KR102061311B1 - Swallowable device - Google Patents

Abstract

Oral endoscope devices are provided. An oral type of endoscopy device that can be swallowed includes one or more imaging units which output the sensor image data by photographing the digestive organs while moving the digestive organs of the human body, and an area under the inner wall of the digestive organs (hereinafter referred to as 'submucosal region'). And at least one ultrasound unit for outputting ultrasound image data of surrounding organs located in the periphery of the digestive organs, a magnetic unit for controlling posture and direction of movement of the oral endoscope device by external magnetic force, and sensor image data and Transmitting and receiving unit for transmitting ultrasound image data to an external device, one or more imaging unit and one or more imaging unit, one or more ultrasound unit, magnetic unit for controlling one or more imaging unit and one or more ultrasound unit to simultaneously or respectively photograph the digestive organs and submucosal region At least one ultrasound unit including a power supply unit for supplying power to the transceiver and the control unit It may be provided to be in close contact with the opposing surfaces of the oral endoscope apparatus.

Description

Oral endoscope device {Swallowable device}

The present invention relates to an oral endoscope device, and more particularly, to an oral endoscope device capable of monitoring the organs around the digestive organs as well as the digestive organs.

Human digestive system is largely divided into esophagus, stomach, small intestine and large intestine. Typically, the esophagus and stomach are observed with an upper gastrointestinal endoscope that can be inserted into the distal portion of the duodenum, and the colon is observed with a colonoscopy that can be observed up to the ileal end of the small intestine.

However, in the small intestine, no endoscope has yet been established in which a diagnosis and / or treatment method has been established. Therefore, in the past, various radiodiagnostic methods including small intestine barium angiography and CT scan have been applied to the small intestine, but the diagnosis rate for small intestine disease is quite low.

Recently, research and development of oral endoscopes have been actively conducted to compensate for these problems. Oral endoscopy is a swallowable capsule endoscopy, a small camera that allows the close-up and observation of the esophagus, stomach, small intestine as well as the large intestine.

However, conventional oral endoscopes are difficult to re-observe by stopping at a site that is judged as an abnormal symptom in the digestive tract or requiring precise observation, or moving back to an already excessive site. This is because the conventional oral endoscope moves by peristalsis of the digestive system rather than by magnetic force.

In addition, the conventional oral endoscopes are small within a few centimeters, while the stomach has a relatively large size, it is difficult to accurately diagnose a disease that requires detailed observation, such as gastrointestinal mucosa and muscle layer tumor.

In addition, some oral endoscope systems control the oral endoscope in the gastrointestinal tract using the magnetic, but the required size of the facility must be large because the device for the control is large, the cost is also expensive.

In addition, the conventional oral endoscope is difficult to close close to the stomach wall of the gastrointestinal tract of the digestive organs is not easy to take close-up of the stomach, thereby, it is also impossible to take pictures of the surrounding organs located around the stomach. Therefore, in order to examine the organs around the stomach such as the pancreas, it is generally accompanied by the inconvenience of using an ultrasound endoscope using a CT scan or a probe.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-1112723

The technical problem to be solved by the present invention to solve the above-described problems is to posture, direction of movement, speed of movement so that more accurate observation and diagnosis of each digestive system is made while observing the small intestine and the large intestine as well as the latitude having a relatively large size. And an oral endoscope device capable of controlling the photographing direction.

In addition, another technical problem to be achieved by the present invention is to provide an oral endoscope device capable of more accurately diagnose the disease that is difficult to diagnose accurately only by the endoscope by applying an ultrasound method.

In addition, the technical problem to be achieved by the present invention, by providing a magnetic and ultrasonic elements at the same time, it is possible to examine the inside and the outer wall of the digestive organs in detail by the ultrasonic method while controlling the movement and the direction of imaging of the endoscope device with a small and low-cost equipment An oral endoscopic device is presented.

In addition, the technical problem to be achieved by the present invention, to provide an oral endoscope apparatus capable of ultrasound imaging of the surrounding organs located around the stomach, without using an ultrasonic endoscope using a conventional probe.

The problem of the present invention is not limited to those mentioned above, and other problems not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

As a means for solving the above technical problem, according to an embodiment of the present invention, oral endoscope device, at least one imaging unit for outputting the sensor image data by photographing the digestive organs while moving the digestive organs of the human body; At least one ultrasound unit configured to output ultrasound image data of an area below the inner wall of the digestive organs (hereinafter referred to as a 'submucosal area') and surrounding organs located around the digestive organs; A magnetic part for controlling the posture and direction of movement of the oral endoscope device by external magnetic force; A transceiver for transmitting the sensor image data and the ultrasound image data to an external device; A control unit controlling the at least one imaging unit and the at least one ultrasound unit to simultaneously or respectively photograph the digestive organ and the submucosal region; And a power supply unit for supplying power to the at least one imaging unit, at least one ultrasound unit, the magnetic unit, the transceiver unit, and the control unit, wherein the at least one ultrasound unit may be provided to be in close contact with an opposing surface of the oral endoscope device. have.

The surface facing the at least one ultrasound unit of the oral endoscope device may be formed flat.

When the ultrasound unit is plural, the plurality of ultrasound units may be provided on at least one of front, rear and side surfaces of the oral endoscope.

The main body may further include a surface of the main body facing the at least one ultrasonic vibrator of the at least one ultrasonic part to be flat, so that the at least one ultrasonic vibrator may be closely attached to the flat surface.

The flat surface facing the at least one ultrasound unit may include at least one of an inner surface and an outer surface of the oral endoscope device.

When the peripheral organ is the pancreas, the controller may control the at least one ultrasound unit to photograph the pancreas by differentiating a frequency at which the center portion of the pancreas is photographed from a frequency at which the head and tail portions of the pancreas are photographed. have.

