Olympus Corporation

Olympus Medical Systems Corporation

Olympus Endo Technology America Inc.

Nec Toshiba Space Systems, Ltd.

Hiroaki Miyoshi

James J Frassica

Robert E Ailinger

Richard Andrews

Kimihiko Naito

Hiroki Moriyama

Yoshitaka Umemoto

Takehiro Nishiie

Yutaka Masaki

Ryosuke Ishizaki

Satoshi Makiyama

Richard M Andrews

A driving force transmission mechanism for an endoscope includes an insertion portion, an operation portion, an electric motor, an output member, a rotation transmission member, an inside plane, a first plane, a second plane and a third plane configured to come into contact with a proximal end of the output member when at least part of the second plane comes into contact with the inside plane to thereby restrict the rotation transmission member from moving toward the distal end side in the axial direction with respect to the output member.

Driving force transmission mechanism for endoscope and endoscope

A rotary unit includes a first taper tubular portion which is contiguous to a first axial direction side of a unit main body portion and in which a first unit end of the rotary unit is positioned, an outer diameter of the first taper tubular portion becoming smaller toward the first axial direction. The rotary unit includes a first projecting portion extended on an outer peripheral portion of the first taper tubular portion with projecting toward an outer peripheral direction and wound toward a first around-axis direction as the first projecting portion extends from the first axial direction toward a second axial direction.

Rotary unit and insertion device

An inserting instrument includes a first flexible tube section having a flexibility lower than a spiral tube, a second flexible tube section having a flexibility lower than the spiral tube and equal to or higher than the first flexible tube section in a state where the second flexible tube section is not covered with the spiral tube. The flexibility of the second flexible tube section is lower than that of the first flexible tube section when the second flexible tube section is covered with the spiral tube. The inserting instrument includes a third flexible tube section provided on the proximal direction side with respect to the second flexible tube section and having a flexibility lower than the first flexible tube section.

Inserting instrument, rotary unit and inserting apparatus

An insertion apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention includes: an insertion portion to be inserted into a subject; a bending operation apparatus to be moved by an operator to input an operation instruction; a bending drive section that generates a drive force based on the movement of the bending operation apparatus; a pulling member to be pulled by the drive force from the bending drive section; a bending portion provided in the insertion portion, the bending portion being connected to the pulling member and being bent upon the pulling member being pulled; and a haptic section that connects the pulling member and the bending operation apparatus via an elastic portion.

Insertion apparatus

An apparatus for accessing a bodily passageway includes: an endoscope including an insertion portion configured to inserted into the bodily passageway; a drive tube including a lumen configured to receive the endoscope; a helically-wound thread disposed on an outer wall of the drive tube and configured such that rotation of the drive tube causes the drive tube with the endoscope to move along the passageway; a flexible drive shaft configured to transfer rotary motion generated by a power supply; and a rotatable drive collar disposed on the endoscope and configured to rotate the drive tube relative to the endoscope, the rotatable drive collar including a stator, a rotor rotatable over the stator and detachably coupled to the drive tube, a rotary gear configured to transfer the rotary motion from the flexible drive shaft to the rotor to rotate the drive tube, and a watertight seal disposed between the stator and the rotor.

Rotate-to-advance catheterization system

An insertion device includes an idle state detector detecting an idle state in which an insertion section does not move in directions along the longitudinal axis when a rotation unit rotates in directions around the longitudinal axis, and a movement displacement calculator calculating a rotation direction and amount of the rotation unit based on a driving direction and amount of the driving member and calculating a movement displacement of the insertion section from a reference position in directions parallel to the longitudinal axis based on the rotation direction and amount of the rotation unit. The movement displacement calculator calculates the movement displacement of the insertion section so that a movement amount of the insertion section in the longitudinal directions while the idle state being detected is zero.

Insertion device

A spiral unit includes a base tube extended along a longitudinal axis and made of a first thermoplastic resin, and a fin disposed on an outer peripheral surface of the base tube along a fin axis spirally extended around the longitudinal axis and made of a second thermoplastic resin. The fin includes a strip portion provided in a state of being bonded to the outer peripheral surface of the base tube and spirally extended along the fin axis. The second resin being mixed with a magnetic material in the strip portion.

Spiral unit, insertion apparatus, and manufacturing method of spiral unit

An endoscope includes an insertion section including first and second bending portions, a first bending drive mechanism to bend the first portion in the upward direction, first and second distal side-traction members passing inside the insertion section and a proximal side-traction member. The first portion can bend in the upward direction. The second portion is on a proximal side of the first portion and can bend in the upward direction and in right and left directions along a circumferential direction of the upward direction. The first distal side-traction member is fixed to a position of the second portion, separated from the upward direction toward the right. The second distal side-traction member is fixed to a position of the second portion, separated from the upward direction toward the left direction. The proximal side-traction member pulls the first and second distal side-traction members in conjunction with the first bending drive mechanism.

Endoscope

An endoscope of the present invention includes an insertion portion including a bending portion, an operation portion separate from the insertion portion, a bending operation wire that is inserted through the insertion portion and used for bending the bending portion in a predetermined direction with tugging in a forward/backward tugging direction, and connecting mechanisms that makes it possible to couple the insertion portion and the operation portion in a manner in which the bending wire is freely tugged in the operation portion.

Endoscope and rotary self-propelled endoscope

An endoscope includes an insertion portion, a bending operation input portion, a first bending drive mechanism and a second bending drive mechanism. The insertion portion includes a first bending portion and a second bending portion disposed at the proximal end of the first bending portion. The bending operation input portion can bend the first bending portion. The first bending drive mechanism bends the first bending portion in accordance with the operation of the bending operation input portion. The second bending drive mechanism can automatically bend the second bending portion in the same direction as the bending direction of the first bending portion in conformity to the first bending portion after the start of the bending of the first bending portion.

In a region where an intestine is movable in the abdominal cavity, conventional endoscope apparatus have suffered from a difficulty in moving an endoscope advancing portion toward a deep intestinal portion. An apparatus for advancing an endoscope is provided, which can be easily manipulated to advance medical instruments having endoscopic functions toward a deep portion. The apparatus includes first and second medical instruments, each having, at a distal end portion thereof, a balloon portion that can be fixed to an intestinal wall. In a fixed state, the balloon portion of the first medical instrument is configured to form a gap for enabling a distal end portion of the second medical instrument to advance therethrough. In a fixed state, the balloon portion of the second medical instrument is configured to form a gap for enabling a distal end portion of the first medical instrument to advance therethrough.

Apparatus for advancing an endoscope and method for manipulating the apparatus for advancing an endoscope

An endoscope insertion apparatus is provided that has an inner-side unit in which a plurality of inner-side fixing sections having an inner-side arm are uniformly arranged in a circumferential direction, an outer-side unit in which a plurality of outer-side fixing sections having an outer-side arm are uniformly arranged in a circumferential direction and in which slit portions that extend in a direction perpendicular to the circumferential direction and from which the inner-side arms protrude are uniformly arranged in the circumferential direction between the outer-side fixing sections, and an insertion operation portion that changes a front/rear relationship between the inner-side arms and outer-side arms.

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Fuchu, Japan

Hiroaki Miyoshi