Various embodiments of apparatus, systems, and methods are disclosed herein that relate to borescopes. In preferred embodiments, the inventive concepts disclosed herein are embodied within medical borescopes, such as laparoscopes, endoscopes, and the like.
In some preferred embodiments, the borescope may comprise a handle, a tube, and a tip at the distal end of the tube. The tip may comprise one or more light sources, such as LED lights, one or more image sensors, a lens assembly, and/or other suitable borescope components as desired. Some embodiments may further comprise a dongle, which may be communicatively coupled with the device, such as by way of wires or by being plugged into the device, such as into a port formed within the handle of the device. This dongle may comprise a memory element and a processor, which may be used to process image data from an image sensor in the device. In some embodiments, the dongle may be removably coupled with the device so that it can be coupled with a plurality of distinct laparoscopes or other borescopes. For example, the dongle may comprise a data port that may be used to couple the dongle with a plurality of distinct borescopes and/or other devices, such as a general-purpose computer. In this manner, as discussed above, data obtained from the borescope, such as usage data, may be stored in the memory element of the dongle and ultimately transferred to another computer/device following a medical procedure.
In some embodiments, the borescope may further comprise a sensor, such as a potentiometer, that may be used to detect a rotational orientation of one portion of the device with respect to another. For example, a sensor may be configured to sense a rotational position of the handle with respect to the shaft, tube, and/or tip of the borescope. The sensor may be used to process image data from the tip and reorient the image data so that the tip, shaft, and/or tube, or another suitable portion of the borescope comprising the image sensor/camera, may be rotated without resulting in rotation of the video stream or other images being output. This may allow the device to be used in a manner similar to a traditional angled laparoscope but without requiring the camera to be rotatable with respect to the tube and/or maintained in a fixed orientation at the proximal end of the device during a surgical procedure. In certain preferred embodiments, the camera/image sensor may therefore be fixedly positioned in the tube or otherwise on the shaft and the shaft, and therefore the camera/image sensor, may be rotated during operation.
The borescope may further be configured such that position/orientation data from the aforementioned sensor is used to perform digital manipulation/rotation to maintain a desired image/video stream orientation on a monitor or other display. In some embodiments, the dongle may receive the position/orientation data and may be configured to process the data and perform this manipulation/rotation to output a video stream that does not rotate with the rotation of the camera/image sensor. This may allow for the novel configurations disclosed herein that allow the camera/sensor to be fixed with respect to the tube/shaft while preserving the behavior of optical rotation to which many surgeons are accustomed.
In a more specific example of a borescope, such as a laparoscope or other medical borescope, according to some embodiments, the borescope may comprise a handle and a shaft and/or tube rotatably coupled with the handle. A tip may be positioned at a distal end of the shaft/tube and may comprise an image sensor configured to generate image data. Preferably, the image sensor is fixed with respect to the shaft/tube. The rotational sensor may be configured to detect a rotational orientation of the handle with respect to the tube/shaft or, in other embodiments, with another suitable first portion of the borescope with respect to a second portion of the borescope.
The borescope may further comprise a dongle, which may be configured to receive and process image data from the image sensor. In some embodiments, the dongle may be further configured to receive and process rotational orientation data from the rotational sensor to digitally reorient the image data.
In some embodiments, the tip may comprise a camera module, which may be at least partially or fully positioned within a lumen of the tube or may be coupled to the distal end of the shaft/tube.
Some embodiments may further comprise a rotational coupling element, such as a worm gear, configured to rotationally couple the tube/shaft with the handle or, as previously mentioned, another suitable first portion of the borescope with respect to another suitable second portion of the borescope. In some such embodiments, the rotational coupling element may be configured to limit a degree to which the tube/shaft/first portion can rotate with respect to the handle/second portion. The worm gear or other rotational coupling element may be positioned within the handle in some embodiments.
In an example of a borescope according to other embodiments, the borescope may comprise a handle and a shaft, which may comprise a lumen and may be rotatably coupled with the handle. The borescope may further comprise an image sensor configured to generate image data and a rotational sensor configured to detect a rotational orientation of the image sensor with respect to the handle and generate rotational orientation data comprising data indicative of a rotational orientation of the image sensor with respect to the handle. The image sensor may be fixedly coupled with the shaft.
