JPH11267090A - Insertion portion of endoscope - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily and smoothly vary the flexibility in the midway of an insert part in an insertion portion of an endoscope where a bent part buckled by a remote operation is connected to the distal end of a flexible pipe by fitting a flexibility restraining pipe to one built-in object in a range from the base end position of the flexible pipe to the middle position. SOLUTION: An insertion portion inserted in a celam of an endoscope is so constructed that a bent part 3 is connected to the distal end of an externally installed soft part by a flexible pipe 2, and the distal end main body 4 is connected to the distal end of the bent part 3. In the flexible pipe 2 and the bent part 3, a treatment instrument insert channel 7, an optical fiber bundle and the like are inserted and disposed extending over the total length. In his case, a flexibility restraining pipe 15 formed by a pipe material made of a superelastic alloy is fitted to the treatment instrument insert channel 7 in the range from the position a little shifted from the base end of the flexible pipe 2 to the operating part 1 to the middle position of the flexible pipe 2. Thus, the flexibility of a part where the flexible pipe 2 is externally installed can be easily varied in its midway so to improve operability.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an endoscope insertion portion to be inserted into a body cavity or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The insertion portion of a so-called flexible endoscope is constructed by inserting and arranging a built-in member such as an optical fiber bundle in an outer flexible tube. It is necessary to be flexible so as to bend relatively freely along the way, and to make the hand-side portion stiff so that a delicate push-pull operation or the like performed by the operator is transmitted to the tip side.

[0003] Conventionally, the flexibility of the exterior flexible tube itself has been changed on the way by changing the thickness, hardness, and the like of the outermost layer of the synthetic resin outer sheath of the exterior flexible tube depending on the position.

[0004]

The outermost layer of the synthetic resin outer sheath of the outer flexible tube is generally formed by extrusion molding. However, in a manufacturing method in which the thickness and hardness are changed one by one, the outer flexible tube is manufactured. Requires significant time and cost. In addition, when the molding conditions are changed in the middle in such a way, there are not a few cases where the flexibility of each product is varied due to the fluctuation of the molding conditions.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an endoscope insertion portion in which flexibility is easily and smoothly changed on the way without changing the thickness and hardness of the outer skin of a flexible tube. .

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, an insertion portion of an endoscope according to the present invention has a bending portion which is bent by remote control connected to a distal end of a flexible tube, and an objective optical system or the like. Is connected to the tip of the curved portion,
In the insertion portion of an endoscope in which a flexible built-in member having a distal end connected to the distal end body is inserted through the entire length of the bending portion and the inside of the flexible tube, at least one of the built-in portions of the endoscope is provided. A flexible suppressing pipe made of a pipe material made of a superelastic alloy is fitted in a range from a base end position to an intermediate position of the flexible tube.

[0007] The flexible suppressing pipe may be fixed to the wire guide only at a base end portion, and the distal end of the flexible suppressing pipe may be fixed to the built-in part. A stopper for restricting movement in the axial direction may be provided on the outer surface of the internal component.

[0008] Further, the built-in object fitted with the flexibility suppressing pipe may be a treatment tool insertion channel, and a wire guide for inserting and guiding the bending operation wire is provided.
The flexible tube is provided with the distal end fixed to the distal end portion. Of the portions of the wire guide located in the flexible tube, the wire guide extends from the base end position to the intermediate position of the flexible tube. Alternatively, a pipe for suppressing flexibility made of a pipe material made of a superelastic alloy may be fitted.

[0009] The distal end face of the flexibility suppressing pipe may be formed obliquely in a wedge shape, and a protruding portion may be arranged on a side close to an inner peripheral surface of the flexible pipe. The flexibility of a built-in material other than the treatment tool insertion channel inserted through the flexible tube, from the base end position to the intermediate position of the flexible tube, made of superelastic alloy pipe material Pipe may be fitted.

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an endoscope, in which an insertion portion to be inserted into a body cavity or the like has a bending portion 3 which is bent by a remote operation from an operation portion 1 at a distal end of a flexible portion covered by a flexible tube 2. A distal end main body 4 containing an objective optical system and the like is connected to the distal end of the curved portion 3.

The flexible tube 2 is formed by covering a helical tube made of, for example, a metal strip with a mesh tube, and covering the outer surface of the tube with a sheath of polyurethane resin or the like. The outer skin portion covering the flexible tube 2 may have any structure, but it is not necessary to change the thickness or hardness of the outer skin in the middle to change the flexibility of the flexible tube 2 itself in the middle. .

In the flexible tube 2 and the bending portion 3, there are provided flexible built-in components such as a treatment instrument insertion channel 7, an optical fiber bundle, and various kinds of tubes, the tip of which is connected to the tip body 4. Are inserted through the entire length.

An observation window 5 for introducing an observation image into the objective optical system, an illumination window 6 for emitting illumination light toward the observation field, an outlet 7a of the treatment instrument insertion channel 7,
And an air supply / water supply nozzle (not shown) are arranged.

