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EP-3656334-B1 - ENDOSCOPIC DEVICE AND METHOD FOR OPERATING SAME

EP3656334B1EP 3656334 B1EP3656334 B1EP 3656334B1EP-3656334-B1

Inventors

  • Fallert, Johannes
  • KLEIN, KIRSTEN

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20191118

Claims (20)

  1. Endoscope device having at least one endoscope base (10) which comprises at least one shaft (12) and at least one handle (14) connected to the shaft (12), having at least one endoscope camera (16) which is at least partially integrated into the endoscope base (10), and having at least one quick connector interface (18) which is designed to releasably connect at least one tracker module (20) to the endoscope base (10) and which defines at least one position and/or orientation of the tracker module (20) relative to the endoscope camera (16), wherein at least one factory-determined position parameter and/or orientation parameter of this defined position and/or orientation is retrievably stored on at least one associated storage medium (22) which is at least partially integrated into the endoscope base (10).
  2. Endoscope device according to claim 1, characterized in that at least one camera parameter of the endoscope camera is stored on the storage medium.
  3. Endoscope device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the endoscope camera (16) is at least partially arranged on a distal end portion (24) of the shaft (12).
  4. Endoscope device according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the quick connector interface (18) comprises at least one end-face stop (26) which is designed to establish the position of the tracker module (20) relative to the endoscope camera (16).
  5. Endoscope device according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the quick connector interface (18) comprises at least one poka-yoke element (28) which is designed to establish the orientation of the tracker module (20) relative to the endoscope camera (16).
  6. Endoscope device according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the quick connector interface (18) is at least partially arranged on a proximal end portion (30) of the shaft (12).
  7. Endoscope device according to any of the preceding claims, characterized by the tracker module (20) which comprises at least one tracker mount (32) and at least one tracker (34) arranged on the tracker mount (32).
  8. Endoscope device according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the tracker module (20) has at least two different tracker planes (36, 38, 40) which are spanned by at least three markers of the tracker module.
  9. Endoscope device according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the tracker module (20) comprises at least one further quick connector interface (42) which is designed in a manner corresponding to the quick connector interface (18) and interacts therewith when connecting the tracker module (20) to the endoscope base (10).
  10. Endoscope device according to claim 9, characterized in that in at least one arrangement of the quick connector interfaces (18, 42) relative to each other, the quick connector interface (18) and the further quick connector interface (42) can be inserted into each other via the respective end faces thereof and in at least one further arrangement they rest against each other via the respective end faces thereof.
  11. Endoscope device according to claim 9 or 10, characterized by at least one quick-release tensioner (44) which clamps the quick connector interfaces (18, 42) together by applying force when connecting the tracker module (20) to the endoscope base (10).
  12. Endoscope device according to claim 11, characterized in that the quick-release tensioner (44) is at least partially formed in one piece with the tracker module (20).
  13. Method for operating an endoscope device, in particular an endoscope device according to any of the preceding claims, in which method in at least one calibration process (46) at least one factory-determined position parameter and/or orientation parameter of a position and/or orientation of at least one tracker module (20) relative to at least one endoscope camera (16), at least partially integrated into an endoscope base (10) comprising at least one shaft (12) and at least one handle (14) connected to the shaft (12), is retrievably stored on at least one associated storage medium (22) which is at least partially integrated into the endoscope base (10), wherein this position and/or orientation is defined by at least one quick connector interface (18) which releasably connects the tracker module (20) to the endoscope base (10).
  14. Method according to claim 13, characterized in that in the calibration process (46) the position parameter and/or orientation parameter is determined by means of a factory-implemented hand-eye calibration.
  15. Method according to claim 13 or 14, characterized by at least one test process (48) in which an existing component assignment of at least the tracker module (20) and the endoscope base (10) is compared to an intended component assignment stored on the storage medium (22).
  16. Method according to claim 13 or 14, characterized by at least one re-evaluation process (50) in which prior to use of the endoscope device a hand-eye calibration, based on the stored position parameter and/or orientation parameter, of the position and/or orientation of the tracker module (20) relative to the endoscope camera (16) is re-evaluated.
  17. Method according to claim 16, characterized in that in the re-evaluation process (50) an image signal (52) is provided which corresponds to a real image (54) of a reference object (56) taken by the endoscope camera (16).
  18. Method according to claim 16 or 17, characterized in that in the re-evaluation process (50) a further image signal (58) is provided which corresponds to a virtual image (62) of a reference object (56), which virtual image is generated by capturing the tracker module (20) by means of a separate room camera (60) and on the basis of the stored position parameters and/or location parameters.
  19. Method according to claims 17 and 18, characterized in that in the re-evaluation process (50) the image signal (52) and the further image signal (58) are compared in order to re-evaluate the hand-eye calibration.
  20. Method according to at least claims 17 and 18, characterized in that in the re-evaluation process (50) a deviation between the image signal (52) and the further image signal (58) is determined which corresponds at least to a deviation between the real image (54) and the virtual image (62) of the reference object (56) in at least one spatial dimension.

