JP2015034875A - Endoscope system, and method for removing dirt on apical surface of insertion part in endoscope employing the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an endoscope system that enables an insertion part of an endoscope to be cooled, using a guide tube, and enables dirt on an apical surface of the insertion part to be easily removed, and further is excellent in observation properties.SOLUTION: An endoscope comprises: a guide tube 20; an insertion part 10 of the endoscope; and an air supply device. At a tip portion of the guide tube 20, an advance direction change part B is formed that changes an advance direction of air A supplied to a space 70 to an interior side in a radial direction K, and in an advance direction change part B, an air discharge port 60K is formed that discharges the air A to the interior side in the radial direction K. When an apical surface of the insertion part 10 is located at an air supply position away by a set distance S1 farther rearward than a tip end 20s, the air A discharged from the air discharge port 60k is supplied to the apical surface.

Description

  The present invention provides an endoscope system including a fluid supply device that supplies a cooling fluid to a space between a guide tube and an insertion portion of the endoscope that can be inserted into and removed from the insertion hole of the guide tube, The present invention relates to a method for removing dirt on a distal end surface of an insertion portion in an endoscope using an endoscope system.

  In recent years, endoscopes have been widely used, for example, in the industrial field. Endoscopes used in the industrial field perform observation of scratches and corrosion in a subject by inserting a long and narrow insertion portion into a jet engine, a factory pipe, a machine, or the like. be able to.

  Here, in a subject under a high temperature environment, when the endoscope insertion portion is inserted into the subject for observation, the insertion portion may be heated to a high temperature (for example, 100 ° C. or higher). Yes, and as a result, there was a problem that an imaging unit or the like provided in the insertion unit failed.

  In view of such a problem, Patent Document 1 discloses that after inserting the guide tube into the subject and inserting the insertion portion into the guide tube, the outer peripheral surface of the insertion portion and the inner peripheral surface of the guide tube A configuration of an endoscope system that can cool an insertion portion during observation in a subject by supplying a cooling fluid to a space formed therebetween is disclosed.

  By the way, an objective lens for observing the inside of the subject and an illumination lens for supplying illumination light to the subject are provided on the tip surface of the insertion portion in the insertion direction (hereinafter simply referred to as the tip). If dirt such as dust adheres to the objective lens and the illumination lens during observation inside the subject, the visual field and the amount of illumination light are reduced.

  In view of this, it is conceivable to remove the insertion portion from the guide tube and remove the dirt on the distal end surface of the insertion portion, and then insert the insertion portion into the guide tube again. However, this method has poor workability.

  Accordingly, an air / water supply conduit is provided in the insertion portion, and an L-shaped nozzle that discharges fluid toward the distal end surface of the insertion portion via the air / water supply conduit is the tip of the air / water supply conduit. There is also a known configuration in which dirt on the distal end surface of the insertion portion is removed during observation inside the subject by supplying fluid to the distal end surface via the air / water supply conduit and the nozzle.

  However, in such a configuration, since the air supply / water supply conduit is provided in the insertion portion, there is a problem that the manufacturing cost of the insertion portion increases and the insertion portion becomes thicker.

  In view of such a problem, in Patent Documents 2 and 3, a nozzle bent inward in the radial direction of the guide tube so as to overlap the distal end surface of the guide tube through which the insertion portion of the endoscope is inserted is provided. The gas supplied to the space between the outer peripheral surface of the insertion portion and the inner peripheral surface of the guide tube is provided to the front end surface of the insertion portion through the nozzle, thereby removing dirt on the front end surface. A configuration of an endoscope system is disclosed.

JP 2010-8551 A JP-A-8-173370 JP-A-10-43131

  However, the configuration of the endoscope system disclosed in Patent Document 1 can cool the insertion portion inserted into the subject, but has a configuration for removing dirt on the distal end surface of the insertion portion. Absent.

  Therefore, by applying the cooling fluid disclosed in Patent Literature 1 to the configurations disclosed in Patent Literatures 2 and 3, it is naturally possible to adopt a configuration in which the cooling of the insertion portion and the removal of the dirt on the distal end surface of the insertion portion are performed simultaneously. .

