JPH0614906B2 - Air supply and water supply device for endoscope - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an air / water supply device for cleaning an observation window of an endoscope.

[Industrial field of use] An endoscope is used for observing, inspecting, etc. by inserting its insertion part into the body such as a human body. If foreign matter adheres to the observation window, it will hinder the observation. Therefore, the observation window must be washed during the operation. For this reason, the endoscope has
In order to supply the cleaning liquid toward the observation window to wash away foreign substances, and to wipe off the droplets after washing,
An air / water supply device is incorporated.

This air / water supply device has a fluid source consisting of a compressed air source for supplying pressurized air and a cleaning liquid tank.The compressed air source and the cleaning liquid tank are respectively provided in an air passage and a cleaning liquid passage built in the endoscope. It is connected. The air passage and the cleaning liquid passage are guided to an ejection port that opens toward an observation window provided at the tip of the insertion portion while remaining independent or joined together in the middle. In addition, the pressurized air from the above-mentioned compressed air source is used to send the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid tank to the cleaning liquid passage under pressure. The piping is connected to the cleaning liquid tank to pressurize the tank. An air / water supply valve is built in the main body operation part of the endoscope, and a switching mechanism in the air / water supply valve can be switched between an air supply state and a water supply state by operating the operation button with fingers. Is configured.

Thus, when supplying the cleaning liquid, it is possible to efficiently wash away the foreign matter over a wide angle by mixing the cleaning liquid with air to atomize the cleaning liquid and eject the mist. In addition, the washing efficiency can be improved because the droplets can be removed quickly after the washing. For this reason, the air / water supply valve can be switched between an air supply state and a state in which air supply and water supply are performed at the same time so that a mixed fluid of a cleaning liquid and air can be ejected. Those that have been known are conventionally known.

[Means for Solving Problems] By the way, as described above, by the air / water supply valve,
If it is possible to switch between an air supply state and a mixed fluid supply state in which air supply and water supply are performed at the same time, in the mixed fluid supply state, pressurized air from the pressure source is supplied to the jet port and the cleaning liquid tank at the same time. Therefore, when the pressure in the body cavity is low, the washing liquid tank cannot be sufficiently raised, and the jetting pressure of the washing liquid becomes low,
There is a drawback in that it causes inconvenience such as reduced cleaning efficiency.

In addition, when jetting the mixed fluid, if the air supply amount is increased, the fluid jetted from the jet outlet will spread over a wide range, and if the washing liquid amount is increased, a large amount of washing liquid will be discharged in a narrow range. Will be able to supply. Then, in order to clean the observation window efficiently and uniformly, it is necessary to supply the fluid to the entire observation window and to supply the cleaning liquid as much as possible. Here, the size of the observation window and the distance from the ejection port to the observation window differ depending on the type of endoscope, and the shape of the ejection port differs depending on the type of endoscope, as well as the nozzle mounting accuracy, etc. There are also differences depending on the individual endoscope. However, in the prior art, it was impossible to adjust the mixing ratio of the air and the cleaning liquid to be the most appropriate due to the relationship between the ejection port and the observation window.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object thereof is to provide a mixed fluid of a cleaning liquid and air,
It is an object of the present invention to provide an air / water supply device for an endoscope, which is capable of jetting with an optimum mixing ratio and with sufficient pressure.

[Means for Solving Problems] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention connects a tank pressurizing pipe opening to a cleaning liquid tank to a pressurized air supply passage from a compressed air source for supplying pressurized air. Then, a communicating portion is provided between the tank pressurizing pipe and the cleaning liquid supply passage from the cleaning liquid tank, and the communicating portion is supplied with air from the tank pressurizing pipe side toward the cleaning liquid supply passage side. Configuration in which a check valve for supplying a mixed fluid of cleaning liquid and pressurized air and an opening area adjusting means for adjusting the mixing ratio of the mixed fluid are provided [Operation] With the above configuration, the pressurized air supply passage The cleaning liquid tank can be pressurized while the communication between the cleaning liquid tank and the fluid ejection port is blocked, and the cleaning liquid tank can be pressurized to a desired pressure state. Therefore,
A mixed fluid of a cleaning liquid and air can be jetted at high pressure, and cleaning efficiency can be improved.
Thus, at the time of supplying the mixed fluid, the tank pressurizing pipe communicates with the cleaning liquid supply passage communicating with the ejection port through the communication passage, and the check valve is interposed therebetween.
If the valve opening pressure of the check valve is set appropriately, the pressure supplied into the cleaning liquid tank will not be reduced. Further, by interposing the check valve in the communication passage in this way, there is no possibility that the cleaning liquid will flow into the air passage side when the supply of the mixed fluid is stopped.

