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Electronically steerable endoscope

  • US 5,547,455 A
  • Filed: 03/30/1994
  • Issued: 08/20/1996
  • Est. Priority Date: 03/30/1994
  • Status: Expired due to Term
First Claim
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1. An endoscope comprising:

  • an elongated shaft, said elongated shaft having a distal end terminating in a distal end surface, a proximal end, an outer side wall extending from said distal end to said proximal end, and at least one internal passageway extending from said distal end to said proximal end;

    a multiplicity of image capturing means being disposed on one or both of said outer side wall and said distal end surface so as to face outwardly therefrom in spaced relationship to one another, each of said image capturing means comprising lens means for defining an outwardly facing field of view for that image capturing means, and each of said image capturing means being adapted to capture an image of any object located within said field of view and to convert that image into corresponding signals, with said image capturing means being arranged so that each of said multiplicity of image capturing means has a substantially different field of view, at least one of said image capturing means being disposed adjacent to first and second of the other of said image capturing means and disposed therebetween, and disposed adjacent to third and fourth of other of said image capturing means and disposed therebetween;

    processing means associated with said proximal end of said shaft, said processing means being adapted to receive said corresponding signals from said image capturing means and to generate display comprising one or more of said images at said proximal end of said shaft; and

    a multiplicity of connecting means for connecting each of said image capturing means to said processing means.

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