  However, in the configuration of the endoscope system disclosed in Patent Documents 2 and 3, since the nozzle is positioned so as to overlap the distal end surface of the insertion portion, it is necessary to remove the contamination from the distal end surface from the nozzle. There is a problem in that it is necessary to accurately position the tip surface at the position where the fluid is supplied and to maintain the position, which makes alignment difficult.

  Furthermore, when the nozzle interferes, the distal end side in the insertion direction of the insertion portion (hereinafter simply referred to as the distal end side) protrudes forward in the insertion direction from the distal end of the guide tube (hereinafter simply referred to as forward). Therefore, there is a problem that the observation inside the subject is poor.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems. The guide tube can be used to cool the insertion portion of the endoscope, and dirt on the distal end surface of the insertion portion can be easily removed. It is an object of the present invention to provide an endoscope system and a method for removing dirt on a distal end surface of an insertion portion in an endoscope using the endoscope system.

In order to achieve the above object, an endoscope system according to an aspect of the present invention includes a guide tube,
The insertion portion of the endoscope that can be inserted into and removed from the insertion hole of the guide tube and that can protrude forward in the insertion direction from the distal end in the insertion direction of the guide tube after insertion, and the insertion portion is inserted into the insertion hole. A fluid supply device for supplying a fluid for cooling the insertion portion to a space between the outer peripheral surface of the insertion portion and the inner peripheral surface of the guide tube in the inserted state; A traveling direction changing portion is formed at the distal end portion on the distal end side in the insertion direction to change the traveling direction of the fluid supplied to the space from the direction along the insertion direction to the inside in the radial direction of the guide tube. And a fluid discharge port for discharging the fluid to the inside in the radial direction is provided in the advancing direction changing portion, and set behind the distal end of the guide tube in the insertion direction. When the distal end surface of the insertion direction of the distal end of the insertion portion is positioned away away fluid supply position, said fluid being discharged from the fluid discharge port is supplied to the tip surface.

  Moreover, the dirt removal method of the front end surface of the insertion part in the endoscope using the endoscope system according to one aspect of the present invention uses the endoscope system according to any one of claims 1 to 9. A method for removing dirt on a distal end surface of an insertion portion in an endoscope, wherein the distal end surface is positioned at the fluid supply position of the insertion portion protruding forward in the insertion direction from the distal end of the guide tube. And at least while the insertion portion is inserted together with the guide tube into the subject, the fluid supply device continuously supplies the space, and the traveling direction changing portion causes the traveling direction to be A step of supplying the fluid for cooling the insertion portion changed from the insertion direction to the inside in the radial direction to the distal end surface via the fluid discharge port at the fluid supply position. .

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the insertion part of an endoscope can be cooled using a guide tube, the stain | pollution | contamination of the front end surface of an insertion part can be removed easily, and also the endoscope system and endoscope system with good observability It is possible to provide a method for removing the dirt on the distal end surface of the insertion portion in an endoscope using this.

The perspective view which shows the endoscope system of 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows schematically the state of the endoscope system by which the insertion part of an endoscope is penetrated in the guide tube of FIG. 2 is a top view of the tip of the guide tube in FIG. 2 viewed from the direction III in FIG. The top view which shows the modification of the formation position of the slit formed in the internal peripheral surface of the guide tube of FIG. Partial sectional view showing a cross section of the guide tube along the line V-V in FIG. 3 together with the insertion portion of the endoscope Partial sectional view showing a section of the guide tube along the VI-VI line in FIG. 3 together with the insertion portion of the endoscope FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view schematically showing a state in which the gas supplied to the space of FIG. 5 has been changed in the traveling direction by the traveling direction changing unit and is supplied to the distal end surface of the insertion portion of the endoscope. The fragmentary sectional view at the time of inserting the front end side of the insertion part of an endoscope in the insertion hole of the guide tube in the endoscope system of 2nd Embodiment. FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional view schematically showing a state in which the gas supplied to the space of FIG. 8 has been changed in the traveling direction by the traveling direction changing unit and is supplied to the distal end surface of the insertion portion of the endoscope.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an endoscope system according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing a state of the endoscope system in which an insertion portion of the endoscope is inserted into the guide tube of FIG. FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an endoscope system 100 includes an endoscope 1, a guide tube 20, and an air supply device 30 that is a fluid supply device.

  The endoscope 1 has an elongated and flexible insertion portion 10 along the insertion direction S, and a grip connected to a proximal end (hereinafter simply referred to as a proximal end) of the insertion portion 10 in the insertion direction S. And an operation unit 15 having a unit 15h.

