FIGS. First, the CPU 18 performs initialization and sets a measurement mode (step SS1). At this time, the CPU 18 sets the measurement mode according to the operation result of the operation unit 6 by the user. Subsequently, the CPU 18 sets 0 in the second flag stored in the RAM 14 (step SS2). The second point flag is a flag indicating whether or not the first measurement point is confirmed and the second measurement point is input. When 0 is set in the second point flag, the first measurement point is not fixed. Further, when 1 is set in the second point flag, the first measurement point is fixed and the second measurement point can be input.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 determines the measurement mode (step SS3). When the measurement mode is set to a mode involving heavy processing such as area calculation, the CPU 18 performs measurement such as area calculation (step SS4). About area calculation, since it is well-known by Unexamined-Japanese-Patent No. 2001-275934, description is abbreviate | omitted. After the measurement is performed, the stereo measurement is finished. When the measurement mode is set to two-point measurement that can be executed by light processing, the CPU 18 monitors a signal input from the operation unit 6 via the RS232C I / F 17 and inputs the measurement point. It is determined whether or not the joystick for use is tilted (step SS5). If the joystick is tilted at step SS5, the process proceeds to step SS6. If the joystick is not tilted, the process proceeds to step SS14.

  On the monitor 4, a measurement point input cursor is displayed together with an image captured by the endoscope 2. In FIG. 11 and FIG. 12, the processing related to cursor display is not shown. The CPU 18 generates a graphic image signal for displaying the cursor together with the operation menu, and outputs the graphic image signal to the video signal processing circuit 12 together with information on the display position of the cursor. The video signal processing circuit 12 combines the graphic image signal and the video signal from the CCU 9 to generate a display signal. At this time, the video signal processing circuit 12 synthesizes the graphic image signal and the video signal so that the cursor is displayed at the display position notified from the CPU 18.

  The position indicated by the cursor is the position of the measurement point. In a state before the measurement point is determined, the user can freely move the cursor by operating the joystick. The CPU 18 monitors the operation of the joystick based on the signal from the operation unit 6 and acquires the position information of the cursor according to the operation of the joystick. The CPU 18 controls the video signal processing circuit 12 to display a cursor at the position indicated by the acquired position information. The cursor position information acquired by the CPU 18 indicates the cursor position on the left image. The position on the right image corresponding to the cursor position on the left image is calculated by pattern matching processing described later.

  When the process proceeds to step SS6, the CPU 18 acquires the cursor position on the image by monitoring the joystick as described above (step SS6). The information on the cursor position acquired by the CPU 18 is stored in the RAM 14 as the cursor position NOW. Subsequently, the CPU 18 stores the information on the cursor position stored in the RAM 14 as the cursor position NOW in the RAM 14 as the cursor position OLD (step SS7). At this time, the cursor position NOW and the cursor position OLD are the same. Subsequently, a three-dimensional coordinate analysis for calculating the three-dimensional coordinates of the cursor position NOW is executed (step SS8). Details of step SS8 will be described later.

  As will be described later with reference to FIG. 14, the Z coordinate of the three-dimensional coordinates calculated in step SS8 is the object distance. In order to display the object distance, the CPU 18 generates a graphic image signal including the object distance and outputs it to the video signal processing circuit 12 (step SS9). Thereby, the object distance is displayed.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 obtains the cursor position on the image again by monitoring the joystick (step SS10). The cursor position NOW in the RAM 14 is updated with the cursor position information acquired by the CPU 18. Subsequently, the CPU 18 reads the cursor position NOW, the cursor position OLD, and the second point flag from the RAM 14, respectively, and determines whether or not the cursor position NOW and the cursor position OLD are different and the value of the second point flag is 1. (Step SS11).

  If the cursor position NOW and the cursor position OLD are different and the value of the second point flag is 1, the process proceeds to step SS12. That is, if the cursor does not move between steps SS6 to SS10 and the first measurement point is confirmed, the process proceeds to step SS12. If the cursor position NOW and the cursor position OLD are the same or the value of the second point flag is 0, the process proceeds to step SS14. That is, when the cursor moves between steps SS6 to SS10, or when the first measurement point is not fixed, the process proceeds to step SS14.

