Bendable Endoscope Tube Assembly With Adjustable Pull-Wire Tension
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Solution Overview
Problem
The tightness of the pull wire in controllable bendable tubes of endoscopes is critical for proper bending, but existing methods struggle to adjust it effectively, leading to issues such as initial bending defects or insufficient maximum bending, affecting visual control.
Innovation Solution
A controllable bendable medical instrument with a rotating disc and traction assembly, featuring adjusting bosses, allows for adjusting the tightness of pull wires by altering their winding paths around these bosses, ensuring precise bending control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the pull wire is tightened to achieve maximum bending, then the bending capability is improved, but the tube becomes initially bent which affects normal use
Solution Approach 1:
The rotating disc with adjusting bosses enables dynamic adjustment of pull wire tightness. During assembly, the pull wire can be wound around different bosses to achieve the desired tightness, allowing the system to adapt between initial straight state and maximum bending state as needed
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the tightness parameter of the pull wire through adjustable winding paths around rotating disc bosses. This allows optimization of the parameter to prevent initial bending while maintaining maximum bending capability when required
2Shape
If the pull wire is loosened to prevent initial bending, then the normal use is improved, but the maximum bending is insufficient which affects visual control
Solution Approach 1:
The rotating disc mechanism provides dynamic adjustability, allowing the pull wire tightness to be optimized during assembly. The wire can be wound around different bosses to achieve the precise tightness needed to maintain straightness while preserving full bending capability
Solution Approach 2:
The adjusting bosses are pre-positioned on the rotating disc to provide predetermined winding paths. This preliminary arrangement of adjustment points enables optimal pull wire tightness to be achieved during assembly, preventing initial bending while ensuring maximum bending capability is maintained
3Ease of manufacture
If the pull wire tightness is fixed during assembly, then the manufacturing process is simplified, but the bending performance cannot be optimized
Solution Approach 1:
The rotating disc is segmented with multiple adjusting bosses positioned at different locations. This segmentation provides multiple discrete winding path options, allowing assembly personnel to select the appropriate boss to achieve optimal bending performance while maintaining a relatively simple assembly process
Solution Approach 2:
The rotating disc structure serves multiple functions: it provides the rotation mechanism for bending control and simultaneously provides multiple adjusting bosses for pull wire tension adjustment. This multi-functionality enables both simplified assembly and optimized bending performance through a single integrated component
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a controllable bendable medical instrument, including a controllable bendable tube, a traction assembly, and a rotating disc. One end of the traction assembly is fixedly connected to the rotating disc, and the other end of the traction assembly is connected to the controllable bendable tube. The traction assembly is pulled or loosened by rotating the rotating disc to drive the controllable bendable tube in the controllable bendable medical instrument to bend. The rotating disc is provided with adjusting bosses. When the traction assembly is assembled, the tightness of the traction assembly is adjusted by adjusting a winding path of the traction assembly around the adjusting bosses, thus meeting the initial assembly requirement.