JP2000107120A - Endoscope - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent an electronic part from deteriorating due to vapor by providing a hermatic section at a second hermatic level of which the sealability is higher than a first hermatic level, at least at one portion of a contained article. SOLUTION: A first shield frame 162 which covers a CCD 156 is incorporated with a frame 159 by bonding or welding, and in addition, a second shield frame 222 is incorporated with the first shield frame 162 by bonding or welding. In a space section which is formed by being surrounded with the first shield frame 162, the CCD 156 and a cover glass 157, an adhesive, a sealing agent or a potting agent of a low vapor permeability is filled, and at the same time, around cable 161 which is arranged on the internal side of the second shield frame 222, an adhesive is filled. By this constitution, although around the CCD 156 is not placed under a perfect air-tight structure, at least a state of a level wherein an electronic part such as the CCD 156 is not destroyed by a vapor is provided. Thus, an autoclave sterilization resistance can be imparted to the whole body of an imaging unit 18, and also, the imaging unit 18 can be miniaturized.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an endoscope, and more particularly, to an endoscope compatible with autoclave sterilization, which has a flexible portion in an insertion portion and is characterized by a built-in structure.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An endoscope capable of observing a deep part or the like in a body cavity by introducing an insertion portion into the body cavity or the like and performing a medical treatment or the like by using a treatment tool as necessary is a medical field. Has become widely used in In the case of a medical endoscope, it is essential to surely disinfect and sterilize the used endoscope in order to prevent infectious diseases and the like.

Conventionally, the disinfecting and sterilizing treatment of a used endoscope has been performed with a sterilizing gas such as ethylene oxide gas (EOG) or a disinfecting solution. However, as is well known, sterilizing gases are very toxic, and the operation becomes complicated to ensure the safety of the sterilizing operation, and the adverse effect of the gas on the environment is regarded as a problem.

[0004] Further, since it takes a long time to aeration for removing gas adhering to the equipment after sterilization, it cannot be used immediately after sterilization. Another problem is that the running cost is high.

On the other hand, in the case of a disinfecting solution, there is a problem in that the management of the disinfecting solution is complicated and a great deal of cost is required to dispose of the disinfecting solution.

Therefore, recently, without complicated work,
Autoclave sterilization (hereinafter also referred to as high-pressure steam sterilization), which can be used immediately after sterilization and has a low running cost, is becoming the mainstream of disinfection and sterilization of endoscope devices.

[0007] Typical conditions for the autoclave sterilization include the approval of the American National Standards Institute and the American standard ANSI / AAMI ST37-1992 issued by the Medical Device Development Association. These conditions include a pre-vacuum type sterilization step of 132 ° C, 4 minutes, Gravity type sterilization process 1
32 ゜ C, 10 minutes. Generally, the temperature of autoclave sterilization is generally set in the range of 115 ° C to 140 ° C.

[0008] A general prevacuum-type autoclave sterilization process includes a prevacuum process in which a sterilization chamber accommodating a medical device to be sterilized is set to a reduced pressure (negative pressure) state before sterilization, and then a high pressure is applied to the sterilization chamber. The method includes a sterilization step in which high-temperature steam is supplied to perform sterilization, and a drying step in which the sterilization chamber is again evacuated to dry the endoscope after sterilization.

[0009] The pre-vacuum step is a step for permeating steam into the details of the medical device during the sterilization step.
By reducing the pressure in the sterilization chamber, high-pressure and high-temperature steam is distributed throughout the housed medical equipment. The pressure in the sterilization chamber in the pre-vacuum step and the drying step is about -0.07 MPa with respect to the atmospheric pressure. On the other hand, the pressure during the sterilization process is + 0.2MP
It is often set to about a. The pre-vacuum step is also performed in gas sterilization using ethylene oxide gas.

In general, in the case of an endoscope having a flexible insertion portion or a curved endoscope having a curved portion, a flexible polymer such as rubber or elastomer is used as an exterior member of the flexible insertion portion or the curved portion. A skin tube made of a material is used. Further, since the endoscope needs to be immersed in a chemical solution, the entire endoscope has a watertight structure.

Therefore, when an endoscope having a watertight structure is subjected to autoclave sterilization, a flexible outer tube swells and breaks during a decompression step such as a prevacuum step or the like, and a joint portion between parts is subject to a difference in internal and external pressure of the endoscope. There was a possibility that it could not withstand and was damaged.

For this reason, in the communication device for the inside and outside of the hermetic endoscope disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 1-12802, in order to prevent the curved outer tube of the curved portion from being ruptured when performing gas sterilization with a pre-vacuum step. During the decompression step, an airtight release cap is attached to an inside / outside communication device provided on the outer wall of the endoscope to communicate the internal space of the endoscope (hereinafter also referred to as the inside of the endoscope) with the outside.

In the case of an endoscope having a structure in which a communication passage provided in a part of the outer wall of the endoscope is closed with a waterproof cap in advance as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-315024, the waterproof cap is removed. Perform gas sterilization in this condition. This prevents the outer tube or the like of the curved portion from bursting during the decompression step.

However, during autoclave sterilization, when the inside and the outside of the endoscope are communicated with each other and high-pressure, high-temperature steam is positively introduced, the steam starts the observation means provided inside the endoscope. However, there arises a problem that various built-in components and internal structural members are deteriorated at an early stage.

To cope with this, Japanese Patent Publication No. 4-67
In the internal pressure adjusting device of the airtight endoscope disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 445, the passage of gas from the inside of the endoscope to the outside is possible,
A check valve mechanism for preventing gas from entering the inside of the endoscope from the outside is provided on the exterior of the endoscope. As a result, even when autoclave sterilization is performed, intrusion of high-pressure, high-temperature steam into the endoscope is positively prevented.

[0016]

However, in the case where a member made of a polymer material such as plastic or rubber is provided in a part of the endoscope, high-pressure high-temperature steam during autoclave sterilization is used. It penetrates the polymer material and enters the endoscope. In other words,
Unless the entire endoscope is made of a material such as metal, ceramics (including glass in a broad sense), or crystalline material,
High-pressure high-temperature steam during autoclave sterilization enters the endoscope.

That is, even in an endoscope provided with a check valve function disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 4-67445, for example, in the case of an endoscope with a bending function having a bending portion in an insertion portion, the bending portion is not provided with a bending portion. Since the outer tube made of a polymer material such as flexible rubber or elastomer is provided, high-pressure and high-temperature steam permeates through the outer tube and gradually enters the inside of the endoscope.

In the endoscope with the bending function, a rubber seal member such as an O-ring made of a polymer material is generally used as a seal member for a rotating shaft of an operation lever for performing the bending operation of the bending portion. . For this reason, the high-pressure high-temperature steam of the autoclave sterilization permeates the rubber seal member and gradually enters the inside of the endoscope.

Further, even in an endoscope having no bending function in the insertion portion, if the entire insertion portion is flexible, a polymer material is still used for the outer tube of the insertion portion. For this reason, high-pressure high-temperature steam during autoclave sterilization permeates the outer tube and gradually enters the endoscope.

That is, even in the case of an endoscope called an airtight endoscope, in the case of an endoscope having a bending function or an endoscope having a flexible insertion portion, high-pressure high-temperature steam in autoclave sterilization cannot be used. As described above, it gradually enters the inside of the endoscope.

The phenomenon that steam enters the endoscope occurs in the autoclave sterilization process regardless of the pre-vacuum type or the gravity type.

When the vapor enters the inside of the endoscope, there is a possibility that various built-in components and internal structural members including the observation means inside the endoscope are gradually deteriorated.

For example, in the case of an electronic endoscope, dew condensation may occur on the surface of the lens constituting the objective lens unit provided in the image pickup unit or on the inner surface of the cover glass due to the vapor entering the endoscope. In addition, there is a possibility that a defect occurs in an electronic component such as a solid-state imaging device, and an observation image defect occurs.

In addition to the above-mentioned electronic endoscope, not only the electronic endoscope but also a fiberscope, when the vapor entering the endoscope reaches the observation optical system, the surface of the lens constituting the observation optical system and the inner surface of the cover glass are formed. There was a possibility that dew condensation would occur and cause poor visual field.

Further, multi-component glass having good workability, which is a lens glass material generally used as the lens and cover glass, is deteriorated by being exposed to high-pressure and high-temperature steam during autoclave sterilization. . For this reason, when the vapor enters the endoscope, the glass material itself may be degraded, or the coating applied to the lens surface or the adhesive applied to the lens surface may be degraded, resulting in defective observation images. There was sex.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 62-212614 discloses an endoscope in which at least a part of an optical system has an airtight structure to prevent vapor from entering the inside of the optical system. But,
In this endoscope, an optical member such as a lens or a cover glass is bonded to a frame by an adhesive. For this reason, when autoclave sterilization is performed under the conditions specified by the above-mentioned U.S. standard or the like, steam enters the optical system through the adhesive. In other words, this structure does not provide the effect of actually preventing high-pressure, high-temperature steam from entering.

In a hardened layer of an adhesive mainly composed of a polymer material such as an epoxy-based adhesive or a silicone-based adhesive, high-pressure high-temperature steam permeates under autoclave conditions as described above. Would.

Also, since the bonding strength of the adhesive is not so high, for example, in a joint portion where components of different materials such as metal and glass are joined, the thermal expansion coefficients of the components are different from each other. At the time of a thermal change, stress may act on the bonding portion and the adhesive may be peeled off.

In consideration of these facts, a rigid endoscope having a rigid insertion portion is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-26504.
As disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 6-204, there is disclosed an endoscope in which a cover glass is airtightly bonded to an outer cylinder as an endoscope exterior component by solder without gaps, and an endoscope exterior as an exterior structure is hermetically sealed. I have.

However, in an endoscope in which at least a part of the insertion portion has a flexible portion such as a curved portion in the insertion portion, as described above, a member formed of a polymer material on at least a part of the exterior of the endoscope. Is arranged, even if only the distal end portion of the insertion portion is air-tightly joined, the entire endoscope exterior cannot be completely air-tightly sealed.

