JPS6340095B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an endoscope with an improved structure of a jet nozzle that sprays cleaning fluid onto the surface of an observation window.

Generally, the observation window provided at the tip of the insertion section of an endoscope is easily soiled by dirt and the like in the body cavity when the endoscope is introduced into the body cavity, which has the drawback of hindering normal observation. Therefore, to deal with this,
A jet nozzle is provided near the observation window, and cleaning water is sprayed from the jet nozzle toward the surface of the observation window for washing. However, when cleaning water is not spouted during observation, the air inside the body cavity will conversely leak from the jet nozzle, so as shown in Figure 1, in the middle of the supply pipe a communicating with the jet nozzle, A check valve b as shown in FIG. 1 is incorporated. This check valve b is provided with an elastic tongue piece c, which is adapted to abut against the receiving surface d from only one side. That is, the fluid is allowed to pass in the direction toward the tip side shown by the arrow, and the flow is blocked in the opposite direction.

However, this check valve b has a disadvantage that when the pressure inside the body cavity reaches a certain level or higher, the air in the supply pipe a up to the check valve b is compressed and flows backward from the nozzle opening. Furthermore, with this backflow, mucus and dirt in the body cavity enter, remain and stick, causing the nozzle opening to become clogged.

The present invention has been made focusing on the above circumstances,
The purpose of this is to prevent backflow from the jet nozzle and to prevent the nozzle opening from becoming clogged with dirt, mucus, etc. in the body cavity.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below based on the drawings.

FIG. 2 shows the entire endoscope 1, which is composed of an operating section 2 and an insertion section 3. The insertion section 3 has a distal end section 5 attached to the distal end of a flexible tube section via a curved tube section 4, and the curved tube section 4 can be remotely operated to bend by operating the operating section 2. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the distal end portion 5 has a direct view type structure in which an observation window 7, an illumination window 8, and a channel opening 9 are provided on the distal end surface 6, and further,
A jet nozzle 10 whose height is adjustable is installed near the observation window 7.

That is, the jet nozzle 10 has a jet nozzle main body 12 housed in a housing hole 11 so as to be protrusive and retractable, and the jet nozzle main body 12 is formed of a cylindrical member whose tip end is closed. Furthermore, the inside of the storage hole 11 has a relatively large inner diameter to form a cavity 13, in which an annular collar 14 formed at the inner edge of the jet nozzle body 12 can be moved. It's like this. Also,
A coil spring 15 is wound around the jet nozzle main body 12 in the cavity 13.
5 constitutes a biasing member that pushes the collar 14 backward and draws the jet nozzle main body 12 into the storage hole 11. In addition, as shown in FIG. 5, a positioning piece 16 is protruded from a part of the collar 14, and
By moving along a positioning groove 17 formed on the inner wall of the jet nozzle body 3, the jet nozzle main body 12 is guided only in the front-back direction while being prevented from rotating. Further, by applying the positioning pieces 16 to the front and rear end walls of the positioning groove 17, the positions of both ends of movement of the jet nozzle body 12 are regulated. That is, normally, as shown in FIG. 2, it is drawn into the storage hole 11 by the coil spring 15, and the tip of the jet nozzle body 12 is retracted to a position out of the observation field 18 of the observation window 7. . Also, the jet nozzle body 12
A nozzle port 19 is provided on the side surface of the nozzle port 19, and this nozzle port 19 is closed by the inner wall of the storage hole 11 when the jet nozzle body 12 is drawn into the storage hole 11 as described above. . In addition, the inner wall of the storage hole 11 has a nozzle opening 19 when it is immersed.
An elastic ring 20 is provided as a fluid intrusion prevention member located on the tip side of the jet nozzle body 1.
It is designed to come into pressure contact with the circumferential surface of 2. Therefore, when the jet nozzle main body 12 is recessed, the nozzle opening 19 is directly blocked from the outside. When the jet nozzle main body 12 protrudes, the nozzle opening 19 is opened as shown by the dotted line in FIG.
protrudes outside and faces the observation window 7.

Further, the inner end of the storage hole 11 is connected to a connecting pipe 21, and this connecting pipe 21 communicates with the inside of the jet nozzle body 12. Furthermore, the proximal end 22 of the connecting pipe 21 is connected to the distal end of a cleaning fluid supply pipe 23, as shown in FIG. The supply pipe 23 is connected to the insertion section 3.
It reaches the operating section 2 through the inside and is connected to an operating valve 24 provided in the operating section 2. The operation valve 24 selectively connects the air supply pipe 25 and the water supply pipe 26 to the supply pipe 23 to selectively supply air and water to the jet nozzle 10 . That is, the operating valve 24 includes a hollow valve body 28 slidably provided inside a bottomed cylindrical valve body 27, and one end of the valve body 28 is extended to the outside by a coil spring 29. It is biased to do so, and is kept on standby with its outer end protruding outside. Furthermore, a communication groove 30 is formed on the circumferential surface of the valve body 28 located within the valve body 27. The air supply pipe 25 is connected to the inner end of the valve body 27, and the water supply pipe 26 is connected to the side wall of the valve body 27 on the relatively open end side. Also,
The supply pipe 23 is connected to the side wall of the valve body 27 so as to be located between the connecting portions of both the pipes 25 and 26.

