Capsule Camera Bi-directional Optical Communication
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Solution Overview
Problem
Capsule cameras for imaging the gastrointestinal tract lack a means for two-way communication with the external environment, limiting post-encapsulation testing and potential applications due to the absence of wireless communication capabilities, particularly a receiver and corresponding protocol circuitry or software.
Innovation Solution
The capsule camera utilizes its image sensor and LED lighting system to communicate with the external environment by capturing and decoding specific image patterns, sequences, or color patterns to receive commands and data, and uses LEDs to transmit information without requiring conventional radio frequency wireless equipment, enabling bi-directional communication.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If conventional radio frequency wireless equipment (transmitter, receiver, antenna) is used for communication, then communication capability is achieved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The image sensor and LED lighting system are made to serve dual purposes: their primary function for imaging and a secondary function for wireless communication. The image sensor receives optical patterns as commands, and the LED system transmits optical patterns as data, eliminating the need for dedicated RF communication components while enabling bi-directional communication capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the electromagnetic RF communication system with an optical communication system. Instead of using radio frequency waves for data transmission, the system uses visible light patterns transmitted through the GI tract, substituting the RF electromagnetic field with an optical field that can be detected by the existing image sensor.
2Adaptability or versatility
If receiver and protocol circuitry are added for two-way communication, then communication functionality improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The image sensor is designed to perform both its traditional imaging function and the additional function of receiving communication commands through optical patterns. The LED lighting system similarly serves both illumination purposes and data transmission purposes, eliminating the need for separate receiver circuitry while enabling two-way communication.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses its existing imaging components (image sensor and LED lighting system) to provide communication functionality without requiring separate dedicated communication hardware. The image sensor 'services' both imaging and communication reception, while the LED system 'services' both illumination and data transmission, reducing overall device complexity.
3Device complexity
If optical communication patterns are used instead of RF signals, then device complexity is reduced, but communication speed and bandwidth are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The optical communication system uses temporal patterns and sequences of light emissions to encode data. By modulating the LED lighting system in specific temporal patterns and using sequence recognition, the system achieves communication functionality without requiring complex hardware, accepting that the communication speed is limited by the imaging frame rate rather than RF bandwidth.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach allows for effective post-encapsulation testing and enhanced functionality, including parameter updates and customized operations, without increasing the camera's size or cost, thereby improving performance and flexibility.
Implementation Method 1
The capsule camera utilizes its image sensor and LED lighting system to communicate with the external environment by capturing and decoding specific image patterns, sequences, or color patterns
Implementation Method 2
uses LEDs to transmit information without requiring conventional radio frequency wireless equipment
Data Source
AI summary
A method for transmitting data to a camera without requiring in the camera a conventional wireless transmission capability includes (a) in the camera's field of view, providing an object which forms an image on which the data is encoded; (b) capturing an image of the object using optics of the camera; and (c) recovering the data from the image of the object. The data is encoded by an optically detectable quantity (e.g., light intensity or color) or a pattern in one or more portions of the object. The data can be carried by the distribution of the optically detectable quantity within the image or its derivative. The field of view of the camera may be divided into multiple sub-areas to allow providing multiple data-bearing images. A sequence of such images may be used to increase the amount of data that can be transmitted in this manner.