JPH0654794A - Automatically curved type endoscope - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable a curving operation with limited sense of fatigue, for example, considering human engineering, the elimination of disparity in correspondence of the layout of a switch in the directions of curving and moving an endoscope image or the selection of a curving function according to operator's demand. CONSTITUTION:Among four switches U. D. L and R composing a curving operation switch section 19, functions of the switch U for upward curving on the side closer to a grip part 20 and the switch D for downward bending on the side farther from the grip part 20 can be changed over with a changeover switch 61. With the switching, additional functions are given to the switches U and D. The switch U performs a downward curving from the upward bending and the switch D does an upward curving from the downward curving. This is, the actions of the switches U and D are reversed.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improvement in an electric bending type endoscope apparatus which bends a bending portion of an endoscope electrically.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, by inserting an elongated insertion portion into a body cavity, the organ in the body cavity can be observed and, if necessary,
2. Description of the Related Art Endoscopes that can perform various therapeutic treatments using a treatment instrument inserted in a treatment instrument channel are widely used.

Boilers, gas turbine engines,
BACKGROUND ART Industrial endoscopes are widely used for observing and inspecting scratches and corrosion inside pipes of chemical plants and the body of automobile engines.

Such an endoscope generally has a mechanism for bending the bending portion on the distal end side, and is provided with an electric drive means such as a motor for driving the bending mechanism.
Such an electric bending-type endoscope constitutes an electric bending-type endoscope apparatus in combination with an endoscope, a bending control device for controlling the bending of the endoscope, a light source device, and the like. ,It is used.

In order to improve the operability of the electric bending type endoscope device, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 1-317423 and 5-5.
As shown in JP-A-8-78635, JP-B-63-59329, and JP-A-58-69523,
It is disclosed that the bending control device has a control means for controlling the bending speed by the operation time, operation amount, operation force amount, etc. of the bending operation switch.

Further, in the apparatus described in Japanese Patent Application No. 62-258279, the bending portion is operated by the switch provided in the endoscope operating portion. The switch is arranged on the thumb side of the gripping hand, with the side closer to the thumb curving downward and the far side curving upward.

With the endoscope operating section in front of the operator,
The insertion part often holds vertically downward, and when gripped in this way, the upper, lower, right, and left sides of the switch match the upper, lower, right, and left sides of the monitor, and can be operated without discomfort. It was thought that the operability was good.

However, considering the operation technique of the endoscope, it is predominant that the upper curve is applied. Japanese Patent Application Sho 62
In the device described in Japanese Patent No. 25879, in order to apply an upward curve, the thumb must be moved in the direction in which it is extended and operated. Ergonomically, it is difficult to perform the movement in the direction of extending the thumb, and the frequent use of this operation increases the fatigue of the operator, so there is room for improvement.

Therefore, the present applicant has filed Japanese Patent Application No. 3-3289.
In the specification of No. 99, from the viewpoint of operator's feeling of fatigue, an endoscope apparatus having a switch arranged in a downward direction that is easy to operate a switch corresponding to upward bending, which is frequently used, that is, a position near a thumb is proposed. ing.

[0010]

As described above, in an apparatus in which the movement direction (curving direction) of the monitor observation image and the arrangement of the switches correspond to each other, there is no discomfort in the correspondence. Due to heavy use, the operator feels tired.

On the other hand, in a device in which the switch arrangement is reversed, the feeling of fatigue can be prevented, but a sense of discomfort is felt in the correspondence between the image movement direction and the switch arrangement.

The above-mentioned two bending operation functions have advantages and disadvantages, and the selection of which is more important depends on the operator, that is, the operator's skill level or preference.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances. For example, in consideration of ergonomics, it is possible to perform a bending operation with less feeling of fatigue, or a switch arrangement and a bending direction and a moving direction of a monitor image. An object of the present invention is to provide an electric bending-type endoscope device capable of eliminating discomfort in handling and selecting a bending operation function according to an operator's request.

[0014]

In the electric bending type endoscope apparatus of the present invention, an insertion portion that can be inserted into a subject is provided with bending portions that can bend in a plurality of bending directions, and the insertion portion is provided. An endoscope having an operation section connected to the bending section, a bending drive section for bending the bending section, and a plurality of instructions for bending the bending section in a plurality of bending directions. And a bending instruction input means. The bending instruction input means is arranged on the operation section such that it is located near the thumb of the endoscope operator's hand when the endoscope operation section is gripped. The electric bending endoscope apparatus is provided with a switching unit that switches correspondence between a plurality of instructions of the bending instruction inputting unit and a plurality of bending directions of the bending section.

[0015]

According to the present invention, the switching means can switch the correspondence between the plurality of instructions of the bending instruction input means and the plurality of bending directions of the bending portion so that the operator can easily use the instruction.

Therefore, when holding the endoscope operation section,
An instruction of the bending instruction input means at a position near the thumb of the endoscope operator's hand and closest to the operator's thumb is, for example, a bending direction that is frequently used among the plurality of bending directions. Is selected by the switching means. While a high-frequency bending operation can be performed in the same position where the thumb is held, it is possible to reduce the difficult movement of the thumb in the direction of extending the thumb to improve the operability and reduce the operator's feeling of fatigue.

On the other hand, if the switching means switches the plurality of instructions of the bending instruction input means and the plurality of bending directions and the moving direction of the endoscope image, the operator feels uncomfortable due to the correspondence. It can be operated without.

[0018]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 to 4 relate to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is an arrangement view of a bending switch provided on an operating portion and a changeover switch, and FIG. 4 is a use explanatory view, FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the bending operation switch, and FIG. A bending mechanism and electric block diagram of the electric bending-type endoscope apparatus, and FIG. 4 is an overall configuration diagram of the electric bending-type endoscope apparatus.

The electric bending type endoscope apparatus 1 shown in FIG.
An electronic electrically-powered bending endoscope 2 having a solid-state imaging device such as a CD installed therein, a light source device 3 for supplying illumination light to the electrically-powered electrically bending endoscope 2, and a solid-state imaging device described later are provided. A video processor (hereinafter abbreviated as VP) 4 that is driven and converts an image pickup signal from the solid-state image pickup device into a video signal;
It is composed of a monitor 5 for displaying a video signal from the VP 4 and a bending motor control device 6 for controlling the bending of a later-described bending portion 10 of the electronic electric bending endoscope 2.

The electronic electric bending endoscope 2 is provided with a large-diameter operating portion 7 and an inserting portion 8 which is connected to the operating portion 7 and which is elongated so that it can be inserted into a subject. The insertion portion 8 includes a flexible tube portion 9, a bending portion 10, and a bending portion 10 in order from the operation portion 7 side.
And the tip forming part 11 are connected. The bending portion 10 is
Inside, there is provided a bending tube (not shown) configured to connect a plurality of bending pieces so as to be bendable in the vertical and horizontal directions.

The side surface of the operating portion 7 serves as a grip portion 20 for the operator to grip and support the endoscope when inserting / removing the endoscope or performing a bending operation. A universal cord 12 is bifurcated from the upper portion of one side surface of the operation portion 7 in the middle. A motor control device connector 13 detachably connected to the bending motor control device 6 is attached to one end of the universal cord 12.
However, light guide connectors 14 that are detachably connected to the light source device 3 are provided at the other ends. And, in the light guide connector 14,
A video control cord 15 extends from a side portion, and a video processor (VP) connector 16 detachably connected to the VP 4 is attached to an end portion of the video control cord 15.
Is provided.

Further, the operation section 7 includes an air supply / water supply button 17 for instructing cleaning of an observation window (not shown) provided on the front surface of the tip forming section 11, and a suction button 18 for instructing suction of body fluid and the like. Is provided. Air / water button 1
By operating 7, air or water is supplied from a nozzle (not shown) provided on the front surface of the tip forming portion 11. By operating the suction button 18, suction is performed from a suction channel (a treatment instrument insertion channel) (not shown) arranged in the electronic electric bending endoscope 2.

Further, the operation section 7 is provided with a bending operation switch section 19 as bending instruction input means, as shown in FIGS. 1, 3 and 4. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the bending operation switch section 19 includes the bending section 10 described above.
Consists of four switches: an upward bending switch U, a downward bending switch D, a left bending switch L, and a right bending switch R so that an instruction to bend the up, down, left, right, and four directions can be issued. Has been done. Each switch L, R, U, D
Are arranged on the four arms of the cross-shaped bending operation switch unit 19, as shown in FIG.

Here, in general, the endoscope is operated with the operating portion 7 on the upper side and the operator's hand side and the inserting portion 8 facing downward.
In many cases, various operations such as insertion / removal or bending operation are performed. Therefore, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the bending operation switch portion 19 is arranged on the upper portion of the operation portion 7 and on the surface facing the operator when the insertion portion 8 is directed vertically downward. There is.

Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the four switches U, D, L, and R in the bending operation switch section 19 are displayed with the upward bending switch U on the side closer to the grip 20.
The switch D for bending downward is arranged on the side far from the grip 20, the switch L for bending left is arranged on the protruding side of the universal cord 12, and the switch R for bending right is arranged on the opposite side.

The function display is located in the vicinity of the thumb of the operator's hand when the operator grips the grip portion 20 gripped by the operator, and the bending operation switch portion 19 can be operated by the thumb. I am considering what I can do.

On the other hand, on the other hand, in order to correspond to the skill and taste of the operator, the operation portion 7 is provided with a changeover switch 61 as a changeover means on the end face on the hand side as shown in FIG. Has been done. The changeover switch 61 switches the arrangement of each switch of the bending operation switch section 19, for example, the function of U (upward bending), D (downward bending).

The displays of the switches U and D may be reversed. Further, since the functions of the switches U and D are switched, the display may be another mark such as a triangle mark instead of the characters U and D. Alternatively, the changeover switch 6
The light emission of the characters “U” and “D” may be switched with the switching of 1. When the display is switched at the same time, it is not necessary for the operator to successively recognize the selection of the switch, and the risk of erroneous operation can be reduced.

The structure of the bending operation switch section 19 is shown in FIG.
Will be explained. Note that FIG. 2 shows a cross section of only one of the four switches. The four switches are
Since they have the same structure, other details are omitted.

The surface of the bending operation switch section 19 is covered with a cover 41 made of a flexible elastomer.
The cover 41 has a convex portion 41 with the center of each switch as the apex.
It has a and covers four switches integrally. Further, the cover 41 is watertightly adhered to the casing 42 of the operation portion 7. Convex portion 41a of cover 41
A columnar body 41b is provided so as to project from below, and is housed in a through hole 42a provided in the casing 42. A substrate 44 having an electrical wiring pattern is fixed below the casing 42. Switch contacts 45a and switch contacts 45b are spaced apart from each other on the substrate 44 and are formed in a through hole pattern.

A plate spring 46 having a circular convex portion 46a at the center is arranged between the columnar body 41b and the substrate 44. One end of the leaf spring 46 is connected to the switch contact 45.
While b is in contact, the switch contact 45a is located directly below (in the figure) the convex portion 46a of the leaf spring 46.
In addition, the signal line 4 is connected to the switch contacts 45a and 45b.
7 and 47 are connected, and the signal lines 47 and 47 are connected to the bending motor control device 6 via the universal cable 12.

When the convex portion 41a of the cover 41 is pushed, the columnar body 41b pushes the leaf spring 46, the convex portion 46a of the leaf spring 46 is deformed, and the switch contact 45a and the switch contact 4
5b is electrically connected.

The bending operation switch section 19 may be a joystick type instead of a flat type, or four 4-way switches may be separated (independent). Further, the bending operation switch section 19 may be an upper and lower two-way switch instead of four directions.

The tip forming section 11 is provided with the objective optical system 20A shown in FIG. 3 and the solid-state image pickup device 21 at the rear end of the observation window, while the rear end of the illumination window (not shown) is provided.
The illumination optical system 22 and the like shown in FIG. 3 are provided. A signal cable is electrically connected to the solid-state imaging device 21, and the signal cable extends to the VP connector 16 via the amplifier 23. At the rear end of the illumination optical system 22, the emission end of a light guide fiber 24 made of a fiber bundle is arranged. The light guide fiber 24 extends to the light guide connector 14, and illumination light from a light distribution lamp 25 provided inside the light source device 3 is incident on the incident end of the light guide fiber 24. ing.

The bending portion 10 formed to be bendable adjacent to the rear end of the tip portion 11 is formed by internally connecting a large number of bending pieces (not shown) vertically and vertically so that the bending pieces can be rotated vertically. A curved tube is provided. The plurality of bending pieces,
The up-down bending operation wire 27 and the left-right bending operation wire 28 shown in FIG. 3 are inserted into the inside thereof, and the tips of the wires are fixed to the tip-end bending piece (not shown) provided in the tip portion 11. There is. These bending operation wires 27, 28
Is inserted through the bending portion 10 and the flexible tube portion 9, and the rear end thereof is wound around the pulleys 29 and 31 inside the operation portion 7, respectively.

