KR20180033106A - Portable terminal for an intraoral x-ray sensor and intraoral x-ray system using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided is a portable terminal for connecting to an intraoral X-ray sensor. The portable terminal comprises: a device driver module which communicates with the intraoral X-ray sensor; a sensor control module which controls an operation of the intraoral X-ray sensor through the device driver module; a storage unit; a data reception module which receives a digital signal from the intraoral X-ray sensor through the device driver module to generate an X-ray image on a tooth and to store the X-ray image in the storage unit; an intraoral viewer module which visualizes the X-ray image stored in the storage unit; and a patient management module which manages patient information. In addition, provided is an intraoral X-ray photographing device using the portable terminal. The intraoral X-ray photographing device comprises: the portable terminal; and the intraoral X-ray sensor which is connected to a connection port of the portable terminal in a wired or wireless manner.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a portable terminal for interlocking with an intraoral x-ray sensor and an intraoral x-

The present invention relates to a portable terminal and an intraoral x-ray imaging apparatus using the same, and more particularly, to a portable terminal for interlocking with an intraoral x-ray sensor and an intraoral x-ray imaging apparatus using the same.

The X-ray imaging apparatus is widely used as a means for acquiring an image of a human body in the medical field. Among the X-ray imaging apparatuses, in particular, the intraoral X-ray imaging apparatus is widely used in dental hospitals and the like because of its convenient use.

The intraoral X-ray apparatus is for X-ray imaging of structures in the oral cavity, and includes an intraoral x-ray sensor (IOS) and an X-ray generator. The intraoral x-ray sensor is inserted into the oral cavity and detects X-rays transmitted through the oral cavity structure irradiated from the x-ray generator outside the oral cavity, and converts the detected value into a digital signal. Is delivered to an external device such as a computer for image processing for subsequent processing.

The intraoral x-ray sensor has a long length of cable from the image processing computer to the image processing computer to transmit the digital signal. In this way, since the intraoral x-ray sensor must be used with a separate image processing computer, there is a problem in portability / mobility, and a power consumption of the image processing computer used together is also problematic.

An object of the present invention is to provide a portable terminal for interlocking with an intraoral x-ray sensor, which is easy to carry and easy to operate and easy to manage and manage for a dental patient, and an intraoral x-ray imaging apparatus using the same.

The problems to be solved by the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned problems, and other matters not mentioned can be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

The present invention provides a portable terminal for interlocking with an intraoral x-ray sensor for the above-mentioned problems, comprising: a device driver module communicating with the intraoral x-ray sensor; A sensor control module for controlling the operation of the intraoral x-ray sensor through the device driving module; A storage unit; A data receiving module for receiving a digital signal from the intraoral x-ray sensor through the device driving module to generate an x-ray image for a tooth and storing the x-ray image in the storage; A viewer module (Intraoral Viewer Module) for visualizing the X-ray image stored in the storage unit; And a patient management module (Patient Management Module) for managing patient information.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a portable terminal, And an intraoral x-ray sensor connected to a connection port of the portable terminal by wire or wirelessly.

According to the portable terminal for interlocking with the intraoral x-ray sensor according to the embodiments of the present invention and the intraoral x-ray imaging apparatus using the same, the oral cavity X- X-ray imaging, such as receiving a digital signal as the result of X-ray detection of the structure, converting the received digital signal into X-ray image, and giving a serial number indicating the position of the imaged tooth to the X- There is a technical effect that it is possible to provide convenience in performing subsequent processing.

1 is a view illustrating an environment in which a portable terminal of an intraoral X-ray imaging apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is used in conjunction with an intraoral x-ray sensor.
2 is a diagram illustrating internal configuration modules implemented in a portable terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a view illustrating the numbers of teeth given by the viewer module of FIG.
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an overlay of a ruler capable of zooming in / out on an X-ray image according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The advantages and features of the present invention and the manner of attaining them will become apparent with reference to the embodiments described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The present invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the concept of the invention to those skilled in the art. To fully disclose the scope of the invention to a person skilled in the art, and the invention is only defined by the scope of the claims.

As used herein, the term " module " or " module " means a functional part that performs at least one function or operation, and may be implemented in hardware or software or a combination of hardware and software. In addition, a plurality of 'modules' or a plurality of 'parts' may be integrated into at least one module except for 'module' or 'module' which needs to be implemented by specific hardware, and may be implemented by at least one processor.

