JPS60225819A - Guide tube for insertion of endoscope - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To facilitate the inserting operation of the endoscope by making part of the tip side of the guide tube which is used for guiding the insert part of the endoscope elastic to axial compression. CONSTITUTION:The guide tube 10 is a spiral tube and formed by winding a metallic beltlike plate 11 spirally. The beltlike plate 11 is sectioned in an S shape and has U-sectioned engaging parts 12 and 13 at both side edge parts; and the engaging parts 12 and 13 engage with each other in a wound state and the guide tube 10 has large elasticity.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] One Step (Industrial Application Field) The present invention provides a method for guiding the insertion section of an industrial endoscope when the insertion section is inserted into a specimen to be observed. This invention relates to guide tubes used in

(Prior Art) When a specimen to be observed with an industrial endoscope has a passageway with many twists and turns (for example, a sewer pipe), the insertion portion of the endoscope is inserted into the passageway of the specimen. is difficult to insert. This is because in order to transmit the pushing force at hand to the tip and obtain smooth propulsion, the insertion part must have increased rigidity against compression, but as the rigidity of the insertion part increases,
This is because the resistance increases when passing through multiple bends.

For this reason, conventionally, a guide tube has been used as an auxiliary aid. To explain in detail, first, the insertion portion 51 of the endoscope 50 is inserted into the guide tube 60 as shown in FIG. The guide tube 60 is soft against bending and rigid against compression. In this state, the insertion section 51 of the endoscope 50 is inserted into the passage 101 of the specimen 100. When the distal end of the insertion section 51 reaches the first bending section 102, the dial 53 of the operation section 52 is operated to bend the curved section 54 formed on the distal end side of the insertion section 51 and direct it in the traveling direction X. let Next, as shown in FIG. 10, the guide tube 60 placed over the insertion section 51 is advanced until its tip passes over the curved section 4 and passes through the first bent section 102.

Next, as shown in FIG. 11, the insertion section 51 is moved forward and the tip of the insertion section 51 is directed in the traveling direction X in the second bentwood section 1 ( ) 3 by the same operation as described above. At this time, since a curved passage is formed by the guide tube 6( ), the insertion portion 51 can be smoothly advanced.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) The above-mentioned guide tube 60 is rigid against compression, and does not have the function of curving its tip in the traveling direction Therefore, the insertion section 51 of the endoscope 50 must be advanced and oriented before the guide tube 60 can be advanced, which is a very complicated operation. , guide tube 6
When moving the guide tube 0 forward, the leading edge of the guide tube 60 at the bending sections 102 and 103 may rub against the insertion section 51 of the preceding endoscope 50 and the outer skin of the bending section 54, causing damage.

The present invention provides a guide tube that allows insertion of an endoscope insertion section with a simple operation and prevents damage to the insertion section.

Structure of the Invention (Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention solves the above problems with a guide tube for inserting an endoscope in which at least a portion of the distal end side has elasticity against compression in the axial direction. It is something to do.

(Function) The guide tube of the present invention has elasticity against compression in the axial direction at least in part on the distal end side, so that by pushing the guide tube with your hand, you can push the guide tube away from the insertion part of the endoscope. The insertion section of the endoscope was able to advance to the deep part of the passage of the specimen in advance, and it is possible to prevent the work from becoming complicated and damage to the insertion section caused by the insertion section of the endoscope being advanced.

(Example) Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described with reference to drawing τ. 1 and 2 show a guide tube 10 which is an embodiment of the present invention. This guide tube 10 is a so-called spiral tube, and is formed by spirally winding a metal strip 11. The strip plate 10 has an S-shaped cross section, and has engaging portions 12 and 13 each having an opening-shaped cross section on both side edges. In the above-mentioned wound state, the engaging portions 12 and 13 are engaged with each other.

The guide tube 10 is configured to generate a strong elastic force. To be more specific, the guide tube 10 is formed by spirally winding the strip plate 11, and therefore has elasticity in the axial direction like a general coil spring. Moreover, guide tube 1 ()
is compressed from its natural length, and the engaging portion 1 of the strip plate 11
2 and 13 are engaged. In other words, stretch in the axial direction)
1) The restoring force is regulated by the engagement of the engaging portions 12 and 13. As a result, the restoring force in the axial direction generated in the guide tube 1( ) is stored as a strong elastic force. Therefore, when the guide tube 10 is compressed even slightly in the axial direction, it generates a strong elastic force. In addition, there is play dl between mutually adjacent parts of the strip plate 11,
The guide tube 10 can have an axial pressure &f'& shape. Furthermore, the guide tube opening has relatively strong elasticity against bending and twisting as a characteristic of the spiral tube.

Next, the operation of the guide tube 10 will be explained with reference to FIGS. 5 to 8. First, as shown in FIG. 5, the guide tube 10 is inserted into the passage 101 of the specimen 100.

Guide tube] (When the tip of l reaches the first bending part 102, it comes into contact with the wall surface 102a facing the guide tube 10 and stops advancing. After stopping the advancement, further pushing force is applied to the guide tube 10. In addition, the guide tube 10 is compressed in the axial direction, and due to this compressive force, the entire body is elastically deformed into a gentle spiral shape, and its distal end is curved.Furthermore, the guide tube 10
When a pushing force is applied to the guide tube 10, the curvature of the curved tip portion becomes smaller, the contact angle between the tip portion of the guide tube 10 and the opposing wall surface 102a approaches zero, the frictional engagement state between them is released, and the guide tube 10 The tip of the slider begins to slide on the opposing wall surface 102a. At this time, since the guide tube 10 stores a strong elastic force due to compression as described above, its tip extends all at once toward the deeper part of the passage 101, that is, in the traveling direction X, as shown in FIG. can proceed.

