JPH0361444B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an endoscope capable of cleaning and disinfecting the inside of an air supply path and draining residual liquid in the liquid supply path.

Generally, the insertion section of an endoscope is provided with an air supply channel and a liquid supply channel that open at the distal end, and the operation section is equipped with air and liquid supply channels that selectively supply air or liquid to these air supply channels and liquid supply channels. A switching mechanism is provided. An air pump and a liquid tank are connected to this endoscope, and air and liquid are supplied from the air pump and the liquid tank, and these are switched by the air/liquid feeding switching mechanism and sent through the air supply path. It is configured to eject air from the distal end of the insertion portion and to eject liquid from the distal end of the insertion portion via the liquid feeding path. However, there was a problem in that the liquid remained in the liquid feeding path when the liquid jetting was finished. If such residual liquid were to flow out during the next inspection, it would be extremely unsanitary, and this residual liquid would cause problems such as corrosion of various parts. In order to eliminate such problems, air is selectively supplied into the liquid delivery pipes such as liquid delivery lines, and the remaining liquid in these pipes is pushed out and removed by the air. is being developed. However, such a device requires a complicated switching valve device between the air pump and the liquid tank, resulting in problems such as a complicated structure and troublesome operation.

On the other hand, in recent years, nosocomial infections due to the use of endoscopes have become a problem. Therefore, after using the endoscope, the insertion portion thereof is immersed in a chemical solution, or a chemical solution is passed into the forceps channel to disinfect the inside of the channel. In addition, since water or a chemical solution can be easily sent to the liquid feeding path in the same manner as the forceps channel, the liquid feeding path is cleaned and disinfected.

However, in order to ensure that the entire endoscope is sterilized, it is necessary to clean and disinfect the air passage as well, as dirt may flow back into the air passage from the tip opening. However, due to the structure of the endoscope, it is not easy to clean and disinfect it. As a result, the air passages were not cleaned and disinfected, and there was a risk that the dirt adhering to the air passages would lead to in-hospital infections.

The present invention has been made based on the above-mentioned circumstances, and its purpose is to be able to supply air to a liquid supply pipe to remove the liquid remaining in this pipe, and to It is an object of the present invention to provide an endoscope capable of cleaning and disinfecting the conduit by feeding liquid, and having a simple structure and easy operation.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained according to an embodiment shown in the drawings. In the figure, 1 is an endoscope, 2 is an insertion section thereof, and 3 is an operation section. The insertion section 2 is provided with an air supply passage 4 and a liquid supply passage 5, and these air supply passage 4 and liquid supply passage 5 merge at the tip and form a nozzle 6 provided at the tip of the insertion section 2. It's communicating.
Furthermore, an air/liquid feeding switching mechanism 7 is provided within the operating section 1 . The air supply passage 4 and liquid supply passage 5 are connected to this air and liquid supply switching mechanism 7, and an air supply port 8 and a liquid supply port 9 are connected to this air and liquid supply switching mechanism 7. . Further, reference numeral 10 denotes an air pump, which is connected to the air supply port 8 via an air supply pipe 11. Further, 12 is a liquid tank, and this liquid tank 12 is connected to the liquid feeding port 9 via a liquid feeding pipe 13. Further, the air supply pipe 11 is branch-connected to this liquid tank 12, and the air pressure fed from the air pump 10 is transferred to this liquid tank 12.
This pressure causes the liquid to flow into the tank 12.
The liquid 14 inside is configured to be fed under pressure.
The supplied air and liquid 14 are controlled by the air/liquid switching mechanism 7 so that they are ejected from the nozzle 6 at the tip of the insertion section 2 through the air passage 4 or the liquid passage 5. It is configured. Next, the configuration of the air/liquid feeding switching mechanism 7 will be explained. 15
is the cylinder, and a piston 16 is slidably inserted into the cylinder 15. An air supply passage 4 is provided on the inner surface of the lower part of the cylinder 15.
The air supply port 8 is open, and the air supply port 8 is positioned upward, that is, shifted in the direction in which the piston 16 is pulled out. Further, the liquid feed path 5 and the liquid feed port 9 are opened on the inner surface of the intermediate portion of the cylinder 15, and the liquid feed port 9 is positioned upward, that is, shifted in the direction in which the piston 16 is pulled out. Further, an annular communication groove 17 is formed on the outer periphery of the intermediate portion of the piston 16, and the upper and lower edges of this communication groove 17
The upper and lower edges of this communication groove 17 are located high upward on one side, and are low at a position 180 degrees opposite to this. Further, the piston 16 has a spring 1
8 is biased upwardly. A stopper 19 is provided on the outer periphery of the upper part of the piston 16, and a notch 20 is formed on the upper surface of the cylinder 15, as shown in FIG. 3, through which the stopper 19 can pass. This stopper 1
9 does not face the notch 20, so the stopper 19
is configured to stop when it hits the upper surface of the cylinder 15. Further, an air release hole 21 is formed in the center of the piston 16 along its central axis. When the finger is released from the piston 16, the piston 16 is moved upward by the biasing force of the spring 18, as shown in FIG. When the communication between the liquid port 9 and the liquid feeding path 5 is cut off, and the piston 16 is pushed down until its stopper 19 touches the upper surface of the cylinder 15 as shown in FIG.
The liquid feeding port 9 and the liquid feeding path 5 are configured to communicate with each other via a communication groove 17. When the piston 16 is rotated so that the stopper 19 corresponds to the notch 20 of the cylinder 15 and the piston 16 is further pushed in as shown in FIG. When the passage 4 is brought into communication and the piston 16 is rotated 180 degrees as shown in FIG. 6 from the state shown in FIG. It is configured to

