Electronic endoscope apparatus for connection to adapter unit

• US 7,282,025 B2
• Filed: 01/21/2005
• Issued: 10/16/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 01/27/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fujinon Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fujinon Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Abe, Kazunori
• Primary Examiner(s): Leubecker; John P.
• Application Number:
  US11/038,262
• Publication Number:
  US 20050165274A1
• Time in Patent Office: 998 Days
• Field of Search: 600/109, 600/118, 348/65, 348/72, 348/74, 200/43.01, 200/43.02
• US Class Current: 600/118
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00114 Electrical cables in or with an endoscope
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/04 combined with photographic or television appliances
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2330/02 Details of power systems and of start or stop of display operation
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/006 Details of the interface to the display terminal specific for a display terminal using a CRT G09G1/167; using a flat panel G09G3/2096; circuits for interfacing with colour displays G09G5/04
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/701 the switch being actuated by an accessory, e.g. cover, locking member
• 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 7/0125 one of the standards being a high definition standard

Abstract

A DVI circuit for generating a digital video signal in accordance with a display standard of a personal computer, etc. is provided for a processor device to which an electronic endoscope is connected. On the output side of the DVI circuit, a high vision system converter which is an adapter unit is connected as arbitrarily attached and removed using a connector. In the processor device, when the fixed state of a fixing screw is detected by a detection switch SW₁, and it is determined that the power supply line connected using a connector to the high vision system converter is in the energized state, a live line processing circuit activates a signal line of the connector. Thus, the adapter unit can be easily attached and removed without turning off the processor device.

Claims

1. An electronic endoscope apparatus, comprising:

an electronic endoscope loaded with a solid-state image pickup element for capturing an observation object;

a processor device for performing various types of video processing on a video signal input from the electronic endoscope;

an adapter unit configured to be connected to a connector unit of the processor device and fixed by a fixture, for performing predetermined signal processing;

a fixed state detection means for detecting whether or not the adapter unit is fixed to the processor device with the fixture;

a live line processing circuit for setting a live line/non-live line of a signal line in the connector unit of the processor device; and

a control circuit for activating a signal line of the connector unit of the processor device by the live line processing circuit when a fixed state of the adapter unit is determined from output of the fixed state detection means, and it is determined that a power supply line of the connector unit is in a energized state.

2. The electronic endoscope apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising

a fixing screw as the fixture, and a detection switch for controlling on and off states by moving a movable unit by a press of the fixing screw as the fixed state detection means.

3. The electronic endoscope apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a high vision system converter for converting an image obtained by various electronic endoscopes loaded with solid-state image pickup elements having different number of pixels as adapter units to a high vision television system, and the high vision system converter is connected with a connector to a differential signal output unit of the processor device for generating a video signal in accordance with a personal computer monitor.