Hardness adjustment mechanism, insertion portion, and endoscope

Abstract

The present invention discloses a hardness adjustment mechanism, an insertion part and an endoscope, and relates to the technical field of medical devices. The hardness adjustment mechanism of the present invention is applied to an endoscope, and the hardness adjustment mechanism includes an elastic member and a driving member, wherein the elastic member is arranged in an active bending section of the insertion part of the endoscope, and the driving member is used to apply force to the elastic member and make the elastic member deform at least in the axial direction of the insertion part. Based on the force applied by the driving member to the elastic member, the elastic member has at least a first state and a second state, and the axial length of the elastic member in the first state is greater than the axial length of the elastic member in the second state. The present invention can realize the switching of the active bending section between the easy-to-bend and difficult-to-bend states by switching the elastic member between the first state and the second state, thereby adjusting the bending performance of the active bending section to meet different insertion requirements.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of medical instruments, and in particular to a hardness adjustment mechanism, an insertion part and an endoscope. Background Art

[0002] An endoscope is a commonly used medical device that can directly enter the human body for examination and provide doctors with sufficient diagnostic information. An endoscope usually includes: an insertion part for inserting into the human body, a handle for controlling the bending of the front end of the insertion part, and a display device for displaying the internal environment of the human body's natural cavity; the endoscope can realize the internal observation of the human body, the exploration of lesions, and the treatment of lesions through the cooperation of the above three parts.

[0003] The insertion part includes an active bending section and a passive bending section. The active bending section is located at the distal end of the insertion part. The active bending section can control its bending state by a lever on the operating handle. The active bending section has the characteristic of being easy to bend, and its hardness is smaller than that of the passive bending section. In the related art, in order to realize the bending of the active bending section, the active bending section is formed by riveting, hinged or welding multiple snake bones, and there is a gap between two adjacent snake bone sections.

[0004] However, the endoscope still has at least the following defects during use: when the insertion part is inserted into the cavity, especially at the entrance of the cavity, the insertion part encounters a large resistance, and the active bending section is easy to deform and bend, which is not conducive to the insertion of the insertion part into the entrance of the cavity. Therefore, providing an insertion part that is easy to insert into the entrance of the cavity has become a technical problem that needs to be solved urgently by those skilled in the art. Summary of the invention

[0005] The invention discloses a hardness adjustment mechanism, an insertion part and an endoscope, so as to solve the technical problem in the related art that the active bending section of the insertion part is easy to deform and bend, which is not conducive to inserting the insertion part into the entrance of the cavity.

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention adopts the following technical solutions:

[0007] A first aspect of the present invention provides a hardness adjustment mechanism.

[0008] The hardness adjustment mechanism of the present invention is applied to an endoscope, and the hardness adjustment mechanism includes an elastic member and a driving member, wherein the elastic member is arranged in an active bending section of an insertion portion of the endoscope, and the driving member is used to apply force to the elastic member and cause the elastic member to deform at least in the axial direction of the insertion portion. Based on the force applied by the driving member to the elastic member, the elastic member has at least a first state and a second state, and the axial length of the elastic member in the first state is greater than the axial length of the elastic member in the second state.

[0009] According to an optional embodiment, the elastic member is sleeved on the instrument tube of the insertion part, and based on the force applied by the driving member to the elastic member, the elastic member is also deformed in the radial direction of the insertion part, and the outer diameter of the elastic member when it is in the first state is smaller than the outer diameter of the elastic member when it is in the second state.

[0010] According to an optional embodiment, when the elastic member is in a first state, the inner wall of the elastic member fits against the instrument tube, and a first gap exists between the outer wall of the elastic member and the inner wall of the active bending section; when the elastic member is in a second state, the outer wall of the elastic member abuts against the inner wall of the active bending section; or a second gap exists between the outer wall of the elastic member and the inner wall of the active bending section, and the second gap is smaller than the first gap.

[0011] According to an optional embodiment, the distal end of the elastic member is fixedly connected to the distal end of the active bending section, the proximal end of the elastic member is slidably disposed in the insertion portion, and when the elastic member is in the second state, the proximal end of the elastic member is located at the proximal end of the active bending section.

[0012] According to an optional embodiment, the driving member includes at least one group of pulling components, and the pulling component includes a first pulling rope, one end of the first pulling rope is connected to the proximal end of the elastic member, and the other end of the first pulling rope is connected to the handle of the endoscope.

