JP4544942B2 - Endoscope system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an endoscope system having an optical adapter.

  In recent years, endoscope systems have been used as medical endoscopes that perform treatment while observing organs in a body cavity, using treatment tools as needed, and in boilers, durbin engines, chemical plants, etc. Widely used as an industrial endoscope for observing and inspecting scratches and corrosion. In such an endoscope system, a plurality of optical adapters may be attached to the distal end portion of the endoscope for observation. In addition, an optical adapter in which a power consuming unit such as a light emitting element or a temperature detecting unit is built in has been proposed.

  An endoscope having such an optical adapter is provided with a plurality of LEDs arranged around the objective lens as an illumination unit inside the optical adapter, or a CCD as an imaging device (for example, a patent) Reference 1). The endoscope has a structure for supplying power to the LED and the CCD in the endoscope body, and the contact of the optical adapter base end surface and the contact of the endoscope insertion portion distal end come into contact with the optical adapter. Drives a power consuming unit such as a built-in LED.

  In addition, there has been proposed an endoscope distal end portion in which a plurality of LEDs are arranged on the circumference of an objective lens as an illumination portion inside the optical adapter (see, for example, Patent Document 2). In this case, the endoscope main body is provided with a circuit for supplying power to the LEDs, and the contact pin from the optical adapter comes into contact with the contact receiver at the distal end of the endoscope insertion portion, so that the power consumption unit built in the optical adapter is reduced. It comes to drive.

Furthermore, an electronic endoscope in which an illumination LED as an illumination unit and a C-MOS image sensor as an image sensor are provided inside the optical adapter has also been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 3). This electronic endoscope includes a circuit for supplying power to the LED and the C-MOS image sensor in the operation unit, and the optical adapter and the distal end of the endoscope insertion unit are installed so as to match each configuration. By contacting the connection part, the power consumption part built in the optical adapter is driven.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-216085 JP 2000-89130 A JP 2001-61777 A

The following problems remain in the conventional technology.
As a method of driving a power consuming part built in a conventional optical adapter, in the contact-type power feeding method using an electrical connection terminal, the contact part of each end of the optical adapter and the endoscope insertion part is exposed. There is a possibility that a power consuming part such as an LED may be damaged due to the application of electricity, or a conduction failure may occur due to rusting of the contact terminal part. Further, when the contact terminals are fitted together, the contact terminals may be displaced from a predetermined position, and the contact terminals may be deformed and the optical adapter cannot be connected. Furthermore, the structures of the optical adapter and the distal end of the endoscope insertion portion are complicated, and there are problems such as poor handling and high cost.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problem, and it is intended to simplify the connection of the optical adapter without causing the respective contacts provided on the optical adapter and the endoscope to be exposed. An object is to provide an endoscope system.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides the following means.
The endoscope system of the present invention, in the endoscope system Ru comprising an optical adapter which is detachably attached to the distal end of the insertion portion of an endoscope having a flexible, the endoscope is a high-frequency AC power source A first adder that multiplexes a high-frequency signal into a component; a first bandpass filter that sends a signal in a predetermined frequency band; and a first adder connected to the first adder and the first bandpass filter. 1, and the optical adapter includes: a light-emitting element that illuminates an observation site; an imaging device that outputs an observation image of the observation site imaged on its own observation surface; and A rectifier circuit that supplies a predetermined operating voltage and supplies power to the image sensor; a second bandpass filter that is connected to the rectifier circuit and the image sensor and divides a signal into a predetermined frequency band; Connect to rectifier circuit And a second adder that modulates an output signal of the image sensor into a high-frequency signal and multiplexes the high-frequency component with an AC power source, and the second band-pass filter and the second adder. And a second dielectric element capable of supplying AC power from the first dielectric element .

  In the endoscope system according to the present invention, power is supplied to the power consuming part in a non-contact manner, so that the electrical connection terminal is not exposed as in the prior art, and thus the continuity failure due to the rust of the connection terminal is not caused. Occurrence can be suppressed. Thus, since it is not dependent on a contact state if it is a non-contact state, it becomes possible to supply electric power in a stable state. In addition, since it is only necessary to attach the optical adapter to the distal end of the insertion portion, it is not necessary to fit the electrical connection portions provided on the distal end of the insertion portion and the optical adapter as in the past. Therefore, the connection of the optical adapter can be simplified.

