JPH02152436A - Electronic endoscopic apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enhance operability by providing a remote control means for enhancing an image to the operation part of an electronic endoscope. CONSTITUTION:The digital image signal outputted from the A/D converter provided to the leading end part of an electronic endoscope is supplied to the field memory circuit 31 on the side of an apparatus main body 100 through a wiring bundle 24 and image signals R, G are stored in the memories Rm, Gm of a filed memory circuit 31. Subsequently, when the third digital image signal is supplied, two digital image signals stored previously are read to be supplied to an image enhancing circuit 40 along with the third digital image signal B. This circuit is constituted so as to capable of selecting function for supplying color signals R, G, B to the digital processor 32 of the next stage without applying enhancing processing to said color signals, function for magnifying a part of an image, function for enhancing the contour of the image and function for enhancing the image using desired color by a remote control means 91. By this method, the desired enhancing treatment relating to the image can be performed in an operation part when the body cavity is photographed or diagnosed and user's convenience becomes well.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to an electronic endoscope device, and particularly to an electronic endoscope device configured to easily perform enhancement processing on captured images. .

[Prior Art] An electronic endoscope device includes an electronic scope section inserted into the body, a processor for processing video signals transmitted from the electronic scope section, a display device, a control circuit, etc. Become.

The electronic scope has a hard tip formed at the tip of a flexible pipe body that can be inserted, for example, into an organ of the human body, and an imaging optical system such as a lens, and a solid-state image sensor such as a CCD are disposed within the tip. In addition, a transmission path for transmitting video signals photoelectrically converted by a solid-state image sensor and clock pulses for driving the solid-state image sensor inside the flexible vibrator, an optical fiber for transmitting light for illumination for photography, and a clamp for collecting specimens from the affected area. It is equipped with an insertion part.

The flexible pipe body has a length of approximately 2 m to 3 m, and a hard tip portion having a length of approximately 1Q mm is formed at its tip. When photographing the inside of the body, the direction of the tip and the like are remotely controlled using an operating section provided at the other end of the flexible pipe body, and the affected area is photographed using a single imaging device.

On the other hand, the device main body side includes a signal processing circuit that performs T correction, white balance, etc., an A/D converter, a luminance signal/color difference signal separation circuit, a video signal processing circuit such as a memory circuit, a display device, an image recording device, etc. is provided, and is configured to be able to display images based on the analog video signal.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] By the way, a doctor operates an operation unit while looking at a photographed image to diagnose the condition of an affected area. If you want to enlarge the affected area during diagnosis, emphasize the outline of the affected area, or perform image enhancement such as changing the color tone,
Since the operation section of the electronic scope is not equipped with a remote control means for this enhancement, it is necessary to approach the main body of the device, perform the desired image enhancement operation, and then return to the patient's side and perform the operation again. It was inconvenient.

Furthermore, while performing the image enhancement operation, the electronic scope may be moved while being held in the hand, and this movement causes inconveniences such as undesirable bending of the flexible pipe portion.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and its purpose is to improve the operability of an electronic endoscope device by providing a remote control means for enhancing images in the operating section of the electronic scope. It is in.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve such an object, the present invention provides image outline enhancement, image enlargement, and appropriate color emphasis on the operation unit of an electronic scope that constitutes an electronic endoscope device. This system is equipped with remote control means for performing image enhancement processing such as the following.

[Function] In the present invention having such a configuration, when performing internal imaging or diagnosis, desired enhancement processing for images can be performed at the operation unit, and the usability of the electronic endoscope device is improved. becomes better.

[Embodiment] Hereinafter, an embodiment of an electronic endoscope to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the external appearance of the electronic scope, FIG. 2 is a perspective view schematically showing the rigid tip of the electronic scope, FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing the structure of the rigid tip, and FIG. is an explanatory diagram showing the emission of light that irradiates the inside of the body,
Figures 5 and 6 are circuit diagrams showing the video signal processing system, and Figure 7 is a circuit diagram showing the video signal processing system.
The figure is a circuit diagram and a waveform diagram of a sample and hold circuit.

