High-speed digital slice scanning system

Abstract

A high-speed digital slice scanning system comprises an objective table, a supporting frame, a scanner host and a macroscopic camera, and the supporting frame is provided with a table top; the objective table is placed on the table top, the table top is provided with a first working position or a second working position, and the objective table is further provided with a slicing base capable of moving in the first direction or the second direction; the scanner host is located above the first working position and is arranged along a third direction; and the macroscopic camera is located at a position which forms a set angle with the imaging light path at the second working position. According to the utility model, motion superposition of the imaging system and the slice can be avoided, so that the scanning speed is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the field of digital slice scanning systems, in particular to a high-speed digital slice scanning system. Background Art

[0002] The digital slide scanning system is a device that quickly scans pathological slides into high-resolution digital images containing all tissue information. Scanning speed is one of the important indicators for evaluating the performance of a digital slide scanning system. In order to improve the scanning speed of the scanning system, the adoption of multi-dimensional joint improvements such as optics, machinery, and electricity has become a common choice for many scanning system manufacturers.

[0003] The existing digital scanning system includes a three-axis moving stage, a stage, a scanner host and a macro camera, etc. The three-axis moving stage is provided with an X-axis, a Y-axis and a Z-axis, wherein the Z-axis is fixed on the Y-axis and moves with the Y-axis. The converter and the objective lens on the scanner host are fixed on the Z-axis and move slightly along the Z direction with the Z-axis and move with the Y-axis at the same time; the tube lens group, the focusing group and the scanning camera group in the imaging system are fixed on the Y-axis and move with the Y-axis. With this structure, the imaging system and the slice specimen are moving during the scanning process, and the vibration caused by the motion superposition will cause the image to be blurred. In order to ensure the imaging quality, the scanning speed has to be reduced, which reduces the efficiency of the system.

[0004] In addition, the stage uses a small backlight and macro camera, which can only take a macro image of one slice at a time. The optical system has a small field of view. The same size specimen is divided into more fields of view, which requires more shots, and it takes more time. The scanning camera on the scanner host is usually a scanning camera triggered by software, and the system communication is time-consuming and has delays. Utility Model Content

[0005] The main purpose of the utility model is to overcome the defect of the existing digital slice scanning system that the scanning speed is affected by the motion superposition of the slice and the imaging system, and to propose a high-speed digital slice scanning system to avoid the motion superposition of the imaging system and the slice, thereby improving the scanning speed.

[0006] The utility model adopts the following technical solutions:

[0007] A high-speed digital slice scanning system includes a stage, a support frame, a scanner host and a macro camera, wherein the support frame is provided with a table top; the stage is placed on the table top, and is characterized in that: a first working position or a second working position is provided on the table top, and a slice seat movable along a first direction or a second direction is also provided on the stage; the scanner host is located above the first working position and arranged along a third direction; the macro camera is located at a position which forms a set angle with the imaging light path at the second working position.

[0008] Furthermore, a mounting plate is provided on the support frame, the mounting plate is vertically connected to the table top and is located on one side of the stage, and a window is provided on the mounting plate relative to the second working position; the macro camera is fixed to the side of the mounting plate facing away from the stage and is located at the window; the scanner host is connected to the mounting plate.

[0009] Furthermore, a reflector is included, and the reflector is located above the second working position to bend the imaging light path toward the macro camera.

[0010] Furthermore, the support frame also includes a bracket, which is fixed relative to the mounting plate and is provided with a mounting seat, the mounting seat is inclined and is provided with a mounting groove, the reflector is installed on the mounting groove, and the side of the reflector opposite to the window faces the second working position and the macro camera.

[0011] Furthermore, the stage further comprises a base and a slide, wherein the base is located on the table top, the slide can move relative to the base along a first direction, and the slicing seat can move relative to the slide along a second direction.

[0012] Furthermore, the slice seat is provided with a receiving groove to accommodate the slice rack, and the slice rack is provided with a plurality of slice grooves distributed along the second direction to place slices; a backlight source is provided at the bottom of the receiving groove, and the size of the backlight source is larger than the sum of the sizes of the two slice grooves.

[0013] Furthermore, it also includes a driving module, which is connected to the slide and the slice seat to drive the slice seat to move along the first direction or the second direction; a hardware trigger camera is used on the scanner host, and the hardware trigger camera is connected to the driving module to trigger the hardware trigger camera when the slice to be scanned on the slice seat reaches the first working position.

