Insertion part for endoscope and endoscope

Abstract

The invention relates to an insertion part for an endoscope and the endoscope, which can effectively reduce the size of the insertion part, improve the discomfort of a patient in the use process and reduce the risk of invasive injury to the patient. The insertion part for the endoscope comprises an insertion part main body which is provided with an illumination imaging channel and an instrument channel which are mutually independent; the optical module is arranged in the illumination imaging channel, and the optical module comprises a lens group, a partial reflection and transmission element, an area light source and an image sensor; the lens group is arranged close to the far end of the illumination imaging channel, the partial reflection and transmission element is located on the image side of the lens group, and the area light source and the image sensor are symmetrically distributed relative to the partial reflection and transmission element, so that the area light source, the partial reflection and transmission element and the lens group jointly form an illumination system. And an imaging system is formed by the lens group, the partial reflection and transmission element and the image sensor.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of endoscopes, in particular to an insertion part for endoscopes and an endoscope. BACKGROUND

[0002] In recent years, cancer has become the main factor leading to human death, and the earlier the tumor cells are found, the more effective the cure of cancer will be. The current main way of exploring tumors is to explore suspicious areas through endoscopic images such as laparoscopes, thoracoscopes, etc., and to confirm them in combination with in-vitro biopsy.

[0003] Since the insertion part 10P in the existing endoscope needs to be provided with two or even three illumination channels 13P for passing through an illumination optical fiber bundle and a homogenizing lens group in addition to the imaging channel 11P and the instrument channel 12P in order to meet the illumination intensity and uniformity requirements, the distal end size of the existing insertion part 10P is relatively large, i.e., the distal end diameter cannot be less than 2.8 mm, which not only greatly increases the discomfort of the patient during use, but also easily causes invasive damage to the patient. SUMMARY

[0004] An advantage of the present application is to provide an insertion part for endoscopes and an endoscope, which can effectively reduce the distal end size of the insertion part, improve the discomfort of the patient during use, and reduce the risk of invasive damage to the patient.

[0005] Another advantage of the present application is to provide an insertion part for endoscopes and an endoscope, wherein in an embodiment of the present application, the insertion part for endoscopes can be designed by sharing the light path of illumination and imaging, thereby saving the space originally occupied by the illumination channel and facilitating the reduction of the outer diameter size of the entire insertion part.

[0006] Another advantage of the present application is to provide an insertion part for endoscopes and an endoscope, wherein in an embodiment of the present application, the insertion part for endoscopes can symmetrically distribute the area light source and the image sensor relative to the partial anti-transmission element to achieve the co-light-path design of the imaging light path and the illumination light path, which not only can reduce the distal end size of the insertion part, but also can effectively reduce the cost, thereby facilitating the demand for disposable endoscopes.

[0007] Another advantage of the present application is to provide an insertion part for endoscopes and an endoscope, wherein in order to achieve the above-mentioned purpose, no expensive materials or complex structures are required in the present application. Therefore, the present application successfully and effectively provides a solution, not only providing a simple insertion part for endoscopes and an endoscope, but also increasing the practicability and reliability of the insertion part for endoscopes and the endoscope.

[0008] In order to achieve the above at least one advantage or other advantages and purposes of the present application, the present application provides an insertion part for endoscope, comprising: an insertion part body having an illumination imaging channel and an instrument channel which are independent of each other; and an optical module, wherein the optical module is arranged in the illumination imaging channel, and the optical module comprises a lens group, a partial reflection and transmission element, a surface light source and an image sensor; the lens group is arranged adjacent to a distal end of the illumination imaging channel, the partial reflection and transmission element is located on an image side of the lens group, and the surface light source and the image sensor are symmetrically distributed relative to the partial reflection and transmission element, so as to jointly form an illumination system through the surface light source, the partial reflection and transmission element and the lens group, and jointly form an imaging system through the lens group, the partial reflection and transmission element and the image sensor.

[0009] According to an embodiment of the present application, the partial reflection and transmission element is a half mirror.

