JPH04102437A - Electronic endoscope device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide an electronic endoscope device capable of selecting automatically a magnified display region to reduce loads on both operator and patient by providing, in an image signal processing means, an image magnifying means capable of magnifying and displaying the most appropriate brightness part of an object image photographed by a solid- state image scanner element according to signal process. CONSTITUTION:The output signal inputted from a solid-state image scanner element 15 to the input end of a video-processor 3 is inputted to a process circuit 21 and then a separate light measuring circuit 29. The separate light measuring circuit 29 divides a frame 4a of a monitor 4 into a plurality of regions and measures light intensity in each region so that the regions are ranked according to the appropriateness of the light intensity and the information is outputted to a magnification control circuit 30. When a magnificated frame observing switch 31 is turned ON, a magnified frame observing mode is selected and the magnification control circuit 30 commands a magnifying circuit 24 to magnify and display the most appropriate light intensity region in the frame divided by the separate light measuring circuit 29. When the switch 31 are continuously turned ON, the picture in the appropriate light intensity region in the next rank set by the separate light measuring circuit 29 is magnified and displayed in the master frame 4a after the passage of set time, and the divided region is sequentially displayed in every set time while the switch 31 is continuously turned ON.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Field of Application] The present invention relates to an electronic endoscope apparatus that automatically selects an area to be enlarged and displayed during enlarged observation using electronic zoom.

[Prior Art] In recent years, various electronic endoscopes have been developed in which a small solid-state imaging device such as a charge-coupled device (CCD) is disposed at the distal end of the insertion section.

In this electronic endoscope, an observation image formed by the tip optical system is converted into an electrical signal by a solid-state image sensor, and this output signal is processed by an external video signal processing device connected to the electronic endoscope. The device is configured to process the video signal and then display it on a television monitor or the like.

Therefore, in this type of electronic endoscope, by adding various signal processing functions to the video signal processing device, signal processing is applied to the output signal from the solid-state image sensor, so that the monitor Processed images can be displayed.

Among the several signal processing functions, there is an image enlargement function (so-called electronic zoom function). This image enlargement function electronically enlarges the image captured by the image sensor. If there is a lesion within the body, it plays an important role in understanding the fine structure of this lesion.For example, as a signal processing means related to the image enlargement function, the enlargement method as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-178234 is recommended. The screen can be displayed on the same monitor as the reduced screen, or the index of the enlarged range can be displayed by combining it with the image before enlargement, as in Japanese Patent Application No. 1-275183, and the enlarged range can be specified using the keyboard. There is something I did.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] By the way, the magnified display area in conventional magnified observation using so-called electronic zoom is fixed at the center of the image, or has to be selected by manual operations such as keyboard designation.

Therefore, when a surgeon wants to observe a lesion on the Wi screen in a magnified manner, he or she must either display the region of interest in the center of the screen by manipulating the angle of the electronic endoscope, or instruct the region to be magnified by manipulating the keyboard.

However, these operations are very time-consuming and difficult for the surgeon, making it easy for the surgeon to lose sight of the lesion on the screen or miss the opportunity to take the best enlarged photo that the surgeon is aiming for. As a result, the diagnosis time becomes longer and the burden is placed on the patient.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an electronic endoscope device that can automatically select an enlarged display area and reduce the burden on both the operator and the patient. The purpose is to

[Means for Solving the Problems] The present invention provides an imaging means using a solid-state image sensor that converts an optical image of a subject into an electrical signal, and a video signal processing means that processes an output signal of the solid-state image sensor into a video signal. In the electronic endoscope apparatus, the video signal processing means can enlarge and display a portion of the subject image captured by the solid-state image pickup device with the most appropriate brightness through signal processing. It is equipped with an enlargement means.

[Function] In the present invention, the screen is divided into several parts, and by enlarging and displaying the one with the best dimming among the divided screens, the area of interest is effectively automatically set as the enlarged area. This allows you to choose from.

