초록 ▼

A multi-function image capture unit for use in an endoscopic camera system is provided. The image capture unit includes a touch-screen LCD display for generating a graphical user interface and for receiving associated user inputs. The image capture unit is configured to be coupled to an endoscopic c

A multi-function image capture unit for use in an endoscopic camera system is provided. The image capture unit includes a touch-screen LCD display for generating a graphical user interface and for receiving associated user inputs. The image capture unit is configured to be coupled to an endoscopic camera, an external monitor, and a network. The image capture unit receives live video generated by the endoscopic camera, displays the video on the external monitor and the LCD display, and stores the live video within the image capture unit. Prior to recording, the video is buffered and compressed. The image capture unit can also store the live video in a remote computer system via the network. The image capture unit can also capture and store still images based on the live video as well as store the still images in the remote computer system. “One-touch” network login and storage allows these operations to be performed in response to a single touch by the user. In the event of a loss of power to the image capture unit, the live video is automatically routed directly to the external monitor. Features of the graphical user interface include handwriting recognition; ability to display reduced-size versions of captured still images, from which the user can select images for display at full-size; a tabbed album display mode; and on-demand printing.

대표청구항 ▼

1. An image capture unit for use in an endoscopy system, the image capture unit comprising:input means for receiving video generated by an endoscopic camera;storage means for recording the video within the image capture unit;communication means for causing the video to be transmitted to a remote pro

1. An image capture unit for use in an endoscopy system, the image capture unit comprising:input means for receiving video generated by an endoscopic camera;storage means for recording the video within the image capture unit;communication means for causing the video to be transmitted to a remote processing system over a network;means for causing the video to be recorded on the remote processing system via the network;capture means for capturing still images from the video;printer interface means for communicating with a printer; andprinter control means for causing captured still images to be printed automatically by the printer after the capture of every N still images, where N is a predetermined number. 2. An image capture unit as recited in claim 1, wherein the storage means comprises means for recording the video within the image capture unit prior to transmitting the video to the remote processing system. 3. An image capture unit as recited in claim 1, wherein the video is transmitted to the remote processing system in real-time in response to the video being generated by the endoscopic camera. 4. An image capture unit for use in an endoscopy system, the image capture unit comprising:input means for receiving video generated by an endoscopic camera;storage means for recording the video within the image capture unit;means for multicasting the video to a plurality of remote processing systems over the network;capture means for capturing still images from the video;printer interface means for communicating with a printer; andprinter control means for causing captured still images to be printed automatically by the printer after the capture of every N still images, where N is a predetermined number. 5. An image capture unit for use in an endoscopy system, the image capture unit comprising:input means for receiving video generated by an endoscopic camera;storage means for recording the video within the image capture unit;communication means for causing the video to be transmitted to a remote processing system over a network;means for causing the video to be recorded on the remote processing system in response to a user command by automatically establishing a communication link with the remote processing system and causing the video to be recorded on the remote processing system, without any additional user input after the user command;capture means for capturing still images from the video;printer interface means for communicating with a printer; andprinter control means for causing captured still images to be printed automatically by the printer after the capture of every N still images, where N is a predetermined number. 6. An image capture unit as recited in claim 1, wherein the storage means comprises:buffer means for buffering the video prior to the video being recorded, anda first non-volatile mass storage device for recording the video. 7. An image capture unit as recited in claim 6, wherein the buffer means comprises a second non-volatile mass storage device having a write-response time faster than a write-response time of the first non-volatile mass storage device. 8. An image capture unit as recited in claim 7, wherein the first non-volatile mass storage device is an optical disk based storage device, and the second mass storage device is a magnetic disk based storage device. 9. An image capture unit as recited in claim 1, further comprising compression means for compressing the video prior to recording the video. 10. An image capture unit as recited in claim 9, wherein the compression means compresses the video according to an MPEG based compression format. 11. An image capture unit as recited in claim 12, wherein the compression means compresses the video according to a wavelet based compression format. 12. An image capture unit as recited in claim 1, further comprising video output means for providing video signals to an external monitor, for causing the monitor to display images representing any of the video fro m the endoscopic camera, the recorded video, or the still images. 