The at least one image sensor of the at least one imaging unit and at least one ultrasonic vibrator of the at least one ultrasound unit may be arranged in parallel in two rows along the circumference of the oral endoscope device to take the same direction in the digestive organs.

One or more ultrasonic vibrators of the one or more ultrasonic units may be arranged along at least one arc that is part of the circumference of the oral endoscope device.

On the other hand, according to another embodiment of the present invention, the swallowable oral type endoscope device, at least one imaging unit for outputting the sensor image data by photographing the digestive organs while moving the digestive organs of the human body; One or more high voltage (HV) pulsers and one or more ultrasonic vibrators for boosting the area below the inner wall of the digestive organs (hereinafter referred to as the 'submucosal region') and surrounding organs located around the digestive organs. At least one ultrasound unit configured to output ultrasound image data; A magnetic part for controlling the posture and direction of movement of the oral endoscope device by external magnetic force; A transceiver for transmitting the sensor image data and the ultrasound image data to an external device; A control unit controlling the at least one imaging unit and the at least one ultrasound unit to simultaneously or respectively photograph the digestive organ and the submucosal region; And a power supply unit supplying power to the at least one photographing unit, at least one ultrasound unit, magnetic unit, transceiver unit, and control unit.

The one or more HV pulsers may generate pulses for generating an ultrasonic frequency received from the controller.

The magnetic unit may include a first permanent magnet; And a second permanent magnet, wherein the power supply unit, which is a conductor, is provided between the first permanent magnet and the second permanent magnet, and the first permanent magnet and the second permanent magnet each have an N / S pole order. Can be arranged.

The magnetic part may allow the oral endoscope to be in close contact with the inner wall of the digestive organ by interaction with the external magnetic force.

The external magnetic force may be generated by a magnetic controller for driving the magnetic part, and the magnetic controller may be in close contact with the abdomen of the patient to generate the external magnetic force.

The magnetic controller controls the magnetic part to move the oral endoscope device to the inner wall of the stomach closest to the peripheral organs, and the control unit moves the oral endoscope device to the inner wall of the stomach closest to the peripheral organs. The at least one imaging unit may be controlled to photograph the inner wall of the closest gastrointestinal tract, and the at least one ultrasound unit may be controlled to photograph the submucosal area of the closest gastrointestinal tract.

According to the present invention, the magnetic direction is used to control the movement direction, the movement speed, and the imaging direction of the oral endoscopy device to more accurately observe and diagnose the digestive organs including the small intestine and the large intestine as well as the stomach having a relatively large size. can do.

In addition, according to the present invention, there is an effect that can accurately diagnose a disease that is difficult to accurately diagnose only by the endoscope using a small ultrasonic element.

In addition, according to the present invention, by providing a magnetic and an ultrasonic element at the same time, there is an effect that can examine the submucosal region as well as the inner wall of the digestive organs in detail with small and low-cost equipment.

In addition, according to the present invention, by using the magnetic force to adhere the oral endoscope device to the gastrointestinal inner wall to improve the convenience of the patient by ultrasound imaging the vivid submucosa of the gastrointestinal tract and surrounding organs located around the stomach.

In addition, according to the present invention, by providing a magnetic and an ultrasonic element at the same time, it is possible to improve the convenience of the patient while observing the digestive organ more accurately with a small and low-cost equipment.

In addition, according to the present invention, the surface facing the ultrasonic wave in the oral endoscope device can be formed flat, the ultrasound can be in close contact with the facing surface, thereby obtaining a clearer ultrasound image.

The effects of the present invention are not limited to those mentioned above, and other effects not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

1 to 4 are simplified views of an oral endoscope system to which an oral endoscopy device of the swallowable form according to the first to fourth embodiments of the present invention is applied;
Figure 5 is a block diagram showing an oral endoscope device according to an embodiment of the present invention,
6 is a block diagram illustrating an ultrasound unit according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure;
7 is a view showing the pancreas located around the stomach and stomach of the digestive organs of the human body,
8 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of arrangement of two permanent magnets and a power supply unit;
9 to 12a and 12b is a conceptual diagram briefly showing the first to fifth oral endoscope apparatus according to the first to fifth embodiments of the present invention, and
13 is a flowchart illustrating a pancreatic endoscope method of the oral endoscopic device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Objects, other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be readily understood through the following preferred embodiments associated with the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described herein and may be embodied in other forms. Rather, the embodiments introduced herein are provided so that the disclosure may be made thorough and complete, and to fully convey the spirit of the present invention to those skilled in the art.

In the present specification, when a component is mentioned to be on another component, it means that it may be formed directly on the other component or a third component may be interposed therebetween. In addition, in the drawings, the thickness of the components are exaggerated for effective explanation of the technical content.

Where the terms first, second, etc. are used herein to describe the components, these components should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one component from another. The embodiments described and illustrated herein also include complementary embodiments thereof.

In addition, when it is mentioned that a first element (or component) is operated or executed on a second element (or component), the first element (or component) is a second element (or component). It is to be understood that the operation or execution in the environment in which the operation or the execution is performed or the operation or execution is performed through direct or indirect interaction with the second element (or component).

Where an element, component, device, or system is referred to as including a component made up of a program or software, even if no explicit mention is made, the element, component, device, or system may be executed or operated by the program or software. It should be understood to include the hardware necessary to run (eg, memory, CPU, etc.) or other programs or software (eg, an operating system or drivers needed to run the hardware, etc.).

In addition, it is to be understood that an element (or component) may be implemented in software, hardware, or any form of software and hardware, unless otherwise specified in the implementation of any element (or component).

