Antiglare tip in a sheath for an endoscope

An apparatus for preventing glare in an endoscope image viewer, comprising:

• an endoscope insertion tube having a light source and an image viewer, an end of said endoscope including an opaque projection extending between said light source and said image viewer;
• a sheath coupled to said endoscope;
• and
• a tip coupled to a distal end of said sheath, said tip including transparent members positioned over said light source and said image viewer, a recess positioned to mate with said projection of said endoscope end, and opaque portions extending around the periphery of said transparent members to block light from passing directly from said light source to said image viewer.

An endoscope and antiglare tip coupled to the sheath combination, comprising:

• an endoscope insertion tube having a light source and an image viewer, an end of said endoscope including an opaque projection extending from said end and positioned between said light source and said image viewer;
• a sheath coupled to said endoscope;
• and
• a tip coupled to a distal end of said sheath, said tip including transparent members positioned over said light source and said image viewer, a recess in said tip positioned to mate with said projection of said endoscope, said projection extending into said recess to prevent light from passing directly from said light source to said image viewer.

A method for providing an antiglare tip for an endoscope, comprising the steps of:

• providing a single-piece opaque member;
• forming apertures in said opaque member;
• inserting transparent members into said apertures, said transparent member being thinner than said opaque member and mounted flush at an outside surface to form recesses on an inside surface of said opaque member;
• and
• attaching said opaque member to a sheath to provide a sheath having an antiglare tip.