In addition, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, unless otherwise defined, have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. Terms such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries should be construed as meaning consistent with meaning in the context of the related art and may be interpreted in an ideal or overly formal sense unless explicitly defined in the specification of the present invention It does not.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, well-known functions or constructions will not be described in detail if they obscure the subject matter of the present invention.

1 is a view illustrating an environment in which a portable terminal of an intraoral X-ray imaging apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is used in conjunction with an intraoral x-ray sensor.

1, an input port (not shown) to which a cable of an intraoral x-ray sensor 150 can be connected is connected to a portable terminal 110 according to an embodiment of the present invention. May be provided. The portable terminal 110 receives a digital signal as a result of X-ray detection of the intraoral oral X-ray sensor 150 through the input port, processes the digital signal into an X-ray image usable in the portable terminal 110, (See 290 in FIG. In addition, the portable terminal 110 can transmit the X-ray image to an external management server 140 via a wired / wireless network.

The X-ray image that can be used in the portable terminal 110 may be a medical digital image file format such as DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine) and / or an image file format such as GIF, PNG, TIFF, The portable terminal 110 generates a medical digital image file and an image file, which are X-ray images for the same subject, from the digital signals received by the intraoral oral X-ray sensor 150 through the data receiving module 230, The image file having a relatively small capacity may be stored in a storage unit 290, which will be described later, while a medical digital image file having a relatively large capacity may be transferred to an external management server 140. Accordingly, the storage space of the storage unit 290 can be used more efficiently.

The intraoral x-ray sensor 150 detects x-rays irradiated by the x-ray generator 120, converts the detected values into digital signals, and transmits the digital signals to the portable terminal 110 for subsequent processing. The intraoral x-ray sensor 150 may include a cable for connecting to the portable terminal 110 and wirelessly communicate with the portable terminal 110 via a local wireless communication instead of a cable. Preferably, the intraoral x-ray sensor 150 may include at least one of a gyro sensor, a geomagnetic sensor, and an acceleration sensor, and the sensing means may include, for example, a slope based on the reference plane, Sensing information on the position and angle of the intraoral x-ray sensor based on the angle, and transmit the sensed information to the portable terminal 110 together with the digital signal.

The management server 140 may be configured to collect and manage X-ray image data, photographing information data, and status information transmitted from the portable terminal 110, and to calculate statistics on the collected data. In one embodiment, the management server 140 may include a particular computer in the dentistry or may be a colocated server, such as an external dedicated server, a hosting server, or a cloud server, And a Picture Archiving and Communication System capable of storing, processing and transmitting digital medical image images.

The portable terminal 110 may include a tablet PC, a note pad, a smart phone, or a handheld based wireless communication device, but the type of the portable terminal 110 is not limited thereto.

The portable terminal 110 not only receives digital signals and sensing information obtained through the intraoral oral X-ray sensor 150, but also information about the current position of the portable terminal 110 during oral X-ray imaging, And information on the use environment of the portable terminal 110 may be stored in the storage unit 290 as state information. To this end, the portable terminal 110 may be provided with at least one of location measurement means, power management means, and environment measurement means including hardware, software, firmware, middleware, or a combination thereof.

As described above, when the portable terminal 110 is used, a separate power source or power cable is not required unlike a conventional image processing computer. Therefore, a medical person can easily use the portable terminal 110 according to an embodiment of the present invention To treat dental patients. If necessary, the display of the portable terminal 110 may be presented in front of the patient 130 to display an X-ray image generated from a digital signal received through the intraoral x-ray sensor 150, as well as a separately stored dental- Etc., so that the medical practitioner can easily explain to the patient 130 about the treatment process.

The X-ray generator 120 may be a so-called portable X-ray generator in the form of a gun or a camera so that the radiographer can freely irradiate the X-rays in various directions by the hand of a photographer.

2 is a diagram illustrating internal configuration modules implemented in a portable terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The portable terminal 110 may include a device driver module 210 configured to enable communication with the intraoral x-ray sensor 150. [ In one embodiment, device driver module 210 may be implemented as an Android app or an iOS app, but the manner in which device driver module 210 is implemented is not limited thereto.

The portable terminal 110 further includes a sensor control module 220 configured to control the operation of the intraoral x-ray sensor 150 via the device driving module 210, a storage unit 290, a device driving module 210 Further includes a data receiving module 230 operable to receive digital data from the intraoral x-ray sensor 150 to generate an x-ray image, and to store the x-ray image in the storage unit 290 in association with the metadata can do. As the data receiving module 230 is operated a plurality of times, a plurality of X-ray images can be stored in the storage unit 290, and corresponding X-ray images are matched and stored in the storage unit 290 .