Also, the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. In this specification, the singular also includes the plural unless specifically stated otherwise in the phrase. As used herein, the words 'comprises' and / or 'comprising' do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other components.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In describing the following specific embodiments, various specific details are set forth in order to explain and understand the invention in more detail. However, one of ordinary skill in the art can understand that the present invention can be used without these various specific details.

In some cases, it is mentioned in advance that parts of the invention which are commonly known in the description of the invention and which are not highly related to the invention are not described in order to prevent confusion in explaining the invention without cause.

In addition, the term "module" in the present specification may mean a functional and structural combination of hardware for performing the technical idea of the present invention and software for driving the hardware. For example, the module may mean a logical unit of a predetermined code and a hardware resource for performing the predetermined code, and means a code that is not necessarily physically connected or does not mean a kind of hardware. It can be easily inferred by the average expert in the art.

In addition, each configuration of the first to fifth oral cervical endoscope devices (100, 600 ~ 900, 900a) according to various embodiments of the present invention is to indicate that can be functionally and logically separated, each configuration It will be readily apparent to the average person skilled in the art that this does not mean that they are divided into separate physical devices or written in separate codes.

Hereinafter, specific technical contents to be implemented in the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a view briefly showing an oral endoscope system to which the oral type endoscope device 100 of the swallowable form according to the first embodiment of the present invention is applied.

Referring to FIG. 1, an oral endoscope system according to an embodiment of the present invention may include an oral endoscope device 100, a magnetic controller 200, a receiver 300, and a monitoring device 400.

The oral endoscope device 100 shown in FIG. 1 may be one of the first to fifth oral endoscope devices 600 to 900 and 900a to be described with reference to FIGS. 9 to 12A and 12B.

Oral endoscope device 100 is a capsule form that can be swallowed by the mouth, it is possible to take an image using an image sensor and ultrasonic tomography using an ultrasonic sensor. In addition, the oral endoscope device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention is provided with a permanent magnet, the posture control and the direction of movement of the oral endoscope device 100 by the external magnetic force generated in the magnetic controller 200 Can be controlled. In particular, by the posture control, the oral endoscope apparatus 100 may be in close contact with the gastrointestinal inner wall by the permanent magnet and the magnetic controller 200 to photograph the gastrointestinal inner wall or to photograph the submucosal region of the inner wall.

The magnetic controller 200 may control the position, posture, and direction of travel of the oral endoscope device 100 by using an external magnetic generating external magnetic force.

To this end, the examiner can approach the magnetic controller 200 to the abdomen of the patient who swallowed the oral endoscope device 100, and can adjust the magnetic strength appropriate to the body condition of the patient. The examiner places the magnetic controller 200 on the abdomen of the patient who swallowed the oral endoscope device 100 and checks the position of the oral endoscope device 100 in the digestive organ through the monitoring device 400.

In addition, when the examiner moves the magnetic controller 200 in the abdomen, the direction of the oral endoscope device 100 may be controlled while the direction of the external magnetic force is changed according to the movement of the magnetic controller 200. That is, the magnetic controller 200 controls the posture control and the direction of progression of the oral endoscopic device 100 according to the control of the examiner, whereby the oral endoscopic device 100 is moved to the inner wall which needs to be taken among the digestive organs. In addition, the inner wall or the submucosal region of the inner wall that needs to be photographed may be photographed and transmitted to the receiver 300.

The receiver 300 receives sensor image data or ultrasonic data output from the oral endoscope apparatus 100 and transmits the sensor image data or the ultrasonic data to the monitoring apparatus 400. In addition, the receiver 300 receives an operation control signal for controlling the operation of the oral endoscope device 100 output from the monitoring device 400 and transmits to the oral endoscope device 100. For example, the operation control signal may include a signal for controlling the photographing unit 120 and the ultrasound unit 130 to be photographed at the same time, or sequentially photographing.

The monitoring device 400 may be a personal computer (PC) that analyzes the sensor image data and the ultrasonic image data received through the receiver 300 and processes the sensor image data and the ultrasound image data into a displayable form.

2 is a view briefly showing an oral endoscope system to which the oral type endoscope device 100 of the swallowable form according to the second embodiment of the present invention is applied.

The second oral endoscope system shown in FIG. 2 is similar to the first oral endoscope system described with reference to FIG. 1.

However, in the case of Figure 1, the magnetic controller 200 controlled the posture and the direction of the oral endoscope device 100, the operation control signal is generated in the monitoring device 400.

In contrast, the magnetic controller 200a illustrated in FIG. 2 may directly generate an operation control signal generated by the monitoring device 400 and output the generated control signal to the receiver 300. The receiver 300 transmits an operation control signal received from the magnetic controller 200a to the oral endoscope apparatus 100.

Figure 3 is a simplified view of the oral endoscope system to which the oral endoscope device 100 of the swallowable form according to the third embodiment of the present invention is applied.

The third oral endoscope system shown in FIG. 3 is similar to the first oral endoscope system described above. However, in the case of FIG. 3, the magnetic controller 200b may directly generate an operation control signal for controlling the oral endoscopic device 100 and transmit it directly to the oral endoscopic device 100. In addition, the magnetic controller 200b may transmit sensor image data or ultrasound data received from the oral endoscope apparatus 100 to the receiver 300. In this case, the oral endoscope apparatus 100 and the magnetic controller 200b may communicate using a galvanic coupling method, which will be described later, or using an RF communication technology.

4 is a view briefly showing an oral endoscope system to which the oral endoscope device 100 of the swallowable form according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention is applied.