In the endoscope system of the present invention, the optical adapter is connected between the image sensor and the second bandpass filter, and demodulates a signal, the image sensor, and the second addition. And a modulator for modulating a signal to a high-frequency signal .

In the endoscope system of the present invention, the optical adapter is for direct viewing .

In the endoscope system of the present invention, the optical adapter is for side view .

The present invention has the following effects.
According to the endoscope system of the present invention, since the power consumption unit is contactlessly supplied with power, the electrical connection terminal is not exposed as in the conventional case. Generation, and further, damage and deformation of the contact terminal can be suppressed. Thus, since it is not dependent on a contact state if it is a non-contact state, it becomes possible to supply electric power in a stable state. Further, since it is only necessary to attach the optical adapter to the distal end of the insertion portion, it is not necessary to fit the electrical connection portions provided on the distal end of the insertion portion and the optical adapter as in the conventional case. Therefore, the connection of the optical adapter can be simplified.

Next, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
As shown in FIG. 1, the endoscope system 1 according to the present embodiment includes an elongated insertion portion 2 having flexibility and an optical adapter 3 detachably provided at the distal end of the insertion portion 2. An endoscope 10 and a power supply unit 4 that controls the operation of the optical adapter 3 and the display device 5 are provided.

  The insertion unit 2 includes an image sensor 21 serving as a solid-state imaging device that captures an observation image of an observation site, and a first magnetic body / coil (first dielectric) disposed at a position facing the optical adapter 3 at the tip. Element) 22.

The optical adapter 3 includes an LED (power consuming unit: light emitting element) 31 that illuminates an observation site, a rectifier circuit 32 that supplies a predetermined operating voltage to the LED 31, and a second magnetic body / coil connected to the rectifier circuit 32. (First dielectric element) 33 and a lens group 34 for forming an observation image of the observation region illuminated by the LED 31 on the observation surface of the image sensor 21. Further, the second magnetic body / coil 33 is disposed at a position where the first magnetic body / coil 22 is opposed to the second magnetic body / coil 33 when the second magnetic body / coil 33 is attached to the distal end of the insertion portion 2. Further, the second magnetic body / coil 33 generates an induced electromotive force by the magnetic coupling of the first magnetic body / coil 22. The induced electromotive force is converted into DC power by the rectifier circuit 32, and the converted DC power is supplied to the LED 31.
The first magnetic body / coil 22 and the second magnetic body / coil 33 function as non-contact power feeding means Y that feeds power to the LED 31 in a non-contact manner.

  The power supply unit 4 includes a power supply circuit 41 connected to the AC adapter 6, an AC power supply circuit 42 that applies an AC voltage to the first magnetic body / coil 22 according to the voltage supplied by the power supply circuit 41, A signal processing unit 43 that drives the image sensor 21 and processes a signal from the image sensor 21 is provided. The observation image formed on the image sensor 21 is photoelectrically converted, and the photoelectrically converted observation image is signal-processed as a video signal by the signal processing unit 43 and displayed on the display device 5 via the signal line L1. It has become.

Next, the operation of the endoscope system 1 according to the present embodiment configured as described above will be described below.
The optical adapter 3 is attached to the tip of the elongated insertion portion 2. Thereafter, AC power is supplied from the AC power supply circuit 42 to the first magnetic body / coil 22. At this time, an alternating magnetic field is generated between the first magnetic body / coil 22 and the second magnetic body / coil 33 built in the optical adapter 3. By this AC magnetic field, the distal end of the insertion portion 2 and the optical adapter 3 are electromagnetically coupled, and an AC power source is generated in the optical adapter 3. The generated AC power becomes DC power by the rectifier circuit 32 and is supplied to the LED 31 to drive the LED 31. Then, the observation part is illuminated by the LED 31, and the observed observation image is formed on the image sensor 21 via the lens group 34. This observation image is converted into an electrical signal by the image sensor 21 and transmitted to the display device 5 via the signal line L1 to display an endoscopic image.