The pulleys 29 and 31 are fixed to shafts 32a and 33a of, for example, DC motors 32 and 33 as electric bending driving means, and the pulleys 29 and 31 are rotated by the rotation of the DC motors 32 and 33, respectively. And 31 will also be rotated.

When the bending portion 10 is bent in the vertical direction, the motor 32 is driven. By the rotation of the pulley 29, the bending operation wire 27 has one of the folded back portions pulled and the other loosened, and the bending portion 1 is pulled to the pulled side.
0 is curved.

When the bending portion 10 is bent in the left-right direction, the motor 33 is driven. The pulley 31
The rotation of the bending operation wire 28 causes one of the folded back wires to be pulled and the other to be relaxed, so that the bending portion 10 is bent on the pulled side.

DC motors 32 and 33 for driving each bending
On the opposite side of the pulleys 29 and 31 from the shaft 32a,
33a protrudes, and rotary encoders 34 and 35 are attached to the shafts 32a and 33a,
The rotation amounts of the DC motors 32 and 33 can be detected respectively.

The switch of the bending operation switch section 19 drives the DC motors 32 and 33 by being pressed to the 0N state. At this time, the rotary encoders 34 and 35 change the rotation amounts of the DC motors 32 and 33. To be detected. The rotation amounts detected by the DC motors 32 and 33 are input to the bending angle detection circuits 40 and 50, respectively. Since the rotation amount corresponds to the bending amount of the bending portion 10, the bending angle detection circuits 40 and 50 convert the input rotation amount into bending angle data of the bending portion 10 and output it to the control circuit 48. To do.

The upper and lower curving switches U and D, the left and right curving switches L and R, and the changeover switch 61 are input / output interfaces (hereinafter abbreviated as I / O) in the curving motor control device 6. An ON / OFF signal is input to the control circuit 48 via the switch 51. Each contact of each switch U, D, L, R on the I / O 51 side is pulled up to the power source end by a resistor via the signal line 47, and each switch U, D, L, R is connected. Each of the other contacts is grounded. Each switch U, D, L, R
Turns on the switch and outputs an "L" ON signal.

The control circuit 48 includes a changeover switch 61.
When is ON, U switch is ON, upward direction, D switch is ON
It is designed to control so that it bends downward.
On the other hand, when the changeover switch 61 is OFF, the control circuit 48
The switch control is performed so that the U switch turns on downward and the D switch turns on upward.

The control circuit 48 controls forward / reverse rotation of the motor 32, that is, upward / downward bending control via the I / O 51a and the driver 52, while forward control of the motor 33 via the I / O 51b and the driver 54. Reverse control, that is, control of left / right bending. The drive currents for driving the motors 32 and 33 are detected by the current detection circuits 57 and 58 via the current probes 55 and 56, respectively, and output to the control circuit 48 via the A / D converter 59.

Under the control of the control circuit 48, the driver 52 supplies the motor 32 with, for example, positive power in the case of upward bending and with negative power in the case of downward bending. The supplied power is converted into a current by the current detection circuit 57 via the current probe 55, A / D converted, and then output to the control circuit 48. Further, under the control of the control circuit 48, the driver 54 supplies the motor 33 with, for example, positive power in the case of the leftward curve and, for example, with negative power in the case of the rightward curve. The supplied power is converted into a current by the current detection circuit 58 via the current probe 56 and A / D converted, and then the control circuit 4 is operated.
8 is output.

The storage unit 60 of the endoscope apparatus 1 includes a bending angle detection circuit 40 (and 50) and a current detection circuit 57 (and 5).
As a relationship between the detection data in 8), a function that should be stored is stored. Then, for the power function in the storage unit 60, between the detection data of the bending angle detection circuit 40 (or 50) and the detection data of the current detection circuit 57 (or 58), for example, 5
When there is a gap of 0% or more, the control circuit 48 slows down the increasing speed of the current supply to the driver 52 (or 54) and slows down the bending speed of the bending portion 10.

On the other hand, the endoscope 2 has a maximum bending angle setting section 6
2 is provided. The maximum bending angle setting unit 62 sets the maximum bending angle in advance by a dip switch (not shown). The dip switch is for up, down, left and right,
The maximum bending angle is set.

