Abstract: An ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus comprises a probe for transmitting an ultrasonic beam onto a target body and receiving an ultrasonic echo from the target body and a diagnosis device for supplying a transmission pulse to the probe and processing an electrical signal from the probe to prepare tomographic image information.

Abstract: In a probe for observing an ultrasonic image, which obtains the ultrasonic image of an object to be observed such as a body cavity by means of an ultrasonic transmitting and receiving means, a mechanical scanning operation of the ultrasonic transmitting and receiving means is performed by an ultrasonic driving means, and thus it is possible to obtain a good diagnosis image with no distortion and no flicker because noises of the driving means can be reduced.Therefore, an ultrasonic endoscope system and an ultrasonic video endoscope system etc. which utilize the probe mentioned above can display a good ultrasonic image and a good optical image.

Abstract: A color imaging apparatus includes means for electronically non-linearly expanding or compressing the dynamic range of an image signal output therefrom. Separate output signals of respective brightness for different colors are logarithmically compressed, inverse-logarithmically converted, then linear-matrix-converted and multipled by a compression factor of brightness level for the respective color signals to produce a logarithmically compressed color signal without varying the tone.

Abstract: A large number of piezoelectric elements are arranged in a mosaic pattern on a spherical surface so that ultrasonic waves generated by the elements converge on a single point. The arrangement of the elements constitutes a transducer. With the transducer applied to a subject through a liquid bag filled with water, ultrasonic shock waves from each piezoelectric element are concentrated on a lithotresis object, or a calculus so as to break it. The ultrasonic shock waves are generated by applying driving impulses (voltage) to each piezoelectric element. In order to locate the calculus, the transducer is coupled to an ultrasonic diagnosis apparatus having a mechanical scanning type ultrasonic probe. The piezoelectric elements have resonance frequencies set such that the piezoelectric element positioned at the center of the transducer has the lowest resonance frequency and the resonance frequency of each piezoelectric element is increased in accordance with its distance from the center.

Abstract: An ultrasonic endoscope apparatus in which an ultrasonic vibrating element radiating an ultrasonic wave to obtain an image of an object to be inspected is rotatably housed in a distal end of an insertion section of the endoscope, and a rotation angle sensing mechanism is also housed in the distal end. The rotation angle sensing mechanism has a magnetic recording section having a magnetization pattern for forming a magnetic field, and a magnetic sensor having at least one magneto-resistive element for sensing the magnetic field. One of the magnetic recording section and the magnetic sensor is rotated integrally with the ultrasonic vibrating element so that a rotation angle of the ultrasonic vibrating element is sensed in a precise manner.

Abstract: An object which is sequentially illuminated by light having wavelengths different for each of several fields is imaged using an X-Y addressed solid state imaging device. The photoelectrically converted signals are read out from the solid state imaging device by the application of drive signals, the read-out being performed without providing a period during which light illumination is suspended. The color mixture caused in accordance with the read-out timing is corrected by using weighting coefficients so as to produce predetermined color video signals.

Abstract: A coherent laser light flux is projected into a cell made of transparent quartz and light scattered from particles suspended in an antigen-antibody reaction liquid contained in the cell is detected by a photomultiplier by means of a collimator. An output electrical signal from the photomultiplier is sampled at different time instances and samplings are supplied to a fast Fourier transformer to derive a plurality of power spectrum desnities of fluctuation in intensity of the scattered light. A plurality of power spectrum densities are averaged to generate a mean power spectrum density. An amount of antigen contained in the reaction liquid is measured in accordance with the mean power spectrum density.

Abstract: This invention concerns an endoscope using a line transfer type solid pickup element which is provided with a means to control the light incident upon the light receiving plane of the solid pickup element and accumulates the optical image from the subject during the incident period and reads the accumulated signal charges during the non-incident period. The means to control the incident light consists of the method to switch ON and OFF the light source driving voltage, method to switch ON and OFF the applied voltage of the liquid crystal filter provided in the optical path, method to provide a rotary filter with shielding regions in front of the light source and method to use a strobo light source. Furthermore, in order to display in color, the combination with the R, G and B color filters is used.

Abstract: A pulse compression apparatus comprises a quadrature detector for converting an echo signal obtained by an ultrasonic transducer into a complex signal, a reference wave oscillator for producing a reference wave signal, and a correlation circuit for deriving a correlation between the complex signal and the reference wave signal to compress the echo signal.

Abstract: Picture quality is improved by reducing an influence such as an illumination unevenness caused on the low band side by providing an image signal correcting device comprising a logarithmic compressing device for logarithmically compressing an image signal, a two-dimensional filter device of a characteristic of suppressing the low band side and relatively enhancing the high band side of this logarithmically compressed image signal and an exponential converting device for converting the image signal having passed through this two-dimensional filter to be of an exponential characteristic.

