JPH1048540A - Endoscope and endoscopic device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fiber scope type endoscope capable of obtaining information other than the image of an object during observation. SOLUTION: The image of an object forming the image by an objective lens 11 provided in the tip part and transferred by an image guide fiber 12 is observed by eyes through an eyepiece lens 13. A liquid crystal display device 14 as a displaying means is located in an observation part 10b and arranged out of the optical path between the exit end face 12b of the image guide fiber 12 and the eyepiece lens 13. A displaying light beam transmitted from the liquid crystal display device 14 is made incident on a half mirror 16 through a projection lens 15. The half mirror 16 synthesizes the light beam transmitted from the image guide fiber 12 with the light beam from the liquid crystal display device 14 and make it incident on the eyepiece lens 13.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a fiberscope type endoscope for guiding an image of an object to an observation section using an image guide fiber, and an apparatus including the endoscope.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a fiberscope type endoscope, an image of an object is formed by an objective lens provided at a distal end of an insertion portion, and the image is conveyed through an image guide fiber and is also transmitted through an eyepiece lens. To observe. BACKGROUND ART A fiberscope type endoscope is used for observing a deeply curved portion in a body cavity such as a gastrointestinal tract for medical use by utilizing flexibility. In the field of view through the eyepiece lens,
An image of the object conveyed through the image guide fiber is observed, and the area other than the area where the image is observed is covered with a black mask.

[0003]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional fiberscope type endoscope, the image information obtained in the observation field of view during the observation is only the image of the object. If it is desired to check, it is necessary to stop the observation once and check the medical record or the like, and there is a problem that the efficiency of the test is low.

[0004] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and has as its object to provide a fiberscope type endoscope which can obtain information other than an image of an object during observation. And

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, an endoscope according to the present invention forms an image of an object formed by an objective lens provided at a distal end thereof and conveyed by an image guide fiber. In an endoscope that can be observed with the naked eye through an eyepiece lens, display means for displaying predetermined information is provided in an observation field including an image of an object observed through the eyepiece lens. Features.

[0006]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of an endoscope according to the present invention will be described below. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing an endoscope apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The endoscope device includes an endoscope 10 and an illumination / control device 20. The endoscope 10 includes a flexible insertion portion 10a inserted into a small space such as a body cavity, and an observation portion 10b connected to the insertion portion 10a. An objective lens 11 for forming an image of the object is provided at the tip of the insertion section 10a, and the image of the object to be formed is arranged so that the incident end face 12a is located at the focal position of the objective lens 11. The image guide fiber 12 is transported to the observation unit 10b side. The observer can visually observe the image of the object formed on the exit end face 12b of the image guide fiber 12 through the eyepiece lens 13 arranged in the observation section 10b.

Further, in the endoscope apparatus of the embodiment, a liquid crystal display panel 14a and a liquid crystal display panel 14a are provided as display means for displaying predetermined information in an observation field including an image of an object observed through the eyepiece lens 13. A liquid crystal display device 14 composed of a backlight 14b and an emission end surface 12b of the image guide fiber 12 is provided in the observation unit 10b.
It is arranged outside the optical path between the lens and the eyepiece lens 13. The display light emitted from the liquid crystal display device 14 enters the half mirror 16 disposed in the optical path between the exit end face 12b of the image guide fiber 12 and the eyepiece lens 13 via the projection lens 15. Half mirror 1
Reference numeral 6 functions as a light beam combining element that combines the light beam emitted from the image guide fiber 12 and the light beam from the liquid crystal display device 14 and makes the light beam enter the eyepiece lens 13.

The illumination / control device 20 is provided with a light source unit comprising a lamp 21 and a condensing / reflecting mirror 22, and a display control circuit 23 for controlling the display of the liquid crystal display device 14.
The illumination light emitted from the light source section is the light guide fiber 1
The light is guided to the distal end of the endoscope by 7 and illuminates the object through the illumination lens 18. A computer for inputting patient data and the like is connected to the display control circuit 23 as input means 24. The computer outputs to the display control circuit 23 data input from a keyboard (not shown), data read from a barcode attached to the medical chart, or data retrieved from a database registered in the storage device. When the display control circuit 23 is provided in the lighting / control device 20, the display control circuit 23
The connection between the light guide fiber 17 and the liquid crystal display device 14 may be provided by providing a connection line in a cable in which the light guide fiber 17 is provided. When the display control circuit is separately provided outside the illumination / control circuit, the display control circuit may be connected via a dedicated cable.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an enlarged part of the inside of the observation section 10b of the endoscope apparatus shown in FIG. The display surface of the liquid crystal display device 14 is located at a position optically substantially conjugate with the exit end surface 12b of the image guide fiber 12 via the projection lens 15. The liquid crystal display device 14 is transported by the image guide fiber 12 and
A character or graphic pattern is displayed electronically so as to display information in a region outside the range of the image observed via the.