The fourth oral endoscope system shown in FIG. 4 is similar to the third oral endoscope system described above. 4, the magnetic controller 200c collects and stores sensor image data or ultrasound data received from the oral endoscope device 100 in the receiver 300, and monitors the stored sensor image data or ultrasound data. 400 can be sent.

5 is a block diagram showing an oral endoscope apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5, the oral endoscope apparatus 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a transceiver 110, an imaging unit 120, an ultrasound unit 130, a power supply unit 140, a magnetic unit 150, and The controller 160 may be included.

The transceiver 110 receives an operation control signal output from the monitoring device 400 through the receiver 300 and transmits it to the controller 160. In addition, the transceiver 110 transmits the sensor image data output from the photographing unit 120 or the ultrasound data output from the ultrasound unit 130 to an external device such as the receiver 300.

The transceiver 110 may use a galvanic coupling method, an RF communication technology requiring an antenna, and may support unidirectional wireless communication or bidirectional wireless communication. The transceiver 110 may be configured of one or more Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs).

Galvanic coupling is a method in which the signal electrode (+) and the ground electrode (-) of each transceiver are attached to both the human body and transmit a signal by changing the electric field with a potential difference between the two electrodes. An antenna for transmitting and receiving signals is required. It is possible to reduce the power and miniaturization without.

The at least one photographing unit 120 outputs sensor image data by capturing the inner wall of the digestive organ in real time or intermittently while the oral endoscope device 100 moves the digestive organ of the human body. To this end, the photographing unit 120 is used for photographing a camera such as at least one image sensor such as a charge coupled device (CCD) or a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS), at least one optical lens, a lighting element such as a light emitting diode (LED), and the like. It may include optical elements. The lighting element may emit light of a predetermined color such as white light or blue light.

The at least one ultrasound unit 130 may include a region under the inner wall of the digestive organs (hereinafter, referred to as a 'submucosal region') or a digestive organ in real time or intermittently while the oral endoscope device 100 moves through the human digestive system. Ultrasound image data of surrounding organs located in the vicinity may be output. Peripheral organs of the digestive organs include the pancreas, spleen, kidneys, liver, gallbladder, salivary glands, heart, lungs and large intestine.

For example, the pancreas, which is one of the surrounding organs, is located in close proximity to the pyloric, pyloric, or Taiwan part of the stomach, and thus, the photographing unit 120 may determine the presence or absence of abnormalities by super close-up photographing the inner wall facing the pancreas. In addition, the ultrasound unit 130 may perform ultrasound imaging of the submucosal region of the inner wall facing the pancreas to determine a disease.

Therefore, the patient can be easily diagnosed for abnormalities of the surrounding organs such as the pancreas without performing ultrasound endoscopy or CT scan using a probe for photographing a difficult region such as the pancreas.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the surface facing at least one of the ultrasound unit 130 of the oral endoscope device 100 may be formed flat. For example, when the side facing the at least one ultrasound unit 130 is a side of the oral endoscope 100, the entire side is formed flat or a part of the entire side (ie, at least one of the at least one ultrasound unit 130) Some directly facing sides) may be formed flat.

In addition, the at least one ultrasound unit 130 may be provided to be in close contact with the opposing surface, thereby performing more accurate and clear ultrasound imaging.

Alternatively, by forming a flat surface facing the at least one ultrasonic vibrator of the at least one ultrasound unit 130 of the main body of the oral endoscope device 100, one or more ultrasonic vibrators may be in close contact with the flat surface. .

The surface formed flat to face the at least one ultrasound unit 130 or at least one ultrasound vibrator may include at least one of an inner surface and an outer surface of the body of the oral endoscope device 100. For example, only the inner surface may be flat and the outer surface facing the inner surface may be formed as a curved surface, or both the inner surface and the outer surface facing the inner surface may be formed to be flat.

In addition, when a plurality of ultrasound unit 130 is provided in the oral endoscope device 100, a plurality of ultrasound unit may be provided on at least one surface of the front, rear and side of the oral endoscope device 100. For example, when the oral endoscope device 100 is a cylindrical shape and a circular cross section is referred to as a front face, an opposite face is a rear face, and a face corresponding to the remaining pillars is called a side face, a plurality of ultrasound parts are only in front, or Ultrasonic imaging may be performed at the front and the side, or at the front and the rear, or at the front, the rear, and the side, at the same time or at a time difference. The same may be applied to the case in which the oral endoscope device 100 is in the form of a capsule.

6 is a block diagram illustrating an ultrasound unit 130 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6, the ultrasound unit 130 includes a plurality of high voltage (HV) pulsers 131, a HV Tx / Rx switch 132, an oscillator array 133, and a plurality of pre-AMPs. 134, multiple variable gain amplifiers (VGA) 135, multiple low pass filters (LPF) law 136, and multiple AD / AD converters (ADC) 137.

Multiple HV Pulsers 131, HV Tx / Rx switch 132, vibrator array 133, multiple Pre-AMPs 134, multiple VGAs 135, multiple LPFs 136 and The number of ADCs 137 is the same as the number of ultrasonic vibrators provided in the vibrator array 133, and the operation is also the same.

When the control unit 160 receives an operation control signal for operating at an ultrasonic frequency to be activated from the monitoring device 400 or the magnetic controllers 200a, 200b, and 200c, the controller 160 generates a plurality of HVs to generate pulses corresponding to the received ultrasonic frequency. Control the pulsers 131.

The plurality of HV Pulsers 131 generates pulses for generating the received ultrasonic frequency and transfers them to the HV Tx / Rx switch 132. By generating pulses using a plurality of HV pulsers 131 for boosting, when a battery is used as the power supply unit 140, the battery capacity may be extended, for example, a battery usage time.