  When the process proceeds to step SS12, the CPU 18 stores the cursor position NOW in the RAM 14 as the second coordinate indicating the coordinate (left image) of the second measurement point (step SS12). Subsequently, a measurement process for performing measurement between two points based on the coordinates of the first and second measurement points is executed (step SS13). Details of step SS13 will be described later.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 determines whether or not the joystick is pushed in to determine the measurement point (step SS14). If the joystick is pushed in, the process proceeds to step SS15. If the joystick has not been pushed, the process proceeds to step SS20.

  When the process proceeds to step SS15, the CPU 18 reads the second point flag from the RAM 14 and determines whether or not the value of the second point flag is 0 (step SS15). When the value of the second point flag is 0 (when the first measurement point is not fixed), the process proceeds to step SS16. When the second point flag is 1 (when the first measurement point is confirmed), the process proceeds to step SS18.

  When the process proceeds to step SS16, the first measurement point is determined by pushing the joystick. Therefore, the CPU 18 sets 1 to the second point flag stored in the RAM 14 (step SS16), and uses the cursor position information stored in the RAM 14 as the cursor position NOW as the coordinates of the first measurement point. The first point coordinates indicating (left image) are stored in the RAM 14 (step SS17). Subsequently, the process proceeds to step SS20.

  In this case, the CPU 18 generates a graphic image signal including the icon of the first measurement point, and outputs it to the video signal processing circuit 12 together with information on the icon display position. Thereafter, since the CPU 18 fixes the first measurement point on the image, the video signal processing circuit 12 is controlled to display the measurement point icon at the same position for the first measurement point. Further, the CPU 18 generates a graphic image signal for displaying a cursor for inputting the second measurement point, and outputs the graphic image signal to the video signal processing circuit 12 together with information on the display position of the cursor. As a result, the first measurement point is fixedly displayed and the user inputs the second measurement point by operating the joystick, so that the cursor can be moved freely.

  On the other hand, when the process proceeds to step SS18, the second measurement point is determined by pushing the joystick. For this reason, the CPU 18 stores the information on the cursor position stored in the RAM 14 as the cursor position NOW in the RAM 14 as the second coordinate (step SS18). In this case, the CPU 18 generates a graphic image signal including the icon of the second measurement point, and outputs the graphic image signal to the video signal processing circuit 12 together with the icon display position information. Subsequently, a measurement process for performing measurement between two points based on the coordinates of the first and second measurement points is executed (step SS19). Details of step SS19 will be described later. Subsequently, the process proceeds to step SS20.

  Subsequent to step SS17 and step SS19, the CPU 18 determines whether or not the menu switch has been operated (step SS20). If the menu switch is not operated, the process proceeds to step SS22. When the menu switch is operated, the CPU 18 generates a graphic image signal for changing the menu and outputs it to the video signal processing circuit 12 (step SS21).

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 determines whether or not the end switch has been operated (step SS22). If the end switch has not been operated, the process returns to step SS5. Further, when the end switch is operated, the stereo measurement is ended.

  The above processing can be summarized as follows. In the measurement between two points, the first measurement point is first input. At that time, the three-dimensional coordinates of the cursor position are calculated by the process of step SS8, and the object distance is displayed in step SS9. When the user performs an operation of pushing the joystick, the first measurement point is determined. When the first measurement point is determined, the second measurement point is subsequently input. Also when inputting the second measurement point, the three-dimensional coordinates of the cursor position are calculated by the process of step SS8, and the object distance is displayed in step SS9. Moreover, a measurement process is performed in step SS13, and the distance between two points is displayed as a measurement result. When the second measurement point is determined, the first measurement point can be input again. That is, it is possible to repeatedly measure between two points by repeatedly performing the above processing.

  Next, details of step SS8 (three-dimensional coordinate analysis) will be described with reference to FIG. First, the CPU 18 executes a pattern matching process to detect matching points that are corresponding points of the left and right two images (stereo images) (step SS81). Details of the pattern matching process will be described later. Subsequently, the CPU 18 obtains a shift amount between the left and right images from the coordinates of the corresponding points (step SS82).

