Abstract: An endoscope bending control apparatus includes: an image feature value calculating section for calculating, based on an endoscopic image, an image feature value related to a luminal dark part; a bending control section for performing bending control on a bending portion in either one of a first bending operation mode in which a position of the luminal dark part is set as an insertion target and a distal end of the insertion portion is directed to the position and a second bending operation mode in which the distal end of the insertion portion is directed in a direction of the position of the luminal dark part; an operation mode switching section for switching an operation mode from one bending operation mode to the other according to a first switching condition based on the calculated image feature value; and a switching condition changing section for changing the first switching condition.

Abstract: An endoscope system of the invention includes: an endoscope including an insertion portion, a distal end portion provided on a distal end side of the insertion portion, and a bending portion which is capable of changing a position and an orientation of the distal end portion; a position detecting section for acquiring position information on a position where the distal end portion is located; a passing target position setting section for setting a passing target position for the distal end portion; a path estimating section for estimating a path through which the distal end portion is to be passed; a bending control target position setting section for setting a bending control target position such that the distal end portion reaches the passing target position along the path; and a bending control information calculating section for calculating an amount of bending and a bending direction of the bending portion.

Abstract: Problem to Be Solved It is intended to provide an antibody having an inhibitory activity against cell malignant transformation and/or tumor cell growth, etc. Solution The present invention provides an antibody which recognizes an epitope recognized by an antibody produced by a hybridoma SH348-1 (FERM BP-10836) or a hybridoma SH357-1 (FERM BP-10837), an antibody produced by the hybridoma SH348-1 or the hybridoma SH357-1, an antibody obtained by humanizing the antibody produced by the hybridoma SH348-1 or the hybridoma SH357-1, a pharmaceutical agent comprising the antibody as an active ingredient, etc.

Abstract: An endoscope system includes: an endoscope for picking up an image in a body cavity by an image pickup apparatus provided in a distal end of an insertion portion; a position detecting apparatus for detecting, based on luminal information acquired by the image pickup apparatus, position information used for inserting the distal end of the insertion portion; a recording apparatus for recording, in a time-sequential manner, the position information detected by the position detecting apparatus; a determining apparatus for determining whether or not the detecting operation of the position information performed by the position detecting apparatus satisfies a set condition; and a direction calculating apparatus for, when the determination result shows that the set condition is not satisfied, reading out the position information recorded in the recording apparatus and outputting information on a direction in which the distal end of the insertion portion is to be inserted.

Abstract: A surgical instrument having a surgical unit which operates on an operating portion in a body cavity, an accommodation portion capable of accommodating the surgical unit. The surgical instrument having movement manipulation mechanism connected to the surgical unit for moving the surgical unit to a position at which the surgical unit is accommodated in the accommodation portion and to a position at which the surgical unit is exposed from the accommodation portion along the inside of the accommodation portion.

Abstract: A CCD solid state imaging module comprises a CCD area sensor, a substrate bias voltage setting device formed on said CCD area sensor for outputting a voltage, and a substrate bias voltage outputting device formed on a chip other than said CCD area sensor for outputting a substrate bias voltage of said CCD area sensor by selecting one voltage level from a plurality of voltages based on the voltage output by said substrate bias voltage setting device. A solid state imaging module suitable for a CCD area sensor having multiple driving modes can be provided.

Abstract: An endoscopic system includes a surgical instrument position control apparatus. The surgical instrument position control apparatus estimates motion of an endoscope main body with respect to a target site, based on an image picked up in conjunction with movement of an endoscope. To determine the moving amount of the surgical instrument, the surgical instrument position control apparatus calculates the amounts of operations, such as bending, rotation, and forward and backward movements, of each joint of a surgical arm section which amounts are required to move the surgical instrument from a position taken by the surgical instrument after movement of the endoscope to a surgical procedure position. The surgical instrument position control apparatus thus bends each joint to move the surgical section to the original surgical procedure position so as to hold the position of the surgical instrument every time the endoscope is moved.

Abstract: A multijointed bending mechanism having a first bending piece, a second bending piece connected to the first bending piece so as to be rotatable around a first rotation shaft, a third bending piece connected to the second bending piece so as to be rotatable around a second rotation shaft, at least two first wires connected to the first bending piece to rotate the first bending piece and at least two second wires connected to the second bending piece to rotate the second bending piece. The first wires are disposed inwards of the second wires with respect to a vertical direction of the first and second rotation shafts.

Abstract: A multijointed bending mechanism having a first bending piece, a second bending piece connected to the first bending piece so as to be rotatable around a first rotation shaft, a third bending piece connected to the second bending piece so as to be rotatable around a second rotation shaft, at least two first wires connected to the first bending piece to rotate the first bending piece and at least two second wires connected to the second bending piece to rotate the second bending piece. The first wires and the second wires are disposed concentrically with respect to a vertical direction of the first rotation shaft and the second rotation shaft.

Abstract: A multijointed bending mechanism having a first bending piece, a second bending piece connected to the first bending piece so as to be rotatable around a first rotation shaft, a third bending piece connected to the second bending piece so as to be rotatable around a second rotation shaft, at least two first wires connected to the first bending piece to rotate the first bending piece and at least two second wires connected to the second bending piece to rotate the second bending piece. The second wires are disposed inwards of the first wires with respect to a vertical direction of the first and second rotation shafts.

Abstract: A movable portion is movable from a closed position, in which the movable portion is in contact with a valve element, to an opened position so as to supply fuel from a fuel portion to a compression chamber through a fuel passage. A drive control unit supplies of a small driving current, which is sufficient to maintain the movable portion at the closed position, to a coil portion so as to move the movable portion from the opened position to the closed position. The drive control unit switches the supply of the small driving current to supply of the large driving current in the course of the movement of the movable portion to the closed position by supplying the small driving current.

