JP4339830B2 - Ultrasound endoscope - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic scanning radial scanning ultrasonic endoscope in which a plurality of ultrasonic probes are arranged at the distal end of an insertion portion of an endoscope. In particular, the present invention relates to a signal transmission coaxial cable for an ultrasonic probe arranged in an annular shape on an outer peripheral surface.

  In recent years, an electronic scanning type ultrasonic endoscope that has an ultrasonic probe at the distal end of an endoscope and performs electrical scanning has been put into practical use. In an electronic scanning ultrasonic endoscope, a large number of piezoelectric vibrators are arranged in an array, and these piezoelectric vibrators are appropriately driven by an ultrasonic observation apparatus to which the ultrasonic endoscope is connected. Ultrasonic images can be obtained.

  A plurality of flexible printed circuits (FPCs) are used for wiring for transmitting an electrical signal to the ultrasonic probe (see, for example, Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2).

  When this FPC is used, it is arranged in the bending tube portion so as to avoid an endoscope observation portion such as a forceps channel, and is then placed closer to the proximal side than the bending tube portion (the operation portion of the ultrasonic endoscope body). It is connected to the signal line (coaxial cable) at the distal end of the flexible tube (for example, see Patent Document 2: FIG. 1).

  In the bending operation of a general endoscope, it is necessary to increase the bending angle in the UP direction. The bending angle is about 130 degrees, and the other is also curved about 90 degrees, so that the insertion into the patient is smooth and the patient is bent. The burden on the operator who operates the endoscope is reduced.

In addition, when there is no FPC and signal lines are directly arranged, a large number of signal lines are bundled by a heat-shrinkable tube or the like over the entire length of the distal end rigid portion, the bending tube, and the flexible tube portion.
JP 2002-153465 A JP 2002-153470 A

  However, when the FPC is used as in the previous example, if the bending tube portion is bent in such a large amount, even if the FPC is arranged as in the previous example, a force for expanding and contracting acts in the insertion axis direction of the FPC. , FPC rippling or receiving tensile force. As a result, disconnection is likely to occur, and there is a problem that the bending angle cannot be increased in all directions.

  In the preceding example, the point is to balance the resistance (stretching force) caused by the FPC. If it does so, not only the operation force amount which an operator feels will become heavy, but the followable | trackability of a curved part will worsen. That is, there are problems that it is difficult to perform a careful operation in a body cavity that is easily damaged, the operability is deteriorated, and the burden on the operator is increased.

  Furthermore, the bending tube portion of the endoscope also has a combined bending state (twisted state) such as LEFT 90 degrees in addition to UP 130 degrees. Then, in the configuration of the preceding example, there is a problem that not only the bending operation force amount becomes heavier, but also the balance of the resistance force by the FPC is lost, and an operation different from the operation intended by the operator may occur.

  Further, when the FPC is not used, for example, as illustrated in FIG. 11, when the signal line bundle 201 bundled with a restraining member (for example, an outer skin) 200 is used, the signal line bundle 201 is tightened by the restraining member 200. As a result, the signal line bundle 201 becomes one rigid body 202. If it does so, there existed a problem that the amount of operation power of a bending pipe part will become heavy, and operativity worsened.

  In particular, when bending with a radius of curvature R, the signal line bundle in the bending tube is rigid, so the center of the signal line bundle becomes a neutral axis, the signal line on the outer peripheral side receives a tensile force, and the compression force on the inner peripheral side However, since the periphery is restrained, pressure is applied to the surrounding signal lines. For this reason, since the stress is repeatedly applied by the endoscope operation, there is a risk of disconnection.

