Connector end for tube sheath of endoscope, tube sheath and endoscope assembly

Abstract

According to the connector end, the tube sheath and the endoscope assembly, the flexible light-transmitting part is adopted for the connector end to replace a hard lens in the prior art, deformation can be generated when the endoscope tube is inserted into the insertion channel of the sheath tube and abuts against the flexible light-transmitting part, the flexible light-transmitting part is attached to the lens of the endoscope tube, the attaching degree of the flexible light-transmitting part and the lens of the endoscope tube is improved, and the endoscope assembly is more flexible. The gap between the far end of the endoscope tube and the flexible light-transmitting piece is reduced or even eliminated, and the imaging quality is improved. Meanwhile, the connector end is a module which can be independently manufactured, and the connector end can be installed on the tube body of the sheathing tube through the butt joint part after being manufactured, so that the flexible light-transmitting piece is simpler to install and time-saving to assemble, and the flexible light-transmitting piece can be conveniently installed through an automatic machine so as to reduce the error rate.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The utility model relates to medical equipment technical field, concretely relates to a sheath pipe structure of endoscope. BACKGROUND

[0002] In clinical medicine, using endoscope to examine or treat is the most common minimally invasive diagnosis and treatment method at present, and the method has less damage to patients. Endoscope is widely used for exploration and treatment of natural cavities of human body, and the traditional endoscope is usually reused after disinfection. Disposable endoscope can solve the problems of cross infection and repeated disinfection and sterilization of reused endoscope, but the cost of disposable electronic endoscope is relatively high, which is one of the important factors restricting the rapid development and wide use of disposable electronic endoscope.

[0003] In order to solve the problem of repeated disinfection and sterilization, reduce the cost and further reduce the outer diameter size of endoscope, a disposable tube sheath is used to replace the disposable endoscope at present, and the part inserted into the human body of the disposable tube sheath is designed in a closed mode. The electronic endoscope comprises an endoscope handle, a scope tube, a lens and an image sensor, wherein the lens is located at the distal end of the scope tube, and the endoscope handle is located at the proximal end of the scope tube. The distal end of the electronic endoscope has a lens for light passing through, an image sensor and an integrated illumination light source around the lens. The disposable tube sheath is sealed with a transparent glass cover at the distal end, and the scope tube of the endoscope can be inserted into the disposable tube sheath. After the scope tube of the endoscope is inserted into the disposable tube sheath, it will not contact the human body. After the operation is completed, the disposable tube sheath can be discarded, and the endoscope can be reused, which can reduce the disinfection and sterilization requirements of the endoscope and reduce the cost.

[0004] However, the hard lens is used in the current disposable tube sheath to cooperate with the endoscope, but the hard lens and the lens cannot be completely matched due to manufacturing and assembly tolerances, which leads to a series of optical problems such as image loss and reflection during imaging. UTILITY MODEL CONTENTS

[0005] The utility model aims at providing a connecting head end of tube sheath for endoscope, a tube sheath and an endoscope assembly, so as to improve the matching effect of the lens and the light-transmitting piece and reduce the manufacturing and assembly difficulty.

[0006] In order to achieve the above purpose, some embodiments of the present application provide a connecting head end of tube sheath for endoscope, which comprises:

[0007] The base has a first channel, a butt joint part for sealing connection with the tube body of the tube sheath and a fixing structure for fixing the flexible sealing piece, and the first channel is used for communication with the second channel of the tube body to form an insertion channel;

[0008] and a flexible light-transmitting member arranged in the first channel and fixed by the fixing structure, and the flexible light-transmitting member seals the first channel.

[0009] In some embodiments, the inner wall of the first channel forms an annular support platform, the fixing structure comprises a pressing part arranged around the annular support platform, the flexible light-transmitting member is arranged on the annular support platform, and the pressing part presses the flexible light-transmitting member from a side of the flexible light-transmitting member away from the annular support platform, so that the flexible light-transmitting member is sealed with the annular support platform.

[0010] In some embodiments, a compression ring is further included, the compression ring presses the flexible light-transmitting member from a side of the flexible light-transmitting member away from the annular support platform, and the pressing part presses the compression ring from a side of the compression ring away from the flexible light-transmitting member.

