JP2001137180A - Endoscope - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an endoscope that can be inserted easily with a small diameter. SOLUTION: The inserted part 2 is composed of hard members and comprising a front end part 7, a freely curving curved part 8 located at the rear end of the front end part 7 and a soft part 9 located at the rear end of the curved part 9, wherein the curved part 8 and the soft part 9 are covered with one outer tube 28 without connecting nods in the case of plurality and without thickening at connecting part to facilitate insertion.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an endoscope having an insertion portion provided with a curved portion.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A normal endoscope is provided with a bendable bending portion on the distal end side of an insertion portion to be inserted into a body cavity, and can be operated by an angle lever provided on an operation portion. . As this bending mechanism, a plurality of bending pieces are generally connected by rivets or the like, and the outer surface thereof is covered with a mesh tube, and the outside thereof is covered with a skin tube made of an elastic material such as rubber. ing.

[0003] As a method for fixing the outer tube, there is a method in which a thread is wound around a curved portion from the outside of both ends of the outer tube as shown in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 3-26965. However, after winding the yarn, an adhesive must be applied to protect the yarn, and there is a problem that the outer diameter of the portion is inevitably increased. In particular, these operations require skill, and it is difficult to make the outer diameter of this portion constant, which may have a significant effect on the insertability.

A method that does not use a yarn is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-8444. In this method, a convex portion is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the outer tube, and is locked and fixed to a concave portion provided on the exterior side (curved portion).

[0005]

However, according to Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 7-8444, there is a problem that the outer diameter must be increased in order to provide a concave portion sufficient for engaging and fixing to the exterior side. there were. In particular, the fixing portion on the proximal end side of the outer tube has a drawback that it is difficult to provide a sufficient hooking portion than the distal end side, and the outer tube is easily turned up from this portion.

(Object of the Invention) The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned points, and has as its object to provide an endoscope having a small diameter and good insertability.

[0007]

Means for Solving the Problems An endoscope having an insertion portion to be inserted into a site to be observed, the insertion portion comprising a bending portion operable to bend at a distal end side and a flexible portion connected to a base end side thereof. In the above, by covering the outermost periphery of the curved portion and the flexible portion with an integral outer tube, it is possible to prevent a large-diameter portion for connection from being formed in a middle portion of the insertion portion, and to improve insertability. I have.

[0008]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. (First Embodiment) FIGS. 1 to 3 relate to a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 shows an endoscope according to the first embodiment, and FIG. FIG. 3 shows an exploded configuration of the insertion portion.

As shown in FIG. 1, an endoscope 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention has an elongated insertion portion 2 inserted into a body cavity or the like.
An operation unit 3 provided at a rear end of the insertion unit 2 and gripped by an operator to perform a bending operation and the like; an eyepiece unit 4 provided at a rear end of the operation unit 3 for visual observation; A light guide cord 5 extended from the part 3;
And a light guide connector 6 provided at an end of the light guide device. The light guide connector 6 is detachably connected to a light source device (not shown), whereby illumination light is supplied from the light source device.

The insertion portion 2 is provided at a front end portion 7 provided at the front end thereof, at a rear end of the front end portion 7, and is provided at a rear end of the bending portion 8 which is freely bendable. A long flexible portion 9 extending to the front end of the operation portion 3 is connected to each other, and the bending portion 8 is bent in, for example, two directions by an angle operation lever 10 provided on the operation portion 3. It is possible.

The operation unit 3 is provided with a suction control device 11. The suction control device 11 is provided through a channel provided in the insertion unit 2, for example, from a distal end component 7 of the insertion unit 2, such as a body fluid in a body cavity. Can be sucked. Further, a treatment instrument can be inserted and an anesthetic solution or the like can be sent from the forceps insertion port 12 provided in the operation section 3. The opening of the forceps insertion port 12 is usually closed with a forceps stopper.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the distal end side of the insertion section 2 of the endoscope 1. An objective lens 17 is attached to an observation window 16 provided in a distal end main body 15 constituting the distal end forming section 7,
The imaging position is fixed via the base member so that the tip end surface of the image guide fiber 18 is located at the image forming position. The rear end of this image guide fiber 18 is
The optical image is fixed in the vicinity and transmitted through the eyepiece of the eyepiece 4 so as to be magnified and observed.

The observation window 16 is provided at the distal end portion 7.
An illumination lens and a light guide fiber (not shown) are attached to an illumination window provided adjacent to the camera, and a channel and the like (not shown) are provided. A curved tube 22 covered with a mesh tube 21 is connected to the proximal end side of the distal end component 7.

A linear angle operation wire 23 made of a metal member such as stainless steel is fixed to the most distal bending piece 22a of the bending tube 22 by brazing. A component of the flexible portion 9 is connected to a bending piece 22 b at the rear end of the bending pipe 22 via a connection pipe 24. The flexible portion 9 has a mesh tube 26 coated on the outside of a spiral tube 25 made of stainless steel or the like. The angle operation wire guide coil 27 is fixed to the connection pipe 24 by brazing.