A bending operation knob 8a for bending the bending portion 3 is provided on the operation portion 1 connected to the base end of the flexible tube 2.
8b is disposed, and one of the operation wires in the vertical direction is pulled by the bending operation knob 8a for the vertical direction, and the other operation wire in the left and right direction is pulled by the bending operation knob 8b for the right and left direction. The bending portion 3 can be bent in any direction.

The operation unit 1 further includes an air / water supply operation button 11, a suction operation button 12, and a treatment tool insertion port 7b.
Etc. are arranged. Reference numeral 14 denotes a light guide cable connected to a light source device (not shown).

The treatment instrument insertion channel 7 is formed by a metal pipe 7p only in the vicinity of the treatment instrument insertion port 7b, and the other parts including the inside of the flexible tube 2 and the inside of the curved part 3 are tetrafluoride. It is formed of a slippery flexible tube 7t such as an ethylene resin tube.

Then, the flexible tube 2 is moved from a position of the treatment instrument insertion channel 7 slightly closer to the operation unit 1 side than the base end of the flexible tube 2.
A flexible suppressing pipe 15 made of a pipe material made of a superelastic alloy is fitted in a range up to an intermediate position of the pipe.

The super-elastic metal is, for example, a Ti-Ni (titanium-nickel) -based metal, and the elastic limit of the metal is very large.
Does not undergo plastic deformation even if it is bent with a radius of curvature that allows it to be bent, and has a resilience to return to its original straight state.

FIG. 2 shows the vicinity of the base end of the flexibility suppressing pipe 15, and the forceps plug 13 is inserted into the treatment instrument insertion port 7b.
A pipe 17 communicating with the suction operation button 12 and a metal pipe 7p of the treatment instrument insertion channel 7 are connected in a T-shape by a pipe joint 16 in a deep portion thereof.

Metal pipe 7p of treatment instrument insertion channel 7
And the flexible tube 7t, at a position A slightly closer to the operation unit 1 side than the base end of the flexible tube 2, the metal connection tube 7e
Connected through.

FIG. 3 shows a connecting portion A between the metal pipe 7p of the treatment instrument insertion channel 7 and the flexible tube 7t, and a tip portion of the flexibility suppressing pipe 15 fitted on the treatment instrument insertion channel 7. B is enlarged.

A connection tube 7e is press-fitted to the base end of the flexible tube 7t of the treatment instrument insertion channel 7, and is fixed from outside by a half of a metal reinforcing coil 18.

The proximal end of the flexibility suppressing pipe 15 fitted to the flexible tube 7t of the treatment instrument insertion channel 7 is located at a position adjacent to the connecting tube 7e and is press-fitted into a half of the reinforcing coil 18. It is fixed to that part by the adhesive force and the tightening force of the reinforcing coil 18. Other portions of the flexibility suppressing pipe 15 are in a free state including the tip portion B.

With such a configuration, the flexible tube 2 in which the flexibility suppressing pipe 15 is fitted in the treatment instrument insertion channel 7 is provided.
In the portion near the base end, when the flexible tube 2 is bent, the flexibility suppressing pipe 15 acts as a resistance to suppress the flexibility, and the pushing and pulling operation of the flexible tube 2 and the like are performed toward the distal side. Easy to be transmitted.

The portion of the flexible tube 2 near the distal end where the flexibility-suppressing pipe 15 is not fitted in the treatment instrument insertion channel 7 is used to prevent the flexible tube 2 from bending. Since the pipe 15 has no effect, the pipe 15 has high flexibility (that is, high flexibility) and smoothly deforms along the organ shape in the body cavity.

FIG. 4 shows a portion of the flexible tube 2 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The configuration of the portion where the flexibility-suppressing pipe 15 is fitted to the treatment instrument insertion channel 7 is as follows. First
This is exactly the same as the embodiment.

Further, in this embodiment, the first embodiment is characterized in that the flexibility suppressing pipe 25 is also fitted to a wire guide 24 for inserting and guiding the bending operation wire 23. It is different from the form.

At the base end of the flexible tube 2, a base connection base 21 for connecting to the operation unit 1 is attached.
A distal end connecting tube 22 for connecting the curved portion 3 is attached to a distal end portion of the connecting portion.

The distal end connecting tube 22 is formed of, for example, a stainless steel tube, and has a wire guide 24 for loosely inserting and guiding the four bending operation wires 23 as shown in FIG. The tip portion is fixed to the inner peripheral surface by spot welding or silver brazing at 90 ° intervals.

FIG. 4 shows two sets of the four sets of bending operation wires 23 and the wire guides 24. The wire guide 24 is formed by a coil pipe in which a stainless steel wire is tightly wound with a fixed diameter, and the distal end of each bending operation wire 23 is connected to the distal end of the bending portion 3.

The proximal end of the wire guide 24 is
Is fixed to a bending operation mechanism frame (not shown) inside, and portions other than both end portions are inserted through the flexible tube 2 in a free state.

Each of the wire guides 24 arranged as described above
On the other hand, in the range from the base end position to the intermediate position of the flexible tube 2, a flexibility suppressing pipe 25 made of a superelastic metal pipe material is fitted.

