Endoscope, disposable endoscope system, and light source for endoscope

Abstract

To provide the invention generally relating to an endoscope and endoscope system, especially, a disposable endoscope and / or disposable endoscope system, and another aspect relating to a light source for an endoscope and / or endoscope system, for example, a disposable endoscope and / or disposable endoscope system.SOLUTION: An endoscope includes a first constituent member and a second constituent member. The first constituent member has a light source incorporated therein. In the second constituent member extends a light guide comprising a light guide fiber so that light of the light source is guided from a proximal end to a distal end and is emitted at the distal end. The light source includes: at least one laser for emitting primary light; and a converter for at least partially converting laser light to light having another wave length before emitting the light. The converter is connected to the second constituent member's proximal end coupled to the first constituent member so that light converted and emitted by the converter is made to be incident into the light guide.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention generally relates to endoscopes and endoscopic systems, particularly disposable endoscopes and / or disposable endoscopic systems. Another aspect relates to light sources for endoscopes and endoscopic systems, for example, disposable endoscopes and / or disposable endoscopic systems.

Background Art

[0002] Diagnostic devices, surgical devices and / or treatment devices, such as endoscopes for diagnosis, minimally invasive intervention or treatment, are known in rigid or flexible configurations and are well described in the literature. Today, the use of disposable endoscopes, also called "disposable endoscopes", is increasing, which can prevent contamination based on single use, thereby enhancing patient safety, especially in medical-technical examinations, treatments and / or minimally invasive interventions. Certainly, conventional endoscopes are conceived to be reproducible in the medical-technical sense, i.e., washable, disinfectable and especially autoclaveable.

[0003] Nevertheless, in this case, due to misuse of reproduction or inconvenient design of the devices as described above, the required reduction in the number of pathogenic bacteria may not be achieved, and thus there is a risk that pathogenic bacteria may be transmitted to patients during the next use, which may occur sporadically. This can be prevented by using disposable endoscopes as described above.

[0004] Another aspect of the increasing use of disposable endoscopes is the consideration of profitability. In particular, the reprocessing that is properly and regularly carried out each time of use requires high costs for practitioners or clinics during this period. Furthermore, since high investments are required for cleaning devices such as thermal disinfectors, autoclave devices and / or plasma sterilization devices, the use of such disposable endoscopes is reasonable as a whole.

[0005] Such disposable endoscopes, on the one hand, can be used portably as "handheld" devices and thus have another advantage in that they can also be used in emergency medicine, military rescue applications, or in hard-to-reach areas, such as in the case of major disasters where, in particular, no means of reproduction are available.

[0006] Such disposable endoscopes, i.e., the "single-use" endoscopes or "disposable endoscopes" as described in the literature, are exemplified in the following documents.

[0007] The disposable endoscope disclosed in the document of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 3,581,738 comprises a body made of a synthetic resin material having a generally tubular side wall forming a speculum, and a single elongated light guide element embedded in the side wall, where the element is formed of a light guide material which is coated with a transparent material having a refractive index different from that of the light guide material, and where the body is formed of two opposing halves axially split from the endoscope, and where each half has an element surrounding member.

[0008] The rigid endoscope described in the document of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 4,964,710 is equipped with an objective lens system, an eyepiece lens, and an intermediate relay lens. The relay system is a hybrid system using both plastic and glass members. The plastic member consists of an even number (N) of axially directed lenses, each of which has a length of the same order as its diameter. The glass member is an axially directed odd number (N minus 1) of glass plano-cylinders with polished end faces.

[0009] The document of European Patent Application Publication No. 1890173 describes a method for manufacturing a light guide that can be used in the endoscope as described above. In this case, a plurality of optical fibers are bundled, and then the fiber bundle is cut at the mouthpiece portion attached to the middle portion of the fiber bundle. In this way, the fiber bundle is divided into a first optical fiber bundle and a second optical fiber bundle. The dividing surfaces of the first and second optical fiber bundles have the same characteristics and conditions. This is because the first and second optical fiber bundles are formed from a fiber bundle obtained by bundling a plurality of identical optical fibers. The first optical fiber bundle is attached inside the insertion portion of the endoscope, and the second optical fiber bundle is attached inside the flexible tube. Thereby, a first light conductor is formed inside the insertion portion of the endoscope, and a second light conductor is formed inside the flexible tube. As a result, a separable light transmission section of the light conductor is generated.

[0010] Based on only one use, since such an endoscope has greatly compressed costs, the constituent groups or components can necessarily be manufactured at optimized costs. One of the main components for image provision and illumination is a light guide or an image guide. These are currently attached or processed in relatively laborious processing steps. Complicated mechanical elements are partly associated with optical elements such as lenses including the light guide or image guide, and are also partly the laborious processing steps such as grinding and polishing of the end face that make the current light guide or image guide relatively expensive.

[0011] However, on the other hand, especially when using an endoscope in medical technology, certain optical-technical requirements also need to be considered. Thereby, in addition to the light provided by the light source being provided to the examination site with as little loss as possible, it also brings about a color-true or accurate color display of the examination site, as well as the avoidance of unnecessary heat to the examination site. In this case, continuously guiding the light beam provided by the light source to the distal end of the endoscope is a special challenge. In particular, an endoscope system with a particularly small diameter requires, on the one hand, an extremely bright light source and, on the other hand, a light guide with an optimized light beam.

[0012] When using active electronic components, such as a camera chip and / or an illumination LED, further requirements regarding electrical insulation, electrical shielding, and patient leakage current that must not exceed the maximum limit value depending on the area of use of the endoscope must also be considered. That is, for example, when used in the heart, a maximum leakage current of 10 μA is required, which corresponds to the CF type classification (see EN60601-1, 3rd edition, Table 3).

[0013] In addition to these optical-technical and electrical requirements, attention must also be paid to the requirements for biocompatibility. Regarding biocompatibility, it is necessary to ensure that the material does not impose a burden on the human body. For medical devices that may come into contact with the human body, regulations require identifying and evaluating possible interactions and undesirable side effects. The selection of the required tests occurs based on the form of contact and contact time in the human body. In accordance with the European Medical Device Directive MDD93 / 42 EWG (abbreviated as MDD) or the Directive (EU) 2017 / 745 of April 5, 2017 (abbreviated as MDR), the biological evaluation of the device is always necessary when direct contact between the material / device and the patient occurs.

[0014] The main rules regarding the biological testing and evaluation of materials are tests compliant with DIN EN ISO 10993 and United States Pharmacopeia Class VI (USP Class VI). Although ISO 10993, which is inherently clearly more extensive, should have replaced the tests compliant with USP Class VI, today, especially for the evaluation of biocompatible plastics, the USP tests are very often used. For this purpose, materials intended for invasive use are, on the one hand, evaluated with regard to their chemical composition and, on the other hand, cytotoxicity tests are carried out and cell cultures that activate possible toxic effects are examined. The requirements for this are summarized in DIN EN ISO 10993, especially parts 1 and 5 (DIN EN ISO 10993-1:2010-04). In the United States, the requirements of the FDA are mandatory in this regard. There, the requirements corresponding to DIN EN ISO 10993 are incorporated into USP Class VI.

[0015] Furthermore, it is beneficial for the design of the endoscope as a disposable endoscope that cleaning / disinfection methods using strongly alkaline solutions and autoclave sterilization at a temperature of up to 135 °C and a typical steam pressure of about 3 bar, which are well-known as regeneration methods, do not need to be considered within this range when selecting materials, and this enables, in particular, the selection of cheaper materials.

[0016] In materials, only the suitability for gas sterilization such as ethylene oxide sterilization and the RoHS Directive and REACH Regulation are considered.

[0017] The applicant's own applications with document numbers DE102019125912 and DE102018107523 relate to different aspects of the light guide. No laser-based light source is mentioned.

[0018] U.S. Patent No. 6,398,721 relates to a surgical microscope device that may have a laser diode.

[0019] U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20060279950 describes an LED. Although an endoscope is not mentioned, for example, a light guide having fibers can be used. The LED is operated in a transmissive manner.

[0020] Similarly, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20060152926 also describes an LED, and this LED can be used, for example, in an endoscope. The LED is operated in a transmissive manner.

[0021] The endoscope described in U.S. Patent No. 5436655 may have a laser.

[0022] A high-efficiency light source is described in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20040246744.

[0023] The endoscope described in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20190014979 may also be operated using laser light.

[0024] The optical imaging system described in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20190290100 can be used particularly in a fluorescence microscope (STED microscope).

[0025] The endoscope described in International Publication No. 2013092498, which is an international patent application, may have a laser diode as a light source.

[0026] U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20060069314 describes a solid light source for an endoscope.

[0027] German Patent Application Publication No. 102017108698 describes an optoelectronic component.

[0028] However, conventionally, it has been impossible to realize the advantages of high-brightness illumination at low cost. In particular, at present, it is impossible to realize the advantages of laser light for disposable endoscopes.

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0029] The object of the present invention is to at least partially overcome or at least reduce the drawbacks of the prior art, and in particular to provide an endoscope system having a bright light source or illumination with high luminance, especially for single-use use, and a light guide system optimized therefor.

Means for Solving the Problem

[0030] The object of the present invention is solved by the subject matter of the independent claims. Special and preferred embodiments are described in the dependent claims.

