JPH04235518A - Endoscope device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve the durability of the bent part of an endoscope device by preventing the damage of a protecting tube for the bent part. CONSTITUTION:The outer diameter D1 of a protecting tube 12 to cover the bent part 10 of an inserting part 4 is formed smaller than the outer diameter D2 of a protecting tube 13 for a soft part 11 functioning as the main body of the inserting part, and when the inserting part 4 is inserted into an inspected body such as a tube or the like having an inner diameter somewhat larger than the outer diameter of the soft part 11, the protecting tube 12 for the bent part 10 is prevented from coming into contact with the inside wall of the tube to rub against it and to turn into damage.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an endoscope device capable of improving the durability of a curved portion.

0002

[Prior Art] In recent years, by inserting an elongated insertion section into a body cavity, organs within the body cavity can be observed, and if necessary, in-vivo tissue can be collected using forceps inserted through a forceps channel to remove the affected area. Endoscope devices that can perform detailed diagnosis are widely used.

[0003] This endoscope device is used not only for medical purposes but also for industrial purposes, such as observing the condition inside the pipes of boilers, chemical plants, etc., or collecting and inspecting deposits on the inner surface of the pipes. Furthermore, it is equipped with a hollow guide tube through which the endoscope can be passed, and the distal end of the endoscope can be protruded from the opening at the distal end of the guide tube. Using a scope insertion aid, it is now possible to examine objects with complex internal structures, such as jet engines.

By the way, in this industrial endoscope device, if the insertion section is repeatedly inserted into and removed from the subject, there is a risk that the outer peripheral surface may be damaged or damaged.
-4717, or Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 5, filed by the present applicant.
As disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 7-37322, etc., the outer circumferential surface of the endoscope insertion section is often protected with a protective tube (forming an outer cover) made of thin metal wires braided into a net shape. In many cases, the curved portion of the endoscope insertion aid is similarly protected on its outer circumferential surface by a protective tube made of a net-like braid of thin metal wires.

In this case, in order to improve the insertability of the insertion part and the bending performance of the bending part, for example, the insertion part of the endoscope apparatus such as the endoscope insertion part or the guide tube of the endoscope insertion aid is used. , as disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 59-22412, the flexibility characteristics of the outer cover are changed between the curved part side of the insertion part and the soft part side as the insertion part main body, and the As disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2-205811, the protective tube usually has a low braid density so that it can be easily bent, and is loosely fixed without applying tension to the protective tube. On the other hand, as disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 59-22412, the protective tube of the flexible portion is made of a wire with a high braid density or a wire with a relatively thick diameter even among thin wires in order to increase durability. It is used to increase rigidity.

[0006]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in an endoscope apparatus, in order to improve operability, the insertion part main body is sometimes held in the insertion hole of the observation target part with an elastic member or the like.
In this case, conventionally, the entire insertion section has approximately the same outer diameter, so when inserting the insertion section, the curved section is excessively compressed by an elastic member, etc., and the protective tube of the curved section is easily damaged. be.

Furthermore, even when inserting the insertion tube into a tubular specimen whose inner diameter is only slightly larger than the outer diameter of the insertion tube main body, a curved tube having approximately the same outer diameter as the insertion tube main body may be used. The protective tube in the curved part was easily damaged, which was a factor in reducing the durability of the curved part.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an endoscope device that can prevent damage to the protective tube of the curved section and improve the durability of the curved section. .

[0009]

Means for Solving the Problems In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an endoscope apparatus having a protective tube in a curved portion, in which the outer diameter of the protective tube is connected to the main body of an insertion portion inserted into the inside of a subject. It is characterized by being smaller than the outer diameter.

0010

[Function] In the endoscope device of the present invention, the outer diameter of the protective tube at the curved portion is smaller than the outer diameter of the main body of the insertion section, and when the insertion section is inserted into the subject, the protection tube and the subject In addition, in order to improve operability, when holding the main body of the insertion part, it is possible to insert the insertion part into the subject and hold the main body of the insertion part without compressing the protective tube. can do.

[0011]

Embodiments Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1 to 3 relate to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
is an overall view of the endoscope device, FIG. 2 is a detailed sectional view of section A in FIG. 1,
FIG. 3 is a detailed sectional view of section B in FIG. 1.

