JP7634860B2 - Medical device and information processing system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a medical device and an information processing system.

Patent document 1 discloses a method for obtaining intraoral images, including the steps of obtaining one or more operation signals indicative of an operation of an intraoral camera, interpreting the obtained operation signals as operator instructions corresponding to predefined operation patterns, and modifying the display of at least the image content in accordance with the operator instructions.

Special table 2017-525411 publication

It is common for dentists who provide dental treatment to use dental equipment during their practice.
Here, when operating the medical equipment or changing the output of the medical equipment, the practitioner, for example, stretches his/her arm to operate the switch to operate the medical equipment or change the output of the medical equipment. When operating the switch in this way, the practitioner must take his/her eyes off the part of the body being treated, which tends to reduce workability.
An object of the present invention is to improve the operability when a practitioner performs medical treatment using a medical device.

For this purpose, the medical treatment device to which the present invention is applied is a medical treatment device that includes an information acquisition means that acquires information used to detect the actions of a practitioner performing dental treatment without touching the practitioner, a motion detection means that detects a specific motion of the practitioner based on the information acquired by the information acquisition means, and a control means that controls medical equipment used in the treatment based on the specific motion detected by the motion detection means.

Here, the information acquisition means is composed of an imaging means for imaging the practitioner, and the movement detection means can be characterized in that it analyzes the image obtained by the imaging means to detect the specific movement.
In addition, the photographing means is a photographing means used to photograph the oral cavity of a patient during medical treatment, and the movement detection means can be characterized in that it analyzes the image obtained by the photographing means for photographing the oral cavity and detects the specific movement.
It can also be characterized in that, when the practitioner performs a predetermined action, the shooting conditions of the shooting means used to photograph the oral cavity are changed to shooting conditions suitable for photographing the specific action.
The motion detection means may detect a specific movement of a predetermined part of the practitioner, and the control means may control the medical equipment based on the specific movement of the predetermined part detected by the motion detection means.
The imaging device may further include a display device that displays a portion of the image obtained by the imaging means, and even if the specific action is captured in an area of the image obtained by the imaging means that is not captured on the display device, control based on the specific action is performed by the control means.
The control means may be characterized in that, when the practitioner performs a predetermined action, the control means controls the medical equipment based on the specific action detected by the action detection means.
The control means may be characterized in that, when the specific motion detected by the motion detection means is performed at a predetermined location, the control means controls the medical equipment based on the specific motion.
The control means can be characterized in that, when the specific movement detected by the movement detection means is performed at a location that is more than a predetermined distance away from the patient's body, the control means controls the medical equipment based on the specific movement, and, when the specific movement is performed at a location that is not more than the predetermined distance, the control means does not control the medical equipment.
It can also be characterized in that the content of control by the control means differs between a case where the specific movement detected by the movement detection means is performed at a first location and a case where the specific movement is performed at a second location different from the first location.
It can also be characterized in that the content of control by the control means differs between a case where the specific movement detected by the movement detection means is performed at a location that is more than a predetermined distance away from the patient's body and a case where the specific movement is performed at a location that is not more than the predetermined distance.
In addition, the control means can be characterized in that when starting operation of the medical equipment based on the specific operation detected by the operation detection means, the control means starts operation of the medical equipment when the medical equipment is in a predetermined state.
The control means may be characterized in that it starts the operation of the medical device when the medical device is inside the patient's oral cavity.
The control means may be characterized in that it starts the operation of the medical device when the medical device is outside the patient's oral cavity.
The control means may be characterized in that it controls the medical equipment based on specific movements of a plurality of parts of the practitioner detected by the movement detection means.

In addition, when the present invention is considered as an information processing system, the information processing system to which the present invention is applied is an information processing system that includes a motion detection means that detects a specific motion of a practitioner performing dental treatment based on information acquired by an information acquisition means that acquires information used to detect the motion of the practitioner without touching the practitioner, and a determination means that determines the content of control of the medical equipment used in the treatment based on the specific motion detected by the motion detection means.

The present invention can improve the workability of practitioners when using medical equipment to provide medical care.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a dental treatment device used in dental treatment. FIG. 1 is a front view of a dental lighting device. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the hardware configuration of a control device. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing functional units realized by a control device of the medical device. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a correspondence table. 13A and 13B are diagrams showing an example of the movement of a clinician. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an image obtained by a camera. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing another example of the correspondence table. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the support portion taken along line IX-IX in FIG. 1 .

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a dental diagnostic apparatus 100 used in dental treatment.
In the medical treatment device 100 shown in Fig. 1, a dental treatment table 2 that supports a patient from below is provided on a floor surface. The treatment table 2 is provided with a support part 200 that supports the patient from below, and an elevation mechanism 250 that raises and lowers the support part 200.
The lifting mechanism 250 is provided with a drive source (not shown) such as a motor, and the support part 200 is lifted and lowered by being driven by this drive source.