[0031] Thus, the present invention is an endoscope having a first component and a second component, wherein a light source is incorporated in the first component, and the second component has a proximal end coupled to the first component, preferably removably coupled proximal and distal ends, and a member for image capture or image guidance and / or optical information recording or optical information guidance, such as a camera chip or a fiber optic element, etc., is disposed at the distal end, and at least one light guide fiber for guiding the light of the light source from the proximal end to the distal end and emitting it at the distal end, and preferably, especially when a camera chip as described above is disposed at the distal end, a supply line for supplying electricity to the camera chip extends, and the light source has at least one laser that emits primary light, and a converter that converts at least a part of the light of the laser into light of another wavelength (secondary light) and emits it, and the converter is connected to the proximal end of the second component coupled to the first component so that the light converted and emitted by the converter is incident into the light guide. The fiber optic element for image capture or image transmission is also called an "image guide" and is composed of tens of thousands of individual fibers arranged with their end faces aligned. Such a fiber optic element may particularly be made of glass or plastic or may contain glass and plastic, and may be formed, for example, as a glass fiber or a plastic fiber.

[0032] Such a configuration of the endoscope has a number of advantages.

[0033] That is, in the present disclosure, the endoscope is divided into two components. A light source is incorporated in a first component, which may also be referred to as a proximal component, and the light source has at least one laser formed to emit primary light. For example, the laser may be configured to emit blue light and / or ultraviolet light. Further, the first component has a converter formed to convert at least part of the light of the laser into light of another wavelength and emit it.

[0034] This is advantageous because in this way the laser light can be made usable. In particular, in this way it is possible to achieve a particularly high illumination intensity.

[0035] In this case, the converter is connected to the proximal end of the second component, which is coupled to the first component, such that the light converted and emitted by the converter can be or is incident into the light guide.

[0036] In other words, the first component is formed to be connectable to a second component, which may also be referred to as a distal component, or rather is formed to be connected to the second component.

[0037] The first component may be formed, depending on a more precise configuration and depending on the type of the members included in the first component, as a manual member, that is, as a component also used, for example, to operate and / or hold the endoscope. However, it is also possible that the first component has members formed as, for example, a control unit and / or an evaluation unit used for the control and / or operation of the endoscope, and in this case, the first component may be formed as an operating device for the endoscope.

[0038] Furthermore, the endoscope has a second component member having a proximal end portion and a distal end portion, and a light guide having at least one light guide fiber extends within the second component member. The light guide fiber is formed to guide the light of the light source from the proximal end portion to the distal end portion and emit it at the distal end portion. An imaging member such as a camera chip for imaging or a fiber optic image guide is disposed at the distal end portion. Further, when the distal end portion preferably has a camera chip, the second component member has a supply line for supplying electricity to the camera chip.

[0039] The configuration of the endoscope provided with such two component members (or component groups) is advantageous. This is because in the described configuration, the first component member has a member such as a light source having at least one relatively costly laser, while the second component member is configured to have a relatively inexpensive member. That is, the endoscope can be divided, and in this way, for example, inexpensive members can be housed in a relatively inexpensive single-use component group, while less inexpensive and costly members are housed in a multi-use component group.

[0040] For the first time, it is thus possible to provide an endoscope that combines, for example, the advantages of extremely high-value illumination with the advantages of an endoscope assumed to be for single use only. It should be noted here that the endoscope according to the present disclosure does not necessarily have to be formed as a single-use endoscope or at least partially as a single-use endoscope. Rather, this can also be considered to be adapted as needed.

[0041] However, it may also be advantageous if the first component and the second component are detachably coupled to each other. As long as the endoscope is formed as an endoscope assuming at least partial single use, for example, the second component may be discarded after use. However, it is also possible that the second component is detachably coupled to the first component, but nevertheless is assumed to be used multiple times and, after being separated from the first component, is subjected to specific cleaning and sterilization processes assuming medical use.

[0042] That is, the endoscope according to the present disclosure, which may also be referred to as a modular endoscope, is on the one hand associated with the possibility of simplified handling. On the other hand, if the endoscope according to the present disclosure is a disposable endoscope or an endoscope formed at least partially as a disposable endoscope, that is, if at least some components are defined only for single use, high-value lighting enabling high light intensity, for example, lighting using a laser, is associated with the advantages of a disposable device.

[0043] The second component having a light guide may be formed, for example, rigidly or may also be formed flexibly. Generally, the second component may be construed as the so-called shaft portion of the endoscope, in which case, within the framework of the present invention, the shaft portion means both a second component that is entirely rigid and a flexible component having, for example, only a flexible outer cover tube containing a plastic material. As long as the second component is formed rigidly, the second component may be formed such that the light guide surrounded by the second component is at least partially surrounded by one or more tube sections containing metal or plastic. In this case, the exact configuration of the second component may be selected according to the suitable field of use of the endoscope.

[0044] In one preferred embodiment, the converter has a ceramic converter material. Such a configuration is advantageous because it enables particularly high light intensities, especially for white light. That is, since the ceramic converter material is particularly temperature-stable, particularly high brightness can thereby be achieved. A converter based on an organic material or a combination of an organic converter material and a ceramic converter material is also conceivable. In particular, it is possible that the converter is formed to have a converter member that includes two or more converter materials, which are particularly configured to convert primary light into light of a different spectral composition. For example, it is conceivable that the converter member includes a so-called "yellow" phosphor and a so-called "red" phosphor. In this case, the phosphor means a luminescent material. For example, these materials may be present as a mixture, for example, a mixture containing an organic material and a ceramic material, or a mixture consisting of an organic material or a ceramic material. However, it is also possible that the converter is formed to have a plurality of converter members, each containing a different converter material. A mixture of these configurations is also conceivable.

[0045] In particular, the ceramic converter material may be a luminescent ceramic material or may contain a luminescent ceramic material. Within the framework of the present disclosure, this means that the converter may, for example, mainly, that is, at least 50% by weight, or substantially, that is, at least 90% by weight, consist of a luminescent ceramic material. It is also possible that the entire converter consists of a luminescent ceramic material. That is, in particular, the converter and / or the converter member contains or consists of a luminescent ceramic material. The converter and / or the converter member may be formed as a composite material, for example, as a phosphor-glass composite material, or a phosphor-plastic composite material, particularly a phosphor-silicone composite material, or a phosphor-ceramic composite material. In this case, preferably, it contains at least 10% by weight, for example, 10% to 30% by weight, particularly 10% to 20% by weight of the luminescent ceramic material.

[0046] In one embodiment, the converter and / or converter member comprises a garnet ceramic material as the luminescent ceramic material or consists mainly, i.e., at least 50% by weight, or substantially, i.e., at least 90% by weight, or entirely of particulate ceramic material, in which case the particulate ceramic material preferably has the following chemical formula, namely: A3B5O12:RE wherein A includes Y and / or Gd and / or Lu, B includes Al and / or Ga, RE is selected from the rare earth group and preferably includes Ce and / or Pr.

[0047] In yet another alternative embodiment, the garnet ceramic material has the following chemical formula, namely: (Y1-xCex)3Al5O12 and / or (Y1-x-yGdyCex)3Al5O12 and / or (Lu1-xCex)3Al5O12 and / or (Y1-x-zLuzCex)3Al5O12 wherein in each case 0.005 < x < 0.05 applies to x, 0 < y < 0.2 applies to y, and 0 < z < 1 applies to z.

[0048] In one embodiment, the converter and / or converter member comprises or consists mainly, i.e., at least 50% by weight, or substantially, i.e., at least 90% by weight, or entirely of a luminescent ceramic material, in which case the converter - exists as a single-phase solid ceramic (i.e., so-called optoceramics) and / or - exists as a multi-phase solid ceramic and / or - exists as a single-phase or multi-phase ceramic with a specific porosity and / or - It exists as a composite material such as a phosphor-in-glass (PIG) and / or a phosphor-in-silicone (PIS).

[0049] In another embodiment, the ceramic material also includes another oxidation compound (other than garnet compounds), and in particular nitride compounds consisting of the group of aluminum oxynitride and aluminum silicon oxynitride.

[0050] In another embodiment, the converter and / or converter member is formed as a porous sintered ceramic, and the porosity is 0.5% to 10%, preferably 4% to 8%. In this case, the porosity is related to the volume. Preferably, the average pore diameter is 400 μm to 1200 μm, preferably 600 μm to 1000 μm, and particularly preferably 600 μm to 800 μm.

[0051] Within the framework of the present disclosure, a single-phase ceramic (or optoceramics) means that at least 95% by volume of the crystals and / or crystallites contained in the ceramic are of the same crystal phase. Preferably, the volume ratio of the heterogeneous phase is significantly small. On the contrary, in particular, more than 96% by volume or more than 97% by volume or more than 98% by volume or rather more than 99% by volume of the crystals and / or crystallites contained in the ceramic may form the same crystal phase. Furthermore, it is not excluded that a single-phase ceramic may also have an amorphous component. However, the amorphous component is generally less than 5% by volume.

[0052] In particular, it may be particularly advantageous if the ceramic material is formed such that this material has a thermal conductivity in the range of 1 W / mK to 20 W / mK. In this way, particularly good derivation of the thermal energy generated or generated during conversion is possible, so that even if the conversion characteristics of the converter material may change during the operation of the material, the change is extremely slight.

[0053] In particular, the ceramic converter material may be formed as polycrystalline.

[0054] It is particularly advantageous if the material is homogeneous or substantially homogeneous. In this case, a homogeneous composition of the material preferably means that the material is present as a single-phase ceramic (or optoceramics).

