JP6396949B2 - Colonoscopy system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an endoscope and an endoscope system including an endoscope and a monitor.

Many endoscopes are “direct-view type endoscopes” having a single objective lens (observation optical system) on the distal end surface of the insertion portion. However, as another type of endoscope, the side surface (circumference) of the distal end portion of the insertion portion is used. A “side-view type endoscope” having one objective lens on the surface) is known.
The direct-view type endoscope is suitable for observing a subject located in front of the distal end portion of the insertion portion, and the side-view type endoscope is suitable for observing a subject located laterally of the distal end portion of the insertion portion. Is suitable. Therefore, for example, if there is a part suitable for observation with a direct-viewing endoscope and a part suitable for observation with a side-viewing endoscope on the inner surface of the body cavity (for example, the inner wall of the large intestine) where the endoscope is inserted, First, observe with one of the direct-view type endoscope and the side-view type endoscope, and then pull out the one endoscope from the body cavity and then insert the other endoscope into the body cavity. It is common to observe with a mirror.
However, it is troublesome for the operator to perform the observation by alternately inserting and removing the two types of endoscopes into the body cavity, which increases the burden on the subject and the operator.

  As a conventional technique of an endoscope that can solve this problem, for example, there is an endoscope disclosed in Patent Document 1. This endoscope includes an operation unit and an insertion unit extending forward from the operation unit. The front end portion of the insertion portion is a hard tip portion made of a hard material, and the portion of the insertion portion excluding the hard tip portion is flexible. A first objective lens is provided on the front end surface of the hard tip portion, a second objective lens is provided on a side surface of the hard tip portion, and an image sensor is provided inside the hard tip portion. This imaging device includes a forward-viewing imaging area that captures an observation image that has passed through the first objective lens, and a side-viewing imaging area that captures an observation image that has passed through the second objective lens.

When the insertion portion is inserted into the body cavity of the subject, a portion of the body cavity wall located in front of the hard tip portion (hereinafter referred to as the front portion) is observed by the first objective lens, and the hard tip portion of the body cavity wall. A portion located on the side of the lens (hereinafter referred to as a side portion) is observed by the second objective lens. Then, the observation image of the front part that has passed through the first objective lens is displayed on the first monitor after being picked up by the forward-viewing imaging area of the image sensor, and the observation image of the side part that has passed through the second objective lens is picked up. After being imaged by the side-view imaging area of the element, it is displayed on the second monitor.
Thus, since the endoscope of patent document 1 can observe two parts (a front part and a side part) simultaneously with a 1st objective lens and a 2nd objective lens, two kinds of endoscopes are alternately put in a body cavity. The burden on the subject and the operator can be reduced as compared with the case where observation is performed by inserting and removing.

JP-A 63-274911

If the diameter of the distal end portion of the insertion portion is large, the pain and the burden felt by the subject increase, and therefore the diameter of the distal end portion is preferably as small as possible. However, when two objective lenses are provided at the distal end hard portion as in the endoscope of Patent Document 1, a large space for attaching the two objective lenses to the distal end hard portion is formed. Compared to the case of only one, the tip hard part becomes larger in diameter.
Further, as in Patent Document 1, when an observation image that has passed through the first objective lens and an observation image that has passed through the second objective lens are to be imaged by a single imaging device, the number of pixels of the imaging data of each observation image is reduced. End up. Therefore, since images with low resolution are displayed on the first and second monitors, it may be difficult for the operator to visually recognize the observation image.

  The present invention provides an endoscope in which the distal end portion of the insertion portion can be made small in diameter while being able to simultaneously observe two directions with a single endoscope, and each observation image can be displayed on a monitor as a high-resolution image. An object is to provide a mirror and an endoscope system.

The endoscope system for large intestine of the present invention is an endoscope system for large intestine having an endoscope for large intestine capable of simultaneously observing a plurality of observation images and display means for displaying an observation image by the endoscope for large intestine. Because
The large intestine endoscope is
An operation unit;
Flexible tube portion extending forward from the operation unit, located in front of the movable Shiwakan portion, a curved portion which is curved in accordance with the operation of the bending operation means digits set in the operation unit, the front end of the flexible tube portion A connecting portion made of a hard material connecting the rear end of the bending portion, and a distal end hard portion made of a hard material extending forward from the front end of the bending portion , and inserted into the large intestine from the anus of the human body An insertion portion, and
The insertion part is
A first observation optical system and a first illumination optical system for illuminating the inside of the field of view of the first observation optical system, provided on the distal end surface of the distal rigid portion;
A first imaging element that is provided inside the hard tip portion and captures an observation image transmitted through the first observation optical system;
A second observation optical system provided on the front end surface of the connection portion and a second illumination optical system for illuminating the field of view of the second observation optical system;
A second imaging element that is provided inside the connection portion and captures an observation image that has passed through the second observation optical system;
The first illumination optical system and the second illumination optical system include an illumination light emitted from the first illumination optical system and an illumination light emitted from the second illumination optical system by bending the bending portion. Can be in a positional relationship that does not interfere with each other, and
The optical axis of the second observation optical system is inclined to the opposite side of the curved portion in a linear state with respect to the axis of the connecting portion;
Characterized by
The display means is
Image processing means for performing image processing on the image data captured by the first observation optical system and the second observation optical system of the large intestine endoscope, respectively, to generate first image processing data and second image processing data;
A monitor for displaying at least one of an observation image based on the first image processing data generated by the image processing means and an observation image based on the second image processing data;
Switching means for switching the observation image based on the first image processing data displayed on the monitor and the observation image based on the second image processing data to either one or both,
The switching means can further switch the size of the observation image based on the first image processing data displayed on the monitor and the observation image based on the second image processing data.
It is characterized by.