The HV Tx / Rx switch 132 switches the pulses received from each HV Pulser 131 to the corresponding ultrasonic vibrator of the vibrator array 133.

The vibrator array 133 is a multi-transducer array in which a plurality of ultrasonic vibrators are arrayed. A plurality of ultrasonic vibrators vibrate according to the pulse received through the HV Tx / Rx switch 132 to generate a vibration wave. In addition, the vibrator array 133 may include only one vibrator. This is because the oral endoscope apparatus 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention is to focus on unidirectional imaging rather than omnidirectional imaging, and thus, ultrasound imaging of the submucosal region is possible using one vibrator. As a result, by taking a unidirectional image compared to omnidirectional imaging, it is possible to perform more accurate examinations by minimizing errors due to changes in position of the ultrasound image.

Vibration waves injected according to the scanning range to the same place as the inner wall of the stomach are reflected by the inner wall and received by each ultrasonic vibrator.

The ultrasonic vibrators of the vibrator array 133 transmit the reflected received vibration wave to the HV Tx / Rx switch 132, and the HV Tx / Rx switch 132 transmits the reflected received vibration wave to each of the ultrasonic vibrators. Switch to AMP 134.

Each Pre-AMP 134 amplifies the reflected received vibration wave, and each VGA 135 variably amplifies the gain of the amplified vibration wave.

Each LPF 136 low-passes the variable gain amplified vibration wave to remove noise, and each ADC 137 converts the noise-removed vibration wave into a digital signal.

The controller 160 processes the digital signal input from each ADC 137 using a digital signal processor (DSP) and then controls the transceiver 110 to transmit the digital signal to the receiver 300.

Hereinafter, an operation of ultrasound imaging the pancreas using the oral endoscope apparatus 100 will be described with reference to FIG. 7.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the pancreas 540 positioned around the stomach and the stomach 510 of the digestive organs of the human body.

Referring to FIG. 7, the pancreas 540 is located in the elongated shape of about 15 cm and is located behind the stomach 510 and is connected to the duodenum 530 and is adjacent to the spleen. Pancreas 540 is divided into three parts, the head, the body, the tail, the duodenum (530) close to the head, the middle of the body, the thinnest part is the tail. In general, the disease associated with the pancreas 540 may have a difference in symptoms depending on which part of the pancreas 540 occurs, it is very important to find the location of the disease.

As shown in Figure 7, the pancreas 540 is in close contact with the stomach 510 and duodenum 530, as in the embodiment of the present invention, by using a magnetic force gastrointestinal 510 to oral endoscope device 100 And close to the inner wall closest to the pancreas 540 of the duodenum 530, and then ultrasonically photographs the head, torso and tail of the pancreas 540 using different or identical frequencies suitable for imaging the pancreas 540. It is possible.

At this time, the oral endoscope apparatus 100 photographs the inner wall of the stomach 510 corresponding to the torso or tail of the pancreas 540 near the pyloric sinus or Taiwan of the stomach 510 using the photographing unit 120, and again. The body of the pancreas 540 may be ultrasonically photographed using the ultrasound unit 130.

In addition, when the pylorus 520 to which the stomach 510 and the duodenum 530 are connected is relaxed by the drug, the oral endoscope device 100 is moved to the duodenum 530 by the external magnetic force of the magnetic controller 200. Oral endoscope device 100 again photographs the inner wall of the duodenum 530 with the imaging unit 120 at a position corresponding to the head or tail of the pancreas 540 of the duodenum 530, using the ultrasound unit 130 The ultrasound or the head or tail of the pancreas 540 can be taken.

Referring back to FIG. 5, the power supply unit 140 supplies power to each component 110 to 160 of the oral endoscope apparatus 100. The power supply unit 140 may include a rechargeable battery or a battery that is difficult to charge. As the charging method of the rechargeable battery, one of a plurality of wireless power charging methods including a magnetic induction method, a magnetic resonance method, or an electromagnetic wave method may be selectively applied. In addition, the power supply unit 140 may be powered on / off.

The magnetic unit 150 may adjust the posture and the moving direction of the oral endoscope device 100 by external magnetic force, and may include one or more permanent magnets. That is, the magnetic unit 150 may control the posture and the moving direction for the position, rotation, and photography of the oral endoscope device 100 by the magnetic force generated by the magnetic controller 200.

In particular, the magnetic part 150 may allow the oral endoscope device 100 to be in close contact with the inner wall of the digestive organ by interaction with an external magnetic force.

When the magnetic part 150 includes two or more permanent magnets, the battery-type power supply 140 may be disposed between two or more permanent magnets.

8 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of the arrangement of two permanent magnets 152 and 154 and the power supply unit 140.

Referring to FIG. 8, the magnetic part 150 includes two permanent magnets 152 and 154, and a conductor-oriented power supply 140 is provided between the two permanent magnets 152 and 154. Since the permanent magnets 152 and 154 are arranged to have the N / S pole and the N / S pole order, respectively, the magnetic part 150 may have a form having a large N / S pole on its own, and has a greater magnetic force. Can be formed.

The controller 160 controls the overall operation of the oral endoscope device 100. When the control unit 160 receives the operation control signal output from the monitoring device 400 or the magnetic controllers 200a, 200b, and 200c through the transceiver 110, the controller 160 may perform an operation corresponding to the operation control signal. have.

For example, when an operation control signal for allowing the photographing unit 120 and the ultrasound unit 130 to photograph the inner wall at the same time is received, the controller 160 is currently looking at the photographing unit 120 and the ultrasound unit 130. The imaging unit 120 and the ultrasound unit 130 are controlled to simultaneously or individually photograph the inner wall or the submucosal region of the inner wall.

