JP7187072B2 - Fiberscope connection and fiberscope system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a connector for connecting a fiberscope and a mobile terminal, and a fiberscope system.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an endoscope device using a fiberscope (fiberscope system) has been used in the medical field and the industrial field to photograph the details and the interior of an object. These endoscopic instruments generally consist of a fiberscope, an electronic image conversion device and a display device. The fiberscope transmits an optical image of an imaging target acquired from an objective lens provided at the tip of the image guide fiber to an electronic image conversion device. The optical image is converted into an electrical signal by an electronic image converter and displayed as an electronic image on a display device. For example, Patent Literature 1 discloses an endoscope device including a body unit having an electronic image conversion device and a display device, and a fiberscope detachable from the body unit.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-035971

However, the above-described technique requires not only the fiberscope but also a dedicated electronic image conversion device and a display device, so it is not suitable for portable use of the fiberscope system.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the problems of the prior art as described above, and an object of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of improving the portability of a fiberscope system.

The present invention for achieving the above object employs the following configuration. That is, the present invention
A fiberscope connector for connecting a fiberscope that outputs an optical image of an imaging target acquired by an objective lens from an image guide fiber to a camera provided in a mobile terminal,
a holding unit that holds the mobile terminal;
an optical unit attached to the holding portion and connected to the image guide fiber from a first direction perpendicular to the optical axis of the camera;
The optical unit is characterized by comprising a relay optical system for transmitting the optical image output from the image guide fiber to the camera in a direction parallel to the optical axis of the camera.

According to the present invention, the connector connects the fiber scope and the mobile terminal by the holding part, and the optical unit transmits the optical image output from the image guide fiber to the camera of the mobile terminal. According to this, the camera of the mobile terminal can be used as an electronic image conversion device, and the display of the mobile terminal can be used as a display device. As a result, the portability of the fiberscope system can be improved because there is no need to prepare an electronic image conversion device or a display device dedicated to the fiberscope. Furthermore, according to the present invention, since the image guide fiber is connected to the optical unit in a direction perpendicular to the optical axis of the camera, the image guide fiber is positioned along the mobile terminal while transmitting an optical image to the camera. be able to. As a result, the image guide fiber is prevented from becoming bulky in the normal direction of the portable terminal, and the overall size of the fiberscope system can be made compact.

In addition, the present invention
The relay optical system is characterized by transmitting the optical image to the camera from a direction parallel to the optical axis of the camera by changing the traveling direction of the optical image with a bending optical member that bends light. good.

In addition, the present invention
The relay optical system includes: the first bending optical member for changing the traveling direction of the optical image from the first direction to the second direction; and a second bending optical member that changes the direction of the optical axis of the optical axis.
According to this, the relay optical system can freely control the traveling direction of the optical image up, down, left, and right by arranging the first bending member and the second bending member. According to this, it is possible to improve the degree of freedom in the layout of the optical members provided in the optical unit. As a result, the size of the optical unit can be made more compact. The bending optical member may bend light by reflecting the light.

In addition, the present invention
The optical unit may have a ball lens positioned on the optical axis of the image guide fiber when the image guide fiber is connected to the optical unit.

In addition, the present invention
The optical unit includes a ball lens provided so as to be positioned on the optical axis of the camera, and the ball lens being positioned on the optical axis of the image guide fiber when the image guide fiber is connected to the optical unit. and a connecting member to be arranged.

According to these, the connecting portion between the optical unit and the image guide fiber can be shortened by using a ball lens with a short focal length. As a result, the optical unit can be made compact, and the portability of the fiberscope system can be further improved.

The invention may also be specified as a system. That is, the present invention
A fiber comprising a fiber scope for outputting an optical image of an imaging target acquired by an objective lens from an image guide fiber, a mobile terminal having a camera, a display and a control device, and a connector for connecting the fiber scope to the camera. A scope system,
The connector has a holding portion that holds the mobile terminal, and an optical unit that is attached to the holding portion and to which the image guide fiber is connected,
the optical unit causes the display to display an electronic image of the optical image by transmitting the optical image to the camera;
The control device may be a fiberscope system, characterized in that it comprises image correction means for correcting the position of the optical image within the electronic image.

According to the present invention, since the position of the optical image within the image is corrected by the control device on the mobile terminal side, the size of the optical unit can be reduced by omitting the optical axis adjustment mechanism, and the portability of the fiberscope system can be improved. can be improved.

Further, the image correction means may correct the orientation of the optical image within the electronic image. According to this, the orientation of the optical image in the image can be kept constant even if the image guide fiber rotates around the optical axis.

In addition, the means for solving the problems in the present invention can be used in combination as much as possible.

According to the present invention, the portability of the fiberscope system can be improved.