In one embodiment of the present invention configured as described above, when the piston 16 is released, the air inlet 8 and the air passage 4 communicate with each other as shown in FIG.
Since the air supplied from the air is released from the air release hole 21, it is not sent to the air supply path 4. Then, when the air release hole 21 is closed with a finger, air is no longer released from the air release hole 21 and is sent to the air supply path 4. Next, when the piston 16 is pushed down, the communication between the air supply port 8 and the air supply path 4 is cut off, and the liquid supply port 9 and the liquid supply path 5 are communicated through the communication groove 17, as shown in FIG. , the liquid is sent to the liquid sending path 5. When the liquid feeding is finished, the piston 16 is rotated so that the stopper 19 of this piston 16 corresponds to the notch 20 of the cylinder 15, and this piston 1
Push 6 further. Then, as shown in FIG. 5, the air supply port 8 is blocked and the liquid supply port 9 and the air supply path 4 are
are communicated with each other through a communication groove 17, and a liquid 14 is supplied into the air passage 4 to clean the inside of the air passage 4. Also, if the liquid 14 is a medicinal liquid, the air passage 4 is disinfected. In this case, the upper and lower edges of the communication groove 17 are inclined, so that if the high position of the upper edge faces the liquid feeding port 9, the low position of the upper edge on the opposite side faces the liquid feeding path 5. It's blocked. Next, the piston 16 is rotated 180 degrees as shown in FIG. 6, so that the high portion of the upper edge of the communication groove 17 faces the liquid feeding path 5, and the air inlet 8 and the liquid feeding path 5 are brought into communication. Then, air flows from the air supply port 8 through the communication groove 17 to the liquid feeding path 5, pushes out the liquid 14 remaining in this liquid feeding path 5, and dries this liquid feeding path 5.

In this way, once the cleaning and disinfection of the air supply passage 4 and the drying of the liquid supply passage 5 are completed, the piston 16 is returned to the state shown in FIG. 3 and air is sent to the air supply passage 4. The liquid 14 remaining in the air passage 4 can be removed and the air passage 4 can also be dried.

Further, according to the above configuration, since liquid can be sent to the air supply path 4 and air can be sent to the liquid supply path 5, there is no possibility that one of the pipes will become clogged when the endoscope 1 is used for normal observation. Even if one pipe fails, air and liquid can be delivered using the other pipe.

As described above, the present invention allows the operation unit of the endoscope to send air to the air passage and liquid to the liquid passage, and also to send liquid to the air passage and liquid to the liquid passage. An air/liquid switching mechanism is provided to supply air. Therefore,
The liquid can be sent to the air passage to clean and disinfect the air passage, and the liquid remaining in the liquid passage can be removed by sending air to the liquid passage. In addition, since such a function is built into the air/liquid switching mechanism, the structure is simple, and the air/liquid switching mechanism requires only one operation point, making the operation easy.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is an overall schematic diagram, FIG. 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the air/liquid supply switching mechanism, FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a partially cut away view, and FIG. 4
6 through 6 are longitudinal cross-sectional views illustrating the operation of the air/liquid feeding switching mechanism. 1... Endoscope, 2... Air supply route, 5... Liquid supply route,
7... Air/liquid feeding switching mechanism, 8... Air inlet, 9...
Liquid feed port, 10... air pump, 11... air pipe,
12...Liquid tank, 15...Cylinder, 16...
Piston, 17... Communication groove, 19... Stopper,
20...Notch.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An air supply path and a liquid supply path formed in the insertion section and opening at the distal end of the insertion section, and an air supply port connected to an air pump and a liquid tank formed in the operation section. a cylinder provided in the operation section and communicating with each passage and opening, and a piston that is slidable in the axial direction of the cylinder, and the piston controls the air supply port and the air passage. In the endoscope, the communication groove of the piston forming the communication passage is formed on an inclined surface with respect to the axis of the piston, and the communication groove of the piston forming the communication passage is formed on an inclined surface with respect to the axis of the piston. By providing a switching means for rotating the piston so as to change the direction, it is possible to switch the liquid feeding port and the air feeding path into switching communication, and further to switch the air feeding port and the liquid feeding path into switching communication. Characteristic endoscope.