Method and system for monitoring form of endoscope

Abstract

According to the method and system for monitoring the form of the endoscope, a reference relation curve corresponding to each position sensor is obtained, and the reference relation curve of each position sensor is used for representing the relation between the output value of the position sensor and the position value of the position sensor; acquiring a real-time output value of each position sensor; for any position sensor, the real-time bending direction of the position sensor is obtained according to the real-time output value of the position sensor and the reference relation curve corresponding to the position sensor; the real-time bending form of the insertion part is determined according to the real-time bending direction of each position sensor; and the real-time bending form of the insertion part is displayed in real time. The bending direction of each position sensor is determined through the real-time output values of the position sensors, so that the bending form of the insertion part is obtained, learning and training in advance are not needed, and the method is simpler and more efficient.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of endoscopes, and particularly to a method and a system for monitoring the shape of an endoscope. Background Art

[0002] During a medical procedure, a doctor often needs to use an endoscope to observe the internal conditions of a human body cavity, so as to accurately understand the patient's condition or perform corresponding treatment operations. The structure of the endoscope body mainly consists of a head end, an insertion portion, a handle operation portion, and a connection cable. Among them, a camera is installed at the head end of the endoscope, enabling the doctor to clearly observe the detailed state inside the cavity. However, when the endoscope enters the human body, the movement direction and the state of the endoscope body cannot be accurately obtained by the doctor. The doctor can only observe the image signal captured by the head-end camera through the host display screen, and then, in combination with a human natural cavity model established based on the anatomical structure of human organs, compare the image information obtained by the head-end camera with the cavity model. For example, by relying on characteristic anatomical tissues such as the cardia, the fundus of the stomach, and the descending part of the duodenum to determine the movement position of the endoscope inside the human body, and continuously adjusting and probing the shape of the endoscope by moving the position of the roller;

[0003] This operation mode requires the doctor to be proficient in the positions and shapes of these characteristic anatomical tissues, and a large amount of training and clinical experience accumulation outside the body are needed. However, in actual clinical operations, due to the relatively complex internal environment of the human body cavity and the need to adjust the positions and angles of surgical instruments according to the real-time state of the endoscope, this operation mode that cannot directly obtain the shape information of the endoscope greatly affects the operation efficiency of the doctor;

[0004] Therefore, it is necessary to design a method for monitoring the bending state of the endoscope inside the human body, so that the doctor can more intuitively understand the actual situation of the endoscope inside the human body, thereby improving the accuracy and safety of the operation and reducing the risks brought by improper operations. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The main technical problem to be solved by the present invention is how to monitor the bending state of the endoscope inside the human body.

[0006] According to a first aspect, in one embodiment, a method for monitoring the shape of an endoscope is provided. The endoscope has an insertion portion, and a plurality of position sensors are respectively arranged at a plurality of different positions on the insertion portion, including:

[0007] Respectively obtain the reference relationship curves corresponding to each of the position sensors. The reference relationship curve of each position sensor is used to represent the relationship between the output value of the position sensor and the position value of the position sensor;

[0008] Obtain the real-time output values of each position sensor;

[0009] For any one position sensor, based on the real-time output value of the position sensor and the corresponding reference relationship curve of the position sensor, obtain the real-time position value of the position sensor;

[0010] Determine the real-time bending shape of the insertion part according to the real-time position values of each position sensor;

[0011] Display the real-time bending shape of the insertion part in real time.

[0012] In some embodiments, the reference relationship curve of each position sensor is obtained based on the first calibration point and the second calibration point of the position sensor; the first calibration point of each position sensor is obtained according to the output value of the position sensor when the insertion part is placed in the first calibration tooling, and the second calibration point of each position sensor is obtained according to the output value of the position sensor when the insertion part is placed in the second calibration tooling.

[0013] In some embodiments, the abscissa of the first calibration point of each position sensor is the position value of the position sensor on the first calibration tooling, and the ordinate is the output value of the position sensor.