Description

State of the art The invention relates to an endoscope device according to claim 1 and a method for operating an endoscope device according to claim 13. From the DE 10 2014 222 880 A1 An adapter is already known that allows an endoscope camera to be coupled to the proximal end of an endoscope base. Such an adapter has some play, particularly regarding its orientation relative to other endoscope components, to facilitate easy assembly. Therefore, while such an adapter is suitable for mounting an endoscope camera, it is not suitable for the play-free mounting of a tracker module, which would enable precise motion capturing, especially without continuous recalibration of position and/or orientation. Since the position and/or orientation of a tracker module cannot be reproduced with such precision using other known adapters either, a hand-eye calibration procedure is required before each use, which can be performed, for example, in the US 6,511,418 B2 has been revealed. From the DE 2013 222 230 A1 Furthermore, a surgical instrument with an instrument shaft connected to an instrument handle and a detachably arranged instrument tip, as well as a locator arrangement for determining the position of the instrument tip, is disclosed. It is disclosed that a first locator is fixedly arranged on the instrument shaft to locate a working point at the instrument tip of the surgical instrument with the aid of a second locator located near the working point. US 2002/010384 A1 Disclosing a device for calibrating the lens position and field of view in an endoscope, the device comprises tracking elements attached at fixed positions on the shaft of the endoscope, a holder that provides an object or pattern to be viewed with the endoscope when it is inserted into the holder, and positioning elements attached at known positions on the holder. A processor in the device determines the positions of the tracking and positioning elements while the endoscope shaft is held in the holder guide and calculates the coordinates of the endoscope lens with respect to the tracking elements and the lens's field of view from these determined positions. A calibration method used by the device is also disclosed. The object of the invention is, in particular, to provide a generic endoscope device and a method for operating such a device with improved motion capture accuracy, especially with regard to improved user-friendliness. This object is achieved according to the invention by the features of claims 1 and 13, while advantageous embodiments and further developments of the invention can be found in the dependent claims. Advantages of the invention In one aspect of the invention, which can be considered in particular individually or in combination with other aspects, an endoscope device is proposed, comprising at least one endoscope base which includes at least one shaft and at least one handle connected to the shaft, at least one endoscope camera which is at least partially integrated into the endoscope base, and at least one quick-connect interface which is designed to provide a detachable connection between at least one tracker module and the endoscope base and which defines at least one position and/or orientation of the tracker module relative to the endoscope camera, wherein at least one factory-determined position and/or orientation parameter of this defined position and/or orientation is stored on at least one associated storage medium and can be retrieved. This can advantageously improve the accuracy of an endoscope device with regard to motion capture. Preferably, it can be achieved that the endoscope device can be used with a consistent calibration, and in particular, calibration before use by a user can be simplified or even eliminated. This allows, in particular, reproducible accuracy in the application of the endoscope device. Furthermore, user-friendliness can be advantageously improved. Most advantageously, deviations of the endoscope device from a defined position and/or orientation can be detected, thus identifying damage to the endoscope device and/or the use of unforeseen components of the endoscope device. This can, in particular, increase patient safety, as the patient can be protected from incorrect treatment due to potentially incorrectly calibrated, damaged, and/or unsuitable components of the endoscope device. Furthermore, patient safety can be increased, preferably by improving user comfort for the operator of the endoscope device, as this reduces fatigue. Additionally, a detachable connection via the quick-connect interface allows for autoclavability of the individual components of the endoscope device, thus improving hygiene and meeting the hygiene requirements of multi-use devices. The term "endoscope device" is understood to mean, in particular, a preferably functional component, especially a subassembly and/or a structural and/or functional component of an endoscope, particularly a video endoscope. In particular, the