  Further, the endoscope 1 includes a universal cord 17 extended from the grip portion 15h of the operation portion 15, and an apparatus main body 50 to which the extended end of the universal cord 17 is connected.

  In order from the distal end side of the insertion portion 10 to the insertion portion 10, a bending portion 12 that can be bent in four directions, for example, up and down, left and right, by operating a joystick 15 j provided in the operation portion 15, and a flexible A long flexible tube portion 13 formed of a conductive member is connected to the operation portion 15, and a proximal end of the flexible tube portion 13 is connected to the operation portion 15. As shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the distal end surface 11s of the distal end portion 11 has an objective lens 2 for observing the inside of the subject and an illumination lens 3 for supplying illumination light into the subject. It is provided to be exposed.

  In addition to the joystick 15j, the operation unit 15 is provided with various switches (not shown) for instructing an imaging operation in an imaging unit (not shown) provided in the distal end portion 11.

  The apparatus main body 50 has, for example, a box shape, and a monitor 55 that displays an endoscopic image captured by the above-described imaging unit of the endoscope 1 on an exterior casing 50g configured by, for example, magnesium die casting. However, it is fixed to the exterior housing 50g so as to be freely opened and closed. The monitor 55 may be detachable from the outer casing 50g, or may be fixed with the monitor surface exposed at all times.

  The insertion portion 10 of the endoscope 1 can be inserted into and removed from an insertion hole 20i (see FIG. 5), which will be described later, in a cylindrical and elongated guide tube 20 along the insertion direction S. As shown in FIG. 2, the guide tube 20 can protrude forward from the tip 20s.

  When the insertion portion 10 is inserted into the subject while being inserted into the guide tube 20, the objective lens 2 exposed on the distal end surface 11s of the distal end portion 11 (both see FIG. 5) is observed. In order to improve the performance, the distal end of the insertion portion 10 is positioned so that at least the curved portion 12 projects forward from the distal end 20 s of the guide tube 20 so that the observation direction of the objective lens 2 can be changed along with the bending of the curved portion 12. The side protrudes forward from the tip 20s.

  The air supply device 30 is connected to the guide tube 20 via a gas supply line 24 in which a valve 26 and a regulator 27 are interposed at a midway position. In the state where the insertion portion 10 is inserted into the guide tube 20, the air supply device 30 is configured to supply a gas A (see FIG. 7) that is a fluid that cools the insertion portion 10 in a space 70 (see FIG. 5) described later. At least while the insertion portion 10 is inserted into the subject together with the guide tube 20, it is continuously supplied via the gas supply line 24.

  Examples of the air supply device 30 include a pump that supplies compressed air, an air pipe provided in a factory, and the like. Moreover, as gas A, normal temperature compressed air is mentioned, for example. If the temperature of the gas A is too low, the objective lens 2 and the illumination lens 3 become cloudy when supplied to the tip surface 11s as will be described later, so that the gas A is at a temperature of about room temperature. Is preferred.

Next, the configuration of the guide tube 20 will be described with reference to FIGS.
3 is a top view of the tip of the guide tube in FIG. 2 as viewed from the direction III in FIG. 2, and FIG. 4 shows a modification of the formation position of the slit formed in the inner peripheral surface of the guide tube in FIG. It is a top view.

  5 is a partial sectional view showing a section of the guide tube along the VV line in FIG. 3 together with the insertion portion of the endoscope, and FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the guide tube along the VI-VI line in FIG. FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional view shown together with the insertion portion of the endoscope. FIG. 7 shows the gas supplied to the space of FIG. 5 with its traveling direction changed by the traveling direction changing portion and supplied to the distal end surface of the insertion portion of the endoscope. It is a fragmentary sectional view showing roughly the state.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the guide tube 20 is formed in a cylindrical shape having an insertion hole 20 i into which the insertion portion 10 can be inserted and removed.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the guide tube 20 has a diameter r1 of an insertion hole 20i in a front half portion (hereinafter simply referred to as a front half portion) 21 in the insertion direction S of the distal end portion 23 located on the distal end side. The inner peripheral surface 20n is formed smaller than the diameter r2 of the insertion hole 20i other than the tip portion 23 (r1 <r2).

