Abstract:
A cell image display apparatus comprising: a parameter value obtainer for obtaining characteristic parameter values based on a plurality of cell images obtained by imaging a sample including the plurality of cells, wherein each of the characteristic parameter values respectively indicates characteristic of each of the cells; a type determiner for determining types of the cells based on the characteristic parameter values obtained by the parameter value obtainer; a display; and a display controller for controlling the display so as to display the cell images in a sequence based on the types of the cells obtained by the type determiner and the characteristic parameter values obtained by the parameter value obtainer. A method and a computer program product are also disclosed.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a cell image display apparatus which displays a cell image obtained by imaging a cell, a cell image display method, and a computer program product. 
     BACKGROUND 
     From the past, there has been known a specimen imaging apparatus that magnifies and images the stained blood smears with a microscope and analyzes the obtained images so as to classify and count the blood cells. 
     In Japanese Patent Publication No. H7-20124, a blood cell analyzing apparatus is disclosed which carries out automatic classification of the blood cells. In the blood cell analyzing apparatus, a blood smear is scanned by a microscope and the blood cells are detected. After the blood cells are detected, the blood cell analyzing apparatus carries out an automatic focusing. Thereafter, the blood cell images are converted into analog signals via a television camera. Various characteristic quantities required for classifying the blood cells are obtained by a characteristic parameter extracting unit on the basis of the digital image signals of the blood cells output from an analog-digital conversion circuit. In addition, an classifying unit classifies the blood cells on the basis of these characteristic quantities. 
     In addition, when the detected blood cell is unclear or abnormal, the blood cell analyzing apparatus stores the digital image signal in an image memory together with the specimen number or the type of the blood cell for specifying the image signal. When a user tries to carry out the review of the specimen after a plurality of the specimens are tested, the content in the image memory is read by a keyboard input, and a specific blood cell or an abnormal blood cell is displayed on the image display apparatus. Then, the displayed specific abnormal blood cell is reclassified on the basis of human judgment. 
     As such a specimen imaging apparatus as described above, there is an apparatus which can display a plurality of blood cell images on one screen. In this way, when a plurality of images are aligned and displayed on one screen, the user can carry out the reclassification of the plurality of the blood cells at one time. 
     However, in the specimen imaging apparatus according to the related art, the blood cell images are aligned in imaging sequence on the screen, but it is not the sequence in which the reclassification can be easily carried out. As a result, the reclassification is difficult to carry out, and there is a problem in that errors occur in the reclassification. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The scope of the present invention is defined solely by the appended claims, and is not affected to any degree by the statements within this summary. 
     A first aspect of the present invention is a cell image display apparatus comprising: a parameter value obtainer for obtaining characteristic parameter values based on a plurality of cell images obtained by imaging a sample including the plurality of cells, wherein each of the characteristic parameter values respectively indicates characteristic of each of the cells; a type determiner for determining types of the cells based on the characteristic parameter values obtained by the parameter value obtainer; a display; and a display controller for controlling the display so as to display the cell images in a sequence based on the types of the cells obtained by the type determiner and the characteristic parameter values obtained by the parameter value obtainer. 
     A second aspect of the present invention is a cell image display apparatus comprising: a display; and a controller being configured to perform operations, comprising (a) obtaining characteristic parameter values based on a plurality of cell images obtained by imaging a sample including the plurality of cells, wherein each of the characteristic parameter values respectively indicates characteristic of each of the cells; (b) determining cell types of the cells based on the characteristic parameter values obtained in the operation (a), and (c) controlling the display so as to display the cell images in a sequence based on the types of the cells obtained in the operation (b) and the characteristic parameter values obtained in the operation (a). 
     A third aspect of the present invention is a method of displaying a cell image comprising steps of: (a) obtaining characteristic parameter values based on a plurality of cell images obtained by imaging a sample including the plurality of cells, wherein each of the characteristic parameter values respectively indicates characteristic of each of the cells; (b) determining types of the cells based on the characteristic parameter value obtained in the step (a); and (c) a display controller for controlling the display so as to display the cell images in a sequence based on the types of the cells obtained in the step (b) and the characteristic parameter values obtained in the step (a). 
     A fourth aspect of the present invention is a computer program product comprising: a computer readable medium, and instructions, on the computer readable medium, adapted to enable a general purpose computer to perform operations comprising: (a) obtaining characteristic parameter values based on a plurality of cell images obtained by imaging a sample including the plurality of cells, wherein each of the characteristic parameter values respectively indicates characteristic of each of the cells; (b) determining types of the cells based on the characteristic parameter value obtained in the step (a); and (c) controlling the display so as to display the cell images in a sequence based on the types of the cells obtained in the step (b) and the characteristic parameter values obtained in the step (a). 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram showing the configuration of a specimen imaging apparatus according to an embodiment; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view showing a part of a microscope unit according to an embodiment; 
         FIG. 3  is a block diagram showing the configuration of an image processing unit according to an embodiment; 
         FIG. 4  is a schematic view showing the configuration of a blood cell database according to an embodiment; 
         FIG. 5  is a block diagram showing the configuration of a blood cell image display unit according to an embodiment; 
         FIG. 6  is a flowchart showing the procedure of an operation of the microscope unit in a blood cell image registration operation; 
         FIG. 7  is a flow chart showing the operating procedure of an image processing unit in a blood cell image registration operation; 
         FIG. 8  is a diagram explaining a scanning pattern of a specimen on a slide glass in white blood cell detection; 
         FIG. 9A  is a diagram explaining the field of view of a line sensor for white blood cell detection; 
         FIG. 9B  is a diagram showing the signal waveform of the line sensor for white blood cell detection; 
         FIG. 10  is a diagram showing an example of a blood cell image; 
         FIG. 11A  is a flow chart showing the procedure of an initial operation of a blood cell image display unit in a blood cell image display operation; 
         FIG. 11B  is a flow chart showing the procedure of a specimen information transmitting operation of an image processing unit in a blood cell image display operation; 
         FIG. 12A  is a flow chart showing the procedure of an image display operation of a blood cell image display unit in a blood cell image display operation; 
         FIG. 12B  is a flow chart showing the procedure of a blood cell image transmitting operation of an image processing unit in a blood cell image display operation; 
         FIG. 13  is a diagram showing an example of a blood cell image review screen; 
         FIG. 14  is a flow chart showing a process flow of a blood cell image display unit  4  in a blood cell image display setting operation; 
         FIG. 15  is a diagram showing an example of a blood cell image display setting screen; 
         FIG. 16  is a flow chart showing a process flow of a blood cell image display unit  4  in a blood cell image display change operation; 
         FIG. 17  is a diagram showing an example of a blood cell image display change setting screen; 
         FIG. 18A  is a flow chart showing a process flow of a blood cell image display unit  4  in a blood cell image reclassification operation; 
         FIG. 18B  is a flow chart showing a process flow of an image processing unit  3  in a blood cell image reclassification operation; 
         FIG. 19  is a diagram showing an example of a screen on which blood cell images are aligned in imaging sequence; 
         FIG. 20A  is diagram showing another example of a blood cell image review screen; and 
         FIG. 20B  is a diagram showing another example of a screen on which blood cell images are aligned in imaging sequence. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 
     In this embodiment, there is provided a specimen imaging apparatus that magnifies and images the stained blood smears by a microscope, acquires the characteristic parameters from the obtained blood cell images, and aligns and displays the plurality of blood cell images in the sequence based on the characteristic parameters. 
     [Configuration of Specimen Imaging Apparatus] 
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram showing the configuration of the specimen imaging apparatus according to this embodiment.  FIG. 1  schematically shows the configuration of the apparatus. The arrangement of sensors, a slide cassette and the like may be slightly different from the actual arrangement to enable easier understanding. For example, in  FIG. 1 , a sensor for WBC detection and a sensor for auto-focusing are respectively arranged on the upper and lower sides. However, in fact, as shown in  FIG. 2  to be described later, both of the sensors are arranged in substantially the same plane. 
     The specimen imaging apparatus  1  is provided with a microscope unit  2  which magnifies and images the blood smear to be in focus by auto-focusing, an image processing unit  3  which processes the images obtained by imaging and classifies the white blood cells in the blood from the images so as to count the number for each type of classified white blood cells, and a blood cell image display unit  4  which is connected to the image processing unit  3  and displays the images obtained by imaging and the analysis results. Further, the image processing unit  3  may not be separately configured from the blood cell image display unit  4 , but both of them may be integrally configured. In addition, a smear preparing apparatus (for example, a smear preparing apparatus SP-1000i made by Sysmex Corporation) which is not shown in the drawing is disposed near the blood cell imaging apparatus  1 . A blood smear prepared by the smear preparing apparatus is automatically supplied to the microscope unit  2 . 
