COMPUTERIZED INFORMATION COLLECTION AND PROCESSING APPARATUS
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Accused Products
Abstract
An improved endoscopic device which is introduced into the intestinal tract of a living organism and which operates autonomously therein, adapted to obtain and store or transmit one or more types of data such as visual image data, laser autofluorescence data, or ultrasonic waveform data. In another aspect of the invention, an improved endoscopic device useful for implanting the aforementioned endoscopic smart probe is disclosed. In another aspect of the invention, apparatus for delivering agents including nanostructures, radionuclides, medication, and ligands is disclosed. In another aspect of the invention, apparatus for obtaining a biopsy of intestinal tissue is disclosed. In another aspect of the invention, apparatus for detecting the presence of one or more molecular species within the intestine is disclosed. Methods for inspecting and/or treating the interior regions of the intestinal tract using the aforementioned apparatus are also disclosed.
3 Citations
59 Claims
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1-29. -29. (canceled)
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30. Computerized information acquisition and processing apparatus, comprising:
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computerized apparatus swallowable by a human being and comprising; a power source; at least one camera apparatus; video apparatus in communication with the at least one camera apparatus and configured to generate digital image data from signals received from the at least one camera apparatus; first processor apparatus in data communication with the video apparatus; digital data storage apparatus in data communication with the first processor apparatus; and a wireless interface having at least one antenna and configured for digital data transfer, the wireless interface being powered at least in part by the power source; and second computerized apparatus configured to communicate with the computerized apparatus swallowable by a human being via the wireless interface to receive at least a portion of the digital image data while the computerized apparatus swallowable by a human being is within an intestinal tract of the human being, the second computerized apparatus comprising a second processor apparatus and at least one computer program operative to run on the second processor apparatus and configured to, when executed, process at least a portion of said received at least portion of said digital image data, said processing comprising; production of a plurality of frames from said at least portion of said received at least portion of said digital image data; algorithmic analysis of said plurality of frames to identify a subset of said plurality of frames of potential interest to a user of the second computerized apparatus, the identification of the subset based at least in part on identification of an artifact rendered in at least one of the plurality of frames of the subset; and causation of generation of a display on a computerized monitor apparatus associated with the second computerized apparatus, the display comprising identification of at least a portion of said subset of said plurality of frames. - View Dependent Claims (31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48)
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49. Computerized apparatus configured for processing data derived from a visual band sensor apparatus disposed on an autonomous intestinal probe, said data having been generated while said probe moved autonomously through the intestinal tract of a human being, the computerized apparatus comprising:
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a data interface configured to receive at least a portion of the data derived from the visual band sensor; digital processor apparatus in data communication with the wireless interface; a digital data storage device in data communication with the digital processor apparatus; a display device in data communication with the digital processor apparatus; and at least one computer program configured to run on the digital processor apparatus, the at least one computer program configured to, when executed, process said received at least portion of the data, said processing comprising; evaluation of the received at least portion of the data to identify at least a first portion that is of possible interest to a human reviewer, said identification comprising analysis of said at received at least portion of the data to identify one or more artifacts corresponding to one or more known physiologic conditions associated with an intestinal tract of the human being, said one or more artifacts comprising at least one of;
(i) one or more characteristic shapes associated with said one or more known physiologic conditions; and
(ii) one or more color intensity values associated with said one or more known physiologic conditions; andpresentation, at least initially, of only said first portion to the human reviewer for further review via the display device; wherein said computerized apparatus is configured to perform said analysis automatically as part of said processing. - View Dependent Claims (50, 51, 52, 53, 54)
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55. Computerized apparatus for processing data derived from signals of a visual-band sensor apparatus disposed on a swallowable intestinal probe, said signals having been generated while said swallowable intestinal probe moved autonomously through the intestinal tract of a living being, the computerized apparatus configured to enhance an efficiency of review of the data by a human reviewer, the computerized apparatus comprising:
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a data interface configured to receive at least a portion of the data derived from the visual band sensor; digital processor apparatus in data communication with the wireless interface; a digital data storage device in data communication with the digital processor apparatus; a display device in data communication with the digital processor apparatus; and at least one computer program configured to run on the digital processor apparatus, the at least one computer program configured to, when executed, process said received at least portion of the data, said processing comprising; identification of a plurality of frames from the received at least portion of the data; automatic selection of a subset of said plurality of frames that are likely to be of interest to the reviewer, the automatic selection being (i) without user input identifying the subset, and (ii) based at least in part on detection of the presence of a physiological artifact rendered within at least a first one of the plurality of frames, the automatic selection of the subset further comprising selection of one or more frames temporally contiguous to said first one of the frames; and causing generation of a display on the display device, the display comprising at least two of said subset of said plurality of frames displayed simultaneously as a temporal sequence in respective ones of at least two regions of a display screen of the display device. - View Dependent Claims (56, 57)
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58. Computerized information acquisition and processing apparatus, comprising:
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computerized apparatus swallowable by a human being and comprising; a power source; at least one camera apparatus configured to generate digital image data from signals received from one or more semiconductor-based sensor elements of the at least one camera apparatus; first processor apparatus in data communication with the at least one camera apparatus; digital data storage apparatus in data communication with the first processor apparatus; a data interface configured for digital data transfer, the data interface being powered at least in part by the power source; and at least one computer program having a data compression algorithm operative to run on the first processor apparatus and, upon execution thereof, to compress at least portions of the digital image data according to the data compression algorithm prior to transmission of the digital image data via the data interface, the compression of the digital image data providing at least a reduction of storage space necessary to store the digital image data within the digital data storage apparatus as compared to uncompressed digital image data; second computerized apparatus configured to communicate with the computerized apparatus swallowable by a human being via the data interface to receive at least a portion of the compressed digital image data, the second computerized apparatus comprising a second processor apparatus and at least one computer program operative to run on the second processor apparatus and configured to, when executed, process at least a portion of said received compressed digital image data, said processing comprising; decompression of at least portions of the received compressed digital image data; production of a plurality of frames from said decompressed at least portions of said received digital image data; algorithmic analysis of said plurality of frames to identify a subset of said plurality of frames of potential interest to a user of the second computerized apparatus, the identification of the subset based at least in part on identification of an artifact rendered in at least one of the plurality of frames of the subset; and causation of generation of a display on a computerized monitor apparatus associated with the second computerized apparatus, the display comprising at least a portion of said subset of said plurality of frames. - View Dependent Claims (59)
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Specification