The metadata may be generated from user input data input through the touch screen of the portable terminal 110 before or after the X-ray imaging of the intraoral x-ray sensor 150, 150 from the sensing means. This metadata includes position information of the teeth in the X-ray image.

The portable terminal 110 further includes a viewer module 300 configured to visualize at least one of a plurality of X-ray image data stored in the storage unit 290 into an image in an ordered manner according to metadata associated with the X- (240), and a Patient Management Module (250) configured to manage patient information. At this time, the patient management module 250 may provide an electronic chart on which inspection information such as personal information, medical care information, and X-ray image for each patient is recorded, and the user input data of the data receiving module 230 may be personal information, In the form of information, the X-ray image can be recorded in the patient-specific electronic chart in the form of examination information. The electronic chart may be transmitted to the management server 140 of FIG. 1. When the management server 140 provides the electronic chart, the personal information, the medical care information, and the examination information are transmitted to the management server 140, Can be recorded in an electronic chart.

In one embodiment, the sensor control module 220 may transmit drive and control-related commands, such as generating and transmitting a trigger signal, which is an imaging preparation signal of the intraoral x-ray sensor 150, through the device driving module 210 Lt; / RTI >

The data receiving module 230 receives the digital signal from the intraoral oral X-ray sensor 150 to generate an X-ray image of the tooth, and associates the X-ray image with the metadata containing the positional information of the tooth Lt; / RTI > The portable terminal 110 is configured to transmit at least one of a plurality of X-ray images stored in the storage unit 290 and personal information, medical care information, and examination information to an external management server 140 together with or separately from an electronic chart (Not shown). In one embodiment, the metadata containing the location information of the teeth may be a serial number indicating the location of the teeth. The serial number may be the number of teeth designated by the viewer module 240 and user input through a touch screen or the like.

In one embodiment, the portable terminal 110 may further include a media player configured to play a demo video to illustrate the process for dental care to the patient. Thus, the patient 130 may have an opportunity to receive detailed explanations of his treatment process.

In one embodiment, the portable terminal 110 may further include a camera module 260. The patient management module 250 may further be configured to manage the face photograph of the patient 130 photographed by the camera module 260 as personal information of the patient and preferably stored in an electronic chart for each patient. The communication unit 280 may be further configured to transmit an X-ray image, a face photograph of the patient 130, or an electronic chart stored therein to an external management server 140. Thus, registration of the face photograph of the patient 130 on the patient management system (PMS) of the management server 140 makes it easy to manage the patients.

In one embodiment, the portable terminal 110 may further include a facial recognition system implemented in hardware, software, firmware, middleware, or a combination thereof, and the user of the portable terminal 110 The facial recognition system automatically selects and loads the electronic chart of the patient with the facial photographs stored in the electronic chart, or displays the X-ray image, personal information, medical care information , It is also possible to automatically record inspection information on the electronic chart.

3 is a view illustrating the numbers of teeth given by the viewer module of FIG. Referring to FIG. 3, the viewer module 240 includes 18, 17, 16, 15, 14, 13, 12, 11, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27 from the maxillary right to the maxillary left teeth And serial numbers of 48, 47, 46, 45, 44, 43, 42, 41, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36 and 37 from the mandibular right to the mandibular left tooth . Therefore, the serial number of the central teeth of the maxilla is 11, and the serial number of the central teeth of the mandible is 41. The viewer module 240 can align the X-ray images photographed according to the serial number of the tooth thus given and display the X-ray images on the display.

In one embodiment, the serial number may be entered by a medical practitioner who is treating the patient 130 using a keyboard, such as a pre-radiographic or x-ray touch screen of the intraoral x-ray sensor 150. Accordingly, if the user selects the serial number using a keyboard such as a touch screen, and then performs intraoral x-ray imaging, the portable terminal 110 can match and store the serial number in the photographed x-ray image.

In another embodiment, the portable terminal may further include a Voice Recognition System implemented in hardware, software, firmware, middleware, or a combination thereof, the serial number indicating that the medical practitioner The voice recognition system of the portable terminal 110 before or after the X-ray imaging of the X-ray sensor 150 can be used to receive the serial number by the voice of the health care provider. In one embodiment, the serial number may be generated based on the sensing information sensed by the sensing means of the intraoral x-ray sensor 150.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an overlay of a ruler capable of zooming in / out on an X-ray image according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG.

