JP2020078469A - Endoscope - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an endoscope which inhibits occurrence of flares.SOLUTION: An endoscope includes: an insertion section inserted into a subject; an illumination part for projecting light from a distal end of the insertion section; an imaging part for imaging an inside of the subject at the distal end of the insertion section; and a distal end part being located at a tip of the insertion section to protect the imaging part and the illumination part, at least a portion of the distal end part having a variable light reflectivity of its surface. The distal end part preferably includes an ultrasound probe having a variable light reflectivity of its surface.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

  The present invention relates to an endoscope.

  BACKGROUND ART Conventionally, there is known an endoscope in which a flexible and elongated insertion portion is inserted into a subject such as a person, illuminating light is directed toward the subject, and the inside of the subject is observed by the light reflected from the subject. (See, for example, Patent Document 1).

  By the way, after finishing the examination using the endoscope, it is necessary to perform cleaning and disinfection (reprocessing) in order to reuse the endoscope. At this time, the tip of the insertion part may be formed of a white member in order to make it easier to visually check whether the dirt attached to the insertion part is removed or not.

JP, 2014-132923, A

  When the tip of the insertion part is white, the reflectance of light is higher than that of other colors. As a result, the illumination light emitted during endoscopic observation may be reflected by the tip of the insertion portion, and flare may occur in the endoscopic image. Particularly, in a perspective type ultrasonic endoscope, flare is likely to occur because the ultrasonic probe is arranged on the tip side of the illumination unit.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object thereof is to provide an endoscope in which the occurrence of flare is suppressed.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, an endoscope according to an aspect of the present invention includes an insertion section that is inserted into a subject, and an illumination section that emits illumination light from the tip of the insertion section. And an imaging unit for imaging the inside of a subject at the tip of the insertion unit, and holding the imaging unit and the illumination unit at the tip of the insertion unit, and at least part of the surface has variable reflectance of light. And a tip portion that is.

  Further, in the endoscope according to one aspect of the present invention, the tip portion has an ultrasonic probe in which the reflectance of light on the surface is variable.

  Further, in the endoscope according to the aspect of the present invention, the reflectance of light on the surface of at least a part of the distal end portion is higher when the endoscope is washed than when the endoscope is inspected.

  Further, in the endoscope according to the aspect of the present invention, the reflectance of light on the surface of at least a part of the tip portion changes according to the temperature of the tip portion.

  Further, in the endoscope according to the aspect of the present invention, the reflectance of light on the surface of at least a part of the distal end portion changes according to the pressure received by the distal end portion.

  Further, in the endoscope according to the aspect of the present invention, the reflectance of light on the surface of the at least part of the distal end portion changes when light having a predetermined wavelength is irradiated.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to realize an endoscope in which the occurrence of flare is suppressed.

1 is a diagram schematically showing an endoscope system including an endoscope according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a view of the distal end portion of the endoscope shown in FIG. 1 viewed from the distal end side. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the insertion portion of the endoscope at the time of endoscopic examination. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the insertion portion of the endoscope at the time of cleaning the endoscope. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the insertion portion of the endoscope at the time of endoscopic examination. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the insertion portion of the endoscope at the time of endoscopic examination. FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the insertion portion of the endoscope at the time of endoscopic examination. FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the insertion portion of the endoscope at the time of endoscopic examination. FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the insertion portion of the endoscope at the time of endoscopic examination.

  Embodiments of an endoscope according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to these embodiments. In the following embodiments, an endoscope including an ultrasonic probe will be described as an example, but the present invention can be applied to endoscopes in general.

  Further, in the description of the drawings, the same or corresponding elements are appropriately assigned the same reference numerals. Further, it should be noted that the drawings are schematic, and the dimensional relationship of each element, the ratio of each element, and the like may differ from reality. Even between the drawings, there may be a case where portions having different dimensional relationships or ratios are included.

(Embodiment 1)
[Schematic configuration of endoscope system]
FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing an endoscope system including an endoscope according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The endoscope system 1 is a system that performs ultrasonic diagnosis inside a subject such as a person using an ultrasonic endoscope. As shown in FIG. 1, the endoscope system 1 includes an endoscope 2, an ultrasonic observation device 3, an endoscope observation device 4, a display device 5, and a light source device 6.