[0055] In another embodiment, the converter has at least two ceramic converter materials that convert laser light into light of different spectral compositions. Such a configuration is particularly advantageous when a particularly accurate and / or detailed inspection is required to identify the condition of the object or area to be inspected, especially in the medical field, for example, to enable the accurate creation of a treatment plan and / or a therapy plan when accurate information about the condition of the tissue to be inspected is needed. This is because in this way, it is possible to achieve a high illumination intensity and light of a composition different from, for example, the chromaticity coordinates of "white" and / or adapt the spectral composition of the light as appropriate.

[0056] Particularly preferably, the converter has two converter members, in which case each converter member contains one ceramic converter material, whereby the converter members are adapted to convert light into light of different spectral compositions. That is, in this way, a particularly simple adaptation of the chromaticity coordinates has been successful. In particular, in such a configuration, it is easily possible to illuminate only one of the two converter materials by appropriate control and / or to divide the laser light for the two converter materials appropriately.

[0057] In one embodiment, the converter is optically coupled to a light guide such that the light diffusely reflected by the converter is or can be incident into the light guide. This is advantageous to ensure that light having exactly the desired spectral distribution passes through the light guide and is guided to the area to be inspected by the endoscope. Diffusely reflected light means light that is converted and / or scattered and / or reflected by the converter, unless otherwise specified within the framework of the present disclosure.

[0058] In another preferred embodiment, the laser is arranged and directed towards the converter such that only the light converted and / or scattered and / or reflected by the converter is incident into the light guide, where this light may also include, for example, components of the scattered or reflected primary light.

[0059] Such a configuration of the endoscope is advantageous especially from the safety point of view, since in this way the laser light is prevented from reaching the inspection range.

[0060] In general, the converter and the laser can be arranged in a so-called transmission configuration, i.e., the light of the laser passes through, i.e., is transmitted through, the converter and is converted and / or scattered in the process. However, also, especially to ensure that no laser light, i.e., the unconverted and / or unscattered light emitted from the laser, reaches the inspection range at all, it is possible and even preferable that the converter and the laser are arranged in a reflective manner, i.e., the laser light hits the converter and is reflected by the converter and is converted and / or scattered in the process.

[0061] In another embodiment, the laser is arranged such that the light of the laser is directed and / or is being directed and / or can be directed towards the converter in a direction that is substantially opposite to the light emission direction of the light converted and / or scattered and / or reflected by the converter and incident into the light guide. Exactly such a configuration may be particularly advantageous from the safety point of view for preventing direct laser light from being incident into the light guide. Such a configuration of the endoscope can be made possible, for example, by the endoscope having means for directing the light of the laser in a direction opposite to the light emission direction of the light diffusely reflected from the converter as described. For example, this means may be and / or may have a light guide fiber.

[0062] In this case, the radiation direction that is substantially opposite to the light radiation direction of the light converted by the converter and incident on the light guide means that an angle of at least ±10° is formed between the normal vector to the surface of the converter and / or one converter member and / or a plurality of converter members and the incident direction of the primary light.

[0063] A suitable light guide may include, for example, dozens, hundreds to thousands of individual fibers for such an endoscope system. In this case, the exact number of individual fibers included in the light guide depends on, for example, the target final diameter of the light guide and / or the diameter of the individual fibers included in the light guide. Usually, the general fiber diameter is 20μm to 100μm. Typical diameters are 30μm, 50μm and 70μm.

[0064] Especially for single - use endoscopes or endoscope systems with small dimensions, it may be advantageous to use fibers that are not too thick as light guide fibers in order to ensure that sufficient luminance or illumination intensity in the inspection range is guaranteed. This can ensure that on the one hand, inexpensive and rapid assembly can be carried out and on the other hand, a high light beam can reach the distal end of the endoscope from the laser light source.

[0065] A number of such individual fibers of up to 20, preferably up to 10, has proven to be advantageous and a good compromise between assembly effort and sufficient light beam transmission, where in the case of extremely thin endoscope systems, one fiber may already be sufficient. Bundles consisting of 3 or 7 individual fibers offer the advantage that these individual fibers can be packed very densely within a common sleeve. In this case, the 7-fiber arrangement has the special advantage that a more or less circular arrangement of the individual fibers can be achieved within the common sleeve, and furthermore, an ideal packing density results for fibers having a circular cross-section. In the case of such a 7-fiber arrangement, for example, the individual fibers around the camera chip or around the image guide at the distal end of the endoscope may be grouped, thereby enabling uniform illumination of the tissue to be examined. However, also with respect to the generally square chip shape of a laser diode or light-emitting diode or converter as a light source, it may be advantageous to use 4 individual fibers or such fibers in multiples of 4 or 2. On the one hand, with respect to the largest possible active fiber area, i.e., the cross-sectional area of the fiber that actually guides light, the cavity provided for illumination can be filled with more fibers, and on the other hand, improved light incidence can be achieved.

[0066] In this case, it has proven to be advantageous that one light guide fiber or a plurality of light guide fibers have a diameter in the range of 100 μm to 1000 μm, preferably at most 600 μm, preferably in the range of 150 μm to 400 μm. Such fibers can be incorporated very simply as individual fibers and also have a sufficiently small minimum bending radius. For example, 1×1 mm 2For today's endoscopes equipped with camera chips of a certain size, for example, it is considered ideal to have four individual fibers with diameters in the range of 200 μm to 300 μm, arranged one by one on each side of the camera. Similarly suitable is an arrangement having a total of eight or twelve individual fibers with two or three fibers arranged on each side of the camera. In this case, the individual fibers have diameters in the range of 150 μm to a maximum of 200 μm. Also, in order to enable the best possible filling of the area or the supply space between the camera chip and the surrounding cover, it may be assumed, for example, that fibers with different diameters are used, whereby the highest possible light beam can be achieved. In the case of a twelve-fiber arrangement, three fibers are arranged on each side of the camera. For example, the middle fiber may have a diameter of about 250 μm, and in this case, the other two fibers only have diameters in the range of 100 μm to 150 μm.

[0067] Basically, instead of individual fibers, a thin fiber bundle consisting of a plurality of extremely thin individual fibers with an individual fiber diameter generally of 30 μm, particularly preferably less than 70 μm, and particularly preferably less than 50 μm, may be used. These fiber bundles have only an extremely thin jacket that bundles the fiber bundles. Such a fiber bundle configuration is described in the applicant's still unpublished parallel application.

[0068] In another embodiment, one light guide fiber or a plurality of light guide fibers is a step-index glass fiber. Preferably, one light guide fiber or a plurality of light guide fibers is a step-index glass fiber having a glass composition that does not contain lead and / or other heavy metals apart from inevitable trace amounts, and does not contain other critical elements such as antimony and / or arsenic and / or Cr(VI).

[0069] Within the framework of the present disclosure, a fiber means an object whose maximum lateral dimension in one spatial direction of a Cartesian coordinate system is at least 10 times, preferably at least 50 times, larger than in the other two spatial directions perpendicular to this first spatial direction. In other words, a fiber is an extremely long and thin object.

[0070] Within the framework of the present disclosure, a step-index glass fiber means a glass fiber in which the refractive index changes in the form of at least one step from the inside, that is, from the core, towards the outside. In this case, the glass fiber includes core glass and cladding glass, and the core glass has a refractive index different from that of the cladding glass.

[0071] Glass fibers contain glass. Glass fibers may further contain, in addition to the glass material, another material, a so-called sizing, that at least partially surrounds the surface of the glass material. Depending on the application, various glass materials may be used for the glass fibers. In particular, the glass fibers may contain single-component glass and / or multi-component glass. For example, a glass fiber as substantially single-component glass may contain fused silica glass and / or may in particular be formed as a fused silica glass fiber. In this case, the fused silica glass may be doped, for example, doped with OH ions and / or fluorine, and / or may exist in the form of fused silica glass with a high or low moisture content, and in this case is still called single-component glass, or may contain multi-component glass, for example, multi-component silicate glass. Furthermore, the glass may be formed as chalcogenide glass. In this case, a fused silica glass fiber or a silica fiber also means a fiber containing doped fused silica glass.

[0072] Preferably, an optical fiber has a fiber core and a fiber edge or a fiber cladding layer. In a preferred embodiment, the core layer consists of core glass.

[0073] Preferably, the optical fiber has a fiber cladding that surrounds the fiber core. In a preferred embodiment, the fiber cladding includes cladding glass.

[0074] Preferably, the fiber cladding has a halogen or halide content of less than 500 ppm (m / m), more preferably less than 400 ppm (m / m), even more preferably less than 300 ppm (m / m), even more preferably less than 250 ppm (m / m), even more preferably less than 200 ppm (m / m), even more preferably less than 150 ppm (m / m), even more preferably less than 100 ppm (m / m), even more preferably less than 80 ppm (m / m), even more preferably less than 60 ppm (m / m), even more preferably less than 40 ppm (m / m), even more preferably less than 20 ppm (m / m), and still more preferably less than 10 ppm (m / m). In a particularly preferred embodiment, the fiber cladding does not contain halogen. Halogen is, for example, chlorine, fluorine, bromine and / or iodine or their anions. An extremely high halogen concentration in the fiber cladding leads to the formation of the corresponding halogen acid, especially during, for example, steam sterilization. The corresponding halogen acid reduces the durability of the optical fiber product and may flow out of the optical fiber product. In particular, the halogen acid corrodes materials such as the special steel of autoclaves and endoscopes, causing undesirable rust.

