Abstract: There is provided an endoscope system which can secure appropriate bending stiffness of an insertion portion while maintaining the slide length of an endoscope insertion portion. According to one aspect of one of the present invention, in an endoscope system including an endoscope and an insertion assisting tool in which the endoscope is inserted and which assists the insertion of an endoscope insertion portion into a body, a flexible portion of the endoscope insertion portion includes a projection region which projects from the distal end opening of a tube body when the endoscope insertion portion is located in the distal end position in a movable range with respect to the tube body of the insertion assisting tool, and the projection region includes a bending stiffness change portion in which bending stiffness increases from a first position on the distal end side to a second position on the proximal end side.

Abstract: The present invention provides a flexible tube having a cylindrical flexible tube base that has flexibility and a resin layer that coats the flexible tube base, in which the resin layer is configured by at least two layers of a first layer that contains a specific resin and a second layer that contains a specific resin, or in which the resin layer is a single layer or multiple layers of two or more layers, and a layer A that is any of the resin layers includes polyester elastomers, and, hindered phenol compounds or hindered amine compounds.

Abstract: A flexible tube for an endoscope includes a flexible tube base, an outer coating layer including a soft resin layer and a hard resin layer, a ratio changing portion, and a tapered portion. In the ratio changing portion, a percentage of a thickness of the hard resin layer decreases and a percentage of a thickness of the soft resin layer increases toward a distal side from a proximal side of the base. In the tapered portion, a ratio between the thickness of the hard resin layer and the thickness of the soft resin layer is maintained, which ratio is the same as that at a position in the ratio changing portion where the percentage of the thickness of the hard resin layer is a lower limit. In the tapered position, an outer diameter of the outer coating layer decreases toward a distal end of the flexible tube base.

Abstract: A flexible tube 10 is constituted of a flexible tube material 14 and a covering layer 15 of two-layers of constitution having an inner layer 17 which covers the entire peripheral surface of the flexible tube material 14 and an outer layer 18 which covers the entire peripheral surface of the inner layer 17. The covering layer 15 is two-layer molded to have the inner layer 17 and the outer layer 18, by supplying two kinds of resins into one molding die at the same time, with being overlapped each other. As resins for molding the inner layer 17 and the outer layer 18, a combination of the soft resin and the hard resin is selected to be in conditions that the difference at the 100% modulus value, which is an index of a hardness after molding, is equal to or more than 10 MPa, and that the difference of the melt viscosity in the molding temperature of 150° C. to 200° C., which is an index of the fluidity in the molten state, is equal to or less than 2500 PaS.

Abstract: An endoscope flexible tube comprises: a tubular structure having flexibility; and a shell layer on an outer peripheral surface of the tubular structure, wherein the shell layer has a two-layer structure including a rigid resin layer of a rigid resin and a soft resin layer of a soft resin, and wherein the two-layer structure is maintained over the entire flexible tube in its length direction.

Abstract: Around a damaged area of a jacket of a flexible tube, a top coat layer whose adhesion to a polymer layer is weak is peeled off with an adhesive tape. The damaged area and its immediate surrounding area are sanded, and then wiped with ethanol for cleaning. A main agent and a hardening agent are heated and defoamed while being mixed to prepare a repair material. The repair material is applied to the damaged area and the immediate surrounding area. A heat shrink tube is opened along slits in an end portion and covers the flexible tube. The heat shrink tube is shrunk with hot air, pressing the repair material and making it flush with a surface of the jacket. The flexible tube is heated with an electric hot plate to harden the repair material. Thereafter, the heat shrink tube is peeled off from the flexible tube.

Abstract: A flexible tube 10 is constituted of a flexible tube material 14 and a covering layer 15 of two-layers of constitution having an inner layer 17 which covers the entire peripheral surface of the flexible tube material 14 and an outer layer 18 which covers the entire peripheral surface of the inner layer 17. The covering layer 15 is two-layer molded to have the inner layer 17 and the outer layer 18, by supplying two kinds of resins into one molding die at the same time, with being overlapped each other. As resins for molding the inner layer 17 and the outer layer 18, a combination of the soft resin and the hard resin is selected to be in conditions that the difference at the 100% modulus value, which is an index of a hardness after molding, is equal to or more than 10 MPa, and that the difference of the melt viscosity in the molding temperature of 150° C. to 200° C., which is an index of the fluidity in the molten state, is equal to or less than 2500 PaS.