Referring to FIG. 4, it can be seen that the X-ray image 410 having the serial number "26" (440) is displayed on the display of the portable terminal 110. Since the serial number is "26 " (440), it can be seen that the X-ray image 410 is obtained by photographing the teeth immediately adjacent to the left upper side of the maxilla. In one embodiment, the viewer module 240 of the portable terminal 110 may be further configured to display a ruler 420 that can be zoomed in and / or zoomed out adjacent to a region of interest (ROI) within the x-ray image 410 . In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, when the two fingers 430 of the medical person contact the display of the portable terminal 100, the ruler 420 is generated so that the size of the teeth can be known, Also, the numerical value of the ruler 110 may be varied in accordance with the variation of the interval between the two fingers 430, so that the medical practitioner can easily know the size of the teeth.

In the embodiments disclosed herein, the arrangement of the components shown may vary depending on the environment or requirements in which the invention is implemented. For example, some components may be omitted or some components may be integrated into one. In addition, the arrangement order and connection of some components may be changed.

The components of the embodiments of the present invention described above may be implemented by hardware, software, firmware, middleware, or a combination thereof, and may be used as a system, a subsystem, components, or subcomponents thereof I must understand. When implemented in software, the elements of the present invention may be instructions / code segments for performing necessary tasks. The program or code segments may be stored in a machine-readable medium, such as a processor-readable medium, or a computer program product. A machine-readable medium or a processor-readable medium may include any medium that can be read by a machine (e.g., processor, computer, etc.) and capable of storing or transmitting information in an executable form.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the technical scope of the present invention should be determined only by the appended claims.

110: Portable terminal
120: X-ray generator
140: management server
150: Oral X-ray sensor
210: device driving module
220: Sensor control module
230: Data receiving module
240: Viewer Module
250: Patient Management Module
260: Camera module
270: Media Player
280:
290:

Claims (13)

A portable terminal for interlocking with an intraoral x-ray sensor,
A device driver module communicating with the intraoral x-ray sensor;
A sensor control module for controlling the operation of the intraoral x-ray sensor through the device driving module;
A storage unit;
A data receiving module for receiving a digital signal from the intraoral x-ray sensor through the device driving module to generate an x-ray image for a tooth and storing the x-ray image in the storage;
A viewer module (Intraoral Viewer Module) for visualizing the X-ray image stored in the storage unit; And
And a patient management module (Patient Management Module) for managing patient information. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the data receiving module generates metadata including positional information of the tooth and stores the X-ray image and the meta data in the storage unit in association with each other,
Wherein the viewer module visualizes the X-ray image according to positional information of the teeth. 3. The method of claim 2,
Wherein the intraoral x-ray sensor includes at least one of a gyro sensor, an acceleration sensor, and a geomagnetic sensor,
The portable terminal includes at least one of a keyboard including a touch screen and a voice recognition system,
The positional information of the teeth may include,
A portable terminal which is inputted through the keyboard or the voice recognition system by a user before or after the X-ray radiography of the intraoral x-ray sensor, or which is calculated as the sensing information of the sensing means after X- . The method according to claim 2 or 3,
Wherein the position information of the tooth is a serial number. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the X-ray image is at least one of a medical digital image format or an image file format. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the patient management module includes an electronic chart in which at least one of personal information for each patient, examination information, and examination information including an X-ray image is recorded. The method according to claim 6,
Further comprising a camera module,
Wherein the patient management module records a face photograph of the subject photographed by the camera module as the personal information. 8. The method of claim 7,
Wherein the patient management module comprises:
Wherein the electronic chart of the examinee is selected and loaded with the face photograph of the subject photographed by the camera module or at least one of the personal information, the medical care information and the examination information is recorded in the electronic chart. The method according to claim 1,
And a media player for reproducing a demonstration image of the dental treatment process. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the viewer module visualizes a ruler to be zoomed in and / or out together with the X-ray image together with the X-ray image. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the device driving module includes an Android app or an iOS app. 12. The method of claim 11,
Wherein the portable terminal is a tablet PC, a note pad, a smart phone, or a handheld based wireless communication device. The portable terminal according to any one of claims 1 to 12, And an intraoral x-ray sensor connected to a connection port of the portable terminal by wire or wirelessly.

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