  In view of the above problems, the present invention provides an ultrasonic endoscope that can have a large bending angle, a small amount of operating force, and is excellent in patient insertion and operator operability.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ultrasonic probe in which a plurality of ultrasonic transducer elements for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves are arranged in a substantially cylindrical shape, and insertion of an endoscope A distal end rigid portion provided with the ultrasonic probe, a curved tube portion connected to the distal end rigid portion and curved by remote operation, and a flexible tube portion connected to the curved tube portion And a bundle of signal lines corresponding to each ultrasonic transducer element for transmitting a drive signal for driving each ultrasonic transducer element, the distal end rigid portion, the bending tube portion, and the flexible An ultrasonic endoscope comprising the signal wire bundle passing through the inside of the tube portion, wherein the signal wire bundle is covered with a restraining member for restraining the signal wire bundle, and is included in the curved tube portion. Covering the signal line bundle in a predetermined range among the signal line bundles The restraining force of the restraining members are can be achieved by providing an ultrasonic endoscope, wherein less than binding of the restraining member covering the other said range of the signal line bundle.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, the restraint member includes a first holding layer that holds at least the signal line bundle, and a second layer that is thinner than the first holding layer. The signal line bundle in the predetermined range having a small restraining force is covered with the restraining member consisting of only the second retaining layer. This can be achieved by providing an ultrasonic endoscope.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, the first holding layer includes at least a shield material and an outer skin covering the shield material. This can be achieved by providing an ultrasonic endoscope according to claim 2.

  According to the invention described in claim 4 of the claim, the second holding layer is composed of a heat shrinkable member, The ultrasonic endoscope according to claim 2, This can be achieved by providing a mirror.

  According to the invention described in claim 5 of the present invention, the predetermined range is a range corresponding to half the total length of the bending tube portion at the longest. This can be achieved by providing an ultrasonic endoscope according to claim 1.

  According to the invention described in claim 6 of the present invention, the predetermined range is at least half the total length of the bending tube portion from the end of the bending tube portion on the distal end rigid portion side. This can be achieved by providing an ultrasonic endoscope according to claim 1, characterized in that it is a position.

  According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the predetermined range is a range corresponding to half the total length of the bending tube portion. This can be achieved by providing the ultrasonic endoscope according to 1.

  According to the invention described in claim 8, the above-described problem is achieved by an ultrasonic probe in which a plurality of ultrasonic transducer elements for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves are arranged in a substantially cylindrical shape, and insertion of an endoscope A distal end rigid portion provided with the ultrasonic probe, a curved tube portion connected to the distal end rigid portion and curved by remote operation, and a flexible tube portion connected to the curved tube portion And a bundle of signal lines corresponding to each ultrasonic transducer element for transmitting a drive signal for driving each ultrasonic transducer element, the distal end rigid portion, the bending tube portion, and the flexible An ultrasonic endoscope comprising: the signal line bundle passing through the inside of the tube part, wherein the signal lines of the signal line bundle in a predetermined range among the signal line bundles included in the curved tube part The mutual distance between the signal lines of the signal line bundle outside the range Be greater than the interval can be achieved by providing an ultrasonic endoscope according to claim.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to increase the bending angle and reduce the amount of operation force, and it is possible to obtain an ultrasonic endoscope with less burden on the patient and the operator.

  FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing a constrained portion and a non-constrained portion of a signal line bundle included in a bending tube portion of an ultrasonic endoscope according to the present invention. The signal line bundle 101 inserted through the insertion portion of the endoscope is covered with the restraining member 100 over the entire length thereof and is in a restrained state (restraint portion). Among them, as shown in FIG. 1A, the restraining member 100 covering the signal line bundle 101 from a part of the bending tube toward the distal end rigid portion side is removed, and the signal line bundle 101 is exposed. Therefore, the signal line bundle at that portion is not restrained by the restraining member (unconstrained portion).

FIG. 1B shows a model diagram of the rigidity of FIG. The constrained portion in FIG. 1A is shown as a rigid portion 102, and the unconstrained portion is shown as a flexible portion 103.
Here, the section line Xa-Xa in FIG. 1B is compared with the corresponding section line Xb-Xb in FIG. The cutting line Xb-Xb is a rigid body, whereas the cutting line Xa-Xa is a flexible part. Therefore, the load applied when the signal line bundle of FIG.

  Therefore, in the present invention, a plurality of super tubes having a sound axis perpendicular to the insertion axis are arranged in the distal rigid portion among the flexible tube portion, the curved tube portion, and the distal rigid portion constituting the distal end of the endoscope insertion portion. An ultrasonic probe unit in which the ultrasonic transducers are arranged in an annular shape, and approximately the same number of signal line bundles as the ultrasonic transducers that are members for transmitting and receiving signals to the ultrasonic probe inserted into the insertion unit In the ultrasound endoscope, each signal line extending from the ultrasound probe is constrained in the distal rigid portion and the flexible tube portion, and in the distal rigid portion and the flexible tube in at least a part of the curved tube portion. The restraint state is gentler than the restraint state at the part. By doing so, each signal line can be freely moved with respect to the insertion axis direction of the endoscope, the bending tube portion is bent, the signal line on the outer peripheral side receives a tensile force, The peripheral side can be flexibly bent even when it receives a compressive force.