According to another aspect of the endoscope system for large intestine of the present invention,
A colonoscope system having a colonoscope capable of simultaneously observing a plurality of observation images, and a display means for displaying an observation image by the colonoscope,
The large intestine endoscope is
An operation unit;
A flexible tube portion extending forward from the operation portion, a bending portion positioned in front of the flexible tube portion and bending in response to an operation of a bending operation means provided in the operation portion; and a front end of the flexible tube portion; A connecting portion made of a hard material connecting the rear end of the bending portion, and a distal end hard portion made of a hard material extending forward from the front end of the bending portion, and inserted into the large intestine from the anus of the human body An insertion portion, and
The insertion part is
A first observation optical system and a first illumination optical system for illuminating the inside of the field of view of the first observation optical system, provided on the distal end surface of the distal rigid portion;
A first imaging element that is provided inside the hard tip portion and captures an observation image transmitted through the first observation optical system;
A second observation optical system provided on the front end surface of the connection portion and a second illumination optical system for illuminating the field of view of the second observation optical system;
A second imaging element that is provided inside the connection portion and captures an observation image that has passed through the second observation optical system;
The first illumination optical system and the second illumination optical system include an illumination light emitted from the first illumination optical system and an illumination light emitted from the second illumination optical system by bending the bending portion. Can be in a positional relationship that does not interfere with each other, and
The front dimension of the second imaging element of the second observation optical system is smaller than the front dimension of the first imaging element of the first observation optical system;
Characterized by
The display means is
Image processing means for performing image processing on the image data captured by the first observation optical system and the second observation optical system of the large intestine endoscope, respectively, to generate first image processing data and second image processing data;
A monitor for displaying at least one of an observation image based on the first image processing data generated by the image processing means and an observation image based on the second image processing data;
Switching means for switching the observation image based on the first image processing data displayed on the monitor and the observation image based on the second image processing data to either one or both,
The switching means can further switch the size of the observation image based on the first image processing data displayed on the monitor and the observation image based on the second image processing data.
It is characterized by.

In the large intestine endoscope system , one of the first observation optical system and the second observation optical system is capable of observing the back surface located in front of the fold of the large intestine in the insertion direction from the anus .

According to the large intestine endoscope system of the present invention, the optical axis of the second observation optical system is inclined to the side opposite to the curved portion in a linear state with respect to the axis of the connection portion. The curved portion and the hard tip portion are hardly projected on the observation image captured by the system (first image sensor), and the field of view is widened.
According to another aspect of the endoscope system for a large intestine of the present invention, the front dimension of the second image sensor of the second observation optical system is smaller than the front dimension of the first image sensor of the first observation optical system. The expansion of the diameter of the part can be suppressed, and the pain and burden on the subject when inserting the insertion part into the body (large intestine) of the subject can be reduced.

1 is an overall view of an endoscope according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view which shows the front part of an insertion part. It is the center longitudinal cross-section side of the front part of the insertion part in alignment with the III-III arrow line of FIG. It is a front view of the front end surface of an insertion part. It is a side view which shows the large intestine when the insertion part which made the axis line of the curved part linear was inserted in the large intestine in the cross sectional view. It is a figure which shows a mode that the observation image by the objective lens provided in the front-end | tip hard part in the state shown in FIG. 5 was displayed on the monitor. FIG. 6 is a side view similar to FIG. 5 when the curved portion is bent to the maximum while bending upward. It is a figure which shows a mode that the observation image by the objective lens provided in the front-end | tip hard part and the observation image by the objective lens provided in the connection part were each displayed on the monitor in the state shown in FIG. 7, (a) is a front-end | tip hard part. This is an example in which the observation image by the objective lens provided on the monitor is displayed large on the monitor and the observation image by the objective lens provided on the connection portion is displayed small in the upper right corner of the monitor, and (b) is provided on the hard tip portion. This is an example in which the observation image obtained by the objective lens is displayed on the monitor in a large size, and the observation image obtained by the objective lens provided in the connection portion is displayed small on the right side of the monitor. It is the center vertical side surface similar to FIG. 3 of a 1st modification. (A) is a front view similar to FIG. 4 of the second modification, and (b) is a front view similar to FIG. 4 of the third modification. It is a front view similar to FIG. 4 of the 4th modification. It is a perspective view similar to FIG. 2 of a 5th modification.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In the following front-rear direction, the distal end side of the insertion portion 12 of the endoscope 10 is defined as “front”, and the distal end side (connector portion 14 side) of the universal tube 13 is defined as “rearward”. The horizontal direction is based on the arrow direction in the figure.
The medical endoscope 10 is fixed to an operation part 11 made of a hard resin, an insertion part 12 extending forward from the operation part 11, a universal tube 13 extending rearward from the operation part 11, and a rear end of the universal tube 13. Connector portion 14.