[Example] Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained in detail based on the drawings.

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an electronic endoscope device, FIG. 2(a) is an explanatory diagram showing a display image during normal observation, and FIG. 2(b) ) is an explanatory diagram showing a display image during magnified observation, FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the overall configuration of the electronic endoscope device, FIGS. 4rM to 16 are explanatory diagrams showing the mounting state of the monitor by aspect, ! 1 is a schematic diagram of a monitor photographing device.

The electronic endoscope device includes an electronic endoscope 1, a light source device 2, a video processor 3 having a built-in video signal processing circuit, and a monitor 4 connected to the video processor 3.

The electronic endoscope 1 includes an elongated and visible insertion section 5, and a large-diameter operation section 6 is connected to the rear of the insertion section 5. A flexible universal cord 7 is extended laterally from this operation section 6, and this universal cord 7 and the light source bag M2 are connected via a connector section 8, and further, this connector section 8 and the video processor 3 are connected via a connection cable 9.

Further, an illumination optical system 11 and an objective optical system 12 are disposed at the distal end portion 10 of the insertion section 5, and the illumination optical system 1
An output end of a light guide fiber 13 is provided opposite to the rear end of the light guide fiber 1 , and an input end of the light guide fiber 13 is provided opposite to a light source 14 built in the light source device 2 .

Further, a charge-coupled device (
An imaging surface of a solid-state imaging device 15 such as CCD) is arranged,
This solid-state image sensor 15 and the input end of the video processor 3 are connected via a signal cable 16.

Distal end 1 of insertion section 5 of electronic endoscope 1 inserted into a body cavity
0, illumination light from a light source 14 built into the light source device 2 is emitted via the light guide fiber 13 and the illumination optical system 11, and the image of the subject inside the body cavity illuminated by this illumination light is An objective optical system 12 provided at the tip 10 of the section 5 forms an image on the imaging surface of the solid-state image sensor 15, photoelectrically converts the image, and sends the image to the video processor via the signal cable 16 and the connection cable 9 connected to the connector section 8. It is output to the input terminal of 3.

The output signal from the solid-state image sensor 15 input to the input end of the video processor 3 is input to the process circuit 21 and detected,
), γ correction, and other signal processing, the A/D
The converter 22 converts the signal into a digital signal.

Next, this digital signal is inputted to an enlargement circuit 24 and a reduction circuit 25 via a memory circuit 23.

This enlargement circuit 24 performs an operation to increase the number of scanning lines and pixels of the original image by interpolation calculation, and the reduction circuit 25 performs an operation to thin out and decrease the number of scanning lines and horizontal pixels of the original image. This is what we do.

Then, each output signal outputted from the enlargement circuit 24 and the reduction circuit 25 passes through the synchronization output circuit 26 to the D/A converter 2.
After being D/A converted in step 7, the video signal is input to the Bost process circuit 28, and the video signal output from the Bost process circuit 28 is input to the monitor 4, and the image pickup surface of the solid-state image sensor 15 is displayed on the monitor 4. The image of the subject, that is, the observed image, is displayed.

On the other hand, the output signal from the pre-processing circuit 21 is also input to two divided photometry circuits. As shown in FIG. 2(a), this divisional photometry circuit 29 divides the screen 4a of the monitor 4 into a plurality of regions (9 divisions in the figure), measures the amount of light in each region, and determines the appropriate amount of light. , and outputs the information to the enlargement control circuit 30.

This enlargement control circuit 30 includes the above-mentioned circuits 21, 24, 25.
26, and when the enlarged observation image switch 31 provided on the operation surface of the video processor 3 is OFF,
The enlargement control circuit 30 is set to the normal observation image mode.
Now, the magnification factor of the magnification circuit 24 is controlled so that all the pixels of the solid-state image sensor 15 are displayed on the screen display frame 4a of the monitor 4 at a predetermined size. Note that at this time, the output from the reduction circuit 25 is not selected, and no reduced screen is displayed on the monitor 4.