[0014] In some embodiments, the abscissa of the second calibration point of each position sensor is the position value of the position sensor on the second calibration tooling, and the ordinate is the output value of the position sensor.

[0015] In some embodiments, the reference relationship curve of each position sensor is obtained based on the first calibration point and the second calibration point of the position sensor, including: performing curve fitting according to the first calibration point and the second calibration point, and taking the obtained curve as the reference relationship curve of the sensor.

[0016] In some embodiments, the determining the real-time bending shape of the insertion part according to the real-time position values of each position sensor includes:

[0017] For any one position sensor, according to the difference between the real-time position value of the position sensor and the position value corresponding to the initial output value of the position sensor, obtain the real-time bending direction of the position sensor according to the obtained difference; determine the real-time bending shape of the insertion part according to the real-time bending directions of all position sensors.

[0018] In some embodiments, it further includes: the interval between adjacent two position sensors is a preset interval.

[0019] According to the second aspect, in one embodiment, a system for monitoring the shape of an endoscope is provided, including:

[0020] An endoscope, the endoscope including an insertion portion;

[0021] A plurality of position sensors, the plurality of position sensors being disposed at a plurality of different positions on the insertion portion;

[0022] A display for displaying content;

[0023] A processor for executing the above method for monitoring the morphology of the endoscope.

[0024] According to the method and system for monitoring the morphology of an endoscope according to the above embodiments, based on the reference relationship curve obtained by different position sensors during the calibration process, for any one position sensor, the position value of the position sensor is obtained according to the real-time output value of the position sensor and the reference relationship curve corresponding to the position sensor, and then the real-time bending direction of the position sensor is obtained according to the position value of the position sensor, and further the morphology curve of the insertion portion is obtained, thereby obtaining the real-time bending morphology of the insertion portion. Without the need for prior learning and training, the bending morphology of the endoscope can be directly obtained, and the doctor can more intuitively understand the actual situation of the endoscope inside the human body, thereby improving the accuracy and safety of the operation, and further reducing the risks brought by improper operation, which is more simple and efficient. Description of the Drawings

[0025] Figure 1 Is a method flow chart of a method for monitoring the morphology of an endoscope;

[0026] Figure 2 Is a system flow chart of a system for monitoring the morphology of an endoscope;

[0027] Figure 3 Is a schematic diagram of the structure of the endoscope body

[0028] Figure 4 Is a partial enlarged view of the insertion portion in the structure of the endoscope body;

[0029] Figure 5 Is a schematic diagram of a first calibration tooling;

[0030] Figure 6 Is a schematic diagram of a second calibration tooling;

[0031] Figure 7 Is a schematic diagram of different positions on the second calibration tooling.

[0032] Reference numerals: 11 - insertion portion; 12 - position sensor; 13 - handle operation portion; 14 - head end; 15 - first calibration tooling; 16 - second calibration tooling; 30 - endoscope; 31 - display; 32 - processor. Detailed Description of the Embodiments

[0033] The present invention will be further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings through specific embodiments. Similar elements in different embodiments are labeled with related similar element numbers. In the following embodiments, many detailed descriptions are provided to enable a better understanding of the present application. However, those skilled in the art can easily recognize that some of these features can be omitted in different situations, or can be replaced by other elements, materials, or methods. In some cases, some operations related to the present application are not shown or described in the specification to avoid overwhelming the core part of the present application with excessive descriptions. For those skilled in the art, it is not necessary to describe these related operations in detail, and they can fully understand the related operations based on the descriptions in the specification and general technical knowledge in the art.

[0034] In addition, the features, operations, or characteristics described in the specification can be combined in any appropriate manner to form various embodiments. At the same time, the steps or actions in the method description can also be reordered or adjusted in a manner obvious to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the various sequences in the specification and drawings are only for clearly describing a certain embodiment and do not mean that they are necessary sequences, unless it is stated otherwise that a certain sequence must be followed.

[0035] The serial numbers assigned to the components herein, such as "first", "second", etc., are only used to distinguish the described objects and do not have any sequential or technical meaning. And the "connection" and "coupling" mentioned in the present application, unless otherwise specified, both include direct and indirect connection (coupling).

