Light source apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10524646-B2
Application number	US-201715478328-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 4, 2017
Priority date	Oct 10, 2014
Publication date	Jan 7, 2020
Grant date	Jan 7, 2020

Abstract

A light source apparatus includes: a light source; a light source driving section; a light detection section; a temperature detection section; and a control section being configured to, when determining that detected brightness is outside a range of brightness set for detecting abnormality in the light source or the light detection section and detected temperature is within a range of temperature set for detecting the abnormality in the light source or the light detection section, cause the light source driving section to perform driving of the light source for a case of abnormality in the light detection section, and when determining that the detected brightness is outside the range of brightness and the detected temperature is outside the range of temperature, cause the light source driving section to perform driving of the light source for a case of abnormality in the light source.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A light source apparatus for an endoscope, the light source apparatus comprising:
a first light source configured to emit first illumination light;
a second light source configured to emit second illumination light, wherein a color of the second illumination light is different from a color of the first illumination light;
a light source driver configured to be controlled to drive the first light source and the second light source;
a first light detection sensor configured to detect brightness of the first illumination light emitted from the first light source;
a second light detection sensor configured to detect brightness of the second illumination light emitted from the second light source,
wherein the first light detection sensor is arranged relative to the first light source and the second light source such that the first illumination light is mainly incident on the first light detection sensor relative to the second illumination light;

a first temperature detection sensor configured to detect a temperature of the first light source; and
a controller configured to:
determine whether or not the brightness of the first illumination light detected by the first light detection sensor is within a range of brightness of the first illumination light capable of being emitted from the first light source under a normal condition of the first light source, wherein the brightness corresponds to a driving current for driving the first light source;
in response to determining that the brightness of the first illumination light detected by the first light detection sensor is outside the range of brightness, determine whether or not the temperature of the first light source detected by the first temperature detection sensor is within a range of temperature of the first light source under the normal condition of the first light source, wherein the temperature corresponds to the driving current for driving the first light source;
in response to determining that the brightness of the first illumination light is outside the range of brightness and the temperature of the first light source is within the range of temperature, control the light source driver to set the driving current for driving the first light source and a driving current for driving the second light source to fixed values, as controlling for a case of abnormality in the first light detection sensor; and
in response to determining that the brightness of the first illumination light is outside the range of brightness and the temperature of the first light source is outside the range of temperature, control the light source driver to stop the driving of the first light source and set the driving current for driving the second light source to a fixed value, as controlling for a case of abnormality in the first light source.

2. The light source apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the first light detection sensor comprises:
a dimmer filter configured to dim the first illumination light emitted from the first light source,
wherein the first light detection sensor is configured to detect brightness of the first illumination light dimmed by the dimmer filter.

3. The light source apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a guide configured to guide the first illumination light to be incident on the first light detection sensor and to shield the second illumination light from being incident on the first light detection sensor.

4. The light source apparatus according to claim 3 ,
wherein the guide comprises a light guide having an incident end arranged to face in the direction of the first light source.

5. The light source apparatus according to claim 4 ,
wherein the guide further comprises a light absorbing surface arranged to the light guide, wherein the light absorbing surface is configured to perform one or more of absorbing a portion of the first illumination light that is not directly incident on the first light detection sensor and absorbing a portion of the second illumination light that is incident on the light guide.

6. The light source apparatus according to claim 3 ,
wherein the guide comprises an optical fiber having an incident end arranged to face in the direction of the first light source.

7. The light source apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the light source driver is configured to generate pulse signals as a driving signal for the first light source and a driving signal for the second light source, and
wherein the controller is configured to:
control a duty ratio of the pulse signals generated by the light source driver and current levels of the pulse signals; and
control the duty ratio, with a pulse width of the driving signals for the first light source being equal to a pulse width of the driving signals for the second light source, as controlling for the case of abnormality in the first light detection sensor.

Assignees

• Olympus Corp

Inventors

• Sakai Aiko
• Yabe Yusuke
• Takahashi Tomoya
• HONGO Kazue

Classifications

• H04N23/74

  by influencing the scene brightness using illuminating means · CPC title

• H04N23/56

  provided with illuminating means · CPC title

• H04N23/555

  for picking-up images in sites, inaccessible due to their dimensions or hazardous conditions, e.g. endoscopes or borescopes · CPC title

• H05B45/24

  using electrical feedback from LEDs or from LED modules · CPC title

• G02B23/26

  using light guides {(for illumination G02B23/2469)} · CPC title