Insertion tube and endoscope

Abstract

The insertion tube comprises a bourdon tube and a plastic tube, the plastic tube comprises a wrapping portion and a welding portion which are sequentially connected in the length direction, the wrapping portion wraps the bourdon tube, and the welding portion is connected to the bourdon tube. During production, after the spring tube is sleeved with the plastic tube, part of the plastic tube is heated and melted, the melted plastic is attached to the surface of the spring tube, the welding part welded to the spring tube is formed after cooling, connection is firm, and the spring tube has good supporting performance, bendability, torsion coaxiality and structural stability; in the processing process, the plastic is melted to form the welding part, so that the harm to human bodies and the pollution to the environment are relatively low; in addition, no extra fluxing material needs to be added in the machining process, and the cost is low.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the technical field of endoscopes, in particular to an insertion tube and an endoscope. Background Art

[0002] An endoscope is a commonly used detection instrument that can be used in the medical field or the industrial field. The endoscope has an insertion tube. When used in the medical field, the insertion tube is used to enter the human body and move in the human body's cavity. The insertion tube is usually a multi-layer tubular structure. The multi-layer tubular structure needs to be connected as one to ensure that the insertion tube has good support and bending properties, and has high torsional coaxiality when twisted, so that the insertion tube can play a better role. In the related art, the multi-layer tubular structure of the insertion tube is usually connected as one using a lead metal welding process. During the processing, the lead metal will cause harm to the human body and pollute the environment; in addition, the cost of lead metal is relatively high. Utility Model Content

[0003] The utility model aims to solve at least one of the technical problems existing in the prior art. To this end, the utility model provides an insertion tube, which has low harm to the human body and low pollution to the environment during the processing and has low cost.

[0004] The insertion tube provided by the first embodiment of the utility model includes: a spring tube; a plastic tube, including a wrapping portion and a welding portion connected in sequence along the length direction, the wrapping portion covering the outside of the spring tube, and the welding portion connected to the spring tube.

[0005] The insertion tube provided by the first aspect of the embodiment of the utility model has at least the following beneficial effects: the plastic tube includes a wrapping portion and a welding portion. During production, after the plastic tube is sleeved onto the outside of the spring tube, part of the plastic tube is heated and melted, and the molten plastic adheres to the surface of the spring tube. After cooling, a welding portion welded to the spring tube is formed, and the connection is relatively firm, with good support, bending and torsional coaxiality, and good structural stability; during the processing, the plastic is melted to form the welding portion, which has low harm to the human body and low pollution to the environment; and no additional fluxing material needs to be added during the processing, so the cost is low.

[0006] In some embodiments of the present invention, part of the weld portion extends along the axial direction of the spring tube in a direction away from the spring tube.

[0007] In some embodiments of the present invention, the welding portion covers the end surface of the spring tube.

[0008] In some embodiments of the present invention, the welding portion has an inner cavity, and the cross-sectional area of ​​at least part of the inner cavity gradually decreases from one end of the welding portion away from the wrapping portion to one end close to the wrapping portion.

[0009] In some embodiments of the present invention, the outer surface of the welding portion is connected to the outer surface of the wrapping portion via a step surface, and the step surface extends from the outer surface of the welding portion to the outside of the welding portion.

[0010] In some embodiments of the present invention, on any cross section passing through the central axis of the insertion tube, in a direction away from the welding portion along the radial direction of the welding portion, the step surface is inclined toward a direction approaching the wrapping portion.

[0011] In some embodiments of the present invention, the plastic tube includes a first plastic layer and a mesh layer sequentially arranged along the thickness direction of the tube wall, and the first plastic layer is wrapped around the outside of the mesh layer.

[0012] In some embodiments of the present invention, the plastic tube further includes a second plastic layer, the first plastic layer, the mesh layer and the second plastic layer are sequentially arranged along the thickness direction of the tube wall, and the first plastic layer and the second plastic layer are an integrated structure.

[0013] In some embodiments of the present invention, the length of the mesh layer is less than or equal to the length of the first plastic layer.

[0014] The endoscope provided in the embodiment of the second aspect of the utility model comprises: an insertion device, comprising the insertion tube provided in any embodiment of the first aspect of the utility model; and an operating device connected to the insertion tube.