In addition, when the magnetic controller 200 controls the posture and the direction of movement of the magnetic part 150 to move to the inner wall of the stomach closest to the surrounding organs of the digestive organ, the magnetic part 150, the magnetic part 150. Moves the oral endoscope device 100 to the inner wall of the stomach closest to the surrounding organs. In this case, the controller 160 may control the photographing unit 120 so that the oral endoscope device 100 photographs the inner wall of the stomach closest to the surrounding organs. When the inspector monitoring the monitoring device 400 finds that there is an abnormality in the currently taken inner wall or commands an ultrasonic imaging even if it is not found, the control unit 160 photographs the submucosal region of the current inner wall. Can be controlled.

In addition, when the peripheral organs for close-up imaging are the pancreas, the examiner may adjust the frequency for imaging the pancreas head, tail, and center. Therefore, the controller 160 captures the center portion of the pancreas and the frequency of capturing the head and tail of the pancreas by the operation control signals from the monitoring device 400 or the magnetic controllers 200a, 200b, and 200c. The ultrasound unit 130 may be controlled to photograph the pancreas by differently. This means that the higher the ultrasonic frequency, the higher the resolution, but the shorter the frequency scanning depth (or the visible range), and the lower the ultrasonic frequency, the lower the resolution and the deeper the frequency scanning depth.

In addition, when receiving the sensor image data and the ultrasound data from the ultrasound unit 130 from the photographing unit 120, the control unit 160 generates the received sensor image data and ultrasound data in the form of a frame, and then to the receiver 300 The transceiver 110 is controlled to transmit.

In addition, the controller 160 may control the power supply unit 140 to simultaneously or selectively turn on / off the power supplied to the photographing unit 120 or the ultrasound unit 130 according to the operation control signal.

In addition, the controller 160 may control the power supply 140 to turn on or off the power of the power supply 140 according to an operation control signal.

In addition, the controller 160 may control the resolution of the photographing unit 120 or the ultrasound unit 130, that is, the frame per second (FPS) in the range of 2 to N. FIG.

In addition, the controller 160 may transmit an AGC (Automatic Gain Control) control command of the photographing unit 120, and may transmit an ultrasound frequency, a voltage, and an amplifier control command to the ultrasound unit 130.

Hereinafter, an oral endoscope apparatus 100 according to various embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 through 12A and 12B.

The oral endoscope device 100 described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7 may be one of the first to fifth oral endoscope devices 600 to 900 and 900a to be described with reference to FIGS. 9 to 12A and 12B. Can be. Accordingly, the first to fifth oral endoscope devices 600 to 900 and 900a illustrated in FIGS. 9 to 12A and 12B include the components described with reference to FIG. 5 and will be described in detail for convenience of description. Is omitted.

Also, the first to fifth imaging units, the first to fifth ultrasound units, the first to fifth image sensors 610 to 910 and 910a, and the first to fifth images described with reference to FIGS. 9 to 12A and 12B. The five ultrasonic vibrators 620 to 920 and 920a may be mounted on the imaging unit 120, the ultrasonic unit 130, or the sensor such as the CMOS of the imaging unit 120 and the vibrator array 133 described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6. It may be provided with ultrasonic vibrators.

In addition, some of the main body 630 to 930 and 930a of the first to fifth oral endoscope devices 600 to 900 and 900a shown in FIGS. 9 to 12A and 12B are made of a material capable of ultrasonic detection. .

First, FIG. 9 is a conceptual diagram briefly illustrating a first oral endoscope apparatus 600 according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 9, the first oral endoscope apparatus 600 is a first image arranged side by side on the same line of the first oral endoscope apparatus 600 so as to photograph the inner wall of the same direction, that is, the same position in the digestive organs. The negative first image sensor 610 and the first ultrasonic vibrators 620 of the first ultrasonic part. That is, the first image sensor 610 and the plurality of first ultrasonic vibrators 620 are arranged in a line along the same line of the first oral type endoscope 600.

In this case, the first image sensor 610 is the outermost of the first ultrasonic vibrators 620 so that the angle of view of the first image sensor 610 and the ultrasonic scanning range of the first ultrasonic vibrators 620 overlap as much as possible. It may be provided next to the vibrator located in.

In addition, FIG. 9 is an example illustrating an arrangement relationship of a plurality of first ultrasonic vibrators 620 included in one first ultrasonic unit, or one first ultrasonic unit includes one first ultrasonic vibrator 620. ), It may be one of examples illustrating an arrangement relationship of a plurality of first ultrasound units. The same can be applied to FIGS. 10 to 12b.

FIG. 10 is a conceptual view briefly illustrating a second oral endoscope apparatus 700 according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

The second oral endoscope apparatus 700 shown in FIG. 10 is substantially the same as the first oral endoscope apparatus 600 described with reference to FIG. 9. However, the second image sensor 710 of the second oral endoscope apparatus 700 may overlap the angle of view of the second image sensor 710 and the ultrasonic scanning range of the second ultrasonic vibrators 720 as much as possible. It may be provided between the ultrasonic vibrators 720.

FIG. 11 is a conceptual diagram schematically illustrating a third oral endoscope apparatus 800 according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

The third oral endoscope apparatus 800 shown in FIG. 11 is substantially the same as the first oral endoscope apparatus 600 described with reference to FIG. 9. However, the surface of which the third ultrasonic vibrators 820 are provided, that is, the surface of which the ultrasonic waves are reflected to face the third ultrasonic vibrators 820, has a curvature greater than zero (C). It may be formed into a curved surface to have a). This is to extend the frequency scanning range of the third ultrasonic vibrators 820, and the number of the third ultrasonic vibrators 820 or the ultrasonic frequency or the organ of the organ for the third oral type endoscope device 800 to photograph mainly. It can be adjusted differently according to a characteristic.

