# US 2019/0377977 A1 · Drug recognizing apparatus, drug recognizing method, and drug recognizing program > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2019/0377977 A1 - Document ID: US20190377977A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 16/547,208 - Filed: 2019-08-21 - Published: 2019-12-12 - Earliest claimed: 2017-03-23 - Assignees: FUJIFILM Toyama Chemical Co., Ltd. - Applicants: FUJIFILM Toyama Chemical Co., Ltd. - Inventors: Kazuchika IWAMI; Masanobu TAKASHIMA - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20190377977A1 ## CPC - G06V 20/66: Trinkets, e.g. shirt buttons or jewellery items (recognising microscopic objects G06V20/69) - A61J 1/03: for pills or tablets (containers for pills or tablets with special dispensing means therefor B65D83/04) - G06F 18/28: Determining representative reference patterns, e.g. by averaging or distorting; Generating dictionaries - G06V 10/141: Control of illumination - G06V 10/772: Determining representative reference patterns, e.g. averaging or distorting patterns; Generating dictionaries - G16H 20/13: delivered from dispensers - G16H 30/40: for processing medical images, e.g. editing - A61J 2200/70: Device provided with specific sensor or indicating means - A61J 2205/40: by shape or form, e.g. by using shape recognition - A61J 2205/50: using icons or symbolic figures, e.g. by a graphical representation symbolising the type of pathology or the organ by an image - G01N 21/9508: {Capsules; Tablets} - G06V 2201/03: Recognition of patterns in medical or anatomical images - G06V 2201/06: Recognition of objects for industrial automation - G06V: IMAGE OR VIDEO RECOGNITION OR UNDERSTANDING - A61J: CONTAINERS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR MEDICAL OR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES; DEVICES OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR BRINGING PHARMACEUTICAL PRODUCTS INTO PARTICULAR PHYSICAL OR ADMINISTERING FORMS; DEVICES FOR ADMINISTERING FOOD OR MEDICINES ORALLY; BABY COMFORTERS; DEVICES FOR RECEIVING SPITTLE - G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N) - G16H: HEALTHCARE INFORMATICS, i.e. INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR THE HANDLING OR PROCESSING OF MEDICAL OR HEALTHCARE DATA - G01N: INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIR CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES (measuring or testing apparatus or processes other than immunoassay, involving enzymes or microorganisms C12M, C12Q) ## Abstract Provided are a drug recognizing apparatus, a drug recognizing method, and a drug recognizing program capable of enhancing robustness of a master image in a case where a drug is recognized. The drug recognizing apparatus includes an illumination unit that illuminates a drug; an imaging unit that images the illuminated drug; a storage unit that stores a master image for each drug type; a drug position acquiring unit that acquires a position of the drug on the basis of a captured image obtained by the imaging unit; a master image generating unit that generates the master image from a drug area in the captured image; an updating determination unit that determines whether to update the master image on the basis of the position of the drug acquired by the drug position acquiring unit; and a registration unit that registers the master image in the storage unit in a case where it is determined that the master image is to be updated. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A drug recognizing apparatus comprising: an illumination unit that illuminates a drug; an imaging unit that images the drug illuminated by the illumination unit; a storage unit that stores a master image showing the drug for each drug type; a drug position acquiring unit that acquires a position of the drug on the basis of a captured image obtained by the imaging unit; an updating determination unit that determines whether to update the master image on the basis of the position of the drug acquired by the drug position acquiring unit; a master image generating unit that generates the master image from a drug area in the captured image obtained by the imaging unit; and a registration unit that registers the master image generated by the master image generating unit in the storage unit in a case where the updating determination unit determines that the master image is to be updated. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the registration unit stores drug position information indicating the position of the drug in association with the master image in the storage unit, and wherein the updating determination unit determines whether to update the master image on the basis of the position of the drug imaged by the imaging unit and the drug position information associated with the master image. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the updating determination unit determines that the master image is to be updated in a case where cognitive power for the drug at the position of the drug imaged by the imaging unit is higher than that at the position of the drug in the master image indicated by the drug position information associated with the master image. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein in a case where a type of drug of which the master image is not registered is imaged by the imaging unit, the registration unit registers the drug area in the captured image obtained by the imaging unit as the master image in the storage unit. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the updating determination unit determines whether to update the master image on the basis of a distance between a reference position at which cognitive power for the drug in an imaging range of the imaging unit satisfies a criterion and the position of the drug. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising a reference position setting unit that calculates in advance the position at which the cognitive power for the drug in the imaging range of the imaging unit satisfies the criterion, and sets the calculated position as the reference position. ### Claim 7 (depends on 5) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the reference position is a position at which the cognitive power for the drug in the imaging range is the highest or a representative position in an area at which the cognitive power for the drug is the highest. ### Claim 8 (depends on 3) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the cognitive power is cognitive power for an engraved mark on a front surface of the drug, and is determined in accordance with an incident angle at which illumination light of the illumination unit is incident to the engraved mark on the front surface of the drug. ### Claim 9 (depends on 5) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the illumination unit illuminates the drug in a plurality of illumination directions surrounding the drug, wherein the imaging unit faces at least one face of a packaging member that wraps the drug, wherein the reference position is a central position in the imaging range, and wherein the updating determination unit determines whether to update the master image on the basis of a distance between the central position in the imaging range and the position of the drug. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the illumination unit is configured to include a plurality of light sources, and the plurality of light sources and an optical axis of the imaging unit are disposed at equal intervals. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the illumination unit illuminates the drug in four or more directions. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the updating determination unit determines whether to update the master image on the basis of intervals of the plurality of drugs in a case where a plurality of the drugs are included in one drug package. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the illumination unit is configured to include a plurality of light sources, wherein the drug recognizing apparatus further comprises: an illumination controller that sequentially switches an illumination direction of the drug by switching the light source that illuminates the drug among the plurality of light sources; and an imaging controller that causes the imaging unit to image the drug whenever the illumination direction is switched, and wherein the master image generating unit composes the plurality of captured images corresponding to the plurality of illumination directions, obtained by the imaging unit, to generate the master image. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the imaging unit is configured to include a first camera that images the drug in a first direction and a second camera that images the drug in a second direction different from the first direction. ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the drug is packaged. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of drug packages in which the drug is packaged are continuous, and wherein in a case where the same kind of plural drugs are imaged from one drug package, or in a case where the same kind of plural drugs are imaged over the plurality of drug packages, the master image generating unit generates the master image using a plurality of drug areas in which the same kind of plural drugs are imaged. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 16, wherein in a case where the same kind of plural drugs are imaged from one drug package, or in a case where the same kind of plural drugs are imaged over the plurality of drug packages, the master image generating unit generates the master image using an average or a weighted average using the plurality of drug areas. ### Claim 18 (depends on 1) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a display unit; and a display controller that causes the display unit to display the drug area in the captured image. ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 18, further comprising a correlation value calculation unit that calculates a correlation value between the master image and the drug area in the captured image, wherein the display controller causes the display unit to display the correlation value. ### Claim 20 (depends on 18) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 18, wherein the display controller causes the display unit to display a history of the updating of the master image. ### Claim 21 (depends on 20) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 20, wherein the display controller causes the display unit to display the position of the drug and the updating of the master image in association. ### Claim 22 (depends on 1) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a drug determination unit that collates a master image that is finally registered among the master images registered in the storage unit with the captured image to determine what the drug indicated by the captured image is; and a determination result output unit that outputs a determination result. ### Claim 23 (depends on 22) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 22, wherein the drug determination unit selects a candidate of the drug indicated by the captured image on the basis of the collation result between the captured image and the master image, and wherein the determination result output unit outputs information indicating the selected candidate. ### Claim 24 (depends on 22) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 22, further comprising an associated information input unit for inputting associated information relating to the drug indicated by the captured image, wherein the drug determination unit performs the determination with reference to the associated information. ### Claim 25 (depends on 24) The drug recognizing apparatus according to claim 24, wherein the associated information is information on a drug included in prescription data, and wherein the drug determination unit acquires the master image for the drug included in the prescription data from the storage unit, collates the captured image with the acquired master image, and determines whether the drug indicated by the captured image is identical to the drug indicated by the acquired master image. ### Claim 26 A drug recognizing method that uses an illumination unit that illuminates a drug, an imaging unit that images the drug illuminated by the illumination unit, and a storage unit that stores a master image showing the drug for each drug type, the method comprising: a step of acquiring a position of the drug on the basis of a captured image obtained by the imaging unit; a step of determining whether to update the master image on the basis of the acquired position of the drug; and a step of registering a drug area in the captured image as the master image in the storage unit in a case where it is determined that the master image is to be updated. ### Claim 27 (depends on 26) A non-transitory, computer-readable recording medium on which a program causing a computer to execute the drug recognizing method according to claim 26 is recorded.