JP2005198734A - Cooling system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To cool the inside of a connector unit without enlarging it. <P>SOLUTION: A system for cooling the inside of the connector unit is constituted of the connector unit where an opening part opening the inside is formed, a cooling means attachable and detachable to/from the connector unit for jetting air from a jetting port, and a positioning means for positioning the jetting port and the opening part such that the air jetted from the jetting port passes through the opening part and is jetted to the inside of the connector unit. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention provides a connector unit of an observation means for acquiring image information for observing the inside of a body cavity, and cooling the interior of the connector unit for connecting to a signal processing device that performs a predetermined process on the image information. About the system.

  As an observation means for acquiring image information for observing the inside of a body cavity, for example, a flexible tube is inserted into the body cavity, and an object is imaged by a solid-state imaging device provided at the distal end of the tube. An electronic endoscope is mentioned. Such an electronic endoscope includes a connector unit at an end thereof, and is connected to a signal processing device such as a processor by the connector unit. Thereby, the image information imaged with the solid-state image sensor is output to the signal processing device, and processed so that it can be displayed on a display means such as a monitor by the action of the signal processing device.

A mounting substrate is usually provided inside the connector unit described above. On such a mounting substrate, for example, a driving circuit for driving a solid-state imaging device, a signal processing circuit for converting an image signal into a video signal, and the like are mounted (for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2002-214539 A

In recent years, a confocal probe that is an observation means different from an electronic endoscope and that can observe a tomographic image of a living tissue has been proposed. This confocal probe irradiates a living body tissue in a body cavity with laser light, and extracts only the reflected light on the object side focal plane of the objective optical system from the reflected light at that time. A tomogram is generated (for example, Patent Document 2).
US Pat. No. 5,120,953

  The confocal probe as described above uses a pinhole arranged at a position conjugate with the object-side focal position of the objective optical system, so that the reflected light from the living tissue is converted into only one point focused on the living tissue. Squeezed. A light receiving element provided in a processor or the like that performs image processing receives this one point of light focused by the pinhole and performs photoelectric conversion processing. For this reason, in order to obtain a two-dimensional or three-dimensional observation image of a living tissue with a confocal probe, it is necessary to scan a laser beam in the living tissue that is the observation target. Therefore, a confocal probe is usually provided with a piezoelectric element and a scanning mirror for scanning laser light in a planar direction or a planar direction and a depth direction in a living tissue.

  Similarly to the electronic endoscope, the confocal probe as described above also has a light source device that oscillates laser light and a power supply device that supplies driving power for driving the piezoelectric element and the scanning mirror as described above (or And a connector unit connected to a processor including a signal processing circuit. Inside such a connector unit, a mounting board on which a driving circuit for driving a piezoelectric element and a scanning mirror is mounted is provided, as in an electronic endoscope.

  In recent years, as the performance of observation means such as electronic endoscopes and confocal probes has improved, more electrical components have been placed on the mounting boards placed inside these connector units. It is coming. When the number of electrical components arranged in this way increases, the amount of heat generated from the mounting board also increases. However, since the temperature inside the connector unit easily rises as the amount of heat generation increases, the electronic endoscope or the confocal probe may not operate normally due to the action of heat. Therefore, it has become necessary to provide a cooling mechanism for cooling the inside of the connector unit.

  However, if the cooling mechanism as described above is provided inside the connector unit, the size of the connector unit is significantly increased. As a result, the electronic endoscope and the confocal probe become difficult to handle, and there is a possibility that the work efficiency of the operator is lowered.

  Then, an object of this invention is to provide the cooling system which can cool the inside, without enlarging a connector unit in view of said situation.