     &lt;Configuration of Microscope Unit  2 &gt; 
       FIG. 2  is a perspective view showing a portion of the microscope unit  2 . The microscope unit  2  includes an objective lens  22  which is a portion of a lens system of a microscope magnifying an image of blood thinly spread and applied over a slide glass  5  mounted on an XY stage  21 . The XY stage  21  holding a smear (the slide glass  5  with an upper surface on which the blood is smeared) can be moved back and forth and from side to side (X and Y directions) by a driving section (not shown), the driving of which is controlled by an XY stage driving circuit  23  (see  FIG. 1  for reference). The objective lens  22  can be moved up and down (Z direction) by a driving section (not shown), the driving of which is controlled by an objective lens driving circuit  24 . 
     A plurality of the slide glasses  5  are stacked and accommodated in a slide cassette  25  (see  FIG. 1  for reference). The slide cassette  25  is transported by a transporting section (not shown) which is controlled by a cassette transport driving circuit  26  so as to be driven. The XY stage  21  is provided with a chuck section  27  (see  FIG. 2  for reference) capable of holding two parts in the vicinities of both ends in the longitudinal direction of the slide glass  5 , and the chuck section can be freely advanced and retracted with respect to the slide glass  5  accommodated in the slide cassette  25  which is stopped at a predetermined position. The chuck section  27  is advanced toward the slide cassette  25  to hold the slide glass  5  by an opening-closing operation of claw sections  27   a  which can be freely opened and closed and each of which is formed at the tip of the chuck section  27 . Then, the chuck section  27  is retracted to draw the slide glass  5  from the slide cassette  25  so that the slide glass can be disposed at a predetermined position on the XY stage  21 . 
     Returning to  FIG. 1 , a lamp  28  as a light source is disposed below the slide glass  5 , and light from the lamp  28  passes through the blood on the slide glass  5 , and via half mirrors  29  and an interference filter  210  arranged on an optical path, enters a line sensor  211  for auto-focusing in which plural pixels are arranged in a line, a sensor  212  for white blood cell (WBC) detection in which plural pixels are arranged in a line and a CCD camera  213 . A white blood cell detecting section  214  composed of an FPGA, an ASIC or the like is connected to the sensor  212  for white blood cell detection and is set up to provide the output signal of the sensor  212  to the white blood cell detecting section  214 . A focus calculating section  215  composed of an FPGA, an ASIC or the like is connected to the sensor  211  for auto-focusing and is set up to provide the output signal of the sensor  211  to the focus calculating section  215 . White blood cell detection is performed by the white blood cell detecting section  214  on the basis of an output signal in accordance with the incident light of the sensor  212 . Information to be used for the auto-focus operation is calculated by the focus calculating section  215  on the basis of an output signal in accordance with the incident light of the sensor  211 . The auto-focus operation is performed on the basis of this information. 
     In addition, the microscope unit  2  includes a control section  216  and communication interfaces  217  and  218 . The control section  216  includes a CPU and a memory, and is connected to the XY stage driving circuit  23 , the objective lens driving circuit  24 , the cassette transport driving circuit  26 , the white blood cell detecting section  214 , the focus calculating section  215  and the communication interfaces  217  and  218  so as to communicate therewith. When the control section  216  executes a control program stored in the memory, the above-described mechanisms are controlled. 
     The communication interface  217  is an Ethernet (registered trade name) interface. The communication interface  217  is connected to the image processing unit  3  via a communication cable so as to perform data communication therewith. In addition, the communication interface  218  is connected to the CCD camera  213  via an A/D converter  213   a  and is connected to the image processing unit  3  via a communication cable. An image signal (analog signal) output from the CCD camera  213  is A/D converted by the A/D converter  213   a  and image data (digital data) output from the A/D converter  213   a  is provided to the communication interface  218  to be transmitted to the image processing unit  3 . 
     Moreover, the microscope unit  2  includes a two-dimensional bar-code reader  219 . A two-dimensional bar-code indicating a specimen ID is printed on a frosted section of the slide glass  5  and the two-dimensional bar-code of the slide glass  5  introduced into the microscope unit  2  is read by the two-dimensional bar-code reader  219 . In this manner, the read specimen ID is provided to the control section  216 . 
     &lt;Configuration of Image Processing Unit  3 &gt; 
     Next, the configuration of the image processing unit  3  will be described.  FIG. 3  is a block diagram showing the configuration of the image processing unit  3 . The image processing unit  3  is realized by a computer  3   a . As shown in  FIG. 3 , the computer  3   a  includes a main body  31 , an image display section  32  and an input section  33 . The main body  31  includes a CPU  31   a , a ROM  31   b , a RAM  31   c , a hard disk  31   d , a reading device  31   e , an I/O interface  31   f , a communication interface  31   g  and an image output interface  31   j . The CPU  31   a , the ROM  31   b , the RAM  31   c , the hard disk  31   d , the reading device  31   e , the I/O interface  31   f , the communication interface  31   g , a communication interface  31   h , a communication interface  31   i  and the image output interface  31   j  are connected to one another by a bus  31   k.    
     The CPU  31   a  can execute a computer program loaded to the RAM  31   c . The CPU  31   a  executes an image processing program  34   a  to be described later, so that the computer  3   a  functions as the image processing unit  3 . 
     The ROM  31   b  is composed of a mask ROM, a PROM, an EPROM, an EEPROM or the like, and the computer program which is executed by the CPU  31   a  and data used for the computer program are recorded therein. 
     The RAM  31   c  is composed of a SRAM, a DRAM or the like. The RAM  31   c  is used to read the image processing program  34   a  recorded in the hard disk  31   d . Moreover, the RAM is used as an operating area of the CPU  31   a  when the CPU  31   a  executes a computer program. 
     In the hard disk  31   d , various computer programs for execution by the CPU  31   a , such as an operating system and an application program, and data which are used to execute the computer programs are installed. The image processing program  34   a  to be described later is also installed in the hard disk  31   d.    
     The hard disk  31   d  is provided with a blood cell image folder  35  for storing blood cell images. In the blood cell image folder  35 , a folder is provided for each specimen and blood cell images obtained as described later are stored in the folder. The folder provided for each specimen has a folder name including a specimen ID, and the corresponding folder can be specified by the specimen ID. The blood cell image folder  35  is set up so as to share data with the blood cell image display unit  4  and the blood cell image display unit  4  can access files stored in the blood cell image folder  35 . 
     Further, the hard disk  31   d  is provided with a specimen database DB 1  for storing information relating to specimens (hereinafter referred to as “specimen information”), and a blood cell database DB 2  for storing results of the classification of white blood cells by image processing. The specimen database DB 1  is a relational database and includes a field for storing specimen IDs, fields for storing the numerical data of the analysis result (the number of white blood cells, the number of red blood cells, etc.) obtained from a multiple automatic blood cell analyzing apparatus (not shown), fields for storing information on results that are determined to be abnormal by the multiple blood cell analyzing apparatus, a field for storing dates of measurements performed by the specimen imaging apparatus  1 , a field for storing patients&#39; names, a field for storing information specifying a hospital ward, a field for storing ages of the patients, a field for storing the number N of white blood cells counted by the microscope unit  2 , and the like. 
       FIG. 4  is a schematic view showing a configuration of the blood cell database DB 2 . The blood cell database DB 2  is provided for each specimen and each blood cell database DB 2  includes data indicating a specimen ID. As a result, the blood cell database DB 2  can be specified by the specimen ID. The blood cell database DB 2  is provided with a white blood cell ID field F 21  for storing white blood cell IDs specifying the white blood cells, a type field F 22  for storing classification results of the white blood cells, and a reconfirmation object field F 23  for storing information for specifying the white blood cells which cannot be classified, and fields F 24 , F 25 , . . . for storing various characteristic parameter values (the numeric values of the characteristic parameters). In the reconfirmation object field F 23 , “0” is stored when the white blood cells are normally classified, and “1” is stored when the white blood cells cannot be classified so as to be a reconfirmation object. 
     The reading device  31   e  is composed of a flexible disk drive, a CD-ROM drive, a DVD-ROM drive or the like and can read the computer program or data recorded in a portable recording medium  34 . In the portable recording medium  34 , the image processing program  34   a  is stored which prompts the computer to function as the image processing unit  3 . The computer  3   a  can read the image processing program  34   a  from the portable recording medium  34  and install the image processing program  34   a  in the hard disk  31   d.    
     The image processing program  34   a  is not only provided by the portable recording medium  34  but can be also provided from an external device, which is connected to the computer  3   a  by an electric communication line (which may be wired or wireless) to communicate therewith via the electric communication line. For example, the image processing program  34   a  is stored in the hard disk of a server computer on the internet and the computer  3   a  accesses the server computer to download the computer program and install the computer program in the hard disk  31   d.    
     Furthermore, in the hard disk  31   d , for example, a multitasking operating system is installed such as Windows (registered trade name) which is made and distributed by Microsoft Corporation in America. In the following description, the image processing program  34   a  according to this embodiment operates on the above operating system. 