[0013] According to an optional embodiment, the pulling assembly also includes a pressure ring, which is sleeved on the outside of the instrument tube of the insertion part, and the pressure ring cooperates with the proximal axial limit of the elastic member. One end of the first traction rope is connected to the pressure ring, and based on the force applied by the first traction rope, the pressure ring drives the elastic member to move axially.

[0014] According to an optional embodiment, the first traction rope is formed with a bending portion at the distal end of the elastic member, the bending radius of the bending portion is greater than or equal to the radius of the active bending section, and the first traction rope located at both ends of the bending portion is respectively located on both sides of the connection point of adjacent snake bone nodes of the active bending section.

[0015] According to an optional embodiment, the pulling assembly also includes a sleeve, the first traction rope is slidably disposed in the sleeve, the distal end of the sleeve passes through the bending portion, and the distal end of the sleeve is located at the distal end of the active bending section; or the distal end of the sleeve passes through the bending portion, and the distal end of the sleeve is located at the proximal end of the active bending section, and when the elastic member is in the second state, the sleeve abuts against the pressure ring to limit the position.

[0016] A second aspect of the present invention provides an insertion portion.

[0017] The insertion portion of the present invention comprises an active bending section and a passive bending section, the active bending section and the passive bending section are connected, and the hardness adjustment mechanism described in any technical solution of the present invention is arranged in the active bending section.

[0018] A third aspect of the present invention provides an endoscope.

[0019] The endoscope of the present invention comprises an insertion portion and a handle, wherein the insertion portion and the handle are connected, and the insertion portion is the insertion portion described in any one of the technical solutions of the present invention.

[0020] The technical solution adopted by the present invention can achieve the following beneficial effects:

[0021] When the hardness adjustment mechanism of the present invention is applied to an endoscope, the elastic member is arranged in the active bending section of the insertion part of the endoscope, and the driving member is used to apply force to the elastic member, so that the elastic member can be deformed at least in the axial direction of the insertion part, thereby changing the axial length of the elastic member. Specifically, when the elastic member is in the first state, its axial length is relatively long. In this state, the hardness of the elastic member is relatively small, and the elastic member is easy to bend. When the active bending section is bent, the resistance encountered by the active bending section is relatively small, so that the active bending section can maintain the performance of being easy to bend; when the elastic member is in the second state, its axial length is relatively short. In this state, the hardness of the elastic member is relatively large, and the elastic member is not easy to bend. When the active bending section is bent, the resistance encountered by the active bending section is relatively large, so that the active bending section has the performance of being difficult to bend.

[0022] It can be seen that by switching the elastic member between the first state and the second state, the active bending section can be switched between the easy-to-bend and difficult-to-bend states, thereby adjusting the bending performance of the active bending section to meet different insertion requirements. This solves the technical problem in the related art that the active bending section of the insertion part is easy to deform and bend, which is not conducive to inserting the insertion part into the cavity entrance. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0023] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying creative work.

[0024] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an endoscope according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0025] Figure 2 It is a partial schematic diagram of the insertion portion of an embodiment of the present application;

[0026] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of an elastic member in a first state according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0027] Figure 4 is a first schematic diagram of the elastic member in the second state of the embodiment of the present application;

[0028] Figure 5 yes Figure 4 A magnified view of part A;

[0029] Figure 6 is a second schematic diagram of the elastic member in the embodiment of the present application in the second state;

[0030] Figure 7 yes Figure 6 A magnified view of part B;

[0031] Figure 8 is a first schematic diagram of another embodiment of the present application in which the elastic member is in the second state;

[0032] Fig. 9 yes Figure 8 Enlarged view of part C;

[0033] Fig.10 is a second schematic diagram of another embodiment of the present application showing an elastic member in a second state;

[0034] Fig.11 yes Fig.10 A magnified view of part D in the middle;

[0035] Fig.12 is a schematic diagram of the elastic member of the embodiment of the present application cooperating with the active bending section when the elastic member is in the first state;

[0036] Fig.13 is a schematic diagram of the elastic member of the embodiment of the present application cooperating with the active bending section when the elastic member is in the second state;

[0037] Fig.14 is a schematic diagram of an active bending section of an embodiment of the present application;

[0038] Fig.15 It is a schematic diagram of the snake bone joint of the embodiment of the present application;

[0039] Fig.16 It is a schematic diagram of the pressing ring of the embodiment of the present application.

