DEVICE FOR FORMING AN IMAGE OF A TRANSPARENT CONTAINER

Abstract: The present invention relates to a device for forming an image of a content of a transparent container, in particular a Petri dish, which container is provided for carrying at least one pharmaceutical tablet in a contaminated medium, said device comprising a carrier for carrying said container, a first light source provided for emitting a first light beam towards said container and image forming means for forming a first image of said content, whereby said first light source and said image forming means are situated at opposite sides of said carrier, and that said carrier is provided for letting said first light beam through it in order to reach at least partially said image forming means.

Description: "Device for forming an image of a transparent container" The present invention relates to a device for forming an image of a content of a transparent container, in particular a Petri dish, which container is provided for carrying at least one pharmaceutical tablet in a contaminated medium, said device comprising a carrier for carrying said container, a first light source provided for emitting a first light beam towards said container and image forming means for forming a first image of said content. Such a device is known and for example commercialised by Sanofi Diagnostics Pasteur. According to this known device, a high resolution camera is used as image forming means for forming said first image of the content of the container, and the first light source is provided at the same side of the carrier, in particular adjacent to said camera. The image is formed on the basis of the first light beam which is at least partially reflected by the container. In this way, an image is formed of the content of the container. This image is further digitised by a computer, connected to said image forming means, and from such a digitised image, an inhibition zone, formed by the reaction of each of the pharmaceutical tablets with the contaminated medium and being essentially circular-shaped, is determined and further processed by the computer. A problem with the known devices is that the formed image does not always clearly represent the inhibition zone(s), in particular the contour of the inhibition zone(s), so that the area of each inhibition zone can not be very accurately determined. The invention has therefore as object to provide an apparatus which enables to form an image on which the contour of the inhibition zone(s) is more accurately formed. To this object, the apparatus according to the invention is characterised in that said first light source and said image forming means are situated at opposite sides of said carrier, and that said carrier is provided for letting said first light beam through it in order to reach at least partially said image forming means. This enables to form an image by having said first light beam passing through the transparent container and reaching said image forming means. Since the inhibition zone(s) is (are) relatively more transparent than the contaminated medium, which in turn is more transparent than the pharmaceutical tablet(s), light will pass more easily through inhibition zone(s) than through the contaminated medium, and in its turn more easily than through the pharmaceutical tablet(s). Consequently, such an image made by transparency technique represents more accurately the contour of the inhibition zone(s). In this way, the area of each inhibition zone can better be determined and further processed. According to a first preferred embodiment, the device according to the invention comprises a second light source, situated at the same side of said carrier than said image forming means, said second light source being provided for emitting a second light beam towards said container and said image forming means being further provided for forming a second image of said content on the basis of said second light beam at least partially reflected by said content. This enables to form a more accurate image of the non transparent parts of the container to be illuminated, such as for example the pharmaceutical tablet(s), since those parts reflect the main portion of the light beam reaching it. According to a second preferred embodiment, the device according to the invention comprises means for determining pixels in said first, respectively said second image, appertaining to said pharmaceutical tablet(s) and substitution means for substituting said pixels in said first image appertaining to said pharmaceutical tablet by said pixels in said second image appertaining to said pharmaceutical tablet. In this way one image can be formed having both a clear contour of the inhibition zone(s) and an identification of the pharmaceutical tablet(s) accurately represented. The invention will now be described in detail, referring to the annexed drawings, wherein : Figure 1 is a plan view of the content of a Petri dish with seven pharmaceutical tablets in a contaminated medium, which illustrates a first image formed by a first light beam passing at least partially through the Petri dish towards image forming means; Figure 2 is a vertical side sectional view of an embodiment of the device according to the invention. Figure 3 is a sectional view according to line Ill-Ill of Figure 2. Figure 4 is a sectional view according to line IV-IV of Figure 2, illustrating the illumination of the first light source; Figure 5 is a sectional view according to line V-V of Figure 4, illustrating the illumination of the second light source where a pharmaceutical tablet is situated; Figure 6 is a sectional view according to line VI-VI of Figure 4, illustrating the illumination of the second light source where the contaminated medium is situated; Figure 7 is a sectional view according to line VII-VII of Figure 4, illustrating the illumination of the second light source where a inhibition zone is situated; and Figure 8 is a plan view of the content of the Petri dish according to Figure 1 , which illustrates a second image formed by a second light beam at least partially reflected by the Petri dish and directed towards image forming means. The device according to the invention is provided for forming an image of a content of a transparent container 1 , for example a Petri dish. Referring to Figure 1 , the container 1 comprises a contaminated medium 2, for example a medium comprising staphylococcus, and several pharmaceutical