[0075] Preferably, the fiber core has a halogen or halide content of less than 500 ppm (m / m), more preferably less than 400 ppm (m / m), still more preferably less than 300 ppm (m / m), still more preferably less than 250 ppm (m / m), still more preferably less than 200 ppm (m / m), still more preferably less than 150 ppm (m / m), still more preferably less than 100 ppm (m / m), still more preferably less than 80 ppm (m / m), still more preferably less than 60 ppm (m / m), still more preferably less than 40 ppm (m / m), still more preferably less than 20 ppm (m / m), and even more preferably less than 10 ppm (m / m). In a particularly preferred embodiment, the core layer does not contain halogen. In the present invention, the halogen is, for example, chlorine, fluorine, bromine and / or iodine or their anions. An extremely high halogen concentration in the fiber core leads to the formation of the corresponding halogen acid, especially during, for example, steam sterilization. The corresponding halogen acid reduces the durability of the optical fiber product and may leak out of the optical fiber product. In particular, the halogen acid corrodes materials such as the special steel of an autoclave or an endoscope, resulting in undesirable rust.

[0076] In a specific embodiment, the optical fiber is a silica fiber. In one specific embodiment, the fiber cladding and / or the fiber core has a silica content of at least 76 wt%, more preferably at least 81 wt%, still more preferably at least 84 wt%, still more preferably at least 88 wt%, still more preferably at least 92 wt%, still more preferably at least 95 wt%, still more preferably at least 97 wt%, still more preferably at least 98 wt%. A higher silica content leads to an improvement in chemical durability and heat resistance.

[0077] In one specific embodiment, the core glass has the following characteristics.

[0078] Preferably, the core glass contains at least 8 wt%, more preferably at least 23 wt%, even more preferably at least 24 wt%, particularly preferably at least 25 wt% or rather at least 26 wt% of SiO2. In one particular embodiment, the core glass contains rather at least 28.3 wt% of SiO2, and most particularly preferably at least 34 wt% of SiO2. In some preferred embodiments, the core glass contains rather at least 35 wt%, more preferably at least 42 wt% of SiO2.

[0079] The preferred core glasses of these inventions contain the following components within the following composition ranges (weight percentages):

Table 1

[0080] R2O is the sum of the contents of all alkali metal oxides at that time.

[0081] One or more of the following components, namely: Cs2O, Rb2O, MgO, CaO, SrO, Gd2O3, Lu2O3, Sc2O3, Y2O3, In2O3, Ga2O3 and WO3, may be contained in the core glass.

[0082] The following components, namely: TiO2, CeO2, Nb2O5, MoO3, Bi2O3, PbO, CdO, Tl2O, As2O3, Sb2O3, SO3, SeO2, TeO2, BeO, radioactive elements and coloring components, are preferably not contained in the core glass at all or, unless otherwise specified in the text, only at a maximum concentration of 500 ppm each due to inevitable impurities in the raw materials. In particular, it is desirable to discard TiO2. This is because this component may cause significant absorption in the UV range. In a preferred embodiment, the component WO3 is also discarded.

[0083] The components TiO2, CeO2, Nb2O5 and / or Bi2O3 may be contained in the core glass up to 0.5% by weight, preferably up to 0.3% by weight, particularly preferably up to 0.2% by weight. In one preferred embodiment, these components are not contained in the core glass.

[0084] Preferably, the core glass does not contain optically active components, in particular Sm2O3, Nd2O3, Dy2O3, Pr2O3, Eu2O3, Yb2O3, Tb2O3, Er2O3, Tm2O3 and / or Ho2O3. Since CeO2 absorbs in the UV range, a preferred core glass does not contain any CeO2 at all.

[0085] The total content of the components alkaline earth metal oxides, La2O3, Ta2O5, ZrO2 and HfO2 is preferably at least 40% by weight, more preferably at least 42% by weight, even more preferably at least 50% by weight, particularly preferably at least 55% by weight, with respect to core glass having a refractive index of more than 1.65 in particular. If the content of these components is extremely low, a suitable refractive index cannot usually be achieved. Based on the shaping, it is desirable that the total value does not exceed 72% by weight.

[0086] In one particular embodiment, the cladding glass has the following characteristics. That is, preferably, the cladding glass has a SiO2 content of more than 60% by weight, more preferably more than 65% by weight, particularly preferably at least 69% by weight. The SiO2 content is preferably at most 75% by weight, particularly preferably at most 73% by weight. The cladding glass is, as a tendency, exposed to the influence of a more severe environment than the core glass. A high SiO2 content results in better chemical durability. Therefore, the content of this component in the cladding glass is higher than that in the core glass.

[0087] Preferably, the composition of the cladding glass is selected or adapted to the composition of the core glass such that the difference between the linear thermal expansion coefficient of the cladding glass and that of the core glass is minimized. Generally, the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) in the temperature range of 20 to 300 °C for the fiber core and the fiber cladding may be the same or different. In particular, the CTEs are different. Preferably, the CTE of the cladding is less than that of the fiber core, typically, the CTE of the cladding is at least 1.0*10 -6 / K less, but also, depending on the glass, typically at least 2.5*10 -6 / K less may be sufficient. The fiber core typically has a CTE of 6.5*10 -6 ~10*10 -6 / K and the cladding has a CTE of 4.5*10 -6 ~6*10 -6 / K. Thereby, it is achieved that upon cooling, the core of the fiber shrinks significantly more than the fiber cladding, thereby forming a compressive stress that protects the fiber within the fiber cladding, which is beneficial for the mechanical load capacity of the fiber, in particular for the bending strength of the fiber.

[0088] The following table shows preferred compositions of cladding glasses that can be used with core glasses. The cladding glass contains the following (in weight % based on oxides):

Table 2

[0089] In another specific embodiment, the core glass and / or the cladding glass is a chalcogenide glass that enables use particularly in the infrared range. The following table shows the preferred compositions of the chalcogenide glass for the core and / or the chalcogenide glass for the cladding in mole percent:

Table 3

[0090] In this case, Hal = fluorine, chlorine, bromine, and / or iodine, Hal2 and / or Hal3 = chlorine and / or bromine, R 1 = Li, Na, K, Rb and / or Cs, R 2 = Ag and / or Cu, M 1 = Mg, Ca, Sr and / or Ba, M 2 = Zn, Cd, Hg and / or Pb, and Ln = La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Pm, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu, Y and Sc.

[0091] Particularly preferred is the case where the glass fiber, fiber rod or compressed fiber rod consists of a core glass and a cladding glass that do not contain lead or heavy metals. Such a fiber system provides a high degree of transmission particularly in the VIS spectral range and exhibits a high degree of color fidelity within the blue spectral range based on a relatively high degree of transmission, which is particularly important in the medical evaluation of tissues. In this case, often only a slight color difference in the tissue determines whether it is a benign tissue change or a malignant tissue change. Therefore, a high CRI value for the entire system consisting of a light source, a light guide and an image providing device is important. In this case, the CRI (color rendering index) is a characteristic value of a photometric value representing the quality of color rendering evaluation of a plurality of light sources with the same correlated color temperature. A CRI value greater than 90 can be achieved by the glass fiber, fiber rod or compressed fiber rod described above. Such a fiber system is well-known by the applicant under the name Schott PURAVIS® and its configuration is described in the German Patent Invention No. 102012100233 and German Patent Invention No. 102013208838. Similar fiber systems are also described in European Patent No. 2072477, and these also do not contain Pb.

[0092] Particularly for use in endoscopes, it is advantageous if the glass fiber, fiber rod or compressed fiber rod consists of a glass system having a numerical aperture (NA) greater than 0.64, particularly preferably greater than 0.77, and having a light acceptance angle 2α greater than 80°, particularly preferably greater than 100°, with respect to the light to be guided. On the one hand, it can be achieved without an increase in the incidence coupling loss that the light of an LED, which particularly usually has a very wide radiation angle, can be incident and coupled into a glass fiber, fiber rod or compressed fiber rod at the proximal end without a complex optical system. On the other hand, wide-angle illumination can be achieved at the distal side without an additional optical system required, which is particularly suitable for endoscopy. Optimal illumination at the currently common picture angle of a camera (generally 120° diagonal) can be achieved if the glass fiber, fiber rod or compressed fiber rod has a light acceptance angle 2α of at least 120° or a NA of at least 0.86.

[0093] A glass fiber as described above usually has a generally undamaged fire-polished surface after its drawing process, and it is important to protect this surface from damage as much as possible. For this purpose, a so-called sizing is applied to the glass fiber before the winding process, and the sizing protects the fiber particularly during the mutual friction of the fibers, but also, for example, when in contact with a metal surface. Such sizing generally consists of a solvent based on rosin or stearin and is sprayed onto the glass fiber. The details of this sizing are described in an as yet unpublished application of the applicant.

[0094] Regarding further mechanical stability in fibers, especially fibers having a relatively large diameter as described above, it has been found to be advantageous if one or more light guide fibers have a protective cover made of a polymer-based coating or a polymer-based tube material, such as a shrinkable tube, which is arranged at least partially and / or segmentally on their outer peripheral surfaces. In this case, a higher strength of the fiber and thus a smaller bending radius can be achieved. By this means, the disadvantages of thicker fibers resulting from the resulting increase in rigidity and increase in the minimum allowable bending radius can be significantly reduced or offset.

[0095] In one embodiment, the light guide has a plurality of light guide fibers, in which case at least one light guide fiber, preferably a plurality of light guide fibers, particularly preferably all light guide fibers, have a protective cover made of a polymer-based coating or a polymer-based tube material, which is arranged at least partially and / or segmentally on their outer peripheral surfaces.

