JP6736322B2 - Endoscope - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an endoscope, and more particularly to an endoscope having a heat dissipation portion for dissipating heat generated inside the endoscope.

Conventionally, endoscopes have been widely used in industrial fields, medical fields, and the like. In many of these types of endoscopes, an examiner inserts an elongated insertion portion into an inspection target and performs an inspection while observing an image displayed on a display unit.

There are various types of endoscopes depending on the purpose of inspection, location, and the like. For example, there is an endoscope in which a light source for illuminating an examination site of a subject is provided inside a housing. The illumination light emitted from the light source is used to illuminate the inspection site of the subject from the tip of the insertion part through a light guide or the like, but in recent years, the brightness of the illumination light is increased to make it easier to observe the inspection site. It is required to improve the quality. However, when the brightness of the illumination light is improved, there is a problem that heat generated inside the endoscope housing increases.

Therefore, there has been a demand for a configuration that effectively dissipates the heat generated by the light source provided inside the housing.

In view of such circumstances, Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration in which a heat sink member that is in thermal communication with a light source that is arranged inside the housing held by the inspector is provided outside the housing.

Special table 2011-502278 gazette

However, in the case of the endoscope device disclosed in Patent Document 1 described above, since the heat sink is provided outside the housing, the outer surface of the housing held by the inspector becomes hot. As a result, the operator's finger may accidentally touch the hot outer surface.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an endoscope that prevents the outer surface of the housing held by the inspector from becoming hot.

According to one aspect of the present invention, an insert portion, a housing portion having a grip portion and a base end of the insert portion being connected, a heat generating portion provided inside the housing portion, and the housing portion. provided in the space having a plurality of openings formed in the heat generating portion in thermal radiating portion through, was closed, the housing portion includes a bottom portion having a can be placed flat, At least one of the plurality of openings is provided above the bottom portion, and the space having the plurality of openings discharges air warmed by the heat radiated from the heat dissipation portion as an upward airflow from the opening. It is a flow path .

ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the endoscope which can prevent that the outer surface of the housing|casing which an inspector grasps becomes high temperature can be provided.

It is a perspective view of an endoscope concerning a 1st embodiment of the present invention. It is a side sectional view of an endoscope concerning a 1st embodiment of the present invention. It is the figure which abbreviate|omitted a part of insertion part 5 from the side sectional drawing of the endoscope concerning the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a rear perspective view of the endoscope concerning the modification 1 of a 1st embodiment of the present invention. It is a side sectional view of an endoscope concerning modification 2 of a 1st embodiment of the present invention. It is a side sectional view of an endoscope concerning modification 3 of a 1st embodiment of the present invention. It is a rear perspective view of the endoscope concerning the modification 3 of the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a side sectional view of an endoscope concerning modification 4 of a 1st embodiment of the present invention. It is a side sectional view of an endoscope concerning modification 5 of a 1st embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the endoscope taken along line XX of FIG. 9. It is a side sectional view of an endoscope concerning a 2nd embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
(overall structure)
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an endoscope according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the endoscope according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a view in which a part of the insertion portion 5 is omitted from the side sectional view of the endoscope according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

The endoscope 1 includes an operation unit 3, a display unit 4 capable of displaying an endoscopic image, an elongated insertion unit 5, and a housing unit 41 accommodating the operation unit 3 and the display unit 4. ing.

The housing unit 41 has a gripping unit 2 that a user who is an inspector grips with one hand. The grip part 2 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped body part 2b.
Note that, hereinafter, when the user holds the body portion 2b with one hand and is viewing the endoscopic image which is the inspection image displayed on the display unit 4, the display surface 4a side of the display unit 4 is grasped. The front side of the part 2 is called the back side.

The grip portion 2 has a bottom portion 2a having a flat surface on which the endoscope 1 can be placed on a table such as a desk. As a result, the housing 41 of the endoscope 1 can stand on a table or the like such that the longitudinal direction of the grip 2 coincides with the vertical direction of the table.

The grip portion 2 has an inclined surface 2c, which is a flat surface inclined toward the front side, on the upper portion of the body portion 2b. The joystick 3a, which is an operating device for performing a bending operation of a bending portion (not shown) provided at the tip of the insertion portion 5, is provided so as to project in a direction orthogonal to the inclined surface 2c.

The grip portion 2 is arranged at a position where the user can grip the body portion 2b with one hand and can operate the joystick 3a with the thumb in the gripped state, and has a size suitable for thumb operation.