In other words, an endoscope which can be constructed by hermetically sealing the entire endoscope exterior as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-265047 does not have a bending function. Are limited to hard endoscopes, which can be made of metal or ceramics.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and in autoclave sterilization, high-pressure high-temperature steam permeates through a sheath tube formed of a polymer material provided in at least a part of an insertion portion. The endoscope prevents the observation image from deteriorating due to fogging, which has an important adverse effect on the optical system due to the invading vapor, and deterioration of electronic components, etc., even if the vapor enters the endoscope. The purpose is to provide.

[0033]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An endoscope according to the present invention is an endoscope including an insertion portion provided with a flexible member formed of a flexible polymer material on at least a part of an exterior, and an internal space of the insertion portion. An endoscope having a built-in part that is entirely or partially accommodated in a mirror internal space, wherein the endoscope internal space is configured to be able to be sealed with a first sealing level that is watertight with respect to the outside, At least a part of the built-in component is provided with a hermetic sealing portion configured with a second hermetic level having a hermetic seal higher than the first hermetic level.

According to this configuration, when the used endoscope is washed before the autoclave sterilization, the liquid is prevented from entering the interior space of the endoscope constituted by the first sealing level. You. Then, when the endoscope after washing is subjected to autoclave sterilization, during the sterilization step, high-pressure and high-temperature steam penetrates the polymer material and the like of the endoscope exterior and enters the inside of the endoscope.
High-pressure high-temperature steam does not enter the hermetically sealed portion provided in the built-in portion.

[0035]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIGS. 1 to 8 relate to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of an electronic endoscope, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the configuration of a check valve cap, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the configuration of the imaging unit near the distal end of the endoscope, FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the configuration of the imaging unit, FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating two types of cover glasses, and FIG. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a joint portion between the frame and the cover glass, and FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a hermetically sealed objective lens unit constituting the imaging unit.

FIG. 5A is an external view illustrating a cover glass disposed on the front end side, FIG. 5B is an external view illustrating a cover glass disposed on the front surface of the solid-state imaging device,
FIG. 7A is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the cover glass is airtightly joined to the frame, and FIG. 7B is an enlarged view for explaining the airtight joint.

(Structure) As shown in FIG. 1, an electronic endoscope 1 according to the present embodiment has an insertion section 2 having, for example, a CCD built in at a distal end side as a solid-state imaging device, and a base end side of the insertion section 2. An operation unit 3 that is connected to perform various operations while being grasped by an observer;
It is mainly composed of a universal cord 4 extending from the operation unit 3. A connector 5 is provided at the other end of the universal cord 4. This connector part 5
Are connected to a light source device (not shown) and a camera control unit (CCU) not shown.

A light guide connector 6 is connected to the light source device, and a camera connector 7 is connected to the CCU. Further, the internal spaces of the insertion section 2, the operation section 3, the universal cord 4, and the connector section 5 communicate with each other. That is, one endoscope internal space (also simply referred to as an internal space) is formed with respect to the endoscope exterior.

The insertion section 2 is composed of a distal end portion 8, a bendable bending portion 9, and a flexible tube 10 having flexibility. The operation section 3 includes a bending operation lever 11 for controlling the operation of the bending section 9, a treatment tool insertion port 12 for inserting a treatment tool such as forceps, and a plurality of switches 13 for freezing and releasing images. Is provided. The bending operation lever 11 is rotatable, and is assembled in a watertight state by an O-ring (not shown).

The inside of the camera connector 7 is provided with a vent 14 for ventilating the internal space and the outside. A waterproof cap 15 is detachable from the camera connector 7. By attaching the waterproof cap 15 to the camera connector 7, the internal space of the endoscope 1 has a hermetically sealed level (referred to as a first level). Then, by removing the waterproof cap 15, the inside and outside of the endoscope exterior, that is, the internal space of the endoscope 1 and the outside communicate with each other.

The waterproof cap 15 is attached to the camera connector 7 when the used endoscope 1 is washed or immersed in a chemical solution. That is, the waterproof cap 15 is watertightly sealed so that liquid does not enter the internal space of the endoscope 1 at the time of washing with running water or immersion in a chemical solution. The camera connector 7 allows a gas to pass from the internal space of the endoscope to the outside, but a check valve cap 200 having a check valve function for preventing the gas from passing from the outside to the inside is also detachable. is there.

As shown in FIG. 2, the check valve cap 20
Reference numeral 0 denotes a metal check valve cap body 202 provided with a valve seat 201, a metal valve body 204 provided integrally with a rubber seal member 203, and the valve seat 201, for example.
A spring 205 for urging the valve body 204 with respect to the camera connector 7, a metal attachment portion 206 attached to the camera connector 7, and an attachment portion 206 when the attachment portion 206 is attached to the camera connector 7. And a seal member 217 made of rubber, for example, for maintaining watertightness between the inner peripheral surface of the camera connector 7 and the outer peripheral surface of the camera connector 7.

When the endoscope 1 is subjected to autoclave sterilization, the check valve cap 200 is attached to the camera connector 7 instead of the waterproof cap 15. By attaching the check valve cap 200, high-pressure high-temperature steam during autoclave sterilization is prevented from entering through the vent 14.

When the check valve cap 200 is attached to the camera connector 7 in a normal state, the valve member 204 is urged in the direction of the valve seat 201 so that the seal member 203 is turned on. The amount of force that adheres to the seat 201, and the valve body 204 during the pressure reduction step of autoclave sterilization.
Is set to the amount of force that releases the urging in the direction of the valve seat 201.

That is, as long as the internal pressure of the internal space of the endoscope does not become higher than the outside air pressure, in other words, in a normal use condition, the internal space of the endoscope is exposed to the outside air by attaching the check valve cap 200. The first sealing level. Therefore, when the endoscope 1 is washed or immersed in a chemical solution, the check valve cap 200 may be attached instead of the waterproof cap 15.

As shown in FIG. 3, the distal end body 16 constituting the distal end portion 8 of the endoscope 1 includes an imaging unit 18 which is an observation means and an image transmission means, a light guide fiber 32 which transmits illumination light, and the like. It is arranged. An illumination lens 34 is fixed to the distal end body 16 with an adhesive on the distal end surface of the light guide fiber 32.

A distal end cover member 107 is attached to the outer periphery of the distal end body 16. At the base end of the distal end cover member 107, a first bending piece 108 located at the forefront of a plurality of bending pieces constituting the bending portion 9 is provided with a rivet 10.
9 are connected so as to be freely rotatable. A plurality of bending pieces 108,...
108 is rotatably connected, and its outer periphery is covered with a metal mesh tube 110 and a skin tube 39. The outer tube 39 is formed of a polymer material made of a flexible rubber such as fluoro rubber or an elastomer.

The hard portion 11 of the imaging unit 18
1 is a tip side from the rivet 109 located on the most front side,
That is, it is located within the distal hard long portion 218.

As shown in FIG. 4, a tip cover glass 150 which is disposed at the tip of the image pickup unit 18 as a part of the exterior of the insertion section 2 (in this embodiment, the tip face) and forms an optical window of the observation means. Is provided.

The tip cover glass 150 is made of sapphire, which is a high-strength, airtight partition member having high pressure and high temperature steam resistance, or a glass glass material having high pressure and high temperature steam resistance. An outer peripheral surface of the tip cover glass 150 is subjected to a surface treatment such as a metal coat described later, and the tip cover glass 150 is used as an inner peripheral surface of a metal tip frame 151 which is an airtight partition member having high-pressure steam resistance. As described later, the airtight joining means has high joining strength and is not hermetically deteriorated by steam. In addition, as the optical window,
Depending on the design of the optical system, a lens may be used instead of the cover glass.

The end frame 151 is made of stainless steel or Kovar. A plating layer is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the tip frame 151 by, for example, electroplating. In this plating layer, for example, the lower layer is a nickel plating layer and the upper layer is a gold plating layer.

A lens frame 153 having an objective lens group 152 configured to form a subject image by arranging a plurality of optical lenses and the like on the base end side of the front cover glass 150.
Is to be assembled. This lens frame 15
Reference numeral 3 denotes an airtight partition member having high pressure and high temperature steam resistance and an insulating frame 1 made of ceramic or the like as an insulating material.
It is configured to be adhesively fixed to the tip end side of the base member 54. The insulating frame 154 is a material having a high thermal conductivity and a high resistance to thermal shock among ceramic materials. A diaphragm 155 is adhered and fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the base end of the insulating frame 154.

A CCD 156 which is a solid-state image pickup device for picking up a subject image formed through the objective lens group 152
Is bonded and fixed to a cover glass 157 made of sapphire or a glass material having high-pressure high-temperature steam resistance by using a reticle or the like. The cover glass 157 is used for the objective lens group 15.
This is a kind of optical window facing the base end face of No. 2. Note that, in the present embodiment, C
A CD cover glass 221 is provided. Further, a lens constituting the lens group 158 is adhesively fixed to the front side surface of the cover glass 157 in a state where the lens is positioned.

The outer peripheral surface and the chamfered portion of the cover glass 157 are subjected to the same surface treatment as that of the front cover glass 150. The cover glass 157 is air-tightly joined to a frame 159 formed of a metal member which is an air-tight partition member having high-pressure steam resistance, by air-tight joining means described later. The lens group 158
A gap is provided between the outer peripheral surface of the frame and the inner peripheral surface of the frame 159. When the frame 159 having a different coefficient of thermal expansion and the lens group 158 are thermally expanded by heating in autoclave sterilization, the gap 159 is formed in the lens joining surface.
This is to prevent stress from being applied.

The front end of the frame 159 is air-tightly joined to the base end of the insulating frame 154 by an air-tight joining means. The frame 159 is formed of stainless steel or Kovar similarly to the end frame 151, and has a surface provided with a plating layer similar to the end frame 151.