[0011] In some embodiments, the pressing part has a middle opening, the middle opening is communicated with the inner hole of the compression ring and the flexible light-transmitting member, so as to form a light inlet channel.

[0012] In some embodiments, the base has a main body part, an end face of the main body part forms the annular support platform, and the pressing part is connected to a circumferential side of the main body part and extends to a side of the flexible light-transmitting member away from the annular support platform along an axial direction of the main body part.

[0013] In some embodiments, the base is an integrally formed structure made of a metal material.

[0014] In some embodiments, an outer wall of the connecting head end has a sunken wall, the sunken wall is used to be sealingly connected with an inner wall of the second channel when the connecting head end is inserted into the second channel of the tube body.

[0015] Based on the above purpose, some embodiments of the present application provide a tube sheath for an endoscope, comprising:

[0016] The connecting head end as shown in any one of the above;

[0017] and a tube body having a second channel penetrating therethrough, the connecting head end is mounted on the tube body, the first channel of the connecting head end is communicated with the second channel to form an insertion channel capable of inserting a photographing assembly.

[0018] In some embodiments, the tube sheath is a disposable tube sheath.

[0019] Based on the above purpose, some embodiments of the present application provide an endoscope assembly, comprising an endoscope and the connecting head end as shown in any one of the above, or comprising the tube sheath as shown in any one of the above.

[0020] According to the connector end, the tube sheath and the endoscope assembly of the above embodiment, the flexible light-transmitting piece is used to replace the hard lens in the prior art, and the flexible light-transmitting piece can be deformed when the lens tube is inserted into the insertion channel of the sheath tube and presses the flexible light-transmitting piece, so that the flexible light-transmitting piece is attached to the lens of the lens tube, the attachment degree of the two is improved, the gap between the distal end of the lens tube and the flexible light-transmitting piece is reduced or even eliminated, and the imaging quality is improved. Meanwhile, the connector end is a module that can be independently manufactured, and after the manufacturing is completed, the connector end can be installed on the tube body of the sheath tube through the butt joint part, so that the installation of the flexible light-transmitting piece is simpler and more time-saving, and the installation is conducive to being completed by an automatic machine, so as to reduce the failure rate. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0021] Figure 1 For an embodiment of the present application, a schematic view of a distal end portion structure of an endoscope assembly;

[0022] Figure 2 For an embodiment of the present application, a sectional view of the distal end portion of the endoscope assembly;

[0023] Figure 3 For an embodiment of the present application, a sectional view of the connector end and the tube body when assembled;

[0024] Figure 4 For an embodiment of the present application, a sectional view of the connector end. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] The utility model will be further described in detail through specific implementation modes combined with drawings. In different implementation modes, similar elements adopt relevant similar element labels. In the following implementation modes, many details are described in order to make the present application be better understood. However, the person skilled in the art can easily realize that part of the features can be omitted in different cases, or can be replaced by other elements, materials or methods. In some cases, some operations related to the present application are not shown or described in the specification in order to avoid that the core part of the present application is overwhelmed by too much description, and for the person skilled in the art, it is not necessary to describe these related operations in detail according to the description in the specification and the general technical knowledge in the art.

[0026] In addition, the features, operations or characteristics described in the specification can be combined in any appropriate way to form various embodiments. Meanwhile, the steps or actions in the method description can also be sequentially changed or adjusted in a manner that is obvious to the person skilled in the art. Therefore, the various sequences in the specification and the drawings are only for the purpose of clearly describing a certain embodiment, and do not mean that the sequence is necessary, unless otherwise stated that a certain sequence must be followed.

[0027] The serial numbers of components in this document, such as "first", "second", etc., are only used to distinguish the described objects, and do not have any sequence or technical meaning. The "connection" and "coupling" in this application include direct and indirect connections (couplings) unless otherwise specified.

[0028] In order to enable the camera assembly in the endoscope to better fit the light transmission window at the distal end of the sheath tube, the application provides a tube sheath for an endoscope.