  The endoscope 2 is partially insertable into the subject, transmits ultrasonic pulses toward the body wall inside the subject, receives ultrasonic echoes reflected by the subject, and outputs an echo signal. The ultrasonic endoscope has a function of outputting and a function of capturing an image of the inside of a subject and outputting an image signal. The detailed configuration of the endoscope 2 will be described later.

  The ultrasonic observation device 3 is electrically connected to the endoscope 2 via an ultrasonic cable 31 (see FIG. 1), outputs a pulse signal to the endoscope 2 via the ultrasonic cable 31, and An echo signal is input from the mirror 2. Then, the ultrasonic observation device 3 performs a predetermined process on the echo signal to generate an ultrasonic image.

  The endoscope observation device 4 is electrically connected to the endoscope 2 via a video cable 41 (see FIG. 1), and inputs an image signal from the endoscope 2 via the video cable 41. Then, the endoscopic observation device 4 performs a predetermined process on the image signal to generate an endoscopic image.

  The display device 5 is configured using liquid crystal or organic EL (Electro Luminescence), and is an ultrasonic image generated by the ultrasonic observation device 3, an endoscopic image generated by the endoscope observation device 4, or the like. Is displayed.

  The light source device 6 is connected to the endoscope 2 via an optical fiber cable 61 (see FIG. 1) and supplies illumination light for illuminating the inside of the subject to the endoscope 2 via the optical fiber cable 61.

[Structure of endoscope]
As shown in FIG. 1, the endoscope 2 includes an insertion portion 21, an operation portion 22, a universal cable 23, and a connector 24. In addition, the “tip” described below means an end located on the tip side of the insertion portion 21. Further, the “proximal end” described below means an end located on the side away from the distal end of the insertion section 21 (on the side of the operation section 22).

  The insertion portion 21 is a portion that is inserted into the subject. Inside the insertion portion 21, a light guide (not shown) for transmitting the illumination light supplied from the light source device 6, an image guide (not shown) for guiding an optical image of the inside of the subject, and a plurality of signal cables for transmitting various signals. , And various treatment tools (for example, a puncture needle) are laid around a tube. The detailed structure of the distal end side of the insertion portion 21 will be described later.

  The operation part 22 is a part that is connected to the proximal end side of the insertion part 21 and receives various operations from a doctor or the like. As shown in FIG. 1, the operation section 22 includes a bending knob 221 for bending the bending section 213 and a plurality of operation members 222 for performing various operations.

  Further, the operation section 22 is formed with a treatment instrument insertion port 223 which communicates with a tube arranged in the insertion section 21 and allows various treatment instruments (for example, a puncture needle) to be inserted into the tube.

  Further, inside the operation unit 22, an image pickup element (not shown) that outputs an image signal corresponding to an optical image inside the subject, and an optical system that forms an optical image guided by an image guide on the image pickup element. (Not shown) are provided.

  The universal cable 23 is a cable having one end connected to the operation unit 22 and provided with a plurality of signal cables for transmitting various signals, an optical fiber for transmitting the illumination light supplied from the light source device 6, and the like.

  The connector 24 is provided at the other end of the universal cable 23. The connector 24 includes first to third connector portions 241 to 243 to which the ultrasonic cable 31, the video cable 41 and the optical fiber cable 61 are respectively connected.

[Structure of insertion part]
As shown in FIG. 1, the insertion portion 21 includes a distal end portion 210 including an ultrasonic probe 211 and a distal end hard portion 212 connected to the proximal end side of the ultrasonic probe 211, and a base of the distal end hard portion 212. A bending portion 213 that is connected to the end side and is bendable, and a flexible tube portion 214 that is connected to the base end side of the bending portion 213 and has flexibility are provided.

  FIG. 2 is a view of the distal end portion of the endoscope shown in FIG. 1 viewed from the distal end side. As shown in FIG. 2, the distal end hard portion 212 disposed in the distal end portion 210 includes an illumination portion 215 that emits illumination light from the distal end of the insertion portion 21 inserted into the subject and a distal end of the insertion portion 21. The imaging part 216 which images the inside of a subject.

