JP2001079005A - Ultrasonographic device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the transmitting/receiving characteristics for ultrasonic waves, make the shape retention of a tip end cap more favorable, and effectively protect an ultrasonic vibrator by providing a rib at a plurality of locations in the circumferential direction at positions being confronted with the ultrasonic vibrator in the tip end cap, making the position in the rotating direction of the tip end cap adjustable, and making the thickness of the tip end cap, in which the ultrasonic vibrator is housed, thinner. SOLUTION: At the tip end of a sleeve in an ultrasonic probe, a tip end cap 24, which covers a sonic wave vibrator 23, is fitted. Then, on the internal surface of the tip end cap 24, raised lines 28, for which the internal surface is partially made thicker, are formed. Also, the base end section of the sleeve is connected to the rotating position adjusting ring of a connector, and the rotating position adjusting ring is made relatively rotatable to a fixed cylinder, which is directly fixed to an ultrasonic operation unit.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ultrasonic inspection apparatus provided with an ultrasonic probe for performing mechanical radial scanning by rotating an ultrasonic transducer, and more particularly to an ultrasonic probe having a small diameter. The present invention relates to an ultrasonic inspection apparatus designed to protect an ultrasonic transducer provided at the tip of the ultrasonic probe.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, an ultrasonic probe which is provided in an endoscope and is inserted into a body cavity by using a treatment tool insertion channel through which forceps or other treatment tools are inserted as guide means has been used. ing. Because this kind of ultrasonic probe is inserted into the treatment instrument insertion channel, its outer diameter is smaller than the inner diameter of this treatment instrument insertion channel, and the insertion portion bends along the insertion path in the body cavity. Therefore, the cord is composed of a flexible thin cord having flexibility over substantially the entire length thereof, and the ultrasonic vibrator is incorporated at the tip of the cord.

Since the ultrasonic probe has a small diameter, the ultrasonic vibrator is formed of a single plate. Therefore, in order to acquire an ultrasonic tomographic image covering a predetermined range, the ultrasonic transducer is scanned, and the scanning is performed by so-called mechanical scanning for mechanically moving the ultrasonic transducer. The scanning direction in the mechanical scanning is roughly classified into linear scanning for linearly moving the ultrasonic transducer, radial scanning for rotating the ultrasonic transducer, and the like. In order to perform mechanical radial scanning, the ultrasonic transducer is rotationally driven by remote control. Therefore, the flexible cord constituting the ultrasonic probe has a function as a control cable for transmitting rotation. The control cable usually has a configuration in which a flexible shaft made of a close-contact coil or the like is inserted through a flexible sleeve, and an ultrasonic vibrator is mounted on a rotating board, and this rotating board is connected to the tip of the flexible shaft. I do.

[0004] From the above, an ultrasonic probe which is inserted endoscopically and which performs mechanical radial scanning has a configuration in which an ultrasonic transducer is attached to the end of a control cable. If the ultrasonic vibrator is driven to rotate while being completely exposed, the inner wall of the body cavity may be involved when the rotating substrate comes into contact with the inner wall of the body cavity. There is also a problem that the ultrasonic transducer may be damaged due to accidental collision with a surrounding object when carrying the ultrasonic probe or the like. For this,
For example, as shown in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-42154, a tip cap is connected to a sleeve constituting an outer part of a control cable, and the ultrasonic transducer and its rotating substrate are housed in the tip cap. In general, radial scanning is performed by rotationally driving the ultrasonic vibrator in the tip cap.

[0005] In order to suppress the attenuation of the ultrasonic signal transmitted from the ultrasonic transducer and reflected from the tomographic portion of the body tissue, air is not interposed in the transmission / reception path in the ultrasonic transducer. Since the ultrasonic transducer is provided in the distal end cap, the ultrasonic transmission medium is sealed inside the distal end cap. Here, at least the inside of the tip cap is completely filled with the ultrasonic transmission medium, but including very small bubbles,
It must be completely replaced by the ultrasonic transmission medium so that no air is present. For this reason, when supplying the ultrasonic transmission medium only inside the tip cap, the space between the tip cap and the sleeve is sealed, but since the ultrasonic probe has a small diameter, only the tip cap is used. In general, the ultrasonic transmission medium is also sealed in the sleeve.

