KR101585014B1 - Capsule type endoscope for radiation detecting and control method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a capsule endoscope and a control method thereof, and more particularly, to a capsule type endoscope and a control method thereof, including a CCD camera for acquiring an in-vivo image of a subject; A radiation detector for detecting radiation emitted from the body; And a wireless communication controller for transmitting a radiation dose detected from the radiation detector and an image acquired from the CCD camera to a control terminal.
A radiation detector for detecting radiation radiated from the body; a wireless communication controller for transmitting a radiation dose detected from the radiation detector and an image acquired from the CCD camera to a control terminal; A method for controlling a capsule endoscope comprising: (a) obtaining, by the CCD camera, an in-vivo image of a subject; (b) the radiation detector measuring radiation from the body of the subject; And (c) transmitting the image and the measured radiation dose to a control terminal.

Description

[0001] CAPSULE TYPE ENDOSCOPE FOR RADIATION DETECTION AND CONTROL METHOD THEREOF [0002]

The present invention relates to a capsule endoscope and a control method thereof, and more particularly, to a capsule endoscope capable of detecting the amount of radiation inside a subject by incorporating a CCD camera, a radiation detector and a radio communication control unit, and a control method thereof .

In-body contamination can occur by inhaling radionuclides that leach into the air where the radiation worker performs the task of handling unsealed radionuclides in the radiation management area.

There are two methods of measuring the internal exposure: in-vitro direct measurement that directly measures the radiation generated in the body, and biomedical analysis to analyze the excrement of the bombardment. However, the in vitro direct measurement method is difficult to accurately measure the low-permeability alpha and beta rays, It is difficult to accurately determine the location of the radiation deposition due to the cumbersome sampling and large measurement error due to the deviation of metabolism.

Disclosure of the Invention The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problems of the related art, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a capsule type radiation endoscope capable of real- .

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and method for controlling the same.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a digital camera, including: a CCD camera for acquiring an in-vivo image of a subject; A radiation detector for detecting radiation emitted from the body; And a wireless communication controller for transmitting a radiation dose detected from the radiation detector and an image acquired from the CCD camera to a control terminal.

In this case, the radiation detector includes a scintillator which receives radiation and emits light.

The radiation detector includes a semiconductor detector for detecting light emitted from the scintillator.

Each of the radiation detectors further includes a reflector for reflecting light generated from the scintillator.

In addition, each of the detectors includes an amplifier for amplifying a signal detected by the semiconductor detector.

At this time, the radio communication controller transmits the radiation dose and the image to the control terminal using a Bluetooth communication method.

Meanwhile, in the capsule endoscope according to the present invention, the CCD camera, the radiation detector, and the wireless communication control unit are packaged with a phosphorus equivalent film having the same radiation transmittance as the body radiation of the subject, Let's do it.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of acquiring an image of a body of a subject, the method comprising: acquiring a body image of a subject; acquiring a radiation dose detected from the radiation detector; And a wireless communication control unit for transmitting the captured image to a control terminal, the method comprising the steps of: (a) acquiring an in-vivo image of a subject by the CCD camera; (b) the radiation detector measuring radiation from the body of the subject; And (c) transmitting the image and the measured radiation dose to a control terminal.

Embodiments of the disclosed technique may have effects that include the following advantages. It should be understood, however, that the scope of the disclosed technology is not to be construed as limited thereby, since the embodiments of the disclosed technology are not meant to include all such embodiments.

The capsule endoscope according to the present invention includes a CCD camera, a radiation detector, and a radio communication control unit, so that it is possible to observe a radiation deposition point and measure a radiation dose.

In addition, the capsule endoscope according to the present invention transmits the image and radiation dose through the wireless communication unit to the measurer in real time, so that the cost and effort required for analyzing the data after the endoscope is recovered can be reduced.

In addition, the capsule endoscope according to the present invention packages a CCD camera, a radiation detector, and a radio communication control unit into a phosphor-equivalent film having a radiation transmittance equal to the radiation transmittance of an internal body tissue of a subject, thereby enabling a more accurate dose measurement.