A seat plate 2b is provided on the support portion 200. Furthermore, a backrest 2c is provided on the examination table 2. One end of the backrest 2c is attached to the seat plate 2b and rotates around this end.
Furthermore, the examination table 2 is provided with a headrest 2d attached to the backrest 2c for supporting the patient's head.
The examination table 2 is also provided with a leg support 2e for supporting the legs of the patient.

In this embodiment, the surface of the seat plate 2b serves as a support surface 2f that supports the buttocks of the patient, and during medical treatment, the patient first sits on the seat plate 2b.
At this time (when the patient sits down), the backrest 2c is in an upright position (standing position) unlike the position shown in Fig. 1. Also, when the patient sits down, the leg support 2e is in a drooping position unlike the position shown in Fig. 1.
Thereafter, in this embodiment, the seat plate 2b rises, and the back plate 2c tilts down. Also, the leg support portion 2e rotates about one end portion 2g, and the other end portion 2h of the leg support portion 2e rises.

The diagnostic device 100 is also provided with a display device 300 for displaying images. The display device 300 is, for example, a liquid crystal display.
The display device 300 is fixed to a wall (not shown) of a room in which the medical device 100 is installed. The display device 300 is not limited to being fixed to the wall, and may be attached to a member constituting a part of the medical device 100, such as the tray table 3.
Furthermore, in this embodiment, a foot controller 400 is provided which is operated by the foot of a practitioner such as a dentist.

In addition, the medical examination device 100 is provided with a doctor's tray table 3 beside the examination table 2, and further with a doctor's instrument holder 10. Furthermore, on the opposite side of the examination table 2 from the tray table 3, an assistant's instrument holder 4 is provided.
Furthermore, a movable support arm 13 is provided, and the tray table 3 and the instrument holder 10 are supported by this support arm 13. This allows the tray table 3 and the instrument holder 10 to move in the horizontal direction.
The diagnostic apparatus 100 is also provided with a dental lighting device 90 that irradiates light into the oral cavity of a patient, an arm 6b that supports the dental lighting device 90, and a support column 6c that supports the arm 6b.

FIG. 2 is a front view of dental lighting device 90.
The dental lighting device 90 is provided with a light source 90A. Furthermore, the dental lighting device 90 is provided with a camera 91 in addition to the light source 90A.
The camera 91, which is an example of an information acquisition means or an imaging means, includes an imaging element such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor), and captures an image of the oral cavity of a patient during medical treatment.

The doctor's instrument holder 10 (see FIG. 1) and the assistant's instrument holder 4 hold a treatment instrument 11, which is an example of medical equipment, in a removable manner (only the assistant's treatment instrument 11 is shown in FIG. 1).
Examples of the doctor's treatment instrument 11 include an air turbine handpiece, a micromotor handpiece, a scaler, a three-way syringe, a root canal length measuring instrument, a root canal enlarger, and an intraoral camera.
Furthermore, the assistant's treatment instrument 11 may be, for example, a suction instrument 20 that sucks up saliva, blood, cutting chips, etc. (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "waste liquid") from the patient's mouth.

In FIG. 1 , a suction syringe (vacuum syringe) 21 as an example of a suction instrument 20 and a syringe ejector 22 are held by the instrument holder 4 .
Each of the suction instruments 20 is connected to an unillustrated suction source (described later) such as a vacuum pump or a compressor, and the waste liquid is sucked by suction from this suction source.

In addition, a water supply device 5 is provided beside (around) the examination table 2 to supply water to a cup (not shown) that the patient uses for gargling.
The supply device 5 is provided with a waste liquid receiving section 52 that receives waste liquid discharged from the patient's mouth, a cup water supply section 53 that supplies water to the cup, and a cleaning water supply section 54 that supplies water for cleaning to the waste liquid receiving section 52.

Furthermore, the supply device 5 is provided therein with a storage container (suction tank) 60 for storing waste liquid.
The storage container 60 stores waste liquid (waste liquid aspirated from the patient's oral cavity) aspirated by the suction instrument 20 (suction syringe 21, saliva ejector 22, etc.).
Inside the supply device 5, a control device 61 that controls each part of the medical device 100 is provided.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the hardware configuration of the control device 61. As shown in FIG.
The control device 61 provided in the medical device 100 is configured by a computer, and includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 101, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 102, and a RAM (Random Access Memory) 103. It further includes an information storage device 104 configured by a hard disk device or the like.