First, the overall structure of the electronic scope 1 will be explained with reference to FIG.

The electronic scope 1 can be roughly divided into an operating section 2, a flexible pipe section 3 to be inserted into the body, a hard tip section (hereinafter referred to as the tip section) 5 provided at the tip of a curved section 4, and a connector 6.7. Flexible connection part 8 that connects to the main body (not shown)
It consists of etc.

Inside the tip part 5, as shown in FIG. 2, cylindrical spaces 11, 12, and 13 are formed which are divided into three parts by a pipe body, and these cylindrical spaces 11 to 13 are connected to the inside of the flexible vibrator part 3. ing. Then, in the cylindrical space 11, for example, a glass fiber east (not shown) that guides light for irradiating the inside of the body may be arranged, and in the cylindrical space 12, for example, a forceps (not shown) for collecting the affected part is operated. It may be provided if possible. Note that the light that irradiates the inside of the body is not white light, but three colors of light: red (R), green (G), and blue (B). That is, as shown in FIG. 4(A), three color filters 15 are arranged in front of a light source such as a xenon lamp 14, and the light transmitted through the color filters 15 is configured to enter a glass fiber 16. .

The color filter 15 is -1 as shown in FIG. 4(B).
An optical filter 17a1 that transmits red light, an optical filter 17b that transmits green light, and a disk that rotates once at /20 sec.
, optical filters 17c that transmit blue light are provided at predetermined intervals.

Therefore, by rotating the color filter 15, red light, green light, and blue light enter one end of the glass fiber 16 every 1/60 seconds, pass through the electronic scope 1, exit from the tip 5, and enter the body. The colored lights are sequentially irradiated.

On the other hand, the cylindrical space 13 is used for imaging and signal transmission, and its structure is as shown in FIG. That is, the tip opening 1 of the cylindrical space 13
In 3a, an imaging optical system 21 consisting of lenses and the like is provided in an airtight structure, and a solid-state imaging device 22 is disposed at a position where a captured image is optically formed by the imaging optical system 21.

The solid-state image sensor 22 is mounted in the cylindrical space 13 by a so-called printed wiring board 23, and the printed wiring board 23 has a wiring bundle 24 for transmitting video signals and clock signals.
is connected.

What should be noted in this embodiment is that an A/D converter 26 is disposed in the vicinity of the solid-state image sensor 22 using the back space 24 of the printed wiring board 23.

According to this configuration, during in-body photography, the inside of the body is sequentially irradiated by the RSG and B lights emitted from the cylindrical space 11, and the reflected light, in other words, the photographed image is transmitted to the photographing optical system 2.
1, the image is formed on the solid-state image sensor 22. The solid-state image sensor 22 performs a light-receiving operation and outputs analog video signals corresponding to R, G, and B in a line-sequential manner. The analog video signal is supplied from the solid-state image sensor 22 to the A/D converter 26 via the printed wiring board 23, but the solid-state image sensor 22 and the A/D converter 26 are arranged close to each other. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the level drop of the analog video signal and the influence of noise.

Then, a digitized video signal is obtained from the A/D converter 26, and is supplied to the main body of the apparatus (not shown) via the wiring bundle 24, which is a signal transmission path. The length of the wiring bundle 24 is approximately equal to the length of the electronic scope 1, and although stray capacity and clock pulses act on the video signal being transmitted, the digitized video signal does not fluctuate.

Therefore, the digital video signal is transmitted in good condition to the signal processing circuit provided in the main body of the apparatus (not shown).

Next, image processing in the apparatus main body will be explained. FIG. 5 shows a first example of image processing, where l indicates the electronic scope side and 100 indicates the apparatus main body side. A
The digital video signal output from the /D converter 23 is
The R digital video signal is supplied to the field memory circuit 31 provided on the device main body side 100 via the wiring bundle 24, and the R digital video signal is supplied to Rm of the field memory circuit 31, and the G digital video signal is supplied to Gm of the field memory circuit 31. memorized.