[0096] Advantageously, the coating consists of an acrylate copolymer, a polyamide copolymer, a polyurethane copolymer, a polyimide copolymer, an epoxy copolymer, an ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene copolymer, or a polyxylylene-based compound (also called a polyxylylene-based coating) based on, for example, a polyparaxylylene compound, such as a compound known under the trade name "Parylene" as a coating material, or a mixture of these compounds. Suitable coating materials are available as coatings or coatings or coating materials under the trade names or brands or names of, for example, NYLON® (polyamide) or TEFZEL® or Parylene® or PMMA (polymethyl methacrylate). Generally, curing of these layers is carried out by heating or UV light. Alternatively or additionally, the coating may contain a thermoplastic elastomer, such as a thermoplastic polyester elastomer or a thermoplastic copolyester elastomer, such as those commercially available under the trade name Hytrel, or silicone.

[0097] In special cases, metal coatings consisting of, for example, gold or aluminum can also be used.

[0098] Particularly advantageous is the case where such a coating can be applied or is applied immediately after the fiber is drawn at low pressure to one or more light guide fibers by dipping, spraying, extrusion or film formation. In particular, such a coating can be applied by dipping, spraying, extrusion or film formation at low pressure to one or more light guide fibers, for example immediately after the fiber is drawn. In particular, by applying the coating immediately after the drawing of one or more fibers, it can be achieved that the substantially perfect, fire-polished surface of one or more fibers is maintained before one or more fibers come into contact with other materials or other fibers. Thereby, it is possible to at least reduce the minute damage that reduces the strength of one or more fibers. In principle, it is even conceivable that such a coating can also result in the elimination of pre-existing damage that may occur or at least partially reduce the effect of such pre-existing damage. Also, it is possible to obtain means for protecting against hydrolysis.

[0099] Generally, such a layer is applied such that the light guide just drawn as a fiber is drawn through a pot equipped with a nozzle in which the polymer material used for the coating is present. In this case, the nozzle can also adjust, inter alia, the layer thickness.

[0100] The layer thickness of this coating is typically in the range of 5 μm to 100 μm, preferably in the range of 10 μm to 50 μm.

[0101] Furthermore, it may be assumed that in addition to this first coating, at least one further organic coating can be applied. Such an additional coating is also called a buffer and is generally used in silica fibers. Examples of materials for such a buffer include PMMA, polyamide (NYLON (registered trademark)), polyimide or, for example, an ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene copolymer commercially available under the trade name TEFZEL (registered trademark) AbbreviationFluorinated polymers such as ETFE) are considered. Such another coating helps to improve the robustness with respect to the bending load. In particular, this buffer layer may include a thermoplastic elastomer, for example, a thermoplastic polyester elastomer or a thermoplastic copolyester elastomer commercially available under the trade name Hytrel®, and / or polyvinylidene fluoride available, for example, under the trade name Kynar, or polytetrafluoroethylene or polyurethane (available, for example, under the trade name Teflon). Such a buffer layer can be applied, for example, by spraying, dipping, extrusion, and electrostatic methods.

[0102] Such a layer system may, for example, consist of a two-layer system. In the two-layer system, first, a relatively thin layer typically 10 μm to 50 μm thick, made of, for example, an acrylate compound or an epoxy compound, is applied to the light guide, and then, as another mechanical protection means, a so-called buffer layer, which may typically have a much larger wall thickness of 50 μm to 200 μm and is made of, for example, NYLON®, TEFZEL®, PMMA, or polyimide, is applied.

[0103] For use in extremely small space situations, the first coating is already sufficient to ensure the highest possible bending strength.

[0104] It should be noted here that, in particular, in order to improve the strength of the fiber, other methods can also be considered. That is, for example, by precise heat treatment of the glass similar to thermal preloading, a higher compressive preload can be formed near the surface, which can improve the bending strength of the fiber. Chemical curing of the fiber can also be considered. However, in this regard, it is considered that another cladding is required to obtain the optical properties of the fiber. In another cladding, precise additional compressive preload can be formed in this additional cladding by ion exchange in molten salt or spraying of a salt layer, followed by tempering. Similarly, electron beam curing or ion beam curing may also be considered in some cases. However, these methods mentioned last are relatively laborious. Furthermore, it is difficult to maintain the optical properties of the fiber using these methods.

[0105] In another embodiment, the coating may be formed to be light-shielding, that is, opaque or light-absorbing, for example, colored such as black or blue. This is advantageous because crosstalk to the camera chip can be reduced in this way.

[0106] In this case, one embodiment is particularly advantageous in which the light guide has at least one glass fiber, in particular a glass fiber containing a multi-component silicate glass or consisting of a multi-component silicate glass, or preferably as a glass fiber bundle, in particular containing a multi-component silicate glass or consisting of a glass fiber having a multi-component silicate glass or consisting of a glass fiber bundle made of a multi-component silicate glass fiber. This is because such glass fibers can particularly flexibly adjust the optical properties of the glass fiber bundle having these glass fibers and thus also the light guide or endoscope. Furthermore, a light guide based on such glass fibers has a significantly higher heat resistance than polymer optical fibers (POF). This is particularly important when trying to achieve particularly good incident coupling efficiency, for example when a thin fiber bundle consisting of or having a plurality of glass fibers is directly contact-connected to an LED chip or brought very close to the very vicinity of such a chip. However, polymer optical fibers or fiber bundles made of or having polymer optical fibers cannot withstand such a heat load and may cause melting of the fibers.

[0107] In one embodiment, one or a plurality of light guide fibers are fitted into one incident sleeve at the proximal end, and the incident sleeve is formed as a mechanical interface to a laser light source and thus enables a predetermined light incidence with respect to the focal distance and centering to the light source. In the case of one or a plurality of individual fibers, ideally three or seven individual fibers, a so-called SMA connector, which enables a predetermined orientation with respect to the laser light source and is particularly used for laser applications, may be provided as the incident sleeve. Similarly in this regard, a so-called FC connector may also be considered. Also in this case, an arrangement consisting of seven individual fibers is particularly advantageous. This is because, on the one hand, a substantially circular cross-section becomes possible and, on the other hand, a minimized mach area between the individual fibers becomes possible. This has an advantage with respect to the incident efficiency. The mach means the intermediate space in a bundle consisting of a plurality of circular fibers. Another optimal fiber arrangement is obtained in the case of 19 individual fibers, in which case each individual fiber is optimally sealed and arranged in two shells around one central fiber. In this case, the positioning of the individual fibers is generally performed using an adhesive, for example a high-temperature crosslinking type two-component epoxy adhesive, or a UV-curing type adhesive.

[0108] To further increase the incident efficiency, it may be assumed that the light guide fiber is arranged by being melted at a high temperature at the proximal end. In this case, on the one hand, the mach area may be minimized. This is because, by the high-temperature deformation process, the individual fibers, which are circular in themselves, can be deformed into at least approximately hexagonal cross-sections and thus arranged with almost no gaps. Furthermore, with a preset incident cross-section or focal diameter, more fibers can be accommodated and thus a higher light beam can be transmitted.

[0109] Such a fiber melted at high temperature can be arranged, for example, in an incident sleeve at the proximal end. However, similarly, it is also possible that the fiber melted at high temperature is provided at the proximal end without a sleeve. This is particularly advantageous for configurations that require efficient space utilization, that is, for example, when the cross-sectional area at the proximal end or the like is particularly small.

[0110] In another embodiment, at least one light guide fiber and / or a plurality of light guide fibers and / or a light guide at the distal end is / are deformed compared to the proximal end. That is, in one embodiment, at least one light guide fiber and / or a plurality of light guide fibers and / or rather the light guide itself may have a cross-section with a shape different from the shape at the proximal end at the distal end. For example, the cross-section of one fiber and / or a plurality of fibers and / or a light guide may be formed substantially, that is, within the frame of measurement accuracy, circular at the proximal end, but at the distal end may be formed, for example, in an elliptical or kidney shape or provided with a substantially D-shaped cross-section. It is also possible that different light guide fibers each have a different cross-section. In this case, in particular, the cross-section may be circular at the proximal end, but at the distal end one or more fibers may be elliptical and the other fibers may be kidney-shaped. Other cross-sections are also conceivable, for example, a rectangular or substantially rectangular cross-section, in particular at the distal end, or a cross-section of polygons in general. Furthermore, it is also possible that one fiber and / or a plurality of fibers and / or a light guide has a shape defined by at least two lines having different radii of curvature from each other at the proximal end and / or the distal end and / or a shape formed as the difference surface of two circles and / or ellipses that only partially overlap each other. In particular, the cross-section may be formed as a circular segment. In the case of a circular segment, the radius of curvature is infinite, that is, a straight line within the frame of measurement accuracy. Such a cross-section formed as a circular segment can also be called a D-shaped cross-section or a substantially D-shaped cross-section.

[0111] In particular, in this case, a substantially D-shaped cross-section results in a high utilization of the provided cavity and thus increases the light beam or illumination intensity at the distal end of the endoscope. A substantially D-shaped cross-section or a substantially D-shaped cross-sectional area means, within the framework of the present disclosure, in particular a surface formed as a circular segment.

[0112] Such a configuration may be advantageous in particular for ensuring a particularly advantageous spatial arrangement of one and / or a plurality of optical fibers and / or light guides with respect to the camera chip.

[0113] In general, it is possible for at least one light guide fiber and / or a plurality of light guide fibers to have a cross section that is at least partially different from circular within at least the framework of the measurement accuracy. This may be advantageous for enabling a particularly efficient, for example space-saving, arrangement of the individual members within two components of the endoscope.

[0114] This may be advantageous precisely at the distal end of the light guide.

