ANTENNA APPARATUS, ANTENNA, ANTENNA HOLDER, AND BODY-INSERTABLE APPARATUS SYSTEM

• US 20130178702A1
• Filed: 11/30/2012
• Published: 07/11/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/30/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Original Assignee: Olympus Medical Systems Corporation (Olympus Corporation)
• Inventors: TANAKA, Shinsuke
• Granted Patent: US 8,821,380 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/109
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00009 of image signals during a use of endoscope
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00016 using wireless means
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/04 combined with photographic or television appliances
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/041 Capsule endoscopes for imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/061 Determining position of a probe within the body employing means separate from the probe, e.g. sensing internal probe position employing impedance electrodes on the surface of the body A61B1/00158 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/07 Endoradiosondes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6801 specially adapted to be attached to or worn on the body surface
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/00 Details of, or arrangements associated with, antennas arrangements for varying orientation of directional pattern H01Q3/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/273 Adaptation for carrying or wearing by persons or animals
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/38 formed by a conductive layer on an insulating support patch antennas H01Q9/0407; microstrip dipole antennas H01Q9/065; microstrip slot antennas H01Q13/106; transmission line microstrip antennas H01Q13/206; manufacturing reflecting surfaces using insulating material for supporting the reflecting surface H01Q15/142
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 21/24 Combinations of antenna units polarised in different directions for transmitting or receiving circularly and elliptically polarised waves or waves linearly polarised in any direction circularly polarised patch antennas H01Q9/0428; circularly polarised horns H01Q13/0241; cross-polarised horns H01Q13/0258; polarisation converters H01Q15/242; cross-polarised rear feeds H01Q19/136; crossed polarisation dual antenna H01Q25/001
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 9/285 Planar dipole H01Q9/065 takes precedence; patch antenna H01Q9/0407

Abstract

An antenna apparatus is configured to acquire information from a body-insertable apparatus that is configured to be inserted into a subject to move inside the subject. The antenna apparatus includes an antenna that includes one sheet on which plural receiving antennas are fixed and in which a first positioning hole is formed; and an antenna holder that includes a container portion which is configured to hold the antenna at a predetermined position and in a predetermined orientation and in which second positioning hole is formed at a position corresponding to the first positioning hole when the antenna is held. The antenna holder is configured to be attached to a predetermined position of the subject using the first and second positioning holes as an index when the antenna is held in the antenna holder.

Claims

1. An antenna apparatus configured to acquire information from a body-insertable apparatus that is configured to be inserted into a subject to move inside the subject, the antenna apparatus comprising:

an antenna that includes one sheet on which plural receiving antennas are fixed and in which a first positioning hole is formed; and

an antenna holder that includes a container portion which is configured to hold the antenna at a predetermined position and in a predetermined orientation and in which a second positioning hole is formed at a position corresponding to the first positioning hole when the antenna is held, the antenna holder being configured to be attached to a predetermined position of the subject using the first and second positioning holes as an index when the antenna is held, wherein

the antenna further includes a cable which extends from the sheet and in which wires connected to the respective receiving antennas are bundled,

the sheet has an upper side and a bottom side that are parallel to an extension direction of the cable, and

a base end portion of the cable is disposed at a position that is deviated from an intermediate line of the upper and bottom sides of the sheet that are parallel to the extension direction of the cable.

2. The antenna apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the container portion of the antenna holder has such a pouch shape that the antenna can be inserted and that has an opening that can be open and closed,

the base end portion of the cable is disposed at a position that is deviated toward the opening from the intermediate line of the upper and bottom sides of the sheet that are parallel to the extension direction of the cable, and

the base end portion of the cable is positioned at an end portion of the opening when the antenna is held in the container portion and the first positioning hole is aligned with the second positioning hole.

3. The antenna apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the antenna holder includes:

a belt that is attached to the container portion to fix the container portion to the subject; and

a rubber band that is formed on an outer surface of the container portion and is stretchable in a direction crossing an extension direction of the belt.

4. The antenna apparatus according to claim 3, wherein

the belt is detachable from the container portion.

5. The antenna apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the sheet is octagonal.

6. The antenna apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the antenna holder includes:

a belt that is attached to the container portion to fix the container portion to the subject;

a first rubber band that is formed on an outer surface of the container portion and is stretchable in an extension direction of the belt; and

a second rubber band that is formed on the outer surface of the container portion and is stretchable in a direction crossing the extension direction of the belt.

7. The antenna apparatus according to claim 6, wherein

the outer surface of the container portion has a shape corresponding to the shape of the antenna, and

plural second rubber bands are disposed so as to surround the first rubber band.

