JPS59151120A - Endoscope for measuring length - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable measurement of the distance up to an object or the size of the object by irradiating laser light together with illuminating light on the incident end face of a light guide, projecting the light to the object and displaying a scale in the visual field for observation. CONSTITUTION:The incident end face of a light guide 11 in an universal cord 6 is irradiated by the light from a laser light source 13 in the direction of an angle beta relative to the optical axis of an illuminating lamp 12. The light thereof emerges from the guide 11 while repeating reflection therein and irradiates an object A-A or B-B. The laser light forms a luminescent line 13A on the object surface. The light from the line 13A is imaged on the scale member 19 in the visual field for observation by an eyepiece lens 18 via an objective lens 17 and an image guide 16 and the distance from the object A-A or B-B is measured by the distance of said image from the optical axis.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention is directed to a length-measuring endoscope that can adjust the distance to an object or the size of an observation region with a simple structure.

[Technical background of the invention and its problems] In recent years, endoscopes have been widely used in the medical and industrial fields.

Using the above-mentioned endoscope, the size of a lesion is measured, for example, in order to diagnose a lesion that has occurred on the inner wall of the stomach, or to investigate how the lesion changes over time. is often necessary.

Conventional endoscope or length measuring device? ! For mirrors, when determining the size of an object to be examined (target object) such as a lesion, based on the amount of adjustment made when adjusting the focus of the observation optical system of the endoscope, the size is determined based on the distance or within the field of view of the object to be examined (target object) such as a lesion. Ta. In this case, due to the characteristics of the optical system in the endoscope, a lens with a large depth of field is used, and the D object to be examined has little change in color or pattern, so it is difficult to perform accurate focus adjustment, and this is not necessary. It was difficult to obtain sufficient measurement accuracy.

Furthermore, in the conventional example disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 51-45911, a light projecting device disposed on the distal end side of the insertion section is used to project light onto the object side so that it intersects with the optical axis of the objective lens system at a large angle. The position of the spot within the field of view is determined by emitting a spot light and placing a scale near the focal plane of the eyepiece along the direction in which the position of the spot changes depending on the distance of the object. It is configured so that the distance, etc. can be determined from the scale corresponding to the sub-length. In this conventional example, the spot size is parallelized so that the spot size does not change with distance, so it is difficult to observe the spot at a long distance, and when the object is illuminated by the illumination optical system, the spot It becomes difficult to identify the location.

In addition, in the conventional example disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 53-80284, the optical system for index light projection is disposed next to the normal fl optical system and illumination optical system, so the structure is complicated. This method has disadvantages in that the manufacturing cost increases, the outer diameter of the insertion portion increases, or the distal end of the insertion portion that cannot be bent becomes longer, which increases the pain caused to the patient during insertion.

Furthermore, since the projected index light flux is a spot light,
As described above, in the state of illumination with illumination light, there is a drawback that it is almost impossible to distinguish the index.

[Object of the Invention] In view of the above-mentioned points, an object of the present invention is to provide a length-measuring endoscope that has a simple structure and is capable of measuring the distance or size of an object.

[IR Essentials of the Invention 1] The present invention irradiates a laser beam along with illumination light to the rear end side entrance end face of a light kite that transmits illumination light, thereby allowing objects to be observed within the field of view that can be observed with an objective lens. It is designed to emit bright lines that appear at different positions depending on the distance and to be displayed within the observation field. ing.

[Embodiments of the invention] Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 1 to 4 relate to a first embodiment of the present invention.
The figure shows the appearance of the first embodiment, FIG. 2 shows the outline of the main parts of the optical system of the first embodiment, and FIG. 3 shows the ladder from which the bright line is projected and the shape of the bright line, FIG. 4 shows an eyepiece field image observed from behind the eyepiece.

As shown in FIG. 1, a length measuring endoscope 1 according to the first embodiment (capable of measuring the distance or size of an object) includes an elongated and flexible insertion section 2; After that, ¥; ff! A large-diameter working part 3 connected to the ll, an eyepiece part 4 formed on the end side of the operating part 3, and an eyepiece part 4 extending to the outside from the side of the operating part 3, which can be attached to the light source device 5. A flexible universal cord (light kite cable) 6 with a connector attached thereto is opened.

