JP7411448B2 - endoscope equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present disclosure relates to an endoscope device that includes an insertion section extending from an operating section and is capable of bending a bending movable section on the distal end side of the insertion section that is inserted into a subject using the operating section.

Usually, an endoscope device has a curved movable part on the distal side and a long and thin tube-shaped insertion part that is inserted into the subject. An operating section for performing various operations of the endoscope device including bending the endoscope, and a connecting flexible tube (universal cord) connected to the operating section on one side and provided with an endoscope side connector on the other side. It is configured with .
The operation section of the endoscope apparatus is equipped with a bending operation mechanism for bending the bending movable section on the distal end side of the insertion section in response to a rotation operation of the knob.

Specifically, the bending operation mechanism rotates a knob serving as a bending operation section to rotate a pulley provided in the operation section in either forward or reverse direction, thereby connecting the actuated section of the bending movable section. The connected wire is let out from the pulley or wound around the pulley, and the actuated part responds to the advance and retreat of the wire to change the bending posture of the bending movable part.

For example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, the bending operation mechanism maintains (locks) the current rotational operation position of the knob as the bending operation section, that is, the current state of the bending posture of the bending movable section, during observation. A bending retention mechanism (also referred to as a brake mechanism or a locking mechanism) is provided that applies a brake to the rotation of the knob to prevent the knob from rotating inadvertently when the rotation of the knob is desired.

Normally, for safety reasons, the bending holding mechanism applies soft braking to the knob so that when a certain amount of force is applied to the bending movable part, the posture of the bending movable part naturally straightens or curves. The state is maintained (locked).

In addition, as in Patent Document 2, for example, the bending operation mechanism, together with the bending holding mechanism, also includes information on how much the bending position of the bending movable part is currently locked (position held) by the bending holding mechanism, and whether it is completely locked. There is also a click mechanism that allows the user to sense whether the device is in a state where the posture is not held (posture-maintained) (free state) by giving a click feeling to the rotation operation of the knob.

Patent No. 3866786 Patent No. 3762515

By the way, in the conventional bending holding mechanism (brake mechanism) of an endoscope device, as shown in Patent Document 1, the bending holding mechanism is housed and arranged in a donut-shaped narrow space inside the knob of the operating section. be done. Therefore, the spring used in the bending holding mechanism to generate the frictional force that holds (locks) the bending position of the bending movable part is a compact spring with a large spring constant (for example, a leaf spring, etc.). Therefore, the change in the magnitude of the biasing force of the spring according to the amount of deflection also increases. As a result, in conventional endoscope devices, the repulsive force received from the spring (spring biasing force) changes greatly due to slight dimensional variations when assembling related parts, including the spring of the bending retention mechanism. Lock adjustment (adjustment of spring deflection) for each device was required.

In addition, as shown in Patent Document 2, the conventional click mechanism that gives a click feeling when rotating a knob has a bending operation mechanism that is not technically related to the structure of the bending holding mechanism and is separate from the bending holding mechanism. It was set up in As a result, in conventional endoscope devices, the entire bending operation mechanism including the bending holding mechanism and click mechanism has a large number of parts, and the structure of the bending operation mechanism is also complicated, resulting in high costs and labor-intensive manufacturing. .

Furthermore, the click mechanism may only produce a click feeling each time the knob is rotated by a preset amount, or may be in either a locked state or a free state due to a curvature retention mechanism. Therefore, it is not possible to make the user feel the intermediate lock operation state including the half-lock state between the locked state and the free state.

The present disclosure has been made in view of this situation, and provides an endoscope device equipped with a bending holding mechanism that eliminates the need for lock adjustment for each device after assembly.

Further, the present disclosure reduces the number of parts of the entire bending operation mechanism including the bending holding mechanism and the click mechanism, and allows the user to control the locking state and the free state by the bending holding mechanism, as well as the intermediate state between both states. To provide an endoscope device capable of sensing a half-lock operating state.

In order to solve the above problems, the present disclosure
an insertion section that is inserted into the subject and has a curved movable section on the distal end side;
an operating section that is provided on the proximal end side of the insertion section and that operates various parts of the device including the bending movable section;
a bending operation mechanism that causes the bending movable section to perform a bending operation in response to a rotational operation of a bending operation section provided in the operation section;
In response to a rotational operation of a brake operation section provided on the operation section together with the bending operation section, the pressing section is brought into contact with or separated from a rotation surface that rotates together with the bending operation section, and the rotation is performed. a curvature holding mechanism that generates or releases a braking force on the surface;
Equipped with
The curvature holding mechanism is
a base that does not rotate in conjunction with the bending operation section;
a brake driving piece that rotates relative to the base in response to a rotational operation of the brake operating section;
a pair of pressing pieces that expand and converge with respect to the base using a base on an attachment side to the base as a fulcrum;
a pressed part that surrounds the base and the pair of pressing pieces, is provided to rotate integrally with the bending operation part, and is abutted by the pair of pressing pieces that are expanded with respect to the base; ,
It is provided on the base in engagement with the brake drive piece, moves while deforming in conjunction with the relative rotation of the brake drive piece with respect to the base, and is attached to each of the pair of press pieces according to the movement position. a biasing force generating member that generates a biasing force to expand or converge the
Provided is an endoscope device having the following.

Moreover, in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the present disclosure includes a plurality of curved recesses formed in the pressing piece to receive the urging force from the urging force generating member, and the urging force is applied by the movement of the urging force generating member. Each time the curved recess that receives the biasing force from the force generating member changes, the biasing force that the pressing piece receives from the biasing force generating member gradually increases or decreases, and the bending holding mechanism provides a click feeling when the brake operating section is rotated. To provide an endoscope device that also serves as a click feeling generating mechanism that provides a click sensation.

Moreover, in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the present disclosure provides that a predetermined curved recess of the plurality of curved recesses transfers the biasing force from the biasing force generating member to a half-locked state intermediate between a lock-free state and a locked state. We provide endoscopic equipment that can be received at

According to the present disclosure, it becomes unnecessary to perform lock adjustment for each device after assembly, and the manufacturability of the bending operation mechanism of the endoscope device is improved.

Further, according to the present disclosure, since the bending holding mechanism also serves as a click feeling generating mechanism, the number of parts of the entire bending operation mechanism including the bending holding mechanism and the click mechanism can be reduced. The operating unit can be made smaller and lighter, and the manufacturability and operability of the bending operation mechanism of the endoscope device are improved.

Further, according to the present disclosure, by receiving the biasing force from the biasing force generating member at the predetermined curved recess, the curved holding mechanism can be easily brought into the half-locked state between the lock-free state and the locked state.

Further, problems, configurations, and effects of the present disclosure other than those described above will be made clear by the description of the embodiments below.

1 is an external view showing the overall configuration of an endoscope apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the configuration of an operating section provided with a bending operating mechanism. 3 is an enlarged view of a brake mechanism portion of the vertical bending mechanism in the endoscope apparatus shown in FIG. 2. FIG. FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the brake mechanism as viewed in the direction of arrows IV-IV in FIG. 3; 5 is a specific configuration diagram of the base shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG. FIG. 5 is a specific configuration diagram of the pressing piece shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG. FIG. 5 is a specific configuration diagram of the brake drive lever shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG. FIG. 5 is a specific configuration diagram of the drive spring shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG. FIG. 7 is an assembly process diagram of the brake mechanism provided in the vertical bending mechanism of the bending operation mechanism. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of the operating state of the braking force generation mechanism when the rotational operation of the bending operation knob is in a locked state. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of the operating state of the braking force generation mechanism when the rotational operation of the bending operation knob is in a half-locked state. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of the operating state of the braking force generation mechanism 83 when the bending operation knob is in a free rotational state. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of brake torque when the rotational operation of the bending operation knob is in a locked state. FIG. 3 is a structural comparison diagram between a drive spring in a conventional braking force generation mechanism and a drive spring in a braking force generation mechanism according to the present embodiment. FIG. 3 is a comparison diagram of brake torque-spring deflection amount characteristics of a drive spring in a conventional braking force generation mechanism and a drive spring in a braking force generation mechanism of the present embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that a medical endoscope apparatus as an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described below as an example. The target region for observation in a medical endoscope device is, for example, the respiratory organ, the digestive organ, or the like.

FIG. 1 is an external view showing the overall configuration of an endoscope apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 1, the endoscope device 1 of this embodiment includes an elongated tubular insertion section 12 inserted into the inside of a subject, an operation section 11 disposed on the proximal end side of the insertion section 12, A connecting flexible tube (universal cord) 13 is connected to the operating section 11 on one side.

The insertion section 12 includes a distal end section 12a, a curved movable section 12b, and a flexible tube section 12c that are connected in order from the distal end side, and the flexible tube section 12a is connected to the connecting section 11a of the operating section 11. It is configured.

Further, on the other side of the flexible connecting tube 13, a connector portion 13a for connecting the endoscope device 1 to the processor 2 is provided. The processor 2 includes a light source device, a system controller, an image processing device, etc., and is equipped with a monitor 3 that displays an electronic image of the observed region.

