JPH11235305A - Operating wire guide device of endoscope - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To permit a smooth operation through a reduction in the length of the hard part of the connection between a soft part and an angle part and suppression in resistance during the operation of pushing and pulling a tapered operation wire which broadens toward on angle part by forming a securing material, which is used when the end of a flexible guide cylinder is secured to a fixed pipe by a securing pin, into the brought out part of the operating wire. SOLUTION: A sticking pin 44 fixing a fixed pipe 43 to which a closely adhering coil 42 is secured is mounted on a mounting ring 46 provided on the inner surface of the connecting ring 38 of an angle part side, and a wire inserting hole 51 through which an operating wire 41 is passed is bored in a pivot pin 50 pivotally attached between front and rear angle rings 34, 34 inside the angle part 30b from the fixed pipe 43. A brazing part 52 is provided on the angle part 30b side of the fixed pipe 43 which is secured to the sticking pin 44, and a brought out part 53 in the form of a tapered face which broadens outward in the form of a cone from the end of the small diameter part 43a of the fixed pipe 43 is formed in order to pass the operating wire 41 through the brazing part 52.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an operation wire guide device for guiding an operation wire for bending an angle portion in a flexible portion in an insertion portion of an endoscope used for medical use or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An endoscope used for medical purposes or the like is configured as shown in FIG. In the drawing, reference numeral 1 denotes a main body operation unit, 2 denotes an insertion unit, and 3 denotes a universal cord. The insertion portion 2 has a flexible portion 2a for most of the length from the side of the connecting portion to the main body operation portion 1, an angle portion 2b at the tip of the flexible portion 2a, and a hard tip at the tip of the angle portion 2b. The sections 2c are respectively provided in series. An illumination section and an observation section are provided on the distal end hard section 2c, the angle section 2b is for directing the distal end hard section 2c in a desired direction, and the flexible section 2a is provided along the insertion path at an arbitrary position. It turns in the direction.

FIG. 6 shows a structure of a connecting portion between a flexible portion 2a and an angle portion 2b. Since the flexible portion 2a is bent in an arbitrary direction, the flexible portion 2a has a spiral tube 10 in which a metal strip having a predetermined width is spirally wound.
0 generally comprises a double tube with a different winding direction. The helical tube 10 is configured so that a net 11 and a skin layer 12 are sequentially attached.

On the other hand, the angle portion 2b is bent by remote control by operating an angle knob 4 provided on the main body operation portion 1, and has a structure in which a plurality of angle rings 13 are interconnected. The connection between the front and rear angle rings 13 is formed by a pair of pivot pins 14.
Can be mutually rotated, and the pair of pivot pins 14
It is provided so as to have a positional relationship of 80 °. Thus, the pivot pin 14 can be rotated in a direction perpendicular to the axis of the pivot pin 14. Also, by sequentially changing the position of the pivot by the pivot pin 14 in the circumferential direction such as left and right and up and down,
The angle portion 2b can be bent vertically and horizontally. And, the angle ring 13 connected as described above
A net 15 and a skin layer 16 are sequentially applied to the outer periphery of the same as in the case of the flexible portion 2a.

As described above, the flexible portion 2a and the angle portion 2
b, since the structure of the structure is different,
The flexible part 2a and the angle part 2b are manufactured as separate members, and are assembled so as to connect them.
For this purpose, connecting rings 17 and 18 are connected to the distal end portion of the flexible portion 2a and the base end portion of the angle portion 2b, respectively, and these connecting rings 17 and 18 are fitted to each other and fixed to each other. It is configured as follows. The connecting ring 17 is a soft part side connecting ring, and this soft part side connecting ring 17 is fixed to the tip of the helical tube 10 of the soft part 2a by means such as spot welding. The connection ring 18 is an angle-side connection ring. The angle-side connection ring 18 is inserted into the angle ring 13 at the most proximal end, and is also fixed by means such as spot welding. Then, a part of the angle part side connection ring 18 is inserted into the flexible part side connection ring 17, and a plurality of through holes 19 are formed in the outside flexible part side connection ring 17, and these through holes 19 are formed.
When the solder 20 is poured into the solder, it is fixed in a connected state. Then, both outer skin layers 12, 16 are extended to the connecting portion between the soft portion 2a and the angle portion 2b, and are wound and an adhesive is applied with their ends abutted.

