JP3322356B2 - Flexible tube - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a flexible tube having a bending mechanism.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a flexible tube such as an endoscope or a catheter, the distal end side of the insertion portion is driven to bend to improve the insertability into a body restraint. For example, a drive mechanism of an endoscope that drives the distal end side of the insertion portion to bend is a flexible bending tube provided at the distal end side of the insertion portion, and is separately fixed to the distal end side of the bending tube and is inserted into the insertion portion. And a plurality of bending operation wires inserted through the bending tube. By pulling one of the bending operation wires, the bending tube can be bent in that direction.

[0003] The pulling operation of the bending operation wire is performed by a bending operation knob provided on an operation section of the endoscope. A drive pulley that pulls the bending operation wire through a chain is provided in an operation unit of the endoscope, and the drive pulley is rotated by the bending operation knob to pull the bending operation wire, and the bending is performed. The tube can be bent.

In recent years, in order to improve the penetrability in a complicatedly bent lumen, two curved portions are connected in the axial direction, and an angle wire is separately connected to each curved portion to connect the wires. 2. Description of the Related Art There is known a flexible tube in which the two bending portions are bent independently of each other by a pulling operation.

[0005]

In the case of the above-mentioned flexible tube having two curved portions, angle wires are required in the number of bending directions of the curved portions. Therefore, the bending for pulling these angle wires is required. The number of operation knobs is also required. In other words, if one bending portion is to bend in four directions, a total of eight bending operation knobs are required for the two bending portions. It is difficult for the operator to operate this alone, and there is a problem in operability. The present invention
The purpose of the present invention is to provide a flexible tube having excellent insertability and operability.

[0006]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a flexible tube according to the present invention comprises a first bending portion which is bent by a bending operation performed by a predetermined operator; A second bending portion connected to the base end side of the bending portion and bendingly driven with a predetermined driving force; a driving force transmitting means for transmitting the driving force to the second bending portion; Driving force generating means for generating the driving force transmitted to the second bending portion via a force transmitting means, bending state detecting means for detecting a bending state of the first bending portion, and bending state detection And a drive control means for controlling the driving force generated by the driving force generation means based on a bending state of the first bending portion detected by the means.

[0007]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 to 3 show a first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, the endoscope 1 as a flexible tube according to the present embodiment includes an insertion section 2 and an operation section 7 connected to the insertion section 2 at a position close to the hand. Insertion part 2
A long flexible tube portion 6, a second bending portion 5 provided at a tip of the flexible tube portion 6, a first bending portion 4 provided at a tip of the second bending portion 5, And a distal end component 3 provided at the distal end of the first curved portion 4. The operation unit 7 is provided with angle knobs 14 and 15 for bending operation, a forceps stopper 9, a suction button 10, an air / water button 11, and the like.

As shown in FIG. 1A, four angle wires 12 are fixedly connected to the distal end side of the first bending portion 4 in correspondence with the respective bending directions of the first bending portion 4. ing. Similarly, four angle wires 13 are connected and fixed to the distal end side of the second bending portion 5.

As shown in FIG. 1B, two angle wires 12 for controlling the vertical bending (indicated by U and D in the figure) of the first bending portion 4 are connected to the first angle wire of the operating portion 7. Angle knob 1
4 and wound around the first drum 16. The two angle wires 12 that control the bending of the first bending portion 4 in the left-right direction (indicated by R and L in the drawing) are connected to the second
The angle knob 15 is wound around and fixed to the second drum 17. A first encoder 18 and a second encoder 19 for detecting the amount of rotation of each of the drums 16 and 17 are attached to the two drums 16 and 17, respectively. These encoders 18 and 19 are connected to the first bending portion 4 as described later.
And a detecting means for detecting a curved state of the image.

The right and left directions of the second curved portion 5 (R in the figure)
′, L ′) for the two angle wires 1
Reference numeral 3 is wound around and fixed to a third drum 22 connected to a first motor 20 for bending left and right provided in the operation section 7. Further, the vertical direction of the second bending portion 5 (U ′,
The two angle wires 13 that control the bending of the second motor 21 are provided in the operation unit 7 and are used for the up and down bending of the second motor 21.
Is wound around and fixed to a fourth drum 23 connected to the fourth drum 23.

