INTEGRATED USER INTERFACE FOR MANEUVERING ENDOSCOPE AND DELIVERY SYSTEM (01-Oct-2009)

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INTEGRATED USER INTERFACE FOR MANEUVERING ENDOSCOPE AND DELIVERY SYSTEM

BACKGROUND

    The present invention relates generally to visual inspection devices, and more particularly to an integrated user interface system for endoscope and delivery system.

    Various inspection devices, including visual inspection devices, have been used for various applications including medical diagnostic, such as endoscopy. Generally, endoscopy means looking inside and typically refers to looking inside the body for medical reasons using a system called an endoscope. Endoscopy is a minimally invasive diagnostic medical procedure that is used to assess and view interior surfaces of an organ by inserting a tube into a body. However, endoscopy is also used for pre- visualization of scale models of proposed buildings and cities (i.e. architectural endoscopy), internal inspection of complex technical systems, examination of improvised explosive devices by a bomb disposal personnel and for conducting surveillance in tight spaces among others.

    The endoscope includes a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) screen, a first interface and various other components that facilitate its operation. The first interface includes multiple buttons and a joystick. The endoscope is operationally connected to a delivery system. The delivery system includes igid or flexible tubes, such as guidetubes or snake robots, that not only provide an image for visual inspection and photography, but also enable the performance of biopsies and the retrieval of foreign objects. The delivery system includes a second interface and a light system to illuminate the organ or object under inspection. A light source is generally outside the body and the light is typically directed via an optical fiber system.

    While performing endoscopy, the endoscope and the delivery system are used simultaneously. However, a user needs to interact with the first interface to operate the

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endoscope and interact with the second interface to operate the delivery system. For example, the user is required to interact with the first interface to initiate the endoscopy and then switch to the second interface to interact and command the delivery system to capture images of the desired body organs or objects. Accordingly, the operation of two different interfaces is cumbersome for the user. Additionally, redundant interfaces increase the cost of the endoscope system as well as the size of the system.

    Therefore, there is a need for an integrated user interface to control the endoscope and the delivery mechanism. Further, the proposed interface eliminates the need for redundant components. As a result, the interface effectively reduces the size and cost of the overall endoscopy system.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

    Figure 1 illustrates a schematic block diagram of an endoscopy system that includes a first interface and a second interface to opera...