Here, inside the insertion section 2, a light guide made of an optical fiber bundle for transmitting illumination light, a signal cable for an electronic endoscope (optical cable for an optical endoscope) An image guide made of a fiber bundle), a treatment instrument insertion channel, an air supply / water supply channel, and the like (all not shown) are inserted. An operation wire 21 is further provided to bend the angle portion 2b by remote control. When the angle portion 2b is bent in the up and down direction, two operation wires are provided vertically, and when the angle portion 2b is bent in the up and down and left and right directions, four operation wires 21 are provided at each of the up and down and left and right positions. The distal ends of these operation wires 21 are fixed to the most distal end ring or the distal end hard portion 2c of the angle portion 2b, but each of the operation wires 21 includes the pivot pin 14 (or the cut-out portion) of each angle ring 13 in the angle portion 2b. It is inserted into the positioning portion, and is inserted into the close contact coil 22 as a flexible guide cylinder in the flexible portion 2a. The tip of the contact coil 22 is fixed to a portion of a connecting portion of the flexible portion 2a to the angle portion 2b.

FIG. 7 shows a configuration of a fixed portion at the tip end of the close contact coil 22 as a guide means for the operation wire 21. A fixing pin 23 as a fixing member is fixed to the angle portion side connecting ring 18 located inside of the connecting rings 17 and 18 by means such as caulking. The head 23a of the fastening pin 23 is located inside the connecting ring 18, and an insertion hole 24 is formed in the head 23a of the fastening pin 23. A fixed pipe 25 to which the tip of the close contact coil 22 is fixed is inserted into the insertion hole 24, and is fixed by means such as brazing. Fixed pipe 25
Is a stepped portion having a large diameter portion 25a and a small diameter portion 25b. The tip of the close contact coil 22 is inserted into the large diameter portion 25a and fixed by means such as soldering or welding. Only the operation wire 21 is inserted through the small diameter portion 25b inserted into the insertion hole 24 of the fastening pin 23, and the large diameter portion 25a extends toward the flexible portion 2a.

The large diameter portion 25a is not a perfect cylindrical shape,
As shown in FIG. 8, a cutout portion 26 is formed so as to penetrate a part in the circumferential direction in the axial direction, and an end surface formed by the cutout portion 26 is formed on an inner surface of the angle portion side connection ring 18. Assembled to abut. As a result, when the fixed pipe 25 is attached, the amount of protrusion toward the inside is reduced by the amount of the cutout portion 26 formed. Further, the cutout portion 26 side of the close contact coil 22 is extended substantially in contact with the inner surface of the connecting ring 18 or with a slight gap formed therebetween.

By the way, the diameter of the insertion portion 2 must be reduced as much as possible because it is inserted into a patient's body or the like. In addition, various members are inserted into the insertion portion 2, and some of these insertion members are vulnerable to pressure or the like. For this reason, the flexible portion 2a and the angle portion 2b constituting the insertion portion 2 It is necessary to have sufficient strength against compression, that is, crush resistance. Here, the flexible portion 2a and the angle portion 2
Compared with b, the flexible portion 2a is long and arbitrarily bends along the insertion path, but does not exert an extreme bending force and has a large radius of curvature when bent.
The entire length of the angle portion 2b is much shorter than that of the flexible portion 2a, and the angled portion 2b can be largely curved with a small radius of curvature, for example, 180 ° or more, in order to direct the hard tip portion 2c in a desired direction. ing. For this reason, unless the movement between members inserted into the angled portion 2b is allowed to some extent, the degree of compression of the built-in member increases, the optical fiber bundle and the signal cable are disconnected, and the treatment tool insertion channel is formed. Buckling. Therefore, the filling rate in the angle portion 2b is
must be kept lower than inside a.

