JPH06181882A - Scope for endoscope device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To assure the good insertability of the scope and to lessen patient's uncomfortability by adequately controlling the flexibility of the arbitrary part of a flexible pipe according to the insertion state of the scope. CONSTITUTION:A basic pipe body is formed by coating the periphery of a spiral pipe 10 with a mesh 11 consisting of metallic fibers. The periphery of the basic pipe body is coated with a three-layered structure consisting of an inner rubber layer 12a constituting a sheath rubber layer 12, an intermediate layer 12b and an outer rubber layer 12c. A flexible adjustable pipe part is formed within the prescribed range in the axial direction of the intermediate rubber layer 12b. The intermediate rubber layer 12b of this pipe part is divided to plural segments and the intermediate rubber layers of the respective segments are formed of rubber materials which are increased in the modulus of elasticity by voltage impression. This voltage impression is controlled from the device body according to the insertion state of the scope.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a scope for an endoscopic device used in medical diagnosis, and more particularly, to adjust flexibility (hardness) of an arbitrary portion of a flexible tube of the scope. Regarding the scope structure.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in a scope of an endoscope apparatus, a distal end side tubular portion to be inserted into the body of a subject has a flexible tube structure. This flexible tube has a basic tube body in which a mesh made of metal fibers is coated on a layer formed by spirally winding an elongated metal plate, and the basic tube body is coated with a rubber tube. When the flexible tube having such a structure is inserted into, for example, the large intestine of a subject to be inspected, it is necessary to ensure appropriate flexibility as a whole. On the other hand, the flexible tube is, for example, the sigmoid colon S2 or the transverse colon S4 (see FIG. 12).
There is a case in which the scope cannot be inserted any more because it is bent as shown in FIGS. In this state, the distal end of the scope (that is, the distal end of the flexible tube) is the anal canal S1 and the sigmoid colon S2.
Movement of the sigmoid colon S2 as it moves past the descending colon S3 to the transverse colon S4 (see FIG. 13)
In addition, the distal end of the scope moves from the transverse colon portion S4 to the ascending colon portion S5.
It is likely to occur due to the movement of the sigmoid part S2 and the transverse colon part S4 (see FIG. 14) when trying to proceed to.

In order to avoid this inability to be inserted, conventionally, a sliding tube, which has a larger diameter and is inelastic than the scope, is usually used for bending and fixing. This sliding tube is inserted into the sigmoid colon after insertion and stagnation of the sigmoid colon to suppress the bending of the sigmoid colon and secure a subsequent scope insertion path.

As a method of adjusting the bending of the scope itself, there is known a method of providing a section made of a shape memory alloy on a predetermined part or all of the flexible tube. That is,
For example, when the tip of the scope is going from the downward colon to the transverse colon, an electric current is applied to the section of the shape memory alloy located in the sigmoid colon to fix the shape of the section. This reduces the flexibility of the flexible tube portion in the sigmoid colon and makes it difficult to bend, so that the distal end of the scope can be further advanced.

Further, as a simpler structure,
In order to make a predetermined portion of the flexible tube (for example, a portion facing the sigmoid colon when the scope tip reaches the transverse colon portion) more difficult to bend (decrease flexibility) than other portions, A rubber tube having high hardness is coated on the part, or the thickness of the rubber tube at the part is increased.

[0006]

However, when the flexibility is adjusted by the above method, the following inconveniences and inconveniences occur.

First, when a sliding tube is used, since a tube having a diameter larger than that of the scope is inserted separately, the subject often suffers pain and discomfort associated with the insertion. At the same time, the position where the sliding tube can be inserted is limited to the sigmoid colon at most, and the bending of the transverse colon when the scope tip reaches the ascending colon cannot be dealt with.

Further, when a shape memory alloy is used for, for example, a part of the flexible tube, its deflection is controlled by supplying a current, so that the temperature of the flexible tube rises due to heat generation from the shape memory alloy portion. This is not desirable for scopes that are inserted into the body.

Further, when a rubber tube having a high hardness is partially used, the position of the rubber tube having a high hardness is a fixed position in the entire flexible tube, but a portion requiring a high hardness is a subject. Since they are different from each other, it is not possible to flexibly deal with such cases. On the other hand, when a structure for adjusting the thickness of rubber is adopted, a difference in outer diameter at the time of coating causes a step on the outer surface. This step difference may hinder the smooth insertion of the scope into the body of the subject, and is also not preferable from the viewpoint of handling since it makes cleaning work troublesome.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned situation of the prior art. While the flexible tube as a whole has an appropriate flexibility, the flexibility of an arbitrary portion of the flexible tube is improved. The main purpose is to be able to adjust appropriately according to the scope insertion state. Another object is to remarkably reduce the discomfort given to the subject and further enhance the operability and functionality.

