A tip for a visual catheter, a method of forming and a visual catheter

Abstract

The application belongs to the field of medical devices, and discloses a head end of a visual catheter, a forming method of the head end, and the visual catheter. The forming method of the head end of the visual catheter comprises fixing a pull wire head end fixed on a pull wire ring to an image sensor; mounting an illumination system, the image sensor and the pull wire ring to the outer side of the distal end of a steerable catheter; putting the illumination system, the image sensor and the pull wire into a mold; injecting transparent material into the mold, and demolding after solidification and forming. The head end of the visual catheter is obtained by using the solidification and forming process of glue injection integration, and does not need to use pre-processed components for assembly. Not only the wall thickness of the head end pre-processed components is avoided to limit the size and compress the space of the head end components, but also the step of assembling the image sensor and the illumination system in the head end pre-processed components is saved, so that slight damage or accidental stress of the image sensor in the assembly process can be avoided to affect the final imaging effect.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of medical devices, in particular to a head end of a visual catheter, a forming method and a visual catheter. BACKGROUND

[0002] A visual catheter or endoscope is a common medical device that can be used in diagnosis or treatment in the fields of digestion, respiration, surgery, etc. The visual catheter or endoscope can be inserted into the human body through the natural cavity of the human body or a small incision made by minimally invasive surgery, and the micro image sensor (such as CMOS) allows the operator to directly observe the human body part with the naked eye.

[0003] As shown in Figure 1 The visual catheter mainly consists of a head end 1, a controlled bending catheter 2, a non-controlled bending catheter 3, and a control handle 4. The head end 1 is generally used to accommodate an image sensor (such as CMOS) and an illumination system. Generally, the head end 1 uses a pre-processed component (such as injection molding or precision cutting) as a base for mounting the image sensor and the illumination system, which has high stability and meets the needs of most catheters. However, for smaller catheters, the above-mentioned pre-processed component has limited machining precision, and the pre-processed component inevitably has a certain wall thickness, which limits the further reduction of the size of the visual catheter head end. At the same time, the relative positions of the image sensor and the illumination system also need to be considered in the design to ensure the imaging effect, which further increases the processing difficulty of the head end assembly. These factors affect the cost of the visual catheter and limit the ability of the visual catheter to enter smaller human cavities for observation. In addition, the micro image sensor is a high-precision electronic component, and the assembly process requires extremely high precision. Slight damage or accidental stress during the process can affect the final imaging effect. SUMMARY

[0004] The purpose of the present application is to provide a head end of a visual catheter, a forming method and a visual catheter, which adopts an integral solidification forming method. This method not only avoids the limitation of the wall thickness of the pre-processed component to reduce the size of the head end, but also greatly reduces the assembly difficulty, reduces the possibility of image sensor damage, and makes low-cost possible.

[0005] The technical solutions provided by the present application are as follows:

[0006] On the one hand, a forming method for a head end of a visual catheter is provided, which comprises the following steps:

[0007] Fixing the head end of the pull wire fixed on the pull wire ring to the image sensor;

[0008] Installing the illumination system, the image sensor and the pull wire ring outside the distal end of the controlled bending catheter;

[0009] Putting the illumination system, the image sensor and the pull wire into the mold;

[0010] Injecting the transparent material into the mold, and demolding after solidification.

[0011] In some embodiments, the fixing the pull wire head end fixed on the pull wire ring to the image sensor specifically comprises:

[0012] Fixing the pull wire to the pull wire ring;

[0013] Processing the pull wire head end protruding from the pull wire ring into a flat shape to form a flat section;

[0014] Fixing the flat section of the pull wire to one side of the image sensor.

[0015] In some embodiments, the fixing the pull wire head end fixed on the pull wire ring to the image sensor specifically comprises:

[0016] Fixing the illumination system to the side of the image sensor;

[0017] Fixing the illumination system and the image sensor outside the distal end of the steerable catheter;

[0018] Adjusting the orientation of the pull wire ring outside the distal end of the steerable catheter so that the direction of the distal end of the pull wire away from the flat surface of the image sensor is consistent with the steering direction of the steerable catheter;

[0019] Fixing the pull wire ring to the distal end surface of the steerable catheter.