Each member inserted into the insertion portion 2 has a substantially uniform outer diameter inside the insertion portion 2, but the flexible portion 2 has a substantially uniform outer diameter.
Inside, the operation wire 21 is inserted into the close contact coil 22, so that the filling rate is higher in the soft part 2a than in the angle part 2b. In particular, the flexible portion 2a and the angle portion 2
Since the close contact coil 22 is inserted into the fixed pipe 25 at the connection portion with b, this portion has a higher filling rate. As described above, the reason why the large diameter portion 25a of the fixed pipe 25 is partially cut is to suppress the filling rate of the portion having the highest filling rate as much as possible.

[0011]

By the way, the inner diameter of the insertion portion 2 is constituted by the inner diameter of the spiral tube 10 in the flexible portion 2a and the inner diameter of the angle ring 13 in the angle portion 2b. As described above, the angle portion 2b
In order to suppress the filling rate in the inside, the thickness of the angle ring 13 is made as thin as possible to expand the internal space. On the other hand, the soft part 2
“a” bends gently, and each member inserted therein does not move much, so that little space is required. Therefore, on the flexible portion 2a side, in order to give priority to strength maintenance and the like, a double spiral tube 10 having a thickness is provided.
In general, it is composed of For this reason, the flexible portion 2a
And the angle portion 2b has a difference in inner diameter,
In the meantime, the step D shown in FIG. 7 is formed.

A fixed pipe 25 for fixing the contact coil 21 is fixed to the angle side connecting ring 18 by a fixing pin 23, and the large diameter portion 2 of the fixed pipe 25 is fixed.
The cutout portion 26 formed in 5a is in contact with the inner surface of the angle portion side connection ring 18. The fixed pipe 25 is made of a hard member, and the tight coil 22 inserted therein and the operation wire 21 inserted in the tight coil 22 are members that can be bent. Therefore, the fixed pipe 2
When the end of the large diameter portion 25a in 5 is close to the step D, the close contact coil 22 and the operation wire 21 inserted therein are sharply bent.

When the angle portion 2b is bent, the operation wire 21 is pushed and pulled within the close contact coil 22, but the close contact coil 22 rides on the step D at a steep angle. When the operation wire 21 is pulled, the operation wire 21 slides in a state of being pressed against the close contact coil 22. As a result, the resistance at the time of pushing and pulling operation of the operation wire 21 becomes extremely large, resulting in poor operability. turn into. In order to improve the operability, the flexible portion 2 a
In this case, the distance to the position of the step D formed in the flexible portion side must be increased, and the length of the flexible portion side connection ring 17 also increases accordingly. In addition, the fitting portion of the close contact coil 22 to the fixed pipe 25 must have a length necessary to maintain the connection strength therebetween.
The connection strength cannot be maintained unless the fitting length is further increased by the amount provided with 6.

The connecting portion between the flexible portion 2a and the angle portion 2b is a hard portion provided with connecting rings 17 and 18. The length of the hard portion in the axial direction is necessary for giving a gentle angle when the contact coil 22 and the operation wire 21 cross the step D in addition to the entire length of the fixed pipe 25 which is a hard member. Length must be ensured. As a result, in the above-described prior art, the internal space in the connecting portion between the flexible portion 2a and the angle portion 2b is widened, which is preferable from the viewpoint of suppressing the filling rate, but as shown in FIG. And angle part 2
long hard segment and so spacing L ₁ between b will be is formed, the longer hard segment in the middle of the insertion portion 2 are present, poor operability of insertion operation into a body cavity or the like In addition, there is a risk that the patient's pain will increase accordingly.

