JPH0137945B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a device for adjusting the length of a spiral tube for guiding an operating wire in an endoscope. In endoscopes for medical and industrial use, the guide tube of the operating wire 2 that bends the tip of the bending tube body 1 is composed of a spiral tube 3 as shown in FIG. When the body 1 is bent, the outer pitch of the spiral tube 3 at the bending point expands as shown in FIG. As a result, the operability of the operating wire 2 passed through it may be affected, or the spiral tube may become hard and inflexible, requiring further bending before insertion. Sometimes things become impossible.

Therefore, in the past, the rear end fixing point in the handle of the spiral tube was manually moved as appropriate each time so as not to interfere with the operation of the operating wire. There are disadvantages in that the amount of movement of the fixing point is not appropriate, and that the insertion operation is often interrupted because it is difficult to perform the operation at the same time as the operation of inserting it into the body cavity.

The present invention aims to solve these drawbacks, and in addition to the operating wire and the spiral tube, a detection spiral tube through which a wire is passed is provided, and the detection spiral tube allows the detection of the spiral tube. The present invention is characterized in that the length of the spiral tube is adjusted by detecting a change in length and automatically driving a motor to move the rear end fixing point of the spiral tube.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG. 3 is an overall explanatory view, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the main parts. 1 is a bent tube body, and although there are various conventional types, usually a flexible tube 5 is formed by connecting rings 4. The flexible tube 5 is covered with a jacket 6, but since the present invention does not relate to the technology of this part, it will not be described in detail, but it can be applied to any type of bent tube body.

Reference numeral 2 denotes an operating wire for bending the tip of the bending tube body 1. In the case of a structure in which the bending tube body 1 is bent in two directions, two operation wires are required to bend the bending tube body 1 in four directions ( In the case of this embodiment), four or three operating wires are built in, and the tip of each operating wire 2 is fixed inside the front end 7 of the bent tube body 1, and the rear end is fixed inside the handle 8. is connected to the operating device 9. Reference numeral 10 denotes a spiral tube through which the operating wire 2 passes, the tip of which is located at the inner tip of the bent tube body 1, and the rear end fixed to a movable body 11 provided within the handle 8.

12 is a wire, 13 is a detection spiral tube through which the wire 12 is passed, and the tip of the wire 12 and the tip of the detection spiral tube 13 are integrally located at the inner tip of the bent tube body 1; The rear end of the detection spiral tube 13 is fixed to the actuating body 14 provided on the movable body 11, and the rear end of the wire 12 is passed through the hole provided in the actuating body 14 in the handle 8 and connected to the support body. Keep it fixed at 15.

The movable body 11 is supported by the inner wall 8a of the handle so as to be movable in the front-rear direction, and the operating body 14 has one end rotatably supported on the movable body 11 by a pin 16, and the other end thereof. It is located between detection means 17 and 18 such as a limit switch provided on the movable body 11, and a spring 19 is tensioned between the actuation body 14 and the support body 15.
4 is always pushed forward.

Reference numerals 20 and 21 indicate detection means such as a limit switch fixed to the inner wall 8a of the handle, and the end portion of the movable body 11 is configured to move between the detection means 20 and 21.

22 is a motor, and the detection means 17, 1
It is driven by signals from 8, 20, and 21, rotates a screw shaft 23 connected to the motor shaft, and moves the movable body 11 screwed onto the screw shaft 23 in the front-back direction.

Next, the operation of the present invention with the above configuration will be described.

When inserted into a body cavity, the bent tube 1 bends as it bends, and the direction of the tip of the bent tube 1 is controlled by operating the operating device 9. The spiral tube 10 passing through the wire 2 and the detection spiral tube 13 passing through the wire 12 are bent, and as shown in FIG. The line spacing increases, and the spiral tube 10 increases by that amount.
And the total length of the detection spiral tube 13 becomes longer. Due to the operation of the detecting spiral tube 13, which becomes longer, the actuating body 14 is pushed against the repulsive force of the spring 19, and operates the detecting means 17, thereby driving the motor 22 to rotate the screw shaft 23. The moving body 11 is moved backward (in the direction of arrow A) through the spiral tube 1.
Adjust the extension of 0.

When the bending of the bent tube body 1 decreases, the spiral tube 10 and the detection spiral tube 13 return to their original lengths, but the actuating body 14 is pushed by the spring 19 accordingly. Detection means 1
8 to drive the motor 22 and screw shaft 23.
The length of the spiral tube 10 is adjusted by moving the movable body 11 forward (in the direction of arrow B).

The above-mentioned operations are performed as appropriate when the length of the spiral tube 10 changes, and the spiral tube 10
A detecting spiral tube 13 detects a change in the length of the moving body 11 to automatically adjust the length.The detection means 20 and 21 indicate the limit of movement of the moving body 11, It is provided to prevent the bent tube body 1 and the spiral tube 10 from being destroyed, and the detection means 20, 2
1 is activated, the drive of the motor 22 is stopped,
There is no further movement of the moving body 11.

According to the present invention having the above configuration and operation, the bending state of the spiral tube for guiding the operating wire is constantly detected by the spiral tube for detecting the bending state of the spiral tube for guiding the operating wire as the bending tube body is bent when actuated by the operating wire. The length of the spiral tube is determined by detecting the change in the length of the spiral tube as a change in the detection spiral tube, and using that change to move the fixed point at the rear end of the spiral tube. Because it can be adjusted automatically, even if the endoscope is inserted into a place with many bends, the spiral tube will become stiff and inflexible, making it impossible to operate the operating wire. This means that the endoscope can always be inserted smoothly, and the endoscope can be easily inserted even into complicated bends.

In addition, unlike the conventional manual adjustment method, the length is automatically adjusted, so the endoscope insertion process can be performed continuously without interruption, improving work efficiency. Since the amount of adjustment is very accurate and the amount of adjustment is accurate, it has effects such as good operability of the operating wire.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a conventional endoscope, Fig. 2 is an enlarged partial sectional view showing the bent state of the spiral tube, Fig. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the endoscope of the present invention, and Fig. 4 is an illustration of the main points. FIG. 1...Bent tube body, 2...Operation wire, 10...
...spiral tube, 11... moving object, 12... wire,
13...detection spiral tube, 14...operating body, 17,
18, 20, 21...detection means such as a limit switch, 22...motor.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In an endoscope having an operation wire for bending the bending tube body and a spiral tube serving as a guide tube for the operation wire, the rear end of the spiral tube is connected to a movable body movably provided in the handle, and the above-mentioned In addition to the operation wire and spiral tube, a wire and a detection spiral tube are separately provided, and the rear end of the detection spiral tube is fixed to the operating body attached to the moving body. A detection means provided in the handle is actuated via this actuating body due to a change in the length of the spiral tube, and the movable body is moved via a motor provided in the handle which is driven by the actuation. A device for adjusting the length of a spiral tube for guiding an operating wire in an endoscope, characterized in that: