KR101828010B1 - Endoscopic structure for variable length - Google Patents

Abstract

A plurality of joints are arranged at regular intervals, and each of the joints is connected to a plurality of wires arranged radially with respect to the center in the lengthwise direction of the front and the back, and the joints are arranged at regular intervals along the longitudinal direction of the wires A link portion including a plurality of guide plates for supporting the wires and preventing twisting of the wires, and an outer covering surrounding the joint portions, the wires, and the guide plates along the longitudinal direction of the link portions, An engaging end portion formed at a front end of the link portion and selectively engaging a tool according to the purpose of use; and a rear end portion provided at a rear end of the link portion, wherein the engaging end portion is connected to the plurality of wires, An operating portion for adjusting the curvature of the link portion, And the screw is connected to the joints by a screw so that the joint is selectively linearly moved by forward rotation or reverse rotation of the screw in accordance with forward or reverse rotation by the user so that the length of the endoscope is elongated or contracted Since the length of the endoscope can be expanded and reduced by including the length adjusting wire, it is possible to reduce the work space for the endoscope to perform the desired work, thereby preventing damage to the surrounding organs during the work, In addition, it is possible to secure diversity in the detailed operation area determined by the kinematic structure, and to secure high working characteristics of the tool (work tool) fastened to the endoscope end, The length of the endoscope being variable.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention [0001] The present invention relates to an endoscopic structure for variable length,

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention [0001] The present invention relates to an endoscope used in internal medicine surgery, and more particularly, to an endoscope used in internal medicine surgery, The joint portion is moved in a linear direction as the nut member of the joint part converts the rotational motion of the screw transmitted to the joint part by the wire into the linear motion so that the link length of the endoscope can be flexibly extended or shrunk freely and the curvature of the endoscope can be varied The present invention relates to a structure of an endoscope which can vary a length that can be variably secured in a detailed operation region of the endoscope.

Endoscopy is a medical device that allows the inside of the abdominal cavity to be seen directly. It is a device designed to observe and insert a machine into organs that can not directly see lesions without surgery or autopsy.

The endoscope described above generally includes an endoscope such as a bronchoscope, an esophagus, a stomach, a duodenoscope, a rectoscope, a cystoscope, a laparoscope, a thoracoscope, a mediastinoscope, It is fabricated to have flexibility, but its flexibility is limited.

That is, in the conventional endoscope, the user does not adjust the bending of the insertion tube, but the insertion tube is naturally bent according to the bending of the inside of the body.

Therefore, even if the endoscope is inserted into the human body, the endoscope can not bend the insertion tube according to the user's intention. Therefore, the camera or the tool provided at the end of the insertion tube can not be changed to a direction desired by the user.

In order to solve such a problem, an endoscope capable of being partially bent has been developed. However, there is a limitation in the angle and the curvature to be bent, and even if the endoscope is bent within a limited angle, it can not be fixed.

Patent Document 10-0990992 discloses a spring module having a flexible material, at least one cylinder inserted at one end of the spring module and spaced apart from each other, a camera provided at one end of the spring module, An insertion tube including at least one wire disposed around the body along the longitudinal direction of the insertion tube and a driver connected to one end of the wire to tense or relax the wire, And sets the length of the cylinder and the free length of the spring module according to the radius of curvature of the insertion tube, the radius of the insertion tube, and the total number of nodes, and the node comprises a cylinder, A micro-end microcontroller capable of adjusting the angle and curvature of the end including one spring module And provided the viewing scope.

However, in the above-described conventional technique, only the operation of the endoscope end is focused on, and thus the motion of the endoscope body is not considered. Therefore, the movement of the segments of the endoscope to maintain the end direction of the endoscope, Inevitably.

In addition, due to organ damage in the body cavity caused by the insertion of the endoscope, the admission rate is 8 times higher than that of the general public without any organ damage in the trunk, and since human organs have different curvatures, It is essential to develop an endoscope that has a variable curvature and allows each joint to maintain its direction and change its length in order to pass without a wound.

Therefore, in the operation unit of the present invention, a plurality of holes formed at regular intervals along the periphery of the operation unit, and a plurality of wires are connected to a plurality of wires passing through the delivery unit at the rear of the delivery unit, And a wire adjusting unit for selectively moving the wire in two degrees of freedom according to the user's manipulation and pulling or pushing the connected wire to adjust the curvature of the joint part. Thus, the length of the endoscope can be extended, It is possible to reduce the work space and to prevent the damage of the surrounding organs occurring during the work. In addition to providing various kinematic characteristics, it is possible to secure diversity in the detailed operation area determined by the kinematic structure , The high work characteristics of tools (work tools) fastened to the endoscope front end And to provide a structure of an endoscope which can vary the length of the energy-efficient system.