By the way, in order to wash the entire surface of the observation window uniformly and efficiently, it is necessary to adjust the mixing ratio of the mixed fluid. In the present invention, since the mixing ratio can be adjusted by the opening area adjusting means, the positional relationship between the ejection port from which the mixed fluid is ejected and the observation window, the size of the observation window, and the shape of the ejection port. The mixing ratio of the cleaning liquid and the pressurized air can be adjusted to an optimum value so that the observation window is not left unwashed and the entire structure is uniform, and the cleaning can be performed efficiently according to the mounting condition and the like.

Embodiments Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

First, FIG. 1 shows the overall configuration of the endoscope. In the figure, 1 is a main body operation part, 2 is an insertion part, 3 is a universal cord, and the universal cord 3 is connected to a light source device 4. An observation window 5 is formed at the tip of the insertion section 2, and the inside of the body cavity is inserted from the light source device 4 through a light guide (not shown) with the insertion section 2 inserted into the body cavity. Illuminating light to the observation window 5
Allows the image of the observation target portion to be observed.

If foreign matter such as body fluid adheres to the observation window 5 described above, the observation field of view will be impaired, so the observation window 5 must be washed as necessary. The observation window 5 is washed by first washing the foreign matter with a cleaning liquid and then blowing pressurized air to wipe off the droplets adhering to the observation window 5. In addition, this pressurized air is also used to expand the body cavity and obtain a wide observation visual field. For this reason, the endoscope is provided with an air / water supply device.

Therefore, the air / water supply device will be described next.

10 is an air pump, 11 is a cleaning liquid tank, the air pump 10 is installed in the light source device 4, and the air pipe 12 from the air pump 10 is connected to the connector portion 3a of the universal cord 3. . Further, a double pipe 13 is connected to the cleaning liquid tank 11, and an inner pipe 13 of the double pipe 13 is connected.
The tip of a is located below the liquid surface of the cleaning liquid tank 11, and the outer tube 13b is opened above the liquid surface of the cleaning liquid tank 11. The double pipe 13 is detachably connected to the connector portion 3a.

On the other hand, an air supply passage 14 and a liquid supply passage 15 are provided between the universal cord 3 of the endoscope and the position near the tip of the insertion portion 2 via the main body operation portion 1. The passage 14 and the liquid feeding passage 15 join together at a position near the tip of the insertion portion 2 to form a joining passage 16. And
The merging passage 16 is connected to a jet port 17 that opens toward the observation window 5 on the distal end surface of the insertion portion 2.

Next, an air / water feeding valve mechanism 18 is provided in the main body operation unit 1, and the air feeding passage 14 and the liquid feeding passage 15 are connected to the air feeding / water feeding valve mechanism 18, and the air feeding passage 14 The water supply passage 15 is adapted to be brought into contact with or separated from the fluid supply source side and the ejection side by a switching valve 19. That is, the switching valve 19
When the valve body 19a of FIG. 1 is in the position shown in the figure, the air supply passage 14 connects the fluid supply source side and the jet outlet 17 side via the valve chamber 20a, and the liquid supply passage 15 has the fluid supply source side and the jet outlet. The communication with 17 is cut off. Therefore, when the switching valve 19 is pushed downward, the air supply passage 14 is blocked, and the liquid supply passage 15 communicates with the fluid supply source side and the jet outlet 17 side via the valve chamber 20b. Then, the valve body 19 of this switching valve 19
In order to switch a, the valve body 19a is provided with an operation button 19b so as to project from the upper surface of the main body operation unit 1, and the operation of the switching button 19b by pushing the operation button 19b with fingers. It is possible to switch. In addition, from the valve body 19a toward the operation button 19b, the valve chamber
An atmosphere communication passage 21 for communicating the air 20a with the atmosphere is formed, and the atmosphere communication passage 21 can be closed with fingers.

Then, in the connector portion 3a of the universal cord 3, as is apparent from FIG. 2, an air passage communicating with the air supply passage 14 is formed.
22 and a cleaning liquid passage 23 communicating with the liquid supply passage 15 are provided,
A tank pressurizing passage 24 branches into the air passage 22.
When the connector portion 3a is connected to the light source device 4, the air pipe 12 communicates with the air passage 22. On the other hand, the double pipe 13 has a connection part to the connector part 3a.
25 are provided.