[0115] Thus, in one embodiment, at least one light guide fiber and / or a plurality of light guide fibers have, at the distal end of the light guide, a cross section with a flattened shape having an aspect ratio of at least 1.5:1 and / or an elliptical cross section and / or a kidney-shaped cross section, and / or a cross section defined by at least two lines having different radii of curvature from each other, and / or a cross section formed as the difference surface of two circles and / or ellipses that only partially overlap each other.

[0116] In another embodiment, the numerical aperture of one or more light guide fibers is at least 0.7, preferably at least 0.8, particularly preferably at least 0.85. Preferably, the core of one or more light guide fibers contains a glass material, and the composition of the glass material is selected from the glass compositions and glass composition ranges for the core glass described above. In particular, the core of the glass fiber may mainly, i.e., at least 50% by weight, or substantially, i.e., at least 90% by weight, or even entirely, consist of the glass material as described above.

[0117] One embodiment in which the core of one or more light guide fibers comprises a glass material as described above is advantageous in that very good illumination of the field of view of a camera (here particularly, for example, a so-called CMOS camera having an area of 1×1 mm 2 can thus be achieved.

[0118] In another embodiment, one light guide fiber or a plurality of light guide fibers are formed such that the core glass and / or cladding glass of the one light guide fiber or the plurality of light guide fibers do not contain lead and / or other heavy metals, apart from inevitable trace amounts, and do not contain other critical elements such as antimony and / or arsenic and / or Cr(VI).

[0119] Another aspect of the present invention relates to a disposable endoscope system comprising a first component and a second component individually aseptically packaged, wherein the second component is preferably formed or may be formed as a shaft and is removably connectable to the first component after being removed from the aseptic packaging, whereby an endoscope, in particular an endoscope according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, can be obtained.

[0120] By the shaft is meant, within the framework of the present disclosure, only a second component of the endoscope having a cross-section that is extremely small compared to its length. In other words, the shaft is formed to be thin compared to its length. Such a configuration of the second component as a shaft is advantageous precisely when inspecting a very difficult-to-access area using an endoscope and / or when used in medical technology.

[0121] One advantage of the endoscope system according to the present disclosure is that it has a plurality of second components, particularly those with a shaft portion, already aseptically packaged for multiple consecutive examinations in a short period of time. This enables rapid examination of multiple areas or, in medical examinations, consecutive examinations of multiple different patients to be carried out in a short time while ensuring sufficient hygiene. Therefore, it is particularly advantageous for the endoscope system according to the present disclosure that the second component can be removably coupled to the first component, thus enabling the advantages of a disposable endoscope. In this case, at the same time, parts of the endoscope system that do not necessarily need to be sterilized, for example, in medical examinations or other medical applications, are housed within the reusable first component. That is, in this way, it is possible to enable illumination by laser light even for a disposable endoscope, for example.

[0122] In one embodiment, the second component is provided as at least partially flexible shaft portion, the shaft portion having a flexible jacket made of a tube or braided tube or shrinkable tube, the jacket at least partially surrounding a light guide with at least one light guide fiber and a supply line for electrical supply to the camera chip and preferably at least one feedback signal line leading to a data post-processing unit and / or an image post-processing unit which may be provided particularly in the first component. Such a configuration with a particularly flexible shaft portion is particularly suitable for medical applications.

[0123] In another embodiment, the second component is provided as at least partially rigid shaft, which has a rigid jacket by a sleeve, the jacket encloses a light guide with at least one light guide fiber as well as supply lines for the electrical supply to the camera chip and preferably also a feedback signal line leading to a data post-processing unit and / or an image post-processing unit, which may preferably be provided in particular on the first component. Such a configuration may be particularly advantageous since it can better protect the components included in the second component, which is provided as a shaft formed rigidly in this case, against mechanical loads.

[0124] Yet another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a light source for an endoscope, in particular a light source for an endoscope according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. A light source for an endoscope, in particular a light source for an endoscope according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, has a laser for emitting primary light, preferably for emitting blue light and / or ultraviolet light, and a light guide with at least one converter arranged corresponding to the laser and one or more light guide fibers, wherein the laser is arranged such that the light of the laser at least partially irradiates the surface of the converter and the proximal end of the light guide with at least one light guide fiber receives the converted, scattered or emitted light of the converter.

[0125] Such a configuration of the light source enables an improved coupling efficiency. That is, because it is possible to use, for example, one or more light guide fibers having a high numerical aperture with respect to air. Also in this way, the excitation laser can be spatially separated from the other components of the endoscope, thereby also preventing, for example, significant heating of these components by the laser.

[0126] Without being limited to the above examples, generally, it is also possible that the light source may further have another component or member. In particular, the light source may have an optical element that can guide and / or modify, in particular, collimate the laser light. For example, such a component may be provided or formed as a diffractive optical element (DOE). Such a configuration may be advantageous when the DOE is formed such that, for example, at least a predetermined surface of the converter is completely irradiated, or the laser light is guided to a plurality of different converters or converter members. However, it is also possible that instead of an optical element being provided that collimates and / or guides and / or modifies the primary light, an optical element is provided that guides and / or modifies and / or collimates the secondary light, i.e., the converted and / or scattered light.

[0127] In particular, a diffuser may be provided that is disposed distally, and the diffuser can emit the light guided by the fiber at a wider spatial angle and thus illuminate a larger tissue area.

[0128] In another embodiment, the light source has a light guide fiber that supplies laser light to the converter. In this case, the exit end of the light guide fiber and the entrance end of the light guide are directed towards the same surface of the converter, whereby the converter is adapted to operate in a diffuse reflection mode, and the direction of light guiding in the light guide fiber that guides the laser light is opposite to the direction of light guiding of the light that enters the light guide from the converter. In this way, direct laser light can be prevented from entering the light guide of the endoscope, which is advantageous from a safety point of view. Especially in case of malfunction of the converter, such an arrangement can prevent the extremely strong laser light or primary rays of the laser light source from reaching the patient's tissue directly. In general, it should be noted that in this arrangement, the converter is coupled thermally in terms of heat transfer technology, for example, as a passive component or to a heat sink in the form of a cooling body provided with active cooling means. Furthermore, the converter is additionally formed as a so-called beam trap in case the converter is damaged or even completely destroyed.

[0129] In another embodiment, the converter has two converter members. In this case, each converter member contains one ceramic converter material. Preferably, the converter members contain different converter materials, whereby the converter members are adapted to convert the laser light into light of different spectral compositions. In this case, at least one laser for irradiating the two converter members with laser light rays respectively is provided.

[0130] Individual converters consisting of a mixture of two converter materials that emit light of different wavelengths are also conceivable.

[0131] Such a configuration makes it possible to obtain a particularly good CRI, that is, to reproduce colors particularly well.

[0132] Advantageously, the light guide has two input ends, in which case each converter member is arranged such that the light emitted from each converter member is incident on each of the input ends.

[0133] Generally, the light source may be configured to have a plurality of converter members, in which case the light guide is configured to have a plurality of input ends, in which case each converter member is arranged such that the light emitted from each converter member is incident on each of the input ends, in which case the number of each converter member corresponds to the number of each input end, and advantageously, corresponding to each converter member, one dedicated input end is arranged.

[0134] With such a configuration, a particularly high CRI value can be obtained. This is because the color mixing performed using a plurality of light guide fibers is actually additive.

[0135] It may be particularly advantageous if the ratio of the light beam incident on the light guide is adjustable. In this way, the chromaticity coordinates of the light of the generated light source can be adapted particularly easily. Thus, in one embodiment, the light source has a device for adjusting the ratio of the light beam incident on the light guide from two converter members or all the converter members included in the light source.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0136] The present invention will be further described below with reference to the drawings. In this case, the same reference numerals represent the same or corresponding members.

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0137] FIG. 1 is a non-scale schematic view of an endoscope 1 according to one embodiment. The endoscope 1 has a first component 7 and a second component 5. In the figure, the first component 7 is arranged on the right side, and the second component 5 is arranged on the left side. The second component 5 has a proximal end 50 coupled to the first component 7. It may be assumed that the proximal end 50 of the second component 5 coupled to the first component 7 is configured to be removable. That is, in particular, the two components 5 and 7 may be configured to be provided via a separable coupling. This may be particularly advantageous when one component is intended for single use only, and the other component, here for example the first component 7, has components defined for multiple uses, especially of high value and / or high cost. This may particularly apply when a special light source, such as a light source having at least one laser, is surrounded by one component, here for example the first component 7.

[0138] The second component 5 further has a distal end 51. In this case, a camera chip 15 for image capture is arranged within the distal end 51. Further, within the second component 5, a light guide 9 having at least one light guide fiber 11 extends. The light guide fiber 11 is formed to guide the light of the light source 3 from the proximal end 50 to the distal end 51 of the light guide 9 and emit it at the distal end 51. Further, within the second component 5, a supply line (not shown) for electrical supply to the camera chip 15 extends.

[0139] The light source 3 has at least one laser 10 designed to emit primary light and a converter 17 that at least partially converts the light of the laser 10 into light of a different wavelength and emits it. The converter 17 is connected to the proximal end portion 50 of the second component 5 that is coupled to the first component 7 such that the light converted and emitted by the converter 17 is incident into the light guide 9.

[0140] The converter 17 preferably has a ceramic converter material.

[0141] In this case, the converter 17 may be configured to have at least two ceramic converter materials that convert the light of the laser 10 (or laser light) into light of different spectral compositions.