Further, the fitting between the tip cover glass 150 and the tip frame 151, the fitting between the tip frame 151 and the insulating frame 154, and the fitting between the insulating frame 154 and the frame 1 are performed.
The fit with 59 is better as closer to 0. Further, a gap having an appropriate size is provided between the cover glass 157 and the frame 159.

The CCD 156 is electrically connected to the cable 161 via the substrate 160. This substrate 1
Electronic components such as ICs and capacitors are mounted on 60, and these electronic components are sealed and fixed with an adhesive having an insulating property.

The CCD 156 and the like are covered by a first shield frame 162 made of metal. The first shield frame 162 is integrally attached to the outer periphery of the frame 159 by bonding or welding. Further, a second shield frame 222 made of metal is attached to the base end of the first shield frame 162 by bonding or welding.

The first shield frame 162 and the CCD 1
The space formed by 56 and the cover glass 157 is filled with an adhesive, a sealing agent, or a potting agent having low vapor permeability.

The periphery of the cable 161 disposed inside the second shield frame 222 is filled with an adhesive, and the outer periphery of the second shield frame 222 has a vapor permeable property. For example, heat-shrinkable tubes 223 and 224 made of, for example, fluororesin are covered.

When the members are fixed to each other with an adhesive, some of the members are easily peeled off by autoclave sterilization, and others are hardly peeled off, depending on the material of the members to be joined.

When the optical member is bonded and fixed to the metal frame, the thermal expansion coefficient of the metal and the thermal expansion coefficient of the optical member are greatly different. When a large stress acts on the bonded portion, the adhesive is peeled off.

On the other hand, when the same member, for example, a metal member is bonded and fixed, almost no stress acts on the bonded portion due to a difference in thermal expansion between the members, so that the bonded portion is hard to peel. In addition, in the filled portion filled with the adhesive, the stress due to the difference in thermal expansion is less likely to be received, so that peeling and cracking are less likely to occur.

Based on these facts, in the present embodiment, when the members used in the portion affected by the invasion of steam are fixed with an adhesive, members having the same thermal expansion coefficient are preferably used, The members having a small difference are bonded and fixed, or the adhesive is used only for filling. This makes it difficult for the parts using these adhesives to peel off, so even when bonding with adhesives,
It is possible to keep the permeation of the vapor low.

Next, the airtight joining means will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 5A, the side peripheral surface 163 of the tip cover glass 150 has been subjected to a surface treatment with a metal coat. The metal coat is
It is composed of a chromium layer provided as a lowermost layer as a metallized layer, a nickel layer provided as a second layer as an intermediate layer, and a gold layer forming an uppermost layer. Each layer is applied by vapor deposition, sputtering, or plating in a vacuum.

As shown in FIG. 5B, the side peripheral surface 166 and the chamfered portion 167 of the cover glass 157 are also subjected to surface treatment as provided on the side peripheral surface 163 of the tip cover glass 150. ing.

By making the lowermost layer of the top cover glass 150 and the cover glass 157 a chromium oxide layer, the chromium oxide layer becomes a lower reflection layer than the chromium layer, so that the optical characteristics are improved. When the chromium oxide layer is provided, a chromium layer is provided on the chromium oxide layer, and a metal coat layer is formed in the other configuration in the same manner as described above.

When considering low reflection, the surface roughness of the side peripheral surfaces 163 and 166 of the cover glasses 150 and 157 is set to an average roughness (Ra) of 0.1 μm to 1 μm or a maximum roughness (Ra). It is preferable that the surface is polished to 2 μm to 5 μm with PV) and subjected to the surface treatment described above.

Further, when the surfaces of the side peripheral surfaces 163 and 166 are mirror-finished, not only the reflection becomes easy, but also the adhesion strength of the coating layer decreases. On the other hand, if the surface roughness is too rough, it is difficult to remove foreign substances adhering to the surface, and the adhesion strength of the coating layer is reduced.

Then, as shown in FIG.
1 and the outer surface 164 of the insulating frame 154 fitted into the frame 1
The outer surface 165 of the insulating frame 154 that fits into the outer surface 159 is also provided with a metal coat.

The metal coat on the outer surfaces 164 and 165 includes a nickel layer provided as a lowermost layer as a metallization layer,
And a gold layer forming the uppermost layer. Each layer is provided by vacuum evaporation, or vacuum sputtering, or plating.

The outer surface 164 and the outer surface 165 are not subjected to a surface treatment with a conductive material. The inner peripheral surface is not subjected to a surface treatment with a conductive material. Therefore, the tip frame 151 fitted and assembled to the outer surface 164 and the frame 159 fitted and assembled to the outer surface 165 are electrically insulated.

Referring to FIG. 7, frame 159 and cover glass 15
The means for hermetically joining with No. 7 will be specifically described. As shown in the figure, the depth dimension of the concave portion 168 of the frame 159 into which the cover glass 157 is fitted is set to be smaller than the thickness dimension of the cover glass 157. That is, one surface of the cover glass 157 is configured to protrude from the end surface where the concave portion 168 is formed.

The side peripheral surface 16 of the cover glass 157
A brazing material or solder is poured into a gap between the inner peripheral surface of the concave portion 168 and the inner peripheral surface of the concave portion 168 so as to be airtightly joined. At this time, a fillet 171 having a substantially triangular cross-sectional shape as a brazing filler metal or solder pool is formed on the protruding end surface of the cover glass 157 and the chamfered portion 167 disposed in the concave portion 168.
Is formed. By ensuring that the cross-sectional shape of the fillet 171 is formed in a triangular shape, the joining while maintaining the airtightness is completed. In the present embodiment, it is possible to visually check whether or not the fillet 171 is securely formed.

When flux is used at the time of soldering or brazing, this frame 159 is used to prevent metal corrosion.
Further, it is necessary to sufficiently wash the cover glass 157 in the joined state.

The soldering and brazing portions are not portions that come into contact with the living body. For this reason, it is possible to arbitrarily select and apply the solder and the brazing material. However, as the solder or brazing material, preferably Au-Sn solder,
Gold brazing is used. Since the outermost layer of the plating of the frame 159 and the metal coat of the cover glass 157 is a gold layer, A
Very good adhesion to u-Sn solder and gold solder.

Referring to FIG. 8, an assembling procedure including a method of joining the imaging unit 18 will be described. First, the side peripheral surface 16 is placed in the concave portion of the plated front end frame 151.
3 tip cover glass 15 with metal coating
0 is inserted and arranged. Then, in this state, the outer peripheral surface of the front end frame 151 on which the front end cover glass 150 is disposed is irradiated with laser light from the direction of arrow A over the entire circumference.

Then, the gold layer coated on the side peripheral surface 163 of the tip cover glass 150 and the gold layer coated on the tip frame 151 are melted by the heat of the laser beam, and then cooled to cool the gold layer. Join together. Thus, the outer peripheral surface of the distal end cover glass 150 and the inner peripheral surface of the distal end frame 151 are joined in a state where there is no gap, that is, joined in an airtight state.

As the laser device for irradiating the laser beam, a YAG laser which can be finely adjusted with a low output is preferable. In addition, when irradiating a laser beam with a pulse wave laser device, superposition with an adjacent pulse is performed by 8 times.
By setting it to 0% or more, it is possible to perform joining that ensures airtightness.

Next, the CCD 15 with the substrate 160 and the cable 161 attached to the cover glass 157
6 is adhered and fixed in a state where it is positioned. Thereafter, the lens group 158 is positioned on the cover glass 157 and is fixed by bonding. The image input side of the CCD 156, which is the image transmission means, and the cover glass 157 are fixed with a light-transmitting adhesive.

At this time, an air layer is prevented from being present in the adhesive layer. As the translucent adhesive, an ultraviolet-curing adhesive is used in order to securely fix the optical axis in a state where the optical axes are aligned. Note that this bonded portion is outside the hermetic zone. For this reason, at the time of autoclave, an adhesive having a property that at least peeling, discoloration and the like is not deteriorated by high-pressure high-temperature steam is selected and used. By these, the CCD 156 and the cover glass 157
In this way, the occurrence of a phenomenon that causes an image defect is prevented.

In the present embodiment described above, the CC
CCD cover glass 22 in front of the imaging chip of D156
1 is pasted. At this time, the space between the imaging surface of the imaging chip of the CCD 156 and the CCD cover glass 221 is tightly fixed or airtightly sealed so that there is no air layer through which vapor can enter. The front surface of the CCD cover glass 221 is a substantial image input end of the solid-state imaging device 156. However, when the CCD cover glass 221 is not disposed, the image input end of the imaging chip of the CCD 156 may be directly adhered to the cover glass 157 and attached.

Next, the frame 159 is fitted and arranged on the insulating frame 154 to which the diaphragm 170 is adhered and fixed. Then, a laser beam is applied to the outer peripheral surface of the frame 159 from the direction of arrow B over the entire circumference. Then, due to the heat of the laser beam, the gold layer coated on the insulating frame 154 and the gold layer coated on the frame 159 are melted, and then cooled to bond the gold layers. This allows the insulating frame 1
There is no gap between the outer peripheral surface of 54 and the inner peripheral surface of the frame 159.
Joined in an airtight state.

Next, the lenses constituting the objective lens group 152 are assembled and fixed to the lens frame 153 by bonding.
Thereafter, the lens frame 153 is arranged on the insulating frame 154,
Focusing is performed by adjusting the position in the axial direction, and the lens frame 153 is bonded and fixed to the insulating frame 154.

Next, the tip frame 151 to which the tip cover glass 150 is bonded so as to cover the lens frame 153 is formed.
Are fitted to the insulating frame 154. Then, the tip frame 151
Is irradiated with laser light over the entire circumference from the direction of arrow C. Then, the heat of the laser beam causes the insulating frame 15
4 and the gold layer coated on the tip frame 151 are melted, and then cooled to bond the gold layers. This allows the insulating frame 15
4 and the inner peripheral surface of the front end frame 151 are joined in a state where there is no gap, that is, in an airtight state.