The endoscope according to the present invention has a plurality of joints arranged at regular intervals, each of the joints connecting a plurality of wires arranged radially with respect to a center in the lengthwise direction of the front and the back, A link portion including a plurality of guide plates disposed at regular intervals along the longitudinal direction to prevent twisting of the wires while supporting the wires; and a shell covering the joint portions, the wires, and the guide plates along the longitudinal direction of the link portions An outer sheath member for protecting the joint portion, the wire, and the guide plates; a coupling end formed at the front end of the link portion for selectively coupling the tool according to the purpose of use; and a rear end portion provided at the rear end of the link portion, An operation of adjusting the curvature of the joint part by the user's operation And a link portion disposed along a lengthwise center of the link portion and connected to the joint portions by a screw so that the screw is rotated or rotated in a forward or reverse direction by a user to rotate the screw forward or backward, And the length of the endoscope is elongated and contracted, and the length of the endoscope is expanded and contracted. The manipulation part is formed with an annular ring having a center hole. The length adjustment wire passes through the center hole and is formed radially A delivery unit having a plurality of holes through which wires are respectively passed and a plurality of wires passing through the delivery unit at a rear side of the delivery unit so as to selectively move in two degrees of freedom according to a user's operation, And a wire adjusting unit for adjusting the curvature of the joint part by pushing.

At this time, the joint part of the link part according to the present invention may include a first ball type change-over part disposed on the front side of the joint part, a second ball type change-over part disposed on the rear side of the first ball type change- And a nut member which is integrally provided in the rear end of the two-hole pipe and in which the screw of the length adjusting wire is screwed.

The joint part of the link part according to the present invention is characterized in that a plurality of guide grooves are formed at regular intervals along the outer circumference of the second punch change case to accommodate a plurality of wires respectively in the guide groove, And a support bushing coupled to a rear outer periphery of the switch to prevent the wire from escaping from the guide groove.

And a stopper provided on the front and rear sides of the screw of the length adjusting wire according to the present invention to set a range of linear motion of the nut member.

The effect of the endoscopic structure varying in length according to one embodiment of the present invention is as follows.

First, since the length of the endoscope can be expanded and contracted, it is possible to reduce the work space for the endoscope to perform a desired operation, thereby preventing damage to the surrounding organs occurring during the operation.

A plurality of wires formed at regular intervals along the periphery of the operation unit, the plurality of wires being connected to a plurality of wires passing through the delivery unit at a rear side of the delivery unit, And a wire adjusting unit for selectively moving the wire in two degrees of freedom in accordance with the operation of the wire and pulling or pushing the connected wire to adjust the curvature of the joint part so that the length of the endoscope can be freely adjusted, , And the diversity of the detailed operation area determined by the kinematic structure can be secured.

Third, since high working characteristics of a tool (work tool) fastened to the endoscope front end can be ensured, it is possible to construct a system with high energy efficiency.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an exemplary view showing an endoscope which is variable in length according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG.
FIG. 2 is an exemplary view showing a joint part of an endoscope which varies in length according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is an exemplary view showing an operation unit of an endoscope for varying the length according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 is an exemplary view showing a curvature variable state of an endoscope varying in length according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5 is an exemplary view showing a variable length state of an endoscope which varies in length according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Prior to this, terms and words used in the present specification and claims should not be construed as limited to ordinary or dictionary terms, and the inventor should appropriately interpret the concepts of the terms appropriately The present invention should be construed in accordance with the meaning and concept consistent with the technical idea of the present invention.

Therefore, the embodiments described in the present specification and the configurations shown in the drawings are merely the most preferred embodiments of the present invention, and not all of the technical ideas of the present invention are described. Therefore, at the time of the present application, It should be understood that variations can be made.

The present invention relates to a ball joint having a plurality of joint parts employing a ball joint and a length adjusting wire and a screw-nut mechanism having a screw formed at a distal end thereof to be connected to each other so that the rotational movement of the screw, Since the joint portion is moved in a linear direction as the nut member is converted into linear motion, the link length of the endoscope can be flexibly extended and contracted freely, so that the curvature of the endoscope can be variably controlled and the detailed operation region of the endoscope can be varied The present invention relates to a structure of an endoscope that can vary the length of a living body, and will be described with reference to the drawings.

The structure of a length-varying endoscope according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a link portion 100, an engagement end portion 200, an operation portion 300, and a length adjustment wire 400, Referring to the joint end 200 located at the front end of the endoscope, the joint end 200 is fastened to the endoscope along with an outer circumferential surface such as a screw thread, so as to attach and detach a tool 210 like an ordinary endoscope for internal surgery. A tool 210 necessary for an endoscopic procedure can be replaced according to the purpose.