1 is an overall view of a fiberscope system according to Embodiment 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows a tablet-type personal computer with a camera. It is a figure which shows a tablet-type personal computer with a camera. 1 is a block diagram of a tablet personal computer with a camera; FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a fiberscope according to Embodiment 1. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of a fiberscope connector according to Embodiment 1. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a fiberscope connector according to Embodiment 1. FIG. 1 is a side view of a fiberscope connector according to Embodiment 1. FIG. FIG. 2 is a side view of the fiberscope connector according to Embodiment 1, showing a state in which the stand piece is in an unfolded posture; 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of an optical unit according to Embodiment 1; FIG. It is a figure which shows the connection part of an image guide fiber and a connector. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing how the fiberscope connector according to the first embodiment is attached to a camera-equipped tablet computer. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an electronic image in which an optical image is displayed shifted from the center of the image due to misalignment of the optical axis; FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an electronic image corrected so that the optical image is positioned at the center of the image by the program according to the first embodiment; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a state in which the hook pieces of the holder according to Modification 1 of Embodiment 1 are in a separated posture; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a state in which hook pieces of a holder according to Modification 1 of Embodiment 1 are in an engaging posture; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a state in which the lid portion of the holder according to Modification 2 of Embodiment 1 is in an open position; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a state in which the lid portion of the holder according to Modification 2 of Embodiment 1 is in a closed position; FIG. 11 is a block diagram of a fiberscope system according to Modification 3 of Embodiment 1; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a state in which the image guide fiber and the optical axis of the camera are aligned in the optical unit according to the second embodiment; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a comparative example of the second embodiment; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a modification of the second embodiment;

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be exemplarily described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

<Embodiment 1>
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a fiberscope system (hereinafter referred to as scope system) 100 according to this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the scope system 100 includes a tablet personal computer (hereinafter referred to as a tablet PC) 1 with a camera 11, a fiberscope connector (hereinafter referred to as a connector) 200 that holds the tablet PC 1, and the connector 200. and a fiber scope 2. The scope system 100 according to the present embodiment converts the optical image into an electronic image by transmitting the optical image acquired by the fiberscope 2 to the camera 11 (see FIG. 2B) provided on the tablet PC 1, and converts the optical image into an electronic image. The electronic image is displayed on the displayed display 12 . The configuration of the scope system 100 will be described below.

[Tablet PC 1]
2A and 2B show the tablet PC 1 used in this embodiment, in which FIG. 2A shows the front of the tablet PC 1 and FIG. 2B shows the back of the tablet PC 1. . Moreover, FIG. 3 is a block diagram of tablet PC1. As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the tablet PC 1 has a plate shape as a whole. A display 12 for displaying an electronic image is provided on one side of the tablet PC 1, and a camera 11 for performing imaging is provided on the other side. Hereinafter, unless otherwise specified, the front of the tablet PC 1 indicates the side on which the display 12 is provided, the rear indicates the side on which the camera 11 is provided, and the thickness of the tablet PC 1 refers to the front-back direction. indicates the length of Further, the vertical and horizontal directions of the tablet PC 1 indicate the vertical and horizontal directions indicated by arrows in the drawing.

The tablet PC 1 has functions as a digital camera 11 in addition to functions as a general personal computer. In addition to a camera 11 and a display 12 , the tablet PC 1 has a touch panel 13 superimposed on the display 12 and receiving user operations, and a control device 15 that controls the entire tablet PC 1 . The tablet PC 1 corresponds to the "portable terminal" of the present invention. The mobile terminal of the present invention is not limited to the tablet PC1. The mobile terminal may be, for example, a smartphone with a camera 11 that has the same functions as the tablet PC 1 . Moreover, the tablet PC 1 may have a communication function.

The camera 11 is a so-called digital camera, and has a movable camera lens 111 and an imaging element 112 such as a CCD (charge coupled device) or CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor). The camera 11 is activated upon receiving a user's touch operation on the touch panel 13, and performs imaging in real time. Specifically, the camera 11 converts an image captured through the camera lens 111 into an electrical signal by the imaging element 112 . Here, the optical axis of the camera 11 is parallel to the normal direction of the rear surface of the tablet PC 1 . Note that the imaging by the camera 11 may be executed by pressing the home button 14 provided on the side of the display.

The control device 15 includes a storage unit 152 that stores various types of information, and a central processing unit (CPU 151) that executes processing based on programs held in the storage unit 152 . The storage unit 152 stores an operating system and an application program for image processing. Further, the storage unit 152 is provided with a user data area for holding acquired electronic image data.

[Fiberscope 2]
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the fiberscope 2 used in this embodiment. The fiberscope 2 is an optical device that is used as an imaging target for imaging the inside of the body at a medical site or a narrow portion in a device at a factory. As shown in FIG. 4, the fiberscope 2 includes an objective lens 21 for acquiring an optical image of an imaging target, an image guide fiber 22 for transmitting the optical image acquired by the objective lens 21, and light supplied from a connector 200. and a light guide fiber 23 for transmitting and irradiating the subject.

The objective lens 21 is provided on the tip side of the image guide fiber 22 , acquires an optical image of an imaging target by refracting light, and transmits the optical image to the image guide fiber 22 . The image guide fiber 22 is configured by bundling a large number of optical fibers, and is capable of transmitting an optical image from one end (tip) to the other end (terminal). The image guide fiber 22 inverts the optical image input from the tip and outputs it from the end. As a result, the optical image inverted by the objective lens 21 is inverted within the image guide fiber 22 and displayed on the end surface 221 of the image guide fiber 22 as an erect image.

Like the image guide fiber 22, the light guide fiber 23 is composed of an optical fiber. The light guide fiber 23 has an end connected to the connector 200 and emits light supplied from the connector 200 from the tip.

As shown in FIG. 4, the image guide fiber 22 and the light guide fiber are housed in a protective tube 24, and are integrated by holding their tips in the head. The ends of the image guide fiber 22 and the light guide fiber 23 are separated from each other by branching in the middle. Since the tip of the light guide fiber 23 is adjacent to the tip of the image guide fiber 22, the light emitted from the tip of the light guide fiber 23 irradiates the object to be imaged. As a result, the objective lens 21 can acquire an optical image by the light reflected from the object to be imaged.