The irradiated light from the light source device of the processor 2 enters one end of an LCB (Light Carrying Bundle), repeats total reflection within the LCB, and propagates within the LCB to the other end. The LCB extends from the connector portion 13a to the distal end portion 12a of the insertion portion 12 via the connecting flexible tube 13 and the operating portion 11.

An illumination window, an observation window (objective window), and the like are formed at the distal end 12a of the insertion section 12. Inside the tip portion 12a, a light distribution lens is provided facing the illumination window and into which the irradiation light from the output end of the LCB is incident. Further, an objective lens is provided facing the observation window (objective window) to receive return light from the observation site (portion to be irradiated with the irradiation light from the illumination window).

In addition, inside the tip 12a, the optical image (return light from the observation site) formed at each pixel on the light-receiving surface through the objective lens is accumulated as a charge corresponding to the amount of light, and R, G, An image sensor that generates and outputs the B pixel signal, drives and controls the image sensor to read out pixel signals for one field or one frame at predetermined time intervals (for example, at 1/60 second or 1/30 second intervals). A driver signal processing circuit for output, etc. are provided.

Various signal lines, LCBs, etc. are inserted into the flexible connecting tube 13. The various signal lines include, for example, a drive signal line for a driver signal processing circuit or an image sensor, an image signal line from the driver signal processing circuit, a switch signal line from a switch provided in the operation section 11, and the like. Among these, the driver signal processing circuit, the drive signal line of the image sensor, and the image signal line from the driver signal processing circuit extend through the operation section 11 to the distal end 12a of the insertion section 12, and are connected to the image sensor and the driver signal processing circuit. It is connected.

The processor 2 integrally controls the entire endoscope system including the endoscope apparatus 1, the processor 2, and the monitor 3 by having the system controller execute various programs stored in the memory. The processor 2 drives and controls the corresponding equipment on the processor 2 side based on the switch operation signal received via the switch signal line from the endoscope device 1 connected to the connector, and controls the operation of the image received via the image signal line. Based on the signals, an electronic image of the observed region can be displayed on a monitor or recorded on an image recording medium.

In such an endoscope device 1, the bending movable portion 12b of the insertion portion 12 can be bent into a desired shape by the bending operation mechanism 15 provided in the operating portion 11.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the configuration of the operating section provided with the bending operating mechanism.

The bending operation mechanism 15 includes a left-right bending mechanism 15LR for bending the bending movable part 12b of the insertion section 12 in a plane defined as a left-right direction, and a left-right bending mechanism 15LR for bending the bending movable part 12b in a plane defined as a left-right direction, and a left-right bending mechanism 15LR for bending the bending movable part 15 in a plane defined as a left-right direction. It has a vertical curving mechanism 15UD for curving within the plane of the direction.

A board 11b is fixedly installed in the housing 11' of the operating section 11, and the base end side of the pivot shaft 21 of the bending operation mechanism 15 is fixed onto the board 11b. At this time, the base end side of the pivot shaft 21 is disposed within the housing 11' via the through hole 11c formed in the housing 11'. The pivot shaft 21 has its proximal end fixed to the substrate 11b, and its distal end protrudes to the outside of the housing (upward in the figure) through the through hole 11c. After fixing the pivot shaft 21 on the substrate 11b, the gap created between the inner peripheral surface of the through hole 11c of the housing 11' and the outer peripheral surface of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61, which will be described later, is made liquid-tight by the lid 11d. Blocked. The pivot shaft 21 is made of a rigid member.

Here, the configuration of the left and right bending mechanism 15LR of the bending operation mechanism 15 will be explained.

A cylindrical operation shaft body 31 that constitutes the left-right bending mechanism 15LR is fitted onto the outer circumferential surface of the rotation base shaft 21 . The operating shaft body 31 is rotatably supported with respect to the rotation base shaft 21 by inserting the rotation base shaft 21 into its cylindrical shaft hole. The operation shaft body 31 is made of a rigid member, similarly to the rotation base shaft 21.

The operation shaft body 31 has a bottom plate on its outer peripheral surface from the distal end side of the rotation base shaft 21 toward the base end side along the axial direction, that is, from the upper end side of the operation shaft body 31 in the figure toward the lower end side. A portion 31a, a fitting portion 31b, and a pulley attachment portion 31c are formed in this order.

The bottom plate portion 31a is constituted by a disk-shaped flange portion in which an outer peripheral portion on the upper end side of the operating shaft body 31 projects radially outward with respect to the fitting portion 31b. The outer circumferential portion of the bottom plate portion 31a is fixed to a knob body 33' of a bending operation knob 33 serving as an operation section of the left-right bending mechanism 15LR.

A cylindrical shaft hole of a cylindrical operating shaft 41 constituting a vertical bending mechanism 15UD, which will be described later, is rotatably and fluid-tightly fitted into the fitting portion 31b with respect to the operating shaft 31. On the fitting part 31b, that is, on the outer periphery of the operation shaft 31, the operation shaft 41 of the vertical bending mechanism 15UD is rotatable with respect to the rotation base 21 independently of the operation shaft 31, similarly to the left and right bending mechanism 15LR. possible extrapolation.

A pulley 35 is fixed to the pulley attachment portion 31c. The pulley 35 is rotatable integrally with the operating shaft body 31.

The bending operation knob 33 constitutes a bending operation section of the left and right bending mechanism 15LR. The outer circumferential surface of the knob body 33' of the bending operation knob 33 is formed with, for example, five finger hooks 33a projecting radially outward from the knob body 33' at equal intervals along its circumference.

Further, a large-diameter bottomed hole portion 33b is formed in the knob body 33' so that the hole axis coincides with the central axis of the knob body 33'. The bottomed hole portion 33b has a circular cross-sectional shape perpendicular to the hole axis. A shaft for inserting the lock shaft member 71 is provided in a portion of the knob body 33' corresponding to the bottom of the bottomed hole 33b, aligned with the hole axis of the bottomed hole 33b, that is, the central axis of the knob body 33'. An insertion hole 33c is formed therethrough.

The bending operation knob 33 is configured such that the hole opening of the bottomed hole 33b formed in the knob body 33' faces the bottom plate part 31a of the operation shaft body 31, and the bottom plate part 31a of the operation shaft body 31 is connected to the knob body 33'. It is fixed to the operation shaft body 31 by fitting and fixing it to the hole opening end of the hole. Since the bottom plate part 31a is fixed to the knob body 33', when the bending operation knob 33 is rotated, the operating shaft body 31, to which the bottom plate part 31a is fixed to the bending operation knob 33, is rotated to the bending operation knob 33. The pulley 35, which rotates in response and is fixed to the pulley attachment portion 31c of the operating shaft 31, also rotates integrally with the bending operation knob 33 and the operating shaft 31.

The pulley 35 is provided with a pair of winding portions 35a and 35b having the same diameter. Operating wires 37a and 37b are fixed to each winding portion 35a and 35b, respectively, with different winding directions. As the pulley 35 rotates, one of the operating wires 37a and 37b6 is wound around the pulley 35, and the other operating wire 37 is let out from the pulley 35. Further, in accordance with switching between the forward and reverse directions of rotation of the pulley 35, the winding side and the feeding side are switched between the winding portions 35a and 35b.

The operating wires 35a and 35b are respectively connected to node rings of the actuated portion of the left and right bending mechanism 15LR provided in the bending movable portion 12b of the insertion portion 12. The actuated portion of the left-right bending mechanism 15LR bends the bending movable portion 12b in the left-right direction in response to the winding and unwinding operations of the operating wires 35a and 35b, respectively. For example, when the bending operation knob 33 is rotated in the L direction in FIG. 1, the operation shaft body 31 is also rotated integrally, and the bending movable portion 12b is curved to the left in the figure, while it is curved in the R direction. When the operating knob 33 is rotated, the bending movable portion 12b bends to the right in the figure.

At this time, in the illustrated example, the winding parts 35a and 35b of the pulley 35 have their winding axes shifted from each other so that the axes of their winding shafts are shifted from each other with respect to the axis of the operating shaft body 31. It is set eccentrically. Thereby, in response to the rotation operation of the bending operation knob 33, the winding parts 35a, 35b rotate while the respective winding axes of the winding parts 35a, 35b revolve around the axis of the operating shaft body 31. Therefore, the configuration is such that the amount of rotation of the finger hook portion 33a of the bending operation knob 33 can be accurately transmitted to the amount of rotation for winding and feeding out each of the operation wires 35a and 35b.

Further, in the embodiment, the bottom plate portion 31a of the operating shaft body 31 is fixed to the knob body 33', and a brake mechanism storage chamber 39 is defined in the bottomed hole portion 33b of the knob body 33'. The brake mechanism storage chamber 39 accommodates the braking force generating mechanism 73 of the brake mechanism 70 attached to the left-right bending mechanism 15LR, supported by the shaft hole opening end at the tip of the operating shaft body 31.