     The I/O interface  31   f  is composed of, for example, a serial interface such as USB, IEEE1394 or RS-232C, a parallel interface such as SCSI, IDE or IEEE1284, and an analog interface including a D/A converter and an A/D converter. The input section  33  is composed of a keyboard and a mouse and is connected to the I/O interface  31   f , and the user uses the input section  33  to input data to the computer  3   a . In addition, the CCD camera  213  provided on the microscope unit  2  is connected to the I/O interface  31   f , so that the images obtained by the CCD camera  213  can be captured. 
     The communication interfaces  31   g  and  31   h  are Ethernet (registered trade name) interfaces. The communication interface  31   g  is connected to the blood cell image display unit  4  via a LAN. The computer  3   a  can perform data communication with the blood cell image display unit  4 , which is connected to the LAN by using a predetermined communication protocol, and a host computer (not shown) by the communication interface  31   g . In addition, the communication interface  31   h  is connected to the communication interface  217  of the microscope unit  2  via a communication cable so as to perform data communication therewith. 
     The communication interface  31   i  is connected to the communication interface  218  of the microscope unit  2  via a communication cable to perform data communication therewith. Accordingly, images captured by the CCD camera  213  are received by the communication interface  31   i.    
     The image output interface  31   j  is connected to the image display section  32  composed of an LCD or a CRT to output a picture signal corresponding to the image data provided from the CPU  31   a  to the image display section  32 . The image display section  32  displays an image (screen) in accordance with an input picture signal. 
     &lt;Configuration of Blood Cell Image Display Unit  4 &gt; 
     The blood cell image display unit  4  is configured from a computer. The blood cell image display unit  4  is connected to the image processing unit  3  via a LAN to read and display blood cell images in the blood cell image folder  35  provided in the hard disk  31   d  of the image processing unit  3 . 
       FIG. 5  is a block diagram showing the configuration of a blood cell image display unit  4 . The blood cell image display unit  4  is realized by a computer  4   a . As shown in  FIG. 5 , the computer  4   a  includes a main body  41 , an image display section  42  and an input section  43 . The main body  41  includes a CPU  41   a , a ROM  41   b , a RAM  41   c , a hard disk  41   d , a reading device  41   e , an I/O interface  41   f , a communication interface  41   g  and an image output interface  41   h . The CPU  41   a , the ROM  41   b , the RAM  41   c , the hard disk  41   d , the reading device  41   e , the I/O interface  41   f , the communication interface  41   g , and the image output interface  41   h  are connected to one another by a bus  41   i.    
     In the hard disk  41   d , various computer programs for execution by the CPU  41   a , such as an operating system and an application program, and data which are used to execute the computer programs are installed. A blood cell image display program  44   a  to be described later is also installed in the hard disk  41   d . In addition, standard display setting information C 1  is stored in the hard disk  41   d  by a setting operation to be described later, and realignment setting information C 2  is stored by a display change operation. 
     The reading device  41   e  is composed of a flexible disk drive, a CD-ROM drive, a DVD-ROM drive or the like and can read the computer program or data recorded in a portable recording medium  44 . In the portable recording medium  44 , the blood cell image display program  44   a  is stored which prompts the computer to function as the blood cell image display unit  4 . The computer  4   a  can read the blood cell image display program  44   a  from the portable recording medium  44  and install the blood cell image display program  44   a  in the hard disk  41   d.    
     The I/O interface  41   f  is composed of, for example, a serial interface such as USB, IEEE1394, SAS, SATA or RS-232C, a parallel interface such as SCSI, IDE or IEEE1284, and an analog interface including a D/A converter and an A/D converter. The input section  43  composed of a keyboard and a mouse is connected to the I/O interface  41   f  and the user uses the input section  43  to input data to the computer  4   a.    
     The communication interface  41   g  is an Ethernet (registered trade name) interface. The communication interface  41   g  is connected to the image processing unit  3  via a LAN. Via the communication interface  41   g , the computer  4   a  can send and receive data between the image processing unit  3  connected to the LAN and a host computer (not shown) by using a predetermined communication protocol. 
     Since the other configurations of the blood cell image display unit  4  are the same as the configurations of the above-described image processing unit  3 , description thereof will be omitted. 
     [Operation of Specimen Imaging Apparatus] 
     Hereinafter, the operation of the specimen imaging apparatus  1  according to this embodiment will be described. 
     &lt;Blood Cell Image Registration Operation&gt; 
     First, the blood cell image registration operation will be described in which the specimen imaging apparatus  1  images the blood cells and stores the blood cell images. Before the operation of the specimen imaging apparatus  1 , the preparation of the blood smears is carried out by a blood smear preparing apparatus. The blood smear preparing apparatus disposed in the vicinity of the specimen imaging apparatus  1  aspirates a specimen contained in a blood collection tube, drops the specimen on a slide glass so as to be spread, and then immerses the slide glass into a stain solution, so that the blood smear is prepared. Further, the stain which is implemented on the specimen by the blood smear preparing apparatus includes May Grunwald Giemsa stain (May Giemsa stain), Wright Giemsa stain, or Wright stain. The blood smear (slide glass  5 ) prepared in this way is automatically supplied to the microscope unit  2  from the blood smear preparing apparatus. 
       FIG. 6  is a flowchart showing the procedure of an operation of the microscope unit  2  in the blood cell image registration operation, and  FIG. 7  is a flowchart showing the process performed by the image processing unit  3  in the blood cell image registration operation. When receiving the slide glass  5  from the blood smear preparing apparatus, the microscope unit  2  detects the slide glass via a sensor (not shown) (Step S 11 ). A control program which is executed by the control section  216  is an event-driven program. Then, in the control section  216  of the microscope unit  2 , a process of Step S 12  is invoked when an event occurs in which the slide glass  5  is received from the blood smear preparing apparatus. 
     In Step S 12 , the control section  216  transports the slide cassette  25  accommodating the received slide glass  5  to a predetermined bar-code reading position and the specimen bar-code is read by the two-dimensional bar-code reader  219  (Step S 12 ). Next, the control section  216  transmits the specimen ID obtained in Step S 12  to the image processing unit  3  via the communication interface  217  (Step S 13 ). 
     The specimen ID transmitted from the microscope unit  2  is received by the communication interface  31   h  of the image processing unit  3  (Step S 201  of  FIG. 7 ). The image processing program  34   a  which is executed by the CPU  31   a  of the image processing unit  3  is an event-driven program, and in the CPU  31   a , a process of Step S 202  is invoked when an event occurs in which the specimen ID is received. 
     In Step S 202 , the CPU  31   a  transmits sequence request data including the received specimen ID to the host computer via the communication interface  31   g  (Step S 202 ). The sequence transmitted from the host computer includes the specimen ID, the patient&#39;s name, the patient&#39;s sex, hospital ward information, comments, analysis results of the multiple automatic blood cell analyzing apparatus (numerical data such as the number of white blood cells and the number of red blood cells), various pieces of abnormality information detected by the multiple automatic blood cell analyzing apparatus, and the data of the number N of white blood cells counted. The CPU  31   a  stands by to receive the sequence (No in Step S 203 ). When the sequence is received (Yes in Step S 203 ), the CPU  31   a  transmits measurement start instruction data including the number N of white blood cells counted by the microscope unit  2  which is included in the sequence, to the microscope unit  2  (Step S 204 ) by the communication interface  31   h , and sets the variable i indicating the number of the analyzed blood cell images to 1 (Step S 205 ). 
     Herein, the microscope unit  2  stands by to receive the measurement start instruction data (No in Step S 14  of  FIG. 6 ). When the measurement start instruction data transmitted from the image processing unit  3  is received by the communication interface  217  of the microscope unit  2  (Yes in Step S 14 ), the control section  216  transports the slide cassette  25  to a predetermined position to hold the slide glass  5  which has been stopped at the predetermined position by the chuck section  27 . Then, the slide glass  5  is drawn from the slide cassette  25  by retracting the chuck section  27 . Then, the slide glass  5  is set at a predetermined position (imaging position) in the XY stage  21  (Step S 15 ). In addition, the control section  216  sets a variable j indicating the number of imaging operations to 1 (Step S 16 ). 
     Next, the white blood cells in the blood applied to the slide glass  5  are detected (Step S 17 ) using the above-mentioned sensor  212 . The sensor  212  is a line sensor and has a field of view of about 400 μm.  FIG. 8  is a diagram explaining a scanning pattern of the specimen on the slide glass in the white blood cell detection. The control section  216  moves the XY stage  21  in the X and Y directions so that the sensor  212  performs a scan operation on the slide glass  5  in a substantially zigzag manner from one end toward the other end in the longitudinal direction (see  FIG. 8  for reference). Generally, an interval D in the longitudinal direction of the slide glass  5  of the substantial zigzag scanning is set in the range of about 300 to 500 μm from the viewpoint of preventing detection failures and increasing scanning efficiency. A dimension H in the width direction of the slide glass  5  being scanned is set in the range of about 14 to 18 mm because the width of the slide glass  5  is normally about 26 mm. 
