Grounding confirmation method of endoscope

Abstract

A grounding confirmation method for an endoscope includes electrically connecting an end portion of a conductive portion to an outer member such that the end portion of the conductive portion is sandwiched between an outer surface of the inner member and an inner surface of the outer member, the inner part and the outer part are embedded in a manner that the end part of the lead is led out from the opening; and bringing a tester into contact with the end portion of the lead wire and the external member, and performing a conduction test of the imaging unit and the external member through the conduction portion.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application of the invention patent application with application number 201980095187.9 (application date is May 7, 2019, invention name is "Endoscope and grounding confirmation method of endoscope"). Technical Field

[0002] The present invention relates to an endoscope having an imaging unit mounted on a non-conductive frame member provided at a distal end portion of an insertion portion, and more particularly to a grounding confirmation method for an endoscope having a structure for confirming the continuity of a ground of the imaging unit. Background Art

[0003] As is well known, endoscopes are widely used for observation and treatment inside the body (inside the body cavity) of a living body, or for inspection and repair inside industrial factory equipment, etc. Such endoscopes have an insertion portion for insertion into a curved duct.

[0004] In such an endoscope, an imaging unit is provided at the front end of the endoscope. If the imaging unit is subjected to accumulated static electricity or high frequency of a treatment instrument, it may cause a malfunction. It is known that a structure is provided so that the current applied when static electricity or high frequency is applied flows to the ground via a wire or the like.

[0005] When the tip hard member is formed of an insulator, the discharge of static electricity and high frequency is achieved together with the reduction in diameter of the tip.

[0006] For example, International Patent Gazette No. WO2012-124526 discloses an endoscope having a frame component of an observation optical system and a grounded connector component in an insulating front end hard portion provided in an insertion portion, and a grounded metal component and a conductive connecting portion forming the structure of the insertion portion are connected in this order from the connector component side.

[0007] As described in International Patent Publication No. WO2012-124526, when the distal end of the insertion portion is formed of an insulating member, as a method of grounding the imaging unit, it is necessary to electrically connect the outer metal of the imaging unit to the ground (GND) of the endoscope via a conductor.

[0008] At this time, it is necessary to perform a continuity check between the camera unit and the conductor to confirm the grounding. However, in the previous structure, there is the following problem: whether such a structure fully functions, it is necessary to perform a continuity check during the manufacturing process of the endoscope, but since the front end is a structure with stacked components, there is insufficient space for inserting the test instrument, making it difficult to perform a continuity check. Summary of the invention

[0009] Means for solving problems

[0010] Therefore, the present invention is completed in view of the above situation, and its purpose is to provide another wire connected to the grounding wire. The end of the other wire extends from an opening provided outside the front end, and by testing the end of the other wire extending from the opening and the end of the grounding wire, it is possible to confirm whether the wire is broken.

[0011] In a method for confirming the grounding of an endoscope according to one embodiment of the present invention, the endoscope comprises: an inner member provided at the front end of an insertion portion; a conductive outer member having an opening and a front end opening fitted to the outside of the inner member and electrically connected to a ground terminal serving as an electrical reference; an imaging unit held by the inner member; a conductive member provided at the imaging unit; a conducting portion electrically connected to the conductive member; and a lead wire electrically connected to the conductive member; the opening being formed from the front end opening along a direction in which the inner member and the outer member fit together and being formed so that a portion of the lead wire can be introduced into the conductive member. The length of the opening is longer than the fitting length of the inner component and the outer component in the fitting direction, and the grounding confirmation method includes the following steps: electrically connecting the end of the conductive part to the outer component in a manner that the end of the conductive part is clamped between the outer surface of the inner component and the inner surface of the outer component, and fitting the inner component to the outer component in a manner that the end of the wire is led out of the opening; and contacting a tester with the end of the wire and the outer component, and performing a conductivity check between the camera unit and the external component through the conductive part.