[0011]

In order to achieve the above object, an endoscope apparatus scope according to the present invention includes a flexible tube having a flexible adjusting tube portion for adjusting flexibility at least in part. , And a grip portion for gripping and operating this flexible tube. Further, the flexible adjusting tube portion has an insulator whose elastic modulus can be changed by applying a voltage, and has a voltage control means for controlling the voltage applied to the insulator whose elastic modulus can be changed. .

Particularly, in the scope for an endoscope apparatus according to a second aspect, the flexible adjusting tube portion is divided into a plurality of segments along the axial direction of the tube portion, and a voltage is applied to each segment. While having an insulator whose elastic modulus can be changed, a voltage control means for controlling a voltage applied to the insulator whose elastic modulus can be changed is provided.

[0013]

The flexible adjusting tube portion (which is divided into axial segments as necessary) in the flexible tube corresponds to, for example, the sigmoid colon portion when the scope tip reaches the transverse colon portion. The flexible adjusting tube is formed in a region (a length (range) in which the individual difference of the subject is taken into consideration). In this state, when the tip of the scope reaches the transverse colon, a voltage is applied from the voltage control means to the insulator of the flexible adjusting tube section. As a result, the elastic modulus of the insulator rises more than before, and the flexible adjustment tube portion becomes more difficult to bend than before. As a result, even if the sigmoid portion tries to bend, the flexible tube portion located there suppresses the bending,
You can take the scope further.

Particularly, in the scope according to claim 2, as the insertion of the scope progresses, a portion of weakening flexibility (hard to bend) is shifted toward the hand side (holding portion side) as necessary, and is inserted to some extent. In the case of being applied, the voltage control means stops the voltage application and restores the original flexibility.

As a result, there is no need to use a conventional sliding tube, and since no current flows through the insulator, there is no fear of heat generation when using the shape memory alloy. In addition, by appropriately setting the positions of the flexible adjustment tube portions at a plurality of positions on the flexible tube, the bending movement of the sigmoid colon and the transverse colon when the scope tip reaches the ascending colon is performed. Can be dealt with at the same time.

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

An electronic endoscope apparatus as an endoscope apparatus shown in FIG. 1 has an apparatus body 1 and a cable 2 attached to the apparatus body 1.
And a scope 3 connected via. Scope 3
Is provided with a hand-side operation section 4 that is manually operated by an operator, and a flexible tube 5 formed by extending a predetermined length from the hand-side operation section 4. The flexible tube 5 is a portion to be inserted into the body of the subject, and a rigid portion 5a having no flexibility is formed only at a predetermined length portion at the tip thereof. The rigid portion 5a is provided with a sensor such as a CCD, a light guide, a forceps port, a water supply port, and an air supply port, and the signal cables, air supply, and water supply pipes necessary for these mechanisms are flexible tubes. It is connected to the hand-side operation section 4 through the inside of 5, and further to the apparatus main body 1.

As shown in FIG. 2, the flexible tube 5 has a basic tube body in which a mesh 11 made of metal fibers is coated around a spiral tube 10 formed by spirally winding a thin metal plate. The outer rubber layer 12 is covered around the. As a result, the entire flexible tube 5 having a predetermined inner diameter and outer diameter has a predetermined flexibility.

Further, the flexible tube 5 has a flexible adjusting tube portion 5 for adjusting the flexibility over a predetermined length (for example, about ten and several cm) at three positions each having a predetermined length from its tip.
A, 5B and 5C are integrally formed. As shown in FIG. 3, each of the flexible adjusting tube portions 5A, 5B and 5C has an inner rubber layer 12a and an intermediate rubber layer 12a forming an outer rubber layer 12 around the spiral tube 10 and the mesh 11 as the above-mentioned basic tube body. It has a structure in which the rubber layer 12b and the outer rubber layer 12c are covered with three layers.

Among them, the intermediate rubber layer 12b is composed of four rubber tube pieces 20, ..., 23 divided into four segments in the longitudinal direction thereof in order to adjust flexibility. The rubber tube pieces 20, ..., 23 are respectively
It is formed of a rubber material (for example, a material obtained by hardening polycobalt methacrylate with isoprene rubber) whose elastic modulus (Young's modulus) can be changed by applying a voltage. That is, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the foil-shaped (eg, gold foil) electrodes 3 are formed on both surfaces of each rubber tube piece 20 (to 23).
0 and 31 are attached, and electrode wires 3 are connected from the electrodes 30 and 31.
2, 33 are drawn out, and a voltage is applied through the electrode wires 32, 33. Thereby, the rubber tube piece 20,
The elastic modulus of 23 increases with the applied voltage. At this time, the volume of the rubber tube pieces 20, ..., 23 does not change, and no current flows. In addition, FIG. 5 shows the rubber tube piece 20 (to 23) in a sheet-like developed state, and FIG.
Shows the rubber tube piece 20 (to 23) as it is in a tubular shape (in FIG. 6, the groove-shaped gap x is for wiring).