[0029] Please refer to Figures 1-3 In some embodiments, the tube sheath 200 includes a connector end 210 and a tube body 220. The connector end 210 and the tube body 220 together enclose an insertion channel for inserting a camera assembly. Of course, in other embodiments, the tube sheath 200 can have other components and structures according to different needs, which can refer to the prior art.

[0030] The sheath tube can be a disposable sheath tube, which is discarded after one use. Of course, the sheath tube can also be a reusable non-disposable sheath tube.

[0031] Please refer to Figure 2 and 3 In some embodiments, the connector end 210 has a first channel 211, the tube body 220 has a through second channel 221, the connector end 210 is mounted on the tube body 220, and the first channel 211 of the connector end 210 communicates with the second channel 221 to form an insertion channel capable of inserting a camera assembly. The camera assembly can be various imaging devices that can be used in an endoscope.

[0032] For the structure of the connector end 210, please refer to Figures 2-4 In some embodiments, a connector end 210 of a tube sheath 200 for an endoscope is provided. The connector end 210 includes a base 212 and a flexible light transmission member 213. The base 212 has a first channel 211, a docking portion 2121 for sealingly connecting with the tube body 220 of the tube sheath 200, and a fixing structure for fixing the flexible light transmission member 213. The first channel 211 is used to communicate with the second channel 221 of the tube body 220 to form an insertion channel. The flexible light transmission member 213 is arranged in the first channel 211 and is fixed by the fixing structure, and the flexible light transmission member 213 seals the first channel 211. When the scope tube of the endoscope assembly is inserted into the first channel 211, the flexible light transmission member 213 can conform to the shape of the scope tube and adaptively deform.

[0033] The flexible light-transmitting member 213 is made of a material that is flexible and can transmit visible light. In some embodiments, the material of the flexible light-transmitting member 213 can be selected from TPU, PVC, PE, EVA, PU, PO, NFEP, etc. For example, the flexible light-transmitting member 213 can be a flexible transparent film or a flexible lens.

[0034] For the convenience of description, in this application, the end of the sheath tube and the endoscope assembly away from the handle of the endoscope, i.e., the end inserted into the detection object, is referred to as the distal end, and the end where the handle of the endoscope assembly is located is referred to as the proximal end. The connector end 210 uses a flexible light-transmitting member 213 instead of the rigid lens in the prior art. The flexible light-transmitting member 213 has a certain flexibility and can deform when the scope tube is inserted into the insertion channel of the sheath tube and presses the flexible light-transmitting member 213, so that the flexible light-transmitting member 213 and the lens of the scope tube are self-adaptively attached, the attachment degree is improved, the gap between the distal end of the scope tube and the flexible light-transmitting member 213 is reduced or even eliminated, and the imaging quality is improved. Moreover, the flexible light-transmitting member 213 reduces the tolerance requirement between the distal end of the scope tube and the tube sheath 200 in the length direction of the scope tube, can adapt to a relatively wide range of tolerance of the scope tube, and makes the manufacturing process requirement lower and easy to manufacture and assemble.

[0035] Meanwhile, the connector end 210 is a module that can be independently manufactured. After the manufacturing is completed, the connector end 210 can be installed on the tube body 220 of the sheath tube through the butt joint part 2121, so that the installation of the flexible light-transmitting member 213 is simpler and saves time for assembly, and is conducive to being completed by an automatic machine to reduce the failure rate.

[0036] The fixing structure can be implemented by various structures that can fix the flexible light-transmitting member 213. For example, please refer to Figures 2-4 In some embodiments, the inner wall of the first channel 211 forms an annular support table 2123, and the fixing structure includes a pressing part 2122 arranged around the annular support table 2123. The flexible light-transmitting member 213 is arranged on the annular support table 2123, and the pressing part 2122 presses the flexible light-transmitting member 213 from the side of the flexible light-transmitting member 213 away from the annular support table 2123, so that the flexible light-transmitting member 213 forms a seal with the annular support table 2123.

[0037] In some embodiments, the annular support table 2123 and the pressing part 2122 can form an annular mounting cavity 2125, and the flexible light-transmitting member 213 can be placed in the annular mounting cavity 2125 and clamped by the annular support table 2123 and the pressing part 2122.

