JP2015000292A - Endoscope apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an endoscope apparatus capable of increasing the degree of freedom for bending of the scope.SOLUTION: Inside a video scope 10, artificial muscles 42 extending from a tip 10P to an operation section 10S are disposed along a scope peripheral edge portion at an equal interval. When a joystick 12 is operated, the artificial muscle corresponding to the bending direction input is contracted by an electric conduction for allowing a bending section 10Q to bend in such direction. Moreover, an amperage corresponding to the input amount is provided with the artificial muscle so that the bending section 10Q is bent just for the angle corresponding to the amperage.

Description

  The present invention relates to an endoscope apparatus that performs an operation by imaging an observation target such as an organ, and more particularly, to a bending mechanism of an endoscope distal end portion.

  The scope of the endoscope apparatus includes a hard distal end portion that incorporates a lens, an image sensor, and the like, and a bendable bending portion is connected to the distal end portion. The bending portion is connected by an input member wire provided in the scope operation portion, and the bending portion is bent in one of up, down, left, and right directions by the operation of the operator. During operations such as endoscopy and treatment, the operator changes the direction of the distal end of the scope, that is, the imaging direction by an input operation.

  The bending mechanism is generally a mechanical bending mechanism in which a wire is directly driven by an operation unit. However, a bending mechanism in which a bending unit is driven using an actuator is also known. For example, the wire is pulled by an electric motor (see Patent Document 1). Or a wire is driven by the fluid pressure artificial muscle (elastic actuator) using the shape memory effect (refer patent document 2).

JP 2006-192056 A JP-A-6-125867

  Also in a motor-driven bending mechanism and a bending mechanism using artificial muscle, a configuration is adopted in which wires used in a conventional mechanical bending mechanism are arranged and an actuator is connected to the wire. Therefore, the bending performance such as the degree of freedom in the bending direction is limited by the thickness of the wire, the number of wires, etc., and is not improved at all.

  Therefore, an actuator-type bending mechanism having excellent bending performance is required.

  The scope of the endoscope apparatus of the present invention can be applied to both a fiber scope and a video scope, and is connected to the distal end portion, the distal end portion, and a bending portion that can be bent so as to change the direction of the distal end portion, And an input unit operated at times.

  In addition, the scope is connected to the distal end, extends at least in the curved portion in the axial direction, is arranged at predetermined intervals along the circumferential direction, and contracts in the axial direction when energized. A bending control unit configured to drive the plurality of fibrous artificial muscles based on the input bending direction and to bend the bending unit;

  And the bending control part in this invention contracts the fibrous artificial muscle according to the bending direction.

  Since the artificial muscle serving as an actuator serves as a mechanism for moving the tip, the structure in the scope is not complicated.

  For example, it is possible to arrange five or more artificial muscles. Therefore, the degree of bending can be increased.

  Further, the plurality of fibrous artificial muscles can be configured to extend from the distal end portion to the scope operation portion, and the bending mechanism can be further simplified.

  The input unit can be configured such that an operation amount corresponding to the bending amount of the bending unit can be input. The bending control unit may adjust the amount of current to the fibrous artificial muscle according to the bending direction according to the input bending amount. For example, by using a joystick, the bending direction and the bending amount can be input simultaneously.

  Thus, according to the present invention, the degree of freedom of bending of the scope can be expanded.

It is a top view of the video scope of the electronic endoscope apparatus which is 1st Embodiment. It is a top view of a scope front-end | tip part. It is a block diagram of an electronic endoscope apparatus. It is a flowchart of the curvature control process performed by a scope controller. It is the figure which showed the display direction and bending direction of the observation image at the normal time. It is the figure which showed the display direction and bending direction of the observation image in rotation mode. It is the figure which showed the display direction and bending direction of the observation image in rotation mode. It is the figure which showed the display direction and bending direction of the observation image in mirror image mode. It is the flowchart which showed the bending direction setting process performed by a scope controller. It is the figure which showed the display direction and bending direction of the observation image in 3rd Embodiment. It is the figure which showed the display direction and bending direction of the observation image in 3rd Embodiment. It is the flowchart which showed the bending direction setting process in 3rd Embodiment.

  Hereinafter, the video scope of the electronic endoscope apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a plan view of a video scope of the electronic endoscope apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the distal end portion of the scope. FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the electronic endoscope apparatus.