The ROM 102 stores a program executed by the CPU 101. The CPU 101 reads out the program stored in the ROM 102, and executes the program using the RAM 103 as a working area.
The program executed by CPU 101 may be provided to medical device 100 in a state where it is stored on a computer-readable recording medium such as a magnetic recording medium (magnetic tape, magnetic disk, etc.), an optical recording medium (optical disk, etc.), a magneto-optical recording medium, or a semiconductor memory.
In addition, the program executed by the CPU 101 may be downloaded to the medical device 100 using a communication means such as the Internet.

In this embodiment, a case will be described in which various processes for the medical device 100 are performed by a control device 61 provided in the medical device 100.
In this embodiment, the portion in which the control device 61 is provided functions as an information processing system that processes information about the medical device 100, and the medical device 100 is controlled by this information processing system.

However, without being limited thereto, a part or all of the various processes for the medical device 100 may be performed by an external device such as a server device provided separately from the medical device 100. In other words, a part or all of the various processes for the medical device 100 may be performed by an external information processing system provided separately from the medical device 100.
Furthermore, when processing is performed in an external information processing system, the processing may be performed by one information processing device, or the processing may be distributed using a plurality of information processing devices.

Fig. 4 is a diagram showing the functional units realized by the control device 61. Note that Fig. 4 shows only the functional units related to the control of medical equipment.
The control device 61 controls various medical devices used in the medical treatment based on the actions of the practitioner captured in an image (video) obtained by a camera 91, which is an example of an imaging means.
The camera 91 is an example of an information acquisition means for acquiring information used to detect the motion of the practitioner without touching the practitioner. The camera 91 acquires images (video) of the practitioner performing various motions as information used to detect the motion of the practitioner without touching the practitioner.

In this embodiment, the case where the camera 91 is used as the information acquisition means will be described as an example, but the information acquisition means is not limited to the camera 91.
Other examples of information acquisition means include equipment that emits infrared rays or millimeter wave radar to the practitioner and receives reflected waves from the practitioner and transmitted waves that pass through the practitioner.
When this device is used, the reflected waves and transmitted waves differ depending on the movements of the practitioner, and by analyzing these reflected waves and transmitted waves, the movements performed by the practitioner can be detected.

The camera 91 and devices using infrared rays or millimeter wave radar use electromagnetic waves such as light, infrared rays, or millimeter wave radar to obtain information used to detect the movements of the practitioner.
Specifically, the camera 91 detects electromagnetic waves (reflected light) from the practitioner and obtains information used to detect the practitioner's movements.
In addition, equipment using infrared or millimeter-wave radar detects electromagnetic waves reflected from the practitioner (reflected waves) and electromagnetic waves that pass through the practitioner (passed waves) to obtain information that can be used to detect the practitioner's movements.

Other examples of information acquisition means include devices that use things other than electromagnetic waves, such as sound waves.
When using sound waves, the waves reflected from the practitioner and the waves passing through the practitioner will differ depending on the practitioner's movements, and by detecting these reflected waves and passing waves, information can be obtained that can be used to detect the practitioner's movements.

The medical equipment controlled by the control device 61 includes not only the above-mentioned treatment instruments 11 that are directly used to treat the patient's teeth, but also the treatment table 2, the dental lighting device 90, the supply device 5, and the like.
The control device 61 controls the treatment instrument 11, the examination table 2, the dental lighting device 90, the supply device 5, etc. based on the movements of the practitioner captured in the image obtained by the camera 91, and the above-mentioned reflected waves and transmitted waves.
In the following description, the control device 61 performs control based on the movements of the practitioner captured in the image obtained by the camera 91.

The control device 61 functions as a motion detection unit 111 , a control content determination unit 112 , and a device control unit 113 .
In this embodiment, the CPU 101 reads out a program stored in the ROM 102 and executes the program using the RAM 103 as a working area, thereby implementing these functional units.

The movement detection unit 111, which is an example of a movement detection means, detects a specific movement of a medical practitioner.
More specifically, the motion detection unit 111 detects a specific motion of the practitioner based on information used for detecting the motion of the practitioner, which is acquired by the camera 91, which is an example of an information acquisition means. More specifically, the motion detection unit 111 detects a specific motion of the practitioner based on the video (video) acquired by the camera 91.
More specifically, the motion detection unit 111 analyzes the video (video) captured by the camera 91 that obtains information about the practitioner, and detects a specific motion of the practitioner.

Here, the motion detection unit 111 detects a specific motion of the practitioner using existing technology. Specifically, the motion detection unit 111 detects a specific motion of the practitioner using an algorithm used in, for example, PoseNet or Kinect.
More specifically, the motion detection unit 111 determines whether or not the information contained in the image captured by the camera 91 includes information indicating a specific motion, and if this information is included, detects the specific motion of the practitioner.
When a reflected wave or a passing wave is obtained as described above, the motion detection unit 111 determines whether or not this reflected wave or the passing wave contains information indicating a specific motion, and if this information is contained, detects the specific motion.

