Endoscope information processor and processing method

• US 20050228221A1
• Filed: 10/29/2003
• Published: 10/13/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Original Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Inventors: Hirakawa, Katsumi
• Granted Patent: US 8,211,010 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/101
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00009 of image signals during a use of endoscope
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/0005 combining images e.g. side-by-side, superimposed or tiled
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00055 for alerting the user
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/0051 with controlled bending of insertion part
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/2051 Electromagnetic tracking systems
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/252 indicating steps of a surgical procedure
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/20 Surgical navigation systems; Devices for tracking or guiding surgical instruments, e.g. for frameless stereotaxis
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/25 User interfaces for surgical systems
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/062 using magnetic field
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7232 involving compression of the physiological signal, e.g. to extend the signal recording period
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/36 Image-producing devices or illumination devices not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/361 Image-producing devices, e.g. surgical cameras

Abstract

An endoscopic information processing system in accordance with the present invention comprises: a shape analyzing unit that analyzes an insertional shape acquired by detecting the shape of an insertion unit of an endoscope which is inserted into a body cavity; and an information providing unit that provides information on the situation of handling the endoscope according to the result of the analysis performed by the shape analyzing unit.

Claims

1. An endoscopic information processing system comprising:

a shape analyzing unit that analyzes an insertional shape acquired by detecting the shape of an insertion unit of an endoscope which is inserted into a body cavity; and

an information providing unit that provides information on the situation of handling the endoscope according to the result of the analysis performed by the shape analyzing unit.

2. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 1, further comprising a shape storage unit in which a plurality of insertional shapes acquired by detecting the shape of the insertion unit of the endoscope that is inserted into a body cavity, wherein:

the shape analyzing unit analyzes the shape of the endoscope insertion unit on the basis of the plurality of shapes of the endoscope insertion unit stored in the shape storage unit.

3. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the information providing unit provides information on the shape of the endoscope insertion unit according to the result of the analysis performed by the shape analyzing unit.

4. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the information providing unit provides information on handling of the endoscope according to the result of the analysis performed by the shape analyzing unit.

5. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 4, wherein the information providing unit provides information on a way of canceling a looped state according to the result of the analysis performed by the shape analyzing unit.

6. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 4, wherein the information providing unit presents information on handling of the endoscope through a display device according to the result of the analysis performed by the shape analyzing unit.

7. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 4, wherein the information providing unit presents information on handling of the endoscope by means of a sound or voice according to the result of the analysis performed by the shape analyzing unit.

8. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a shape detecting unit including a plurality of magnetic field generating members that generates a magnetic field, and a plurality of magnetic field detecting members that detects the magnetic field generated by the magnetic field generating members, and having either of the plurality of magnetic field generating members and the plurality of magnetic field detecting members disposed in the insertion unit; and

a shape inferring unit that infers the shape of the insertion unit based on the result of the detection performed by the magnetic field detecting members.

9. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 1, further comprising a shape inferring unit that has a plurality of detecting members, which detects a physical quantity of a specific part of the insertion unit, disposed in the insertion unit, and that infers the shape of the insertion unit based on the result of detecting the physical quantity and the positions at which the detecting members are located.

10. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 9, wherein the detecting members that detect the physical quantity of the specific part of the insertion unit are a plurality of sensors that detects a deformation.

11. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 9, wherein the detecting members that detect the physical quantity of the specific part of the insertion unit are a plurality of sensors that detects a pressure.

12. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 9, wherein the detecting members that detect the physical quantity of the specific part of the insertion unit are a plurality of sensors that detects a displacement.

13. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the shape analyzing unit includes a calculating block that calculates a magnitude of a movement made by the specific part of the insertion unit, and an inferring block that infers the state of the insertion unit from the magnitude of the movement made by the specific part of the insertion unit.

14. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the shape analyzing unit detects the looped shape of the insertion unit.

15. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the information providing unit presents through display device information on the result of the analysis performed by the shape analyzing unit.

16. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 15, wherein information presented through the display device is provided in the form of characters and/or a graphic.

17. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the information providing unit presents information on the result of the analysis performed by the shape analyzing unit by means of a sound or voice.

18. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a first data preserving unit that preserves first data that is information on the situation of handling the endoscope provided by the information providing unit;

a second data preserving unit that receives data, which is examination information containing an endoscopic image, from an endoscope system, and preserves the data in association with the first data; and

a reproducing unit that presents through a monitor the data items, which are preserved in the first and second data preserving units, synchronously with each other or independently of each other.

19. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 18, further comprising:

a retrieval executing unit for executing retrieval according to the features exhibited by the first and second data items; and

a result-of-retrieval information appending unit for appending relevant information to data retrieved by the retrieval executing unit, wherein;

the reproducing unit presents information, which is appended by the result-of-retrieval information appending unit, through a monitor during reproduction of the first and second data items.

20. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 18, further comprising:

a data analyzing unit for analyzing the first data and/or the second data that are preserved in the first data preserving unit or second data preserving unit; and

a processing unit that determines and executes processing according to the result of the analysis performed by the data analyzing unit.

21. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 18, wherein the reproducing unit reads information on the situation of handling the endoscope from the first data preserving unit, reads endoscopic image data from the second data preserving unit, and presents an endoscopic image, which is represented by the read endoscopic image data, and information on the situation of handling the endoscope, which is associated with the endoscopic image data, through the monitor according to information on an acquisition time instant at which the information on the situation of handling the endoscope is acquired and information on an acquisition time instant at which the endoscopic image data is acquired.

22. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 21, wherein the information on the situation of handling the endoscope is insertional shape data concerning the endoscope insertion unit.

23. An endoscopic information processing system according to claim 22, further comprising:

a relevant information input unit for use in entering supplementary information relevant to the endoscopic image displayed on the monitor by the reproducing unit or relevant to the insertional shape presented through the monitor thereby; and

a supplementary information storage unit in which supplementary information entered at the relevant information input unit is stored in association with the endoscopic image or insertional shape.

24. An endoscopic information processing method, comprising:

a shape analyzing step of analyzing an insertional shape acquired by detecting the shape of an insertion unit of an endoscope that is inserted into a body cavity; and

an information providing step of providing information on the situation of handling the endoscope according to the result of the analysis performed by the shape analyzing step.

25. An endoscopic information processing method according to claim 24, further comprising a shape storing step of storing a plurality of insertional shapes acquired by detecting the shape of an insertion unit of an endoscope that is inserted into a body cavity, wherein:

at the shape analyzing step, the shape of the endoscope insertion unit is analyzed based on the plurality of shapes of the endoscope insertion unit stored at the shape storing step.

26. An endoscopic information processing method according to claim 24, wherein at the information providing step, information on the shape of the endoscope insertion unit is provided based on the result of the analysis performed at the shape analyzing step.

27. An endoscopic information processing method according to claim 24, wherein at the information providing step, information on handling of the endoscope is provided based on the result of the analysis performed at the shape analyzing step.

28. An endoscopic information processing method according to claim 24, further comprising:

a first data preserving step of preserving first data that is information on the situation of handling the endoscope provided at the information providing step;

a second data preserving step of preserving data, which is examination information containing an endoscopic image and received from an endoscope system, in association with the first data; and

a reproducing step of presenting through a monitor the data items, which are preserved at the first and second data preserving steps, synchronously with each other or independently of each other.