13. An image capture unit as recited in claim 12, further comprising video switching means for causing video received by the input means to be automatically routed to the external monitor in response to a predetermined condition of the image capture unit. 14. An image capture unit as recited in claim 13, wherein the predetermined condition is a loss of power to the image capture unit. 15. An image capture unit as recited in claim 1, further comprising:a display device; andmeans for generating a graphical user interface on the display device to allow a user to control the image capture unit. 16. An image capture unit as recited in claim 15, wherein the display device comprises touch-screen input means for receiving user inputs. 17. An image capture unit for use in an endoscopy system, the image capture unit comprising:input means for receiving live video generated by an endoscopic camera;capture means for capturing still images of the live video;storage means for storing recorded video and still images based on the live video;video output means for providing video signals to a monitor for causing the monitor to display images representing any of the live video, the recorded video, or the still images;network communication means for causing the video to be transmitted to a remote processing system over a network;recording means for causing the recorded video and the captured still images to be recorded on the remote processing system via the network in response to a single user input;printer interface means for communicating with a printer; andprinter control means for causing captured still images to be printed automatically by the printer after the capture of every N still images, where N is a predetermined number. 18. An image capture unit as recited in claim 17, wherein the storage means comprises:buffer means for buffering the live video, anda first non-volatile mass storage device for long term storage of the recorded video and the still images. 19. An image capture unit as recited in claim 18, wherein the buffer means comprises a second non-volatile mass storage device having a write-response time faster than a write-response time of the first non-volatile mass storage device. 20. An image capture unit as recited in claim 19, wherein the first non-volatile mass storage device is an optical disk based storage device, and the second mass storage device is a magnetic disk based storage device. 21. An image capture unit as recited in claim 17, wherein the network communication means comprises means for causing the live video or the recorded video to be transmitted in real-time to a remote processing system coupled to the image capture unit on a network. 22. An image capture unit as recited in claim 21, wherein the network communication comprises means for multicasting the live video, the recorded video, or the still images to a plurality of remote processing systems over the network. 23. An image capture unit as recited in claim 17, wherein the recording means comprises means for responding to a user command by automatically establishing a communication link with the remote processing system and writing the recorded video to the remote processing system, without any additional user input. 24. An image capture unit as recited in claim 17, further comprising compression means for compressing the live video prior to recording the live video. 25. An image capture unit as recited in claim 24, wherein the compression means compresses the live video according to an MPEG based compression format. 26. An image capture unit as recited in claim 24, wherein the compression means compresses the live video according to a wavelet based compression format. 27. An image capture unit as recited in claim 17, further comprising:a display device; andmeans for generating a graphical user interface on the display device to allow a user to control the integrated image capture unit. 28 . An image capture unit as recited in claim 27, wherein the display device comprises touch-screen input means for receiving user inputs. 29. An image capture unit as recited in claim 17, further comprising video switching means for causing live video received by the input means to be automatically routed to the monitor in response to a loss of power to the image capture unit. 30. An image capture unit for use in an endoscopy system, the image capture unit comprising:a video input interface configured to receive live video generated by an endoscopy camera;a capture unit configured to capture still images from the live video, a first storage device;a network interface; anda processor configured to cause live video received via the video input to be recorded in the first storage device, and further configured to cause the recorded video to be written via the network interface to a remote processing system over a network, and to cause the captured still images to be printed automatically by a printer after the capture of every N still images, where N is a predetermined number. 31. An image capture unit as recited in claim 30, wherein the processor is further configured to cause the live video to be transmitted in real-time to the remote processing system over the network. 32. An image capture unit as recited in claim 30, wherein the processor is further configured to cause the recorded video to be multicast to a plurality of remote processing systems over the network. 33. An image capture unit as recited in claim 30, wherein the processor is further configured to cause the live video to be multicast in real-time to a plurality of remote processing systems over the network. 34. An image capture unit as recited in claim 30, wherein the processor is configured cause a communication link with the remote processing system to be established and the recorded video to be written to the remote processing system automatically in response to a single user input. 35. An image capture unit as recited in claim 30, further comprising a second storage device, wherein the processor is further configured to buffer the live video in the second storage device prior to recording the video in the first storage device. 