[0006]

By the way, in order to improve the transmission and reception characteristics such as suppressing the attenuation of the ultrasonic wave when transmitting and receiving the ultrasonic wave by the ultrasonic vibrator, the tip cap must be made as thin as possible. For this reason, the tip cap becomes fragile, and even if a slight external force is applied, the tip cap is easily deformed. As a result, the ultrasonic transducer cannot be effectively protected. In the above-mentioned prior art, the shape of the distal end cap is maintained by utilizing the enclosed ultrasonic transmission medium. That is, a pressurizing unit is mounted on the base end side of the ultrasonic probe, and the pressurizing unit presses the ultrasonic transmission medium inside the distal end cap from the sleeve. As described above, the shape of the tip cap is improved by pressurizing the inside of the tip cap. However, the thinner the tip cap is, the more the ultrasonic transmission medium is a fluid, so the deformation due to external force is caused. Therefore, the thickness of the tip cap is limited.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object of the present invention is to improve the ultrasonic wave transmission / reception characteristics by reducing the thickness of a tip cap containing an ultrasonic vibrator. It is another object of the present invention to improve the shape retention of the tip cap so that the ultrasonic vibrator can be effectively protected.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides an ultrasonic vibrator which is provided so as to protrude from the tip of a flexible sleeve, and which is provided inside the sleeve. Has an ultrasonic probe that performs mechanical radial ultrasonic scanning by rotating the flexible shaft around an axis in the sleeve, and is connected to the distal end of the flexible shaft that has been inserted through the sleeve. Is mounted with a distal end cap covering the ultrasonic vibrator, and inside the distal end cap, a plurality of support bones are provided in a circumferential direction at a position facing the ultrasonic vibrator, and further, a proximal end of the sleeve. The part is characterized in that it has a configuration in which a position adjusting means for rotating the tip cap in the rotation direction is provided in a connected manner.

Here, the supporting bone can be constituted by a ridge integrally connected to the inner surface of the tip cap, a metal wire or a plate fixed to the inner surface of the tip cap, or the like. Also,
The ultrasonic probe may be inserted alone into a body cavity, but is particularly suitable when used as an ultrasonic probe of a type that is inserted into a treatment instrument insertion channel of an endoscope that requires a small diameter. And in the ultrasonic probe of the type which is inserted endoscopically in this way, a connector detachably connected to an operation unit for controlling the operation of the ultrasonic transducer at the base end thereof. Therefore, the position adjusting means is provided in this connector. The operation unit to which the connector is connected can be configured to be detachably attached to the treatment instrument introduction section of the endoscope.

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. First, FIG. 1 shows the overall configuration of an ultrasonic inspection apparatus inserted endoscopically.
Note that the ultrasonic probe of the present invention is not necessarily limited to a probe using an endoscope as a guide.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes an endoscope. As is well known, the endoscope 1 has a body operating section 2 and an insertion section 3 inserted into a body cavity. The illumination unit and the observation unit are provided at the tip of the insertion section 3. In addition, a treatment tool introduction unit 4 also called a forceps port is provided at a position near the connecting portion of the main body operation unit 2 to the insertion unit 3, and an illumination unit and an observation unit are provided at the tip of the insertion unit 3. And the treatment instrument lead-out portion is open. A treatment instrument insertion channel 5 is provided between the treatment instrument introduction section 4 and the treatment instrument derivation section, and a treatment instrument such as forceps is inserted therethrough.

The ultrasonic inspection apparatus has an ultrasonic probe 10 guided into a body cavity through a treatment instrument insertion channel 5 and an ultrasonic operation unit 11 detachably attached to the treatment instrument introduction section 4. A cord 12 for connecting to an ultrasonic observation device (not shown) is extended from the ultrasonic operation unit 11.