FIG. 1C is a block diagram of a control system for controlling the bending operation of the second bending portion. Encoder 18,
The detection signal 19 is sent to and stored in the memory unit 25, and is then used as a drive amount signal of the first bending unit 4 by the shift control unit 2.
Sent to 6. The drive amount signal stored in the memory from the shift control unit 26 is sent to the motor control unit 28 by the ON signal of the second bending unit drive switch 27, and the motor control unit 28
Is a motor 21 according to a drive amount signal from the encoder 18.
, And drives the motor 20 according to the drive amount signal from the encoder 19. The second bending section drive switch 27 may be provided in the operation section 7 or may be a foot switch separate from the endoscope 1.

Next, the operation of the endoscope 1 having the above configuration will be described. First, the insertion section 2 of the endoscope 1 is inserted into the large intestine 24 as shown in FIG. Then, by bending the first bending portion 4 at the bending portion 24a of the large intestine 24, the first bending portion 4 is inserted toward the back of the bending portion 24a (see FIG. 3A). In this case, by rotating the angle knobs 14 and 15 of the operation section 7 to push and pull the angle wire 12 located in the direction to be bent, the first bending section 4 is bent in that direction. .

In the state shown in FIG. 3A, even if the insertion portion 2 is pushed as it is, only the bent portion 24a protrudes upward, and the insertion portion 2 cannot move forward. Therefore, the insertion section 2 is pushed in while the second bending section drive switch 27 is turned ON. By the ON operation of the second bending portion drive switch 27, the shape of the first bending portion 4 is stored in the encoders 18 and 19, and the second bending portion 5 is made the same shape as the first bending portion 4 for a predetermined time. The motors 20 and 21 are driven so that the angle wire 13 is pushed and pulled. With this operation, the surgeon can insert the insertion portion 2 closer to the hand than the second bending portion 5 to the depth side of the bending portion 24a as shown in FIG. At this time, the first bending portion 4 is maintained at the center in the large intestine by manual operation of the operator.
Further, the predetermined time may be freely set by an operator.

FIGS. 4 to 8 show a second embodiment of the present invention. The bending drive mechanism of the endoscope 1a of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 4, four tactile sensors 29 are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction on the side surface of the second curved portion 5 of the endoscope 1a. FIG. 6 is a block diagram of the control system.

In this control system, each tactile sensor 29a-2
The output of 9d is sent to the comparison circuit 30. The comparison circuit 30 detects whether or not the pressure sense value with the inner wall of the large intestine has become equal to or more than a certain value. When the pressure value reaches the constant value P shown in FIG. 7, the motor control unit 28 receives the signal from the comparison circuit 30 and drives the motors 20 and 21 to lower the pressure value.

As shown in FIG. 5, the tactile sensor 29 includes a pressure-sensitive conductive rubber 3 between a first electrode 31 and a second electrode 32.
3 is provided. The pressure-sensitive conductive rubber 33 is obtained by dispersing carbon in a rubber material, and its electric resistance changes due to deformation due to an external force F. Therefore, a pressure change can be detected by a change in the electric resistance value.

The configuration of the tactile sensor 29 may be as shown in FIG. That is, this is an example. Diaphragm 34 by etching of Si substrate
And a first electrode 35 and a second electrode 3 at two places in the body cavity in the cavity formed by the diaphragm 34.
6 are formed. In this case, if the thin-film diaphragm 34 is deformed by the contact with the inner wall of the large intestine tract as shown by a broken line in the drawing (by the force F in the drawing), the capacitance between the electrodes 35 and 36 changes. Therefore, a change in pressure can be detected by a change in capacitance.

Further, the tactile sensor 29 may have a configuration as shown in FIG. A transparent resin layer 37 made of silicon or the like is provided in the insertion section 2, and a light projecting section 38 made of an LED or the like and a light receiving section 39 such as a photo sensor are provided. In this case, when the resin 37 is deformed by the external pressure F, the light amount of the light receiving unit 39 changes. Therefore, a change in pressure can be detected by a change in the amount of light received by the light receiving unit 39.