The connecting portion 25 includes a connecting portion main body 26 to which the double pipe 13 is connected and a connecting ring 27 that is detachably connected to the connector portion 3a via a bayonet mechanism or the like. Is provided with an inner pipe connecting portion 26a and an outer pipe connecting portion 26b, and the inner pipe 13a and the outer pipe 13b of the double pipe 13 are connected to each other. A liquid passage 28 is formed inside the inner pipe connecting portion 26a so as to penetrate the connecting portion main body 26, and a plurality of liquid passages 28 having one end communicating with the outer pipe connecting portion 26b are provided outside the liquid passage 28. The air flow path 29 of the
The other side communicates with the annular air chamber 30. And the connection
When 25 is connected to the connector portion 3a, the cleaning liquid passage 23 is connected to the inner pipe 13a via the liquid flow passage 28, and the tank pressurizing passage 24 is connected to the outer pipe 13b via the annular air chamber 30 and the air flow passage 29. It is designed to communicate.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 3 and FIG.
By providing a notch in a part of a wall portion between the annular air chamber 30 and the liquid flow path 28 in 26, a communication passage 31 that communicates between them is formed. Then, a check valve 32 in which an elastic member such as rubber is formed into a cylindrical shape is mounted in the liquid flow path 28, and the check valve 32 directs the liquid flow path 28 side from the annular air chamber 30 side. However, the cleaning liquid is prevented from flowing from the liquid flow path 28 side toward the annular air chamber 30 side. Further, a screw portion 33 is formed on the inner wall surface of the annular air chamber 30, and a passage adjusting ring 34 as an opening area adjusting means is screwed into the screw portion 33. Therefore, the opening area of the communication passage 31 can be changed from 0 to the maximum by screwing the passage adjusting ring 34 into an appropriate position.

The present embodiment is configured as described above, and its operation will be described next.

When performing the inspection and observation by inserting the insertion part 2 into the body cavity, the connector part 3a of the universal cord 3 is connected to the light source device 4, and the connection part 25 connected to the double tube 13 is connected. The air pump 10 is connected to the connector portion 3a so that the air pump 10 is always operated. Therefore, the air supplied from the air pump 10 is sent from the air pipe 12 into the air supply passage 14 through the air passage 22 of the connector portion 3a, which is supplied from the valve chamber 20a of the switching valve 19 to the atmosphere. Since the air pump 10 is opened to the atmosphere via the communication passage 21, the air pump 10 is operated in a no-load state.

Therefore, in order to expand the inside of the body cavity, the atmosphere communication passage 21 is closed by bringing a finger into contact with the upper surface of the operation button 19b provided in the main body operation unit 1. As a result, pressurized air is supplied from the air pump 10. Here, the air chamber 10 side of the air supply passage 14 and the ejection port 17 are controlled by the valve chamber 20a.
The pressurized air is ejected from the ejection port 17 through the air supply passage 14 and the confluence passage 16 because the side is maintained in a connected state. At this time, pressurized air is supplied from the air passage 22 through the tank pressurizing passage 24 to the cleaning liquid tank 11 through the outer pipe 13b, but since the switching valve 19 shuts off the liquid feeding passage 15. , The cleaning liquid is spouted 17
It never leaks out.

Next, when the observation window 5 is contaminated with foreign matter such as body fluid, in order to clean it, the operation button 19b in the main body operation unit 1 is pressed. As a result, the switching valve 19 is switched, the cleaning liquid tank 11 side of the liquid supply passage 15 and the jet outlet 17 side are in communication, and the air supply passage 14 is blocked. Therefore, the pressurized air from the air pump 10 is supplied from the air passage 22 through the tank pressurizing passage 24 to the inside of the cleaning liquid tank 11 from the outer pipe 13b of the double pipe 13 to pressurize the liquid surface of the cleaning liquid tank 11. This pressure causes the cleaning liquid to flow from the inner pipe 13a to the liquid flow path.
Spill towards 28. Here, since the annular air chamber 30 and the liquid flow passage 28 in the connecting portion 25 are communicated with each other by the communication passage 31, the check valve 32 provided in the communication passage 31 is indicated by a phantom line in FIG. As shown by, the valve is opened and the pressurized air flows into the liquid flow path 28. Therefore, in the liquid flow path 28, air is mixed with the cleaning liquid, and the mixed fluid flows from the ejection port 17 to the observation window 5 through the cleaning liquid passage 23, the liquid supply passage 15, and the confluence passage 16 in this order. The cleaning liquid becomes a mist toward and is ejected. Therefore, the cleaning liquid can be uniformly supplied to the observation window 5 over a wide range, and the mixed fluid can be sprayed at a high pressure, so that foreign substances such as body fluid can be swiftly and reliably washed out. Like Moreover, after this washing is performed, almost no droplets are attached to the observation window 5.

