61 results about "Flexible endoscopy" patented technology

The utility model discloses a neuroendoscope assembly which comprises a hard outer sleeve, a flexible endoscope and a locking sleeve, and the hard outer sleeve comprises a connecting part and a hard tube body; a first connector for fixing the hard tube body is arranged at the front end of the connecting part, and a clamping part and a limiting part are arranged at the tail end of the connecting part; a space surrounded by the clamping part and the limiting part forms an insertion cavity; the flexible endoscope comprises an inserting part and a flexible catheter; a second connector for fixing the flexible catheter is arranged at the front end of the inserting part; the second connector is matched with the insertion cavity, and a stop block is arranged on the outer wall of the second connector; the locking sleeve is rotatably mounted on the clamping part, the bottom of the inner wall of the locking sleeve is provided with a spigot abutting against the connecting part, and the top of the inner wall of the locking sleeve is provided with a sliding groove and a locking block; and the clamping part is clamped in the sliding groove. According to the neuroendoscope assembly, accurate alignment can be achieved in the inserting process, the flexible endoscope and the hard outer sleeve can be easily fixed and separated, and damage to intracranial tissue is reduced.

A method is provided for method for estimating shape of an elongated member of an articulating flexible endoscope. The method comprising: receiving sensor data acquired by a series of sensor pairs located at multiple points along a length of the elongated member, where the series of sensor pairs are mounted to a structure movable relative to the elongated member; calculating orientations of the elongated member at the multiple points; and estimating a shape of the elongated member based at least in part on the orientations.

The present invention discloses a flexible endoscope robot for minimally invasive intervertebral disc surgery, which relates to the technical field of minimally invasive intervertebral disc surgery. The present invention includes a flexible pipeline, and a negative pressure extraction tube and a flushing tube are arranged inside the flexible pipeline. A support tube is arranged at the insertion end of the negative pressure extraction tube, an inner sliding sleeve is slidably connected inside the support tube, a driving rope reel is rotatably installed inside the inner sliding sleeve, and multiple groups of crushing thin ropes are arranged on the outer side of the driving rope reel. The whole of the present invention adopts a flexible endoscope robot. When the puncture needle reaches the position of the intervertebral foramen, there is no need to gradually expand the outer opening of the intervertebral foramen level by level, and there is no need to resect part of the articular process joint or resect the lamina. After the flexible endoscope robot passes through the puncture needle, it directly bends into the intervertebral foramen, and then cooperates with the use of the clamping jaw and the negative pressure extraction tube to grab and aspirate the intervertebral disc herniation, which can reduce the damage to the bone joints, enhance the stability of the spine, and reduce the recurrence rate of the intervertebral disc.

Provided is an articulated flexible endoscope. The endoscope comprises: a distal tip portion manipulated via a drive mechanism; a bending section connected to the distal tip portion at a first end and connected to a shaft portion at a transition interface, the bending section being articulated by one or more pull wires; and a shaft portion comprising one or more load transmission tubes for reducing at least a portion of an articulation force applied to the bending section by the one or more pull wires, thereby improving the stability of the shaft portion, the one or more load transmission tubes being anchored to the transition interface and having a length greater than the length of the shaft portion.

An articulated flexible endoscope is provided. The endoscope comprises: a distal tip portion manipulated via a drive mechanism; a curved section connected at a first end to the distal tip portion and connected at a transition interface to the shaft portion, the curved section being hinged by one or more pull wires; and a shaft portion including one or more load transfer tubes anchored to the transition interface and having a length greater than the length of the shaft portion for reducing at least a portion of the articulation force applied to the curved section by the one or more pull wires, thereby improving the stability of the shaft portion.

A deflection control mechanism for a steerable flexible endoscope (10), the endoscope (10) having an elongate flexible shaft (30) comprising a steerable section (31) that is deflectable by movement of at least one elongate control element, comprises a support structure, a drive wheel rotatably supported in or on the support structure, and a hand wheel (22, 23) rotationally coupled to the drive wheel, wherein the deflection control mechanism (29) is connectable to the at least one elongate control element to effect movement of the at least one elongate control element by rotation of the drive wheel, wherein the deflection control mechanism (29) comprises a brake stator element rotationally coupled to the support structure and a brake rotor element rotationally coupled to the drive wheel, the brake stator element being displaceable relative to the brake rotor element in an axial direction, and wherein a first one of the brake stator and brake rotor elements comprises an elastically deformable lip and the other one of the brake stator and brake rotor elements comprises a friction surface (105a, 115a), the elastically deformable lip being arranged for being pressed against the friction surface (105a, 115a) by axial displacement of the brake stator element relative to the brake rotor element. The invention also relates to a steerable flexible endoscope (10) and to a method for controlling a flexible endoscope (10).