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the inner peripheral surface 20 n is located on the inner peripheral surface 20 n 2 of the rear half portion (hereinafter simply referred to as the latter half portion) 22 in the insertion direction S in the distal end portion 23. It has a tapered surface 22t that connects the circumferential surface 20n1 and the inner circumferential surface 20n3 other than the tip portion 23 in a taper shape along the insertion direction S.

  The tapered surface 22t is formed when the distal end side of the insertion portion 10 protrudes forward from the distal end 20s of the guide tube 20 via the insertion hole 20i or when the distal end side of the insertion portion 10 is pulled into the insertion hole 20i. This facilitates the movement of the insertion portion 10 in the insertion hole 20i so that the distal end side is not caught by the inner peripheral surface 20n.

  Here, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, in a state where the insertion portion 10 is inserted through the insertion hole 20 i, there is a gap between the outer peripheral surface 10 g of the insertion portion 10 and the inner peripheral surface 20 n of the guide tube 20. A space 70 constituting the insertion hole 20i is formed along the insertion direction S.

  On the base end side in the insertion direction S of the guide tube 20 (hereinafter simply referred to as the base end side), an air supply base 20k communicating with the space 70 is provided as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, one end of the gas supply line 24 is freely connectable. Thereby, the gas A supplied from the air supply device 30 is supplied to the space 70 via the gas supply pipe 24 and the air supply base 20k, and is inserted into the insertion hole 20i by the supplied gas A. The inserted insertion part 10 is cooled.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the traveling direction of the gas A supplied to the space 70 at the distal end portion 23 of the guide tube 20 is changed from the direction along the insertion direction S to the inside of the radial direction K of the guide tube 20. In addition, at least while the insertion portion 10 is inserted into the subject together with the guide tube 20, the gas discharge port 60k that is a fluid discharge port that continuously discharges the gas A into the radial direction K is provided. A direction changing portion B is formed.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the advancing direction changing portion B includes a bent portion 20 m that is bent inward in the radial direction K at the distal end of the distal end portion 23, that is, at the distal end of the guide tube 20. The main part is comprised from the slit 60 formed along the insertion direction S with respect to the inner peripheral surfaces 20n1 and 20n2. The slit 60 opens to the inside in the radial direction K, communicates with the space 70, and is a portion into which the gas A flows from the space 70.

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the slit 60 has a set interval, for example, a 90 ° interval, along the circumferential direction C of the guide tube 20 with respect to the inner peripheral surfaces 20n1, 20n2. The case where four are formed is shown as an example, but the number is not limited to four, and any number may be formed, and only one may be formed. Moreover, it does not need to be formed in the perimeter with respect to the inner peripheral surfaces 20n1 and 20n2.
For example, as shown in FIG. 4, only three are formed with respect to the inner peripheral surfaces 20n1 and 20n2, and the set interval in the circumferential direction C is biased toward only a part of the inner peripheral surfaces 20n1 and 20n2 in the circumferential direction C. May be formed. Furthermore, the interval between the slits 60 in the circumferential direction C may not be constant.

  The bent portion 20m changes the traveling direction of the gas A flowing into the slits 60 from the space 70 to the inner side in the radial direction K in the insertion hole 20i.

  Further, of the openings to the inner side in the radial direction K of each slit 60, the part facing the gas supply position described later, specifically, the part not facing the outer peripheral surface 10g of the insertion portion 10 at the gas supply position is: The gas discharge port 60k described above discharges the gas A whose traveling direction has been changed by the bent portion 20m.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the gas A discharged from the gas discharge port 60k is moved rearward in the insertion direction S (hereinafter simply referred to as rear), and the distal end 20s of the guide tube 20 is inserted in the insertion hole 20i. When the distal end surface 11s at the distal end of the insertion portion 10 is positioned at the gas supply position, which is a fluid supply position that is further away from the set distance S1, the distal end surface 11s is supplied. As a result, dirt adhering to the tip surface 11s, specifically, the objective lens 2 and the illumination lens 3 is removed. The set distance S1 is variable according to the movement position of the insertion portion 10, that is, the position of the distal end surface 11s, has a predetermined width in value, and the thickness of the bent portion 20m in the insertion direction S + described later. It is defined by the variable opening diameter y of the gas discharge port 60k.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the opening diameter y of the gas discharge port 60k when the front end surface 11s is located at the gas supply position is smaller than the diameter x of the space 70 (y <x). That is, the gas A supply path is narrowed at the gas discharge port 60k. As a result, the flow rate of the gas A discharged from the gas discharge port 60k increases.