The laser device used for the above-mentioned bonding is a YAG laser which can be finely adjusted with a low output, and at the time of laser bonding, the temperature of the bonded portion becomes 1000 ° C. or higher.
Since the laser beam irradiation is local and instantaneous, the stop 170
Adhesive part, CCD 156, lens frame 153 and insulating frame 1
The adhesive portion 54, the objective lens group 152, and the like have no adverse effect due to heat.

As described above, the tip cover lens 150 and the tip frame 151, the tip frame 151 and the insulating frame 154, and the insulating frame 15
4 and the frame 159 are bonded together by using a laser beam to melt and bond a gold layer previously coated on each member once.
By performing airtight joining without any gap between members using solder, brazing material, etc., when performing autoclave sterilization, the airtightness of the airtight state in which steam does not enter inside (second sealing level) ) To form a hermetically sealed objective lens unit 219 that is a hermetically sealed part. The hermetically sealed objective lens unit 219 is a part of the imaging unit 18 which is a built-in member inside the endoscope.

The hermetically sealed objective lens unit 219 uses an airtight partition member having a high vacuum characteristic as described later for the front cover glass 150, the front frame 151, the insulating frame 154, the frame 159, and the cover glass 157. Since these members are joined by air-tight joining means, they have not only reduced pressure and pressure during autoclave sterilization but also pressure resistance and joining strength that are not destroyed by temperature changes. For this reason, when performing autoclave sterilization, even if steam permeates the outer tube formed of the polymer material and enters the internal space, it is sealed at the second sealing level and is hermetically sealed.
The vapor is prevented from entering the interior of the housing.

The hermetically sealed objective lens unit 219
And a cover glass 157 which is an optical window on the rear end side of the hermetically sealed objective lens unit 219, is adhered to the rear end side of the CCD 156 with a translucent adhesive in a state where an air layer is removed. ing.

For this reason, the distal end cover glass 150 on the distal end side, which is an optical window exposed on the distal end surface of the endoscope 1, has a C
In the optical path to the image input end of the CD 156, there is no portion that is condensed due to the intrusion of autoclave sterilization steam. That is, according to this configuration, even if the solid-state imaging device is not hermetically sealed together with the objective lens, no trouble occurs in observation, so that the imaging unit can be formed in a small size.

Electronic components such as a solid-state image sensor have a certain degree of resistance to vapor, unlike optical members that cause a problem of obstruction of observation such as dew condensation due to vapor that has entered slightly.

In this embodiment, the first shield frame 162 that covers the CCD 156 is attached to the frame 159 by bonding or welding, and the second shield frame 222 is attached to the first shield frame 162 by bonding or welding. I have. Then, the first shield frame 162 and the CCD
A space defined by the space 156 and the cover glass 157 is filled with an adhesive, a sealing agent or a potting agent having low vapor permeability, and the cable 161 disposed inside the second shield frame 222. Was filled with adhesive around. For this reason, although the periphery of the CCD 156 is not completely airtight, at least C
Electronic components such as the CD 156 are in a sealed state at a level not destroyed by steam. With this configuration,
Without using the hermetic connector of the second embodiment described later, the entire imaging unit can be given autoclave sterilization resistance, and the imaging unit can be downsized.

Further, the illumination optical system is not hermetically sealed. This is because, for the illumination optical system, even if slight condensation or the like occurs in the illumination lens, no serious problem occurs in the function such as poor illumination. This is a level that is permissible for fixing by adhesion as in the present embodiment.

Specifically, in the present embodiment, the metal, ceramics, glass, and the like used as the hermetic partition wall member configured to hermetically seal the hermetically sealed objective lens unit are hermetically sealed.
Materials such as sapphire have high heat resistance, pressure resistance that is not destroyed by decompression and pressurization in autoclave sterilization,
Moreover, the material itself has high vacuum characteristics (using a helium leak detector shown in JIS Z2331, etc., the equivalent reference leak amount in the case of a test object space volume of 0.1 to 0.4 cm ³ is 1 × 10 ⁻⁹ Pa · m). ³ / S or less) and can be hermetically bonded.

The material that can be hermetically bonded is a material having heat resistance that can withstand the heating at the time of bonding by airtight bonding means as described later.

On the other hand, a polymer material such as a general resin or rubber cannot satisfy the above-mentioned conditions for the airtight partition member. For this reason, the material of the airtight partition member is limited to a material mainly composed of metal, ceramics, glass, and a crystalline material, and a more preferable material is selected from the materials.

Various materials can be used as the metal. For example, metals such as stainless steel and Kovar can be used.

In this embodiment, the ceramics and the glass are expressed separately as separate materials. However, ceramics is a general term for nonmetallic inorganic materials obtained through processes such as molding and firing. For this reason, in a broad sense, glass is also included in ceramics. Many of such ceramic materials satisfy the above-mentioned conditions of the hermetic partition member, and are used when metal cannot be used as the hermetic partition member due to insulation problems, optical problems, and the like. .

However, among the above-mentioned ceramics, there are materials having low vacuum characteristics, materials which are liable to be cracked by heating during hermetic bonding, and materials which may be extremely deteriorated by steam. For this reason, for example, the insulating member has insulating properties such as aluminum nitride, sialon, alumina, silicon nitride, and silicon carbide,
It is preferable to use fine ceramics having high vacuum characteristics.

Further, many multi-component glasses generally used as optical members are deteriorated by steam. For this reason, as an optical member used as an airtight partition member, that is, as an optical window, a crystalline material having a light-transmitting property, or a multi-component glass having high pressure, high-temperature, and high-temperature steam resistance is used. The above-described sapphire is a single crystal of Al ₂ O ₃ , is classified as a light-transmitting crystalline material, and is a typical optical material that satisfies the conditions of the hermetic partition member. Further, as another translucent crystalline material, there is quartz (quartz) or the like.

On the other hand, in the present embodiment, as the hermetic joining means, fusion welding and brazing such as soldering or brazing, which are a type of welding for melting and joining gold plating using heat from laser irradiation, are employed. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and it is possible to employ various types of welding.

The types of welding include fusion welding typified by laser welding, electron beam welding, etc., pressure welding typified by resistance welding, brazing, soldering, etc., and any of these joining means. Airtight bonding is possible. For example, when two metal parts, which are airtight partition members, are joined by laser welding, the two metal parts are fused and integrated. For this reason, the joint becomes the airtight partition member itself, and it is possible to ensure reliable airtightness.

When the brazing is performed, metal is filled in the joint provided between the hermetic partition members so that airtightness can be ensured. As the brazing material, various brazing materials such as gold brazing, silver brazing, nickel brazing and copper brazing can be used. However, also in this case, in consideration of corrosion resistance, it is preferable to select a brazing material such as gold brazing or nickel brazing which is not easily rusted. Further, as a soldering agent, general Pb-Sn
In addition to solder, Ag-containing solder, Cu-containing solder, Au-Sn
Solder or the like can be used. Also in this case, A
A rust-resistant solder material such as u-Sn solder is preferable.

[0104] In addition to metal welding, joining with molten glass is also a joining means capable of joining in a gas-tight manner, and can naturally be adopted. As a molten glass for airtight filling and joining, there is a low melting point powder glass or the like, and by melting this by heating, it is possible to fill the joint provided between the airtight partition wall members with glass to ensure airtightness. it can.

As the low melting point powder glass, there are glassy ones and crystallized ones. For ceramics other than glass, there is a bonding agent that can be hermetically bonded by firing. That is, as long as the main component of the bonding portion is a metal, ceramics, glass, or a bonding means that becomes a crystallizable substance, it can be adopted as an airtight bonding means.

At the time of joining by the above-mentioned airtight joining means,
Often it gets quite hot. For example, in the case of soldering, which is a typical metal welding, the temperature rises from 200 ° C. to 400 ° C., in the case of brazing, 700 ° C. to 1000 ° C., and in the case of laser welding, the temperature rises to the melting temperature of the metal. That is, in the case of stainless steel, the temperature rises to about 1400 ° C. In addition, low melting point glass generally used as a molten glass for hermetic bonding has a melting point of 300 ° C. to 600 ° C.
° C.

(Operation) First, after using the endoscope, even the endoscope that can be sterilized in an autoclave is always washed. For this reason, at least the waterproof cap 15 is attached and the entire endoscope exterior is water-tightly sealed at the first sealing level so that the liquid does not infiltrate at the time of washing with running water or immersion in the chemical solution at the time of washing. This prevents the liquid from penetrating into the endoscope during cleaning of the endoscope, thereby preventing deterioration of members inside the endoscope. Next, after cleaning, the waterproof cap 15 is removed, and the check valve cap 200 is removed. Attach. And this endoscope 1
Is sterilized in a pre-vacuum type autoclave sterilizer. Then, in the pre-vacuum step, the air in the internal space of the endoscope 1 is discharged to the outside through the check valve cap 200. This causes a pressure difference between the inside and the outside of the hermetically sealed objective lens unit 219 which is hermetically sealed at the second sealing level, but the outer tube 39 of the curved portion 9 constituting the endoscope exterior. Does not swell and burst. Further, since the hermetically sealed objective lens unit 219 is configured by hermetically sealing the airtight partition members and these airtight partition members, they are not destroyed by this pressure difference.

In the subsequent sterilization step, the high-pressure, high-temperature steam does not actively enter the endoscope interior space because the check valve cap 200 is attached. However, the high-pressure and high-temperature steam gradually penetrates into the inner space of the endoscope through the outer tube 39 formed of a polymer material constituting the endoscope exterior and the like, but the airtight and hermetically sealed objective lens unit 219. Is formed by hermetic partition members and these hermetic partition members are hermetically bonded to each other, so that vapor does not enter the inside of the hermetically sealed objective lens unit 219. Further, the endoscope 1 is heated up to about 115 ° C. to 140 ° C., but is not destroyed by a temperature change.