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 calculates the three-dimensional coordinates of the target point (step SS83). Hereinafter, the basic principle of the three-dimensional coordinate analysis will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 14 shows the positional relationship between two left and right images on a three-dimensional spatial coordinate system having x, y, and z axes. FIG. 14 shows a state where a point P that is a measurement target of the distance to the subject (object distance) is imaged on the right imaging surface 28R and the left imaging surface 28L of the image sensor. In FIG. 14, the points OR and OL are the principal points of the optical system, the distance f is the focal length, the points QR and QL are the imaging positions of the point P, and the distance L is the distance between the point OR and the point OL.

In FIG. 14, the equation (1) is established from the straight line QR-OR.
x / xR = {y− (L / 2)} / {yR− (L / 2)} = z / (− f) (1)
Moreover, Formula (2) is materialized from the straight line QL-OL.
x / xL = {y + (L / 2)} / {yL + (L / 2)} = z / (− f) (2)
If this equation is solved for x, y, z, the three-dimensional coordinates of the point P can be obtained. Thereby, the distance (object distance) from the imaging surface of the endoscope 2 to the subject is obtained. Actually, due to the effect of the image transmission optical system 27, the light beams of the two left and right images are bent, and the distance between the right imaging surface 28R and the left imaging surface 28L becomes smaller, but here, in order to simplify the drawing, the image transmission is performed. The effect of the optical system 27 is omitted for illustration.

FIG. 15 shows the procedure of the pattern matching process in step SS81. First, the CPU 18 narrows down a pattern area indicating the size of a pattern to be subjected to pattern matching (step SS811). In the example of this embodiment, a pattern area corresponding to the value k is set. That is,
When k = 1, the pattern area is 35 × 35 (pixels),
When k = 2, the pattern area is 23 × 23 (pixels),
When k = 3, the pattern area is 11 × 11 (pixels),
Then, the value k is switched from small to large to narrow the region from large to small so as to improve the accuracy of corresponding point detection.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 sets a search range. That is, the area of the right image for searching for a pattern is determined (step SS82). In setting the search range, the epipolar line is set within ± 5 pixels in consideration of errors in the epipolar line, or within ± 7 pixels horizontally on the monitor screen, or manually specified on the screen. There are cases where the approximate matching point is within ± 10 pixels. The above ± 10 pixels is an optimum value in consideration of manual error.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 performs pattern matching within the set search range (step SS83). In this pattern matching, corresponding points are detected by normalized cross-correlation, and coordinates (X, Y) having the largest normalized cross-correlation coefficient (−1 to +1) are used as corresponding points. The pattern matching is repeatedly performed while incrementing the value k, narrowing down the pattern corresponding to the value k, and moving the pattern area within the search range.

The following formula is generally used for the normalized cross-correlation function M (u, v) used for pattern matching. That is, t (x, y) is a template, g (x, y) is image data, t ′ is the average luminance of the template, and g ′ is the average luminance of the image. Applied. Here, ΣΣ _S represents taking the sum of pixels.
M (u, v) = {ΣΣ _S (g (x + u, y + v) −g ′) (t (x, y) −t ′)} / {ΣΣ _S (g (x + u, y + v) −g ′) ² × ΣΣ _S (t (x, y) −t ′) ² } ^1/2 (3)

  When the pattern matching is finished, the pattern matching process is finished.

  Next, details of Step SS13 and Step SS19 (measurement processing) will be described with reference to FIG. First, the CPU 18 reads the first coordinate corresponding to the first measurement point from the RAM 14 (step SS131), and executes a three-dimensional coordinate analysis using the first coordinate as an input value (step SS132). The detailed procedure of Step SS132 is as shown in FIG.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 reads out the second coordinate corresponding to the second measurement point from the RAM 14 (step SS133), and executes a three-dimensional coordinate analysis using the second coordinate as an input value (step SS134). The detailed procedure of step SS134 is as shown in FIG. Since the three-dimensional coordinates of the first and second measurement points are obtained, the CPU 18 calculates the distance between the two measurement points (step SS135). Furthermore, in order to display the calculated distance between two points as a measurement result, the CPU 18 generates a graphic image signal including the measurement result and outputs the graphic image signal to the video signal processing circuit 12 (step SS136). As a result, the measurement result is displayed and the measurement process ends.