  A cooling system according to an aspect of the present invention that solves the above problem is a connector unit of an observation unit that acquires image information for observing the inside of a body cavity, and a signal processing device that performs predetermined processing on the image information The connector unit for connecting to the connector unit is cooled, the connector unit is formed with an opening that opens the interior, and a cooling means that can be attached to and detached from the connector unit. A cooling means for jetting, and positioning means for positioning the jet port and the opening so that the air jetted from the jet port passes through the opening and is jetted into the connector unit. is there. Further, in the case where it further has a piercing portion inserted into the opening so as to pierce into the connector unit, and the jet port is formed at the tip of the piercing portion, the air jetted from the jet port is It is discharged to the outside through the gap between the opening and the opening. Further, the cooling means is a ring-shaped inflow port formed so as to cover the outer periphery of the entry portion, and further includes an inflow port into which outside air flows and an exhaust port that opens the inside thereof. In this case, the air discharged from the gap flows into the cooling means through the inlet and is discharged from the outlet.

  When the cooling system of the present invention is employed, it is not necessary to add a mechanism for cooling the inside of the connector unit, so that the size of the connector unit is not increased. Thereby, the workability of the observation means provided with the connector unit does not deteriorate, and the operator can easily use the observation means.

  The cooling system according to the embodiment of the present invention is one component in an electronic endoscope system for observing or treating a living tissue in a body cavity, for example. Hereinafter, an electronic endoscope system of the present embodiment and a cooling system provided in the system will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an electronic endoscope system 500 including the cooling system of the present embodiment. The electronic endoscope system 500 includes an electronic endoscope 100 that is inserted into a body cavity and captures an image in the body cavity, an electronic endoscope processor 200 that is connected to the electronic endoscope 100, and a confocal unit. The processor 300, the monitor 210 connected to the electronic endoscope processor 200, and the monitor 310 connected to the confocal unit processor 300.

  The electronic endoscope 100 has a function of imaging a living tissue in a body cavity using a solid-state imaging device such as a CCD, and a function of acquiring image information inside the living tissue using an optical system such as a confocal microscope. ing. The electronic endoscope 100 includes a distal end body 10 provided at the distal end of an insertion portion to be inserted into a body cavity, an insertion portion flexible tube 11 that is also an insertion portion and has flexibility, forceps, and the like. The treatment instrument insertion port 12 in which the various treatment instruments are set, the grip 13 that the operator grips when operating the electronic endoscope 100, and various buttons and levers for the operator to operate the electronic endoscope 100 are provided. An electronic endoscope side connector unit that is a connecting portion of the arranged operation unit 14, the flexible electronic endoscope side cable 15 and confocal unit side cable 16, and the electronic endoscope processor 200. 20 and a confocal unit side connector unit 30, which is a connecting portion between the confocal unit processor 300.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an internal configuration of the distal end main body 10 of the electronic endoscope 100. The distal end body 10 includes a ride guide 1 disposed so as to extend from the electronic endoscope side connector unit 20, an objective lens 2 disposed in front of the distal end body 10, and an image side focal plane of the objective lens 2. The solid-state imaging device 3 is arranged so that the light receiving surface is positioned on the top, and an electric cable 4 is provided that electrically connects the device 3 and the electronic endoscope side connector unit 20. The electronic endoscope 100 performs a function of imaging a living tissue in a body cavity using these components. The configuration and operation of the electronic endoscope system 500 related to this function will be described below.

  In order to perform the above-described function, it is necessary to connect the electronic endoscope side connector unit 20 and the electronic endoscope processor 200. The electronic endoscope side connector unit 20 includes a housing 21 that holds various electrical components including a drive circuit of the solid-state imaging device 3, a cable jack 22 that performs electrical connection, and a fiber jack 23 that performs optical connection. Have. The electronic endoscope processor 200 includes a cable jack 201 that performs electrical connection and a fiber jack 202 that performs optical connection.

  By connecting the cable jacks 22 and 201, the electronic endoscope 100 and the electronic endoscope processor 200 are electrically connected. Further, by connecting the fiber jacks 23 and 202, the electronic endoscope 100 and the electronic endoscope processor 200 are optically connected.

  The electronic endoscope processor 200 has a function as a light source device, a function as a power supply device that supplies a drive voltage for driving the solid-state imaging device 3 to the drive circuit, and a signal that converts an image signal into a video signal. And a function as a processing device.