On the other hand, when the enlarged observation image switch 31 is turned on, the enlarged II observation image mode is selected, and the enlargement control circuit 31
Now, for the enlargement circuit 24, the division photometry circuit 29 is
The center area of the screen divided by
A command is given to enlarge and display the central area in figure (a).

Then, in the enlargement circuit 24, the enlargement control circuit 30
The image signal of the area designated by is enlarged to a preset magnification, and the signal is output to the periodic output circuit 26. at the same time,
The reduction circuit 25 operates to reduce the image signal output from the solid-state image sensor 15 at a predetermined magnification, and outputs the signal to the synchronous output circuit 26 in a time-division manner with respect to the output signal from the enlargement circuit 24.

Then, from the synchronous output circuit 26 to the D/A converter 2
The enlarged image signal and the reduced image signal are time-divided and output to the host process circuit 28 via the host process circuit 7 in synchronization with the video signal, and further output from the host process circuit 28 to the monitor 4.

Then, as shown in FIG. ) 4a is displayed, and a display frame 4b smaller than the main screen 4a (hereinafter referred to as the "small screen") 4b is displayed in the margin, and the main screen 4a is enlarged by the enlargement circuit 24. The image is displayed, and an image reduced by the reduction circuit 25 is also displayed on the small screen 4b.

Then, when the enlarged observation image switch 31 is kept on, after a set time (for example, 1 second) has elapsed, the appropriate light amount area of the next rank set by the divided photometry circuit 29 (see FIG. 2) is displayed on the main screen 4a. In a), the image of the upper center area) is enlarged and displayed, and the enlarged observation image switch 31 is turned ON.
While this continues, divided areas are displayed one after another at set time intervals.

Then, when the enlarged observation image switch 31 is turned off, the image displayed on the main screen 4a at that time is frozen (still image), and the image on the monitor 4 can be photographed or the still image can be stored on a recording device, etc. can be recorded.

Further, after turning on the enlarged observation image switch 31 to enter the enlarged observation image mode, the enlarged observation image switch 31
If the switch is turned OFF once and then turned ON and then OFF again within a set time (for example, 1 second), the screen is set to the normal observation image mode.

Note that the number of divided areas in the two divided photometry circuits may be other than nine, and furthermore, the operation of the magnified observation image switch 31 may be performed in addition to the above-mentioned manner, for example, after turning this switch 31 from ON to OFF. If the power is turned on again within a set time (for example, 1 second), an enlarged image of the next rank may be displayed.

Further, the preprocessing circuit 21 of the video processor 3 measures the brightness of illumination light from the image signal output from the solid-state image sensor 15, and outputs a brightness signal to the dimming circuit 33 provided in the light source device 2. . The light control circuit 33 operates the diaphragm 32 interposed between the light source 14 and the input end of the light guide fiber 16 based on the luminance signal to set the aperture amount to a predetermined value.

Incidentally, since the operator operates the electronic endoscope 1 while observing the subject image displayed on the monitor 4, he must always look at both the patient and the monitor 4. Therefore, in order to quickly recognize the image displayed on the monitor 4, it is necessary to arrange the monitor 4 at a position where it can be easily viewed.

For example, if the monitor 4 is a CRT, it is relatively heavy, so as shown in FIG. A turntable 43 is rotatably attached to the other end of this arm 42, the monitor 4 is placed and fixed on this turntable 43, and the operator manually or electrically moves the arm 42, The monitor 4 is displayed by operating the turntable 43.
to the desired position.

In addition, in FIG. 5, a guide rail 44 is installed horizontally on the upper surface of the video system cart 41, and this guide rail 44
The turntable 4 is mounted on a slider 45 that is movable along the
3 is fixedly installed, and the monitor 4 mounted on any turntable 43 can be easily moved to a position where the operator can easily see it.

