JP2005087550A - Light source device for endoscope - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To save space by simplifying a moving mechanism moving an auxiliary light source in a light source device for an endoscope. <P>SOLUTION: This light source device for the endoscope is provided with a main light source lamp 27; light guides 25 and 15 having an incident end face 25a opposed to the main light source lamp 27 and an emitting end face 15b positioned in the tip part of an insertion part 11 of the endoscope; a diaphragm plate 31 supported movably in the direction of crossing an incident optical path between the main light source lamp 27 and the incident end face 25a and having a transmission light quantity adjusting mask 33 changing the transmission light quantity according to an area occupying the incident optical path; and a high luminance LED 34 disposed outside the transmission light quantity adjusting mask 33 of the diaphragm plate 31, when the diaphragm plate 31 moves outside a light quantity adjusting area, opposed to the incident end face 25a and allowing an auxiliary light to enter from the incident end face 25a. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an endoscope light source device including a light amount adjusting member that adjusts a light amount of a main light source and an auxiliary light source that is turned on when the main light source is out of order.

The endoscope includes a light source device that emits illumination light emitted from a main light source lamp through a light guide (fiber bundle) from the distal end portion of the insertion portion of the endoscope and illuminates the human body. Furthermore, even if an abnormality occurs in the main light source lamp, the auxiliary light source is advanced between the main light source lamp and the light guide so that the emergency operation such as removing the endoscope from the human body can be performed. One having an auxiliary light source moving mechanism that leads to a light guide is known.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-305148

  However, in the conventional auxiliary light source moving mechanism of the light source device, the auxiliary light source is normally positioned at a retracted position that does not face the incident end face of the light guide. It moves to a use position facing the incident end face, supplies light to the light guide, and illuminates the body cavity with the light of the auxiliary light source. As described above, the conventional light source device includes the auxiliary light source moving mechanism that is used only in an emergency in which the main light source is out of order. Therefore, the auxiliary light source moving mechanism occupies space and is inefficient. The equipment was enlarged.

  In view of the above-described problems of the prior art, an object of the present invention is to provide an endoscope light source device that simplifies a moving mechanism for moving an auxiliary light source and realizes space saving.

To achieve this object, the present invention provides a main light source, a light guide member having an incident end face opposed to the main light source, and an exit end face positioned at the distal end portion of the endoscope, and between the main light source and the incident end face. A light amount adjustment member that is supported so as to be movable in a direction crossing the incident light path and has a light amount adjustment region in which the amount of transmitted light varies depending on the region that occupies the incident light path, and mounted outside the light amount adjustment region of the light amount adjustment member And an auxiliary light source facing the incident end face of the light guide member when the light amount adjustment member moves out of the light amount adjustment region.
The auxiliary light source is turned off when the main light source can be turned on, turned on when the main light source cannot be turned on, and the light amount adjusting member is inserted into the auxiliary light source when the main light source cannot be turned on. It is comprised so that it may move to the position facing the incident end surface of an optical member.
The light amount adjustment member traverses the incident optical path provided at an end of the arm, and an arm that is pivotally fixed to a rotation axis parallel to the optical axis of the main light source, and A plate-like arc-shaped portion extending in an arc shape with the moving axis as the center, and a transmitted light amount adjustment region in which the transmitted light amount is different along the circumferential direction formed in the arc-shaped portion in an arc shape around the rotation axis And a driving member for rotating the diaphragm plate via the rotation shaft, and the auxiliary light source is mounted on the arcuate portion outside the transmitted light amount adjustment region.
Actually, whether or not the main light source is turned on is detected, the auxiliary light source is turned off while the main light source is turned on, and the auxiliary light source is turned on when the main light source cannot be turned on. Control means for rotating the light amount adjusting member through a driving member to a position where the auxiliary light source faces the incident end face.

  As described above, according to the present invention, the auxiliary light source is mounted on the diaphragm plate for adjusting the light amount of the main light source, and the diaphragm driving mechanism is also used as the auxiliary light source moving mechanism. It has become possible to reduce and save space.

Hereinafter, an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an electronic endoscope system will be described. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a main part of an electronic endoscope system including an electronic endoscope 10 and an endoscope processor 20.
This electronic endoscope 10 has a flexible insertion portion 11 and an operation portion 12, a universal tube 13 extends from the operation portion 12, and a connector 14 provided at the distal end of the universal tube 13 includes: Removably connected to the connector 21 of the endoscope processor 20.

