Abstract: A brake adjustment body is disposed in a direction orthogonal to turning shafts between a bending drive shaft and a lock operation shaft. The brake adjustment body is configured by including an intermediate member that abuts a cam portion of the lock operation shaft, and a brake member that applies to the bending drive shaft a pressure according to displacement of the intermediate member. The intermediate member has a shaft body portion and a cylindrical sliding portion screwed together, and by rotating the sliding portion in a state where the shaft body portion and the sliding portion are screwed together, the distance between a proximal end portion and a distal end portion of the intermediate member may be adjusted, and when fixing force on the bending drive shaft is reduced, the distance may be re-adjusted to restore the fixing force.

Abstract: A brake adjustment body is disposed in a direction orthogonal to turning shafts between a bending drive shaft and a lock operation shaft. The brake adjustment body is configured by including an intermediate member that abuts a cam portion of the lock operation shaft, and a brake member that applies to the bending drive shaft a pressure according to displacement of the intermediate member. The intermediate member has a shaft body portion and a cylindrical sliding portion screwed together, and by rotating the sliding portion in a state where the shaft body portion and the sliding portion are screwed together, the distance between a proximal end portion and a distal end portion of the intermediate member may be adjusted, and when fixing force on the bending drive shaft is reduced, the distance may be re-adjusted to restore the fixing force.

Abstract: A bending portion of an endoscope capable of realizing optimum bending forms corresponding to purposes by a simple configuration is provided. For this purpose, knot rings for upward/downward bending and knot rings for left/right bending arrayed in a first bending area set on a distal end side of a bending portion are configured with second knot rings on which a pair of projecting portions are arranged axially symmetric relative to a central axis of an insertion portion; knot rings for left/right bending arrayed on a second bending area set on a proximal end side of the bending portion are configured with second knot rings; and knot rings for upward/downward bending arrayed in the second bending area are configured with third knot rings on which a pair of projecting portions are offset upward from axially-symmetric positions relative to the central position of the insertion portion by a predetermined offset amount.

Abstract: A battery-powered light source device 5 has an DC/DC converter 61 that boosts the supply voltage of a battery 51 and supplies electrical power to a lamp 31, and, inside this DC/DC converter 61, are provided a comparator 65 that compares a specific reference voltage to the output voltage of a DC/DC converter 61, and a control component 66 that keeps the output voltage from the DC/DC converter 61 at a specific lamp voltage on the basis of the comparison result of this comparator 65, whereby the supply voltage of the battery 51 is boosted and the optimal lamp voltage is obtained. Consequently, the battery-powered light source device 5 allows the brightness of the lamp to be adjusted and a high step-up efficiency to be obtained, and the battery can therefore be used more efficiently, and a more convenient use of the endoscope is possible.

Abstract: A battery-powered light source device 5 has an DC/DC converter 61 that boosts the supply voltage of a battery 51 and supplies electrical power to a lamp 31, and, inside this DC/DC converter 61, are provided a comparator 65 that compares a specific reference voltage to the output voltage of a DC/DC converter 61, and a control component 66 that keeps the output voltage from the DC/DC converter 61 at a specific lamp voltage on the basis of the comparison result of this comparator 65, whereby the supply voltage of the battery 51 is boosted and the optimal lamp voltage is obtained. Consequently, the battery-powered light source device 5 allows the brightness of the lamp to be adjusted and a high step-up efficiency to be obtained, and the battery can therefore be used more efficiently, and a more convenient use of the endoscope is possible.

Abstract: A battery-powered light source in which the relative position to a control section of an endoscope is changed to switch an illumination lamp to an ON state or OFF state includes a light source main body containing a battery for supplying electric power for turning on the illumination lamp, a plurality of switch positions provided in a range in which the relative position between the light source main body and the control section of the endoscope is changed, and a click mechanical portion provided at at least one of the switch positions, for maintaining the relative position between the light source main body and the control section of the endoscope in a predetermined state and switching the illumination lamp to a predetermined state while maintaining the state of the relative position.

Abstract: An endoscope apparatus capable of preventing occurrence of problems trouble attributable to exhaustion of a battery has an endoscope and a battery-powered light source. The endoscope has a light guide fiber bundle over which illumination light is propagated. The battery-powered light source is freely detachably attached to the endoscope, and includes an illumination lamp and a battery. The illumination lamp supplies illumination light to the incidence end of the light guide fiber bundle on which illumination light falls. The battery serves as a power supply causing the illumination lamp to light. At least one of the endoscope and battery-powered light source has an indication unit for notifying a user of the amount of electrical energy contained in the battery.

Abstract: A battery-powered light source in which the relative position to a control section of an endoscope is changed to switch an illumination lamp to an ON state or OFF state includes a light source main body containing a battery for supplying electric power for turning on the illumination lamp, a plurality of switch positions provided in a range in which the relative position between the light source main body and the control section of the endoscope is changed, and a click mechanical portion provided at at least one of the switch positions, for maintaining the relative position between the light source main body and the control section of the endoscope in a predetermined state and switching the illumination lamp to a predetermined state while maintaining the state of the relative position.