     Red blood cells do not absorb much red color component of light, but the nucleus of a white blood cell does absorb a large amount of the red color component of light. Accordingly, by detecting the red color component, the white blood cells and the red blood cells can be easily distinguished by the line sensor  212 .  FIG. 9A  is a diagram explaining the field of view of the line sensor  212 , and  FIG. 9B  is a diagram showing a signal waveform of the line sensor  212 .  FIG. 9A  shows that a white blood cell WBC is present in a field of view V of the line sensor  212 . In this case, as shown in  FIG. 9B , the red color component of a signal detected by the line sensor  212  has a value equal to or less than a reference value S in a part in which the white blood cell WBC is present. Using this phenomenon, the white blood cells can be detected in the blood. By detecting the width W of the portion in which the red color component of the signal has a value equal to or less than the reference value S, it is checked whether the portion emitting the signal is the nucleus of the white blood cell. 
     Next, the control section  216  performs an auto-focus operation (Step S 18 ). As shown in  FIG. 2 , the direction of the light passing through the slide glass  5  and the objective lens  22  is changed by a prism mirror  29   a , and the light is divided into light which is directed to the CCD camera  213  and light which is directed to the sensors  211  and  212  by the half mirrors  29 . The line sensor  211  for auto-focusing is composed of two line sensors  211   a  and  211   b.    
     As shown in  FIG. 2 , the line sensor  211   a  which is one of the two line sensors  211   a  and  211   b  for auto-focusing is disposed in front of (close to the objective lens on the optical path) a focus position (a position which is in focus), and the other line sensor  211   b  is disposed behind (far from the objective lens on the optical path) the focus position. In addition, the position of the objective lens is adjusted on the basis of a value which is obtained by the integral of the difference between the output signals of the two line sensors, so that the focus of the objective lens is on the specimen on the slide glass. 
     Next, the control section  216  instructs the communication interface  218  to take and transmit the image of the CCD camera  213 . Thus, the image of the white blood cell detected in Step S 17  is taken (Step S 19 ) and the blood cell image is transmitted to the image processing unit  3  (Step S 110 ). After that, the control section  216  determines whether the required counted number of the white blood cells has been satisfied, that is, whether j is equal to or greater than N (Step S 111 ). When j is less than N (No in Step S 111 ), the control section increments j by 1 (Step S 112 ) and returns the process to Step S 17  to repeat the detection of the white blood cells. On the other hand, when j is equal to or greater than N in Step S 111  (Yes in Step S 111 ), the control section  216  completes the process. 
     After the above Step S 205 , the CPU  31   a  of the image processing unit  3  stands by to receive the blood cell image (No in Step S 206  of  FIG. 7 ). When the blood cell image transmitted from the microscope unit  2  is received by the communication interface  31   h  of the image processing unit  3  (Yes in Step S 206 ), the CPU  31   a  performs a correction process on the blood cell image (Step S 207 ). In this correction process, the CPU  31   a  linearly corrects brightness values of the RGB components of all the pixels of the blood cell images such that the average value of the brightness values of the background portion (which corresponds to a portion other than the blood cells) of the blood cell images becomes a predetermined value (for example, 225). The CPU  31   a  stores the blood cell image after the correction in the hard disk  31   d  (Step S 208 ). In the process of Step S 208 , a white blood cell ID corresponding to the blood cell image is generated by the CPU  31   a . Then, the blood cell image is stored as image data with a file name including the white blood cell ID. 
     Next, the CPU  31   a  specifies areas of cytoplasm and a nucleus in the blood cell image (Step S 209 ).  FIG. 10  is a diagram showing an example of the blood cell image. As shown in  FIG. 10 , a white blood cell image  61  is included in a blood cell image  6 A. In a stained white blood cell, a nucleus has a color different from that of a cytoplasm. Moreover, the colors of the cytoplasm and the nucleus of the white blood cell are different from the colors of a red blood cell and a background. Accordingly, in the process of Step S 209 , a nucleus area  61   a  and a cytoplasm area  61   b  which are included in the white blood cell image  61  are specified by using a RGB value of the white blood cell image  61 . 
     Next, the CPU  31   a  calculates various characteristic parameters of the white blood cell on the basis of the blood cell image (Step S 210 ). As the characteristic parameters, there may be exemplified the area of a white blood cell nucleus, the area of the cytoplasm of a white blood cell, and the area ratio (NC ratio) between the nucleus and the cytoplasm of a white blood cell, the constriction of the nucleus, the color of the nucleus, and the color of the cytoplasm, which can be obtained on the basis of color signals (G, B, R) of the image. 
     Next, using the obtained characteristic parameters, the CPU  31   a  identifies the type of the white blood cell (Step S 211 ). Specifically, for example, the CPU  31   a  sequentially compares several characteristic parameters of the white blood cell with judgment criteria values which are determined for various parameter values in advance so as to gradually narrow down the type of the white blood cell. In this manner, the imaged white blood cell is classified as a mature white blood cell such as a lymphocyte, a monocyte, an eosinophil, a basophil or a neutrophil (bacillary, lobulated), as an immature white blood cell such as a blast cell, a young granulocyte or an atypical lymphocyte, or as an erythroblast. For example, the lymphocyte has an area ratio (NC ratio) between the nucleus and the cytoplasm larger than that of the monocyte. Therefore, when a determination is made as to whether a blood cell is a lymphocyte or a monocyte, the CPU  31   a  determines the blood cell as a lymphocyte when the NC ratio is larger than the criteria value. The CPU  31   a  determines the blood cell as a monocyte when the NC ratio is less than the criteria value. In this example, the classification process is simply explained, but the classification process may be carried out using various characteristic parameters other than the NC ratio in practice. 
     Next, the CPU  31   a  determines whether the required counted number of the white blood cells has been satisfied, that is, whether i is equal to or greater than N (Step S 212 ). When i is less than N (No in Step S 212 ), the CPU  31   a  increments i by 1 (Step S 213 ), returns the process to Step S 206 , and stands by to receive another blood cell image. 
     On the other hand, when i is equal to or greater than N in Step S 212  (Yes in Step S 212 ), the CPU  31   a  registers the information relating to the specimen, which is obtained as described above, in the specimen database DB 1  of the hard disk  31   d , and registers the classification result and the characteristic parameter values in the blood cell database DB 2  (Step S 214 ) and completes the process. 
     &lt;Operation of Displaying Blood Cell Image&gt; 
       FIG. 11A  is a flowchart showing the procedure of an initialization operation of the blood cell image display unit  4  in a blood cell image display operation, and  FIG. 11B  is a flowchart showing the procedure of a specimen information transmitting operation of the image processing unit  3  in the blood cell image display operation. The user operates the input section  43  of the computer  4   a  to instruct the execution of the blood cell image display program  44   a . The CPU  41   a  of the computer  4   a  receives the instruction and executes the blood cell image display program  44   a . In this manner, the computer  4   a  functions as the blood cell image display unit  4 . 
     Immediately after the initiation of the blood cell image display program  44   a , the CPU  41   a  sets an initial value of a realignment flag to “0” which is secured in the RAM  41   c  to be described later (Step S 31  in  FIG. 11A ), and displays a login input screen prompting the input of a user name and a password on the image display section  42  (Step S 32 ). In the login input screen, the CPU  41   a  receives a user name and a password from the user (Step S 33 ). The blood cell image display program  44   a , which is executed by the CPU  41   a  of the blood cell image display unit  4 , is an event-driven program. Then, in the CPU  41   a , a process of Step S 34  is invoked when an event occurs in which the user name and the password are input. 
     In Step S 34 , the CPU  41   a  performs a user authentication process. When the user authentication fails (No in Step S 35 ), the CPU  41   a  completes the process. When the user is successfully authenticated by using the login process (Yes in Step S 35 ), the CPU  41   a  transmits request data of specimen information whose measurement date is set as the date on which the user logs in the blood image display unit  4  via the communication interface  41   g  to the image processing unit  3  (Step S 36 ). 
     The request data transmitted from the blood cell image display unit  4  is received by the communication interface  31   h  of the image processing unit  3  (Step S 41  of  FIG. 11B ). In the CPU  31   a , a process of Step S 42  is invoked when an event occurs in which the request data is received. 
     In Step S 42 , from the specimen database DB 1 , the CPU  31   a  obtains the specimen information whose measurement date is set as the date on which the user logs in (Step S 42 ). Next, the CPU  31   a  transmits the obtained specimen information to the blood cell image display unit  4  via the communication interface  31   g  (Step S 43 ) and completes the process. 
     Returning to  FIG. 11A , after transmitting the request data of specimen information in Step S 36 , the CPU  41   a  of the blood cell image display unit  4  stands by to receive the specimen information (No in Step S 37  of  FIG. 11A ). When the specimen information transmitted from the image processing unit  3  is received by the communication interface  41   g  of the blood cell image display unit  4  (Yes in Step S 37 ), the CPU  41   a  displays a measurement progress screen (not shown) (Step S 38 ), and completes the process. In the measurement progress screen, the specimen information relating to plural specimens is displayed as a list. In the measurement progress screen, the user can select one of the pieces of specimen information displayed as a list. By selecting one piece of specimen information and subsequently performing a predetermined operation (for example, the double-clicking of the left button of a mouse), the user can provide an instruction to the blood cell image display unit  4  to display a blood cell image relating to the specimen. 
