JP6843528B2 - Curved tube structure and endoscope - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a curved tube structure arranged in a curved portion and an endoscope in which the curved tube structure is arranged in the curved portion.

In recent years, medical devices inserted into a subject, such as an endoscope, have been widely used in the medical and industrial fields.

In particular, endoscopes used in the medical field are used for observing organs in the body cavity by inserting an elongated insertion portion into the body cavity to be a subject, and for treatment tools provided by the endoscope as needed. Various treatments can be performed using the treatment tool inserted in the insertion channel.

It is well known that such a conventional endoscope insertion portion is provided with a bendable portion in order to improve the insertability into a subject.

Generally, in the curved portion of the endoscope, for example, a curved tube in which a plurality of curved pieces are continuously provided as disclosed in Patent Document 1 is built in, and adjacent ones of the plurality of curved pieces are adjacent to each other. Is rotatably connected to each other.

Further, in recent years, a curved tube structure in which a plurality of slits are provided in a tubular body formed of a superelastic alloy such as Ni—Ti has also appeared.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2001-104239

However, in the conventional curved pipe structure in which a plurality of curved pieces are rotatably connected, the shape of each curved piece is complicated, the unit cost of parts is high, and man-hours are required to connect the adjacent pieces. Therefore, there is a problem that the manufacturing cost becomes high.

Further, in the curved tube structure using a superelastic alloy such as Ni—Ti, there is a problem that the manufacturing cost is high because the superelastic alloy itself is expensive.

Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides a curved tube structure and an endoscope having an inexpensive component configuration, reducing man-hours during manufacturing, and reducing manufacturing costs. The purpose.

The curved tube structure of one aspect of the present invention includes a plurality of curved pieces including at least three curved pieces provided side by side in a state of being separated from each other through a predetermined gap, and the plurality of curved pieces so as to straddle the predetermined gap. The connecting member is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the curved piece, and at least includes an elastically deformable connecting member that connects the curved piece at one end of the plurality of curved pieces and the curved piece at the other end, and the connecting member is curved at one end. It is a single member that covers from the piece to the curved piece at the other end.

The endoscope of one aspect of the present invention has an insertion portion inserted into a subject and a curved portion provided in the insertion portion having a curved tube structure built-in, and the curved tube structure is provided. , A plurality of curved pieces including at least three curved pieces provided side by side in the longitudinal axis direction of the insertion portion, separated from each other through a predetermined gap, and the plurality of curved pieces so as to straddle the predetermined gap. It is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the piece, and includes at least an elastically deformable connecting member that connects the curved piece at one end to the curved piece at the other end of the plurality of curved pieces, and the connecting member is formed from the curved piece at one end. It is one member that covers up to the curved piece at the other end.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a curved tube structure and an endoscope with a curved tube structure and an endoscope, which have an inexpensive component structure, can reduce man-hours during manufacturing, and reduce manufacturing costs.

Perspective view showing the structure of the endoscope of one aspect of the present invention. The same, perspective view which shows the tip part of the insertion part The same, perspective view showing the curved pipe structure The same, perspective view showing the curved piece The same, perspective view showing a state in which a plurality of curved pieces are arranged side by side. The same, partial cross-sectional view showing the curved pipe structure The cross-sectional view which shows the curved pipe structure of the 1st modification. The perspective view which shows the curved piece of the 2nd modification. The perspective view showing the state in which a plurality of curved pieces of the second modification are arranged side by side. The perspective view which shows the curved tube structure of the 3rd modification of the same

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described. In the following description, the drawings based on each embodiment are schematic, and the relationship between the thickness and width of each part, the ratio of the thickness of each part, and the like are different from the actual ones. It should be noted that the drawings may include parts having different dimensional relationships and ratios from each other.

First, an endoscope according to one aspect of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
1 is a perspective view showing the configuration of an endoscope according to one aspect of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a tip portion of an insertion portion, FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a curved tube structure, and FIG. 4 is a curved piece. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state in which a plurality of curved pieces are arranged side by side, and FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a curved pipe structure.

As shown in FIG. 1, the electronic endoscope (hereinafter, simply referred to as an endoscope) 1 of the present embodiment is connected to an insertion portion 2 formed in an elongated tubular shape and a base end of the insertion portion 2. The operation unit 3 is mainly composed of a universal cord 4 which is an endoscope cable extending from the operation unit 3, an endoscope connector 5 arranged at the tip of the universal cord 4, and the like. ..