[0036] In the embodiments of the present invention, based on the reference relationship curves obtained by different position sensors during the calibration process, for any one position sensor, the position value of the position sensor is obtained according to the real-time output value of the position sensor and the corresponding reference relationship curve of the position sensor. Then, based on the position value of the position sensor, the real-time bending direction of the position sensor is obtained, and further the morphological curve of the insertion part is obtained, thereby obtaining the real-time bending morphology of the insertion part.

[0037] Please refer to Figure 1 , some embodiments provide a method for monitoring the morphology of an endoscope, specifically including the following steps:

[0038] The structure of the endoscope body is as Figure 3 shown. It mainly consists of a head end 14, an insertion part 11, a handle operation part 13, and a connecting cable. In this embodiment, a plurality of position sensors 12 are respectively arranged at a plurality of different positions of the insertion part 11 of the endoscope. These position sensors 12 are evenly distributed along the axis of the insertion part 11, as Figure 4 shown, and this figure is also Figure 3Partial enlarged view of the insertion portion 11, wherein the interval between two adjacent position sensors 12 is a preset interval, and the size of the preset interval can be set according to the actual situation; the types of the position sensors 12 in this embodiment include mems position sensors, accelerometers, fiber optic position sensors, etc.;

[0039] In some embodiments, multiple position sensors 12 can also be set according to the softness of different positions on the insertion portion 11 of the endoscope; among them, due to the different flexibility of different positions on the insertion portion 11 of the endoscope, generally speaking, the part of the insertion portion 11 close to the head end 14 usually bends more frequently and has a higher flexibility; the part close to the handle operation portion 13 needs to better transmit the force when the doctor operates the handle, and the flexibility is lower; while the middle part of the insertion portion 11 has a moderate flexibility. Therefore, in order to better determine the shape of the insertion portion 11 during the actual operation, the density of multiple position sensors can be adjusted according to the flexibility and / or the frequency of operation of different positions on the insertion portion 11 of the endoscope;

[0040] For example, the insertion portion 11 of the endoscope is divided into three regions. For the region close to the head end 14, the preset interval between two adjacent position sensors in this region is set to a smaller value a; for the region close to the handle operation portion 13, the preset interval between two adjacent position sensors in this region is set to a larger value b; for the region corresponding to the middle part of the insertion portion 11, the preset interval corresponding to this region is set to a value between the smaller value a and the larger value b. Thus, the distribution density of the position sensors in different regions is adjusted by adjusting the preset intervals between adjacent position sensors in different regions.

[0041] Step S100: Obtain the reference relationship curve corresponding to each position sensor, and the reference relationship curve of each position sensor is used to represent the relationship between the output value of the position sensor and the position value of the position sensor.

[0042] In this embodiment, the reference relationship curve of each position sensor is obtained based on the first calibration point and the second calibration point of the position sensor during the calibration process before leaving the factory, and is used to represent the relationship between the output value of the position sensor and the position value of the position sensor; during the calibration process, the first calibration point of each position sensor is obtained according to the output value of the position sensor when the insertion portion 11 is placed in the first calibration tooling 15, and the second calibration point of each position sensor is obtained according to the output value of the position sensor when the insertion portion 11 is placed in the second calibration tooling 16;

[0043] Among them, the first calibration tooling 15 is a straight tooling, such as Figure 5As shown, after the insertion part 11 with multiple position sensors is placed on the linear tooling, the entire insertion part 11 is straightened by the adjustment lever of the linear tooling, and then the output values of each position sensor are obtained through the endoscope host;

[0044] Under normal circumstances, when the position sensor is in a stationary state and there is no position movement, its output should remain at the zero position (i.e., the zero point). However, due to various reasons, such as processing parameter deviations of the position sensor itself and errors introduced during the acquisition process, etc., the output value of the position sensor may shift, resulting in a change in the zero point position. Therefore, by obtaining the output values of each position sensor in this stationary state and taking them as the zero points of the position sensors in the stationary state, the zero point drift of each position sensor is eliminated, and the first calibration point of the position sensor is obtained according to the output value of each position sensor. Among them, the abscissa of the first calibration point of the position sensor is the position value of the position sensor on the first calibration tooling 15. In this embodiment, the position value of the position sensor on the first calibration tooling 15 is the numerical value 0, and the ordinate is the output value of the position sensor;

