Endoscope including a plurality of individually testable subassemblies
AssigneeIntuitive Surgical Operations, Inc.
InventorsWilliam Jason Culman, Jaime G. Blackstad, Dominique D. Brichard, Peter M. Herzlinger, Willard Curtis Lomax
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An endoscope includes a first subassembly, a second subassembly, a third subassembly, and a fourth subassembly, which are sequentially assembled and tested in making the endoscope. The first subassembly includes a pressure-sealed electrical cable connected to an image capture unit. The second subassembly includes the first subassembly, a shell, a light pipe, and a lid. The third subassembly includes the second subassembly, a central tube, and a flange. The fourth subassembly includes the third subassembly, a base, a shaft, and optionally an articulating assembly.
Claims20
An endoscope comprising:
- an image capture subassembly including an electrical-cable and image-capture-unit subassembly, the electrical-cable and image-capture-unit subassembly comprising a pressure-sealed electrical cable and an image capture unit, the pressure-sealed electrical cable being connected to the image capture unit and extending proximally from the image capture subassembly, and wherein the pressure-sealed electrical cable is a shielded cable with a shield that surrounds one or more conductors, wherein a seal is formed in and around the shield that is sufficient to maintain a minimum pressure required during a pressure test of the endoscope and prevent a through path for gas flow within the electrical-cable;
- and
- a central tube bundle subassembly including a central tube, the central tube having a distal end, the pressure-sealed electrical cable being passed into the distal end of the central tube in forming the central tube bundle subassembly, and the central tube having the distal end connected to the image capture subassembly.
An endoscope comprising:
- a central tube bundle subassembly comprising:
- an image capture assembly;
- a light pipe having a distal end mounted in the image capture assembly;
- a pressure-sealed electrical cable having a distal end connected to the image capture assembly, wherein the pressure-sealed electrical cable is a shielded cable with a shield that surrounds one or more conductors, wherein a seal is formed in and around the shield that is sufficient to maintain a minimum pressure required during a pressure test of the endoscope and prevent a through path for gas flow within the electrical-cable;
- and
- a central tube having a distal end and a lumen, the distal end of the central tube being connected to the image capture assembly, and the light pipe and the pressure-sealed electrical cable passing through the lumen of the central tube;
- and
- a base instrument subassembly comprising:
- a base;
- a shaft;
- and
- an articulating assembly, the shaft being coupled between the base and the articulating assembly, the central tube extending through the articulating assembly and the shaft, and the articulating assembly being connected to the image capture assembly.
A method comprising:
- assembling a first subassembly including a pressure-sealed electrical cable connected to an image capture unit, wherein the pressure-sealed electrical cable is a shielded cable with a shield that surrounds one or more conductors, wherein a seal is formed in and around the shield that is sufficient to maintain a minimum pressure required during a pressure test of an endoscope and prevent a through path for gas flow within the electrical-cable;
- performing an electrical conductivity test on the first subassembly;
- and
- assembling a second subassembly including the first subassembly, a shell, a light pipe, and a lid,
- the shell having a distal end and a proximal end, the image capture unit being mounted in the shell from the distal end of the shell, the pressure-sealed electrical cable extending proximally through the proximal end of the shell;
- the light pipe having a distal end, the distal end of the light pipe being mounted in the shell, and the light pipe extending proximally through the proximal end of the shell;
- and
- the lid being affixed to the distal end of the shell.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.