As described above, the flexible portion 2a and the angle portion 2
In order to shorten the length of the hard portion constituting the connecting portion with the connecting portion b, the internal space of the connecting portion is sacrificed to some extent and fixed on the extension of the axis of the close contact coil 22 in the soft portion 2a. It is conceivable to arrange pipes. With such a configuration, the length of the connecting portion between the flexible portion 2a and the angle portion 2b can be made substantially equal to the length of the fixed pipe, and therefore, the hard portion at this portion can be shortened. However, if you do so, the fixed pipe and angle part 2
There will be a step with the inner surface of b. The operation wire is inserted through the positioning portion formed by the pivot pin of the angle ring and the cut-out portion in order to restrict the movement in the angle portion 2b other than the axial direction, so that the operation wire is led out from the fixed pipe toward the angle portion. The operating wire becomes bent. As a result, the operating wire comes into sliding contact with the edge of the fixed pipe, and the resistance to the push-pull operation of the operating wire increases, and the sliding contact between the fixed pipe edge and the operating wire causes them to wear or deform. There is a possibility that such a situation may occur.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object thereof is to reduce the length of a hard portion in a connecting portion between a soft portion and an angle portion,
An object of the present invention is to minimize the resistance during the operation of pushing and pulling an operation wire to enable a smooth operation.

[0017]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, a connecting ring is connected to each of a flexible portion and an angle portion constituting an insertion portion of an endoscope, and both connecting rings are connected to each other. In order to fix the flexible guide cylinder through which an operation wire for bending and operating the angle portion has been inserted and fixed to a connecting portion between the angle portion and the soft portion, The end of the flexible guide cylinder is inserted into and fixed to a fixed pipe, and the fixed pipe is fixed to a fixing pin provided on a connection ring located inside of the two connection rings, and the operation wire is connected to the fixing pipe. Extending from the lead-out portion provided on the fastening pin into the angle portion,
A fixing material used for fixing the fixed pipe to the fixing pin is extended from the end of the fixed pipe toward the angle portion by a predetermined length, and the fixing material is attached to the fixing member on the angle portion side. The configuration is such that a lead-out portion of a tapered operation wire that expands toward the opening is formed.

Here, since the fixing material forms a tapered lead-out portion, in order to stably maintain the shape, the fixing material is formed of a metal or the like which solidifies when cooled, such as solder or solder. preferable. With this configuration, even if there is a step in the lead-out portion of the operation wire from the fixed pipe toward the angle portion, the operation wire can be smoothly pushed and pulled with low resistance. Therefore,
Since the flexible guide cylinder can be connected to the fixed pipe in a state where the flexible guide cylinder extends straight from the inside of the flexible part, the axis of the fixed pipe can be connected to the axis of the flexible guide cylinder inside the flexible part. Can be placed at a position that substantially matches As a result, the hard portion of the connecting portion between the soft portion and the angle portion can have a length substantially equal to the entire length of the fixed pipe. When the angle portion side connection ring is disposed inside, a mounting ring having a predetermined thickness is fixedly provided on the inner surface thereof, and a fastening member for fixedly holding the fixed pipe on the inner surface of the mounting ring is provided. It should be attached. In this case, the mounting ring is provided with a tapered surface at the end facing the angle portion in the same direction as the inclined direction of the lead-out portion. The tapered surface may form a part of a lead-out portion of the operation wire, or the lead-out portion may be formed in the sticky material by wrapping the fixing material around the tapered surface.

[0019]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows the flexible section 30a and the angle section 3 in the insertion section 30 of the endoscope.
FIG. 2 shows a cross section of a portion connected to Ob, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XX of FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG.

As is apparent from FIG. 1, the flexible portion 30a constituting the insertion portion 30 has a double helical tube 31 as a structure thereof, and the helical tube 31 has a net 32 and an outer portion. A skin layer 33 is applied and the angle portion 30b
Has an angle ring 34 as a structure, and a net 35 and a skin layer 36 are attached to the angle ring 34. A flexible portion side connection ring 37 is provided at the tip of the spiral tube 31,
At the base end of the angle ring 34, an angle portion side connection ring 38 is extended.
The connection rings 7 and 38 are fitted with the connection ring 37 positioned outside and the connection ring 38 side positioned inside, and a plurality of through holes 39 are formed in the outside connection ring 37. By pouring the solder 40 into the hole 39, the two connection rings 37 and 38 are fixed in a connected state.