[0020] In some embodiments, the fixing the pull wire head end fixed on the pull wire ring to the image sensor specifically comprises:

[0021] Fixing the illumination system to the distal end surface of the steerable catheter;

[0022] Fixing the image sensor outside the distal end of the steerable catheter;

[0023] Adjusting the orientation of the pull wire ring outside the distal end of the steerable catheter so that the direction of the distal end of the pull wire away from the flat surface of the image sensor is consistent with the steering direction of the steerable catheter;

[0024] Fixing the pull wire ring to the distal end surface of the steerable catheter.

[0025] In some embodiments, the fixing the pull wire head end fixed on the pull wire ring to the image sensor specifically comprises:

[0026] Setting one or multiple spacer rods at predetermined positions in the mold.

[0027] In some embodiments, the inner diameter of the mold is the same as the outer diameter of the steerable catheter;

[0028] the height of the mold is greater than the length of the head end; and / or;

[0029] the profile shape of the closed end in the longitudinal section of the mold is pointed or circular arc or stepped circular arc or stepped trapezoidal.

[0030] In another aspect, the head end of the visual catheter is also provided, which comprises an illumination system, an image sensor, a pull wire and a transparent member, the head end of the pull wire is fixed to the image sensor, the transparent member is integrally formed and wrapped around the illumination system, the image sensor and the pull wire, and is fixed with the illumination system, the image sensor and the pull wire.

[0031] In some embodiments, the pull wire has a flat section, the flat section comprises at least one flat surface, the flat surface is fixed to one side of the image sensor, the side extends along the longitudinal axis of the image sensor, and the longitudinal axis of the image sensor is consistent with the extension direction of the pull wire.

[0032] In some embodiments, one or more working channels are arranged in the head end of the visual catheter; and / or; the profile of the distal end of the head end in the longitudinal section is pointed or circular arc or stepped circular arc or stepped trapezoidal.

[0033] In another aspect, the visual catheter is also provided, which comprises a control handle, a non-controlled bending catheter, a controlled bending catheter and the head end of the visual catheter according to any one of the embodiments described above.

[0034] The technical effect of the present application is that the head end of the visual catheter is obtained by using the integral curing molding process of glue injection, the entire head end component, including the image sensor, the illumination system and the pull wire part, is wrapped by the transparent material, without using pre-processed components for assembly, not only avoiding the size limitation of the wall thickness of the head end pre-processed component and the space compression of the head end component, but also saving the design space of the optical path channel, leaving space for other components, in addition, the step of assembling the image sensor and the illumination system in the head end pre-processed component is saved, and slight damage or accidental stress of the image sensor in the assembly process can be avoided to affect the final imaging effect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0035] The present application will be further described in detail below in combination with the drawings and specific embodiments:

[0036] Figure 1 is a structural schematic diagram of a visual catheter of the prior art;

[0037] Figure 2 is a flowchart of a head end molding method of a visual catheter according to Embodiment One of the present application;

[0038] Figure 3 is a process diagram of a head forming method of a visual catheter provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0039] Figure 4 is a structure diagram of a head longitudinal section of a visual catheter provided by an embodiment one of the present application, in which a distal end profile is sharp;

[0040] Figure 5 is a structure diagram of a head longitudinal section of a visual catheter provided by an embodiment one of the present application, in which a distal end profile is a circular arc shape;

[0041] Figure 6 is a structure diagram of a head longitudinal section of a visual catheter provided by an embodiment one of the present application, in which a distal end profile is a stepped circular arc shape;

[0042] Figure 7 is a structure diagram of a head longitudinal section of a visual catheter provided by an embodiment one of the present application, in which a distal end profile is a stepped flat bottom shape;