12A is a diagram schematically illustrating a fourth oral endoscope apparatus 900 according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 12A, the fourth oral cavity endoscope device 900 is arranged side by side with the fourth image sensor 910 and the fourth ultrasonic vibrators 920 so as to photograph the inner wall of the same direction, that is, the same position in the digestive organ. Are arranged.

That is, the fourth image sensor 910 and the fourth ultrasonic vibrators 920 may be arranged in parallel in two rows along an inner surface corresponding to the circumference of the fourth oral endoscope device 900.

As shown in FIG. 12A, the fourth image sensor 910 may be provided at a predetermined distance from an inner surface of the case of the fourth oral endoscope device 900, and although not illustrated, the fourth oral endoscope device ( 900 may be provided to be in close contact with the inner surface of the case.

In addition, the shape or size of the fourth image sensor 910 is not limited.

In addition, the fourth ultrasonic vibrators 920 may be partially arranged along at least one arc that is part of the circumference of the fourth oral endoscope device 900, that is, along the circumference. The fourth ultrasonic vibrators 920 may be provided to be in close contact with the inner surface of the case so that the fourth oral cavity endoscope device 900 may secure an ultrasound image.

In addition, although not shown in FIG. 12A, the fourth image sensor 910 and the fourth ultrasonic vibrators 920 may be provided in the entire circumference.

12B is a conceptual diagram briefly illustrating a fifth oral type endoscope apparatus 900a according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to (a) and (b) of FIG. 12B, the fifth oral endoscope device 900a may have a cylindrical shape, and the fifth image sensor 910a and the fifth ultrasonic vibrators 920a may include the fifth. It may be arranged collinearly toward the front or rear side of the oral endoscope device 900a.

In the case of the fifth oral type endoscope apparatus 900a illustrated in FIG. 12B, the surface on which the fifth ultrasonic vibrators 920a are provided, that is, the surface facing the fifth ultrasonic vibrators 920a is flat. The fifth ultrasonic vibrators 920a may be provided to be in close contact with the flat surface.

9 to 12B are provided with a plurality of first to fifth ultrasonic vibrators, respectively, but may also be provided with one first to fifth ultrasonic vibrators. In addition, the main body 630 in the first to third oral endoscope devices 600, 700, and 800 and the fifth oral endoscope device 900a described with reference to FIGS. 9, 10, 11, and 12B. When the ultrasonic sensor is applied to the side or the front of the 730, 830, and 930a, the side or the front is flat so that the first to third oral endoscopes 600, 700, 800 and the fifth oral cavity are flat. Side or front of the type endoscope device 900a may be in close contact with the internal wall of the fire extinguisher.

13 is a flowchart illustrating a pancreatic endoscope method of the oral endoscope device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 13, when the oral endoscope device 100 enters the patient's digestive organ, the examiner controls the movement of the oral endoscope device 100 using the magnetic controller 200 placed on the abdomen of the patient ( S1010).

In response to an operation control signal of the monitoring device 400 or the magnetic controllers 200a, 200b, and 200c, the oral endoscope device 100 may activate the imaging unit 120 to start capturing the digestive organs (S1020).

Oral endoscope device 100 is moved to the inner wall of the stomach closest to the pancreas by the external magnetic force of the magnetic controller 200 (S1030). That is, the examiner determines the position close to the pancreas while watching the captured image corresponding to the sensor photographing data displayed on the monitoring device 400, and manipulates the magnetic controller 200 to move the oral endoscope apparatus 100.

In the inner wall of the stomach close to the pancreas, the oral endoscope apparatus 100 turns off the operation of the photographing unit 120 by an operation control signal, and turns on the ultrasound unit 130 (S1040).

In addition, the oral endoscope device 100 is as close to the inner wall of the stomach as possible by the external magnetic force of the magnetic controller (200, 200a, 200b or 200c), the monitoring device 400 or the magnetic controller (200a, 200b, 200c) In step S1050, the ultrasound unit 130 is controlled to generate a corresponding frequency according to the ultrasonic frequency.

The ultrasound unit 130 of the oral endoscopic device 100 generates a vibration wave corresponding to the ultrasonic frequency, receives the vibration wave reflected from the inner wall, and outputs ultrasonic data by signal processing such as amplification, digital conversion, etc. (S1060). As a result, ultrasound data corresponding to a part of the pancreas is output.

Oral endoscope apparatus 100 transmits the ultrasound data output in step S1060 to the receiver 300 (S1070).

When the ultrasound imaging of a part of the pancreas is completed by step S1070, it is checked whether the gastrointestinal rhythm is relaxed by drugs injected before step S1010.

When it is confirmed that the oral endoscope device 100 is relaxed enough to move, the oral endoscope device 100 moves through the gastrointestinal pylori by the external magnetic force of the magnetic controller 200 and moves to the duodenum close to the head of the pancreas. (S1080). In operation S1070 or after operation S1070, the ultrasound unit 130 may be turned off, and the imaging unit 120 may be turned on to emit light of the lighting device of the imaging unit 120.

Again, the oral endoscope device 100 in the inner wall of the duodenum close to the head of the pancreas turns on the ultrasound unit 130 by the operation control signal (S1090). In operation S1090, the photographing unit 120 may be maintained on or off, and this may be selectively applied in consideration of the surrounding situation. Ambient conditions may include, for example, remaining battery capacity, gastrointestinal, pancreatic or duodenal inner / outer wall conditions.

Then, the oral endoscope device 100 is as close as possible to the inner wall of the duodenum by the external magnetic force of the magnetic controller (200, 200a, 200b or 200c), the monitoring device 400 or the magnetic controller (200a, 200b, 200c) In operation S1100, the ultrasonic unit 130 is controlled to generate a corresponding frequency according to the ultrasonic frequency.