Abstract: An insertion instrument which is connected to a manipulating head grip is composed of an elongated flexible tube section, an articular section and a rigid tip end section in series from a proximal end which is connected to the manipulating head grip. The articular section can be flexed in an arbitrary direction by way of a flexion control means which is provided on the manipulating head grip. A flexible tube straightening means is provided internally of the flexible tube section to straighten the same into a rectilinear form. The flexible tube straightening means is activated into a straightening action in interlinked relation with a flexing operation of the flexion control means.

Abstract: A universal driver capable of controlling an image process in a plurality of types of image processing devices is installed in a control device. The control device includes a control unit, a first selecting unit, and a management unit. The first selecting unit selects a most frequently used image processing device among a plurality of image processing devices used under the control of the control unit. The management unit performs an installation prompting process for executing selected one of an installation of a first specialized driver, which is more specialized for the most frequently used image processing device than the universal driver and is capable of controlling the image process in the most frequently used image processing device, and an issuing of a notification for prompting the installation.

Abstract: A flexible tube is placed in large and small furnaces separated by a heat-shield panel, and two kinds of jacket resin of the flexible tube are heated separately at different temperatures for their own softening points. A connecting area of the jacket resin enters the small furnace to a predetermined distance. In this connecting area, the jacket resin fails to reach the softening point temperature, and is not firmly welded to a blade. A cylindrical attachment is used to surround the spot that has lower temperature than the softening point, and hot air of approximately 250° C. is supplied from a spot heater into the cylindrical attachment. The spot in the cylindrical attachment reaches the softening point in a short time, and the jacket resin is welded to the blade.

Abstract: A flexible tube is constituted of a flexible tubular structure, a jacket for covering the periphery of the tubular structure, and a coating layer for coating the jacket. The jacket has a soft resin layer and hard resin layer, and has constant thickness throughout its length. The thickness of the soft resin layer is tapered from a distal end to a proximal end of the tubular structure. The hard resin layer applied on the soft resin layer gradually thickens from the distal end to the proximal end, conversely. While an assembly, which includes a plurality of tubular structures coupled in series, is passing through a head section, two layers of the soft resin layer and hard resin layer are successively formed thereon. The assembly with the jacket is wound up after cooling. After a dust removing step, a coating layer is applied on the hard resin layer.

Abstract: Around a damaged area of a jacket of a flexible tube, a top coat layer whose adhesion to a polymer layer is weak is peeled off with an adhesive tape. The damaged area and its immediate surrounding area are sanded, and then wiped with ethanol for cleaning. A main agent and a hardening agent are heated and defoamed while being mixed to prepare a repair material. The repair material is applied to the damaged area and the immediate surrounding area. A heat shrink tube is opened along slits in an end portion and covers the flexible tube. The heat shrink tube is shrunk with hot air, pressing the repair material and making it flush with a surface of the jacket. The flexible tube is heated with an electric hot plate to harden the repair material. Thereafter, the heat shrink tube is peeled off from the flexible tube.

Abstract: An insertion instrument which is connected to a manipulating head grip is composed of an elongated flexible tube section, an articular section and a rigid tip end section in series from a proximal end which is connected to the manipulating head grip. The articular section can be flexed in an arbitrary direction by way of a flexion control means which is provided on the manipulating head grip. A flexible tube straightening means is provided internally of the flexible tube section to straighten the same into a rectilinear form. The flexible tube straightening means is activated into a straightening action in interlinked relation with a flexing operation of the flexion control means.

Abstract: An endoscope flexible tube comprises: a tubular structure having flexibility; and a shell layer on an outer peripheral surface of the tubular structure, wherein the shell layer has a two-layer structure including a rigid resin layer of a rigid resin and a soft resin layer of a soft resin, and wherein the two-layer structure is maintained over the entire flexible tube in its length direction.

