JP2005253900A - Head shaking device for endoscope - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To achieve a reduced diameter of a bending portion and an interior portion with high density by utilizing a space where the number of pull wires is reduced to four to three, relating to an endoscope device. <P>SOLUTION: An universal joint can smoothly rotate from a rotational support not in each four directions but in all directions by its structure. As above, rotational movement in all directions is allowed, so that although each one operation wire in four directions was conventionally required, three operation wires are only required for rotational movement in all directions due to smoothly rotatable movement in all directions. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an endoscope apparatus.

  Examples of endoscope types include medical use and industrial use. A medical endoscope is used for observing an organ in a body cavity, for example, by inserting a thin insertion portion into the body. On the other hand, industrial endoscopes are used for observation and inspection of the insides of turbines, boilers, piping of scientific plants and the like, automobile engines, and the like.

  Usually, these endoscopes are provided with a bendable bending portion in the vicinity of the distal end portion of the insertion portion to be inserted into the lumen. In this curved portion, a plurality of node rings are arranged in series along the axial direction. The front and rear node rings are connected to each other by rivets so that they can be bent. Further, a wire insertion portion projects from the inner space of the node ring. A pulling wire is inserted through the insertion portion, and a bending operation mechanism is provided at the operation portion on the proximal side of the endoscope. A pulling wire is connected to the bending operation mechanism, and a bending knob is disposed in the bending operation mechanism. By operating the bending knob, one end of the pulling wire is moved forward and backward to bend in a desired direction in the vertical and horizontal directions.

  Further, in order to widen the effective cross-sectional area of the inner space of the node ring, the technique disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-192134, uses a wire in a position that avoids the top of the rivet in the node ring. An insertion portion is provided, and the protruding portion protruding into the inner space of the node ring is made as small as possible.

  In the technique disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 60-190301, a connecting portion connected by a rivet is projected in the outer diameter direction of the insertion portion. And it prevents that a rivet top part protrudes inside a node ring, and makes the insertion part outer diameter narrow and the high-density filling of a built-in thing compatible.

Further, in the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-296103, a plurality of node rings are arranged in series on the bending portion of the insertion portion having flexibility. Each node ring is formed with a wire insertion portion and a raised portion serving as a rotation fulcrum. An operation wire is inserted through the wire insertion portion of each node ring. And the raised part of a node ring is contact | abutted to the adjacent node ring sequentially, and the connection by the rivet of node rings is eliminated. According to this technology, there is no need for a joint such as a rivet top that conventionally protrudes into the node ring, so that the space can be used to drastically reduce the diameter of the insertion portion and increase the density of the built-in components. Can be realized. As a result, it is possible to provide an endoscope with good operability.
Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 60-190301 JP 2000-296103 A JP 2002-2224019 PR

  In the prior art, there are drawbacks in that the operation is not smooth when it is determined in each of the four directions by the rotation fulcrum of each node ring and it is desired to perform a rotational motion in the middle direction of each of the four directions.

  In the prior art, four or more operation wires are required, but in the present invention, the number of pulling wires is reduced from four to three, so that the space is used to reduce the diameter of the bending portion and the internal organs. High density of the part can be realized.

  Further, by reducing the number of operation wires from four to three, the adjustment of the tension of the wire is greatly simplified as compared with the conventional mechanism.

  The present invention enables a smooth rotational movement from the rotation fulcrum in all directions instead of the four directions by the structure of the universal joint.

  In addition, since the rotational movement in all directions is possible, the number of operation wires is conventionally required to be one in each of the four directions. Because of this, it is possible to rotate in all directions with three operation wires.

  Hereinafter, an endoscope swing mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is an overview diagram of a swing device wire according to the present invention when the wire is uniformly loaded, FIG. 2 is an overview diagram of a swing device wire 3a according to the present invention (when swinging), and FIG. 3 is a swing device according to the present invention. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the principle, FIG. 4 is an individual drawing of a swinging device part related to the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a partial perspective view of the swinging device related to the present invention.

  A camera cable code 7 and an operation wire code 3 are inserted through the flexible tube code 8 of FIG.

  Next, the camera cable code 7 is inserted through the flexible tube fixing metal fitting 5 arranged at the end of the flexible tube code 8, and the operation wire code 3 is arranged at a certain distance from the axis of the flexible tube fixing metal fitting 5. Insert the hole.

  The camera cable symbol 7 is inserted through a plurality of holes arranged in the center of the first movable component convex symbol 1 and the second movable component concave symbol 2, and finally the first movable component convex symbol 1 is inserted. After that, the CCD camera unit fixing bracket mark 6 is inserted, enters the CCD camera unit code 4 and is connected to the outside of the CCD camera diagram and the LED illumination device diagram.

  The operation wire code 3 is inserted through a plurality of holes arranged at a certain distance from the axis in the second movable component concave code 2 and is arranged at a certain distance from the axis in the CCD camera unit fixing metal code 6. The hole is inserted and fixed.

  The operation method in the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  In FIG. 1, the three wires of the operation wire symbol 3 (upper direction operation wire symbol 3a lower front direction operation wire symbol 3b lower rear direction operation wire symbol 3c in FIG. 5) are equally tensioned in FIG. The lower front direction operation wire symbol 3b is shown in the lower back direction operation wire symbol 3c and is directed in the axial direction.

  In FIG. 2, a tensile load is applied only to the upper direction operation wire symbol 3a in FIG. 5, and the lower front operation wire symbol 3b and the lower back direction operation wire symbol 3c are not subjected to a tensile load. The movable part convex mark 1 and the second movable part concave sign 2 are sequentially bent upward.

  Furthermore, when a tensile load is sequentially applied to either the lower front direction operation wire symbol 3b or the lower back direction operation wire symbol 3c, the same degree of bending motion is smoothed in all directions.

The invention's effect

  In the prior art, four or more pulling wires are required, but in the present invention, the number of pulling wires is reduced from four to three, so that the space is used to reduce the diameter of the bending portion and the internal organs. High density of the part can be realized.

  Further, by reducing the number of pulling wires from four to three, the adjustment of the tension of the wire is greatly simplified as compared with the conventional mechanism.

  Medical endoscope and industrial endoscope swing device

Overview of swinging device wire even load according to the present invention Overview of pulling of the swing device wire 3a according to the present invention Schematic diagram of the principle of the swing device according to the present invention Swinging device partial parts individual drawing related to the present invention Swinging device partial parts individual drawing related to the present invention Swing device partial three-dimensional view according to the present invention

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 1st movable part convex 2 2nd movable part concave 3 Operation wire 4 CCD camera part 5 Flexible tube fixing bracket 6 CCD camera part fixing bracket 7 Camera cable 8 Flexible tube 3a Upper direction operation wire 3b Lower front direction operation wire 3c Lower back direction operation wire 61a Operation wire 3 fixing portion

Claims (2)

  The end face of the first movable part and the end face of the second movable part arranged at the tip of the pipe are joints of a universal joint structure, and the pipe, the first movable part and the second movable part are inserted and arranged. An endoscope swing mechanism in which the first and second movable parts are bent by moving the third operation wire forward and backward in the axial direction.   The first and second movable parts are moved forward and backward in the axial direction by moving the third operation wire having the first movable part and the second movable part inserted and arranged by the mechanism of claim 1. Endoscopic swing mechanism that bends.

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