Endoscope system, image pickup system and image processing apparatus

An image pickup system comprising:

• an image pickup section provided in an insertion body configured to be inserted in a body cavity, for picking up an image in the body cavity;
• a luminal information detecting unit for detecting luminal information corresponding to a running direction of the body cavity, from the image picked up by the image pickup section;
• a recording unit for recording, in a time-sequential manner, luminal information detected by the luminal information detecting unit;
• an estimating unit for estimating a position and a direction of the image pickup section;
• a determining unit for determining whether or not the detecting operation of the luminal information performed by the luminal information detecting unit satisfies a set condition;
• a direction calculating unit for, when the determining unit determines that the condition is not satisfied, reading out the luminal information recorded in the recording unit and calculating information on a direction in which the insertion body is moved based on the luminal information and an estimation result acquired by the estimating unit;
• and
• a controlling unit for controlling the direction in which the insertion body is moved, based on the information calculated by the direction calculating unit.

A capsule medical system comprising:

• a capsule medical apparatus including inside an image pickup section and a magnet;
• an inductive magnetic field generating apparatus arranged outside of the capsule medical apparatus, for inducing the capsule medical apparatus;
• a position/direction detecting apparatus for detecting a position and a direction of the capsule medical apparatus;
• an estimating unit for estimating a moving direction based on an image acquired by the capsule medical apparatus;
• a recording unit for recording, in a time-sequential manner, information on the position and the direction detected by the position/direction detecting apparatus and information on the moving direction estimated by the estimating unit;
• and
• an inductive magnetic field controlling unit for controlling an inductive magnetic field generated by the inductive magnetic field generating apparatus to move the capsule medical apparatus in the body cavity based on the estimation result by the estimating unit and the detection result by the position/direction detecting apparatus.

An image processing apparatus comprising:

• an inputting section for inputting an endoscopic image picked up by an image pickup unit provided in a distal end portion of an insertion portion configured to be inserted in a body cavity;
• a position detecting unit for performing a processing of detecting, from the endoscopic image, position information used for introducing the distal end of the insertion portion;
• a recording unit for recording, in a time-sequential manner, the position information detected by the position detecting unit;
• a determining unit for performing determining processing as to whether or not the processing of detecting the position information performed by the position detecting unit satisfies a set condition;
• and
• a direction calculating unit for, when the determining unit determines that the condition is not satisfied, reading out position information recorded in the recording unit and outputting information on a direction in which the distal end of the insertion portion is to be inserted.