[0040] In the figure: 100, hardness adjustment mechanism; 110, elastic member; 120, driving member; 121, first traction rope; 121a, bending portion; 122, pressure ring; 122a, mounting hole; 123, sleeve; 200, insertion portion; 210, active bending section; 211, serpentine joint; 212, connection point; 213, first recessed portion; 214, second recessed portion; 215, mounting tube; 216, fixing portion; 220, instrument tube; 230, passive bending section; 240, second traction rope; 250, first gap; 300, handle. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0041] To make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the present invention clearer, the technical solution of the present invention will be described in detail below. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, rather than all the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other implementation methods obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work belong to the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0042] The terms "first", "second", etc. in the specification and claims of the present application are used to distinguish similar objects, and are not used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that the data used in this way can be interchangeable under appropriate circumstances, so that the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in an order other than those illustrated or described here, and the objects distinguished by "first", "second", etc. are generally of one type, and the number of objects is not limited. For example, the first object can be one or more. In addition, "and / or" in the specification and claims represents at least one of the connected objects, and the character " / " generally indicates that the objects associated with each other are in an "or" relationship.

[0043] In each embodiment of the present application, "proximal end" and "distal end" refer to the position of each component relative to the user in the use environment, wherein the end closer to the user is designated as the "proximal end" and the end farther from the user is designated as the "distal end".

[0044] In the related art, the distal end of the insertion part is provided with a camera module, an instrument tube outlet and other structures. In order to make the camera module have a larger camera range, or to align the instrument tube outlet with the lesion, it is usually necessary to adjust the bending state of the distal end of the insertion part. Specifically, the distal end of the insertion part is provided with an active bending section, and there is a gap between two adjacent snake bone sections of the active bending section, so that the hardness of the active bending section is relatively small and has the characteristic of being easy to bend. The bending state of the active bending section can be controlled by operating the lever on the handle.

[0045] When the lever is not operated, although the active bending section is in a straight state, when the insertion part is inserted into the entrance of the cavity, especially when the size of the entrance of the cavity is small, it is usually necessary to apply a large force to the insertion part to insert the insertion part into the cavity, which not only easily causes tissue damage, but also the insertion part is subjected to large resistance during the process, which easily causes the active bending section to bend, which is not conducive to inserting the insertion part into the entrance of the cavity.

[0046] To this end, the present application provides a hardness adjustment mechanism, which is arranged in the active bending section of the insertion part, and the bending performance of the active bending section can be adjusted by the hardness adjustment mechanism. Exemplarily, when the insertion part is inserted into the entrance of the cavity, the hardness adjustment structure makes the active bending section have a property that is not easy to bend, thereby reducing the difficulty of inserting the insertion part into the entrance of the cavity; after the insertion part is inserted into the entrance of the cavity, the active bending section restores the property of being easy to bend, thereby facilitating the insertion of the insertion part into the bent cavity, or adjusting the orientation of structures such as the camera module and the instrument tube outlet.

[0047] The following is combined with Figures 1 to 16 , the hardness adjustment mechanism, insertion part and endoscope provided by the present application are described in detail through specific embodiments and their application scenarios.

[0048] The first aspect of this embodiment describes the hardness adjustment mechanism in detail.

[0049] The hardness adjustment mechanism of this embodiment is applied to an endoscope. The endoscope includes an insertion portion 200 and a handle 300. The insertion portion 200 is used to be inserted into a cavity. The handle 300 is provided with an operating member for the convenience of the doctor to operate. Figure 1 The inserting portion 200 has an active bending section 210 and a passive bending section 230, wherein the active bending section 210 is located at the distal end and the passive bending section 230 is located at the proximal end. Figure 2 The insertion portion 200 is also provided with an instrument tube 220, which is used to insert instruments. Figure 2 As shown. The distal end surface of the active bending section 210 is provided with a camera module and other structures. Exemplarily, the active bending section 210 is formed by hingedly connecting multiple snake bone sections 211, and two adjacent snake bone sections 211 have two symmetrically distributed connection points 212, such as Fig.14 shown.

[0050] The hardness adjustment mechanism of this embodiment includes an elastic member 110, such as Figure 3 As shown. Exemplarily, the elastic member 110 is a spring or an elastic rubber member or other elastic member. Since the elastic member 110 is elastic, it can be deformed under force. The following description is made by taking the elastic member 110 as a spring as an example.

