Flexible lens

摘要

A flexible lens is mounted to the end of an elongate medical device having a camera, such as an endoscope. The lens is generally solid and is made from a translucent, flexible, and resilient material. In a medical environment, the lens can be pressed against a vessel wall in a patient to enlarge the area viewed by the camera, and can further adapt to the shape of the wall to limit trauma on the patient. When pressed against the vessel wall, the lens can become longitudinally compressed, while becoming wider. The wider and compressed shape of the lens will push blood away from the viewing area to increase the clarity of the camera's field of view.

主权项

1. A lens for mounting to an elongate medical device having a camera, the lens comprising:
a lens body having a first longitudinal length extending longitudinally between a proximal end and a distal end, the lens body also having a first width defined by an outermost surface of the lens body when the lens body is in a nominal state, wherein the lens body is configured for being mounted to an elongate medical device having a camera; a translucent portion of the lens body for creating a field of view for the camera; a tip portion at the distal end of the lens body; a base portion at the proximal end of the lens body, wherein the base portion is sized for being mounted to an elongate medical device having a camera; wherein the lens body has a generally flexible and resilient construction; wherein the lens body has a generally solid cross-section; wherein the lens body has the nominal state, in which the lens body has the first length and the first width, and a compressed state, in which the lens body has a second length that is shorter than the first length and second width defined by the outermost surface of the lens body when in the compressed state, wherein the second width is wider than the first width; wherein the lens will transition from the nominal state to the compressed state in response to compression against a barrier and will transition from the compressed state to the nominal state in response to disengagement from the barrier; wherein the lens body defines a mating surface that defines the proximal end of the lens body and further defining the proximal end of the base portion of the lens body, such that the lens body does not extend proximally beyond the mating surface, the mating surface extending transverse to the longitudinal length of the lens body and having a mating surface outer width defined by an outermost edge of the mating surface, wherein the mating surface outer width corresponds to the first width of the lens body in the nominal state and configured to mate against a distal end of an elongate medical device.