The flexibility suppressing pipe 25 is fitted on each of the four wire guides 24, and is connected to the base end connecting base 21.
The base end 25b of the flexibility suppressing pipe 25 is fixed to the stepped tubular member 31 fixed to the wire guide 24 by soldering in the vicinity of the outlet portion of the pipe 25.

In this manner, the flexibility of the portion of the flexible tube 2 can be further changed as required, and the portion 25a on the distal end side of the flexibility suppressing pipe 25 is formed obliquely in a wedge shape. Thereby, the flexibility can be gradually changed smoothly.

The distal end 25a of the flexibility suppressing pipe 25 has an outer end (so that the other end of the flexible tube 2 is not damaged by the tip of the flexibility suppressing pipe 25. That is,
It is disposed so as to be positioned on the side closer to the inner peripheral surface of the flexible tube 2).

FIG. 6 shows a third embodiment of the present invention, in which a flexible tube 7t of a treatment instrument insertion channel 7 is provided.
The stopper ring 19 with which the distal end surface of the flexibility suppressing pipe 15 fitted on the stopper tube 19 abuts is fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the flexible tube 7t, and the treatment instrument insertion channel 7 and the flexibility suppressing pipe 1
The second embodiment restricts relative movement with respect to the fifth embodiment, and the other parts are the same as those in the second embodiment.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, the flexibility suppressing pipe 15 may be provided with a built-in component other than the treatment instrument insertion channel 7 (the tip is connected to the tip body 4). , A flexible component inserted through the entire length of the flexible tube 2 from the inside of the bending portion 3), and may be fitted to the treatment instrument insertion channel 7 and other built-in components. You may.

In general, since the treatment instrument insertion channel 7 is the thickest among the built-in components, the largest change in flexibility can be obtained by fitting the flexibility suppressing pipe 15 to the treatment instrument insertion channel 7. The change in flexibility can be finely adjusted by fitting the flexibility suppressing pipe 15 to the wire guide 24 or a thin built-in member.

[0039]

According to the present invention, the flexible built-in member having the distal end connected to the distal end main body and inserted through the entire length in the curved portion and the flexible tube from the proximal end position of the flexible tube. By fitting a flexibility-suppressing pipe made of a superelastic alloy pipe material into the range up to the intermediate position, the flexible tube can be covered with the flexible tube without changing the thickness and hardness of the outer skin of the flexible tube. The flexibility of the bent portion can be easily changed without variation among products in the middle.

If the pipe for suppressing flexibility is fitted to the treatment instrument insertion channel, a large change in flexibility can be obtained, and the pipe for suppressing flexibility can be fitted to a wire guide or a thin built-in member. Thus, the change in flexibility can be finely adjusted.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic external view showing an entire configuration of an endoscope according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the vicinity of a connection portion between a flexible tube portion and an operation portion of the endoscope according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of both end portions of the flexibility suppressing pipe according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a flexible tube according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line VV in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a flexible tube according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Operation part 2 Flexible tube 3 Bending part 7 Treatment tool insertion channel 7t Flexible tube 15 Flexibility suppressing pipe 24 Wire guide

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A bending portion which is bent by remote operation is connected to a distal end of a flexible tube, a distal end body containing an objective optical system or the like is connected to a distal end of the bending portion, and a distal end is connected to the distal end body. In the insertion portion of the endoscope in which the connected flexible built-in components are inserted through the inside of the bending portion and the entire length of the flexible tube, at least one built-in component is positioned from the proximal end position of the flexible tube. An insertion part for an endoscope, wherein a pipe for suppressing flexibility made of a pipe material made of a superelastic alloy is fitted in a range up to an intermediate position. 2. The endoscope insertion section according to claim 1, wherein the flexibility suppressing pipe is fixed to the wire guide only at a base end portion. 3. A stopper provided on an outer surface of said built-in member for restricting a distal end portion of said flexibility suppressing pipe from moving in an axial direction with respect to said built-in member.
Or the insertion part of the endoscope of 2. 4. The endoscope insertion part according to claim 1, wherein the built-in object fitted with the flexibility suppressing pipe is a treatment instrument insertion channel. 5. A wire guide for inserting and guiding a bending operation wire is provided in a state where the distal end is fixed to a distal end portion of the flexible tube, and the wire guide is located in the flexible tube. 5. A flexible suppressing pipe made of a superelastic alloy pipe material is also fitted in a range from a base end position to an intermediate position of the flexible tube. An insertion portion of the endoscope according to any of the above items. 6. The flexible pipe according to claim 5, wherein a distal end face of the flexibility suppressing pipe is formed obliquely in a wedge shape, and a protruding portion thereof is arranged on a side close to an inner peripheral surface of the flexible pipe. Insertion section of the endoscope described. 7. A pipe made of superelastic alloy is also provided in a range from a base end position of the flexible tube to an intermediate position of a built-in component other than the treatment instrument insertion channel inserted through the flexible tube. The insertion section of an endoscope according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein a flexible suppressing pipe is fitted.