Next, the process proceeds to a drying step. Then, the same pressure difference as in the pre-vacuum step is generated inside and outside the hermetically sealed objective lens unit 219. At this time, since the hermetically sealed objective lens unit 219 is formed by hermetically sealing the airtight partition members and these airtight partition members, they are not broken by the influence of the pressure difference, the temperature change, or the like. Further, at this time, vapor does not enter the inside of the hermetically sealed objective lens unit 219.

After the autoclave sterilization, the pressure in the internal space of the endoscope becomes low with respect to the outside air, and for example, the skin tube 39 constituting the bending portion 9 is stuck to the internal structure.

If a bending operation is performed in this state,
The outer tube 39 may be damaged. However, the camera connector 7 must be attached to the CCU before using the endoscope. In other words, the check valve cap 20
0 is always detached from the camera connector 7.
Since the atmosphere flows into the endoscope internal space through 4, the pressure difference between the inside and the outside of the hermetically sealed objective lens unit 219 and between the endoscope internal space and the outside air is eliminated. Accordingly, the state where the outer tube 39 is stuck to the inner structure is released, and the outer tube 3
9 does not hurt.

Although the present embodiment has been described with respect to a medical endoscope that performs autoclave sterilization, other endoscopes that perform steam sterilization, an endoscope that is immersed in a chemical solution for a long time, and steam enter the endoscope. The configuration of the present invention may be applied to a potential endoscope, for example, an industrial endoscope used in a high humidity environment.

In the present embodiment, the insertion section 2 is provided with the bending section 9.
However, the present invention is applied to an endoscope in which a curved portion 9 is provided in a part of a rigid insertion portion, or an endoscope in which the entire insertion portion is formed to be soft and has no curved portion. May be adopted. (Effects) This embodiment has the following effects.

Even when an endoscope with a curved portion using a polymer material as an exterior member of the endoscope is subjected to autoclave sterilization, the outer tube of the curved portion does not burst.

By performing autoclave sterilization, vapor does not infiltrate into the inside through the hermetic partition members constituting the exterior of the hermetically sealed objective lens unit and the junction where the hermetic partition members are hermetically joined to each other. . Therefore, occurrence of an observed image defect due to dew condensation on the lens or the like is prevented.

By performing autoclave sterilization, the hermetic partition members constituting the exterior of the hermetically sealed objective lens unit and the joints of these hermetic partition members that are hermetically bonded are not broken. Therefore, steam does not enter inside due to the destruction. Obviously, no observed image defect occurs due to condensation on the lens.

When performing autoclave sterilization, steam does not actively enter the internal space of the endoscope due to the effect of the check valve cap. Therefore, deterioration of the endoscope internal member is reduced. Further, in the endoscope after the autoclave sterilization, the check valve cap is always removed from the camera connector before using the endoscope. Therefore, the endoscope is not used in a state where the internal pressure in the internal space is low with respect to the outside air. This eliminates damage to the outer tube caused by using the outer tube of the curved portion in a state of sticking to the inner structure.

Since the airtight hermetically sealed objective lens unit is disposed in close contact with the image input end of the solid-state imaging device, no defective visual field occurs even when autoclaving is performed. Further, the imaging unit is configured to be compact. Therefore, even with a curved endoscope, the rigid portion of the imaging unit can be disposed within the distal end hard length on the distal end side of the curved portion, and the distal end hard length is shortened.

The imaging unit was constructed by hermetically sealing the airtight hermetically sealed objective lens unit, while the portion surrounding the solid-state imaging device was hermetically sealed by bonding means containing an adhesive, so that autoclave sterilization was performed. In this case, observation image defects such as destruction of the solid-state imaging device do not occur. Further, the imaging unit can be made compact. Therefore, even with a curved endoscope, it is possible to arrange the hard portion of the imaging unit having autoclave sterilization resistance within the length of the distal end hard portion at the distal end of the curved portion, and the distal end hard length may be increased. Is prevented.

The airtightness described in the present invention means that the equivalent reference leak amount (0.1 to 0.4 cm ^{3 in the} test body space) is basically determined by a helium leak detector described in JIS Z2331, etc. Is 1 × 10 ^-9 P
a · m ³ / S or less.

When the above value exceeds 1 × 10 ⁻⁹ Pa · m ³ / S, steam invades during autoclave sterilization,
By repeatedly performing autoclave sterilization, water vapor may accumulate to cause condensation or clouding on the lens, or the coating or adhesive applied to the lens or the lens surface may be deteriorated to cause problems such as defective observation images.

Table 1 shows the relationship between the difference in the equivalent reference leak amount due to the difference in the joining method and the presence or absence of vapor intrusion.

The hermetic structure by welding, in other words, the hermetic structure of the hermetically sealed objective lens unit 219 shown in the above embodiment is equivalent to the water-tight structure formed by using a general O-ring or an adhesive. It can be seen that the reference leak amount is different.

[0124]

[Table 1] The data on the presence or absence of water vapor intrusion after autoclave sterilization shows that in the case of bonding or sealing using a polymer material, vapor enters through the bonding portion and the sealing member for welding such as brazing and fusion welding. This manifests itself as a more pronounced difference with repeated autoclaving.

FIGS. 9 to 12 relate to a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the configuration near the distal end of an electronic endoscope, and FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the configuration of an imaging unit. FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the configuration of a light guide connector, and FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the configuration of a switch.

The overall configuration of the present embodiment is substantially the same as that shown in FIG. 1 of the first embodiment. Only the components different from those of the first embodiment will be described, and the same components will be denoted by the same reference numerals. The description is omitted.

(Structure) As shown in FIG. 9, the distal end portion 8 of the insertion section 2 of the endoscope 1 according to the present embodiment includes a distal end main body 16, a distal end cover 17, and a distal end main body 16. The imaging unit 18 is an observation unit inserted and fixed in a through-hole provided in the front cover 17 and is an imaging unit 18 serving as an image transmission unit, and a light guide 19 serving as an illumination unit.

The tip cover 17 also plays a role of insulation, and is made of polyphenylene sulfide, polyphenyl sulfone having insulation, heat resistance, and water resistance.
It is formed of plastic such as polyetheretherketone or ceramics.

The proximal end of the distal end body 16 has a curved portion 9.
1st piece 38 located at the forefront of a plurality of bending pieces constituting
Has been fixed. A bending piece 108 is rotatably connected to the rear end of the first piece 38 by a first rivet 115. A distal end portion of an outer tube 39 made of a flexible polymer material such as fluoro rubber and covering the outer periphery of the bending piece constituting the bending portion 9 is fixed to the outer circumference of the distal end portion body 16 in a watertight manner. .

As shown in FIG. 10, the imaging unit 18 of the present embodiment includes an objective lens group 20 for forming a subject image,
A CCD 21 for picking up an image of the formed subject;
A substrate 22 on which electronic components such as a capacitor and an IC for processing an electric signal related to D21 are mounted;
Metal lens frame 23, which is an airtight partition member for holding 0
And the CCD 2 fitted to the base end of the lens frame 23.
1 is a metal CCD frame which is an airtight partition member for holding 1
A hermetic connector 25 provided at the base end of the CCD frame 24; the lens frame 23 and the CCD frame 24;
It is mainly composed of a metal airtight holding pipe 212 which is an airtight partition member fitted and disposed over the CCD and a CCD cable 26 connected to the hermetic connector 25.

In the hermetic connector 25, a metal contact pin 30 is disposed in a through hole formed in a metal connector main body 28, which is a hermetic partition member. Insulation hermetic sealant 2
9 is inserted into the through hole, and the contact pin 30 is insulated from the connector main body 28. By filling the through holes with molten glass, the contact pins 30
There is an airtight joint with no gap between the hole and the through hole.

As shown in FIG. 9, a heat-shrinkable tube 27 is provided between the hermetic connector 25 and the CCD cable 26. The inside of the heat-shrinkable tube 27 is filled with a filler 31 such as an epoxy-based adhesive, a ceramics adhesive, or a silicon-based adhesive. This prevents the filler 31 from covering the joint between the contact pin 30 and each signal line in the CCD cable 26, that is, the portion where the metal joined by solder or the like is exposed, and preventing the filler 31 from being rusted by steam. ing. The imaging unit 1
The hard portion 114 of the eighth portion is housed and arranged in a hard tip end 116 on the tip side of the first rivet 115 of the curved portion 9.

As shown in FIG. 10, the first lens 113 disposed at the forefront of the objective lens group 20 and serving as an optical window disposed so as to constitute the front end surface of the endoscope includes the sapphire or high-pressure high-temperature Made of vapor-resistant glass. The metal coating described in the first embodiment is applied to the side peripheral surface and the chamfered portion of the first lens 113. The first lens 113 is joined to the metal lens frame 23 by the hermetic joining means described in the first embodiment.

The CCD frame 24 and the hermetic connector 25 are hermetically joined by irradiating the abutting portions of both members with laser light all around in the direction of arrow D and welding.

When joining the CCD frame 24 and the lens frame 23, first, the lens frame 23 to which the objective lens group 20 is fixed is fitted into the CCD frame 24, and this lens frame 2
3 is appropriately moved in the axial direction, and is fixed with an adhesive when focused.

Thereafter, the airtight holding pipe 212 is connected to the C
It is inserted and arranged so as to straddle both parts of the CD frame 24 and the lens frame 23. Then, in this state, the laser beam is irradiated over the entire circumference from the direction of arrow E, and
The abutting portion with the CD frame 24 is hermetically joined by welding, and a laser beam is irradiated over the entire circumference from the direction of arrow F to hermetically seal the overlapped portion of the airtight holding pipe 212 and the lens frame 23 by welding. Join.

With the above arrangement, the first
The hermetically sealed imaging unit main body 22 of the second sealed level equivalent to the hermetically sealed objective lens unit 219 of the embodiment
0 is configured.

The laser device is a YAG laser which can be finely adjusted at a low output, similarly to the first embodiment. When irradiating with a pulsed laser,
By setting the overlap with the adjacent pulse at 80% or more, reliable airtightness can be ensured.

[0139] As shown in FIG.
Is a light guide fiber 32 configured as an optical fiber bundle obtained by bundling a plurality of optical fibers as optical fibers each having a core and a clad;
A first light guide fiber frame 33 made of metal, which is an airtight partition member in which the light guide fiber 32 is inserted;
An illumination lens 34 for increasing the illumination angle disposed on the distal end surface side of the lens, a sapphire illumination cover glass 35 which is an airtight partition member disposed on the distal end surface side of the illumination lens 34, and these members A metal illumination lens frame 36 which is an airtight partition member inserted therein;
A light guide fiber outer tube 37 having one end disposed at a base end thereof and covering the light guide fiber 32
It is composed of

The distal end portion of the light guide fiber 32 inserted and arranged in the first light guide fiber frame 33 is filled with molten glass, which is one of the hermetic joining means. That is, the molten glass is filled without gap between the fiber strands constituting the light guide fiber 32.

The above-mentioned molten glass is an organic material which has a melting temperature of 300 ° C. to 600 ° C., which is lower than the melting point of the fiber strand, does not re-melt due to the generation of illumination light, is easy to use at the time of assembling. A paste-like low-melting powder glass in which a binder is mixed is preferred.

In the case where the pasty low-melting powder glass is used for airtight bonding, first, a fiber bundle impregnated with the low-melting powder glass is inserted and arranged in the first light guide fiber frame 33. . Then, the portion is heated to 300 ° C. to 600 ° C. to blow off the organic binder, and when the low melting point glass powder is melted, this portion will be cooled in the future.

As a result, the molten glass is more airtightly filled between the fiber strands, and the outer periphery of the end portion of the light guide fiber 32 which is airtightly filled between the strands and the first light guide fiber frame 33. Are hermetically joined by the molten glass.

That is, the molten glass plays the role of a filler for maintaining the airtightness between the fiber strands and the role of the light guide fiber 3.
The second light guide fiber frame 33 also serves as an airtight joining means for joining the first light guide fiber frame 33 and the first light guide fiber frame 33 in an airtight manner.

The outer peripheral surface of the illumination cover glass 35 is provided with the same metal coat as shown in the first embodiment. The illumination cover glass 35 and the illumination lens frame 36 are hermetically joined by the hermetic joining means as in the first embodiment.

The structure of the light guide 19 will be specifically described. First, the illumination lens 34 is inserted and arranged inside the illumination lens frame 36 to which the illumination cover glass 35 is airtightly joined. Next, a light guide frame 33 in which the end of the light guide fiber 32 is hermetically bonded by molten glass is inserted into the illumination lens frame 36, and the illumination lens frame 36 and the light guide frame 33 are hermetically sealed by laser welding. Join.

Thus, the illumination cover glass 35
, The illumination lens frame 36, the first light guide fiber frame 33, and the portion surrounded by the end portion of the light guide fiber 32 are the hermetically sealed imaging unit main body 220.
Similar to the above, it is hermetically sealed.

With this configuration, the vapor that has penetrated the light guide fiber outer tube 37 made of a polymer material and penetrated into the tube, between the fiber strands, and between the light guide fiber 32 and the first light guide fiber frame 33 can be used. Is prevented from invading the illumination lens 34 through the gap.

Further, by adopting this configuration, the illumination lens 34 is arranged in a completely airtight space. For this reason, it is not necessary to use an airtight partition member as the illumination lens 34, and it is possible to use a commonly used multi-component glass excellent in workability.

Further, the illumination lens 34 is constituted by an optical member such as sapphire having high pressure and high temperature steam resistance, and the illumination lens 34 is directly and air-tightly joined to the first light guide fiber frame 33 to thereby provide the illumination lens. The cover glass 35 may be omitted. In either configuration, no dew condensation occurs on the inner surface of the illumination lens 34, so that illumination failure does not occur.

As shown in FIG. 11, the light guide connector 6 comprises a metal second light guide fiber frame 40 which is a hermetic partition member into which the base end of the light guide fiber 32 is inserted, and this light guide fiber. A rod lens 41 arranged on the base end face side of the fiber 32 for making incident light into the light guide fiber 32 uniform, and an incident end made of sapphire, which is an airtight partition member arranged on the rear end face side of the rod lens 41 A cover glass 42, a metal incident end cover glass frame 43 which is an airtight partition member for interposing these members, and a screw 44
And a connector base body 45 attached thereto. The head of the screw 44 is filled with a filler 46 such as an adhesive for maintaining watertightness.

Note that the base end of the light guide fiber 32 is filled with molten glass without any gap, similarly to the above-described distal end, and the outer periphery of the end of the light guide fiber 32 and the second light guide fiber frame 40 are Are hermetically joined by molten glass. Further, a metal coat is applied to the side peripheral surface of the entrance end cover glass 42, and the entrance end cover glass 42 and the entrance end cover glass frame 43 are air-tightly joined by an air-tight joining means.

Further, the second light guide fiber frame 40 and the entrance end cover glass frame 43 are hermetically joined by laser welding.

As a result, the entrance end cover glass 42
, The entrance end cover glass frame 43, the second light guide fiber frame 40, and the portion surrounded by the end of the light guide fiber 32 are the hermetically sealed imaging unit main body 220.
As in the case of, it is hermetically sealed.

As a result, the rod lens 41
Is disposed in a hermetically sealed interior, so that even if a single fiber made of multi-component glass or the like that does not have high-pressure high-temperature steam resistance is used, there is no fear of deterioration due to steam.

Also, the light guide fiber 32 is
The light guide fiber outer tube 37 and the light guide fiber frames 33 and 40 are sealed with a sealing degree equal to or higher than the first sealing level. As the light guide fiber outer tube 37, a silicone tube is generally employed. However, in the present embodiment, a fluororesin tube or the like having a lower vapor permeability than the silicone tube and having high pressure and high temperature vapor resistance is used. At this time, it is necessary to check whether the tube has a certain degree of flexibility.

As shown in FIG. 12, the switch 13
A small electric switch 48, which is an electronic component attached to the package member 47; a pressing pin 49 for turning on / off the electric switch 48;
9, a switch cover 50 made of a rubber such as fluoro rubber molded with the insert 9 and the switch cover 50 is fixed to the operation unit exterior 51 in a watertight manner.
9, a nut 53 for fixing the pressing member 52, and the package member 47.
Screw 54 for fixing the electronic component to the operation part exterior 51, a fluorine rubber O-ring 55 for watertightness between the package member 47 and the operation part exterior 51, and a contact 5 of the electric switch 48.
6 and a switch cable 57 connected thereto. As a result, the electric switch 48 is disposed in a sealed space sealed by the switch cover 50 and the O-ring 55 with a degree of sealing equal to or higher than the first sealing level.

The switch cover 50 constituting the closed space has a certain thickness in advance so as not to be ruptured or damaged even if the air in the closed space expands or contracts due to pressure reduction and pressurization during autoclave sterilization. It is formed.

The closed space has pressure resistance to decompression and pressurization during autoclave sterilization. Further, the closed space is an extremely small space as compared with the internal space of the endoscope. For this reason, the amount of air that expands due to reduced pressure during autoclave sterilization is also small. Therefore, the possibility that the switch cover 50 ruptures like the rupture of the outer tube of the curved portion described in the prior example is extremely low. Considering this, it is not necessary to make the switch cover 50 extremely thick.

From this, it is not necessary to completely and hermetically seal the inside of the endoscope, not only in the switch section, but also in a portion where it is desired to prevent the invasion of steam even with a certain degree of sealing. Like the switch section described above, the first
By sealing at a sealing level equal to or higher than the sealing level of, the invasion of steam can be effectively reduced.

Further, the water absorbing member 58 is provided in the closed space.
Is effective in preventing the invading steam from being absorbed by the water absorbing member and preventing the electronic component from being deteriorated. Further, it is more effective to make the water absorbing member replaceable.

Further, for the rubber seal member such as the O-ring, silicone rubber, fluorine rubber or the like is generally used. However, silicone rubber is very permeable to vapor. For this reason, it is preferable to use a sealing member made of fluoro rubber as described above. For the same reason, instead of using silicone rubber or silicone-based adhesive for partitions and joints in spaces where vapor intrusion is desired to be prevented, for example, a material such as fluororubber is used as partitions, and an epoxy-based adhesive or ceramics is used as an adhesive. It is good to use agents and the like.

Further, a gas barrier coating is applied to a portion which cannot be hermetically sealed by using an airtight partition member or airtight joining means due to its dimensions or configuration.
This is effective in preventing vapor from entering.

For example, a gas-barrier coating is applied to the outer surface of the light guide fiber outer tube 37, the outer surface of the heat-shrinkable tube of the image pickup unit 18, and the outer surface of the joint portion with an adhesive to form internal components. For example, an effect that the light guide fiber 32 and the like are hardly deteriorated can be obtained.

Examples of the gas barrier coating include resin coating such as parylene resin coating;
There are metal thin film coating such as vapor deposition and solder dip coating, ceramic coating such as silica coating converted from silazane, and crystalline coating. For example, it is necessary to adopt a flexible coating for the light guide fiber outer tube 37 and the like. With this method, it is possible to prevent the invasion of steam without increasing the size of the internal components to be sealed. If the sealing can be performed to the second sealing level by a metal thin film coating, a ceramic coating, a crystalline coating, or the like, it can be adopted for an observation optical system having an optical member.

(Operation) As in the case of the first embodiment, when the endoscope of the present embodiment is sterilized by autoclave, the hermetically sealed imaging unit main body 220 is not broken and no vapor enters the inside. .

Further, in the present embodiment, the hermetically sealed portions of the light-exiting end portion and the light-incident end portion of the light guide 19, like the hermetically sealed image pickup unit main body 220, may be broken or damaged. No ingress of steam.