In a normal state, the valve body 28 is raised as shown in FIG. It communicates with the outside through the bottom space of the supply pipe 23 and the hollow part 31 in the valve body 28 . Therefore, even if air is supplied from the air supply pipe 25, the hollow portion 31 of the valve body 28
Air escapes to the outside through the air and cannot be sent to the supply pipe 23 side. However, if the hollow portion 31 is closed by placing a finger on the outer end surface of the valve body 28, air can be supplied to the supply pipe 23.

Further, when the valve body 28 is pushed in, the communication groove 30 of the valve body 28 is located between the connection portion of the water supply pipe 26 and the supply pipe 23, and connects the water supply pipe 26 to the supply pipe 23, and also connects the water supply pipe 26 to the supply pipe 23. 25
cut off.

That is, the operating valve 24 can freely switch between air supply, water supply, and stop state.

As shown in FIG. 2, an objective lens 33 is installed inside the cover lens 32 of the observation window 7, and this lens system transmits a light image in the observation field to an optical fiber bundle 34 for image transmission. The image is formed on the distal end surface 35 of. The optical image is then transmitted to the eyepiece section 36 of the operation section 2 through the image transmission optical fiber bundle 34.

Next, the operation of the above embodiment will be explained. First, when the operating valve 24 is not operated at all, it is in the state shown in FIG. Escape to the outside, supply pipe 23
will not be sent to.

Therefore, in order to send water, the valve body 28 of the operating valve 24 is pushed in with a finger, and the communication groove 30 of the valve body 28 is positioned across both the connection portions of the water pipe 25 and the supply pipe 23. As a result, the air supply pipe 25 is cut off, and the water supply pipe 26 is connected to the supply pipe 23.
Since it communicates with the supply pipe 23, water can be supplied to the supply pipe 23.

When water is supplied to the jet nozzle 10 through the supply pipe 23, the jet nozzle main body 12 is pushed out by the water pressure and protrudes as shown by the dotted line in FIG. That is, the nozzle opening 19 protrudes to the outside and faces the observation window 7. Then, clean water is ejected from the nozzle port 19 toward the observation window 7. After the ejection continues for a predetermined time in this manner, the finger is released from the valve body 28 of the operating valve 24, and the restoring force of the coil spring 29 causes the valve body to
Restore 8. Next, without pushing in the valve body 28, the hollow part 31 of the valve body 28 is closed with a fingertip, the air supply pipe 25 is communicated with the supply pipe 23, and air is supplied to the jet nozzle 10. Due to this feeding pressure, the jet nozzle main body 12 protrudes in the same manner as described above, and the nozzle opening 19
is directed toward the surface of the observation window 7, and air is blown onto the observation window 7. As a result, water remaining on the surface of the observation window 7 is blown off and dried.

Then, when the finger is released from the valve body 28 of the operation valve 24, the air escapes directly to the outside as described above, and the air is not sent to the supply pipe 23. Therefore, the jet nozzle body 12 is automatically retracted by the coil spring 15, as shown by the solid line in FIG. That is, the tip of the jet nozzle body 12 is located in the observation field 1.
8 and does not interfere with observation through the observation window 7. Of course, when supplying air or water, the observation window 7 can be sufficiently cleaned because it protrudes to ensure the necessary height.

In addition, during the above-mentioned air supply and water supply, there is no backflow due to the pressure.

Also, during observation, the jet nozzle main body 12
is inserted into the storage hole 11, and its nozzle port 19 is
It is covered by the inner wall of the storage hole 11 and is reliably isolated from the outside by an elastic ring 20 serving as a fluid prevention member located on the distal side thereof. In other words, it is directly blocked at the distal end surface 6 of the endoscope 1, and not only the nozzle port 19 but also the supply pipe 23
There is no infiltration.

Therefore, it is possible to prevent mucus, dirt, and the like from entering the body cavity and remaining and sticking to the body cavity.

In the above embodiment, the ejection nozzle main body is made to protrude using the cleaning fluid, but the means for protruding and retracting the ejection nozzle main body is not limited thereto. Examples of this modification will be listed below.

In the one shown in FIG. 6, the jet nozzle main body 40 is pre-biased in the projecting direction by a coil spring 41, and is stored in the storage hole 11 by being pulled by an operating wire 42. . Note that the operation wire 42 is connected to the endoscope 1.
It is guided to the operating section 2 through the insertion section 3 of the device, and is pulled and operated by a pulling operation mechanism (not shown). Further, the ejection nozzle main body 40 of this embodiment has a length that penetrates the tip portion 5,
A supply pipe 23 is directly connected to its base end. In this embodiment, the elastic packing 37 is also provided inside the nozzle opening 19 when the jet nozzle main body 40 is retracted.