       FIG. 12A  is a flowchart showing the procedure of an image display operation of the blood cell image display unit  4  in the blood cell image display operation, and  FIG. 12B  is a flowchart showing the procedure of a blood cell image transmitting operation of the image processing unit  3  in the blood cell image display operation. In the blood cell image display unit  4 , when an event occurs, in which the instruction for displaying the blood cell image relating to one specimen is received as described above, in a state in which the measurement progress screen is displayed (Step S 51 ), a process of Step S 52  is invoked. 
     In Step S 52 , the CPU  41   a  transmits blood cell image transmitting request data, including the specimen ID of the specimen for which the instruction is made, to the image processing unit  3  via the communication interface  41   g  (Step S 52 ). 
     The request data transmitted from the blood cell image display unit  4  is received by the communication interface  31   g  of the image processing unit  3  (Step S 61  of  FIG. 12B ). In the CPU  31   a , a process of Step S 62  is invoked when an event occurs in which the request data is received. 
     In Step S 62 , the CPU  31   a  obtains classification result information from the blood cell database DB 2  corresponding to the specimen ID (Step S 62 ). The classification result information includes white blood cell IDs specifying the white blood cells shown in  FIG. 4 , the types (monocyte, neutrophil, basophil, eosinophil, lymphocyte, etc.) as the result of the white blood cell classification, information indicating whether or not the classification can be carried out, and various characteristic parameter values. In addition, in the classification result information, the type information or the unclassifiable information is associated with the white blood cell ID. That is, with the classification result information, the types of the white blood cells can be specified or the white blood cell can be specified as being unclassifiable or not from the white blood cell ID. 
     Next, the CPU  31   a  transmits the obtained classification result information to the blood cell image display unit  4  via the communication interface  31   g  (Step S 63 ). 
     Returning to  FIG. 12A , after transmitting the request data of the classification result information, the CPU  41   a  of the blood cell image display unit  4  stands by to receive the classification result information (No in Step S 53  of  FIG. 12A ). When the classification result information transmitted from the image processing unit  3  is received by the communication interface  41   g  of the blood cell image display unit  4  (Yes in Step S 53 ), the CPU  41   a  determines whether or not the realignment setting of the blood cell images is carried out as described in the following (Step S 54 ). As to be described later, when the realignment setting of the blood cell images is carried out, the CPU  41   a  sets the realignment flag provided in the RAM  41   c  to “1”. When the realignment setting of the blood cell images is not carried out, the realignment flag is set to “0”. In the process of Step S 54 , the CPU  41   a  refers to the realignment flag so as to determine whether or not the realignment setting of the blood cell images is carried out. 
     In Step S 54 , when the realignment setting is not carried out (YES in Step S 54 ), the CPU  41   a  reads the standard display setting information C 1  from the hard disk  41   d  (Step S 55 ). As to be described later, after the blood cell image display unit  4  is started up, when the realignment setting is not carried out, the standard display setting information C 1  is used to display the blood cell images. The standard display setting information C 1  includes information indicating the alignment sequence of the blood cell types, information indicating the blood cell type of the display object, information indicating the characteristic parameter which is used to determine the alignment sequence of the blood cell images for each blood cell type, and information indicating whether the alignment sequence in which the blood cell images are aligned using the characteristic parameters for each blood cell type is in ascending sequence or in descending sequence. 
     Next, the CPU  41   a  specifies the white blood cell IDs corresponding to the blood cell types which are set to the display objects in the standard display setting information C 1  from the classification results (Step S 56 ), and determines the alignment sequence of each white blood cell ID specified as the display object for each blood cell type using the characteristic parameters which are set in the standard display setting information C 1  for each blood cell type and the information indicating that the alignment sequence is in ascending sequence or in descending sequence (Step S 57 ). When the alignment sequence of each white blood cell ID is determined, the CPU  41   a  moves to the process in Step S 511 . 
     In Step S 54 , when the realignment setting is carried out (NO in Step S 54 ), the CPU  41   a  reads the realignment setting information C 2  from the hard disk  41   d  (Step S 58 ). As to be described later, the realignment setting information C 2  is used to display the blood cell images in the period from when the realignment setting of the blood cell images is carried out to until the blood cell image display unit  4  is shutdown. The realignment setting information C 2  includes information indicating the alignment sequence of the blood cell types, information indicating the blood cell type of the display object, information indicating the characteristic parameters which is used to determine the alignment sequence of the blood cell images, and information indicating whether the alignment sequence in which the blood cell images are aligned using the characteristic parameters is in ascending sequence or in descending sequence. 
     Next, the CPU  41   a  specifies the white blood cell ID corresponding to the blood cell type which is set to the display object in the realignment setting information C 2  among the blood cell types included in the received classification result information (Step S 59 ), and determines the alignment sequence of the white blood cell ID specified as the display object using the characteristic parameters set in the realignment setting information C 2  and the information indicating that the alignment sequence is in ascending sequence or in descending sequence (Step S 510 ). When the alignment sequence of each white blood cell ID is determined, the CPU  41   a  moves to the process in Step S 511 . 
     In Step S 511 , the CPU  41   a  transmits image transmission request data, including the specified white blood cell ID, to the image processing unit  3  via the communication interface  41   g  (Step S 511 ). Further, the image transmission request data includes all of the white blood cell IDs which are specified. 
     Returning to  FIG. 12B , after transmitting the classification result information in Step S 63 , the CPU  31   a  of the image processing unit  3  stands by to receive the image transmitting request data (No in Step S 64  of  FIG. 12B ). When the request data transmitted from the blood cell image display unit  4  is received by the communication interface  31   g  of the image processing unit  3  (Yes in Step S 64 ), the CPU  31   a  reads the blood cell image corresponding to the white blood cell ID, which is included in the image transmitting request data, from the folder corresponding to the specimen ID in the blood cell image folder  35  of the hard disk  31   d  (Step S 65 ). Then, the CPU  31   a  transmits the read blood cell image to the blood cell image display unit  4  via the communication interface  31   g  (Step S 66 ), and completes the process. 
     Returning to  FIG. 12A , after transmitting the image transmitting request data in Step S 511 , the CPU  41   a  of the blood cell image display unit  4  stands by to receive the blood cell image (No in Step S 512  of  FIG. 12A ). When the blood cell image transmitted from the image processing unit  3  is received by the communication interface  41   g  of the blood cell image display unit  4  (Yes in Step S 512 ), the CPU  41   a  generates a blood cell image review screen (Step S 513 ). In the blood cell image review screen, the respective blood cell images are aligned in the sequence that is determined in Step S 57  or S 510 . The CPU  41   a  displays the blood cell image review screen on the image display section  42  (Step S 514 ), and completes the process. 
       FIG. 13  is a diagram showing an example of the blood cell image review screen. In a blood cell image review screen W 1 , a blood cell image display area A 11  for displaying one or more blood cell images, a patient information display area A 12  for displaying patient information, a counted value display area A 13  for displaying the result of the counting of each type of classified blood cells, and an analysis result display area A 14  for displaying the analysis result of the multiple automatic blood cell analyzing apparatus are included. In the blood cell image display area, images which are obtained by reducing received blood cell images are displayed as a list. A blood cell type is displayed with a string of characters (“Mono” for a monocyte, “Band” or “Seg” for a neutrophil, “Eosin” for an eosinophil, “Baso” for a basophil, “Lymph” for a lymphocyte, etc.) in each reduced image. In addition, the blood cell images displayed in the blood cell image display area A 11  are the blood cell images corresponding to the white blood cell IDs set to the display objects in Steps S 56  and S 59  described above. In addition, the blood cell images are displayed in each group which is created by the blood cell type. The respective groups are aligned according to the alignment sequence of the blood cell types which are set in the standard display setting information C 1  when the realignment setting is not carried out. When the realignment setting is carried out, the respective groups are aligned in a predetermined sequence. In  FIG. 13 , the lymphocyte and the monocyte are set as the blood cell types of the display objects, and the alignment sequence of the blood cell types is aligned such that the lymphocyte is first aligned and then the monocyte is aligned. In addition, in the blood cell image display area A 11 , the blood cell images are aligned in a sequence, which is set from among the ascending sequence or the descending sequence by the characteristic parameters used in determining the alignment sequence, for each blood cell type of the display object.  FIG. 13  shows an example in which the blood cell images of the lymphocyte are aligned in the descending sequence with respect to the characteristic parameter “NC ratio”. In addition, in the screen example shown in  FIG. 13 , the blood cell image of the lymphocyte disposed on the uppermost left end is the lead (the maximum NC ratio). The blood cell images of the lymphocyte are aligned in sequence of decreasing NC ratio from the lead to the right side. When reaching the right end, the sequence is lowered by one line and the blood cell images of the lymphocyte are aligned in sequence from the left end to the right side. Then, the blood cell images are aligned by repeating the sequence. Following the blood cell image of the lymphocyte with the minimum NC ratio, the blood cell images of the monocyte are aligned in the same sequence. 