[0010] According to an embodiment of the present application, the half mirror has a first optical surface facing the lens group, a second optical surface facing the surface light source and a third optical surface facing the image sensor.

[0011] According to an embodiment of the present application, the first optical surface and the second optical surface are oppositely arranged; or, the first optical surface and the third optical surface are oppositely arranged.

[0012] According to an embodiment of the present application, the half mirror comprises a first right-angle prism, a second right-angle prism and a half mirror film cemented between the inclined surface of the first right-angle prism and the inclined surface of the second right-angle prism.

[0013] According to an embodiment of the present application, the surface light source is a surface array light source arranged by a plurality of LED lamp beads.

[0014] According to an embodiment of the present application, the insertion part for endoscope further comprises an electric wire extending along the illumination imaging channel, a distal end of the electric wire is electrically connected to the surface light source, and a proximal end of the electric wire extends out of the illumination imaging channel for electrically connecting with an external power supply.

[0015] According to an embodiment of the present application, the image sensor is a CCD chip.

[0016] According to an embodiment of the present application, the insertion part for endoscope further comprises a signal line extending along the illumination imaging channel, a distal end of the signal line is communicatively connected to the image sensor, and a proximal end of the signal line extends out of the illumination imaging channel for communicatively connecting with an external display.

[0017] According to another aspect of the present application, the present application further provides an endoscope comprising: an operation part; and The insertion part for endoscope according to any one of the above, wherein the proximal end of the insertion part for endoscope is connected to the operation part. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0018] Figure 1 Structure diagram of the distal end surface of the insertion part for endoscope according to the prior art; Figure 2 Structure diagram of the endoscope according to one embodiment of the present application; Figure 3 Structure diagram of the distal end surface of the insertion part for endoscope in the endoscope according to the above embodiment of the present application is shown; Figure 4 Structure diagram of the optical module in the insertion part for endoscope according to the above embodiment of the present application is shown. Figure 2 Enlarged diagram of the local part A in the endoscope shown; Figure 5 Structure diagram of the optical module in the insertion part for endoscope according to the above embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0019] Main element symbol explanation: 1, endoscope; 10, insertion part for endoscope; 11, insertion part main body; 111, illumination imaging channel; 112, instrument channel; 12, optical module; 121, lens group; 122, partial reflection-transmission element; 1220, half reflection-half transmission lens; 1221, first right-angle prism; 1222, second right-angle prism; 1223, half reflection-half transmission film; 12201, first optical surface; 12202, second optical surface; 12203, third optical surface; 123, surface light source; 124, image sensor; 13, electric wire; 14, signal wire; 20, operation part.

[0020] The above main element symbol explanation further explains the present application in detail in combination with the drawings and the specific embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described clearly and completely below in combination with the drawings of the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some of the embodiments of the present application, but not all the embodiments of the present application. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all the other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative labor fall within the protection scope of the present application.

[0022] It should be understood that when an element or layer is referred to as being "on" another element or substrate, it can be directly on another element or substrate or intervening elements can also be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being "directly on" another element or substrate, there are no intervening elements present. It will be understood that when an element is referred to as being "connected" or "coupled" to another element, it can be directly connected or coupled to the other element or intervening elements can be present. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

[0023] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this application belongs. The terminology used in the description herein is for describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the application. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

[0024] In view of the illumination intensity and uniformity requirements of the insertion portion in the existing endoscope, two or even three illumination channels are usually required to be provided for passing through the illumination optical fiber bundle and the homogenizing lens group, resulting in a relatively large size of the distal end of the existing insertion portion, which not only greatly increases the discomfort of the patient during use, but also easily causes invasive damage to the patient. Therefore, the present application provides an insertion portion for endoscope and an endoscope, which can effectively reduce the size of the insertion portion, improve the discomfort of the patient during use, and reduce the risk of causing invasive damage to the patient.