When the motion detection unit 111 detects a specific motion of the practitioner, the control content determination unit 112 and the equipment control unit 113, which are examples of a control means, control the medical equipment used in the treatment based on the specific motion of the practitioner detected by the motion detection unit 111.
Specifically, when the motion detection unit 111 detects a specific motion of the practitioner, the control content determination unit 112, which functions as a determination means, first identifies the medical equipment to be controlled based on the specific motion detected by the motion detection unit 111, and also determines the control content of the identified medical equipment.

More specifically, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5 (a diagram showing the correspondence table), a correspondence table is generated in advance in which the content of a specific action of a practitioner, the medical equipment to be controlled, and the control content of this medical equipment are associated with each other, and this correspondence table is stored in advance in the information storage device 104 (see FIG. 3).
When the control content determination unit 112 obtains information about a specific operation detected by the operation detection unit 111, it refers to this correspondence table to identify the medical equipment to be controlled, and further grasps the control content of this medical equipment and determines the grasped control content as the control content of the medical equipment.

Next, in this embodiment, the equipment control unit 113 generates a control signal based on the control content determined by the control content determination unit 112, and outputs this control signal to the medical equipment identified by the control content determination unit 112.
As a result, in this embodiment, in response to a specific action of the practitioner, the medical device associated with this specific action operates with the control content associated with this specific action.

In this embodiment, the doctor/practitioner is photographed together with the patient's oral cavity by the camera 91. The "doctor/practitioner" is not limited to dentists, but also includes persons other than dentists, such as dental hygienists.
In this embodiment, the control device 61 controls the medical equipment used in the medical treatment based on the specific movement of the practitioner captured in the image obtained by the camera 91 as described above.
In this embodiment, when the practitioner operates the medical device or changes the output of the medical device, the practitioner performs a specific predetermined action (gesture). In this embodiment, the medical device is controlled in accordance with the specific predetermined action.

In this embodiment, information on the actions of the practitioner is obtained using a camera 91 that photographs the oral cavity of a patient. In this way, when the camera 91 for photographing the oral cavity is used, it is not necessary to install a dedicated camera for photographing the actions of the practitioner, and costs can be reduced.
Note that the installation of a dedicated camera for recording the movements is not excluded; a dedicated camera for recording the movements of the practitioner may be installed and the movements of the practitioner may be recorded using this dedicated camera.

As described above, the control device 61 controls the medical equipment based on the movements of the practitioner captured in the image obtained by the camera 91 .
More specifically, the control device 61 controls the medical equipment based on, for example, a specific movement of a predetermined part of the practitioner's body.More specifically, the control device 61 controls the medical equipment based on, for example, a specific movement of the practitioner's fingers.
More specifically, in this embodiment, the motion detection unit 111 detects a specific motion of a predetermined part of the practitioner. Then, in this embodiment, the medical device is controlled based on the specific motion of the predetermined part.

More specifically, when the movement of the practitioner's fingers captured in the image obtained by the camera 91 is, for example, a movement of pointing the thumb up, as shown in (A) of Figure 6 (a diagram showing an example of the practitioner's movement), the control device 61 performs control to raise, for example, the support part 200 of the examination table 2 (see Figure 1).
In addition, when the movement of the practitioner's fingers shown in the image obtained by the camera 91 is, for example, a movement of pointing the thumb down, as shown in Figure 6 (B), the control device 61 controls the support part 200 of the examination table 2 (see Figure 1) to be lowered.
More specifically, in this case, the equipment control unit 113 of the control device 61 outputs a control signal to a lifting mechanism 250 (see FIG. 1) provided on the examination table 2, and the examination table 2 rises or falls.

Note that while the example described here is the case of raising and lowering the examination table 2, other control contents of the medical equipment include, for example, the process of tilting or raising the backrest 2c (see Figure 1) provided on the examination table 2.
In addition, other examples of the control of the medical equipment include on/off control of the treatment instrument 11 (control to start and stop operation) and control to increase or decrease the output of the treatment instrument 11.
Here, an example of the control for increasing or decreasing the output of the treatment instrument 11 is a process for increasing or decreasing the rotation speed of an air turbine handpiece or a micromotor handpiece, which are examples of the treatment instrument 11.

In addition, the contents of the control of the medical equipment include, for example, on/off control of the dental lighting device 90 and control to increase/decrease the output (brightness) of the dental lighting device 90 .
In addition, although the above description is given as an example of controlling the medical equipment based on the movement (direction) of the thumb of the practitioner, the medical equipment may be controlled based on the movement of other fingers such as the index finger, etc. Also, the medical equipment may be controlled based on the direction of the palm or the back of the hand.