The display unit 4 is arranged so as to be inclined obliquely downward from the upper portion of the grip unit 2 so that the display surface 4a faces slightly upward on the front side of the grip unit 2.

On the back surface side of the grip portion 2, a flexible and elongated insertion portion 5 is provided so as to extend obliquely downward from the back surface. As shown in FIG. 2, the axis C1 of the insertion section 5 extending from the back surface of the grip section 2 coincides with the axis of the joystick 3a. In other words, the axis of the joystick 3a and the extension direction axis of the insertion portion 5 are coaxial. That is, the grip portion 2 of the housing portion 41 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped body portion 2b that can be gripped by one hand of the user, the display portion 4 is fixed, and the proximal end of the insertion portion 5 is connected to the insertion portion 5. Extends from the back.

As shown in FIG. 2, a processing circuit 11, a battery 12, and a lighting unit 13 are provided inside the housing unit 41.

The processing circuit 11 is provided inside the housing portion 41 and on the rear surface side of the display surface 4a of the display portion 4. The processing circuit 11 is, for example, an image processing circuit that processes an image signal acquired by an imaging element (not shown) arranged at the tip of the insertion section 5. The processing circuit 11 may be a control signal processing circuit that outputs a control signal to the endoscope 1 in response to a signal provided by a switch (not shown) provided on the grip portion 2. Since the processing circuit 11 generates heat when processing various signals, it becomes a heat generating portion of the endoscope.

The battery 12 is provided inside the housing portion 41 and near the body portion 2b of the grip portion 2. The battery 12 supplies electric power to the illumination unit 13, the display unit 4, an image pickup device (not shown), and the like. The battery 12 generates heat when power is supplied to each component, and thus serves as a heat generating portion of the endoscope.

The lighting unit 13 is provided inside the housing unit 41 and near the bottom portion 2 a of the grip unit 2. The illumination unit 13 includes an illumination light source 15 and an illumination board 16. The illumination light emitted from the illumination unit 13 illuminates the examination site of the subject from the tip of the insertion unit 5 via a light guide (not shown). The illuminating unit 13 generates heat when illuminating with illumination light, and thus serves as a heat generating unit of the endoscope.

The processing circuit 11, the battery 12, and the lighting unit 13 are connected via the frame 20. FIG. 3 shows a state in which a part of the insertion portion 5 is omitted from FIG. 2 in order to clarify the shape of the frame 20.

As shown in FIG. 3, the frame 20 connects the processing circuit 11, the battery 12, and the lighting unit 13. The frame 20 is made of metal. Through the frame 20, the processing circuit 11, the battery 12, and the lighting unit 13 are in a thermally connected state, that is, in a thermally connected state.

Note that, in FIG. 3, the frame 20 is in a connected state without a gap, but even if there is a slight gap, heat generated from the processing circuit 11, the battery 12, and the illumination unit 13 is a frame. If it is configured to be transmitted to 20, it is assumed that it is in thermal communication. Also, when the frame 20 is connected via a material having thermal conductivity, it is in a state of being in thermal communication.

The heat dissipation portion 14 is provided on the lower base end side of the frame 20. That is, the heat dissipation part 14 is provided on the grip part 2 side inside the housing part 41 and below the base end of the insertion part 5. The heat dissipation part 14 is provided on the opposite side of the illumination part 13 via the frame 20. The heat dissipation portion 14 is composed of a heat sink 17 and fins 18. The fin 18 is composed of a plurality of or a single protrusion. The fin 18 is made of metal, resin, or the like. The fin 18 may have a flat shape without having a protrusion.

A space 6 is formed in the longitudinal direction inside the back surface of the casing 41. An opening 6a is formed in the space 6 above the housing 41 and on the back side of the display 4. An opening 6 b is formed in the bottom 2 a of the space 6 below the housing 41. The fins 18 of the heat dissipation portion 14 are exposed in the vicinity of the opening 6b. The boundary between the fin 18 and the space 6 is watertight with an adhesive, rubber packing, or the like (not shown).

(Action)
Next, the function of radiating the heat generated inside the casing 41 will be described. The heat generated in the processing circuit 11, the battery 12, and the lighting unit 13, which are heat generating units, is in thermal communication with the heat radiating unit 14 via the frame 20. As a result, the heat generated by at least one of the processing circuit 11, the battery 12, and the lighting unit 13 is radiated to the space 6 via the fins 18 of the heat radiating unit 14.