[0025] Specifically, referring to the accompanying drawings, Figures 2 to 5 An embodiment of the present application provides an endoscope 1, which can include an insertion portion 10 for endoscope and an operation portion 20, a proximal end of the insertion portion 10 for endoscope is connected to the operation portion 20, so as to control the action of the distal end of the insertion portion 10 for endoscope through the operation portion 20 to perform corresponding endoscopic operation.

[0026] More specifically, as shown in Figure 3 , Figure 4 and Figure 5As shown, the endoscopic insertion section 10 may include an insertion section body 11 and an optical module 12. The insertion section body 11 has an independent illumination imaging channel 111 and an instrument channel 112. The optical module 12 is disposed within the illumination imaging channel 111 and includes a lens group 121, a partially reflective element 122, a surface light source 123, and an image sensor 124. The lens group 121 is arranged adjacent to the distal end of the illumination imaging channel 111. The partially reflective element 122 is located on the image side of the lens group 121. The surface light source 123 and the image sensor 124 are symmetrically distributed with respect to the partially reflective element 122, so that the surface light source 123, the partially reflective element 122, and the lens group 121 together constitute an illumination system, and the lens group 121, the partially reflective element 122, and the image sensor 124 together constitute an imaging system, such that the illumination system and the imaging system share the lens group 121.

[0027] Thus, as Figure 5 As shown, a portion of the illumination light emitted by the surface light source 123 propagates through the partial reflective element 122 to the lens group 121, where it is modulated by the lens group 121 to achieve uniform illumination, facilitating even illumination of the object and helping to meet the requirements for illuminance and uniformity. Simultaneously, as... Figure 5 As shown, the illumination light reflected by the object is first modulated by the lens group 121 to form imaging light, and a portion of the imaging light is then transmitted through the partial reflective element 122 to the image sensor 124, where it is received by the image sensor 124 to obtain image information.

[0028] It is worth noting that, since the optical module 12 of this application uses the principle of optical path reversibility to share the lens group 121 between the illumination system and the imaging system, the illumination light and the imaging light can be transmitted through the same optical path. Therefore, the main body 11 of the insertion part of this application only needs to be provided with an illumination imaging channel 111 and an instrument channel 112, without the need to provide a separate illumination channel. This helps to reduce the outer diameter of the entire insertion part, improve the patient's discomfort during use, and reduce the risk of invasive damage to the patient.

[0029] In addition, the lens group 121 of the present application can cooperate with the area light source 123 to play a role of uniform illumination, in addition to modulating the reflected illumination light into imaging light for the image sensor 124 to receive as imaging modulation, without the need for additional uniform illumination devices, which helps to reduce the cost of the lens. In other words, the lens group 121 in the insertion part 10 of the present application has both uniform illumination and imaging functions, so that the insertion part body 11 in the endoscope 1 of the present application only needs to configure one illumination and imaging channel 111 to realize the endoscopic illumination and imaging function, without the need for separate imaging channels and multiple illumination channels as in the prior art, which helps to minimize the size of the insertion part and greatly reduce the cost of the insertion part, thereby facilitating the low-cost demand of disposable endoscopes.

[0030] According to the above embodiments of the present application, as shown in Figure 4 and Figure 5 , the partial reflective and transmissive element 122 can be implemented as a half reflective and transmissive lens 1220, but is not limited thereto, for reflecting half of the light and transmitting the other half of the light, so as to split a bundle of light into two sub-bundles of light that are close in optical energy, which helps to balance the optical energy requirements of illumination and imaging. It can be understood that the half reflective and transmissive lens 1220 mentioned in the present application can be a half reflective and transmissive prism (i.e. BS prism), or a half reflective and transmissive mirror. Of course, in other embodiments of the present application, the partial reflective and transmissive element 122 can also be implemented as other light splitting devices such as a partial reflective and transmissive lens or a polarizing beam splitter prism (i.e. PBS prism), as long as it can split the light beam into the required sub-beam.

