Endoscope S-Shape Bending via Segmented Portions and Regulation Wire
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing endoscopes with bending portions lack the ability to be efficiently bent in an S-shape, limiting their flexibility and precision in navigating body cavities.
Innovation Solution
The endoscope design incorporates a distal rigid portion, a first bending portion, a second bending portion, a flexible tube portion, an operation wire, a wire guide member, and a regulation wire. The operation wire bends the first bending portion, while the regulation wire, longer and stronger, opposes the second bending portion's direction, allowing the entire bending portion to be bent in an S-shape.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a single bending portion is used in existing endoscopes, then the structure is simple, but the ability to be efficiently bent in an S-shape is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The bending portion is divided into a first bending portion (23a) and a second bending portion (23b) that are coupled together. Each bending portion can be independently controlled by separate operation wires, enabling the endoscope to form an S-shape configuration. This segmentation allows the distal end to bend in one direction while the proximal end bends in the opposite direction, achieving efficient S-shape navigation in body cavities.
2Ease of operation
If operation wires are used to control bending, then the bending portions can be operated, but the wires may become tangled or misaligned during insertion
Solution Approach 1:
A wire guide member (101) is introduced as an intermediary component through which the operation wire (50) passes. The wire guide member is fixed to the inner circumferential surface of the joint ring (30) and extends through the bending portion, providing a guided path for the operation wire. This ensures the wire remains properly aligned and prevents tangling during insertion and operation, while still allowing smooth bending control.
Data Source
AI summary
An endoscope includes a distal rigid portion, a bending portion comprising a first bending portion and a second bending portion and a flexible tube portion. The endoscope further includes an operation wire, a wire guide member, a bending operation portion. The endoscope further includes a regulation wire, the regulation wire being longer than the bending portion, the regulation wire being inserted through the first bending portion and the second bending portion, the regulation wire being provided to face the operation wire in the diametrical direction of the bending portion, the regulation wire regulating the bending of the bending portion so that the second bending portion is bent in a direction opposite to the bending direction of the first bending portion and the bending portion is bent in an S-shape when the first bending portion is bent.