Stroboscopic Endoscope Light Control for Stable Vocal Cord Brightness
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing stroboscopic endoscope systems struggle with maintaining consistent image brightness during stroboscopic observation of fast-moving vocal cords, leading to fluctuations in signal-to-noise ratio and unnatural image quality due to uniform duty ratio control.
Innovation Solution
An endoscope system that calculates a first Duty target value based on previous image brightness and adjusts pulse width and emission period to achieve intended brightness, incorporating a control device to determine and control pulse light emission dynamically, and a method that updates the Duty target value to account for errors in duty ratio control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If uniform duty ratio control is applied to pulse light emission, then the control method is simple, but image brightness becomes inconsistent and signal-to-noise ratio fluctuates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamic duty ratio control where the duty ratio is adjusted for each pulse light emission based on cumulative brightness feedback. Instead of using a fixed uniform duty ratio, the system dynamically modifies the duty ratio of subsequent pulses based on the actual brightness accumulated from previous pulses, thereby achieving consistent image brightness while maintaining reasonable control complexity.
2Use of energy by moving object
If pulse width modulation is used to adjust brightness, then energy consumption is reduced, but image quality becomes unnatural due to brightness fluctuations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the actual brightness of captured images is measured and used to adjust the duty ratio of subsequent pulse light emissions. The processor calculates the cumulative brightness from previous pulses and modifies the next pulse's duty ratio accordingly, creating a closed-loop control system that maintains natural and consistent image quality while optimizing energy consumption.
3Productivity
If the light emission period is fixed based on vocal cord frequency, then stroboscopic observation is effective, but brightness control precision is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the brightness control into multiple independent pulse emissions within each imaging frame. Instead of controlling a single fixed pulse, the system divides the illumination into multiple pulses with individually adjustable duty ratios, allowing precise brightness control while maintaining the fixed emission period synchronized with vocal cord vibration frequency for effective stroboscopic observation.
Data Source
AI summary
An endoscope system includes: a light source configured to emit a pulse light; an imager configured to capture an image on a frame by frame basis; a processor configured to: determine a first Duty target value representing a Duty ratio of the pulse light to make an image that is captured in a next imaging frame have intended brightness; based on a frequency of vocal cords, determine a light emission period at a time when the pulse light is emitted; based on the first duty target value and the light emission period, determine a pulse width of the pulse light that is emitted next; and based on the light emission period and the pulse width, control the light source in light emission.