36. An image capture unit as recited in claim 35, wherein the first storage device and the second storage device each are a non-volatile mass storage device, and wherein the second storage device has a write-response time that is substantially less than that of the first mass storage device. 37. An image capture unit as recited in claim 36, wherein the first non-volatile mass storage device is an optical disk based storage device, and the second mass storage device is a magnetic disk based storage device. 38. An image capture unit as recited in claim 30, wherein the processor is further configured to compress the live video prior to recording the live video. 39. An image capture unit as recited in claim 38, wherein the processor is further configured to compress the live video according to an MPEG based compression format. 40. An image capture unit as recited in claim 38, wherein the processor is further configured to compress the live video according to a wavelet based compression format. 41. An image capture unit as recited in claim 30, further comprising a video output interface for connection to an external monitor, wherein the processor is further configured to cause the monitor to display images representing any of the live video, the recorded video, or the still images. 42. An image capture unit as recited in claim 41, further comprising a video switch configured to cause live video received by the video input interface to be automatically routed to the external monitor in response to power to the image capture unit being terminated. 43. An image capture unit as recited in claim 30, further comprising a display device, wherein the processor is further configured to generate a graphical user interface on the display device to allow a user to control the image capture unit. 44. An image capture unit as recited in claim 43, wherein the display device is touch-sensitive for receiving user inputs. 45. An image capture unit for use in an endoscopy system, the image capture unit comprising:input means for receiving live video generated by an endoscopic camera;recording means for recording the live video within the image capture unit;capture means for capturing still images from the live video;communication means for causing the recorded video or the still images to be transmitted to a remote processing system over a network;means for causing the recorded video or the still images to be recorded on the remote processing system via the network;video output means for providing video signals to an external monitor, for causing the external monitor to display images representing any of the live video, the recorded video, or the still images;a display device;means for generating a graphical user interface on the display device to allow a user to control the image capture unit;printer interface means for communicating with a printer; andprinter control means for causing captured still images to be printed automatically by the printer after the capture of every N still images, where N is a predetermined number. 46. An image capture unit as recited in claim 45, wherein the communication comprises means for multicasting video from the endoscopic camera to a plurality of remote processing systems over the network. 47. An image capture unit as recited in claim 45, wherein the communication comprises means for responding to a user command to record the live video on the remote processing system by automatically establishing a communication link with the remote processing system and recording the live video on the remote processing system, without any additional user input. 48. An image capture unit as recited in claim 45, wherein the recording means comprises:buffer means for buffering the live video prior to the live video being recorded, anda first non-volatile mass storage device for recording the live video. 49. An image capture unit as recited in claim 48, wherein the buffer means comprises a second non-volatile mass storage device having a write-response time faster than a write-response time of the first non-volatile mass storage device. 50. An image capture unit as recited in claim 49, wherein the first nonvolatile mass storage device is an optical disk based storage device, and the second mass storage device is a magnetic disk based storage device. 51. An image capture unit as recited in claim 45, further comprising compression means for compressing the live video prior to recording the live video. 52. An image capture unit as recited in claim 51, wherein the compression means compresses the live video according to an MPEG based compression format. 53. An image capture unit as recited in claim 45, wherein the compression means compresses the live video according to a wavelet based compression format. 54. An image capture unit as recited in claim 45, further comprising video switching means for causing live video received by the input means to be automatically routed directly to the external monitor in response to a loss of power to the image capture unit. 55. An image capture unit as recited in claim 45, wherein the display device comprises touch-screen input means for receiving user inputs. 56. A method of acquiring and storing images in an endoscopic camera system, the method comprising:receiving live video generated by an endoscopic camera;buffering the live video in a first non-volatile storage device;recording the buffered video in a second non-volatile storage device;capturing still images based on the live video;causing the captured still images to be printed automatically by a printer after the capture of every N still images, where N is a predetermined number; andtransmitting video, based on the live video generated by the endoscopic camera, to a remote p rocessing system over a network. 57. A method as recited in claim 56, wherein all of said receiving, said buffering, said recording, said capturing, and said transmitting are performed by a single, self-contained image capture device. 58. A method as recited in claim 56, further comprising causing the recorded video to be transmitted to, and recorded in, the remote processing system via the network. 