  Moreover, in this invention, the signal line to half the full length of all the bending pipes is made into a weakly restrained state inside a bending pipe. Further, within the bending tube, the signal line up to the tip half of the entire length of the entire bending tube is in a weakly constrained state.

Now, an embodiment according to the present invention will be described below.
<First Embodiment>
FIG. 2 shows an external configuration of the ultrasonic endoscope according to the present invention. The ultrasonic endoscope 1 includes an elongated insertion portion 2 that is inserted into a body cavity, an operation portion 3 that is located at the proximal end of the insertion portion 2, and a universal cord 4 that extends from a side portion of the operation portion 3. And is mainly composed.

  In the universal cord 4, a light guide cable, a suction tube, an electric wire and the like pass. A scope connector 5 connected to a light source device (not shown) is provided at the base end of the universal cord 4. From the scope connector 5, an electric cable that is detachably connected to a camera control unit (not shown) via an electric connector, and an ultrasonic wave that is detachably connected to an ultrasonic observation device (not shown) via an ultrasonic connector 6 a. The cable 6 is extended.

  The insertion portion 2 includes a distal end rigid portion 7 formed of a hard resin member in order from the distal end side, a bendable bending tube portion 8 positioned at the rear end of the distal end rigid portion 7, and a position at the rear end of the bending tube portion 8. Thus, a flexible tube portion 9 having a small diameter, a long length, and flexibility reaching the distal end portion of the operation portion 3 is continuously provided. An ultrasonic probe 10 in which a plurality of piezoelectric elements that transmit and receive ultrasonic waves are arranged is provided on the distal end side of the distal rigid portion 7.

  The operation unit 3 includes an angle knob 11 for controlling the bending of the bending tube unit 8 in a desired direction, an air / water supply button 12 for performing air supply and water supply operations, a suction button 13 for performing suction operations, and a body cavity A treatment instrument insertion port 14 or the like serving as an entrance of a treatment instrument to be introduced into the instrument is provided.

  FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the distal rigid portion 7 of the ultrasonic endoscope 1 shown in FIG. FIG. 3A is an external perspective view, and FIG. 3B is an external configuration diagram. An ultrasonic transducer 10 that enables electronic radial scanning is provided at the distal end of the distal rigid portion 7. The ultrasonic transducer 10 is covered with a material on which an acoustic lens (ultrasonic transmission / reception unit) 17 is formed. Further, the tip rigid portion 7 is formed with a slope portion 7a. The slope portion 7a includes an illumination lens 18b that constitutes an illumination optical unit that irradiates the observation site with illumination light, an objective lens 18c that constitutes an observation optical unit that captures an optical image of the observation site, and a surgical tool that sucks the excised site. Is provided with a suction / forceps port 18d which is an opening through which the air flows and an air supply / water supply port 18a which is an opening for supplying and supplying air.

  FIG. 4 shows a cross section of the ultrasonic probe. FIG. 5 shows a perspective view thereof. In this embodiment, an electronic radial ultrasonic probe will be described as an example of the ultrasonic probe. An electronic radial ultrasonic probe transmits and receives an ultrasonic beam in the circumferential direction.

The ultrasonic probe 10 has a cylindrical shape, and is covered with an acoustic lens material 17 and an acoustic matching layer 22 from the outermost peripheral side.
Electrode layers 23a and 23b are respectively formed on the opposing surfaces of the piezoelectric element 23 (the inner surface and the outer surface of the ultrasonic probe 10). A conductive layer 21 is formed on one surface of the substrate 20 (the surface in the inner side direction of the ultrasonic probe 10). The conductive layer 21 and the electrode layer 23a are electrically connected. A conductive layer 25 that is electrically connected to the electrode layer 23b is formed in a part of the acoustic matching layer.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the substrate 20, the conductive layer 21, the piezoelectric element 23, the electrode layer 23 a, the electrode 23 b, the conductive layer 25, and the acoustic matching layer 22 (part thereof) are diced to form a plurality of transducer elements 37. Is formed.