  When the light source in the electronic endoscope processor 200 emits light, white light is emitted toward the fiber jacks 202 and 23. Since the end of the ride guide 1 is connected to the fiber jack 23, the white light enters the ride guide 1 and is guided to the distal end main body 10 to irradiate the living tissue in the body cavity.

  The reflected light reflected on the living tissue enters the objective lens 2, forms an image on the light receiving surface of the solid-state image sensor 3, and is received by the solid-state image sensor 3. The reflected light received here is photoelectrically converted by the solid-state imaging device 3 to become an image signal, transmitted by the electric cable 4 and input to the electronic endoscope processor 200 via the cable jacks 22 and 201.

  The electronic endoscope processor 200 performs predetermined processing on the input image signal to convert it into a video signal, and outputs the video signal to the monitor 210. The monitor 210 displays an image corresponding to the video signal input here. Thereby, the operator can observe the living tissue in the body cavity. The image that can be observed here is the surface of the living tissue and a relatively wide range (low magnification).

  In addition to the above-described components, the distal end body 10 further includes an optical fiber 5 disposed so as to extend from the confocal unit side connector unit 30 and an objective lens 6 disposed in front of the distal end body 10. And an electric cable 8 in which the actuator 7 and the confocal unit side connector unit 30 are electrically connected to each other. The electronic endoscope 100 functions to acquire image information inside the living tissue using these components. The configuration and operation of the electronic endoscope system 500 related to this function will be described below.

  In order to perform the above-described function, it is necessary to connect the confocal unit side connector unit 30 and the confocal unit processor 300. The confocal unit-side connector unit 30 is electrically connected to a housing 31 that holds various electrical components including a drive circuit of the actuator 7, and a cooling jack 32 that sends cooling air into the housing 31. A cable jack 33 is provided, a fiber cable 34 having flexibility, and a fiber jack 35 installed at an end of the fiber cable 34 and performing an optical connection. Further, the confocal unit processor 300 includes a cooling jack 301 for sending cooling air to the confocal unit side connector unit 30, a cable jack 302 for electrical connection, and a fiber jack 303 for optical connection. have.

  By connecting the cooling jacks 32 and 301, a passage through which cooling air is sent from the confocal unit processor 300 to the confocal unit side connector unit 30 is connected. In addition, by connecting the cable jacks 33 and 302, the electronic endoscope 100 and the confocal unit processor 300 are electrically connected. Further, by connecting the fiber jacks 35 and 303, the electronic endoscope 100 and the confocal unit processor 300 are optically connected.

  The confocal unit processor 300 functions as a light source device, functions as a power supply device that supplies a drive voltage for driving the actuator 7 to the drive circuit, and performs predetermined processing on the image signal so that it can be displayed on the monitor 310. And a function as a cooling device that cools the confocal unit side connector unit 30 by air cooling.

  When the light source in the confocal unit processor 300 emits light, laser light is emitted toward the fiber jacks 303 and 35. Since the end of an optical fiber 5a (described later) is connected to the fiber jack 35, the laser light is incident on the optical fiber 5a, and further incident on the optical fiber 5 connected to the optical fiber 5a. The light is guided to the main body 10 to irradiate the living tissue inside the body cavity.

  The reflected light reflected inside the living tissue enters the objective lens 6. Here, the tip of the optical fiber 5 is located on the image side focal plane of the objective lens 6. Therefore, only one point of reflected light focused on the living tissue out of the reflected light imaged by the objective lens 6 is incident on the optical fiber 5.

  When the driving voltage is supplied from the confocal unit processor 300, the driving circuit disposed in the housing 7 transmits the driving control signal using the electric cable 8 to drive the actuator 7. The actuator 7 is formed by stacking piezoelectric elements, for example, and vibrates at high speed in the direction of arrow A. Due to this vibration, the end of the optical fiber 5 is vibrated at high speed. As a result, the laser light emitted from the fiber 5 is scanned in a two-dimensional or three-dimensional direction inside the living tissue. Along with this scanning, the position of the object side focal point of the objective lens 6 also changes. For this reason, the image formed by the reflected light incident on the optical fiber 5 also changes continuously.