The brake mechanism 70 prevents the bending operation knob 33 of the left-right bending mechanism 15LR from rotating inadvertently when it is desired to maintain (lock) the current left-right bending posture state of the bending movable portion 12b by the left-right bending mechanism 15LR. This is a mechanism that applies a brake to the rotation of the bending operation knob 33. The brake mechanism 70 locks (brakes) or releases the lock (brakes release) the rotation of the bending operation knob 33 by causing the braking force generating mechanism 73 to generate or release the braking force by rotating the lock shaft member 71. It is configured so that it can be done. Here, for convenience of explanation, explanation of the specific structure and operation of the braking force generation mechanism 73 will be omitted, and will be described in detail later.

In the illustrated example, the lock shaft member 71 for braking and releasing the brake mechanism 70 is constituted by a cylindrical shaft member whose outer peripheral portion on one end side is a flange portion 71b. The lock shaft member 71 is provided with a cylindrical portion 71 a that is fitted over the outer peripheral portion of the tip end side of the rotation base shaft 21 . The lock shaft member 71 is provided so as to be rotatable with respect to the rotation base shaft 21, with the rotation base shaft 21 inserted into the cylinder shaft hole. Further, the lock shaft member 71 is configured such that the cylindrical portion 71a is inserted into the shaft insertion hole 33c of the bending operation knob 33, and the flange portion 71b is positioned outside the knob body 33' of the bending operation knob 33. It is also rotatably provided. In addition, the attachment position of the lock shaft member 71 along the axial direction of the rotation base shaft 21 is regulated by a retaining ring attached to the outer circumferential surface of the distal end side of the rotation base shaft 21, and the braking force generation mechanism 73 is , and the braked surface (pressed surface) of the bending operation knob 33 are aligned with each other along the axial direction of the pivot shaft 21 .

A brake operation knob 75 of the brake mechanism 70 is attached and fixed to the flange portion 71b on one end of the lock shaft member 71. The cylindrical portion 71a on the other end side of the lock shaft member 71 serves as an engaging portion 71c with the braking force generation mechanism 73.

By rotating the brake operation knob 75, the lock shaft member 71 can be rotated integrally with the brake operation knob 75 relative to the pivot shaft 21 and the bending operation knob 33, and the braking force generation mechanism 73 generates a braking force. Alternatively, the braking force can be released.

Next, the configuration of the vertical bending mechanism 15UD of the bending operation mechanism 15 will be explained. The vertical bending mechanism 15UD is arranged along the axial direction of the rotation base shaft 21 so as to be located between the left-right bending mechanism 15LR and the pulley 35 of the left-right bending mechanism 15LR.

The vertical bending mechanism 15UD has a cylindrical operating shaft 41, and the operating shaft 41 is rotatably inserted into the fitting portion 31b of the operating shaft 31 that constitutes the left-right bending mechanism 15LR. . The operating shaft body 41 has a lid on its outer peripheral surface from the distal end side to the base end side of the rotation base shaft 21 along the axial direction, that is, from the upper end side to the lower end side of the operating shaft body 41 in the figure. A plate portion 41a, a fitting portion 41b, and a pulley attachment portion 41c are formed in this order.

The cover plate portion 41a is constituted by a disk-shaped flange portion whose outer peripheral portion on one end side of the operating shaft body 41 protrudes radially outward with respect to the fitting portion 41b. The outer peripheral portion of the cover plate portion 41a is fixed to a knob body 43' of a bending operation knob 43 serving as an operation section of the vertical bending mechanism 15UD.

The fitting portion 41b is rotatably fitted into the shaft hole of the cylindrical fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61. That is, the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 is fitted onto the fitting portion 41b, that is, the outer periphery of the operating shaft body 41.

A pulley 45 is fixed to the pulley attachment portion 41c. The pulley 45 is rotatable integrally with the operating shaft body 41.

The bending operation knob 43 constitutes a bending operation section of the vertical bending mechanism 15UD. The outer peripheral surface of the knob body 43' of the bending operation knob 43 is formed with, for example, five finger hooks 43a projecting radially outward from the knob body 43' at equal intervals along its circumference.

A large-diameter through-hole portion 43b is formed in the knob body 43' of the bending operation knob 43, with the hole axis aligned with the central axis of the knob body 43'. The through-hole portion 43b has a circular cross-sectional shape perpendicular to the hole axis.

An opening at one end of the through-hole portion 43b (an upper opening in the drawing) is a fitting portion with the cover plate portion 41a of the operating shaft body 41. The lid plate portion 41a of the operating shaft body 41 is fitted into the opening at one end of the through hole portion 43b, and the opening at the one end is liquid-tightly covered by the lid plate portion 41a.

The opening at the other end of the through-hole portion 43b (lower opening in the figure) is a fitting portion with the annular bottom plate portion 63. The bottom plate part 63 is provided with a lock shaft, which will be described later, in such a manner that, when the bending operation knob 43 is fixed to the through-hole part 43b, the hole axis is aligned with the hole axis of the through-hole part 43b and the central axis of the knob body 43'. A shaft insertion hole 65 through which the member 81 is inserted is formed.

The bending operation knob 43 is fixed to the operation shaft 41 by fitting the cover plate 41a of the operation shaft 41 into the opening at one end of the through hole 43b formed in the knob body 43'. The bending operation knob 43 and the operation shaft 41 can rotate integrally with respect to the operation shaft 31. Since the bending operation knob 43 and the operation shaft body 41 are fixed, when the bending operation knob 43 is rotated, the operation shaft body 41 to which the cover plate portion 41a is fixed to the bending operation knob 43 can be operated to perform the bending operation. The pulley 45, which rotates in response to the knob 43 and is fixed to the pulley attachment portion 41c of the operating shaft 41, also rotates integrally with the bending operation knob 43 and the operating shaft 41. At this time, the bottom plate part 63 fixed to the bending operation knob 43 rotates around the lock shaft member 81 via the x-ring, so that the bending operation knob 43 can also rotate relative to the lock shaft member 81. It has become.

The pulley 45 is provided with a pair of winding portions 45a and 45b having the same diameter. Operation wires 47a and 47b are fixed to each winding portion 45a and 45b, respectively, with different winding directions. As the pulley 45 rotates, one of the operating wires 47a and 47b is wound around the pulley 45, and the other operating wire 47 is let out from the pulley 45. In addition, in accordance with switching between the forward and reverse operation rotation of the pulley 45, the winding side and the feeding side are switched between the winding portions 45a and 45b.

The operating wires 47a and 47b are respectively connected to node rings of an actuated part of the vertical bending mechanism 15UD provided in the bending movable part 12b of the insertion section 12. The actuated portion of the vertical bending mechanism 15UD bends the bending movable portion 12b in the vertical direction in response to the winding and unwinding operations of the operating wires 47a and 47b, respectively. For example, when the bending operation knob 43 is rotated in the U direction in FIG. When it is rotated in the D direction, the bending movable portion 12b is bent downward in the figure.

At this time, in the illustrated example, similarly to the case of the winding parts 35a and 35b of the pulley 3524, the winding parts 45a and 45b of the pulley 45 are shifted from each other's winding axes so that the winding parts 45a and 45b of the pulley 45 are The axis of the shaft is eccentrically provided with respect to the axis of the operating shaft body 41. Thereby, the configuration is such that the amount of rotation of the finger hook 43a of the bending operation knob 43 can be accurately transmitted to the amount of rotation for winding and feeding out each of the operation wires 47a and 47b.

Further, in the embodiment, the cover plate part 41a and the bottom plate part 63 of the operating shaft body 41 are fixed to the knob body 43', and the brake mechanism storage chamber 49 is defined in the through hole part 43b of the knob body 43'. be done. In the brake mechanism storage chamber 49, a braking force of a brake mechanism 80 attached to the vertical bending mechanism 15UD is generated, supported by a fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 and a lock shaft member 81 supported by the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61. A mechanism 83 is housed therein.

The brake mechanism 80 prevents the bending operation knob 43 of the vertical bending mechanism 15UD from rotating inadvertently when it is desired to maintain (lock) the current vertical bending posture state of the bending movable portion 12b by the vertical bending mechanism 15UD. This is a mechanism that applies a brake to the rotation of the bending operation knob 43. The brake mechanism 80 is configured to cause the braking force generating mechanism 83 to generate or release a braking force by rotating the lock shaft member 81, thereby locking or unlocking the rotation of the bending operation knob 43. Here, for convenience of explanation, explanation of the specific structure and operation of the braking force generation mechanism 83 will be omitted, and will be described in detail later.

In the illustrated example, the lock shaft member 81 for braking and releasing the brake mechanism 80 is constituted by a cylindrical shaft member whose outer peripheral portion on one end side is a flange portion 81b. The flange portion 81b of the lock shaft member 81 has mounting portions 81c protrudingly formed at predetermined locations around the periphery thereof. A brake operating lever 85 is attached and fixed to the attachment portion 81c. The brake operation lever 85 has a configuration in which the operation end of the lever protrudes outward from the curved operation knob 43 in the radial direction about the pivot shaft 21 .