FIG. 1 shows an example in which a capsule endoscope according to an embodiment of the present invention detects radiation in a body of a subject and transmits the radiation to a control terminal.
2 is a cross-sectional view of a capsule endoscope according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a block diagram of a capsule endoscope according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 is a flowchart illustrating a method of controlling a capsule endoscope according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The description of the disclosed technique is merely an example for structural or functional explanation and the scope of the disclosed technology should not be construed as being limited by the embodiments described in the text. That is, the embodiments are to be construed as being variously embodied and having various forms, so that the scope of the disclosed technology should be understood to include equivalents capable of realizing technical ideas.

FIG. 1 shows an example in which a capsule endoscope according to an embodiment of the present invention detects radiation in a body of a subject and transmits the radiation to a control terminal.

The capsule endoscope 100 according to one embodiment is inserted into the subject's body through the oral cavity of the subject. The capsule endoscope 100 has a round capsule shape. Therefore, according to the peristalsis of the gastrointestinal tract, it is passed through the capsule endoscope (100), the small intestine, the large intestine, and the body image acquisition and the radiation dose in the body are measured. The in-vivo images and the radiation dose are converted into wireless signals and transmitted to the control terminals 200 and 300. The control terminal 200 includes an electronic apparatus having a wireless communication means such as a smartphone tablet PC and a notebook computer. According to the embodiment, the control terminal 200 and the control terminal 200 are connected to the control terminal 200, And determining a radiation level of the radiation source. In addition, the control terminals 200 and 300 may include a program for remotely controlling the capsule endoscope 100.

2 is a cross-sectional view of a capsule endoscope according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a block diagram of a capsule endoscope according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The capsule endoscope 100 according to one embodiment includes a CCD camera 150, a radiation detector 110, and a wireless communication controller 160.

The radiation detector 110 detects radiation from the body of the examinee, converts the detected radiation dose into an electric signal, and transmits the electric signal to the wireless communication controller 160. The wireless communication controller transmits the electric signal to the control terminal 200.

The CCD camera 150 acquires the body image of the subject and transmits the acquired image to the wireless communication control unit 160. The wireless communication control unit 160 transmits the captured image to the control terminal 200. [

The control terminal 200 receives the radiation dose signal detected from the radiation detector 110 and displays it.

The radiation detector 110 includes a radiation detection unit 111, a signal conversion unit 112, and a dose processing unit 113.

The radiation detection unit 111 includes a scintillator 111a that emits light by receiving radiation, a semiconductor detector 111b that detects light generated from the scintillator, an amplification unit 111c that amplifies the signal detected by the semiconductor detector 111b, And a signal processing unit 111d for processing the signal amplified by the unit 111c.

The scintillator 111a is a material that emits light by receiving radiation, and may be composed of different kinds depending on the kind of radiation to be detected. That is, the scintillator 111a may be constituted by packing a substance for detecting? -Ray, a substance for detecting?, A scintillator for detecting? -Ray, and a substance for detecting?, Respectively. That is, the material constituting the scintillator 111a may be changed according to the radiation source to be detected.

On the other hand, the scintillator 111a may be formed in a structure including a reflector for preventing leakage of detection light to more effectively detect light emitted from the radiation detecting material. A Teflon reflector may be used as the reflector.

The semiconductor detector 111b detects light emitted from the radiation detecting material. The semiconductor detector 111b may comprise a silicon light doubling device for sensing weak light.

According to the embodiment, the scintillator 111a and the semiconductor detector 111b may be composed of a single packaged module, and the scintillator 111a and the semiconductor detector 111b may be separately detachable. That is, the semiconductor detector 111b may be configured to be separated from the scintillator 111a.

The amplifying unit 111c amplifies the signal detected by the semiconductor detector 111b. According to the embodiment, the amplification unit 111c amplifies the small radiation detection signal detected by the semiconductor detector 111b to 2V or more.

The signal processing unit 111d processes the amplified signal from the amplification unit 111c. The signal amplified by the amplifier 111c includes analog noise due to dark current or the like. Therefore, the signal processor 111d filters the signal amplified by the amplifier 111c to remove the analog noise.

The signal converting unit 112 includes an analog-to-digital converter 112a (hereinafter referred to as ADC) and a noise filter 112b.

The ADC 112a converts the no-log noise canceled signal from the signal processing unit 111d into a digital signal. The noise filter 112b removes the digital noise included in the digital signal.