[0043] Figure 8 is a cross section diagram of a head of a visual catheter provided by an embodiment three of the present application;

[0044] Figure 9 is a longitudinal section diagram of a head and a control bending catheter provided by an embodiment three of the present application;

[0045] Figure 10 is a variant structure of a head of a visual catheter of an embodiment three of the present application;

[0046] Figure 11 is a cross section diagram of a head of a visual catheter provided by an embodiment four of the present application;

[0047] Figure 12 is a longitudinal section diagram of a head and a control bending catheter provided by an embodiment four of the present application;

[0048] Figure 13 is a cross section diagram of a head of a visual catheter provided by an embodiment five of the present application;

[0049] Figure 14 is a longitudinal section diagram of a head and a control bending catheter provided by an embodiment five of the present application;

[0050] Figure 15 is a forming process diagram of a head provided by an embodiment five of the present application.

[0051] Explanation of the reference signs:

[0052] 1, head; 11, image sensor; 12, illumination system; 14, working channel; 15, transparent piece; 2, steerable catheter; 21, guide wire channel; 22, pull wire channel; 3, non-steerable catheter; 4, control handle; 5, pull wire; 51, flat section; 6, pull wire loop; 7, mold; 8, spacer rod. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0053] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings needed to be used in the embodiments or the prior art description. Obviously, the drawings in the following description only represent some of the embodiments of the present application, and for those skilled in the art, other drawings can also be obtained without creative labor based on these drawings.

[0054] In order to make the drawing simple, only the parts related to the present application are shown in each drawing, which does not represent the actual structure of the product. In addition, in order to make the drawing simple and easy to understand, in some drawings, only one of the parts with the same structure or function is shown, or only one of them is marked. In this paper, "one" not only means "only one", but also means "more than one".

[0055] It should be further understood that the term "and / or" used in the present application specification and the appended claims means any combination of one or more of the associated listed items and all possible combinations, and includes these combinations.

[0056] In this paper, it should be noted that unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "mounting", "connection", "connection" should be understood broadly, for example, it can be fixed connection, or detachable connection, or integral connection; it can be mechanical connection, or electrical connection; it can be directly connected, or indirectly connected through intermediate medium, or the communication inside two elements. For those skilled in the art, the specific meaning of the above terms in the present application can be understood according to the specific circumstances.

[0057] In addition, in the description of the present application, the terms "first", "second" and the like are only used to distinguish the description, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0058] As shown in Figure 1 The visible catheter includes head 1, steerable catheter 2, non-steerable catheter 3 and control handle 4 connected in turn, the steerable catheter 2 is steered by the pull wire arranged in the steerable catheter 2, and the pull wire is controlled by the control handle 4. As shown in Figure 4As shown, the head end 1 mainly comprises an image sensor 11 and an illumination system 12, which can be LED lights or optical fibers. The image sensor 11 collects the light signals and converts them into electrical signals, which are then sent to an image display. The visual image displayed on the image display corresponds to the four sides of the image sensor 11.

[0059] Embodiment one

[0060] As shown in Figure 2 and Figure 3 A method for forming a head end of a visual catheter, comprising:

[0061] S100, fixing the head end of the pull wire fixed on the pull wire ring to the image sensor;

[0062] S200, installing the illumination system, the image sensor and the pull wire ring outside the distal end of the steerable catheter;

[0063] S300, placing the illumination system, the image sensor and the pull wire into a mold;

[0064] S400, injecting transparent material into the mold, and demolding after curing and forming.

[0065] As shown in Figure 3 When assembling the head end 1, the pull wire 5 can be fixed on the pull wire ring 6, and the head end of the pull wire 5 extends from the pull wire ring 6 to the outside of the pull wire ring 6. Then, the head end of the pull wire 5 is fixed on the image sensor 11. The illumination system 12 and the image sensor 11 are installed outside the distal end of the steerable catheter 2. The pull wire ring 6 is fixed on the distal end face of the steerable catheter 2. The wires of the illumination system 12 and the image sensor 11 pass through the wire channel 21 of the steerable catheter 2 and the non-steerable catheter 3. The pull wire 5 passes through the pull wire channel 22 of the steerable catheter 2 and the non-steerable catheter 3.