[0045] In this embodiment, the installation deviation of each position sensor is further eliminated by the second calibration tooling 16. The second calibration tooling 16 in this embodiment is a circular tooling, such as Figure 6 As shown, the insertion part 11 of the endoscope is wound around this circular tooling, and then the second calibration points corresponding to each sensor are obtained. At this time, the abscissa of the second calibration point of each position sensor is the position value of the position sensor on the second calibration tooling 16, and the ordinate is the output value of the position sensor;

[0046] The position value of the position sensor on the second calibration tooling 16 refers to the offset of the position of the position sensor on this circular tooling relative to the preset reference position of the circular tooling in the preset direction. The preset reference position of the circular tooling can be set according to the actual situation. In this embodiment, the preset reference position of the circular tooling can be a tangent point on the circumference of the circular calibration tooling or the center of the circular calibration tooling;

[0047] Schematic diagrams of different positions in the second calibration tooling 16 are as shown in Figure 7 As shown, if the radius of the second calibration tooling 16 is denoted as R, then:

[0048] When taking a certain tangent point of the second calibration tooling, such as point A, as the preset reference position of the second calibration tooling 16 in this embodiment, the offset of the position sensor relative to the preset reference position in the preset direction is the position value corresponding to the position sensor; among them, the preset direction can be set by the user himself, and can be horizontal or vertical. In the horizontal direction, the right direction is the positive direction, and in the vertical direction, the upward direction is the positive direction; if the preset direction is horizontal, then for Figure 7The position sensor at point B is located in the positive direction of point A in the transverse direction and at a position with a distance of R from point A. That is, the offset of point B relative to point A is R, so the position sensor at point B corresponds to a position value of R. For the position sensor at point C, it is located in the negative direction of point A in the transverse direction and at a position with a distance of R from point A. Then the offset of point C relative to point A is -R. Therefore, the position sensor at point C corresponds to a position value of -R.

[0049] When taking the center of the second calibration tooling as the preset reference position, each position on the circumference has its corresponding positive direction. For any position on the circumference, its positive direction is the direction from the center of the circular tooling to the position corresponding to this point. For Figure 7 the position sensor at point B in it, the positive direction of this position is the direction from the center of the circular tooling to point B. Therefore, the offset of point B relative to the center of the circle is R. By analogy, the offset of each position on the circular tooling relative to the center of the circle is R.

[0050] According to the position value corresponding to each position sensor, combined with the output value of this position sensor, the second calibration point corresponding to this position sensor is obtained. Curve fitting is performed based on the first calibration point and the second calibration point of each position sensor, and the obtained curve is used as the reference relationship curve of this position sensor. Each position sensor has a corresponding reference relationship curve. Since two points determine a straight line, the obtained curve is actually a straight line. That is, in this embodiment, for each position sensor, a position value can be uniquely determined according to the output value of this position sensor, and subsequently, the bending direction of this position sensor is determined according to this position value.

[0051] It should be noted that the endoscope can be replaced by a duodenoscope. That is, for a duodenoscope, a plurality of position sensors are respectively arranged at multiple different positions on the insertion part 11 of the duodenoscope, and then the reference relationship curves corresponding to each position sensor are obtained through the first calibration tooling 15 and the second calibration tooling 16. The difference is that when using the first calibration tooling 15, the elevator of the duodenoscope needs to be placed at the lowest position, that is, the elevator of the duodenoscope is not lifted. When using the second calibration tooling 16, the elevator of the duodenoscope needs to be placed at the highest position, that is, the elevator of the duodenoscope is lifted to the maximum value. Among them, a sensor can be installed on the elevator of the duodenoscope to prompt the height of the elevator being lifted and lowered.