Next, the detailed structure of the insertion part 12 is demonstrated.
The insertion portion 12 includes a flexible tube portion 16 that extends forward from the operation portion 11 and has flexibility, and a connection portion 17 that is connected to a front end portion of the flexible tube portion 16. The connection portion 17 is made of a hard resin material (for example, ABS, modified PPO, PSU, etc.) that is substantially inelastically deformable. As shown in FIG. 3, the connecting portion 17 is a hollow member that is open at both front and rear ends, and has a cylindrical large-diameter portion 18 that constitutes the rear portion thereof, and a cylindrical shape that constitutes the front portion and a smaller diameter than the large-diameter portion 18. And a small diameter portion 20. As shown in the drawing, the small-diameter portion 20 is eccentric upward with respect to the large-diameter portion 18 in a front view, and a part of the large-diameter portion 18 and an outward projecting portion 19 located on the outer peripheral side of the small-diameter portion 20 in a front view. It has become. The front end surface of the outward projecting portion 19 is a plane orthogonal to the axis of the insertion portion 12 (and connection portion 17).
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the fixing hole formed in the lower part of the front surface of the outward projecting portion 19 has an objective lens 23 (a circular shape in front view) that is a rotationally symmetric body about its own optical axis. (Second observation optical system) is fitted and fixed, and is located in the internal space of the connection portion 17 immediately after the objective lens 23, and is a rotationally symmetric body (circular shape in front view) centered on its own optical axis. There are provided three lenses 24 (second observation optical system). Further, an image sensor 26 (second image sensor) whose front surface is an imaging surface is provided immediately after the lens 24, and the rear end of the image signal cable 27 made of a flexible material extending rearward from the image sensor 26. The portion is connected to an image processing connection sleeve 14 </ b> A that protrudes from the insertion portion 12, the operation portion 11, the universal tube 13, and the connector portion 14 and protrudes from the connector portion 14.
In addition, a pair of fixing holes located on the left and right sides of the objective lens 23 are formed on the front surface of the outward projecting portion 19, and both fixing holes have a rotationally symmetric body (circular shape in front view) around its own optical axis. The illumination lens 28 is fitted and fixed. A flexible light guide fiber 28a (see FIG. 2) is disposed in the internal space of the insertion portion 12, the operation portion 11, the universal tube 13, and the connector portion 14. The front end of the light guide fiber 28a is connected to each illumination lens 28, and the rear end of the light guide fiber 28a is connected to a light source connection sleeve 14B protruding from the connector portion 14.

  The vicinity of the distal end of the insertion portion 12 is a curved portion 30 having the same diameter as that of the small diameter portion 20 whose rear end portion is concentrically connected to the small diameter portion 20 of the connection portion 17. As shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of bending pieces 31, which are annular bodies around the axis of the bending portion 30, are arranged in the bending portion 30 in the axial direction of the insertion portion 12. They are connected to each other via a rotating shaft extending in the left-right direction or a rotating shaft extending in the up-down direction so as to be relatively rotatable. The bending piece 31 located on the rearmost side is fitted and fixed to an annular recess 21 formed on the outer peripheral surface of the front end of the small diameter portion 20 (see FIG. 3). Further, the bending piece 31 located in the foremost position among the bending pieces 31 that can rotate about the rotation axis extending in the left-right direction includes a vertical operation wire (illustrated) disposed in the internal space of the operation unit 11 and the insertion unit 12. The front end of the abbreviation) is fixed, and the rear end of the up / down direction operation wire is connected to an up / down bending operation lever (bending operation means) 15A provided rotatably on the operation portion 11. Further, the bending piece 31 located in the foremost position among the bending pieces 31 that can rotate around the rotation axis extending in the vertical direction includes a left-right direction operation wire (illustrated) disposed in the internal space of the operation unit 11 and the insertion unit 12. The front end of the left and right direction operation wire is connected to a left and right bending operation lever (bending operation means) 15B provided rotatably on the operation portion 11. Accordingly, when the up / down bending operation lever 15A is rotated, the bending pieces 30 are bent in the up / down direction by rotating the bending pieces 31 rotatable around the rotation axis extending in the left / right direction, and the left / right bending operation lever 15B is rotated / operated. Then, each bending piece 31 that can rotate around the rotation axis extending in the vertical direction rotates, so that the bending portion 30 is bent in the horizontal direction. It should be noted that the endoscope 10 of the present embodiment is devised in the shape of the bending piece 31 so as to be higher than the maximum downward bending amount (maximum bending angle) of the bending portion 30 when the vertical bending operation lever 15A is rotated. The maximum bending amount (maximum bending angle) is increased.