[0015] The endoscope provided by the second aspect of the utility model has at least the following beneficial effects: using the insertion tube provided by the first aspect of the utility model, the support, bending and coaxial torsion of the insertion tube are good, and the structural stability is good, which is beneficial to improving the performance of the endoscope; the harm to the human body and the pollution to the environment during the processing of the insertion tube are low, which is beneficial to reducing the harm to the human body and the pollution to the environment during the overall production process of the endoscope; the cost of the insertion tube is low, which is beneficial to reducing the overall cost of the endoscope.

[0016] Additional aspects and advantages of the present invention will be given in part in the following description, and in part will become apparent from the following description, or will be learned through the practice of the present invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] The present invention is further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments, wherein:

[0018] Figure 1 A three-dimensional schematic diagram of an insertion tube provided for some embodiments of the first aspect of the utility model;

[0019] Figure 2 for Figure 1a cross-sectional view of the insertion tube shown;

[0020] Figure 3 for Figure 2 The enlarged view of point A in the middle;

[0021] Figure 4 for Figure 2 The enlarged view of point B in the middle;

[0022] Figure 5 for Figure 1 A cross-sectional view of the insert tube is shown before welding.

[0023] Reference numerals:

[0024] Spring tube 100 , plastic tube 200 , wrapping portion 210 , welding portion 220 , inner cavity 221 , step surface 222 , first plastic layer 230 , second plastic layer 240 , mesh layer 250 . DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] The embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below, and examples of the embodiments are shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numerals throughout represent the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are only used to explain the present invention, and cannot be understood as limiting the present invention.

[0026] In the description of the present invention, it should be understood that descriptions involving orientation, such as up, down, left, right, etc., indicating orientations or positional relationships, are based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on the present invention.

[0027] In the description of the present invention, unless otherwise clearly defined, terms such as setting, installing, connecting, etc. should be understood in a broad sense, and technicians in the relevant technical field can reasonably determine the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention based on the specific content of the technical solution.

[0028] In the description of the present invention, the reference to the terms "one embodiment", "some embodiments", etc. means that the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiment or example are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present invention. In this specification, the schematic representation of the above terms does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described can be combined in any one or more embodiments or examples in a suitable manner.

[0029] Reference Figures 1 to 3The insertion tube provided by the first embodiment of the utility model comprises a spring tube 100 and a plastic tube 200. The plastic tube 200 comprises a wrapping portion 210 and a welding portion 220 connected in sequence along the length direction. The wrapping portion 210 wraps around the outside of the spring tube 100, and the welding portion 220 is connected to the spring tube 100. During production, refer to Figure 5 First, the plastic tube 200 is placed on the outside of the spring tube 100, and then a part of the plastic tube 200 is heated and melted, and the molten plastic is attached to the surface of the spring tube 100, and after cooling, a Figures 2 to 3 The welded portion 220 welded to the spring tube 100 is firmly connected, has good support, bendability and torsional coaxiality, and has good structural stability. During the processing, the plastic is melted to form the welded portion 220, which has low harm to the human body and low pollution to the environment. In addition, no additional fluxing material is required during the processing, so the cost is low.

[0030] Further, refer to Figures 2 to 3 , part of the welded portion 220 extends in the axial direction of the spring tube 100 in a direction away from the spring tube 100. Figure 5 Before welding, one end of the plastic tube 200 is made to extend beyond the end of the spring tube 100, and welding is performed at the end of the plastic tube 200 that extends relative to the spring tube 100, thereby forming a welding portion 220 that at least partially extends in the axial direction of the spring tube 100 in a direction away from the spring tube 100. Providing a portion of the welding portion 220 to extend in the axial direction of the spring tube 100 in a direction away from the spring tube 100 can ensure that there is enough plastic material for welding in the hot-melt process, thereby reducing the possibility that the welding portion 220 and the spring tube 100 are not firmly connected due to insufficient plastic material for welding.