Here, the optical fibers that constitute the image guide fiber 22 and the light guide fiber 23 are cables that are also used in the field of communication and can convert data into optical signals for transmission. An optical fiber has a structure in which a core made of a material with a high refractive index is covered with a clad with a low refractive index. In such a state in which the optical fiber is greatly bent, there is a possibility that the incidence of light on the interface changes and the light leaks into the clad without being reflected on the interface. As a result, light loss due to leakage occurs depending on the degree of bending of the optical fiber. Also, if the optical fiber is bent significantly, the core may break. For the reasons described above, an allowable bending radius is set for optical fibers, and it is preferable not to bend the optical fibers below this limit. In general, the permissible bending radius of optical fibers is about 30 mm. Therefore, in the fiber scope 2 used in this embodiment, the image guide fiber 22 and the light guide fiber 23 are covered with a protective tube 24 to prevent the optical fibers from being bent or damaged.

[Connector 200]
Next, the connector 200 according to this embodiment will be described. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the configuration of the connector 200 according to this embodiment. FIG. 6 is a view of the connector 200 as seen from the rear. FIG. 7 is a view of the connector 200 as viewed from the right. Hereinafter, the front-back direction, the up-down direction, and the left-right direction of the connector 200 are defined by the up-down direction and the left-right direction indicated by arrows in the drawings, unless otherwise specified. As shown in FIG. 6 , the connector 200 has a holding portion 10 that holds the tablet PC 1 and an optical unit 20 attached to the rear side of the holding portion 10 . The optical unit 20 optically connects the tablet PC 1 and the fiberscope 2 to transmit an optical image acquired by the fiberscope 2 to the camera 11 . The optical unit 20 also functions as a stand for erecting the scope system 100 .

As shown in FIG. 5, the holding section 10 has a storage section 3 that stores the tablet PC 1, and a lid section 4 that is provided on the front side of the storage section 3 and prevents the tablet PC 1 from coming off.

The housing portion 3 has a plate-like outer shape that is slightly larger than the tablet PC 1 . The housing portion 3 includes a front wall surface 31 and a rear wall surface 32 facing each other in the front-rear direction, a right wall surface 35 and a left wall surface 36 facing each other in the left-right direction, and an upper wall surface 33 and a lower wall surface facing each other in the vertical direction. 34 and . The front wall surface 31 is formed with a storage pocket 37 that is a depression that can store the tablet PC 1 . The storage pocket 37 has a pocket bottom surface 371 that has substantially the same shape as the tablet PC 1 when viewed from the front and is substantially parallel to the front wall surface 31 , and a side wall surface 372 that extends from the periphery of the pocket bottom surface 371 and continues to the front wall surface 31 . , is formed by The pocket bottom surface 371 is a surface that contacts the back surface of the tablet PC 1 when the tablet PC 1 is stored. The side wall surfaces 372 are surfaces that come into contact with the right side, left side, upper side, and lower side of the tablet PC 1 when the tablet PC 1 is accommodated. The height of the side wall surface 372 , that is, the depth of the storage pocket 37 is approximately the same as the thickness of the tablet PC 1 .

Further, a lens hole 373 that is a hole penetrating from the pocket bottom surface 371 to the rear wall surface 32 is formed in the housing portion 3 . The lens hole 373 has a slightly larger diameter than the camera lens 111, and is arranged at a position overlapping the camera lens 111 when the tablet PC 1 is housed.

The lid portion 4 has a plate-like outer shape that is substantially the same shape as the housing portion 3 and is attached so as to cover the front wall surface 31 of the housing portion 3 . Further, the lid portion 4 is formed with a window portion 41 for the user to operate the touch panel 13 and the home button 14 of the tablet PC 1 housed in the housing portion 3 . The window part 41 is a substantially rectangular hole penetrating the lid part 4 from the front to the back, and has substantially the same size as the display 12 . The lid portion 4 is detachably attached to the housing portion 3, and is fixed to the front wall surface 31 of the housing portion 3 by screws or the like, for example.

[Optical unit 20]
The optical unit 20 is attached to the rear wall surface 32 of the housing section 3, and has a relay optical system 6 and an illumination section 7, which will be described later, and a housing section 5 which is a box-shaped housing for housing them.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, the housing 5 has a roughly rectangular parallelepiped shape with a pair of opposing surfaces curved. Specifically, the housing section 5 includes an attachment plane 51 attached to the housing section 3, an operation plane 52 facing the attachment plane 51, a connection plane 53 to which the fiberscope 2 is connected, and an operation plane 53 facing the connection plane 53. and a pair of convexly curved opposing curved surfaces 54 , 54 .

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, in the optical unit 20, the mounting plane 51 of the housing section 5 is in contact with the rear wall surface 32 of the housing section 3, the connection surface faces either the left or right direction, and the curved surfaces 54, 54 are curved. is attached to the holding portion 10 so that the is directed in the vertical direction. The connection plane 53 may face left or right, but is oriented leftward in the connector 200 as an example in this embodiment. The housing portion 5 is configured to be attachable and detachable with respect to the housing portion 3 . The housing portion 5 is fixed to the rear wall surface 32 of the housing portion 3 by screws or the like, for example.

As shown in FIG. 6, on the operation plane 52 of the housing unit 5, there is a knob 622 for switching on/off of an optical filter 623 (see FIG. 9), and for adjusting the focus of the optical image captured by the camera 11. A fixing screw 634 is provided for this purpose. A connector 611 to which the end of the image guide fiber 22 is connected and a connector 71 to which the end of the light guide fiber 23 is connected are provided on the connection surface.