The above point is not particularly different from the above-mentioned prior art. In such a configuration, the angled portion 30b is provided at the tip of the angled portion 30b to orient the not-shown distal end hard portion in a desired direction.
Is bent by remote control.
Two to four operation wires 4 provided in 0
Reference numeral 1 is inserted through the close contact coil 42 constituting the flexible guide cylinder in the flexible portion 30a. The tip of the close contact coil 42 is fixedly inserted into the fixed pipe 43. These points are also the same as those of the prior art.

As shown in FIG. 2, the fixed pipe 43 has a large-diameter portion into which the contact coil 42 and the operation wire 41 inserted therethrough are inserted, and the contact coil 42 is fixed by means such as spot welding. 43a and a small-diameter portion 43b having only a small-diameter portion 43b through which only the operation wire 41 is inserted.
Needless to say, the large-diameter portion 43a also has a cylindrical shape without a cutout portion. The fixing pipe 43 is fixed at the position of the connection between the flexible portion 30a and the angle portion 30b, and a fixing pin 44 as a fixing member for this purpose is used. The fastening pin 44 is composed of a head portion 44a having a cylindrical portion having a spherical distal end surface, and a leg portion 44b having a diameter smaller than the outer diameter of the cylindrical portion of the head portion 44a. A through-hole is formed in the head 44a in a direction perpendicular to the axis thereof, and the through-hole is formed in the small-diameter portion 43b of the fixed pipe 43.
Into an insertion hole 45 for inserting the.

The contact coil 4 through which the operation wire 41 is inserted
2 extends inside the flexible portion 30a along the inner surface of the spiral tube 31. The fixed pipe 43 to which the tip of the contact coil 42 is fixed is connected to the fixed pipe 43 in the flexible portion 30a. It is located almost on the extension line.
That is, since the internal space of the angle portion 30b is made as large as possible and the strength is improved on the side of the flexible portion 30a, there is a difference in thickness between the inner diameter of the flexible portion 30a and the inner diameter of the angle portion 30b. Thus, a step D is formed. The fixed pipe 43 is fixed in such a manner as to enter into the inside by an amount substantially corresponding to the step D, and the end of the large-diameter portion 43a extends toward the spiral tube 31 constituting the flexible portion 30a. And preferably extends to an unbent part near the tip of the spiral tube 31.

The fixing pin 44 for fixing the fixing pipe 43 can be directly attached to the angle side connecting ring 38. However, in order to fix the fixing pipe 43 to the position inside by the step D, it is connected to the angle ring 34. A mounting ring 46 is fixedly provided on the inner surface of the provided angle portion side connection ring 38 by means such as welding, and a fastening pin 44 is mounted on the mounting ring 46. Therefore, the attachment ring 46 has a thickness dimension about the diameter difference between the inner diameter of the angle portion side connection ring 38 and the inner diameter of the spiral tube 31 in the flexible portion 30a. The mounting ring 46
At least the end face on the side facing the angle portion 30b is a tapered surface 46a inclined inward.

The mounting ring 46 has a concave portion 47 at least at a portion of the outer peripheral surface where the fastening pin 44 is attached, and a through hole for inserting the leg portion 44b of the fastening pin 44. 48 are drilled. Therefore, the fixing pin 44 has its head portion 44a positioned inside the mounting ring 46 and the leg portion 44b
And fixed by caulking at the site inside the recess 47. As a result, a projecting portion does not occur on the outer peripheral surface of the mounting ring 46, and the mounting ring 46 can be smoothly inserted into the angle side connecting ring 37. In order to connect the connecting rings 37 and 38, flux is supplied when the solder 40 is poured into the through holes 39.
Numeral 7 also functions as an escape portion for the flux.
A communication hole 49 leading to 7 is formed. As a result, the excess flux when the solder 40 is poured is collected in the concave portion 47, and the flux does not enter the internal space of the flexible portion 30 and does not stain the members provided therein.

