JP2582681Y2 - Endoscope bending device - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a bending device for an endoscope for bending a bending portion provided at a distal end of an insertion portion formed by a flexible tube to a desired angle by remote control.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Remote operation for bending a curved portion is performed by:
Generally, the operation is performed by passing an operation wire having a distal end connected to the bending portion into the insertion portion, and pulling the operation wire from an operation portion provided on the base end side of the insertion portion.

[0003] However, in the case of such a simple structure, the entire insertion portion is contracted by pulling the operation wire, and the curved portion can hardly be bent. Therefore, it is necessary to provide a guide that does not shrink due to the pulling force of the operation wire, and to insert the operation wire into the guide in the insertion portion.As such a guide, a thin stainless steel wire has conventionally been used. A tightly wound coil tube is provided.

[0004]

The insertion part of the endoscope may be inserted into a body cavity to form a loop. Especially,
In the case of an endoscope for the large intestine or the like, the insertion portion may loop many times.

[0005] In such a case, the bending operation wire and the guide therethrough also form a loop in the same manner. However, when the operation wire is towed in such a state, the friction due to friction with the guide becomes extremely large, so that the operation becomes extremely heavy, the operability is deteriorated, and a smooth bending operation is performed. Can not.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a bending device for an endoscope which can perform a smooth bending operation without increasing resistance to an operation wire even when an insertion portion forms a loop. .

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, a bending device for an endoscope according to the present invention is provided with a flexible bending portion at the tip of an insertion portion formed by a flexible tube, An endoscope in which the bending portion is bent at a desired angle by pulling an operation wire having a distal end connected to the bending portion and inserted into the portion, from an operation portion provided on a proximal end side of the insertion portion. In the mirror bending device, a tightly wound coil-shaped guide means for inserting and guiding the operation wire so as to be able to advance and retreat is inserted into the insertion portion, and is brought into contact with a side surface of the operation wire to advance and retract the operation wire At least one rotating roller is rotatably mounted in the middle of the guide means.

[0008]

An embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 schematically shows the entire configuration of the endoscope. A flexible bending section 2 is provided at a distal end side of an insertion section 1 formed by a flexible tube.
Is formed, and a distal end body 3 is provided at the distal end.

An observation window, an illumination window, and the like are formed in the distal end body, an objective lens is arranged in the observation window, and an emission end of the light guide fiber bundle is arranged in the illumination window. Illustration of these is omitted.

An operation section 4 having a built-in bending operation mechanism and the like is connected to a base end side of the insertion section 1. 6 is the eyepiece, 7
Denotes an air / water supply operation button, and 8 denotes a suction operation button. The distal end of the operation wire 9 inserted through the entire length of the insertion portion 1 is connected to the distal end of the bending portion 2, and the operation wire 9 is rotated by rotating a bending operation knob 10 protruding from the operation portion 4. Is pulled, and the bending portion 2 can be bent at a desired angle in a desired direction.

In FIG. 2, the bending operation knob 10 includes two knobs for bending in the vertical direction and for bending in the horizontal direction. However, the operating wire 9 includes only a pair of wires for bending in the vertical direction. The wire for bending in the left-right direction is shown in the figure, but is not shown.

FIG. 3 schematically shows, in an enlarged manner, only a portion of the bending device. The bending portion 2 is configured by rotatably connecting a number of node rings 15 by rivets (not shown). .

A guide means 20 for inserting and guiding the operation wire 9 so as to be able to advance and retreat is formed in a tightly wound coil tube, and is inserted into the insertion portion 1, and the tip thereof is
It is fixed to a base 16 connected to the rear end of the curved portion 2,
The base end is fixed to the frame of the operation unit 4.

FIGS. 1 and 4 show the guide means 20 in an enlarged manner. FIG. 1 is a partial side view, and FIG. 4 is a front view. The guide means 20 is provided with a coil tube 21 made of a stainless steel wire wound in a substantially square cross section with a uniform diameter over the entire length, and the four corner portions 22 are in close contact with the four corner portions 22 adjacent to each other. So that it does not shrink in the longitudinal direction.

