Control device and medical imaging system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10912450-B2
Application number	US-201916365226-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 26, 2019
Priority date	May 18, 2015
Publication date	Feb 9, 2021
Grant date	Feb 9, 2021

Abstract

There is provided a control device including: an autofocus control section configured to execute an autofocus operation by moving at least one optical member; and an autofocus operation determination section configured to determine whether it is possible for the autofocus operation to bring biological tissue into focus, the biological tissue serving as an object. In a case where the autofocus operation determination section determines that it is not possible for the autofocus operation to bring the object into focus, the autofocus control section moves the at least one optical member to a predicted focal position set in advance in accordance with a purpose of imaging to make it possible to further improve convenience of a user.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A medical imaging system comprising:
processing circuitry configured to
obtain a medical image from a medical imaging device,
evaluate an area of the medical image for focus adjustment,
determine, when the evaluation of the area satisfies a predetermined condition, a movement amount of an at least one focus lens based on the evaluation of the area, and
determine, when the evaluation of the area does not satisfy the predetermined condition, the movement amount of the at least one focus lens based on a predetermined position,
wherein the predetermined position is a memorized position in a memory, the memorized position in the memory being different from an initial position of the focus lens.

2. The medical imaging system according to claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to
evaluate the area by at least one of a contrast detection method, a phase difference method, a depth map method, or a triangulation method.

3. The medical imaging system according to claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to
determine the predetermined position based on an optical system for generating the medical image.

4. The medical imaging system according to claim 1 , wherein the medical imaging device is an endoscope, and
the predetermined position is based on a type of the endoscope.

5. The medical imaging system according to claim 1 , wherein the medical imaging device is a microscope, and
the predetermined position is based on an optical system of the microscope.

6. The medical imaging system according to claim 1 , wherein the evaluation of the area produces contrast information based on the medical image.

7. The medical imaging system according to claim 1 , wherein the predetermined condition is
whether the area of the medical image is determined, based on the evaluation of the area, to be a focus adjustable before a predetermined time elapses.

8. The medical imaging system according to claim 1 , wherein the predetermined condition is
whether the area of the medical image is determined, based on the evaluation of the area, to be focus adjustable before the at least one focus lens arrives a predetermined number of times at an end point of a specific range included in a movable range.

9. The medical imaging system according to claim 7 , wherein the evaluation of the area is based on contrast information of the medical image, and
the processing circuitry is further configured to
determine, based on the evaluation of the area, the area is focus adjustable when the position at which the contrast is maximum is searched.

10. The medical imaging system according to claim 8 , wherein the evaluation of the area is based on contrast information of the medical image, and
the processing circuitry is further configured to
determine, based on the evaluation of the area, the area is focus adjustable when the position at which the contrast is maximum is searched.

11. The medical imaging system according to claim 1 , wherein the predetermined position is determined in accordance with an optical property of an optical system attached to the medical imaging device.

12. The medical imaging system according to claim 1 , wherein the focus adjustment is an autofocus operation.

13. The medical imaging system according to claim 3 , wherein the memory stores at least one memorized position in accordance with the optical system, and
the processing circuitry is further configured to
detect the optical system and determine the predetermined position in accordance with the optical system.

14. An endoscope system comprising:
an endoscope including an optical property of an optical system; and
processing circuitry configured to
obtain an endoscope image from the endoscope,
evaluate an area of the endoscope image for focus adjustment,
determine, when the evaluation of the area satisfies a predetermined condition, a movement amount of an optical member of the endoscope based on the evaluation of the area, and
determine, when the evaluation of the area does not satisfy the predetermined condition, the movement amount of the optical member based on a predetermined position,
wherein the predetermined position is a memorized position in a memory, the memorized position being determined based on a type of the endoscope.

15. The endoscope system according to claim 14 , wherein the predetermined position is determined based on the optical property of the optical system.

16. The endoscope system according to claim 14 , wherein the memorized position in the memory is one of a plurality of memorized positions in accordance with the type of the endoscope, and
the processing circuitry is further configured to
detect the type of the endoscope and determine the predetermined position in accordance with the type of the endoscope.

17. A medical imaging method, comprising:
obtaining, by processing circuitry, a medical image from a medical imaging device,
evaluating, by the processing circuitry, an area of the medical image for focus adjustment,
determining, by the processing circuitry and when the evaluation of the area satisfies a predetermined condition, a movement amount of a focus lens based on the evaluation of the area,
determining, by the processing circuitry and when the evaluation does not satisfy the predetermined condition, the movement amount of the focus lens based on a predetermined position not based on the evaluation of the area,
wherein the predetermined position is a memorized position in a memory, the memorized position being determined based on a type of the medical imaging device.

18. The endoscope system according to claim 14 , wherein the evaluation of the area produces contrast information based on the endoscope image.

19. The endoscope system according to claim 14 , wherein the evaluation of the area is based on contrast information of the medical image, and
the processing circuitry is further configured to
determine, based on the evaluation of the area, the area is focus adjustable when the position at which the contrast is maximum is searched.

20. The endoscope system according to claim 14 , wherein the focus adjustment is an autofocus operation.

Assignees

• Sony Corp
• Sony Olympus Medical Solutions Inc

Inventors

• Okazaki Sakae
• Hirano Hirotaka
• Yamamoto Takahiro

Classifications

• G02B7/28 Primary

  Systems for automatic generation of focusing signals · CPC title

• H04N23/672 Primary

  based on the phase difference signals · CPC title

• H04N23/673

  based on contrast or high frequency components of image signals, e.g. hill climbing method · 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

• A61B1/04

  combined with photographic or television appliances · CPC title