JPH0342443B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention provides a light that improves heat transfer with a light guide inside a light guide connector attached to a light source device, thereby preventing burnout of the light guide and reduction in durability. Regarding guide connectors.

[Technical background of the invention and its problems] In recent years, in the medical field, an elongated insertion section is inserted into a body cavity, and illumination light is emitted from the end face of a light guide inserted through the insertion section to a target area such as an affected area within the body cavity. BACKGROUND ART Endoscopes that emit light and allow observation of an illuminated optical image of a target region are becoming widely used.

The insertion section is made as small in diameter as possible to reduce pain to the patient, and therefore the (cross-sectional) area of the light guide as an illumination light transmission means and the observation optical system that is inserted through the insertion section is made small. .

Therefore, since the amount of illuminating light transmitted by the light guide becomes small, the amount of light that illuminates the target site within the body cavity tends to be insufficient. For this reason, by irradiating high-intensity illumination light from the illumination lamp in the light source device to the entrance end surface inside the light guide connector of the light guide cable provided with the light guide connector connected to the light source device,
The required amount of illumination light was maintained from the other end of the light guide.

The above-mentioned light guide is generally formed by hardening an optical fiber bundle (light guide fiber bundle) with adhesive at the end thereof, so that the entrance end of the light guide is irradiated with high-intensity illumination light. and,
The adhesive absorbs light and becomes very hot, and heat conduction is poor due to the small air layer that exists between the cap that inserts the light guide's incident end and ties it together, and the connector body around its outer periphery. Heat tends to accumulate on the light guide side. As a result, the temperature around the end of the light guide increases, causing burnout of the adhesive, reduced durability, and deterioration of characteristics. or,
If even a part of the adhesive discolors or burns out, that part absorbs more light and becomes more likely to heat up.

For this reason, in the past, heat dissipation fins were provided or the outer periphery of the light guide connector was forcedly cooled, but this did not significantly improve the negative effects caused by the air layer.

In addition, there is a conventional example in which a copper plate or the like is arranged between the light guide fiber bundles to guide heat to the base side, but as in the conventional example above, the heat conduction is poor due to the air layer interposed between the base and the connector body. Therefore, it was not effective enough to prevent a temperature rise despite the increase in cost for arranging the copper plates and the like.

[Objective of the Invention] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned points, and it improves heat conduction between the inner light guide and the outer tube member side, prevents temperature rise, prevents burnout, and improves durability. An object of the present invention is to provide a light guide connector that enables prevention of deterioration in performance.

[Summary of the Invention] The present invention is characterized by filling and curing a thermally conductive adhesive having high thermal conductivity between the outer circumferential surface of the end portion of a light guide and the inner circumferential surface of the outer circumferential member of the end portion of the light guide. The light guide is configured to quickly dissipate heat around the end face toward the connector.

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

1 to 4 relate to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 shows an endoscope equipped with the first embodiment.
The embodiment is shown together with the attached light source device, FIG. 2 shows an enlarged portion of the first embodiment, and FIG. 3 shows a further enlarged main part on the end side of the first embodiment,
FIG. 4 shows a cross section taken along line A-A' in FIG.

In these figures, a flexible endoscope 1 includes an elongated and flexible insertion section 2, an operating section 3 connected to the insertion section 2 with a wide rear end, and a rear end of the operating section 3. A flexible light guide cable 5 extends from the side of the operating section 3.

A light guide connector 7 according to a first embodiment of the present invention, which can be attached to a light source device 6, is formed at an end portion (hereinafter referred to as the front end portion) of the light guide cable 5.

The (light guide) connector 7 is designed to be detachably attached to the connector receiver 8 of the light source device 6, and condenses the light from the illumination lamp 9 in the light source device 6 with a condensing lens 10, and 7, the center of the front end surface, that is, the front end surface of the light guide fiber bundle 12 as a light transmission member, is irradiated, and the irradiated light is transmitted from the front end surface to the rear side, and the light guide cable 5, (endoscope) insertion part. 2 to the insertion section 2
The light beam is configured to be emitted from the end face on the tip side toward the object that can be observed by the observation optical system.

As shown in FIG. 2, the connector 7 is composed of a shaft portion 13 on the front end side (inserted into the connector receiver 8 side) and a rear gripping portion 14 adjacent to the shaft portion 13. The outer periphery of the tube member 16 is covered with a tube member 16 provided with an insertion hole 15.

A flexible tube 17 that covers the light guide fiber bundle 12 is inserted into the insertion hole 15, and the front end side of the flexible tube 17 is coated with an adhesive or the like on the outer periphery of the light guide fiber bundle 12 to form a base 18.
The end surface fixed to the outer periphery of the rear end and secured by the base 18 is polished to a smooth surface.

On the other hand, the outer periphery of the gripping part 14 is covered with a gripping member 19 which is approximately ring-shaped and has a thin outer peripheral rear end, and the outer periphery of the thin-walled rear end of the gripping member 19 is covered with the front end of a tubular covering member 20. The abutting parts are fixed with adhesive or the like. Further, the gripping member 19 and the tube member 16 can be integrated by screwing a threaded portion 19A formed on the inner periphery of the front end of the gripping member 19 to a male thread formed on the outer periphery of the rear end of the tube member 16. . During this screwing, a recess for accommodating the O-ring is formed on the tube member 16 side or the gripping member 19 side,
A structure that presses the O-ring makes it possible to maintain liquid tightness (not shown).

Thus, the front end of the insertion hole 15 of the tube member 16 is formed with a small diameter portion 15A having a wall thickness slightly larger than the outer diameter of the mouthpiece 18.
8 into a screw hole formed at one location on the outer periphery of the tube member 16 as its outer peripheral member.
The structure is such that it can be fixed by pressing against the inner wall side of the tube member 16 facing the screw hole.

As shown in FIG. 3, the small diameter portion 15 of the insertion hole 15
Since the inner diameter D of A is slightly larger than the outer diameter d of the cap 18, when the cap 18 is pressed by the tip of the set screw 21, the cap 18 is pressed against the inner wall surface of the small diameter portion 15A on the opposite side facing the screw hole. Contact. In this case, on the set screw 21 side, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a gap 22 having a size of D-d is generated, and a cross section between the inner wall surface of the small diameter portion 15A and the outer peripheral surface of the cap 18 is formed. The gap 22, which has a substantially crescent shape, is filled with a thermally conductive adhesive 23 having high thermal conductivity, which is the essential part of the present invention.

This thermally conductive adhesive 23 is made of silicone resin,
The main ingredients are urethane resin and epoxy resin, and various curing agents are mixed with them to form a binder, and SiO ₂
fillers, SiC compounds, and aluminum,
It is a mixture of thermally conductive fine particles such as iron, nickel, or a mixture of these metals as a filler, and when the thermally conductive fillers come into contact with each other, a heat conduction path is formed in the adhesive, causing heat transfer. The conductivity is made sufficiently large.

As shown in FIG. 4, when the cap 18 is fixed with the setscrew 21, the contact area between the cap 18 and the inner wall surface of the small system part 15A is very small, and the outer peripheral member from the cap 18 passes through this contact area. Although very little heat is transmitted to the pipe member 16 side, as in the first embodiment, the gap 22 is filled with the thermally conductive adhesive 23 and cured, so this thermally conductive adhesive 23, heat is quickly transmitted to the tube member 16 side, and the tendency for heat to be trapped due to an air layer with extremely low thermal conductivity when the thermally conductive adhesive 23 is not used is greatly improved. It turns out.

Therefore, the incident end face of the light guide fiber bundle 12 is irradiated with a large amount of illumination light, and the light guide fiber bundle 1 is absorbed by light (energy).
Even if 2 generates heat, the heat is transferred to the thermally conductive adhesive 2.
3, the pipe member 1 on the outer peripheral side of the cap 18 is immediately removed.
6 side, and is formed so that the heat is radiated from the connector receiver 8 etc. on the outer circumferential side where the tube member 16 is attached, or the heat is radiated from a heat radiator (not shown) etc. via the connector receiver 8, so that the light guide The fiber bundle 12 is prevented from becoming too hot. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the light guide fiber bundle 12 or the adhesive fixing the light guide fiber bundle 12 from burning out and from decreasing its durability. Furthermore, since the gap 22 is filled with the adhesive 23, there is no need to form a means to prevent leakage unlike when filling the gap 22 with a thermally conductive fluid, and the gap 22 is filled with a good heat dissipation function over a long period of time. Can be maintained.

FIG. 5 shows the main part of a second embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in the figure, in this embodiment, a transparent rod-shaped single light transmission element 31 such as glass or quartz is disposed at the end of the light guide fiber bundle 12 as a light transmission member formed of a single member. has been done. This rod-shaped single optical transmission element 31 has a low refractive index cladding layer 31A covering the side outer circumferential surface so that light incident from the front end side does not leak to the outside from the side outer circumferential surface. It is formed.

Also in this second embodiment, the single optical transmission element 31
and the small system part 1 of the insertion hole 15 of the tube member 16.
The gap 22 with the inner wall surface of 5A is filled with thermally conductive adhesive 2.
The single optical transmission element 31 is fixed by being pressed with a set screw 21.

Also in this second embodiment, even if the rod-shaped single optical transmission element 31 generates heat due to high-intensity light irradiation, it is quickly transferred to the tube member 16 side as the outer peripheral member by the thermally conductive adhesive 23. Since a heat conduction path is formed through which heat moves, the single optical transmission element 3
1 can be prevented from becoming high temperature. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the single optical transmission element 31 from expanding and being damaged by heat.

In the second embodiment, the periphery of the front end of the light guide fiber bundle 12 is inserted into and fixed to the base 18' which fits into the insertion hole 15 at the rear of the small diameter portion 15A. The rest of the structure is similar to that of the first embodiment, and the same members are denoted by the same reference numerals (this also applies to other embodiments to be described later).