The coupling end 200 and the fastening means are not limited to any one, and a detailed description will be omitted as various known techniques can be employed.

The link unit 100 is disposed at a rear side of the coupling end 200. The link unit 100 includes a plurality of joint units 110 arranged at regular intervals, And is connected to a plurality of wires 120 arranged radially with respect to the center.

2, a plurality of guide plates 130 are arranged at regular intervals along the longitudinal direction of the wire 120 so that the guide plate 130 supports the wire 120 while supporting the wire 120 120).

The outer cover member 140 is provided on the outer side of the link unit 100 so that the outer cover member 140 is disposed along the longitudinal direction of the link unit 100 with the joint 110, Protects the joints 110, the wires 120, and the guide plates 130 from the outside by wrapping the plates 130.

The cover member 140 is preferably made of a soft and flexible material so that it can easily be bent. The cover member 140 may be formed of a wrinkle along the longitudinal direction so as to be elongated or contracted in length, .

The outer circumferential surface of the guide plate 130 is provided with protrusions and recesses so that the outer circumferential surface of the outer circumference member 140 and the guide plate 130 are integrated with each other, (130) is prevented from flowing.

1 and 2, a length adjusting wire 400 passes through the center of the guide plate 130 and the joint part 110. At this time, a bearing 131 is provided at the center of the guide plate 130, A length adjusting wire 400 is fixed to the guide plate 130 through the bearing 131 and the length adjusting wire 400 is rotated by the center of the guide plate 130, And supports the length-regulating wire 400 so as to be positioned at the center of the endoscope.

The length adjusting wire 400 disposed along the center of the link part 100 is a hollow tube and a screw 410 is formed on the outer circumferential surface of the tip of the length adjusting wire 400. The screw 410 is screwed to the joint part 110 The screw 410 formed at the tip of the length adjusting wire 400 is rotated forward or backward to linearly move the joint 110 as the length adjusting wire 400 is rotated forward or reverse Thereby selectively expanding and contracting the length of the endoscope according to the embodiment of the present invention.

The joint 110 of the link unit 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention will now be described in more detail.

As shown in FIG. 2, the joint part 110 includes a first pivot shaft 111 and a second pivot shaft 112 that are hollowed together. The first pivot shaft 111 and the second pivot shaft 112 are connected to each other to form joints. And the second ball joint 112 is connected to the rear of the ball joint 111 by a ball joint method to form a spherical joint.

More specifically, the inner circumferential surface on the rear side of the first pivot shaft 111 disposed relatively forward of the joint part 110 forms an engaging ring having a rounded engraved shape, And a ball of the second ball type change-over member 112 is received in the coupling chamber of the first ball type change-over member 111 by interference fit, and the first ball type change- The first ball 111 and the second ball 112 are jointed by a ball joint system that is easy to rotate.

Here, the first and second pneumatic switching assemblies 111 and 112 are combined with a plurality of wires 120 arranged radially with respect to the longitudinal center, The curvature of the joint 120 is adjusted.

The wires 120 may pass through the hollow of the first punch 111 through the first punch 111 and the second punch 112. In this case, And a joint plate 116 for guiding the plurality of wires 120 not to be tangled to each other is provided in front of the first hole 111.

The joint plate 116 is formed with a main through hole at the center thereof in the form of a circular plate and a plurality of peripheral through holes formed around the main through hole and is vertically coupled to the front of the first hole 111 Thereby forming the front face of the first punch change 111.

A length adjusting wire 400 passes through the main through hole of the coupling plate 116, and a plurality of wires 120 pass through the plurality of peripheral through holes.

The wire 120 is guided along the outer circumference of the second punch 112 by passing through the ball of the second punch 112. In the second punch 112, A plurality of guide grooves 115 are formed at regular intervals on the outer circumferential surface of the change-over switch 112. After the plurality of wires 120 pass through the ball of the second change-over switch 112, At this time, an annular support bushing 114 is coupled to the outer periphery of the rear portion of the second hole 112 to prevent the wire 120 from being separated from the guide groove 115.

Therefore, the wire 120 can be adjusted only in the curvature of the joint part 110 by the linear motion (the wire is pushed or pulled) in the longitudinal direction by the above-described structure.

A nut member 113 is integrally formed in the rear end of the second hole 112 and the screw 410 of the length adjusting wire 400 is screwed to the nut member 113.

At this time, a stopper 420 is provided on each of the front and rear sides of the screw 410 of the length adjusting wire 400 so that the range of the linear motion of the nut member 113 on the line 410 is set.

5, depending on the configuration of the nut member 113 of the joint part 110 and the screw 410 of the length adjusting wire 400, the length adjusting wire 400 may be rotated by the user, The screw 410 formed at the distal end of the length adjusting wire 400 is also rotated forward or reverse so that the joint part 110 is selectively moved forward or backward by the nut member 113, The length of the endoscope according to the embodiment of the present invention is expanded and contracted.

