JP2009045084A - Endoscope operation device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an endoscope operation device having a bending operation knob for bending a bending part at the distal end of an insertion part by the rotating operation, highly flexible in the selection of the shape of a projecting part of the bending operation knob, and excellent in the operability. <P>SOLUTION: The endoscope operation device has a plurality of projecting parts projecting in the direction of outer diameter around the rotation axis of the bending operation knob on the outer surface of the bending operation knob. At least one projecting part is a separate projecting part formed as a separate member from a knob body part, and the endoscope operation device is characterized by an attaching/detaching means for attaching/detaching the separate projecting part to/from the knob body part. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an operating device for an endoscope, and more particularly to a bending operation knob for operating a bending portion at the distal end of an insertion portion.

  2. Description of the Related Art Endoscopes that allow a distal end portion of a flexible insertion portion to be bent by an operation device provided in an operation portion (grip portion) held by an operator are widely used. This type of endoscope is provided with a plurality of bending pieces connected to each other so as to be relatively rotatable in the bending portion, and a bending operation is performed by pulling and relaxing an operation wire connected to the bending piece. In many cases, a bending operation knob provided on the operation portion so as to be rotatable is used as a wire operation means. In the type capable of bending operation in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction, the two bending operation knobs for the vertical direction and the horizontal direction are arranged side by side on the same axis. In this case, in order to obtain good operability, the maximum outer diameter size of the bending operation knob on the base end side close to the outer surface of the operation unit (hereinafter referred to as the lower bending operation knob) is far from the outer surface of the operation unit. Generally, it is formed to be larger than the maximum outer diameter size of the bending operation knob on the distal end side (hereinafter referred to as the upper bending operation knob).

By the way, depending on the state of use of the endoscope, it is necessary for the operator to operate the two bending operation knobs with one hand. Therefore, a structure that can be easily operated with one hand is desired. For example, in Patent Document 1, at least one of a plurality of convex portions formed on the outer peripheral surface of the upper bending operation knob is formed so as to protrude larger than the lower bending operation knob. Thus, even when an operator with a small hand handles the finger, the finger can easily reach the upper bending operation knob far from the operation unit.
JP 2005-245545 A

  In the bending operation knob of Patent Document 1, the shape of the bending operation knob including the specific convex portion that increases the outer diameter size is limited to a shape set in advance at the molding stage. It is not possible to freely select and improve usability. Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an endoscope operating device that has a high degree of freedom in selecting the shape of the convex portion of the bending operation knob and is excellent in operability.

  The present invention is an endoscope having a bending operation knob that bends a bending portion at a distal end of an insertion portion by a rotation operation, and protrudes in an outer diameter direction around the rotation axis on an outer peripheral surface of the bending operation knob. An attaching / detaching means having a plurality of projecting parts, wherein at least one projecting part is a separate projecting part formed as a separate member from the knob body part, and the separate projecting part is detachable from the knob body part It is characterized by having.

  In order to further improve the operability, it is preferable that separate protrusions having different shapes can be selected and attached to the same attachment portion of the knob body.

  The attaching / detaching means may be constituted by a screw hole formed on the outer peripheral surface of the knob main body and an attachment screw inserted into and screwed into the screw insertion hole formed in the separate protrusion.

  According to the endoscope operating device of the present invention described above, since the separate convex portion formed as a separate member is attached to the knob main body portion, the degree of freedom in selecting the shape of the convex portion is high and the operator's preference As a result, the operability is improved.

  An electronic endoscope 10 shown in FIG. 1 includes an operation unit 11, an insertion unit 12 extending from the distal end of the operation unit 11, a universal cable 13 extending from the operation unit 11 to the side, and a universal cable 13 and a connector portion 14 provided at an end portion. The connector unit 14 is connected to a processor (not shown). The processor incorporates an image processing device, a light source lamp for illumination, and the like.

  An objective optical system and an illumination optical system are provided at the distal end portion of the insertion portion 12. The objective optical system forms an image on the light receiving surface of the image pickup device, and an image signal obtained by photoelectric conversion by the image pickup device is sent to the image processing device of the processor through a transmission cable arranged up to the connector section 14. The image processed by the image processing apparatus can be displayed on a monitor display or recorded on an image recording medium. A light guide is also provided in the electronic endoscope 10 from the connector unit 14 to the illumination optical system. When the light source lamp emits light in the processor, the light is passed through a condenser lens provided in the connector unit 14. Light source light enters the guide, and illumination light is distributed from the distal end portion of the insertion portion 12 via the light guide and the illumination optical system.

  The operation unit 11 is provided with a plurality of remote operation buttons 15 used for image processing, image recording, illumination control, and the like. The operation unit 11 is provided with an air / liquid feeding button 16 and a suction button 17. By operating the air / liquid feeding button 16, Liquid feeding can be performed, and suction from the suction port at the distal end of the insertion portion 12 can be performed by operating the suction button 17.