[0012] One embodiment of the present invention provides a method for confirming the grounding of an endoscope, the method comprising the following steps: fitting an inner component into a front end opening of an outer component; electrically connecting a conductive component of a camera unit fixed to the inner component to the outer component; disposing a conductive wire electrically connected to the conductive component at an opening formed closer to the base end than the fitting length of the inner component and the outer component; and bringing a tester into contact with the conductive wire and the outer component, and performing a conductivity check between the camera unit and the outer component through the conductive portion.

[0013] Effects of the Invention

[0014] According to the present invention, by testing the end of the other conductive wire extending from the opening and the end of the ground conductive wire, it is possible to confirm whether or not the conductive wire is disconnected. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] Figure 1 This is a diagram showing the appearance of an endoscope according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0016] Figure 2 It is a perspective view showing the structure of the distal end portion of the insertion portion of the endoscope according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] Figure 3 It is a cross-sectional view showing the structure of the distal end portion of the insertion portion of the endoscope according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0018] Figure 4 This is an exploded perspective view showing a fitting state of a distal end hard portion and a bending piece at the most distal end of an endoscope according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0019] Figure 5 This is a perspective view showing a state in which a distal end hard portion and a bending piece at the most distal end of an endoscope according to one embodiment of the present invention are fitted together.

[0020] Figure 6 This is a diagram showing a state in which a distal end hard portion and a bending piece at the most distal end of an endoscope according to one embodiment of the present invention are fitted and a continuity test is performed by a tester. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] Here, the endoscope of the present invention is used as an example for description. In addition, in the following description, it should be noted that the drawings based on the various embodiments are schematic, and the relationship between the thickness and width of each part, the ratio of the thickness of each part, etc. are different from the actual situation, and the drawings also include parts with different size relationships and ratios.

[0022] In addition, among the endoscopes in the following structural description, examples are given of endoscopes with thin-diameter insertion portions such as bronchoscopes and uroscopes, but the present invention is not limited to this and can also be applied to so-called soft endoscopes with flexible insertion portions for insertion into the upper or lower digestive organs of a living body, and so-called rigid endoscopes with hard insertion portions for surgical use.

[0023] Hereinafter, an endoscope according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

[0024] like Figure 1 As shown, an endoscope 1 serving as an electronic endoscope of the present embodiment is mainly composed of an insertion portion 2 formed in a slender tubular shape, an operating portion 3 continuously provided at the base end of the insertion portion 2, a universal soft wire 4 extending from the operating portion 3 as an endoscope cable, an endoscope connector 5 provided at the front end of the universal soft wire 4, and the like.

[0025] The insertion portion 2 is a flexible tubular member formed by sequentially providing a distal end portion 6, a bending portion 7, and a flexible tubular portion 8 from the distal end side. The distal end portion 6 houses an imaging unit as an imaging device having imaging components therein, an illumination unit, and the like described later.

[0026] The bending portion 7 is a mechanism portion configured to be actively bendable in two directions (UP-DOWN) of the insertion portion 2 by the rotation operation of the bending rod 13 among the operating members of the operating portion 3 .

[0027] In addition, the bending portion 7 is not limited to a type that actively bends in the upward and downward directions, but may be a type that can bend in four directions including the left and right directions in addition to the upward and downward directions (through the entire circumferential directions around the axis through up, down, left and right operations, UP-DOWN / LEFT-RIGHT), or a type that bends only in one direction, the upward (UP) direction, or a type that does not have an active bending mechanism based on the bending rod 13 and only bends passively.

[0028] The flexible tube portion 8 is a tubular member formed to be flexible in a passively bendable manner. In the interior of the flexible tube portion 8, in addition to the treatment instrument insertion channel described later, a signal cable bundle described later extending from the camera device built into the front end portion 6 and then extending from the operation portion 3 to the interior of the universal cord 4, a light guide bundle described later for guiding the illumination light from the light source device and emitting it from the front end portion 6, etc. are also inserted (here, all are not shown).