In the endoscope 1a having the above structure, the tactile sensor 2
9 detects the pressing state between the second curved portion 5 and the inner wall of the large intestine. Then, when the output of the tactile sensor 29 increases, the motors 20 and 21 are driven so that the pressure sense value decreases. That is, when the pressure sense value reaches a certain value P in a state where the second curved portion 5 is curved in the UP direction as shown by the solid line in FIG. 7, the inner wall of the large intestine and the second curved portion 5
The second curved portion 5 is connected to the opposite DO so that the contact pressure with
It is driven in reverse rotation in the WN direction. Of course, when the pressure sensed value does not reach the fixed value P, the normal rotation drive for maintaining the UP direction is performed. Similarly, when the pressure sense value reaches a certain value P in a state where the second bending portion 5 is bent in the DOWN direction as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 7, the inner wall of the large intestine and the second bending portion The second bending portion 5 is reversely driven in the opposite UP direction so that the contact pressure with the second bending portion 5 decreases. Also in this case, when the pressure sensed value does not reach the fixed value P, the normal rotation drive for maintaining the DOWN direction is performed. By repeating such an operation, the insertion portion 2 is inserted by controlling the bending of the second bending portion 5 while keeping the contact pressure between the inner wall of the large intestine tract and the second bending portion 5 always within a certain range. The insertion section 2 is further advanced from the state shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 9, the second curved portion 5
May be provided. That is, another second bending portion 43 that is electrically operated by the same control as that of the second bending portion 5 may be provided on the base end side of the second bending portion 5. In this case, the length of the second bending portion 43 may be longer than the length of the second bending portion 5.

FIG. 10 shows a third embodiment of the present invention. The endoscope 1d according to the present embodiment is an electronic endoscope having a solid-state imaging device in the distal end component 3. This endoscope 1d
Is different from the first embodiment only in that the mechanism for pulling the angle wire 13 of the second bending portion 5 is not the motors 20 and 21 but a linear actuator 40. The mechanical structure is the same as in the first embodiment. The angle wires 13 in each direction are connected to separate actuators 40, respectively. A guide sheath 41 is fitted on each of the angle wires 13. The guide sheath 41 has one end fixed to the distal end of the flexible tube portion 6 and the other end connected to the linear actuator 4.
0 is fixed to a substrate 42. The linear actuator 40 may be of any type such as an electromagnetic drive type or a pneumatic drive type as long as it has a mechanism capable of pulling the angle wire 13. Further, the microstructure may be arranged in the insertion section 2 after being micronized.

The endoscope 1d constructed as described above operates exactly the same as in the first embodiment. However, if the linear actuators 40 are simultaneously driven to pull all the angle wires 13, the endoscope 1d is compressed by the guide sheath 41. Force is applied to the insertion part 2
Hardness can be temporarily increased, and push-in operability can be improved.

Next, the optical system of the endoscope 1d having the above configuration will be described with reference to FIGS. As described above, the endoscope 1a has the solid-state imaging device in the distal end component 3. Illumination light illuminating the treatment section in the body is guided inside the insertion section 2 by the laser guide fiber 103, and is illuminated inside the body via the light distribution lens 104. Object light from inside the body is sent to the three-dimensional photoelectric conversion element 101 through the objective lens 105. The object light sent to the three-dimensional photoelectric conversion element 101 is converted into an electric signal and formed into an image.

As shown in FIG. 12, the photoelectric conversion element 101
Is composed of a three-dimensional circuit element in which four IC layers are stacked, so that signals can be transmitted simultaneously and in parallel between the layers and between the layers. The first layer is a photoelectric conversion element 110 that inputs an optical image and converts it into an electric signal. The second layer is
A level detection circuit 111 detects the level of an analog electric signal and converts the level into a digital signal. The third layer is a first frame memory 112 that stores each detection signal. The fourth layer includes a second frame 113 memory and an arithmetic circuit 115. A control circuit 114 that controls signal transfer and processing of each layer is connected to each layer. 4th layer arithmetic circuit 1
Reference numeral 15 denotes a subtraction circuit, for example.

A commonly used solid-state imaging device (CC
D) generates image data every 1/60 second. In an endoscope, light from a light source (not shown)
Since a color image is obtained through the filter of B, a color shift occurs for a fast moving subject. Therefore, in the present embodiment, by employing the three-dimensional photoelectric conversion element 101, it is possible to realize a very high-speed signal processing as compared with a CCD that sequentially reads out one pixel at a time, and to prevent color misregistration.

For example, image data is fetched into the frame memories 112 and 113 every 1/120 second, and data before and after the data is subtracted twice.
Since the subject has moved and a color shift has occurred, the arithmetic circuit 115 performs processing so as not to output. This process is 1
It is possible if / 120 × 2 = 1/60 seconds, and processing can be performed in real time while maintaining compatibility with normal video signals.