[0051] In some embodiments, the elastic member 110 is disposed in the active bending section 210, such as Figure 3 As shown. Exemplarily, the elastic member 110 is disposed in the cavity of the active bending section 210 along the axial direction. Exemplarily, the elastic member 110 can also be disposed on the outer wall surface of the active bending section 210 along the axial direction. Exemplarily, the elastic member 110 is disposed in the cavity of the active bending section 210 along the axial direction, and the elastic member 110 is also evenly distributed along the circumferential direction of the active bending section 210, so that the bending performance of each part of the active bending section 210 remains consistent.

[0052] In some embodiments, the hardness adjustment mechanism further includes a driving member 120, such as Figure 3 The driving member 120 is used to apply force to the elastic member 110, and to deform the elastic member 110 at least in the axial direction of the insertion portion 200. Exemplarily, the force applied by the driving member 120 to the elastic member 110 may be a thrust or a pull in the axial direction of the elastic member 110, so that the elastic member 110 may be deformed in its axial direction. The deformation of the elastic member 110 in its axial direction may cause the length of the elastic member 110 in its axial direction to change.

[0053] Based on the force applied by the driving member 120 to the elastic member 110, the elastic member 110 has at least a first state and a second state, and the axial length of the elastic member 110 in the first state is greater than the axial length of the elastic member 110 in the second state. The first state of the elastic member 110 can also be said to be the initial state of the elastic member 110. Figure 3 shows a schematic diagram of the elastic member 110 in a first state; Figure 4 , Figure 6 , Figure 8 and Fig.10 A schematic diagram showing the elastic member 110 in the second state is shown. Figure 3 The passive bending section 230 is hidden. Figure 4 and Figure 8 The snake bone segment 211 at the proximal end of the active bending segment 210 and the passive bending segment 230 are hidden. Figure 6 and Fig.10 The snake bone joints 211 and the passive bending section 230 located at the proximal and distal ends of the active bending section 210 are hidden.

[0054] For example, taking the case where the distal end of the elastic member 110 is fixed and a thrust is applied to the proximal end of the elastic member 110, the greater the thrust applied to the elastic member 110, the greater the deformation of the elastic member 110, the shorter the length of the elastic member 110 in the axial direction, and the greater the hardness of the elastic member 110. Taking a spring as an example, when the pitch between two adjacent turns of the spring is reduced to 0, the hardness of the spring is the largest. Conversely, the smaller the thrust applied to the elastic member 110, the smaller the deformation of the elastic member 110, the longer the length of the elastic member 110 in the axial direction, and the smaller the hardness of the elastic member 110.

[0055] Exemplarily, in the first state, the elastic member 110 is not subjected to the force applied by the driving member 120, or is subjected to a small push or pull force by the driving member 120, so that the elastic member 110 is in a natural state, or a slightly compressed or slightly stretched state. In the second state, the elastic member 110 is subjected to a large push force by the driving member 120, so that the elastic member 110 is compressed to a large extent.

[0056] In the hardness adjustment mechanism of this embodiment, when the elastic member 110 is in the first state, its axial length is relatively long and its pitch is relatively large. In this state, the hardness of the elastic member 110 is relatively small and the elastic member 110 is easy to bend. When the active bending section 210 bends, the resistance encountered by the active bending section 210 is relatively small, thereby enabling the active bending section 210 to maintain the property of being easy to bend; when the elastic member 110 is in the second state, its axial length is relatively short and its pitch is relatively small or even 0. In this state, the hardness of the elastic member 110 is relatively large and the elastic member 110 is not easy to bend. When the active bending section 210 bends, the resistance encountered by the active bending section 210 is relatively large, thereby enabling the active bending section 210 to have the property of being difficult to bend.

[0057] It can be seen that by switching the elastic member 110 between the first state and the second state, the active bending section 210 can be switched between the easy-to-bend state and the difficult-to-bend state, thereby adjusting the bending performance of the active bending section 210 to meet different insertion requirements, thereby solving the technical problem in the related art that the active bending section 210 of the insertion part 200 is easy to deform and bend, which is not conducive to inserting the insertion part 200 into the cavity entrance.

[0058] In some embodiments, the elastic member 110 is sleeved on the instrument tube 220 of the insertion portion 200, such as Figure 3 As shown. Exemplarily, the elastic member 110 has a first channel penetrating in the axial direction, so that the elastic member 110 can be sleeved on the instrument tube 220, especially sleeved on the instrument tube 220 located at the active bending section 210.