[0029] The operating portion 3 is composed of a bending prevention portion 9 which is arranged on the front end side and covers the base end of the flexible tube portion 8 and is connected to the flexible tube portion 8, a holding portion 10 which is continuously arranged with the bending prevention portion 9 and is held by the hand when the user uses the endoscope 1, an operating unit for operating various endoscope functions arranged on the outer surface of the holding portion 10, a disposal instrument insertion portion 11, a suction valve 15, etc.

[0030] The operation means provided in the operation section 3 include, for example, a bending rod 13 for bending the bending section 7, a plurality of operation members 14 for performing corresponding operations such as air and water supply operation or suction operation, an imaging device, and a lighting unit.

[0031] The treatment instrument insertion portion 11 includes treatment instrument insertion ports for inserting various treatment instruments (not shown), and is a component communicating with a treatment instrument insertion channel (not shown) via a branch member inside the operation portion 3 .

[0032] The treatment instrument insertion portion 11 is provided with a forceps plug 12 which is a cover member for opening and closing the treatment instrument insertion port and is configured to be detachable (replaceable) relative to the treatment instrument insertion portion 11. In addition, the treatment instrument insertion channel is also connected to the suction valve 15 through a branch member inside the operating portion 3.

[0033] The universal cord 4 is a composite cable that penetrates from the distal end portion 6 of the insertion portion 2 into the insertion portion 2 to reach the operation portion 3 and through which a signal cable harness, a light guide bundle that transmits illumination light from a light source device (not shown), and the like are inserted.

[0034] The endoscope connector 5 is constructed to have an electrical connector portion 16 on the side portion for connecting a signal cable, the signal cable being connected between the endoscope and a video processor (not shown) as an external device, and a light source connector portion 17 for connecting a light guide bundle and a cable (not shown) described later, the light guide bundle and the cable being connected between the endoscope and a light source device as an external device; and an air and water supply plug 18 for connecting an air and water supply pipe (not shown) from an air and water supply device (not shown) as an external device.

[0035] Here, based on Figure 2 as well as Figure 3 The configuration of the distal end portion of the insertion portion 2 of the endoscope 1 according to the present embodiment will be described below. In the following description, the description of the known configuration of the insertion portion 2 will be omitted.

[0036] like Figure 2 As shown, the front end portion 6 of the insertion portion 2 has a front end hard portion 20 as an inner member, and the front end hard portion 20 is a frame member of a substantially cylindrical block having insulating properties and non-conductive, provided with an observation window 21, an illumination window 22, and a channel opening 23. The front end hard portion 20 is covered with a bending rubber 25 from the middle toward the base end side, and the front end of the bending rubber 25 is fixed by a wire wrapping adhesive portion 24.

[0037] like Figure 3 As shown, in the distal end portion 6, an imaging unit 30 is inserted into a fitting hole 28 formed in the distal end rigid portion 20. The imaging unit 30 is fixed to the distal end rigid portion 20 by a filler 36 such as an adhesive.

[0038] The imaging unit 30 has two lens frames 31 and 32 as conductive parts formed of conductive metal or the like, which hold an objective lens group 33 including an observation window 21. In addition, the imaging unit 30 has a heat shrinkable tube 34 that covers an element frame (not shown) together with the base end peripheral portion of the lens frame 32 on the base end side, and the element frame is provided with a solid-state imaging element such as a CCD or CMOS, a drive circuit substrate, and the like.

[0039] An imaging cable 35 is extended toward the proximal end side from the heat shrinkable tube 34. The heat shrinkable tube 34 is filled with an adhesive or the like for liquid-tight maintenance.

[0040] The lens frames 31 and 32 of the camera unit 30 electrically connect the front end of the jumper wire 50 as a conductive portion and the core wire on the front end side of the insulated cable 54 of the tester cable, which is a coated conductor with an insulating outer sheath such as enameled wire or plastic coated wire.

