Asahi Kogaku Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha

Pentax Corporation

Newton Laboratories, Inc.

Koichi Furusawa

Hiroyuki Saito

Minoru Suzuki

Katsuyoshi Suzuki

Hiroshi Orita

Tetsuya Utsui

Tetsuya Nakamura

Masaru Eguchi

Ryo Ozawa

Shinsuke Okada

Kohei Iketani

Rensuke Adachi

Atsumi Kaneko

Stephen F Fulghum, Jr

The present invention provides systems and methods for the determination of the physical characteristics of a structured superficial layer of material using light scattering spectroscopy. The light scattering spectroscopy system comprises optical probes that can be used with existing endoscopes without modification to the endoscope itself. The system uses a combination of optical and computational methods to detect physical characteristics such as the size distribution of cell nuclei in epithelial layers of organs. The light scattering spectroscopy system can be used alone, or in conjunction with other techniques, such as fluorescence spectroscopy and reflected light spectroscopy.

Spectroscopic diagnostic methods and system

An endoscope system is provided with a light guide including a plurality of optical paths, and a low-coherent light source that emits a low-coherent light beams. The low-coherent light source is provided at a proximal end side of the light guide. The light beams emitted by the low-coherent light source are incident on the plurality of optical paths, respectively. The endoscope system is further provided with an interferometer unit. The interferometer unit includes a beam splitting element that splits each of the low-coherent beams emitted from the distal end of the light guide and emits split one of each of the beams to an object, a reference optical system that guides the other split beam of each of the beams, a reflector unit that reflects the beams guided by the reference optical system toward the beam splitting element, and a light detecting device that detects an interfered beam generated by interference, at the beam splitting element, between the beam reflected by the object and the beam reflected by the reflector unit. The endoscope system is further provided with a driving unit that moves the interferometer unit toward/away from the object, and a signal processing system that generates a tomogram based on signals detected by the light detecting device.

Endoscope system

An endoscope system which can obtain a tomographic image in accordance with optical coherence tomography (OCT). An OCT section of the endoscope system comprises a first optical fiber, a second optical fiber, an optical coupler, a super-luminescent diode (SLD), a photodetector, and a reference mirror. The first optical fiber is opposed to the SLD at its proximal end. The second optical fiber is opposed to the photodetector at its proximal end. The optical coupler establishes optical connection between the optical fibers. The reference mirror is arranged movable in front of the distal end of the second optical fiber. The distal end of the first optical fiber is introduced to an OCT scanning unit at a tip of an endoscope. This OCT scanning unit includes a polygon mirror having a plurality of reflecting surfaces, which are tilted in different angles from each other. The OCT scanning unit forms a plurality of scanning lines aligned in parallel over a subject at regular intervals. Here, the OCT scanning unit irradiates the subject with light emitted from the distal end of the first optical fiber, and introduces the light reflected by the object to the first optical fiber.

Endoscope system, scanning optical system and polygon mirror

A fiber bundle for image transmission includes pluralities of first optical fibers and a plurality of second optical fibers. Both pluralities of optical fibers being tied at their distal ends to form a composite bundle portion. The first optical fibers being tied at their proximal ends to form a first branched bundle portion and the second optical fibers being tied at their proximal ends to form a second branched bundle portion.

Fiber bundle and endoscope apparatus

A thermal head driver system cyclically and independently drives at least two thermal heads having each a plurality of electric resistance elements. A storage system cyclically stores an image information data, the image information data cyclically being each of at least two types of image information data, respectively corresponding to the thermal heads. A selector system cyclically and correspondingly selects which thermal head should be driven in accordance with the cyclical storage of the types of image information data in the storage system, such that the electric resistance elements of the thermal head, selected by the selector system, are selectively and electrically energized in accordance with a corresponding type of image information data cyclically stored in the storage system.

Thermal head driver system and thermal image-forming apparatus therewith

An endoscope system capable of obtaining a normal light image and/or fluorescent light image is further provided with an a low-coherent light source arranged on a proximal end side of one of first and second light guides. A scanning unit is provided to cause the low-coherent light beam emerged from a tip of the first light guide to scan on the object. The low-coherent light reflected by the object is directed to the first light guide by the scanning unit as detecting light. A mirror is provided to reflect the low-coherent light beam emerged from a tip of the second light guide. A detector is arranged on a proximal end side of the other of the first and second light guides to detect interference fringe pattern generated by interference between the detecting light and the reference light. By changing a length of an optical path, via the first light guide, from the coupler to the object relative to a length, via the second light guide, of an optical path from the coupler to the mirror, a tomogram of the object can be captured.

An endoscope system is provided with a normal light image capturing system, a fluorescent light image capturing system, and an OCT (Optical Coherence Tomography) image capturing system. The normal light image, the fluorescent light image and the OCT image are displayed on a screen of a display device simultaneously. Optionally, one of the normal light image or the fluorescent light image is displayed as an animated image, and the OCT image is also displayed as an animated image. A cursor indicating a scanning position corresponding to the OCT image is indicated on one of the normal light image and the fluorescent light image displayed as the animated image.