As shown in FIG. 2, the insertion section 2 has a rigid tip structure section 8 housing an optical spring for incision inspection, etc., and a curved section 9 which are successively connected from the distal end side. By rotating the bending operation knob 10 formed on the operation part 3, the bending part 8 can be bent horizontally or vertically.

Notes: Inside the Harley Rude G is a light kite 1 formed of a flexible 71 fiber bundle that transmits illumination light.
1 is inserted, and the corresponding light guide 11 (well, the light from the illumination lamp 12 illuminated Q1 on the end surface (incidence end surface) on the one side (incidence end surface) attached to the light source station 5 is emitted from the tip fI', l. The illumination light transmitting means in the illumination optical system that comes out from the end face is bent and inserted further into the push-in part 2 by bending the operating part 3, and its tip IQ+l is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG.
It is designed to illuminate the area in front of you within a circular peg-shaped lighting angle.

In addition to being irradiated by the manual illumination lamp 12, the entrance end surface on the rear end side of the guide 11 is irradiated with laser light by one laser light source 13 according to the present invention.
It is composed of

For example, if a semiconductor laser is used, the laser light source 13 can be housed in a small space. is an appropriate angle β,
The laser beam is set to emit a parallel beam of light to a long distance with the same phase 45.The laser beam emitted at this angle β passes through each fiber of the kite 11 to the lie 1, and to each side of the fiber. While repeating foul play, he advances toward the tip. In this case, since each fiber has a pongee cylindrical shape, when the light is emitted from the tip surface of each fiber forming the light guide 11, it forms a cone with an angle β with the optical axis as shown in FIG. The width of each part of the cone is the diameter of the fiber handle. By projecting this conical laser beam onto the object, a bright line 13A that serves as a reference for measuring the distance to the object is formed (displayed) on the object surface.

On the other hand, image guides 1 to 16 for image transmission formed of flexible fiber bundles are inserted into the insertion section 2, and the distal end side of the image guide 1G is located at the distal end (through-hole formed in the C section 8). It is fixed to the inner wall of the hole with a base member.In front of this image guide 16, an objective lens 17 for image formation is arranged.
The object in front within the range angle (objective field of view) is focused on the tip surface of the image guide 1G, and the image chi 1-16 is
An observation optical system is formed in which the information can be transmitted to the rear pant surface on the proximal side, and the observation optical system can be magnified and observed from the rear of the eyepiece lens 18 placed behind the rear pant surface of 1:.

This first embodiment (,: here, please). On the end surface of the image kit 16, a scale 19△ is marked in black or the like on a transparent glass plate, etc., as shown in Fig. 4. A scale member 19 is provided.This scale 19A is located within the eyepiece field of view as seen from the eyepiece section 4, and extends in the straight line direction connecting the optical axis of the objective lens 17 and the optical axis of the tip of the light guide 11. It is located along the

That is, as shown in FIG. 2, the objects are marked A-A, B-
As shown in B, it is not shown in a perspective view to make it easier to see. ), distance 1'Jt L + from the tip surface (front end surface) of the tip borrowed portion 8
and -2, the object within the illumination angle α is illuminated from the tip surfaces of the lights 1 to 1 to 11, and the bright line is displayed in a ring shape by the laser beam projected in a conical shape. 13Δ (width is omitted in FIG. 2) differs in its appearance within the objective field of view of the objective lens 17 (thus, it becomes observable (imaged). In this case, the position of the object field of the objective lens 17 ( Or, in the eyepiece field, the position of the link-shaped bright line 13A that enters within the same 4M) is on the upper side of the ring-shaped bright line 13A on the straight line 1 connecting the optical axis of the guide 11 to the lie 1 and the optical axis of the objective lens 17. Some of them intersect (
II in the Taloszuru) part, r+: [As becomes larger, it gradually approaches the light of the objective lens 17 and h (or approaches the center of the field of view), and as it becomes even larger, it approaches the optical axis in the opposite direction) (or away from the center of the field of view), and the scale 19A displayed along the direction of movement indicates the distance. In Fig. 4, the straight line in the vertical direction coincides with the straight line connecting the optical axis of the objective lens 17 and the optical axes of the light guys 1 to 11, and the line gradually increases from the bottom to the top. Scale 19 representing the distance
A is attached.