[0031] It can be understood that the plastic tube 200 and the spring tube 100 can be set to the same length. Before the hot melt process, the plastic tube 200 and the spring tube 100 can be assembled in a form with both ends offset. One end of the spring tube 100 is located inside the plastic tube 200, and the other end is located outside the plastic tube 200. The length of the spring tube 100 extending out of the plastic tube 200 at one end of the combination of the plastic tube 200 and the spring tube 100, that is, the length of the plastic tube 200 extending relative to the spring tube at the other end of the combination of the plastic tube 200 and the spring tube 100, can be used to determine whether the length of the part of the plastic tube 200 used for hot melting is qualified.

[0032] Further, refer to Figure 2 and Figure 3The welding part 220 covers the end surface of the spring tube 100. On the one hand, the contact area between the welding part 220 and the spring tube 100 can be increased to further improve the connection strength between the welding part 220 and the spring tube 100; on the other hand, the welding part 220 can abut against one end of the spring tube 100 to limit the spring tube 100 in the axial direction of the spring tube 100. At the connection between the welding part 220 and the end of the spring tube 100, the connection direction of the welding part 220 and the spring tube 100 is the same as the axial direction of the spring tube 100, while at the connection between the welding part 220 and the side of the spring tube 100, the connection direction of the welding part 220 and the spring tube 100 is perpendicular to the axial direction of the spring tube 100. If only the welding part 220 is provided to be connected to the spring tube 100 at the side of the spring tube 100, when the insertion tube is bent and deformed so that the spring tube 100 on the inside and the plastic tube 200 on the outside have a tendency to relative displacement, that is, the spring tube 100 has a tendency to move axially relative to the plastic tube 200, at this time, the spring tube 100 and the welding part 220 are relatively more likely to be misaligned; while the welding part 220 is provided to be connected to the side of the spring tube 100 and cover the end face of the spring tube 100, when the spring tube 100 has a tendency to move axially relative to the plastic tube 200, the side of the spring tube 100 has a tendency to separate from the welding part 220, but the end of the spring tube 100 is limited by the welding part 220, and the end and side of the spring tube 100 are connected to the welding part 220, so the spring tube 100 is less likely to separate from the welding part 220, which is beneficial to further improve the structural stability of the insertion tube.

[0033] Further, refer to Figure 2 and Figure 3 The welding portion 220 has an inner cavity 221, and the cross-sectional area of ​​at least part of the inner cavity 221 gradually decreases from the end of the welding portion 220 away from the wrapping portion 210 to the end close to the wrapping portion 210, that is, a trumpet-shaped opening is formed at the end of the welding portion 220 away from the wrapping portion 210. During the production process, the combination of the plastic tube 200 and the spring tube 100 needs to be placed in a hot melt mold for welding. The shape of the welding portion 220 with a trumpet-shaped opening is convenient for demoulding, which is beneficial to improving the production yield. In addition, the welding portion 220 with a trumpet-shaped opening is also convenient for positioning and installing the end of the insertion tube and other components.

[0034] Further, refer to Figure 1 and Figure 3 The outer surface of the weld 220 is connected to the outer surface of the wrapping portion 210 by a step surface 222, and the step surface 222 extends from the outer surface of the weld 220 to the outside of the weld 220, that is, the outer surface of the weld 220 shrinks toward the inside of the spring tube 100 relative to the outer surface of the wrapping portion 210. During the production process, the inner cavity of the hot melt mold is designed to be the shape of the weld 220 of the finished product. Figure 5After the combination of the plastic tube 200 and the spring tube 100 shown is placed in the hot melt mold, the part of the plastic tube 200 placed in the hot melt mold is heated and melted, and the molten plastic flows toward the spring tube 100 under the extrusion of the hot melt mold, and part of the plastic can penetrate into the gap of the spring tube 100 to increase the final contact area between the welding part 220 and the spring tube 100, thereby further improving the connection strength between the welding part 220 and the spring tube 100, and further improving the structural stability of the insertion tube.

[0035] Further, refer to Figure 3 and Figure 4 In any cross section passing through the central axis of the insertion tube, in the direction away from the welding portion 220 along the radial direction of the welding portion 220, the step surface 222 is inclined toward the direction close to the wrapping portion 210, so that an obtuse angle can be formed at the connection between the step surface 222 and the outer surface of the welding portion 220, and at the connection between the step surface 222 and the outer surface of the wrapping portion 210, which is convenient for demolding, helps to reduce stress concentration, and further improves the structural stability of the insertion tube. In addition, the obtuse angle is not easy to scratch or hurt the patient, which is beneficial to improving the patient's comfort.