When the washing of foreign matter is completed in this way, the atmosphere communication passage 21
Switch valve 19 to the air supply passage 14
Are communicated with each other and the liquid supply passage 15 is switched off.
As a result, the pressurized air from the air pump 10 is ejected from the ejection port 17 toward the observation window 5, the droplets of the cleaning liquid adhering to the observation window 5 are wiped off, and the observation window 5 is completely wiped. Therefore, it becomes possible to secure a good observation visual field. Moreover, when the switching valve 19 is switched in this way, there is no possibility that the cleaning liquid accumulated in the liquid supply passage 15 will flow back and flow from the communication passage 31 to the outer pipe 13b side.

Here, in order to clean the observation window 5 evenly and efficiently, it is necessary to supply a fluid to the entire observation window 5 and to supply a large amount of cleaning liquid as much as possible. The range to which the cleaning liquid is supplied changes depending on the degree of atomization of the cleaning liquid ejected from the ejection port 17. Therefore, the size of the observation window 5 and the ejection port
By adjusting the mixing ratio of the pressurized air mixed with the cleaning liquid depending on the distance from 17 to the observation window 5, etc., the distance between the ejection port 17 and the observation window 5 and the size of the observation window 5 can be adjusted. , Can be adjusted to the optimum atomization conditions. Thus, the mixing ratio of the pressurized air to the cleaning liquid, that is, the degree of atomization can be adjusted by appropriately screwing the passage adjusting ring 34 and controlling the opening area of the communication passage 31. That is, when the passage adjusting ring 34 is displaced in the screwing direction along the threaded portion 33, the opening area of the communication passage 31 is increased and the air mixing ratio is increased. On the other hand, when the passage adjusting ring 34 is screwed in the returning direction, the opening area of the communication passage 31 is reduced and the air mixing ratio can be reduced. Then, when the passage adjusting ring 34 is set to completely cover the communication passage 31, the air supply is cut off,
It becomes possible to supply only the cleaning liquid.

[Advantages of the Invention] As described above, the present invention provides a communication section between the tank pressurizing pipe and the cleaning liquid supply passage from the cleaning liquid tank,
Since a check valve that allows air to flow from the tank pressurizing pipe side toward the cleaning liquid supply passage side is provided in the communication portion, a mixed fluid of the cleaning liquid and air is washed when the observation window is washed. It becomes possible to spray, the cleaning liquid can be efficiently supplied to the observation window over a wide range, and the supply pressure can be increased. To be able to wash,
Moreover, since the mixing ratio of the cleaning liquid and the pressurized air can be adjusted by the opening area adjusting means, for example, when the diameter of the observation window is large, the opening is enlarged to increase the supply amount of the pressurized air. By increasing the number, you can clean the entire observation window evenly, and if the observation window is small, narrow the opening to reduce the supply of pressurized air and direct a large amount of cleaning liquid to this small observation window. It provides various effects such as the optimum atomization condition can be created according to the position and the dimensional relationship between the ejection port and the observation window, such as the centralized supply and the extremely efficient cleaning.

[Brief description of drawings]

The drawings show an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram showing an air / water feeding mechanism of an endoscope, FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a water feeding mechanism connecting portion to a connector portion, and FIG. FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG. 2, and FIG. 4 is an external perspective view of a connection part. 1: Operation part main body, 2: Insert part, 3: Universal code, 3a: Connector part, 4: Light source device, 5: Observation window, 10:
Air pump, 11: cleaning liquid tank, 12: air pipe, 13: double pipe, 13a: inner pipe, 13b: outer pipe, 14: air supply passage, 15: liquid supply passage, 16: confluence passage, 17: jet outlet, 18: air / water supply valve mechanism, 19: switching valve, 21: atmosphere communication passage, 22: air passage,
23: Cleaning liquid passage, 24: Tank pressurizing passage, 25: Connection part, 2
6: Connection body, 28: Liquid flow path, 29: Air flow path, 30: Annular air chamber, 31: Communication path, 32: Check valve, 33: Screw part, 34:
Passage adjustment ring.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A device for cleaning an observation window of an endoscope by supplying pressurized air from a compressed air source and a cleaning liquid from a cleaning liquid tank, wherein the pressurized air supply passage from the compressed air source is provided with the compressed air. A tank pressurizing pipe opening to the cleaning liquid tank is connected, and a communicating portion is provided between the tank pressurizing pipe and the cleaning liquid supply passage from the cleaning liquid tank, and the communicating portion is provided from the tank pressing pipe side. A check valve that supplies air to the cleaning liquid supply passage side to supply a mixed fluid of the cleaning liquid and pressurized air, and an opening area adjusting unit that adjusts the mixing ratio of the mixed fluid are provided. An air / water supply device for an endoscope, which is characterized in that