[0031] Exemplarily, taking the half reflective and transmissive prism as an example, as shown in Figure 4 and Figure 5 , the half reflective and transmissive lens 1220 can have a first optical surface 12201 facing the lens group 121, a second optical surface 12202 facing the area light source 123, and a third optical surface 12203 facing the image sensor 124; the first optical surface 12201 and the second optical surface 12202 are oppositely arranged, so that the image sensor 124 is located on the reflection side of the half reflective and transmissive lens 1220, and the area light source 123 is located on the transmission side of the half reflective and transmissive lens 1220 along the optical axis direction of the lens group 121. In this way, the half reflective and transmissive lens 1220 is used to transmit a part of the illumination light incident from the second optical surface 12202 to form an illumination sub-beam of light out of the first optical surface 12201 to propagate to the lens group 121; and the half reflective and transmissive lens 1220 is used to reflect a part of the imaging light incident from the first optical surface 12201 to form an imaging sub-beam of light out of the third optical surface 12203 to propagate to the image sensor 124.

[0032] In other words, as shown in Figure 5As shown, a portion of the illumination light from the area light source 123 and incident from the second optical surface 12202 is transmitted by the semi-reflective semi-transmissive lens 1220 to form illumination sub-light out of the first optical surface 12201; then, the illumination sub-light out of the first optical surface 12201 is homogenized by the lens group 121 and then out of the distal end of the illumination imaging channel 111 for illumination. Meanwhile, as shown, the illumination light reflected by the object is modulated by the lens group 121 into imaging light to propagate to the first optical surface 12201; then, a portion of the imaging light incident from the first optical surface 12201 is reflected by the semi-reflective semi-transmissive lens 1220 to form imaging sub-light out of the third optical surface 12203; finally, the imaging sub-light out of the third optical surface 12203 is received by the image sensor 124 for imaging. It can be understood that in other examples of the present application, the first optical surface 12201 and the third optical surface 12203 in the semi-reflective semi-transmissive lens 1220 are oppositely arranged, such that the area light source 123 is located on the reflective side of the semi-reflective semi-transmissive lens 1220, and the image sensor 124 is located on the transmission side of the semi-reflective semi-transmissive lens 1220 along the optical axis direction of the lens group 121, which will not be described herein again. Figure 5

[0033] Optionally, as shown, Figure 5 The semi-reflective semi-transmissive lens 1220 can include a first right-angle prism 1221, a second right-angle prism 1222, and a semi-reflective semi-transmissive film 1223 cemented between the inclined surface of the first right-angle prism 1221 and the inclined surface of the second right-angle prism 1222. Two right-angle surfaces of the first right-angle prism 1221 serve as the first optical surface 12201 and the third optical surface 12203, respectively; one right-angle surface of the second right-angle prism 1222 parallel to the first optical surface 12201 serves as the second optical surface 12202. In other words, the first optical surface 12201 in the semi-reflective semi-transmissive lens 1220 is perpendicular to the third optical surface 12203 and parallel to the second optical surface 12202, which helps to reduce light loss and improve overall light energy utilization of the device. In this way, in the illumination light path, only the light emitted by the area light source 123 and transmitted by the semi-reflective semi-transmissive lens 1220 can be irradiated onto the object through the lens group 121; and in the imaging light path, only the light modulated by the lens group 121 and reflected by the semi-reflective semi-transmissive lens 1220 can be received by the image sensor 124 for imaging.

[0034] According to the above-mentioned embodiments of the present application, the area light source 123 can be implemented as an area array light source arranged by a plurality of LED lamp beads.

[0035] Optionally, as shown, Figure 2 and Figure 4 ​As shown, the insertion part 10 for endoscope of the present application further comprises an electric wire 13 extending along the illumination imaging channel 111; the distal end of the electric wire 13 is electrically connected to the area light source 123, and the proximal end of the electric wire 13 extends out of the illumination imaging channel 111 for electrical connection with an external power supply (not shown in the figure) to obtain power supply.

[0036] Optionally, the image sensor 124 can be, but is not limited to, implemented as a CCD chip.