In FIG. 1, an endoscope device 1 includes an endoscope 2 and a light source device 3. A large-diameter operating section 5 is connected to the rear end of the insertion section 4 and is provided with an operating knob 5a for bending the distal end of the insertion section 4, and a large diameter operating section 5 extends from the side of the operating section 5. Light guide code 6
and a connector 7 provided at the end of the light guide cord 6 and connected to the light source device 3, and an eyepiece section 8 for naked eye observation is provided at the rear end of the operation section 5. .

The insertion section 4 includes a hard tip 9 and a flexible section 11 as an insertion section main body connected to the tip 9 via a curved section 10. It is configured. The curved portion 10 and the flexible portion 11 are covered with protective tubes 12 and 13, respectively, and the curved portion 10 is covered with protective tubes 12 and 13, respectively.
The outer diameter D1 of the protective tube 12 covering the flexible portion 1
The outer diameter D2 of the protective tube 13 that covers the protective tube 1 is smaller than the outer diameter D2 of the protective tube 13 that covers the protective tube 1.

FIG. 2 shows a detailed cross-sectional view of section A from the distal end 9 to the curved section 10, and there is an insertion section on one side of a hard distal end member 14 made of metal or the like in the distal end 9. A hole is formed in the axial direction of the objective lens 15.
, 15 are arranged via the lens frame 16. Also,
One of the two holes on the other side of the tip member 14 is fixed with the tip side of a light guide fiber 18 that emits illumination light forward from its tip surface via the cover glass 17, and the tip side of the light guide fiber 18 is fixed to one of the two holes on the other side of the tip member 14. The portion is covered with a flexible tube member 19, and illumination light is supplied from the hand side via the flexible portion 11. In addition, the tip member 1
The other hole 4 (not shown) is used, for example, as a channel for inserting a treatment instrument.

Further, a highly flexible image guide fiber 20 as an image transmission means is arranged so that its tip end surface is located at the position where the optical image of the object is formed by the objective lenses 15, 15. has been done. The image guide fiber 20 is housed in a flexible tube member 21 and inserted to the rear operating section side, and serves as an observation optical system that allows the optical image formed by the objective lenses 15, 15 to be observed from behind an eyepiece (not shown). system is configured.

Furthermore, a curved portion 10 adjacent to the tip portion 9
Inside, a large number of approximately annular joint pieces 22, 22, ..., 22 are rotatably disposed in series in the direction of the insertion section 4. It is formed so that it can be bent vertically, horizontally, etc. by pulling and relaxing the proximal portion of the operating wires 23, 23, 23, 23 inserted therein by operating the operating knob 5a.

The joint pieces 22, 22, . ) is fixed to the rear end of a housing 26 which is fixed to the distal end member 14 with a substantially ring-shaped locking piece 25.

The outer periphery of the mesh pipe 24 covering the joint pieces 22, 22, . is compressed and fixed with a ring-shaped member to maintain liquid tightness. Then, the tube member 2
7 is covered with the protective tube 12 to form a jacket, and the protective tube 12 of the jacket is, for example, braided with a thin metal wire or the like with a small diameter strand at a low braiding density,
It is formed to have good flexibility and be easily bent.

The front end of the protective tube 12 is clamped and fixed by an inner tube 28 and an outer tube 29, and the outer periphery of the outer tube 29 has a thin base portion at the rear end of a fixing member 30 having an annular or cylindrical shape. It is fitted into the holder and fixed with solder, silver solder, etc. A fixing ring 31 is fitted onto the outer periphery of the tip member 14 adjacent to the fixing member 30, and has a male screw formed on the outer periphery of the front end and a knurling on the outer periphery of the rear end. A detachable notch (in the circumferential direction) is provided in a recess formed on the outer periphery of the member 14 and comes into contact with a fitted ring 32 to prevent the member from coming off and to regulate its position. The fixing ring 31 is configured to attach or unscrew the cylindrical cover member 33 by screwing the female thread formed on the inner periphery of the rear end of the cylindrical cover member 33 that covers the front end side of the tip portion 9 to the male thread of the fixing ring 31. It is constructed so that it can be removed. Note that the portions of the cylindrical cover member 33 facing the observation objective window, the illumination window, etc. are each formed to be open.

On the other hand, from the curved portion 10 to the flexible portion 11
A detailed cross-sectional view of the B section is shown in FIG.
The rearmost joint piece 22 in 0 is fixed, together with the rear end of the mesh pipe 24, to the front end side of a connecting member 34 that is approximately cylindrical and has a step provided at the boundary between the curved part 10 and the flexible part 11. .