Further, since the switch section is hermetically sealed at or above the first sealing level to reduce the invasion of steam, high-pressure high-temperature steam entering the endoscope does not directly attack the electric switch. .

In addition, as for the slightly invaded steam, the water absorbing member absorbs the steam, so that the electric switch or the like is prevented from being damaged by the steam or moisture. In addition, since the high-pressure high-temperature steam does not directly attack the light guide fiber due to the effect of the outer tube, the deterioration of the fiber glass material is prevented and the possibility of breakage is reduced.

As described above, in this embodiment, most of the built-in components that are likely to be degraded by steam entering the internal space of the endoscope are hermetically or water-tightly sealed, so that the possibility of failure of the endoscope as a whole is lower. Has become.

Further, without attaching a check valve cap, as in the case of the conventional ethylene oxide gas sterilization,
Autoclave sterilization with the vent of the endoscope's outer wall left open, even if the high-pressure, high-temperature steam actively enters the inside of the endoscope, is easily deteriorated by the steam inside the endoscope. Most of the built-in components such as the means, the lighting means, and the switch unit are hermetically or water-tightly sealed, so that the endoscope does not break down.

(Effects) The present embodiment has the following effects.

Even when a curved endoscope using a polymer material as an exterior member of the endoscope is subjected to autoclave sterilization, the outer tube of the curved portion is ruptured and functional components inside the endoscope are broken. There is no.

By performing autoclave sterilization, there is no vapor that penetrates through the hermetic partition members constituting the exterior of the hermetically sealed imaging unit main body and the junction where these hermetic partition members are hermetically joined. Therefore, C
The occurrence of a failure in an observed image due to a failure of an electronic component such as a CD or condensation on a lens is prevented.

By performing the autoclave sterilization, the hermetic partition members constituting the exterior of the hermetically sealed objective lens unit and the joints hermetically joined to each other are not broken. Therefore, steam does not enter inside due to the destruction. Obviously, there is no occurrence of a failure in an observed image due to a failure of an electronic component such as a CCD or dew condensation of a lens.

[0176] By performing autoclave sterilization, vapor does not enter the hermetically sealed portions of the light-emitting end portion and the light-entering end portion of the light guide. Therefore, illumination failure due to condensation on the lens does not occur.

[0177] By performing autoclave sterilization, high-pressure high-temperature steam that has entered the internal space of the endoscope does not directly attack the electric switch. Further, since the water-absorbing member absorbs a small amount of steam that has entered the switch section, the electric switch does not fail due to steam or moisture.

By performing autoclave sterilization, high-pressure high-temperature steam does not directly attack the light guide fiber. Therefore, there is little possibility that the fiber glass material is deteriorated and broken.

When the autoclave is sterilized, the check valve cap is not attached, and even if the inside space of the endoscope and the outside are completely ventilated as a measure against rupture of the outer tube of the curved portion, the inside of the endoscope is placed. Various built-in components such as the observation optical system, the illumination optical system, and the switch that are used do not break down.

FIGS. 13 to 15 relate to a third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 13 is a view for explaining the configuration of an endoscope, and FIGS.
FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the configuration near the distal end of the endoscope.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of an eyepiece of an endoscope.

This embodiment has substantially the same configuration as the second embodiment. Therefore, only different components will be described, and the same components will be denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

(Configuration) The endoscope 100 of the present embodiment
As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, this is a fiberscope using a fiber as an observation means, that is, an image transmission means.

An image guide fiber 10 composed of an optical fiber bundle formed by bundling a plurality of optical fibers, which are optical fibers having a core and a clad, is provided inside the insertion portion 2.
1 is interpolated. This image guide fiber 10
An objective lens 102 is arranged at the tip of the lens 1, and an eyepiece 103 is arranged at the other end.

The connector portion 104 is provided with a light guide connector 105 and a vent hole 106 for ventilating the inside space of the endoscope and the outside. By attaching a vent cap 107 to the vent hole portion 106, the inside and outside of the endoscope can be connected. It can be ventilated.

Instead of the image pickup unit in the second embodiment, an image guide fiber 10 is provided at the tip 8.
1 and a metal image guide fiber frame 108 which is an airtight partition member in which the image guide fiber 101 is inserted.
An objective lens 102 disposed on the distal end side of the image guide fiber 101 to form a subject image; and an sapphire objective cover glass 109 serving as an airtight partition member disposed further distally on the objective lens 102. A metal objective lens frame 110, which is an airtight partition member in which these members are inserted, and an image guide fiber sheath tube 111 for sheathing the image guide fiber 101 are arranged.

In the image guide fiber 101, it is necessary that the arrangement of the wires is the same at the front end and the rear end. For this reason, due to the manufacturing method, both ends are acid-melted glass, etc.
The glass melted by the chemical is solidified in a state of being filled between the wires. That is, the acid-melting glass plays a role of an air-tightness filler between the fiber strands at the end of the image guide fiber 101 here.

The tip of the image guide fiber 101 solidified by the acid-melting glass and the image guide fiber frame 108 are hermetically joined by the molten glass as described in the second embodiment. Further, a rear lens constituting the objective lens 102 is adhered and fixed to the distal end portion with a translucent adhesive.

The outer peripheral surface of the objective cover glass 109 and the inner peripheral surface of the objective lens frame 110 are metal-coated. The objective cover glass 109 and the objective lens frame 110 are hermetically joined by soldering.

The objective lens 10 is airtightly joined to the objective lens frame 110, and the objective lens 10 is
2 is arranged and fixed. Thereafter, the image guide fiber 101 in which the rear lens of the objective lens 102 is fixed in the objective lens frame 110.
Insert. Then, after temporary fixing is performed at a focused position by, for example, spot welding, the objective lens frame 110 and the image guide fiber frame 108 are hermetically joined by laser welding.

As a result, the objective cover glass 109
, Objective lens frame 110 and image guide fiber frame 10
8 and the portion surrounded by the end of the image guide fiber 101 are the hermetically sealed imaging unit main body 220 of the second embodiment.
As in the case of, it is hermetically sealed.

Therefore, the distance between the fiber strands and between the image guide fiber 101 and the image guide fiber frame 10
8 does not penetrate into the objective cover glass 109.

The joining of the image guide fiber frame 108 and the distal end of the image guide fiber 101 solidified with acid-melting glass may be performed by a method other than the joining with molten glass. For example, a metal coat is applied to the outer periphery of the tip of the image guide fiber hardened by acid-melting glass, and the tip of the surface-treated image guide fiber and the image guide fiber frame 108 are hermetically joined by solder. You may.

The image guide fiber 101 is a flexible fiber in which both ends are solidified by acid-melting glass, and the intermediate part is melted by a chemical solution to disperse strands having a core and a clad. The conduit fiber is not limited to the bundle, and may be, for example, a conduit fiber in which a plurality of core glasses are arranged in a clad glass, which is a single conduit over the entire length. In this case, the clad glass plays a role of a sealing filler between the core glasses of the optical fibers.

Generally, the flexible fiber bundle is often made of multi-component glass, and the conduit fiber is sometimes made of quartz glass in addition to the multi-component glass.

As shown in FIG. 15, the eyepiece 103 comprises an eyepiece unit 112 and an eyepiece 113. The eyepiece 103 is detachable from the endoscope body 114.

The eyepiece lens unit 112 includes an eyepiece lens group 115 composed of a plurality of lenses, a metal eyepiece lens frame 116 serving as an airtight partition member in which the eyepiece lens group 115 is disposed in an inner hole, and an airtight lens. It is composed of a sapphire eyepiece first cover glass 117 and an eyepiece second cover glass 118 which are partition members. The outer peripheral surfaces of the cover glasses 117 and 118 are coated with metal, and the eyepiece frame 116 and the two cover glasses 117 and 118 are air-tightly joined by solder.

That is, the internal space in which the eyepiece group 115 of the eyepiece unit 112 is disposed is hermetically sealed by the eyepiece frame 116, the first eyepiece cover glass 117, and the second eyepiece cover glass 118. I have.

The endoscope body 114 is attached to the eyepiece 10.
3 with the eyepiece first cover glass 1 attached.
Reference numeral 17 denotes an optical window arranged as a part of the endoscope exterior.

The rear end of the image guide fiber 101 disposed on the endoscope main body 114 has the same structure as the above-described front end of the image guide fiber 101.

Further, a metal coat is applied to the side peripheral surface of the cover glass 119,
And the fiber holding member 120 are hermetically joined by soldering. The second image guide fiber frame 121 and the fiber holding member 120 are also hermetically joined by solder.

As a result, the end of the image guide fiber 101 is air-tightly sealed, so that the end of the image guide fiber 101 and the cover glass 11 are closed.
The vapor does not enter the inner surface of 9.

For this reason, when the eyepiece 103 is not attached to the endoscope main body 114, the cover glass 11
Reference numeral 9 denotes an optical window arranged as a part of the outer surface of the endoscope.

Further, in the present embodiment, the eyepiece lens unit 112 which is hermetically sealed is detachably attached to the image output end of the image guide fiber 101. Similar to the relationship between the lens unit 219 and the image input end of the CCD 156,
An airtightly sealed eyepiece unit 112 may be tightly joined to the image output end of the image guide fiber 101 with a light-transmitting adhesive without an air layer. In this case, an eyepiece lens focus adjustment mechanism may be provided in an airtightly sealed eyepiece unit for diopter adjustment.

Further, similarly to the light guide fiber 32 of the second embodiment, the image guide fiber 101 is hermetically sealed with an outer tube and a base at a sealing degree equal to or higher than the first sealing level.

(Operation) The endoscope 100 is
By attaching the ventilation cap 107 to the endoscope, the inside space of the endoscope and the outside can be ventilated. Therefore, at the time of washing, the washing is performed in a watertight state without attaching the ventilation cap 107. Then, at the time of autoclave sterilization, the ventilation cap 107 is attached and the autoclave is put into the autoclave device, and the outer tube 37 of the bending portion 9 is prevented from bursting.