  As shown in FIG. 3, when four slits 60 are formed at intervals of 90 ° in the circumferential direction C with respect to the inner peripheral surfaces 20n1 and 20n2, four gas discharge ports are formed with respect to the tip surface 11s. Gas A is supplied from 60k. At this time, since the gas A is supplied from four directions with respect to the dirt on the tip surface 11s, the dirt attached to the tip surface 11s can be easily removed.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, when three slits 60 are formed with a partial deviation in the circumferential direction C with respect to the inner peripheral surfaces 20n1 and 20n2, three gas discharge ports are formed with respect to the tip surface 11s. Gas A is supplied from 60k. At this time, the gas A is intensively supplied from one direction with respect to the dirt on the tip surface 11s, so that the dirt attached to the tip surface 11s can be easily removed.

  The supply of the gas A from the gas discharge port 60k to the tip surface 11s is not necessarily performed in a state where the tip surface 11s is stationary at the gas supply position. This is because the gas A is continuously discharged from the gas discharge port 60k, so that the gas A is supplied when the distal end surface 11s moving back and forth along the insertion direction S passes the gas supply position. This is because the dirt on the tip surface 11s may be removed.

Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described.
First, when observing the inside of the subject, the operator inserts the endoscope 1 into the insertion hole 20 i of the guide tube 20 from the proximal end opening of the guide tube 20 after inserting the guide tube 20 into the subject. The part 10 is inserted. The insertion portion 10 is inserted until the distal end side of the insertion portion 10, specifically, at least the bending portion 12 protrudes forward from the distal end 20 s of the guide tube 20.

  Thereafter, the operator operates the joystick 15j to bend the bending portion 12, and observes the region to be examined in the subject with the objective lens 2.

  When the inside of the subject is in a high temperature environment, the insertion section 10 is heated, so that the operator performs an operation of opening the valve 26 and is supplied from the air supply device 30 using the regulator 27. After adjusting the pressure of the gas A to be, for example, about 3 kPa, the gas A is continuously supplied from the air supply device 30 to the space 70 via the gas supply pipe 24. As a result, since the gas A is continuously supplied to the space 70, the insertion portion 10 is cooled. The supply of the gas A to the space 70 is performed at least while the insertion unit 10 is inserted together with the guide tube 20 in the subject.

  In addition, the gas A supplied to the space 70 flows into each slit 60 and is discharged from each gas discharge port 60k to the insertion hole 20i regardless of the position of the insertion portion 10, and then the tip 20s of the guide tube 20 is discharged. It is discharged out of the guide tube 20 through the opening, specifically, the gap between the outer peripheral surface 10g of the insertion portion 10 and the inner peripheral surface 20n1. Note that the gas A is continuously discharged from each gas discharge port 60k. Further, the discharge of the gas A from each gas discharge port 60k is performed at least while the insertion portion 10 is inserted into the subject together with the guide tube 20.

  Thereafter, during observation in the subject, when dirt is attached to at least one of the objective lens 2 and the illumination lens 3 on the distal end surface 11s, that is, the observation visual field is deteriorated or the brightness of the subject is lowered. In this case, in order to remove dirt, the operator moves the insertion portion 10, specifically, pulls the distal end side of the insertion portion 10 into the insertion hole 20 i, thereby positioning the distal end surface 11 s at the above-described gas supply position. Let

  As a result, at the gas supply position, the gas A is continuously supplied from the gas discharge ports 60k to the front end surface 11s, so that the dirt attached to at least one of the objective lens 2 and the illumination lens 3 is gas A. Removed by. The gas A and the dirt removed by the gas A are discharged out of the guide tube 20 from the opening at the tip 20 s of the guide tube 20.

  The supply of the gas A to the distal end surface 11s may be performed during the movement of moving the insertion portion 10 back and forth in the insertion direction S.

  Specifically, during the movement of the insertion portion 10 from the rear of the gas supply position to the front of the gas supply position, or during the movement of the insertion portion 10 from the front of the gas supply position to the rear of the gas supply position, Further, it may be performed during repeated movement back and forth with respect to the gas supply position.