The lock shaft member 81 is provided so that the cylinder portion 81 a is fitted onto the outer circumferential surface of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 and is rotatable relative to the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 . In the illustrated example, the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 is constituted by a cylindrical member having a small diameter shaft hole portion and a large diameter shaft hole portion aligned with each other and having a stepped through hole portion. has been done. The opening edge of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 on the side where the opening of the large diameter shaft hole portion is provided is fixed to the substrate 11b together with the rotation base shaft 21.

The rotation base shaft 21, the operation shaft body 31, and the operation shaft body 41 are inserted into the small diameter shaft hole portion of the stepped through hole portion of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61, and the rotation base shaft is inserted into the large diameter shaft hole portion. 21, the operating shaft 31, and the operating shaft 41 are inserted therethrough, and a pulley 35 fixed to the operating shaft 31 and a pulley 45 fixed to the operating shaft 41 are housed. A lead-out notch 61a for leading out the operating wires 37, 47 from the pulleys 35, 45 is provided at the base end portion of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 in which the pulleys 35, 45 are accommodated.

The distal end portion of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 on the side where the small diameter shaft hole portion is provided accommodates the through hole 11c provided in the lid 11d of the housing 11', the cylinder shaft hole of the lock shaft member 81, and the brake mechanism housing. It is inserted through the braking force generating mechanism 83 in the chamber 49.

The opening end of the shaft hole at the tip of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 allows the bending operation knob 43 of the vertical bending mechanism 15UD to be connected to the bending operation knob 33 of the left-right bending mechanism 15LR along the axial direction of the rotation base shaft 21 in the bending operation mechanism 15. It is supported so as to overlap with the housing 11'.

Further, the braking force generating mechanism 83 of the brake mechanism 80 is accommodated and supported in the brake mechanism storage chamber 49 of the bending operation knob 43 by a support step 61b appropriately formed on the outer circumferential surface of the distal end portion of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61. The lock shaft member 81 is supported along the axial direction of the pivot shaft 21 such that the brake operation lever 85 is disposed between the bending operation knob 43 and the housing 11'.

When the brake operating lever 85 is rotated, the lock shaft member 81 rotates integrally with the brake operating lever 85 relative to the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61, that is, the rotation base shaft 21.

Next, the configuration of the brake mechanism provided in the bending operation mechanism 15 will be described in detail. In the description, the brake mechanism 70 of the left-right bending mechanism 15LR and the brake mechanism 80 of the vertical bending mechanism 15UD are such that the braking force generating mechanisms 73, 83 are arranged in the brake mechanism storage chambers 39, 49 of the bending operation knobs 33, 43. They are the same in that the inner circumferential surfaces of the bottomed hole 33b of the bending operation knob 33 and the through-hole 43b of the bending operation knob 43 are the braked surfaces (pressed surfaces), and both are substantially the same. Therefore, the specific configuration and operation of the brake mechanisms 70 and 80 will be described below based on the drawings, taking the brake mechanism 80 of the vertical bending mechanism 15UD as an example.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the brake mechanism 80 portion of the vertical bending mechanism 15UD in the endoscope apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the brake mechanism 80 as viewed in the direction of arrow IV-IV in FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the brake mechanism 80 includes a brake operation lever 85 as a brake operation section, and a brake mechanism storage chamber 49 of the bending operation knob 43 to generate or release the brake force of the brake operation lever 85. A lock shaft member 81 that is housed in the brake mechanism storage chamber 49 and that generates or releases a braking force in response to a brake force generation or release operation that is transmitted through the lock shaft member 81. The power generating mechanism 83 is configured to include a power generating mechanism 83.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the rotation of the brake operating lever 85 is transmitted to the lock shaft member 81 which is rotatably fitted onto the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61. The fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 is fixed to the base plate 11b in the housing 11' together with the rotation base shaft 21 on which the operation shaft body 41 to which the bending operation knob 43 is fixed is rotatably inserted. Thereby, the brake operation lever 85 can be rotated independently of the bending operation knob 43.

The braking force generation mechanism 83 is housed in the brake mechanism storage chamber 49 of the bending operation knob 43. The braking force generation mechanism 83 generates or releases a braking force by using the inner circumferential surface of the through hole 43b forming the brake mechanism storage chamber 49 as a braking surface (pressed surface). The braking force generating mechanism 83 adjusts its own dimensions along the axial direction of the rotating base shaft 21 and the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 by using the storage chamber peripheral wall of the brake mechanism storage chamber 49 in which the braking force generating mechanism 83 is stored as a braking surface. It can be suppressed.

In the case of the braking force generating mechanism 83 of the illustrated vertical bending mechanism 15UD, the braking force generating mechanism 83 is connected to the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 by an annular stopper 67 screwed onto the outer periphery of the distal end side of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61. It is held between the support step portion 61b formed on the outer circumferential surface of the support step portion 61b. Thereby, mutual positioning along the axial direction of the rotation base 21 and the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 between the braked surface (pressed surface) of the bending operation knob 43, and the brake operation lever 85 and the lock shaft member. This is intended to prevent the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 of 81 from wobbling along the axial direction.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the braking force generation mechanism 83 includes a base 110, a pair of pressing pieces 130 (130R, 130L), a brake drive lever 150, and a drive spring 170. There is.

The braking force generating mechanism 83 also functions as a click feeling generating mechanism 88 that provides a click feeling when the brake operating lever 85 is rotated. The click generating mechanism 88 determines to what extent the bending posture of the bending movable portion 12b of the insertion section 12 is locked (maintained) by the braking force generated by the braking force generating mechanism 83, and whether the bending posture is completely locked (maintained). This is a mechanism that allows the user to sense whether the brake is in a free (non-held) state by a click sensation accompanying the rotational operation of the brake operating lever 85.

The base 110 is fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61, and supports the pair of pressing pieces 130 so as to be able to swing relative to the base 110, respectively.

The pair of pressing pieces 130 (130R, 130L) swings to expand and converge with respect to the base 110 on the same plane as the base 110 by rotating around the mounting shaft 134 relative to the base 110. .

The brake drive lever 150 is rotatably attached to the lock shaft member 81 integrally with the lock shaft member 81. The brake drive lever 150 rotates with respect to the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 and the base 110 fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 by the rotation of the lock shaft member 81 based on the rotation operation of the brake operating lever 85. move. The brake drive lever 150 has a spring engagement portion 152 that engages with a drive spring 170, and rotates the drive spring 170 that is engaged with the spring engagement portion 152 in response to a rotational operation of the spring engagement portion 152.

The drive spring 170 serves as an actuator of the braking force generation mechanism 83 and applies a spring biasing force to each of the pair of press pieces 130 to expand the press pieces 130 relative to the base 110 in response to the drive of the brake drive lever 150.

Next, the detailed configuration of each part of the braking force generation mechanism 83, which also serves as the click feeling generation mechanism 88, will be explained with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 5 is a specific configuration diagram of the base shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG. In FIG. 5, FIG. 5(A) is an external configuration diagram of the base 110 viewed diagonally from above, relating to the axial direction of the pivot shaft 21 and the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61, and FIG. FIG. 5C is an external configuration diagram of the base 110 viewed from diagonally below in the axial direction of the fixed pedestal 61. FIG. FIG.

The base 110 is composed of a plate-shaped molded member in which three spring guide parts 112, 113, and 114 are integrally provided around a base 111. The base 110 has a size that can be accommodated in the brake mechanism storage chamber 49 of the bending operation knob 43.

In the base 110, the base 111 constitutes the center part of the base 110, and the base 111 has a through hole 115 that fits with the outer peripheral surface of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61, and a through hole 115 that is screwed into the outer periphery of the distal end side of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61. An engagement recess 116 into which an annular stopper 67 is engaged is coaxially formed. In the illustrated example, the through hole 115 has a cross-sectional shape perpendicular to the hole axis and has a rounded square shape, and the rounded square cylinder outer periphery formed on the tip side of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 is inserted into the through hole 115. The base 110 cannot rotate together with the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61.

The three spring guide parts 112, 113, and 114 are formed radially around the base 111 with respective protruding directions different from each other. Each spring guide portion 112, 113, 114 has an arc shape with a radius smaller than the radius of the inner peripheral surface of the through hole portion 43b that forms the brake mechanism storage chamber 49 and is centered on the hole axis of the through hole 115 of the base portion 111. Guide grooves 117 and 118 and guide holes 119 for guiding the displacement movement of the drive spring 170 are formed in each outer edge portion.

As shown in FIG. 5(C), the three spring guide parts 117, 118, 119 are arranged so that the direction in which the remaining one spring guide part 119 projects with respect to the base 111 is the axis of symmetry. They are arranged o-o so that they are line-symmetrical to each other. As a result, the base 110 has a 'Y' shape in which the three spring guide parts 117, 118, and 119 intersect with the hole axis of the through hole 115 of the base 111.

In addition, the base 110 has an outer edge portion between the spring guide portion 112 and the spring guide portion 114, and an outer edge portion between the spring guide portion 113 and the spring guide portion 114, respectively, at the converging edge 121 of the pressing piece 130. , 122. In addition, mounting shaft holes 124 (124R, 122L) for the pressing pieces 130 (130R, 130L) are formed near the spring guide portions 112, 113 in each of the convergent edges 121, 122. The mounting shaft holes 124R and 122L are formed so that the direction in which the spring guide portion 114 projects with respect to the base portion 111 is an axis of symmetry oo, and their positions are line-symmetrical to each other. Further, the outer edge portion of the base 110 between the spring guide portion 112 and the spring guide portion 113 serves as a lever movement guide portion 125 of the brake drive lever 150.

FIG. 6 is a specific configuration diagram of the pressing pieces 130 (130R, 130L) shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. As shown in FIG. In FIG. 6, FIG. 6(A) is an external configuration diagram showing the pressing pieces 130R and 130L from diagonally above in the axial direction of the rotating base shaft 21 and the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61, and FIG. 6(B) is a diagram FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the base with pressing pieces 130R and 130L removed from the cross-sectional view of the brake mechanism shown in FIG.

In this embodiment, the pressing pieces 130R and 130L shown in FIG. 4 are both composed of pressing pieces 130 of the same shape and size, and can be used as the pressing pieces 130R or 130L by using them with the front and back sides different. It has become.

The pressing piece 130 is composed of an arch-shaped molded member having a pressing part 131 having an arcuate circumferential surface, and a converging part 132 having a peripheral surface having the same shape as the converging edges 121 and 122 of the base 110. has been done. The pressing portion 131 of the pressing piece 130 is formed of an arcuate peripheral surface portion having approximately the same diameter as the respective arcuate outer edge portions of the spring guide portions 112, 113, 114 of the base 110. A portion thereof protrudes by a small amount in the radial direction with respect to the other circumferential surface portion, and serves as an abutting portion 133 that can come into contact with the inner circumferential surface of the through hole portion 43b forming the brake mechanism storage chamber 49. . In addition, the converging portion 132 of the pressing piece 130 has a mounting shaft hole 124 (124R, 124L) formed in the converging edge portions 121, 122 of the base 110 so as to be rotatable on one side in the length direction. An engaging mounting shaft portion 134 is integrally formed to protrude.

Furthermore, a spring guide hole 135 extending along the arcuate peripheral surface of the pressing part 131 is formed inside the pressing piece 130 made of a bow-shaped molded member, as shown in FIG. 6(B). ing. A plurality of curved recesses 136 (136-1 to 136-4) are successively arranged in a wavy shape along the arcuate direction of the pressing part 131 on the outer peripheral side of the spring guide hole 135, that is, on the inner wall surface of the hole on the pressing part 131 side. It is in the form of

Each curved recess 136 is formed by mutually adjusting the bottom position and edge position of the respective recess peripheral wall by, for example, varying the distance from the center of the arc of the circular arc-shaped peripheral surface of the pressing part 131. In the illustrated example, each of the curved recesses 136-1 to 136-4 has one end that becomes a fixed end where the mounting shaft portion 134 is formed from the other end that becomes the free end of the pressure piece 130 in the longitudinal direction of the pressure piece 130. The distance from the center of the circular arc of the circular arc-shaped peripheral surface to the bottom position and the edge position of the concave peripheral wall gradually increases toward the side.

As shown in FIG. 4, the pressing pieces 130R, 130L are assembled by engaging each mounting shaft portion 134 with the mounting shaft holes 124R, 124L formed in the convergent edges 121, 122 of the base 110. It is attached to the base 110 with each converging portion 132 facing the converging edges 121, 122 of the base 110.

As a result, the pressing pieces 130R, 130L can swing to expand and converge relative to the base 110 on the same plane as the base 110 by rotating around the mounting shaft 134 relative to the base 110. It has become. In this case, the expanded state of the pressing pieces 130R, 130L means that the base 110 of the pressing pieces 130R, 130L has the other free end of the pressing piece 130 spaced apart from the converging edges 121, 122 of the base 110. The converged state of the press pieces 130R, 130L refers to the rotation state of the press pieces 130R, 130L when the other end of the press piece 130, which is the free end side, is closest to the convergent edges 121, 122 of the base 110. This refers to the state of rotation relative to the base 110.

Therefore, when the pressing pieces 130R and 130L are also attached to the base 110 and housed in the brake mechanism storage chamber 49, in the converged state, the pressing portion 131 is a curved operation knob that forms the brake mechanism storage chamber 49. The through hole portion 43b of 43 has a size and shape that allows it to maintain a separated state without coming into contact with the inner circumferential surface (braked surface, pressed surface) of the through hole portion 43b.

FIG. 7 is a specific configuration diagram of the brake drive lever 150 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. As shown in FIG. In FIG. 7, FIG. 7(A) is an external top view of the brake drive lever 150 viewed from above, and FIG. A partially cutaway side view of the brake drive lever 150 viewed in the direction of arrow B-B in A), FIG. FIG. 3 is an external bottom view of the lever 150.

The brake drive lever 150 has a disc-shaped annular portion 151 and a spring engaging portion 152 integrally formed on the outer circumference thereof. The annular portion 151 includes a shaft insertion hole 153, and the shaft insertion hole 153 has a size that allows the stepped through hole portion of the fixed cylindrical shaft pedestal 61 to be inserted therethrough. The brake drive lever 150 is rotatable relative to the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61, that is, the rotation base shaft 21, with the stepped through hole portion of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 inserted into the shaft insertion hole 153. .

In the brake drive lever 150, an annular base support portion 154 is formed on the upper surface of the annular portion 151 around the opening of the shaft insertion hole 153352. The base support portion 154 supports the base 110 that is non-rotatably attached to the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 by fitting the shaft end portion of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 into the through hole 115. Furthermore, an engagement recess 155 into which the shaft end of the lock shaft member 81 engages is formed in the opening of the shaft insertion hole 153 on the lower surface of the annular portion 151 . In the illustrated example, the engagement recess 155 has a rounded rectangular recess inner peripheral surface, and the lock shaft member 81 has a shaft end portion having a rounded rectangular cylindrical outer periphery mutually. can be engaged by aligning the hole axes of the two. The lock shaft member 81 whose shaft end is engaged with the engagement recess 155 is configured to be able to transmit the rotation of the lock shaft member 81 itself relative to the fixed cylindrical shaft pedestal 61, that is, the rotation base shaft 21, to the brake drive lever 150. ing. The brake drive lever 150 rotates with respect to the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61, that is, the rotation base 21, together with the lock shaft member 81, which rotates with respect to the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61, that is, the rotation base 21. It is designed to be able to rotate as a unit.

The spring engaging portion 152 of the brake drive lever 150 is located at a position projecting outward in the radial direction of the annular portion 151, and extends axially upward from the axial end surface side of the annular portion 151 where the base support portion 154 is formed. It is configured to have an engaging column portion 156 extending along the same. The spring engaging portion 152 is disposed on the lever movement guide portion 125 of the base 110 supported by the base support portion 154, and the lever movement guide portion 125 can be moved. Therefore, the spring engaging portion 152 of the brake drive lever 150 is connected to the lock shaft member 81 which rotates with respect to the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61, that is, the rotational base shaft 21 by the rotational operation of the brake operating lever 85. The base 110 is movable along a lever movement guide portion 125 of the base 110, which is unrotatably attached to the shaft pedestal 61.

FIG. 8 is a specific configuration diagram of the drive spring 170 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. As shown in FIG. In FIG. 8, FIG. 8(A) is a plan external view of the drive spring 170 viewed along the axial direction of the rotating base shaft 21 and the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61, and FIG. ) is an external view of the drive spring 170 as viewed in the BB arrow direction.

The drive spring 170 is a biasing force generating member formed by bending and forming a plate spring member, and its planar appearance is such that the opening portion 171 and the engaging recess 172 are in opposite positions, as shown in FIG. 8(A). It has an open, curved, pot-like shape.

The driving spring 170 has a pair of leaf spring swinging parts 173 (173R, 173L) that connect the leaf spring end part forming the opening part 171 and the leaf spring middle part forming the engagement recess 172. It has a line-symmetrical shape with the center line oo connecting the engagement recess 172 as the axis of symmetry. Each plate spring swinging portion 173 has a mountain-folded shoulder portion 174, a valley-folded constriction portion 175, and The curved portions 176 that are curved and protruded are arranged in a row.

With the engagement recess 172 fixedly supported, the drive spring 170 is connected to the leaf spring end portion 173p of each leaf spring swinging portion 173 forming the opening portion 171, as shown by the broken line in FIG. 8(A). The leaf spring swinging portions 173 (173R, 173L) are configured to be able to bend and deform from the normal state shown by the solid line in FIG. 8(A) so that they are close to each other.