[0037] Optionally, as Figure 2 and Figure 4 As shown, the insertion part 10 for endoscope of the present application further comprises a signal line 14 extending along the illumination imaging channel 111; the distal end of the signal line 14 is communicatively connected to the image sensor 124, and the proximal end of the signal line 14 extends out of the illumination imaging channel 111 for signal connection with an external display (not shown in the figure) to display images.

[0038] It is worth noting that the endoscope 1 of the present application can be used as a stand-alone endoscope to directly insert into the body via a sheath tube or a body cavity (or a surgical fistula) to perform endoscopic imaging on target tissues; of course, the endoscope 1 of the present application can also be used as an auxiliary endoscope to enter the body via the tool channel of a conventional endoscope, and still can perform endoscopic imaging on target tissues in the body, because the insertion part of the endoscope 1 of the present application is extremely thin and can pass through the tool channel of a conventional endoscope.

[0039] In addition, the instrument channel 112 in the insertion part body 11 can be used for inserting surgical instruments to perform corresponding surgeries. Of course, in other examples of the present application, the insertion part body 11 can also be provided with auxiliary channels such as perfusion holes or suction holes, so as to expand the use function of the endoscope 1 while realizing endoscopic imaging, which will not be described herein.

[0040] The technical features of the above embodiments can be combined in any manner. In order to make the description concise, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are described, however, as long as the combinations of the technical features do not exist contradictions, they should be considered as the scope of the present disclosure.

[0041] The above embodiments only express several implementation manners of the present application, and the description is more specific and detailed, but it should not be understood as a limitation on the scope of the patent. It should be pointed out that for those skilled in the art, without departing from the concept of the present application, a number of modifications and improvements can be made, which are all within the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. An insertion section for an endoscope, characterized by The insertion section comprises: a main body having a separate illumination imaging channel and an instrument channel; and an optical module, wherein the optical module is arranged in the illumination imaging channel, and the optical module comprises a lens group, a partial reflection and transmission element, a surface light source and an image sensor; the lens group is arranged adjacent to a distal end of the illumination imaging channel, the partial reflection and transmission element is located on an image side of the lens group, and the surface light source and the image sensor are symmetrically distributed relative to the partial reflection and transmission element to form an illumination system through the surface light source, the partial reflection and transmission element and the lens group, and form an imaging system through the lens group, the partial reflection and transmission element and the image sensor.

2. The insertion section for endoscopy according to claim 1, characterized in that The partial reflection and transmission element is a half reflection and transmission lens.

3. The insertion section for endoscopy according to claim 2, characterized in that The half reflection and transmission lens has a first optical surface facing the lens group, a second optical surface facing the surface light source and a third optical surface facing the image sensor.

4. The insertion section for endoscopy according to claim 3, characterized in that The first optical surface is arranged opposite to the second optical surface, or the first optical surface is arranged opposite to the third optical surface.

5. The insertion section for endoscopy according to claim 3, characterized in that The half reflection and transmission lens comprises a first right-angle prism, a second right-angle prism and a half reflection and transmission film glued between the inclined surface of the first right-angle prism and the inclined surface of the second right-angle prism.

6. The insertion section for an endoscope according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized by The surface light source is a surface array light source arranged by a plurality of LED lamp beads.

7. The insertion section for endoscopy according to claim 6, characterized in that Further comprising an electric wire extending along the illumination imaging channel, a distal end of the electric wire is electrically connected to the surface light source, and a proximal end of the electric wire extends out of the illumination imaging channel for electrically connecting with an external power source.

8. The insertion section for an endoscope according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized by The image sensor is a CCD chip.

9. The insertion section for endoscopy according to claim 8, characterized in that Further comprising a signal line extending along the illumination imaging channel, a distal end of the signal line is communicatively connected to the image sensor, and a proximal end of the signal line extends out of the illumination imaging channel for communicatively connecting with an external display.

10. An endoscope, characterized by The operation section comprises: an operation section; and the insertion section for endoscope according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein a proximal end of the insertion section for endoscope is connected to the operation section. ​

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