In addition, by setting the angle β of the conically projected laser beam slightly larger than the angle θ of the objective field of view in -V, the bright line 13A becomes larger (larger) with the distance within the field of view.
It can move and read distances with high accuracy.

The operation of the first embodiment configured in this way will be described below.

Attach the universal cord 6 of the length measuring endoscope 1 of the first embodiment to the light source device 5, turn on the power switch of the light source device 5, and transmit the light from the illumination lamp 12 and the laser light from the laser light source 13 to the light guide 11 ( The irradiated illumination light illuminates the area within the angle α from the tip face of the light guide 11, and the laser beam forms a ring-shaped bright line 13A on the object surface at an angle β. .

On the other hand, since the objective viewing angle of the objective lens 17 is θ, the position where the ring-shaped bright line 13A projected together with the illumination by the illumination optical system appears within the field of view is located at the object as shown in FIG. Depends on the distance. For example, in Fig. 2, if there is an object at a distance of 1'lt I-+, the image of the bright line 13A is in a position close to the center of the visual field, and part of the ring of this image is shown in Fig. 4. Scale member 1 as shown
9 intersects the scale 19A (straight line) near the center, so the distance can be determined by reading the position of the scale 19A that intersects. When the object is further away, a ring-shaped PI is projected! The position where 1113A intersects moves to the upper side in FIG. 4, and the distance to the object can be determined by reading the scale 19A at the intersecting position.

In this way, according to the first embodiment, since the ring-shaped bright line 13A is displayed together with the illumination light, the distance information can be seen on the observation screen at all times, so there is no mistaking the sense of perspective. In addition to being able to perform operations appropriately,
It becomes easier to estimate the size of the object.

For example, the distance PIII from the scale 19A to the object
When L is known, the radius r of the ring-shaped emission line 13△ on the object plane is r = l tallβ, so if tallβ is calculated in advance, the size of the affected area in the field of view can also be determined from the size of this radius r. You can also know more accurately by making judgments and comparisons.

In this case, the pP line 13A is ring-shaped, so even if a part of it is difficult to see, it can be seen by moving 1φ away from other parts, so it is easy to know the distance and size. It is very useful for diagnosis and observation. Also, Toshinagauchi? 52 mirror 1 main body is scale member 19
If you exclude it, is it within normal softness? Jl! Since it is the same as a mirror, there is no need to increase the outer diameter of the distal end of the insertion section 2 inserted into the body cavity to form a length measuring means, and it has the advantage that it does not cause pain to the patient. cover

Furthermore, it can be inserted into narrow parts within body cavities and has a wide range of application.

FIG. 5 shows a second model using a scale 19B that displays the magnification of the field of view that changes depending on the distance of the object on the scale member 19.
2 shows an ocular visual field image in an example.

The rest is the same as the first embodiment. In this case, ring-shaped brightness #l! 13A is enlarged (or reduced in some cases) by one shift of the scale 19B that intersects with the scale 19B.
(divided by that value) is the actual length.

In FIG. 5, the luminance 1m13A and 13A appearing at the lower and upper sides of the field of view indicate the case where the light is projected onto a nearby object and a distant object, respectively. In this case as well, by comparing the size of the projected ring-shaped bright line image observed within the field of view, the size of the observed area such as the affected area within the field of view or the distance to the object can be determined. It can also be used as a clue.

FIG. 6 shows an ocular field image according to the third embodiment.

That is, in this example, the scale 19C on the scale member 19 indicates the length of a certain length (for example, 2 [mm]) within the field of view. For example, in Fig. 6-C, if the images of the projected ring-shaped bright line 13A intersect at the upper side of the field of view, the objective object placed within the field of view will be code C
This indicates that the length corresponds to a constant length of 2 [mm].

