Circon Corporation

Edward A Wooff, Jr

Erik Sluyter

Frederick A Miller

A highly focusable video camera for use in medical and surgical procedures in conjunction with an endoscope is shown. The video camera includes a cylindrical body defining a confinement space having an open end and a cover having an aperture on a top portion and a cylindrical sleeve which extends into the cylindrical body portion. An optical system is mounted on the cover and extends into the cylindrical body and the optical system receives and passes an optical image from an endoscope. The optical system is focusable by relative movement along its optical axis. The internal surface of the cylindrical body has a groove which is formed to have an axial pitch and the groove functions as a cam surface to receive and coact with a follower which is connected to the cylindrical sleeve. A sealing means is located between the interior surface of the body and the external surface of the body and the external surface of the sleeve for blocking passage of the fluid into the containment space. A solid-state sensor-converter is operatively positioned to receive the optical image after it is passed through the optical system and converts the optical image into an unprocessed video signal. A video processing circuit receives the output of the sensor converter and transmits preprocessed output signals as an output to a remote location and to a video output circuit.

Focusable video camera for use with endoscopes

A highly compact focusable video camera for use in medical and surgical procedures in conjunction with an endoscope is shown. The focusable video camera includes a two-part body having a first body portion having an optically apertured forward end portion thereof and a cylindrical sidewall, a second body portion having a rearward end portion and a cylindrical sidewall wherein the first and second body portions are slidable one into the other and having portions of their respective cylindrical walls overlapping. A coacting member is located on the overlapped portion of the cylindrical wall of each body portion and causes relative forward and rearward axial motion of the body upon rotation of one body relative to the other. The body portions define a cavity having an optical aperture which defines an optical axis extending through the optical system and outside the body for receiving and transmitting optical images received from the endoscope. The optical system includes a forward portion mounted on the first body portion and a rearward portion located on the second body portion and a sensor-converter which receives and converts the optical image to an unprocessed video signal and a video electronic processing circuit in the cavity extending around the outside of the rearward portion of the optical system.

A highly compact focusable video camera for use in medical and surgical procedures in conjunction with an endoscope is shown. The focusable video camera includes a body having a front end and sidewalls which define a cavity, an adjusting element having an optical aperture positioned external of the body forward of the front end, an extension element integral to the adjusting element extending through and movable relative to the aperture in the front end portion which defines an optical path from the optical aperture of the adjusting element into the cavity, and an optical system aligned with the optical aperture in the optical path to define optical axes extending through the optical system and outside the body for receiving and transmitting an optical endoscope image. The optical system includes a forward portion mounted in the extension element for forward and rearward movement, a rearward portion fixably mounted in the cavity, a sensor-converter operatively placed inside the cavity to receive the optical image passing through the optical system for converting the optical image to an unprocessed video signal, a video electronic processing circuit located in the cavity extending around the outside of the rearward portion of the optical system, and a releasable holding member for selectively fixing the position of the forward portion of the optical system relative to the rearward portion of the optical system.

An integrated beam splitter and adjustable light intensity control adapter including a housing having a plurality of hollowed-out areas with openings from the interior thereof to the housing exterior, a connecting adapter to couple an optical device producing an optical image to the housing wherein the optical image passes through the openings within the housing, a viewing means coupled to the housing to enable a viewer to observe the optical image, a beam splitter positioned within the housing in one hollowed-out area to receive the optical image and pass a portion of the optical image along one optical path to the eyepiece and the remainder of the optical image along a second optical path to an optical system including a beam splitter and prism which deflect the remainder of the optical image into a second hollowed-out area within the housing, a light intensity control means positioned along the second optical path between the prism and an aperture extending from the second hollowed-out area to the exterior of the housing and a coupling means for attaching a video camera recording means, is shown.

Integrated beam splitter and adjustable light intensity control adapter

An automatic iris control system adapted to be connected between a video camera and optical input device which produces an optical image from a light directed upon and reflected from a subject wherein the optical image is directed onto the surface of an electronic imaging tube in the video camera and the optical image has a wide variation of reflected light due to variations in distance of the subject from the light source and wherein the automatic iris control system has an adjustable iris and drive motor located between the surface of the electronic imaging tube and optical input device for dynamically varying the intensity of the optical image applied to the electronic imaging tube of the video camera, a light intensity programming circuit for establishing a desired light intensity level on the surface of the electronic imaging tube of the video camera, and an automatic iris control circuit having a low gain amplifier, a weighted peak response detector, a comparator, a circuit for controlling current to the iris drive motor and a circuit for providing a feedback signal representing the direction in which the iris must be adjusted by the motor to control the light intensity on the surface of the electronic imaging tube of the video camera is shown.

Growing community of inventors

Ventura, CA, United States of America

Edward A Wooff, Jr