As mentioned above, two digital video signals are stored in memory;
Next, when the third digital video signal is supplied, the second digital video signal previously stored is read out and supplied to the image enhancement circuit 40 together with the third digital video signal, that is, the B digital video signal. The circuit 4
0 is controlled by the operation of the remote control means 91.
A function to supply the R, G, and B color signals to the next stage digital processor 32 without emphasizing them, a function to enlarge a part of the image, a function to emphasize the outline of the image, and a function to further convert the image into a desired shape. It is configured so that functions etc. to be highlighted with color can be selected.

The above function may be configured to be performed by arithmetic processing or a digital filter, and the enhanced color signal or the non-enhanced color signal is supplied to the digital processor 32 at the next stage.

The digital processor 32 performs white balance adjustment, γ correction, gain adjustment, and black adjustment light, and the corrected and adjusted R, G, and B digital video signals are simultaneously sent to the digital encoder 33.
is supplied to

The digital encoder 33 performs D/A conversion and outputs R, G
, B and outputs a comprehensive color video signal (NTSC video signal). In response to each of the video signals, display by a display device, VT
Recording on R, recording on a photosensitive material, etc. are performed.

By the way, the solid-state image sensor 22 requires a clock pulse φv1 for vertically transferring charges and a clock pulse φh (for example, 7.16 MHz) for horizontally transferring charges, and also requires a vertical synchronizing signal for the digital processor 32 and digital encoder 33. It is necessary to supply fv, horizontal synchronization signal fh, etc. This agreement, sink generator 41
is provided to generate a vertical synchronization signal fv and a horizontal synchronization signal fh, and supply them to the digital processor 32 and digital encoder 33.

As for the solid-state image sensor 22, the clock pulse φv1φh is generated and supplied from the timing pulse generation circuit 42.

On the other hand, timing and pulses are required to drive the A/D converter 23, but if a dedicated transmission path is provided for timing pulse transmission, the wiring bundle 24 will inevitably become thicker, and the weight of the electronic scope 1 will increase. There is a risk that the deformability within the body may worsen.

Therefore, a phase shift circuit 43 is installed near the solid-state image sensor 22.
The timing pulse Tp for driving the A/D converter 26 is obtained from the clock pulse φh.

As a result, the A/D converter 26 can be driven without providing a transmission path for supplying the timing pulse Tp to the A/D converter 26, and a dedicated transmission path becomes unnecessary.

Next, a second example of image processing will be described. The difference between the first example and the second example is that the image processing is configured to be performed in an analog manner. Therefore, circuits having the same functions as those in the first example are designated by the same reference numerals, and their explanation will be omitted. That is,
The R and GSB digital video signals read from the memory circuit 31 are sent to D/A converters 51a, 5lb,
51c1. ::Thus, it is converted into an analog video signal and then supplied to the process amplifier 52. R where T correction, white balance adjustment, etc. were performed from the process amplifier 52
S.G.

The analog video signal of B is output, and the encoder 53
A comprehensive color video signal (NTSC video signal) is output from the NTSC system.

Furthermore, a sample and hold circuit can also be applied to improve the S/N ratio when transmitting analog video signals.

As for sample-and-hold circuits, correlated double sampling circuits, delay differential noise removal methods, and the like are known, and both require timing pulses for clamping operations, gate opening/closing, and the like.

However, in the electronic scope 1, the clock pulse φh is used to drive the solid-state image sensor 22 built into the distal end portion 5.
Since 1φV is supplied, if these tarock pulses are used, it is possible to drive the sample and hold circuit for sample and hold without supplying a new timing pulse, and it is possible to improve the S/N ratio.

Here, an example in which a correlated double sampling circuit is provided near the solid-state image sensor 22 will be described with reference to FIG.

That is, the noise component n( as shown in FIG. 7(B)) is input to the input terminal of the correlated double sampling circuit shown in FIG. 7(A).
Assume that a video signal V1 including voltage fluctuation (voltage fluctuation) is supplied.