     In the count value display area A 13 , plural reclassification buttons BT 11  are vertically aligned on which the respective names of the blood cell types are displayed. The count values of the corresponding blood cell types are displayed in the horizontal row thereof. When one of the blood cell images displayed in the blood cell image display area A 11  is selected by a click operation of the left button of a mouse, and when one of the reclassification buttons BT 11  is selected in the same way, the blood cell image is reclassified as a blood cell type. The operation will be described later. 
     &lt;Operation of Blood Cell Image Display Setting&gt; 
     Next, as described above, the operation of the display setting of the blood cells which are stored in the image processing unit  3  will be described. In this display setting operation, the sequence of the blood cell images is set in the blood cell image review screen described above. For example, at the beginning when the specimen imaging apparatus  1  is introduced in a facility, a service man performs display setting on the blood cell image review screen, and then the setting values are used when the specimen imaging apparatus  1  is practically operated by a user. In addition, the user or the service man performs the display setting of the blood cell image screen once again, so that the setting values can be updated. 
       FIG. 14  is a flow chart showing a process flow of the blood cell image display unit  4  in the blood cell image display setting operation. An user such as the service man or the user operates the input section  43  so as to instruct the blood cell image display unit  4  to display a display setting screen W 2 . When the event of receiving the instruction occurs (Step S 701 ), the CPU  41   a  performs the process of Step S 702 . 
     In Step S 702 , the CPU  41   a  displays the display setting screen W 2  of the blood cell images on the image display section  42  (Step S 702 ).  FIG. 15  is a diagram showing an example of the display setting screen W 2  of the blood cell images. The display setting screen W 2  includes an area A 21  for setting the alignment sequence of the blood cell types, an area A 22  for setting the blood cell types of the display objects, and an area A 23  for setting the characteristic parameters which are used to determine the alignment sequence of the blood cell images for each blood cell type. 
     In the area A 21 , a blood cell type name display box BX 1  in which all the names of the blood cell types are aligned and displayed, and buttons BT 21  and BT 22  for changing the alignment sequence of the blood cell types are provided. In the blood cell type name display box BX 1 , a character string of each blood cell type name is displayed and can be selected. When the button BT 21  is selected in a state where one blood cell type name is selected in the blood cell type name display box BX 1  (the left button of a mouse is clicked in a state where a point of the mouse is overlapped with the button BT 21 ), the alignment sequence of the selected blood cell type goes up by 1. On the other hand, when the button BT 22  is selected in a state where one blood cell type name is selected in the blood cell type name display box BX 1 , the alignment sequence of the selected blood cell type goes down by 1. In this manner, the user can set the alignment sequence of the blood cell types. 
     In the area A 22 , a displaying blood cell type name display box BX 2  in which the names of the blood cell types of the display objects are aligned and displayed, a non-displaying blood cell type name display box BX 3  in which the names of the blood cell types of the non-display objects are aligned and displayed, and buttons BT 23  and BT 24  for changing display/non-display of the blood cell types are provided. In the displaying blood cell type name display box BX 2 , character strings of the blood cell type names of the display objects are displayed and can be selected. In the non-displaying blood cell type name display box BX 3 , character strings of the non-display blood cell type names of the non-display objects are displayed and can be selected. When the button BT 24  is selected in a state where one blood cell type name is selected in the displaying blood cell type name display box BX 2 , the selected blood cell type name is deleted from the displaying blood cell type name display box BX 2 , and added to the non-displaying blood cell type name display box BX 3 . Therefore, the selected blood cell type is changed from the display object to the non-display object. On the contrary, when the button BT 23  is selected in a state where one blood cell type name is selected in the non-displaying blood cell type name display box BX 3 , the selected blood cell type name is deleted from the non-displaying blood cell type name display box BX 3 , and added to the displaying blood cell type name display box BX 2 . Therefore, the selected blood cell type is changed from the non-display object to the display object. 
     In the area A 23 , plural blood cell type names BTY are displayed by being vertically aligned, and selection boxes SB are provided in the horizontal row thereof in sequence to select the characteristic parameters. In addition, at the horizontal row of each selection box SB, a radio button RB 1  for selecting the ascending sequence as the alignment sequence and a radio button RB 2  for selecting the descending sequence are provided. The blood cell type name, the selection box SB, and the radio buttons RB 1  and RB 2  which are aligned in one horizontal row correspond to each other. The selection button SB is provided with a pull down button. When the pull down button is selected, a selection menu is displayed in a pull down manner which includes the names of plural characteristic parameters (“Cell Size”, “NC Ratio”, “Nucleus Constriction”, “Nucleus Color”, and “Cytoplasm Color”). When the characteristic parameter desired by the user is selected by a mouse in a state where the pull down menu is displayed, the characteristic parameter is set as the characteristic parameter which is used to determine the alignment sequence of the corresponding blood cell images. In addition, the user selects any one of the radio buttons RB 1  and RB 2  by a mouse, so that the ascending sequence/descending sequence can be set as the alignment sequence. 
     In addition, in the setting screen W 2 , an OK button BT 25  and a cancel button BT 26  are provided. When the OK button BT 25  is selected, the setting values which are input in the manner as described above are settled. Then, the standard display setting information C 1  including the setting values is stored in the hard disk  41   d . On the other hand, when the cancel button BT 26  is selected, the input setting values are discarded. 
     The user carries out the operation as described above in a state where the display setting screen W 2  of the blood cell images is displayed on the image display section  42 , so that the setting values are input and the settlement can be instructed. When receiving the input and settlement of the setting values as described above (Step S 703 ), the CPU  41   a  stores the standard display setting information C 1  including the setting values in the hard disk  41   d  (Step S 704 ), completes the displaying of the display setting screen W 2  (Step S 705 ), and completes the process. As described above, the setting is carried out on the display of the blood cell images. 
     &lt;Operation of Blood Cell Image Display Change&gt; 
     Next, the operation of the blood cell image display change will be described. Through the display change operation, the blood cell images can be set to be in a new alignment sequence in sequence to easily classify the blood cell images in a state where the above-mentioned blood cell review screen is displayed. 
       FIG. 16  is a flow chart showing a process flow of the blood cell image display unit  4  in the blood cell image display change operation. A user operates the input section  43 , for example, selects “display setting change” from the “display” menu of a menu bar, so as to instruct the blood cell image display unit  4  to display the display change setting screen of the blood cell image. When the event of receiving the instruction occurs (Step S 801 ), the CPU  41   a  performs the process of Step S 802 . 
     In Step S 802 , the CPU  41   a  displays the display change setting screen of the blood cell images on the image display section  42  (Step S 802 ). The display change setting screen is an independent window from the blood cell image review screen, and is overlapped with and displayed on the blood cell image review screen.  FIG. 17  is a diagram showing an example of the display change setting screen of the blood cell images. The display change setting screen W 3  includes an area A 31  for setting the blood cell types of the display objects, an area A 32  for setting the characteristic parameters which are used to determine the alignment sequence of the blood cell images, and an area A 33  for setting the alignment sequence based on the characteristic parameters to be in the ascending sequence or to be in the descending sequence. 
     In the area A 31 , there are displayed the names of the respective blood cell types such as “Lympy (lymphocyte)”, “Mono (monocyte)”, “Eosin (eosinophil)”, “Baso (basophil)”, “Band (bacillary nucleus neutrophil)”, “Seg (lobulated nucleus neutrophil)”, and “Unknown (unclassifiable)”. Further, in the horizontal row of each names described above, a check box CB 1  is provided. The user selects the check box CB 1  in the horizontal row of a desired blood cell type as a display object, so that the blood cell type can be set as a display object. 
     In the area A 32 , there are displayed the names of the respective characteristic parameters such as “Nucleus Area”, “Nucleus/Cytoplasm Area Ratio”, “Nucleus Constriction”, “Nucleus Color”, “Cytoplasm Color”. Further, in the horizontal row of each name, a radio button RB 3  is provided. A user selects the radio button RB 3  in the horizontal row of a desired characteristic parameter, so that the characteristic parameter can be set which is used to determine the alignment sequence of the blood cell images. 
     In the area A 33 , there are provided radio buttons RB 4  for selecting ascending sequence/descending sequence as the alignment sequence of the blood cell images. The user selects any one of two radio buttons RB 4  by a mouse, so that the ascending sequence/descending sequence can be selected as the alignment sequence of the blood cell images. 
     In addition, in the display change setting screen W 3 , an OK button BT 31  and a cancel button BT 32  are provided. When the OK button BT 31  is selected, the setting values which are input in the manner as described above are settled. Then, the realignment setting information C 2  including the setting values is stored in the hard disk  41   d . On the other hand, when the cancel button BT 32  is selected, the input setting values are discarded. 