An image-forming system has an image-forming sheet, and a printer for forming an image on the sheet. The sheet has a sheet of paper, and a layer of microcapsule, coated over the paper sheet, that contains a plurality of microcapsules filled with a dye. A shell wall of each microcapsule is composed of a resin exhibiting a pressure/temperature characteristic such that, when each microcapsule is squashed under a predetermined pressure at a predetermined temperature, the dye seeps from the squashed microcapsule. The microcapsules are covered with an infrared absorbent coating that-absorbs infrared rays having a specific wavelength. The printer has a transparent glass plate, and a roller platen elastically pressed against the plate at the predetermined pressure, with the sheet being interposed between the plate and the platen. Further, the printer has an optical scanner for scanning the layer of microcapsules with an infrared beam having the specific wavelength, such that the microcapsules, irradiated by the infrared beam, are heated to the predetermined temperature.

Image-forming substrate and image-forming system using same

An endoscope system is provided with first and second light guides, which are optically coupled by an optical coupler. A low-coherent light source is provided, and the light emitted therefrom is incident on the first or second light guide. Further provided is a scanning unit that causes the light beam emerged from the first light guide to scan on a predetermined surface of the object. The light beam reflected by the object is directed, by the scanning unit, to the first light guide as a detection light beam. A light beam emerged from the second light guide is reflected by a reflector and returned to the second light guide as a reference beam. By varying the optical path length of the reference beam relative to that of the detection beam, two beams interfere. A signal processing system generates OCT image based on the signal detected by a light detecting device which receives the interfering beams.

A fiber bundle consists of first optical fibers and second optical fibers. At the distal end of the fiber bundle, the first and second optical fibers are bundled in a square close-packed array or a hexagonal close-packed array. The first and second optical fibers are separated from each other at the proximal end of the fiber bundle so that the first optical fibers are tied as a first branch bundle and that the second optical fibers are tied a second branch bundle.

An illuminating device for an endoscope system emits light toward a light receiving surface of an optical fiber bundle. Light incident on the light receiving surface of said optical fiber bundle is emitted from a light emitting surface of the optical fiber bundle for illuminating an object. The illuminating device is provided with a plurality of light emitting elements, each of which emits a directive monochromatic light beam. The light beams emitted by the plurality of light emitting elements are incident on the light receiving surface of the optical fiber bundle within an angular aperture of the light receiving surface thereof.

Endoscope system and illuminating device for the endoscope

An image-forming system has an image-forming sheet, and a printer for forming an image on the sheet. The sheet has a sheet of paper, and a layer of microcapsule, coated over the paper sheet, that contains a plurality of microcapsules filled with a dye. A shell wall of each microcapsule is composed of a resin exhibiting a pressure/temperature characteristic such that, when each microcapsule is squashed under a predetermined pressure at a predetermined temperature, the dye seeps from the squashed microcapsule. The microcapsules are covered with an infrared absorbent coating that absorbs infrared rays having a specific wavelength. The printer has a transparent glass plate, and a roller platen elastically pressed against the plate at the predetermined pressure, with the sheet being interposed between the plate and the platen. Further, the printer has an optical scanner for scanning the layer of microcapsules with an infrared beam having the specific wavelength, such that the microcapsules, irradiated by the infrared beam, are heated to the predetermined temperature.

An image transfer apparatus that records an image through selective heat and pressure application has an ink ribbon and a film disposed between a driving head and a flat platen. Color dyes of the ink ribbon are transferred to the film as the image. The image on the film is thus conveyed to a position for transferring the image to a recording sheet. The film and the recording sheet are pressed between a transfer roller and a conveyor roller with a pressure that sufficiently smooths unevenness in the surface of the recording sheet. A high quality image is thus recorded on the recording sheet regardless of the surface condition of the recording sheet.

Pressure-sensitive and heat-sensitive image transfer apparatus for recording

In an image-forming system, an image-forming substrate is used, which has a sheet of paper, and a layer of microcapsules coated over the sheet of paper. The layer of microcapsules includes at least one type of microcapsules filled with an ink. A shell wall of each microcapsule is formed of resin, which exhibits a temperature/pressure characteristic such that each of the microcapsules is squashed under a predetermined pressure when being heated to a predetermined temperature, thereby discharging the dye out of the shell wall. A printer, having a roller platen and a thermal head, forms an image on the substrate. The platen locally exerts the pressure on the microcapsule layer. The thermal head selectively heats a localized area of the microcapsule layer, on which the pressure is exerted by the platen, to a temperature in accordance with an image-information data, such that the microcapsules in the microcapsule layer are selectively squashed and an image on the microcapsule layer.

System for rupturing microcapsules filled with a dye

A recording sheet includes a micro-capsule layer which includes a plurality types of micro-capsules colored with different colors, for example, primary or complimentary colors of a subtractive mixture. The micro-capsules are filled with core materials which are discharged when the micro-capsules are broken. Each type of micro-capsule is selectively broken by a selective temperature and pressure application. When a micro-capsule is broken, the core material blends out the color of the micro-capsule. Additionally, an image forming system includes a heating unit for selectively heating the micro-capsules by an output of a Joule heat or light irradiation. Different wavelengths of light are radiated by the light irradiation heating unit, which are absorbed depending upon an absorption band exhibited by the different colored micro-capsules.

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Koichi Furusawa