[0059] In some embodiments, based on the force applied by the driving member 120 to the elastic member 110, the elastic member 110 is also deformed in the radial direction of the insertion portion 200, and the outer diameter of the elastic member 110 in the first state is smaller than the outer diameter of the elastic member 110 in the second state. That is, when the driving member 120 applies force to the elastic member 110, the elastic member 110 may not only deform axially, but also deform radially, so that the radial size of the elastic member 110 changes. Exemplarily, when the elastic member 110 switches from the first state to the second state, the size of the elastic member 110 in the radial direction increases, and when the elastic member 110 abuts against the inner wall of the active bending section 210, the active bending section 210 may be less prone to bending.

[0060] In some embodiments, when the elastic member 110 is in the first state, the inner wall of the elastic member 110 fits the instrument tube 220, and a first gap 250 is formed between the outer wall of the elastic member 110 and the inner wall of the active bending section 210. Fig.12 As shown. On the one hand, there is a first gap 250 between the outer wall of the elastic member 110 and the inner wall of the active bending section 210, so that when the active bending section 210 is bent, it is beneficial to reduce the resistance of the active bending section 210 to bending. On the other hand, during the bending process of the active bending section 210, the instrument tube 220 bends along with the bending of the active bending section 210, and there may be a hidden danger that the instrument tube 220 collapses on the bending side. In this embodiment, the inner wall of the elastic member 110 fits with the instrument tube 220, and the elastic member 110 can constrain the instrument tube 220, reducing the risk of collapse of the instrument tube 220.

[0061] In some embodiments, when the elastic member 110 is in the second state, the outer wall of the elastic member 110 abuts against the inner wall of the active bending section 210, such as Fig.13 or there is a second gap between the outer wall of the elastic member 110 and the inner wall of the active bending section 210, and the second gap is smaller than the first gap 250. When the elastic member 110 is in the second state, when the active bending section 210 is about to bend, it is resisted by the elastic member 110, so that the active bending section 210 is more difficult to bend (or the hardness of the active bending section 210 is greater).

[0062] In some embodiments, the active bending section 210 is provided with a first recessed portion 213, such as Fig.15 The first recessed portion 213 is recessed toward the instrument tube 220, and the groove formed by the first recessed portion 213 is used to install the first traction rope 121. The active bending section 210 is also provided with a second recessed portion 214, as shown in FIG. Fig.15 As shown. The second recessed portion 214 is recessed toward the instrument tube 220. The groove formed by the second recessed portion 214 is used to install the second traction rope 240 (the second traction rope 240 is used to control the bending state of the active bending section 210). Exemplarily, the second recessed portion 214 is provided with a mounting tube 215. The mounting tube 215 is used to install the second traction rope 240. The second traction rope 240 can be slidably disposed in the mounting tube 215. Fig.15 As shown. Exemplarily, the first recessed portion 213 and the second recessed portion 214 are distributed in the circumferential direction of the active bending section 210, so that the inner walls of the first recessed portion 213 and the second recessed portion 214 can abut against the elastic member 110, as shown. Fig.12 , 13 and 15.

[0063] In some embodiments, along the axial direction of the active bending section 210, the first recessed portion 213 and the second recessed portion 214 are distributed over the entire length of each snake bone segment 211, such as Fig.14 and Fig.15 As shown. That is, the length of the first recessed portion 213 and the second recessed portion 214 is the same as the length of the snake bone section 211, which is beneficial to the contraction or extension of the elastic member 110. Specifically, taking the spring as an example, there is a gap between two adjacent coils of the spring, and there is also a gap between two adjacent sections of the snake bone section 211. The lengths of the first recessed portion 213 and the second recessed portion 214 are relatively long, so that the spring and the active bending section 210 are not prone to the hidden danger of mutual jamming.

[0064] In some embodiments, the distal end of the elastic member 110 is fixedly connected to the distal end of the active bending section 210 (for example, by welding), and the proximal end of the elastic member 110 can be slidably disposed in the insertion portion 200. The distal end of the active bending section 210 also has structures such as a camera module, and the space is limited. This arrangement of the elastic member 110 ensures that the deformation of the elastic member 110 in the axial direction will not affect the camera module and the like at the distal end of the active bending section 210.

[0065] In some embodiments, when the elastic member 110 is in the second state, the proximal end of the elastic member 110 is located at the proximal end of the active bending section 210, so that the active bending section 210 has substantially the same hardness along its entire length. Figure 4 , Figure 6 , Figure 8 and Fig.10 shown.