The borescope, or a suitable system including the borescope, may further comprise an image processor configured to receive and process image data from the image sensor and rotational orientation data from the rotational sensor, which image processor may be configured to digitally reorient the image data using the rotational orientation data.
In some embodiments, the rotational orientation data may comprise data indicative of a rotational orientation of the handle with respect to the shaft.
Some embodiments may further comprise a camera module containing the image sensor. In some such embodiments, the camera module may be positioned at a distal end of the shaft.
Some embodiments may further comprise a dongle coupled with the borescope, which dongle may be removable from the handle or another suitable element of the borescope and/or may be configured to receive and process image data from the image sensor. In some such embodiments, the dongle may include the image processor and may therefore be configured to receive and process rotational orientation data from the rotational sensor to digitally reorient the image data.
In an example of a method for digitally reorienting image data from a borescope according to some implementations, the method may comprise generating image data using a borescope. The borescope may comprise a first portion comprising an image sensor, such as a shaft and/or tube of the borescope, and a second portion, such as a handle of the borescope, that may be rotatably coupled to the first portion. The method may further comprise rotating the first portion with respect to the second portion and sensing an orientation, such as a rotational orientation, of the first portion with respect to the second portion and using a sensed orientation of the first portion with respect to the second portion to digitally reorient the image data.
Some implementations may further comprise displaying a video stream comprising the image data, such as preferably a real-time video stream. The video stream may maintain a fixed orientation, wherein, but for the step of using a sensed orientation of the first portion with respect to the second portion to digitally reorient the image data, the video stream would rotate.
Some implementations may further comprise generating rotational orientation data comprising data indicative of a rotational orientation of the first portion of the borescope with respect to the second portion of the borescope sensor and transmitting the rotational orientation data and the image data to a dongle coupled with the borescope. The rotational orientation data and/or the image data may be processed using the dongle to digitally reorient the image data and generate digitally-reoriented image data. A video stream of the digitally-reoriented image data may then be transmitted and/or displayed, preferably in real time.
The features, structures, steps, or characteristics disclosed herein in connection with one embodiment may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more alternative embodiments.
The written disclosure herein describes illustrative embodiments that are non-limiting and non-exhaustive. Reference is made to certain of such illustrative embodiments that are depicted in the figures, in which:
It will be readily understood that the components of the present disclosure, as generally described and illustrated in the drawings herein, could be arranged and designed in a wide variety of different configurations. Thus, the following more detailed description of the embodiments of the apparatus is not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure, but is merely representative of possible embodiments of the disclosure. In some cases, well-known structures, materials, or operations are not shown or described in detail.
Various embodiments of apparatus and methods are disclosed herein that relate to borescopes and other related medical borescoping, such as laparoscopy, endoscopy, and the like. The present inventors also anticipate possible uses of the inventive teachings provided herein in connection with industrial applications, such as engine, turbine, or building inspections. In some embodiments disclosed herein, medical borescopes may be provided that mimic the behavior of more traditional angled borescopes by manipulating the images and/or video stream digitally by using a sensor in the device to maintain a desired image/video orientation during a surgical procedure.
In some preferred embodiments, the borescope may comprise a handle, a tube, and a tip at the distal end of the tube. The tip may comprise one or more light sources, such as LED lights, one or more image sensors, a lens assembly, and/or other medical borescope components. In some embodiments, the tip may further comprise a PCB and/or a memory element, such as a flash memory component or other non-volatile memory component, which may be used to store various types of data, such as the duration and/or number of uses of the device and/or model identification or calibration data, as described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/958,728 titled MEDICAL BORESCOPES AND RELATED METHODS AND SYSTEMS, which was filed on Dec. 3, 2015 and is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
As also described in the aforementioned patent application incorporated herein by reference, some embodiments may further comprise a dongle, which may be communicatively coupled with the device, such as by way of wires or by being plugged into the device, such as into a port formed within the handle of the device. This dongle may comprise a memory element and a processor, which may be used to process image data from an image sensor in the device. In some embodiments, the dongle may be removably coupled with the device so that it can be coupled with a plurality of distinct laparoscopes or other borescopes. For example, the dongle may comprise a data port that may be used to couple the dongle with a plurality of distinct borescopes and/or other devices, such as a general-purpose computer. In this manner, as discussed above, data obtained from the borescope, such as usage data, may be stored in the memory element of the dongle and ultimately transferred to another computer/device following a medical procedure.
