Endoscope and method of securing a bundle of fibre-optic light guides in a shaft of an endoscope

US10687692B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• Henke-Sass, Wolf GmbH · DE

Inventors

• Andreas Mattes · Bohmte, DE
• Oliver Rehe · Tuttlingen, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Sep 26, 2017
• Grant date: Jun 23, 2020
• Expiry date: Aug 11, 2038

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G02B23/243
• WIPO field: Medical technology
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

An endoscope includes a main unit and a shaft, connected to the main unit, which extends along a longitudinal axis. The shaft includes a jacket tube, an inner tube for receiving an objective lens, and a bundle of fibre-optic light guides. The inner tube includes, at a distal end, an inner tube head which includes a first bearing section and a second bearing section, which is connected to the first bearing section by a connecting element. The first bearing section includes a first bearing surface, against which the bundle of fibre-optic light guides abuts, and the second bearing section includes a second bearing surface, against which the bundle of fibre-optic light guides abuts, wherein, to align the bundle of fibre-optic light guides at the distal end, an area of the first bearing surface and/or an area of the second bearing surface run non-parallel to the longitudinal axis.