Automated Fiber Scope Feeder for Medical Lumen Inspection
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Medical devices with long, thin, flexible or rigid lumens, such as endoscopes and catheters, are difficult to inspect and clean internally due to their small diameters and complex geometries, leading to potential contamination and damage issues during reuse.
Innovation Solution
A medical device inspection system that automatically feeds a flexible fiber scope into the device's lumen, using spinning drums and a controller with AI to advance the scope in incremental steps, capture images, and identify defects, while also emitting UV light for disinfection, thereby facilitating effective inspection and cleaning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Difficulty of detecting and measuring
If a small, flexible scope is inserted to inspect the lumen of a medical device, then inspection capability is improved, but device complexity and operation difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The fiber optic scope is inserted inside the medical device lumen for inspection, creating a nested configuration where one device fits within another. This allows the inspection scope to access the internal lumen space without requiring external attachment or complex positioning mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
A feeder mechanism acts as an intermediary device that automatically advances and retracts the fiber optic scope through the medical device lumen. This intermediary system eliminates the need for manual manipulation of the flexible scope, reducing operation difficulty while maintaining inspection capability.
2Productivity
If manual inspection methods are used, then device complexity is reduced, but productivity and inspection effectiveness decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The feeder mechanism automatically performs the functions of inserting, advancing, and retracting the fiber optic scope through the medical device lumen without requiring continuous manual intervention. The system serves itself by mechanizing the inspection process, thereby increasing productivity while implementing controlled automation.
Solution Approach 2:
The feeder mechanism is pre-configured with the fiber optic scope and automatically performs the insertion and advancement actions before the actual inspection begins. This preliminary automation of positioning and insertion tasks prepares the system for efficient inspection without manual intervention during critical phases.
3Measurement precision
If the fiber scope is manually fed into the lumen, then device complexity is reduced, but measurement precision and inspection quality deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The feeder mechanism incorporates dynamic control capabilities to precisely regulate the advancement and retraction of the fiber optic scope. This dynamic positioning system adjusts the scope's position in real-time during inspection, ensuring optimal viewing angles and maintaining measurement precision throughout the inspection process.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates feedback mechanisms that monitor the position and movement of the fiber optic scope during inspection. This feedback information is used to adjust the feeder mechanism's operation, ensuring precise positioning and maintaining inspection accuracy by compensating for any deviations or variations in real-time.
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
The system enables thorough and efficient inspection and disinfection of medical devices, reducing human error and the need for extensive training, while ensuring the detection and treatment of contaminants and defects within the device's lumen.
Implementation Method 1
a fiber scope holder, for holding a handle of a fiber scope
Implementation Method 2
a moveable roller moveably attached to the base such that it is free to rotate around an axis and move from a first position to a second position along the base
Data Source
AI summary
A method for inspecting and cleaning an inner surface of a medical device may involve advancing a distal end of a flexible, elongate inspection device into the medical device, visualizing the inner surface of the medical device with a visualization member at or near the distal end of the inspection device, and emitting an ultraviolet light from an ultraviolet light emitter at or near the distal end of the inspection device, to clean the inner surface. The ultraviolet light emitter is configured to emit a uniform beam of ultraviolet light onto the inner surface.