[0066] In some embodiments, the driving member 120 includes at least one set of pulling components. For example, the driving member 120 may include two sets of pulling components, and the two sets of pulling components are symmetrically distributed in the circumferential direction of the elastic member 110, so that the elastic member 110 is evenly stressed in the circumferential direction, avoiding the hidden danger of the elastic member 110 tilting when stressed. For example, the two sets of pulling components may also be asymmetrically distributed in the circumferential direction of the elastic member 110.

[0067] In some embodiments, the pulling assembly includes a first pulling rope 121, one end of the first pulling rope 121 is connected to the proximal end of the elastic member 110, and the other end of the first pulling rope 121 is connected to the handle 300 of the endoscope. Figure 3 Exemplarily, when a pulling force is applied to the first traction rope 121, the proximal end of the elastic member 110 is moved toward the distal end by the pulling force, so that the axial length of the elastic member 110 is shortened and the elastic member 110 is in a compressed state; when the pulling force applied to the first traction rope 121 is released, the proximal end of the elastic member 110 moves toward the proximal end under the action of its own elastic force, so that the axial length of the elastic member 110 is extended.

[0068] In some embodiments, the handle 300 is provided with a structure similar to a lever or a button. By operating the corresponding structure, the first traction rope 121 can be triggered to apply tension to the elastic member 110, or the tension applied by the first traction rope 121 to the elastic member 110 can be triggered to be released.

[0069] In some embodiments, the pulling assembly further includes a pressing ring 122, such as Figure 3 The pressing ring 122 is sleeved on the outside of the instrument tube 220 of the insertion part 200, and the pressing ring 122 is axially limited with the proximal end of the elastic member 110, as shown in FIG. Figure 3 That is, the pressing ring 122 is located at the proximal end of the elastic member 110 and blocks the proximal end of the elastic member 110 .

[0070] One end of the first traction rope 121 is connected to the pressing ring 122. Based on the force applied by the first traction rope 121, the pressing ring 122 drives the elastic member 110 to move axially. Fig.16 The mounting hole 122a is used to mount and fix the first traction rope 121.

[0071] Exemplarily, when a pulling force is applied to the first traction rope 121, the pressing ring 122 is pulled and moves toward the distal end. The movement of the pressing ring 122 can drive the elastic member 110 to move toward the proximal end, thereby shortening the axial length of the elastic member 110 and putting the elastic member 110 in a compressed state. By applying force to the elastic member 110 through the pressing ring 122, the uniformity of the force applied to the elastic member 110 in the circumferential direction can be further enhanced. When the pulling force applied to the first traction rope 121 is released, the proximal end of the elastic member 110 moves toward the proximal end under the action of its own elastic force and pushes the pressing ring 122 to move toward the proximal end, thereby extending the axial length of the elastic member 110.

[0072] In some embodiments, the first traction rope 121 is formed with a curved portion 121a at the distal end of the elastic member 110, such as Figure 3 That is, after one end of the first traction rope 121 is connected to the proximal end of the elastic member 110 or the pressing ring 122, the other end of the first traction rope 121 is axially extended to the distal end of the elastic member 110, and after being bent at the distal end of the elastic member 110 to form a curved portion 121a, it is axially extended again to the handle 300. For example, a fixing portion 216 is provided on the snake bone joint 211 at the farthest end, and the fixing portion 216 is used to fix the curved portion 121a. Figure 3 shown.

[0073] In some embodiments, the bending radius of the curved portion 121a is greater than or equal to the radius of the active bending section 210. Figure 3That is, the first traction rope 121 forms a relatively large curved portion 121a at the distal end of the elastic member 110. This structure is conducive to reducing the friction resistance of the first traction rope 121 at the curved portion 121a, thereby increasing the smoothness of the first traction rope 121 during the pulling process and avoiding the problem of the first traction rope 121 being stuck at the curved portion 121a.

[0074] In some embodiments, the first traction ropes 121 located at both ends of the bending portion 121a are respectively located on both sides of the connection point 212 of the adjacent snake bone joints 211 of the active bending section 210, such as Figure 7 and Fig.11 As shown. Exemplarily, the first traction rope 121 is located in the middle between the two connection points 212. This arrangement of the first traction rope 121 can form multiple constraint points in the circumferential direction of the active complete segment through the first traction rope 121 and the connection point 212, and when the elastic member 110 is in the second state, the hardness of the active bending segment 210 can be further enhanced.