Further, as shown in FIG. 6, one side of a monitor table 46 is connected to the top side of the video system cart 41 via a hinge (not shown). If you want to place the monitor 4 on the side of the video system cart 41 for storage, raise the monitor table 46 and set it on the same surface as the top of the video system cart 41.
Fix it with.

By using the monitor table 46, the area in which the monitor 4 of the video system cart 41 is installed is substantially expanded, and the degree of selectivity is increased accordingly.

Incidentally, if the monitor table 46 is provided on both sides of the video system cart 41, the selectivity will be further improved.

Furthermore, if the height of the video system cart 41 is relatively high, if the monitor 4 is placed on the top surface of the video system cart 41, the surgeon will have to raise the monitor 4 for observation. This burden will increase.

In such a case, as shown in FIG. 7, the video processor 3 or light source device 2 placed on the rack 41a of the video system cart 41 may be made longer in the depth direction and made narrower in the width direction. By forming a gap on one side of the rack 41b and storing the monitor 4 in this gap, the installation height of the monitor 4 can be lowered.

Further, as shown in the figure, a roller 48 is attached to the bottom of the video processor 3 or the light source device 2, and the video processor 3 or the light source device is made movable, thereby creating a space in which the monitor 4 is housed. You can easily set both the left and right parts.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 8, if the area around the examination bed 49 is narrow and it is difficult to secure a place to install the monitor 4, an electrically or manually rotating L is attached to the bottom of the head 49. One end of a letter-shaped arm 50 is pivotally supported, and a monitor stand 51 is attached to the other end of this arm 50. When the monitor 4 is not in use, the arm 50 is rotated downward and the monitor 4 placed on the monitor stand 51 is stored under the four examination beds. When in use, the arm 50 is rotated upward to expose the monitor 4 above the examination bed 49. In addition,
The monitor stand 51 is always maintained in a horizontal state even when the arm 50 swings up and down.

Further, as shown in FIG. 9, a guide rail 52 is attached to the long side of the examination bed 49, and arms 5 extending downward from the four corners of the bottom of the monitor stand 53 are attached to the guide rail 52.
A roller 55 provided at the lower end of 4 is fitted to the monitor stand 5.
By making the monitor 4 placed on the patient's head 3 movable in the longitudinal direction along the examination bed 49, the monitor 4 can be easily moved to a position where the operator can easily see it.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 10, the monitor 4 is mounted on a dedicated monitor stand 56.
The state shown is that it is placed on the

This monitor stand 56 is movable by casters 57, and a monitor arm 6 has a monitor stand 60 fixed to one end on five balls erected on a stand base 58.
The other end of the monitor arm 61 is rotatably inserted therethrough, and the monitor arm 61 and a weight 62 loosely inserted into the ball 59 are connected via a wire 63. The weight 62 is set to have almost the same weight as the monitor stand 60 on which the monitor 4 is placed and the monitor arm 61, and the operator stops the monitor arm 61 at the position of the appointed officer on the ball 59, The monitor 4 can be set at a height that is easy to view.

In addition, when the monitor 4 is a flat monitor using a liquid crystal or the like as shown in FIG. One end of the monitor arm 65 is inserted through so that it can be fixed at any position with a fastener (not shown), and the flat monitor 4 is connected to the other end of the monitor arm 65 via a ball joint 66. be able to.

The operator rotates and moves the monitor arm 65 in the vertical direction to set the position, and further sets the inclination angle of the flat monitor 4 to obtain a position for easy viewing.

Further, FIGS. 12 to 14 show an example in which the flat monitor 4 is installed on a medical examination bed 49, and in FIG. 12, a stay 67 is installed upright on one side of the examination bed 49, and A stay 67 is shown supporting the flat monitor 4 in a tiltable manner, and in FIG.
A guide groove 68a is formed in 8, and a flat monitor 4 is movably supported in this guide groove 68a.