FIG. 6 shows a third embodiment in which the setscrew 21 in the first embodiment is omitted and is fixed only with a thermally conductive adhesive 23. According to this embodiment, the set screw 21
The number of parts and the number of processing steps can be reduced, and manufacturing costs can be lowered compared to when using the method.

Furthermore, the light guide fiber bundle 12 is not forced to one side by the set screw 21;
There is also the advantage that eccentricity is reduced.

FIG. 7 shows the set screw 21 in the second embodiment.
A fourth embodiment is shown in which the components are fixed with a thermally conductive adhesive as in the third embodiment, instead of using a heat conductive adhesive.

In this case as well, manufacturing costs can be reduced as described above.

Furthermore, the single optical transmission element 31 is pressed to one side by the set screw 21 and is prevented from becoming eccentric. Therefore, the eccentricity can prevent light leakage around the end face.

FIG. 8 shows a second embodiment in which the length of the base 18 in the first embodiment is made sufficiently long.

Also in this embodiment, a thermally conductive adhesive 23 is filled and hardened between the outer circumference of the cap 18 and the inner circumference of the tube member 16. According to this embodiment, since the area of the heat dissipation path with good thermal conductivity is made sufficiently large, the temperature increase can be further reduced than in the case of the first embodiment.

In the fifth embodiment, the narrow diameter portion 15A of the tube member 16 can be made longer toward the rear side, thereby reducing the volume of the gap in which the thermally conductive adhesive 23 is filled and hardened.

Furthermore, in each of the above-described embodiments, a thermally conductive adhesive 2
Holes are provided in the vicinity of both boundaries filled with 3, and these holes are filled with the thermally conductive adhesive 23 described above.
is inserted and hardened, and then a thermally conductive fluid such as heat sink grease, which is widely used when attaching semiconductors to heat sinks, is filled through the screw hole between both holes, and then the set screw 21 is used to tighten the heat conductive fluid. It can also be sealed to compress the sexual fluid. The effects of this embodiment are substantially the same as those described above, but in addition, by releasing the set screw 21, the tube member 16 can be easily removed.

In addition, each of the above-mentioned embodiments is applicable to the flexible endoscope 1 as well as the flexible endoscope 1.
The present invention can be similarly applied to a connector formed on a light guide cable for a rigid endoscope.
Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned example, and the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned example. It can be used.

Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to use in a light guide using a bundle of a plurality of light guide fibers, but can be similarly applied to a light guide formed of a single light guide fiber. I can do it.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, the light guide disposed inside the light guide connector;
Since a thermally conductive adhesive with good thermal conductivity is filled and hardened between the light guide and the outer circumference of the light guide, even if the light guide generates heat due to strong light irradiation, it is quickly transferred to the outer circumference of the light guide. Fiber bundles forming light guides, so that heat can be dissipated
Another advantage is that it can prevent the adhesive or the like that fixes the fiber bundle from being burnt out or deteriorate its durability or characteristics, and it can also prevent a single optical transmission element from being damaged due to thermal expansion. Furthermore, the light guide can be fixed without eccentricity by filling the gap between the outer peripheral surface of the light guide fiber bundle or single transmission element and the inner peripheral surface of the tubular member with a thermally conductive adhesive. It is also possible to reduce costs by reducing the number of processing steps.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 to 4 relate to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 shows an endoscope in which the first embodiment is attached to the end of a light guide cable, and the first embodiment is attached to the endoscope. The perspective view shown together with the light source device, FIG.
FIG. 1 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the surrounding area of the light guide connector of the first embodiment, FIG. 3 is a further enlarged cross-sectional view of the main part around the end of FIG. 2, and FIG. , FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing the main parts of the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing the main parts of the third embodiment of the invention. , FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing the main part of the fourth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
The figure is a sectional view showing the main parts of a fifth embodiment of the present invention. 1... Endoscope, 5... Light guide cable,
6...Light source device, 7...Light guide connector,
8...Connector receiver, 12...Light guide fiber bundle, 15A...Small diameter part, 16...Pipe member, 1
8, 18'...cap, 21...set screw, 22...
...Gap, 23...Thermal conductive adhesive, 31...Single optical transmission element.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A light transmission member formed of a single member disposed at the end of an optical fiber bundle within a tubular outer circumferential member, or a cap for inserting and bundling the end of the optical fiber bundle. In the light guide connector, in which the light transmission member or the end portion of the optical fiber bundle bound by the cap can be connected to transmit light, the optical fiber bundle is inserted into the light transmission member or the cap and the outer peripheral member is connected. A light guide connector characterized by filling and hardening a thermally conductive adhesive between the layers. 2 The thermally conductive adhesive uses silicone resin, urethane resin, or Epoquine resin as a main adhesive,
SiO ₂ or SiC compounds, aluminum,
The light guide connector according to claim 1, characterized in that the adhesive contains thermally conductive fine particles of iron, nickel, etc. and is cured with various curing agents.