BENDING DEVICE, CONTROL DEVICE, AND MEDICAL INSTRUMENT

• US 20170112358A1
• Filed: 02/10/2015
• Published: 04/27/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/10/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: AOKI, Hitoshi
• Granted Patent: US 10,292,572 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00042 for mechanical operation
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00045 Display arrangement
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00071 Insertion part of the endoscope body A61B1/0055 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00147 Holding or positioning arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/0052 Constructional details of control elements, e.g. handles
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/0055 Constructional details of insertion parts, e.g. vertebral elements
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/015 Control of fluid supply or evacuation
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/04 combined with photographic or television appliances
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 23/2476 Non-optical details, e.g. housings, mountings, supports

Abstract

A bending device with which bending motions can be controlled with ease and good controllability includes a plurality of elastic tubes disposed inside an elastic tube. The elastic tubes each include an elastic tube body and a non-stretching body. The portion of the elastic tube body opposite the portion in which the non-stretching body is fixed inflates in a circumferential direction of the elastic tube body in response to increase in its internal pressure, causing the elastic tube to bend. The portion of the elastic tube body in which the non-stretching body is fixed is thicker than the remaining portion of the elastic tube body.

Claims

1. A bending device comprising:

a tubular member having a hollow structure; and

a plurality of elastic tubes disposed inside the tubular member, wherein

the elastic tubes each include an elastic tube body which is sealed at a distal end portion and has an elongated, hollow cylindrical shape, and a non-stretching body for suppressing inflation of the elastic tube body,

the non-stretching body is fixed to the elastic tube body,

a portion of the elastic tube body in which the non-stretching body is fixed is thicker than a remaining portion of the elastic tube body,

a portion of the elastic tube body opposite the portion in which the non-stretching body is fixed inflates in a circumferential direction of the elastic tube body in response to increase in an internal pressure, causing the tubular member to bend, and

the tubular member includes bending portions that are deformable in response to inflation of the elastic tube body, and non-bending portions that do not deform when the elastic tube body inflates.

2. The bending device according to claim 1, wherein a stretchability of the non-stretching body is lower than a stretchability of the elastic tube body.

4. The bending device according to claim 1, wherein positions of the elastic tubes provided in two bending portions that neighbor one another across the non-bending portion are different from each other.

5. The bending device according to claim 1, comprising:

first elastic tubes and second elastic tubes provided inside the first elastic tubes as the elastic tubes, wherein

the tubular member includes a first bending portion and a second bending portion as the bending portions,

in the first bending portion, the first elastic tubes inflate and the second elastic tubes do not inflate in response to increase in the internal pressure, and

in the second bending portion, the second elastic tubes inflate and the first elastic tubes do not inflate in response to increase in the internal pressure.

6. The bending device according to claims 1, wherein a bending angle of the tubular member changes stepwise in response to increase in the internal pressure of the elastic tube body.

7. A control device for controlling inflation and deflation of the elastic tube body according to claim 1, the control device comprising:

an instruction receiving unit for receiving an instruction for inflating or deflating the elastic tubes; and

a fluid pressure varying unit for changing a pressure by injecting fluid into a hollow interior of the elastic tube body based on the instruction received by the instruction receiving unit.

8. A medical instrument comprising:

the bending device according to claim 1; and

a control device including;

an instruction receiving unit for receiving an instruction for inflating or deflating the elastic tubes; and

a fluid pressure varying unit for changing a pressure by injecting fluid into a hollow interior of the elastic tube body based on the instruction received by the instruction receiving unit.

3. (canceled)