[0038] The pressing part 2122 can directly abut against the flexible light-transmitting member 213, or can indirectly press the flexible light-transmitting member 213 through other intermediate components. For example, please refer to Figures 2-4In some embodiments, a compression ring 214 is further included, which compresses the flexible light-transmitting member 213 from the side of the flexible light-transmitting member 213 away from the annular support platform 2123, and the compression portion 2122 compresses the compression ring 214 from the side of the compression ring 214 away from the flexible light-transmitting member 213. The compression ring 214 has an annular structure, and one side of the compression ring 214, which is directed towards the flexible light-transmitting member 213, can form a larger contact surface with the flexible light-transmitting member 213, thereby providing a more stable compression effect. For example, the one side of the compression ring 214 can be completely pressed against the flexible light-transmitting member 213, or can also be partially pressed against the flexible light-transmitting member 213.

[0039] Please continue to refer to Figures 2-4 In some embodiments, the compression portion 2122 has a middle portion opening, which is in communication with the inner hole of the compression ring 214 and the flexible light-transmitting member 213, so as to form a light inlet channel.

[0040] Further, please continue to refer to Figures 2-4 In some embodiments, the base 212 has a main body portion 2124, one end surface of the main body portion 2124 forms the annular support platform 2123, the compression portion 2122 is connected to the circumferential side of the main body portion 2124 and extends along the axial direction of the main body portion 2124 to the side of the flexible light-transmitting member 213 away from the annular support platform 2123, so as to form a structure capable of pressing against the flexible light-transmitting member 213.

[0041] In some embodiments, at least two of the main body portion 2124, the compression portion 2122 and the aforementioned docking portion 2121 can be separate components, which are then combined and spliced and fixed, or, in some embodiments, as shown in Figures 2-4 the base 212 is an integral structure. In order to ensure the strength of the base 212, more specifically, in some embodiments, the base 212 can be an integral structure made of a metal material.

[0042] When the base 212 is made of a metal material, for example, made of stainless steel. When the flexible light-transmitting member 213 is installed, the compression portion 2122 is initially a cylindrical structure, the flexible light-transmitting member 213 is first placed in the annular installation cavity 2125 formed between the annular support platform 2123 and the compression portion 2122, then the compression ring 214 is placed, and then the compression portion 2122 is bent through a riveting or stamping process, so that the compression portion 2122 tightly presses the compression ring 214, and the compression ring 214 tightly presses the flexible light-transmitting member 213, thereby fixing the flexible light-transmitting member 213 on the end of the endoscope. In this embodiment, since the compression portion 2122 is made of a metal material and is difficult to be bent to completely fit the flexible light-transmitting member 213, the compression ring 214 is added at this time, which can improve the fixation of the flexible light-transmitting member 213.

[0043] In addition, besides being clamped, the flexible light-transmitting member 213 can be fixed by any one or a combination of at least two of welding, heat welding, chemical connection, riveting, clamping, interference fit and bonding.

[0044] Further, in the connection between the connecting head end 210 and the sheath tube 220, various feasible sealing connection structures can be used.

[0045] Please refer to Figure 2 and 3 In some embodiments, the outer wall of the connecting portion 2121 has a sunken wall 2121a for sealing connection with the inner wall of the second channel 221 when the connecting portion 2121 is inserted into the second channel 221 of the sheath tube 220. In other embodiments, the connecting portion 2121 can be sleeved on the outer wall of the sheath tube 220, and the inner wall of the connecting portion 2121 is sealingly connected with the outer wall of the sheath tube 220. Of course, in other embodiments, the connecting portion 2121 can be sealingly connected with the sheath tube 220 through other adapters.

[0046] Of course, the fixed connection between the connecting portion 2121 and the sheath tube 220 can also include, but is not limited to, any one or a combination of at least two of welding, heat welding, chemical connection, riveting, clamping, internal and external thread connection, interference fit and bonding.