In some embodiments, the device may further comprise a sensor that may be used to detect an orientation of a portion of the device. For example, some embodiments, may comprise a rotational position sensor configured to sense a rotational position of one portion of the device, such as the handle, with respect to another portion of the device, such as the tube and/or tip of the device. This may allow the device to be used in a manner similar to a traditional angled laparoscope but without requiring the camera to be rotatable with respect to the tube and/or maintained in a fixed orientation at the proximal end of the device during a surgical procedure.
In certain preferred embodiments, the camera/image sensor may be fixedly positioned in the tube. Thus, when the tube is rotated, the video stream/image inherently rotates with the tube. Thus, rather than using the optical rotation typically used by traditional laparoscopes, such embodiments may instead use digital rotation to mimic such optical rotation. In some such embodiments, a first portion of the device having the image sensor/camera, such as the tube, may be configured to rotate with respect to a second portion of the device, such as the handle, which may comprise a sensor, such as a rotational sensor, configured to sense a rotational orientation of at least a portion of the first portion with respect to at least a portion of the second portion. In this manner, the handle or another second portion of the device may act as the camera does in a traditional laparoscope. Thus, the doctor can maintain the handle/second portion in a fixed position while rotating the tube/first portion.
In preferred embodiments, the handle may comprise a rotational sensor configured to sense the position and/or rotational orientation of the handle with respect to the tube, which, again, may be rotatable with respect to the handle. The device may be configured such that this position/orientation data is used to perform digital manipulation/rotation to maintain a desired image/video stream orientation on a monitor or other display. In some embodiments, the dongle may receive the position/orientation data and may be configured to perform this manipulation/rotation, in some such embodiments along with the other image processing previously mentioned. Thus, in preferred embodiments, the dongle may be configured to capture a digital video stream from the camera/tip and process the raw image sensor data to convert it to a standard color HDMI or USB video stream for display on a monitor/TV or computer/tablet/phone and may also be configured with circuitry to control the LED or other light source, the exposure level of the image sensor, and/or the rotational orientation of the video stream. This digital manipulation/rotation may be used to preserve the rotational orientation between the tube and the handle, or between two other portions of the device, to allow the camera/sensor to be fixed with respect to the tube and preserve the behavior of optical rotation to which many surgeons are accustomed.
Other novel aspects of certain embodiments of borescopes are also disclosed herein, such as camera/camera module coupling methods and assemblies, methods and structures for heat dissipation, providing for increased resolution video streams, specific methods for detecting rotational position/orientation, and related improvements.
The embodiments of the disclosure may be best understood by reference to the drawings, wherein like parts may be designated by like numerals. It will be readily understood that the components of the disclosed embodiments, as generally described and illustrated in the figures herein, could be arranged and designed in a wide variety of different configurations. Thus, the following detailed description of the embodiments of the apparatus and methods of the disclosure is not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure, as claimed, but is merely representative of possible embodiments of the disclosure. In addition, the steps of a method do not necessarily need to be executed in any specific order, or even sequentially, nor need the steps be executed only once, unless otherwise specified. Additional details regarding certain preferred embodiments and implementations will now be described in greater detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
As shown by the arrows in
A dongle 140 may be communicatively coupled with handle 110. In preferred embodiments including the one depicted in
Dongle 140 may, in turn, be communicatively coupled with a mobile general-purpose computing device 150, such as a computer/tablet/phone and/or a display 160, such as a TV or monitor. Again, although cables/wires are depicted in the figure, such as HDMI and/or USB cables, it is contemplated that any other suitable coupling techniques/structures may be used as desired. For example, in some embodiments and implementations, the dongle 140 may be unplugged from handle 110 and plugged into the mobile general-purpose computing device 150 and/or display 160 as needed.
As with borescope 200, borescope 300 may further comprise a PCB 333 and a potting 331 of the coupling of wires 332 with PCB 333.
It is contemplated that, in some embodiments, the LED(s)/light source(s) and image sensor(s) may be positioned on a single PCB and encapsulated using a curable adhesive. However, this configuration may, in some embodiments, result in undesirable image sensor heating. Thus, in alternative embodiments, the LED(s)/light source(s) may be positioned on separate PCBs relative to the image sensor(s). In some embodiments, a housing, such as a lens housing, may then be used as the encapsulating feature rather than a curable adhesive.
