Laryngoscope

Abstract

A laryngoscope with a handle, at the distal end of which a blade is arranged at an angle to the longitudinal axis of the handle, wherein a channel for receiving an image carrier of a video endoscope is formed in the handle and in the blade such that the channel, in a transition area from the handle to the blade, merges in a radius from the handle into the blade. In order to provide a laryngoscope which, while being easy to handle, ensures insertion of the image carrier into the channel in a way that protects material, in the transition area from the handle into the blade, at least one run-on bevel is formed in the interior of the channel.

Claims

1. A laryngoscope with a handle, at the distal end of which a blade is arranged at an angle to the longitudinal axis of the handle, wherein a channel for receiving an image carrier of a video endoscope is formed in the handle and in the blade such that the channel, in a transition area from the handle to the blade, merges in a radius from the handle into the blade, characterized in that, in the transition area from the handle into the blade, at least one run-on bevel is formed in the interior of the channel.

2. The laryngoscope according to claim 1, wherein the at least one run-on bevel is composed of several ribs arranged at a distance from one another.

3. The laryngoscope according to claim 2, wherein the ribs are arranged parallel to one another.

4. The laryngoscope according to claim 2, wherein the ribs, viewed in the direction of insertion of the image carrier, are arranged on the inner wall of the channel at a location proximal from the strongest curvature of the radius.

5. The laryngoscope according to claim 2, wherein the ribs, facing into the channel, are oriented at an angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of the handle.

6. The laryngoscope according to claim 2, wherein the ribs have an increasing radial thickness along their axial length, from proximal to distal.

7. The laryngoscope according to claim 2, wherein the ribs are formed all the way round the entire circumference of the inner wall of the channel.

8. The laryngoscope according to claim 2, wherein the ribs are formed only in sections about the circumference of the inner wall of the channel.

9. The laryngoscope according to claim 1, wherein the angle at which the blade is angled with respect to the longitudinal axis of the handle is 70° to 90°.

10. The laryngoscope according to claim 1, wherein the handle and the blade are connected to each other releasably

11. The laryngoscope according to claim 3, wherein the ribs, viewed in the direction of insertion of the image carrier, are arranged on the inner wall of the channel at a location proximal from the strongest curvature of the radius.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] Further features and advantages of the invention will become clear from the appended drawings in which an illustrative embodiment of a laryngoscope according to the invention is depicted only by way of example, without limiting the invention to this illustrative embodiment. In the drawings:

[0019] FIG. 1 shows a side view of a laryngoscope according to the invention with an associated video endoscope, before they are joined together;

[0020] FIG. 2 shows a side view as per FIG. 1, but with the video endoscope inserted in the laryngoscope;

[0021] FIG. 3 shows a side view of the laryngoscope as per FIG. 1 in cross section and rotated through 90°, and

[0022] FIG. 4 shows a schematic side view of a rib.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] The laryngoscope 1 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 is composed of a handle 2 and of a blade 4 arranged at the distal end of the handle 2 at an angle with respect to the longitudinal axis 3 of the handle 2.

[0024] As will be seen from the figures, the blade 4 is oriented substantially at right angles to the longitudinal axis 3 of the handle 2. In practice, the angle at which the blade 4 is angled with respect to the longitudinal axis 3 of the handle 2 is 70° to 90°.

[0025] Laryngoscopes 1 of this kind, used as disposable articles, are generally made of a plastics material and are preferably formed from two shells produced by injection molding.

[0026] A channel 7 is formed in the laryngoscope 1 in order to permit insertion of an image carrier 5 of a video endoscope 6, which channel 7, in the transition area 8 from the handle 2 to the blade 4, merges in a radius from the handle 2 into the blade 4. For insertion of the image carrier 5, the channel 7 extending from the handle 2 into the blade 4 is open at the proximal end in the handle 2, while the distal end of the channel 7 located in the blade is generally closed by a window 9.

[0027] The component designated here as the image carrier 5 of the laryngoscope 1 is a cable 10 with a video chip 11 arranged at its distal end.

[0028] Since, on the one hand, the blade 4 is angled at an angle of 70° to 90° with respect to the longitudinal axis 3 of the handle 2 and thus the radius of the channel 7 in the transition area 8 from the handle 2 into the blade 4 is also very tight, and on the other hand, the image carrier 5 of the video endoscope 6 has a certain stiffness, there is a danger, upon insertion of the image carrier 5 into the channel 7, of the image carrier 5 hitting the ground in the radius of the transition area 8 and buckling. This buckling of the image carrier 5 can result in permanent damage to the image carrier 5 and, consequently, a deterioration of the image transmission.

[0029] To allow the image carrier 5 to be inserted through the channel 7 from the handle 2 into the blade 4 without buckling, at least one run-on bevel 12 is formed in the interior of the channel 7 of the laryngoscope 1 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, specifically, as can be seen in particular from FIG. 2, in the transition area 8 from the handle 2 into the blade 4. The run-on bevel 12, narrowing the channel 7, serves as a guide for the image carrier 5 in the interior of the channel 7 and thus also makes it possible to guide the image carrier 5 round tight radii without buckling.

[0030] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the run-on bevel 12 is composed of several ribs 13 arranged in parallel and at a distance from one another. This design reduces the weight, since less material needs to be used for the run-on bevel 12, and, by virtue of the ribs 13 extending parallel to one another, it additionally provides very good guiding of the image carrier 5 that is to be inserted into the channel 7.

[0031] To make it easier to insert the image carrier 5 in a targeted manner into the channel 7, the ribs 13 in the embodiment shown are oriented facing into the channel 7 at an angle α with respect to the longitudinal axis 3 of the handle 2. This angled orientation of the ribs 13 is such that the ribs 13 are arranged, facing into the radius, on the inner wall 14 of the channel 7.

[0032] Viewed in the direction of insertion of the image carrier 5 into the channel 7, the ribs 13 forming the run-on bevel 9 are provided on the inner wall 14 of the channel at a location proximal from the strongest curvature of the radius. This arrangement of the ribs 13 before the strongest curvature, in the direction of insertion, ensures that the image carrier 5 is guided at the correct angle, and without risk of buckling, into the transition area 8 between handle 2 and blade 4.

[0033] As will be seen from FIG. 4, in addition to being at the angle α with respect to the longitudinal axis 3 of the handle 2, the ribs 13 can additionally be formed such that they also narrow the inside diameter of the channel 7, since they have an increasing radial thickness along their axial length from proximal to distal.

[0034] The arrangement of the ribs 13 on the inner wall 14 of the channel can be such that the ribs 13 are either formed all the way round the entire circumference of the inner wall 14 of the channel or are formed only in sections about the circumference of the inner wall 14 of the channel. In the case of the only sectional arrangement of the ribs 13, they can be divided up into one or more sections about the circumference of the inner wall 14 of the channel.

[0035] While being easy to handle, a laryngoscope 1 of the above-described design ensures that the image carrier 5 is inserted into the channel 7 in a manner that protects material.