  Next, a second operation example of stereo measurement will be described with reference to FIG. The process shown in FIG. 17 is a modification of the process shown in FIG. In FIG. 17, the same processes as those shown in FIG. 11 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted. In initialization of step SS1, a timer is started. After acquiring the cursor position in step SS6, the CPU 18 acquires the time measured by the timer (step SS31). Subsequently, the CPU 18 determines whether or not a predetermined time has elapsed based on the time acquired in Step SS31 (Step SS32).

  If the predetermined time has not elapsed, the process proceeds to step SS14. If the predetermined time has elapsed, the CPU 18 resets the timer (step SS33). Subsequently, the process proceeds to Step SS7. Processing other than the above is the same as the processing shown in FIG.

  When the first measurement point is determined and the cursor position OLD is different from the cursor position NOW (the cursor is moved) by the above process, the measurement process of step SS13 is performed every time a predetermined time elapses. Is executed. If measurement and cursor drawing are frequently performed while the cursor is movable, the drawing process may be delayed due to an increase in processing load depending on the processing capability of the CPU 18. Therefore, an increase in the processing load can be suppressed by controlling the execution timing of the measurement process and reducing the execution frequency of the measurement process.

  Next, a third operation example of stereo measurement will be described with reference to FIG. The process shown in FIG. 18 is a modification of the process shown in FIG. In FIG. 18, the same processes as those shown in FIG. 11 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted. In initialization of step SS1, a timer is started. After acquiring the cursor position in step SS6, the CPU 18 acquires the time measured by the timer and resets the timer (step SS41). Subsequently, the CPU 18 reads out the cursor position NOW and the cursor position OLD from the RAM 14, and calculates the cursor movement speed from the cursor movement distance calculated from both and the time acquired in step SS41 (step SS42).

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 sets the zoom window magnification based on the moving speed of the cursor calculated in step SS42 (step SS43). For example, when the cursor moving speed is fast, the magnification is set to a low value (such as × 2), and when the cursor moving speed is slow, the magnification is set to a high value (such as × 4). Information on the magnification set by the CPU 18 is output to the video signal processing circuit 12. The video signal processing circuit 12 performs an image enlargement process based on the magnification information.

  FIG. 19 shows a measurement screen when the zoom window magnification changes from x2 to x4. The zoom windows 1900 and 1901 have a magnification of x4. Further, the sizes of the areas 1912 and 1913 around the cursors 1910 and 1911 are smaller than those of the areas 812 and 813 shown in FIG.

  Subsequent to step SS43, the process of step SS7 is executed. Subsequent to step SS7, the CPU 18 determines whether or not the moving speed of the cursor is equal to or lower than a predetermined value (step SS44). If the moving speed of the cursor exceeds the predetermined value, the process proceeds to step SS14. If the moving speed of the cursor is equal to or lower than the predetermined value, the process proceeds to step SS8. In the above processing, the moving speed of the cursor is used for the determination in step SS44. However, the determination in step SS44 may be performed every predetermined time, and the moving distance of the cursor may be used for the determination.

  When the first measurement point is determined by the above process, the measurement process of step SS13 is executed if the moving speed of the cursor becomes a predetermined value or less. If measurement and cursor drawing are frequently performed while the cursor is moving at high speed, drawing processing may be delayed due to an increase in processing load depending on the processing capacity of the CPU 18. Therefore, an increase in processing load can be suppressed by controlling the execution timing of the measurement process and performing the measurement process when the moving speed of the cursor becomes slow.

  Also, the zoom window magnification is controlled according to the moving speed of the cursor by the above processing. When the zoom window magnification is high and the cursor movement speed is fast, the CPU display process cannot catch up, and the enlarged image at the cursor position cannot be displayed, which may reduce the efficiency of determining the position of the measurement point. There is sex. Therefore, the efficiency of measurement work can be improved by reducing the zoom window magnification when the cursor movement speed is fast and increasing the zoom window magnification when the cursor movement speed is slow.