59. A method as recited in claim 56, further comprising causing the live video to be transmitted to, and recorded in, the remote processing system via the network. 60. A method as recited in claim 56, further comprising causing the still images to be transmitted to, and recorded in, the remote processing system over a network. 61. A method as recited in claim 56, further comprising multicasting the live video in real-time to a plurality of remote processing systems over the network. 62. A method as recited in claim 56, further comprising automatically establishing a communication link with the remote processing system over the network and writing the recorded video to the remote processing system in response to a single user input. 63. A method as recited in claim 56, further comprising compressing the live video prior to recording the live video. 64. A method as recited in claim 63, wherein said compressing comprises compressing the live video according to an MPEG based compression format. 65. A method as recited in claim 63, wherein said compressing comprises compressing the live video according to a wavelet based compression format. 66. A method as recited in claim 56, further comprising providing video signals to an external monitor, for causing the monitor to display images representing of the live video, the recorded video, or the still images. 67. A method as recited in claim 56, further comprising automatically routing the received live video to the external monitor in response to a loss of power. 68. A method as recited in claim 56, further comprising generating a graphical user interface using a display device, to allow a user to control said recording, said capturing, and said transmitting. 69. A method as recited in claim 68, further comprising responding to touch-screen user inputs applied to the display device. 70. A method of operating an image capture unit for use in an endoscopic camera system, the image capture unit including a display device, the method comprising:receiving live video generated by an endoscopic camera;capturing still images based on the live video;causing the captured still images to be printed automatically by the printer after the capture of every N still images, where N is a predetermined number;recording the still images and the live video in the image capture unit;generating a graphical user interface via the display device of the image capture unit, for allowing a user to control the image capture unit; andin response to a single user input,automatically establishing a communication link with a remote processing system over a network, andcausing at least one of the recorded video and the still images to be recorded on the remote processing system. 71. A method as recited in claim 70, wherein said generating the graphical user interface comprises receiving user inputs applied to a touch-sensitive screen of the display device. 72. A method as recited in claim 71, wherein said generating the graphical user interface further comprises:receiving user inputs forming writing at the touch-sensitive screen; andperforming character recognition of the user inputs to recognize the writing. 73. A method as recited in claim 70, wherein said generating the graphical user interface comprises:displaying a plurality of reduced-size versions of the captured still images; andin response to a user input selecting one of the reduced-size versions, causing the captured still image represented by the selected reduced-size version to be displayed on an external monitor at full size. 74. A method as recited in claim 70, wherein said generating the graphical user interface comprises generating an album display mode, the album display mode characterized by a plurality of user-selectable, overlapping display areas displayed on the display device, each capable of containing a plurality of reduced-size versions of the captured still images, such that the user can select any of the display areas for display. 75. A method as recited in claim 74, wherein each of the user-selectable, overlapping display areas includes a tab portion, such that the user can select any of the display areas for display by selecting the tab portion of the selected display area. 76. A method as recited in claim 74, wherein said generating the graphical user interface further comprises:receiving a user input selecting one of the reduced-size versions of the captured still images; andin response to the user input, causing the full-sized version of said one of the captured still images to be displayed. 77. An image capture unit for use in an endoscopic camera system, the image capture unit comprising:a display device;means for receiving live video generated by an endoscopic camera;means for capturing still images based on the live video;means for causing the captured still images to be printed automatically by the printer after the capture of every N still images, where N is a predetermined number;means for recording the still images and the live video in the image capture unit;means for transmitting video, based on the video generated by the endoscopic camera, to a remote processing system coupled to the image capture unit on a network;means for generating a graphical user interface via the display device of the image capture unit, for allowing a user to control the image capture unit; andmeans for responding to a single user input byautomatically establishing a communication link with a remote processing system over a network andcausing at least one of the recorded video and the still images to be recorded on the remote processing system. 78. A method of operating an image capture unit for use in an endoscopic camera system, the method comprising:receiving, at the image capture unit, video generated by an endoscopic camera;capturing a plurality of still images in the image capture unit, based on the received video;determining, in the image capture unit, when a predetermined number of said still images have been captured; andin response to determining that the predetermined number of said still images having been captured, causing a printer to print the predetermined number of said still images.