Abstract: A pulsating oil pressure reducing device 40 for an internal combustion engine has an oil chamber 41 for reducing pulsating oil pressure in a discharge passage 30 for carrying oil discharged from an oil pump 20. The oil chamber 41 communicates with the discharge passage 30 by way of a connecting port 41a1 and makes the oil stagnate therein. The oil chamber 41 is connected to the discharge passage 30 by an air vent passage 45 through which air is discharged from the oil chamber 41 into the discharge passage 30. The air vent passage 45 has an inlet port 45a opening into a top part 41a of the oil chamber 41 and a discharge port 45b opening into the oil passage 30 at a level above the inlet port 45a. Since the pulsating oil pressure reducing device 40 having the air vent passage separately from the connecting port, air can be efficiently discharged from the oil chamber and the degree of freedom of placement of the oil passage and the oil chamber is increased.

Abstract: A pulsating oil pressure reducing device 40 for an internal combustion engine has an oil chamber 41 for reducing pulsating oil pressure in a discharge passage 30 for carrying oil discharged from an oil pump 20. The oil chamber 41 communicates with the discharge passage 30 by way of a connecting port 41a1 and makes the oil stagnate therein. The oil chamber 41 is connected to the discharge passage 30 by an air vent passage 45 through which air is discharged from the oil chamber 41 into the discharge passage 30. The air vent passage 45 has an inlet port 45a opening into a top part 41a of the oil chamber 41 and a discharge port 45b opening into the oil passage 30 at a level above the inlet port 45a. Since the pulsating oil pressure reducing device 40 having the air vent passage separately from the connecting port, air can be efficiently discharged from the oil chamber and the degree of freedom of placement of the oil passage and the oil chamber is increased.

Abstract: A component fitting structure includes a component fitting hole (25) formed across mated faces between a cylinder head (4) and chain cover (24), and a collar (26) fitted in the component fitting hole through a liquid gasket, a tensioner unit 21a being engaged with the collar. Because the component fitting portion extends across the mated faces the members themselves can be made smaller in size. Further, since the collar can be attached in advance to one of these members before they are mated together, the fitting portion of the component can be easily observed visually. Further, the component can be removed without separating the two members from each other.

Abstract: First and second gears are interposed, respectively, between first and second endless power transmission belts each for driving a camshaft of a cylinder head of each of V-shaped cylinder banks and a crankshaft 7. A pair of balancer shafts are provided at symmetrical positions with respect to a separating plane acting as a center therebetween where an upper block and a lower block of a cylinder block are separated from each other from a horizontal plane passing through a center of the crankshaft in such a manner that axes of the pair of balancer shafts become parallel with the crank shaft. The crankshaft and the balancer shaft on the lower block side are connected to each other by means of a third endless power transmission belt. The balancer shafts are connected to each other by means of third gears, so that the pair of balancer shafts are driven to rotate in the opposite directions.

Abstract: A flexible sheathing tube suitable for encasing an elongated flexible body like a flexible insertion rod of an endoscope or other insertion type examination istrument, and a method for fabrication of such sheathing tubes. The flexible sheathing tube being of the type is basically provided with a flexible base structure having at least an open helical coil member of a cylindrical shape, a protective mesh sleeve fitted on the helical coil member, and an insulating outer coating layer formed on the protective mesh sleeve. The sheathing tube is further provided with an inner coat layer of a resilient material formed on the inner side of the helical coil member in such a manner as to cover the inner periphery of the helical coil member completely, filling in gap spaces between open helices of the coil member.

Abstract: A flexible sheathing tube suitable for encasing an elongated flexible body like a flexible insertion rod of an endoscope or other insertion type examination instrument, and a method for fabrication of such sheathing tubes. The flexible sheathing tube being of the type is basically provided with a flexible base structure having at least an open helical coil member of a cylindrical shape, a protective mesh sleeve fitted on the helical coil member, and an insulating outer coating layer formed on the protective mesh sleeve. The sheathing tube is further provided with an inner coat layer of a resilient material formed on the inner side of the helical coil member in such a manner as to cover the inner periphery of the helical coil member completely, filling in gap spaces between open helices of the coil member.