JPH07275197A - Electronic endoscope apparatus for separating image pickup part - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To observe the inside of an object to be observed from any arbitrary direction, to easily move/arrange an image pickup part to be separated, and to speedily and easily collect it. CONSTITUTION:An image pickup part 12 provided with a CCD 15 and a signal processing circuit 16 is separatably housed in a housing part 11 at the main body of an electronic endoscope, a wire 18 arranged at a wire guide 19 in the main body of the endoscope is fitted to this image pickup part 12, and the image pickup part 12 can be collected on the main body side of the endoscope by pulling this wire 18. Further, this wire 18 is utilized as a signal line for transmitting image signals.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electronic endoscope apparatus, and more particularly to an apparatus configured so that an image pickup section can be separated from an endoscope main body in a body cavity.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A CCD (Charge Cou
pled device), an electronic endoscopic device for observing an image inside a body to be observed is well known. In this electronic endoscopic device,
An electronic endoscope (scope) is inserted into a body to be observed, and an affected part in a body cavity such as a digestive tract is observed and treated. The insertion portion of the electronic endoscope includes a tip portion provided with the CCD, an angle portion that bends up and down and left and right by operating the operation portion,
It is composed of a flexible portion, and the angle portion allows the tip portion to be bent to a desired portion.

[0003]

However, in the above-mentioned electronic endoscope apparatus, since the inside of the object to be observed is observed within the range of the bending angle of the angle portion, there is a problem that there is a range that cannot be observed. That is, it is difficult to bend the front surface of the distal end portion so as to face the rear side in the insertion direction, and a protrusion such as a polyp cannot be seen from the back side. Further, in the conventional device, the positional relationship between the observation direction of the CCD and the direction in which the treatment instrument is led out from the treatment instrument insertion channel cannot be changed, but when treating the affected area, the observation direction and the treatment instrument lead-out direction are changed. In many cases, the treatment is easier, and it is convenient if the affected area can be observed from any direction other than the treatment direction.

Conventionally, it has also been proposed to orally administer a capsule-shaped micromachine equipped with an image pickup unit alone. However, when using this micromachine alone, it is necessary to move to the affected part position by the driving means provided in the device itself while utilizing the biological function.
There is a problem that this moving operation is not easy.

Therefore, the applicant of the present invention has proposed an endoscope in which the image pickup section is separated, but in such an endoscope, it is necessary to collect the separated image pickup section. The imaging unit in this case is
Although it is possible to recover naturally by utilizing the excretion function of the living body, if it can be recovered quickly and easily when the observation / treatment is completed, a device with good usability can be obtained.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to observe the inside of an object to be observed from an arbitrary direction regardless of the operation direction of the distal end portion of the endoscope and to separate it from the imaging section. It is an object of the present invention to provide an electronic endoscope apparatus that separates an image pickup unit that facilitates easy movement and arrangement and also allows quick and easy collection.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, an electronic endoscope apparatus for separating an image pickup section according to the present invention comprises:
An imaging unit is provided that is configured to be separated from the endoscope main body and is provided with an imaging element. A wire disposed inside the endoscope main body is attached to the imaging unit, and the imaging unit is pulled by pulling the wire. Is to be collected on the endoscope body side. In the above description, since the image pickup unit is provided with the transmitter and the endoscope body is provided with the receiver, the image obtained by the image pickup unit can be displayed on the monitor of the endoscope body side. According to a second aspect of the present invention, the wire is used as a signal line, and an image signal obtained by the image pickup unit is transmitted to the endoscope main body side through the wire. In this case, the transmitter / receiver becomes unnecessary.

[0008]

According to the above construction, the imaging section is stored in the storage section of the endoscope main body, and the imaging section is connected and fixed to the endoscope main body by being pulled by the wire. Then, when the endoscope is inserted and moved to a desired position in the body to be observed, the imaging unit is separated by loosening the wire. Then, the imaging unit, which has been the eye of the distal end of the endoscope until now, separates from the endoscope and captures an image of the inside of the observed body as an independent imaging device.

The image signal obtained by this image pickup device can be sent to the endoscope main body side by a wireless method, but the above wire can be used as a signal line, and in this case, signal transmission is simple. There are advantages that can be realized. When a wire is used as the signal line, the image signal obtained by the image pickup unit is transmitted to the signal processing circuit on the endoscope side through the wire, and a predetermined process is performed there, whereby the monitor An image of the inside of the observed body is displayed on. Therefore, the inside of the observation target can be observed from a direction different from the insertion direction of the endoscope.

