An image pickup apparatus includes a stacked device in which a plurality of semiconductor devices respectively including a plurality of through electrodes are stacked, a first semiconductor device, among the plurality of semiconductor devices, in which thermal resistance of a through electrode is highest among the plurality of through electrodes, is disposed in front of a first surface on which a first circuit that is one of the semiconductor circuits having a largest heat generation amount is formed, the plurality of through electrodes of the first semiconductor device are conformal vias, and the plurality of through electrodes of semiconductor devices other than the first semiconductor device are filled vias.

Provided is an ultrasound endoscope capable of achieving both improvement of the kink resistance of a forceps tube in a bending part and improvement of electromagnetic wave shieldability in a distal end hard part.

A forceps tube is configured such that a metal element wire is wound around a tube bending part that is disposed inside a bending part, and a tube distal end part including an opening portion facing region facing an opening portion of a shield ring is formed of a material that is hardly influenced by electromagnetic waves. The tube distal end part is configured of only the forceps tube. That is, the metal element wire that is influenced by electromagnetic waves is not wound around the tube distal end part, and resin, such as fluororubber or silicon rubber, to be hardly influenced by electromagnetic waves is exposed from the opening portion facing region.

A surface-mount device platform includes a surface-mounting region, a connection region, and a bendable region therebetween, each including a respective part of a base substrate. The base substrate includes electrically-conductive layers interspersed with electrically-insulating build-up layers. Each of the surface-mounting region, the connection region, and the bendable region spans between a bottom substrate-surface and a top substrate-surface of the base substrate. The surface-mounting region further includes an electrically-insulating first top rigid-layer, and device bond-pads exposed on a top surface of the first top rigid-layer facing away from the top substrate-surface in the surface-mounting region. The connection region further includes an electrically-insulating second top rigid-layer and a plurality of connector bond-pads each exposed on a top surface of the second top rigid-layer facing away from the top substrate-surface in the connection region, and electrically connected to a respective device bond-pad via at least one of the electrically conductive layers.

An optical fibre having a functionalised distal exploration end including a sheath, and a ferrule rigidly connected to the sheath at the distal exploration end, characterised in that the distal exploration end has a functionalised head which is removably attached on the ferrule. Also, a method of assembling the optical fibre.

An endoscope distal head includes a distal head housing defining a distal end surface of the distal head and being formed from a light-permeable material that is permeable to light within a securing material curing spectrum. The distal head housing defines a working channel tube receiving cavity, a camera receiving cavity, and an illumination light conduit receiving cavity. A working channel tube is secured within the working channel tube receiving cavity, while an image sensor-based camera assembly is secured within the camera receiving cavity and an illumination conduit is secured within the illumination light conduit receiving cavity. Each of these components, the working channel tube, the camera assembly, and the illumination light conduit are each secured in their respective receiving cavity with a light-cured securing material that has been cured by exposure to light within the securing material curing spectrum.

A surgical apparatus includes a housing, a test port retainer, a pressure test chamber, and an image capture assembly. The housing includes a pressure test port. The test port retainer includes a test port retainer housing, a probe seal, and a liquid exclusion barrier. In one aspect, the test port retainer also includes a hydrophobic membrane mounted within the test port retainer housing. The pressure test chamber includes a manifold and a central tube. The first end of the central tube is affixed to the image capture assembly to form a pressure seal, and the second end of the central tube is coupled to the test port retainer so that the pressure test port communicates with the interior volume of the central tube through the test port retainer.

An instrument (203; 204) for endoscopic applications. The instrument is able to be guided through a curved shaped tube (201; 202) and has an intermediate cylindrical element (3) with a handling end portion with a flexible portion and actuating means located at an actuating end portion. The intermediate cylindrical element (3) has a first cylindrical part (31; 151) at the handling end portion, a second cylindrical part (35; 155) at the actuating end portion and a number of longitudinal elements (38; 60; 70; 80; 90; 100; 110; 130; 153) for transferring the movement of the actuating means to the handling end portion. The longitudinal elements are separated by longitudinal slits in the intermediate cylindrical element.

An endoscope includes, in an insertion section, a bending tube covered with a first skin, a flexible tube covered with a second skin, a thread wound around a joining section of the first skin and the second skin, first resin covering the thread and having a modulus of elasticity of 0.5 GPa or more and 5 GPa or less, and second resin covering the first resin, extended from both ends of the first resin respectively to ranges of 100 μm or more, and having a modulus of elasticity of 0.3 MPa or more and 100 MPa or less.

There is provided an endoscope of which a structure is simple and co-rotation of an external cable can be prevented.

A fixing member to be rotated integrally with a knob in a direction around an axis is disposed in an operation unit body, and a part of a light guide in a longitudinal direction is fixed by a fixing part of the fixing member. A light guide-insertion space is formed between the fixing part and a distal end-side opening portion in the operation unit body. A light guide is inserted into and disposed in the light guide-insertion space so that tension is not applied to the light guide present between the fixing part and the distal end-side opening portion even in a case where the fixing member is rotated in the direction around the axis by the knob.

A steerable instrument for endoscopic and/or invasive type of applications, such as in surgery, which has an elongated tubular body having a proximal end part with a first actuation flexible zone having a first diameter and a distal end part having a first distal flexible zone having a second diameter that is different from the first diameter. A cylindrical diameter adaptation section is arranged to connect the proximal end part to the distal end part such that a flexion in a radial direction relative to a longitudinal center axis of the longitudinal tubular body of the first actuation flexible zone results in an amplified or attenuated flexion of the first distal flexible zone.