The distal end portion of the insertion portion 12 is a distal end hard portion 33 fixed to the front end portion of the bending portion 30. The distal end hard portion 33 has a substantially cylindrical shape having the same diameter as that of the curved portion 30 and is made of a hard resin material (for example, ABS, modified PPO, PSU, etc.) that is substantially not elastically deformable.
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the distal end surface of the distal end hard portion 33 is a plane orthogonal to the axis of the insertion portion 12, and a fixing hole penetrating the distal end hard portion 33 in the front-rear direction is formed on the distal end surface. The objective lens 34 (first observation optical system), which is a rotationally symmetric body (circular shape in front view) around its optical axis, is fitted and fixed to the front end of the fixing hole. Further, three lenses 35 (first observation optical system) which are positioned in the fixed hole immediately after the objective lens 34 and which are rotationally symmetric bodies (circular shape in front view) around the optical axis of the fixed lens, and An image sensor 37 (first image sensor) that is located immediately after the lens 35 and has a front surface as an imaging surface is provided. The outer diameters of the objective lens 34 and the lens 35 are larger than the outer diameters of the objective lens 23 and the lens 24. The number of effective pixels on the imaging surface of the image sensor 37 is larger than the number of effective pixels of the image sensor 26, and the front dimensions (vertical and horizontal dimensions) of the image sensor 37 are larger than the front dimensions of the image sensor 26. The rear end portion of the image signal cable 38 made of a flexible material extending rearward from the image sensor 37 passes through the internal space of the insertion portion 12, the operation portion 11, the universal tube 13, and the connector portion 14 for image processing. It is connected to the connection sleeve 14A.
In addition, a pair of fixing holes located on the left and right sides of the objective lens 34 are formed as through holes penetrating the front end hard portion 33 in the front-rear direction on the front end surface of the end hard portion 33. A circular illumination lens 40 is fixedly fitted. A flexible light guide fiber 40a (see FIG. 2) is disposed in the internal space of the insertion portion 12, the operation portion 11, the universal tube 13, and the connector portion 14. The front end of the light guide fiber 40a is The light guide fiber 40a is connected to the illumination lens 40, and the rear end of the light guide fiber 40a is connected to the light source connection sleeve 14B.
Further, a treatment instrument insertion hole 41 and a sub-water supply injection hole 42 are formed on the distal end surface of the distal rigid portion 33. A pair of air / water supply nozzles 43 (first water supply nozzles) whose opening faces the objective lens 34 side are provided on the distal end surface of the distal end hard portion 33. The front end portion of the water supply tube and the air supply tube (both not shown) arranged in the internal space of the insertion portion 12, the operation portion 11, the universal tube 13, and the connector portion 14 are connected to each air supply / water supply nozzle 43. The rear ends of the water supply tube and the air supply tube are connected to an air / water supply base 14 </ b> C projecting from the connector portion 14. An intermediate portion of the water supply tube and the air supply tube is connected to an air / water supply cylinder (not shown) provided inside the operation unit 11. An air / water supply button 44A is provided in the air / water supply cylinder so as to be able to protrude and retract, and a piston (not shown) fixed to the air / water supply button 44A is slidably in contact with the inner surface of the cylinder.

Next, how to use the endoscope system 57 including the endoscope 10, the processor 50, and the monitor 55 will be described.
The endoscope system 57 includes a processor 50 (light source device / image processing means; see virtual line in FIG. 1) and a monitor 55 (see virtual line in FIG. 1 and FIG. 8 (see FIG. 8) (the processor 50 and the monitor 55 are connected to an external power source), the image processing connection sleeve 14A and the light source connection sleeve 14B of the connector unit 14 are connected to the processor 50, Further, the air supply / water supply cap 14C is used with one end connected to the other end of a water supply pipe (not shown) located in a water supply bottle (not shown). One end of an air supply pipe (not shown) is located in the air reservoir in the water supply bottle, and the other end of the air supply pipe is connected to the air / water supply base 14C. Furthermore, compressed air (fluid) is always sent from a compressed air source (not shown) to the air reservoir of the water supply bottle, and this compressed air is always supplied with an air supply pipe, an air supply tube, and an air supply / water supply cylinder. Is sent to the internal space of the air / water supply button 44A and leaks to the outside through an air escape hole formed on the upper surface of the air / water supply button 44A.
On the surface of the processor 50, a main switch 51, an illumination switch 52, and an image changeover switch 53 are provided.
Before inserting the insertion portion 12 of the endoscope 10 into the body of the subject (not shown), the main switch 51 is turned on, the illumination switch 52 is turned on, and the image changeover switch 53 is set to “first”. It is located at the “switching position”.
When the illumination switch 52 is turned on, the light source provided in the processor 50 emits light, and the light emitted from the light source is supplied to the rear end faces of the light guide fibers 28a and 40a provided in the light source connection sleeve 14B. Therefore, illumination light is irradiated from the illumination lens 28 and the illumination lens 40 forward.
Further, when the main switch 51 is turned on, the image pickup device 26 and the image pickup device 37 are activated, so that the observation image reflected by the subject located in front of the objective lens 23 passes through the objective lens 23 and the lens 24 and then the image pickup device. An observation image picked up by the image pickup device 26 (image pickup surface) and reflected by a subject positioned in front of the objective lens 34 is picked up by the image pickup element 37 (image pickup surface) after passing through the objective lens 34 and the lens 35. Observation image data captured by the image sensor 26 and observation image data captured by the image sensor 37 are sent to an image processing circuit in the processor 50 via an image signal cable 27 and an image signal cable 38, respectively. Image processing is performed by the image processing circuit (the processor 50 generates first image processing data based on observation image data captured by the image sensor 37, and first processing is performed based on observation image data captured by the image sensor 26. 2 image processing data is generated). However, when the image changeover switch 53 is located at the “first changeover position”, only the observation image (first image processing data) picked up by the image pickup device 37 is displayed on the monitor 55 (see FIG. 6).

