Patent ID: 8398543

Claim:
A capsule endoscope activation system comprising: a capsule endoscope that includes a capsule-shaped casing, and a magnetic field detecting unit that is provided inside the capsule-shaped casing and detects a magnetic field in a direction orthogonal to a longitudinal direction of the capsule-shaped casing, the capsule endoscope being activated when the magnetic field detecting unit detects a magnetic field of a threshold or more; a capsule container that houses the capsule endoscope; a route portion in which a route is formed on which the capsule container moves on a planar face; an activation magnetic field generating unit that is arranged at a predetermined interval along the route, and includes a plurality of magnets for generating magnetic fields in a direction vertical to a direction in which the capsule container moves on the route, the plurality of magnets being arranged such that respective magnetization directions are different; and a magnetic field response unit that has a magnetization direction orthogonal respectively to a center axis direction of the longitudinal direction and a direction of the magnetic field detected by the magnetic field detecting unit.