The structure of the tip of the ultrasonic probe 10 is as follows.
It is as shown in FIG. In the figure, reference numeral 20 denotes a sleeve, into which a flexible shaft 21 is inserted. The flexible shaft 21 is formed by winding a metal wire in the form of a close-contact coil, and a rotating substrate 22 is connected to and provided at the tip of the flexible shaft 21, and the ultrasonic vibrator 23 is mounted on the rotating substrate 22. ing. This ultrasonic vibrator 23 is provided with a tip cap 24 connected to the tip of the sleeve 20.
Is located within. Further, a cable 25 connected to the ultrasonic vibrator 23 is inserted into the flexible shaft 21.

Here, the tip cap 24 is made of a resin material such as high-density polyethylene, but has a different acoustic impedance from the ultrasonic transmission medium.
In addition, the tip cap 24 is a medium whose ultrasonic transmission characteristics are inferior to those of the ultrasonic transmission medium. Therefore, the tip cap 24 is made as thin as possible from the viewpoint of transmission / reception characteristics such as suppression of attenuation of ultrasonic waves. However, it is necessary to reduce the thickness of the peripheral body portion 24 a of the distal end cap 24 facing the ultrasonic transducer 23. On the other hand, at least the inside of the distal end cap 24 on which the ultrasonic transducer 23 is mounted must be filled with the ultrasonic transmission medium. To this end, the distal end portion 24b of the distal end cap 24 is made thicker, and an inlet 26 is provided in the thicker portion, and the inlet 26 is closed with a plug member 27. Accordingly, by removing and attaching the plug member 27, the ultrasonic transmission medium can be sealed in the distal end cap 24. In addition, this ultrasonic transmission medium is not only inside the tip cap 24,
By filling the inside of the sleeve 20 with the ultrasonic transmission medium, there is no need to provide a sealing member between the tip cap 24 and the sleeve 20.
The lubricating effect when the 1 rotates is exerted.

The base end of the ultrasonic probe 10 is a connector 30 detachably connected to the ultrasonic operation unit 11. As shown in FIG. 3, the connector 30 includes a sleeve connecting portion 31 and a shaft connecting portion 32. The sleeve connecting portion 31 includes a rotation position adjustment ring 33 to which the sleeve 20 is directly connected, and a fixed cylinder 34, and a fold-preventing cover 35 is attached to an outer peripheral portion of the rotation position adjustment ring 33. The fold-preventing cover 35 is provided for the ultrasonic probe 10 which is a flexible member.
Since the connector 30 is a hard member, the flexible cord 1
This is for preventing stress from concentrating on the root portion when the base portion 2 is bent. Fixed cylinder 34
Is composed of an outer cylinder 36 and a connecting cylinder 37, and these outer cylinder 36 and the connecting cylinder 37 are assembled in a state where they are joined to each other via a screw ring 38.

The connecting cylinder 37 has a large-diameter portion 37a whose innermost and outer diameters are substantially the same as the connecting cylinder 37 at the most proximal end side, and a diameter reduced from the large-diameter portion 37a. And a sliding portion 37c which is further reduced in diameter from the screw fitting portion 37b and in which the rotational position adjusting ring 33 is slidably fitted. This sliding part 37
A flange portion 33a protruding outward in the radial direction is formed at a base end portion of the rotation position adjustment ring 33 fitted to c. The flange portion 33a comes into contact with a step wall between the screw fitting portion 37b and the sliding portion 37c of the connecting cylinder 37, and a stopper ring 39 is screwed to the screw fitting portion 37b. Is done. Further, a stopper wall 39a is provided on the stopper ring 39 so as to extend inward in the radial direction, whereby the rotation position adjustment ring 33 can be relatively rotated with respect to the connecting cylinder 37, and is relatively rotatable in the axial direction. It is immovably connected. Therefore, the rotation position adjustment ring 33 constitutes a means for adjusting the position of the tip cap 24 in the rotation direction by remote control. When the rotation position adjustment ring 33 is rotated, specifically, the rotation position adjustment ring 33 is fitted to the rotation position adjustment ring 33. The sleeve 20 can be rotated around the axis by manually rotating the combined fold-preventing cover 35, and the distal end cap 24 connected to the distal end of the sleeve 20 is rotated by remote control. When the stopper ring 39 is tightened, the flange portion 33a of the rotation position adjusting ring 33 is pressed and pressed between the stopper wall 39a of the stopper ring 39 and the step wall of the connecting cylinder 37.
The rotation position adjusting ring 33 is
May be in a state where it cannot be rotated relative to the connecting cylinder 37.