[0052] Step S110: Obtain the real-time output values of each position sensor.

[0053] In this embodiment, the endoscope host is used to obtain the real-time output values of each position sensor.

[0054] Step S120: For any position sensor, based on the real-time output value of the position sensor and the corresponding reference relationship curve of the position sensor, obtain the real-time position value of the position sensor.

[0055] Obtain the position value of the position sensor based on the real-time output value of the position sensor and the corresponding reference relationship curve of the position sensor.

[0056] Step S130: Determine the real-time bending shape of the insertion part based on the real-time position values of each position sensor.

[0057] In this embodiment, the real-time bending shape of the insertion part is represented by a preset shape curve. Each position sensor corresponds to a point on the preset shape curve. Then, for any position sensor, obtain the real-time bending direction of the position sensor based on the position value of the position sensor, that is, calculate the difference between the calculated position value and the position value corresponding to the initial output value of the position sensor. Here, the initial output value of the position sensor is the first output value generated after the position sensor enters the human body. Based on the initial output value and the reference relationship curve, the position value corresponding to the initial output value can be obtained; then, based on the positive or negative situation of the obtained difference and the initial state of the shape curve, obtain the bending direction of the position sensor;

[0058] For example, when the initial state of the shape curve is a horizontal line, and the upward vertical direction is the positive direction, then for any position sensor, if the difference corresponding to the position sensor is positive, it means that the normal line of the point corresponding to the position sensor on the shape curve is upward. Here, the normal line always points to the concave side of the curve, that is, at this time on the shape curve, the point corresponding to the position sensor is concave downward; conversely, if the difference corresponding to the position sensor is negative, it means that the normal line of the point corresponding to the position sensor on the shape curve is downward, that is, at this time on the shape curve, the point corresponding to the position sensor is convex upward;

[0059] When the initial state of the shape curve is a vertical line, and the leftward direction is the positive direction, then for any position sensor, if the difference corresponding to the position sensor is positive, it means that the normal line of the point corresponding to the position sensor on the shape curve is leftward, that is, at this time on the shape curve, the point corresponding to the position sensor is concave to the right; conversely, if the difference corresponding to the position sensor is negative, it means that the normal line of the point corresponding to the position sensor on the shape curve is rightward, that is, at this time on the shape curve, the point corresponding to the position sensor is concave to the left;

[0060] Determine the real-time bending shape of the insertion part 11 based on the real-time bending directions of each position sensor, and thus draw the real-time bending shape of the entire insertion part 11 into a shape curve.

[0061] Step S140: Display the real-time bending state of the insertion part in real time.

[0062] Based on the reference relationship curves obtained by different position sensors during the calibration process in this embodiment, for any one position sensor, the position value of the position sensor is obtained according to the real-time output value of the position sensor and the corresponding reference relationship curve of the position sensor, and then the real-time bending direction of the position sensor is obtained according to the position value of the position sensor, and further the shape curve of the insertion part 11 is obtained, thereby obtaining the real-time bending state of the insertion part 11. There is no need for prior learning and training, and the bending state of the endoscope can be directly obtained. The method is simpler and more efficient.

[0063] Please refer to Figure 2 , an embodiment provides a system for monitoring the state of an endoscope, including:

[0064] An endoscope 30, wherein the endoscope includes an insertion part 11;

[0065] A plurality of position sensors 12, each position sensor is arranged at a plurality of different positions of the insertion part 11 of the endoscope;

[0066] A display 31 for displaying content, which is used to display the corresponding shape curve of the insertion part 11 of the endoscope in this embodiment, show the bending state of the insertion part 11 of the endoscope, and further guide the doctor to perform corresponding operations;

[0067] A processor 32 for executing the method for monitoring the state of the endoscope as described above, which will not be elaborated here.