[0066] In this embodiment, the pull wire ring 6 can be a metal circular ring sheet. The diameter of the pull wire ring 6 is larger than the inner diameter of the pull wire channel 22, which prevents the pull wire ring 6 from falling out of the pull wire channel 22. The pull wire ring 6 can be connected to the steerable catheter 2 by physical or chemical means. The size of the pull wire channel 22 is slightly larger than that of the pull wire 5, which can protect and limit the movement track of the pull wire 5. The size of the wire channel 21 can be set according to actual needs.

[0067] As a simple deformation, the pull wire 5 and the conductive wires of the lighting system 12 and the image sensor 11 can be first threaded through the steerable catheter 2 and the non-steerable catheter 3, and then the pull wire ring 6 is fixed to the distal end face of the steerable catheter 2, and the head end of the pull wire 5 is fixed to the image sensor 11. In this embodiment, the specific installation sequence of the head end 1 and the steerable catheter 2 can be changed as needed, as long as the assembly of the head end 1 and the steerable catheter 2 can be achieved.

[0068] Then, the assembled visual catheter is turned over, so that the lighting system 12 and the image sensor 11 are placed in the customized mold 7. The mold 7 is made of transparent material such as non-sticky glue. The relative position of the components of the head end 1 and the mold 7 is kept unchanged. The super-fine needle on the glue syringe is extruded into the gap between the steerable catheter 2 and the mold 7 by using the softness of the wall of the steerable catheter 2, and transparent UV glue is injected into the mold 7. The excess glue on the surface of the mold 7 is wiped off. The glue can be quickly cured under UV light to form a transparent part 15. The transparent part 15 wraps the image sensor 11, the lighting system 12 and the pull wire 5 and forms an integral whole with the image sensor 11, the lighting system 12 and the pull wire 5. The mold 7 is removed, and the head end 1 of the visual catheter is obtained. Of course, in addition to injecting transparent glue into the mold 7 to wrap the image sensor 11 and the lighting system 12, other transparent materials such as thermosetting materials and curable glue can also be injected. When selecting the wrapping material, it is required to ensure that it is transparent after curing, and the forming and post-processing operations are simple and feasible.

[0069] Specifically, Figure 3 Step (1) is pull wire shaping, step (2) is lighting system fixing, step (3) is head end component relative fixing, step (4) is catheter assembly, step (5) is placing the catheter in the mold, step (6) is injecting glue into the mold, step (7) is glue curing, and step (8) is removing the mold.

[0070] In this embodiment, preferably, the inner diameter of the mold 7 is the same as the outer diameter of the steerable catheter 2, so that the outer diameter of the formed head end 1 is the same as the outer diameter of the steerable catheter 2. The height of the mold 7 is slightly greater than the length of the head end 1, so that a small part of the steerable catheter 2 is also located in the mold 7. The glue can immerse the cavity opening of the steerable catheter 2 and enter the lumen of the steerable catheter 2 a little, so as to increase the connection firmness of the head end 1 and the steerable catheter 2.

[0071] It should be noted that in this embodiment, a type of glue with low viscosity and good fluidity is selected, and the glue is first placed in a vacuum condition for 24 hours before injection, so as to avoid the occurrence of air bubbles in the process of injection molding of the head end 1, which affects the light path of the lighting system 12, and improves the lighting effect.

[0072] The visual catheter tip of this invention is obtained using an integrated injection molding process. The entire tip component, including the image sensor, illumination system, and pull wire, is encapsulated in a transparent material, eliminating the need for pre-processed components. This avoids the size limitations and space compression imposed by the wall thickness of pre-processed tip components, and saves design space for the optical path, freeing up space for other components. The tip molding method of this invention not only reduces the size of the tip but also allows for the addition of new working channels without increasing the tip size, thus improving space utilization.

[0073] In some embodiments, the distal profile of the closed end in the longitudinal section of the mold is pointed, rounded, stepped, or stepped.

[0074] Preferably, in this embodiment, the shape of the head end 1 can be changed by altering the mold 7. For example... Figures 4 to 7 As shown, this example illustrates several possible head shapes, where the image sensor 11 and illumination system 12 are encased in a transparent material. Examples applicable to this embodiment include, but are not limited to, the styles shown in the figures, which can be customized for different applications: (1) Figure 4 As shown, the tip 1 is pointed, which facilitates the insertion of the catheter into small cavities of the human body; (2) Figure 5 As shown, the head end 1 is arc-shaped, which can prevent the catheter from scratching human tissue on the one hand, and can also act as a convex lens to focus light and magnify it on the other hand; (3) Figure 6 The head end 1 is shown to be an arc shape with steps. The added steps can act as an "anchor" to better fix the head end in the target position; (4) Figure 7 The head end 1 is shown to be flat-bottomed with steps, which provides better fixation without interfering with the signal reception of the image sensor 11.

[0075] Example 2

[0076] Based on the above implementation one, step S100, which involves fixing the pull wire end fixed to the pull wire ring to the image sensor, specifically includes:

[0077] Secure the pull cord to the pull cord ring;

[0078] The end of the pull cord protruding from the pull cord loop is flattened to form a flat segment;

[0079] The flat section of the pull wire is fixed to one side of the image sensor.

[0080] Specifically, the pull wire 5 is welded on the pull wire ring 6, and the part of the pull wire 5 extending out of the pull wire ring 6 is pretreated to make the head end of the pull wire 5 flat to form a flat section 51, wherein the pretreatment of the pull wire 5 can be shape design in the processing process, or can be obtained by pressing, machining or grinding on the finished product of the pull wire 5. The flat section 51 of the pull wire 5 is bonded to one side of the image sensor 11, so that the position of the pull wire 5 is relatively fixed. In this embodiment, the distal end of the pull wire 5 includes the flat section 51, so that the side of the pull wire 5 connected with the image sensor 11 is provided as a flat surface. The connection surface of the pull wire 5 with the image sensor 11 is large, the connection is firm, and the relative position can be kept unchanged. Therefore, during the bending control process, the flat section 51 can limit the bending direction of the image sensor 11, so that the image sensor 11 will only bend towards the two flat surfaces of the flat section 51, so that the bending direction of the image sensor 11 is consistent with the bending direction of the catheter, thereby realizing that the visual image is consistent with the bending direction of the catheter, avoiding the rotation of the image sensor 11 to bend in any direction, and thereby realizing the control of the bending direction of the image sensor 11.

[0081] Embodiment three

[0082] On the basis of the above-mentioned embodiment one or embodiment two, S200 installs the illumination system, the image sensor and the pull wire ring on the distal end of the bending control catheter, and specifically includes:

[0083] Fixing the illumination system on the side of the image sensor;

[0084] Installing the illumination system and the image sensor on the distal end of the bending control catheter;

[0085] Adjusting the orientation of the pull wire ring on the distal end of the bending control catheter, so that the direction of the distal end of the pull wire away from the flat surface of the image sensor is consistent with the bending direction of the bending control catheter;

[0086] Fixing the pull wire ring on the distal end surface of the bending control catheter.

[0087] Specifically, the illumination system 12 of this embodiment is fixed on the image sensor 11, and the following will be described by taking the example that the illumination system 12 includes two LED lamps. As shown in Figure 8 , the two LED lamps are fixed on the opposite two surfaces of the image sensor 11, and it is ensured that the two LED lamps are in contact with the image sensor 11 by the largest area, so as to maximize the space utilization and further reduce the size of the visual catheter head end. Since the head end 1 of the present application is wrapped by a transparent material, the light source emits well, and a single LED lamp can also achieve the uniform light irradiation effect of two LED lamps, so as shown in Figure 10 , one of the two LED lamps in the illumination system 12 can be deleted to provide more possibilities for the new working channel.