  Next, details of step SM (image recording processing) will be described with reference to FIG. First, the CPU 18 performs initialization (step SM1). Subsequently, the CPU 18 sets 0 in the result flag stored in the RAM 14 (step SM2). The result flag is a flag indicating whether or not there is a measurement result at the time of image recording. When 0 is set in the result flag, the measurement process is not executed and no measurement result exists. If 1 is set in the measurement flag, the measurement process is executed and a measurement result exists.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 sets 0 to the measurement point determination flag stored in the RAM 14 (step SM3). The measurement point determination flag is a flag indicating whether or not the second measurement point is fixed at the time of image recording (in other words, whether or not an operation for determining the second measurement point is performed). When 0 is set in the measurement point determination flag, the second measurement point is not fixed. Further, when 1 is set in the measurement point determination flag, the second measurement point is fixed.

  Subsequently, the CPU 18 determines whether or not there is a measurement result (step SM4). If there is a measurement result, the process proceeds to step SM5. If there is no measurement result, the process proceeds to step SM8. When the process proceeds to step SM5, the CPU 18 sets 1 in the result flag stored in the RAM 14 (step SM5). Subsequently, the CPU 18 determines whether or not the second measurement point is fixed (step SM6). If the second measurement point is confirmed, the process proceeds to step SM7. If the second measurement point is not fixed, the process proceeds to step SM8.

  When the process proceeds to step SM7, the CPU 18 sets 1 to the measurement point determination flag stored in the RAM 14 (step SM7). Subsequently, the process proceeds to step SM8. When the process proceeds to step SM8, the CPU 18 reads various flags and various coordinates from the RAM 14 (step SM8). Subsequently, the CPU 18 adds additional information including information read from the RAM 14 in step SM8 to the image data captured from the video signal processing circuit 12, and records it in the memory card 32 via the card I / F 15 ( Step SM9). The additional information is information indicating a screen state at the time of image recording. When the recording of the image data and the additional information is finished, the image recording process is finished.

  FIG. 21 shows the contents of the additional information. The image flag indicates the presence or absence of image data. When the value of the image flag is 1, there is image data. When the value of the image flag is 0, there is no image data. The result flag is as described above. When the result flag value is 1, there is a measurement result, and when the result flag value is 0, there is no measurement result. The measurement result indicates the distance between the two points calculated by the measurement process. When there is no measurement result, 0 is stored, and when there is a measurement result, the numerical value of the measurement result is stored.

  The measurement point determination flag is as described above. When the value of the measurement point determination flag is 1, the second measurement point is fixed, and when the value of the measurement point determination flag is 0, two points are determined. Eye measurement points are not fixed. The first point coordinate and the second point coordinate are two-dimensional coordinates of the first and second measurement points, respectively. If there is no two-dimensional coordinate of the measurement point, 0 is stored, and if there is a two-dimensional coordinate of the measurement point, a coordinate value is stored. The current cursor coordinates are the coordinates of the cursor position NOW.

  FIG. 21A shows the contents of the additional information when there is no measurement result. The value of the image flag is 1, but the values of the other result flags and the like are 0. FIG. 21B shows the content of the additional information when the second measurement point is fixed. Since the second measurement point is fixed, the value of the measurement point determination flag is 1. Further, the first coordinate and the second coordinate store the two-dimensional coordinates of the first and second measurement points, respectively. In addition, since the measurement point input cursor is not displayed when the second measurement point is confirmed, the current cursor coordinate value is zero. Further, since the second measurement point is fixed, the measurement process is executed and the measurement result is stored.

  FIG. 21C shows the content of the additional information when the second measurement point is not fixed. Since the second measurement point is not fixed, the value of the measurement result determination flag is 0, and the two-dimensional coordinates of the first measurement point are stored in the first point coordinate. 0 is stored in the coordinates. Since the cursor for inputting the second measurement point is displayed, the two-dimensional coordinates of the cursor at the time of image recording are stored in the current cursor coordinates. In the measurement between two points, since the measurement process is executed even if the second point is not fixed, the measurement result is stored.

  By the image recording process described above, it is possible to record the screen state such as the presence / absence of the measurement point at the time of image recording and the position of the cursor together with the image.

  Next, details of step SO (image reproduction processing) will be described with reference to FIG. First, the CPU 18 performs initialization (step SO1). Subsequently, the CPU 18 reads additional information from the memory card 32 via the card I / F 15 and determines whether or not the value of the result flag in the additional information is 1 (step SO2). If the value of the result flag is 1 (when there is a measurement result), the process proceeds to step SO3. If the value of the result flag is 0 (when there is no measurement result), the process proceeds to step SO6.