  The vicinity of the distal end portion of the insertion portion 11 is a bending portion containing a bending mechanism (not shown) that bends in the vertical and horizontal directions in accordance with the operation of a bending operation knob provided on the operation portion 12.

  An electronic camera 16 including an objective lens (imaging lens), an imaging element, and the like is built in the distal end portion of the insertion portion 11. The electronic camera 16 includes an objective lens, a focus adjustment mechanism, and an image sensor, and is arranged so that the outside can be imaged from an observation window (object window) provided on the distal end surface of the insertion portion 11. Further, on the distal end surface of the insertion portion 11, an illumination window of an illumination optical system that emits illumination light emitted from the exit end surface 15 b of the illumination light guide (fiber bundle) 15, a forceps opening for projecting forceps and the like. Etc. are arranged (not shown). In addition to the operation knob, the operation unit 12 is provided with operation buttons for controlling moving image shooting, still image shooting, and the like of the electronic camera 16.

  The endoscope processor 20 includes an A / D converter 22, a signal processing circuit 23, and a D / A converter 24 as a video signal processing system for processing a video signal captured by the electronic camera 16. The electronic camera 16 and the A / D converter 22 are wired through the insertion portion 11, the operation portion 12 and the universal tube 13 connected through the connectors 14 and 21, and the endoscope processor 20. The video cable 22a is connected. The D / A converter 24 is connected to a television monitor that displays an image captured by the electronic camera 16. The D / A converter 24 can further be connected to an external storage device such as a video deck for recording video, and a video signal input of a personal computer.

  The video signal converted into a digital signal by the A / D converter 22 is also input to the photometry circuit 26. The photometry circuit 26 determines the exposure amount of the electronic camera 16 from the luminance signal of the input video signal, and outputs a control signal for controlling the exposure control or the illumination light quantity.

  The other end of the light guide 15 is connected to an optical connector (not shown) in the connector 14 from the distal end portion of the insertion portion 11 through the insertion portion 11, the operation portion 12 and the universal tube 13. When the connector 14 and the connector 21 are connected, this optical connector is simultaneously connected to an optical connector (not shown) in the connector 21, and the incident end face 15 a of the light guide 15 and the light guide (optical fiber bundle) 25. The light emission end face 25b is optically connected. The incident end face 25 a at the other end of the light guide 25 is disposed at the incident position of the main light source lamp 27.

  The luminous flux emitted from the main light source lamp 27 is converged and incident from the incident end face 25a, guided to the light guide 25, the exit end face 25b, and the incident end face 15a, and emitted from the exit end face 15b of the light guide 15. The body cavity is illuminated by emitting from the illumination window on the distal end surface of the insertion section 11 to the outside of the insertion section 11.

The main light source lamp 27 is driven and controlled by a main light source 28. The main light source power supply 28 controls the lighting of the main light source lamp 27 by a current supplied from the commercial power supply 29a and stabilized by the stabilized power supply circuit 29b.
The overall operation of the endoscope processor 20 including the turning on / off of the main light source lamp 27 is controlled by the system controller 30. The system controller 30 starts operating when the power switch SWP is turned on.

  As the main light source lamp 27, a high-intensity lamp such as a mercury lamp or a metal halide lamp is usually used, and the high-intensity lamp is mounted on a lamp socket 27a having a reflector. The main light source lamp 27 and the light guide 25 are arranged so that the convergence position of the light beam emitted from the main light source lamp 27 coincides with the incident end face 25a.

In the incident light path between the main light source lamp 27 and the incident end face 25a, a diaphragm plate 31 for adjusting the amount of light incident on the incident end face 25a is disposed movably in a direction perpendicular to the main light source optical axis. . The rotational amount of the diaphragm plate 31 adjusts the amount of light incident on the incident end face 25a. The diaphragm plate 31 is fixed to the rotation shaft 32a of the rotary actuator 32 at the approximate center of the arm portion 31a, and a transmitted light amount adjustment mask 33 is attached to one end portion of the arm portion 31a. When the diaphragm plate 31 is swung by the rotary actuator 32, the transmitted light amount adjustment mask 33 moves in a direction perpendicular to the main light source optical axis, and the amount of light transmitted through the main light source lamp 27 is transmitted according to the position. change.
The actuator 32 is driven and controlled by a drive circuit 35 that has received a photometric signal output from the photometric circuit 26.