One of the electrodes 30 and 31 arranged on the outer peripheral side is the ground side.

6 and 7 show the wiring state for every four segments. That is, four rubber tube pieces 20, ..., 2
3 to 4 sets of electrode wires 32a, 33a, ..., 32
The pair of d and 33d are wired along the longitudinal direction at positions displaced by 90 degrees in the radial direction while utilizing the groove-shaped gap x. Of course, insulation between pairs and between wirings is also secured. These 32a, 33a, ..., 32d,
33 d is connected to the voltage application system 40 of the apparatus body 1.

Further, FIG. 8 shows a partial cross section of the outer rubber layer 12. In the figure, reference numerals 30a and 31a denote electrodes attached to the rubber tube piece 20, and reference numerals 30b and 3a.
An electrode 1b is attached to the rubber tube piece 21. The same applies to the other rubber tube pieces 22 and 23. The rubber tube pieces 20, ..., 23 are connected to each other by a heat-shrinking method which is one of the tube-type rubber connection methods. Further, the inner rubber layer 12a and the outer rubber layer 12c have insulating properties. Further, the flexible adjustment tube portion 5 of the flexible tube 5
The intermediate rubber layer 12b in the portions other than A, 5B, and 5C is simply elongated and formed in a tubular shape having the same thickness as the adjusting tube portion.

In addition to the voltage application system 40, the apparatus main body 1 controls the flexibility of the flexible adjustment tube portions 5A, 5B, 5C, and thus the control system 41 and the flexible tube shape measuring system. 42 is provided. Among these, the flexible tube shape measuring system 42 is for knowing the position and shape of the flexible tube 1 in the body, and is, for example, a system using X-rays or a system using a measure formed on the flexible tube 1. . The measurement information of this measurement system 42 is sent to the control system 41, and the position where this control system 41 may largely bend is judged. The control system 41 sends a control command to the voltage application system 40 according to the determination result, and the voltage application system 40 can apply the voltage to the rubber tube pieces of the flexible adjusting tube portions 5A and 5B.

This voltage application will be described by taking a large intestine examination as an example. The same reference numerals as in FIG. 11 described above are used for each part of the large intestine.

First, as shown in FIG. 10, when the scope 3 reaches the transverse colon S4 through the anal canal S1, the sigmoid colon S2 and the descending colon S3, the voltage applying system 4 is applied.
Rubber tube piece 2 of 0 to 2nd flexible adjustment pipe part 5B
A voltage is supplied to 0, ..., 23. As a result, the elastic modulus of the rubber tube pieces 20, ...
The flexibility of B is reduced and it becomes difficult to bend. Therefore, the flexible tube 5 suppresses the movement due to not being fixed to the abdominal wall of the sigmoid colon S2, so that the scope 3 can be further advanced. Then, when the flexible tube 5 is advanced to some extent and the possibility that the flexible tube 5 is bent due to the influence of the sigmoid colon S2 is reduced, the voltage application to the second flexible adjustment tube 5B is released.

When the scope 3 is further advanced and its tip approaches the ascending colon S5 as shown in FIG. 11, this time, the voltage applying system 40 causes the first and third flexible adjusting tubes to move. Rubber tube pieces 20 of parts 5A and 5C,
The voltage is supplied to 23. As a result, the pipe portion 5
The flexibility of A and 5C respectively decreases, and it becomes difficult to bend. Therefore, the flexible tube 5 can suppress the movement of the flexible tube 5 that is not fixed to the abdominal wall of the sigmoid colon S2 and the transverse colon S4, and can further advance the scope 3. Then, when the scope is further advanced and it becomes unnecessary to control the flexibility of the flexibility adjusting tube portions 5A and 5C, the voltage application to these tube portions 5A and 5C is released.

The flexible adjusting tube portion 5 preset in this way
By individually controlling the flexibility of A to 5C, the flexibility of the scope as a whole is secured when it is not affected by the movements of the sigmoid region and the transverse colon, while the movements of those regions are not affected. When affected by, it is possible to easily and easily reduce the flexibility of the susceptible portion. As a result, the scope can be inserted into the body, the operator's operation labor can be reduced, and the inspection efficiency can be improved. Further, it is possible to avoid the discomfort associated with the sliding tube and the problem of heat generation in the flexibility adjustment using the shape memory alloy as in the related art. Furthermore, even during flexibility control,
The outer diameter of the entire scope is the same in all parts, and there is no obstruction to insertion due to steps. Further, the easiness of the cleaning work is maintained.