When the insertion portion 12 is inserted into the large intestine A from the subject's anus with the bending portion 30 maintained in a (substantially) straight state (see FIG. 5), an observation image (moving image) captured by the image sensor 37 on the monitor 55 Is displayed, the surgeon inserts the insertion portion 12 into the back side (small intestine side) of the large intestine A while viewing the observation image.
There are a large number of folds A1 and A2 on the inner surface of the large intestine A. In order to observe the back surfaces (small intestine side) of the folds A1 and A2 with the endoscope 10, the objective is viewed from the back side (small intestine side) of the large intestine A It is necessary to bring the lens 34 close to the folds A1 and A2. For example, when it is desired to observe the back surface of the fold A1, the image changeover switch 53 is first switched to the “second changeover position”, and not only the observation image (first image processing data) picked up by the image pickup device 37 on the monitor 55, An observation image (second image processing data) captured by the image sensor 26 is also displayed (see FIG. 8A). At this time, the observation image (first imaging screen) captured by the imaging device 37 is displayed large on the monitor 55, and the observation image (second imaging screen) captured by the imaging device 26 is small in the upper right corner of the monitor 55. Displayed as an image. When the image changeover switch 53 is changed to the “third changeover position”, the observation image picked up by the image pickup device 37 is displayed with a size slightly smaller than the overall size of the monitor 55 as shown in FIG. The observation image captured by the image sensor 26 is displayed as a small image on the right side of the monitor 55. The surgeon rotates the up / down bending operation lever 15A while observing the observation image displayed on the image pickup device 37 displayed on the monitor 55, thereby bending the bending portion 30 to the maximum extent and moving the distal end surface of the distal end hard portion 33 rearward. (See FIG. 7). Then, since the front end surface of the front end hard portion 33 faces the fold A1, an observation image of the back surface of the fold A1 imaged by the image sensor 37 is displayed on the monitor 55. When the bending portion 30 is curved to the maximum extent in this way, the distal end surface (illumination lens 40) of the distal end hard portion 33 is positioned behind the outward projecting portion 19 (illumination lens 28) as shown in FIG. Therefore, the illumination light emitted from the illumination lens 40 (L1 in FIGS. 5 and 7) and the illumination light emitted from the illumination lens 28 (L2 in FIGS. 5 and 7) do not interfere with each other. A clear observation image is displayed on the monitor 55. Therefore, the surgeon can visually recognize the state of the back surface of the fold A1 by looking at the monitor 55. When the operator pushes the image processing button 44 </ b> B protruding from the operation unit 11 by hand, an observation image (moving image) captured by the image sensor 26 and the image sensor 37 is recorded on a recording device built in the processor 50, or imaged. An observation image captured by the element 26 and the image sensor 37 can be displayed on the monitor 55 as a still image.
When the operator closes the air escape hole formed on the upper surface of the air / water supply button 44 </ b> A with a finger of the hand, the compressed air generated by the compressed air source is jetted from the air / water supply nozzle 43 onto the surface of the objective lens 34. Further, when the operator pushes the air / water supply button 44A while closing the air escape hole with a finger, the pressure of the compressed air is applied to the cleaning water in the water supply bottle, and the cleaning water is supplied to the water supply pipe and the water supply tube (for air supply / water supply). The air is fed from the air / water feeding nozzle 43 to the surface of the objective lens 34 through the cylinder).
When observation of the large intestine A is completed, the bending portion 30 is returned to the (almost) linear state by rotating the up / down bending operation lever 15A (and the left / right bending operation lever 15B), and then the insertion portion 12 is examined from the anus. Pull out of the body. Then, by turning off the main switch 51 and the illumination switch 52, the light source is turned off, and the imaging operation of the imaging element 26 and the imaging element 37 is stopped.