At this time, a large amount of water vapor enters the endoscope main body 114 through the ventilation section.
The vapor does not enter the eyepiece lens unit 112 which is detachably attached to the distal end of the image guide fiber 101 and the endoscope main body 114, which is configured so as to be airtightly sealed in the inside 4. For this reason, there is no possibility that steam enters the inside of these closed spaces and water droplets adhere to the optical member.

(Effects) The present embodiment has the following effects.

When a curved endoscope using a polymer material as an exterior member of an endoscope is subjected to autoclave sterilization, the outer tube of the curved portion does not rupture and poor visual field does not occur.

By performing autoclave sterilization, the tip of the image guide fiber that is hermetically sealed,
Vapor does not enter the eyepiece unit. Further, when water droplets adhere to the surface of the cover glass of the eyepiece unit, the waterdrops can be wiped by removing the eyepiece unit. Therefore, a visual field defect due to condensation on the lens does not occur.

By performing autoclave sterilization, an airtightly sealed image guide fiber tip,
The hermetic partition members constituting the exterior of the eyepiece lens unit and the joints hermetically joined to each other are not broken. Therefore, steam does not enter inside due to the destruction. Naturally, no visual field failure due to condensation on the lens or the like does not occur.

The autoclave sterilization prevents high-pressure high-temperature steam from directly attacking the image guide fiber. For this reason, the fiber glass material does not deteriorate and break.

(Modification) In the present embodiment, the air vent 10
6, a cap member having the same check valve function as the check valve cap 200 of the first embodiment may be attached instead of the vent cap.

In this case, when the cap member is attached, it is necessary to make the vent port 106 communicate with the cap member so that the check valve function of the cap member works. With this configuration, even if autoclave sterilization is performed, as in the first embodiment,
Since the vapor does not actively enter the inside of the endoscope, deterioration of the internal components inside the endoscope is further prevented.

In this embodiment, the objective lens frame 110 is used.
And the image guide fiber frame 108 are hermetically joined directly by laser welding. However, as shown in FIG. 16, an airtight holding member 225 made of metal, ceramics or the like is used like the airtight holding pipe shown in the second embodiment, and the airtight holding member 225, the objective lens frame 110, and the airtight holding member are used. Holding member 225 and image guide fiber frame 1
08 may be hermetically joined by laser welding, soldering, or the like. In this case, since the objective lens frame 110 and the image guide fiber frame 108 can be fixed by bonding, the focusing operation of the objective lens 102 during assembly becomes easy.

The present invention is not limited to only the above-described embodiments, but can be variously modified without departing from the gist of the invention.

[Supplementary notes] According to the above-described embodiment of the present invention, the following configuration can be obtained.

(1) An insertion portion provided with a flexible member formed of a flexible polymer material on at least a part of an exterior, and all or a part of the endoscope internal space including the internal space of the insertion portion is housed. The endoscope internal space is configured to be sealable at a first sealing level that is water-tight to the outside, and at least a part of the internal An endoscope provided with a hermetically sealed portion constituted by a second hermetically sealed level having a higher degree of sealing than the hermetically sealed level.

(2) The hermetic sealing section formed at the second sealing level has a pressure resistance that is not destroyed by negative pressure and pressurization during autoclave sterilization, and prevents high-pressure high-temperature steam from entering inside during autoclave sterilization. 2. The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the endoscope has a sealing degree to prevent.

(3) The endoscope according to appendix 1, wherein at least an optical member is housed inside the hermetically sealed portion.

(4) The airtightly sealed portion is at least a part of an observation means having an optical window, and the observation window is exposed on an outer surface as a part of an exterior of the endoscope. Endoscope.

(5) The endoscope according to appendix 1, wherein the hermetically sealed portion is at least a part of an image pickup unit including an objective lens unit and a solid-state image pickup device.

(6) The endoscope according to appendix 1, wherein the hermetically sealed portion is at least a part of an objective lens unit.

(7) The endoscope according to appendix 1, wherein the hermetically sealed portion is at least a part of an eyepiece unit.

(8) The hermetic sealing portion is provided with a plurality of hermetic partition members constituting the exterior and hermetic joining means for joining these hermetic partition members without gaps.
The endoscope as described.

(9) The endoscope according to appendix 1, wherein the hermetic partition wall member is a member formed of metal, ceramics, glass, or a crystalline material.

(10) The endoscope according to appendix 1, wherein the hermetic joining means is metal welding such as fusion welding, pressure welding, brazing, or the like, or joining by molten glass.

(11) The endoscope according to appendix 1, wherein a component of the portion joined by the airtight joining means is a metal, ceramics, glass, or a crystallizable substance.

(12) The metal welding is performed by laser welding,
12. The endoscope according to appendix 11, including soldering and brazing.

(13) The endoscope according to Supplementary Note 5 or 6, wherein a bending portion operable to bend is provided in the vicinity of the distal end portion of the insertion portion, and the hermetically sealed portion is disposed in the distal end hard portion distal to the bending portion. mirror.

(14) The built-in object is a lighting means,
2. The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein at least a part of the illuminating means is an airtight seal.

(15) An insertion part in which at least a part of the exterior is made of a flexible polymer material, and the whole or part of the exterior is disposed and housed in the endoscope internal space including the internal space of the insertion part. The endoscope internal space is formed at a first sealing level that is watertight with respect to the outside, and at least a part of the endoscope has the first sealing level. An endoscope provided with a sealed space configured at a third sealing level having a sealing degree equal to or higher than the sealing degree.

(16) The sealed space formed at the third sealing level is constituted by at least a partition member having pressure resistance not destroyed by negative pressure and pressure during autoclave sterilization and joining means. Endoscope.

(17) The endoscope according to appendix 16, wherein a sealing material made of fluoro rubber is used as a sealing member in the closed space.

(18) The endoscope according to attachment 16, wherein at least one of an optical member and an electronic component is housed inside the sealed portion.

(19) The endoscope according to attachment 18, wherein an electric switch is housed inside the sealed portion.

(20) The endoscope according to attachment 18, wherein an image guide fiber or a light guide fiber is housed inside the sealed portion.

(21) The endoscope according to Supplementary Note 1 or 15, further comprising communication means for connecting the internal space of the endoscope with the outside.

(22) The endoscope according to appendix 21, wherein the communication means communicates when at least a pressure outside the endoscope is reduced below a pressure inside the endoscope.

(23) An internal space that can be sealed at a first sealing level that is watertight with respect to the outside air,
In an endoscope having a communication means capable of selectively communicating the internal space and the outside air, the internal component has a negative pressure resistance to negative pressure during autoclave sterilization, and at least during autoclave sterilization. An endoscope sealed at a second sealing level higher than the first sealing level capable of preventing entry of water vapor into the interior under high pressure and high temperature steam.

[0240]

According to the endoscope of the present invention as described above, at the time of autoclave sterilization, the high-pressure high-temperature steam is supplied to the outer tube formed of a polymer material provided in at least a part of the insertion portion. Even if the light penetrates into the endoscope through the endoscope, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of fogging, which has an important adverse effect on the observation of the optical system due to the entering vapor, and to prevent deterioration of the observation image due to deterioration of electronic components and the like. An endoscope can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 to FIG. 8 relate to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an electronic endoscope.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of a check valve cap.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration near a distal end of the electronic endoscope.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of an imaging unit.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating two types of cover glasses.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an outer surface of an insulating frame.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a joint between the frame and the cover glass.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a hermetically sealed objective lens unit constituting the imaging unit.

FIG. 9 to FIG. 12 are related to a second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration near a distal end portion of the electronic endoscope.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of an imaging unit.

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of a light guide connector.

FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a structure of a switch.

FIGS. 13 to 15 relate to a third embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 13 is a view for explaining the configuration of an endoscope;

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the configuration near the distal end of the endoscope.

FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of an eyepiece of an endoscope.

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view illustrating another configuration of the distal end portion of the observation unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Electronic endoscope 2 ... Insertion part 3 ... Operation part 4 ... Universal cord 5 ... Connector part 6 ... Light guide connector 7 ... Camera connector 8 ... Tip part 9 ... Bending part 10 ... Flexible tube 11 ... Bending operation lever 12 ... Treatment instrument insertion port 13 ... Switch 14 ... Vent hole 15 ... Waterproof cap 16 ... Tip body 17 ... Tip cover 18 ... Imaging unit 19 ... Light guide 20 ... Objective lens group 21 ... CCD 22 ... Substrate 23 ... Imaging unit frame 24 ... Object cover glass 25 ... Hermetic connector 26 ... CCD cable 27 ... Heat shrink tube 28 ... Connector body 29 ... Insulation hermetic sealing member 30 ... Contact pin 31 ... Fillant 32 ... Light guide fiber 33 ... Light guide fiber frame 34 ... Lighting Lens 35: Lighting cover glass 36: Lighting lens frame 37: Light guide file Outer tube 37 38 First frame 39 Outer tube 40 Second light guide fiber frame 41 Rod lens 42 Entrance end cover glass 43 Entrance end cover glass frame 44 Screw 45 Connector body 46 Filling Agent 47 ... Package member 48 ... Electric switch 49 ... Pressing pin 50 ... Switch cover 51 ... Operation part exterior 52 ... Holding member 53 ... Nut 54 ... Screw 55 ... O ring 56 ... Contact 57 ... Switch cable 58 ... Water absorbing member

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An insertion part provided with a flexible member formed of a flexible polymer material on at least a part of an exterior, and all or part of the insertion part is housed in an endoscope internal space including an internal space of the insertion part. An endoscope comprising a built-in component, wherein the endoscope internal space is configured to be able to be sealed at a first sealing level that is water-tight with respect to the outside, and at least a part of the built-in component includes the first seal. An endoscope comprising: a hermetic sealing portion configured by a second hermetic level having a hermetic seal higher than the level.