Abstract: A capsule endoscope includes: an imaging unit configured to capture inside of a subject and to generate an image of the inside of the subject; a brightness distribution measurement unit configured to measure a brightness distribution in the image generated by the imaging unit; and an imaging controller configured to switch a frame rate of the imaging unit to a frame rate higher than a reference frame rate when an area having brightness lower than a predetermined value is distributed at a center of the image in the brightness distribution measured by the brightness distribution measurement unit and to switch the frame rate of the imaging unit to a frame rate lower than the reference frame rate when the area having the brightness lower than the predetermined value is distributed outside the center of the image.

Abstract: A capsule endoscope includes: an imaging unit configured to capture inside of a subject and to generate an image of the inside of the subject; a brightness distribution measurement unit configured to measure a brightness distribution in the image generated by the imaging unit; and an imaging controller configured to switch a frame rate of the imaging unit to a frame rate higher than a reference frame rate when an area having brightness lower than a predetermined value is distributed at a center of the image in the brightness distribution measured by the brightness distribution measurement unit and to switch the frame rate of the imaging unit to a frame rate lower than the reference frame rate when the area having the brightness lower than the predetermined value is distributed outside the center of the image.

Abstract: A decoding device includes: a data obtaining unit configured to obtain a key block and a non-key brock, the key block forming a part of image data of one frame, and the non-key block forming a part of the image data of one frame on at least a part of which a coding process is performed; a characteristic information storage unit configured to store characteristic information regarding a pixel value correlation characteristic in a frame; and a decoding unit configured to perform repeated decoding by a belief-propagation method based on a first log-likelihood ratio and a second log-likelihood ratio to estimate the non-key block before the coding process, the first log-likelihood being obtained from the non-key block, and the second log-likelihood ratio being obtained from the key block and the characteristic information.

Abstract: A capsule type medical device having a substrate section that includes at least a single layer substrate; an antenna conductor that is arranged on and closely attached to at least one surface of the substrate section; a transmitting circuit that is arranged on the one surface of the substrate section within an area surrounded by the antenna conductor; and a plurality of lands that are arranged to another surface of the substrate section, and electrically connected with the transmitting circuit.

Abstract: A position detection device includes: a region acquiring unit that acquires a region where at least two of spheres with receiving antennas as centers and distances between each receiving antenna and a capsule endoscope as radii overlap with one another; an orientation estimating unit that estimates orientations of the capsule endoscope at points in the region based on positional relationships between the points and the receiving antennas, and received strength of signals received by the receiving antennas; and a position determination unit that determines the position of the capsule endoscope based on the positions of the points and the orientations, wherein the position determination unit calculates theoretical values of the received strength at the points, acquires measured values of the received strength at the receiving antennas, and detects a point having a minimum error between the theoretical value and the measured value as the position of the capsule endoscope.

Abstract: A position detection apparatus includes: a distance calculation unit configured to calculate a first distance between each of a plurality of receiving antennas and the capsule endoscope based on each reception strength of a signal received by the plurality of receiving antennas, a total distance calculation unit configured to calculate a total sum of distances from spherical surfaces inside a region where at least three or more spheres out of a plurality of spheres are overlapped, each of the plurality of spheres having a center at each of the plurality of receiving antennas and having a radius of the first distance, and a position determination unit configured to detect, as the position of the capsule endoscope, a position where the total sum of distances from the spherical surfaces is minimum.

Abstract: A position information estimation system includes: a body-insertable apparatus that is inserted into a subject and moves through an inside of the subject; a receiving unit that receives information from the body-insertable apparatus; and an information processor that performs processes on the information acquired from the receiving unit. The receiving unit includes an acquisition antenna that includes a plurality of receiving antennas and acquires information from the body-insertable apparatus.

Abstract: An antenna unit includes a receiving antenna which receives in-vivo information of a subject transmitted from a capsule medical apparatus, a wireless-signal generator which receives the in-vivo information of the subject received by the receiving antenna and generates a wireless signal including the received in-vivo information, a power supply unit which supplies power for the wireless signal generator, an outer covering on which the receiving antenna, the wireless-signal generator, the transmitting antenna, and the power supply unit are mounted. The power supply unit is flexible and can be transformed easily according to transformation of the outer covering.

Abstract: An antenna apparatus includes: first and second receiving antennas disposed on a plane at equal distances from a reference point and face each other with the reference point therebetween; third and fourth receiving antennas disposed on the plane, a gravity center of the third and fourth receiving antennas being an equal distance from the reference point, a straight line connecting the gravity centers of the third and fourth receiving antennas is at 90 degrees with respect to a straight line connecting gravity centers of the first and second receiving antennas; fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth receiving antennas disposed on the plane, having gravity centers on straight lines different from each other and rotated by an angle of 45 degrees from the straight line connecting the gravity centers of the first and second receiving antennas and the straight line connecting the gravity centers of the third and fourth receiving antennas, respectively.

Abstract: A transmitting/receiving system includes a transmitting apparatus that generate modulated signals each containing a broadband signal component and a narrowband signal component, and transmits the modulated signals to the outside; and a receiving device that receives the modulated signals via at least three receiving antennas. The receiving device includes a signal processing system that processes the broadband signal component contained in the modulated signal; and a received-strength detecting system that processes the narrowband signal component contained in the modulated signal.

