Systems and Methods for Regulating Temperature and Illumination Intensity at the Distal Tip of an Endoscope

摘要

The present specification describes a system and method for computing the temperature of the tip of a multiple viewing elements endoscope based on a measurement of junction temperatures of light emitting diode (LED) illuminators inside the tip. The measurement of temperature is used for taking corrective action if the temperature exceeds a limit. The temperature measurement is used for optimizing image parameters, as the performance of image sensors is affected by changes in ambient temperature.

主权项

1. An endoscopy system capable of measuring and regulating the temperature of its distal tip comprising:
a plurality of viewing elements located in the endoscope tip, wherein each of said viewing elements comprises an image sensor and a lens assembly and is associated with one or more light emitting diode (LED) illuminators; a circuit board comprising a circuit for measuring a voltage across each of said LED illuminators; and a controller programmed to compute a temperature of each of said LED illuminators by using said measured voltage and a function representing a relationship between LED voltage and LED junction temperature for a given current.