  The electronic endoscope apparatus includes a video scope 10 whose insertion portion is inserted into the body, and a processor 20 shown in FIG. 3, and the video scope 10 is detachably connected to the processor 20 via a universal cable 10K. The

  The flexible insertion portion 10B inserted into the body of the video scope 10 includes a hard tip portion 10P and a bending portion 10Q connected to the tip portion 10P. One end of the insertion portion 10B is connected to the operation portion 10S held by the operator, and a joystick 12 as an input member is installed on the surface of the operation portion 10S.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the objective lens 13 is disposed at the center of the distal end surface 10T at the distal end portion 10P of the video scope 10, and an image sensor (not shown here) is disposed behind the objective lens 13T. . Around the objective lens 13, light distribution lenses 14A and 14B are arranged at positions facing each other, and a nozzle port 15 for sending compressed air, liquid, and the like, and a forceps port 16 are formed on the distal end surface 10T. ing.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the processor 20 includes a lamp 26 that emits white light, and the light emitted from the lamp 26 is a light provided in the video scope 10 via a condenser lens (not shown). Incident on a guide (not shown). The light incident on the light guide exits from the scope distal end portion 10P via the light distribution lenses 14A and 14B shown in FIG. 2, and is irradiated onto the subject (observation site).

  The light reflected from the subject is imaged by the objective lens 13 provided at the scope distal end portion 10P, and a subject image is formed on the light receiving surface of the image sensor 18. Here, a CCD or CMOS sensor is used as the image sensor 18. On the light receiving surface of the image sensor 18, a complementary color filter (not shown) is arranged in which color filter elements made of Cy, Ye, G, Mg, or R, G, B are arranged in a mosaic pattern.

  The image sensor 18 reads image signals for one field / frame at predetermined time intervals. For example, in the NTSC system, pixel signals for one field are read at 1/60 second intervals, and in the PAL system, they are read at 1/50 second intervals. The read analog pixel signal is sent to the initial circuit 21 of the processor 20 and subjected to digitization processing, amplification processing, and the like.

  The image signal processing circuit 22 of the processor 20 performs signal processing such as white balance processing (gain processing), gamma correction processing, and color conversion processing on the analog pixel signal. Thereby, a color image signal is generated. By outputting the color image signal to the monitor 60, the color image is displayed on the monitor 60.

  A system control circuit 30 including a CPU, a ROM, etc. outputs control signals to the image signal processing circuit 22, the front panel switch 34, etc., and controls the operation of the entire processor 20. A program relating to operation control is stored in advance in the ROM. A diaphragm (not shown) is disposed between the incident end of the light guide and the condenser lens, and increases or decreases the amount of illumination light by opening and closing operations.

  The scope controller 40 of the video scope 10 controls the operation of the entire scope and communicates with the system control circuit 30 of the processor 20. The memory 17 stores data relating to the characteristics of the video scope 10 such as the number of pixels of the image sensor and the position where the forceps opening is formed. When the video scope 10 is connected to the processor 20, the data is transmitted to the system control circuit 30.

  An image button (not shown) provided on the front panel 34 of the processor 20 is an operation button for changing the display direction of the observation image. Here, an image rotation mode and a mirror image mode can be set. In the image rotation mode, the observation image displayed on the monitor 60 can be displayed by being rotated by 90 °, 180 °, or 270 °.

  When the system control circuit 30 detects an input signal due to an image button operation, the system control circuit 30 transmits a control signal to the image signal processing circuit 22 to execute rotation processing of the generated image data. In the mirror image mode, the display orientation can be changed so that the observation image is a mirror image, and image processing for generating a mirror image is performed in the image signal processing circuit 22. Note that the change in the display direction of the observation image may be an input operation using the keyboard 70.

  The bending portion 10Q is configured by rotatably connecting a plurality of bending pieces (not shown) and covering the periphery thereof with an outer skin. In the video scope 10, a plurality of fibrous actuators are arranged so that the distal end portion 10P can be bent in various directions. Specifically, 16 fine linear artificial muscles 42A to 42P are arranged.

  The artificial muscles 42A to 42P are made of a shape memory alloy and driven by energization. For example, Biometal (registered trademark) is applicable. In a normal state, a state in which tension is not applied in the axial direction like a loose thread is maintained, and when energized, the thread contracts in the axial direction. Each of the artificial muscles 42A to 42P has a distal end extending to the distal end portion 10P and connected to the distal end portion 10P.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the artificial muscles 42 </ b> A to 42 </ b> P are arranged at predetermined intervals along the periphery of the scope distal end portion 10 </ b> P, and eight artificial muscle pairs (42 </ b> A, 42 </ b> I), (42 </ b> B) that are located at opposite positions, respectively. , 42J), (42C, 42K), (42D, 42L), (42E, 42M), (42F, 42N), (42G, 42O), (42H, 42P).

