JP2002153466A - Ultrasonic endoscope - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ultrasonic endoscope which makes wiring formed on flexible substrates hardly disconnectable and is highly durable even if the flection action of a bending section is repeated. SOLUTION: Elastic wires 42 are arranged along the longitudinal direction of the flexible substrates 40 arranged within the bending section 2.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ultrasonic endoscope in which an ultrasonic probe and an objective optical system for optical observation are provided at the tip of an insertion section.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an ultrasonic endoscope, a bending portion which is bent by a remote operation from an operation portion is provided at the distal end of a flexible tube of an insertion portion so that insertion and guidance can be easily performed similarly to a general endoscope. Are linked.

In an ultrasonic endoscope, it is necessary to insert a signal transmission member for transmitting signals input / output to / from the ultrasonic probe into the insertion portion. In recent years, the signal transmission member in the bending portion has been required. A so-called flexible substrate is used.

[0004]

In such an ultrasonic endoscope, a force acts to expand and contract the flexible substrate in the longitudinal direction (axial direction of the insertion portion) by bending the curved portion.

[0005] As a result, the flexible substrate repeatedly repeats the state of waving by the compressive force and the state of being straightened, which may cause a failure in which the wiring provided on the flexible substrate is disconnected. Was.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an ultrasonic endoscope with excellent durability, in which the wiring provided on the flexible substrate is hardly broken even when the bending operation of the bending portion is repeated.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, an ultrasonic endoscope according to the present invention comprises a flexible tube section forming an insertion section, a distal end of a flexible tube section connected to a bending section which is bent by remote control. An ultrasonic probe for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic signal and an objective optical system for performing optical observation are disposed at a portion closer to the distal end than the bending portion, and signals input to and output from the ultrasonic probe are transmitted in the bending portion. In an ultrasonic endoscope in which a flexible substrate is used as a signal transmission member for performing the operation, an elastic wire is arranged along the longitudinal direction of the flexible substrate.

The heat-shrinkable tube may be covered and shrunk so as to surround the flexible substrate and the elastic wire, whereby the elastic wire may be tightly fixed to the flexible substrate. If the flexible substrate is arranged along the plate surface of the flexible substrate on the back side, the flexible substrate is less likely to be damaged in the curved portion.

The elastic wire can be formed by a stranded metal wire, a single metal wire having spring properties, a superelastic alloy wire, or the like.

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 shows an ultrasonic endoscope, in which a distal end of a flexible tube 1 inserted into a body cavity is connected to a bending portion 2 that bends by remote operation, and is connected to the distal end of the bending portion 2. A cylindrical ultrasonic probe 4 is attached to the distal end main body 3.

The tip body 3 also includes an objective optical system for optical observation, a solid-state image pickup device for capturing an optical observation image, and a light guide fiber bundle for illuminating the optical observation range. The end etc. are built in.

A bending operation knob 6 for bending the bending portion 2 and the like are arranged on the operation portion 5 connected to the base end of the flexible tube portion 1. The bending portion 2 is bendable in four directions, up, down, left, and right, and FIG. 2 shows a state in which the bending portion 2 is bent halfway upward.

A treatment instrument insertion channel 10 for inserting a treatment instrument over the entire length in the flexible tube portion 1 and the curved portion 2.
Are inserted, and the insertion port 7 of the treatment tool into the treatment tool insertion channel 10 is arranged to protrude obliquely upward at the lower end of the operation unit 5.

The first connection flexible tube 8 connected to the operation unit 5
A video signal connector section 81 and a light guide connector section 82 connected to a video processor (not shown) are provided side by side at the tip of the second flexible tube 9. An ultrasonic signal connector unit 91 connected to the ultrasonic signal processing device is provided.