Abstract: An antenna apparatus includes: first and second receiving antennas disposed on a plane at equal distances from a reference point and face each other with the reference point therebetween; third and fourth receiving antennas disposed on the plane, a gravity center of the third and fourth receiving antennas being an equal distance from the reference point, a straight line connecting the gravity centers of the third and fourth receiving antennas is at 90 degrees with respect to a straight line connecting gravity centers of the first and second receiving antennas; fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth receiving antennas disposed on the plane, having gravity centers on straight lines different from each other and rotated by an angle of 45 degrees from the straight line connecting the gravity centers of the first and second receiving antennas and the straight line connecting the gravity centers of the third and fourth receiving antennas, respectively.

Abstract: A receiving apparatus includes: a plurality of receiving antennas in which active circuits are provided; a selection controller that performs control of selecting one receiving antenna that receives a radio signal transmitted from the outside from the plurality of receiving antennas and supplying power only to the selected receiving antenna; and an abnormality detector that detects abnormality of the selected receiving antenna based on a voltage when power is supplied to the receiving antenna selected by the selection controller.

Abstract: An encapsulated medical device system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a selector between a receiving device and a plurality of receiving antennas having their respective directionalities. The system selects and disconnects any receiving antenna subjected to the effect of a magnetic field used to guide a capsule endoscope, and captures information about the inside of a body from the appropriate receiving antenna thus selected. The system prevents an overload current caused by induced voltage from being applied to the receiving device. The system includes the function of preventing the overload current, caused by induced voltage arising from a sudden movement of the capsule endoscope or sudden change in magnetic field gradient, from being applied to a transmission circuit of the capsule endoscope and a receiving device.

Abstract: An image pick-up unit inserted in the body picks up an image of the body, and transmits by radio the image to an extra-corporeal unit which is arranged outside the body. The image pick-up unit includes an image pick-up portion capturing an image, a data transmitting portion for transmitting the image obtained by the image pick-up portion to the extra-corporeal unit at a plurality of transmitting ratios, a characteristic amount detecting portion for detecting a predetermined amount of characteristics based on the image, and a determining portion for determining a valid image based on an output from the characteristic amount detecting portion. The data transmitting portion controls the data transmitting ratio in accordance with the determining result of the determining portion.

Abstract: A capsule casing of a capsule medical device has a chemical sensor inside, used for sensing operation. The chemical sensor has a recovery device which resets the chemical sensor to an initial state thereof so as to use the chemical sensor for the sensing operation a plurality of times or continuously.

Abstract: A capsule type medical device, including: a capsule shaped casing which can be ingested to within the living body; an electrical stimulation device which comprises a plurality of electrodes which are used for applying electrical stimuli to living body tissue; an electrode selection device which selects an electrode from among the plurality of electrodes, to apply an electrical stimulus; a contact detection device which electrically detects the electrode which is in contact with the living body tissue; and a control section which controls the various devices.

Abstract: A capsule type medical device is of a type of a capsule type medical device that is introduced inside the living body to gather in-vivo information, and comprises a capsule shaped casing; an in-vivo information acquisition device for acquiring the in-vivo information; a communication device for sending the in-vivo information acquired by the in-vivo information acquisition device to outside of the living body by wireless; at least one pair of first electrodes provided in a vicinity of one end along an axis of the casing for giving electric stimulation to body tissue in the living body; a first current control device for sending current to the first electrodes; and an interelectrode distance variation device for changing a distance between the electrodes.

Abstract: An image pick-up unit inserted in the body picks up an image of the body, and transmits by radio the image to an extra-corporeal unit which is arranged outside the body. The image pick-up unit includes an image pick-up portion capturing an image, a data transmitting portion for transmitting the image obtained by the image pick-up portion to the extra-corporeal unit at a plurality of transmitting ratios, a characteristic amount detecting portion for detecting a predetermined amount of characteristics based on the image, and a determining portion for determining a valid image based on an output from the characteristic amount detecting portion. The data transmitting portion controls the data transmitting ratio in accordance with the determining result of the determining portion.

Abstract: To achieve a body-insertable apparatus such as a capsule endoscope that moves in a subject at a low speed at which acquisition of in-vivo information is sufficiently possible, the body-insertable apparatus is inserted into the subject and moves in the subject. The body-insertable apparatus includes an in-vivo information acquiring unit that acquires the in-vivo information, an external case member accommodating the in-vivo information acquiring unit, and a moving-speed suppressing unit positioned inside or outside of the external case member to generate a predetermined suppressing force for suppressing the moving speed between an inner wall of a passage route in the subject and the external case member.

Abstract: To provide a capsule endoscope in which a degree of appearance of a sting-like member in a captured image is reduced, a capsule endoscope (2) includes an optical system (18) having a predetermined principal point, an imaging unit (19) which captures light focused by the optical system (18), and an attachment member (28) which is arranged at a predetermined position on a window portion (17a) having optical transparency and forming a portion of an outer casing member (17) housing the optical system (18) and the imaging unit (19). The capsule endoscope (2) further includes a traction member (29) having one end secured to the attachment member (28) and extending by a predetermined distance in a direction from the optical system (18) toward a position of the attachment member (28). Since the traction member (29) has such a structure, an appearance of an image of the traction member (29) can be reduced at the imaging unit (19).