An ultrasonic probe includes ultrasonic vibrators arranged in a circumferential direction, an acoustic matching layer disposed on the ultrasonic vibrators, and a flexion section disposed between the ultrasonic vibrators adjacent to each other in the circumferential direction, and having an electrode layer acting as an electrode of the ultrasonic vibrators adjacent to each other. Further, it is also possible to configure the ultrasonic probe in which the electrode layer is exposed in the flexion section.

In one embodiment of the disclosure, a method of monitoring a fetus in utero is disclosed that includes implanting a medical device into a patient's uterus, collecting fetal data using the medical device, and transmitting, e.g., wirelessly, the fetal data from the medical device to a receiver. In another embodiment, a medical monitoring system is disclosed that includes a first device that is implantable into a patient's uterus for collecting fetal data, and a second device that is configured and dimensioned for connection with the first device such that the fetal data is wirelessly communicable from the first device to the second device.

In certain embodiments, a method for communicating with a fetus may include providing, on an electronic device, a user interface configured to facilitate wireless communication of signals between the electronic device and at least one implanted device located in proximity to the fetus; and responsive to a user selecting a communication selection element, causing the wireless communication of signals inclusive of content data between the electronic device and implanted device.

A capsule endoscope includes: an imaging unit configured to capture inside of a subject and to generate an image of the inside of the subject; a brightness distribution measurement unit configured to measure a brightness distribution in the image generated by the imaging unit; and an imaging controller configured to switch a frame rate of the imaging unit to a frame rate higher than a reference frame rate when an area having brightness lower than a predetermined value is distributed at a center of the image in the brightness distribution measured by the brightness distribution measurement unit and to switch the frame rate of the imaging unit to a frame rate lower than the reference frame rate when the area having the brightness lower than the predetermined value is distributed outside the center of the image.

An imaging device includes an image sensor. The image sensor includes: a light receiving unit having pixels configured to receive light and generate an imaging signal according to an amount of the received light; a color filter having a filter unit disposed corresponding to the pixels, the filter unit including first band filters for passing light of a wavelength band of a primary color or a complementary color and including at least one second band filter for passing narrow-band light whose wavelength band is narrower than the wavelength band of the light passing through each of the first band filters; and an output unit configured to output the imaging signal under conditions that an amount of light incident on a second pixel corresponding to the at least one second band filter is greater than an amount of light incident on each of first pixels corresponding to the first band filters.

An image processor calculates diagnosis support parameters on the basis of the state of blood vessels of an observation object. The image processor includes an image acquisition unit that acquires an endoscopic image, a blood vessel extraction unit that extracts blood vessels, using the endoscopic image, a blood vessel information calculation unit, and a blood vessel parameter calculation unit. The blood vessel information calculation unit calculates a plurality of items of blood vessel information including at least two or more among the number of pieces, the number of branches, a branch angle, a distance between branch points, the number of intersections, thickness, a change in thickness, the degree of complexity of a change in thickness, length, intervals, depth with a mucous membrane as a reference, and the like. The blood vessel parameter calculation unit calculates blood vessel parameters by calculating using the plurality of items of blood vessel information.

A capsule endoscope includes: an in vivo information acquiring section that acquires information on an inside of a body of a subject; a battery that supplies power; a power source switch that turns on/off power supply from the battery to the in vivo information acquiring section; a detection section that includes at least two electrodes disposed on an outer face of a casing, and, upon detection of introduction to the inside of the body of the subject based on a change in electric resistance between the electrodes, outputs a detection signal; and a control section that controls the power source switch according to the detection signal.

A capsule endoscope includes, inside a capsule casing, an information acquiring section that acquires information on an inside of a body of a subject, a battery that supplies power, a detection section that, upon detection of introduction to the inside of the body of the subject, outputs a detection signal, a signal receiving section that receives a control signal from an outside and outputs an internal signal, and a control section that controls power supply from the battery to the information acquiring section according to the internal signal and the detection signal.

There is provided a wireless communication system including a wireless capsule including an imaging section, a posture control section, a first wireless communication section which transmits an image captured by the imaging section and receives a control signal for controlling the posture control section, and a power supply section which supplies power to the imaging section and the posture control section, and a wireless terminal apparatus including a second wireless communication section which receives the image transmitted from the first wireless communication section, and transmits the control signal, a display control section which performs a control in a manner that the image is displayed on a display section, a posture detection section which detects a posture of the display section, and a generation section which generates the control signal based on a posture signal detected by the posture detection section.

A wireless endoscope includes: a detection portion configured to detect a connection state to an endoscope body of a battery; and a control portion configured to set a replacement time operation mode of using the power from a power storage component as the power needed for the endoscopic observation and performing the endoscopic observation with lower power compared to a normal time operation mode of performing an endoscopic observation with the power from the battery, when a detection result of a non-connection state of the battery is given from the detection portion, in which the control portion restores the normal time operation mode from the replacement time operation mode when a detection result of a reconnection state to the endoscope body of the battery is given from the detection portion.