CURVATURE SENSOR AND ENDOSCOPE APPARATUS

摘要

A curvature sensor is to be mounted along detection target to allow a curvature of the detection target. The sensor includes a light source, a light guide to guide light from the light source and sensing parts having light absorbability. The sensing parts include absorption bands having different intrinsic absorption patterns and characteristic absorption bands having intrinsic characteristic absorption patterns in the absorption bands. A light detector allows residual light not absorbed by the characteristic absorption bands to be detected, the residual light being included in light of bands corresponding to the characteristic absorption bands and radiated to the sensing parts from the light source. A calculator computes a curvature of the detection target based on a rate of change in the residual light.

主权项

1. A curvature sensor to be provided along a flexible, linear detection target to allow a curvature of the detection target to be sensed, the curvature sensor comprising:
a light source; a light guide provided along the detection target to guide light from the light source; a plurality of sensing parts having light absorbability and provided along a longitudinal direction of the light guide, the sensing parts including absorption bands having different intrinsic absorption patterns and characteristic absorption bands having intrinsic characteristic absorption patterns in the absorption bands; a light detector which allows residual light not absorbed by the characteristic absorption bands to be detected, the residual light being included in light of bands corresponding to the characteristic absorption bands and radiated to the sensing parts from the light source; and a calculator which computes a curvature of the detection target based on a rate of change in the residual light.