Endoscope with cable compensating mechanism
First Claim
1. An inspection instrument having a generally elongated flexible shaft extending between a control head at a proximal end thereof and an objective assembly at a distal end thereof comprising:
- a controlled bending section adjacent said objective assembly enabling movement of said objective assembly between a position generally axially aligned with said elongated flexible shaft, and positions angularly disposed relative thereto;
a control member movably mounted on said control head;
at least one operating cable means extending between said proximal end and said distal end, said operating cable means being operatively connected at its opposite ends to said objective assembly and to said control member for deflecting said objective assembly in at least one direction; and
compensating means engageable with each of said cables intermediate said opposite ends thereof operable for preventing a tensile force in said cables in excess of a predetermined value or for accommodating variations in the working length of said cables.
13 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An inspection instrument having a generally elongated flexible shaft extending between a control head at a proximal end and an objective assembly at a distal end. A bending section adjacent the objective assembly enables movement of the objective assembly between a neutral position and angularly disposed positions. A control member on the control head causes deflection of the objective assembly by means of a pair of operating cables which are operatively connected at their opposite ends to the control member and to the objective assembly. A compensating mechanism engages the cables intermediate their ends and is effective to guard the cable against excessive loads and also to readily accommodate variations in the working length of the cables as occurs when the cables are permanently stretched.
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Citations
27 Claims
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1. An inspection instrument having a generally elongated flexible shaft extending between a control head at a proximal end thereof and an objective assembly at a distal end thereof comprising:
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a controlled bending section adjacent said objective assembly enabling movement of said objective assembly between a position generally axially aligned with said elongated flexible shaft, and positions angularly disposed relative thereto; a control member movably mounted on said control head; at least one operating cable means extending between said proximal end and said distal end, said operating cable means being operatively connected at its opposite ends to said objective assembly and to said control member for deflecting said objective assembly in at least one direction; and compensating means engageable with each of said cables intermediate said opposite ends thereof operable for preventing a tensile force in said cables in excess of a predetermined value or for accommodating variations in the working length of said cables. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. An inspection instrument having a generally elongated flexible shaft extending between a control head at a proximal end thereof and a deflectible tip at a distal end thereof comprising:
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a controlled bending section adjacent said deflectible tip enabling movement of said tip between a position generally axially aligned with said elongated flexible body and a position angularly disposed relative thereto; a control member movably mounted on said control head; an operating cable means extending between said proximal end and said distal end, said operating cable means being operatively connected at its opposite ends to the region of said deflectible tip and to said control member for deflecting said deflectible tip in at least one direction; and compensating means engageable with said cable intermediate said opposite ends thereof operable for preventing a tensile force in said cable in excess of a predetermined value or for accommodating variations in the working length of said cable. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27)
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Specification