Endoscope Bending Portion With Segmented Pull-Rope Chambers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional endoscopes with thin bending portions lack sufficient interior space for complex constructions, leading to inadequate functionality and limited applicability in small cavities.
Innovation Solution
The endoscope design incorporates a flexible insertion tube with a bending portion featuring a sleeve divided into separate chambers by a separating element, allowing for a pivoting movement of pull ropes without interference, using materials like spring steel or flexible plastic for the separating element.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of moving object
If the bending portion is made thin to reduce endoscope diameter, then the endoscope can examine small cavities, but the bending portion lacks sufficient interior space for complex constructions
Solution Approach 1:
The bending portion is segmented into multiple independent chambers (first chamber, second chamber, third chamber) separated by partition walls. Each chamber houses specific components (pull ropes, articulation mechanisms) independently, allowing complex functionality to be distributed across segmented spaces rather than requiring a single large interior volume.
Solution Approach 2:
Components are nested within the bending portion chambers in a space-efficient manner. Pull ropes are anchored within chambers, articulation mechanisms are housed within chamber spaces, and the entire bending portion is nested within the thin endoscope diameter, creating a compact nested structure that maximizes interior utilization.
2Reliability
If conventional complex constructions are used in the bending portion, then satisfactory functionality is achieved, but the bending portion requires sufficient interior space that increases diameter
Solution Approach 1:
The bending portion is divided into multiple functional chambers separated by partition walls. The first chamber houses pull rope anchoring mechanisms, the second chamber contains articulation mechanisms with pivot points, and the third chamber accommodates additional components. This segmentation allows complex functionality to be distributed across smaller, more efficient spatial units.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from a conventional single-large-chamber design to a multi-chamber three-dimensional arrangement. By utilizing vertical partition walls and creating stacked chamber configurations, the design efficiently packs complex articulation mechanisms and pull rope systems into a compact diameter while maintaining full functionality through spatial optimization in multiple dimensions.
3Length of moving object
If the bending portion is made very thin, then small cavities can be examined, but pull ropes and articulation mechanisms cannot be properly arranged
Solution Approach 1:
Pull ropes are assigned to specific chambers (first chamber, second chamber, third chamber) separated by partition walls. Each chamber provides a dedicated pathway and anchoring zone for pull ropes, eliminating interference between multiple ropes and simplifying their arrangement and operation despite the thin overall diameter.
Solution Approach 2:
Partition walls act as intermediaries that separate and organize pull rope pathways within the bending portion. These partition walls create distinct spatial zones that guide and isolate pull ropes, making them easier to arrange and operate independently without mutual interference, while still fitting within the constrained thin diameter.
Data Source
AI summary
An endoscope includes a flexible insertion tube and a bending portion controllable from a proximal side and being distally connected to the insertion tube. The bending portion includes a sleeve in which at least one pull rope runs for a pivoting movement of the bending portion, wherein the at least one pull rope is anchored to the distal end of the bending portion. A separating element dividing the cross-section of the sleeve into at least two separate chambers is arranged in the longitudinal direction of the sleeve. In one of the at least two chambers separated by the separating element, a pull rope of the at least one pull rope is arranged in the longitudinal direction of the sleeve for pivoting movement of the bending portion.