[0088] The image sensor 11 with the lighting system 12 fixed thereon is installed outside the distal end of the steerable catheter 2, and then the orientation of the pull ring 6 outside the distal end of the steerable catheter 2 is adjusted so that the orientation of the flat surface of the flat section 51 of the pull wire 5 away from the image sensor 11 is consistent with the steering direction of the steerable catheter 2. Specifically, as shown in Figure 9 the flat surface of the flat section 51 of the pull wire 5 away from the image sensor 11 is oriented to the side of the steerable catheter 2 with the thinnest wall, and the direction in which the flat surface extends outward from the side of the steerable catheter 2 with the thinnest wall is the steering direction of the steerable catheter 2. Here, the specific position of the surface of the image sensor 11 bonded with the flat section 51 of the pull wire 5 can be any surface of the image sensor 11 extending along the longitudinal axis thereof, which is not limited in the present application. Since the visible image on the image display is consistent with the direction of the image sensor 11 and the relative position of the image sensor 11 and the pull wire 5 is fixed, the final visible image is consistent with the steering direction of the steerable catheter 2. For example, as the steerable catheter 2 is bent downward, the visible image can present a downward moving view angle.

[0089] Embodiment Four

[0090] On the basis of the above-mentioned embodiment one or embodiment two, S200 installs the lighting system, the image sensor and the pull ring outside the distal end of the steerable catheter specifically includes:

[0091] fixing the lighting system on the distal end surface of the steerable catheter;

[0092] installing the image sensor outside the distal end of the steerable catheter;

[0093] adjusting the orientation of the pull ring outside the distal end of the steerable catheter so that the orientation of the distal end of the pull wire away from the flat surface of the image sensor is consistent with the steering direction of the steerable catheter;

[0094] fixing the pull ring on the distal end surface of the steerable catheter.

[0095] Specifically, when the LED lamp is fixed on the image sensor 11, the LED lamp and the image sensor 11 are placed side by side on the distal surface of the head end 1. Since the LED lamp has a heat effect, the heat is relatively concentrated, which can easily cause local high temperature and cause damage to human tissues and the image sensor 11. In the present embodiment, as shown in Figure 11 and Figure 12 the lighting system 12 is placed close to the steerable catheter 2 at the head end 1, and the lighting system 12 is located below the image sensor 11. This not only can further save space for the head end 1 and provide the possibility for the increase of new working channels, but also can effectively accelerate the heat dissipation efficiency of the LED light source close to the channel of the steerable catheter 2 due to the air contained in the cavity of the steerable catheter 2, thereby avoiding the concentration of heat to cause local overheating.

[0096] The installation of the illumination system 12 in this embodiment is different from the above-mentioned embodiments, which requires that the LED lamp be fixed in advance at a proper position on the distal end face of the steerable catheter 2. The installation of other components, such as the image sensor 11, the pull wire 5, the pull wire ring 6, etc., is the same as in the above-mentioned embodiments, and will not be described again in this embodiment.

[0097] Embodiment Five

[0098] On the basis of the above-mentioned Embodiment One or Embodiment Two or Embodiment Three or Embodiment Four, the step of placing the illumination system and the image sensor into the mold before S300 further comprises:

[0099] One or a plurality of spacer rods are arranged at predetermined positions in the mold.

