Control device for an endoscope

• US 6,656,111 B2
• Filed: 04/18/2001
• Issued: 12/02/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Pentax Corporation (Hoya Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Pentax Corporation (Hoya Corporation)
• Inventors: Katsurada, Hiroyuki, Fujii, Yoshinori, Sugiyama, Akira
• Primary Examiner(s): CAMPBELL, THOR S
• Application Number:
  US09/836,221
• Publication Number:
  US 20010034472A1
• Time in Patent Office: 958 Days
• Field of Search: 600/146, 600/139, 600/152, 600/122
• US Class Current: 600/146
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/0052 Constructional details of control elements, e.g. handles

Abstract

An endoscope includes a hollow operational body, a hollow shaft provided on the hollow operational body, at least one hollow rotational control knob which is rotatably supported on the hollow shaft; and an air passage via which an inner space of the hollow operational body and an inner space of the at hollow rotational control knob have a communicative connection with each other, wherein the hollow shaft includes a portion of the passage.

Claims

1. An endoscope comprising:

a hollow operational body;

a hollow shaft provided on said hollow operational body;

at least one hollow rotational control knob which is rotatably supported on said hollow shaft; and

an air passage via which an inner space of said hollow operational body and an inner space of said hollow rotational control knob have a communicative connection with each other, wherein said hollow shaft comprises a portion of said passage;

wherein said hollow rotational control knob is positioned about an axis of said hollow shaft at an intermediate position between opposite ends of said axis, and wherein said air passage comprises;

at least one radial path formed on said hollow shaft to extend in a radial direction of aid hollow shaft to said inner space of said hollow rotational control knob; and

at least one axial path formed in said hollow shaft so as to have a communicative connection with said radial path, and to extend in a direction of said axis of said hollow shaft to said inner space of said hollow operational body.

4. The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein said at least one hollow rotational control knob comprises two hollow rotational control knobs which are positioned about said axis of said hollow shaft at different positions between opposite ends of said axis, and

wherein said inner space of each of said two hollow rotational control knobs have a communicative connection with said inner space of said hollow operational body via said air passage.

6. The endoscope according to claim 1, further comprising another hollow rotational control knob which is positioned at one end of said hollow shaft to be rotatable about said axis of said hollow shaft,

wherein an inner space of said another hollow rotational control knob and said inner space of said hollow operational body have a communicative connection with each other via said axial path.

8. The endoscope according to claim 1, further comprising an insertion portion connected to said hollow operational body,

wherein said hollow rotational control knob functions as a manually rotatable control member to bend a steerable distal end of said insertion portion so as to direct a tip of said distal end toward a target.

9. The endoscope according to claim 1, further comprising:

an insertion portion connected to said hollow operational body; and

another hollow rotational control knob which is positioned at one end of said hollow shaft to be rotatable about said axis of said hollow shaft;

wherein said hollow rotational control knob functions as a manually rotatable control member to bend a steerable distal end of said insertion portion so as to direct a tip of said distal end toward a target; and

wherein said another hollow rotational control knob functions as a manually rotatable lock member to lock said rotational steering knob.

2. An endoscope comprising:

a hollow operational body;

a hollow shaft provided on said hollow operational body;

at least one hollow rotational control knob which is rotatably supported on said hollow shaft;

an air passage via which an inner space of said hollow operational body and an inner space of said hollow rotational control knob have a communicative connection with each other, wherein said hollow shaft comprises a portion of said passage; and

at least one cylindrical member which is fitted on said hollow shaft,

wherein said hollow rotational control knob is positioned about an axis of said hollow shaft at an intermediate position between opposite ends of said axis, and

wherein said air passage comprises;

at least one axial path formed in said hollow shaft to extend in a direction of said axis of said hollow shaft to said inner space of said hollow operational body;

at least one first radial path formed on said hollow shaft to extend in a radial direction of said hollow shaft from said axial path to an outer peripheral surface of said hollow shaft;

at least one second radial path formed on said cylindrical member to extend in said direction of said axis of said hollow shaft so as to provide a communicative connection with said axial path and said inner space of said hollow rotational control via said second radial path regardless of a relative rotational position between said cylindrical member and said hollow shaft.

3. The endoscope according to claim 2, wherein said hollow rotational control knob is fixed to said cylindrical member so that said cylindrical member rotates about said hollow shaft together with said hollow rotational control knob when said hollow rotational control knob is turned.

5. The endoscope according to claim 2, wherein said at least one hollow rotational control knob comprises two hollow rotational control knobs which are positioned about said axis of said hollow shaft at different position between opposite ends of said axis, and

wherein said inner space of each of said two hollow rotational control knobs have a communicative connection with said inner space of said hollow operational body via said air passage.

7. The endoscope according to claim 2, further comprising another hollow rotational control knob which is positioned at one end of said hollow shaft to be rotatable about said axis of said hollow shaft,

wherein an inner space of said another hollow rotational control knob and said inner space of said hollow operational body have a communicative connection with each other via said at least one axial path.