[0142] In general, without being limited to the light source 3 having the laser 10, which is exemplarily shown in the endoscope 1 of FIG. 1 or the exemplary endoscope 1 shown in FIG. 1, the converter 17 may be understood to include a converter member (not shown here) having a converter material. In particular, this converter member may be configured to have a converter material that may be, for example, particularly preferably a ceramic material here or may include a ceramic material. The converter material is, for example, deposited on a base in the form of a thin material layer, and the base can act as a conductor for the thermal energy generated during the conversion of the primary light. Such a configuration is particularly suitable when the light source or the converter is operated in a diffuse reflection mode.

[0143] In one embodiment of the endoscope, the transducer 17 is optically coupled to the light guide 9 such that light diffusely reflected by the transducer 17 is incident and / or can be incident and / or is at least capable of being incident into the light guide 9. Preferably, the laser 10 may be arranged and directed towards the transducer 17 such that light converted and / or scattered only by the transducer 17 is incident and / or can be incident and / or is capable of being incident into the light guide 9. Such a configuration is significant particularly from the perspective of safety when it is to be prevented that high-energy laser light reaches, for example, the tissue surface 80 illustrated here on the left side in FIG. 1 by way of example.

[0144] In this case, advantageously, it may be assumed that the laser 10 is arranged such that the light of the laser 10 is directed and / or is being directed and / or can be directed towards the transducer 17 in a direction opposite to the light emission direction of the light incident into the light guide 9 after being converted by the transducer 17.

[0145] Particularly from the perspective of assembly, it may be advantageous if the light guide 9 has a maximum of ten light guide fibers 11, especially when the second component 5 is assumed to be for single use only. In general, however, it is possible for a maximum of several hundred individual fibers 11 to be present in the light guide 9, which depends on the corresponding fiber diameter and consequently the resulting or targeted fiber bundle and thus the thickness of the light guide 9, and accordingly the number of fibers 11 can be selected.

[0146] The typical fiber diameter (or fiber thickness) of the light guide fiber 11 may preferably be in the range of 100 μm to 1000 μm, preferably up to a maximum of 600 μm, in which case the maximum fiber diameter is particularly preferably in the range of 150 μm to 400 μm. However, thinner fibers with diameters of 30 μm, 50 μm or 70 μm are also conceivable.

[0147] In one embodiment, one light guide fiber 11 or a plurality of light guide fibers 11 are formed as step-index glass fibers.

[0148] Preferably, one light guide fiber 11 and / or a plurality of light guide fibers 11 may be formed such that the numerical aperture (NA) of at least one fiber 11 and / or a plurality of light guide fibers 11 with respect to air is at least 0.7, preferably at least 0.8, and particularly preferably at least 0.85. This is particularly advantageous for obtaining a high CRI (color rendering index).

[0149] Particularly from the perspective of assembly, it may be advantageous if at least one light guide fiber 11 or a plurality of light guide fibers 11 are arranged in an incident sleeve 55 at the proximal end 50 of the light guide 9, as schematically shown in FIG. 1.

[0150] The second component 5 may be provided, for example, as at least partially flexible shaft or as at least partially rigid shaft. The second component may have a jacket 53 as illustratively shown in FIG. 1, for example. When the second component 5 is formed as at least partially flexible shaft, the jacket 53 is configured to be flexible, in particular by a tube or a braided tube or a shrinkable tube. When the second component 5 is formed as at least partially rigid shaft, the jacket 53 is preferably formed rigidly and has a sleeve. Without being limited to the examples illustratively shown herein, generally the jacket 53 at least partially surrounds a light guide 9 with at least one fiber 11, a supply line for electrical supply to the camera chip 15 and preferably at least one feedback signal line 12, and preferably a line leading to a data post-processing unit and / or an image post-processing unit 18 which may be provided in particular on the first component 7.

[0151] One particularly preferred embodiment is known to be a unit comprising seven light guide fibers 11 having a thickness of about 200 μm, formed as so-called wide-angle fibers with NA greater than 0.85. In this case, the seven light guide fibers 11 are arranged around the camera chip 15 and are adhesively bonded within a common entrance sleeve 55 at the proximal end. Alternatively, these seven light guide fibers 11 may be thermally fused within the entrance sleeve 55. In general, however, it is also possible, and even preferred in some cases, for the thermally fused fibers to be present at the proximal end without a sleeve.

[0152] FIG. 2 shows schematic views, not to scale, of the distal end 51 of the second component 5 of the endoscope 1 in FIGS. 2a - 2e. The distal ends 51 each include a plurality of fibers 11 here and a light guide 9 each having one camera chip 15.

[0153] In FIG. 2a, four fibers 11 having a circular cross-section within the frame of measurement accuracy are arranged. These fibers 11 are arranged here, by way of example, around a camera chip 15 having an approximately square shape, with one fiber 11 provided on each side of the camera chip 15. In contrast, in FIG. 2d, fibers 11 are arranged on only three sides of the camera chip 15.

[0154] In FIG. 2b, only two fibers 11 are arranged on two sides of the camera chip 15. In this case, the cross-section of the light guide fiber 11 is not circular, but rather elliptical or oval. In particular, in this case, the light guide fiber 11 may be formed such that it is deformed in the same way at the distal end 51 as compared to the proximal end 50 - not shown here. In particular, it is possible for the light guide fiber 11 to have a circular cross-section at the proximal end 50, but to be deformed and provided in the same way as in this case at the distal end. This may be advantageous for arranging the fibers 11 so as to surround the camera chip.

[0155] Preferably, a plurality of light guide fibers 11 and / or at least one light guide fiber 11 may have, at least at the distal end portion 51, a flat shape, in particular a cross section having an aspect ratio of at least 1.5:1 and / or an elliptical cross section and / or a kidney-shaped cross section, as exemplified herein. Another cross-sectional shape, such as a polygon, is also conceivable, but it is precisely the flat shape that is particularly advantageous with respect to the arrangement of the light guide fibers 11 surrounding the camera chip 15. In the arrangement shown in FIG. 2c, four fibers having a substantially D-shaped cross section at the distal end portion are arranged so as to surround the camera chip 15.

[0156] The distal end portions of the fibers 11 shown in both FIG. 2b and FIG. 2c can be deformed, as shown, for example, by a hot forming process, so that the corresponding cross sections or cross parts shown in FIGS. 2a to 2d are formed. In this case, the fiber 11 is heated in a mold by its processing heat and then pressed and deformed. Based on the viscosity of the fiber material, a perfect geometry cannot of course be replicated. Thus, the substantially D-shaped cross section will have relatively small rounding at the pointed corners at the front. Basically, such shaping can also be applied to glass fibers, quartz fibers or plastic fibers, in which case the deformation temperature can be adapted to each material. The deformation temperature is typically 150°C to 300°C in the case of plastic fibers (POF), typically 500°C to 800°C in the case of glass fibers depending on the type of glass, and up to 2000°C in the case of quartz fibers.

[0157] FIG. 2e shows a 12-fiber arrangement as already mentioned above. In this case, four thicker fibers 11 are grouped together with eight thinner fibers, with the thicker fiber 11 being arranged in the center of the cavity and the two thinner fibers 11 being arranged to the left and right of the thicker fiber 11 per cavity (segment). This allows already good area utilization of the cavity and thus a relatively high luminous flux to be achieved despite a relatively small number of fibers 11. Such an example can also be developed, for example, to a 20-fiber arrangement with 20 individual fibers 11, i.e. five fibers 11 per cavity, in which case ideally three diameter stages of the fibers 11 are present.

[0158] Finally, in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 two schematic, not to scale, views of a part or parts of the light source 3 are shown.

[0159] The light source 3 for an endoscope 1, in particular for an endoscope according to the present disclosure, comprises a laser 10 (not shown) for emitting primary light, preferably blue and / or ultraviolet light, as well as at least one converter 17 and a light guide 90 arranged corresponding to the laser. In this case, the converter 17 is formed in such a way that it comprises a first converter member 170 with a ceramic converter material 173. In this case, the converter member 170 is formed in such a way that the ceramic converter material 173 is provided as a material layer on a base also included in the converter member or on a thermal sink (or heat sink) 172 which may be formed for example to dissipate thermal energy resulting from the conversion of the laser light. Furthermore, a light guide 90 is provided with one or more light guide fibers 11. In this case, the laser 10 (not shown) is arranged in such a way that the light of the laser 10 at least partially irradiates a face of the converter 17, in particular a face 175 formed at least partially from the converter material 173, and the proximal end of the light guide with the at least one light guide fiber 11 receives the converted and / or scattered and / or emitted light of the converter 17.

[0160] In this case, in the view shown in FIG. 3, it may be assumed that one light guide fiber 100 supplies laser light to the converter 17. In this case, the output end of the light guide fiber 100 and the input end 91 of the light guide 90 are preferably directed towards the same surface 175 of the converter 17, as exemplarily shown in FIG. 3, and the converter is operated in a diffuse reflection mode. In this case, the guiding direction of the light in the light guide fiber 100 is opposite to the guiding direction of the light incident into the light guide 90 by the converter. Advantageously, it may be assumed that the light guide 90 has an interface at its distal end 93 with respect to the light guide 9 of the second component 5 of the endoscope. Here, as shown in the form of the lens 96, the light source 3 may further have, for example, optical elements for beam forming, focusing and / or collimation, in particular so-called diffractive optical elements.