The operation wire 41 extends from the small diameter portion 43b of the fixed pipe 43 into the angle portion 30b.
In the angle portion 30b, the operation wire 41 can move only in the axial direction, and it is necessary to regulate the operation wire 41 so as not to move in other directions. For this purpose, a wire insertion hole 51 is formed in a pivot pin 50 pivotally connected between the front and rear angle rings 34 constituting the angle portion 30b, and the operation wire 41 is inserted into the wire insertion hole 51. I am trying to do it. Further, although not shown, the distal end portion of the operation wire 41 is fixed to a leading-end angle ring or a distal end hard portion. In order to hold the operation wire 41, the above-described pivot pin 50 is inserted into the wire insertion hole 51.
Instead of drilling, a cut-out portion may be formed at a predetermined position of the angle ring 34.

As described above, the axis of the fixed pipe 43 substantially matches the axis of the close contact coil 42 in the flexible portion 30a, and the operation wire 41 in the angle portion 30b.
Is formed between the wire insertion hole 51 through which the wire is inserted. Accordingly, the operation wire 41 is led out from the fixed pipe 43, and a portion reaching the wire insertion hole 51 is bent at a predetermined angle with respect to the axis of the insertion portion 30. In this state, when the operation wire 41 is pushed and pulled, the operation wire 41 comes into sliding contact with the leading edge portion of the fixed pipe 43 to promote abrasion.
May be deformed. Also, as the angle of the operation wire 41 increases, the pressure contact force between the operation wire 41 and the edge of the fixed pipe 43 increases, so that not only the wear and deformation are further promoted, but also the operation wire 41 The resistance to the push-pull operation increases accordingly.

Therefore, the operation wire 41 at this step is used.
3 and FIG. 4 are adopted in order to make the movement smoothly and to reduce wear caused by sliding between the operation wire 41 and the fixed pipe 43.

That is, the fixed pipe 43 has a small diameter portion 43.
b is inserted into an insertion hole 45 provided in the head 44a of the fixing pin 44. In order to fix the fixing pin 43 to the fixing pin 44, a brazing material is used as a fixing material. 4
The brazing part 52 is provided on the angle part 30b side of No. 4.
The solder as the fixing material penetrates between the outer peripheral surface of the fixed pipe 43 and the insertion hole 45 in a heated state, and when cooled, the fixed pipe 43 is fixed. Here, the brazing portion 52 exerts a function as a guide portion of the operation wire 41 in addition to a function of fixing the fixed pipe 43. For this purpose, the solder does not simply penetrate into the insertion hole 45 of the fastening pin 44, but also extends from the fastening pin 44 toward the angle portion 30 b by a predetermined length, and the taper of the mounting ring 46. The surface 46a is also wrapped around. The brazing portion 52 has a tapered lead-out portion 53 for leading out the operation wire 41.

Here, the lead-out portion 5 formed on the brazing portion 52
Reference numeral 3 denotes a tapered surface shape that expands outward from the end of the small diameter portion 43b of the fixed pipe 43 in a conical shape. Also, the end face of the small diameter portion 43b of the fixed pipe 43 is
Has a tapered surface shape that substantially matches the taper angle of.
Here, as is clear from FIG. 3, the axis in a state that straighten the angle section 30b when the A _1, the angle α of the tapered surface relative to this axis A _1, the base end side from the fastening pin 44 side Axis A _{2 of the} operation wire 41 reaching the pivot pin 50
Is larger than the angle β.