  The reflected light incident on the optical fiber 5 again is transmitted through the optical fiber 5 and is incident on a fiber branched from the fiber 5 by a photocoupler (not shown). Then, the light is received by a light receiving element (not shown) disposed at the end of the fiber, is photoelectrically converted into an image signal, and is input to the confocal unit processor 300 via the cable jacks 33 and 302.

  The confocal unit processor 300 generates two-dimensional or three-dimensional image information by collecting point images acquired in time series by scanning with laser light, and outputs the information to the monitor 310. To do. The monitor 310 displays the image input here. Thereby, the operator can observe the living tissue in the body cavity. The image that can be observed here is a surface image or a tomographic image of a living tissue, and is in a relatively narrow range (high magnification).

  In addition, high precision is not required for the connection between each jack of the electronic endoscope side connector unit 20 and each jack of the electronic endoscope processor 200. Therefore, in the electronic endoscope side connector unit 20, both the cable jack 22 and the fiber jack 23 are supported while being relatively fixed to the housing 21, and are roughly connected to the corresponding jacks. .

  On the other hand, in the confocal unit, the center portion of the laser beam and the core portion of the optical fiber 5 are aligned with high accuracy, and the portion having the highest intensity in the laser beam is reliably incident on the core portion. There is a need. Therefore, high accuracy is required for connection between the fiber jack 35 of the confocal unit side connector unit 30 and the fiber jack 303 of the processor 300 for the confocal unit. For this reason, the fiber jack 35 is supported in a state of being relatively movable with respect to the cooling jack 32 and the cable jack 33 (in other words, the housing 31) that do not require high accuracy for such connection. . Thereby, the cooling jack 32 and the cable jack 33 can be roughly connected to the corresponding jacks, and the fiber jack 35 can be connected to the corresponding jack (that is, the fiber jack 303) with high accuracy.

  Next, the confocal unit side connector unit 30 will be described.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an internal configuration of the confocal unit side connector unit 30. 3A is a cross-sectional view of the unit 30 observed from the top surface, and FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view of the unit 30 observed from the side surface. The confocal unit side connector unit 30 of the present embodiment has a structure that reduces the burden on the operator when the unit is assembled or repaired. Specifically, the electrical components mounted on the substrate and the optical fibers are arranged in independent spaces so that these assembly / repair operations can be performed independently. Below, with reference to FIG. 3, the structure and effect | action of the confocal unit side connector unit 30 are demonstrated.

  The confocal unit-side connector unit 30 stores various electrical components such as a drive circuit 36 for driving the actuator 7 and an optical fiber in the housing 31. In the present embodiment, the various electrical components and the optical fiber are arranged in separate spaces by using the mounting substrate 37 on which the various electrical components are mounted.

  The optical fibers arranged in different spaces from the various electrical components are two optical fibers connected to each other, the optical fiber 5 arranged so as to extend from the tip body 10, and the end portion of which is a sleeve The optical fiber 5 a is connected to the end of the optical fiber 5 by 38. The optical fiber 5 a has one end at the connection portion with the optical fiber 5 and the other end at the tip of the fiber jack 35, and is arranged to extend in the fiber cable 34. Hereinafter, of the optical fiber 5 and the optical fiber 5a, the optical fiber portion housed in the housing 31 is referred to as a housing fiber 50.

  Here, the housing 31 includes a cable connection portion 16 a that is a connection portion with the confocal unit side cable 16 and a cable connection portion 34 a that is a connection portion with the fiber cable 34. In this embodiment, in order to further improve the assembly workability when the optical fiber is stored in the housing 31, the optical fibers are connected to each other inside the housing 31 after passing the individual optical fibers through the cable connection portions. I am letting. At this time, the sleeve 38 used for the connection of the optical fiber is a metal member and is not flexible. However, since the sleeve 38 is disposed inside the housing 31, it does not affect the flexible portion of the electronic endoscope 100 (for example, the insertion portion flexible tube 11 or the confocal unit side cable 16). Absent.