  According to the endoscope system 1 according to the present embodiment, since the first magnetic body / coil 22 and the second magnetic body / coil 33 are provided, the optical adapter 3 is attached to the distal end of the insertion portion 2. Since power is supplied to the LED 31 only, the LED 31 can be driven. Therefore, since electric power can be supplied into the optical adapter 3 in a non-contact manner, it is not necessary to provide an electrical connection terminal for the insertion portion 2 and the optical adapter 3 as in the prior art. That is, since the electrical contact terminal is not exposed, there is no risk of the connection portion being broken or deformed, and power can be supplied to the optical adapter 3 well.

Next, a second embodiment according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In each embodiment described below, portions having the same configuration as those of the endoscope system 1 according to the first embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.
The endoscope system 50 according to the present embodiment is different from the first embodiment in the configuration of the insertion unit 51, the optical adapter 60, and the power supply unit 70.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the optical adapter 60 includes an LED (power consumption unit: light-emitting element) 61 that illuminates an observation site, a rectifier circuit 62 that supplies a predetermined operating voltage to the LED 61, and a bandpass filter for the rectifier circuit 62. (Hereinafter referred to as BPF) 63 and a second magnetic body / coil (second dielectric element) 65 connected via an adder 64 and an observation image illuminated by the LED 61 with an image sensor ( And a lens group 67 for forming an image on the observation surface of the power consumption unit (imaging device) 66. A signal for driving the image sensor 66 is divided into a predetermined frequency band by the BPF 63, sent to the demodulator 69, and transmitted to the image sensor 66 through the demodulator 69. . Further, the output signal from the image sensor 66 is transmitted to the adder 64 via the modulator 68.

Further, the image sensor 66 is configured such that a signal divided into a predetermined frequency band by the BPF 63 is input to the rectifier circuit 62 and power is supplied from the rectifier circuit 62. The observation image formed on the image sensor 66 is photoelectrically converted, and the photoelectrically converted observation image is provided as a video signal at the tip of the modulator 68, the adder 64, the second magnetic body / coil 65, and the insertion portion 51. The power is transmitted to the power supply unit 70 via the provided first magnetic body / coil (first dielectric element) 52.
The first magnetic body / coil 52 and the second magnetic body / coil 65 function as non-contact power feeding means Z that feeds power to the LED 61 and the image sensor 66 in a non-contact manner.

The power supply unit 70 includes a power supply circuit 71 connected to the AC adapter 6, an AC power supply circuit 72 that applies an AC voltage to the first magnetic body / coil 52 according to the voltage supplied by the power supply circuit 71, A system control unit 75 connected via an adder 73 and a BPF 74, a signal processing unit 76 that processes a signal from the system control unit 75, a modulator 77 that modulates an input drive signal into a high-frequency signal, and an input And a demodulator 78 that demodulates the converted signal into the original output signal. The adder 73 adds the signals from the AC power supply circuit 72 and the modulator 77 and then sends the signal to the first magnetic body / coil 52. The BPF 74 sends a signal in a predetermined frequency band to the demodulator 78.
The observation image sent by the optical adapter 60 is displayed on the display device 5 via the signal line L1 via the BPF 74, the system control unit 75, and the signal processing unit 76.

Next, the operation of the endoscope system 50 according to the present embodiment configured as described above will be described below.
The optical adapter 3 is attached to the tip of the elongated insertion portion 2. Thereafter, AC power is supplied from the AC power supply circuit 72 to the first magnetic body / coil 52 via the adder 73 and the BPF 74. As in the first embodiment, an alternating magnetic field is generated between the second magnetic body / coil 65 and the first magnetic body / coil 52, and between the distal end of the insertion portion 2 and the optical adapter 3. And the AC power is generated in the optical adapter 3, the DC power is supplied to the LED 31 by the rectifier circuit 32, and the LED 61 is driven.

Next, a method for driving the image sensor 66 will be described.
When receiving a drive command from the system control unit 75, the signal processing unit 76 sends a drive signal to the modulator 77. Then, the modulator 77 modulates the drive signal into a high-frequency signal, and this high-frequency signal is multiplexed with the high-frequency component of the AC power supply from the AC power supply circuit 72 by the adder 73. The multiplexed modulated high frequency is transmitted to the optical adapter 3 by the electromagnetic coupling described above, and only the high frequency line segment is taken out by the BPF 63. Then, the signal is demodulated to the original drive signal by the demodulator 69 and transmitted to the image sensor 66 to drive the image sensor 66.

