Magnetic Endoscopic Guide Anchoring for Colonoscopy
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current endoscopic guides for catheters and endoscopes face challenges such as passive positioning, incomplete anchoring, difficulty in navigating anatomically complex areas like the colon, risk of tissue damage, and inability to replace endoscopes while maintaining anchoring, leading to discomfort and inefficiency during procedures like colonoscopy.
Innovation Solution
An endoscopic guide featuring a tubular guiding element with a magnetic or ferromagnetic agent and a manually maneuverable magnetic field source, allowing for secure anchoring and precise movement of the anchoring head, enabling the use of larger mass colonoscopes and facilitating the precise location of lesions without occluding the lumen.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If an inflatable balloon is used for anchoring the guide, then the guide can be locked in place, but the lumen is completely occluded and the operation is passive requiring manual repositioning
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical inflatable balloon anchoring system with a magnetic anchoring system. The guide incorporates a magnetic element that interacts with an external magnetic field source to achieve anchoring, eliminating the need for inflation/deflation operations and enabling active remote positioning through magnetic field manipulation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a magnetic field as an intermediary between the operator and the guide. By applying external magnetic fields, the operator can remotely manipulate the guide's position and anchoring state without direct mechanical interaction, solving both the occlusion and passive positioning problems.
2Reliability
If an inflatable balloon is used for anchoring, then the guide can be secured, but excessive pressure on the bowel wall may cause pain or tissue tearing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical pressure-based anchoring of inflatable balloons with a magnetic anchoring mechanism. The magnetic force provides secure anchoring without requiring excessive pressure on the bowel wall, eliminating the risk of pain and tissue tearing associated with balloon inflation.
3Reliability
If the bowel is dilated and flaccid, then it does not offer resistance to balloon expansion, but the balloon distension becomes ineffective and risky
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical expansion-based anchoring with a magnetic anchoring system that does not rely on bowel resistance. The magnetic force can effectively anchor the guide regardless of whether the bowel is dilated and flaccid, eliminating the ineffectiveness and risks of balloon distension in such conditions.
4Force
If a more rigid guide is used to support larger mass colonoscopes, then the guide can provide sufficient pulling force, but the rigid tip may damage the bowel
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a magnetic anchoring mechanism that provides firm anchoring without requiring excessive guide rigidity. This allows the use of more flexible guides with softer tips that can safely navigate the bowel while still providing sufficient pulling force through the magnetic anchoring point.
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 solution provides a stable and less traumatic anchoring system that allows for significant pulling force, precise lesion location, and easy replacement of endoscopes, reducing procedural time and discomfort while maintaining safety and cost-effectiveness.
Implementation Method 1
a magnetic or ferromagnetic agent in said anchoring head, said tubular guiding element further comprising a magnetic or ferromagnetic agent movable in said longitudinal cavity for filling/emptying the container
Implementation Method 2
The magnetic or ferromagnetic agent comprises a magnetizable agent, i.e. an agent which reacts to the presence of an external magnetic field
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
The present invention relates to an endoscopic guide, in particular for flexible endoscopes. In particular, the invention relates to a system for endoscopy, in particular for colonoscopy and enteroscopy, comprising: - an endoscopic guide (1, 10) for catheters or endoscopes, comprising a tubular guiding element (2) and an anchoring head (3), wherein the tubular guiding element (2) comprises a longitudinal cavity (7), the anchoring head (3) being provided at least with a container (4, 8) for accommodating a magnetic or ferromagnetic agent (5, 6), the container being in communication with said longitudinal cavity (7), the endoscopic guide (1) further comprising a magnetic agent (5, 6) movable in said longitudinal cavity (7) configured to fill/empty the container (4, 8); - a manually maneuverable magnetic field source configured to exert a retaining force on the magnetic or ferromagnetic agent (5, 6) contained in the balloon, with respect to a transverse pulling direction, greater than 5 Newton at a distance from 2 centimeters to 10 centimeters.