The insertion portion 2 is a tubular member having flexibility formed by connecting the tip portion 6, the curved portion 7 as the endoscope curved portion of the present embodiment, and the flexible tube portion 8 in order from the tip side. Is. Among these, an imaging unit, which is an imaging device (not shown) having an imaging means inside, an imaging unit (not shown), and the like are housed and arranged in the tip portion 6.

The endoscope 1 is not limited to the electronic endoscope, and may be a fiberscope in which an image guide fiber without an imaging unit is arranged in the insertion portion 2.

The curved portion 7 has a built-in curved pipe structure described later, and can be actively curved in two up and down directions (UP-DOWN) by the rotation operation of the curved lever 13 described later among the operating members of the operating unit 3. It is a mechanical part configured as such.

The curved portion 7 is not limited to this type, and the curved portion 7 is not limited to this type, and is available in four directions including the left-right direction in addition to the up-down direction. -LEFT), or a type that can be curved only upward (UP direction) may be used.

The flexible tube portion 8 is a tubular member formed with flexibility so as to be passively flexible. In addition to the treatment tool insertion channel described later, the inside of the flexible tube portion 8 extends from the imaging unit built in the tip portion 6, and further extends from the operation portion 3 to the inside of the universal cord 4. Various signal lines of the above, a light guide described later for guiding the illumination light from the light source device and emitting it from the tip portion 6 and the like are inserted (none of them are shown).

The operation unit 3 is provided on the tip side and covers the base end of the flexible pipe portion 8 and is connected to the flexible pipe portion 8. It is composed of a grip portion 10 that is gripped by hand when using the mirror 1, an operating means for operating various endoscopic functions provided on the outer surface of the grip portion 10, a treatment tool insertion portion 11, a suction valve 15, and the like. Will be done.

As the operating means provided in the operation unit 3, for example, a plurality of operations for performing each corresponding operation such as a bending lever 13 for performing a bending operation of the bending portion 7, an air supply / water supply operation or a suction operation, an imaging means, and a lighting means. There is a member 14 and the like.

The treatment tool insertion unit 11 is provided with a treatment tool insertion port for inserting various treatment tools (not shown), and is a component that communicates with the treatment tool insertion channel via a branch member inside the operation unit 3.

The treatment tool insertion portion 11 is provided with a forceps plug 12 which is a lid member for opening and closing the treatment tool insertion port and which is detachably (replaceable) with respect to the treatment tool insertion portion 11. ing.

The universal cord 4 inserts the inside of the insertion portion 2 from the tip portion 6 of the insertion portion 2 to reach the operation portion 3, and further inserts various signal lines and the like extending from the operation portion 3 into the inside, and also inserts the light source device. It is a composite cable through which a light guide (not shown) is inserted and a tube for air supply / water supply extending from an air supply / water supply device (not shown) is inserted.

The endoscope connector 5 has an electric connector portion 16 on the side surface to which a signal cable for connecting to a video processor (not shown) of an external device is connected, and also connects to a light source device which is an external device. Connect the light source connector 17 to which the light guide bundle and the electric cable (not shown), which will be described later, are connected, and the air supply tube (not shown) from the air supply / water supply device (not shown) of the external device. It is configured to have a water supply plug 18 and the like.

Next, the configuration of the tip end portion of the insertion portion 2 of the endoscope 1 of the present embodiment will be described.
The tip portion 6 of the insertion portion 2 has a tip hard portion 21 which is a substantially cylindrical rigid frame formed of metal, hard resin, or the like. The tip rigid portion 21 is provided with an observation window 22, here two illumination windows 23, and an opening 24 of a treatment tool channel on the tip surface.

The curved portion 7 is covered with curved rubber so as to cover the outer periphery, and the curved rubber is watertightly fixed to each end portion of the tip portion 6 and the flexible pipe portion 8 by pincushion adhesion or the like. .. Further, in the curved portion 7, a curved pipe structure described later in which a plurality of curved pieces (not shown) are continuously provided is built.

Next, the curved pipe structure provided in the curved portion 7 will be described below.

As shown in FIG. 3, the curved pipe structure 30 of the present embodiment has a group of curved pieces in which a plurality of curved pieces 31 are arranged at substantially equal intervals with a predetermined gap, and is made of polypropylene, rubber, or the like. A plurality of curved pieces 31 are connected so that a band-shaped core portion 33, which is a connecting member formed of the flexible resin of the above, straddles a predetermined gap between adjacent curved pieces 31.

The core portions 33 here are arranged on both sides of the plurality of curved pieces 31 along the longitudinal direction of the curved pipe structure 30 in the left-right direction.

The curved piece 31 is formed in a ring shape by a metal such as stainless steel or a hard resin, and as shown in FIG. 4, a wire receiver formed in a concave shape in the inner diameter direction in which a curved operation wire (not shown) is arranged. Two string guides 32, which are portions, are arranged at point-symmetrical positions at the center.

Further, each curved piece 31 is perforated with two holes 34 as holding portions in a substantially central portion of the outer circumference rotated by approximately 90 ° with respect to the string guide 32.

Further, each curved piece 31 is inexpensively manufactured by press molding in the case of metal or molding in the case of hard resin.

As shown in FIG. 5, these plurality of curved pieces 31 are arranged side by side with a predetermined gap so that the string guides 32 and the holes 34 are arranged in a row along the longitudinal direction, and are shown in FIG. As described above, the core portions 33 are insert-molded in the direction along each of the hole portions 34 arranged in a row. That is, the core portions 33 of the plurality of curved pieces 31 are integrally molded on both side portions from the arranged state.

Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the core portion 33 is embedded in the hole portion 34 of each curved piece 31, and is formed to have a predetermined thickness on the outer peripheral portion and the inner peripheral portion of each curved piece 31. There is.

In this way, by providing the hole portion 34 as a holding portion into which the core portion 33 is embedded in each curved piece 31, the plurality of curved pieces 31 can be formed at the time of insert molding in which the core portion 33 is integrated into the plurality of curved pieces 31. Rotation in the circumferential direction can be regulated.

Further, by embedding the core portion 33 in the hole portion 34 as the holding portion, the joint strength between the plurality of curved pieces 31 and the core portion 33 can be increased.

In the curved pipe structure 30 configured as described above, the plurality of curved pieces 31 can be moved as in the conventional case by elastically deforming the joints of the core portions 33 that fill the predetermined gaps of the plurality of curved pieces 31. The bending function of the curved portion 7 can be performed. As a result, the curved portion 7 of the endoscope 1 has a structure that can be bent as in the conventional case.

According to the above description, in the endoscope 1 of the present embodiment, a plurality of curved pieces 31 of the curved tube structure 30 arranged in the curved portion 7 are connected by a band-shaped core portion 33 integrated by insert molding. Therefore, the man-hours at the time of assembly can be reduced and the manufacturing cost can be reduced as compared with the conventional case.

Further, in the curved tube structure 30, a plurality of tubular curved pieces 31 that are press-molded or molded are used, and the component cost can be suppressed, so that the manufacturing cost can be reduced. If the plurality of curved pieces 31 are made of resin, the core portion 33 can be molded in two colors.

According to the above description, the endoscope 1 provided with the curved tube structure 30 built in the curved portion 7 has an inexpensive component configuration, can reduce man-hours during manufacturing, and can reduce manufacturing costs. It becomes.

(First modification)
FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a curved pipe structure of the first modification.
As shown in FIG. 7, the curved pipe structure 30 may be provided with a string guide 36, which is a wire receiving portion for inserting and holding the bending operation wire 37 through the plurality of bending pieces 31, on the inner peripheral portion. As shown in FIG. 7, the string guide 36 may have a tubular member joined to the inner peripheral surface of the curved piece 31 with solder or the like, or a part of the curved piece is deformed to the inner peripheral side by press molding or the like. A hole through which the wire 37 can be inserted may be formed.

(Second modification)
FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a curved piece of the second modified example, and FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a state in which a plurality of curved pieces are arranged side by side.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, one hole 34 is formed in the plurality of curved pieces 31 of the curved tube structure 30, and the core 33 is embedded at a position symmetrical with respect to the center point with respect to the hole 34. A slit 35 may be formed as a holding portion.

With such a configuration, the curved piece 31 can be formed into a substantially annular shape from the metal plate-shaped member by press molding, the component cost can be further reduced, and the manufacturing cost can be further reduced.

(Third variant)
FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a curved pipe structure of a third modified example.
As shown in FIG. 10, in the curved tube structure 30, one curved piece 31 having a string guide 32 and the other annular curved piece 31 having no string guide 32 are arranged alternately or every few pieces. The bending operation wire 37 may be passed through the inside of the annular curved piece 31 along the string guide 32 of one curved piece 31 and held.

With such a configuration, since the annular curved piece 31 having no string guide 32 simply cuts the metal or resin pipe, the component cost can be further reduced, and the manufacturing cost can be further reduced. Can be reduced.