  The artificial muscles of each pair are disposed at substantially opposite positions with the scope axis C interposed therebetween, and the bending portions 10Q are bent in the opposite direction. Since eight artificial muscle pairs are arranged, there are 16 degrees of freedom in the bending direction. Here, the bending directions of the artificial muscles 42A and 42I are defined as an upward direction and a downward direction as viewed from the operation unit side, respectively. Further, the bending directions of the artificial muscles 42E and 42M are determined as the left direction and the right direction, respectively, when viewed from the operation unit side. The bending direction corresponds to the input direction (up / down / left / right direction) input to the joystick.

  During the endoscopic work, the operator bends the bending portion 10Q by operating the joystick 12, and changes the direction of the distal end surface 10T, that is, the photographing direction. The joystick 12 can input a bending direction and a bending amount by adjusting a direction in which the stick is pushed down and a tilt amount of the stick. Moreover, the curved state can be maintained by operating an angle fixing button (not shown).

  As shown in FIG. 3, the scope operation unit 10 </ b> S is provided with an input detection circuit 11 and a current control circuit 19. The input detection circuit 11 transmits the bending direction and the bending amount to the current control circuit 19. The current control circuit 19 selects, sets, and energizes the artificial muscle according to the bending direction among the artificial muscles 42A to 42P to bend the bending portion 10Q. The bending amount of the bending portion 10Q depends on the contraction force (tensile force) of the driven artificial muscle, and the contraction amount increases as the current value increases.

  The artificial muscle according to the bending direction contracts when an electric current flows. As a result, the energized artificial muscle pulls the tip portion 10T and bends in the bending direction in which the bending portion 10Q is input. Note that the energization may be contracted by passing a current exceeding a predetermined reference amount in addition to the configuration in which the current is set from ON to OFF.

  The operator can bend the bending portion 10Q with the joystick 12 in a desired direction. For example, when it is desired to move the imaging range to the left side of the observation image, the operator tilts the joystick 12 to the left side. Similarly, by operating the joystick 12 to the right side, upper side, and lower side, the bending portion 10Q bends in the right direction, the upper direction, and the lower direction. Further, by bending the joystick 12 in the direction corresponding to the artificial muscles 42B to 42D, 42F to 42H, 42J to 42L, and 42N to 42P, bending in an oblique direction is possible.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the bending control process executed by the scope controller. The bending operation will be described with reference to FIG.

  In step S101, it is confirmed whether or not the angle fixing button is in an OFF state. When the angle fixing button is in the ON state, the bending state of the immediately preceding bending portion 10Q is maintained (S102). If it is confirmed that the angle fixing button is OFF, the tilt direction and tilt angle of the joystick 12, that is, the input bending direction and bending amount are detected (S104).

  Then, among the artificial muscles 42A to 42P, the artificial muscle corresponding to the bending direction is specified. Here, numbers 1 to 16 are assigned to the artificial muscles 42A to 42P, and the numbers are set. When the artificial muscle to be driven is specified, a control signal related to the current value corresponding to the number and the detected bending amount is sent to the current control circuit 19. The current control circuit 19 accesses the artificial muscle corresponding to the number, and allows a current to flow at a set current value.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the artificial muscles 42A to 42P are arranged at equal intervals along the periphery of the scope in the video scope 10, and extend from the distal end portion 10P to the operation portion 10S. When the joystick 12 is operated, the artificial muscle corresponding to the input bending direction is contracted by energization, and the bending portion 10Q is bent in that direction. Further, by supplying a current amount corresponding to the input amount to the artificial muscle, the bending portion 10Q is bent by an angle corresponding to the current amount.

  By using such a conventional actuator that also serves as a wire, it is possible to bend with five or more degrees of freedom. In particular, since the actuator itself functions as a wire extending from the scope tip to the operation unit, the structure in the scope can be simplified and the diameter of the scope can be reduced. Further, by providing a joystick, it is possible to easily input an arbitrary bending direction.

  As for the arrangement of the artificial muscles, it is possible to arrange the four artificial muscles according to the up / down / left / right bending directions as in the conventional electronic endoscope apparatus, and the number and arrangement thereof are arbitrary. A plurality of pairs of artificial muscles that face each other may be arranged so as to bend freely in opposite directions. Further, in consideration of the accuracy of bending control when contracting from the loosening of the artificial muscle, it may be extended to the middle from the tip to the operation unit.