tablets 11-18, in particular antibiotic tablets such as Ampicillin. Each tablet is distinguishable for example by its colour or a mark applied on the upper surface of the tablet, for example (an) identification letter(s) (Figure 8). Referring to Figures 2 and 3, the device comprises a carrier 23 for carrying the container 1. According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, said carrier is formed by a front plate 25 and a slidable tray provided with a glass plate 24, onto which the container 1 can be placed. According to another embodiment, said carrier is formed by a front plate and a tray provided with a plate having an opening onto which plate the container can be placed, whereby the area of the opening is slightly smaller than the area of the container 1 to be placed. In this way, the container 1 to be placed fits exactly on the carrier, whereby the opening is provided for letting a light beam passing through it. Still according to another embodiment, said carrier comprises a fixed tray provided with a glass plate. The embodiments with the glass plate have the advantage, comparing to the embodiment with the plate having an opening, that the carrier is provided for carrying containers with a relatively wider range of dimensions. The device further comprises a first light source 20 provided for emitting a first light beam (i.e. i 1T , iic and in), see Figure 4, towards said container 1 and image forming means 21 for forming a first image of the content of the container 1. The image forming means 21 are for example formed by at least one sensor or a CCD camera. According to the invention, the first light source 20 and the image forming means 21 are situated at opposite sides of the carrier 23. The device further comprises data processing means such as a PC, provided for being connected to the image forming means and programmed for processing the data of the formed image. Preferably the device comprises a second light source 22, situated at the same side of the carrier 23 than the image forming means 21 , in particular adjacent to said image forming means. The second light source 22 is provided for emitting a second light beam i 2 (i.e. i 2T , i 2 c and i 2 ι), see Figures 5-7, towards the container 1. The image forming means 21 are further provided for forming a second image of the content of the container 1 on the basis of the second light beam i 2 at least partially reflected by said content. The second light source preferably emits a light beam which does not deform colours so that the formed second image clearly represents the colours of the content of the container. Preferably, the device is enclosed in a closed box 26, so that the influence of external or ambient light is minimised. The operation of the device according to Figure 2 will now be described in detail. Referring to Figure 4, the first light source 20 emits, in a first step, a first light beam h towards the container 1. As represented in Figure 4, three different sectors can be distinguished : sector T is a sector where a pharmaceutical tablet (indicated by 11-18 in Figures 1 and 8) is situated, sector C is a sector where the contaminated medium (indicated by 2 in Figure 1 ) is situated and sector I is a sector where an inhibition zone (indicated by 3-10 in Figure 1 ) is situated. A first light beam i 1T emitted in a sector T will be reflected rιτ by the pharmaceutical tablet 13, since the pharmaceutical tablet is not transparent. In this sector, dark pixels will be formed on the image forming means. A first light beam i c emitted in sector C will essentially pass through the contaminated medium and be transmitted tic to the image forming means, since the contaminated medium is essentially transparent. Similarly, a first light beam in emitted in sector I will essentially pass through an inhibition zone and be transmitted tn to the image forming means, since the inhibition zone is essentially transparent. In sectors C and I, the image will consequently be clearly represented. Since an inhibition zone is more transparent than the contaminated medium, a small amount of the light beam iι c in sector C will be reflected r 1C) whereas a negligible amount of the light beam i 1t in sector I will be reflected. Consequently the formed image of the contaminated medium will be darker than the formed image of the inhibition zone and therefore the contour of the inhibition zone will clearly be formed. The amount of light transmitted towards the image forming means 21 is represented by the longer dots of dotted line tn compared to the dots of dotted line tι C . In order to form a first image of the entire surface of the container 1 , the carrier slides from a first position, wherein a first extremity 27 of the container 1 is illuminated, towards a second position, wherein a second extremity 28 opposite to said first extremity of the container 1 is illuminated (Fig. 3). The results of the formed first image is illustrated in Figure 1. Since the main portion of the first light beam passes through the areas of the contaminated medium and the inhibition zone(s), these areas are clearly represented. Since the inhibition zone(s) is (are) more transparent than the contaminated medium, the contour of the inhibition zone(s) can clearly be distinguished. Optionally the container could be provided with an identification label, such as for example a bar-code 19, in such a manner that when forming said first image, the identification label is also represented, so that formed images of different containers can easily be distinguished from each other. Referring to Figures 5-7, the second light source 22 emits, in a second step, a second light beam i 2 towards the container 1. A second light beam i 2T emitted in a sector T (Figure 5) will be essentially reflected r 2 τ by the pharmaceutical tablet 17 towards the image forming means 21 , since the pharmaceutical tablet is not transparent. Consequently a clear image of the pharmaceutical tablet will be formed on the image forming means. A second light beam i 2C emitted in sector C (Figure 6) will essentially pass through the contaminated medium and be transmitted t 2C , since the contaminated medium is essentially transparent. Similarly, a second light beam i 2 , emitted in sector I (Figure 7) will essentially pass through an inhibition zone and be transmitted t 2 ι, since the inhibition zone is essentially transparent. In sectors C and I, dark pixels will consequently