Additionally, although the practitioner's fingers have been given as an example of the "predetermined part of the practitioner" here, other examples of the "predetermined part of the practitioner" include the practitioner's arms, the practitioner's legs, the practitioner's face, and the practitioner's head.
For example, when the practitioner raises his/her elbow or lifts one leg, the medical equipment may be controlled. Also, when the practitioner changes his/her facial expression, for example, by closing one eye or opening his/her mouth, the medical equipment may be controlled. In addition, when the practitioner makes a motion such as tilting his/her head, the medical equipment may be controlled.

In this embodiment, when medical equipment is controlled based on specific movements of the practitioner captured in the image obtained by camera 91, the practitioner can control the target medical equipment without touching a physical switch.
Furthermore, when controlling the medical equipment based on a particular movement of the practitioner captured in the image obtained by the camera 91, the practitioner can control the medical equipment without taking his/her eyes off the affected area of the patient.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining an image obtained by the camera 91. As shown in FIG.
In this embodiment, the range indicated by the reference symbol 7A is the angle of view of the camera 91, and in this embodiment, an image of a subject present within the range of this angle of view is acquired.
In this embodiment, the entire subject within the range of the angle of view is not displayed on the display device 300 (see FIG. 1), but only a portion of the subject is displayed on the display device 300.
Specifically, in this embodiment, an image of the subject located within the area indicated by the symbol 7B is displayed on the display device 300, and an image of the subject located within the area indicated by the symbol 7C is not displayed on the display device 300.

In this embodiment, even if a specific movement of the practitioner is captured in an image obtained by the camera 91 that is not displayed on the display device 300, the specific movement is detected by the movement detection unit 111.
Then, control based on this specific operation is performed by the control content determination section 112 and the device control section 113, which are an example of a control means.
More specifically, even if a particular action is performed by the practitioner in the area indicated by the reference symbol 7C, control based on this particular action is performed by the control content determination section 112 and the device control section 113.

As a result, in this embodiment, when the practitioner performs a specific action in an area that is not displayed on the display device 300, the image of the oral cavity displayed on the display device 300 is prevented from becoming obscured by the image of this specific action.
In this embodiment, when a practitioner performs a specific action in the area displayed on the display device 300, the patient's oral cavity is located behind the practitioner's action, making it difficult to see the oral cavity.
In contrast, when the practitioner performs a specific action in an area not shown on the display device 300, the specific action is performed at a location that is off the line connecting the oral cavity and the camera 91. In this case, it is less likely that the image of the oral cavity displayed on the display device 300 will be obscured by the image of the specific action.

(Other processing examples)
The control device 61 does not uniformly control the medical equipment based on a specific action shown in the video, but may control the medical equipment based on a specific action shown in the video when the practitioner performs a predetermined action.
In other words, the control of the medical device based on a specific motion detected by the motion detection unit 111 may be performed when the practitioner performs a predetermined motion.

More specifically, the control device 61 may be configured to control the medical equipment when the practitioner performs a predetermined operation, such as operating the foot controller 400 (see FIG. 1), and then performs a specific operation for controlling the medical equipment (a specific operation that is to be detected by the operation detection unit 111).
In this case, the medical equipment is controlled on the condition that the practitioner steps on the foot controller 400, for example.
More specifically, when the practitioner steps on the foot controller 400, for example, the operation of the medical equipment is started or the output of the medical equipment is changed.

In this case, unless the practitioner steps on the foot controller 400, the practitioner cannot control the medical equipment based on his/her own specific motion (the specific motion that is the target of detection by the motion detection unit 111).
In this case, unintended operation of the medical equipment or changes in output are less likely to occur compared to when the medical equipment is controlled based only on specific actions performed in front of the camera 91 (specific actions that are the target of detection by the action detection unit 111).

In other words, in this processing example, the practitioner not only needs to perform a specific action for controlling the medical equipment in front of the camera 91, but also needs to perform another action in addition to this specific action.
In this case, unintended operation of the medical equipment or unintended changes in the output of the medical equipment due to erroneous detection of the specific operation, etc., is less likely to occur than when the medical equipment is controlled based solely on this specific operation.

The control device 61 determines whether or not the foot controller 400 has been operated by the practitioner based on, for example, the output from the foot controller 400. The control device 61 may also determine whether or not the foot controller 400 has been operated by the practitioner by analyzing the image obtained by the camera 91.

In addition, in this embodiment, the operation of the foot controller 400 is given as an example of the above-mentioned "another action", but other examples of this "another action" include, for example, the action of the practitioner uttering a predetermined sound or the action of operating a predetermined switch.
Furthermore, for example, the action of the practitioner moving a part of his or her own body is also given as an example of "another action."