[0161] FIG. 4 shows another drawing of part or portion of the light source 3 having a laser 10 (not shown here). In this case, the converter 17 has two converter members 170, 171. In this case, the converter member 170 has a first converter material 173, in particular a ceramic converter material 173, and the converter member 171 has a second converter material 174, in particular a ceramic converter material 174. In this case, the converter materials 173 and 174 are formed differently from each other, whereby the converter members 170 and 171 are adapted to convert the laser light into light of different spectral compositions. For example, the converter material 173 may be provided as so-called "red phosphor" and the converter material 174 may be provided as so-called "yellow phosphor". Such a configuration is advantageous, in particular for optimizing the so-called CRI, in particular for achieving a CRI of more than 80.

[0162] Generally, the light source 3 may have a plurality of converter members 170, 171. In this case, the number of input ends 91, 92 of the light guide 90 preferably corresponds to the number of converter members.

[0163] In particular, at least one light guide fiber 100 is provided that directs the light of the laser 10 towards the surface 175 of the converter members 170, 171. Also in this case, preferably the number of light guide fibers 100 corresponds to the number of converter members 170, 171, as is shown here by way of example for two converter members. Furthermore, the distal end portion 93 of the light guide 90 is shown, and in this case, preferably an interface of the second component 5 to the light guide 9 of the endoscope may be provided here.

Explanation of reference numerals

[0164] 1 Endoscope 3 Light source 5 Second component of the endoscope, for example the shaft 50 Proximal end portion of the second component 51 Distal end portion of the second component 53 Jacket 55 Inlet sleeve 7 First component of the endoscope 9, 90 Light guide 91, 92 Inlet end portions of the light guide 90 93 Distal end portion of the light guide 90, interface 96 Optical element, for example a lens 10 Laser 11, 100 Light guide fiber 12 Feedback signal line 15 Camera chip 17 Converter 170, 171 Converter member 172 Heat sink 173, 174 Converter material 175 Surface of the converter 18 Data processing unit and / or image processing unit

Claims

1. An endoscope (1) having a first component (7) and a second component (5), The first component (7) incorporates a light source (3), and the second component (5) has a proximal end (50) coupled to the first component (7), preferably a removably coupled proximal end (50) and distal end (51), and an image capturing element such as a camera chip (15) or a fiber optic element is disposed at the distal end (51), and at least one light guide fiber is disposed within the second component (5) to guide the light of the light source (3) from the proximal end (50) to the distal end (51) and emit it at the distal end (51). a light guide (9) having a fiber (11) and preferably a supply line for supplying electricity to the camera chip (15) extend through the light source (3); the light source (3) has at least one laser (10) for emitting primary light and a converter (17) for converting at least part of the light of the laser (10) into light of another wavelength and emitting the light; the converter (17) is connected to the proximal end (50) of the second component (5) coupled to the first component (7) so that the light converted and emitted by the converter (17) is incident on the light guide (9); Endoscope (1).

2. The transducer (17) comprises a ceramic transducer material (173, 174). An endoscope (1) according to claim 1.

3. The converter (17) comprises at least two ceramic converter materials (173, 174) that convert the laser light into light of different spectral compositions. An endoscope (1) according to claim 2.

4. the converter (17) comprises two converter elements (170, 171) each containing one of the ceramic converter materials (173, 174), such that the converter elements (170, 171) convert the laser light into light of different spectral compositions; An endoscope (1) according to claim 3.

5. the converter (17) is optically coupled to the light guide (9) such that light diffusely reflected, i.e. converted and / or scattered and / or reflected by the converter (17), is and / or can be and / or at least can be injected into the light guide (9), An endoscope (1) according to any one of the preceding claims.

6. the laser (10) is arranged and directed towards the converter (17) such that only light converted and / or scattered and / or reflected by the converter (17) is and / or can be and / or is at least capable of being injected into the light guide (9), An endoscope (1) according to any one of the preceding claims.

7. the laser (10) is arranged such that the light of the laser (10) is directed and / or is directed and / or can be directed towards the converter (17) in a direction substantially opposite to the light emission direction of the light converted by the converter (17) and entering the light guide, An endoscope (1) according to any one of the preceding claims.

8. the light guide (9) has up to 20, preferably up to 10 light guide fibers (11), preferably one or more of the light guide fibers (11) having a diameter in the range of 100 μm to 1000 μm, preferably in the range of 100 μm to 600 μm, particularly preferably in the range of 150 μm to 400 μm, the individual light guide fibers (11) may each have a different diameter; An endoscope (1) according to any one of the preceding claims.

9. the light guide fiber (11) or the light guide fibers (11) are step-index glass fibers, preferably the light guide fiber (11) or the light guide fibers (11) are step-index glass fibers having a glass composition that does not contain lead and / or other heavy metals apart from unavoidable traces and does not contain other critical elements such as antimony and / or arsenic and / or Cr(VI), An endoscope (1) according to any one of the preceding claims.

10. the numerical aperture (NA) of the light guide fiber (11) or of the light guide fibers (11) in air is at least 0.7, preferably at least 0.8, particularly preferably at least 0.85; Preferably, the light guide fiber or fibers (11) have a protective covering on their outer periphery, the protective covering being made of a polymer-based coating or a polymer-based tubing material, Preferably, said coating consists of an acrylate copolymer, a polyamide copolymer, a polyurethane copolymer, a polyimide copolymer, an epoxy copolymer, an ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene copolymer or a polyxylol-based compound or a mixture of these compounds, and / or the coating can be or is applied to the light guide fiber or fibers (11) at low pressure by dipping, spraying, extrusion or deposition immediately after drawing of the light guide fiber (11); and / or The coating has a layer thickness of 10 μm to 100 μm, preferably 20 μm to 50 μm. An endoscope (1) according to any one of the preceding claims.

11. the coating has at least one further outer coating, which may consist of PMMA, polyamide, polyimide or a fluorinated polymer such as ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene copolymer, or a mixture thereof; Endoscope (1) according to claim 10.

12. The light guide fiber (11) or the light guide fibers (11) are disposed in an entrance sleeve (55) at the proximal end (50). An endoscope (1) according to any one of the preceding claims.

13. The light guide fiber (11) is disposed at the proximal end (50) by high temperature melting. An endoscope (1) according to any one of the preceding claims.

14. at least one of the light guide fibers (11) and / or a plurality of the light guide fibers (11) and / or the light guide (9) at the distal end (51) is deformed compared to the proximal end (50); An endoscope (1) according to any one of the preceding claims.

15. the at least one light guide fiber (11) and / or the plurality of light guide fibers (11) are provided, at least at the distal end (51) of the light guide (9), with a flattened shape with an aspect ratio of at least 1.5:1 and have a cross-section whose shape is adapted to the plane remaining between the camera chip and the outer contour of the distal end, in particular an elliptical cross-section and / or a kidney-shaped cross-section and / or a cross-section in the shape of a circle segment, An endoscope (1) according to any one of the preceding claims.

16. A single-use endoscope system comprising a first component (7) and an individually sterile-packaged second component (5), The second component (5) is preferably or may be formed as a shaft and is releasably connectable to the first component (7) after removal from the sterile packaging (20), so that an endoscope (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 15 is obtained. Disposable endoscopy system.

17. the second component (5) is provided at least partially as a flexible shaft, the shaft having a flexible jacket (53) of a tube or a braided tube or a shrinkable tube, the jacket (53) at least partially enclosing the light guide (9) with at least one light guide fiber (11) as well as supply lines for the electrical supply to the camera chip (15) and preferably at least one return signal line (12) leading in particular to a data and / or image post-processing unit (18) which may be provided as a component in the first component (7), 17. The single use endoscope system of claim 16.

18. the second component (5) is at least partially provided as a rigid shaft, the shaft having a rigid jacket (53) formed by a sleeve, the jacket (53) enclosing the light guide (9) with at least one light guide fiber (11) as well as supply lines for the electrical supply to the camera chip (15) and preferably at least one return signal line (12) leading to a data post-processing unit and / or an image post-processing unit (18) which may be provided as a component in the first component (7), 18. A single use endoscope system according to claim 16 or 17.

19. A light source (3) for an endoscope (1), in particular for an endoscope (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 15, The light source (3) comprises a laser (10) for emitting primary light, preferably blue and / or ultraviolet light, and a light guide (90) with at least one converter (17) and one or more light guide fibers (11) arranged corresponding to the laser (10), the laser (10) being arranged such that the light of the laser (10) at least partially illuminates a face (175) of the converter (17) and a proximal end of the light guide (90) with at least one light guide fiber (11) receives the converted and / or scattered and / or reflected light of the converter (17), Light source (3).

20. The light source (3) has a light guide fiber (100) that supplies the laser light to the converter (17), the exit end of the light guide fiber (100) and the entrance end of the light guide (90) are directed to the same face (175) of the converter (17), so that the converter (17) is operated in a diffuse reflection mode, and the light guide fiber (100) that guides the laser light has a light guide direction opposite to the light guide direction entering the light guide (90) from the converter (17).

20. The light source (3) according to claim 19.

21. the converter (17) comprises two converter elements (170, 171) each containing a ceramic converter material (173, 174), preferably each of the converter elements (170, 171) containing a different converter material (173, 174), whereby the converter elements (170, 171) convert the laser light into light of different spectral composition, and at least one laser (10) is provided for irradiating the two converter elements with a laser beam, respectively. A light source (3) according to claim 19 or 20.

22. The light guide (90) has two input ends (91, 92), and each of the converter members (170, 171) is arranged such that light emitted from each of the converter members (170, 171) is incident on a respective one of the input ends (91, 92). The light source (3) according to claim 21.

23. The light source (3) has a device for adjusting the ratio of the light beams incident on the light guide from the two converter members (170, 171). A light source (3) according to claim 21 or 22.

Images