As shown in FIG. 13, each frame memory 1
Subtract and compare outputs corresponding to the same pixel of 12, 113,
If the compared results are equal, the signal added by the adding circuit 116 is output as it is. If the compared results are different, the switch 118 is operated by the output of the subtracting circuit 117 so as not to output. According to the above configuration, a high-quality image can be obtained without color shift even when the subject moves.

In the above configuration, an image is obtained every 1/120 second. However, the image is processed at a higher speed to detect a motion for each image. Is output, loss of information can be prevented. In the above configuration, the output of the moving image is stopped, but only the color signal may be turned off.

FIG. 14 shows a modification of the three-dimensional photoelectric conversion element. This three-dimensional photoelectric conversion element 120 has 5
The photoelectric conversion element 121, the level detection circuit 122, the first frame memory 123, the second frame memory 124, the third frame memory, and the arithmetic circuit 125 are arranged from the upper layer.

Here, each frame memory stores the R. G. FIG. The arithmetic circuit generates a luminance signal Y, a color difference signal RY, and BY after passing through the LPF, and compares the signals before and after the color difference signal to detect a color shift. When there is a color shift, a color difference signal is not output. Therefore, in this configuration, since the comparison is made using the color difference signals, color misregistration can be reliably prevented.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. The endoscope as the flexible tube may be not only a medical endoscope but also an industrial endoscope. Further, the configuration of the present invention can be applied to a catheter, a treatment tool, and the like other than the endoscope.

[0032]

As described above, according to the flexible tube of the present invention, only the first bending portion needs to be manually operated, and the other operations of the second bending portion are easy to insert the insertion portion. Thus, the operability is improved and the insertability is improved as compared with the conventional one in which all the curved portions are manually operated.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1A is a schematic view showing the inside of an insertion section of an endoscope according to a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1B is a schematic view of a guide wire pulling mechanism provided in an operation section, and FIG. FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a control system for controlling a bending operation of a bending portion.

FIG. 2 is an overall configuration diagram of the endoscope of FIG. 1;

3A is a state diagram showing a state in which a bending operation of a first bending portion is performed at a bending portion of a large intestine, and FIG. 3B is a state diagram in which a bending operation of a second bending portion is performed from the state of FIG. It is a state figure showing the state where the 1st curved part was inserted in the back of the bent part.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of an insertion portion of an endoscope according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a tactile sensor.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a control system that controls a bending operation of a bending portion of the endoscope in FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is an output waveform diagram of the tactile sensor.

FIG. 8 is a schematic sectional view showing another configuration of the tactile sensor.

FIG. 9 is a schematic view of an insertion portion of an endoscope having two second bending portions.

FIG. 10A is a schematic diagram showing the inside of an insertion portion of an endoscope according to a third embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 10B is a schematic diagram of a guide wire pulling mechanism provided in an operation unit.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing the insertion section of the endoscope of FIG. 10 in further detail;

12 is an element configuration diagram of a three-dimensional photoelectric conversion element included in the optical system of the endoscope in FIG.

13 is a circuit diagram from the frame memory of the three-dimensional photoelectric conversion element in FIG. 12 to an arithmetic circuit.

14 is an element configuration diagram showing a modification of the three-dimensional photoelectric conversion element in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

1, 1b, 1c, 1d: endoscope (flexible tube), 4: first bending portion, 5, 43: second bending portion, 18, 19: encoder (detection means), 27: second bending Section drive switch (control means), 26: shift control section (control means), 28: motor control section (control means), 20, 21: motor (control means), 29: tactile sensor (detection means), 40: actuator (Control means).

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Toshimasa Kawai 2-43-2 Hatagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo O-Limpus Optical Industrial Co., Ltd. Examiner Hiroshi Kadota (56) Reference JP-A-2-109536 (JP, A) JP-A-3-178630 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) A61B 1/00-1/32 G02B 23/24-23/26

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A bending operation performed by a predetermined operator.
A first bending portion bent by the first bending portion, a second bending portion connected to a base end side of the first bending portion, and driven to obtain a predetermined driving force, and a second bending portion. Driving force transmitting means for transmitting the driving force; driving force generating means for generating the driving force transmitted to the second bending portion via the driving force transmitting means; and bending of the first bending portion. Bending state detection means for detecting a state; drive control means for controlling the driving force generated by the driving force generation means based on a bending state of the first bending portion detected by the bending state detection means; A flexible tube comprising: