MICROSCOPE, REGION DETERMINING METHOD, AND PROGRAM

• US 20120140055A1
• Filed: 11/29/2011
• Published: 06/07/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/06/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Narusawa, Ryu, Matsunobu, Goh
• Application Number:
  US13/305,946
• Publication Number:
  US 20120140055A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/79
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/10 affording dark-field illumination G02B21/14 and G02B21/125 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/365 Control or image processing arrangements for digital or video microscopes G02B21/361, G02B21/362 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10056 Microscopic image
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30004 Biomedical image processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/12 Edge-based segmentation
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/174 involving the use of two or more images
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/693 Acquisition

Abstract

A microscope includes a dark-field illumination system that irradiates dark-field illumination light to a preparation in which a specimen is encapsulated between slide glass and cover glass by using an encapsulant, and an imaging unit that takes a dark-field image of the preparation irradiated with the dark-field illumination light. The microscope further includes a region determiner that detects the boundary between the encapsulant and air included between the slide glass and the cover glass based on the taken dark-field image and determines a region other than a region of the air as a region of interest for the specimen.

Claims

1. A microscope comprising:

a dark-field illumination system configured to irradiate dark-field illumination light to a preparation in which a specimen is encapsulated between slide glass and cover glass by using an encapsulant;

an imaging unit configured to take a dark-field image of the preparation irradiated with the dark-field illumination light; and

a region determiner configured to detect a boundary between the encapsulant and air included between the slide glass and the cover glass based on the taken dark-field image and determine a region other than a region of the air as a region of interest for the specimen.

2. The microscope according to claim 1, wherein

the region determiner detects a region line forming a closed region in the dark-field image as the boundary.

3. The microscope according to claim 2, wherein

the region determiner compares an inside region of the closed region and an outside region and determines either one region as the region of interest.

4. The microscope according to claim 3, further comprising

a focusing processing unit configured to calculate an in-focus position in the inside region and an in-focus position in the outside region,

wherein

the region determiner compares the calculated in-focus positions of the regions and determines the region of interest.

5. The microscope according to claim 3, further comprising:

an irradiator configured to irradiate detection light to each of the inside region and the outside region; and

a reflected light detector configured to detect reflected light of the detection light irradiated to the regions,

wherein

the region determiner determines whether reflected light reflected by the region of the air is included in reflected light of each of the regions, detected by the reflected light detector, and determines the region of interest based on a determination result.

6. A region determining method comprising:

irradiating dark-field illumination light to a preparation in which a specimen is encapsulated between slide glass and cover glass by using an encapsulant;

taking a dark-field image of the preparation irradiated with the dark-field illumination light; and

detecting a boundary between the encapsulant and air included between the slide glass and the cover glass based on the taken dark-field image and determining a region other than a region of the air as a region of interest for the specimen.

7. A program for causing a microscope equipped with a computer to execute processing comprising:

irradiating dark-field illumination light to a preparation in which a specimen is encapsulated between slide glass and cover glass by using an encapsulant;

taking a dark-field image of the preparation irradiated with the dark-field illumination light; and

detecting a boundary between the encapsulant and air included between the slide glass and the cover glass based on the taken dark-field image and determining a region other than a region of the air as a region of interest for the specimen.