The light beam for image formation emitted from the image guide fiber 12 and the display light emitted from the liquid crystal display device 14 are combined by a half mirror 16, and when observed through an eyepiece lens, for example, FIG.
It is observed as a display like. An image area R1 where an image of the object conveyed by the image guide fiber 12 is formed is located at the center of the field of view R0, and a plurality of pieces of information are observed around the image area R1 by display light from the liquid crystal display device 14. Is done.

In this example, the first information I1 is the patient name "Hanako Yamada", and the second information I2 is the gender of the patient.
Age "F34" and third information I4 as "Dr. Sek
"iya" is displayed as character information. These pieces of display information are displayed by output signals from the display control circuit 23. The display of information by the liquid crystal display device 14 can be located not only in the region outside the region R1 where the image of the target object is displayed as shown in FIG. 3, but also in that region.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram similar to FIG. 2 showing a second embodiment of the present invention. The configuration other than the portion shown in FIG. 4, that is, the configuration of the insertion section 10a, the lighting / control device 20, and the like is the same as that of the first embodiment shown in FIG.
In the example of FIG. 4, a disc-shaped liquid crystal display panel 30 is used as a display element. The liquid crystal display panel 30 has a larger diameter than the emission end face 12b of the image guide fiber 12, and is arranged in close contact with the emission end face 12b such that the display face is arranged substantially in the same plane as the emission end face of the image guide fiber. ing. In a region outside the emission end face 12b of the liquid crystal display panel 30, a ring-shaped backlight 3 is provided.
Reference numeral 1 is disposed in close contact with the back surface when viewed from the eyepiece lens 13 side.

The liquid crystal display panel 30 has a TN (Twisted) between two polarizing plates disposed so that transmission axes are orthogonal to each other.
Nematic) type liquid crystal cells are arranged.
The liquid crystal cell is configured by filling liquid crystal between transparent electrodes having a plurality of segments inside. In this example, at least a portion for displaying information has a matrix-like segment or one digit for numerical display. A transparent electrode is formed which is divided into a segment group in which eight segments are arranged by a necessary number of digits. When displaying information over the entire area of the liquid crystal display panel including the portion overlapping the image of the object, transparent electrodes in a matrix may be formed over the entire area of the liquid crystal display panel. On the other hand, in order to display information only on the outer portion that does not overlap with the region where the image of the object is observed, the emission end face 12 is required.
What is necessary is just to form the transparent electrode which has a segment only in the ring-shaped area | region which does not overlap with b.

According to the above configuration, a segment to which no voltage is applied between the electrodes transmits light, and a segment to which a voltage is applied blocks light. Therefore, the image of the object can be observed when no voltage is applied at a portion overlapping with the emission end face 12b of the image guide fiber 12, and at a non-overlapping peripheral portion, the portion where no voltage is applied becomes brighter by the backlight 31. , Only the segment to which the voltage is applied is displayed dark. The visual field observed through the eyepiece lens 13 is
For example, as in FIG. 3, an image of the object is observed in the center, and a plurality of character information is observed as a dark pattern in a bright background by the backlight around the object. The contrast between the background and the character information may be such that the background is dark and the character information is bright, contrary to the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing a third embodiment of the endoscope apparatus according to the present invention, and shows an example of a usage form of the endoscope apparatus shown in FIG. In this example, a photographing attachment 40 is attached to the eyepiece lens 13 shown in FIG. 1, and a single-lens reflex camera 50 for film photographing is connected to the endoscope 10 via this attachment. The configurations of the insertion section 10a, the liquid crystal display device 14 as the display means, the illumination / control device 20, and the like are the same as those in the first embodiment shown in FIG.

The imaging attachment 40 is provided with an imaging lens 41 for imaging an afocal light beam emitted from the eyepiece lens 13. The single-lens reflex camera 50 includes a quick return mirror 51 and a film 52.
And a finder including a pentaprism 53 and an eyepiece lens 54 is provided.
The light beam incident from the imaging lens 41 is reflected toward the finder side by the quick return mirror 51 arranged at the position shown by the solid line at the time of observation, thereby enabling observation via the eyepiece lens. On the other hand, at the time of photographing, the quick return mirror 51 is rotated to the position shown by the broken line, and an image of the object is exposed on the film 52 by opening a shutter (not shown) provided in front of the film 52.