With the above configuration of the endoscope, the endoscope according to the embodiment of the present invention can variably adjust the curvature of the endoscope, and can variably secure the detailed operation region of the endoscope.

As shown in FIG. 3, the length adjusting wires 400 may be formed in multiple stages corresponding to the number of the joints 110. In the final center of the length adjusting wires 400, It is desirable to provide an operating wire for operating the operation of the tool 210 fastened to the mating end 200. [

In other words, the number of the joints 110 of the link unit 100 is determined according to the entire length of the endoscope. In one embodiment of the present invention, the first to third joints are divided into three joints 110 3, the length adjusting wire 400 also includes three first to third length adjusting wires 401, 402, and 403, and the wire 120 has one joint portion It is preferable that a total of nine wires 120 are radially formed along the longitudinal direction of the link unit 100 by connecting only three wires 120 to the link unit 100.

An operation unit 300 is provided at a rear end of the link unit 100. The operation unit 300 connects the plurality of wires 120 so that the joint unit 210 can move in two degrees of freedom, The curvature of the joint part 110 can be adjusted by pulling or pushing the wire 120 as the user manipulates the joint part 300.

The operation unit 300 includes a delivery unit 310 and a wire control unit 320. The delivery unit 310 is formed with an annular ring with a center hole, And the wire 120 passes through a plurality of holes radially formed along the periphery with respect to the perforation.

Accordingly, the delivery unit 310 may be configured such that a plurality of the wires 120 provided along the longitudinal direction of the link unit 100 are passed through the length adjusting wire 400 at the rear end of the link unit 100, Dispersed.

 3 and 4, the wire adjusting unit 320 is disposed at a rear portion of the delivery unit 310. The wire adjusting unit 320 moves the delivery unit 310 And selectively moves in two degrees of freedom according to a user's operation to pull or push the connected wire 120 to adjust the curvature of the joint part 110. [

As shown in FIG. 3, the first wire adjusting unit 321, the second wire adjusting unit 322, and the third wire adjusting unit 323 include a total of three units (not shown) It is desirable to form this set.

While the present invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. Accordingly, the true scope of the present invention should be determined by the technical idea of the appended claims.

100: link portion 110: joint portion
111: First District Switch 112: Second District Switch
113: nut member 115: guide groove
116: joint plate 120: wire
130: guide plate 131: bearing
140: envelope member 200: engaging end
210: tool 300:
400: length adjusting wire 410: screw

Claims (4)

A plurality of joints are arranged at regular intervals and each of the joints is connected to a plurality of wires arranged radially with respect to the center in the lengthwise direction of the front and the back and arranged at regular intervals along the longitudinal direction of the wires, A link portion including a plurality of guide plates for supporting the wires while preventing twisting of the wires;
A cover member covering the joint portion, the wire, and the guide plates along the longitudinal direction of the link portion to protect the joint portion, the wire, and the guide plates;
A coupling end formed at a front end of the link portion and selectively coupling the tool according to the purpose of use;
A manipulation part provided at a rear end of the link part and connected to the plurality of wires to adjust a curvature of the joint part by a user's operation; And
And the screw is connected to the joint portions by a screw so that the screw is rotated forward or backward by the user in a forward or reverse rotation operation so that the joint is selectively moved in a straight line And a length adjusting wire that moves and expands the length of the endoscope,
The manipulation unit includes a delivery unit having an annular ring having a center hole, a length control wire passing through the perforated center, and a plurality of holes radially formed along the circumference with respect to the perforation, the wire passing through the manipulation unit;
And a wire adjusting unit connected to a plurality of wires passing through the delivery unit at the rear of the delivery unit and selectively moving in two degrees of freedom according to a user's operation and pulling or pushing the connected wires to adjust the curvature of the joints The structure of an endoscope that can vary in length.
The method according to claim 1,
The joint portion of the link portion
A first pivot shaft disposed at a front side of the joint part and a second pivot shaft disposed at a rear side of the first shaft pivot shaft;
And a nut member which is integrally provided in a rear end of the second branch exchange and into which a screw of the length adjusting wire is screwed.
The method of claim 2,
The joint portion of the link portion
Forming a plurality of guide grooves at regular intervals along an outer periphery of the second punch change, respectively, and accommodating the plurality of wires in the guide groove;
And a support bushing connected to the outer periphery of the rear of the second punch change in a ring shape to prevent the wire from being separated from the guide groove.
The method of claim 2,
And a stopper provided on the front and rear sides of the screw of the length adjusting wire to set a range of linear motion of the nut member.

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