Endoscope Connector Mechanism for Long Member Attachment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing endoscope designs face challenges in efficiently and securely attaching and detaching long members, such as wires, which are crucial for operating treatment instruments, often leading to complexity and potential misalignment during use.
Innovation Solution
The endoscope incorporates a connector mechanism with open-close members and a locking mechanism that allows for easy attachment and detachment of long members by swinging the open-close members about a fulcrum, ensuring secure engagement and proper alignment with the operation section.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a conventional wire attachment method using guide conduit and fixing screw is used, then the wire can be attached to the operation section, but the attachment process becomes complex and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment mechanism is divided into separate functional components: the open-close member for gripping the long member, the locking member for securing it, and the fulcrum for enabling motion. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function efficiently, simplifying the overall attachment process while maintaining reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The open-close member is designed to swing between a first position where it opens to receive the long member and a second position where it closes to grip the long member. This dynamic motion enables easy attachment and detachment without complex fastening operations, directly reducing attachment complexity and time.
2Ease of operation
If the open-close member is designed to swing between open and closed positions, then attachment and detachment become easy, but the structure requires a fulcrum mechanism
Solution Approach 1:
The fulcrum is designed to automatically return the open-close member to its initial open position after the long member is inserted. This self-returning mechanism eliminates the need for manual manipulation or additional actuation systems, simplifying the overall structure while maintaining ease of operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The open-close member is pre-positioned in the open state ready to receive the long member. The locking member is pre-configured to automatically engage with the open-close member when it swings to the closed position, ensuring secure attachment without requiring additional steps or complex coordination mechanisms.
3Reliability
If the locking member moves in longitudinal direction to lock the open-close member, then secure locking is achieved, but the locking mechanism becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The locking member is positioned within or integrated with the open-close member structure, allowing it to move along the longitudinal axis within the existing component boundaries. This nested arrangement achieves secure locking without requiring separate external locking mechanisms, thereby maintaining structural compactness and reducing overall complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
An endoscope includes a connector for connecting a movable body and a long member. The connector includes: an open-close member having a distal end portion and a proximal end portion which are opened or closed by swinging about a predetermined fulcrum, the proximal end portion having a holding portion which holds the long member when the proximal end portion is closed, the distal end portion having an engaging portion which projects outwardly in a radial direction of the distal end portion and is engageable with an inner side of the movable body; and a locking member which moves in a longitudinal direction outwardly in a radial direction of the open-close member, and locks the proximal end portion of the open-close member and the movable body with each other in a state where the long member is held.