FIG. 3 shows a distal end portion of the insertion portion, and the front is optically observed from an observation window 11 arranged on the distal end surface of the distal end body 3. The ultrasonic probe 4 is surrounded by a balloon 12 that is inflated with degassed water or the like,
Ultrasonic waves can be emitted and received radially around the axis to obtain an ultrasonic tomographic image.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along a section perpendicular to the axis of the ultrasonic probe 4, and is, for example, 270 ° around the axis.
Ultrasonic signals are transmitted and received (electronic scanning) in a range of (135 ° left and right with respect to the upward direction), and radial scanning is performed in a direction perpendicular to the axis.

At the rear end of the ultrasonic probe 4, a flexible substrate provided with wiring for transmitting signals input to and output from the ultrasonic probe 4 is connected. As shown in FIG. A flexible substrate 40 extends rearward from the distal end body 3. The bending portion 2 is configured to bendable by rotatably connecting a plurality of node rings 22 with rivets or the like (not shown).

As shown in FIG. 6 which is a developed view of the single unit, the flexible board 40 is a single wide board in the vicinity of the connection with the ultrasonic probe 4 and has a curved portion 2 behind it. The portion located inside is widened and divided into eight equal parts in parallel.

Therefore, in the curved portion 2, the width of the wiring on the flexible substrate 40 can be formed wider than the vicinity of the connection portion with the ultrasonic probe 4, thereby increasing the mechanical strength of the wiring and breaking the wiring. Durability can be improved.

The flexible substrate 4 having such a developed shape
0 is the same as the scanning range 270 near the connection with the ultrasonic probe 4 so as to be suitable for connection with the ultrasonic probe 4 as shown in FIG.
In the vicinity of the boundary between the curved portion 2 and the distal end main body 3, it is formed in a substantially 360 ° arc shape as shown in FIG. 8 showing a VIII-VIII cross section.

Returning to FIG. 5, the flexible substrates 40 divided into eight and arranged in parallel in the curved portion 2 are formed to have different lengths. The length is set so as to pass through the inside and reach the inside of the flexible tube portion 1.

As shown in FIG. 9, the plurality of signal lines 51 of the signal cable 50 inserted through the flexible tube portion 1 and the wiring of each flexible substrate 40 are connected to the flexible tube portion 1.
Connected within.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view taken along a cross section perpendicular to the axis of the bending portion 2 (II cross section in FIG. 5). The operation wire 20 is inserted and arranged in the wire guide 21 arranged in the axis direction so as to be able to advance and retreat in the axial direction.
Is bent in the direction in which the operation wire 20 pulled from the operation section 5 side is located.

In the internal space of the bending portion 2, in addition to the flexible substrate 40 and the treatment tool insertion channel 10, a video signal cable 14 for transmitting an imaging signal of an endoscope observation image and the like, illumination light Various internal components such as a light guide fiber bundle 15 for transmitting light, a degassed water injection / drainage tube 17 to the balloon 12, and the like are inserted and arranged.

The flexible substrates 40 are superposed two by two, covered by a heat-shrinkable tube 41, integrated and arranged in four parts as a whole. The elastic wire 42 is disposed.

The elastic wire 42 is located at the center of the flexible substrate 40 along the plate surface of the flexible substrate 40 on the rear side with respect to the center axis of the curved portion 2 (ie, the surface on the outer surface side of the flexible substrate 40). The heat-shrinkable tubes 41 are arranged straight, and the flexible heat-shrinkable tubes 41 are shrink-wrapped and fixed to each other.

As the elastic wire 42, for example, a metal stranded wire using a stainless steel wire or the like, a single metal wire having a spring property, or a superelastic alloy wire such as a Ni—Ti alloy can be used.

The elastic wires 42 are arranged along substantially the entire length of the flexible board 40 as schematically shown in FIG. 5, and the bending portion 2 is bent so that the flexible board 40 is wavy by the compressive force. In some cases, the elastic wire 42
Is restricted so that the bending of the flexible substrate 40 is not extremely reduced.