     A user carries out the operation as described above in a state where the display change setting screen of the blood cell images is displayed on the image display section  42 , so that the setting values for the realignment are input and the settlement can be instructed. When receiving the input of the setting values for the realignment and settlement of the setting values as described above (Step S 803 ), the CPU  41   a  stores the realignment setting information C 2  including the setting values in the hard disk  41   d  (Step S 804 ), sets the realignment flag to “1” (Step S 805 ), and completes the display of the display change setting screen (Step S 806 ). As described above, the initial value of the realignment flag is “0”. 
     Next, the CPU  41   a  reads the realignment setting information C 2  from the hard disk  41   d  (Step S 807 ), specifies the white blood cell IDs corresponding to the blood cell types which are set to the display objects in the realignment setting information C 2  from the blood cell types included in the classification result information (Step S 808 ), and determines the alignment sequence of the white blood cell IDs specified as the display objects using the characteristic parameters, which are set in the realignment setting information C 2 , and the information indicating whether the alignment sequence is the ascending sequence or the descending sequence for each blood cell type (Step S 809 ). Then, the CPU  41   a  creates the blood cell image review screen in which the determined blood cell images are aligned (Step S 810 ), updates the display of the blood cell image review screen (Step S 811 ), and completes the process. Therefore, the blood cell images are aligned in the sequence in accordance with the characteristic parameter value which is set for realignment. That is, it was difficult to differentiate which blood cell type that the blood cell image is classified into in the sequence of the blood cell images set in the display setting surface W 2 . However, in the realignment setting screen W 3 , the blood cell images are realigned in an alignment sequence which is newly set in the realignment setting screen W 3 , so that the accuracy in the classification of the blood cell type can be enhanced. 
     &lt;Reclassification Operation of Blood Cell Image&gt; 
     A user (a doctor or a surveyor who is a laboratory technician) refers to the blood cell image review screen, and reclassifies the erroneously classified blood cell images to be correctly classified, among the plural blood cell images aligned in the screen. Hereinafter, the operation will be described.  FIG. 18A  is a flow chart showing a process flow of a blood cell image display unit  4  in a blood cell image reclassification operation.  FIG. 18B  is a flow chart showing a process flow of an image processing unit  3  in a blood cell image reclassification operation. In a state where the blood cell image review screen is displayed, the user operates the input section  43  so as to select the blood cell image as a reclassification object, and instructs a new blood cell type of the blood cell image. The selection of the blood cell image is carried out by the clicking operation of the left button of a mouse in a state where the pointer of the mouse is overlapped with the blood cell image as the target. In addition, the instruction of the new blood cell type is carried out such that the reclassification button BT 11  of the blood cell image review screen is similarly operated by the clicking operation or the like of the left button of the mouse. When an event in which the selection of the blood cell image as the reclassification object and the instruction of a new blood cell type are received occurs (Step S 901 ), the CPU  41   a  performs the process of Step S 902 . 
     In Step S 902 , the CPU  41   a  transmits database update instruction data, including the white blood cell ID of the selected blood cell image and information of the new blood cell type, to the image processing unit  3  via the communication interface  41   g  (Step S 902 ). In addition, the CPU  41   a  updates the blood cell image review screen so as to reflect the reclassification results (Step S 903 ). In the update process of the blood cell image review screen, the reclassified blood cell image is deleted from the group of the blood cell type which is not reclassified in the blood cell image display area A 11  yet (hereinafter, referred to as “old blood cell type”), and is included to the group of the blood cell type in which the blood cell image is reclassified (hereinafter, referred to as “new blood cell type”). The blood cell images belonging to the group of the new blood cell type are realigned in a sequence in accordance with the characteristic parameters which are associated with the blood cell type. In addition, the counting result of the old blood cell type is subtracted by 1, and the counting result of the new blood cell type is added by 1. Thereafter, the CPU  41   a  completes the process. 
     Here, while comparing the screen in which the blood cell images are aligned in imaging sequence with the screen in which the blood cell images are aligned in the sequence in accordance with the characteristic parameter values according to this embodiment, the way to reclassify the blood cell images will be described.  FIG. 19  is an example of the screen in which the blood cell images are aligned in imaging sequence. Further, the screen shown in  FIG. 19  has the same configuration as the blood cell image review screen shown in  FIG. 13  except that the alignment sequence of the blood cell images is in imaging sequence. In addition, all the blood cell images in this screen are the same images as those displayed in the blood cell image review screen of  FIG. 13 . In the screen in which the blood cell images are aligned in imaging sequence as shown in  FIG. 19 , the adjacent blood cell images may not have a similar shape. For this reason, the surveyor such as a laboratory technician or a doctor must carefully confirm all the blood cell images and it is impossible to easily find erroneous classifications. On the other hand, in the screen in which the blood cell images are aligned in descending sequence with respect to the “NC ratio” of the characteristic parameter as shown in  FIG. 13 , the blood cell images with a small NC ratio among the lymphocytes with a large NC ratio are generally arranged in the latter part. In addition, as described above, since the monocyte has a NC ratio smaller than that of the lymphocyte, the blood cell images of the lymphocyte with a small NC ratio which are arranged close to the monocyte group are approximate to the shape of the monocyte, so that the blood cell images of the monocyte have a high possibility of being erroneously classified as lymphocytes. As described above, since the blood cell image of the lymphocyte which is positioned backward has a high possibility of being erroneously classified, the surveyor makes confirmations by focusing more on these images, so that the erroneous classifications can be easily found. In addition, by arranging the images as described above, the blood cell image of the blood cell type to be originally classified can be arranged in the vicinity of the blood cell image with a high possibility of being erroneously classified, so that the surveyor can easily compares the two. The surveyor compares the blood cell image with a high possibility of being erroneously classified with a blood cell image of the blood cell type to be originally classified, so that it is possible to more easily find erroneous classifications. 
       FIG. 20A  is diagram showing another example of the blood cell image review screen of the specimen imaging apparatus according to the this embodiment.  FIG. 20B  is a diagram showing another example of the screen on which the blood cell images are aligned in imaging sequence.  FIG. 20A  shows an example in which the blood cell images of the respective groups of the bacillary nucleus neutrophil (Band) and the lobulated nucleus neutrophil (Seg) are aligned in descending sequence with respect to the “Nucleus Constriction” of the characteristic parameters. In the alignment sequence of the blood cell types, the bacillary nucleus neutrophil is first aligned and then the lobulated nucleus neutrophil is aligned. The “Nucleus Constriction” of the characteristic parameters indicates a minimum thickness of the nucleus. That is, the blood cell image is arranged in the fore part as the minimum thickness of the nucleus is larger and the constriction is smaller. The bacillary nucleus neutrophil has a morphological characteristic in which the nucleus is bent such that a ratio of the long diameter and the short diameter of the nucleus is equal to or more than 3:1, and the lobulated nucleus neutrophil has a morphological characteristic in which a ratio of the long diameter and the short diameter of the nucleus is lobulated to be equal to or more than that of the bacillary nucleus neutrophil. For this reason, “Nucleus Constriction” is one of the characteristic parameters which are used to classify the two. Therefore, the blood cell image with a large minimum thickness of the nucleus among the blood cell images of the lobulated nucleus neutrophil is originally the bacillary nucleus neutrophil, but it may be erroneously classified as the lobulated nucleus neutrophil. The blood cell image of the lobulated nucleus neutrophil with a large minimum thickness of the nucleus is disposed in the fore part, that is, a position close to the group of the bacillary nucleus neutrophil. In  FIG. 20A , the blood cell image of the lobulated nucleus neutrophil which is surrounded with a dotted line and disposed in a position close to the group of the bacillary nucleus neutrophil, is to be classified into the bacillary nucleus neutrophil in practice. As described above, in this example, the lobulated nucleus neutrophil positioned in the fore part has a high possibility of being erroneously classified. The surveyor makes a confirmation by focusing more on these images, so that erroneous classification of the neutrophil can be easily found. On the other hand, in the screen in which the blood cell images are aligned in imaging sequence as shown in  FIG. 20B , it cannot be regarded as that the blood cell images with a high possibility of being erroneously classified are assembled in one part. For this reason, the surveyor such as a laboratory technician or a doctor, must carefully confirm all the blood cell images, and it is impossible to easily find an erroneous classification. 
     As shown in  FIG. 18B , in the CPU  31   a  of the image processing unit  3 , when an event in which the database update instruction data is received occurs (Step S 911 ), a process of Step S 912  is invoked. 
     In Step S 912 , the CPU  31   a  specifies the blood cell database DB 2  corresponding to the white blood cell ID which is included in the received database update instruction data (Step S 912 ). Next, the CPU  31   a  changes data of the type field F 22  in the specified blood cell database DB 2  with a blood cell type included in the database update instruction data (Step S 913 ), and completes the process. Therefore, the reclassification of the blood cell images is terminated. 