When the tip of the guide tube 10 contacts the opposing wall surface 102a and curves, if the direction does not match the direction of travel,
Even if the guide tube 10 is pushed, the tip end hits the wall surface 102+ which comes into contact with the opposing wall surface 102a, making it impossible to advance. In this case, the guide tube 10 may be pushed and pulled repeatedly. That is, as described above, when the guide tube 10 is subjected to compressive force, it is deformed into a gentle spiral shape, so when a push-pull motion is applied to the guide tube 10, the tip part deforms as a characteristic of a helical elastic body. Rotate. The tip may be directed in the above-mentioned direction of movement X by several times of pushing and pulling movements, and at this time, it can be moved to the deep part instantaneously by the same movement as above. The operator can know that the guide tube 10 has advanced to a deeper part by the sudden decrease in the reaction force from the guide tube 10.

As described above, the guide tube 10 can be advanced by simply pushing and pulling to change the orientation of the tip of the guide tube 10 without twisting the guide tube 10 in the hand, so the advancement work is easy. . In addition, 1. If the guide tube 10 is long, it becomes difficult to rotate the tip even if the guide tube 10 is twisted by hand, but this problem is not caused by pushing and pulling.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 8, the guide tube 10 can be made to pass through the second bent portion 103 and advance further into the depth by the same operation as described above.

The guide tube 10 is connected to the bent part 102°1()3 in the passage 101.
After advancing to the deep part through
0 deep into the passage 101. At this time, the guide tube 10 has strong elasticity against bending,
In other words, since it has a strong linear restoring force, it is curved with a large curvature at each of the bent portions 102 and 103, and the insertion portion 51 can be guided smoothly into the deep part of the passage 101. Note that the insertion section 51 of the endoscope 50 may be made to advance inside the guide tube 10 little by little each time the guide tube 10 passes through each bending section 102 and 103.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments and can be modified in various ways. The guide tube 20 shown in FIG. 3 is formed by winding a strip plate 21 in a spiral shape. Flange-shaped engaging portions 22 and 23 are formed on both side edges of the strip plate 21. As shown in FIG. Engagement part 2
2.23 engages to restrict the restoring force in the direction of extension of the guide tube 10, so that the guide tube 20 has strong elasticity against compression in the axial direction, similar to the guide tube 10 described above. have.

Note that there is a play d2 between mutually adjacent portions of the strip plate 21, and the guide tube 20 can be compressed and deformed in the axial direction.

The guide tube 30 shown in FIG. 4 includes a spiral tube 32 formed by spirally winding a flat band plate 31, and an outer tube 33 that stores and fixes the spiral tube 32 in a compressed state. Specifically, the outer tube 33 is made of a metal mesh pipe, polyester, etc., and is rigid in the stretching direction, but flexible in the bending, compression, and twisting directions. . Locking rings 34.35 are fixed to both ends of the outer tube 33, and these locking rings 34.35 lock and fix both ends of the helical tube 32 compressed to be shorter than its natural length.

This guide tube 30 also stores a restoring force in the direction of extension of the spiral tube 31, so it has strong elasticity against compression in the axial direction. Note that there is a play d3 between mutually adjacent portions of the strip plate 32, and the guide tube 30 can be compressed and deformed in the axial direction.

Furthermore, the guide tube may be formed, for example, by simply winding a plate-shaped strip in a spiral manner. In this case, the guide tube has a natural length because the restoring force in the direction of extension is not restricted. The band plate is wound with a gap (play) to allow compressive deformation of the guide tube in the axial direction. An elastic force is generated in proportion to the degree of this compressive deformation. In this case, the elasticity is weaker than in the above-mentioned embodiments, but the effects of the present invention can be achieved.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, the entire length of the guide tube has the same configuration, but only a portion on the tip side may be configured to have elasticity.

As described in detail, the guide tube of the present invention can advance to the deep part of the specimen passage ahead of the insertion section of the endoscope; This makes the endoscope insertion work more complicated.

Damage to the insertion section can be prevented.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view showing one embodiment of the guide tube of the present invention, and FIG.
The figure is a partially enlarged sectional view of the same guide tube, FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged sectional view showing another embodiment, FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing still another embodiment, and FIGS. 5 to 8 are according to the present invention. FIGS. 1J to 11 are explanatory diagrams sequentially showing the functions of the conventional guide tube. 10.20.30... Guide tube, 50... Endoscope, 5
1... Insertion section, 100... Specimen, 101... Passage, 1112. 103...Merchandise Department, Applicant Machida Manufacturing Co., Ltd. Agent Patent Attorney Watanabe ■ Figure 3 0 Figure 4 0 9B 1 (Jj

Claims (1)

[Claims] At least a portion of the distal end side of the guide tube used to guide the insertion section of the endoscope when the insertion section is inserted into the specimen must have elasticity against compression in the axial direction. A guide tube for inserting an endoscope.