Here, as is apparent from FIG. 4, the members inserted into the insertion portion 30 include, in addition to the operation wire 41 described above, a light guide 60 and a solid-state image pickup device provided at a hard end portion. Cable 61 (or image guide), treatment tool insertion channel 62, air / water pipe 63
When the endoscope is configured as a side-viewing endoscope, the standing operation wire 64 is further inserted. Of these members, except for the operation wire 41, the outer diameter is substantially uniform in the axial direction. The operation wire 41 is connected to the flexible portion 30a.
From the contact portion to the connection portion to the angle portion 30b, the portion is inserted into the close contact coil 42.
The tip of 2 is inserted into the fixed pipe 43. Therefore, between the inside of the flexible portion 30a and the connecting portion between the flexible portion 30a and the angle portion 30b, the filling rate of the connecting portion is higher by the provision of the fixed pipe 43, but this fixed pipe 4
If 3 is made as thin as possible, the difference in the filling rate can be substantially ignored. In order to make this portion almost the same space as the inside of the soft portion 30a, in order to expand the space by the dimension corresponding to the thickness of the fixed pipe 43, for example, the treatment tool insertion channel 52 on the inner surface of the attachment ring 46 is used.
A groove 46c penetrating in the axial direction may be formed at a portion where the hole is inserted.

With the above configuration, the length L ₂ of the hard portion generated at the connecting portion between the flexible portion 30a and the angle portion 30b in the insertion portion 30 can be significantly reduced.
First, since the fixed pipe 43 has a cylindrical shape, the contact area between the fixed pipe 43 and the close contact coil 42 increases, so that even if the length of the large-diameter portion 43a of the fixed pipe 43 is reduced, sufficient fixing is achieved. Can maintain strength. And
The large-diameter portion 43a extends to the distal end portion of the flexible portion 30a or to a portion that is not bent on the distal side, so that a hard portion generated at a connection portion between the flexible portion 30a and the angle portion 30b is a fixed pipe made of a hard pipe. The length L ₂ (see FIG. 1) can be substantially the same as the total length of the reference numeral 43. Thereby, when the length of the hard portion in the middle of the insertion portion 30 is shortened, the operability of insertion into a body cavity or the like is improved, and when an endoscope is used for medical purposes, pain of a patient is reduced. It is planned.

On the other hand, for the same reason as described above, it is necessary to reduce the diameter of the insertion portion 30. However, the inside of the flexible portion 30a and the inside of the angle portion 30b have an exceptional filling rate as compared with the above-described prior art. Is not necessarily higher. However, in the connecting portion between the flexible portion 30a and the angle portion 30b, a mounting ring 46 having a thickness substantially equivalent to the step D is mounted in the connecting ring 38, and a fixed pipe 43 is provided inside the mounting ring 46. Since the space of this part in the prior art is limited by the amount, the filling rate is increased. However, since this part is a hard part,
Even if the filling rate is slightly increased, the members do not squeeze together, and in comparison with the filling rate of the flexible portion 30a, the filling rate is increased only by the thickness of the fixed pipe 43, By minimizing the thickness dimension of the pipe 43, an increase in the filling rate can be suppressed to a minimum, and the diameter of this portion does not increase.

When the inner diameter of the flexible portion 30a is compared with the inner diameter of the angle portion 30b, a step D is formed because a dimensional difference occurs between them. Flexible part 3
Operation wire 4 extending from angle 0a into angle portion 30b
1 is inserted into the close contact coil 42 in the flexible portion 30a, and the close contact coil 42 is further fitted to the fixed pipe 43 at the position of the connection portion between the flexible portion 30a and the angle portion 30b. The fixed pipe 43 is located at a position substantially extended from the axis of the close contact coil 42 in the flexible portion 30a. Therefore, since the operation wire 41 led out from the fixed pipe 43 is inserted into the wire insertion hole 51 of the pivot pin 50 provided in the angle ring 34, the operation wire 41 is located up to the pivot pin 50 at the most proximal end. The angle β is bent with respect to the axis of the angle portion 30b. However, since the operation wire 41 is to be led out of the fixed pipe 43 from the lead-out portion 53 of the brazing portion 52 having a tapered surface having an angle α larger than the angle β, the operation wire 41 is The leading portion 53 can be led out in a non-contact state with the edge of the leading end. As a result, even if the operation wire 41 is pushed and pulled, there is no possibility that the operation wire 41 is significantly worn, and the push / pull operation itself of the operation wire 41 becomes lighter, and the operability is improved. Further, the end of the fixed pipe 43 on the small-diameter portion 43b side is surrounded by a brazing portion 52. The brazing in the brazing portion 52 is a metal having high strength in a solidified state. Even when the operation wire 41 is used, there is no fear that the operation wire 41 is deformed by a force acting upon operation.