  Next, a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. In the second embodiment, the setting of the bending direction is changed in accordance with the change in the display direction of the observation image.

  FIG. 5A is a diagram illustrating a display direction and a bending direction of an observation image in a normal state. 5B and 5C are views showing the display direction and the bending direction of the observation image in the rotation mode. FIG. 5D is a diagram illustrating a display direction and a bending direction of the observation image in the mirror image mode.

  In the second embodiment, four artificial muscles 42A, 42F, 42I, and 42M are arranged at 90 ° intervals along the scope circumferential direction. The artificial muscles 42A, 42F, 42I, and 42M correspond to the upward, leftward, downward, and rightward directions, respectively. On the other hand, the display direction of the observation image is defined centering on the screen, and the left, right, up and down directions of the screen as viewed from the operator side are defined as the left, right, up and down directions of the observation image, respectively.

  When the rotation mode is set, the image signal processing circuit 22 performs image processing for changing the orientation of the observation image. As shown in FIGS. 5B and 5C, it can be rotated by 90 ° and 180 °. Further, when the mirror image mode is set, the display direction of the observation image is changed so as to have a mirror image relationship with the original observation image (see FIG. 5D). Note that the formation of the rotated image and the mirror image is performed by conventionally known image processing.

  In the second embodiment, the bending direction is switched and set in accordance with the change in the display direction of the observation image. For example, when the observation image is rotated 180 °, as shown in FIG. 5C, the curved up-down direction and the curved left-right direction are switched to the bay bottom left and right-left directions, respectively. As a result, when the joystick 12 is tilted in the direction in which the operator wants to bend while viewing the observation image rotated by 180 °, the artificial muscle corresponding to the intended bending direction is contracted.

  For example, in the normal observation state, when it is desired to bend the bending portion 10Q in the left direction of the screen (see the broken line arrow in FIG. 5A), the operator tilts the joystick 12 to the left side. A current flows through the artificial muscle 42F corresponding to the left direction.

  On the other hand, when the observation image is rotated by 180 ° in an uncurved state and the operator tries to change the direction of the photographing direction in the direction of the broken line arrow shown in FIG. 5C, the operator matches the direction of the displayed observation image. Tilt the joystick 12 to the left.

  The rotation mode merely changes the display direction of the observation image, and the bending portion 10Q itself does not change the direction. However, since the curved left and right directions are switched, a current flows through the artificial muscle 42M. As a result, in the normal observation state, the same bending operation is performed as when the photographing direction is changed to the right side of the screen. This means that the bending portion 10Q bends in the tilt direction of the joystick 12, that is, the photographing direction intended by the operator.

  Similarly, when the observation image is rotated by 90 °, the bending direction is changed so that the upper, left, lower, and right directions move 90 ° clockwise as shown in FIG. 5B. In the mirror image mode, the bending direction cannot be switched in the up-down direction, while the bending left-right direction is switched (see FIG. 5D).

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a bending direction setting process executed by the scope controller.

  In step S201, the display direction of the observation image is detected. When the system control circuit 30 of the processor 20 executes the process of changing the display orientation of the observation image, the system control circuit 30 transmits a signal related to the content of the display orientation change to the scope controller 40, and the system control circuit 30 displays the display orientation based on this signal. Detect changes.

  If it is determined that the display orientation of the observation image has been changed, the artificial muscle to be driven is switched and set according to the contents of the change in the display orientation (S202). As a result, the number of the artificial muscle to be accessed is switched and reset according to the bending direction.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, the artificial muscles 42A, 42F, 42I, and 42M are arranged along the scope periphery at 90 ° intervals, and the artificial muscles according to the inputted bending direction are energized. Thus, the bending portion 10Q is bent. Further, in the rotation mode, when the display direction of the observation image is rotated by 90 ° or 180 °, the setting is changed so that the bending direction is sequentially shifted by the rotation angle according to the rotation angle. Even in the mirror image mode, the bending direction can be switched.

  Since the bending direction is switched according to the display direction of the observation image, the operator can perform an input operation without worrying about the display direction before the change.

  In addition, it is also possible to arrange the artificial muscles 42A to 42P as in the first embodiment and change the display direction of the observation image in accordance with the bendable direction. In the rotation mode, the access number of the artificial muscle may be shifted in order according to the rotation angle.