When the user is inspecting while holding the body portion 2b of the grip portion 2, air flows in through the opening 6b on the lower side of the space 6. The air flowing into the space 6 through the lower opening 6b is warmed by the heat radiated from the fins 18. The air warmed by the heat radiated from the fins 18 becomes an updraft due to the chimney effect and is discharged from the upper opening 6 a of the space 6.

As a result, the heat inside the housing 41, which is dissipated from the fins 18, is discharged from the upper opening 6 a of the space 6.

As shown in FIG. 2 or 3, a cutout portion 2a1 is formed on the side surface of the bottom portion 2a of the grip portion 2. Even when the bottom portion 2a of the grip portion 2 is placed on a table or the like, air flows in from the cutout portion 2a1 and the same effect as the above can be obtained.

In FIG. 3, the opening area of the upper part of the space 6, that is, the opening dimension D1 in the direction perpendicular to the display surface 4a of the rear surface side of the display unit 4 is the lower part of the space 6. That is, it has the same area as the opening area of the opening dimension D2 of the portion of the grip portion 2 on the back side of the body portion 2b. However, the opening area of the opening dimension D1 of the portion of the space 6 on the back side of the display unit 4 may be smaller than the opening area of the opening dimension D2 of the portion of the holding section 2 on the back side of the body portion 2b. When the opening area of the opening dimension D1 portion is smaller than the opening area of the opening dimension D2 portion, the flow velocity of the air carried by the ascending airflow passes through the portion having a small opening area, and the flow velocity further increases (Bernoulli's theorem). As a result, the heat dissipation effect is further improved.

Note that, as shown in FIG. 3, the proximal end side of the insertion portion 5 is provided inside the space 6. Part of the heat carried by the air rising from the opening 6b on the lower side of the space 6 is in thermal communication with the insertion portion 5. The heat transmitted to the insertion portion 5 is radiated toward the tip side of the insertion portion 5. As a result, the heat carried by the air rising from the lower opening 6b of the space 6 is also radiated from the insertion portion 5 in addition to being radiated from the upper opening 6a of the space 6, so that the heat radiation effect is obtained. Is further improved.

As described above, according to the above-described embodiment, the heat generated by at least one of the processing circuit 11, which is the heat generating portion inside the housing 41 of the endoscope 1, the battery 12, and the lighting unit 13, , Is in thermal communication with the heat radiating portion 14 via the frame 20, and is radiated from the fins 18 to the space 6. The radiated heat warms the air that has flowed in from the lower opening 6b of the space 6. The warmed air forms an updraft due to the chimney effect, and is discharged from the upper opening 6a.

As a result, the heat generated inside the housing 41 can be efficiently dissipated without the outer surface of the housing 41 held by the user becoming hot.

Further, since the outer surface of the casing 41 held by the user does not reach a high temperature, it is possible to prevent the user from accidentally touching the high temperature portion.

Furthermore, by forming an ascending airflow by the chimney effect, it becomes possible to perform efficient air cooling without separately providing a fan or the like.

In the present embodiment, the heat generated by at least one of the processing substrate 11, the battery 12, and the lighting unit 13, which is the heat generating unit inside the housing 41 of the endoscope 1, is transmitted via the frame 20. Although the configuration in which the heat sink 15 and the fins 18 are in thermal communication with each other to radiate heat to the space 6 has been described, the heat sink 15 and the fins 18 may be omitted. That is, the frame 20 may function as the heat radiating portion 14 and may be provided directly inside the space 6 to radiate the heat generated inside the housing portion 41 of the endoscope 1. In this case, the frame 20 may have a flat plate shape or a shape having a plurality of irregularities. By configuring the frame 20 as the heat dissipation portion 14, the frame 20 is directly exposed to the inside of the space 6 and an effect of efficiently dissipating heat is produced.

(Modification 1)
FIG. 4 is a rear perspective view of the endoscope according to the modified example 1 of the first embodiment of the present invention. The configuration of the casing 41 of the first modification is mainly different from that of the first embodiment described above. Other configurations that are the same as those of the first embodiment described above are given the same reference numerals as appropriate and description thereof is omitted.

As shown in FIG. 4, the housing portion 41 of the present modification is configured such that the housing front surface portion 42 and the housing rear surface portion 3 can be separated from each other, and includes a housing front surface portion 42 and a housing rear surface portion 43. The space 6 is formed by connecting the.

By using this configuration, it becomes possible to manufacture the housing portion 41 by separating the housing front surface portion 42 side and the housing rear surface portion 43 side. As a result, the effect of facilitating the manufacture and assembly of the endoscope 1 as compared with the first embodiment occurs.