Further, a stand piece 55 having a shape along the operation plane 52 and the pair of curved surfaces 54 is hinge-connected to the curved surface 54 on the lower side. The stand piece 55 can change its posture between an abutment posture in which it contacts the operation plane 52 shown in FIG. 7 and an unfolded posture away from the operation plane 52 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 8, when the stand piece 55 is in the deployed posture, the stand piece 55 and the lower wall surface 34 of the holding portion 10 can be grounded to allow the connector 200 to stand up. As a result, the user can take an image of an object to be imaged while placing the tablet PC 1 on a desk or workbench. In addition, the housing part 5 functions as a grip that is held by the user when the stand piece 55 is in the abutment posture.

A relay optical system 6 for transmitting an optical image output from the image guide fiber 22 of the fiber scope 2 to the camera 11 and an illumination unit for supplying light to the light guide fiber 23 of the fiber scope 2 are provided inside the housing unit 5. 7 are accommodated. FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining the internal configuration of the optical unit 20. As shown in FIG. 9, illustration of the housing portion 5 and the holding portion 10 is omitted.

The illumination unit 7 has a connector 71 to which the end of the light guide fiber 23 is connected, and a light source 72 that emits light with a predetermined intensity. The light source 72 is, for example, an LED (light emitting diode) light source. The light source 72 can be turned on and off by the user operating a switch (not shown) provided outside the housing 5 . Light from the light source 72 is supplied to the light guide fiber 23 via the connector 71 .

A solid line P in FIG. 9 indicates the path of light traveling along the optical axis of the image guide fiber 22 . That is, the path P indicates the path of the optical image of the imaging target from the image guide fiber 22 to the camera 11 in the relay optical system 6 . In the path P, the fiberscope 2 side is upstream, and the camera 11 side is downstream.

As shown in FIG. 9, the relay optical system 6 includes an input section 61, a filter section 62, a focus adjustment section 63, a first reflecting member 64 and a second reflecting member 65, in order from the upstream side of the path P. An output unit 66 connected to the camera lens 111 is arranged. As indicated by path P in FIG. 9, an optical image is input to the relay optical system 6 from a first direction perpendicular to the optical axis of the camera 11, and is reflected by the first reflecting member 64 perpendicular to the optical axis and the first direction. Then, the second reflecting member 65 changes the traveling direction to a direction parallel to the optical axis, and reaches the camera lens 111 . The configuration of the relay optical system 6 will be described in detail below.

The input section 61 has a connector 611 to which the end of the image guide fiber 22 is connected, and a relay lens 612 held by the connector 611 . The end of the image guide fiber 22 is connected to the connector 611 from the first direction. That is, the optical axis of the image guide fiber 22 is parallel to the first direction. Since the first direction is the direction perpendicular to the optical axis of the camera 11, the image guide fiber 22 is connected in the direction perpendicular to the normal to the rear surface of the tablet PC 1. FIG.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a state in which the image guide fiber 22 is connected to the input section 61. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 10, the relay lens 612 is arranged so that the optical axis of the image guide fiber 22 and the optical axis of the relay lens 612 are aligned when the ends of the image guide fiber 22 are connected. A relay lens 612 forms an inverted image of the end face 221 of the image guide fiber 22 . As a result, the optical image of the imaging object displayed on the end face 221 is inverted.

The filter unit 62 includes various optical filters 623 that adjust the amount of light and color tone by reflecting, absorbing, and transmitting specific wavelengths of light, and a filter holder 621 that holds the optical filters 623 . The filter holder 621 is provided with a knob portion 622 protruding outside the housing portion 5 shown in FIG. The filter holder 621 is attached to the housing part 5
The user can move the position of the optical filter 623 between on the path P and outside the path P by operating the knob 622 from the outside. This allows the user to manually switch ON/OFF the optical filter 623 . The optical filter 623 used in the filter unit 62 includes a polarizing filter for reducing glare in an optical image, an infrared cut filter for cutting infrared rays, and a color separation filter for separating and transmitting R, G, and B colored lights. Various filters can be selected, such as filters.

The focus adjustment unit 63 is an optical member that mechanically adjusts the focus of an optical image. The focus adjustment unit 63 includes an inner cylinder 632 arranged parallel to the first direction, a focus lens 633 provided inside the inner cylinder 632, and an outer cylinder 631 that slidably accommodates the inner cylinder 632. ,have. The focus lens 633 is provided so that its optical axis is coaxial with the optical axis of the relay lens 612 . A long hole whose longitudinal direction coincides with the axial direction of the outer cylinder 631 penetrates through the side surface of the outer cylinder 631 . A threaded portion of a fixing screw 634 inserted through a hole formed in the operation surface of the housing portion 5 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 6, the screw head of the fixing screw 634 is exposed to the outside of the operation surface, so that the user grasps the screw head of the fixing screw 634 and slides the inner cylinder 632 with respect to the outer cylinder 631. The inner cylinder 632 can be fixed to the outer cylinder 631 by tightening the fixing screw 634 . As a result, the focus lens 633 can be adjusted to any position, and the focus of the optical image can be adjusted. The focus lens 633 inverts the optical image transmitted from the relay lens 612 .