In the drive spring 170, the pressing pieces 130R, 130L are swingably attached to the base 110 so as to expand and converge, and the leaf spring swinging parts 173R, 173L are connected to the corresponding pressing pieces 130R, 130L, respectively. is inserted into the spring guide hole 135 of. In this inserted state, the drive spring 170 positions the engagement recess 172 in the lever movement guide part 125 of the base 110 and is guided by the three spring guide parts 112, 113, 114 of the base 110 together with the pressing pieces 130R and 130L. Supported. By attaching the drive spring 170, the pressing pieces 130R, 130L and the base 110 are integrated with the drive spring 170 as an assembly of the braking force generation mechanism 83.

The assembly of the braking force generation mechanism 83 is constructed by inserting the shaft end of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 into the through hole 115 of the base 110 and inserting the shaft end of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 into the shaft insertion hole 153. It is mounted on the annular portion 151 of the brake drive lever 150. During this mounting, the spring engaging portion 152 of the brake drive lever 150 is engaged with the engaging recess 172 of the drive spring 170 located in the lever movement guide portion 125 .

FIG. 9 is an assembly process diagram of the brake mechanism 80 provided in the vertical bending mechanism 15UD of the bending operation mechanism 15.

In the brake mechanism 80, first, a lock shaft member 81 to which a brake operating lever 85 is attached is rotatably attached to the outer periphery of the cylinder of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61. At this time, the bottom plate part 63 is attached to the outer periphery of the cylindrical part 81a of the lock shaft member 81 so as to be rotatable with respect to the lock shaft member 81. Next, the brake drive lever 150 is attached to the outer periphery of the cylinder of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 with its engagement recess 155 engaged with the shaft end of the lock shaft member 81. Thereby, the brake drive lever 150 can rotate integrally with the lock shaft member 81 around the outer periphery of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 in response to the rotation operation of the brake operating lever 85.

A base 110 constituting an assembly of the braking force generation mechanism 83 is engaged with the outer peripheral portion of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 on the distal side of the position where the brake drive lever 150 is provided. The assembly of the braking force generation mechanism 83 includes a base 110, a pair of pressing pieces 130 (130R, 130L) that are rotatably attached to the base 110 and can expand and converge with respect to the base 110, and a drive spring 170. It is an assembled body. At that time, the engagement recess 172 of the drive spring 170 that constitutes the assembly of the braking force generation mechanism 83 is engaged with the engagement column 156 provided on the spring engagement section 152 of the brake drive lever 150. The base 110 of the braking force generating mechanism 83 is fixedly supported on the outer peripheral surface of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61 by a stopper 67.

Furthermore, the fitting portion 41b of the operating shaft body 41 is inserted into the cylindrical portion of the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61, which is provided with the assembly of the lock shaft member 81 and the braking force generation mechanism 83 on the outer peripheral surface. An operating shaft body 41 is rotatably provided relative to the handle. The bottom plate part 63 of the bending operation knob 43 is fitted over the cover plate part 41a of the operation shaft body 41 and the lock shaft member 81 so that the assembly of the braking force generation mechanism 83 is accommodated in the through hole part 43b. The assembly of the braking force generating mechanism 83 is housed in the brake mechanism storage chamber 49.

In the vertical bending mechanism 15UD in which the brake mechanism 80 is assembled in this manner, as shown in FIGS. The lock shaft member 81 and the brake drive lever 150 of the braking force generation mechanism 83 are fixed in response to the rotation operation of the brake operation lever 85. It is rotatable with respect to the cylinder shaft pedestal 61 and the base 110 of the braking force generation mechanism 83. In the braking force generation mechanism 83, as the brake drive lever 150 rotates with respect to the base 110, the spring engagement part 152 of the brake drive lever 150, which is engaged with the engagement recess 172 of the drive spring 170, moves to the base. 110, and the drive spring 170 also moves along the spring guide holes 135 of the spring guide portions 112, 113, 114 of the base 110 and the pressing pieces 130R, 130L, into the through hole 115 of the base 110. It can be rotated around the engaged fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61. As shown in FIGS. 10 to 12, the braking force generation mechanism 83 adjusts the inner periphery of the through-hole portion 43b of the bending operation knob 43 according to the rotational displacement of the drive spring 170 around the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal 61. A braking force can be generated or released by using the surface as a braking surface (pressed surface).

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of the operating state of the braking force generation mechanism 83 when the rotation operation of the bending operation knob 43 is in the locked state, and FIG. FIG. 12 shows an explanatory diagram of the operating state of the braking force generating mechanism 83 when the bending operation knob 43 is in a free state. . 10 to 12 are all cross-sectional views of the operating state of the braking force generation mechanism 83, viewed in the direction of arrow IV-IV in FIG. 3. Further, FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram of the brake torque when the rotation operation of the bending operation knob 43 is in a locked state.

As shown in FIG. 10, the locked state of the rotation operation of the bending operation knob 43 is achieved by rotating the brake operation lever 85 to rotate the brake drive lever 150 with respect to the base 110, and then rotating the brake drive lever 150 with respect to the base 110. This is achieved by locating the engagement column portion 156 provided on the engagement portion 152 toward the spring guide portion 113 side along the lever movement guide portion 125 of the base 110. Along with this, the drive spring 170 is attached to the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal engaged with the through hole 115 of the base 110 along the spring guide portions 112, 113, 114 of the base 110 and the spring guide holes 135 of the pressing pieces 130R, 130L. 61, and in this locked state, both shoulders 174, 174 of the drive spring 170 engage with the curved recesses 136-2 of the pair of pressing pieces 130R, 130L, and are rotated against the base 110. All rotation positions are now determined. In this positioning state, the drive spring 170 is in a contracted state as shown by the broken line, compared to the normal state shown by the solid line in FIG. 173p are close to each other, and the distance D between the leaf spring ends 173p is reduced compared to the normal state. Since the spring force P of the drive spring 170 in the contracted state is acting on the curved recesses 136-2 of the pressing pieces 130R and 130L, which are engaged with both shoulders 174 and 174 of the drive spring 170, Each of the pressing pieces 130R, 130L rotates around the mounting shaft 134, and the free end side of the converging portion 132 of each pressing piece 130R, 130L is spaced apart from the converging edge 121, 122 of the base 110, and the pressing piece 130R and 130L each expand with respect to the base 110, and the contact portion 133 provided in each pressing portion 131 applies a pressing force to the braked surface consisting of the inner peripheral surface of the through hole portion 43b of the bending operation knob 43. Press with P'.

In this case, the relationship between the spring force P of the drive spring 170 and the deflection of the drive spring 170 will be explained based on FIG.
Spring force P of drive spring 170 consisting of a plate spring
P= ^bt3Ed /( ^4L3 )...Formula (1)
become,
If the drive spring 170 is made of, for example, SUS304, the bending stress σ of the drive spring 170 is 88 [kg/mm ² ], which results in plastic deformation.
σ=1.5dtE/L ² ...Equation (2)
become.
here,
P: Spring force P of drive spring 170
b: Width of the SUS wire plate that constitutes the drive spring 170 [mm],
t: Thickness of the SUS wire plate forming the drive spring 170 [mm],
E: longitudinal elastic modulus of drive spring 170 2×10 ⁴ [kg/mm ² ],
d: amount of deflection of the drive spring 170 [mm],
L: Length from fulcrum to load point [mm],
It is.

Then, the pressing force (pressing force) P' against the braking surface made of the inner peripheral surface of the through hole 43b of the bending operation knob 43 by the contact portion 133 provided on the pressing portion 131 of each of the pressing pieces 130R, 130L. teeth,
P'=P・A/B...Formula (3)
become.
here,
A: Length [mm] from the fulcrum of the drive spring 170 on the base 110 to the load point of the leaf spring end 173p, shown in FIG.
B: Length [mm] from the pivot point of each of the pressing pieces 130R and 130L shown in FIG. 13 with respect to the base 110 to the load point of the contact portion 133,
It is.

The brake torque T [kgmm] exerted on the bending operation knob 43 by the contact portions 133 of the pressing pieces 130R and 130L is as follows:
T=μP'R...Formula (4)
become.
here,
μ: coefficient of friction between the contact portion 133 of each of the pressing pieces 130R, 130L and the inner peripheral surface of the through-hole portion 43b of the bending operation knob 43 as a braking surface;
R: radius [mm] of the inner circumferential surface of the through-hole portion 43b of the bending operation knob 43 as the braking surface;
It is.

As described above, in the illustrated brake mechanism 80, the braking force generation mechanism 83 is housed in the brake mechanism storage chamber 49 formed by the through hole 43b of the bending operation knob 43. The braking force generation mechanism 83 includes an operating shaft body 41 that is perpendicular to the hole axis of the through hole portion 43b of the bending operation knob 43, to which the bending operation knob 43 is attached and rotates integrally with the bending operation knob 43. The pressing piece is pressed by the drive spring 170 not against the plate surface of the cover plate 41a, but against the inner peripheral surface of the through hole 43b parallel to the hole axis of the through hole 43b of the bending operation knob 43. The contact portions 133 of each of 130R and 130L can be pressed against each other.