Here, whether or not the practitioner has performed an action that produces a predetermined sound can be determined, for example, by installing a microphone in the medical device 100, and based on the output from this microphone, it is determined whether or not the practitioner has performed an action that produces a predetermined sound.
Whether or not the practitioner has performed the action of operating a predetermined switch is determined, for example, by obtaining an output from the switch, and when the predetermined output is received from the switch, it is determined that the practitioner has performed the action of operating the switch. Alternatively, the image obtained by the camera 91 may be analyzed to determine whether or not the practitioner has performed the action of operating the switch.
In addition, as to whether or not the practitioner has performed an action to move a part of his/her body, for example, the image obtained by the camera 91 is analyzed to determine whether or not the practitioner has performed an action to move this part.

(Other processing examples)
Additionally, when a specific action shown in the video is performed at a predetermined specific location, the control device 61 may control the medical equipment based on this specific action.
In other words, the control device 61 may be configured to initiate control associated with a specific action shown in the video when the specific action is performed at a predetermined specific location.
More specifically, when the motion detection unit 111 detects a specific motion and further determines that this specific motion has been performed at a predetermined specific location, control of the medical equipment based on this specific motion may be started.

More specifically, for example, when a specific action shown in the image is performed at a location that is more than a predetermined distance away from the patient's body, the control device 61 controls the medical equipment based on this specific action.
More specifically, when a specific action shown in the video is performed at a location that is more than a predetermined distance away from the patient's body, the control device 61 controls the start of operation of a medical device associated with the specific action or increases the output of the medical device.

On the other hand, when the specific action shown in the video is performed at a location that does not exceed this predetermined distance, the control device 61 performs processing not to control the medical equipment.
Specifically, in this case, for example, if a particular action shown in the image is performed at a location that is not more than a predetermined distance from the patient's body, the control device 61 will not initiate operation of the medical equipment associated with this particular action or will not increase the output of this medical equipment.

More specifically, when performing this process, first, the motion detection unit 111 of the control device 61 analyzes the image obtained by the camera 91 to detect a specific motion performed by the practitioner. Furthermore, the motion detection unit 111 analyzes the image to ascertain the distance between the location where the specific motion was performed and the part of the patient's body that is closest to the location where the specific motion was performed.
If the distance detected by the motion detection unit 111 does not exceed a predetermined distance, the equipment control unit 113 performs control such that the operation of the medical equipment associated with this specific motion is not started or the output of this medical equipment is not increased.
The distance between the location where the specific movement is performed and a predetermined reference such as the patient's body may be determined using known video analysis technology.

Here, for example, when the specific action performed by the practitioner is an action of moving the fingers, it is assumed that the practitioner moves the fingers while holding the treatment instrument 11 in his/her hand.
In this case, if this action of moving the fingers is performed close to the patient's body and, for example, the content of the control performed based on this action of moving the fingers is control to raise the support part 200 (see Figure 1), there is a risk that the treatment instrument 11 will come into contact with the patient.
In contrast, in the present embodiment, when a specific action shown in the video is performed at a location that is more than a predetermined distance away from the patient's body, when controlling medical equipment, it is less likely that the treatment instrument 11 will come into contact with the patient.

(Other processing examples)
In addition, the content of the control performed based on a specific action shown in the video may be different depending on whether the specific action is performed in a first location or a second location different from the first location.
More specifically, the content of the control performed based on a specific movement may be different between a case where the movement detection unit 111 detects a specific movement and determines that the specific movement was performed at a first location and a case where the movement detection unit 111 detects a specific movement and determines that the specific movement was performed at a second location different from the first location.

When performing this process, as shown in Figure 8 (a diagram showing another example of a correspondence table), the content of a specific operation, the location where the specific operation is performed, the medical equipment to be controlled, and the content of control are previously associated with each other, and this information is then registered in a correspondence table.
The control device 61 refers to this correspondence table and determines the content of control to be performed based on a specific action (the medical equipment to be controlled and the control content) depending on the location in the image where the specific action was performed.

Specifically, for example, as shown in FIG. 9 (a cross-sectional view of the support unit 200 taken along line IX-IX in FIG. 1), the content of the control performed based on a specific movement shown in the image (a specific movement detected by the movement detection unit 111) is different depending on whether the specific movement is performed at a location that is more than a predetermined distance L away from the patient's body or not.

More specifically, for example, when a practitioner performs a specific action to raise the support part 200, and when this specific action is performed at a location that does not exceed the above-mentioned distance L, control is performed to reduce the raising speed of the support part 200.
Conversely, for example, if this specific operation is performed at a location that exceeds the above-mentioned distance L, control is performed to increase the lifting speed of the support part 200.