The endoscope processor 20 includes a high-intensity LED 34 as an auxiliary light source that supplies illumination light instead of the main light source lamp 27 when the main light source lamp 27 is turned off due to some failure such as lamp life. In this embodiment, the high-intensity LED 34 is mounted on the diaphragm plate 31, and is configured to move to the retracted position and the irradiation position by the rotation operation of the diaphragm plate 31.
The overall operation of the endoscope processor 20 including control of the high-intensity LED 34 and the diaphragm plate 31 is controlled by the system controller 30.

  The features of this embodiment will be further described in detail with reference to FIGS. 2 is a perspective view of the main light source lamp 27, the diaphragm plate 31 and the light guide 25, FIGS. 3 and 4 are perspective views of the diaphragm plate 31 and the light guide 25, and FIG. The enlarged front view seen from the light guide 25 side was shown.

  The diaphragm plate 31 is pivotally supported by the rotary shaft 32a of the rotary actuator 32 at the approximate center of the arm portion 31a. One end of the arm portion 31a is provided with an arc-shaped portion 31b extending in an arc shape centering on the rotation shaft 32a, and the arc-shaped notch 31c extending in an arc shape centering on the rotation shaft 32a is provided in the arc-shaped portion 31b. Is formed. A transmitted light amount adjustment mask 33 that covers the arc-shaped notch 31c and extends along the arc-shaped notch 31c is attached to the arc-shaped portion 31b.

The transmitted light amount adjustment mask 33 has a large number of small small holes 33a along the arc-shaped notches 31c. Each small hole 33a is circular, and the pitch of each small hole 33a is constant, and the diameter thereof is formed so as to gradually increase toward the tip opening side of the arc-shaped notch 31c. That is, the amount of transmitted light increases toward the tip opening side and the amount of transmitted light decreases toward the opposite side, and the main light source is selected according to the region of the transmitted light amount adjustment mask 33 located in the incident light path. The amount of light emitted from the lamp 27, incident from the incident end face 25a and emitted outside the insertion portion 11 changes, and the brightness for illuminating the body cavity changes. The region where the transmitted light amount adjustment mask 33 moves in the incident optical path, the portion where the transmitted light amount adjustment mask 33 is not present, and the opening portion of the arc-shaped notch 31c are the transmitted light amount adjustment region, which is the transmitted light amount adjustment rotation range. The rotary actuator 32 usually adjusts the light amount by swinging the diaphragm plate 31 in this transmitted light amount adjustment rotation range.
The shape and arrangement of the small holes 33a of the transmitted light amount adjustment mask 33 are arbitrary, and instead of the small holes, an optical filter whose transmittance changes gradually or stepwise may be used.

A white high-intensity LED 34 as an auxiliary light source is mounted on the arc-shaped portion 31b of the diaphragm plate 31 at an extended position of the arc-shaped notch 31c. The high-intensity LED 34 is mounted on a cooling heat sink 34a, and is fixed to the arcuate portion 31b of the aperture plate 31 via the heat sink 34a. The high-intensity LED 34 is mounted such that its light emitting surface faces the incident end surface 25a. When the diaphragm plate 31 is in the transmitted light amount adjustment region, it is in a retracted position that is retracted from the incident light path, and when the diaphragm plate 31 rotates beyond the transmitted light amount adjustment region, the light emitting surface faces the incident end surface 25a. Has been. The position where the light emitting surface of the high-intensity LED 34 faces the incident end surface 25a is the auxiliary light source light emitting position.
In addition, the leg-shaped part provided in the other end part of the arm part 31a is the balancer part 31d for balancing the rotation of the diaphragm plate 31 (see FIGS. 2 and 3). The rotary actuator 32 is fixed to the parent plate 50 and is fixed to the housing of the light source device (not shown) via the parent plate 50.

  The rotary actuator 32 is driven and controlled via a drive circuit 35. While the main light source is turned on, it operates in response to a photometric signal from the photometry circuit 26, and the transmitted light amount adjustment mask positioned between the main light source lamp 27 and the incident end face 25a by rotating the aperture plate 31 within the transmitted light amount adjustment region. The amount of transmitted light, that is, the amount of light emitted from the exit end 15b is adjusted by adjusting the area 33.