  The insertion portion 12 has flexibility, and a partial region near the distal end thereof has a bending portion 21 that is bent in the vertical direction and the left-right direction in accordance with the operation of the bending operation device 20 provided in the operation portion 11. It has become. A plurality of node rings connected to be freely rotatable are provided in the bending portion 21, and an operation wire connected to the node ring extends from the insertion portion 12 into the operation portion 11. This operation wire is provided with a total of four pairs of a pair for bending in the vertical direction and a pair for bending in the horizontal direction.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the bending operation device 20 includes an up / down bending operation knob 22, a left / right bending operation knob 23, a lock lever 24, and a lock knob 25. These three knobs and one lever are supported so as to be independently rotatable about a common rotation center axis G, and are provided so as to be stacked on the same axis along the rotation center axis G. ing. Specifically, the lock lever 24 is located on the proximal end side of the rotation center axis G closest to the outer surface of the operation unit 11, and the vertical bending operation knob 22 and the left / right bending operation knob 23 are arranged thereon in this order. The lock knob 25 is located at the tip position of the rotation center axis G farthest from the outer surface of the operation unit 11.

  The up / down bending operation knob 22 and the left / right bending operation knob 23 rotate integrally with a pulley provided inside the operation unit 11, and a pair of operation wires for bending in the up / down direction is wound around the pulley rotating together with the up / down bending operation knob 22. A pair of left and right bending operation wires are wound around a pulley that is rotated and rotates integrally with the left and right bending operation knob 23. By rotating the respective bending operation knobs 22 and 23 in the forward and reverse directions, the pair of operation wires wound around the pulley is pulled and relaxed, whereby the node ring in the bending portion 21 is relatively rotated, and the bending portion 21 is curved. By rotating the up / down bending operation knob 22 in the forward / reverse direction, the bending portion 21 is bent in the up / down direction, and by rotating the left / right bending operation knob 23 in the forward / reverse direction, the bending portion 21 is bent in the left / right direction. Specifically, when the up / down bending operation knob 22 is rotated to the “D” side illustrated in FIG. 2, a downward bending operation occurs when the up / down bending operation knob 22 is rotated to the “U” side. When it is rotated to the “R” side shown in FIG. 2, a bending operation is generated in the right direction, and when it is rotated to the “L” side, a bending operation is generated in the left direction. In addition, regarding the bending direction of the insertion portion 12, which direction is defined as up and down or left and right is arbitrary, but the up and down bending direction by the up and down bending operation knob 22 and the left and right bending directions by the left and right bending operation knob 23 are Are orthogonal to each other. The lock lever 24 is a brake (lock) operation member that restricts the rotation of the up / down bending operation knob 22 by rotating in the “F” direction shown in FIG. 2. Similarly, the lock knob 25 is a brake (lock) operation member that restricts the rotation of the left / right bending operation knob 23 by performing a rotation operation in the “F” direction. A turning support mechanism that supports the up / down bending operation knob 22, the left / right bending operation knob 23, the lock lever 24, and the lock knob 25 so as to be coaxially rotatable with respect to the operation unit 11, and the up / down bending operation knob 22 The brake mechanism that restricts the rotation of the bending operation knob 22 and the left and right bending operation knob 23 has a well-known structure and will not be described in detail.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the left and right bending operation knob 23 is provided with five convex portions 30 on the outer peripheral surface thereof at different positions in the circumferential direction around the rotation center axis G. The portions 30 are connected by arcuate recesses 31. The left and right bending operation knob 23 is configured such that the convex portion 30 can be attached to and detached from the knob main body portion 32 having the concave portion 31.

  Each of the knob main body 32 and the convex portion 30 is separately molded as a synthetic resin molded product. As shown in FIG. 3, a shaft member 33 that can rotate about a rotation center axis G is provided inside the left / right bending operation knob 23, and the knob main body 32 is fixed to the shaft member 33. Has been. The inside of the knob main body 32 is formed in a hollow shape, and a brake mechanism operated by the lock knob 25 is incorporated therein. Five planar attachment surfaces 34 are formed on the outer peripheral surface of the knob main body 32 so as to appear alternately with the recesses 31, and screw holes 35 are opened on the attachment surface 34. A female screw is formed inside the screw hole 35. A flat contact surface 36 corresponding to the mounting surface 34 is formed in the convex portion 30, and a screw insertion hole 37 penetrating from the outer peripheral portion of the convex portion 30 to the contact surface 36 is formed. The inner diameter size of the screw insertion hole 37 is larger than the inner diameter size of the screw hole 35, and the inner diameter size is gradually increased in the back side region adjacent to the contact surface 36 in the screw insertion hole 37 as the contact surface 36 is approached. A conical portion 38 to be reduced is formed.