A shaft connecting portion 32 is disposed inside the outer cylinder 36 screwed to the connecting tube 37 via a bearing 40, and the shaft connecting portion 32 has a rotating shaft 41. The rotating shaft 41 also serves as an electrode, and includes an electrode pin 42 at a center position, and an electrode tube 44 fitted around the outer periphery of the electrode pin 42 via an insulating tube 43. A connecting pipe 45 made of synthetic resin is fixedly provided on the distal end side, and a metal ring 46 is fixedly provided in the connecting pipe 45. The flexible shaft 21 is fixed to the metal ring 46 by means such as welding. A cable 25 from the ultrasonic transducer 23 is inserted into the flexible shaft 21, and a core wire 25 a of the cable 25 is connected to the electrode pin 42, and a shield wire 25 b is connected to the electrode tube 44.

When the connector 30 is connected to the ultrasonic operation unit 11, the sleeve connecting portion 31 is fixedly connected to the ultrasonic operation unit 11. A rotary shaft (not shown) driven by a motor or the like is provided in the ultrasonic operation unit 11, and a shaft connecting portion 32 of the connector 30 is connected to the rotary shaft. Thus, the flexible shaft 21 as a rotation transmitting member in the ultrasonic probe 10 is rotated around the axis from the ultrasonic operation unit 11 side, and the rotary substrate 22 on which the ultrasonic transducer 23 is mounted is rotationally driven. Therefore, the ultrasonic operation unit 1
Numeral 1 constitutes an operation means for driving the ultrasonic transducer 23 to rotate, and also functions as a means for relaying signal transmission between the ultrasonic transducer 23 and the ultrasonic observation apparatus.

The ultrasonic inspection apparatus constructed as described above has an extremely small diameter because the ultrasonic probe 10 is guided into the body cavity through the treatment instrument insertion channel 5 of the endoscope 1. Is done. Therefore, although the tip cap 24 in which the ultrasonic transducer 23 is housed is thin, the thickness is extremely thin in order to further improve the transmission / reception characteristics of the ultrasonic wave. It does not have good shape retention. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4, a plurality of (four in the illustrated example) functioning as skeletons are provided on the inner surface of the peripheral body portion 24 a of the distal end cap 24.
A ridge 28 is provided. These ridges 28 are thickened portions of the tip cap 24, and the ridges 2
Reference numeral 8 denotes a length from the base end position of the distal end cap 24 to the distal end portion 24a. In this manner, by providing the protruding ridges 28, the peripheral body portion 24a of the thinned end cap 24 is reinforced. However, when the projection 28 is provided on the tip cap 28, the transmission and reception characteristics of the ultrasonic wave when the ultrasonic wave passes through the portion are deteriorated.

Incidentally, the ultrasonic transducer 23 performs a radial scan, but the entire image in the radial direction does not always have to be displayed in a complete form. Since this is for finding a place of interest such as a lesion from a radial ultrasonic image displayed on a monitor, it is necessary to obtain complete information at least for the place of interest. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5, for example, if a point of interest K, such as a lesion, is located on the extension of the ridge 28, that is, at a position that is shadowed by the ridge 28, in this state, A clear ultrasonic image cannot be obtained for the location K having the above. However, if the ridge 28 is displaced in the rotation direction to the state shown in FIG. 6, an accurate ultrasonic image of the point K of interest can be obtained.