Similarly, in the case of a short distance where the projected ring-shaped bright line 13A intersects at the bottom of the figure, the length of code d is within the field of view for objects observed at that distance. This corresponds to 2 [mm]. In other words, the length from the top point of the field of view to the position where the projected n-ray image crosses and covers the object observed within the field of view is equivalent to 2 [mm]. Therefore, by comparing the length or size of the object or affected area whose length or size you want to measure with the above length, you can find out the length or size of the object or the affected area. This is extremely useful for diagnosis, etc., as it is a distance image of a certain length of the image along with objects within the field of view.

FIG. 7 shows how the size of a target region is measured by the optical system in the fourth embodiment.

In this fourth embodiment, a laser light source 13 that irradiates a laser beam onto the incident end surface on the rear end side of the light guide 11 is mounted, for example, on a rotatable disc or the like, and It is designed so that the irradiation angle at which the end face is irradiated can be varied and the angle can be read, and the bright line projected from the end face of lie 1 to guide 11 can be aligned with the appropriate position of the target object. By reading the required angle at the time, the distance to the object (1) or the size of the object can be determined.

That is, first, the bright line 13A+ of the laser beam is aligned with the center of the objective field or observation field.
3 and measure the incident angle β1 of the laser beam at that time, the distance pHL can be calculated using the relational expression L=S//la
It is determined from nβ1. Here, the symbol @S is the optical object lens 1
7 and the optical axis on the tip side of the light guide 11.

Next, change the incident angle of the laser beam and align the bright line 13A2°13△3 with the upper and lower ends of the target part whose size you wish to determine, respectively, as shown in the eyepiece field image in Fig. 8.
Their angle of incidence β2. When β3 is read respectively, the size is 1. ,, < tanβ3-tallβ2)
Or 5(tanβ3-tanβ2)L a IIβ1
It is determined by timing from . In addition, in Fig. 7 and Fig. 1 of E, each node Fi113A+, 13△2, 13A3
The width of is omitted.

Is the means for varying the angle of incidence of the laser beam within the length measurement range? ! Since it can be installed outside the main body of the mirror 1, each implementation of +5Ji as the main body of the length measuring endoscope 1! As well as within normal? 9 Set a scale on the mirror (it becomes possible to do so by looking at the scale).

The color of the laser beam mentioned above can be changed depending on the middle color, such as red, edge, blue, etc., so that the bright line can be more clearly identified.

Note that the manual scale section (419 is not limited to the example in which it is disposed on the eyepiece section 4 side, but can be placed at an appropriate point in the observation optical system near the object lens 17 or behind the position where the image is formed by the objective lens 17). '; can be placed at the beginning.

Furthermore, a liquid crystal plate can be used for the scale portion 1.419. In other words, if there is no need to measure the length, or if the scales 19A, 19.B, etc. get in the way when measuring 1, stop applying the voltage so that almost all the light passes through the liquid crystal plate. so that it can be used as a regular endoscope,
On the other hand, if scales '19A, 198, etc. are required, alternating current voltage can be applied by operating a switch or the like, and the scales 19A, 19B, etc. can be covered in black (as dark areas) in the non-transparent areas.

In addition, it is also possible to select and display different scales 19A, 19B (non-transparent parts), etc. on the liquid crystal plate by operating a changeover switch zz (of course, any of the scales 19A, 19B, etc.) can be displayed. (You can also choose to stop it.)
.

When irradiating laser light, it is also possible to irradiate only a part of the incident end face rather than the entire area, and emit a narrow laser light from the end face to form a narrow bright line on the object surface. good.

Furthermore, the lies 1 to guides 11 can be formed not only by the fiber pans 1 to 1 but also by the fiber midline.

Incidentally, the present invention utilizes an image transmission device 1-16 as an image transmission means.
It can be applied not only to a flexible endoscope using a relay optical system but also to a rigid endoscope using a relay optical system.
Solid 11 using Br) (bucket brigade Heis) etc.
The endoscope has a structure in which an image formed on the solid-state imaging element is photoelectrically converted, transmitted through a signal cable inserted through the insertion section 2, and displayed on a display device such as a cathode ray tube. It is also applicable. In this case, the scale part (A) may be arranged on the front surface of the integral m-image element, or the scale part (A) may be placed on the display device without using the scale member.