As shown in FIG. 3, the flexible portion 9 and the curved portion 8 are covered with an outer tube 28 made of a single soft resin. The outer tube 28 is fixed to the flexible portion 9 by bonding. The outer tube 28 is formed of a thermoplastic resin, and after coating, heat is applied to the softening point of the resin, and pressure is applied thereto. 26 may eat. The distal end side of the outer tube 28 is located at the distal end portion 7.
The end is positioned in a groove 29 provided on the outer periphery of the substrate and is adhered, and is pressed and fixed from the outside by a heat shrinkable tube 31.

According to the present embodiment thus configured, the outer tube 28 covers the outermost periphery integrally from the vicinity of the distal end to the proximal end of the insertion portion 2, so that the outer circumference tube is halfway through the insertion portion 2. There is no part with a large diameter in the part, and the connection part in the case of forming with two outer skin tubes is unnecessary,
It is possible to reduce the diameter by eliminating the increase in thickness at that portion, and the outer peripheral surface of the insertion portion 2 becomes smooth, so that the insertability is good.

Therefore, the present embodiment has the following effects. Since there is no portion having a large diameter for connection in the middle of the insertion portion 2, the insertion portion 2 can be made thinner, the insertability is improved, and the pain given to the patient can be reduced. Further, as compared with the case of using two outer tubes, the operation of connecting the two outer tubes becomes unnecessary, and there is an effect that the assembling operation becomes easier.

(Second Embodiment) Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG.
FIG. 5 shows an exploded view of the configuration of the insertion portion according to the second embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 5 shows a distal end side of the insertion portion, and FIG. 6 shows a cross-sectional structure of the bending portion.

As shown in FIG. 4, in the present embodiment, the outer tube 28 has a thin portion 40 in which a portion corresponding to the curved portion 8 is thinner than a portion corresponding to the soft portion 9. The thin portion 40 is set to a thickness that allows a bending operation without difficulty. In addition, the outer tube 2 of the soft part 9
The meat pressure of No. 8 is set so that the optimum hardness (waist) for insertion is obtained.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the distal end side of the insertion section 2.
In the first embodiment, the angle operation wire 23 is made of metal such as stainless steel, but in the second embodiment, the angle operation wire is formed of the light guide fiber 41 made of plastic or the like. The distal end side of the light guide fiber 41 also serving as the angle operation wire is fixed to the distal end component 7 by bonding or the like. A conical rod lens 42 is arranged at the end.

FIG. 6 shows a cross section at the curved portion. A total of four light guide fibers 41 are housed inside the insertion section, and the light guide fiber 41 also serves as an angle operation wire and does not.
By also using the angle operation wire in this manner, the outer diameter of the insertion portion can be further reduced. In addition, FIG.
3 shows a channel tube 44 forming a channel 43 and the image guide fiber 18.

Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described. By changing the flesh pressure of the outer tube 28 between the bending portion 8 and the soft portion 9, the bending can be performed without difficulty and the insertability is improved. (If the outer tube is thinned over the entire length of the insertion portion, the soft portion 9 becomes weaker. If it becomes too soft, the insertability will decrease.
The operation cannot be performed smoothly.)

This embodiment has the following effects. First
In addition to the effects of the second embodiment, the insertability can be improved as compared with the first embodiment. In the case where the flesh pressure of the outer tube 28 is increased near the connection tube 24 on the soft portion 9 side, the soft portion 9
Is made larger than the bending portion 8 side, but the outer diameter of the flexible portion 9 may be made the same as the bending portion 8 side, and the inner circumference side may be made thicker than the bending portion 8 side. In this case, the same effect as described above can be obtained.

(Third Embodiment) Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 shows an outer tube in the third embodiment. In the present embodiment, the portion corresponding to the curved portion 8 corresponds to the first flexible portion 51 and the flexible portion 9 made of low-hardness resin, without changing the wall thickness of the outer tube 28 of the first embodiment. The portion to be formed is a second flexible portion 52 made of a high-hardness resin, and a tapered rear end of the first flexible portion 51 and a tapered front end of the second flexible portion 52 are integrated by welding or the like. It has an outer tube.

In this embodiment, there are two types of hardness, but three or more types of hardness change may be provided. The operation of this embodiment is the same as that of the second embodiment. This embodiment has the following effects. The insertability can be improved without changing the outer diameter.

In addition, as a modified example of FIG. 7, for example, the flexible portion 9 side is also formed of the first flexible portion 51. In this case, the fiber having higher hardness than the member of the first flexible portion 51 is formed on the flexible portion 9 side. Or the like may be impregnated or contained inside. Even in this case, without changing the outer diameter as described above,
This has the effect that the insertability can be improved.