[0100] Specifically, to optimize the space utilization of the head end of the visual catheter, the pull wire 5, the image sensor 11 and the illumination system 12 in the head end structure of this embodiment remain unchanged on the basis of the above-mentioned embodiments, as shown in FIG. 1, and a new working channel 14 is added on the side of the image sensor 11, as shown in FIG. 2. When the working channel 14 is added on the head end 1, a corresponding channel also needs to be added on the steerable catheter 2. The number of working channels 14 on the head end 1 can be one or more. With the increase in the number of working channels 14, the additional functions of the visual catheter increase, and the new working channel 14 can place an electromagnetic induction sensor, a biopsy tool or other components, helping the visual catheter to better position, and providing the possibility for the application of the visual catheter in the integration of diagnosis and treatment functions. Figure 13 Figure 14

[0101] As shown in FIG. 2, the process of adding the working channel 14 on the head end 1 is to reserve a spacer rod 8 in the mold 7 at a position corresponding to the working channel 14, and then perform glue injection and curing forming treatment. After the head end 1 is formed, the reserved spacer rod 8 and the mold 7 are removed in sequence, and the head end structure with the reserved working channel 14 is obtained. The surface of the reserved spacer rod 8 needs to be treated in advance so as not to be adhered to the glue. According to the number and size of the working channel 14, the corresponding number and size of the spacer rod 8 can be flexibly selected. Figure 15

[0102] In summary, the head end forming method of the visual catheter in the above-mentioned embodiments has the following technical effects:

[0103] ​​​(1) The head end of the visual catheter is formed by UV glue curing molding method, which not only shortens the process flow of head end processing and reduces the processing cost, but also does not need pre-processing parts, can reduce the volume of the head end, and the head end processing is integrated molding, which eliminates the two steps of assembling the image sensor and the lighting system in the pre-processed parts of the head end and assembling the head end with the control bending catheter, and is completed in one step in the mold, which can avoid the slight damage or accidental stress of the image sensor in the assembly process, and further avoid the damage of the head end parts in the assembly process.

[0104] (2) The use of transparent material in the head end eliminates the need for special light path channel design, which can change the position and number of light sources on the basis of ensuring the lighting effect and avoid heat accumulation to burn human tissues.

[0105] (3) Without increasing the processing difficulty and cost, the shape and outer diameter size of the catheter head end can be freely adjusted by changing the mold, without the need for mold opening or precision machining, but only by changing the parameters of the mold, which can effectively reduce the cost.

[0106] (4) During the processing, the pull wire is pretreated, and the upper end of the pull wire is shaped and treated as a flat section, one flat surface of which faces the thinnest side of the bendable section catheter wall, and the other flat surface is bonded to a certain surface of the image sensor. The bonded surface of the image sensor is not limited here, and can correspond to any direction of the visual image, such as "up", "down", "left" and "right", so that the bending direction of the catheter and the direction of the visual image on the display are always consistent, so that the new head end structure can control the direction of the visual image on the display to correspond to the bending direction of the catheter, which is convenient for the operator to operate and observe the lesion.

[0107] (5) During the head end assembly process, a spacer rod is reserved at the corresponding mold position of the channel, and then glue injection and curing molding treatment are performed. After the head end is formed, the reserved spacer rod and the mold are removed in sequence, a new working channel is added outside the original image sensor and lighting system components of the head end structure, and the processing difficulty is not increased, which gives the visual catheter the possibility of additional functions.

[0108] Example Six

[0109] A head end of a visual catheter, as shown in Figures 3-8 , includes a lighting system 12, an image sensor 11, a pull wire 5, and a transparent part 15. The head end of the pull wire 5 is fixed to the image sensor 11, the transparent part 15 is integrally cured and formed, and wraps the lighting system 12, the image sensor 11 and the pull wire 5, and the transparent part 15 is fixed with the lighting system 12, the image sensor 11 and the pull wire 5. The head end of the visual catheter is formed by any one of the molding methods of examples one to five. As shown in Figure 10As shown, the head end of the formed visual conduit may be provided with one or more working channels 14. Compared with machining, this method is easier to form, reduces processing difficulty and cost, and the addition of new working channels 14 can give the visual conduit the possibility of other functions. The distal shape of the head end of the formed visual conduit can be changed according to the shape of the mold 7. For example, the distal contour shape of the longitudinal section of the head end 1 can be pointed, rounded, stepped, or stepped trapezoidal, etc., to meet different usage requirements of the head end 1.