[0036] Further, refer to Figure 2 and Figure 3 The plastic tube 200 includes a first plastic layer 230 and a mesh layer 250 which are sequentially arranged along the thickness direction of the tube wall, and the first plastic layer 230 is coated on the outside of the mesh layer 250. The mesh layer 250 can be formed by weaving metal wires, and the metal wires are staggered and hinged in different directions and connected to the first plastic layer 230. The mesh layer 250 can improve the hardness of the plastic tube 200 and improve the torsional coaxiality of the plastic tube 200, so that the plastic tube 200 can better transmit torque; coating the first plastic layer 230 on the outside of the mesh layer 250 can make the outer surface of the insertion tube smoother, thereby reducing the resistance of the insertion tube during use and avoiding the discomfort of the patient caused by the uneven surface rubbing against the cavity wall of the human body.

[0037] Further, refer to Figure 2 and Figure 3 The plastic tube 200 further includes a second plastic layer 240. The first plastic layer 230, the mesh layer 250 and the second plastic layer 240 are sequentially wrapped along the thickness direction of the tube wall. The first plastic layer 230 and the second plastic layer 240 are an integrated structure. It should be noted that Figure 2 and Figure 3The first plastic layer 230, the mesh layer 250, and the second plastic layer 240 shown are only for illustration. In fact, the mesh layer 250 is a mesh structure with many holes. The mesh layer 250 is embedded between the first plastic layer 230 and the second plastic layer 240. The first plastic layer 230 and the second plastic layer 240 are connected to each other in the holes of the mesh layer 250 to form an integrated structure. The first plastic layer 230 and the second plastic layer 240 of the integrated structure are more firmly connected, and the mesh layer 250 can be firmly fixed between the first plastic layer 230 and the second plastic layer 240, which is conducive to further improving the structural stability of the insertion tube.

[0038] It should be noted that the first plastic layer 230, the mesh layer 250, and the second plastic layer 240 are a multi-layer structure of the plastic tube 200 arranged along the thickness direction of the tube wall, and the wrapping portion 210 and the welding portion 220 are a two-stage structure of the plastic tube 200 arranged along the length direction. When processing the welding portion 220, the first plastic layer 230 and the second plastic layer 240 located in the welding area are melted in the hot melt mold and welded to the spring tube 100, which is beneficial to improving the connection strength between the first plastic layer 230 and the second plastic layer 240, and also beneficial to improving the connection strength between the welding portion 220 and the spring tube 100.

[0039] Furthermore, the length of the mesh layer 250 is less than or equal to the length of the first plastic layer 230, that is, the end of the mesh layer 250 should be set not to exceed the end of the welded portion 220 away from the wrapping portion 210 after molding, so that when the hot melt mold extrude the molten plastic, it will not extrude the mesh layer 250, thereby preventing the mesh layer 250 from affecting the molding of the welded portion 220. Preferably, refer to Figure 2 and Figure 3 At one end close to the welding portion 220 , the end of the mesh layer 250 may be arranged flush with the end of the spring tube 100 .

[0040] Furthermore, the first plastic layer 230 and the second plastic layer 240 are respectively formed through two extrusion processes. Specifically, in some embodiments, a core rod is first taken, and the first plastic layer 230 located in the inner layer is formed on the outer surface of the core rod by extrusion molding, and then the mesh layer 250 is woven on the outside of the first plastic layer 230, and then the second plastic layer 240 is formed on the outside of the first plastic layer 230 by extrusion molding. Finally, the core rod is pulled out to complete the preparation of the plastic tube 200. During the molding process of the second plastic layer 240, the molten plastic can penetrate into the holes of the mesh layer 250 and be integrally connected with the first plastic layer 230, thereby improving the connection strength between the first plastic layer 230 and the second plastic layer 240; and the mesh layer 250 can be embedded in the second plastic layer 240, thereby improving the connection strength between the mesh layer 250 and the first plastic layer 230, so as to improve the torsional coaxiality of the insertion tube. In addition, extrusion molding is conducive to forming a thinner structure. Forming the first plastic layer 230 and the second plastic layer 240 by extrusion molding is conducive to reducing the tube wall thickness of the insertion tube and reducing the outer diameter of the insertion tube, so that the insertion tube can be inserted into a narrower area, thereby improving the ease of use of the insertion tube.