As in the above, for example, a case is assumed in which a practitioner performs a specific action of moving his/her fingers while holding the treatment instrument 11 in his/her hand.
In this case, if this particular action of moving the fingers is performed close to the patient's body and, for example, the control based on this particular action of moving the fingers is control to raise the support part 200, there is a risk of an incident such as the treatment instrument 11 coming into contact with the patient.

In such a case, in this embodiment, the rising speed of the support part 200 becomes slower, and even if the treatment instrument 11 comes into contact with the patient, the effect of the contact becomes smaller.
On the other hand, in this embodiment, when a particular finger movement is performed at a location beyond the above-mentioned distance L (when performed at a location away from the patient's body), the support part 200 rises at a faster speed.
In this case, the support part 200 can be raised more quickly while preventing the treatment instrument 11 from touching the patient.

(Other processing)
In addition, when the control device 61 starts the operation of the medical equipment based on a specific action shown in the video (a specific action detected by the action detection unit 111), the control device 61 may start the operation of the medical equipment when the medical equipment is in a predetermined state.
In other words, if a specific action shown in the video is an action instructing the start of operation of medical equipment, the control device 61 may be configured to start the operation of the medical equipment when the medical equipment is in a predetermined state.

More specifically, for example, when a specific action shown in the image is an action instructing the start of operation of the treatment instrument 11, the control device 61 starts the operation of the treatment instrument 11 when the treatment instrument 11 is inside the patient's oral cavity.
More specifically, for example, when a specific action shown in the image is an action instructing the operation of a treatment instrument 11 used to cut a patient's teeth, the control device 61 starts the operation of the treatment instrument 11 when a part (tip) of the treatment instrument 11 is inside the patient's oral cavity.
Here, the state in which the treatment instrument 11 is in the patient's oral cavity is not limited to the state in which the entire treatment instrument 11 is in the patient's oral cavity, but also includes the state in which only a part of the treatment instrument 11 is in the patient's oral cavity. On the other hand, the control device 61 prevents the treatment instrument 11 from starting to operate when the treatment instrument 11 is not in the patient's oral cavity.

More specifically, in this case, the control content decision unit 112 analyzes the image obtained by the camera 91 to determine whether or not the treatment instrument 11 is in the patient's oral cavity. Then, when the control content decision unit 112 determines that the treatment instrument 11 is in the patient's oral cavity, it makes a decision to start the operation of the treatment instrument 11.
On the other hand, when the control content decision unit 112 determines that the treatment instrument 11 is not in the patient's oral cavity, it decides not to start the operation of the treatment instrument 11. In this case, the device control unit 113 does not start the operation of the treatment instrument 11.

As a result, in this processing example, the treatment instrument 11 is prevented from starting to operate when the treatment instrument 11 is not inserted in the patient's oral cavity.
Here, when the operation of the treatment instrument 11 (specifically, the treatment instrument 11 used to cut the patient's teeth) is started in a state where it is not in the patient's oral cavity (a state where it is outside the oral cavity), the treatment instrument 11 in the operating state is inserted into the patient's oral cavity. In this case, there is a risk that the treatment instrument 11 in the operating state may come into contact with the patient's lips, etc., which is not preferable.
In contrast, when the treatment instrument 11 is inside the patient's oral cavity and the operation of the treatment instrument 11 is started, the treatment instrument 11 in the operating state is less likely to come into contact with the patient's lips, etc.

In addition, the control device 61 may be configured to start the operation of the treatment instrument 11 when, for example, a specific action shown in the image is an action that instructs the start of operation of the treatment instrument 11 and the treatment instrument 11 is outside the patient's oral cavity.
More specifically, for example, when a specific action shown in the image is an action instructing the operation of a treatment instrument 11 other than the treatment instrument 11 used for cutting teeth, the control device 61 starts the operation of the treatment instrument 11 when the treatment instrument 11 is outside the patient's oral cavity.
On the other hand, the control device 61 prevents the treatment instrument 11 from starting to operate when the treatment instrument 11 is in the patient's oral cavity.

Here, an example has been described in which it is determined whether or not the treatment instrument 11 is in the oral cavity of a patient by analyzing the image obtained by the camera 91. In other words, it has been described in which it is determined whether or not a medical device such as the treatment instrument 11 is in a predetermined state by analyzing the image obtained by the camera 91.
However, without being limited to this, whether or not the medical equipment is in a predetermined state may be determined based on an output from the medical equipment.