  Then, the observation part is illuminated by the LED 61, and the observed observation image is formed on the image sensor 66 through the lens group 67. This observation image is transmitted from the image sensor 66 to the modulator 68 as an output signal, and is modulated into a high frequency signal by the modulator 68. The modulated high frequency signal is multiplexed by the adder 64 with the high frequency component of the AC power supply. Only the high frequency portion of the multiplexed modulated high frequency is extracted by the BPF 74 through the insertion unit 51 by the electromagnetic coupling described above, and demodulated to the original output signal by the demodulator 78. The demodulated signal is transmitted to the signal processing unit 76 for signal processing. And it transmits to the display apparatus 5 via the signal line L1, and an endoscopic image is projected.

  Since the endoscope system 50 according to the present embodiment includes the first magnetic body / coil 52 and the second magnetic body / coil 65, the optical adapter 60 is attached to the distal end of the insertion portion 51. Only the voltage is supplied to the LED 61 and the image sensor 66, so that the LED 61 and the image sensor 66 can be driven. Therefore, since electric power can be supplied into the optical adapter 60 in a non-contact manner, it is not necessary to provide an electrical connection terminal for the insertion portion 51 and the optical adapter 60 as in the prior art.

The technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.
For example, the non-contact power supply means includes a power receiver provided in the optical adapter and a power transmitter provided in the endoscope, and the LEDs 31 and 61 and the image are generated by electromagnetic waves emitted from the power transmitter to the power receiver. Electric power may be supplied to the sensor 66. In this configuration, the power transmitter provided in the endoscope 10 and the power receiver provided in the optical adapters 3 and 60 attached to the distal end of the insertion portion 2 of the endoscope 10 are within a predetermined range. Even if it has, it can supply electric power to LED31, 61 and the image sensor 66 by emitting electromagnetic waves from a power transmitter to a power receiver. Further, although one LED 31, 61 is arranged on the optical adapter 3, a plurality of LEDs 31, 61 and an image sensor 66 may be arranged as necessary.
Further, the optical adapters 3 and 60 may include a plurality of adapter groups. In this configuration, by preparing various types of optical adapters 3 and 60 such as for direct viewing and side viewing, various observations according to applications can be performed.

1 is a block diagram illustrating an endoscope system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the endoscope system which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

Y, Z Non-contact power supply means 1,50 Endoscope system 2,51 Insertion section 3,60 Optical adapter 10 Endoscope 22 First magnetic body / coil (non-contact power supply means: first dielectric element)
31, 61 LED (power consumption part: light emitting element)
33 Second magnetic body / coil (non-contact power supply means: second dielectric element)
52 First magnetic body / coil (non-contact power supply means: first dielectric element)
65 Second magnetic body / coil (non-contact power supply means: second dielectric element)
66 Image sensor (Power consumption part: Image sensor)

Claims (4)

Flexible in the endoscope system Ru comprising an optical adapter which is detachably attached to the distal end of the insertion portion of an endoscope having a,
The endoscope is
A first adder that multiplexes a high-frequency signal with a high-frequency component of an AC power supply;
A first bandpass filter for transmitting a signal of a predetermined frequency band;
A first dielectric element connected to the first adder and the first bandpass filter;
Have
The optical adapter is
A light emitting element for illuminating the observation site;
An image sensor that outputs an observation image of the observation site imaged on its own observation surface;
A rectifier circuit that supplies a predetermined operating voltage to the light emitting element and supplies power to the imaging element;
A second bandpass filter connected to the rectifier circuit and the imaging device and dividing a signal into a predetermined frequency band;
A second adder that is connected to the rectifier circuit and modulates an output signal of the imaging device into a high-frequency signal and multiplexes the high-frequency component with an AC power supply;
A second dielectric element connected to the second band-pass filter and the second adder and capable of supplying an AC power from the first dielectric element;
An endoscope system comprising: The optical adapter is
A demodulator connected between the image sensor and the second bandpass filter for demodulating a signal;
A modulator connected between the image sensor and the second adder for modulating a signal into a high-frequency signal;
The endoscope system according to claim 1, further comprising: The endoscope system according to claim 1, wherein the optical adapter is for direct viewing . The endoscope system according to claim 1 , wherein the optical adapter is for side viewing .

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