A connecting cylinder constituting a fixed cylinder 34 fixedly connected to the ultrasonic operation unit 11 in a state where the connector 30 is provided with a rotational position adjusting ring 33 and the connector 30 is connected to the ultrasonic operation unit 11. It is for this reason that the rotational position adjusting ring 33 is connected so as to be rotatable relative to 37. The rotation position adjusting ring 33 is connected to the base end of the sleeve 20 and furthermore, the sleeve 2
The leading end cap 24 is connected to the leading end of the zero. Therefore, this rotation position adjustment ring 33, specifically, the fold-preventing cover 3 fitted to the rotation position adjustment ring 33.
When the rotating operation of the lever 5 is performed, the rotating power extends from the sleeve 20 to the tip cap 24. As a result, when the ultrasonic transducer 23 is operated to perform radial ultrasonic scanning, a point K of interest is located at the position of the extension of the ridge 28 provided on the tip cap 24, and this ridge is formed. Even if it is shadowed by 28, by rotating the rotation position adjusting ring 33, the tip cap 24 can change the position in the rotation direction by a desired angle by remote control. As a result, the position K of interest is shifted from the position where the protrusion 28 provided on the tip cap 24 is shadowed, and it is possible to confront a thin portion having a good ultrasonic transmission / reception characteristic. , An accurate ultrasonic inspection can be performed.

That is, in order to protect the ultrasonic vibrator 23 mounted inside the tip cap 24, the tip cap 24 is made to have good shape retention by the ridge 28 which is partially thickened. Moreover, the tip cap 2 is remotely operated.
By changing the position of the rotating member 4 in the direction of rotation by remote control, when performing the ultrasonic inspection by the operation of the ultrasonic vibrator 23, the portion which is partially thickened to substantially eliminate a blind spot is eliminated. be able to. When only the shape retention of the tip cap 24 is considered, it is desirable that the width of the ridge 28 be as large as possible. However, in consideration of the transmission and reception characteristics of ultrasonic waves, the ridge 28 is provided in the tip cap 24. In order to protect the ultrasonic transducer 23, the width of the projections 28, 2 adjacent to each other should be as small as possible without causing any trouble.
It is desirable to make the interval between 8 wide.

Here, in radial scanning of the ultrasonic transducer 23, the flexible shaft 21 connected to the rotating substrate 22 is driven to rotate around the axis. Since the flexible shaft 21 is inserted into the sleeve 20, the sleeve 2 is rotated when the flexible shaft 21 rotates.
It comes into sliding contact with the inner surface of 0. Therefore, the sleeve 20
Is the flexible shaft 21 at the time of ultrasonic scanning.
It is necessary to keep it so that it does not rotate with it. Connecting cylinder 37
Is provided with a stopper ring 39 screwed therein.
When the flange portion 33a of the rotational position adjusting ring 33 is pressed against the step wall of the connecting cylinder 37 by the stopper wall 39a of the stopper ring 39, the rotational position adjusting ring 33 connected to the sleeve 20 is fixed in the rotational direction. If the frictional resistance at the fitting portion between the rotational position adjusting ring 33 and the sliding portion 37c of the connecting cylinder 37 is larger than the rotational driving force of the sleeve 20 generated when the flexible shaft 21 rotates, the stopper is not necessarily required. It is not necessary to tighten with the ring 39.

A ridge provided on the tip cap 24 for improving shape retention and protecting the ultrasonic vibrator 23 provided therein is provided with a ridge 28 provided integrally with the tip cap 24. Instead, for example, a support member 128 as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 can be used. As shown in FIG. 8, the support member 128 is made of a high-strength member such as a metal, and has a ring portion 12 whose one end is disposed inside a connection portion of the tip cap 124 to the sleeve 120.
8a, a plurality of plate strips 128 are removed from the ring portion 128a.
b is extended. Then, the tip cap 12
4 has a very thin wall thickness and is uniform over the entire circumference, and each plate 128b has a curved cross section in the width direction. Therefore, the plate strip 128b is the tip cap 1
24, and in this state, it extends toward the distal end side at least to a position where it passes through a portion where the ultrasonic transducer 123 mounted on the rotating substrate 122 is mounted.