[0068] Based on the reference relationship curves obtained by different position sensors during the calibration process in this embodiment, for any one position sensor, the position value of the position sensor is obtained according to the real-time output value of the position sensor and the corresponding reference relationship curve of the position sensor, and then the real-time bending direction of the position sensor is obtained according to the position value of the position sensor, and further the shape curve of the insertion part 11 is obtained, thereby obtaining the real-time bending state of the insertion part 11. There is no need for prior learning and training, and the bending state of the endoscope can be directly obtained. The method is simpler and more efficient.

[0069] Those skilled in the art can understand that all or part of the functions of the various methods in the above embodiments can be implemented in a hardware manner or in a computer program manner. When all or part of the functions in the above embodiments are implemented in a computer program manner, the program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, which may include: read-only memory, random access memory, magnetic disk, optical disk, hard disk, etc. The above functions can be realized by a computer executing the program. For example, the program is stored in the memory of the device, and when the processor executes the program in the memory, the above all or part of the functions can be realized. In addition, when all or part of the functions in the above embodiments are implemented in a computer program manner, the program can also be stored in a storage medium such as a server, another computer, magnetic disk, optical disk, flash drive or mobile hard disk, and saved to the memory of the local device by downloading or copying, or the system of the local device is updated. When the processor executes the program in the memory, all or part of the functions in the above embodiments can be realized.

[0070] The above uses specific examples to elaborate on the present invention, which is only used to help understand the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. For those skilled in the art of the present invention, according to the idea of the present invention, several simple deductions, deformations or substitutions can also be made.

Claims

1. A method for monitoring the morphology of an endoscope, the endoscope having an insertion portion, the insertion portion having a plurality of position sensors disposed at a plurality of different positions, characterized in that: include: Respectively obtaining reference relationship curves corresponding to the respective position sensors, wherein the reference relationship curve of each position sensor is used to represent the relationship between the output value of the position sensor and the position value of the position sensor; Get the real-time output value of each position sensor; For any position sensor, the real-time position value of the position sensor is obtained according to the real-time output value of the position sensor and the reference relationship curve corresponding to the position sensor; Determining the real-time bending shape of the insertion portion according to the real-time position values ​​of each position sensor; The real-time bending shape of the insertion portion is displayed in real time.

2. The method for monitoring the morphology of an endoscope according to claim 1, characterized in that: The reference relationship curve of each position sensor is obtained based on the first calibration point and the second calibration point of the position sensor; the first calibration point of each position sensor is obtained according to the output value of the position sensor when the insertion part is placed in the first calibration tool; the second calibration point of each position sensor is obtained according to the output value of the position sensor when the insertion part is placed in the second calibration tool.

3. The method for monitoring the morphology of an endoscope according to claim 2, characterized in that: The abscissa of the first calibration point of each position sensor is the position value of the position sensor on the first calibration tool, and the ordinate is the output value of the position sensor.

4. The method for monitoring the morphology of an endoscope according to claim 2, characterized in that: The abscissa of the second calibration point of each position sensor is the position value of the position sensor on the second calibration tooling, and the ordinate is the output value of the position sensor.

5. The method for monitoring the morphology of an endoscope according to claim 2, characterized in that: The reference relationship curve of each position sensor is obtained based on a first calibration point and a second calibration point of the position sensor, including: performing curve fitting according to the first calibration point and the second calibration point, and using the obtained curve as the reference relationship curve of the sensor.

6. The method for monitoring the morphology of an endoscope according to claim 1, characterized in that: The step of determining the real-time bending shape of the insertion portion according to the real-time position values ​​of each position sensor comprises: For any position sensor, the real-time bending direction of the position sensor is obtained according to the difference between the real-time position value of the position sensor and the position value corresponding to the initial output value of the position sensor; the real-time bending shape of the insertion part is determined according to the real-time bending directions of all position sensors.

7. The method for monitoring the morphology of an endoscope according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: The interval between two adjacent position sensors is a preset interval.

8. A system for monitoring the morphology of an endoscope, characterized in that: include: an endoscope, the endoscope comprising an insertion portion; a plurality of position sensors, the plurality of position sensors being disposed at a plurality of different positions of the insertion portion; A display for displaying content; A processor, configured to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

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