The first reflecting member 64 and the second reflecting member 65 are optical members capable of reflecting light. The first reflecting member 64 and the second reflecting member 65 correspond to the "bent optical member" of the present invention. The first reflecting member 64 changes the traveling direction of the optical image from the first direction to the second direction by reflecting the optical image. The first reflecting member 64 is a rectangular prism having a substantially triangular prism shape. A cross section in the axial direction of the first reflecting member 64 forms an isosceles right triangle. Here, the two surfaces orthogonal to each other when viewed in the axial direction are defined as a first incident surface 641 and a first exit surface, respectively, and the inclined surface is defined as a first reflecting surface 643 . The first reflecting member 64 is arranged such that the first incident surface 641 and the optical axis of the focus lens 633 are perpendicular to each other, and the light emitted from the focus lens 633 is incident on the first incident surface 641 . The light incident on the first incident surface 641 from the first direction is totally reflected by the first reflecting surface 643 to change the traveling direction to the second direction and is emitted from the first emitting surface. As a result, the traveling direction of the optical image changes from the first direction to the second direction. At this time, the optical image is inverted as the light is reflected by the first reflecting surface 643 .

By reflecting the optical image, the second reflecting member 65 changes the traveling direction of the optical image from the second direction to a direction parallel to the optical axis of the camera 11 . Like the first reflecting member 64, the second reflecting member 65 is a rectangular prism having a substantially triangular prism shape. Two surfaces orthogonal to each other when viewed in the axial direction are defined as a second entrance surface 651 and a second exit surface 652 , respectively, and a sloped surface is defined as a second reflection surface 653 . The second reflecting member 65 is positioned on the optical axis of the camera 11 and arranged so that the light emitted from the first reflecting member 64 is incident on the second incident surface 651 in a direction perpendicular to it. The light incident on the second incident surface 651 from the second direction is totally reflected by the second reflecting surface 653 to change the direction of travel to a direction parallel to the optical axis of the camera 11 and exit the second emitting surface 652. emitted. As a result, the traveling direction of the optical image changes from the first direction to the second direction. At this time, the optical image is reversed by reflecting the light on the second reflecting surface 653 .

The output portion 66 has a guide tube that penetrates the mounting plane 51 of the housing portion 5 . The guide cylinder is provided so that its central axis coincides with the optical axis of the camera 11 , and a part of it protrudes from the housing 5 and is inserted into the lens hole 373 of the holding part 10 . The guide tube transmits an optical image transmitted from the focus lens 633 to the camera lens 111 of the camera 11 through the lens hole 373 of the holding section 10 . Also, the output unit 66 may have an eyepiece that enlarges the optical image transmitted from the second reflecting member 65 by a predetermined magnification.

In the relay optical system 6 as described above, the optical image on the end surface 221 of the image guide fiber 22 is an erect image, and the image is inverted by the relay lens 612, the focus lens 633, the first reflecting member 64, and the second reflecting member 65. Repeatedly, finally, it is transmitted to the camera 11 as an erect image.

[how to use]
Next, a method for imaging an imaging target by the scope system 100 according to this embodiment will be described. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing how the system is assembled. First, the user sets the connector 200 to a state in which the optical unit 20 is fixed to the housing portion 3 and the housing portion 3 and the lid portion 4 are separated. In this state, the tablet PC 1 is accommodated in the accommodation portion 3 and the connector 200 is attached to the tablet PC 1 by fixing the cover portion 4 to the accommodation portion 3 . By connecting the end of the image guide fiber 22 to the connector 611 of the optical unit 20 and connecting the end of the light guide fiber 23 to the connector 611 , the fiber scope 2 is connected to the connector 200 . Thereby, the scope system 100 shown in FIG. 1 is assembled. Depending on the usage environment, the scope system 100 may allow the tablet PC 1 to stand upright on a table or the like with the stand piece 55 in the unfolded posture shown in FIG. Then, the optical unit 30 may be held as a grip.

Next, as shown in FIG. 1, when the light source 72 of the illumination unit 7 is caused to emit light while the objective lens 21 provided at the tip of the image guide fiber 22 is directed toward the object to be imaged, the light from the light source 72 is emitted into the ride guide. An optical image of light emitted from the tip of the fiber and reflected by the object to be imaged is transmitted to the camera 11 via the objective lens 21 , the image guide fiber 22 and the relay optical system 6 .

In this state, when the camera 11 is activated by the user's designation operation on the touch panel 13, an optical image is captured by the camera lens 111 and converted into an electronic image by the image processing unit, as shown in FIG. , an electronic image of the object to be imaged is displayed on the display 12 in real time. Accordingly, the user can observe the imaging target by visually recognizing the electronic image displayed on the display 12 . In addition, a still image can be recorded at an arbitrary timing by operating the touch panel 13 or the home button 14 as a shutter.

Note that the CPU 151 performs automatic focus adjustment (autofocus) by moving the camera lens 111 based on the contrast of the image captured by the image sensor 112 . If the focus adjustment of the electronic image by autofocus alone is insufficient, the position of the focus lens 633 of the focus adjustment unit 63 can be manually adjusted by operating the fixing screw 634 shown in FIG. may be adjusted.