[0075] In some embodiments, the pulling assembly further includes a sleeve 123, such as Figure 3 As shown. The first traction rope 121 is slidably disposed in the sleeve 123. Exemplarily, the sleeve 123 can be a hose. Exemplarily, the sleeve 123 can also be a hard tube. The inner diameter of the sleeve 123 is slightly larger than the inner diameter of the first traction rope 121, so that the first traction rope 121 can slide in the sleeve 123.

[0076] In some embodiments, the sleeve 123 extends from the proximal end to the distal end, and the distal end of the sleeve 123 passes through the curved portion 121a. Figure 6 , Figure 7 , Fig.10 and Fig.11 In the bending area, the first traction rope 121 is subjected to greater frictional resistance, and the distal end of the sleeve 123 is passed through the curved portion 121a. When the first traction rope 121 slides under force, the first traction rope 121 can slide along the bending direction of the sleeve 123, which is conducive to reducing the frictional resistance encountered by the first traction rope 121 during the sliding process.

[0077] In some embodiments, the distal end of the sleeve 123 is located at the distal end of the active bending section 210, such as Figure 4~Figure 7 shown.

[0078] In some embodiments, the distal end of the sleeve 123 passes through the curved portion 121a, and the distal end of the sleeve 123 is located at the proximal end of the active curved section 210. When the elastic member 110 is in the second state, the sleeve 123 abuts against the pressing ring 122 to limit the position. Figure 8~Figure 11 As shown. Preferably, the casing 123 is a hard pipe. Exemplarily, the casing 123 is a steel pipe.

[0079] The inventors found in their research that if the distal end of the sleeve 123 is located at the distal end of the active bending section 210, in this case, the tension applied to the first traction rope 121 is too large, and there is a problem of stress on the active bending section 210. The specific analysis is as follows: when the elastic member 110 is in the second state, if the first traction rope 121 continues to be applied, the elastic member 110 will continue to be stressed, and because the distal end of the elastic member 110 is connected to the distal end of the active bending section 210, the active bending section 210 will be stressed.

[0080] In this embodiment, the distal end of the sleeve 123 passes through the bending portion 121a, and the distal end of the sleeve 123 is located at the proximal end of the active bending section 210. When the elastic member 110 is in the second state, the sleeve 123 and the pressure ring 122 abut to limit the position. If force is continued to be applied to the first traction rope 121, the sleeve 123 and the pressure ring 122 abut to limit the elastic member 110 from continuing to be subjected to force, thereby avoiding the problem of the active bending section 210 being subjected to force.

[0081] The second aspect of this embodiment describes the insertion portion in detail.

[0082] The insertion portion of this embodiment includes an active bending section 210 and a passive bending section 230, and the active bending section 210 and the passive bending section 230 are connected, such as Figure 2 The structures of the active bending section 210 and the passive bending section 230 may be the same as those in the prior art, and will not be described in detail herein. In the insertion portion of this embodiment, the active bending section 210 is provided with a hardness adjustment mechanism 100 of any one of the embodiments.

[0083] The insertion portion of this embodiment can realize the switching of the active bending section 210 between the easy-to-bend and hard-to-bend states through the hardness adjustment mechanism of any technical solution in this embodiment, thereby realizing the adjustment of the bending performance of the active bending section 210 to meet different insertion requirements.

[0084] The third aspect of this embodiment describes the endoscope in detail.

[0085] The endoscope of this embodiment includes an insertion portion 200 and a handle 300. The insertion portion 200 and the handle 300 are connected. The insertion portion 200 is the insertion portion of any technical solution of this embodiment, such as Figure 1 shown.

[0086] The endoscope system of this embodiment may be a digestive endoscope, a bronchoscope, a pyeloscope, an esophagoscope, a gastroscope, a colonoscope, an otoscope, a rhinoscope, a stomatoscope, a laryngoscope, a colposcope, a laparoscope, an arthroscope, etc. This embodiment does not specifically limit the type of the endoscope system.

[0087] The endoscope of this embodiment can meet different insertion requirements through the function of the insertion part of any technical solution in this embodiment.

[0088] It should be noted that, in this article, the terms "include", "comprises" or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or device including a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, article or device. In the absence of further restrictions, an element defined by the sentence "comprises a ..." does not exclude the existence of other identical elements in the process, method, article or device including the element.