With this configuration, the shape retention of the tip cap 124 can be improved. However, when the support member 128 is formed of metal, the ultrasonic wave hardly passes through the portion of the plate 128b of the support member, and becomes substantially a shadow. By widening the interval, a fan-shaped ultrasonic image having a predetermined width is obtained at a portion therebetween. Then, by rotating the distal end cap 124 by remote control, it is possible to eliminate a portion that becomes a blind spot. A ring bridging between the plate strips 128b may be provided at a position of the distal end of the support member 128 that has passed the ultrasonic transducer 123, and instead of the plate strips, a line having a circular cross section may be used. You can also.

[0026]

As described above, according to the present invention, a plurality of supporting bones are provided in the distal end cap at positions facing the ultrasonic vibrator in the circumferential direction, and the distal end cap is moved in the rotational direction. By making the structure adjustable, the tip cap containing the ultrasonic vibrator can be made thinner, so that the transmission and reception characteristics of ultrasonic waves can be improved, and the shape retention of the tip cap can be improved. As a result, various effects such as effective protection of the ultrasonic vibrator can be obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration explanatory view showing a state in which an ultrasonic inspection apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is incorporated in an endoscope.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a distal end portion of the ultrasonic probe.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a connector portion of the ultrasonic probe.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is an operation explanatory view showing the influence of a ridge provided on a tip cap when radial scanning is performed by an ultrasonic vibrator.

6 is an operation explanatory view when the tip cap is displaced in the rotational direction from the state of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a distal end portion of an ultrasonic probe showing another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an external view of a support member mounted on the ultrasonic probe of FIG. 7;

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Endoscope 4 Treatment tool introduction part 5 Treatment tool insertion channel 10 Ultrasonic probe 11 Ultrasonic operation unit 20,12
0 Sleeve 21 Flexible shaft 22, 12
2 Rotating substrate 23, 123 Ultrasonic vibrator 24, 12
4 Tip cap 25 Cable 28 Ridge 30 Connector 31 Sleeve connection part 32 Shaft connection part 33 Rotation position adjustment ring 33a Flange part 34 Fixed cylinder 35 Bend prevention cover 36 Outer cylinder 37 Connection cylinder 37a Large diameter part 37b Screw fitting part 37c Sliding part 39 Stopper ring 41 Rotary shaft 128 Support member 128a
Ring part 128b Plate strip

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An ultrasonic vibrator is provided so as to protrude from a distal end of a flexible sleeve, and the ultrasonic vibrator is connected to a distal end of a flexible shaft inserted into the sleeve, and the ultrasonic vibrator is flexible in the sleeve. An ultrasonic probe that performs mechanical radial ultrasonic scanning by rotating a shaft around an axis, and a distal end cap that covers the ultrasonic vibrator is attached to the distal end of the sleeve of the ultrasonic probe, and the distal end is Inside the cap, a plurality of support bones are provided in the circumferential direction at positions facing the ultrasonic transducer, and further, a position adjusting means in the rotation direction of the tip cap is connected to the base end of the sleeve. An ultrasonic inspection apparatus, wherein: 2. The ultrasonic inspection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said support bone is constituted by a ridge integrally connected to an inner surface of said tip cap. 3. The ultrasonic inspection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said support bone is formed of a metal wire or plate fixed to an inner surface of said tip cap. 4. The ultrasonic probe can be inserted into a treatment instrument insertion channel of an endoscope, and has a connector detachably connected to an operation unit at a base end of the ultrasonic probe, 2. The ultrasonic inspection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said position adjusting means is provided on said connector. 5. The ultrasonic inspection apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the operation unit to which the connector is connected is configured to be detachably attached to a treatment instrument introduction portion of the endoscope.