As described above, according to the endoscope system 57 of the present embodiment, the two independent observation optical systems (the first observation optical system including the objective lens 34 and the lens 35, the objective lens 23, and Since the second observation optical system including the lens 24 is provided, the surgeon can observe the two directions simultaneously with the single endoscope 10.
In addition, an observation optical system (first observation optical system) including the objective lens 34 and the lens 35 is provided on the distal end hard portion 33, while an observation optical system (second observation optical system) including the objective lens 23 and the lens 24 is provided. ) Is provided in the connection portion 17, the distal end hard portion 33 (the distal end portion of the insertion portion 12) can be made smaller in diameter than when two observation optical systems are provided in the distal end hard portion 33. In addition, since the objective lens 23 and the lens 24 are smaller in diameter than the objective lens 34 and the lens 35 and the front dimension of the image sensor 26 is smaller than the front dimension of the image sensor 37, the front dimension of the outward projecting portion 19 of the connection portion 17. The amount of protrusion from the distal end hard portion 33 to the outer peripheral side when viewed from the front is not so large. Therefore, the pain and burden of the subject when inserting the insertion portion 12 into the subject's body (large intestine A) can be reduced.
Further, an observation image of the observation optical system (first observation optical system) including the objective lens 34 and the lens 35 and an observation image of the observation optical system (second observation optical system) including the objective lens 23 and the lens 24 are obtained. Since the images are picked up by the separate image pickup elements 26 and 37, clear images with high resolution can be displayed on the monitor 55.
Further, when the bending portion 30 is bent upward (the maximum bending amount is larger than the lower side), the bending portion 30 is positioned on the opposite side of the objective lens 23 (not positioned immediately before the objective lens 23). Is not narrowed by the curved portion 30.

As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated using the said embodiment, this invention can be implemented, giving various deformation | transformation. For example, implementation in the following first to fifth modified embodiments is possible.
In the endoscope 10 of the first modification shown in FIG. 9, the front end surface of the outward projecting portion 19 </ b> A of the connection portion 17 is a flat surface inclined downward with respect to the axis of the insertion portion 12 (and the connection portion 17). The longitudinal axes of the optical axes of the objective lens 23 and the lens 24 and the image pickup element 26 (in side view) are below (in a straight line) the bending portion 30 with respect to the axis of the insertion portion 12 (and the connection portion 17). Inclined to the other side. Therefore, there is an advantage that the curved portion 30 and the distal end hard portion 33 are hardly projected in the observation image captured by the image sensor 26.

In the endoscope 10 of the second modified example shown in FIG. 10A, the front end hard portion 33 is eccentric downward with respect to the connection portion 17 in a front view, and the upper portion of the connection portion 17 and the left and right side portions are outside. (The front end surface of the outward protruding portion 19B may be a plane orthogonal to the axis of the insertion portion 12 or a plane inclined upward with respect to the axis.) ). The endoscope 10 is devised in the shape of the bending piece 31 so that the maximum bending amount below the maximum bending amount (maximum bending angle) of the bending portion 30 when the up / down bending operation lever 15A is rotated. The (maximum bending angle) is configured to be large.
On the other hand, in the endoscope 10 of the third modified example shown in FIG. 10B, the front end hard portion 33 is eccentric to the left with respect to the connection portion 17 in the front view, and the right side portion and the upper portion of the connection portion 17. And the lower portion constitutes an outward projecting portion 19C (even if the front end surface of the outward projecting portion 19C is a plane orthogonal to the axis of the insertion portion 12, it is inclined to the right with respect to the axis. It may be a flat surface). By devising the shape of the bending piece 31, the endoscope 10 is designed to have a maximum leftward bending amount (maximum bending angle) of the bending portion 30 when the left / right bending operation lever 15B is rotated. The bending amount (maximum bending angle) is configured to be large.
Although not shown, the distal end hard portion 33 is eccentric to the right with respect to the connection portion 17 in a front view, and outward protrusions are formed on the left side, upper portion, and lower portion of the connection portion 17. (The front end surface of the outward projecting portion may be a plane orthogonal to the axis of the insertion portion 12 or may be a plane inclined to the left with respect to the axis). By devising the shape, the maximum amount of bending to the right (maximum bending angle) is larger than the maximum amount of bending to the left (maximum bending angle) of the bending portion 30 when the left and right bending operation lever 15B is rotated. You may comprise as follows.

