Capsulated medical equipment

• US 8,100,888 B2
• Filed: 05/18/2006
• Issued: 01/24/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/16/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Original Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Inventors: Segawa, Hidetake, Takizawa, Hironobu, Adachi, Hideyuki, Yokoi, Takeshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Lucchesi, Nicholas
• Assistant Examiner(s): Zhang, Jenna
• Application Number:
  US11/436,787
• Publication Number:
  US 20060224063A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,077 Days
• Field of Search: 600/587, 600/117, 600/424, 600/431, 600/432
• US Class Current: 604/890.1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00016 using wireless means
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00156 using self propulsion
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00158 using magnetic field
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/041 Capsule endoscopes for imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/042 characterised by a proximal camera, e.g. a CCD camera
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/273 for the upper alimentary canal, e.g. oesophagoscopes, gastroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0031 Implanted circuitry
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/065 Determining position of the probe employing exclusively positioning means located on or in the probe, e.g. using position sensors arranged on the probe
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14539 for measuring pH
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4839 combined with drug delivery
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/13 Tomography A61B8/10, A61B8/12 take precedence; tomography for radiation diagnosis A61B6/02
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/565 involving data transmission via a network

Abstract

A capsulated body having a facility, which acquires biomedical information through endoscopic examination or the like, incorporated therein is inserted into a duct within a living body. Whether the capsulated body has halted for a certain period of time is detected from the time-varying position of the capsulated body or a time-passing change in an image. If it is judged that the capsulated body has halted at a stenosed region or the like, the fact is notified so that the capsulated body can be collected immediately.

Claims

1. A capsulated medical equipment comprising:

a capsulated body, an entire armor case of which is inserted into a living body and passed through a duct in the living body;

a driving unit provided in the capsulated body, for causing a needle to thrust outside and sink inside the capsulated body;

a control unit provided in the capsulated body, for controlling the driving unit;

a position detection unit provided outside the capsulated body, for detecting the position of the capsulated body;

a judgment unit for judging whether or not the capsulated body is in a halted state where the capsulated body has halted in the duct for a certain period of time, based on position information concerning the capsulated body provided by the position detection unit;

a trajectory arithmetic unit for performing arithmetic operations to calculate a trajectory, along which the capsulated body has moved, using the position information concerning the capsulated body provided by the position detection unit;

a magnet or magnetic substance that is incorporated in the capsulated body and that reacts on magnetic forces; and

a guiding assembly for guiding the capsulated body to move from outside the living body by utilizing the magnetic forces,

wherein when the judgment unit judges that the capsulated body is in the halted state where the capsulated body has halted for a certain period of time in the duct, the halted state is notified and the capsulated body is guided in a direction opposite to the trajectory using the guiding assembly.

2. The capsulated medical equipment according to claim 1, wherein the needle is an injector.

3. The capsulated medical equipment according to claim 2, wherein a hemostatic agent is injected in a bleeding region by the injector.

4. The capsulated medical equipment according to claim 3, wherein the hemostatic agent is ethanol.

5. The capsulated medical equipment according to claim 1, wherein the trajectory of the capsulated body calculated by the trajectory arithmetic unit is displayed on a display device.

6. The capsulated medical equipment according to claim 1, wherein the capsulated body includes a blood sensor or an observation device for detecting a bleeding region.

7. The capsulated medical equipment according to claim 6, wherein information acquired by the blood sensor or the observation device is transmitted by radio to an extracorporeal unit placed outside the living body.