  Donut-shaped structural members 26 and 29 are provided in the vicinity of the lower opening and the upper opening of the ultrasonic probe 10, respectively. A space between the structural members 26 and 29 is filled with a backing material 28. A copper foil is formed on the surface of the structural member 26 (the lower surface in the figure). The electrode 23 b and the copper foil 27 are electrically connected via the conductive layer 25.

  A cylindrical structural member 30 is inserted from the upper opening side (side on which the substrate 20 is provided). The cylindrical structural member 30 is composed of a cylindrical portion and an annular collar 31 provided at one end thereof. By joining the flange 31 and the structural member 29, the position of the cylindrical member 30 is fixed inside the ultrasonic probe 10.

  A printed wiring board 32 is provided on the surface of the collar 31, and a plurality of electrode pads 36 are provided on the surface. Further, a cable bundle 40 is passed through the cylindrical structural member 30, and the tip of each cable 41 of the cable bundle 40 is soldered to the electrode pad 36 corresponding to each cable 41. The cable 41 is usually a coaxial cable for noise reduction. Each electrode pad 36 is electrically connected to the conductive layer 21 via solder and wire 35. The cable 41 is potted with a resin 42.

  The surface of the cylindrical portion of the cylindrical structural member 30 is covered with a metal thin film 38. The ground line 39 extending from the cable 40 is soldered to the cylindrical surface on which the metal thin film 38 is formed by the solder 39a. The metal foil 38 is electrically connected to the copper foil 27.

  As described above, the signal line of each cable 41 is electrically connected to one electrode 23 a of the piezoelectric element of the transducer element 37 corresponding to the signal line of each cable 41. On the other hand, the electrode 22b facing the signal electrode 22a of the piezoelectric element 23 is a ground electrode. The cable bundle 40 is bonded by the adhesive 43 only in the vicinity of the opening of the cylindrical structural member 30, and is bundled and restrained.

  FIG. 6 shows a cross section near the distal end of the insertion portion 2 of the ultrasonic endoscope in the present embodiment. There are a distal end rigid portion 7 and a bending tube portion 8 from the distal end of the insertion portion 2. In addition, a connection member 60 for joining the ultrasonic probe 10 to the distal end rigid member is provided.

  A cylindrical portion of the cylindrical structural member 30 is accommodated inside the connection member 60. A cable bundle 40 extends from the opening of the cylindrical structural member 30 and passes through the inside of the bending tube portion 8. Further, a plurality of connecting members (not shown) for bending the bending tube portion 8 in the left-right direction (the direction perpendicular to the paper surface in FIG. 6) are provided inside the bending tube portion 8 and the vertical direction (FIG. 6, there are a plurality of connecting members 49 for bending the bending tube portion 8 in the horizontal direction with respect to the paper surface. Further, the bending tube portion 8 is composed of a plurality of units of the bending tube 48. Therefore, when the connecting member operates, each bending tube 48 moves and the entire bending tube portion 8 is bent. In the present embodiment, the multi-core coaxial cable 50 is used as the cable bundle 40.

  FIG. 7 shows a cross section of the multi-core coaxial cable 50 in the present embodiment. Fig.7 (a) is a schematic diagram of the cross section of the multi-core coaxial cable 50 corresponding to cut surface AA of FIG. FIG.7 (b) is a schematic diagram of the cross section of the multi-core coaxial cable 50 corresponding to the cut surface BB of FIG.

  The multi-core coaxial cable 50 is a bundle of a plurality of coaxial cables 54. In the present embodiment, the multi-core coaxial cable 50 has a cross section shown in FIG. 7 (b) over the entire length except for a portion described later (see FIG. 7 (a)). First, FIG. 7B will be described.

  In FIG. 7B, each coaxial cable 54 is configured such that a core wire (signal line) 54a is covered with an insulator 54b, covered with a shield wire 54c from above, and further covered with a jacket (outer skin) 54d. Yes. Further, a plurality of coaxial cables 54 are bundled and covered with a shield wire (overall shield wire) 53 from above, and further covered with a jacket (outer skin) 52. This is a general multi-core coaxial cable configuration.