[0035]

As described above, the present invention is used when a fixing pipe for fixing the distal end of a flexible guide cylinder is fixed to a fastening pin at a connecting portion between a flexible portion and an angle portion. The fixing material is extended from the end of the fixed pipe toward the angle portion by a predetermined length, and a tapered operating wire lead-out portion that expands toward the angle portion side is formed on the fixing material. As a result, the length of the hard part at the connection between the flexible part and the angle part is shortened, and the resistance at the time of pushing and pulling the operation wire is minimized, enabling smooth operation. It has effects such as becoming.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a connecting portion between a flexible portion and an angle portion of an insertion portion according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG.

FIG. 3 is an operation explanatory view showing a state in which a part is pulled out from an outlet of a fixed pipe of an operation wire to a connection part to a pivot pin in an angle part.

FIG. 4 omits the angle ring, net and outer skin layer,
XX shown in FIG. 1 together with a member inserted into the insertion portion.
It is sectional drawing.

FIG. 5 is an external view of an endoscope.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a connection portion between a flexible portion and an angle portion of an insertion portion according to the related art.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is an external view of a fixed pipe.

[Explanation of symbols]

30 Insertion part 30a Flexible part 30b Angle part 31 Spiral tube 34 Angle ring 37 Flexible part side connection ring 38 Angle part side connection ring 39 Through hole 40 Solder 41 Operation wire 42 Adhesive coil 43 Fixed pipe 43a Large diameter part 43b Small diameter part 44 Stop Attachment pin 45 Insertion hole 46 Mounting ring 46a Groove 47 Recess 50 Pivot pin 51 Wire insertion hole 52 Brazing part 53 Lead-out part

Claims (4)

[Claims] A connecting ring is connected to each of a flexible portion and an angle portion forming an insertion portion of an endoscope, and the connecting rings are fitted and fixed by a predetermined length, and the angle portion is bent. In order to fix the flexible guide tube into which the operating wire for inserting the flexible guide tube has been inserted to the connecting portion between the angle portion and the flexible portion, the end of the flexible guide tube is inserted and fixed to a fixed pipe. The fixed pipe was fixed to a fastening pin provided on a connection ring located inside of the two connection rings, and the operation wire was extended from the lead-out portion provided on the fastening pin into the angle portion. In this, a fixing material used for fixing the fixed pipe to the fastening pin is extended from the end of the fixed pipe toward the angle portion by a predetermined length, and the fixing material is fixed to the fixing material. Angle part side An operation wire guide device for an endoscope, wherein a lead-out portion of a tapered operation wire expanding toward the end is formed. 2. The operation wire guide device for an endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the fixing material is a solder or a solder which solidifies after being supplied. 3. The fixed pipe is provided so as to be fixed at a position where the axis of the fixed pipe substantially coincides with the axis of the flexible guide cylinder inside the flexible portion, and the distal end face of the fixed pipe is connected to the lead-out section. The operation wire guide device for an endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the operation wire guide device has a tapered shape having substantially the same angle as that of the operation wire guide device. 4. An angle-side connecting ring is arranged inside, and a mounting ring to which a fastening member for fixedly holding the fixed pipe is mounted is inserted into an inner surface thereof, and the mounting ring is attached. The mounting ring is fixed to the connection ring, and the mounting ring is provided with a tapered surface at the end facing the angle portion in the same direction as the inclination direction of the lead-out portion. The operation wire guide device for an endoscope according to claim 3.