An air supply / water supply nozzle 45 (second water supply nozzle) is provided in the outward projecting portion 19 of the endoscope 10 of the fourth modification shown in FIG. 11 (in place of the left illumination lens 28 in the above embodiment). It is. The opening of the air / water supply nozzle 45 faces the objective lens 23 side, and is different from the above-mentioned water supply tube and the air supply tube connected to the air / water supply nozzle 43 (both not shown). The front end portion is connected to the air / water supply nozzle 45, and the rear end portion of the water supply tube and the air supply tube is connected to the air / water supply base 14C. Therefore, by operating the air / water supply button 44 </ b> A, compressed air or washing water can be ejected from the air / water supply nozzle 45 toward the objective lens 23.
In this case, two air / water supply buttons are provided in the operation unit 11, the air / water supply operation is performed on the air / water supply nozzle 43 by one air / water supply button, and the air / water supply nozzle is operated by the other air / water supply button. You may make it perform air supply / water supply operation with respect to 45.

A pair of LEDs 46 (semiconductor light emitting elements) positioned immediately after the left and right illumination lenses 28 are provided inside the outward projecting portion 19 of the endoscope 10 of the fifth modification shown in FIG. The left LED 46 is not shown). An electric cable 47 extends rearward from each LED 46, and the rear end portion of the electric cable 47 is connected to the image processing connection sleeve 14A. Therefore, when the power of the external power supply is supplied to the electric cable 47 via the processor 50, the left and right LEDs 46 emit light, and the illumination light is emitted from the left and right illumination lenses 28 toward the front.
In general, when light is supplied to the light guide fibers 28a and 40a, the temperature of the light guide fibers 28a and 40a is increased. Therefore, the insertion unit 12, the operation unit 11, the universal tube 13, and the connector unit 14 are also easily heated. However, when the light guide fiber 28a is not provided as in the present modification, the insertion portion 12, the operation portion 11, the universal tube 13, and the connector portion 14 are less likely to be heated than those having the light guide fiber 28a. .
When a light guide fiber is provided inside the endoscope, a movable stop located between the light source and the rear end face of the light source connection sleeve 14B is provided inside the processor 50, and the stop diameter of the movable stop is changed. In general, the amount of illumination light emitted by the illumination lens is controlled. Therefore, when the illumination light amounts of the illumination lens 28 and the illumination lens 40 of the endoscope system 57 shown in FIGS. 1 to 8 are separately controlled using a movable diaphragm, two movable elements provided in the processor 50 are used. Since the diaphragm is controlled separately, the internal structure of the processor 50 and the movable diaphragm control system become complicated. However, in this modification, the light quantity of the LED 46 can be controlled by controlling the voltage of the power supplied to the electric cable 47. Therefore, since only one movable stop is provided in the processor 50, the internal structure of the processor 50 and the configuration of the control system for adjusting the illumination light quantity are simplified.

Further, an observation image (moving image or still image) captured by the image sensor 26 may be displayed large on the monitor 55, and an observation image captured by the image sensor 37 may be displayed small on the monitor 55. In addition, two monitors 55 are connected to the processor 50, an observation image captured by the image sensor 26 is displayed on one monitor 55, and an observation image captured by the image sensor 37 is displayed on the other monitor 55. Also good.
Although not shown in the drawing, the entire connecting portion 17 has a cylindrical shape having the same diameter and concentricity as the curved portion 30, and an objective lens as a side-viewing lens is formed on the peripheral surface (side surface) of the connecting portion 17. 23 (and the lens 24), the objective lens 23 (and the lens 24), and an illumination lens 28 having parallel optical axes, and the observation image transmitted through the objective lens 23 (and the lens 24) inside the connection portion 17. You may provide the image pick-up element 26 which images. Further, an objective lens 34 (and lens 35) as a side-viewing lens, and an illumination lens 40 having an optical axis parallel to the objective lens 34 (and lens 35) are provided on the peripheral surface (side surface) of the distal end hard portion 33. In addition, an imaging element imaging element 37 that captures an observation image transmitted through the objective lens 34 (and the lens 35) may be provided inside the distal end hard portion 33.
Further, two image processing buttons are provided on the operation unit 11, and the observation image processing (recording or the like) by the image sensor 26 is performed by one image processing button, and the observation image processing by the image sensor 37 is performed by the other image processing button. You may go.
Although omitted in the above description, in the structure of the insertion portion 12, the outer tube resin or the mesh tube may be appropriately covered with the flexible tube portion 16, the connection portion 17, and the bending portion 30. Thereby, the insertion part 12 can be protected from dirt and the like, and the durability as an endoscope can be enhanced.
Furthermore, the present invention may be applied to an industrial endoscope.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Endoscope 11 Operation part 12 Insertion part 13 Universal tube 14 Connector part 14A Image processing connection sleeve 14B Light source connection sleeve 14C Air supply / water supply base 15A Vertical bending operation lever (bending operation means)
15B Left / right bending operation lever (bending operation means)
16 Flexible tube portion 17 Connection portion 18 Large diameter portion 19 19A 19B 19C Outward projecting portion 20 Small diameter portion 21 Annular recess 23 Objective lens (second observation optical system)
24 lens (second observation optical system)
26 Image sensor (second image sensor)
27 Image signal cable 28 Illumination lens (second illumination lens, second illumination optical system)
28a Light guide fiber 30 Bending part 31 Bending piece (node ring)
33 Hard tip portion 34 Objective lens (first observation optical system)
35 Lens (first observation optical system)
37 Image sensor (first image sensor)
38 Image signal cable 40 Illumination lens (first illumination lens, first illumination optical system)
40a Light guide fiber 41 Treatment tool insertion hole 42 Sub-water supply injection hole 43 Air / water supply nozzle (first water supply nozzle)
44A Air / water supply button 44B Image processing button 45 Air / water supply nozzle (second water supply nozzle)
46 LED (Semiconductor Light Emitting Element)
47 Electric cable 50 Processor (image processing means)
51 Main switch 52 Illumination switch 53 Image switching switch 55 Monitor 57 Endoscope system A Large intestine A1 A2 Large intestine folds