  In the present embodiment, such a multi-core coaxial cable 50 is further covered with a heat shrinkable tube 51. In this way, a predetermined number of signal lines (signal wire bundles) connected to the ultrasonic probe 10 (the number corresponding to the number of transducer elements) are within a part of the distal end rigid portion 7 and within the bending tube portion 8. The heat-shrinkable tube 51 was covered on the jacket 52 over the entire length by a part and the flexible tube portion 9.

  FIG. 7A shows a bundle of coaxial cables 54 exposed by removing the jacket 52 and the overall shield wire 53 of the multi-core coaxial cable 50 described in FIG. 7B in a part of the bending tube portion 8. Covered with a heat shrinkable tube 51 from above. The reason why the heat-shrinkable tube 51 is covered is that each coaxial cable 54 is held so as not to be separated one by one and with a certain degree of freedom. This is because if the coaxial cables 54 are separated one by one, there is a possibility that the coaxial cables 54 may be caught between the connecting members 49 or the like and disconnected.

  The heat shrinkable tube 51 is also for positioning the multi-core coaxial cable 50 at a predetermined position inside the bending tube portion 8. In FIG. 7B, the heat-shrinkable tube 51 is also for improving the safety by preventing the overall shield wire 53 from being exposed to the outside when the jacket 52 is mechanically damaged.

  Referring again to FIG. 6, the multi-core coaxial cable 50 extending from the opening of the cylindrical structural member 30 toward the curved tube portion 8 side is a cylindrical structural member 30 from a portion of the curved tube portion 8. The jacket 52 and the integrated shield wire 53 are removed toward the side (C portion). Other than that, the jacket 52 and the comprehensive shield wire 53 are covered (D portion).

  Then, the bundle of the coaxial cables 54 that has been exposed is bonded in the vicinity of the opening of the cylindrical structural member 30 by the adhesive 43 and is bound and restrained. Except for the bonded portion 43, the multi-core coaxial cable 50 is covered with the heat shrinkable tube 51 over the entire length, including the bundled portion (C portion) of the coaxial cable 54 exposed. ing.

  By the way, when covering the multi-core coaxial cable 50 with the heat-shrinkable tube 51, first, the multi-core coaxial cable 50 is passed through the heat-shrinkable tube 51, and heat is applied from the outside. At this time, heat can be generated by changing the heating time, changing the heating power or heat source (for example, adjusting by using a small heating device such as a heat gun or a large heating device), or separating the heat source from the object to be heated. Gradient is applied, and the restraining force of the heat-shrinkable tube 51 on each coaxial cable 54 is adjusted depending on the portion.

  For example, the heating time for the heat-shrinkable tube 51 located in the portion (C portion) from which the jacket 52 and the overall shield wire 53 are removed is made shorter than the other portions so that the binding force to each coaxial cable 54 is increased. Can be weakened relatively.

  By covering the heat-shrinkable tube 51, each signal line (coaxial cable 54) in the jacket 52 (in the general shield 53) is further restrained (D portion). Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7B, the interval P0 between the coaxial cables 54 is narrowed. If it does so, the turn of the comprehensive shield 53 will become a big sliding resistance of a signal wire (coaxial cable 54), and each signal wire (coaxial cable 54) will be restrained reliably.

  On the other hand, in the portion C in the bending tube portion 8, since there is no jacket 52 and the overall shield 53, there is little tightening for each signal line (coaxial cable 54). That is, as shown in FIG. 7A, the interval P1 between the coaxial cables 54 is wider than P0 in FIG. 7B (P1> P0).

  Therefore, in FIG. 7A, the degree of freedom of each coaxial cable 54 is larger than in the case of FIG. This indicates that when the multi-core coaxial cable 50 is bent, the binding force on each coaxial cable 54 is smaller in FIG. 7A.

  As described above, when the signal line bundle is bent with the curvature radius R by the bending operation of the endoscope, the signal line located on the inner circumference side of the curvature is bent, and the signal line located on the outer circumference side is bent with the curvature radius R, which is unnecessary. No tension is applied. In addition, since unnecessary force is not applied to the signal line, not only is there no fear of disconnection, but the signal line bundle becomes flexible, so that the amount of operation force is reduced.