The control circuit 48 compares the set value of the maximum bending angle with the output values of the bending angle detecting circuits 40 and 50. The control circuit 48 uses the bending angle detection circuits 40, 5
When the output value of 0 becomes the same value as the set value, the output values of the bending angle detection circuits 40 and 50 are controlled so as not to become larger. That is, the control circuit 48 controls the driving of the motors via the drivers 52 and 54 so as not to bend the motor beyond the maximum bending angle.

Since the maximum bending angle setting section 62 is a dip switch, if the setting value of the maximum bending angle is desired to be changed, the setting of the dip switch can be switched, and the setting value can be easily changed. . For example, if the wires 27, 28 are stretched by repeated use, the motor 3
As a first aid measure when the original maximum bending angle cannot be obtained (decreased) even if 2, 33 rotate the same amount as before,
Increase the DIP switch setting. This gives the same maximum bending angle as before.

The maximum bending angle setting section 62 may be a ROM in which bending angle data is written. The maximum bending angle setting unit 62 may be a resistor, and the control circuit 48 reads the resistance value as bending angle data. Alternatively, the maximum bending angle setting unit 62 may use a bar code and provide a bar code reader in the bending motor control device 6 to read the bending angle data.

In this embodiment, when the operator grips the grip portion 20, the operator can operate the changeover switch 19 with the thumb of the operator's hand. Changeover switch 61 is ON
At this time, when the switch (U switch in the illustrated example) arranged closest to the thumb is operated, upward bending is applied. Since the switch for upward bending, which has the largest number of operations, is arranged at the position where it can be operated most easily, the operator is less likely to feel fatigue. In particular, the switch is arranged so as to be easy for an operator who is skilled in operating an endoscope.
Alternatively, it can be switched according to the preference of the operator.

On the other hand, when the changeover switch 61 is OFF, when the insertion portion 8 is held vertically downward, operating the upper switch (D switch) causes upward bending, and operating the lower switch (U switch) causes downward bending. Takes.
That is, the operator can obtain a desired curve by pressing a switch located in the desired direction. The up, down, left, and right switches correspond to the up, down, left, and right positions of the switch, and the bending direction and the moving direction of the monitor image correspond to each other.Therefore, an operator who is unfamiliar can simply press the switch in the desired direction. it can.

If the changeover switch 61 is a switch with an LED, the operator can easily confirm the ON / OFF state.

Incidentally, in many cases, the insertion portion is used with the insertion portion facing vertically downward, and the upward bending is also frequently used. Therefore, switching between the switches U and D has been described as an example. In some cases, the part may be used horizontally.
The switches may be switches L and R. Alternatively, the functions of all the switches may be switched.

The bending drive may be performed by fluid pressure or SMA instead of the motor. The endoscope can be applied not only for medical purposes but also for industrial endoscopes.

The endoscope is not limited to the electronic endoscope shown in the figure, but may be a fiber type optical endoscope.

[0056]

According to the present invention, by the switching means,
By switching between the instruction of the bending instruction input means and the correspondence of the bending direction of the bending portion, for example, it is possible to perform a bending operation with less fatigue in consideration of ergonomics, or the arrangement and bending direction of the bending instruction means. There is an effect that it is possible to eliminate discomfort in correspondence with the movement direction of the endoscopic image and to select the bending operation function according to the operator's request.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a layout and use explanatory diagram of a bending switch and a changeover switch provided in an operation unit according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a bending operation switch.

FIG. 3 is a bending mechanism and electrical block diagram of the electric bending-type endoscope device.

FIG. 4 is an overall configuration diagram of an electric bending endoscope apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Electric bending-type endoscope apparatus 2 ... Endoscope 7 ... Operation part 8 ... Insertion part 10 ... Bending part 12 ... Universal cable 19 ... Bending operation switch part 20 ... Grip part 61 ... Changeover switch U, D, L , R ... switch

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An endoscope having a bending portion capable of bending in a plurality of bending directions in an insertion portion that can be inserted into a subject, and an endoscope having an operation portion connected to the insertion portion, and the bending portion. A bending driving means for bending the bending portion, and a bending instruction input means capable of giving a plurality of instructions for bending the bending portion in a plurality of bending directions to the bending driving means. In the endoscope apparatus, the bending instruction input means is arranged in the operation section so as to be located near the thumb of the endoscope operator's hand when gripping the endoscope operation section, An electric bending-type endoscope apparatus, characterized in that switching means is provided for switching correspondence between a plurality of instructions of the bending instruction inputting means and a plurality of bending directions of the bending portion.