JPH03215240A - Endoscopic apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prescribe curving in the accuracy of the almost same degree as in a case that a curving drive means is provided in an operation part by providing a means for prescribing the draw-in quantity of a traction member toward a connection part in the operation part or in the vicinity of the operation part. CONSTITUTION:Since a means for prescribing the draw-in quantity of wires A16, B18 toward a light guide cable 4 is provided in an operation part 2, the effect of meandering or looping on the side of the light guide cable 4 with respect to the prescription of the wires A16, B18 is excluded/and curving can be prescribed in the accuracy of the almost same degree as in a case that a curving motor 20 is provided in the operation part 2, while the curving motor 20 is arranged in the vicinity of an external apparatus.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Field of Application] The present invention provides a method for bending a bending portion using a drive means provided near an external device. J! Regarding a mirror device.

[Prior Art] In recent years, it has become possible to observe internal organs, etc. in a body cavity by inserting a thin insertion section into a body cavity, and to perform various therapeutic procedures as necessary using a treatment instrument inserted into a treatment instrument channel. Endoscopes are widely used.

The insertion portion of the endoscope is provided with a curved portion. Conventionally, the curved portion was often operated manually, but
There are also proposals to electrify it. For example, Tokuko Sho 57-2257
In Publication No. 4, the bending traction member is driven forward and backward by a motor provided in an external device. As a result, compared to the case where a motor is provided in the operating section, the operating section can be made lighter and the operability can be improved.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] By the way, it is dangerous if the curved portion is curved more than necessary. In order to avoid this, means for regulating the bending angle is required. For example, it is possible to achieve this objective by regulating the rotation angle of the remote motor using electrical control.

However, as mentioned above, when the motor is installed near the external device, the total length of the traction member, including the inside of the insertion section and the inside of the universal cord that connects the operating section and the external device, is approximately 3 to 4 m. This is approximately twice as much as when the motor is provided inside the operating section. Therefore, the amount of elongation of the traction member when the traction member is pulled is also approximately twice that of the case where the motor is provided within the operating section. If there is a certain relationship between the bending angle and the tensile stress imposed on the traction member, consider the relationship and install a regulating means near the motor, for example in the connector that connects the universal cord and the external device. Ba,
The effect of the length of the traction member can be eliminated. However, in reality, the insertion portion and the universal cord meander or form loops, and the relationship between the bending angle and the tensile stress of the traction member is not constant due to the influence of the meandering and loops.

Therefore, it is very difficult to provide a regulating means near the motor that can offset the amount of extension of the traction member.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and allows the bending control to be performed with the same degree of precision as when the bending drive means is provided within the operating section, while the bending drive means is placed near the external device. The objective is to provide an endoscopic device with

[Means for Solving the Problems] An endoscope device of the present invention includes an insertion section having a curved section, an operation section connected to a rear end of the insertion section, and a connection between the operation section and an external device. and a traction member that is inserted into the insertion portion, the operating portion, and the connection portion, and has one end connected to the curved portion and the other end connected to a driving means, and the traction member In the device for bending the bending portion by moving the traction member forward and backward, a regulating means for regulating the amount of retraction of the traction member toward the connecting portion is provided within the operating portion or near the operating portion.

[Operation] In the present invention, the traction member is moved back and forth by the driving means, and the curved portion is curved. The amount by which the traction member is pulled toward the connecting portion is controlled by M by a regulating means provided within or near the operating portion. By providing the regulating means in or near the operating section, it is possible to eliminate meandering or loop formation on the connecting section side in response to regulation of the traction member.

[Example] Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 1 to 9 relate to a first embodiment of the present invention.
The figure is a cross-sectional view showing the regulating means of the endoscopic mirror, Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A in Figure 1, Figure 3 is a view taken along arrow 8 in Figure 1,
Is the diagram inside? ! FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the external device; FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing the connector and motor unit; FIG. 7 is a view taken along arrow C in FIG. 6; FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the light guide cable, and FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing the connector and the waterproof connector.

As shown in FIG. 4, the endoscope 1 includes an elongated and flexible insertion section 3, an operation section 2 connected to the rear end of the insertion section 3, and a side portion of the operation section 2. The light guide cable 4 extends from the light guide cable 4.

The insertion section 3 is constructed by sequentially connecting a bendable bending tube 6 and a hard tip forming section 7 to the distal end of a flexible tube 5 connected to the operating section 2 . The operation section 2 is provided with a bending operation device 8 for remotely bending the bending tube 6. Further, a connector 9 is provided at the end of the light guide cable 4. The connector 9 includes a light source connector 9a, a CCU connector 9b, an angle connector 9C, a water supply cap 9d, and the like.