The ultrasound unit 130 of the oral endoscope apparatus 100 outputs the ultrasound data after taking the pancreas with a vibration wave corresponding to the ultrasound frequency (S1110).

Oral endoscope apparatus 100 transmits the ultrasound data output in step S1110 to the receiver 300 (S1120).

The monitoring device 400 analyzes and processes the sensor image data and the ultrasonic data received through the receiver 300 as displayable signals and displays them on the screen.

On the other hand, the pancreatic endoscope method of the oral endoscopic device 100 according to the present invention is implemented by a program of instructions for implementing the tangible implementation, it may be provided included in a recording medium that can be read through a computer Is easy to understand.

That is, the pancreatic endoscope method of the oral-type endoscope apparatus 100 according to the present invention is implemented in a program form that can be executed by various computer means, and can be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium, the computer-readable recording medium May include program instructions, data files, data structures, and the like, alone or in combination. The computer-readable recording medium may include magnetic media such as a hard disk, optical media such as a CD-ROM, and DVD, and ROM, RAM, flash memory, USB memory, and the like. Hardware devices specifically configured to store and execute program instructions are included.

Accordingly, the present invention also provides a program stored in a computer-readable recording medium that is executed on a computer controlling the electromagnetic wave characteristic measurement system to implement the pancreatic endoscope method of the oral endoscopic device 100.

100, 600, 700, 800, 900, 900a: oral endoscopy device
110: transceiver unit 120: recording unit
130: ultrasonic unit 140: power unit
150: magnetic unit 160: control unit
200, 200a, 200b, 200c: magnetic controller
300: receiver 400: monitoring device
610, 710, 810, 910, 910a: first to fifth image sensors
620, 720, 820, 920, 920a: first to fifth ultrasonic vibrators

Claims (14)

In oral type endoscopy apparatus of swallowable type,
At least one photographing unit which photographs the digestive organs and outputs sensor image data while moving the digestive organs of the human body;
At least one ultrasound unit configured to output ultrasound image data of an area below the inner wall of the digestive organs (hereinafter referred to as a 'submucosal area') and surrounding organs located around the digestive organs;
A magnetic part for controlling the posture and direction of movement of the oral endoscope device by external magnetic force;
A transceiver for transmitting the sensor image data and the ultrasound image data to an external device;
A control unit controlling the at least one imaging unit and the at least one ultrasound unit to simultaneously or respectively photograph the digestive organ and the submucosal region; And
And a power supply unit supplying power to the at least one photographing unit, at least one ultrasound unit, magnetic unit, transceiver unit, and control unit.
The at least one ultrasound unit is provided to be in close contact with the opposite surface of the oral endoscope device,
Oral endoscope device, characterized in that by the interaction between the magnetic portion and the external magnetic force so that the ultrasonic portion is in close contact with the inner wall of the digestive organ. The method of claim 1,
Oral endoscope device, characterized in that the surface facing the one or more ultrasonic portion of the oral endoscope device is formed flat. The method of claim 2,
When the ultrasound unit is a plurality, the plurality of ultrasound unit is an oral endoscope device, characterized in that provided on at least one surface of the front, rear and side of the oral endoscope device. The method of claim 2,
It further comprises a body;
Oral endoscope device, characterized in that the surface of the body facing the at least one ultrasonic vibrator of the at least one ultrasonic portion is formed flat, so that the at least one ultrasonic vibrator is in close contact with the flat formed surface. The method of claim 2,
Oral endoscope device characterized in that it comprises at least one of the inner surface and the outer surface of the oral endoscope device flat surface facing the one or more ultrasonic portion. The method of claim 1,
If the surrounding organ is the pancreas,
And the control unit controls the at least one ultrasound unit to photograph the pancreas by differentiating a frequency of photographing the central part of the pancreas and a frequency of photographing the head and tail of the pancreas. The method of claim 1,
The image sensor of the at least one imaging unit and the at least one ultrasonic vibrator,
Oral endoscope device, characterized in that arranged in parallel in two rows along the circumference of the oral endoscope device to take the same direction in the digestive organs. The method of claim 7, wherein
At least one ultrasonic vibrator of the at least one ultrasonic wave unit,
Oral endoscope device, characterized in that arranged along at least one arc that is part of the circumference of the oral endoscope device. The method of claim 1,
The at least one ultrasound unit, oral endoscope device characterized in that it comprises one or more HV (High Voltage) pulser for boosting. The method of claim 9,
The one or more HV pulsers,
Oral endoscope device, characterized in that for generating a pulse for generating the ultrasonic frequency received from the controller. The method of claim 1,
The magnetic part,
A first permanent magnet; And
And a second permanent magnet;
The power supply unit, which is a conductor, is provided between the first permanent magnet and the second permanent magnet, and the first permanent magnet and the second permanent magnet are arranged to have an N / S pole order, respectively. . delete The method of claim 1,
The external magnetic force is generated by a magnetic controller for driving the magnetic part,
The magnetic controller is oral endoscope device, characterized in that to generate the external magnetic force in close contact with the abdomen of the patient. The method of claim 13,
The magnetic controller,
The magnetic part is controlled so that the oral endoscope device moves to the inner wall of the stomach closest to the surrounding organs,
The control unit,
When the oral endoscope moves to the gastrointestinal wall closest to the surrounding organs, the at least one imaging unit is controlled to photograph the inner wall of the closest gastrointestinal tract, and the at least one gastrointestinal endoscopy is photographed. Oral endoscope device, characterized in that for controlling the ultrasound unit.

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