[0041] The proximal end of the jumper wire 50 is electrically connected to a bending piece 41 at the distal end as an external member. The bending piece 41 is an external member having conductivity and is fitted to the outer peripheral portion 26 on the proximal end side of the distal rigid portion 20 .

[0042] As a result, a structure is achieved in which the current (charge) applied to the lens frames 31 and 32 is conducted so as to flow to the jumper wire 50 and the bending piece 41 .

[0043] The base end of the jumper wire 50 is held between the outer peripheral portion 26 of the distal rigid portion 20 and the inner surface 42 of the distalmost bending piece 41. The jumper wire 50 is thus electrically connected to the bending piece 41, and the lens frames 31 and 32 of the imaging unit 30 are electrically connected via the jumper wire 50.

[0044] It should be noted that the proximal end of the insulating cable 54 is housed in a state of being enclosed in the insertion portion 2 .

[0045] A plurality of bending pieces 41 are provided continuously and are pivotally supported by pivot support portions 43 so as to be rotatable relative to each other. The bending operation wires 44 and 45 of the plurality of bending pieces 41 are pulled and loosened by the operation of the bending lever 13.

[0046] As a result, the plurality of bending pieces 41 rotate about the pivot support portion 43 , and the bending portion 7 is bent. The bending operation wires 44 and 45 are fixed to or inserted through the wire guides 46 provided on the inner surface side of the plurality of bending pieces 41 and held.

[0047] The plurality of bending pieces 41 are electrically connected, and the most proximal bending piece 41 is electrically connected to a metal braid (not shown) of the flexible tube portion 8. The metal braid of the flexible tube portion 8 is also electrically connected to the endoscope connector 5 via the metal frame of the operation portion 3 and the universal cord 4.

[0048] Furthermore, the endoscope connector 5 is configured to be connected to an external device, and a patient ground (GND) serving as an electrical reference of the endoscope is electrically connected to the imaging unit 30 .

[0049] That is, the endoscope 1 is constructed so as to form an electrical conduction path to the ground terminal (GND) to the bending block 41, the metal braid of the flexible tube portion 8, the frame of the operating portion 3, the universal cord 4 and the endoscope connector 5, and the endoscope connector 5 is connected to an external device and grounded.

[0050] Thus, the imaging unit 30 fitted to the non-conductive distal rigid portion 20 is also inserted through the jumper wire 50 electrically connected to the distalmost bending piece 41 , so that the endoscope connector 5 is connected to an external device and grounded.

[0051] In addition, if Figure 4 and Figure 5As shown, the front end bending piece 41 that is engaged with the front end hard portion 20 is formed with a front end opening 47 (see Figure 4 ) is a conductive portion cut-off hole portion obtained by cutting off a portion of the end portion on the distal end side toward the proximal end side. The opening 51 exposes a portion of the outer peripheral surface of the distal end hard portion 20.

[0052] like Figure 5 As shown, the opening 51 has a linear groove portion 52 cut from the front end opening portion 47 at the end of the bending piece 41 toward the base end side, and a triangular conductive portion cutoff portion 53 communicating with the groove portion 52 .

[0053] The distal end bending piece 41 fitted with the distal end rigid portion 20 is formed with a cutout 56 of a predetermined length cut out from the distal end opening 47 toward the proximal end. The cutout 56 is used to lead the insulating cable 54 out of the distal end bending piece 41 .

[0054] The cutout portion 56 is set to a predetermined length that is longer than the proximal end of the distal rigid portion 20 in a state where the distal rigid portion 20 and the distalmost bending piece 41 are fitted together.

[0055] That is, the cutout portion 56 is set to a predetermined length longer than the fitting length between the distal end rigid portion 20 and the distal end bending piece 41 and to form an open cable lead-out port through which the insulated cable 54 is led out.

[0056] In addition, the structure for leading out the insulating cable 54 may not be a structure in which a cutout is made from the front end opening 47 of the front end bending block 41, but a hole-shaped cable lead-out port for leading out the insulating cable 54 may be formed on the outer peripheral portion of the front end bending block 41 that does not overlap with the fitting portion of the front end hard portion 20.