  The convex portion 30 is fastened and fixed to the knob main body portion 32 by an attachment screw 40. The mounting screw 40 has a screw shaft portion in which a male screw that can be screwed into the female screw of the screw hole 35 is formed, and a head portion having a diameter corresponding to the inner diameter size of the screw insertion hole 37. When attaching the convex part 30 to the knob main body part 32, the contact surface 36 is applied to the attachment surface 34, and it aligns so that the screw insertion hole 37 and the screw hole 35 may communicate. Then, the mounting screw 40 is inserted into the screw insertion hole 37 and screwed into the screw hole 35. As shown in FIG. 3, the mounting screw 40 is tightened until its head portion contacts the conical portion 38. As a result, the contact surface 36 comes into close contact with the mounting surface 34, and the convex portion 30 is fixed to the knob main body portion 32. It is preferable that the screw insertion hole 37 is closed with a sealing material 39 after the projection 30 is attached. As a result, dirt does not enter the screw insertion hole 37 and cleaning is facilitated. In general, since the outer surface of the endoscope is required to be covered with a non-conductive material, when the mounting screw 40 is a metal member, the outer surface can be obtained by covering the mounting screw 40 with a sealing material 39. Can prevent exposure to.

  When removing the convex part 30 from the knob main-body part 32, the sealing material 39 should just be removed from the screw insertion hole 37, and fixation by the attachment screw 40 should be cancelled | released contrary to the above procedure. 3 shows only the attachment / detachment structure of one protrusion 30, all of the five protrusions 30 in the left / right bending operation knob 23 can be attached to / detached from the knob main body 32 with the same structure. Yes.

  As described above, in the left / right bending operation knob 23, the convex portion 30 is formed as a separate convex portion that can be arbitrarily attached to and detached from the knob main body portion 32, so that the convex portion is integrally formed with the knob main body. Compared to the type of bending operation knob, the degree of freedom in setting the shape is increased, and a bending operation knob with excellent operability can be obtained. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, a knob shape according to the preference of the surgeon can be obtained by arranging a plurality of types of convex portions 30 having different shapes so that they can be arbitrarily selected. Of course, you may further prepare the convex part 30 of shapes other than shown in FIG. In addition, even if it is the convex part 30 from which a shape differs, the screw insertion hole 37 and the cone-shaped part 38 of the same diameter are each formed, and it fastens and fixes with respect to the knob main-body part 32 with the common attachment screw 40. Can be made.

  In the structure where two or more operation knobs are stacked in the direction of the rotation center axis, when the operator's hand is small, the finger may not reach the operation knob located far from the outer surface of the operation unit. there were. In order to improve this, in the illustrated embodiment, a structure in which the convex portion 30 can be attached to and detached from the knob main body portion 32 of the left and right bending operation knob 23 on the side far from the outer surface of the operation portion 11 is adopted. However, from the viewpoint of improving the operability by increasing the degree of freedom in setting the shape of the bending operation knob, the same structure can be applied to the vertical bending operation knob 22 on the side close to the outer surface of the operation unit 11. That is, similarly to the left / right bending operation knob 23, the up / down bending operation knob 22 has five protrusions 41 protruding in the outer diameter direction, and these protrusions 41 are used as the knob body of the up / down bending operation knob 22. On the other hand, you may comprise as a separate convex part which can be attached or detached.

  As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated based on illustration embodiment, this invention is not limited to this embodiment. For example, the left and right bending operation knob 23 of the illustrated embodiment has all the five protrusions 30 detachable from the knob body 32, but a part of the protrusions 30 is a detachable separate protrusion. The other protrusions 30 may be structured so as to be formed integrally with the knob body 32.

1 is an overall view of an electronic endoscope including a bending operation device according to the present invention. It is the figure which expanded and showed the bending operation apparatus vicinity in the endoscope of FIG. It is sectional drawing of the convex part vicinity of the left-right bending operation knob which follows the AA line of FIG. It is the figure which removed the convex part from the knob main body of the right and left bending operation knob in the bending operation apparatus of FIG. 2, and showed with the convex part of another shape which can be replaced | exchanged.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Electronic endoscope 11 Operation part 12 Insertion part 20 Bending operation apparatus 21 Bending part 22 Up and down bending operation knob 23 Left and right bending operation knob 24 Lock lever 25 Lock knob 30 Convex part 31 Concave part 32 Knob body part 33 Shaft member 34 Mounting surface 35 Screw Hole 36 Contact surface 37 Screw insertion hole 38 Conical portion 39 Sealing material 40 Mounting screw

Claims (3)

An endoscope having a bending operation knob for bending the bending portion at the distal end of the insertion portion by a rotation operation,
A separate protrusion formed on the outer peripheral surface of the bending operation knob, which has a plurality of protrusions protruding in the outer diameter direction centering on the rotation axis, and at least one protrusion is formed as a separate member from the knob body. An endoscope operating device comprising an attaching / detaching means configured to attach and detach the separate protrusion to the knob body. The endoscope operating device according to claim 1, wherein separate convex portions having different shapes can be selected and attached to the same attaching portion of the knob body. The endoscope operating device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the attaching / detaching means is inserted into a screw hole formed on the outer peripheral surface of the knob main body and a screw insertion hole formed on a separate convex portion. An endoscope operating device comprising a mounting screw to be screwed together.

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