(Modification 2)
FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of an endoscope according to a modified example 2 of the first embodiment of the present invention. The configuration of the casing 41 of the first modification is mainly different from that of the first embodiment described above. Other configurations that are the same as those of the first embodiment described above are given the same reference numerals as appropriate and description thereof is omitted.

As shown in FIG. 5, the casing 41 of this modification has a configuration in which a casing upper portion 44 and a casing lower portion 45 can be separated. As shown in FIG. 5, the housing 41 has a configuration in which the display 4 can be separated from the grip 2. A space 6x penetrating vertically is provided in the housing upper portion 44, and a space 6y penetrating vertically is provided in the housing lower portion 45. The space 6 is formed by connecting the upper case 44 and the lower case 45.

By using this configuration, even when the housing 41 is separated into the housing upper portion 44 and the housing lower portion 45 and the endoscope is inspected, the heat generated inside the housing lower portion 45 can be applied to the housing lower portion. It is possible to radiate heat from the space 6c formed in the upper part of the.

The heat generated from at least one of the battery 12 and the lighting unit 13, which is a heat generating unit disposed inside the lower case 45, is in thermal communication with the heat radiating unit 14 via the frame 20a. Heat is radiated from the fins 18 of the heat radiating portion 14. The radiated heat warms the air flowing in from the lower opening 6b of the space 6, and the warmed air is discharged from the opening 6c formed on the upper side of the housing lower portion 45 by the rising airflow generated by the chimney effect. It

With this configuration, even when the case upper part 44 having the display unit 4 and the case lower part 45 having the grip portion 2 are separately inspected, the heat generated in the case lower part can be efficiently dissipated. is there.

(Modification 3)
FIG. 6 is a side sectional view of an endoscope according to Modification 3 of the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7: is a rear perspective view of the endoscope concerning the modification 3 of the 1st Embodiment of this invention. In the third modification, the configuration of the space 6 is mainly different from that of the first embodiment described above. Other configurations that are the same as those of the first embodiment described above are given the same reference numerals as appropriate and description thereof is omitted.

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the upper portion of the space 6, that is, the portion corresponding to the rear surface side of the display unit 4 is divided into a plurality of portions by the ribs 51 to form the openings 6aa, 6ab, 6ac. ..

As a result, the opening area formed by the openings 6aa, 6ab, 6ac of each of the divided spaces 6 is smaller than the opening area of the opening 6a shown in FIG. The air that has flowed in from the opening 6b on the lower side of the space 6 and that has been heated and turned into an ascending airflow further increases the flow velocity by passing through the diameter narrowed by the ribs 51 (Bernoulli's theorem).

With this configuration, there is an effect that the heat generated inside the casing 41 can be radiated more efficiently.

(Modification 4)
FIG. 8 is a side sectional view of an endoscope according to Modification 4 of the first embodiment of the present invention. In the fourth modification, the configuration of the space 6 is mainly different from that of the first embodiment described above. Other configurations that are the same as those of the first embodiment described above are given the same reference numerals as appropriate and description thereof is omitted.

As shown in FIG. 8, the lower opening 6d of the space 6 is provided on the upper side of the bottom 2a of the grip portion 2 of the housing 41 and on the rear side of the body 2b.

The heat generated inside the casing 41 warms the air that has flowed in from the lower opening 6d of the space 6 via the fins 18. The warmed air forms an updraft due to the chimney effect, and is discharged from the upper opening 6a.

With this configuration, even when the housing portion 41 is made to stand on a stand or the like, an effect of efficiently radiating heat is produced. Further, on the back side of the body portion 2b, the opening area of the opening 6d can be increased, and the heat dissipation efficiency can be improved.

In addition, in this modification 4, it has been described that the lower opening 6d of the space 6 is provided on the back surface side of the body portion 2b, but not limited to the back surface side, the front surface side, the side surface, and other parts of the body portion 2b. It may be provided in any direction in the circumferential direction. Similarly, the opening on the upper side of the space 6 is not limited to the upper portion of the housing portion 41 on the rear surface side of the display portion 4, but may be the rear surface side, the front surface side, the side surface of the housing portion 41, and the other circumferential direction. It may be provided in any direction.

(Modification 5)
FIG. 9 is a side sectional view of an endoscope according to a modified example 5 of the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the endoscope taken along the line XX of FIG. In the fourth modified example, the configuration of the heat dissipation unit 14 is mainly different from that of the first embodiment described above. Other configurations that are the same as those of the first embodiment described above are given the same reference numerals as appropriate and description thereof is omitted.