A mesh pipe 3 is provided on the inner periphery of the rear end of the connecting member 34.
5 and the front end side of a flexible tube 36 made of resin or the like that fits and accommodates the mesh pipe 35 is fixed with an adhesive or the like, and a long thin plate-like member is spirally wound around the inner periphery of the mesh pipe 35. A flexible helical tube 37 formed by the above-mentioned method is inserted therethrough. A light guide fiber 18 for transmitting illumination light, an image guide fiber 20 for transmitting an image, and the like are inserted inside the spiral tube 37.

Furthermore, a flexible tube 36 made of the resin or the like is provided.
The outer periphery of the protective tube 1 is braided with thin metal wire or the like.
This protective tube 13 that covers the flexible portion 11 is coated with a protective tube 13, for example, by increasing the braiding density, making the diameter of the strands relatively thick, or increasing the thickness. The front end is fitted into a thin double-tubular mouthpiece formed on an annular fixing member 38, and is clamped from the inside and outside, and is fixed with an adhesive or the like.

The connecting member 34 is fitted and accommodated in the fixing member 38, and the screw 3 is inserted at the front end side of the fixing member 38.
9, the insertion portion 4 can be inserted into and removed from an insertion path in an industrial pipe or the like, and can be replaced if the protective tube 13 of the flexible portion 11 is damaged.

Furthermore, a substantially annular connecting member 40 is fitted and housed in the stepped portion of the connecting member 34 and fixed with solder, silver solder, etc., and the inner periphery of the front end of this connecting member 40 is cut out. A thin mouthpiece is formed, and the rear end of the protective tube 12 that covers the outer periphery of the curved part 10 is compressed and clamped between an inner tube 41 and an outer tube 42, and a fixed piece is fitted and housed in the thin mouthpiece. , solder, silver solder, etc.

[0025] In the endoscope device 1 having such a configuration, when inserting the insertion portion 4 into a subject such as a tube having an inner diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the flexible portion 11 of the insertion portion 4, the insertion portion 4 may be bent. The outer diameter D1 of the protective tube 12 of the insertion portion 10 is the outer diameter D2 of the protective tube 13 of the flexible portion 11 as the main body of the insertion portion.
, the possibility that the protective tube 12 of the curved portion 10 will come into contact with and rub against the inner wall of the pipe is greatly reduced. Therefore, damage to the protective tube 12 of the curved section 10 can be prevented, and the protective function of the protective tube 12 for the curved section 10 can be fully demonstrated, damage to the curved section 10 can be avoided, and the curved section 10 can be prevented from being damaged. This makes it possible to improve the durability and, in turn, the durability of the endoscope device 1 as a whole.

[Second Embodiment] FIGS. 4 to 7 show a second embodiment of the present invention.
Regarding the embodiment, FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the state in which the insertion section of the endoscope device is fixed to the subject, FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the insertion section distal end side, and FIG. 6 is a partial sectional view showing the attachment structure of the grindstone. , FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing the attachment of the grindstone.

The endoscope device 50 shown in FIG. 4 includes an endoscope 51 having a rotating treatment member at its tip, a light source device 52 that supplies illumination light to the endoscope 51, and a rotation drive of the rotating treatment member. and a controller 53 that controls the.

The endoscope 51 has a large diameter and includes an insertion section 54 and an operation knob 55a connected to the rear end of the insertion section 54 for bending the distal end of the insertion section 54. an operating section 55, a light guide cord 56 extending from the side of the operating section 55 and connected to the light source device 52, and an eyepiece connected to the rear end of the operating section 55 for visual observation. The connecting portion 58 in which the portion 57 is provided, and the connecting portion 5
8 and a rotary drive unit 59 connected to the rotary drive unit 59 .
A universal cord 60 extends from the controller 53 and is connected to the controller 53.

The insertion portion 54 of the endoscope 51 has a hard tip portion 6 to which a rotating treatment member such as a grindstone 61 is attached.
2, a curved portion 63 that drives the distal end portion 62 in a curved manner, and a rigid and substantially linear rigid portion 64 as an insertion portion main body connected to the curved portion 63. is covered with a protective tube 65 made of thin metal wire or the like, and the outer diameter of the protective tube 65 is smaller than the outer diameter of the hard part 64.

