Endoscope

• US 5,840,014 A
• Filed: 12/19/1997
• Issued: 11/24/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 01/14/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Fuji Photo Optical Co. Ltd (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fuji Photo Optical Co. Ltd (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Miyano, Hitoshi, Yamamoto, Chikara
• Primary Examiner(s): Hirsch, Paul J.
• Application Number:
  US08/994,748
• Time in Patent Office: 340 Days
• Field of Search: 600/121, 600/181, 600/122, 600/125, 600/123, 600/124
• US Class Current: 600/125
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00096 Optical elements
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00101 the distal tip features being detachable
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/05 characterised by the image sensor, e.g. camera, being in the distal end portion

Abstract

A transparent material having an air-layer-purging function is disposed between a cover tip portion of a protective cover covering an inserting portion of an endoscope, and a front end face of the inserting portion of the endoscope, so as to keep illumination light from reflecting between an illumination window and the cover tip portion, thus preventing flare and ghost from being generated by this reflected light. Disposed Between a front end face 1A of an inserting portion 1 of the endoscope and a transparent cover 11 constituting a protective cover 10 for the endoscope is a transparent material 15 whose form can conform to the transparent cover 11, illumination window 2, and viewing window 3 without intervening an air layer therebetween, such as deaerated water, cedar oil, jelly-like material, gel-like material, or the like. Consequently, light reflection at the rear end face 11A of the transparent cover 11 and the front end face 2A of the transparent window 2 can be reduced, whereby the loss in quantity of the irradiation light can be decreased. Also, the quantity of the reflected light incident on the viewing window 3 can be lowered, whereby the occurrence of flare and ghost caused thereby can be alleviated.

Claims

1. An endoscope inserting portion comprising:

a front end face having an illumination window and a viewing window;

a detachable protective covering for covering the inserting portion;

wherein said detachable protective covering is disposed in proximity to the front end face;

a space between the front end face and the detachable covering; and

a transparent material for purging air from the space between the front end face and the detachable covering.

2. An endoscope according to claim 1 wherein said transparent material is made of a liquid material.

3. An endoscope according to claim 1, wherein said transparent material fills all of the space between the front end face and the detachable covering.

4. An endoscope according to claim 1, wherein said detachable protective covering is a bag with one end closed, and an open end portion which is formed with a thick annular part having a circular cross section, wherein said thick annular part engages an annular groove formed on said inserting portion.