  At this time, when the leading end surface 11s is positioned at the gas supply position, that is, when passing through the gas supply position, the gas A continuously discharged from each gas discharge port 60k is supplied to the leading end surface 11s. Therefore, similarly, the dirt adhered to at least one of the objective lens 2 and the illumination lens 3 is removed by the gas A.

  Thus, in this Embodiment, it showed that the insertion part 10 was cooled by supplying the gas A from the air supply apparatus 30 to the space 70. FIG.

  In addition, the insertion portion 10 inserted through the insertion hole 20 i of the guide tube 20 is shown to be able to protrude forward from the tip 20 s of the guide tube 20.

  Further, the traveling direction of the gas A for cooling the insertion portion 10 supplied from the air supply device 30 to the space 70 is changed from the direction along the insertion direction S to the inside of the radial direction K at the distal end portion 23 of the guide tube 20. It was shown that the traveling direction changing part B to be changed was formed.

  Moreover, it showed that the gas A was discharged continuously from the gas discharge port 60k of the advancing direction change part B. FIG.

  Furthermore, when the distal end side of the insertion tube 10 protruding forward from the distal end 20s of the guide tube 20 is drawn into the insertion hole 20i, and the distal end surface 11s is located at the gas supply position that is further away from the distal end 20s by the set distance S1. It has been shown that the gas A discharged from the gas discharge port 60k is supplied to the tip surface 11s, thereby removing the dirt on the tip surface 11s.

  According to this, since the gas A is supplied to the space 70 during observation in the subject under a high temperature environment, the insertion portion 10 can be cooled and dirt is attached to the distal end surface 11s. Since the gas A used for cooling is supplied to the tip surface 11s by a simple operation of simply pulling the insertion portion 10 to the gas supply position, there is no need for accurate positioning of the tip surface 11s as in the prior art. The dirt on the tip surface 11s can be easily removed.

  Furthermore, the dirt on the tip surface 11s can be removed even when the tip surface 11s passes through the gas supply position by a simple operation of simply moving the insertion portion 10 back and forth with respect to the gas supply position. Since the positioning of the surface 11s is not required at all, the dirt on the tip surface 11s can be more easily removed by simply moving the insertion portion 10 back and forth.

  Further, since the insertion portion 10 inserted into the insertion hole 20i of the guide tube 20 is not limited, any direct view type internal view can be used as long as the outer diameter of the insertion portion 10 is smaller than the above-described diameter r1 in the insertion hole 20i. It can also be applied to a mirror insertion part.

  Furthermore, since it is not necessary to provide an air / water supply conduit for supplying fluid to the distal end surface 11 s in the insertion portion 10, the insertion portion 10 can be reduced in diameter.

  Further, since the distal end side of the insertion portion 10 can be protruded forward from the distal end 20 s of the guide tube 20, the observability in the subject by the objective lens 2 is improved.

  As described above, the insertion portion 10 of the endoscope 1 can be cooled using the guide tube 20 and the dirt on the distal end surface 11 s of the insertion portion 10 can be easily removed. A method for removing dirt from the distal end surface 11 s of the insertion portion 10 in the endoscope 1 using the endoscope system 100 can be provided.

(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional view when the distal end side of the insertion portion of the endoscope is inserted into the insertion hole of the guide tube in the endoscope system of the present embodiment, and FIG. 9 is supplied to the space of FIG. It is a fragmentary sectional view which shows roughly the state by which the advancing direction is changed by the advancing direction change part, and the gas is supplied to the front end surface of the insertion part of an endoscope.

  Compared with the endoscope system of the first embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 7 described above, the configuration of the endoscope system of the second embodiment is that the traveling direction changing portion is formed from a spiral groove. It is different in the configuration. Therefore, only this difference will be described, the same reference numerals are given to the same components as those in the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted.

  As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, in the present embodiment, the slit portion 60 and the bent portion 20 m are not formed at the distal end portion 23 of the guide tube 20, and the traveling direction changing portion B is the guide tube 20. Are formed circumferentially along the circumferential direction C and open inward in the radial direction K, and further communicate with the space 70 and the gas A from the space 70. It is comprised from the spiral groove | channel 80 which flows in.