Since each of the elastic wires 42 flexes flexibly in any direction, even if the curved portion 2 is flexed in any direction, each of the four flexible substrates 40 has an extremely small radius of curvature. Turns smoothly without ripples. As a result, even if the curved portion 2 is repeatedly bent, the wiring provided on the flexible substrate 40 is not easily broken.

Further, since the elastic wires 42 are arranged along the outer surface of the flexible board 40, when the curved portion 2 is bent and the flexible board 40 becomes wavy, the flexible board 40 is bent. Adjacent node ring 22
It is not sandwiched between gaps and contributes to preventing the flexible substrate 40 from being damaged.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and the flexible substrate 40 in the curved portion 2
May take any layout. Also,
As shown in FIG. 10, a single flexible substrate 40 and an elastic wire 42 may be covered and shrunk by a heat-shrinkable tube 41, and as shown in FIG.
Before covering 0 with the heat-shrinkable tube 41, the flexible substrate 40 and the elastic wire 42 may be covered with an elastic thin silicon rubber tube 43 or the like and fixed in position.

[0032]

According to the present invention, by arranging the elastic wires along the longitudinal direction of the flexible substrate disposed in the bending portion, the bending portion is bent and the flexible substrate is wavy by the compressive force. When it becomes, the elasticity of the elastic wire regulates the bending of the flexible board so as not to be extremely small, so even if the bending operation of the bending portion is repeated, the wiring applied to the flexible board is hard to be broken, and it is excellent. Durability can be obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan sectional view (II sectional view in FIG. 5) of a curved portion of an ultrasonic endoscope according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an overall side view of the ultrasonic endoscope according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a side view of a distal end portion of an insertion portion of the ultrasonic endoscope according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic plan sectional view of a distal end portion of an insertion portion of the ultrasonic endoscope according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic side view of the ultrasonic endoscope according to the embodiment of the present invention in a state where outer skins of an insertion portion are removed.

FIG. 6 is a development view of the flexible substrate according to the embodiment of the present invention.

7 is a sectional view of the flexible substrate according to the embodiment of the present invention, taken along the line VII-VII in FIG. 5;

8 is a sectional view of the flexible substrate according to the embodiment of the present invention, taken along line VIII-VIII in FIG.

FIG. 9 is a side view of the vicinity of a connection portion between the flexible board and the signal cable according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of a flexible substrate according to a second embodiment of the present invention in a cross section perpendicular to the plate surface.

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of a flexible substrate according to a third embodiment of the present invention in a cross section perpendicular to the plate surface.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Flexible tube part 2 Bending part 4 Ultrasonic probe 40 Flexible board 41 Heat shrinkable tube 42 Elastic wire 43 Silicon rubber tube

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 2H040 BA21 DA03 DA12 DA17 DA19 DA51 GA02 4C301 AA02 BB03 BB24 CC01 EE12 FF05 FF15 GA02 GA07 GB06 GB08 GC02 GC17 JA13 JA17 JA19

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. An ultrasonic probe for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic signal and an objective optical for performing optical observation, wherein a bending portion which is bent by remote control is connected to a distal end of a flexible tube portion forming an insertion portion. A system is disposed at a portion closer to the distal end than the bending portion, and an ultrasonic endoscope using a flexible substrate as a signal transmission member for transmitting signals input / output to / from the ultrasonic probe in the bending portion. An ultrasonic endoscope, wherein an elastic wire is arranged along a longitudinal direction of the flexible substrate. 2. The ultrasonic endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the heat-shrinkable tube surrounds the flexible substrate and the elastic wire, and the heat-shrinkable tube is covered and shrunk, whereby the elastic wire is tightly fixed to the flexible substrate. 3. The ultrasonic endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the elastic wire is disposed along a plate surface of the flexible substrate, which is on a back side with respect to a center axis of the curved portion. 4. The elastic wire according to claim 1, wherein the elastic wire is a stranded metal wire, a single metal wire having a spring property, or a superelastic alloy wire.
Or the ultrasonic endoscope according to 3.