Similarly, as shown in FIG. 11, the half-locked state of the rotation operation of the bending operation knob 43 is achieved by rotating the brake operation lever 85 to rotate the brake drive lever 150 with respect to the base 110, and thereby driving the brake. This is accomplished by positioning the engagement post section 156 provided on the spring engagement section 152 of the lever 150 at the center of the spring guide section 113 along the lever movement guide section 125 of the base 110. Along with this, the drive spring 170 is attached to the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal engaged with the through hole 115 of the base 110 along the spring guide portions 112, 113, 114 of the base 110 and the spring guide holes 135 of the pressing pieces 130R, 130L. 61, and in this half-locked state, one shoulder 174 of the drive spring 170 engages with the curved recess 136-1 of the pressing piece 130R of the pair of pressing pieces 130R, 130L, and the other The shoulder portion 174 engages with the curved recess 136-3 of the pressing piece 130L, and the rotational position relative to the base 110 is determined. In this positioning state, the drive spring 170 is in a contracted state as shown by the broken line, compared to the normal state shown by the solid line in FIG. 173p are close to each other, and the distance D between the leaf spring ends 173p is reduced compared to the normal state, and expanded compared to the locked state shown in FIG. The spring force P of the drive spring 170 in the contracted state is applied to the curved recess 136-1 of the pressing piece 130R and the curved recess 136-3 of the pressing piece 130L, with which the pair of shoulders 174, 174 of the driving spring 170 engage. is acting, each of the pressing pieces 130R, 130L rotates around the mounting shaft 134, and the free end side of the converging part 132 of each pressing piece 130R, 130L is connected to the converging edge 121, 122 of the base 110. The pressing pieces 130R and 130L each expand with respect to the base 110, and the contact portions 133 provided on the respective pressing portions 131 are separated from the inner peripheral surface of the through hole portion 43b of the bending operation knob 43. The braking surface is set at a pressure P'/2 that is smaller than the pressure P' in the locked state shown in FIG. 10, for example, approximately half the pressure P' in the locked state. Press.

As a result, the magnitude of the brake torque T exerted on the bending operation knob 43 by the contact portions 133 of the pressing pieces 130R and 130L becomes smaller than that in the locked state shown in FIG. is locked in a half-locked state, which is looser than the locked state.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 12, when the bending operation knob 43 is in a free rotational state, the brake operation lever 85 is rotated to rotate the brake drive lever 150 relative to the base 110, and the brake drive lever 150 is rotated relative to the base 110. This is achieved by locating the engaging column portion 156 provided on the spring engaging portion 152 of the base 110 toward the spring guide portion 112 side along the lever movement guide portion 125 of the base 110. Along with this, the drive spring 170 is attached to the fixed cylinder shaft pedestal engaged with the through hole 115 of the base 110 along the spring guide portions 112, 113, 114 of the base 110 and the spring guide holes 135 of the pressing pieces 130R, 130L. 61, and in this free state, one shoulder portion 174 of the drive spring 170 engages with the inner wall surface of the guide hole 119 provided in the spring guide portion 114 of the base 110, and the other shoulder portion 174 is rotated to a position relative to the base 110 without engaging any of the curved recesses 136-1 to 136-4 of the pressing piece 13130L. In this positioning state, the drive spring 170 is in a normal state, that is, a natural state, as shown by the solid line in FIG. , the distance D between the leaf spring ends 173p is expanded even in the half-locked state shown in FIG. 11, and is in the maximum expanded state. One of the pair of shoulders 174, 174 of the drive spring 170 is supported by the spring guide part 114 of the base 110, and the other is not supported by any of the curved recesses 136-1 to 136-4 of the pressing piece 130R. , each of the pressing pieces 130R, 130L rotates around the mounting shaft 134, and brings the free end side of the converging part 132 of each pressing piece 130R, 130L close to the converging edge 121, 122 of the base 110, and presses. It becomes possible to converge each of the pieces 130R and 130L with respect to the base 110.

As a result, the contact portions 133 provided on the respective pressing portions 131 can be separated from the braking surface formed by the inner peripheral surface of the through-hole portion 43b of the bending operation knob 43, and the through-hole of the bending operation knob 43 The pressing force P' from the abutment part 133 no longer acts on the braking surface made of the inner circumferential surface of the hole of the part 43b.

Therefore, according to the brake mechanism 80 provided in the vertical bending mechanism 15UD, the rotation operation of the brake operation lever 83 causes the braking force generation mechanism 83 to generate or release the braking force, and the bending operation knob 43 is The current rotational operation position can be selectively held in any one of the locked state explained based on FIG. 10, the half-locked state explained based on FIG. 11, and the free state explained based on FIG. can. In the locked state explained based on FIG. 10 or the half-locked state explained based on FIG. 11, a brake is applied to the rotation of the bending operation knob 43 so that the bending operation knob 43 does not rotate inadvertently. . In these cases, the magnitude of the braking force applied to the bending operation knob 43 is larger in the locked state explained based on FIG. 10 than in the half-locked state explained based on FIG. The brake operating lever 83 can be adjusted to any one of the locked state explained based on 10, the half-locked state explained based on FIG. 11, and the free state explained based on FIG.

Further, when the bending operation knob 43 is in the locked state as explained based on FIG. , the bending operation knob 43 can be put into the half-locked state as explained based on FIG. 11, and when the bending operation knob 43 is in the half-locked state explained based on FIG. If the bending operation knob 43 is rotated in the predetermined direction or the opposite direction with a rotation torque larger than the magnitude of the brake torque T, the bending operation knob 43 is brought into the free state described based on FIG. 12 or into the locked state described based on FIG. 10. be able to.

Furthermore, when rotating the brake drive lever 150 to change the state of the bending operation knob 43 between the locked state described based on FIG. 10 and the half-locked state described based on FIG. The shoulders 174, 174 are located at the boundary between the curved recess 136-1 and the curved recess 136-2 of the curved recesses 136 of the pressing pieces 130R, 130L, which are continuous in a wavy shape along the arc direction of the pressing part 131. By overcoming the crest of the wave or the crest of the boundary between the curved recess 136-2 and the curved recess 136-3, a click feeling can be added to the rotation operation of the brake drive lever 150. Similarly, when rotating the brake drive lever 150 to change the state of the bending operation knob 43 between the half-locked state explained based on FIG. 11 and the free state explained based on FIG. Both shoulder portions 174, 174 are connected to the free end of the pressing piece 130 in the curved recess 136-1 of the curved recess 136 of each of the pressing pieces 130R, 130L, which are continuous in a waveform shape along the circular arc direction of the pressing portion 131. By overcoming the wave head or the wave head at the boundary between the curved recess 136-3 and the curved recess 136-4, a click feeling can be added to the rotation operation of the brake drive lever 150.

In this way, the wave head of the boundary between the adjacent curved recesses 136 of each of the pressing pieces 130R and 130L that constitute the braking force generation mechanism 83 cooperates with the drive spring 170 that also constitutes the braking force generation mechanism 83. The braking force generating mechanism 83 of the brake mechanism 80 is configured to also function as the click feeling generating mechanism 88 of the brake mechanism 80. .

As a result, the braking force generating mechanism 83 and the click feeling generating mechanism 88 of the brake mechanism 80 do not need to be provided as separate mechanisms, and the braking force generating mechanism 83 also serves as the click feeling generating mechanism 88, so the number of parts can be reduced. The brake mechanism 80 housed in the brake mechanism storage chamber 49 can be made smaller and lighter, and the operability of the bending operation knob 43 can also be improved.

In the brake mechanism 80, a plurality of curved recesses 136-1 to 136-4 are formed in each of the pressing pieces 130R and 130L to receive the biasing force from the drive spring 170, and Every time the curved recesses 136-1 to 136-4 that receive the biasing force from the drive spring 170 change due to the rotation of the spring 170, the biasing force that each of the pressing pieces 130R and 130L receives from the drive spring 170 changes from 'free state' to 'free state' The brake operation feeling of the bending operation knob 43 is also improved because it increases gradually in the order of 'half-locked state' → 'locked state' or gradually decreases in the order of 'locked state' → 'half-locked state' → 'free state'.

Further, among the plurality of curved recesses 136-1 to 136-4 of each of the pressing pieces 130R and 130L, the curved recess 136-1 of the pressing piece 130R and the curved recess 136-3 of the pressing piece 130L are attached by the drive spring 170. Since it is configured as a predetermined curved recess 136 that can receive force in a half-locked state, for example, during a procedure, the brake mechanism 80 can be ensured to be in a half-locked state by quickly operating the bending operation knob 43. The distal end portion 12a of the insertion portion 12 and the bendable movable portion 12b can be fixed at a desired position inside the subject with a light force while remaining in the half-locked state.

FIG. 14 is a structural comparison diagram of the drive spring in the conventional braking force generation mechanism and the drive spring in the braking force generation mechanism of the present embodiment described in FIG. 8. FIG. 15 is a diagram comparing the brake torque-spring deflection amount characteristics of the drive spring in the conventional braking force generation mechanism and the drive spring in the braking force generation mechanism of the present embodiment described in FIG. 8.