This invention is entitled "Apparatus and Method for Sterilizing Endoscopes". The invention discloses a method for sterilizing articles such as flexible endoscopes, the method being performed in a sterilization chamber. A vacuum is applied to the sterilization chamber while the articles are contained within it. A sterilizing agent is then introduced into the sterilization chamber. The pressure within the sterilization chamber is gradually increased to provide a gradual transition from a high vacuum state to atmospheric pressure. The articles are thus sterilized.

An apparatus for sanitizing a fiberoptic endoscope includes an elongated box with an interior storage chamber and a cleaning piece connected to the exterior of the box. The cleaning piece and the box are arranged in-line with one another and are configured to receive a flexible endoscopic cable of a fiberoptic endoscope inside of them to sanitize and sterilize the cable. The flexible endoscopic cable is first inserted in the cleaning piece via a through opening of the cleaning piece. The cleaning piece includes a plurality of filtering media in its interior, each with a respective through hole. The flexible endoscopic cable is disinfected as it is moved through the filtering medium through holes. Having passed through the filtering media, the flexible endoscopic cable travels to the interior storage chamber of the box, where it is irradiated by an ultraviolet light source for sterilizing the flexible endoscopic cable.

The present application belongs to the technical field of medical robot control, and provides an active modeling control method for a magnetically driven flexible endoscope, which comprises the following steps: acquiring an actual bending angle of a tip of the endoscope; calculating a nominal control input current by using a nominal controller; constructing an extended discrete state space model of the magnetically driven flexible endoscope; performing real-time estimation on the extended discrete state space model by using a nonlinear state estimation algorithm; constructing a quadratic cost function containing an estimated value of the modeling error, and obtaining an optimal compensation control input current by minimizing the quadratic cost function; adding the nominal control input current and the optimal compensation control input current to obtain an actual input current, which is output to a driving mechanism to control the bending angle of the flexible endoscope. The present method can reduce the phase lag phenomenon of a conventional controller, and greatly reduce the steady-state and dynamic tracking errors.

The invention relates to the technical field of medical equipment, and provides a flexible endoscope delivery guiding device and a flexible endoscope robot, and the flexible endoscope delivery guiding device comprises a lead screw mechanism and a delivery guiding mechanism. A first lead screw driving seat and a second lead screw driving seat in the lead screw mechanism get close to each other or get away from each other, so that telescopic deformation of the shear fork assembly can be driven. Thus, the flexible endoscope delivery guiding device has certain self-supporting and adjusting capacity, and the tail end of the shear fork assembly can be kept at the entrance of the human body approach during delivery under the condition that an additional support is not needed. No extra support needs to be arranged on the sickbed, so that the installation steps and complexity of the equipment are reduced, and the operation difficulty and risk are reduced; meanwhile, extra manufacturing cost, installation cost and disinfection and isolation cost caused by the support are avoided, the requirements for rapid deployment and single-time use cost are met, and the flexible endoscope support is particularly suitable for application scenes of disposable flexible endoscope robots.

A catheter (50) of a flexible endoscope (100). The catheter (50) includes a catheter body defined by a proximal end and a distal end. The proximal end is connectable to an umbilical portion (5) of a flexible endoscope (100) and the distal end defines a deflectable portion. The catheter body defines a first channel (1), a second channel (2) and a third channel (3). The first channel (1) accommodates at least one of the optical system and deflection means for deflecting the deflectable portion, and the second channel (2) and the third channel (3) are configured to expand when in operation. The catheter (50) comprises an actuating member (18) insertable into the second channel (2) of the catheter body. The actuation member (18) is operable to selectively expand the second channel (2). The second channel (2) is operable in a plurality of modes when expanded, and one of the plurality of modes of the second channel (2) is configured to allow a suction operation in the second channel (2).

An attachment to be fitted to a flexible endoscope is provided. The attachment, or resection cap, can be positioned at the end of an endoscope to create traction and improve visualization. An electrode or cutting wire allows for the resection of a target tissue plane using electrosurgical energy and is designed to interact with the cap to create cutting zones and insulated zones. A conductive coupling element that is capable of interfacing with a catheter passed through an endoscope to transmit electricity to the electrode. The coupling element is designed so that it may be electrically connected and disconnected interprocedurally without removing the scope, and it does not impede use of other instruments through the scope. A coupling catheter that conducts electricity to the resection cap and can deliver fluid to the resection site is additionally provided.

The invention discloses a flexible endoscope combined dual-purpose control robot which comprises a steering device and a control system, the steering device comprises a support supporting plate, the support supporting plate is rotationally connected with a steering guide part, the steering guide part is connected with a flexible endoscope elbow, the flexible endoscope elbow is connected with an endoscope, and the control system is connected with the steering guide part. The support supporting plate is connected with a driving mechanism, the output end of the driving mechanism is in power connection with the steering guiding piece, and the steering guiding piece plays a role in guiding the flexible endoscope elbow through power of the driving mechanism. According to the flexible ureteroscope operation robot, manual operation is replaced by the mechanical arm, the remote control handle and the switching platform are combined, the functions of accurate control, labor-saving operation, soft rope lifting, posture locking and remote surgery are achieved, the surgery threshold is lowered, safety is improved, and the flexible ureteroscope operation robot can be expanded to be used in collaborative surgery, remote surgery and surgery teaching scenes.

A method for controlling a tip speed of an articulated flexible endoscope is provided. The method includes: generating a command to move a tip of an elongate member of the articulated flexible endoscope at an expected speed; receiving sensor data acquired by a sensor disposed at a distal tip portion of the elongate member to calculate a tip velocity; calculating a difference between the expected speed and the tip speed; and control the tip speed based on the difference.

An articulating flexible endoscope is provided. The endoscope comprises: a bending section connected to a distal tip portion at a first end, and connected to a shaft portion at a second end; a pull wire coupled to the distal tip portion at a first location and is configured for articulating the bending section; and a first tube for accommodating the pull wire. A distal end of the first tube is coupled to a second location on the bending section or on the shaft portion, a proximal end of the first tube is coupled to a proximal portion of the articulating flexible endoscope. An effective bending section of the articulating flexible endoscope is adjusted by varying i) a length between the first location and the second location or ii) the second location.

This paper presents endoscopic surgical instruments and methods that mitigate some of the shortcomings of conventional ureteroscopy, while shortening treatment time, increasing the probability of stone-free treatment, and enhancing treatment safety. [Solution] An instrument for endoscopic applications, including urology. The instrument may include both irrigation and aspiration channels 102, an illumination fiber 112 with steering capabilities for a flexible version of the scope, effective aspiration and suction of tissue and internal calculus fragments, improved visibility of the surgical area. In some embodiments, the distal head is configured to position the opening 108 of the working channel within the field of view of the visualization system. In some embodiments, a transparent cap 100 is placed at the distal end of the endoscope to improve the field of view of the surgical area. The irrigation and aspiration channels 102 may be positioned so that a consistent flow of water attracts tissue and internal calculus particles and removes heated fluid.

The disclosed technology relates to a guiding arrangement for receiving and guiding a tool of a surgical instrument, in particular of a single-use flexible endoscope, comprising a working shaft adaptor; a tubular working shaft connected to the working shaft adaptor and comprising a working channel extending beyond the working shaft adaptor; and a curved guiding element with a distal end and a proximal end, wherein the distal end is connected to the working shaft adaptor such that the curved guiding element guides the working channel along a curved trajectory to the proximal end. Furthermore, the disclosed technology relates to a corresponding surgical instrument, e.g., a single-use flexible endoscope.

A surgical robot system can include a robotic arm coupled to a flexible scope and a viewer for displaying a view of a surgical site derived from the flexible scope. The surgical robot system can be configured to operate the flexible scope in a particular mode among a plurality of modes. In accordance with a determination that the flexible scope is operating in the particular mode, the surgical robot system can provide an electrical signal for presenting a first visual indicator corresponding to each mode on the viewer.

A scope system is provided including an elongate tube with a distal portion and a lumen extending therethrough. The scope system also includes at least one accessory channel including a tubular structure with an accessory lumen extending therethrough, the at least one accessory channel movably disposed at least partially within the lumen of the elongate tube. The at least one accessory channel includes a distal section and a forward-viewing configuration and a side-viewing configuration. In the forward-viewing configuration, the distal section of the at least one accessory channel is substantially parallel to the distal portion of the elongate tube and in the side-viewing configuration, the distal section of the at least one accessory channel is arced at a radius greater than a radius of the distal portion of the elongate tube.