[0110] Example 7

[0111] A visual catheter, such as Figure 1 As shown, the device includes a control handle 4, a non-bendable conduit 3, a bendable conduit 2, and a head end 1 connected in sequence. The head end 1 is the head end 1 of the visual conduit described in Embodiment Six above. The head end 1 of the visual conduit is obtained using an integrated injection molding process, which avoids the size limitations imposed by the wall thickness of the pre-processed head end components and the space compression of the head end components. The head end is integrally molded, eliminating the step of assembling the image sensor and illumination system within the pre-processed head end components. This avoids minor damage to the image sensor 11 or accidental stress during assembly, which could affect the final imaging effect.

[0112] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention. It should be noted that for those skilled in the art, several improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the principle of the present invention, and these improvements and modifications should also be considered within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for shaping the tip of a visual catheter, characterized in that, include: Fix the end of the pull wire, which is fixed on the pull wire ring, to the image sensor; The lighting system, the image sensor, and the pull ring are mounted on the distal end of the bend control conduit; Place the lighting system, the image sensor, and the draw wire into the mold; Inject a transparent material into the mold, and demold after it has cured and solidified. The specific steps of fixing the pull wire end fixed to the pull wire ring to the image sensor include: Secure the pull cord to the pull cord ring; The end of the pull cord protruding from the pull cord loop is flattened to form a flat segment; The flat section of the pull wire is fixed to one side of the image sensor; The installation of the lighting system, the image sensor, and the pull ring on the distal end of the bend control conduit specifically includes: The illumination system is fixed to the side of the image sensor; The lighting system and the image sensor are mounted on the distal end of the bend control duct. Adjust the position of the pull wire loop outside the distal end of the bending control conduit so that the orientation of the distal end of the pull wire away from the flat surface of the image sensor is consistent with the bending direction of the bending control conduit. The pull ring is fixed to the distal end face of the bending control conduit.

2. The method for forming the tip of a visual catheter according to claim 1, characterized in that, The installation of the lighting system, the image sensor, and the pull ring on the distal end of the bend control conduit specifically includes: Fix the lighting system to the distal end face of the bend control duct; The image sensor is mounted on the distal end of the bend-controlled conduit; Adjust the position of the pull wire loop outside the distal end of the bending control conduit so that the orientation of the distal end of the pull wire away from the flat surface of the image sensor is consistent with the bending direction of the bending control conduit. The pull ring is fixed to the distal end face of the bending control conduit.

3. The method for forming the tip of a visual catheter according to claim 1, characterized in that, The process of placing the lighting system and the image sensor into the mold also includes: One or more liner rods are set at preset positions within the mold.

4. The method for shaping the tip of a visual catheter according to claim 1, characterized in that, The inner diameter of the mold is the same as the outer diameter of the bending control guide tube; The height of the mold is greater than the length of the head end; and / or; The contour shape of the closed end in the longitudinal section of the mold is pointed, rounded, or stepped trapezoidal.

5. A tip of a visual catheter, characterized in that, The method for forming the tip of a visual catheter according to any one of claims 1-4 includes an illumination system, an image sensor, a pull wire, and a transparent component. The tip of the pull wire is fixed to the image sensor. The transparent component is integrally cured and molded to wrap the illumination system, the image sensor, and the pull wire, and is fixed to the illumination system, the image sensor, and the pull wire. The pull wire has a flat section, the flat section including at least one flat surface, the flat surface being fixed to one side of the image sensor; the side extends along the longitudinal axis of the image sensor, the longitudinal axis of the image sensor being consistent with the extension direction of the pull wire.

6. The tip of a visual catheter according to claim 5, characterized in that, The tip of the visual catheter is provided with one or more working channels; and / or; The distal profile of the longitudinal section of the head end is pointed, rounded, or stepped trapezoidal.

7. A visual catheter, characterized in that, It includes a control handle, a non-bendable conduit, a bendable conduit, and the tip of the visual conduit as described in any one of claims 5-6, connected in sequence.

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