Abstract: A method of adaptively displaying images captured using a camera according to quality of image matching. The system utilizes the quality of image matching to guide whether to stitch underlying images or not. The quality of image matching is measured between two images to be matched. The image is declared as a high-confidence image or a low-confidence image according to the quality of image matching. The high-confidence images are stitched into one or more larger composite pictures and displayed on a display device. On the other hand, the low-confidence images are displayed as individual images without stitching.

Abstract: A method of processing images captured using a capsule camera is disclosed. According to one embodiment, two images designated as a reference image and a float image are received, where the float image corresponds to a captured capsule image and the reference image corresponds to a previously composite image or another captured capsule image prior to the float image. Automatic segmentation is applied to the float image and the reference image to detect any non-GI (non-gastrointestinal) region. The non-GI regions are excluded in match measure between the reference image and a deformed float image during the registration process. The two images are stitched together by rendering the two images at the common coordinate. In another embodiment, large area of non-GI regions are removed directly from the input image, and remaining portions are stitched together to form a new image without performing image registration.

Abstract: A method of automatic allocation of processing power and system resource for an image viewing and processing application is disclosed. The usage of a processing unit or system resources consumed by other computing-processes on the computer is determined. The usage required by the image viewing and processing application is determined. Then, based on the usage consumed by other computing-processes and the usage required by the image viewing and processing application, the adequacy of the processing unit or system resources for executing the image viewing and processing application is assessed. If the adequacy of the processing unit or system resources for executing the image viewing and processing application is not satisfied, the usage of the processing unit or system resources consumed by other computing-processes associated with other applications is displayed. Also, options to select one or more other applications for termination via a user interface are displayed.

Abstract: A method of processing images captured using an in vivo capsule camera is disclosed. Input images captured by the in vivo capsule camera are received and used as to-be-processed images. At least one locally-deformed stitched image is generated by applying local deformation to image areas in a vicinity of a seam between two to-be-processed images and stitching the two locally deformed to-be-processed images. Output images including the at least one locally-deformed stitched image are provided for display or further processing. The process to generate at least one locally-deformed stitched image may comprise identifying an optimal seam between the two to-be-processed images and applying the local deformation to the image areas in the vicinity of the optimal seam. The process of identifying the optimal seam comprises minimizing differences of an object function across the optimal seam. The object function may correspond to image intensity or derivative of the image intensity.

Abstract: An endoscopy capsule having an image collecting capacity includes a deformable member configured to inflate when exposed to body liquid. The deformable member includes an effervescent material. When the effervescent reacts with water the resulting Carbon-Dioxide gas reduces the specific gravity of the endoscopy capsule. The capsule is contained within a shell or dome when swallowed. The shell or dome is configured dissolve in either a low or high pH environment.

Abstract: A capsule camera device is disclosed, where the capsule camera device comprises multiple light sources with different spectral characteristics for illuminating lumen walls selectively based on a determined capsule location in the gastrointestinal tract. The capsule camera device includes two or more light sources, an image sensor, a battery, a control module and a housing to enclose the above components in a sealed environment. The control module is used to select one or more selected light sources from said at least two light sources depending on a determined capsule location in the GI tract. Only the selected light source or light sources will be used for illumination in the determined capsule location. The light sources may comprise a white light source and a blue light source with a high spectral concentration at about 415 nm or another light source of different spectral characteristics.

Abstract: A capsule device with density control is disclosed, where the density of the capsule device is set to desired specific gravities when it travels to designated regions of the gastrointestinal track. The density control means will cause at least two specific gravities of the capsule device for at least two designated regions of the gastrointestinal track respectively, wherein each of said at least two specific gravities is selected from a first group consisting of a greater-than-one state and a less-than-one state. In one embodiment, the greater-than-one state correspond to the specific gravity of about 1.1 or larger and the less-than-one state corresponds to the specific gravity of about 0.94 or smaller.

Abstract: A method for determining an object's size based on calibration data is disclosed. The calibration data is measured by capturing images with an image sensor and a lens module, having at least one objective, of the capsule camera at a plurality of object distances and/or back focal distances and deriving from the images characterizing a focus of each objective for at least one color plane. Images of lumen walls of gastrointestinal (GI) tract are captured using the capsule camera. Object distance for at least one region in the current image is estimated based on the camera calibration data and relative sharpness of the current image in at least two color planes. The size of the object is estimated based on the object distance estimated for one or more regions overlapping with an object image of the object and the size of the object image.

Abstract: A capsule endoscopic system with movement control is disclosed. The capsule endoscopic system comprises a capsule endoscopic device and a processor. The capsule endoscopic device comprises a capsule housing, an image sensor, one or more electrodes disposed fixedly through the capsule housing and a signal generation/signal driver unit. The image sensor captures images when the capsule endoscopic device travels inside a patient's gastrointestinal track. The processor derives quantified movement of the capsule endoscopic device based on the images captured using the image sensor. The electrodes apply electrical stimulus to living body tissue in the patient's gastrointestinal track. The signal generation/signal driver unit provides the electrical stimulus generated according to the quantified movement of the capsule endoscopic device to adjust movement of the capsule endoscopic device. The image sensor and the signal generation/signal driver unit are inside the capsule housing.