[0014] It can be seen from the above description of the utility model that compared with the prior art, the utility model has the following beneficial effects:

[0015] 1. In the present invention, the slice seat of the stage is arranged to be movable along the first direction or the second direction, and the scanner main unit is arranged to be connected to the support frame and arranged along the third direction, so as to avoid synchronous movement of the imaging system and the slice, reduce image blur caused by vibration caused by motion superposition, and thus improve the scanning speed.

[0016] 2. In the utility model, a mounting plate is provided to connect the scanning assembly and the macro camera, and a window is provided at the second working position, and the macro camera is located at the window to ensure that the tube lens group, the focusing group and the scanning camera of the scanner host are fixed relative to the support frame when working.

[0017] 3. In the utility model, a reflector is also arranged above the second working position to bend the imaging light path toward the macro camera. The macro camera adopts a large field of view and a large-size backlight source on the stage, and can take two or more macro images at the same time, which reduces the macro image shooting time and further increases the scanning speed.

[0018] 4. In the present invention, the scanning camera uses a hardware trigger camera and is configured to trigger the scanning camera when the slice is in place, without the need for system communication and response time.

[0019] 5. In the present invention, after adopting multi-dimensional improvement measures, the speed of the scanning system can be improved, achieving the expected goal of high-speed scanning. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] Figure 1 This is the main structural diagram of the utility model;

[0021] Figure 2 for Figure 1 Side view of

[0022] Figure 3 for Figure 1 Side view of (with bracket removed);

[0023] Figure 4 for Figure 1 Exploded diagram of

[0024] Figure 5 Decomposition for stage Figure 1 ;

[0025] Figure 6 Decomposition for stage Figure 2 ;

[0026] Figure 7 for Figure 1 A top view of

[0027] Figure 8 Schematic diagram of the position of the reflector and macro camera;

[0028] in:

[0029] 10. Support frame; 11. Table; 12. Mounting plate; 13. Window; 14. Bracket; 15. Mounting seat; 20. Stage; 20a. Slice seat; 21. Slice rack; 22. Backlight source; 23. Base; 24. Slide; 25. First guide rail; 26. Second guide rail; 27. Slice slot; 28. Accommodating slot; 29. ​​Slice; 30. Scanner host; 31. Scanning camera; 40. Macro camera; 50. Reflector. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] The present invention is further described below through specific implementation methods.

[0031] The terms "first" and "second" appearing in the present invention are only for the convenience of description to distinguish different components with the same name, and do not indicate a sequence or primary and secondary relationship.

[0032] In the description of the present invention, the directions or positional relationships indicated by “up”, “down”, “left”, “right”, “front” and “back” are based on the directions or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention. They do not indicate or imply that the device referred to must have a specific direction, be constructed and operated in a specific direction. Therefore, they cannot be understood as limiting the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0033] In addition, in the description of this application, unless otherwise specified, "plurality" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. The character " / " generally indicates that the associated objects are in an "or" relationship.

[0034] See also Figures 1 to 7 A high-speed digital slice scanning system includes a stage 20, a support frame 10, a scanner host 30, a macro camera 40, etc. The support frame 10 is provided with a table 11, and the table 11 can be located on the upper surface of the support frame 10. The stage 20 is placed on the table 11, and the table 11 is provided with a first working position a and a second working position b, and the first working position a and the second working position b are arranged along a second direction. The stage 20 is also provided with a slice seat 20a that can move along the first direction or the second direction, and the slice seat 20a is used to place a slice rack 21, so that the slice 29 on the slice rack 21 can be moved and switched between the first working position a, the second working position b or other positions.

[0035] The scanner host 30 is located above the first working position a and arranged along the third direction. The scanner host 30 is provided with a scanning camera 31, a tube lens group, a focusing group, etc. These structures are fixed relative to the support frame 10 and do not move synchronously with the slice rack 21 in the first direction or the second direction, thereby avoiding vibration caused by the superposition of the imaging system and the slice movement. The scanning camera 31 is used to scan the slice 29 to be scanned at the first working position a to obtain a scanned image.