Further, since the range of the flexibility adjusting tube portion can be set to be long in the axial direction so that the flexibility can be controlled for each segment, a portion requiring high hardness (low flexibility) It is possible to flexibly deal with the case where each subject is different.

In the above embodiment, the structure in which a plurality of flexible adjusting tube portions are partially formed in the flexible tube has been described, but the present invention is not necessarily limited to this, and the adjustment thereof is not limited thereto. The number and range of the pipe portions may be increased, or the entire flexible tube excluding the hard portion at the tip may be formed as the flexible adjustment pipe portion (in that case, the flexible adjustment pipe portion is (A structure not divided into a plurality of segments is also possible), and only a single adjusting tube portion may be formed. On the other hand, the number of segments forming each one of the flexible adjusting tube portions is not limited to the above-mentioned four, and can be formed in an arbitrary axial length and an arbitrary number.

Further, in the above-mentioned embodiment, only the intermediate rubber layer of the outer rubber layer is explained to control the flexibility of a part thereof, but in order to further enhance the priority of insertability, the outer rubber layer, One or both of the inner rubber layers may have a segment structure similarly, and the flexibility may be controlled by using the same member as the intermediate rubber layer.

Further, as the flexible tube shape measuring system for judging the position and shape of the scope, the flexibility can be automatically controlled based on the pressure detection information of the pressure sensor embedded in the outer wall of the scope. Further, as a modified example of this measurement system, an operator can manually control the flexibility while looking at another X-ray fluoroscopic image, or manual control depending on the intuition of the operator is also possible.

Furthermore, the flexibility of the flexible adjusting tube is
The value of the elastic modulus itself may be controlled to continuously change by changing the applied voltage value.

[0034]

As described above, according to the endoscope apparatus scope of the present invention, the flexible adjusting tube portion (if necessary, is divided into a plurality of segments along the axial direction). Has an insulator whose elastic modulus can be changed by applying a voltage, and the voltage is applied to the insulator depending on the insertion state of the flexible tube into the subject. While obtaining appropriate flexibility as a whole, the flexibility of any part of the flexible tube or the entire flexibility can be appropriately adjusted according to the scope insertion state. As a result, it is possible to provide a scope that can flexibly deal with individual subjects, improve operation efficiency and examination efficiency, and significantly reduce the discomfort of the subject.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment according to a scope for an endoscope apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cutaway perspective view showing the internal structure of a flexible tube.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing a structure of a flexible adjustment tube portion of a flexible tube.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating voltage application to one intermediate rubber layer developed in a sheet shape.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating voltage application to one tubular intermediate rubber layer.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating voltage application to the intermediate rubber layer of each segment.

7 is a schematic sectional view taken along the line VII-VII in FIG.

FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a cross section in the longitudinal direction of the flexible adjustment tube portion.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram for explaining flexibility control.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram illustrating flexibility control in the case of a large intestine examination.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram illustrating flexibility control in the case of a large intestine examination.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the outline of the large intestine.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram in the case of a large intestine examination for explaining the inconvenience of the conventional technique.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram in the case of a large intestine examination for explaining the inconvenience of the conventional technique.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Device Main Body 3 Scope for Endoscopic Device 5 Flexible Tube 5A, 5B, 5C Flexible Adjustment Tube Section 10 Spiral Tube 11 Mesh 12 Outer Rubber Layer 12c Intermediate Rubber Layer 20, ..., 23 Rubber Tube Piece 30, 31 Electrode 32, 33 electrode wire

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. An endoscope including a flexible tube having a flexible adjusting tube portion for adjusting flexibility at least at a part thereof, and a holding portion for holding and operating the flexible tube. In the scope, the flexible adjusting tube portion has an insulator whose elastic modulus can be changed by applying a voltage, and includes voltage control means for controlling the voltage applied to the insulator whose elastic modulus can be changed. A scope for an endoscopic device characterized in that 2. An endoscope including a flexible tube having a flexible adjusting tube portion for adjusting flexibility at least at a part thereof, and a holding portion for holding and operating the flexible tube. In the scope, the flexible adjusting tube is divided into a plurality of segments along the axial direction of the tube, and each segment has an insulator whose elastic modulus can be changed by applying a voltage. An endoscope apparatus scope comprising a voltage control means for controlling a voltage applied to an insulator whose rate can be changed.