[0047] On the other hand, some embodiments of the present application provide an endoscope assembly, which comprises an endoscope and the connecting head end 210 according to any one of the above embodiments, or comprises the sheath tube 200 according to any one of the above embodiments. The endoscope assembly is used for insertion into a detection object (which can be a human body, an animal or other objects) to obtain images of a desired area.

[0048] The above describes the present application by using specific examples, which is only used to help understand the present application and does not limit the present application. According to the idea of the present application, those skilled in the art can make some simple deductions, modifications or substitutions.

Claims

1. A connector tip for a tube sheath of an endoscope, characterized by, The base has a first channel for communicating with a second channel of the tube body of the tube sheath to form an insertion channel, and a fixed structure for fixing the flexible light-transmitting member. The inner wall of the first channel forms an annular support platform, and the fixed structure comprises a pressing part arranged around the annular support platform. The pressing part has a middle opening in communication with the inner hole of the pressing ring and the flexible light-transmitting member to form a light inlet channel.

2. The connector end of claim 1, wherein, The base has a main body part, and an end face of one end of the main body part forms the annular support platform.

3. The connector end of claim 2, wherein, The pressing part is connected to the circumferential side of the main body part and extends to the side of the flexible light-transmitting member away from the annular support platform along the axial direction of the main body part.

4. The connector end of claim 3, wherein, The base is an integrally formed structure made of a metal material.

5. The connector end of claim 2, wherein, The outer wall of the connecting part has a sunken wall for sealingly connecting with the inner wall of the second channel when the connecting part is inserted into the second channel of the tube body.

6. The connector end of any of claims 2-5, wherein, The base has a first channel for communicating with a second channel of the tube body of the tube sheath to form an insertion channel, and a fixed structure for fixing the flexible light-transmitting member.

7. The connector end of claim 1, wherein, The inner wall of the first channel forms an annular support platform, and the fixed structure comprises a pressing part arranged around the annular support platform.

8. A tube sheath for an endoscope, characterized by, The pressing part has a middle opening in communication with the inner hole of the pressing ring and the flexible light-transmitting member to form a light inlet channel. The base has a main body part, and an end face of one end of the main body part forms the annular support platform. The pressing part is connected to the circumferential side of the main body part and extends to the side of the flexible light-transmitting member away from the annular support platform along the axial direction of the main body part.

9. The tube sheath of claim 8, wherein, The base is an integrally formed structure made of a metal material.

10. An endoscope assembly comprising: The outer wall of the connecting part has a sunken wall for sealingly connecting with the inner wall of the second channel when the connecting part is inserted into the second channel of the tube body. The base has a first channel for communicating with a second channel of the tube body of the tube sheath to form an insertion channel, and a fixed structure for fixing the flexible light-transmitting member. The inner wall of the first channel forms an annular support platform, and the fixed structure comprises a pressing part arranged around the annular support platform. The pressing part has a middle opening in communication with the inner hole of the pressing ring and the flexible light-transmitting member to form a light inlet channel. The base has a main body part, and an end face of one end of the main body part forms the annular support platform. The pressing part is connected to the circumferential side of the main body part and extends to the side of the flexible light-transmitting member away from the annular support platform along the axial direction of the main body part. The base is an integrally formed structure made of a metal material. The outer wall of the connecting part has a sunken wall for sealingly connecting with the inner wall of the second channel when the connecting part is inserted into the second channel of the tube body. The base has a first channel for communicating with a second channel of the tube body of the tube sheath to form an insertion channel, and a fixed structure for fixing the flexible light-transmitting member. The inner wall of the first channel forms an annular support platform, and the fixed structure comprises a pressing part arranged around the annular support platform. The pressing part has a middle opening in communication with the inner hole of the pressing ring and the flexible light-transmitting member to form a light inlet channel. The base has a main body part, and an end face of one end of the main body part forms the annular support platform. The pressing part is connected to the circumferential side of the main body part and extends to the side of the flexible light-transmitting member away from the annular support platform along the axial direction of the main body part. The base is an integrally formed structure made of a metal material. The outer wall of the connecting part has a sunken wall for sealingly connecting with the inner wall of the second channel when the connecting part is inserted into the second channel of the tube body.

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