In the conventional braking force generation mechanism as described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, the spring bending force of the drive spring 270 causes the plate-shaped pressing piece to be perpendicular to the hole axis of the through hole portion 43b of the bending operation knob 43. Since the drive spring 270 was configured to press against the plate surface of the cover plate portion 41a (see FIG. 1) of the operation shaft body 41 (see FIG. 1), the drive spring 270 was pressed against the plate surface of the cover plate portion 41a (see FIG. 1), as shown in FIG. The annular part 271 has an insertion hole 272 through which the distal end side of the annular part 271 (see FIG. It had an impeller shape with a plurality of blade pieces 275 projecting radially from the outer periphery. Since the plurality of blade pieces 255 have a structure in which the blade surfaces are deformed from a bent state to a flat state with respect to the disk surface of the annular portion 271, the spring constant is large and the amount of deflection db [ The fluctuation of the repulsion force according to [mm] also increases, and the value range of the deflection amount db [mm] to obtain the target brake torque setting, for example, the target brake torque T within the range of 19 to 24 [kgmm], is 0. Only 1 [mm] was allowed.

On the other hand, the pair of pressing pieces 130 (see FIG. 1) are pressed against the inner circumferential surface of the through-hole portion 43b (see FIG. 1) parallel to the hole axis of the through-hole portion 43b of the bending operation knob 43. In the pressing drive spring 170 according to the present embodiment shown in FIG. [mm] value range is allowed to be 1.3 [mm], which is much larger than that of the conventional drive spring 270.

As a result, the drive spring 170 according to the present embodiment shown in FIG. is small, and the fluctuation of the repulsive force according to the deflection amount da [mm] can also be made small, so the deflection amount of the drive spring 170 to obtain the desired brake torque T within the range of 19 to 24 [kgmm] can be reduced. The allowable range of da [mm] of 1.3 [mm] is much larger than the allowable range of 0.1 [mm] of the conventional drive spring 270. The drive spring 170 according to the present embodiment is less susceptible to the influence of component tolerances of the drive spring itself, unlike the conventional drive spring 270. Lock adjustment of each power generation mechanism 83 is no longer necessary, and manufacturing efficiency can be improved.

More specifically, in conventional brake mechanisms such as those described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, the allowable range of the amount of deflection da of the drive spring 270 for obtaining the target brake torque T is narrow, so it is difficult to assemble the brake mechanism. Afterwards, the spring pressure of the drive spring 270 (proportional to the pushing distance of the adjustment screw from the default position) is adjusted by rotating the adjustment screw provided in advance from the default position, and the deflection amount da of the drive spring 270 is set to the desired value. The brake torque T had to be within the allowable range. On the other hand, since the drive spring 170 according to the present embodiment has a large (wide) allowable range of the amount of deflection da [mm], there is no need to perform an adjustment operation on the adjustment screw after the brake mechanism is assembled.

Although a detailed explanation has been omitted, the configuration of the brake mechanism 70 and braking force generation mechanism 73 of the left-right bending mechanism 15LR is also such that the brake operation lever 85 is replaced by the brake operation knob 75 and the lock shaft member 81 is replaced. The only difference is that the lock shaft member 71 rotates and the inner peripheral surface of each through hole 43b of the bending operation knob 43 is used as a braked surface (pressed surface). It has the same specific configuration as the braking force generation mechanism 83.

Although the endoscope apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is configured as described above, the specific configurations of the brake mechanism 80 and the braking force generation mechanism 83 are not limited to the configurations described above. For example, the drive spring 170 may be configured by bending a linear spring instead of a plate spring, and the specific shapes of the base 110 and the pressing piece 130 are also accommodated in the brake mechanism storage chamber 49 within the bending operation knob 43. It is possible to expand and converge the pair of pressing pieces 130 with respect to the base 110, so that the inner periphery of each through-hole portion 43b of the bending operation knob 43 can be expanded and converged with respect to the base 110. Any specific shape may be used as long as it can be pressed against a surface.

1 Endoscope device,
2 processor,
3 monitor,
11 Operation unit,
11' housing,
11a connection part,
11b board,
11c through hole,
11d lid body,
12 insertion section,
12a tip,
12b curved movable part,
12c flexible tube section,
13 Connecting flexible tube (universal cord),
13a connector part,
15 Curving operation mechanism,
15LR left and right bending mechanism,
15UD vertical bending mechanism,
21 Rotation axis,
31 operation shaft body,
31a Bottom plate part (flange part),
31b fitting part,
31c Pulley mounting part,
33 Curving operation knob (curving operation member),
33' knob body,
33a finger rest,
33b bottomed hole,
33c shaft insertion hole,
35 Pulley,
35a, 35b winding part,
37 (37a, 37b) operation wire,
39 Brake mechanism storage chamber,
41 Operation shaft body,
41a lid plate part,
41b fitting part,
41c Pulley mounting part,
43 Curved operation knob,
43' Knob body,
43a finger rest,
43b through hole section,
45 Pulley,
45a, 45b winding part,
47 (47a, 47b) operation wire,
49 Brake mechanism storage chamber,
61 Fixed cylinder shaft pedestal,
61a lead-out notch,
61b support step,
63 Bottom plate part,
65 shaft insertion hole,
67 Stopper,
70 Brake mechanism (bending retention mechanism, locking mechanism),
71 Lock shaft member,
71a cylinder part,
71b flange part,
71c engaging part,
73 Braking force generation mechanism,
75 Brake operation knob,
78 Click feeling generation mechanism,
80 Brake mechanism (bending retention mechanism, locking mechanism)
81 Lock shaft member,
81a cylinder part,
81b flange part,
81c mounting part,
83 Braking force generation mechanism,
85 Brake operation lever,
88 Click feeling generation mechanism,
110 base,
111 base,
112, 113, 114 spring guide part,
115 through hole,
116 engagement recess,
117,118 guide groove,
119 guide hole,
121,122 convergent edge,
124 (124R, 124L) mounting shaft hole,
125 lever movement guide section,
130 (130R, 130L) Pressing piece (Attaching piece),
131 Pressing part,
132 Convergence part,
133 contact part,
134 Mounting shaft part,
135 Spring guide hole,
136 (136-1 to 136-4) curved recess,
150 brake drive lever,
151 Annular part,
152 spring engagement part,
153 shaft insertion hole,
154 base support part,
155 engagement recess,
156 Engagement column portion 170 Drive spring (biasing force generating member),
171 Open part,
172 engagement recess,
173 (173R, 173L) Leaf spring swinging part,
173p leaf spring end,
173q recess edge,
174 shoulder,
175 Waist part,
176 curved part,
270 drive spring,
271 Annular part,
272 insertion hole,
275 Feather piece.

Claims (4)

an insertion section that is inserted into the subject and has a curved movable section on the distal end side;
an operating section that is provided on the proximal end side of the insertion section and that operates various parts of the device including the bending movable section;
a bending operation mechanism that causes the bending movable section to perform a bending operation in response to a rotational operation of a bending operation section provided in the operation section;
In response to a rotational operation of a brake operation section provided on the operation section together with the bending operation section, the pressing section is brought into contact with or separated from a rotation surface that rotates together with the bending operation section, and the rotation is performed. a curvature holding mechanism that generates or releases a braking force on the surface;
Equipped with
The curvature holding mechanism is
a base that does not rotate in conjunction with the bending operation section;
a brake driving piece that rotates relative to the base in response to a rotational operation of the brake operating section;
a pair of pressing pieces that expand and converge with respect to the base using a base on an attachment side to the base as a fulcrum;
a pressed part that surrounds the base and the pair of pressing pieces, is provided to rotate integrally with the bending operation part, and is abutted by the pair of pressing pieces that are expanded with respect to the base; ,
It is provided on the base in engagement with the brake drive piece, moves while deforming in conjunction with the relative rotation of the brake drive piece with respect to the base, and is attached to each of the pair of press pieces according to the movement position. a biasing force generating member that generates a biasing force to expand or converge the
has
A plurality of curved recesses are formed in the pressing piece to receive the urging force from the urging force generating member, and the urging force received by the pressing piece from the urging force generating member is increased by the movement of the urging force generating member. The curved concave portion receiving the biasing force from the force generating member gradually increases or decreases each time the curved concave portion changes, and the curvature holding mechanism also serves as a click feeling generating mechanism that provides a click feeling when the rotation operation of the brake operating portion is performed.
Endoscope equipment. In claim 1,
The pair of pressing pieces are expanded and converged with respect to the base on a plane perpendicular to the axial direction of the operation shaft of the bending operation section,
The rotating surface of the pressed portion that is in contact with the pair of pressing pieces expanded with respect to the base is a surface parallel to the axial direction of the operating shaft of the bending operating portion.
Endoscope equipment. In claim 1,
The biasing force generating member includes a curved spring member formed at a position opposite to the opening portion and the engagement recess, and the front curved spring member is bent so as to change the opening distance of the opening portion depending on the moving position. Endoscope equipment. In claim 1 ,
A predetermined curved recess of the plurality of curved recesses receives a biasing force from the biasing force generating member in a half-locked state intermediate between a lock-free state and a locked state.
Endoscope equipment.

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