Here, the electronic image acquired by the camera 11 is obtained by imaging the end face 221 of the image guide fiber 22 displaying the optical image of the object to be imaged. In such a scope system 100, optical axis misalignment between optical members such as optical axis misalignment between the image guide fiber 22 and the relay lens 612 may occur. In that case, as shown in FIG. 12A, the end face 221 of the image guide fiber 22 is displayed shifted from the center C of the electronic image, thereby shifting the position of the optical image of the imaging target within the electronic image from the image center C. may be displayed as The system according to the present embodiment may use an image correction application program (hereinafter referred to as an image correction program) stored in the storage unit 152 to correct deviation of the electronic image due to the optical axis deviation described above. The image correction program causes the CPU 151 to function as image correction means of the present invention. When the image correction program is activated by the user's designation operation on the touch panel 13, the CPU 151 determines whether or not the center position of the end surface 221 is shifted based on the image correction program. This determination is made by detecting the center position of the end face 221 by edge detection in the image. If the center position of the end face 221 is shifted from the image center C, the electronic image is corrected so that it is positioned at the image center C. FIG. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 12B, the optical image of the imaging target can be displayed at the image center C.

Alternatively, the illumination unit 7 may use a light provided in the tablet PC 1 as the light source 72 . In that case, the illumination unit 7 transmits the light emitted from the light to the light guide fiber 23 using any optical member such as a rectangular prism or an optical fiber.

[Action/effect]
As described above, according to the connector 200 according to the first embodiment, the tablet PC 1 is held by the holding portion 10, and the optical image output from the image guide fiber 22 by the optical unit 20 is transmitted to the camera of the tablet PC 1. can be done. Thereby, an optical image can be captured by the camera 11 of the tablet PC 1 and an electronic image can be displayed on the display 12 of the tablet PC 1 . As a result, the portability of the scope system 100 can be improved because there is no need to prepare a dedicated camera or display for the fiberscope.

Here, as described above, the allowable bending radius is determined for the optical fiber. Therefore, if the image guide fiber 22 is connected to the optical unit 20 in parallel with the optical axis of the camera 11, that is, in parallel with the normal direction of the rear surface of the tablet PC 1, the image guide fiber 22 cannot be bent within the allowable bending radius. Therefore, the image guide fiber 22 may be bulky in the normal direction of the rear surface.

On the other hand, in the optical unit 20 according to the first embodiment, since the image guide fiber 22 is connected in a direction perpendicular to the optical axis of the camera 11, the image guide fiber 22 can be positioned along the rear surface of the tablet PC 1. . As a result, the image guide fiber 22 is prevented from being bulky in the normal direction of the rear surface of the tablet PC 1, and the overall size of the scope system 100 can be made compact.

In addition, the relay optical system 6 changes the traveling direction of the optical image from the first direction to the second direction by the first reflecting member 64, and changes the traveling direction of the optical image from the second direction to the direction of the camera 11 by the second reflecting member 65. An optical image is transmitted to the camera 11 by changing the direction of the optical axis. That is, the relay optical system 6 can freely control the traveling direction of the optical image up, down, left, and right by arranging the first reflecting member 64 and the second reflecting member 65 . According to this, the degree of freedom in layout of the optical members provided in the optical unit 20 can be improved. As a result, the size of the optical unit 20 can be made more compact. Note that the first direction and the second direction do not necessarily have to be orthogonal.

Further, the optical unit 20 according to the first embodiment can transmit an optical image output from the image guide fiber 22 in the relay optical system 6 to the camera 11 as an erect image. As a result, it is not necessary to reverse the electronic image by the tablet PC 1 in order to obtain an erect image.

Assuming that the number of times the optical image is inverted in the relay optical system 6 is N, N may be the number of times that the optical image transmitted to the camera 11 becomes an erect image. For example, when the optical image output from the image guide fiber 22 is an erect image, the erect image can be output by setting N to an even number. Conversely, when the optical image output from the image guide fiber 22 is an inverted image, N should be an odd number. As a result, the camera 11 can capture the optical image of the imaging target as an erect image. The size of N can be adjusted by changing the number of reflections, such as by changing the number of reflecting members.

Note that the first reflecting member 64 and the second reflecting member 65 may be, for example, a plane mirror or a beam splitter that reflects an optical image with a metal film formed on the surface.

Further, since the scope system 100 according to the first embodiment can correct the position of the optical image in the image by the control device 15 of the tablet PC 1, it is necessary to separately provide the optical unit 20 with a mechanism for adjusting the optical axis. Therefore, the optical unit 20 can be made compact. As a result, the portability of the scope system 100 is improved.

The image correction program may also rotate and correct the electronic image so as to keep the orientation of the optical image constant during observation. Specifically, when the CPU 151 detects rotation of the optical image in the electronic image during observation of the imaging target based on the image correction program, the electronic image is rotated to correct the orientation of the optical image. As a result, even if the image guide fiber 22 rotates around the optical axis during observation of the imaging target, the top and bottom of the optical image in the image can be kept constant.

In addition to the position correction and rotation correction described above, the image correction program may also perform noise removal correction to remove noise in the electronic image due to the display of the cladding of each optical fiber that constitutes the image guide fiber 22. good. The image correction program may perform noise removal correction only when a still image is obtained by operating the shutter. By not performing noise removal correction during observation, the processing load on the CPU 151 can be reduced.

Although the connector 200 according to the present embodiment is configured such that the holding portion 10 and the optical unit 20 are detachably separate members, the holding portion 10 and the optical unit 20 may be formed integrally.

[Modification 1]
13A and 13B are diagrams showing a holding portion 10A according to Modification 1. FIG. The holding portion 10A according to the modification has a wide window portion 41A formed in the lid portion 4A. The window portion 41A is formed so as to abut only near the lower edge of the front surface of the tablet PC 1 . Further, near the upper edge of the rear wall surface 32 of the accommodating portion 3, a hook piece 7A having a substantially U-shaped cross section is hingedly connected. The hook piece 7A can change its posture between a separation posture away from the upper wall surface 33 shown in FIG. 13A and an engagement posture in contact with the upper wall surface 33 shown in FIG. 13B. , is formed to abut near the upper edge of the front surface of the tablet PC 1 . In the holding portion 10A, the tablet PC 1 is stored in the storage pocket 37 with the hook piece 7A in the separated posture, and then the hook piece 7A is put in the engagement posture, so that the vicinity of the lower edge of the front surface of the tablet PC 1 is secured to the lid portion 4. , and the vicinity of the upper edge is held down by the hook piece 7A. This prevents the stored tablet PC 1 from coming off.

[Modification 2]
14A and 14B are diagrams showing a holding portion 10B according to Modification 2. FIG. As shown in FIGS. 14A and 14B, the housing portion 3B of the holding portion 10B and the lid portion 4B may be hinged so that the lid portion 4B can be opened and closed. In the housing portion 3B according to the modification, the lower edge of the lid portion 4B is hinge-connected to the lower edge of the front wall surface 31 . As a result, the lid portion 4B can change its posture between the open posture away from the front wall surface 31 shown in FIG. 14A and the closed posture covering the front wall surface 31 shown in FIG. 14B. A hook piece 7B having a substantially semicircular cross section is hinged near the upper edge of the rear wall surface 32 of the housing portion 3B. The hook piece 7B maintains the closed posture of the lid portion 4B by engaging with the upper edge of the lid portion 4B when the lid portion 4B is in the closed posture. This prevents the stored tablet PC 1 from coming off.

[Modification 3]
FIG. 15 is a block diagram of a scope system 100C according to Modification 3. As shown in FIG. Generally, since the fiberscope 2 is used on the human body, the upper limit of the number of times of use (hereinafter referred to as the allowable number of times of use) is set. As shown in FIG. 15, the optical unit 20C of the connector 200C according to Modification 3 includes an identification element recognition unit 8 that recognizes the identification element 25 provided at the end of the image guide fiber 22, and the identification element 25. and a communication unit 9 that transmits identification information to the tablet PC 1 . An ID (identification information) unique to the fiberscope 2 is recorded in the identification element 25 . The identification element 25 is, for example, an RFID (radio frequency identifier) tag, and the identification element recognition unit 8 is, for example, an RFID reader capable of detecting the RFID tag. The identification element recognition section 8 detects the RFID tag when the image guide fiber 22 is connected to the connector 611 . The control device 15 of the tablet PC 1 acquires the identification information acquired by the identification element recognition section 8 by performing wireless communication with the communication section 9 based on the program. Wireless communication between the control device 15 and the communication unit 9 conforms to the IEEE802.11 standard, for example. The CPU 151 of the control device 15 calculates the number of times the fiberscope 2 has been used based on the obtained identification information and the number of times the identification information has been obtained. When the number of times the fiberscope 2 has been used exceeds the allowable number of times of use, the CPU 151 causes the display 12 to display that it is disabled.

<Embodiment 2>
FIG. 16A is a diagram showing a connecting portion between the optical unit 30 according to Embodiment 2 and the image guide fiber 22D of the fiberscope 2D. In Embodiment 2, two ball lenses optically connect the tablet PC 1 and the fiberscope 2D.

The ball lens used in the second embodiment has a spherical shape and has the function of collimating light emitted from the focal position. In addition, since the ball lens has a small radius of curvature, it has a short focal length compared to an aspherical lens having the same diameter. The two ball lenses are respectively a first ball lens 301 provided in the optical unit 30 and a second ball lens 220 provided at the end of the image guide fiber 22D.

The optical unit 30 according to the second embodiment has a connecting tube 302 provided in the holding section 10 and a first ball lens 301 arranged inside the connecting tube 302 . The connecting cylinder 302 is provided so as to be coaxial with the lens hole 373 of the holding portion 10 . The first ball lens 301 is provided such that its optical axis coincides with the optical axis of the camera 11 . The connecting tube 302 corresponds to the "connecting member" of the present invention.

The second ball lens 220 is provided so that the optical axis coincides with the optical axis of the image guide fiber 22D and the distance between the center position and the end of the image guide fiber 22D is the focal length. Such connection between the image guide fiber 22D and the optical unit 30 is made by inserting the end of the image guide fiber 22D into the connecting tube 302. As shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 16A, when the image guide fiber 22D and the optical unit 30 are connected, the optical axis of the first ball lens 301 and the optical axis of the second ball lens 220 are aligned, and the end of the image guide fiber 22D A light ray from the surface 221 is collimated by the second ball lens 220 and enters the first ball lens 301 , thereby transmitting an optical image to the camera lens 111 .

Here, FIG. 16B is a diagram showing a connecting portion between the optical unit 30E according to the comparative example and the image guide fiber 22E of the fiberscope 2E. In the comparative example, instead of the first ball lens 301 and the second ball lens 220, a first aspherical lens 301E and a second aspherical lens 220E are provided. The first aspherical lens 301E and the second aspherical lens 220E are general objective lenses having an aspherical shape. The focal lengths of the first aspherical lens 301E and the second aspherical lens 220E are longer than the focal lengths of the first ball lens 301 and the second ball lens 220, respectively. Therefore, the connecting tube 302E is longer than the connecting tube 302, as shown in FIG. 16B. That is, the connecting portion between the optical unit 30E and the image guide fiber 22E is longer in the optical axis direction of the camera 11 than the connecting portion between the optical unit 30 and the image guide fiber 22D.

As described above, according to the optical unit 30 according to the second embodiment, the first ball lens 301 and the second ball lens 220 having shorter focal lengths than the first aspherical lens 301E and the second aspherical lens 220E can be used. Thus, the connecting portion between the optical unit and the image guide fiber can be formed shorter than in the comparative example. As a result, the optical unit 30 can be made compact, and the portability of the scope system 100 can be further improved. Furthermore, since the ball lens is spherical, tilting of the optical axis due to tilting of the ball lens is suppressed. As a result, the lens holding mechanism can be configured more simply than when a normal objective lens is used, and the design tolerance of the holding mechanism can be increased.

In Embodiment 2, the tablet PC 1 and the fiberscope 2D are optically connected by two ball lenses, but the present invention is not limited to the aspect described above. As shown in the modification of FIG. 16C, the ball lens may be provided only on the optical unit side. In FIG. 16C, the optical unit 30 and the image guide fiber 22E are optically connected by the first ball lens 301 provided on the optical unit 30 side and the second aspherical lens 220E provided on the image guide fiber 22E side. is doing. Also by doing so, the optical unit 30 can be configured more compactly than the comparative example in which two general objective lenses are used and connected.

The second ball lens 220 may be arranged inside the connector 611 of the input section 61 in the first embodiment instead of the relay lens 612 .

<Others>
The contents described in the above embodiments and modifications can be implemented in combination as much as possible.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Tablet personal computer with a camera 11... Camera 12... Display 13... Touch panel 14... Home button 15... Control device 2... Fiber scope 21... Objective lens 22. Image guide fiber 23 Light guide fiber 3 Accommodating portion 4 Lid portion 5 Housing portion 6 Relay optical system 61 Input portion 62 Filter portion 63... Focus adjustment part 64... First reflecting member 65... Second reflecting member 66... Output part 67... Illuminating part 10... Holding part 20... Optical unit 100...・Fiberscope system 200...Fiberscope connector 301...First ball lens 220...Second ball lens

Claims (5)

A fiberscope connector for connecting a fiberscope that outputs an optical image of an imaging target acquired by an objective lens from an image guide fiber to a camera provided in a mobile terminal,
a holding unit that holds the mobile terminal;
an optical unit attached to the holding portion and connected to the image guide fiber from a first direction perpendicular to the optical axis of the camera;
The optical unit comprises a relay optical system that transmits the optical image output from the image guide fiber to the camera in a direction parallel to the optical axis of the camera ,
The relay optical system includes a filter section that holds the optical filter so that the optical filter can be moved between on and off the path of the optical image by operating a knob projecting to the outside of the optical unit. A fiberscope connector, comprising : 2. The optical unit has a ball lens positioned on the optical axis of the image guide fiber when the image guide fiber is connected to the optical unit. The fiberscope connector described in . A fiberscope connector for connecting a fiberscope that outputs an optical image of an imaging target acquired by an objective lens from an image guide fiber to a camera provided in a mobile terminal,
a holding unit that holds the mobile terminal;
an optical unit attached to the holding portion and connected to the image guide fiber from a first direction perpendicular to the optical axis of the camera ;
The optical unit includes a ball lens provided so as to be positioned on the optical axis of the camera, and the ball lens being positioned on the optical axis of the image guide fiber when the image guide fiber is connected to the optical unit. A connecting member to be arranged, and a relay optical system for transmitting the optical image output from the image guide fiber to the camera in a direction parallel to the optical axis of the camera ,
The relay optical system includes a filter section that holds the optical filter so that the optical filter can be moved between on and off the path of the optical image by operating a knob projecting to the outside of the optical unit. A fiberscope connector, comprising : A fiber comprising a fiber scope for outputting an optical image of an imaging target acquired by an objective lens from an image guide fiber, a mobile terminal having a camera, a display and a control device, and a connector for connecting the fiber scope to the camera. A scope system,
The connector includes a holding portion that holds the mobile terminal, and an optical unit that is attached to the holding portion and to which the image guide fiber is connected from a first direction perpendicular to the optical axis of the camera. have
the optical unit causes the display to display an electronic image of the optical image by transmitting the optical image to the camera;
The control device has image correction means for correcting the position of the optical image within the electronic image,
The optical unit comprises a relay optical system that transmits the optical image output from the image guide fiber to the camera in a direction parallel to the optical axis of the camera,
The relay optical system includes a filter section that holds the optical filter so that the optical filter can be moved between on and off the path of the optical image by operating a knob projecting to the outside of the optical unit. A fiberscope system comprising : A fiber comprising a fiber scope for outputting an optical image of an imaging target acquired by an objective lens from an image guide fiber, a mobile terminal having a camera, a display and a control device, and a connector for connecting the fiber scope to the camera. A scope system,
The connector includes a holding portion that holds the mobile terminal, and an optical unit that is attached to the holding portion and to which the image guide fiber is connected from a first direction perpendicular to the optical axis of the camera. have
the optical unit causes the display to display an electronic image of the optical image by transmitting the optical image to the camera;
The control device has image correction means for correcting the orientation of the optical image within the electronic image,
The optical unit comprises a relay optical system that transmits the optical image output from the image guide fiber to the camera in a direction parallel to the optical axis of the camera,
The relay optical system includes a filter section that holds the optical filter so that the optical filter can be moved between on and off the path of the optical image by operating a knob projecting to the outside of the optical unit. A fiberscope system comprising :

Images