Claims (3)

A colonoscope system having a colonoscope capable of simultaneously observing a plurality of observation images, and a display means for displaying an observation image by the colonoscope,
The large intestine endoscope is
An operation unit;
Flexible tube portion extending forward from the operation unit, located in front of the movable Shiwakan portion, a curved portion which is curved in accordance with the operation of the bending operation means digits set in the operation unit, the front end of the flexible tube portion A connecting portion made of a hard material connecting the rear end of the bending portion, and a distal end hard portion made of a hard material extending forward from the front end of the bending portion , and inserted into the large intestine from the anus of the human body An insertion portion, and
The insertion part is
A first observation optical system and a first illumination optical system for illuminating the inside of the field of view of the first observation optical system, provided on the distal end surface of the distal rigid portion;
A first imaging element that is provided inside the hard tip portion and captures an observation image transmitted through the first observation optical system;
A second observation optical system provided on the front end surface of the connection portion and a second illumination optical system for illuminating the field of view of the second observation optical system;
A second imaging element that is provided inside the connection portion and captures an observation image that has passed through the second observation optical system;
The first illumination optical system and the second illumination optical system include an illumination light emitted from the first illumination optical system and an illumination light emitted from the second illumination optical system by bending the bending portion. Can be in a positional relationship that does not interfere with each other, and
The optical axis of the second observation optical system is inclined to the opposite side of the curved portion in a linear state with respect to the axis of the connecting portion;
Characterized by
The display means is
Image processing means for performing image processing on the image data captured by the first observation optical system and the second observation optical system of the large intestine endoscope, respectively, to generate first image processing data and second image processing data;
A monitor for displaying at least one of an observation image based on the first image processing data generated by the image processing means and an observation image based on the second image processing data;
Switching means for switching the observation image based on the first image processing data displayed on the monitor and the observation image based on the second image processing data to either one or both,
The switching means can further switch the size of the observation image based on the first image processing data displayed on the monitor and the observation image based on the second image processing data.
An endoscopic system for large intestine. A colonoscope system having a colonoscope capable of simultaneously observing a plurality of observation images, and a display means for displaying an observation image by the colonoscope,
The large intestine endoscope is
An operation unit;
A flexible tube portion extending forward from the operation portion, a bending portion positioned in front of the flexible tube portion and bending in response to an operation of a bending operation means provided in the operation portion; and a front end of the flexible tube portion; A connecting portion made of a hard material connecting the rear end of the bending portion, and a distal end hard portion made of a hard material extending forward from the front end of the bending portion, and inserted into the large intestine from the anus of the human body An insertion portion, and
The insertion part is
A first observation optical system and a first illumination optical system for illuminating the inside of the field of view of the first observation optical system, provided on the distal end surface of the distal rigid portion;
A first imaging element that is provided inside the hard tip portion and captures an observation image transmitted through the first observation optical system;
A second observation optical system provided on the front end surface of the connection portion and a second illumination optical system for illuminating the field of view of the second observation optical system;
A second imaging element that is provided inside the connection portion and captures an observation image that has passed through the second observation optical system;
The first illumination optical system and the second illumination optical system include an illumination light emitted from the first illumination optical system and an illumination light emitted from the second illumination optical system by bending the bending portion. Can be in a positional relationship that does not interfere with each other, and
The front dimension of the second imaging element of the second observation optical system is smaller than the front dimension of the first imaging element of the first observation optical system;
Features
The display means is
Image processing means for performing image processing on the image data captured by the first observation optical system and the second observation optical system of the large intestine endoscope, respectively, to generate first image processing data and second image processing data;
A monitor for displaying at least one of an observation image based on the first image processing data generated by the image processing means and an observation image based on the second image processing data;
Switching means for switching the observation image based on the first image processing data displayed on the monitor and the observation image based on the second image processing data to either one or both,
The switching means can further switch the size of the observation image based on the first image processing data displayed on the monitor and the observation image based on the second image processing data.
An endoscopic system for large intestine. 3. The large intestine endoscope system according to claim 1, wherein the first observation optical system is capable of observing the back surface located in front of the insertion direction from the anus of the fold of the large intestine by bending the bending portion. Endoscope system for large intestine.

Images