  The ultrasonic probe 211 shown in FIG. 2 is a convex type ultrasonic probe, but may be a linear type or a radial type. The tip portion 210 includes an ultrasonic probe 211 and a tip hard portion 212. The ultrasonic transducer unit 2111 is composed of an acoustic lens 2111a which is an ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface, a piezoelectric element (not shown), an acoustic matching layer, a backing material and the like. The ultrasonic probe 211 is composed of an ultrasonic transducer unit 2111 and a housing 2112 that houses the ultrasonic transducer unit 2111. The ultrasonic probe 211 is attached to the distal end hard portion 212. The ultrasonic transducer unit 2111 converts the pulse signal input from the ultrasonic observation device 3 into ultrasonic pulses and transmits the ultrasonic pulses into the subject. Further, the ultrasonic transducer unit 2111 converts the ultrasonic echo reflected in the subject into an electric echo signal and outputs it to the ultrasonic observation device 3.

  The hard tip portion 212 is a hard member made of a resin material and has a substantially columnar shape. The distal end hard portion 212 is located on the distal end side of the insertion portion 21 and holds the illumination unit 215 and the imaging unit 216. In addition, the distal end hard portion 212 is formed with a treatment instrument projecting port 217 through which a treatment instrument such as forceps is projected from the distal end of the insertion section 21. The treatment instrument projecting port 217 communicates with a treatment instrument insertion port 223 formed in the operation portion 22 via a treatment instrument insertion passage (not shown).

  The bending portion 213 is a portion that bends in response to an operation of the bending knob 221 by a doctor or the like.

  The illumination unit 215 illuminates the inside of the subject with illumination light from the emission end of the light guide connected to the light source device 6 via the illumination lens.

  The imaging unit 216 acquires an optical image of the inside of the subject via the objective lens. The optical image is converted into an electric signal by an image sensor such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor), and then transmitted to the endoscope observation device 4.

  Next, the state of the tip of the insertion portion 21 at the time of inspection using the endoscope 2 and at the time of cleaning the endoscope 2 will be described. First, the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 have variable light reflectances on their surfaces. Specifically, the reflectance of light on the surfaces of the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 changes according to the temperatures of the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212. The ultrasonic probe 211 and the tip hard portion 212 are made of a thermochromic material whose color reversibly changes due to temperature change due to thermochromism.

  FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the insertion portion of the endoscope at the time of endoscopic examination. In FIG. 3, the hatched portion corresponds to the black surface portion. As shown in FIG. 3, the surfaces of the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 are black during endoscopic inspection. That is, at the time of endoscopic inspection, the reflectance of light on the surfaces of the ultrasonic probe 211 and the distal end hard portion 212 is relatively lower than that of other colors. This is because the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 are made of a material in which a resin whose color changes according to the temperature of the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 is mixed, and the temperature inside the body of the subject is measured. This is because it is formed so as to become black at (about 36 to 37 degrees). As a result, during the endoscopic examination, reflected light on the surfaces of the ultrasonic probe 211 and the distal end hard portion 212 is suppressed from entering the imaging unit 216, and flare is suppressed.

  FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the insertion portion of the endoscope at the time of cleaning the endoscope. Also in FIG. 4, the hatched portion corresponds to the black surface portion, and the non-hatched portion corresponds to the white surface portion. As shown in FIG. 4, the surfaces of the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 are white when the endoscope is cleaned. That is, the reflectance of light on the surfaces of the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 is relatively higher than that of other colors. This is because the ultrasonic probe 211 and the tip hard portion 212 are formed so as to become white at the temperature (for example, 10 to 20 degrees) of the cleaning liquid such as water used for cleaning. As a result, dirt attached to the surfaces of the ultrasonic probe 211 and the distal end hard portion 212 is easily visible when the endoscope is cleaned.

  As described above, the reflectance of light on the surfaces of the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 of the endoscope 2 changes according to the temperature of the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212. The occurrence of flare is suppressed during endoscopy, and stains are easily visible when cleaning the endoscope.

(Modification 1-1)
The ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip part 212 are made of a material mixed with a resin whose color changes in accordance with the temperature of the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip part 212, and the internal temperature of the subject (36 to It is formed so as to become black at about 37 degrees. On the other hand, the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 are formed so as to be white at the temperature (for example, 50 to 60 degrees) of a high-temperature cleaning liquid such as hot water used for cleaning. As described above, the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 may be whitened at a high temperature.

  The setting of the temperature is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment. For example, the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 may be formed so as to become black when heated by a heater arranged inside the insertion portion 21. Further, the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 may be formed so as to become black when the liquid is circulated inside the insertion portion 21 and cooled.

(Embodiment 2)
The ultrasonic probe 211 and the tip hard part 212 are made of a material in which a resin whose light reflectance changes according to the pressure applied to the ultrasonic probe 211 and the tip hard part 212 is mixed. The ultrasonic probe 211 and the tip hard portion 212 are made of a piezochromic material whose color reversibly changes due to a change in pressure due to piezochromism. Specifically, the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 are formed to be white due to the pressure of the brush during cleaning. On the other hand, the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 are formed so as to be black during an endoscopic examination in which the insertion portion 21 of the endoscope 2 is not so much pressured. In this way, the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 may be configured to change colors due to factors other than temperature, such as pressure.

(Embodiment 3)
The ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 are made of a material mixed with a resin that changes the reflectance of light on the surface when irradiated with light having a predetermined wavelength. The ultrasonic probe 211 and the tip hard portion 212 are made of a photochromic material whose color reversibly changes with light due to photochromism. The ultrasonic probe 211 and the distal end hard portion 212 are formed so as to be black when the illumination light of the predetermined wavelength is emitted from the illumination portion 215 during the endoscopic examination. On the other hand, the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 are formed so as to become white unless illuminated with illumination light during cleaning. As described above, the ultrasonic probe 211 and the distal end hard portion 212 may be configured to change colors by irradiation with light having a predetermined wavelength.

(Modification 3-1)
The ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 are made of a material mixed with a resin whose color changes in response to the irradiation of light of a predetermined wavelength, and become black if not irradiated with UV light during an endoscopic examination. Is formed in. On the other hand, the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 become white when irradiated with UV light of a predetermined wavelength for changing the color of the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 during cleaning. Is formed in.

(Modification 3-2)
The ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 are made of a material mixed with a resin whose color changes in response to irradiation with light of a predetermined wavelength, and are provided separately from the illumination portion 215 during an endoscopic examination. It is formed so as to become black when it is irradiated with UV light of a predetermined wavelength from the UV light source unit. On the other hand, the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 are formed so as to become white unless they are irradiated with UV light during cleaning.

  In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the reflectance of light on the entire surface of the tip portion 210 including the ultrasonic probe 211 and the tip hard portion 212 is variable has been described. With this configuration, the reflectance of light on the entire surface of the distal end portion 210 is variable, and thus the effect of suppressing the occurrence of flare during endoscopic inspection is the highest. However, if the reflectance of light on the surface of at least a part of the tip 210 including the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip 212 is variable, the effect of suppressing flare can be obtained. Modifications A to E in which the reflectance of light on the surface of a part of the tip 210 is variable will be described below with reference to FIGS. 5 to 9 are perspective views of the insertion portion of the endoscope during the endoscopic examination. In addition, the following modified examples A to E can be applied to any of the above-described first to third embodiments and their modified examples.

(Modification A)
As shown in FIG. 5, only the surface of the ultrasonic transducer unit 2111 on the distal side of the imaging unit 216 of the rigid tip 212 and the surface of the ultrasonic transducer unit 2111 may have a black surface during an endoscopic examination. With this configuration, the reflectance of light on the surface is variable in the range in which the image pickup unit 216 receives light, so that the effect of suppressing the occurrence of flare during endoscopy can be sufficiently obtained, and the reflection of light on the surface can be achieved. It is possible to reduce the manufacturing cost by narrowing the range in which the rate is variable.

(Modification B)
As shown in FIG. 6, only the surface of the ultrasonic probe 211 may be blackened at the time of endoscopic examination. In the ultrasonic endoscope, since the ultrasonic probe 211 is arranged on the tip side of the illumination unit 215, the illumination light emitted from the illumination unit 215 is reflected on the surface of the ultrasonic probe 211. When entering the image pickup unit 216, flare may occur. Therefore, the occurrence of flare may be suppressed by changing the light reflectance on the surface of the ultrasonic probe 211 as in the present modification.