  Since the groove 80 has a spiral shape, the gas A flowing in from the space 70 travels in the groove 80 along the spiral shape, so that the traveling direction of the gas A is changed to the insertion direction S. It has a function of changing from the direction along the inner side of the radial direction K at the tip of the groove 80.

  In addition, a portion facing the gas supply position in the opening inward in the radial direction K of the groove 80, specifically, a portion not facing the outer peripheral surface 10 g of the insertion portion 10 at the gas supply position is formed by the groove 80. The gas discharge port 80k is a fluid discharge port that discharges the gas A whose traveling direction is changed. That is, the gas discharge port 80k is provided at the tip of the groove 80 and is opened at the gas supply position.

  As shown in FIG. 9, in the gas A discharged from the gas discharge port 80k, the insertion portion 10 is moved rearward in the insertion direction S (hereinafter simply referred to as rearward), and the distal end surface 11s is located at the gas supply position. Is supplied to the tip surface 11s. As a result, dirt adhering to the tip surface 11s, specifically, the objective lens 2 and the illumination lens 3 is removed.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the opening diameter y of the gas discharge port 80k when the distal end surface 11s is located at the gas supply position is larger than the diameter x of the space 70 as in the first embodiment described above. It is smaller (y <x). That is, the gas A supply path is narrowed at the gas discharge port 80k. As a result, the flow rate of the gas A discharged from the gas discharge port 80k increases. Also in the present embodiment, the set distance S1 has a variable width depending on the position of the tip surface 11s.

  As in the first embodiment described above, the supply of the gas A from the gas discharge port 80k to the tip surface 11s is not necessarily performed in a state where the tip surface 11s is stationary at the gas supply position. This is because the gas A is continuously discharged from the gas discharge port 80k, so that the gas A is supplied when the tip surface 11s moving back and forth along the insertion direction S passes the gas supply position. This is because the dirt on the tip surface 11s may be removed.

  Other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment described above. Furthermore, as an operation of the present embodiment, the gas A supplied to the space 70 flows into the groove 80, and the traveling direction of the gas A is changed to the inner side in the radial direction K by the groove 80 at the tip of the groove 80. Since the gas A is supplied from the gas discharge port 80k to the distal end surface 11s at the gas supply position, it is the same as the above-described first embodiment, and thus detailed description thereof is omitted.

  Even with such a configuration, the same effect as that of the first embodiment described above can be obtained, and after the gas A passes through the spiral groove 80, the gas A becomes a swirling flow and the flow velocity is increased to supply the gas. Since it is supplied to the front end surface 11s at the position, dirt can be reliably removed from the front end surface 11s.

  In the first and second embodiments described above, an example is shown in which the dirt on the tip surface 11s is removed by supplying gas to the tip surface 11s. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Of course, it may be supplied. In this case, the air supply device 30 is a liquid supply device. Furthermore, a gas-liquid two-phase flow in which a liquid is mixed in a gas may be supplied. That is, it goes without saying that a fluid may be supplied.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Endoscope 10 ... Insertion part 10g ... Outer peripheral surface of insertion part 11s ... End surface of insertion part 20 ... Guide tube 20i ... Insertion hole of guide tube 20m ... Bending part (traveling direction changing part) of guide tube
20n ... Inner peripheral surface of the guide tube 20n1 ... Inner peripheral surface of the front half of the tip portion of the guide tube 20n2 ... Inner peripheral surface of the latter half of the tip portion of the guide tube 20n3 ... Inner peripheral surface of the guide tube other than the tip portion 20s ... Tip of guide tube 21 ... First half of guide tube 22 ... Second half of guide tube 22t ... Tapered surface of second half of guide tube 23 ... Tip portion of guide tube 30 ... Air supply device (fluid supply device)
60 ... Slit (travel direction changing part)
60k ... Gas outlet (fluid outlet)
70 ... Space 80 ... Groove (travel direction changing part)
80k ... Gas outlet (fluid outlet)
100: Endoscopy system A ... Gas (fluid)
B: Traveling direction changing portion C ... Circumferential direction K ... Radial direction S ... Insertion direction S1 ... Setting distance r1 ... Diameter of insertion hole in the first half of the guide tube r2 ... Diameter of insertion hole in the second half of the guide tube

Claims (11)