<Second Embodiment>
The signal line bundle is in a weakly constrained state over the entire length of the bending tube (a state in which the signal line bundle is not sufficiently constrained by the jacket 52 and the integrated shield wire 53, etc., and is covered with only the heat-shrinkable tube in the first embodiment (C In the following description, each signal line is bent in various directions. As a result, it comes into contact with other built-in objects (for example, a light guide cable or the like) existing in the bending tube portion, and an unnecessary load is applied to them. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the signal line bundle in a weakly restrained state in the bending tube portion is set to be half or less of the entire length of the bending tube portion.

  FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of the distal end of the insertion portion of the ultrasonic endoscope in the present embodiment. In the figure, the total length of the bending tube portion is L1, and the length of the signal line bundle portion 70 in the weakly constrained state is L2. L2 is set to a length equal to or less than half of L1. For example, L2 may be 1/3 of L1 in length.

  FIG. 9 shows a state of the signal line bundle when the bending tube portion 8 of the ultrasonic endoscope according to the present embodiment is bent. As shown in the figure, when the bending tube portion 8 is bent in a semicircular shape so that one end E1 and the other end E2 of the bending tube portion 8 are positioned at 180 degrees, the length of the signal line bundle portion 70 is increased. The limit is indicated by a 90 degree arc. If the arc has an angle larger than this, each signal line may be bent in various directions. Therefore, considering FIG. 9, the signal line bundle portion that is substantially weakly constrained should be less than half the total length of the bending tube portion.

  From the above, it is possible to limit a region where each signal line is freely deformed. Therefore, interference with other built-in objects such as a forceps channel and an optical observation member can be prevented, and not only the signal line is broken but also damage to other built-in objects can be minimized.

<Third Embodiment>
In the second embodiment, the length of the portion of the weakly restrained signal line bundle in the bending tube portion is half or less than that of the bending tube portion. Is less than or equal to half of the tip side between the curves. When the endoscope is guided into the body cavity, the distal end of the insertion portion of the endoscope need only bend flexibly, and other portions only follow.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of the distal end of the insertion portion of the ultrasonic endoscope according to the present embodiment. Thereby, the flexible location (the signal line bundle portion 80 in the weakly constrained state) of the bending tube is positioned on the distal end side.
By doing so, at the time of insertion into the patient, the followability to the lumen is improved, the insertability is improved, and the burden on the patient and the operator is reduced.

  In addition, in the 1st-3rd embodiment, although the heat contraction tube was used, it is not limited to this, What is necessary is just to be able to restrain a signal wire bundle. For example, a heat shrink tape or the like may be used. In the first to third embodiments, the electronic radial type ultrasonic probe is used. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a convex type or linear type ultrasonic probe may be used. In the first to third embodiments, the electronic radial ultrasonic probe using a piezoelectric element is used. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and an electron using a capacitive vibrator (c-MUT) is used. The present invention can also be applied to a radial type ultrasonic probe.

  The present invention is not limited to the first to third embodiments, and various configurations can be adopted within the scope described in the claims. Therefore, the restraining force by the covering member covering the signal wire bundle in a predetermined range among the signal wire bundles included in the bending tube portion can be made smaller than the restraining force of the covering member covering the other part. If present, the covering member is not limited to the configuration of the heat shrinkable tube 51, the jacket 52, and the general shield 53.