In some preferred embodiments, a high-resolution image sensor may be used, such as, for example, an image sensor with a resolution of 1920×1080 with 1.4×1.4 μm pixels. Other embodiments may instead utilize lower resolution sensors, such as a 1280×720 image sensor with 1.75×1.75 μm pixels. In some embodiments, a plurality of image sensors and/or lens assemblies may be configured to be interchanged with one another in the borescope. However, because use of a 1080p sensor doubles the number of pixels with the same frame rate (e.g., 30 fps) relative to a 720p borescope, an unused differential pair in the cable may be provided to carry an additional serial stream so that the bandwidth requirements of the serial lines do not increase.
In the embodiment of
Borescope 400 further comprises a PCB 433 and a potting compound 431 or other sealant to maintain a consistent electrical coupling of wires 432 with PCB 433, which is positioned immediately adjacent and proximal of camera module 421. Wires 432 may be coupled with a dongle or a port configured to receive such a dongle, as previously mentioned.
As previously described in connection with various other embodiments, borescope 500 may further comprise a PCB 533 and a potting 531 or other sealant to facilitate stable coupling of wires 532 with PCB 533. As previously mentioned, the LED(s)/light source(s) 528 and image sensor(s) may be positioned on a single PCB and encapsulated using a curable adhesive or may be positioned on separate PCBs relative to the image sensor(s). In some embodiments, a housing, such as a lens housing, may then be used as the encapsulating feature rather than a curable adhesive. As with borescope 400, borescope 500 may further comprise a cover window 526, which, again, may be formed from a glass or other transparent material and may be positioned at the distal end of tube 520 adjacent to the imaging elements of camera module 521. Window/glass 526 may be part of camera module 521 or may be a separate element coupled to camera module 521 and/or borescope 500.
A schematic example of a rotational sensor 670 suitable for use in connection with one or more of the borescopes disclosed herein is depicted in
As shown in
Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate, however, that the sensor 670 of
In other embodiments, the shaft/tube 720 may be manufactured with an external groove, which may be used instead of a worm gear for a similar purpose. In still other embodiments, a twist potentiometer may be used instead of a slide potentiometer. Such an alternative potentiometer may be, for example, coupled directly to the shaft/tube 720, either on the proximal end or on the side via another gear mechanism. In other embodiments, a direct gear may be used to couple to a rotational potentiometer, a hall-effect sensor may be used for shaft encoding, and/or an optical shaft encoder may be used. Each of these is an example of means for sensing rotation between a first portion of a borescope and a second portion of a borescope rotatable with respect to the first portion.
In some embodiments, the sensor reading may be converted to a rotation angle by calibrating each borescope. These calibration settings may, in some embodiments, be stored in a storage element in the borescope, such as in the tip. Thus, in some embodiments, a plurality of calibration points (four, for example) may be stored and interpolation may be used for angle readings in between the calibration points.
It is contemplated that, in alternative embodiments, the ADC for the potentiometer 770 may be positioned in the tip and/or tube of the borescope. In some such embodiments, a two-conductor cable may be used to deliver the analog voltage from the potentiometer in the handle down the tube to the ADC in the tip/tube. However, the present inventors have discovered that this analog voltage may be susceptible to interference from EM radiation during electrocautery procedures. Thus, for certain applications, it may be preferable to position the ADC and the circuitry for the potentiometer 770 or other sensor in the handle 710 and instead transmit the digital signal from the handle 710 (either to the tip or directly to a dongle, for example) following conversion of the signal. This configuration may provide the benefit of elimination, or at least substantial reduction, of EM interference caused by electrocautery.
As previously mentioned, some embodiments may comprise a wire/cable that runs from the tip of the borescope through the tube and either out the handle or terminating in the handle. The present inventors have further discovered that, because in preferred embodiments the tube may be configured to rotate with respect to the handle, and because the wire/cable is preferably secured to the inside of the handle, the wire/cable must absorb the rotation over its length with appropriate strain relief. For this reason, it may be preferred to limit the ability of the handle to rotate with respect to the tube to a predetermined amount. For example, in some embodiments, the worm gear 780 or another suitable component may be used to limit such rotation to no more than a single, complete rotation. In some such embodiments, the rotation may be limited to less than a full rotation such as, for example, a quarter rotation in either direction. In alternative embodiments, the tube/shaft may be configured to rotate continuously in either the clockwise or counterclockwise directions without any limit on the degree or number of rotations.