The connector 9 is adapted to be connected to an external device as shown in FIG. That is, the light source connector 9a
is inserted into the light source device 10, and the CCu connector 9b and camera control unit (hereinafter referred to as CCU) 1
1 is connected via a connection cord 12. [Angle] A motor unit 13 is attached to the connector 9C. The driving power for this motor unit 13 is obtained from the light source device 10 or ccuii via a power cord 14. Further, a water tank 15 attached to the light source device @10 is connected to the water supply cap 9d.

The distal end surface of the distal end component 7 is provided with an illumination window, an observation window, an air/water supply port, and a suction port. A light distribution lens (not shown) is provided inside the illumination window, and a light guide 37 as shown in FIG. 8 is connected to the rear end of the light distribution lens. This light guide 37 is inserted through the insertion section 3, the operation section 2, and the light guide cable 4, and its input end is connected to the light source connector 9a. The illumination light emitted from the light source device 10 passes through the light guide 37 and the light distribution lens and is irradiated onto the subject. An objective lens system (not shown) is provided inside the observation window, and a solid-state imaging device (not shown) is disposed at an imaging position of this objective lens system. An electric cable 40 as shown in FIG. 8 connected to this solid-state image carrier is inserted through the insertion section 3, the operation section 2, and the light guide cable 4, and is connected to the CCU connector 9C. and,
The electric cable 40 is connected to the CCU 11 via this CCU connector 9C. An air supply tube 38 as shown in FIG. 8 is attached to the air and water supply port.
and a water supply tube 39 are connected. The air supply tube 38 and the water supply tube 139 are connected to the insertion section 3 and the operation section 2.
and the light guide cable 4, and the air supply tube 38 is connected to an air supply mouthpiece (not shown) of the connector 9,
The water supply tube 39 is connected to the water supply mouthpiece 9d.

Further, a suction tube 36 as shown in FIG. 8 is connected to the suction port. The suction tube 36 is inserted through the insertion section 3, the operation section 2, and the light guide cable 4, and is connected to a suction cap (not shown) of the connector 9.

Next, the bending mechanism of the bending tube 6 will be explained.

The curved tube 6 has a large number of nodes arranged in the axial direction and rotatably connected to each other. The most advanced node ring has the first
One end of a wire A16 as shown in the figure is fixed, and by pulling this wire A16, the bending tube 6 is bent.

As shown in FIG.
18. The wire A16 is inserted into the coil vibe 50 inside the flexible tube 5. Both ends of this coil pipe 50 are fixed within the rearmost face ring and the operating section 2, respectively. The wire 81
B is inserted through the light guide cable 4, and its loose end is connected to the rack 19 within the connector 9, as shown in FIG. A gear 24 disposed within the angle connector 9C meshes with one of the racks, and a gear 23 disposed within the angle connector 9C meshes with this gear 24. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7, a motor 20 connected to a control circuit 42 is provided in the motor unit 13 connected to the angle connector 9C. The control circuit 42 is connected to the bending operation device @8 and is also connected to a power source. The motor 20
A gear 21 is attached to the output shaft, and a gear 22 meshes with this gear 21. The gear 23 meshes with this gear 22. Incidentally, as shown in FIG. 6, the angle connector 9 of the motor unit 13
Fixation to C is by C ring 34. Motor unit 1
When the motor 20 in 3 rotates, the gears 21, 22, 23
．． 24 rotates to move the rack 19 back and forth. By changing the rotation direction of the motor 20, the wire 818 and the wire A16 are pulled and relaxed through the rack 19, and the curved pipe 6
is curved.

Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the gear 24 has a thick width.
In addition to gear 19, it also meshes with gear 32. This gear 3
2 is engaged with a rack 33. Similar to the rack 19, a wire 818 is connected to this rack 33, and a wire A16 is connected to the tip of this wire 818 via the stopper receiver 17. With this configuration, the rack 33 can be relaxed when the rack 19 is towed, and the hook 33 can be towed when the rack 19 is relaxed. Since the tips of the wires connected to the racks 19 and 33 are fixed at approximately symmetrical positions within the bending tube 6, the bending tube 6 can be bent in two directions by forward and reverse rotation of the motor 20.

Furthermore, motor 20, rack 19.33, wire 16.
By providing another set of bending mechanisms consisting of 18 mag.
The curved tube 6 can be curved in four directions.

Next, with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3, a regulating means for regulating the amount of wire retraction will be described.

As shown in FIG. 1, retainers 25 and 26 are attached to each end of the wire A16 and the wire B18, respectively.
These are inserted into grooves 27 and 28 provided in the stop collar receiver 17 from the side.

