Endoscope photometric apparatus

• US 5,068,719 A
• Filed: 02/01/1990
• Issued: 11/26/1991
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/1989
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Olympus Optical Corporation Limited (Olympus Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Olympus Optical Corporation Limited (Olympus Corporation)
• Inventors: Tsuji, Kiyoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Groody, James J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hsia, Sherrie
• Application Number:
  US07/476,062
• Time in Patent Office: 663 Days
• Field of Search: 358/98, 358/220, 128/4, 128/6
• US Class Current: 348/65
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/042 characterised by a proximal camera, e.g. a CCD camera
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/0646 with illumination filters
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/0669 at proximal end of an endoscope
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/07 using light-conductive means, e.g. optical fibres
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/555 for picking-up images in sites, inaccessible due to their dimensions or hazardous conditions, e.g. endoscopes or borescopes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/71 Circuitry for evaluating the brightness variation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/72 Combination of two or more compensation controls

Abstract

An endoscope photometric apparatus includes a photometric apparatus for detecting the brightness of an image based on an image signal from an endoscope imaging apparatus. An extracting apparatus extracts, from the image signal from the imaging apparatus, a bright part in which the brightness level from the peripheral of the image is above a predetermined value and the spatial size of the bright part is below a predetermined value. A limiting device limits the input image signal into the photometric apparatus of the part, corresponding to the bright part, in the image signal by using the output of the extracting apparatus in order to reduce the influence of the bright part on the brightness of the entire image.

Claims

1. An endoscope photometric apparatus comprising:

an endoscope imaging apparatus;

a photometric means, connected to said endoscope imaging apparatus, for detecting brightness of an image based on an input image signal from said endoscope imaging apparatus;

an extracting means, connected to said endoscope imaging apparatus, for extracting, from the input image signal from said endoscope imaging apparatus, a bright part of the image signal in which a difference in brightness level at a periphery of the image is above a predetermined value and a spatial size of said bright part is below a predetermined value; and

a limiting means, connected to said endoscope imaging apparatus, said extracting means and said photometric means, for limiting input into said photometric means of a part, corresponding to said bright part, in said image signal by using an output of said extracting means in order to reduce the influence of said bright part on the brightness of the entire image.

2. A photometric apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said extracting means includes an integrating means for integrating said image signal with a predetermined time constant and a means for extracting the part in which a difference between a) the signal integrated by said integrating means and b) said input image signal from said endoscope imaging apparatus, is above a predetermined value.

3. A photometric apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said limiting means includes a means for interrupting the input image signal into said photometric means for the part corresponding to said bright part in said input image signal.

4. A photometric apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said extracting means includes a means for extracting, from said input image signal, a signal component of the bright part which shows a) a range of said bright part and b) the difference in brightness level between said bright part and a periphery of said bright part, and said limiting means includes a depressing means for depressing the part, corresponding to said bright part, in said input image signal in response to the brightness level of the signal component of said bright part.

5. A photometric apparatus according to claim 4 wherein said depressing means includes a means for subtracting the signal component of said bright part from the input image signal before being input into said photometric means.

6. A photometric apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said limiting means has a) an operating state in which limiting operation is performed and b) a non-operating state in which limiting operation is not performed, said photometric apparatus further comprising a selecting means for selecting said operating state and said non-operating state of said limiting means.

7. A photometric apparatus according to claim 6 wherein said selecting means includes a discriminating means for discriminating a type of endoscope imaging apparatus to be connected to said photometric means and for selecting said operating state and said non-operating state in response to a discriminating result of said discriminating means.

8. A photometric apparatus according to claim 7 wherein the types of endoscope imaging apparatuses discriminated by said discriminating means are a) an electronic endoscope including an imaging means and b) a television camera to be connected to an eyepiece part of an endoscope for naked eye observation.

9. A photometric apparatus according to claim 6 wherein said selecting means includes a discriminating means for discriminating different types of photometric systems of said photometric means and for selecting said operating state and said non-operating state in response to a discriminating result of said discriminating means.

10. A photometric apparatus according to claim 9 wherein the photometric systems discriminated by said discriminating means are an average photometric system detecting an average value level of the input image signal and a peak photometric system detecting a maximum value level of the input image signal.

11. An endoscope apparatus comprising:

an endoscope body having an elongate insertable part including an observing window at a tip and an image forming optical system for forming an endoscope image by receiving light, from an object, incident through said observing window;

an imaging means for imaging said endoscope image formed by said imaging forming optical system as an image signal;

a photometric means for detecting brightness of said endoscope image based on the image signal from said imaging means;

a brightness controlling means for controlling the brightness of said endoscope image based on an output of said photometric means;

an extracting means for extracting, from the image signal from said imaging means, a bright part in which a difference in brightness level at a periphery of the endoscope image is above a predetermined value and a spatial size of said bright part is below a predetermined value; and

a limiting means for limiting a part of the image signal input into said photometric means corresponding to said bright part, by using an output of said extracting means in order to reduce the influence of said bright part on the brightness of the entire image.

12. An endoscope apparatus according to claim 11 which further comprises an illuminating means for radiating an illuminating light to said object and wherein said brightness controlling means includes a means for adjusting an amount of illuminating light radiated by said illuminating means.

13. An endoscope apparatus according to claim 11 which further comprises a signal processing means for processing, as a video signal, the image signal from said imaging means and wherein said brightness controlling means includes a means for adjusting the brightness level of said image signal input into said signal processing means from said imaging means.

14. An endoscope apparatus according to claim 11 wherein said imaging means includes an imaging device arranged in an image forming position of said image forming optical system.

15. An endoscope apparatus according to claim 11 wherein said endoscope body further has an eyepiece part provided on a rear end side of said insertable part and an image transmitting means for transmitting to said eyepiece part, said endoscope image formed by said image forming optical system and said imaging means is a television camera to be removably connected to said eyepiece part.