(Other processing)
In addition, the control device 61 may control medical equipment based on specific movements of multiple parts of the practitioner shown in the video (based on specific movements of multiple parts of the practitioner detected by the movement detection unit 111).
Specifically, the control device 61 may control medical equipment based on, for example, a specific movement of the right hand and a specific movement of the left hand of the practitioner.

More specifically, the control device 61 performs control to raise the support part 200 when, for example, the thumb of the practitioner's right hand points upward and the thumb of the practitioner's left hand points upward.
In addition to this, for example, the control device 61 performs control to increase the rotation speed of the treatment instrument 11 when the thumb of the practitioner's right hand points upward and the thumb of the practitioner's left hand points upward.
This makes it less likely that unintended operation of the medical equipment or unintended changes in the output of the medical equipment will occur due to false detection of a specific movement, compared to when the medical equipment is controlled based only on a specific movement of one part of the practitioner that is captured on video.

Although the right hand and left hand of the practitioner are given here as an example of a combination of multiple locations, the combination of multiple locations is not limited to this.
Other examples of combinations of multiple parts include hands and feet, hands and facial expressions, feet and facial expressions, right feet and left feet, etc.

(Other processing)
In addition, the control device 61 may change the shooting conditions of the camera 91 to shooting conditions suitable for shooting the specific action of the practitioner, for example, when the practitioner performs a predetermined action.
Specifically, for example, when the practitioner operates the foot controller 400 (see Figure 1), performs a predetermined finger movement, or gives a voice command such as "change the shooting conditions," the control device 61 changes the shooting conditions of the camera 91 to shooting conditions suitable for capturing a specific movement of the practitioner.

Here, the above-mentioned "predetermined action" for changing the shooting conditions is not limited to the action of the camera 91 acquiring the image.
As described above, this "predetermined action" may be an action other than an action whose image is captured by camera 91, such as an operation on foot controller 400 or an instruction by voice.

The control device 61 performs control to change the shooting conditions to those suitable for photographing specific movements of the practitioner, for example, by increasing the resolution of the camera 91 or by moving the lens inside the camera 91 to expand the angle of view of the camera 91.
This allows the imaging conditions of the camera 91 to become suitable for imaging a particular movement of the practitioner.
In other words, by changing the shooting conditions, even when using a camera 91 for photographing the oral cavity as in this embodiment, the shooting conditions of the camera 91 can be made suitable for photographing specific movements of the practitioner.

2...examination table, 5...supply device, 11...treatment instrument, 61...control device, 90...dental lighting device, 91...camera, 100...treatment device, 111...motion detection unit, 112...control content determination unit, 113...equipment control unit, 300...display device

Claims (4)

an information acquisition means for acquiring information used to detect the motion of a dental practitioner without contacting the dental practitioner;
a motion detection means for detecting a specific motion of the practitioner based on the information acquired by the information acquisition means;
a control means for controlling a medical device used in the medical treatment based on the specific motion detected by the motion detection means;
Equipped with
The control means controls the medical equipment based on the specific motion detected by the motion detection means when the specific motion is performed at a location that is more than a predetermined distance away from the patient's body, and does not control the medical equipment when the specific motion is performed at a location that is not more than the predetermined distance. an information acquisition means for acquiring information used to detect the motion of a dental practitioner without contacting the dental practitioner;
a motion detection means for detecting a specific motion of the practitioner based on the information acquired by the information acquisition means;
a control means for controlling a medical device used in the medical treatment based on the specific motion detected by the motion detection means;
Equipped with
A medical device in which the control content by the control means differs depending on whether the specific movement detected by the movement detection means is performed at a location that is more than a predetermined distance away from the patient's body or the specific movement is performed at a location that is not more than the predetermined distance. a motion detection means for detecting a specific motion of a practitioner performing dental treatment based on information acquired by an information acquisition means for acquiring information used to detect the motion of the practitioner without touching the practitioner;
a decision means for making a decision regarding control of a medical device used in the medical treatment based on the specific motion detected by the motion detection means;
Equipped with
The decision means is an information processing system that makes a decision to control the medical equipment based on the specific motion when the specific motion detected by the motion detection means is performed at a location that is more than a predetermined distance away from the patient's body, and makes a decision not to control the medical equipment when the specific motion is performed at a location that is not more than the predetermined distance. a motion detection means for detecting a specific motion of a practitioner performing dental treatment based on information acquired by an information acquisition means for acquiring information used to detect the motion of the practitioner without touching the practitioner;
a decision means for making a decision regarding control of a medical device used in the medical treatment based on the specific motion detected by the motion detection means;
Equipped with
The decision means is an information processing system that makes a decision to make different control contents of the medical equipment when the specific movement detected by the movement detection means is performed at a location that is more than a predetermined distance away from the patient's body and when the specific movement is performed at a location that is not more than the predetermined distance.

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