  When the process proceeds to step SO3, the CPU 18 determines whether or not the value of the measurement point determination flag in the additional information is 1 (step SO3). When the value of the measurement point determination flag is 1 (when the second measurement point is fixed), the process proceeds to step SO4. If the value of the measurement point determination flag is 0 (when the second measurement point is not fixed), the process proceeds to step SO5.

  When the process proceeds to step SO4, the CPU 18 reads out the image data from the memory card 32 via the card I / F 15 and outputs it to the video signal processing circuit 12. Further, based on the additional information, the CPU 18 generates a graphic image signal for displaying an operation menu, a measurement result, a measurement point icon, and the like, and outputs the graphic image signal to the video signal processing circuit 12 (step SO4). As a result, an operation menu, measurement results, measurement point icons, and the like are displayed on the monitor 4 together with the image. At this time, the CPU 18 controls the video signal processing circuit 12 so that the icons of the first measurement point and the second measurement point are fixedly displayed at the positions indicated by the first coordinate and the second coordinate in the additional information.

  When the process proceeds to step SO5, the CPU 18 reads out the image data from the memory card 32 via the card I / F 15 and outputs it to the video signal processing circuit 12. Further, based on the additional information, the CPU 18 generates a graphic image signal for displaying an operation menu, a measurement result, a cursor, a measurement point icon, etc., and outputs the graphic image signal to the video signal processing circuit 12 (step SO5). As a result, an operation menu, a measurement result, a cursor, a measurement point icon, and the like are displayed on the monitor 4 together with the image. At this time, the CPU 18 fixes and displays the icon of the first measurement point at the position indicated by the first coordinate in the additional information, and displays the cursor at the position indicated by the current cursor coordinate in the additional information. The processing circuit 12 is controlled. Thereafter, when the user operates the joystick, the cursor moves in accordance with the operation.

  When the processing proceeds to step SO6, the CPU 18 reads out the image data from the memory card 32 via the card I / F 15 and outputs it to the video signal processing circuit 12. Further, the CPU 18 generates a graphic image signal for displaying an operation menu, a cursor, etc. based on the additional information, and outputs it to the video signal processing circuit 12 (step SO6). As a result, an operation menu, a cursor, and the like are displayed on the monitor 4 together with the image. At this time, the CPU 18 controls the video signal processing circuit 12 to display a cursor at a predetermined default position. Thereafter, when the user operates the joystick, the cursor moves in accordance with the operation. When steps S01 to S06 are finished, the image reproduction process is finished.

  FIG. 23 shows a screen displayed on the monitor 4 by the image reproduction process. FIG. 23A shows a screen when the second measurement point is fixed. At the positions of the first measurement points 2300 and 2301 and the second measurement points 2310 and 2311, icons of “x” marks indicating the determined measurement points are displayed. Further, the cursor is displayed at the positions of the measurement points 2310 and 2311, and the first measurement point can be input for the next measurement between the two points. FIG. 23B shows a screen when the second measurement point is not fixed. At the positions of the first measurement points 2302 and 2303, an “x” mark icon indicating the determined measurement point is displayed. In addition, cursors 2320 and 2321 for inputting the second measurement point are displayed.

  By the above-described image reproduction process, the screen state before image recording can be reproduced, and the user can continuously perform an operation for measurement. Note that the coordinates of the measurement points on the right image may be calculated by pattern matching processing from the coordinates of the measurement points on the left image, or the coordinates of the measurement points on the right image are included in the additional information and recorded together with the image. May be.

  Next, a modification of this embodiment will be described. In addition to measurement between two points, it is also possible to perform measurement in real time by line reference measurement that measures the length of a perpendicular drawn from one point with respect to a reference line connecting two points. FIG. 24 shows a screen displayed on the monitor 4 at the time of line reference measurement. When the user performs an operation of determining the measurement points 2400 and 2401 in the same manner as described above, a reference line 2410 connecting the measurement points 2400 and 2401 is drawn. When the reference line 2410 is determined, the distance between two points between the determined first measurement point and the cursor position is calculated in real time and displayed as a measurement result 2430. When the user moves the cursor 2420 by operating the joystick after the measurement points 2400 and 2401 are determined, the length of the perpendicular line 2411 drawn from the position of the cursor 2420 to the reference line 2410 is calculated and displayed as a measurement result 2430.