It is a conceptual diagram for demonstrating the restricted part and weakly restricted part of a signal wire | line in this invention. It is a figure which shows the external appearance structure of the ultrasonic endoscope in this invention. It is an enlarged view of the front-end | tip part of the ultrasonic endoscope 1 of FIG. It is sectional drawing of the ultrasound probe in 1st Embodiment. It is a perspective view of the ultrasonic probe in a 1st embodiment. The cross section near the front-end | tip of the insertion part 2 of the ultrasonic endoscope in 1st Embodiment is shown. The cross section of the multi-core coaxial cable in 1st Embodiment is shown. It is a schematic diagram of the insertion part front-end | tip of the ultrasonic endoscope in 2nd Embodiment. The state of the signal line bundle when the bending tube portion 8 of the ultrasonic endoscope in the second embodiment is bent is shown. It is a schematic diagram of the front-end | tip of the insertion part of the ultrasonic endoscope in 3rd Embodiment. It is a figure for demonstrating the signal wire bundle 201 of the bending tube part of the conventional endoscope.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Ultrasonic endoscope 2 Insertion part 3 Operation part 4 Universal cord 4a Endoscope connector 5 Electric cable 6 Ultrasonic cable 6a Ultrasonic connector 7 Tip rigid part 8 Bending pipe part 9 Flexible pipe part 10 Ultrasonic transducer 11 Angle knob 12 Air / water supply button 13 Suction button 14 Treatment instrument insertion port 17 Acoustic lens (ultrasonic wave transmission / reception unit)
18a Air / water supply port 18b Illumination lens 18c Objective lens 18d Suction / forceps port 20 Substrate 21 Conductive layer 22 Acoustic matching layer 23 Piezoelectric element 23a, 23b Electrode layer 25 Conductive layer 26, 29 Structural member 27 Copper foil 28 Backing material 30 Cylinder -Like structural member 31
32 Printed wiring board 35 Wire 36 Electrode pad 37 Vibrator element 38 Metal thin film 39 Ground wire 39a Solder 40 Cable bundle 41 Cable 42 Potting resin 43 Adhesive 48 Curved tube 49 Connecting member 50 Multi-core coaxial cable 51 Heat shrinkable tube 52 Jacket 53 Shielded wire (general shielded wire)
54 Coaxial cable 54a Core wire (signal wire)
54b Jacket (outer skin)
54c Shielded wire 54d Jacket (outer skin)
60 Connection member 70, 80 Signal line bundle part

Claims (8)

An ultrasonic probe in which a plurality of ultrasonic transducer elements for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves are arranged in a substantially cylindrical shape; a distal end rigid portion that constitutes the distal end of an endoscope insertion portion and is provided with the ultrasonic probe; ,
A bending tube portion to which the distal rigid portion is connected and bent by remote operation;
A flexible tube connected to the curved tube;
A bundle of signal lines corresponding to each ultrasonic transducer element for transmitting a drive signal for driving each ultrasonic transducer element, wherein the distal end rigid portion, the bending tube portion, and the flexible tube portion The signal bundle passing through the interior of
An ultrasonic endoscope comprising:
The signal wire bundle is covered with a restraining member that restrains the signal wire bundle,
The restraining force of the restraining member covering the signal wire bundle in a predetermined range among the signal wire bundles included in the bending tube portion is used as the restraint covering the signal wire bundle other than the range. An ultrasonic endoscope characterized by being smaller than the restraining force of a member. The restraining member includes at least a first holding layer that holds the signal line bundle, and a second holding layer that is thinner than the first holding layer,
The ultrasonic endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the signal line bundle in the predetermined range where the restraining force is small is covered with the restraining member including only the second holding layer.   The ultrasonic endoscope according to claim 2, wherein the first holding layer includes at least a shield material and an outer skin that covers the shield material.   The ultrasonic endoscope according to claim 2, wherein the second holding layer is formed of a heat shrinkable member.   The ultrasonic endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined range is a range corresponding to at most half the total length of the bending tube portion.   2. The ultrasonic endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined range is a position that is at most half of the entire length of the bending tube portion from the end of the bending tube portion on the distal end rigid portion side.   The ultrasonic endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined range is a range corresponding to half the total length of the bending tube portion. An ultrasonic probe in which a plurality of ultrasonic transducer elements for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves are arranged in a substantially cylindrical shape; a distal end rigid portion that constitutes the distal end of an endoscope insertion portion and is provided with the ultrasonic probe; ,
A bending tube portion to which the distal rigid portion is connected and bent by remote operation;
A flexible tube connected to the curved tube;
A bundle of signal lines corresponding to each ultrasonic transducer element for transmitting a drive signal for driving each ultrasonic transducer element, wherein the distal end rigid portion, the bending tube portion, and the flexible tube portion The signal bundle passing through the interior of
An ultrasonic endoscope comprising:
Among the signal line bundles included in the bending tube portion, the distance between the signal lines of the signal line bundle in a predetermined range is larger than the distance between the signal lines of the signal line bundle other than the range. An ultrasonic endoscope characterized by that.