After the observation or treatment is completed, by pulling the wire, the image pickup section is stored in the storage section, which enables easy and quick recovery.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIGS. 1 and 2 show the configuration of an electronic endoscope apparatus according to a first embodiment, in which an image pickup section is separated. Figure 1
2, a circular groove-shaped storage unit 11 is formed in the distal end portion 10 of the electronic endoscope, and an imaging unit 12 made of a cylindrical capsule is detachably stored in the storage unit 11. A lens unit 14, a CCD 15 which is a solid-state image sensor, and a signal processing circuit 16 are arranged in the image pickup unit 12, and an image inside the body to be observed is captured by the CCD 15 via the lens unit 14, and the CCD 15 is used. The obtained image signal is amplified by the signal processing circuit 16.

A wire 18 having a signal line therein is connected to the image pickup section 12, and the wire 18 has a tip portion 10.
It is passed through the wire guide 19 on the side. This wire 18
Is a flexible wire made of a metal material, a plastic material, or the like in the form of a single wire or a stranded wire. Further, the electronic endoscope is provided with a treatment instrument insertion channel 21 for introducing a treatment instrument such as forceps, and the treatment instrument insertion channel 21 extends from the bottom of the storage section 11 to the treatment instrument and the wire of the operation section 22. The insertion opening 23 is provided. The wire guide 19 is connected to the treatment tool and the wire insertion port 23 via a relay section. That is, wire 1
Reference numeral 8 indicates the treatment tool and the wire insertion port 23 in a state in which the signal line inside is separated by the relay section. On the other hand, the signal line is loosened (rolled up) for a predetermined length in the relay section, for example.
Alternatively, the length can be changed by using a sliding contact member or the like.

A signal processing circuit 25 and a monitor 26 are connected to the signal line of the wire 18, and the signal processing circuit 25 subjects the image signal obtained by the CCD 15 to gamma correction and the like. Based on the output of the signal processing circuit 25, the image inside the observed body is displayed on the monitor 26.

Further, the endoscope body of the first embodiment is provided with an optical observation means. That is, the observation window lens portion 28 is provided on the tip portion 10, and the observation window lens portion 28 is provided.
An optical fiber 29 is connected to the optical fiber 29, and the optical fiber 29 is connected to the eyepiece portion 30 of the operation unit 22. Therefore,
The image inside the object to be observed captured through the observation window lens unit 28 can be observed by the eyepiece unit 30. Further, the operation section 22 is provided with an operation switch 31 for air supply / water supply, and a supply path for air supply / water supply is provided inside the endoscope, and as shown in FIG. An air / water feeding nozzle 32 is provided in the vicinity of the observation window lens portion 28 on the front surface of the portion. According to the air / water feeding nozzle 32, the observation window lens portion 28 can be washed with the operation switch 31. Then, as shown in FIG. 2, irradiation windows 34 and 35 are provided on the front surface of the tip portion 10,
Irradiation light is supplied to the irradiation windows 34 and 35 from a light source unit (not shown) by a light guide.

The first embodiment is constructed as described above, and its operation will be described with reference to FIG. First, as shown in FIG. 1, by pulling the wire 18, the imaging unit 1
With 2 stored in the storage unit 11, the distal end portion 10 of the electronic endoscope is inserted into the body cavity of FIG. 3 (insertion direction 100).
For example, when observing the polyp P of FIG. 3 from the back side, after inserting the tip portion 10 to the position of the chain line, the wire 18 is loosened and the imaging unit 12 is separated from the tip portion 10. When the image pickup unit 12 comes out of the distal end portion 10, the lens unit 1 of the image pickup unit 12 is slightly pushed by pushing the distal end portion 10 inward.
4 can be arranged so that it faces the polyp P. Here, it is also possible to lead out the operation member from the treatment instrument insertion channel 21 and correct the position of the imaging unit 12 by this operation member.

During the above operation, the eyepiece 3 of the operating section 22.
By observing 0, the inside of the object to be observed can be observed through the observation window lens unit 28, whereby the imaging unit 12 is arranged at a desired position, in the case of the figure, on the back side of the polyp P. Also,
In the imaging unit 12 as well, the image signal inside the body under observation captured by the CCD 15 is subjected to amplification processing and the like by the signal processing circuit 16, and the output of this signal processing circuit 16 is transmitted through the wire 18 to the signal processing circuit on the endoscope main body side. 25. Then, in the signal processing circuit 25, image processing such as gamma correction processing is performed, and an image of the inside of the observed body is displayed on the monitor 26. Therefore, according to this imaging unit 12,
An image of the polyp P and its peripheral portion is displayed on the monitor 26.