[0089] In addition, it should be noted that the scope of the methods and devices in the embodiments of the present application is not limited to performing functions in the order shown or discussed, and may also include performing functions in a substantially simultaneous manner or in a reverse order according to the functions involved. For example, the described methods may be performed in an order different from that described, and various steps may be added, omitted, or combined. In addition, features described with reference to certain examples may be combined in other examples.

[0090] The above description is only a specific implementation mode of the present invention, but the protection scope of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any technician familiar with the technical field can easily think of changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed by the present invention, which should be covered by the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A hardness adjustment mechanism, applied to an endoscope, characterized in that: The hardness adjustment mechanism comprises an elastic member (110) and a driving member (120), wherein the elastic member (110) is arranged in an active bending section (210) of an insertion portion (200) of an endoscope, and the driving member (120) is used to apply force to the elastic member (110) and cause the elastic member (110) to deform at least in an axial direction of the insertion portion (200). Based on the force applied by the driving member (120) to the elastic member (110), the elastic member (110) has at least a first state and a second state, and the axial length of the elastic member (110) when in the first state is greater than the axial length of the elastic member (110) when in the second state; The elastic member (110) is sleeved on the instrument tube (220) of the insertion portion (200), and based on the force applied by the driving member (120) to the elastic member (110), the elastic member (110) is also deformed in the radial direction of the insertion portion (200), so that the outer diameter of the elastic member (110) when in the first state is smaller than the outer diameter of the elastic member (110) when in the second state.

2. The hardness adjustment mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that: When the elastic member (110) is in the first state, the inner wall of the elastic member (110) fits the instrument tube (220), and a first gap (250) is provided between the outer wall of the elastic member (110) and the inner wall of the active bending section (210); When the elastic member (110) is in the second state, the outer wall of the elastic member (110) abuts against the inner wall of the active bending section (210); or a second gap is provided between the outer wall of the elastic member (110) and the inner wall of the active bending section (210), and the second gap is smaller than the first gap (250).

3. The hardness adjustment mechanism according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The distal end of the elastic member (110) is fixedly connected to the distal end of the active bending section (210), the proximal end of the elastic member (110) is slidably arranged in the insertion portion (200), and when the elastic member (110) is in the second state, the proximal end of the elastic member (110) is located at the proximal end of the active bending section (210).

4. The hardness adjustment mechanism according to claim 3, characterized in that: The driving member (120) comprises at least one group of pulling components, wherein the pulling components comprise a first pulling rope (121), one end of the first pulling rope (121) being connected to the proximal end of the elastic member (110), and the other end of the first pulling rope (121) being connected to the handle (300) of the endoscope.

5. The hardness adjustment mechanism according to claim 4, characterized in that: The pulling assembly further comprises a pressing ring (122), wherein the pressing ring (122) is sleeved on the outside of the instrument tube (220) of the insertion portion (200), and the pressing ring (122) is in axial limiting cooperation with the proximal end of the elastic member (110). One end of the first traction rope (121) is connected to the pressing ring (122), and based on the force applied by the first traction rope (121), the pressing ring (122) drives the elastic member (110) to move axially.

6. The hardness adjustment mechanism according to claim 5, characterized in that: The first traction rope (121) is formed with a curved portion (121a) at the distal end of the elastic member (110), the curved portion (121a) having a curved radius greater than or equal to a radius of the active curved section (210), and The first traction ropes (121) located at both ends of the bending portion (121a) are respectively located on both sides of a connection point (212) of adjacent serpentine nodes (211) of the active bending section (210).

7. The hardness adjustment mechanism according to claim 6, characterized in that: The pulling assembly further comprises a sleeve (123), wherein the first pulling rope (121) is slidably disposed in the sleeve (123). The distal end of the sleeve (123) passes through the curved portion (121a), and the distal end of the sleeve (123) is located at the distal end of the active curved section (210); or, The distal end of the sleeve (123) passes through the curved portion (121a), and the distal end of the sleeve (123) is located at the proximal end of the active curved section (210); when the elastic member (110) is in the second state, the sleeve (123) abuts against the pressing ring (122) to limit position.

8. An insertion portion, characterized in that: The invention comprises an active bending section (210) and a passive bending section (230), wherein the active bending section (210) and the passive bending section (230) are connected, and a hardness adjustment mechanism (100) as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7 is arranged in the active bending section (210).

9. An endoscope, characterized in that: The invention comprises an insertion part (200) and a handle (300), wherein the insertion part (200) and the handle (300) are connected, and the insertion part (200) is the insertion part according to claim 8.

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