[0057] Here, if Figures 4 to 5 As shown in FIG. 1 , a structure in which the bending piece 41 at the front end is fitted into the front end hard portion 20 and the jumper wire 50 extending from the opening 51 is cut will be described.

[0058] When the front end hard portion 20 is engaged with the front end bending block 41, as shown in FIG. Figure 4 As shown, the jumper wire 50 passes from the groove portion 52 of the opening 51 of the bending piece 41 to the conduction cut-off portion 53 .

[0059] Furthermore, since the jumper wire 50 can pass through the conduction cutoff portion 53 of the opening 51 of the bending piece 41 , it is not necessary to have the groove portion 52 communicating so as to connect the front end opening portion 47 of the bending piece 41 and the opening 51 .

[0060] And, if Figure 5As shown, the front end hard part 20 is engaged with the front end bending piece 41. At this time, the jumper wire 50 is sandwiched between the outer peripheral part 26 as the outer surface of the front end hard part 20 and the inner surface 42 of the front end bending piece 41 and is fixed, and is in a state of extending from the conductive part cutting part 53 of the opening 51.

[0061] The redundant jumper wire 50 extending from the conductive portion cutting portion 53 is cut off by a cutting tool (not shown) such as a design knife. Figure 6 As shown, the conductive portion is cut off so as to be accommodated in the conductive portion cutting portion 53 .

[0062] That is, when the front end hard portion 20 is engaged with the frontmost bending piece 41, the jumper wire 50 connected to the lens frame 31, 32 which is the conductive portion of the camera unit 30 becomes a structure that can be sandwiched between the front end hard portion 20 and the bending piece 41 and easily and reliably electrically connected to the conductive bending piece 41.

[0063] Thus, in the endoscope 1, even if static electricity, high-frequency current generated by a treatment instrument, etc., is applied to the front end portion 6 of the insertion portion 2 having a non-conductive front end hard portion 20 and flows in the lens frames 31, 32 of the camera unit 30, it falls from the jumper 50 via the bending block 41 to the ground terminal (GND).

[0064] That is, the charge generated in the distal end portion 6 flows to the lens frames 31 and 32 and is discharged from the jumper 50 to the ground (GND) via the bent block 41. Therefore, the imaging unit 30 of the endoscope 1 can prevent malfunctions caused by static electricity, high-frequency current, and the like.

[0065] Therefore, the endoscope 1 has the following structure: in order to ground the camera unit 30, it has a simple structure having a portion near one end of a jumper wire 50 serving as a conductive wire clamped by a front end hard portion 20 and a bending block 41, wherein the front end hard portion 20 is a front end frame component that insulates the camera unit 30 from the outside, and the bending block 41 is an external component connected to a ground terminal (GND).

[0066] In addition, the distal end rigid portion 20 is preferably non-conductive, but is not limited thereto and may be conductive.

[0067] In addition, the front end hard portion 20 is engaged with the frontmost bending piece 41, and a conductor 54a such as a copper wire obtained by stripping off the coating of enamel, sheath, etc. from the lead-out end of the insulated cable 54 led out from the cutout portion 56 formed in the frontmost bending piece 41 contacts one test rod 101 of the tester 100. On the other hand, the other test rod 102 of the tester 100 contacts the outer peripheral portion of the frontmost bending piece 41, and a continuity check is performed between the camera unit 30 and the frontmost bending piece 41.

[0068] That is, the imaging unit 30 is electrically connected to the bending block 41 at the front end via the jumper wire 50 , and the jumper wire 50 and one end of the insulating cable 54 are connected to the lens frames 31 and 32 via the electrical connection portion 55 .

[0069] Therefore, by making the test rods 101 and 102 of the tester 100 contact the wire 54a of the insulating cable 54 and the front end bending block 41, it is possible to perform a conductivity check on the jumper 50 that electrically connects the lens frames 31 and 32 of the camera unit 30 and the front end bending block 41, and check whether the jumper 50 has any faults such as breakage.