Furthermore, the present invention can be applied not only to direct-viewing types, but also to rigid endoscopes that use a relay optical system as an image transmission means, as well as oblique-viewing and side-viewing flexible endoscopes. It is.

[Effects of the Invention I L] As described above, according to the present invention, a laser beam irradiated through the light guide for transmitting illumination light can be used to illuminate an object within a field of view that can be observed with an objective lens. Since a bright line whose size and position change depending on the distance from S! is displayed, the pair S! The distance of an object is 1 or I! The size of the observation area, such as the affected area, that one wishes to observe can be easily determined by the scale provided on the observation optical system side. Furthermore, in the present invention, the distal end of the insertion section inserted into the body cavity may have the same structure as a normal endoscope, but the outer diameter of the distal end may be increased for diameter measurement.
There is no need to lengthen the tip, which cannot be bent, and it is compact.
The means for length measurement can be accommodated within a small space. Therefore, the insertion part can also be used at the knot insertion site, allowing a wide range of internal use.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 to 4 relate to the first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing the external appearance of the length measuring endoscope of the first embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the length measuring endoscope of the first embodiment. Explanatory diagram showing the optical system, '@53
The figure shows an enlarged view of the main parts of the illumination optical system, and the figure (a) is from lie 1 to kite entry 11. Figure 3 (1)) is an explanatory diagram showing how the laser beam irradiated on one side is emitted from the other end face and a bright line is formed on the object. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the ocular visual field image seen from the eyepiece section. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing the ocular visual field image of the second practical example of the present invention. The figure is a reading diagram showing the ocular field image of Cj in the third embodiment of the present invention.
The figure shows how the distance to an object and the size of the observed area are measured according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. I explanatory drawing, FIG. 8 is an explanatory drawing showing the eyepiece visual field image in FIG. 1... Length measurement endoscope 2... 1,000 person part 4...
- Eyepiece 5...Light source device 6...Universal cord 8...Tip component 11...Light kite 12...Light source lamp 1
3...Laser light source 16...Image guide 17...Objective lens 7
8... Eyepiece lens 19... Scale section (A'
19A, 19B, 19C... Scale 2-43-2 Hatagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo Lymphus Optical Industry Co., Ltd. Inventor: Hosono Safube 2-43-2 Hatagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo Lymphus Optical Industry Inside the corporation

Claims (6)

[Claims] (1) An illumination optical system that uses a light guide formed using a fiber that emits light that is illuminated at the input end face from the other end face, and an object illuminated by the illumination optical system that is In an endoscope having an observation optical system that enables observation by forming an image with an objective lens disposed on the distal end side, the light 1
- Guide entry Q] Illuminate the laser beam on the surface at an appropriate angle 04
By doing so, each beam emitted from the other end face at an appropriate angle forms a bright line on the object side, and the position appearing within the field of observation of the observation optical system is determined depending on the distance of the object. Change the object mark for the cup line: (Dv
+j 1 or the scale indicating the size of the observed part of the object around the image formation position of the objective lens or its formation f'Th
(Form at an appropriate position of the observation optical system behind the stand.)
'1 - Within the length measurement feature? M&jt
. (2) The length measuring endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the laser beam uses a wavelength of red, green, or blue. (3) The laser beam has inputs Q and J of light 1 to power r.
Length measurement according to claim 1, characterized in that the size of the observation area is measured by changing the incident angle of irradiation onto the %M surface according to the observation area f tear of the beauty object. Endoscope. (4) The scale is formed on a liquid crystal panel whose display is controlled by controlling the application of voltage. Chin. (5) The tiff scale is provided at the rear end of the image guide 1- when the image guide 1- is used as an image transmission means of the observation optical system. length measurement endoscope. (6) When a solid-state uQ image element is used in the observation optical system, the scale is provided on the front surface of the display station of the solid-state IIi1□□□ element. The length measuring endoscope described.