be formed on the image forming means. Such as in the first step, since an inhibition zone is more transparent than the contaminated medium, a small amount of the light beam i 2c in sector C will be reflected r 2C , whereas a negligible amount of the light beam i 2 ι in sector I will be reflected. Consequently the formed image of the inhibition zone will be darker than the formed image of the contaminated medium. In order to form a second image of the entire surface of the container, the carrier slides, such as in the first step, from a first position, wherein a first extremity 27 (Fig. 3) of the container 1 is illuminated, towards a second position, wherein a second extremity 28 (Fig. 3) opposite to said first extremity of the container 1 is illuminated. The results of the formed second image is illustrated in Figure 8. Since the main portion of the second light beam reaching the pharmaceutical tablet(s) is reflected by these tablets, these tablets are clearly represented, whereas both the inhibition zones and the contaminated medium are less clearly represented compared to Figure 1. In this example, the pharmaceutical tablets can be distinguished from each other by their different marks such as for example identification letter(s) : APN (Ampicillin), AMX (Amoxycillin), TMN (Temocillin), CPS (Cephalospoπns of the first generation), CRX (Cefuroxime), CTX (Cefotaxime), CAZ (Ceftazidime) and TM (Tobramycim). According to another example, pharmaceutical tablets having different colours can be distinguished from each other by their different colours, provided the second image is coloured. According to the Figures, the carrier is slidably mounted in said device and the light sources 20, 22 and the image forming means 21 are fixed on said device. According to another embodiment, said carrier is fixed and said light source(s) and said image forming means are slidably mounted in said device. If use is made of a CCD camera or (a) large sensor(s), neither the light source(s) and the camera, nor the carrier must be slidably mounted. The advantage of the slidable arrangement is that the distance between the first light source and the image forming means, on the one hand, and between the container and the image forming means, on the other hand, can be relatively small, so that the device according to the invention can be made relatively compact. According to a preferred embodiment, the device according to the invention is dimensioned in such a manner that it fits in a standard tower of a PC, so that it can be integrated in a PC. The device comprises data processing means, for example in the PC, for determining, in a further step, the location of the pixels in the first image appertaining to the pharmaceutical tablet(s). These pixels can easily be detected since they are darker than the pixels pertaining to the contaminated medium and the inhibition zone(s). Corresponding pixels, having the same location, are determined in the second image and retrieved therefrom. Substitution means are provided for substituting said pixels appertaining to said pharmaceutical(s) tablet in said first image by said retrieved corresponding pixels in said second image. In this way a third image is formed whereby both the inhibition zone(s) and the pharmaceutical tablet(s) are accurately formed. The device according to the invention enables to determine accurately the areas of the inhibition zone(s) and to provide in this way a more accurate analysis of the effect of the pharmaceutical tablet(s) in a contaminated medium. From the description, it will be clear that the second light source is not absolutely necessary. Indeed, from the formed first image, the contour of the inhibition zone(s) can be determined. However, the pharmaceutical tablet(s) can not be distinguished from one another by their different colour of identification letter(s), but can be distinguished by their relative position to one another. In this case, a marking is preferably provided on the container, so that each pharmaceutical tablet can be distinguished from another one by its relative position with respect to the marking. An essential feature of the invention is consequently that use is made of the described arrangement of the first light source and image forming means, known as transparency technique, for forming an image of a content of a container comprising at least one pharmaceutical tablet in a contaminated medium.

Claims: CLAIMS 1. A device for forming an image of a content of a transparent container, in particular a Petri dish, which container is provided for carrying at least one pharmaceutical tablet in a contaminated medium, said device comprising a carrier for carrying said container, a first light source provided for emitting a first light beam towards said container and image forming means for forming a first image of said content, characterised in that said first light source and said image forming means are situated at opposite sides of said carrier, and that said carrier is provided for letting said first light beam through it in order to reach at least partially said image forming means. 2. Device according to claim 1 , characterised in that it further comprises a second light source, situated at the same side of said carrier than said image forming means, said second light source being provided for emitting a second light beam towards said container and said image forming means being further provided for forming a second image of said content on the basis of said second light beam at least partially reflected by said content. 3. Device according to claim 2, characterised in that it comprises means for determining pixels in said first, respectively said second image, appertaining to said pharmaceutical tablet(s) and substitution means for substituting said pixels in said first image appertaining to said pharmaceutical tablet by said pixels in said second image appertaining to said pharmaceutical tablet. 4. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that it is enclosed in a closed box. 5. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that said image forming means comprise at least one sensor. 6. Device according to any one of the claims 1 to 4, characterised in that said image forming means comprise a CCD camera.

Inventors: MUYLLE JEAN-PIERRE, MUYLLE, JEAN-PIERRE
Applicants: MUYLLE JEAN PIERRE, MUYLLE, JEAN-PIERRE
Application year: 1996
Main classification: C12Q1
IPC codes: C12M1, C12Q1, G01N33