[0070] After the continuity test is performed by the tester 100, the insulating cable 54 is received in the frontmost bending block 41 from the cable outlet formed by the cutout 56. At this time, the insulating cable 54 may have its uncoated conductor 54a cut off or an insulating sleeve may be provided at the end.

[0071] The endoscope 1 configured as described above can easily perform a continuity check between the imaging unit 30 and the bending piece 41 that is conductively connected to the ground (GND) even after the distal rigid portion 20 is fitted with the distalmost bending piece 41 , thereby confirming the grounding of the imaging unit 30 .

[0072] Therefore, the endoscope 1 can easily and reliably electrically connect the camera unit 30 built into the front end 6 of the insertion part 2 and the bending block 41 which serves as a conductive part and is connected to the ground terminal (GND) through the jumper 50. By performing a conductivity check by bringing the tester 100 into contact with the bending block 41 and the insulating cable 54, the grounding of the camera unit 30 can be simply confirmed.

[0073] The invention described in the above embodiments and variations is not limited to these embodiments and variations, and various modifications can be implemented in the implementation stage without departing from the scope of the main purpose. Moreover, in the above embodiments and variations, inventions at various stages are included, and various inventions can be extracted through appropriate combinations of the disclosed multiple constituent elements.

[0074] For example, even if some structural elements are deleted from all the structural elements shown in the embodiment and the modified example, the above-mentioned problem can be solved. When the above-mentioned effect can be obtained, the structure without the structural elements can be extracted as an invention.

Claims

1. A method for confirming a grounding of an endoscope, the endoscope comprising: an inner member disposed at a front end of the insertion portion; A conductive outer member having an opening and a front end opening fitted to the outer side of the inner member and electrically connected to a ground terminal serving as an electrical reference; a camera unit held in the inner member; A conductive component, which is arranged on the camera unit; a conducting portion electrically connected to the conductive component; as well as A wire electrically connected to the conductive component; The opening is formed from the front end opening along the direction in which the inner member and the outer member are fitted and is formed so as to allow a portion of the wire to be introduced and led out, and the length of the opening is longer than the fitting length of the inner member and the outer member in the fitting direction. It is characterized in that the grounding confirmation method comprises the following steps: The end of the conductive portion is electrically connected to the outer member in such a manner that the end of the conductive portion is sandwiched between the outer surface of the inner member and the inner surface of the outer member, and the inner member and the outer member are fitted together in such a manner that the end of the conductive wire is led out of the opening; as well as A tester is brought into contact with the end of the lead wire and the external member, and a continuity check is performed between the imaging unit and the external member through the conduction portion.

2. The method for confirming the grounding of an endoscope according to claim 1, characterized in that: The grounding confirmation method also includes the following steps: After the inspection, the lead wire is housed in the outer member through the opening.

3. The method for confirming the grounding of an endoscope according to claim 1, characterized in that: The grounding confirmation method also includes the following steps: After the inspection, the uncovered portion of the wire is cut away.

4. A method for confirming the grounding of an endoscope, characterized in that: The grounding confirmation method includes the following steps: Fitting the inner member into the front end opening of the outer member; electrically connecting a conductive member of the camera unit fixed to the inner member to the outer member; A lead wire electrically connected to the conductive member is arranged in an opening formed closer to the base end than the fitting length of the inner member and the outer member; as well as A tester is brought into contact with the lead wire and the external member, and a continuity check is performed between the imaging unit and the external member through a conduction portion.

5. The method for confirming the grounding of an endoscope according to claim 4, characterized in that: The grounding confirmation method also includes the following steps: After the inspection, the lead wire is housed in the outer member through the opening.

6. The method for confirming the grounding of an endoscope according to claim 4, characterized in that: The grounding confirmation method also includes the following steps: After the inspection, the uncovered portion of the wire is cut away.

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