Although the core portion 33 of the above-described embodiment and each modification is exemplified as a flexible resin, the present invention is not limited to this, and a strip-shaped resin or metal having elasticity may be used.

Further, since the core portion 33 may be configured to connect the adjacent curved pieces 31, a plurality of core portions 33 are formed in a strip shape along the longitudinal direction of the curved pipe structure 30 so as to straddle a predetermined gap between the adjacent curved pieces 31. It may be configured as a new type.

Further, it goes without saying that the curved pipe structure 30 of the embodiment and each modification described above can be combined with each of the illustrated configurations.

The invention described in the above-described embodiment is not limited to the embodiment and the modification, and various modifications can be carried out at the embodiment without departing from the gist thereof. Further, the above-described embodiment includes inventions at various stages, and various inventions can be extracted by an appropriate combination of a plurality of disclosed constituent requirements.

For example, even if some constituent requirements are deleted from all the constituent requirements shown in the embodiment, if the described problem can be solved and the stated effect is obtained, this constituent requirement is deleted. The configuration can be extracted as an invention.

1 ... Endoscope 2 ... Insertion part 3 ... Operation part 4 ... Universal cord 5 ... Endoscope connector 6 ... Tip part 7 ... Curved part 8 ... Flexible tube part 9 ... Breaking part 10 ... Grip part 11 ... Treatment tool Insertion part 12 ... Force plug 13 ... Curved lever 14 ... Operating member 15 ... Suction valve 16 ... Electric connector part 17 ... Light source connector part 18 ... Air supply / water supply plug 21 ... Hard tip part 22 ... Observation window 23 ... Lighting window 24 ... Opening Part 30 ... Curved tube structure 31 ... Curved pieces 32, 36 ... String guide 33 ... Core 34 ... Hole 35 ... Slit 37 ... Curved operation wire

Claims (10)

A plurality of curved pieces including at least three curved pieces provided side by side in a state of being separated from each other through a predetermined gap, and a plurality of curved pieces.
An elastically deformable connecting member arranged on the outer peripheral surface of the plurality of curved pieces so as to straddle the predetermined gap and connecting at least one curved piece at one end and the other curved piece of the plurality of curved pieces.
Equipped with
The connecting member is a curved pipe structure that covers from the curved piece at one end to the curved piece at the other end. The curved pipe structure according to claim 1, wherein the connecting member connects adjacent curved pieces from the curved piece at one end to the curved piece at the other end. The curved pipe structure according to claim 1, wherein the connecting member is a single strip-shaped member that covers from the curved piece at one end to the curved piece at the other end. The connecting member is provided on a part of the outer peripheral surface and is provided.
From the curved piece at one end to the curved piece at the other end, which is provided on a part of the outer peripheral surface different from the connecting member and connects at least the curved piece at one end and the curved piece at the other end of the plurality of curved pieces. The curved pipe structure according to claim 1, further comprising a second connecting member which is one member covering the above. The curved pipe structure according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of curved pieces have a holding portion into which the connecting member is embedded. The holding portion is a hole portion drilled in each of the plurality of curved pieces.
The curved pipe structure according to claim 5, wherein the connecting member is embedded in the holes arranged in a row from the curved piece at one end to the curved piece at the other end. The holding portion is a slit provided in each of the plurality of curved pieces.
The curved pipe structure according to claim 5, wherein the connecting member is embedded in the slits arranged in a row from the curved piece at one end to the curved piece at the other end. The curved tube structure according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of curved pieces have a wire receiving portion formed in a concave shape in the direction of the inner diameter in which the bending operation wire is arranged. The plurality of curved pieces are arranged along the wire receiving portion and a first curved piece having a wire receiving portion formed in a concave shape in the inner diameter direction in which the bending operation wire is arranged on the outer peripheral surface. The curved tube structure according to claim 1, wherein a second annular piece through which the bending operation wire is inserted is arranged alternately or every few pieces. The insertion part to be inserted into the subject and
A curved portion having a curved tube structure built in the insertion portion and a curved portion.
Have,
The curved pipe structure is
A plurality of curved pieces including at least three curved pieces provided side by side in the longitudinal axis direction of the insertion portion, separated from each other through a predetermined gap, and
An elastically deformable connecting member that is arranged on the outer peripheral surface of the plurality of curved pieces so as to straddle the predetermined gap and connects at least one curved piece to the other curved piece of the plurality of curved pieces.
Equipped with
The endoscope is characterized in that the connecting member is a single member that covers from the curved piece at one end to the curved piece at the other end.

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