  The mounting substrate 37 is a single-sided mounting substrate, and is mounted on a mounting substrate support 39 formed so as to extend from four corners inside the housing 31 so that the upper surface side of the housing 31 is a non-mounting surface and the bottom surface side is a mounting surface. The housing 31 is supported inside the housing 31 by being screwed to the mounting board support 39 by means of mounting screws 40 and nuts 41. Note that the mounting board support portion 39 is formed in the vicinity of an intermediate position between the upper surface and the bottom surface of the housing 31. Therefore, the mounting substrate 37 is supported in the vicinity of an intermediate position between the upper surface and the bottom surface of the housing 31. For this reason, the space inside the housing 31 is divided into two spaces with the mounting substrate 37 as a boundary. Specifically, the first space 42 surrounded by the bottom and side surfaces of the housing 31 and the mounting surface of the mounting substrate 37, and the first space 42 surrounded by the top surface and side surfaces of the housing 31 and the non-mounting surface of the mounting substrate 37. It is divided into two spaces 43.

  Since the first space 42 includes the mounting surface of the mounting substrate 37, various electric components including the drive circuit 36 are naturally arranged in the space 42. In addition, the storage fiber 50 is disposed in the second space 43 so as to intentionally avoid positional interference with various electrical components.

  The parts arranged in the second space 43 will be described in detail. An optical fiber storage chamber 44 is disposed in the second space 43 to protect the storage fiber 50 and prevent the storage fiber 50 from jumping out of the second space 43 when the confocal unit side connector unit 30 is assembled. Has been.

  The optical fiber storage chamber 44 stores the storage fiber 50 therein, and is formed of an optical fiber storage base 44a and an optical fiber storage lid 44b. The optical fiber storage base 44a covers a plate-like portion having the same size as the mounting substrate 37 and the entire outer periphery of the plate-like portion provided orthogonal to the plate-like portion. It is formed from a side wall portion. That is, the optical fiber storage base 44a is a box-shaped member having a bottom surface and a side surface and an opening on the top surface. The optical fiber storage base 44 a mainly functions to protect the storage fiber 50 and to prevent the above-described protrusion of the storage fiber 50 in the direction parallel to the mounting substrate 37.

  A boss 46 with a mounting screw hole is formed on the optical fiber storage base 44a. The optical fiber storage base 44a is placed on the non-mounting surface of the mounting board 37, and the mounting board connecting screw 46 is screwed into the boss 46 with a mounting screw hole and the through hole (not shown) of the mounting board 37, and The optical fiber storage base 44 a is supported on the non-mounting surface of the mounting substrate 37 by screwing the nut 47 into the mounting substrate connecting screw 46 extending on the mounting surface of the mounting substrate 37.

  Also, a hole (not shown) for inserting the storage fiber 50 out of the optical fiber storage chamber 44 is formed in the side wall portion of the optical fiber storage base 44a located in the vicinity of the cable connection portions 16a and 34a. Is formed. The storage fiber 50 is disposed in the optical fiber storage base 44a by inserting the optical fiber 5 and the optical fiber 5a into the hole and connecting the ends of the optical fiber 5 and the optical fiber 5a with the sleeve 38. At this time, the above-described jump-out of the storage fiber 50 in the direction parallel to the mounting substrate 37 is prevented by the side wall portion of the optical fiber storage base 44a. In addition, since terminals such as IC chips protrude from the back surface of the mounting surface (that is, the non-mounting surface) of the single-side mounting substrate, there is a risk of damaging the optical fiber. In the present embodiment, the storage fiber 50 is protected from sharp objects such as the terminals by the plate-like portion of the optical fiber storage base 44 a interposed between the non-mounting surface and the storage fiber 50.

  The optical fiber storage lid 44b is a lid-shaped molded product having a size substantially the same as the plate-like portion of the optical fiber storage base 44a. The optical fiber storage base 44a is opened by an engagement mechanism (not shown). It engages with the optical fiber storage base 44a so as to cover the part. The optical fiber storage lid 44b mainly functions to prevent the above-described protrusion in the direction orthogonal to the mounting substrate 37.

