Electronic endoscope system capable of displaying a plurality of images

• US 20050288553A1
• Filed: 06/29/2005
• Published: 12/29/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hoya Corporation
• Original Assignee: Pentax Corporation (Hoya Corporation)
• Inventors: Sugimoto, Hideo
• Granted Patent: US 7,762,946 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/118
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/0005 combining images e.g. side-by-side, superimposed or tiled
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/043 for fluorescence imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/0638 providing two or more wavelengths
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/0655 Control therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/0669 at proximal end of an endoscope

Abstract

An electronic endoscope system, which is adapted to observe a fluorescence image of autofluorescence emitted from a body cavity wall irradiated with excitation light as well as a normal image of the body cavity wall illuminated with white light on a display device, includes a display controller whereby the aspect ratio of at least one of a plurality of images to display is converted so that the plurality of images are displayed in conformity with the shape of a display area of the display device when the plurality of images including the normal image and the fluorescence image are displayed on the display device. In the electronic endoscope system, the display controller converts the aspect ratio of at least one of the plurality of images by cutting both horizontal ends of the image to convert.

Claims

1. An electronic endoscope system used for observing living tissues inside a body cavity, comprising:

an image capturing system capable of capturing images of the living tissues;

a display device having an image displaying area, each of the images captured by the image capturing system and the image displaying area having similar rectangular shapes defined by a predetermined aspect ratio;

a display control system that controls the display device to display a plurality of images in the image displaying area of the display device along a direction parallel with one side of the rectangular shape; and

a data conversion system that converts at least one of the plurality of images to be displayed in the image displaying area such that at least a side end portion of the image in the direction in which the plurality of images are aligned is eliminated, the remaining portion of the converted image being displayed such that a length of the converted image in the direction in which the plurality of images are aligned is unchanged on the image displaying area.

2. The electronic endoscope system according to claim 1, wherein the display control system controls the display device to display the plurality of images in the image displaying area along a direction parallel with a longer side of the rectangular shape of the image displaying area.

3. The electronic endoscope system according to claim 2, wherein the data conversion system converts at least one of the plurality of images to be displayed in the image displaying area such that both side end portions of the image in the direction in which the plurality of images are aligned are eliminated, the remaining portion of the converted image being displayed such that a length of the converted image in the direction in which the plurality of images are aligned is unchanged on the image displaying area.

4. The electronic endoscope system according to claim 1, further including at least one operable member to be operated by a user to specify images to be converted by the data conversion system.

5. The electronic endoscope system according to claim 1,

further including:

an electronic endoscope that includes an insertion part which is inserted in the body cavity;

a light guide which introduce illuminating light to the tip of the insertion part;

an illuminating device having a white light source emitting white light and an excitation light source that emits excitation light having a predetermined wavelength, the living tissues fluoresces to emit autofluorescence when irradiated with the excitation light; and

an illuminating control system that controls the illuminating apparatus such that the white light source and the excitation light source illuminate the living tissues alternately at every predetermined period,

wherein the display control system that controls the display device to display the plurality of images which includes a normal image generated while the living tissues are illuminated with the white light and a fluorescence image generated while the living tissues are irradiated with the excitation light.

6. The electronic endoscope system according to claim 5, wherein the electronic endoscope includes a ROM that stores an identification data identifying a kind of electronic endoscope connected to the illuminating apparatus.

7. The electronic endoscope system according to claim 5,

wherein the illuminating apparatus includes a rotary shutter provided in front of the white light source, the rotary shutter having a light transmitting area and a light blocking area, the white light intermittently illuminating the living tissues as the rotary shutter rotates.

8. The electronic endoscope system according to claim 7,

wherein the illuminating apparatus includes an excitation light source driver that intermittently turns ON/OFF the excitation light source synchronously with blocking/transmitting of the white light.

9. The electronic endoscope system according to claim 7, wherein the rotary shutter is able to be shifted together with a beam combiner to a point where the rotary shutter does not interfere with the white light, the beam combiner combining both light paths of the white light and the excitation light.

10. The electronic endoscope system according to claim 1,

wherein the data conversion system includes:

a pre-signal-processing element that processes image signals received from the image capturing system;

at least two image memories that temporarily store the image signals outputted from the pre-signal-processing element; and

a post-signal-processing element that performs image-conversion against the image signals outputted from the image memories and further transforms the converted signals into standardized video signals which are allowed to be displayed on the display device.

11. The electronic endoscope system according to claim 1,

wherein the image capturing system includes:

an objective lens that first receives light from the living tissues and forms an image thereof;

an imaging device that receives the formed image and outputs an image signal corresponding to the received image; and

an excitation light cut filter that is provided between the objective lens and the imaging device,

wherein the excitation light cut filter eliminates the wavelength components equivalent to the excitation light from light directed to the imaging device from the objective lens.

12. The electronic endoscope system according to claim 11, wherein the excitation light source emits near-ultraviolet light.

13. The electronic endoscope system according to claim 2, further including at least one operable member to be operated by a user to specify images to be converted by the data conversion system.

14. An electronic endoscope system used for observing living tissues inside a body cavity, comprising:

an image capturing system capable of capturing images of the living tissues;

a display device having an image displaying area, each of the images captured by the image capturing system and the image displaying area having similar rectangular shapes defined by a predetermined aspect ratio;

a display control system that controls the display device to display a plurality of images in the image displaying area of the display device along a direction parallel with one side of the rectangular shape; and

a data conversion system that converts at least one of the plurality of images to be displayed in the image displaying area such that at least a side end portion of the image in the direction in which the plurality of images are aligned is eliminated so that the aspect ratio of the at least one of the plurality of images displayed on the image displaying area is changed, the converted image being displayed such that a length of the converted image in the direction in which the plurality of images are aligned is unchanged on the image displaying area.