     With such a configuration as described above, in the blood cell image review screen, the blood cell images of the same blood cell type are aligned in sequence in accordance with the characteristic parameter values which are set with respect to the blood cell type. Therefore, a user can efficiently find the erroneously classified blood cell images. 
     In addition, when the characteristic parameter used to classify the blood cell images is used as the characteristic parameter which is used to determine the alignment sequence of the blood cell images, the blood cell images with a high possibility of being erroneously classified can be assembled in one part and a user makes confirmations by focusing more on that part. Therefore, it is possible to easily find the erroneously classified blood cell images. 
     In addition, when the blood cell image is classified into any one of 2 blood cell types by the magnitude of the characteristic parameter value, the groups of the blood cell images of 2 blood cell types are continuously aligned. By aligning the blood cell images in the alignment sequence matched with the alignment sequence of the 2 groups, the blood cell images with a high possibility of being erroneously classified into one blood cell type can be disposed in a position close to the other blood cell type of group into which the blood cell images should have originally been classified. To explain more specifically, when the first blood cell type of group with a large (small) characteristic parameter value is aligned in the fore part and the second blood cell type of group with a small (large) characteristic parameter value is aligned in the latter part, the blood cell images of the first blood cell type are aligned in descending (ascending) sequence with respect to the characteristic parameter, so that the blood cell images with a high possibility of being erroneously classified are disposed in a position close to the second blood cell type of group among the blood cell images of the first blood cell type of group. This is because the blood cell images with a small (large) characteristic parameter value among the blood cell images classified into the first blood cell type, that is, the blood cell images of the second blood cell type are erroneously classified into the first blood cell type in some cases. When the blood cell image suspected of erroneous classification is erroneously classified, the blood cell image can be disposed in a position close to the blood cell type of group which is considered as the group it belongs to. Therefore, a user can easily compare both groups, so that erroneous classification is more easily found. 
     In addition, since the characteristic parameter used to determine the alignment sequence can be freely set for each blood cell type, the characteristic parameter suitable for finding the erroneous classification can be set for each blood cell type. 
     In addition, the blood cell image review screen is configured to be displayed such that the standard display setting information C 1  including the normally used characteristic parameter is set to the display of the blood cell image review screen in advance and the alignment sequence of the blood cell images is determined using the standard display setting information C 1 . Therefore, after the standard display setting information C 1  is created once, even though a user does not specify the characteristic parameter which is used to determine the alignment sequence of the blood cell images, the blood cell images are displayed in the alignment sequence in which a user can easily find erroneous classification. 
     In addition, when a user wants to realign the alignment sequence using another characteristic parameter because the alignment sequence of the blood cell images by the standard display setting information C 1  as described above is not suitable, the realignment setting of the blood cell images can be carried out. As described above, in the realignment setting, a user can set the characteristic parameter to be secondarily used, so that the blood cell images can be aligned in an alignment sequence suitable for each specimen and the erroneous classification can be more easily found. The realignment setting information C 2  including the characteristic parameter to be secondarily used is not used when the blood cell image display unit  4  is shut down and then starts next time. However, after the next start, the standard display setting information C 1  is reused once more. For this reason, a user does not need to carry out the display setting with the same settings as the standard display setting information C 1  once more, so that the configuration is very convenient for the users. 
     Other Embodiments 
     Further, in the above-mentioned embodiments, the configuration has been described regarding the specimen imaging apparatus which images the blood smear so as to obtain the blood cell images, but the invention is not limited thereto. The specimen imaging apparatus may be configured such that tissue is gathered and sliced from a human body, attached to a slide glass, and then stained by a stain solution so as to obtain a specimen which is imaged to acquire a cell image including a cell shape. 
     In addition, in the above-mentioned embodiments, the configuration has been described in which even though no characteristic parameter is set which is used to determine the alignment sequence of the blood cell images immediately after the blood cell image display unit  4  starts, the alignment sequence of the blood cell images is determined in accordance with the standard display setting information C 1  set once, and the blood cell image review screen is displayed. In addition, when a user carries out the realignment setting, the alignment sequence of the blood cell images is changed according to the realignment setting information C 2 . However, the invention is not limited to the above-mentioned configuration. It may be configured such that immediately after the blood cell image display unit  4  starts, no characteristic parameter is set which is used to determine the alignment sequence of the blood cell images, for example, the blood cell image review screen is displayed on which the blood cell images are aligned in imaging sequence. In addition, when a user carries out the realignment setting by specifying the characteristic parameter, the realignment is carried out such that the blood cell images are aligned in the alignment sequence in accordance with the characteristic parameter value. 
     In addition, in the above-mentioned embodiments, the configuration has been described in which after a user carries out the realignment setting and until the blood cell image display unit  4  is shut down, the arrangement sequence of the blood cell images is determined in accordance with the characteristic parameter value included in the realignment setting information C 2 . However, the invention is not limited to the above-mentioned configuration. It may be configured such that after a user carries out the realignment setting and until the instruction to stop the use of the realignment setting information C 2  is received from the user, the arrangement sequence of the blood cell images is determined in accordance with the characteristic parameter value included in the realignment setting information C 2 . In addition, after the instruction to stop the use of the realignment setting information C 2  is received from the user, the alignment sequence of the blood cell images is determined in accordance with the standard display setting information C 1 , and the blood cell image review screen is displayed. In addition, instead of until the blood cell image display unit  4  is shut down, the arrangement sequence of the blood cell images may be determined in accordance with the characteristic parameter value included in the realignment setting information C 2  until a time when the state of the specimen of the display object is switched, such as a state where specimen information is switched, that is, another specimen different from the specimen which was the display object in the measurement progress screen is selected by the specimen switching button A 15 . In addition, the arrangement sequence of the blood cell images may be determined in accordance with the characteristic parameter value included in the realignment setting information C 2  until the standard imaging apparatus  1  reaches a predetermined state other than the shutdown of the blood cell image display unit  4 , such as a state where abnormality occurs in the blood cell image display unit  4  or a state where the image processing unit  3  receives a new blood cell image from the microscope unit  2 . 
     In addition, in the above-mentioned embodiments, the configuration has been described in which the blood cell images are classified into a plurality of blood cell types and then the classification result and the blood cell images are aligned in the sequence of the characteristic parameter values. However, the invention is not limited to the above-mentioned configuration. It may be configured such that only the blood cell images of one type (lymphocyte, etc.) are imaged and the blood cell images are obtained, and the blood cell images are analyzed to obtain the characteristic parameter value (NC ratio, etc.), and the blood cell images are aligned and displayed in the sequence of the characteristic parameter values. When blood cell images of a different type (monocyte, etc.) from the type described above are included, the blood cell images are aligned in the above-mentioned sequence, so that a user can easily specify the blood cell image of a different type. 
     In addition, in the above-mentioned embodiments, the configuration has been described in which, by executing the blood cell image display program  44   a , the computer functions as the blood cell image display unit  4  to acquire the blood cell images and the values of the characteristic parameters, to determine the alignment sequence of the blood cell images in accordance with the values of the characteristic parameters, and to display the blood cell image review screen in which the blood cell images are aligned in the alignment sequence on the image display section  42 . However, the invention is not limited to this. A configuration may also be employed, in which the above-mentioned process is performed using dedicated hardware such as an FPGA, an ASIC or the like capable of executing the same process as the blood cell image display program. 
     In the above-described embodiments, the configuration has been described in which the above-mentioned process is carried out by the blood cell image display unit  4  which is provided independently of the image processing unit  3 . However, the invention is not limited to this. A configuration may be employed in which, by one unit having the function of the image processing unit  3  as well as the function of the blood cell image display unit  4 , the acquisition of the characteristic parameters by the image processing of the blood cell images, the classification of the blood cell images, the determination of the alignment sequence of the blood cell images in accordance with the values of the characteristic parameters, and the displaying of the blood cell image review screen in which the blood cell images are aligned in the alignment sequence are carried out. Further, a configuration may be employed in which, by one unit having the function of the microscope unit  2 , the function of image processing unit  3 , and the function of the blood cell image display unit  4 , the imaging of the specimen, the acquisition of the characteristic parameters by the image processing of the blood cell images, the determination of the alignment sequence of the blood cell images in accordance with the values of the characteristic parameters, and the displaying of the blood cell image review screen in which the blood cell images are aligned in the alignment sequence are carried out. 
     In the above-described embodiments, the configuration has been described in which all the processes of the image processing program  34   a  are executed by the single computer  3   a . However, the invention is not limited to this. A distribution system also can be employed for distributing the same processes as the above-described image processing program  34   a  to plural apparatuses (computers) and executing the processes. 
     In the above-described embodiments, the configuration has been described in which all the processes of the blood cell image display program  44   a  are executed by the single computer  4   a . However, the invention is not limited to this. A distribution system also can be employed for distributing the same processes as the above-described blood cell image display program  44   a  to plural apparatuses (computers) and executing the processes.