The single-lens reflex camera 50 is provided with a counter 55 for counting the number of shot frames. Data on the number of frames counted by the counter 55 is input to the display control circuit 23. The display control circuit 23 displays frame number data based on the frame number data.

When observed through the eyepiece lens 13, a display as shown in FIG. 6, for example, is observed in the field of view. In this example, an image region R1 where an image of the object conveyed by the image guide fiber 12 is formed is located at the center of the visual field range R0, and a plurality of character information is transmitted from the liquid crystal display device 14 around the image region R1. Are observed by the display light of. In this example, the patient's initials "TY" as the first information I4, the patient's gender and age "F34" as the second information I5, and the frame number as the third information I3. The displayed frame number "No. 21" is displayed.

According to the configuration shown in FIG. 5, observation and photographing can be performed in a state where the image of the subject conveyed by the image guide fiber 12 and the information displayed by the liquid crystal display device 14 are superimposed. In the past, when a camera was attached to an endoscope via an attachment, it was only the frame number that was added to the developed picture, so it was necessary to check which patient the picture was taken. Needed to refer to other materials. According to the configuration of FIG. 5, the display content of the display unit is also printed on the film to be photographed, so that the content of the developed photo can be specified without referring to other materials, and the management of the photo In addition to being easy, misunderstanding can be prevented.

Also, instead of a camera for film photography, C
Even when a video module using an image sensor such as a CD sensor is attached, an image processing apparatus for superimposing a captured image and character information on a display screen by displaying a captured image as it is is provided. The character information can be displayed in a state where the character information is included as image data without using it.

The display means is not only an image display element such as the liquid crystal display panel shown in the above two embodiments but also a display of a single information within a predetermined display area by turning on and off, for example. Alternatively, a light emitting element such as an LED for switching non-display may be used. Further, the position where the display means is provided may be not only at the object side of the eyepiece lens as in the embodiment, but also in the eyepiece lens or at the eye side of the eyepiece lens. Further, as information to be displayed, not only the character information as in the above-described embodiment, but also information on the state of the endoscope apparatus or the connected camera may be displayed in a graphic pattern.

[0022]

As described above, according to the present invention, in an apparatus using a fiberscope type endoscope, predetermined information can be displayed in a visual field observed through an eyepiece lens. For example, by displaying the data of the patient under observation, necessary information can be obtained without keeping an eye on the endoscope. Therefore, it is not necessary to temporarily stop the observation and check the medical record or the like as in the related art, and it is possible to improve the efficiency of observation and photographing. Further, when the film camera is mounted via the attachment, the display by the above-mentioned display means is also printed on the film, so that the management of the photograph after the development is facilitated and misidentification can be prevented.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an endoscope apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an enlarged observation unit of the endoscope apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of an observation field of view of the endoscope apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged explanatory view showing an observation unit of an endoscope apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an endoscope apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of an observation field of view of the endoscope apparatus illustrated in FIG. 5;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Endoscope 10a Insertion part 10b Observation part 11 Objective lens 12 Image guide fiber 12a Incident end face 12b Exit end face 13 Eyepiece lens 14 Liquid crystal display device 15 Projection lens 16 Half mirror 17 Light guide fiber 18 Illumination lens 20 Illumination / control device 21 Lamp 22 Condenser / reflector 23 Display control circuit 24 Input means

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An endoscope in which an image of an object formed by an objective lens provided at a distal end portion and conveyed by an image guide fiber can be observed with the naked eye through an eyepiece lens. An endoscope, further comprising: display means for displaying predetermined information in an observation field including an image of the object to be observed. 2. The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the display means includes a display element for electrically displaying the information as a character or graphic pattern. 3. The display element is disposed outside the optical path between the end face of the image guide fiber on the emission side and the eyepiece lens and is substantially optically conjugate with the end face on the emission side. A light beam combining element that combines a light beam emitted from the image guide fiber and a light beam from the display element and causes the light beam to enter the eyepiece lens is provided between the end face of the image guide fiber on the emission side and the eyepiece lens. The endoscope according to claim 2, wherein: 4. The endoscope according to claim 2, wherein the display element is disposed in substantially the same plane as an end face of the image guide fiber on the emission side. 5. An endoscope apparatus for transporting an image of an object formed by an objective lens provided at a distal end portion through an image guide fiber, and photographing the image of the object transported by the image fiber with a camera. , Wherein display means for displaying predetermined information within a range photographed by the camera, and display control means for controlling the display means to display the predetermined information on the display means are provided. Endoscope device. 6. The endoscope apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the display control means displays information about the camera.