Medical endoscope with a cooling device for mounted electric components
Inventors
Dillinger, Anja Katrin • Schuetz, Guenter Wilhelm • Schnuerer-Patschan, Christoph
Assignees
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Publication Number
US-10226169-B2
Publication Date
2019-03-12
Expiration Date
Abstract
An endoscope with a flexible endoscope shaft has an endoscope head arranged at its distal end. The endoscope head is a sleeve, open at both end faces. Functional units, such as an optical system, a working channel, an illumination and a cooling system for the illumination are accommodated in the endoscope head. The cooling system has a heat exchanger integrally formed with the sleeve in the latter which forms a closed cooling chamber for generating a coolant flow. The illumination, which is in the form of an external conductor plate supporting an illumination means, is arranged adjacent to the distal end wall of the heat exchanger, to discharge thermal energy via the end wall of the heat exchanger to the coolant flow. The external conductor plate is mechanically supported on, or has only a minimum distance from, the heat exchanger end wall.
Core Innovation
The invention relates to a flexible medical endoscope having an endoscope head arranged at a distal end of a flexible endoscope shaft. The endoscope head includes a sleeve that is open at at least one end face and accommodates an optical system, a working channel, an illumination and a cooling means at least for the illumination. The cooling means comprises a heat exchanger unitarily formed in the sleeve, with a cooling chamber formed together with the sleeve to generate a coolant flow.
A support projects radially inwardly and is integrally supported on the heat exchanger for a working channel. The support is formed in the sleeve in the axial area of the distal end face and includes an axial through-opening for the optical system. The cooling chamber forms a coolant path closed to the outside of the cooling chamber, defined as a channel extending at least in portions along a distal end wall of the heat exchanger and forming a number of channel loops to increase the channel distance.
The optical system comprises a conductor plate supporting a light-sensitive sensor chip, with a lens system mounted above the sensor chip at the sensor chip and/or at the conductor plate. The lens system is held and/or aligned without contacting the sleeve exclusively via the conductor plate supporting the sensor chip, and it is guided freely through the axial through-opening in the support for the working channel. The disclosed embodiment further integrates related heat-transfer and flow-path features inside the unitary sleeve/heat-exchanger structure.
Claims Coverage
The document identifies one independent claim (clm-00001), with multiple dependent refinements. The core claim covers an endoscope architecture combining a unitary sleeve heat exchanger with a closed coolant path and a specific optical mounting and guiding arrangement via a conductor plate.
Unitary sleeve heat exchanger with closed coolant path
A flexible endoscope shaft and a distal endoscope head with a sleeve accommodating an optical system, a working channel, an illumination and a cooling means at least for the illumination, where the cooling means comprises a heat exchanger unitarily formed in the sleeve with a cooling chamber formed together with the sleeve for generating a coolant flow.
Radially inward support with axial through-opening for optical system
A support projecting radially inwardly and integrally supported on the heat exchanger for a working channel, the support formed in the sleeve in the axial area of its distal end face and comprising an axial through-opening for the optical system.
Closed coolant path as looping channel along distal end wall
The cooling chamber forms a coolant path closed to the outside of the cooling chamber as a channel defined in the cooling chamber which extends at least in portions along a distal end wall of the heat exchanger and forms a number of channel loops to increase the channel distance.
Conductor plate supporting sensor chip with lens held and aligned without contacting sleeve
The optical system comprises a conductor plate supporting a light-sensitive sensor chip on which a lens system is mounted above the sensor chip such that the lens system is held and/or aligned without contacting the sleeve exclusively via the conductor plate supporting the sensor chip and is guided freely through the axial through-opening for the optical system in the support for the working channel.
Overall, the claim coverage centers on integrating a unitarily formed heat exchanger and cooling chamber into the sleeve to create a closed, looping coolant path, while arranging the optical system so a conductor plate supports a light-sensitive sensor chip and holds and aligns a lens system without contacting the sleeve, guided through an axial through-opening in a radially inward support for the working channel.
Stated Advantages
Not explicitly described in patent.
Documented Applications
Not explicitly described in patent.
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