A guidewire including a thin elongated structure and an outer shell around at least a portion of the thin elongated structure. The outer shell includes a first portion and a second portion. The first portion and the second portion of the outer shell are each coupled to the thin elongated structure. The first portion is spaced from the second portion by a gap. The guidewire is configured to move between a flexible state and a rigid state. The gap has a first distance when the guidewire is in the flexible state and the gap has a second distance greater than the first distance when the guidewire is in the rigid state.

A bending operation system includes an elongated tubular portion including a bending portion, a first linear member and a second linear member which cause the bending portion to bend, and a drive portion which displaces the first linear member and the second linear member. The bending operation system further includes a first displacement detector which acquires a displacement of the first linear member as a first displacement, a second displacement detector which acquires a displacement of the second linear member as a second displacement, and a calculator which calculates operation assist information by use of one or both of the first displacement and the second displacement.

A clip indwelling device includes an insertion portion; a power transmission member; a hollow member in which an insertion passage is formed; an arm member which includes a first and a second arms inserted into the insertion passage to protrude from a distal end of the hollow member, is connected to the power transmission member, and is constituted to switch between an open state and a closed state due to advance-retract movement of the power transmission member, and an adjustment mechanism which disposes the first and the second arms such that protrusion lengths of the first and the second arms in an axial direction with respect to the hollow member become equivalent to each other in the open state and disposes the first and the second arms such that the protrusion lengths thereof in the axial direction with respect to the hollow member differ from each other in the closed state.

An enhanced flexible robotic endoscopy apparatus includes a main body and flexible elongate shaft. The main body comprises a proximal end, a distal end and a housing that extends to the proximal end and the housing comprises a plurality of surfaces and a plurality of insertion inlets which reside on at least one of the surface of the housing at the proximal end of the main body, through which a plurality of channels for endoscopy are accessible. Each of the insertion inlets has insertion axis corresponding thereto, along which flexible elongate assemblies are insertable, with the insertion axes of the insertion inlets being parallel to the central axis of the flexible elongate shaft at the proximal end of the flexible elongate shaft.

An endoscope (1) including a handle (2), an insertion cord (3), and a steering mechanism, the insertion cord (3) including an insertion tube (4), a bending section (5) and a distal tip unit (6), the steering mechanism including a manually operable steering input element (7) to receive a rotational input by a user and being connected to a control shaft, which is rotatably supported at the endoscope handle (2) and a steering switch mechanism (13) configured to switch a coupling state of the steering input element (7) at least between a first mode of operation, in which the steering mechanism bends the bending section (5) in a first bending plane, and a second mode of operation, in which the steering mechanism bends the bending section (5) in a second bending plane.

A self-locking angle adjustment mechanism for an endoscope includes: an endoscope angle adjustment steel wire (5), a rotation handle (2), an endoscope handle (3) and a self-locking rotation device, wherein: an outer conical surface is provided at an external surface of the rotation shaft (7), a conical cylinder is sleeved onto the outer conical surface; a spring (14), which is capable of driving the rotation shaft to move towards a direction of the conical cylinder or driving the conical cylinder to move towards a direction of the rotation shaft, and forcing the inner conical surface to closely fit with the outer conical surface for self-locking, is located along an axial direction of the rotation shaft or conical cylinder. Through the present invention, the flexible sheath is locked stepless at any position, meeting free positioning requirement of endoscope during surgeries, reducing labor strength during surgeries, avoiding patient injuries caused by misoperations.

The present invention relates to a multidirectional turning endoscope, which includes an insertion portion (2), an endoscope handle (4) and a bending driving portion (3); wherein: the bending driving portion includes a left-right driving rod, an up-down driving rod, a rotation shaft, a left turning wheel (17), a right turning wheel (18) and a spring (19); the rotation shaft includes a left half shaft (15) and a right half shaft (16); the external surface of the left half shaft and the external surface of the right half shaft respectively have a left outer conical face and a right outer conical face, a left conical cylinder and a right conical cylinder (20) are respectively sleeved to the left outer conical face and a right outer conical face; a spring (19) is located at an axial direction of the left half shaft and the right half shaft.

An endoscope including at least one operating element, a steerable deflecting element located at the distal end, an endoscope tip, and a steering wire having a first portion, a second portion and an intermediate portion, wherein the intermediate portion is attached to the deflecting element or to the endoscope tip, operation of the at least one operating element to apply a drag force to the first portion moving the endoscope tip in a first direction, and operation of the at least one operating element or another operating element to apply a drag force to the second portion moves the endoscope tip in a second direction different from the first direction, and/or wherein the intermediate portion of the steering tie element is at least in part received in a clearance provided at/in a distal end portion of the deflecting element and/or at/in the endoscope tip.

Apparatus described herein includes a tube, shaped to define a tube lumen and including a distal portion that has a plurality of articulated sections. The apparatus further includes a ribbon that passes longitudinally through the tube lumen and is connected to a distalmost one of the articulated sections, and a control handle disposed at a proximal end of the tube, the control handle being configured to flex the distal portion of the tube by pulling the ribbon. Other embodiments are also described.

An endoscope with an articulated bending section body (1) including a number of segments including a proximal segment (2), a distal segment (3) and a number of intermediate segments (4, 4′, 4i) arranged between the proximal segment (2) and the distal segment (3). Each intermediate segment (4, 4′, 4i) comprises at least one through passage for a pull-wire (7). The intermediate segments include (4, 4′, 4i) at least one interface segment (4i) adapted to receive and retain the distal end of a tube (8) surrounding the at least one pull-wire (7).