An image pickup system includes: a light source portion configured to sequentially emit first illumination light and second illumination light; an image pickup portion configured to perform image pickup of return light from an object; an image generating portion configured to generate a first image corresponding to return light of the first illumination light and a second image corresponding to return light of the second illumination light, each of which corresponds to one field, and sequentially output the first image and the second image; a synchronization processing portion configured to simultaneously output images corresponding to a plurality of fields, selectively assigning the images to three channels of a display apparatus; and a control portion configured to set image assignment to and image update frequency for the three channels based on an evaluation value acquired from the images generated by the image generating portion.

The invention alleviates a burden on a user relating to selection of a lighting color required for image inspection by multi-spectral imaging. A processor controls an illumination device to irradiate a setting target object individually with an illumination beam of each lighting color in a predetermined order, thereby generating a plurality of spectral images. The processor sets a combination of lighting colors recommended to illuminate an inspection target object based on the plurality of spectral images. An inspection unit inspects the inside of each inspection region in a plurality of inspection images generated for the inspection target object illuminated by illumination beams of lighting colors according to the set combination of recommended lighting colors.

Provided is an image processing apparatus including as image acquiring section that acquires a plurality of images obtained by imaging, at different times, a subject irradiated with lights intensity-modulated with a plurality of modulation frequencies or modulation frequency bands; and a demodulating section that demodulates pixel values of the plurality of images with a plurality of demodulation frequencies or demodulation frequency bands based on the plurality of modulation frequencies or modulation frequency bands, for each pixel, thereby generating a plurality of pieces of pixel information indicating subject light amounts from the subject caused by each of the lights intensity-modulated with the plurality of modulation frequencies or modulation frequency bands, for each pixel.

Systems and methods are disclosed for recovering both phase and amplitude of an arbitrary sample in an optical microscope from a single image, using patterned partially coherent illumination. This is realized through the use of a encoded light source which embeds several different illumination patterns into color channels. The sample is modulated by each illumination wavelength separately and independently of each other, but all of the channels are sensed by the imaging device in a single step. This color image contains information about the phase and amplitude of a sample encoded in each channel, and can be used to recover both amplitude and phase from this single image, at the incoherent resolution limit. Further, extensions of this method are shown which allow the same recovery of a sample whilst it is moving during a single exposure using a motion deblurring algorithm.

An imaging device includes: an imaging element that generates an image signal of a subject; an observation method determining unit that determines, based on identification information indicating types of a control device connected to the imaging device, whether the control device adopts a first observation method for processing an image signal indicating a plurality of images of the subject per one frame period or a second observation method for processing an image signal indicating a single image of the subject per one frame period; and a data reducing unit. If the control device adopts the second observation method, the data reducing unit reduces a data amount of the image signal to be transmitted to the control device per unit time such that a transmission rate indicating the data amount of the image signal per unit time is acceptable to the control device that adopts the second observation method.

Apparatuses, systems and methods for generating color video with a monochrome sensor include the acts of (i) selectively energizing each of a plurality of light sources in a sequence, (ii) capturing a monochrome image of the illuminated sample at a monochrome sensor at each stage of the sequence, and (iii) generating a color video from the monochrome images. The sequence can have a series of stages with each stage of the sequence corresponding to activation of a different wavelength of light from the light sources to illuminate a sample. Generating the monochrome video can include the acts of compiling a plurality of monochrome images captured at the monochrome sensor with a single light source into a series of monochrome video frames comprising the monochrome video.

An optical scanning observation apparatus includes: a light source selectively emitting a plurality of illumination lights of different colors; a light emission timing controller controlling light emission timing, based on a predetermined ratio of number of light emissions of each color of the illumination light emitted from the light source; a fiber guiding the illumination light from the light source; an actuator vibratory driving the tip part of the fiber; an optical system for irradiating the illumination light emitted from the fiber; an optical detector; and a signal processor.

The invention alleviates a burden on a user relating to selection of a lighting color required for image inspection by multi-spectral imaging. A processor controls an illumination device to irradiate a setting target object individually with an illumination beam of each lighting color in a predetermined order, thereby generating a plurality of spectral images. The processor sets a combination of lighting colors recommended to illuminate an inspection target object based on the plurality of spectral images. An inspection unit inspects the inside of each inspection region in a plurality of inspection images generated for the inspection target object illuminated by illumination beams of lighting colors according to the set combination of recommended lighting colors.

An imaging apparatus for use with a subject may include a light source structured to irradiate the subject with a yellow light, a magenta light and a cyan light at a delayed illumination timing; and a plurality of photodetectors structured to detect the intensity of the light coming from the subject when the yellow light is irradiated, the intensity of the light coming from the subject when the magenta light is irradiated, and the intensity of the light coming from the subject when the cyan light is irradiated.

Provided is an image processing apparatus including as image acquiring section that acquires a plurality of images obtained by imaging, at different times, a subject irradiated with lights intensity-modulated with a plurality of modulation frequencies or modulation frequency bands; and a demodulating section that demodulates pixel values of the plurality of images with a plurality of demodulation frequencies or demodulation frequency bands based on the plurality of modulation frequencies or modulation frequency bands, for each pixel, thereby generating a plurality of pieces of pixel information indicating subject light amounts from the subject caused by each of the lights intensity-modulated with the plurality of modulation frequencies or modulation frequency bands, for each pixel.