By moving the flat monitor 4 shown in the thirteenth country along the guide 68a and tilting it at a predetermined angle, it is possible to easily set the position most easily viewed by the operator.

In addition, in FIG. 14, the flat monitor 4 is placed on the bed 49 for viewing
The operator can use one hand to set the flat monitor 4 at the best viewing position.

In addition, in FIG. 15, the flat monitor 4 is pivotally supported via a monitor arm 69 to a pivot member 41a provided on the top surface of the video system cart 41, and as shown by the solid line in the figure, the flat monitor 4 is The flat monitor 4 is placed on the top surface of the video system cart 41, and when in use, the monitor arm 69 is moved to one side of the video system cart 41 as shown by the dashed line in the figure. The flat monitor 4 is tilted toward the operator, and the flat monitor 4 is easy to store.

Further, in FIG. 16, the flat monitor 4 is supported on the top surface of the video system cart 41 via a rotating arm 70, and the rotating arm 70 is rotated to rotate the flat monitor 4. By rotating it on the movable arm 70, the most visible position can be set.

By the way, in general, when trying to take a photograph of what is displayed on a monitor, it is necessary to change color filters depending on the film in order to obtain color development that matches the spectral sensitivity characteristics of the film. Since it is interposed between the color filter and the camera, dust attached to the surface of the color filter is likely to be captured at the same time.

In this case, as shown in FIG. 17, a transmissive liquid crystal monitor 4a is used as a monitor, and the liquid crystal surface of the transmissive liquid crystal monitor 4a and the photographing device 71 are sealed via a hood 72. Between the liquid crystal surface of the monitor 4a and the illumination section 73 for providing brightness to this liquid crystal surface from the back side,
By detachably interposing a color filter 75 that matches the spectral sensitivity characteristics of the film 74, even if dust adheres to the color filter 75, it will not be captured in the photograph.
Improves handling.

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, according to the present invention, it is possible to automatically select an enlarged display area of an image displayed on a monitor, thereby reducing the burden on both the operator and the patient. Excellent effects can be achieved.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an electronic endoscope device, FIG. 2(a) is an explanatory diagram showing a display image during normal observation, and FIG. 2(b) ) is an explanatory diagram showing a display image during magnified observation, FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the overall configuration of the electronic endoscope device, FIGS. Figure (a) is a plan view of Figure 4(b), Figure 4(b) is a front view, Figure 5(a) is a plan view of Figure 5(b),
), FIG. 5(b) is a front view, FIGS. 6 and 7 are front views of the aspect side, FIG. 8(a) is a plan view of FIG. 8(b), and FIG. 8( b) is a front view, Fig. 9 is a perspective view, Fig. 10 (
a) is a partial plan view of FIG. 10(b), FIG. 10(b) is a front view, FIG. 11 is a perspective view, FIGS. 12 to 14 are front views of the aspect side, and FIG. 15 is a perspective view. 16 is a plan view, and FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram of the monitor photographing device. 4...Monitor, 15...Solid-state image sensor, 24...
Enlargement circuit, two... split photometry circuit. Fig. 2 Fig. 4 (b) Fig. 6 Fig. 7 Fig. 52 (a) Fig. 8 Fig. 10 Fig. 9rIJ Fig. 11 Fig. 15 Fig. 17 Fig. 16 C On page 20 of the specification, line 5 [Figure 2 (a)] December 7, 2010 has been corrected to [Figure 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the display image displayed on the monitor and is shown in Figure 2 (a).''

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] An electronic endoscope comprising an imaging means using a solid-state image sensor that converts an optical image of a subject into an electrical signal, and a video signal processing means that processes an output signal of the solid-state image sensor as a video signal. In the apparatus, the video signal processing means includes an image enlarging means for enlarging and displaying a portion of the subject image captured by the solid-state image pickup device with the most appropriate brightness through signal processing. An electronic endoscope device featuring: