JPH0557565B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention relates to an endoscope that uses a solid-state imaging device for observation.

[Technical background of the invention and its problems]

In recent years, endoscopes that use solid-state image sensors in their observation systems have been developed. In this type of endoscope, the solid-state image sensor is incorporated into the end of the endoscope, and the method of mounting it is to fix the solid-state image sensor alone or together with a board to the member to which it is attached using screws. was.

However, this attachment method requires a space for screwing on the solid-state image sensor or the substrate, and therefore it is not possible to downsize the distal end of the endoscope. Moreover, there are drawbacks such as difficulty in finely adjusting the position of the solid-state image sensor.

[Purpose of the invention]

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to improve the mounting structure of the solid-state image sensor in an endoscope using a solid-state image sensor. It is an object of the present invention to provide an endoscope whose parts can be made smaller and whose mounting position of a solid-state image sensor can be easily finely adjusted.

[Summary of the invention]

The present invention provides a solid-state imaging device disposed within the tip of an endoscope, a transmission optical system that makes a light image from an objective optical system enter an image receiving section of the solid-state imaging device, and a transmission optical system that is provided integrally with the transmission optical system. A holding member, and a pair of support pieces that are provided at the distal end of the endoscope and form a guide surface that guides the holding member so that the transmission optical system is fixed in the optical axis direction of the objective optical system and is movable along the image receiving section of the image sensor. a positioning member that positions and fixes the holding member to the support member; and a positioning member that is provided on the pair of support pieces of the support member and moves the image receiving part of the solid-state image sensor in a direction perpendicular to the optical axis direction of the objective optical system. The endoscope includes a reference surface for attaching a solid-state image sensor that can be brought into contact with the reference surface for attaching the solid-state image sensor, and a positioning member that positions and fixes the solid-state image sensor with respect to the reference surface for attaching the solid-state image sensor.

[Embodiments of the invention]

Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

In FIG. 1, 1 is an endoscope, 2 is a light source device,
3 is a camera control unit. The endoscope 1 includes an insertion section 4, a connector section 5, and a light guide cord 6. The insertion section 4 consists of a flexible tube 7 and a distal end section 8 connected to the distal end of the flexible tube 7,
The tip 8 is constructed as shown in FIGS. 2 to 6.

That is, the tip portion 8 is provided with a tip body 10 . As shown in FIG.
and four lighting windows 12 provided around it. As shown in FIG. 4, the illumination window 12 is provided with an exit lens 13, to which the tip of a light guide 14 made of an optical fiber bundle is optically connected. The proximal end of the light guide 14 is connected to the light source device 2 through the insertion section 4, the connector section 5, and the light guide cord 6.

In addition, an objective lens system 17 consisting of a plurality of fixed lenses 15 and a focus lens 16 is provided in a hole formed in the tip main body 10 facing the observation window 11.
(objective optical system) is provided. The focus lens 16 is attached to a lens frame 18 and is movable in the optical axis direction.
That is, an operating pin 19 is implanted in the lens frame 18, and this operating pin 19 is passed through an elongated hole 21 formed in the distal end main body 10 along the longitudinal direction of the insertion section 4. The spiral groove 23 of the rotating ring 22 rotatably fitted around the outer periphery of the tip main body 10
is connected to. That is, the spiral groove 23 is helically carved on the inner periphery of the rotating ring 22, into which the operating pin 19 is inserted. In addition, the rotating ring 22
is designed to rotate in a fixed position. Therefore,
By rotating the rotating ring 22, the position where the elongated hole 21 and the spiral groove 23 intersect is changed, and the focus lens 16 is moved along with the lens frame 18 in the optical axis direction.

A hood 24 is provided on the outer periphery of the distal end side of the distal end main body 10.
Alternatively, first and second threaded portions 25 and 26 are formed for mounting a running aid (not shown).
The first threaded portion 25 is formed at a smaller diameter portion on the distal end side, and the second threaded portion 26 is formed at a larger diameter portion on the proximal end, separated from the first threaded portion 25. The hood 24 is formed with female threaded portions 27 and 28 which are screwed into the threaded portions 25 and 26, respectively. When the hood 24 is attached, first, the first threaded part 25 and the female threaded part 27 that are threaded into this are threaded together, and when the threaded part 27 can be passed through, the second threaded part 26 is inserted as shown in FIG. Another female threaded portion 28 is screwed together. Therefore, even if the female threaded portion 28 comes off from the second threaded portion 26, the first screw 25 and the female threaded portion 27 engage with each other, so that the hood 24 does not come off immediately, and other The threaded portion 27 catches and prevents it from falling off. Further, the running aid (not shown) is provided with two female threaded portions in the same way as the hood 24, and is designed to prevent it from falling off by being attached in the same manner.