A roller 24 formed by cutting a stainless steel pipe is rotatably fitted to the four side portions 23. As shown in FIG. 1, since the four corner portions 22 protrude from the outer peripheral surface of the roller 24 in the longitudinal direction, the adjacent rollers 24 can rotate freely without contacting each other.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, the operation wire 9 is inserted through the roller 24 with a slight gap in the guide means 20 formed as described above. Then, as shown in FIG.
Four guide means 20 are arranged for a total of four operation wires 9 for up and down and left and right. Note that optical fiber bundles, tubes, and the like are also inserted into the insertion section 1, but are not shown in FIG.

By configuring the guide means 20 as described above, even when the insertion section 1 loops several times in a body cavity or the like, the bending operation knob 10 is rotated to pull the operation wire 9. Sometimes, the roller 24 at the position where the operation wire 9 is pressed against is rotated by the advance and retreat of the operation wire 9, so that the frictional resistance to the operation wire 9 does not increase, and the bending operation can be performed lightly and smoothly.

FIGS. 6 to 9 show the guide means 20 described above.
1 shows an example of a manufacturing method. In this example, as shown in FIG. 6, the stainless steel wire 21a is pressed by a press 3 while the roller 24 is rotatably fitted to a long stainless steel wire 21a having an outer diameter slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the roller 24.
0 crushes locally at equal intervals.

The portion crushed by the press 30 is
The cross-sectional shape of the stainless steel wire 21a becomes flat, and as shown in FIG. 6, the stainless steel wire 21a becomes thinner in the direction of crushing, but as shown in FIG. 21a has a large diameter.

In this embodiment, the stainless steel wire 21a is press-formed so that the end of the stainless steel wire 21a protrudes from the outer peripheral surface of the roller 24, whereby free rotation of the roller 24 is ensured.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the stainless steel wire 21a to which the roller 24 is attached is wound around a core metal 40 having a square cross section with four chamfered corners. 21 are formed.

At this time, the stainless steel wire 21a is bent at a right angle to the direction in which the stainless steel wire 21a has been
And wound into a substantially square cross section. Then, as shown in FIG. 9, the coil tube 21 is wound by winding the four corner portions 22 adjacent to each other so as to abut on each other in the longitudinal direction.
Is tightly wound in the longitudinal direction and does not shrink even when a compressive force is applied.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, the structure and manufacturing method of the guide means can be variously modified, and the roller can be changed according to the use of the endoscope. Thus, at least one piece may be provided in the middle of the guide means.

[0024]

According to the bending device for an endoscope of the present invention, even when the insertion portion of the endoscope loops, the roller provided in the middle of the guide contacts the operation wire, Since the operation wire is rotated by the reciprocating operation, frictional resistance does not increase with respect to the operation wire, and an excellent effect that the bending operation can be performed lightly and smoothly.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of a guide unit and an operation wire according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is an overall external view of the endoscope of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a bending device according to an embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a front view of a guide unit and an operation wire according to the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a front sectional view of an insertion portion of the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a side view showing a manufacturing process of the guide means of the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a plan view showing a manufacturing process of the guide means of the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a front view showing a manufacturing process of the guide means of the embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a side view showing a manufacturing process of the guide means of the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Insertion part 9 Operation wire 20 Guide means 24 Roller

Claims (1)

(57) [Scope of request for utility model registration] A flexible bending portion is provided at the distal end of an insertion portion formed by a flexible tube, and an operation wire inserted into the insertion portion and having a distal end connected to the bending portion is connected to a proximal end of the insertion portion. By pulling from the operation unit provided on the side,
In the bending device for an endoscope, wherein the bending portion is bent at a desired angle, a tightly wound coil tubular guide means for inserting and guiding the operation wire so as to be able to advance and retreat is inserted into the insertion portion and the operation is performed. A bending device for an endoscope, wherein at least one roller which is in contact with a side surface of a wire and is rotated by an advance / retreat operation of the operation wire is rotatably mounted in the guide means.