A guide tube,
An insertion portion of an endoscope that can be inserted into and removed from the insertion hole of the guide tube, and can protrude forward in the insertion direction from the distal end in the insertion direction of the guide tube after insertion, and
A fluid supply device for supplying a fluid for cooling the insertion portion to a space between the outer peripheral surface of the insertion portion and the inner peripheral surface of the guide tube in a state where the insertion portion is inserted through the insertion hole;
Comprising
Changing the direction of travel of the guide tube at the distal end of the insertion direction, the direction of travel of the fluid supplied to the space from the direction along the insertion direction to the inside of the guide tube in the radial direction And a fluid discharge port for discharging the fluid to the inside in the radial direction is provided in the traveling direction changing portion.
The fluid that is discharged from the fluid discharge port when the distal end surface of the distal end in the insertion direction of the insertion portion is located at a fluid supply position that is a set distance away from the distal end of the guide tube in the insertion direction. Is supplied to the distal end surface.   The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the fluid discharge port supplies the fluid when passing through the fluid supply position with respect to the distal end surface that is moving in the insertion direction. system.   The endoscope according to claim 1 or 2, wherein an opening diameter of the fluid discharge port is variable according to a position of the distal end surface of the insertion portion and is smaller than a diameter of the space. system. The diameter of the insertion hole in the front half of the insertion direction of the distal end portion of the guide tube is formed to be smaller than the diameter of the guide tube other than the distal end portion,
A tapered surface that connects the inner peripheral surface of the front half portion and the inner peripheral surface other than the distal end portion in a tapered shape along the insertion direction to the inner peripheral surface of the rear half portion of the distal end portion in the insertion direction. The endoscope system according to claim 1, wherein the endoscope system is formed. The advancing direction changing portion is formed along the insertion direction with respect to the inner peripheral surface of the tip portion and a bent portion that is bent inward in the radial direction at the tip in the insertion direction of the tip portion. It is composed of a slit that opens inside the radial direction and communicates with the space,
The bent portion changes the traveling direction of the fluid flowing into the slit from the space to the inside of the radial direction,
5. The internal view according to claim 4, wherein a portion of the slit opening that faces the fluid supply position serves as the fluid discharge port that discharges the fluid whose traveling direction has been changed by the bent portion. Mirror system.   The set distance is defined by a value obtained by adding a thickness of the bent portion in the insertion direction plus a variable opening diameter according to the position of the distal end surface of the insertion portion of the fluid discharge port. 6. The endoscope system according to claim 5, wherein the endoscope system has a variable width according to the position of the distal end surface.   7. The inner portion according to claim 5, wherein a plurality of the slits are formed at a set interval along a circumferential direction of the guide tube with respect to the inner peripheral surface of the distal end portion. Endoscopic system. The advancing direction changing portion is a spiral groove that opens to the inside in the radial direction and is in communication with the space, and is formed circumferentially with respect to the inner peripheral surface of the tip portion.
The portion of the opening of the spiral groove facing the fluid supply position changes the traveling direction of the fluid that has flowed into the spiral groove from the space to the inside of the front radial direction, and the traveling direction is The endoscope system according to claim 4, wherein the endoscope is the fluid discharge port that discharges the changed fluid.   The endoscope system according to claim 8, wherein the set distance has a variable width according to a position of the distal end surface of the insertion portion. A method for removing dirt on a distal end surface of an insertion portion in an endoscope using the endoscope system according to any one of claims 1 to 9,
Moving the insertion part protruding forward in the insertion direction from the tip of the guide tube so that the tip surface is positioned at the fluid supply position;
At least while the insertion portion is inserted into the subject together with the guide tube, the fluid supply device continuously supplies the space, and the advancing direction changing unit changes the advancing direction from the insertion direction to the radial direction. A step of supplying the fluid that cools the insertion portion that has been changed to the inside to the distal end surface through the fluid discharge port at the fluid supply position;
A method for removing dirt on the distal end surface of an insertion portion in an endoscope using an endoscope system comprising the endoscope system. The procedure of moving the insertion portion so that the distal end surface is located at the fluid supply position is performed during the movement of moving the insertion portion back and forth in the insertion direction,
11. The fluid that is continuously discharged from the fluid discharge port when the distal end surface passes through the fluid supply position during the movement of the insertion portion is supplied to the distal end surface. The dirt removal method of the front end surface of the insertion part in the endoscope as described in 1 above.

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