(Modification C)
As shown in FIG. 7, only the surfaces of the distal rigid portion 212 and the housing 2112 of the ultrasonic probe 211 may be blackened during endoscopic inspection. Since the tip hard portion 212 and the housing 2112 of the ultrasonic probe 211 are made of a hard resin of the same material, it is easy to make the light reflectance on the surface variable, and these portions can be made uniform. It may be made of a material having a variable reflectance.

(Modification D)
As shown in FIG. 8, only the surface of the housing 2112 of the ultrasonic probe 211 may be blackened during endoscopic inspection. In the ultrasonic endoscope, since the flare may occur due to the light reflected on the surface of the ultrasonic probe 211 as described above, the reflectance of the light on the surface of the ultrasonic probe 211 is Only the housing 2112, which is easily variable, may be made of a material having a variable reflectance.

(Modification E)
As shown in FIG. 9, only the surface of the acoustic lens 2111a of the ultrasonic probe 211 may be blackened during the endoscopic examination. In the ultrasonic endoscope, as described above, flare may occur due to the light reflected on the surface of the ultrasonic probe 211, so that the acoustic lens 2111 a located closer to the imaging unit 216 is selectively selected. It may be made of a material having a variable reflectance.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, an example in which the surfaces of the ultrasonic probe 211 and the tip hard portion 212 change to white and black has been described, but the light reflectance may change to a low state and a high reflectance state. The color is not particularly limited.

  In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 are made of a material mixed with a resin whose color changes according to temperature, pressure, or light has been described, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Absent. The ultrasonic probe 211 and the tip hard portion 212 may have a structure in which a material whose color changes according to temperature, pressure, or light is applied to the surface.

  Further, the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 may have a low light reflectance due to their roughened surfaces. Further, the ultrasonic probe 211 and the hard tip portion 212 may have a rough surface while the surface color changes due to temperature, pressure, or light.

  Further, the light reflectance may be lowered by using a transparent member for the ultrasonic probe 211 or the distal end hard portion 212. In this case, since it is transparent, the visibility of stains attached to the ultrasonic probe 211 or the hard tip portion 212 is also good.

  Further effects and modifications can be easily derived by those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the broader aspects of the present invention are not limited to the specific details and representative embodiments shown and described above. Accordingly, various changes may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the general inventive concept as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

1 Endoscope System 2 Endoscope 3 Ultrasonic Observation Device 4 Endoscope Observation Device 5 Display Device 6 Light Source Device 21 Insertion Section 22 Operation Section 23 Universal Cable 24 Connector 31 Ultrasonic Cable 41 Video Cable 61 Optical Fiber Cable 210 Tip Part 211 Ultrasonic probe 212 Tip hard part 213 Curved part 214 Flexible tube part 215 Illumination part 216 Imaging part 217 Treatment tool projecting opening 221 Curved knob 222 Operation member 223 Treatment tool insertion port 241 to 243 1st to 3rd connector Part 2111 Ultrasonic transducer unit 2111a Acoustic lens 2112 Housing

Claims (6)

An insertion portion to be inserted into the subject,
An illumination unit that emits illumination light from the tip of the insertion unit,
An imaging unit that images the inside of the subject at the tip of the insertion unit,
A tip portion that is located at the tip of the insertion portion, holds the image pickup portion and the illumination portion, and has at least a portion where the reflectance of light on the surface is variable,
An endoscope equipped with.   The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the tip portion has an ultrasonic probe whose reflectance of light on the surface is variable.   The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein a reflectance of light on a surface of the at least a part of the distal end portion is higher during cleaning of the endoscope than during endoscopic inspection.   The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the reflectance of light on the surface of the at least a part of the tip portion changes according to the temperature of the tip portion.   The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the reflectance of light on the surface of the at least a part of the tip portion changes according to the pressure received by the tip portion.   The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the reflectance of light on the surface of at least a part of the distal end portion changes when light of a predetermined wavelength is irradiated.

Images