  The storage fiber 50 is stored in the optical fiber storage chamber 44 by disposing the storage fiber 50 in the optical fiber storage base 44a and covering the opening of the optical fiber storage base 44a with the optical fiber storage lid 44b. .

  As described above, by providing the optical fiber storage chamber 44 in addition to the mounting substrate 37, various electrical components including the drive circuit 36 and the storage fiber 50 are arranged in a spatially separated state. Therefore, since these assembly / repair operations can be performed independently, the ease of operation is improved and the burden on the operator is reduced.

  Next, a cooling system included in the electronic endoscope system 500 according to the embodiment of the present invention, which is a characteristic part of the present invention, will be described.

  The cooling system of the present embodiment is a system that cools the interior of a connector unit that has been highly integrated and has increased the amount of heat generated with the recent improvement in performance of electronic endoscopes without increasing the size of the connector unit.

  FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing the configuration of the cooling system according to the embodiment of the present invention, which cools the confocal unit side connector unit 30 (more specifically, inside the housing 31) by air cooling. 4, only the confocal unit side connector unit 30 is extracted from the electronic endoscope 100, and only the cooling mechanism 304 is extracted from the confocal unit processor 300. Hereinafter, the confocal unit side connector unit 30 and the cooling mechanism 304 shown here are referred to as a cooling system 400 for convenience. Below, with reference to FIG. 4, the structure and effect | action of the cooling system 400 of this embodiment are demonstrated.

  As shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, the first space 42 inside the housing 31 of the confocal unit side connector unit 30 has one end inside the cooling jack 32, and this cooling jack 32 is arranged. A cylindrical cooling passage 48 having another end is disposed in the vicinity of the inner wall facing the inner wall of the housing 31. Of the end portions of the cooling passage 48, an end portion located inside the cooling jack 32 is formed with an inflow port 48a through which the air jetted from the cooling mechanism 304 flows, and the other end portion. Is formed with a jet port 48 b for jetting the air into the housing 31.

  In addition, a circular opening 32 a is formed at a connection portion between the housing 31 and the cooling jack 32 so that air can freely pass between the housing 31 and the cooling jack 32. The cooling passage 48 is disposed across the cooling jack 32 from the housing 31 by being inserted into the opening 32 a. Note that the diameter of the opening 32 a is larger than the diameter of the cooling passage 4. The cooling passage 48 is arranged such that the central axis thereof coincides with the center of the opening 32a. Accordingly, at the connection portion between the housing 31 and the cooling jack 32, the outer circumference of the cooling passage 48, which is finally defined by an inner circle by the cooling passage 48 and an outer circle by the opening 32a, is formed. A ring-shaped opening that covers the surface is formed.

  Further, the cooling jack 32 is provided with an air flow passage 32b for discharging the air flowing in from the opening 32a to the outside (or discharging the air flowing from the outside through the opening 32a). The air inside the housing 31 is discharged to the outside by the air flow passage 32b and the opening 32a.

  Next, the cooling mechanism 304 will be described. The cooling mechanism 304 is a device that cools the inside of the housing 31 by air cooling, and includes a fan 305 for jetting cooling air, a motor 306 that rotationally drives the fan 305, a cooling fan that stores the fan 305 and the motor 306. It is formed so that air can freely come and go between the storage chamber 307, the cylindrical air flow passage 308 extending from the cooling fan storage chamber 307 into the cooling jack 301, and the inside and outside of the cooling mechanism 304. And a plurality of openings 309.

  The cooling jack 301 has a ring-shaped opening that covers the outer periphery of the air flow passage 308 so that air can freely travel between the cooling jack 301 and the cooling mechanism 304. And an air flow passage 301b for discharging air flowing in from the outside (or the opening 301a) from the opening 301a (or discharging it to the outside).

  Next, the cooling process for the cooling jack 32 by the cooling system 400 will be described.