As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, in the fifth modification, the heat pipe 19 is configured as a heat dissipation section. The heat pipe 19 is in thermal communication with the frame 20 and is exposed inside the space 6. Further, the heat pipe 19 is configured to contact the side and the back side inside the space 6. The boundary between the heat pipe 19 and the space 6 is watertight with an adhesive or rubber packing (not shown).

As a result, the heat generated by at least one of the processing substrate 11, the battery 12, and the lighting unit 13 which are the heat generating parts inside the housing 41 of the endoscope 1 is generated by the heat pipe 19 and the heat via the frame 20. It is communicated and radiated to the space 6. The heat pipe 19 can be widely exposed from the side to the back side inside the space 6. That is, the heat pipe 19 can be efficiently arranged with respect to the opening area of the space 6.

With this configuration, there is an effect that the heat radiation efficiency can be further improved.

(Second embodiment)
FIG. 11 is a side sectional view of an endoscope according to a second embodiment of the present invention. In the second embodiment, the structure of the space 6 is the same as in the first embodiment. Mainly different to. Other configurations that are the same as those of the first embodiment described above are given the same reference numerals as appropriate and description thereof is omitted.

As shown in FIG. 11, the second embodiment of the present invention differs from the first embodiment in the positions of the upper opening 61a and the lower opening 61b in the space 61.

The opening 61a on the upper side of the space 61 is formed in the upper portion of the body portion 2b of the grip portion 2 on an inclined surface 2c which is a plane inclined toward the front side. The opening 61b on the lower side of the space 61 is formed on the front side of the bottom portion 2a of the grip portion 2.

The metal frame 20b is formed by bending in the lower portion inside the housing portion 41. The positional relationship between the illuminating section 13 and the heat radiating section 14 is opposite to that in the first embodiment.

The heat generated inside the housing portion 41 is radiated to the space 61 via the fins 18 of the heat radiation portion 14, and is discharged from the lower opening 61b of the space 61 toward the upper opening 61a. The boundary between the fin 18 and the space 61 is watertight with an adhesive, rubber packing, or the like (not shown).

The upper opening of the space 61 may be formed in the body portion 2b.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

1 endoscope 2 grip part 2a bottom part 2a1 notch part 2b body part 2c inclined surface 3 operation part 3a joystick 4 display part 4a display surface 5 insertion part 6 space 11 processing circuit 12 battery 13 illumination part 14 heat dissipation part 15 illumination light source 16 Illumination board 17 Heat sink 18 Fins 19 Heat pipes 20, 20a, 20b Frame 41 Housing part 42 Housing front part 43 Housing back part 44 Housing upper part 45 Housing lower part 51 Rib.

Claims (14)

The insertion part,
A housing part having a grip part, to which the base end of the insertion part is connected,
A heat generating portion provided inside the casing,
A heat dissipating section provided in the space having a plurality of openings formed in the housing section and in thermal communication with the heat generating section;
Have a,
The housing portion has a bottom portion having a flat surface on which it can be placed,
At least one of the plurality of openings is provided above the bottom portion,
The space having the plurality of openings is a flow path for discharging the air warmed by the heat radiated from the heat dissipation portion from the openings as an ascending airflow.
An endoscope characterized in that . The plurality of openings has an upper opening and a lower opening, the upper opening is provided above the bottom portion, and the lower opening is located below the upper opening in the gravity direction.
The endoscope according to claim 1, characterized in that. The endoscope according to claim 2, wherein the lower opening is provided in the bottom portion. The endoscope according to claim 2, wherein the lower opening is provided on a side surface of the housing portion. The space is longer in the communication direction than in the radial direction of the plurality of openings.
The endoscope according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein: The endoscope according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the heat dissipation part is provided below the base end of the insertion part inside the space. The endoscope according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein a base end of the insertion portion is provided inside the space. The endoscope according to any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein the area of the lower opening is smaller than the area of the upper opening. The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the bottom portion has a cutout portion on a side surface portion. The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the space is formed in a longitudinal direction of the housing portion. The housing unit has a display unit capable of displaying an image captured by the image capturing unit provided in the insertion unit,
The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the opening is formed on the back side of the display section and on the lower side of the grip section. The heating unit is at least one of an illumination unit that illuminates the subject with illumination light, a processing substrate that processes various signals, and a battery that supplies power. The endoscope according to any of the above. The heat dissipation portion is configured by a heat sink and fins,
The endoscope according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the fin is provided inside the space. The heat radiating section is configured by a heat pipe,
The endoscope according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the heat pipe is provided inside the space and is in contact with a back surface side inside the space.