8. The antenna apparatus according to claim 6, wherein

the antenna holder includes a cover that covers the first and second rubber bands.

9. The antenna apparatus according to claim 6, wherein

in the first and second rubber bands, a difference between a natural length of the first rubber band and a length between attachment positions of both ends of the first rubber band in relation to the antenna holder is larger than a difference between a natural length of the second rubber band and a length between attachment positions of both ends of the second rubber band in relation to the antenna holder.

10. The antenna apparatus according to claim 6, wherein

when no load is applied from the outside, tension of the second rubber band is greater than that of the first rubber band.

11. The antenna apparatus according to claim 6, wherein

the belt is detachable from the container portion.

12. An antenna that acquires information from a body-insertable apparatus configured to be inserted into a subject to move inside the subject, the antenna comprising:

one sheet on which plural receiving antennas are fixed; and

a cable which extends from one side of the sheet and in which wires connected to the respective receiving antennas are bundled, wherein

a positioning hole is formed in the sheet, and

a base end portion of the cable is disposed at a position that is deviated from a line that passes through a center of the sheet and is parallel to an extension direction of the cable.

13. The antenna according to claim 12, wherein

the sheet is octagonal.

14. An antenna holder for holding an antenna in which plural receiving antennas that acquire information from a body-insertable apparatus that is inserted into a subject and moves inside the subject are fixed on one sheet in which a first positioning hole is formed, the antenna holder comprising:

a container portion which is configured to hold the antenna and in which a second positioning hole corresponding to the first positioning hole of the antenna is formed, wherein

the container portion has such a pouch shape that the antenna can be inserted and that has an opening that can be open and closed, and

a base end portion of a cable that extends from the antenna is positioned at an end portion of the opening when the antenna is held in the container portion to align the first positioning hole with the second positioning hole.

15. An antenna holder for holding an antenna in which plural receiving antennas that acquire information from a body-insertable apparatus that is inserted into a subject and moves inside the subject are fixed on one polygonal sheet, the antenna holder comprising:

a container portion that has such a pouch shape that the antenna can be inserted and that has an opening that can be open and closed;

a belt that is attached to the container portion to fix the container portion to the subject;

a first rubber band that is formed on an outer surface of the container portion and is stretchable in an extension direction of the belt; and

a second rubber band that is formed on the outer surface of the container portion and is stretchable in a direction crossing the extension direction of the belt.

16. The antenna holder according to claim 15, wherein

the outer surface of the container portion has a shape corresponding to the shape of the antenna, and

plural second rubber bands are disposed so as to surround the first rubber band.

17. The antenna holder according to claim 15, further comprising a cover that covers the first and second rubber bands.

18. The antenna holder according to claim 15, wherein

in the first and second rubber bands, a difference between a natural length of the first rubber band and a length between attachment positions of both ends of the first rubber band in relation to the antenna holder is larger than a difference between a natural length of the second rubber band and a length between attachment positions of both ends of the second rubber band in relation to the antenna holder.

19. The antenna holder according to claim 15, wherein

when no load is applied from the outside, tension of the second rubber band is greater than that of the first rubber band.

20. A body-insertable apparatus system that is inserted into a subject to acquire internal information of the subject, the body-insertable apparatus system comprising:

a body-insertable apparatus configured to be inserted into the subject to acquire an in-vivo image of the subject and wirelessly transmit image data to the outside while moving inside the subject;

an antenna that includes one sheet on which plural receiving antennas that receive the image data transmitted wirelessly from the body-insertable apparatus are fixed and in which a first positioning hole is formed;

an antenna holder that includes a container portion which is configured to hold the antenna at a predetermined position and in a predetermined orientation and in which a second positioning hole is formed at a position corresponding to the first positioning hole when the antenna is held, the antenna holder being configured to be attached to a predetermined position of the subject using the first and second positioning holes as an index when the antenna is held;

a receiving device that stores the image data received by the antenna and received signal strengths of the plural receiving antennas when the image data is received; and

an information processing device to which the image data stored in the receiving device is transmitted and which displays the in-vivo image of the subject on a display unit, wherein

the antenna further includes a cable which extends from the sheet and in which wires connected to the respective receiving antennas are bundled,

the sheet has an upper side and a bottom side that are parallel to an extension direction of the cable, and

a base end portion of the cable is disposed at a position that is deviated from an intermediate line of the upper and bottom sides of the sheet that are parallel to the extension direction of the cable, and

the information processing device includes a position information estimating unit configured to estimate position information of the body-insertable apparatus when the image data is received, based on the respective received signal strengths of the plural receiving antennas included in the image data.