Still-picture acquisition method and apparatus applied to microscope
AssigneeOlympus Corporation
InventorHisao Kitagawa
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A still-picture acquisition section in a computer selects a brightness-periodically-varying portion of image data of a living cell like a cardiac cell, as a sample, which makes a self-ordered periodic motion, monitors a change in brightness, generates a trigger signal at the timing at which the value of the brightness exceeds a specific threshold value, causes a camera body to repeatedly pick up the image of the living cell after a predetermined delay time, and then averages the picked-up images. This makes it possible to acquire as high-quality still pictures the instantaneous status of a living cell which varies with time in accordance with the application of external stimulation or the in-vivo order.
Claims42
A still-picture acquisition apparatus for a microscope, comprising:
- means for repeatedly picking up an image of a sample at a timing based on a dynamic behavior of said sample;
- and
- means for acquiring a still picture by accumulating or averaging picked-up images.
A still-picture acquisition apparatus for a microscope, comprising:
- an image pickup device for accumulating images of a sample in synchronism with an electric signal to be detected in accordance with a dynamic behavior of said sample;
- and
- means for transferring a still picture formed by accumulation of said images of said sample in said image pickup device.
A still-picture acquisition method applied to a microscope, comprising the steps of:
- repeatedly picking up an image of a sample at a timing based on a dynamic behavior of said sample;
- and
- acquiring a still picture by accumulating or averaging picked-up images.
A computer-readable storage medium having computer program components stored thereon that perform acquiring a still picture, the program components comprising:
- means for causing a computer to perform control to repeatedly pick up an image of a sample at a timing based on a dynamic behavior of said sample;
- and
- means for causing a computer to acquire a still picture by accumulating or averaging picked-up images.
A computer program data signal embodied in a data stream comprising program components that perform acquiring a still picture, the program components comprising:
- means for causing a computer to perform control to repeatedly pick up an image of a sample at a timing based on a dynamic behavior of said sample;
- and
- means for causing a computer to acquire a still picture by accumulating or averaging picked-up images.
A still-picture acquisition apparatus for a microscope, comprising:
- means for determining image-pickup timings for picking up images of a living cell as a sample, based on timings of periodic behaviors of the living cell;
- means for picking up only images of instantaneous statuses in the periodic behaviors of the living cell at specific timings, in synchronism with the determined image-pickup timings;
- and
- means for acquiring a still picture of the instantaneous statuses of the living cell by accumulating or averaging the picked-up images.
A still-picture acquisition method for a microscope, comprising:
- determining image-pickup timings for picking up images of a living cell as a sample, based on timings of periodic behaviors of the living cell;
- picking up only images of instantaneous statuses in the periodic behaviors of the living cell at specific timings, in synchronism with the determined image-pickup timings;
- and
- acquiring a still picture of the instantaneous statuses of the living cell by accumulating or averaging the picked-up images.
A computer-readable storage medium encoded with a computer program that is executable by a computer to perform a process comprising:
- determining image-pickup timings for picking up images of a living cell as a sample, based on timings of periodic behaviors of the living cell;
- picking up only images of instantaneous statuses in the periodic behaviors of the living cell at specific timings, in synchronism with the determined image-pickup timings;
- and
- acquiring a still picture of the instantaneous statuses of the living cell by accumulating or averaging the picked-up images.
A still-picture acquisition apparatus for a microscope, comprising:
- a computer configured to determine image-pickup timings for picking up images of a living cell as a sample, based on timings of periodic behaviors of the living cell;
- a scanner which picks up only images of instantaneous statuses in the periodic behaviors of the living cell at specific timings, in synchronism with the determined image-pickup timings;
- and
- a processor configured to acquire a still picture of the instantaneous statuses of the living cell by accumulating or averaging the picked-up images.
A still-picture acquisition apparatus for a microscope, comprising:
- a monitoring device which detects periodic behaviors of a living cell as a sample;
- a computer configured to determine image-pickup timings for picking up images of the living cell, based on timings of the periodic behaviors of the living cell;
- a scanner which picks up only images of instantaneous statuses in the periodic behaviors of the living cell at specific timings, in synchronism with the determined image-pickup timings;
- and
- a processor configured to acquire a still picture of the instantaneous statuses of the living cell by accumulating or averaging the picked-up images.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.