Furthermore, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 7, the jet nozzle is connected to the supply pipe 23 through a connecting pipe 43, as in the case of the embodiment shown in FIG. The other configurations are the same as those in FIG.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, a magnetic body 45 is attached to the base end of the jet nozzle main body 44, and the jet nozzle main body 44 is biased in a protruding direction by a coil spring 46, while an electromagnet 47 The ejection nozzle main body 44 is pulled in by magnetic attraction, and is kept in a retracted state on standby. That is, normally, when cleaning the observation window 7 by exciting the electromagnet 47 and retracting the jet nozzle body 44 against the restoring force of the coil spring 46, by demagnetizing the electromagnet 47, the jet nozzle body 44 is pulled in against the restoring force of the coil spring 46. This is for protruding the jet nozzle body 44.

Further, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 9, a permanent magnet 49 is attached to the base end of the jet nozzle body 48, and by attracting it to a connecting pipe 50 made of a magnetic material, the jet nozzle body 48 is pulled in and put on standby. Furthermore, an electromagnetic coil 51 is installed around the connecting pipe 50 to constitute an electromagnet 52, and when cleaning the observation window 7, the permanent magnet 49 is excited in a direction to repel it. . Furthermore, in the embodiments shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the elastic ring 53 is attached directly to the circumferential surface of the jet nozzle bodies 44, 48 instead of to the wall of the storage hole 11.

According to each of the above embodiments, although the ejection nozzle is set near the observation window and an effective height is obtained during cleaning, the ejection nozzle must be retracted and evacuated from the observation field during observation. Can be done. That is, the observation field of view is not obstructed by the jet nozzle. Therefore, even with a particularly thin endoscope or a wide-angle endoscope, there are no restrictions on the installation of the jet nozzle, and good observation can be made.

Furthermore, by remotely operating the jet nozzle body using an operating wire, the jet nozzle can be reliably operated.

Moreover, if the jet nozzle main body is pushed out by the pressure of the cleaning fluid, there is no particular need for operating the main body, and the configuration of the operating mechanism of the jet nozzle section can be greatly simplified.

In addition, if you operate the jet nozzle body magnetically,
A relatively large operating force can be obtained, the jet nozzle can be operated reliably, and the configuration of the operating section can be simplified.

Further, since the ejection nozzle is closed by the fluid intrusion prevention member when the ejection nozzle main body is retracted, it is possible to prevent fluid from flowing into the ejection nozzle portion.

As explained above, in the present invention, the jet nozzle main body sinks into the storage hole during observation, and the nozzle opening is blocked and closed from the outside by the fluid prevention member. Therefore, backflow from the jet nozzle can be prevented, and clogging of the nozzle opening due to dirt, mucus, etc. in the body cavity can be prevented.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a sectional view showing a conventional check valve, Fig. 2 is a partially cutaway side view of an endoscope showing an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 3 is a side view of the distal end of the embodiment. 4 is a front view of the tip end of the same embodiment, FIG. 5 is a front sectional view of the nozzle part of the same embodiment, and FIGS. 6 to 9 show other different embodiments. FIG. 3 is a side cross-sectional view of the distal end of the endoscope. 1... Endoscope, 2... Operation section, 3... Insertion section,
4... Curved tube part, 5... Tip part, 6... Tip surface,
7...Observation window, 8...Illumination window, 9...Channel opening, 10...Ejection nozzle, 11...Storage hole, 12
...Blowout nozzle body, 13...Cavity, 14...Brim, 15...Coil spring, 16...Positioning piece,
17...Positioning groove, 18...Observation field of view, 19...
... Nozzle opening, 20 ... Elastic ring, 21 ... Connecting pipe, 22 ... Base end, 23 ... Supply pipe, 24
...Operation valve, 25...Air supply pipe, 26...Water supply pipe, 27...Valve body, 28...Valve body, 29...
... Coil spring, 30 ... Communication groove, 31 ... Hollow part, 32 ... Cover lens, 33 ... Objective lens, 34 ... Optical fiber bundle, 35 ... Tip surface, 36
...Eyepiece, 40...Ejection nozzle body, 41...
Coil spring, 42... Operation wire, 43... Connecting pipe, 44... Ejection nozzle body, 45... Magnetic material, 46... Coil spring, 47... Electromagnet, 48
...Blowout nozzle body, 49...Permanent magnet, 50...
... Connecting pipe, 51 ... Electromagnetic coil, 52 ... Electromagnet, 53 ... Elastic ring.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An insertion section of an endoscope with a built-in cleaning fluid supply pipe, an observation window provided at the distal end of the insertion section of this endoscope, and a distal end of the endoscope located near the observation window. A jet nozzle body is provided so as to be projectable and retractable into the storage hole of the part, and is connected to the supply pipe, and a part of the jet nozzle body that is exposed to the outside when the jet nozzle main body protrudes from the tip part. a nozzle opening, and a fluid intrusion prevention member located on the tip side of the nozzle opening to block and block the nozzle opening from the outside of the tip when the jetting nozzle body is inserted into the storage hole; What is claimed is: 1. An endoscope comprising: an ejecting/retracting operation mechanism comprising a biasing means for causing the ejection nozzle to protrude, and a means for protruding the ejection nozzle.