The inside of the grooves 27 and 28 has two steps, which are wider on the back side, and because of this difference in steps, the retainers 25 and 26 act as a retainer against the stopper receiver 17 in the pulling direction. As shown in FIG. 2, the stop lever receiver 17 is held by a cover 52 fixed on a base plate 51 so as to be slidable in the axial direction.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, on the substrate 51,
A stopper 30 is fixed to the rear end side of the stopper receiver 17. The stopper receiver 17 has a claw 29 on the rear end side.
The stopper 30 is provided with a stopper claw 31 that comes into contact with the claw 29. Then, at the maximum bending time, that is, at the maximum traction of the wire 16.18,
The claw 29 of the stopper receiver 17 comes into contact with the stopper claw 31 of the stopper 30, preventing further traction. The position of the stopper claw 31 can be set to an appropriate position for each individual endoscope.

Note that the wire 818 has a larger diameter than the wire A16, has higher tensile strength, and has less elongation.

This is because the wire A16 is made as thin as possible in order to make the outer diameter of the flexible tube 5 thinner, but the wire 818 can be made thicker because there are fewer restrictions on the outer diameter of the light guide cable 4. Also, due to the rotation of the motor 20, the wire A16. wire B1
A tensile force acts on wire A, but due to loss of frictional force etc.
The tensile force on wire 818 is much greater than the tensile force on wire 16. Therefore, making the wire 818 stronger than the wire A16 has a great effect in terms of preventing wire elongation, etc. In addition, as shown in FIG.
A bent portion of the light guide cable 18 from the operating section 2 to the light guide cable 4 side is inserted into the guide pipe 53.

Next, with reference to FIG. 8, the arrangement of the wire 818 within the light guide cable 4 will be described.

The light guide cable 4 is composed of a so-called multi-lumen tube having a plurality of holes, and is made of a silicon tube or the like. The four wires 818 are each covered with a coil pipe 35 and placed in separate lumens located approximately at the center of the light guide cable 4 . Both ends of the coil pipe 350 are connected to the operating section 2 and the connector 9, respectively.
is fixed inside. Since the four wires 818 are arranged approximately at the center of the light guide cable 4, even if the light guide cable 4 becomes a loop, the curved tube 6
The curvature angle will not change.

In addition, since the four coil pipes 35 ensure appropriate rigidity, it is no longer necessary to construct the light guide cable with metal such as a flex made by winding a band-shaped metal plate or a braid of a metal mesh pipe, as in the past. do not have.

Further, other lumens provided in the light guide cable 4 house a suction tube 36, a light guide 37, an air supply tube 38, a water supply tube 39, various electric cables 40, and the like.

This configuration of the light guide cable 4 prevents other internal components within the light guide cable 4 from being damaged due to the movement of the wire 818. Also,
By storing the coil vibe 35 in the lumen,
Buckling of the coil pipe 35 is prevented and the bending angle is stabilized.

By the way, as shown in FIG. 9, when disinfecting the endoscope 1t1, a waterproof connector 44 is attached instead of the motor unit 13. A sealing O-ring 45 is interposed between the waterproof connector 44 and the angle connector 9C.

Also, on the CCU 11 side, the connection cord 12 is removed and another waterproof connector 44 is attached in its place.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the wire A16 and the wire B18 are connected to the light guide cable 4 side within the operation unit 2.
Since the wire A16. The effect of meandering or looping on the light guide cable 4 side on the regulation of the wire 818 is eliminated, and the bending motor is provided in the operation unit 2 while the bending Tanabata 20 is placed near the external device. It becomes possible to regulate the curvature with a degree of accuracy.

FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing a WIH regulating means in a second embodiment of the present invention.

This embodiment differs from the first embodiment in the configuration of the regulating means provided in the operating section 2.

In this embodiment, the traction means consists of a single wire 56;
A stopper receiver 57 is fixed to this wire 56 within the operating section 2 . This stopper receiver 57 is held by a guide 58 so as to be slidable in the axial direction.

Further, a limit switch 41 is provided in the operating section 2 instead of the stopper 30 in the first embodiment. When the motor 20 is driven and the wire 56 is pulled, the stopper receiver 57 contacts the limit switch 41, and the limit switch 41 electrically transmits the contact information to the control circuit 42 of the motor 20. stop rotating.

Further, the coil pipe 35 is covered with the wire 56 so as to include the bent portion of the wire 56, and the bent portion of the coil pipe 35 is provided to prevent buckling of the coil vibe 35 and to prevent movement of the wire 56. In order to do so, guide 43
is provided.

Other configurations, operations, and effects are the same as those in the first embodiment.