On the other hand, a prism holder 32, which will be described later, is connected and fixed to the rear end portion of the tip main body 10 as a support member for supporting the solid-state image sensor 31. The prism holder 32 has a cylindrical portion 33 formed on the distal end side, and this cylindrical portion 33 is fitted onto the outer periphery of the rear end of the distal end main body 10 and is fastened and fixed by a fastening screw 34. Further, a pair of left and right support pieces 35 are provided on the rear end of the cylindrical portion 33 in parallel to each other. Each opposing surface 36 (guide surface) of the support piece 35 is formed flat and parallel. A prism optical system 37 (transmission optical system) is arranged in a groove formed between each opposing surface 36 of the support piece 35. The prism optical system 37 consists of first and second prisms 38 and 39 each formed into a triangular shape. The first and second prisms 38 and 39 are connected as shown in FIG.
The first prism 38 receives the optical image from the objective lens system 17, reflects it in the right angle direction by its reflecting surface 38A, and enters the second prism 39. The second prism 39 is reflected by the first reflective surface 39A, then reflected by the second reflective surface 39B, and further reflected by the third reflective surface 39C, so that the second prism 39 is reflected in a direction perpendicular to the long axis direction of the tip 8. The light is made incident on the image receiving surface of the solid-state image sensor 31.

A holding member 41 is attached to the second prism 39 of the prism optical system 37. In other words, the entire prism optical system 37 can be moved back and forth using the holding member 41 within the groove formed between the opposing surfaces 36 of the support piece 35. In other words, the prisms 38 and 39 of the prism optical system 37 fit relatively tightly into the grooves between the opposing surfaces 36 of the support piece 35 and are slidably guided. Correspondingly, the holding member 41 is tightened and fixed at that position by a set screw 42 (positioning member) screwed into the support piece 35 of the prism holder 32. Further, at the lower end of the support piece 35 of the prism holder 32, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, a mounting reference surface 43 (solid-state image sensor mounting reference surface) consisting of a recess is formed. The solid-state image sensor 31 is pressed against this mounting reference surface 43 and is positioned and fixed.

The solid-state image sensor 31 protrudes from the top surface of its package 44 to form an image receiving section 45, and a plate-shaped cover glass 46 having the same size as the image receiving section 45 is bonded and fixed to the top surface of the image receiving section 45. There is. The upper surface of this cover glass 46 is pressed against the mounting reference surface 43 formed of a convex portion. In addition, the above mounting reference surface 4
The concave portion 47 forming the image receiving portion 3 is formed to have a width larger than the size of the image receiving portion 45 and the cover glass 46 in both the front, rear, right and left directions. In other words, the solid-state image sensor 31 can be slid in the direction of the mounting reference surface 43 to adjust its position. Further, the upper surface of the cover glass 46 of the solid-state image sensor 31 is connected to the second reflective surface 39B of the second prism 39.
It is bonded to the mask which is glued to the.

A plurality of positioning screws 50 are screwed into the left and right side walls of the recess forming the mounting reference surface 43, respectively, and abut against the left and right end surfaces of the cover glass 46 to regulate its position. Further, each positioning screw 50 (positioning member) moves forward and backward by rotation, so that the position of the cover glass 46 in the left and right direction can be selected.

Note that, as will be described later, after the position of the solid-state image sensor 31 is finely adjusted, the solid-state image sensor 31 is adhesively fixed to the prism holder 32 with an adhesive. Considering repairability, it is desirable that the adhesive be relatively easy to remove, such as a silicone adhesive.

On the other hand, the package 44 of the solid-state image sensor 31
is bonded and fixed onto a substrate 48 as shown in FIG. Then, the connection pin 49 of the solid-state image sensor 31
It is fixed by bending it inward and soldering it, and it is also electrically connected. Further, the solid-state image sensor 31 is pressed against the mounting reference surface 43 by pressing an elastic member such as a leaf spring 51 against the substrate 48 .

The plate spring 51 has an attachment end 52, which is one end thereof, attached and fixed to the prism holder 32 using a screw 53. Further, the leaf spring 51 is composed of a pair of elastic pieces 54, and the pair of elastic pieces 54 press against the lower surface of the substrate 48.

A signal line 55 is connected to the substrate 48. The signal line 55 is guided through the flexible tube 7 of the insertion section 4 to the connector section 5, and is connected to the camera control unit 3.

The flexible tube section 7 and the connector section 5 of the insertion section 4 are connected as shown in FIG. 7. That is,
A base end of the flexible tube 7 is provided with a base 60 whose outer periphery is tapered. It is fastened by a pipe 63. Furthermore, a cylindrical socket 64 is fitted into the proximal end of the flexible tube 7 provided with the base 60, and the tip of the socket 64 is connected and fixed to a folding in 66 of a folding tube 65. Further, the proximal end portion of the socket 64 is fitted into the end portion of the shell 61 and secured with a screw.

A connection board 67 for receiving the signal line 55 is installed within the shell 61, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9. As shown in FIGS. This connection board 67 is attached to a board stopper member 68. Board stopper member 68
One end thereof is formed into a cylindrical shape, and this cylindrical portion 6
9 is rotatably attached within a retaining ring 71 provided at the base end of the shell 61. On the side wall of the shell 61 is a connection seat 7 for connecting the light guide cord 6.
8 is provided. In the shell 61, a plane formed by the central axes of the entrance and exit of the light guide 72 and the connection board 67 are connected to each other.
At the position where the board retaining member 68 is parallel to the retaining ring 7
1 is fixed with screws. In other words, there are eight screw holes 75 on the outer circumference of the retaining ring 71 as shown in FIG.
is drilled. Then, when the shell 61 is rotated and the connection seat 78 comes to the above position, the screw hole 75 is selected and the shell 61 is screwed and fixed to the retaining ring 71. Also, the retaining ring 71 has a plug 73.
The proximal ends of the two are screwed together and fixed with adhesive. A connecting ring 74 is attached to the outer periphery of the plug 73, and the connecting ring 74 is screwed into a receptacle (not shown) on the camera control unit 3 side to fix the plug 73. Further, the terminal end of the electric circuit on the connection board 67 is connected to the connection pin 76 of the plug 73 via a signal line 77.

Further, the extending end of the light guide cord 6 is connected to the light source device 2 through the light guide connector 9.
connected to.

Incidentally, when assembling the tip portion 8 into which the solid-state image sensor 31 is to be assembled, the following procedure is used. That is, first, the prism optical system 37 is installed between the support pieces 35 of the prism holder 32, and by holding the holding member 41 and moving it back and forth in the groove between the support pieces 35, the objective optical system is brought into focus. After completing this focus adjustment, set screw 42
The holding member 41 is fixed to the support piece 35 of the prism holder 32 by screwing. Thereafter, the position of the solid-state image sensor 31 is finely adjusted by moving the positioning screw 50 back and forth. After this fine adjustment, adhesive is filled between the solid-state image sensor 31 and the prism holder 32 to fix them.

In the above embodiment, the elastic member is formed of a leaf spring, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and may be made of an elastic member such as rubber.

〔Effect of the invention〕

The present invention provides a solid-state imaging device disposed within the tip of an endoscope, a transmission optical system that makes a light image from an objective optical system enter an image receiving section of the solid-state imaging device, and a transmission optical system that is provided integrally with the transmission optical system. A holding member, and a pair of support pieces that are provided at the distal end of the endoscope and form a guide surface that guides the holding member so that the transmission optical system can be moved in the optical axis direction of the objective optical system along the image receiving part of the solid-state image sensor. a positioning member that positions and fixes the holding member to the support member; and a positioning member that is provided on the pair of support pieces of the support member and moves the image receiving part of the solid-state image sensor in a direction perpendicular to the optical axis direction of the objective optical system. Since the solid-state image sensor is provided with a solid-state image sensor mounting reference surface that can be brought into contact with the solid-state image sensor mounting reference surface and a positioning member that positions and fixes the solid-state image sensor with respect to the solid-state image sensor mounting reference surface, the solid-state image sensor can be mounted in a direction perpendicular to its optical axis direction. The position can be adjusted,
The solid-state image sensor can be finely adjusted during assembly, and the tip of the endoscope can be made smaller.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an endoscope system, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of essential parts near the tip body, and FIG. 3 is a plan view of the tip body. Figure 4 is a side sectional view of the endoscope tip, Figure 5 is a front view of the endoscope tip, and Figure 6 is A-A in Figure 4.
7 is a sectional view of the connecting portion of the insertion portion to the connector portion, FIG. 8 is a plan sectional view of the connector portion, FIG. 9 is a side sectional view of the connector portion, and FIG. 10 is a sectional view taken along the line. FIG. 9 is a sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. 9; 1... Endoscope, 4... Insertion section, 8... Tip section,
17... Objective lens system, 31... Solid-state image sensor,
Prism holder, 35... Support piece, 37... Prism optical system, 43... Reference plane, 50... Positioning screw, 54... Elastic piece.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A solid-state image sensor disposed within the distal end of an endoscope, a transmission optical system that makes a light image from an objective optical system enter an image receiving section of the solid-state image sensor, and integrated with this transmission optical system. a holding member provided at the distal end of the endoscope; and a guide surface provided at the distal end of the endoscope for guiding the holding member so that the transmission optical system is movable along the image receiving section of the solid-state image sensor in the direction of the optical axis of the objective optical system. a support member having a pair of support pieces formed thereon; a positioning member for positioning and fixing the holding member to the support member; a reference surface for mounting a solid-state image sensor that is movably abutted in a direction perpendicular to the optical axis direction of the system; a positioning member that positions and fixes the solid-state image sensor with respect to the reference surface for mounting the solid-state image sensor;
An endoscope comprising: