Endoscope Bending Instrument Linking Part Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional endoscope bending instruments face challenges in returning to their original state after bending, leading to operational impediments and potential soiling during withdrawal, especially when used through gastrostomy catheters.
Innovation Solution
A bending instrument for endoscopes featuring a fixed part, a sliding part, a flexible linking part, and a deformable cylindrical spacer allows for reliable orientation and retraction without twisting, ensuring the endoscope remains clean and easy to withdraw by maintaining the linking part's length within a specified range.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the linking part is made flexible to enable bending operation, then the endoscope tip can be oriented in various directions, but the linking part may become caught during operation when it bends
Solution Approach 1:
The linking part is designed as a thin-walled cylindrical structure with wall thickness of 0.1-0.3mm, providing flexibility for bending operations while maintaining structural integrity. The thin-walled design allows the linking part to bend smoothly without becoming caught, resolving the contradiction between flexibility and operational smoothness.
Solution Approach 2:
The linking part is given a curved, cylindrical shape rather than a straight configuration. This curvature allows the linking part to naturally accommodate bending movements during endoscope orientation while preventing snagging or catching during insertion and withdrawal operations.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the extension is made deformable to enable bending, then the endoscope tip can be oriented, but the extension may not return to its original state when the endoscope is withdrawn
Solution Approach 1:
The linking part is designed with dynamic properties that allow it to deform during bending operations and then automatically return to its original cylindrical shape. The elastic material and thin-walled structure enable reversible deformation, ensuring reliable return to the original state after withdrawal.
Solution Approach 2:
The linking part's physical parameters (shape, volume) are temporarily changed during bending operations but automatically revert to original values after use. The elastic recovery property ensures that dimensional changes are reversible, maintaining reliability for repeated use.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the linking part is made longer to allow sufficient bending movement, then orientation is improved, but the linking part may twist excessively during withdrawal
Solution Approach 1:
The thin-walled cylindrical structure with controlled wall thickness (0.1-0.3mm) provides the right balance between flexibility for bending and stability to prevent excessive twisting. The thin wall allows bending movement while maintaining enough structural rigidity to limit twist during withdrawal.
Solution Approach 2:
Different portions of the linking part have different wall thicknesses or structural properties optimized for their specific functions. The local structural variations allow sufficient bending range in operational areas while maintaining stability and preventing excessive twisting in other portions during withdrawal.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables precise orientation of the endoscope tip within internal organs without soiling, simplifies the withdrawal process, and extends the endoscope's lifespan by minimizing the need for sterilization and cleaning.
Implementation Method 1
a deformable cylindrical spacer (11) which is fitted on the outer periphery of the sheath (27) between the fixed part (12) and the sliding part (13)
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3
Figure 4(a)~4(c)
AI summary
[Issue] To provide a bending instrument for an endoscope with which a linking part which joins a sliding part and a fixed part reliably returns to its original state after having bent so that there is no impediment to operation, and furthermore with which the endoscope does not become soiled, and an endoscope set which uses the same. [Means of Resolution] A bending instrument 10 for an endoscope which is attached to the tip end of a sheath 27 for covering the endoscope 20, and which causes the tip end portion of the endoscope 20 to bend consists of: a fixed part 12 which is attached to the outer periphery at the tip end of the sheath 27; a sliding part 13 which is slidably attached further towards the base end of the sheath 27 than the portion where the fixed part 12 is attached; a flexible linear linking part 14 for joining the fixed part 12 and the sliding part 13; and a spacer 11 comprising a coil spring which is fitted on the outer periphery of the sheath 27 between the fixed part 12 and the sliding part 13. Furthermore, an endoscope set consists of the bending instrument 10 for an endoscope, the endoscope 20, the sheath 27 and a gastrostomy catheter 40.