(Fourth Embodiment) Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 shows an outer tube according to the fourth embodiment. In the present embodiment, the wall pressure of the outer tube 28 is gradually reduced from the proximal end to the distal end.

The operation of this embodiment is the same as that of the second embodiment. This embodiment has the same effects as the second embodiment.

(Fifth Embodiment) Next, a fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 9, a thin-walled tube 55 is previously coated on the reticulated tube 26 of the flexible portion 9 and then an outer tube 28 with no change in wall thickness is coated.

As an operation of the present embodiment, the flexibility of the flexible portion optimal for insertion is set by the thin-walled tube 55.

This embodiment has the same effects as the first embodiment.

(Sixth Embodiment) Next, a sixth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 10 shows a sixth embodiment. After the resin 56 is impregnated in advance on the reticulated tube 26 of the flexible portion 9, the outer tube 28 having no change in wall thickness is covered.

As an effect of the present embodiment, the flexibility of the flexible portion optimal for insertion is set by the hardness of the resin applied to the mesh tube.

This embodiment has the following effects. Since there is no portion having a large diameter in the middle of the insertion portion, the insertability is improved and the pain is reduced. Also, the assembling work is easy.

Although the above embodiment has been described with reference to an optical endoscope provided with an image guide fiber 18 for transmitting an optical image, the present invention is not limited to this. The present invention can also be applied to an electronic endoscope in which a solid-state imaging device such as a CCD is arranged at the image forming position.

[Supplementary Notes] An endoscope having an insertion portion to be inserted into an observation target site, wherein the insertion portion is an endoscope including a bending portion that can be bent on the distal end side and a flexible portion connected to the base end side thereof, An endoscope wherein both outer peripheries of a flexible portion are covered with one outer tube.

2. The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the outer tube has a portion corresponding to the curved portion more flexible than a portion corresponding to the soft portion.

3. The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the outer tube has a thinner portion corresponding to the curved portion than a portion corresponding to the soft portion.

4. 2. The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the thickness of the outer tube is gradually reduced from a base end toward a distal end.

[0040]

As described above, according to the present invention, there is provided an insertion portion for insertion into a site to be observed, and the insertion portion is connected to a bending portion operable to bend at a distal end side and to a base end side thereof. In the endoscope made of a flexible portion, by covering the outermost periphery of the curved portion and the flexible portion with an integral outer tube, it is possible to prevent a large-diameter portion for connection from being formed in a middle portion of the insertion portion. Performance can be improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an endoscope according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a structure of a distal end side of an insertion portion.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view showing a configuration of an insertion unit.

FIG. 4 is an exploded view showing a configuration of an insertion portion according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the distal end side of the insertion section.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a bending portion.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing a configuration of an outer tube according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view showing a configuration of an outer tube according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a sectional view showing the configuration of an outer tube according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an exploded view showing a configuration of an insertion portion according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Endoscope 2 ... Insertion part 3 ... Operation part 4 ... Eyepiece part 5 ... Light guide cord 6 ... Light guide connector 7 ... Tip construction part 8 ... Bending part 9 ... Soft part 10 ... Angle operation lever 11 ... Suction control Device 12 ... Forceps insertion port 16 ... Observation window 17 ... Objective lens 18 ... Image guide fiber 21 ... Reticulated tube 22 ... Curved tube 23 ... Angle operation wire 24 ... Connection tube 25 ... Spiral tube 26 ... Reticulated tube 27 ... Angle operation wire Guide coil 28 ... Skin tube 29 ... Groove 31 ... Heat shrink tube 40 ... Thin portion 41 ... Light guide fiber 42 ... Rod lens 43 ... Channel 51 ... First flexible portion 52 ... Second flexible portion 55 ... Thin tube 56 ... Resin

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Seiichi Higuma 2-43-2 Hatagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo Inside Olympus Optical Industrial Co., Ltd. (72) Keiji Ogawa 2-43-2 Hatagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo No. Inside Olympus Optical Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Yasuyuki Futaki 2-43-2 Hatagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo F-term inside Olympus Optical Co., Ltd. 2H040 DA16 4C061 AA00 BB02 CC04 DD03 FF34 JJ11

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An insertion part for insertion into a site to be observed,
In the endoscope, the insertion portion is provided with a bending portion operable to bend on the distal end side and a flexible portion continuously provided on the base end side thereof, wherein an outermost tube of the outermost periphery of both the bending portion and the flexible portion is integrated. An endoscope, characterized in that the endoscope is coated with an endoscope. 2. The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the outer tube has a portion corresponding to the curved portion made more flexible than a portion corresponding to the soft portion. 3. The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the outer tube has a thinner portion corresponding to the curved portion than a portion corresponding to the flexible portion.