Abstract: A coherent laser light flux is projected into a cell made of transparent quartz and light scattered from particles suspended in an antigen-antibody reaction liquid contained in the cell is detected by a photomultiplier by means of a collimator. An output electrical signal from the photomultiplier is sampled at different time instances and samplings are supplied to a fast Fourier transformer to derive a plurality of power spectrum densities of fluctuation in intensity of the scattered light. A plurality of power spectrum densities are averaged to generate a mean power spectrum density. An amount of antigen contained in the reaction liquid is measured in accordance with the mean power spectrum density.

Abstract: Equipment to erase the mesh pattern caused by the arrangement of the optical fibers in an endoscope which uses the optical fiber bundle as an image transferring means. This equipment erases the mesh pattern without decreasing the resolution by providing optical low pass filters to cut off the spatial frequency component higher than the resolution which is specified by the arrangement of the optical fibers on both sides of the image transferring means.

Abstract: An ultrasonic imaging apparatus comprises an ultrasonic transducer having two ultrasonic transducer elements which rotatably arranged back to back at the distal portion of an endoscope and a motor provided in the operation section of the endoscope and coupled to the transducer through a drive shaft to rotate the transducer. A transducer drover alternately drives the transducer elements during one rotation of the transducer. A switching circuit alternately switches the echo signals from the transducer elements during one rotation of the transducer. The echo signals of the transducer elements through the switch circuit are signal-processed and supplied to a TV monitor to display a tomographic image.

Abstract: A color emphasis circuit in a color endoscope includes a color signal modulator for modulating color signals corresponding to a color image, a color signal averager for obtaining an averaged value by averaging the color signals for every color image, an averaged color signal modulator for modulating the averaged color signals, and a hue difference detector for detecting a hue difference between the modulated color signal output from said color signal modulator and the modulated averaged color signal output from said averaged color signal modulator. Further, a hue difference changer is provided for widening the detected hue difference at least near the averaged value so as to change the hue difference. A phase shifter is also provided for shifting phases of the modulated color signals by the changed hue difference; additionally, a demodulator is provided for demodulating the phase shifted modulated color signals to output color emphasized color signals for display.

Abstract: An illuminating device is provided to serve as a lighting source for a subject to be imaged by color imaging equipment and a source of synchronizing signals, and is adjustable to provide light that complements the spectral response characteristics of the solid state image pick-up device used. The device includes a rotating color filter disc interposed between the subject and a source of light, and can be arranged to adjust the amount of light of each of the three primary colors irradiated on the subject by initially selecting the respective areas of each color filter for transmitting each color and/or by sequentially adjusting the intensity of the light source in synchronism with each of the color filter areas passing before it and the synchronizing signals are generated by openings formed in light shielding regions of the disc.

Abstract: Electromagnetic shield means are provided on the optical axis of the detector end of an endoscope incorporating pickup means for providing an optical image and converting the image photoelectrically. The electromagnetic shield means are mounted at the preceding end of the endoscopic pickup means for preventing external electromagnetic effects so as to provide distinct image pickup of an object to be examined.

Abstract: An image pickup apparatus for endoscopes, which makes an image of an object to be observed employing a solid-state image pickup device such as a charge-coupled-device, is provided with an optical filter disposed on the optical path including an illumination optical system for applying illumination light to the object to be observed and an objective optical system for forming an optical image of the object to be observed on said solid-state image pickup device, for correcting the spectral properties of said optical path, thereby permitting a faithful color picture image to be reproduced and a picture image suitable for a kind of the object to be observed to be made.

Abstract: This invention concerns an endoscope using a line transfer type solid pickup element which is provided with a means to control the light incident upon the light receiving plane of the solid pickup element and accumulates the optical image from the subject during the incident period and reads the accumulated signal charges during the non-incident period. The means to control the incident light consists of the method to switch ON and OFF the light source driving voltage, method to switch ON and OFF the applied voltage of the liquid crystal filter provided in the optical path, method to provide a rotary filter with shielding regions in front of the light source and method to use a strobo light source. Furthermore, in order to display in color, the combination with the R, G and B color filters is used.

Abstract: Image Sensing means are provided in a solid-state image sensing element at the focus of an imaging optical system, as well as elements for illuminating a sequential three color mode, or the like comprising three color filters each transmitting light having each different wave length along the optical path between said solid-state image sensing element and a light source. Light transmitting elements are provided including liquid crystal panel wherein light transmitting portions are successively switched by applying a voltage so as to pass successively each color filter portions or alternately light transmitting elements are provided wherein the positions of light transmitting portions are successively switched with respect to said color filter portions by displacing reciprocally the light transmitting means to enable the color image sensing.

Abstract: In an endoscope using for an imaging means a solid state image pick-up device with light receiving elements arranged two-dimensionally, deterioration of the imaging resolution two-dimensionally is prevented by providing frame memories to read the imaging signals time-serially along each array direction of the light receiving elements, low pass filters to cut the higher harmonics in the signals read time-serially along each array direction and bandwidth compensating circuits to compensate the bandwidths in each array direction.