  In addition, the measurement method of the present embodiment can be applied even when area calculation can be performed in real time by using an apparatus (such as a personal computer) with high processing capability. FIG. 25 shows a screen displayed on the monitor 4 during area calculation. Similar to the above-described procedure, the user performs an operation of determining the measurement points 2500, 2501, 2502, 2503. When the user moves the cursor to a desired position by operating the joystick and performs an operation for determining the measurement point, the measurement point is fixedly displayed at that position, and a cursor for inputting the next measurement point is displayed. Also, the distance between the two points between the last determined measurement point and the cursor position is calculated in real time and displayed as a measurement result 2530.

  A line segment 2520 connecting the cursor 2510 for inputting the fifth measurement point and the fourth measurement point 2503 intersects with a line segment 2521 connecting the first measurement point 2500 and the second measurement point 2501. Then, a closed region that is an area calculation target is determined. This closed region is a region surrounded by line segments 2521, 2522, 2523, and 2524. Although the line segment 2524 is illustrated for explaining the closed region, it may be displayed on the screen in the same manner as other line segments. When the closed region is confirmed, the area of the closed region is calculated and displayed as a measurement result 2531.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to execute measurement based on both the measurement points that are not fixed and the measurement points that are fixed. As a result, since the operation for determining the measurement point (joystick push-in operation) is reduced, the operation burden can be reduced and the efficiency of the measurement work can be improved.

  In addition, when performing measurements that can be performed with a light process, such as measuring between two points, measurement is performed based on both the measurement points that have not been confirmed and the measurement points that have been confirmed. Efficiency can be improved. Furthermore, when performing measurement that requires heavy processing, such as area calculation, the increase in processing load due to frequent measurement can be suppressed by performing measurement based only on the determined measurement points. .

  Further, the efficiency of the measurement work can be maintained by recording the screen state together with the image data at the time of image recording and reproducing the screen state at the time of image reproduction.

  Also, by controlling the measurement execution timing based on the time acquired from the timer or the moving speed of the cursor, it is possible to suppress an increase in processing load due to frequent measurement.

  Also, by controlling the zoom window magnification according to the cursor movement speed, lowering the zoom window magnification when the cursor movement speed is fast, and increasing the zoom window magnification when the cursor movement speed is slow, The efficiency of measurement work can be improved.

  As described above, the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the specific configuration is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and includes design changes and the like without departing from the gist of the present invention. .

1 is a perspective view showing an overall configuration of a measurement endoscope apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the internal structure of the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one Embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view of the front-end | tip part of the insertion part of the endoscope which the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one Embodiment of this invention has. It is sectional drawing of the front-end | tip part of the insertion part of the endoscope which the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one Embodiment of this invention has. It is a perspective view which shows a mode that the optical data peculiar to the optical adapter applied to the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one Embodiment of this invention are measured. It is a reference figure showing the display screen of the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the whole operation | movement of the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one Embodiment of this invention. It is a reference figure showing the measurement screen of the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one embodiment of the present invention. It is a reference figure showing a menu screen of a measuring endoscope apparatus by one embodiment of the present invention. It is a reference figure which shows the moving speed of the cursor in one Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the stereo measurement which the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one Embodiment of this invention performs. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the stereo measurement which the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one Embodiment of this invention performs. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the three-dimensional coordinate analysis which the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one Embodiment of this invention performs. It is a reference figure which shows the basic principle of the three-dimensional coordinate analysis in one Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the pattern matching process which the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one Embodiment of this invention performs. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the measurement process which the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one Embodiment of this invention performs. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the stereo measurement which the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one Embodiment of this invention performs. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the stereo measurement which the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one Embodiment of this invention performs. It is a reference figure showing the measurement screen of the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the image recording process which the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one Embodiment of this invention performs. It is a reference figure which shows the content of the additional information in one Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the image reproduction process which the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one Embodiment of this invention performs. It is a reference figure showing the reproduction screen of the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one embodiment of the present invention. It is a reference figure showing the measurement screen of the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one embodiment of the present invention. It is a reference figure showing the measurement screen of the endoscope apparatus for measurement by one embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Measuring endoscope apparatus, 2 ... Endoscope, 3 ... Apparatus main body, 4 ... Monitor, 5 ... Housing | casing, 6 ... Operation part (position information input part) , Confirmation instruction input unit), 8 ... endoscope unit, 9 ... CCU (imaging signal processing unit), 10 ... control unit, 12 ... video signal processing circuit (display signal generation unit), 18 ... CPU (measurement unit, display control unit, measurement control unit, mode switching unit, recording unit, reading unit), 20 ... insertion unit, 21 ... tip portion, 22 ... curving unit, 23 ... Flexible tube, 28 ... Image sensor