[0041] Furthermore, in some embodiments, after the mesh layer 250 is woven, the first plastic layer 230 is heated so that the first plastic layer 230 contacts the surface of the mesh layer 250 and is in a slightly melted state, so that the mesh layer 250 is embedded in the first plastic layer 230, thereby improving the connection strength between the mesh layer 250 and the first plastic layer 230, and reducing the possibility of the mesh layer 250 moving or twisting relative to the first plastic layer 230, so as to further improve the torsional coaxiality of the insertion tube.

[0042] It is understandable that the first plastic layer 230 and the second plastic layer 240 can be made of the same material so that the first plastic layer 230 and the second plastic layer 240 can be more reliably welded during the molding process of the second plastic layer 240; the first plastic layer 230 and the second plastic layer 240 can also be made of different materials, but it is necessary to ensure that the two different materials can be reliably welded.

[0043] The endoscope provided in the second embodiment of the utility model includes an insertion device and an operating device, wherein the insertion device includes the insertion tube provided in any embodiment of the first embodiment of the utility model; the operating device is connected to the insertion tube. The insertion tube provided in the first embodiment of the utility model has good support, bending and coaxial torsion, good structural stability, and is conducive to improving the performance of the endoscope; the harm to the human body and the pollution to the environment during the processing of the insertion tube are low, which is conducive to reducing the harm to the human body and the pollution to the environment during the overall production process of the endoscope; the cost of the insertion tube is low, which is conducive to reducing the overall cost of the endoscope.

[0044] The embodiments of the utility model are described in detail above in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, but the utility model is not limited to the above embodiments. Various changes can be made within the knowledge of ordinary technicians in the relevant technical field without departing from the purpose of the utility model. In addition, the embodiments of the utility model and the features in the embodiments can be combined with each other without conflict.

Claims

1. An insertion tube, characterized in that include: Bourdon tube; The plastic tube comprises a wrapping portion and a welding portion which are sequentially connected along the length direction, wherein the wrapping portion is wrapped around the outside of the spring tube, and the welding portion is connected to the spring tube.

2. The insertion tube according to claim 1, characterized in that Part of the welded portion extends in an axial direction of the spring tube in a direction away from the spring tube.

3. The insertion tube according to claim 2, characterized in that The welding portion covers the end surface of the spring tube.

4. The insertion tube according to claim 1, characterized in that The welding portion has an inner cavity, and the cross-sectional area of ​​at least part of the inner cavity gradually decreases from an end of the welding portion away from the wrapping portion to an end of the welding portion close to the wrapping portion.

5. The insertion tube according to claim 1, characterized in that The outer surface of the welding portion is connected to the outer surface of the wrapping portion via a step surface, and the step surface extends from the outer surface of the welding portion to the outside of the welding portion.

6. The insertion tube according to claim 5, characterized in that In any cross section passing through the central axis of the insertion tube, the step surface is inclined in a direction away from the weld portion in a radial direction of the weld portion toward a direction approaching the wrapping portion.

7. The insertion tube according to claim 1, characterized in that The plastic tube comprises a first plastic layer and a mesh layer which are sequentially arranged along the thickness direction of the tube wall, and the first plastic layer is wrapped around the outside of the mesh layer.

8. The insertion tube according to claim 7, characterized in that The plastic tube further includes a second plastic layer. The first plastic layer, the mesh layer and the second plastic layer are sequentially arranged along the thickness direction of the tube wall. The first plastic layer and the second plastic layer are an integrated structure.

9. The insertion tube according to claim 7, characterized in that The length of the mesh layer is less than or equal to the length of the first plastic layer.

10. An endoscope, characterized in that include: An insertion device comprising an insertion tube according to any one of claims 1 to 9; The operating device is connected to the insertion tube.

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