Abstract: A capsule endoscopic device with movement control is disclosed. The capsule endoscopic device comprises a capsule housing, one or more electrodes disposed fixedly through the capsule housing, a signal generation/signal driver unit, an interface circuit and a switch module. The electrodes apply electrical stimulus to living body tissue in a patient's gastrointestinal track. The signal generation/signal driver unit generates the electrical stimulus for the electrodes. The switch module is coupled to the electrodes, the signal generation/signal driver unit and the interface circuit. Furthermore, the switch module is configured to connect the electrodes to the signal generation/signal driver unit or the interface circuit depending on an operation mode.

Abstract: The present invention discloses reliable image storage for a capsule camera device comprising a light source, an image sensor, an archival memory and a processing module within a housing. The processing module is configured to store the image frames in the archival memory so that any N consecutive image frames are stored in non-contiguous memory areas of the archival memory or to transmit any N consecutive image frames in separate wireless channels. In one embodiment, the processing module is configured to generate a first sequence and a second sequence from the image frames, and to store the first sequence in a first memory area of the archival memory or transmit in a first wireless channel, and to store the second sequence in a second memory area of the archival memory or to transmit in a second wireless channel.

Abstract: A method and system for displaying images captured by an in vivo imaging device are disclosed. Embodiments according to the present invention display image sequence data in a first display area. When a first annotated image is displayed in the first display area, a first thumbnail image in a second display area corresponding to the first annotated image is replaced to indicate an occurring correspondence between the first annotated image and the first thumbnail image corresponding to the first annotated image being displayed. In one embodiment, the method further comprises displaying the first thumbnail image in the second display area when one other image of the image sequence data is displayed in the first display area after the first annotated image is displayed.

Abstract: An integrated image sensor circuit with multiple power modes is disclosed. The integrated circuit comprises a pixel array, an analog block to process analog signal associated with the pixel array, where the analog block comprises an analog to digital convertor (ADC), and a first control circuit to enable/disable the analog block or to configure the analog block to a high/low-power mode depending on whether the pixel array is in a readout frame or in a reset frame with no active readout. The integrated image sensor circuit may further comprise a post-processing block and a second control circuit to enable/disable the post-processing block or to configure the post-processing block to the high-power mode or the low-power mode depending on whether the pixel array is in the readout frame or in the reset frame with no active readout.

Abstract: A method of processing images captured by an in vivo capsule camera is disclosed. The images having large overlap exceeding a threshold are stitched into larger images. If the current image and none of its neighboring images has large overlap, the current image is designated as a non-stitched image. Any image, that exists between two images stitched and is not included in the stitched image, is also designated as a non-stitched image. The large-overlap stitching can be performed on the images iteratively by treating the stitched images and non-stitched image as to be processed images in the next round. A second stage stitching can be applied to stitch small-overlap images. The small-overlap image stitching can also be applied iteratively. A third stage stitching can be further applied to stitch the output images from the second stage processing.

Abstract: A method for presentation of image sequence data is disclosed. The intensity of the image sequence data is used to derive the navigation guide. Each representative data may correspond to an average pixel value, a median pixel value, a minimum value, or a maximum value of the sub-image or said one or more images. Each representative data may also comprise a term proportional to a mathematical product of adjusted color values. The series of representative data can be plotted along with highlighting an area between a curve corresponding to the series of representative data and a coordinate axis by filling the area with a highlight color. Each representative data may comprise a minimum value and a maximum value associated with the sub-image, or one or more images.

Abstract: The present invention discloses a capsule device with textured structural surface so that the capsule device has desired surface properties when it travels through designated regions in the gastrointestinal tract. The capsule device according to the present invention comprises a sensor and a capsule housing, where the sensor is sealed in the capsule housing. The capsule housing having a textured surface to cover at least one region of an exterior surface of the capsule housing to increase holding force between the luminal wall and the capsule device when the capsule device travels inside a gastrointestinal (GI) tract after being swallowed. A coating can be added to cover the textured surface so as to make the capsule surface smooth for easy to swallow. The coating layer will dissolve when the capsule device is in contact with the acid fluid inside the GI tract.

Abstract: A method characterizes manufacturing imperfections in a camera and variations in its operating environment to allow images captured by the camera to be compensated for these defects. The method includes: (a) illuminating a field of view of the optical elements under a controlled condition; (b) exposing multiple images onto the image sensor under the controlled condition; (c) extracting from the multiple images parameter values for pixels of the image sensor; and (d) compensating images taken subsequently in the camera using the parameter values. The controlled condition includes an external light source for illumination, and the image sensor is sensitive to color components.

Abstract: A method and system for displaying images captured by an in vivo imaging device are disclosed. Embodiments according to the present invention display image sequence data in a first display area. When a first annotated image is displayed in the first display area, a first thumbnail image in a second display area corresponding to the first annotated image is replaced to indicate an occurring correspondence between the first annotated image and the first thumbnail image corresponding to the first annotated image being displayed. In one embodiment, the method further comprises displaying the first thumbnail image in the second display area when one other image of the image sequence data is displayed in the first display area after the first annotated image is displayed.

Abstract: 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.

Abstract: Method and apparatus of reconstruction of images from an in vivo multi-camera capsule are disclosed. In one embodiment of the present invention, the capsule comprises two cameras with overlapped fields of view (FOVs). Intra-image based pose estimation is applied to the sub-images associated with the overlapped area to improve the pose estimation for the capsule device. In another embodiment, two images corresponding to the two FOVs are fused by using disparity-adjusted, linear weighted sum of the overlapped sub-images. In yet another embodiment, the images from the multi-camera capsule are stitched for time-space representation.