Claims (8)

An endoscope that photoelectrically converts a subject image to generate an imaging signal, an imaging signal processing unit that processes the imaging signal to generate image data, and a measurement unit that performs measurement based on the principle of triangulation using the image data And a measurement endoscope apparatus comprising a display signal generation unit that generates a display signal for displaying an image based on the image data,
A position information input unit for inputting position information indicating a measurement position on the image;
A confirmation instruction input unit for inputting a confirmation instruction of the measurement position;
A mark is displayed at the position indicated by the position information input to the position information input unit. When the confirmation instruction is input to the confirmation instruction input unit, the position of the currently displayed mark is fixed and the next mark is displayed. A display control unit for controlling the display signal generation unit to display
A measurement control unit that controls the measurement unit to perform measurement based on both the measurement position where the confirmation instruction is not input and the measurement position where the confirmation instruction is input;
An endoscope apparatus for measurement, further comprising:   A first measurement mode in which the measurement unit performs measurement based on both the measurement position where the confirmation instruction is not input and the measurement position where the confirmation instruction is input, and the confirmation instruction is input. The measurement endoscope apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a mode switching unit that switches between a second measurement mode in which the measurement unit performs measurement based only on the measurement position.   2. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a recording unit that records the position information regarding the currently displayed mark, status information indicating whether or not the confirmation instruction is input regarding the currently displayed mark, and the image data on a recording medium. Or the endoscope apparatus for measurement of Claim 2. A reading unit that reads the position information, the state information, and the image data from the recording medium;
The display control unit further displays a mark at a position indicated by the position information read from the recording medium, fixes a position of the mark where the confirmation instruction is input, and a mark where the confirmation instruction is not input The measurement endoscope apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the display signal generation unit is controlled to update the position of the display signal to a position indicated by the position information input to the position information input unit.   The measurement control unit according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the measurement control unit further controls a timing at which the measurement unit executes measurement based on an elapsed time from a predetermined timing. Endoscopic device.   The said measurement control part further controls the timing which the said measurement part performs a measurement based on the moving speed of the position which the said positional information which was input into the said positional information input part shows. The measurement endoscope apparatus according to claim 4. The display signal generation unit generates the display signal for displaying an image at a position indicated by the position information input to the position information input unit based on the image data,
The display control unit further controls a display magnification of an image at a position indicated by the position information in accordance with a moving speed of the position indicated by the position information input to the position information input unit. The measurement endoscope apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6. An endoscope that photoelectrically converts a subject image to generate an imaging signal, an imaging signal processing unit that processes the imaging signal to generate image data, and a measurement unit that performs measurement based on the principle of triangulation using the image data And a computer that controls the measurement endoscope apparatus, including a display signal generation unit that generates a display signal for displaying an image based on the image data.
A position information input unit for inputting position information indicating a measurement position on the image;
A confirmation instruction input unit for inputting a confirmation instruction of the measurement position;
A mark is displayed at the position indicated by the position information input to the position information input unit. When the confirmation instruction is input to the confirmation instruction input unit, the position of the currently displayed mark is fixed and the next mark is displayed. A display control unit for controlling the display signal generation unit to display
A measurement control unit that controls the measurement unit to perform measurement based on both the measurement position where the confirmation instruction is not input and the measurement position where the confirmation instruction is input;
Program to function as.

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