10. An endoscope comprising:

a hollow operational body;

at least one hollow rotational control knob provided on said hollow operational body; and

a communicative connection device which provides a communicative connection with an inner space of said hollow operational body and an inner space of said hollow rotational control knob;

wherein said communicative connection device comprises a stationary hollow shaft about which said at least one hollow rotational control knob is turned, at least one radial path provided in said hollow shaft extending in a radial direction of said hollow shaft to the inner space of said at least one hollow rotational control knob, and at least one axial path provided in said hollow shaft and having a communicative connection with the radial path and extending in a direction of the axis of said hollow shaft to the inner space of the hollow operational body.

11. The endoscope according to claim 11, wherein said at least one hollow rotational control knob comprises:

a first angle knob for bending a distal end of an insertion portion of said endoscope in a first direction;

a second angle knob for bending said distal end in a second direction perpendicular to said first direction; and

a lock knob, positioned at one end of said hollow shaft, for locking said first knob.

12. An endoscope comprising:

an insertion portion provided at a distal end thereof with a steerable bendable portion; and

at least one rotational steering knob which is controlled manually to bend said steerable bendable portion so as to direct a tip of said steerable bendable portion toward a target;

wherein said rotational steering knob is made of a resin material and comprises;

a pair of walls which are separate from each other in a direction of a rotational axis of said rotational steering knob, an aperture being formed on each of said pair of walls; and

an outer peripheral wall which extends to connect said pair of walls so as to form said rotational steering knob as a hollow knob;

wherein said pair of walls and said outer peripheral wall comprise a molded single-piece construction.

13. The endoscope according to claim 12, wherein said rotational steering knob is formed by injection molding;

and

wherein one of said two apertures which are respectively formed on said pair of walls is formed so that at least one mold piece of a mold for injection molding said rotational steering knob can be removed through said one of said two apertures.

14. The endoscope according to claim 12, wherein said outer peripheral wall comprises a plurality of hollow projecting portions which extend radially outwards perpendicularly to said rotational axis.

15. The endoscope according to claim 13, wherein said outer peripheral wall comprises a plurality of hollow projecting portions which extend radially outwards perpendicularly to said rotational axis.

16. The endoscope according to claim 15, wherein said mold comprises:

a first mold piece group for forming an outer surface of said rotational steering knob;

a second mold piece group, positioned in an inner space of said rotational steering knob, for forming inner surfaces of said plurality of hollow projecting portions; and

a third mold piece group, positioned in said inner space, for positioning said second mold piece group at a predetermined position in said inner space;

wherein said third mold piece group is taken out of said inner space via said one of said two apertures, subsequently said second mold piece group is moved to a position in said inner space where said second mold piece group can be taken out of said inner space via said one of said two apertures, and subsequently said second mold piece group is taken out of said inner space via said one of said two apertures.

17. The endoscope according to claim 13, further comprising at least one locking device which can be manually operated from an outside of said endoscope to lock said at least one rotational steering knob;

wherein at least one element of said locking device is positioned in said inner space of said at least one rotational steering knob; and

wherein said at least one element of said locking device can be dismounted from said inner space via said one of said two apertures.

18. The endoscope according to claim 17, further comprising at least one annular sealing member for sealing a gap between said one of said two apertures and said at least one element of said locking device.

19. The endoscope according to claim 12, further comprising:

a rotational center-shaft about which said at least one rotational steering knob is turned; and

at least one control shaft comprising a cylindrical portion rotatably fitted on said rotational center-shaft and a plate portion extending perpendicular to an axis of said rotational center-shaft;

wherein said plate portion is fixed to an inner surface of one of said pair of walls, said inner surface being positioned in an inner space of said at least one rotational steering knob.

20. The endoscope according to claim 19, wherein said inner surface of said one of said two separate walls, to which said plate portion is fixed, comprises:

a plurality of projections, wherein a corresponding plurality of holes are formed on said plate portion;

wherein said plurality of projections are firstly fitted in said corresponding plurality of holes, respectively, and subsequently a tip of each of said plurality of projections is melted by heat to fix said plate portion to said one of said two separate walls.

21. The endoscope according to claim 19, wherein said at least one control shaft is made of metal.

22. An endoscope comprising:

an operational body having an insertion portion extending therefrom;

at least one elongated groove provided in an external surface of a grip portion of said operational body; and

non-slip rubber member fixed to an external surface of said operational body, said non-slip rubber member comprising a rubber strip fixed in said at least one elongated groove in the external surface of the grip portion of said operational body, said non-slip rubber strip projecting outwardly from said elongated groove above the external surface of the grip portion of said operational body.

23. The endoscope according to claim 22, wherein said insertion portion comprises a steerable bendable portion;

and

wherein said operational body comprises at least one rotational steering knob which is turned manually to bend said steerable bendable portion so as to direct a tip thereof toward a target, said at least one non-slip rubber member being fixed to an external surface of said at least one rotational steering knob.

24. The endoscope according to claim 22, wherein said at least one non-slip rubber member is made of a fluorine-contained rubber.

25. The endoscope according to claim 22, wherein said at least one non-slip rubber member is made of silicone rubber.

26. The endoscope according to claim 22, wherein said at least one non-slip rubber member is made of a rubber which has an outstanding performance in chemical resistance.