Although the amplification unit 111c, the signal processing unit 111d, the ADC 112a and the noise filter 112b are described as independent components according to the above description, the amplification unit 111c, the signal processing unit 111d 111d, the ADC 112a, and the noise filter 112b may be implemented as one packaged device.

The dose processing unit 113 receives a signal that detects the amount of radiation from the noise filter 112b, and counts the amount of radiation. That is, the detected radiation dose is numerically expressed.

The radio communication controller 160 converts the quantified radiation dose from the radiation detector 110 into a radio signal and sends it to the control terminal 200. And converts the body image of the subject acquired from the CCD camera 150 into a radio signal and sends it to the control terminal 200.

The wireless signal transmitted at this time can be performed by the Bluetooth communication method. The reason for using the Bluetooth communication method is to miniaturize the wireless communication controller 160 using a conventional commercial communication method, and the wireless signal transmitting method according to the present invention is not limited to this.

The capsule endoscope 100 according to one embodiment further includes a human body equivalent coating 120, a lens unit 130, and a power source unit 170.

The human body equivalent film 120 is a package material having a radiation transmittance equal to the radiation transmittance of the body tissue of the subject. The capsule endoscope 100 can correct the detected dose value by using the in-vivo transmittance value when the radiation detector 110 is packaged with the human body equivalent film 120 and the? Ray with weak penetration power is detected.

The lens unit 130 is disposed on the photographing surface of the CCD camera 150 to enable acquisition of an in-vivo image. According to the embodiment, the lens unit 130 may further include a ring-type light emitting device.

The power supply unit 170 supplies power to the capsule endoscope 100. Considering that the time for the capsule endoscope 100 to pass through the body is 12 to 24 hours, the power source unit 170 may be made of a silver oxide battery having a high power storage density and a smooth discharge characteristic.

4 is a flowchart illustrating a method of controlling a capsule endoscope according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the CCD camera 150, the radiation detector 110, and the wireless communication control unit 160 according to the present embodiment even when the capsule endoscope 100 of FIG. 2 is implemented in a systematic manner. Is applied as it is in this embodiment.

 The capsule endoscope control method according to an exemplary embodiment includes a body image acquisition step (S410), a radiation measurement step (S420), and an image and radiation dose transmission step (S430).

In step S410, the CCD camera 150 acquires an in-vivo image of the subject.

In step S420, a radiation detector measures radiation from the subject's body.

In step S430, the measured image and the radiation dose are transmitted to the control terminal 200.

The detailed description of the CCD camera 150, the first radiation detector 110, and the wireless communication control unit 160 is the same as that of FIG.

Although the disclosed method and apparatus have been described with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications and equivalent embodiments are possible without departing from the scope of the present invention. I will understand that. Accordingly, the true scope of protection of the disclosed technology should be determined by the appended claims.

100: Capsule type radiation endoscope
110: Radiation detector
120: human equivalent film
130:
150: CCD camera
160: Wireless communication control unit
170:
200, 300: control terminal

Claims (12)

A CCD camera for acquiring an in-vivo image of the subject;
A radiation detector for detecting radiation emitted from the body; And
And a wireless communication controller for transmitting a radiation dose detected from the radiation detector and an image acquired from the CCD camera to a control terminal,
Wherein the radiation detector comprises:
A scintillator receiving the radiation and emitting light;
A reflector for reflecting light generated from the scintillator; And
And a semiconductor detector for detecting light generated from the scintillator and light reflected from the reflector,
Wherein the CCD camera, the radiation detector, and the radio communication control unit are packaged by a human equivalent film having a radiation transmittance equal to the radiation transmittance of the body tissue of the subject,
Wherein the radiation detector corrects the dose of the detected radiation by using the transmittance of the body tissue as the detected radiation is?.
delete delete delete The method according to claim 1,
Wherein each of the detectors further comprises an amplification unit for amplifying a signal detected by the semiconductor detector.
The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising a power supply unit for supplying power to the CCD camera and the radiation detector.
The method of claim 6,
Wherein the power source unit comprises an oxidized silver battery.
The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the wireless communication control unit transmits the radiation dose and the image to the control terminal using a Bluetooth communication scheme.
delete delete delete delete

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