Patent EP0218226A2 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
EP0218226A2
Expired / Lapsed
EP
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Control circuit for video endoscope
Assignee: Olympus Corp
•
Filing: 1986-10-04
•
Granted: —
•
Expires: 2006-10-04
Abstract
Abstract Disclosed is a control circuit which is connected to a video endoscope, having a CCD (10) in the distal end thereof. The control circuit supplies driving clock pulses to the CCD (10), and converts a picture element signal pulses from the CCD (10) into a continuous image signal, by clamping, or sampling and holding, the signal pulses. The converted signals are further subjected to video processing. A scope discrimination resistor (12) is contained in the endoscope, in the vicinity of a connector thereof, which connects the endoscope and the control circuit. The resistance value of the resistor (12) depends on the length of the endoscope. When the endoscope is connected to the control circuit, the resistor (12) is connected in series with a constant-current source (40) in a scope discrimination circuit (26). The discrimination circuit (26) discriminates the scope length by detecting the resistance value of the resistor (12) as a terminal voltage. The waveform of the driving clock pulses for the CCD (10) is modified in accordance with the result of the discrimination, and the timing for clamping, or sampling and holding, the picture-element signal pulses from the CCD (10), is determined by the discrimination result.
Inventors
- 👤 Shinichi Kato
- 👤 Masahiko Sasaki
- 👤 Tadashi Kato
- 👤 Masahide Kanno
- 👤 Yutaka Takahashi
- 👤 Katsuyuki Saito
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-28 08:31
CPC Classifications
H; H04; H04N; H04N17/00; H04N17/02; H04N23/00; H04N23/60; H04N23/66; H04N23/50; H04N23/555
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 11
Claim 1
Independent Claim
122 words
A control circuit for video endoscope, which comprises means for supplying clock pulses to a solid state pickup element in a video endoscope, and means for converting image signal pluses, supplied from the pickup element, into a continuous image signal, characterized by further comprising: means (26) for detecting the type of the endoscope connected to the control circuit, and characterized in that: said supply means (18) modifies the waveform of the clock pulses in accordance with the result of detection by the detecting means (26), and said converting means (24) converts the image signal pluses into the continuous image signal, by clamping, or sampling and holding the pluses, with a timing corresponding to the detection result given by the detecting means (26).
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
122 words
A control circuit for video endoscope, which comprises means for supplying clock pulses to a solid state pickup element in a video endoscope, and means for converting image signal pluses, supplied from the pickup element, into a continuous image signal, characterized by further comprising: means (26) for detecting the type of the endoscope connected to the control circuit, and characterized in that: said supply means (18) modifies the waveform of the clock pulses in accordance with the result of detection by the detecting means (26), and said converting means (24) converts the image signal pluses into the continuous image signal, by clamping, or sampling and holding the pluses, with a timing corresponding to the detection result given by the detecting means (26).
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
29 words
The control circuit for video endoscope according to claim 1, characterized in that said detecting means (26) discriminates the length of the endoscope as the type of the endoscope.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
65 words
The control circuit for video endoscope according to claim 1, characterized in that said detecting means (26) includes a constant-current source (40) connected in series with a resistor (12) disposed in the endoscope, having a resistance value corresponding to the length of the endoscope, and a detector circuit (48) for detecting a voltage at the junction of the constant-current source (40) and the resistor (12).
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
65 words
The control circuit for video endoscope according to claim 3, characterized in that said detector circuit (48) includes a plurality of comparators (48a - 48g) for comparing the voltage, at the junction of the constant-current source and the resistor, with a plurality of reference voltages, and an adder (52, 54) for adding one to binary signals, as outputs from the comparators, and delivering discrimination signals.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
38 words
The control circuit for video endoscope according to claim 1, characterized in that said waveform modifying means (18) includes differentiation circuit means (DL1 - DL8) whose time constant is determined by the output of the detecting means (26).
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
73 words
The control circuit for video endoscope according to claim 5, characterized in that said differentiation circuit means includes a plurality of CR differentiation circuits (DL1 - DL8) with different time constants, and relay switches (S1 - S8) connected individually to the differentiation circuits, and designed so that only one of the switches is closed by the output of the detecting means (26), thereby supplying the clock pulses to one of the differentiation circuits.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
40 words
The control circuit for video endoscope according to claim 1, characterized in that said converting means (24) includes means (72) for clamping the image signal pulses, with the timing corresponding to the detection result given by the detecting means (26).
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
40 words
The control circuit for video endoscope according to claim 1, characterized in that said converting means (24) includes means for sampling and holding the image signal pulses, with the timing corresponding to the detection result given by the detecting means.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
77 words
The control circuit for video endoscope according to claim 1, further comprising: display means (90) for displaying the output of the converting means (24); means (92) for generating RGB standard-color signals; means (94) for detecting the connection of the video endoscope to the control circuit; and means (86) for supplying the display means (90) with the RGB standard-color signals, instead of the output of the converting means (24), when the connection of the endoscope is not detected.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
23 words
The control circuit for video endoscope according to claim 9, characterized in that said standard-color signal generating means (92) generates RGB color-bar signals.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
Maintenance schedule is calculated for granted US utility patents.