  When the main light source lamp 27 expires due to a failure or a lifespan, the system controller 30 detects this, turns off the main light source power supply 28, turns on the auxiliary light source power supply 36, turns on the high-intensity LED 34, and turns on the drive circuit 35. Then, the rotary actuator 32 is rotated in the direction of the auxiliary light source emission position, and the high-intensity LED 34 is opposed to the incident end face 25a. Through the above processing, the luminous flux emitted from the high-intensity LED 34 enters from the incident end face 25a, is guided through the light guides 25, 15, and exits from the exit end face 15b to illuminate the inside of the body cavity. With this auxiliary light illumination, the user can pull out the insertion portion 11 from the body cavity by operating the operation portion 12 while watching the television monitor.

  As described above, according to the embodiment of the present invention, the high-intensity LED 34 that is an auxiliary light source is attached to the diaphragm plate 31 that adjusts the amount of light of the main light source. Therefore, the drive mechanism dedicated to the auxiliary light source is not necessary, and the number of parts can be reduced and the space can be saved.

  The power source of the main light source lamp 27 is normally only a commercial power source. However, the power source of the imaging and auxiliary light source system is not supplied from a standby power supply device or a rechargeable battery that switches when the commercial power source fails in addition to the commercial power source. If an auxiliary power source such as a power failure power supply is provided, it can cope with a power failure. In this case, when the commercial power supply is stopped, the auxiliary power supply is switched, and the high-intensity LED 34 is turned on and the diaphragm plate 31 is moved to the blocking position.

It is a figure which shows the main structures of the electronic endoscope system in embodiment which provided the light source device of this invention to the electronic endoscope. It is a perspective view of a main light source, an aperture plate, and a light guide in an embodiment of the present invention. It is the perspective view which showed the aperture plate and light guide in the embodiment from the main light source side. It is the perspective view which showed the aperture plate and light guide in the embodiment from the light guide side. It is the enlarged front view which showed the aperture plate in the same embodiment from the light guide side.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Electronic endoscope 11 Insertion part 12 Operation part 15 Light guide 15a Incident end face 15b Emission end face 16 Electronic camera 20 Endoscope processor 25 Light guide 25a Incidence end face 25b Emission end face 27 Main light source lamp 28 Main light source power supply 29a Commercial power supply 29b Stable Power supply circuit 30 System controller 31 Diaphragm plate 31a Arm portion 31b Arc-shaped portion 31c Arc-shaped notch 32 Rotary actuator 32a Rotating shaft 33 Transmitted light amount adjustment mask 33a Small hole 34 High-intensity LED
35 Drive circuit 36 Auxiliary light source power supply

Claims (4)

A main light source;
A light guide member having an incident end face facing the main light source and an exit end face positioned at a distal end portion of the endoscope;
A light amount adjustment member having a light amount adjustment region that is supported so as to be movable in a direction crossing the incident optical path between the main light source and the incident end surface, and having a transmitted light amount different depending on a region that occupies the incident optical path;
An auxiliary light source mounted outside the light amount adjustment region of the light amount adjustment member and facing the incident end surface of the light guide member when the light amount adjustment member moves out of the light amount adjustment region. Endoscopic light source device. The auxiliary light source is turned off when the main light source can be turned on, turned on when the main light source cannot be turned on, and the light amount adjusting member is inserted into the auxiliary light source when the main light source cannot be turned on. The endoscope light source device according to claim 1, wherein the light source device moves to a position facing an incident end face of the optical member. The light amount adjustment member traverses the incident optical path provided at an end of the arm, and an arm that is pivotally fixed to a rotation axis parallel to the optical axis of the main light source, and A plate-like arc-shaped portion extending in an arc shape with the moving axis as the center, and a transmitted light amount adjustment region in which the transmitted light amount is different along the circumferential direction formed in the arc-shaped portion in an arc shape around the rotation axis And a driving member that rotates the diaphragm plate via the rotation shaft, and the auxiliary light source is mounted on the arcuate portion outside the transmitted light amount adjustment region. Item 3. The light source device for an endoscope according to Item 1 or 2. Whether or not the main light source is turned on is detected, the auxiliary light source is turned off while the main light source is turned on, and the auxiliary light source is turned on when the main light source cannot be turned on and via the driving member. The light source device for an endoscope according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a control unit that rotates the light amount adjusting member to a position where the auxiliary light source faces the incident end surface.