  Next, an electronic endoscope apparatus according to a third embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. In the third embodiment, by changing the display direction, an image of the processing tool that has passed through the forceps channel is displayed in the same region.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the display direction and the bending direction of the observation image in the third embodiment.

  In the video scope 10 ', four artificial muscles 42A, 42F, 42I, and 42M are arranged in the circumferential direction at intervals of 90 °. Further, the forceps port 16 'is formed on the distal end surface 10'T, but unlike the first embodiment, the forceps port 16' is positioned at the middle of the artificial muscles 42F and 42I.

  FIG. 7A shows a screen when the treatment tool is inserted into the forceps channel formed in the video scope 10 ′ and an endoscopic operation is performed. When displayed in the normal observation state, the image TZ of the distal end portion of the treatment tool protruding from the forceps port 16 'is displayed at the lower left corner in the display image area AR.

  On the other hand, in FIG. 7B, when the video unification button (not shown) provided on the front panel switch is ON and the video scope 10 'is connected, the displayed observation image is in a state in which the display orientation is changed. Is displayed. For example, when the forceps are set to come out from the 5 o'clock direction by the display unification button, the image TZ of the distal end portion of the treatment instrument is displayed in the lower right part BA (hereinafter referred to as a reference area) of the image area AR. The observation image is rotated by 270 °.

  In accordance with the change in the display direction of the observation image, the setting of the bending direction is changed. The artificial muscles 42A, 42F, 42I, and 42M are set in the curved left, down, right, and up directions, respectively. Accordingly, when the operator performs an input operation in accordance with the display direction of the observation image, the bending portion is bent in the intended direction.

  Similarly, when a video scope other than the video scope 10 ′ is connected, the observation image is displayed in the same direction so that an image of the distal end of the treatment tool protruding from the forceps opening is displayed in the area BA on the lower side of the screen. The rotation is changed, and the setting of the bending direction is changed accordingly.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a bending direction setting process in the third embodiment. When the display unified button is turned on, the process is started.

  In step S101, data related to the connected video scope is detected. Specifically, the formation position of the forceps opening is detected based on data relating to the scope characteristics read from the memory in the video scope.

  In step S102, it is determined whether or not the image TZ of the distal end of the treatment instrument is displayed in the reference area BA. If the position is a forceps opening formation position that is not displayed in the reference area BA, the image is displayed in the reference area BA. Thus, the display direction of the observation image is changed. Then, the setting of the bending direction is changed. When the image TZ of the treatment tool tip is displayed in the reference area BA, the display direction and the bending direction of the observation image are not changed. Note that it may be configured to change the setting of the display direction and the bending direction of the observation image at the same time as the video scope is connected.

  As described above, according to the third embodiment, the artificial muscles 42A, 42F, 42I, and 42M are arranged along the scope periphery at 90 ° intervals, and the artificial muscles according to the input bending direction are energized. Thus, the bending portion 10Q is bent. Then, it is determined whether or not the treatment tool is displayed in the reference area BA. If not, the display direction of the observation image is changed, and the bending direction is set and changed accordingly.

  In the second and third embodiments, it is possible to adopt a configuration in which an electric motor is used instead of the artificial muscle and wire driving is performed.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Videoscope 10P Tip part 10Q Bending part 11 Input detection circuit 12 Joystick (input part)
16 Forceps port 18 Image sensor 19 Current control circuit 20 Processor 22 Image signal processing circuit 30 System control circuit 40 Scope controllers 42A to 42P Artificial muscle 60 Monitor

Claims (5)

The tip,
A bending portion coupled to the tip portion and bendable to change the direction of the tip portion;
An input unit operated during bending,
A plurality of fibrous artificial muscles connected to the distal end, extending in the axial direction at least in the curved portion and arranged at predetermined intervals along the circumferential direction, and contracting in the axial direction by energization;
A bending control unit configured to drive the plurality of fibrous artificial muscles based on the bending direction input to the input unit and to bend the bending unit;
The scope of the endoscope apparatus, wherein the bending control unit contracts the fibrous artificial muscle according to the bending direction. The input unit can input an operation amount corresponding to the bending amount of the bending portion;
2. The scope according to claim 1, wherein the bending control unit adjusts an amount of current to the fibrous artificial muscle according to a bending direction according to the input bending amount.   The scope according to any one of claims 1 to 2, wherein the plurality of fibrous artificial muscles extend from the distal end portion to a scope operation portion.   The scope according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the input unit includes a joystick. The scope according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein five or more fibrous artificial muscles are arranged.

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