PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an endoscope apparatus for normally acquiring a bright image without changing the shade of an observation image even when the light amount of illumination light is increased by introducing light from an auxiliary light source to illumination light from a main light source.SOLUTION: The endoscope apparatus includes: the main light source 33 for generating first and second illumination lights with mutually different center wavelengths the auxiliary light source 45 for generating a third illumination light having substantially the same center wavelength as that of the second illumination light an imaging means a light amount control means and a shade correction means for correcting the shade of an observation image in accordance with the light amount rate of the light amount of the first illumination light to the total light amount of the second and third illumination light. The light amount control means controls the light amount by the main light source till a target light amount reaches the maximum output light amount by the main light source, and controls the light amount by introducing the third illumination light while keeping the maximum output light amount of the main light source when the target light amount exceeds the maximum output light amount of the main light source. The shade correction means corrects the shade of the observation image when the light amount rate is changed by the introduction of the third illumination light.COPYRIGHT: (C)2013,JPO&INPIT【課題】主光源からの照明光に補助光源からの光を導入して照明光の光量を増加させた場合でも、観察画像の色味が変化することなく、常に明るい画像が得られる内視鏡装置を提供する。【解決手段】内視鏡装置は、中心波長が互いに異なる第1、第2の照明光を生成する主光源33と、第2の照明光と実質的に同一の中心波長を有する第3の照明光を生成する補助光源45と、撮像手段と、光量制御手段と、第1の照明光の光量に対する第2、第3の照明光の合計光量の光量比に応じて観察画像を色味補正する色味補正手段とを備える。光量制御手段は、目標光量が主光源による最大出力光量となるまでは主光源により光量制御し、目標光量が主光源の最大出力光量を超える場合には、主光源を最大出力光量に維持したまま第3の照明光を導入して光量制御する。色味補正手段は、第3の照明光の導入によって光量比が変化する場合に観察画像の色味を補正する。【選択図】図1