  When the motor 306 is rotationally driven by a drive circuit (not shown) provided in the confocal unit processor 300, the fan 305 also rotates as the motor 306 rotates. When the fan 305 rotates, external air flows into the cooling fan storage chamber 307 and flows in the cooling fan storage chamber 307 in the direction of the arrow in FIG. The air flows into the air flow passage 308, flows in the air flow passage 308 in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 4, and is jetted from a jet port 308 a that is an end of the air flow passage 308. That is, this air is jetted from the cooling jack 301 to the outside.

  Note that it is assumed that the cooling jack 32 is inserted into the cooling jack 301 when this cooling process is performed. When these jacks are connected, the inlet 48 a at the end of the cooling passage 48 is located in front of the jet port 308 a at the end of the air passage 308. Therefore, the air jetted from the jet port 308a flows into the cooling passage 48 through the inlet port 48a, flows in the cooling passage 48 in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 4, and is jetted from the jet port 48b. The

  The air jetted from the jet port 48b flows into the housing 31 and is blown to various electrical components mounted on the mounting board 37 to cool them. The housing 31 is formed airtight except for the opening 32a so that the cleaning liquid does not enter the interior of the housing 31 during cleaning. Therefore, all the air that has flowed into the housing 31 is discharged from the opening 32a.

  The air discharged from the opening 32 a flows through the air flow passage 32 b of the cooling jack 32, is discharged from the opening 301 a through the air flow passage 301 b of the cooling jack 301, and flows into the cooling mechanism 304. To do. And this air is discharged | emitted from the some opening part 309 outside.

  By the above cooling process, the housing 31 whose temperature rise is remarkable due to the heat generation of various electrical components is cooled. The components added to the confocal unit side connector unit 30 in order to realize the cooling process by the cooling system 400 of this embodiment are only the cooling jack 32 and the cooling passage 48. Therefore, when the cooling system 400 as in the present embodiment is employed, the unit 30 can be cooled without increasing the size of the confocal unit side connector unit 30.

  The cooling jack 32 is arranged in parallel with the cable jack 33 and can serve as a rough guide when the cable jack 33 is inserted into the cable jack 302. Thus, the operator can easily connect the confocal unit side connector unit 30 and the confocal unit processor 300.

  The above is the embodiment of the present invention. The present invention is not limited to these embodiments and can be modified in various ranges.

  In this embodiment, the inside of the confocal unit side connector unit 30 is cooled, but in another embodiment, the inside of the electronic endoscope side connector unit 20 is cooled by replacing the confocal unit side connector unit 30. May be.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the electronic endoscope system containing the connector unit of embodiment of this invention. It is the schematic block diagram which showed the structure inside the front-end | tip part main body of the electronic endoscope used for embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed the internal structure of the confocal unit side connector unit of embodiment of this invention. It is a cooling system of an embodiment of the present invention, and is a sectional view showing composition of a cooling system which cools a confocal unit side connector unit by air cooling.

Explanation of symbols

30 confocal unit side connector unit 31 housing 32 cooling jack 35 fiber jack 36 drive circuit 37 mounting board 48 cooling passage 48b jet port 301 cooling jack 301a opening 304 cooling mechanism 308 air flow passage 400 cooling system

Claims (3)

In the cooling system for cooling the inside of the connector unit for connecting to a signal processing device for obtaining image information for observing the inside of a body cavity, the connector unit for performing a predetermined process on the image information,
A connector unit formed with an opening that opens the interior;
A cooling means detachable from the connector unit, the cooling means for jetting air from a jet port;
Positioning means for positioning the jet port and the opening so that the air jetted from the jet port passes through the opening and is jetted into the connector unit. system. When further having a piercing portion inserted into the opening to pierce into the connector unit, and the jet port is formed at the tip of the piercing portion,
The cooling system according to claim 1, wherein the air jetted from the jet port is discharged to the outside through a gap between the entry portion and the opening. The cooling means is a ring-shaped inflow port formed so as to cover the outer periphery of the entry portion, and further includes an inflow port through which outside air flows and an exhaust port that opens the inside thereof.
The cooling system according to claim 2, wherein the air discharged from the gap flows into the cooling means through the inflow port and is discharged from the discharge port.

Images