A guide sheath includes ports at a handle portion through which flexible endoscopic tools may be advanced until they emerge from corresponding ports at a distal tip of the guide sheath. The guide sheath includes a position sensor at its distal tip that is compatible with an image guided surgery (IGS) system, such that a virtual view of the distal tip's position relative to a surgical site may be presented by the IGS system. The virtual view may assist a surgeon in precisely positioning the distal tip at the surgical site, and then one or more flexible endoscopic tools may be advanced the length of the guide sheath for use at the surgical site. The guide sheath may also include an articulating portion at the distal tip that may be deflected in one or more directions in order to provide additional control over placement within the surgical site.

A method includes advancing a shaft of a flexible scope via a set of feedrollers, the flexible scope having a handle mounted to a hull, pivoting the hull about a rotary joint to thereby pivot the handle of the flexible scope relative to the set of feedrollers, and translating the hull along a linear joint to thereby advance the handle toward the set of feedrollers.

A method for controlling the tip speed of an articulated flexible endoscope is provided. The method includes: generating a command to move the tip of the elongate member of the articulated flexible endoscope at an expected speed; receiving sensor data acquired by a sensor disposed at a distal tip portion of the elongate member to calculate the tip speed; calculating a difference between the expected speed and the tip speed; and controlling the tip speed based on the difference.

The application belongs to the technical field of medical devices, and particularly relates to a flexible endoscope autonomous path planning method, device and system, wherein the flexible endoscope autonomous path planning method comprises: pre-processing an endoscope image; obtaining a visual depth map from the endoscope image and constructing a three-dimensional point cloud map; identifying and contouring a target in the endoscope image to obtain target position information; fusing the three-dimensional point cloud map and the target position information to construct a dynamic environment model; generating a safe path according to the dynamic environment model and movement constraint conditions of an endoscope catheter; and using a deep deterministic policy gradient algorithm to generate a movement strategy according to a current environment state, with the safe path as a reference trajectory. Through visual depth recovery and reinforcement learning strategy, the application realizes real-time three-dimensional environment reconstruction, autonomous obstacle avoidance and accurate tracking of a moving target of the endoscope in a dynamic human body cavity.

To provide a system, a device, and a method for fastening a tissue of a flexible endoscope platform or the like having a stapling function, for example.SOLUTION: A medical device includes: a first shaft; a second shaft arranged inside a lumen of the first shaft; a first stapling head and a second stapling head arranged in a distal portion of the second shaft; and an extrusion element extending so as to penetrate the lumen, the extrusion element being configured to deploy one or more staples in a direction substantially orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the second shaft by movement in a distal direction of the extrusion element along the longitudinal axis.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 9

A method for a robotic endoscope system is provided. The method includes generating a 3D depth map of the environment surrounding the robotic endoscope system, autonomously actuating a mobile base of a robotic support system to a desired location relative to a patient bed based on the 3D depth map, where the robotic support system includes a robotic arm coupled to the mobile base at a proximal end and coupled to a flexible endoscope device via an instrument drive mechanism (IDM) at a distal end, and actuating the robotic arm to align the IDM with a component coupled to the patient bed or that is part of the patient bed.

A device insertion method for observing the lateral wall of the lumen includes: rotating a hollow organ by changing a body position; turning the tip of the device to the lateral wall of the lumen by rotating the device; and retracting the organ with the device itself by rotating the device, In other embodiments, an endoscope insertion method for observing the lateral side of the organ includes: rotating a body cavity by changing a body position; turning the tip of the flexible endoscope to the lateral side of the organ by rotating the flexible endoscope; and retracting the organ with the flexible endoscope itself by rotating the flexible endoscope.

The present invention provides a shaft (1) for a surgical instrument, in particular for a flexible endoscopic instrument, comprising: an inner shaft structure layer (2) with a distal end (3) and a proximal end (4), wherein the inner shaft structure layer (2) has a through-opening (5) for receiving a working channel and / or an optical imaging device, wherein the through-opening (5) extends axially from the proximal end (4) to the distal end (3), and wherein the inner shaft structure layer (2) comprises a slot (6) for laterally opening the inner shaft structure layer (2), wherein the slot (6) is arranged at least sectionally between the proximal end (4) and the distal end (3).Furthermore, the present invention provides a surgical instrument (100) with such a shaft (1) and a method for mounting a working channel and / or an optical imaging device to a shaft (1) for a surgical instrument.