FIGS. 11 and 12 relate to a third embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 11 is a sectional view showing a regulating means of an endoscope, and FIG. 12 is a sectional view of a light guide cable.

In this embodiment, the stopper receiver Sj 5 in the second embodiment is
There are two 7s. That is, the wire 56 has
The stopper receiver A57a is fixed, and this stopper receiver A57a is fixed.
57a is screwed into the stopper receiver B57b. This stopper receiver B57b is held slidably in the axial direction by a guide 58, and is also capable of contacting the limit switch 41. The positional relationship between the stopper receiver A57a and the stopper receiver B57b can be changed in the axial direction by rotating them relative to each other. This makes it possible to adjust the contact position between the stopper receiver B57b and the limit switch 41, making it easy to change the maximum bending angle of the bending tube 6.

Furthermore, the light guide cable 4 in this embodiment is constructed as shown in FIG. 12. In this embodiment, although not shown, a forceps channel is provided within the insertion section 3, and a forceps base is provided near the opening on the distal end side of this forceps channel. A forceps raising wire 60 is connected to this forceps raising base, and by pulling and relaxing this forceps raising wire 60, the forceps raising base can be operated. The forceps lifting wire 60 and the four bending wires 56 are each housed in a guide pipe and are arranged in the same lumen located approximately at the center of the light guide cable 4. In addition, multiple other built-in items are placed in the same lumen. In the example shown in Figure 12,
The suction tube 36 and the air supply tube 38 are arranged in the same lumen, the light guide 37 and various electric cables 40 are arranged in the same lumen, and the water supply tube 39 and other internal components 61 are arranged in the same lumen. There is.

The forceps lifting wire 60 is pulled in the same way as the bending wire 56 by another motor installed near the connector 9 in addition to the bending motor 20, and the forceps lifting angle of the forceps lifting base is adjusted. The regulating means is provided within the operation section 2. Note that the forceps lifting wire 60 may also be thinner on the insertion portion 3 side and thicker on the light guide cable 4 side, like the wire A16 and wire B18 in the first embodiment.

Other configurations. The operation and effect are the same as in the second embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a sectional view showing a regulating means of an endoscope according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

In this embodiment, similarly to the first embodiment, the regulating means consisting of the stopper receiver 17, the stopper 30, etc. is provided not within the operating section 2 but within the bending stop section 62 between the operating section 2 and the insertion section 3. It is something that In this way, the regulating means may be provided not only within the operating section 2 but also near the operating section 2, for example, within the bending stop on the light guide cable 4 side.

Other configurations. The operation and effect are the same as in the first embodiment.

Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and for example, the bending motor may be provided within the connector 9 or within the light source device 10. Further, the driving means is not limited to a motor, but may also be an actuator using pneumatic pressure, hydraulic pressure, or the like.

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, according to the present invention, the regulating means for regulating the amount of pulling of the traction member for bending toward the connecting portion side is provided in or near the operating portion. Although the drive means is disposed near the external device, it is possible to regulate the bending with the same degree of precision as when the bending drive means is provided within the operation section, and this has the effect of improving safety.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIGS. 1 to 9 relate to a first embodiment of the present invention.
The figure is a sectional view showing the regulating means of the endoscope, FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line A-A' in FIG. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the external device; FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing the connector and motor unit; FIG. 7 is a view taken in the direction of arrow C in FIG. 6; FIG. 8 is a light guide. 9 is a sectional view of the cable, FIG. 9 is a sectional view showing the connector and waterproof connector, FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing the regulating means of the endoscope according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 11 and 12 are Regarding the third embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 11 is a sectional view showing the regulating means of the endoscope, FIG. 12 is a sectional view of the light guide cable, and FIG. 13 is an internal view of the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a mirror regulating means. 1... Endoscope 2... Operation section 3... Insertion section 4... Light guide cable 6... Curved tube 9...] Connector 13... Motor unit 16... Wire A 17... Stroller receiver 18
...Wire B 20...Motor Fig. 5 Fig. 6 Fig. 7 Fig. 8 Fig. 12 Fig. 9 Fig. 9 Fig. 10 Fig. 11 Mark

Claims (1)

[Claims] an insertion section having a curved section, an operation section connected to a rear end of the insertion section, a connection section that connects the operation section and an external device, and inserted into the insertion section, the operation section, and the connection section, an endoscope device comprising a traction member having one end connected to the bending section and the other end connected to a drive means, and bending the bending section by moving the traction member forward and backward by the drive means The endoscope apparatus according to the present invention, further comprising a regulating means for regulating the amount of retraction of the traction member toward the connecting portion, provided within the operating portion or near the operating portion.