Sensor 770, which may comprise a potentiometer or other suitable element for sensing a degree of rotation between two elements of a borescope, is also positioned with handle 710 immediately adjacent to worm gear 780 to allow the rotational position of worm gear 780 to be translated into a linear position and sensed by the potentiometer 770 or another suitable sensor. Rotational dial or grip 790, which may comprise an annular structure extending about a desired portion of tube/shaft 720 (a portion abutting the distal portion of handle 710 in the depicted embodiment) may be fixedly coupled to tube/shaft 720 and therefore rotatably coupled to handle 720 (by virtue of the rotational coupling of tube/shaft 720 with respect to handle 720) to provide a surface to improve the ability of a surgeon/operator to rotate tube/shaft 720 with respect to handle 710. Dial/grip 790 may comprise various other features, such as bumps, knobs, grooves, a roughened surface, and/or the like to further facilitate desired
As also previously mentioned, a sensor 970, such as a position sensor, may be provided. In preferred embodiments, position sensor 970 may be positioned in handle 910 and handle 910 may be rotationally coupled to the tube/shaft of the borescope 900. Thus, position sensor 970 may be configured to detect the rotational position of the handle 910 with respect to the tube/shaft and/or tip 922 so that the image(s) and/or video stream from image sensor 924 may be digitally manipulated to rotate them into a desired configuration during use.
As shown in
In performing digital rotation of the image data, it may be desired to achieve as low-latency rotation as possible at the full frame rate. Low latency is desired for at least two reasons. First, latency affects the ability of the surgeon to perform real-time surgery. Delay in the video stream could cause over-correction, tool misplacement, etc. Second, it may be desired to mimic the optical rotation of a traditional laparoscope, as previously mentioned. The optical rotation of traditional laparoscope does not typically introduce any latency.
In order to maintain a desired frame rate while eliminating or at least reducing latency, digital rotation may utilize a high-speed random access frame buffer. For example, under 0-degree image rotation the pixels would be read out of the frame buffer sequentially. However, in the case of a 90-degree image rotation, a pixel is read from a given row and then must access columns from non-sequential locations or from locations that are not co-located with each other. In such embodiments, access is not required to be sequential.
Although it is contemplated that some embodiments may utilize DRAM for frame buffering, doing so may introduce difficulties in providing high-speed random access for real-time image rotation. Preferred embodiments may therefore instead comprise two high-speed SRAM's in a double buffer fashion to achieve real-time digital rotation. Thus, as shown in
In some embodiments, a dedicated Graphical Processing Unit (GPU) may be provided in place of the two, discrete SRAM units 944a and 944b. While a GPU may be able to perform real-time image rotation efficiently due to its utilization of integrated high-speed SRAM, it also adds expense. Thus, for certain applications, it may be preferable to use discrete SRAMs, as shown in
As also shown in
It will be understood by those having skill in the art that changes may be made to the details of the above-described embodiments without departing from the underlying principles presented herein. Any suitable combination of various embodiments, or the features thereof, is contemplated.
Any methods disclosed herein comprise one or more steps or actions for performing the described method. The method steps and/or actions may be interchanged with one another. In other words, unless a specific order of steps or actions is required for proper operation of the embodiment, the order and/or use of specific steps and/or actions may be modified.
Throughout this specification, any reference to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” or “the embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with that embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. Thus, the quoted phrases, or variations thereof, as recited throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment.
Similarly, it should be appreciated that in the above description of embodiments, various features are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure, or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure, however, is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that any claim require more features than those expressly recited in that claim. Rather, inventive aspects lie in a combination of fewer than all features of any single foregoing disclosed embodiment. It will be apparent to those having skill in the art that changes may be made to the details of the above-described embodiments without departing from the underlying principles set forth herein.
Likewise, benefits, other advantages, and solutions to problems have been described above with regard to various embodiments. However, benefits, advantages, solutions to problems, and any element(s) that may cause any benefit, advantage, or solution to occur or become more pronounced are not to be construed as a critical, a required, or an essential feature or element. The scope of the present invention should, therefore, be determined only by the following claims.
This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/613,368, which was filed Jan. 3, 2018 and titled “ANGLED BORESCOPES WITH DIGITAL IMAGE ORIENTATION,” which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62613368 | Jan 2018 | US |