Abstract: A fuel supply apparatus includes a movable unit, a coil, a drive circuit portion, and a drive control portion. The drive circuit portion energizes the coil with a drive electric current of a first value such that the movable unit is displaced from an opening-side position to a closing-side position. The drive circuit portion energizes the coil with the drive electric current of a second value that is smaller than the first value such that the movable unit is held at the closing-side position. The drive control portion controls the drive circuit portion to change the drive electric current from the first value to the second value while the movable unit is being displaced toward the closing-side position based on energization of the coil with the drive electric current of the first value.

Abstract: An electric power steering (EPS) apparatus 1 includes a motor 12, an EPS actuator 10, a torque sensor 14, and an ECU 11. The EPS actuator 10 uses the motor 12 as a drive source to apply assist force to a steering system, thereby assisting a steering operation. The torque sensor 14 detects a steering torque ? of the steering system. The ECU 11 controls the operation of the EPS actuator 10. Based on the steering torque ? detected by the torque sensor 14, the ECU 11 computes a basic shift amount ?ts_b of the assist force applied to the steering system. The ECU 11 determines which one of returning, holding, and turning is the state of the steering operation. When the state of the steering operation is returning or holding, the ECU 11 executes compensation control for correcting the steering torque ?, which is used in the computation of the basic shift amount ?ts_b of the assist force, thereby increasing the assist force applied to the steering system.

Abstract: In an endoscopic system, when an affected area of a biomedical tissue in an image is treated with a scalpel and a holding pair of forceps which movably extend from a distal portion of an endoscope through the endoscope while the image taken by the endoscope in a body cavity in a time-series manner is being observed, a treatment is performed in which the holding pair of forceps holds the affected area detached from the biomedical tissue by the scalpel. When any motion is detected in the distal portion of the endoscope included in the image, a motion direction and a motion amount of the distal portion of the endoscope attributed to the motion are detected, and the distal portion of the endoscope is curved to return the scalpel to an original treatment position.

Abstract: A medical device for examination or treatment based on a reference point A1, including: a virtual endoscopic image generation section configured to generate a virtual endoscopic image from a plurality of different sight line positions using three-dimensional image data of a bronchus that is obtained in advance; an image retrieving section configured to retrieve a virtual endoscopic image highly similar to a real image; a reference-point setting section configured to set the reference point A1 based on a line-of-sight position A0 of the highly similar virtual endoscopic image; a relative-position calculation section configured to calculate a relative position of a treatment instrument to the reference point A1; a movement detection section configured to detect a movement of the reference point A1 or the bronchus; and a position correction section configured to correct the relative position in response to the movement of the reference point A1 or the bronchus.

Abstract: There is provided a medical image processing apparatus including an image-extracting section extracting a frame image from in vivo motion picture data picked up by an in vivo image pickup device or a plurality of consecutively picked-up still image data, and an image analysis section analyzing the frame image extracted by the image-extracting section to output an image analysis result. The image analysis section includes a first biological-feature detection section detecting a first biological feature, a second biological-feature detection section detecting, based on a detection result obtained by the first biological feature detection section, a second biological feature in a frame image picked up temporally before or after the image used for detection by the first biological feature detection section; and a condition determination section making a determination for a biological condition based on a detection result obtained by the second biological feature detection section to output the determination.

Abstract: A reference heater energization delay time is established according to an engine conditions (shift range, cooling water temperature, intake-air temperature, ambient temperature, and oil temperature) during starting period. An extension delay time is established according to an engine condition after starting period. A final heater energization delay time is established by adding the extension delay time to the reference heater energization delay time. Until an elapsed time after starting period of engine reaches the final heater energization delay time, an energization of a heater of an exhaust gas sensor is inhibited. When the elapsed time after starting period of engine reaches the final heater energization delay time, the energization of the heater is started to heat a sensor element.

Abstract: The invention provides an endoscope inserting direction detecting apparatus and method with which the direction of a lumen can be determined reliably despite a simple configuration. The endoscope inserting direction detecting apparatus includes a pixel sampling unit that samples a stated pixel value from each of domains constituting an endoscopic image received by an image input/output control circuit; a shape-of-range estimating unit that estimates the shape of a range within the endoscopic image according to the continuity of the distribution of the pixels indicating the stated pixel value; and an inserting direction determining unit that determines an inserting direction within a body cavity, in which an endoscope should be further inserted, on the basis of the estimated shape. The inserting direction is displayed together with the endoscopic image.

Abstract: An endoscope system includes an endoscope with a bending portion installed on a distal side of an insertion portion; a bending drive unit which drives and bends the bending portion electrically; a map information storage unit which stores map information digitized by associating an amount of bending and a corresponding three-dimensional position and direction of a distal end of the insertion portion with each other, with a position near a rear end of the bending portion being designated as a reference position; a position and direction detecting unit which detects the position and direction of the distal end of the insertion portion; and a bending control unit which controls the bending drive unit to orient the distal end of the insertion portion into a target direction using the map information.

Abstract: An information processing apparatus which is capable of generating XPS data having a data sequence suited to print settings for non-normal-order printing, from XPS data generated as a print spool file for normal-order printing. In the information processing apparatus, a layout filter receives an XPS document from a filter pipeline manager, and acquires print setting information indicative of print settings from the XPS document. Then, the layout filter determines a data sequence for printing based on the acquired print setting information. Then, the layout filter changes layout information described in the received XPS document according to the determined data sequence, and rearranges data files in the XPS document in a sequence determined based on the changed layout information, to thereby generate an XPS document.