As shown in FIG. 5, an exit window 66 for the illumination optical system and an entrance window 67 for the objective optical system are provided on the front surface of the tip 62.
and a treatment instrument insertion channel 68 are disposed, and the rotating shaft 69 of the grindstone 61 connects to the rotation drive unit via a flexible shaft (not shown) inserted into the treatment instrument insertion channel 68. 59.

Further, as shown in FIG. 6, in the grindstone 61, a male thread formed at the tip of the rotating shaft 69 is screwed into a female thread of a connecting member 70 connected to the flexible shaft. A cap nut 7 rotatably engaged with a flange 71 formed at the male threaded base of the rotating shaft 69
Two female threads are screwed onto the male threads of the connecting member 70. In order to connect this grindstone 61 to the rotation drive unit 59 via the flexible shaft, as shown in FIG. 7, first, the male thread at the tip of the rotating shaft 69 and the male thread of the connecting member 70 are screwed together, Next, the female thread of the cap nut 72 is screwed into the male thread of the connecting member 70.

In this case, if the female thread of the cap nut 72 and the male thread of the connecting member 70 are right-handed, the male thread at the tip of the rotating shaft 69 and the female thread of the connecting member 70 are left-handed, and the cap nut 72 If the female thread of the connecting member 70 and the male thread of the connecting member 70 are left-handed threads, the rotating shaft 69
The male thread at the tip and the female thread of the connecting member 70 are formed as right-handed threads, so that the connection with the connecting member 70 will not come off even if the whetstone 61 is rotated in either a clockwise or counterclockwise direction. 61 can be prevented from falling into the subject.

The grindstone 61 is chamfered at both ends to prevent damage to the normal part of the member to be treated. Further, instead of chamfering, each corner of both ends may be rounded.

In this second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, the insertion section 54 of the endoscope 51 is inserted into the subject 73, and the rigid part 64 of the insertion section 54 is inserted into the outer wall of the subject 73. By holding the endoscope 51 with an elastic member such as an O-ring 76 on a holding member 75 fixed via a screw 74, internal observation and grindstone 61 can be performed at a desired position without having to grasp and fix the endoscope 51. able to perform work.

When inserting the insertion section 54 into the subject 73, the outer diameter of the protective tube 65 that covers the curved section 63 of the insertion section 54 is smaller than the outer diameter of the rigid section 64. , the influence of the tightening force by the O-ring 76 on the protective tube 65 of the curved portion 63 can be reduced to a practically negligible extent. Therefore, the protection tube 65 can be prevented from being damaged, the curved portion 63 can be sufficiently protected, and the durability of the curved portion 63 can be improved.

Furthermore, by making the outer diameter of the protective tube 65 smaller than the inner diameter of the O-ring 76 when attached to the holding member 75, the influence of the tightening force by the O-ring 76 can be completely eliminated. However, in practice, as long as the influence of the tightening force by the O-ring 76 can be ignored, the outer diameter of the protective tube 65 should be smaller than the inner diameter of the O-ring 76 when attached to the holding member 75. It may be slightly larger.

[Third Embodiment] FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing how a curved guide tube type endoscope device is attached to a jet engine according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

The endoscope apparatus 80 in the third embodiment includes an endoscope 81, an endoscope insertion aid 82 attached to the endoscope 81, and a light guide cord 81a attached to the endoscope 81. The endoscope insertion aid 82 includes an endoscope holding device 84.
is installed.

The endoscope insertion aid 82 includes an elongated guide tube 85 serving as an insertion portion of the endoscope device 80, and a wide guide tube connected to the rear end of the guide tube 85. an operating section 86; an endoscope mounting section 87 formed on the rear end side of the operating section 86 to which the operating section 81b of the endoscope 81 is attached; and the endoscope mounting section 87 and the operating section 86. and an extensible and retractable part 88 that is formed between the two parts.

The guide tube 85 has a curved portion 90 formed by connecting a large number of indirect pieces (not shown) in series to the front end side of a flexible portion 89 serving as the main body of the insertion portion, and a curved portion 90 made of a thin metal wire or the like on the outer periphery of the curved portion 90. A protective tube 91 is covered, and the outer diameter of the protective tube 91 is smaller than the outer diameter of the flexible portion 89 . Note that whether or not the flexible portion 89 is covered with a protective tube is appropriately selected depending on the conditions.