Next, while looking through the eyepiece portion 30 or looking at the image on the monitor 26, the distal end portion 10 is returned to, for example, the position indicated by the solid line, and the treatment instrument 36 is led out from the treatment instrument insertion channel 21 at this position. To be done. Therefore, in this case, the treatment with the treatment tool 36 can be performed while observing the polyp P in both the front (insertion direction 100) side and the back side.

Then, after the above observation and treatment are completed,
The separated imaging unit 12 in FIG. 3 pulls the wire 18 from the treatment tool and the wire insertion port 23, and thereby the storage unit 1
1 and stored. The collection of the imaging unit 12 can be naturally performed by utilizing the excretion function of the living body, but this requires time and labor for the collection. However, according to the present invention, the wire 18 allows the imaging unit 12 to be quickly and easily recovered when the observation / processing is completed.

FIG. 4 shows the configuration of the second embodiment. This second embodiment is an example in which signals are transmitted wirelessly and no optical observation means is used. In FIG. 4, the image pickup unit 40 is arranged in the storage unit 39 of the distal end portion 38. In the image pickup unit 40, the lens unit 14 and the CCD 1 are arranged.
5, a camera control unit (CCU) 41 having an image signal processing circuit and a transmission unit is arranged, and the imaging unit 40
A transmission antenna 42 is provided on the surface of the. CC above
In U41, the image signal obtained by the CCD 15 is subjected to image processing and then converted into a transmission signal, and this transmission image signal is output from the transmission antenna 42.

On the other hand, on the electronic endoscope side, a receiving antenna 44 is arranged on the surface of the distal end portion 38, and a monitor 46 is connected to the receiving antenna 44 via a receiving section 45.
That is, in the receiving unit 45, the image signal input from the receiving antenna 44 is demodulated, and the image inside the observed body is displayed on the monitor 46 based on the image signal. Then, as in the first embodiment, the wire 48 is provided in the image pickup unit 40.
Are connected, and the wire 48 in this case does not also serve as a signal line. Further, an air / water supply path 49 is formed to the front surface of the tip portion 38, and a nozzle 50 is provided on the front surface. Therefore, by ejecting air or water from the nozzle 50, the window of the lens unit 14 of the image pickup unit 40 can be washed.

According to the second embodiment, the image signal captured by the image pickup unit 40 is output from the transmitting antenna 42 after being modulated by the CCU 41, while the image signal received via the receiving antenna 44 is , And is demodulated by the receiving unit 45 and then supplied to the monitor 46. In this way, in the image pickup unit 40, the back side of the polyp P shown in FIG.
6 can be displayed as an image. Then, after the observation / treatment is completed with this image, the imaging unit 40 can be promptly recovered by operating the wire 48.

In the above embodiment, a flagellar drive unit composed of flagella and a drive member, a caterpillar (registered trademark) drive unit, or the like is provided as the self-propelling unit or the self-position correcting unit in the image pickup units 12 and 40. However, in this case, these means can be used to move to a desired position.

[0023]

As described above, according to the present invention,
An imaging unit configured to be separated from the endoscope main body is provided, and a wire that is movable in the endoscope main body is attached to the imaging unit and the imaging unit is pulled by pulling the wire. Since it is collected on the side, the separated imaging unit allows observation of the inside of the observation target body from any direction regardless of the operation direction of the endoscope distal end, and facilitates movement and placement of the imaging unit. At the same time, there is an advantage that collection can be performed quickly and easily.

According to the second aspect of the invention, since the wire is used as a signal line and the image signal obtained by the image pickup section is transmitted by the wire, the wireless system is not adopted. There is an advantage that a signal can be transmitted by using a wire with a simple structure.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a distal end portion of an electronic endoscope apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a front surface of a tip portion of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a state in which the electronic endoscope of the embodiment is applied inside a body cavity.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a configuration of a tip end portion of a second embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10, 48 ... Tip part, 11, 39 ... Storage part, 12, 40 ... Imaging part, 15 ... CCD, 18, 48 ... Wire, 16, 25 ... Signal processing circuit, 28 ... Observation window lens part, 30 ... Eyepiece Part, 41 ... CCU (camera control unit).

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. An imaging unit, which is configured to be separated from the endoscope main body and is provided with an image sensor, is provided, and a wire disposed inside the endoscope main body is attached to the imaging unit.
An electronic endoscope apparatus that separates the imaging unit so that the imaging unit is recovered to the endoscope body side by pulling the wire. 2. The image pickup device according to claim 1, wherein the wire is used as a signal line, and an image signal obtained by the image pickup unit is transmitted to the endoscope main body side through the wire. An electronic endoscope device that separates the parts.