[0036] In the present invention, the first direction, the second direction and the third direction are three directions perpendicular to each other. Figure 1 In the example, the first direction is the X-axis direction, the second direction is the Y-axis direction, and the third direction is the Z-axis direction.

[0037] The macro camera 40 is located at a set angle to the imaging light path of the second working position b. The macro camera 40 is used to collect a macro image of the slice 29 located at the second working position b. The macro image is used for the scanning system to locate the specimen on the slice, etc.

[0038] In order to ensure the relative positions of the scanner host 30, the macro camera 40 and other structures, a mounting plate 12 is provided on the support frame 10. The mounting plate 12 is vertically connected to the table 11 and is located on one side of the stage 20. The mounting plate 12 is arranged along the second direction. The scanner host 30 is connected to the mounting plate 12, and the two are detachably connected. A window 13 is provided at the mounting plate 12 relative to the second working position b; the macro camera 40 is fixed to the side of the mounting plate 12 facing away from the stage 20 and is located at the window 13.

[0039] A backlight source 22 is provided on the stage 20 to provide backlight for the slice 29 . In order to locate the macro camera 40 on the imaging light path, a reflector 50 is also included. The reflector 50 is located above the second working position b to bend the imaging light path toward the macro camera 40 .

[0040] Furthermore, the support frame 10 also includes a bracket 14, which is fixed relative to the mounting plate 12 and is provided with a mounting seat 15, which is tilted and provided with a mounting groove, and the reflector 50 is detachably mounted on the mounting groove and positioned in cooperation with the pressing piece. The side of the reflector 50 relative to the window 13 faces the second working position b on the table 11 and the macro camera 40, that is, the reflective surface of the reflector 50 is opposite to the position of the backlight source 22 and the macro camera 40 at the same time. Among them, the tilt angle of the mounting seat 15 can be set according to the tilt angle of the reflector 50, see Figure 7 , taking the example that the angle between the plane where the reflective mirror 50 is located and the plane where the slice rack 21 of the stage 20 is located is 45°, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0041] In the present invention, the stage 20 adopts a two-dimensional mobile platform structure, which includes a base 23 and a slide 24. The base 23 is located on the table 11, the slide 24 is located on the base 23 and can move relative to the base 23 along a first direction, and the slice seat 20a is located on the slide 24 and can move relative to the slide 24 along a second direction. Among them, two first guide rails 25 are provided on one side of the slide 24 that slides with the base 23, and two second guide rails 26 are provided on one side of the slide 24 that slides with the slice seat 20a.

[0042] In addition, the table 11 is provided with a light source at the first working position a, and the base 23 and the slide seat 24 of the stage 20 are provided with corresponding holes to avoid blocking the light source.

[0043] Furthermore, the slice rack 21 is provided with a plurality of slice slots 27 distributed along the second direction. The number of the slice slots 27 is set according to the size of the slice rack 21, and can be two, three, four, five or even six, etc., and six are taken as an example in the figure. The slice seat 20a is provided with a receiving slot 28 to accommodate the slice rack 21, and a backlight source 22 is provided at the bottom of the receiving slot 28, and the size of the backlight source 22 is larger than the sum of the sizes of the two slice slots 27. Correspondingly, the macro camera 40 adopts a large-sized macro camera 40 to ensure that the macro camera 40 can simultaneously take macro images of two slices 29 at a time. The large-sized macro camera 40 here refers to a macro camera with a higher pixel, for example, a macro camera with a pixel of 1200W. By adopting a large-sized macro camera 40 and a backlight source 22, two or more macro images can be taken at the same time, which reduces the time for taking macro images.

[0044] The utility model also includes a driving module, which is connected to the slide 24 and the slice holder 20a, and is used to drive the slide 24 to drive the slice holder 20a and the slice rack 21 to move along the first direction, or drive the slice holder 20a and the slice rack 21 to move along the second direction. In addition to the first working position a and the second working position b, the stage 20 is also provided with a film ejection position, etc. When the slice rack 21 moves to the film ejection position, the slice 29 can be removed from the slice rack 21. In the utility model, the scanning camera 31 on the scanner host 30 adopts a hardware trigger camera, which is connected to the driving module, and the hardware trigger camera is triggered when the slice 29 to be scanned on the slice rack 21 reaches the first working position a. By presetting that the slice 29 to be scanned on the slice rack 21 moves to the first working position a, the driving module sends information to the trigger terminal of the hardware trigger camera, triggering the hardware trigger camera to perform a scanning operation. The driving module can be implemented by a plurality of linear motors or other linear motion drive structures.