After the calming period indicated by the to period is clamped by the clamp circuit 61, the signal period ts is sampled and held by the sample and hold circuit 62 to remove noise n. Note that 63, 64, and 65 are current buffers. The timing pulse for driving the clamp circuit 61 and the sample hold circuit 62 is the clock pulse φh1φV.
Try to get it by using.

According to this circuit configuration, the noise component contained in the video signal V1 can be removed without providing a timing pulse transmission path for driving the sampling circuit.

Furthermore, in order to improve the operability when performing diagnosis using the electronic scope 1, the following measures have been taken for the operation section 2.

The operating section 2 will be explained below with reference to FIG. The operation unit 2 is provided with a VTR remote control button 71 and a freeze frame hard copy button 72 for operations related to video. In addition, there are a suction button 73, an air/water supply button 74, a vertical angle lock button 75, a vertical angle knob 76, a left/right angle knob 77, a left/right angle knob 77, a suction button 73, an air/water supply button 74, and a An angle lock lock lever 78 is provided.

Regarding the forceps operation, the forceps stopper 81, forceps hole 82, sub-water supply hole 83, forceps upright wire cleaning hole 84
etc. are provided. A remote switch 91 is provided for performing operations related to image enhancement processing. That is, when a doctor inserts the electronic scope 1 into a patient's body and diagnoses the inside of the patient's body, the doctor does so while viewing an image on a display device provided in the main body of the device. Conventionally, if a person particularly wanted to observe a part of the body, the user had to return to the main body of the apparatus, perform predetermined operations, and then return to the patient's vicinity to operate the electronic scope 1.

However, as shown in this embodiment, by providing a remote switch 91 for image enhancement operation in a part of the operation unit 2, the doctor can view the image of the affected area that he or she particularly wants to see while staying close to the patient. Processing such as enlargement, outline enhancement, and desired color enhancement can be performed.

Note that the image enhancement circuit itself is connected to the device main body side 10 as described above.
By providing the remote switch 91 on the operating section 2, the diameter of the flexible pipe section 3 will not increase, and the operability will not deteriorate.

Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above, and various modifications are possible.

For example, the solid-state image sensor 22 and the A/D converter 26 may be integrally provided on the same semiconductor substrate.

Furthermore, if the solid-state image sensor 22 is to be made large due to resolution etc., a prism is used, for example, as disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application No. 62-35314, but even in this case, the solid-state image sensor 2 An A/D converter is placed near this,
The above objective can be achieved.

Further, in order to detect a lesion, the affected area may be irradiated with monochromatic light, and the selection of the irradiation light may be performed using the operating section.

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, according to the present invention, since the operation section of the electronic scope is provided with a remote control means for enhancing the photographed image, the usability of the electronic endoscope is improved and the photographing process is improved. and diagnostic work becomes easier.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing the overall appearance of the electronic scope, Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the schematic structure of the tip of the electronic scope, Fig. 3 is a sectional view showing the structure of the tip, and Fig. 4 is a light source and 5 and 6 are circuit diagrams showing the video signal processing system. FIG. 7 is a waveform diagram illustrating the sample and hold circuit and its operation. Reference numeral 1 in the figure: Electronic scope 2: Operating section 3: Flexible pipe section 5: Hard tip section 21: Photographing optical system 22 Two solid-state image sensors 23 Niblint wiring board 24: Wiring bundle 25: Space 26: A/D converter 31: Field memory circuit Digital processor Digital encoder Image enhancement circuit Sink generator Timing pulse generation circuit Phase shift circuit Process amplifier Encoder Clamp circuit Sample hold circuit Remote switch: Equipment main body Figure 5'

Claims (1)

[Claims] In an electronic endoscope device comprising an electronic scope with a built-in solid-state image sensor in a distal end, and a processor that performs desired signal processing on a video signal output from the solid-state image sensor on the device main body side, the device main body side An electronic endoscope apparatus comprising: an image enhancement circuit provided in the electronic scope; and a remote control means for selectively driving the image enhancement circuit provided in the operating section of the electronic scope.