[0041]The indirect piece is a guide tube 85.
A wire inserted through the inside is connected to a mechanism that indexes and loosens the wire in the operating section 86, and by rotating an operating knob 86a provided on the operating section 86, the curved section 90 can be moved vertically or horizontally. The distal end portion 81c side of the endoscope insertion portion inserted through the guide tube 85 and protruding from the distal end of the guide tube 85 is bent by the bending operation of the guide tube 85 and the telescopic portion 88. The endoscope 81 can be guided in the direction of the target region by the extension and contraction operations of the endoscope 81 and the bending operation of the insertion section of the endoscope 81 itself.

Furthermore, a stopper member 9 is provided on the outer periphery of the extensible portion 88.
2 is fitted onto the outside of the stopper member 92, and a mounting plate 93 of the endoscope holding device 84 is detachably attached to the side surface of this stopper member 92 by screwing or the like. The endoscope holding device 84 includes:
One arm 94 of a pair of arms 94 and 95 projects from the mounting plate 93, and the other end of this arm 94 is connected to the other arm 95 via a bendable portion 96. This bent portion 96 is designed to allow the angles of both arms 94 and 95 to be varied.

Further, a pair of gripping pieces 97, 97 are attached to the other end of the arm 95, and these gripping pieces 97, 9
7 can be fixed in a state where it grips a mounting rod 99 protruding from a mounting plate 98, which will be described later. By gripping this mounting rod 99, the endoscope insertion aid 82 and the endoscope insertion The endoscope 81 attached to the auxiliary tool 82 can be fixed to the mounting plate 98 without wobbling.

[0044] The mounting plate 98 is in close contact with the mounting portion 101 of the jet engine 100 as the test object.
A hole 103 communicating with each screw hole 102 of the mounting portion 101 is provided, and each fixing screw 104 connects the mounting plate 98.
can be fixed to the mounting portion 101 of the jet engine 100. Furthermore, a guide tube 85 of the endoscope insertion aid 82 is inserted into the mounting plate 98 and is arranged around the observation hole 105 which is connected to the observation hole 105 provided in the mounting portion 101 of the jet engine 100. Elastic member 1
06 is provided with an insertion hole 107 to be held.

In this endoscope device 80, when inspecting the inside of the jet engine 100, the mounting plate 98 is brought into close contact with the jet engine 100 side mounting portion 101, and each fixing screw 104 is screwed. The mounting plate 98 is firmly fixed to the mounting portion 101, and the mounting rod 99 of the mounting plate 98 is gripped by the gripping pieces 97 to hold the endoscope holding device 84.

Next, the mounting plate 93 at the end of the arm 94 of the endoscope holding device 84 is mounted on the stop member 92 of the endoscope insertion aid 82, and the jet engine is inserted through the insertion hole 107 of the mounting plate 98. Observation hole 1 of 100 side mounting part 101
05, the guide tube 85 of the endoscope insertion aid 82
Insert. Then, by introducing the distal end portion 81c of the endoscope 81 into the jet engine 100 and holding the flexible portion 89 of the guide tube 85 by the elastic member 106, a desired region can be inspected.

At this time, as mentioned above, the endoscope device 80
In the guide tube 85 as an insertion part, the outer diameter of the protective tube 91 of the curved part 90 is the same as that of the flexible part 8 as the insertion part main body.
9, the protective tube 91 can be prevented from being damaged when the flexible portion 89 is held by the elastic member 106, and damage to the curved portion 90 can be avoided.

[0048]

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, according to the present invention, since the outer diameter of the protective tube of the curved part of the endoscope device is smaller than the outer diameter of the main body of the insertion section, the insertion section can be inserted into the inside of the subject. In this case, the contact between the protective tube and the subject is reduced,
In addition, when holding the main body of the insertion section to improve operability, the insertion section can be inserted into the subject and held without compressing the protective tube, and the curved portion can be held. Excellent effects such as preventing damage to the protective tube and improving the durability of the curved portion can be obtained.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is an overall view of an endoscope device.

FIG. 2 is a detailed sectional view of section A in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a detailed sectional view of section B in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which the insertion section of the endoscope device is fixed to a subject according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the distal end side of the insertion section according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a partial sectional view showing a grindstone mounting structure according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing attachment of a grindstone according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing how a curved guide tube type endoscope device is attached to a jet engine according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Endoscope device 2 Endoscope 4 Insertion part 10 Curved part 11 Soft part 12 Protective tube

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An endoscope apparatus having a protective tube at a curved portion, wherein the outer diameter of the protective tube is smaller than the outer diameter of a main body of an insertion section inserted into a subject. .