[0045] The system of the utility model also includes a control system, which is connected to the stage 20, the scanner host 30, the macro camera 40, the drive module, etc., and is used to control the various modules to work together. The scanning camera can also use an optical system with a large field of view to reduce the field of view number (the number of main camera scanning resources), thereby reducing the scanning time.

[0046] The specific working principle is as follows:

[0047] When scanning is ready to start, the control system controls the driving module to move the slice holder 20a and the slice rack 21 on the stage 20 to the second working position b; after the slice rack 21 with the slice 29 is inserted into the receiving groove 28, the control system detects whether the slice rack 21 is inserted in place, and controls the macro camera 40 to take macro images of two slices 29 at the same time, and then drives the slice rack 21 to move to the first working position a, i.e., the scanning position, and the hardware scanning camera 31 is triggered to start scanning immediately. When the scanning is completed, the driving module drives the slice rack 21 to move to the ejection position, at which time the slice rack 21 can be easily taken out.

[0048] The structure of the utility model fixes the key components of the imaging system of the scanner host 30, thereby avoiding the simultaneous movement of the imaging system and the sliced ​​specimen, and preventing the image from being blurred due to vibration superimposed by the movement, so that the scanning system can run at full speed. Also, because the scanner host 30 adopts an optical system with a large field of view, the number of fields of view required to be photographed can be reduced by about 40%, which is equivalent to an increase in the scanning speed; the hardware-triggered scanning camera 31 is used, and the scanning is performed as soon as it is in place, without the need for system communication and response time. After adopting the above multi-dimensional improvement measures, the speed of the scanning system can be increased by about 3 times, perfectly achieving the expected goal of high-speed scanning.

[0049] The above is only a specific implementation method of the utility model, but the design concept of the utility model is not limited to this. Any non-substantial changes to the utility model using this concept shall be deemed as an infringement of the protection scope of the utility model.

Claims

1. A high-speed digital slide scanning system, comprising a stage, a support frame, a scanner host and a macro camera, wherein the support frame is provided with a table; the stage is placed on the table, characterized in that: A first working position or a second working position is arranged on the table top, and a slice seat movable along a first direction or a second direction is also arranged on the stage; the scanner host is located above the first working position and arranged along a third direction; the macro camera is located at a position which is at a set angle to the imaging light path at the second working position.

2. A high-speed digital slide scanning system as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: A mounting plate is provided on the support frame, the mounting plate is vertically connected to the table top and is located on one side of the stage, and a window is provided on the mounting plate relative to the second working position; the macro camera is fixed on the side of the mounting plate facing away from the stage and is located at the window; the scanner host is connected to the mounting plate.

3. A high-speed digital slide scanning system as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that: Also included is a reflector, which is located above the second working position to bend the imaging light path toward the macro camera.

4. A high-speed digital slide scanning system as claimed in claim 3, characterized in that: The support frame also includes a bracket, which is fixed relative to the mounting plate and is provided with a mounting seat, the mounting seat is inclined and is provided with a mounting groove, the reflector is installed on the mounting groove, and the side of the reflector opposite to the window faces the second working position and the macro camera.

5. A high-speed digital slide scanning system as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: The stage further comprises a base and a slide seat, wherein the base is located on the table surface, the slide seat can move relative to the base along a first direction, and the slicing seat can move relative to the slide seat along a second direction.

6. A high-speed digital slide scanning system as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that: The slice seat is provided with a receiving groove to accommodate the slice rack, and the slice rack is provided with a plurality of slice grooves distributed along the second direction to place slices; a backlight source is provided at the bottom of the receiving groove, and the size of the backlight source is larger than the sum of the sizes of the two slice grooves.

7. A high-speed digital slide scanning system as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that: It also includes a driving module, which is connected to the slide and the slice seat to drive the slice seat to move along the first direction or the second direction; a hardware trigger camera is used on the scanner host, and the hardware trigger camera is connected to the driving module to trigger the hardware trigger camera when the slice to be scanned on the slice seat reaches the first working position.

Images