Fiberscopes

Fiberscopes are tools used for inspecting holes and cavities. The basic unit of operation is a flexible tube that can change its view angle or navigation through paths that are not straight.

Important specifications for fiberscopes include tube or sheath diameters, working length, field of view and minimum focus distance.  The tube diameter is the diameter of probe for insertion into the cavity to be inspected.  This typically determines the minimum size hole the scope can be used with.  The working length is the length of the probe.  This effectively determines depth of inspection capability.  The field of view is the viewing cone included in the viewing angle.  It is a measure of how much of the visual field is taken up by the image.  The minimum focus distance for the fiberscope is the minimum effective focusing distance.

Tips of fiberscopes have specific specifications that differentiate them.  The viewing angle for the tip can be direct, forward oblique, side, and retro.  A direct viewing angle tip affords direct straight-on viewing.  A forward oblique viewing angle is between 0° and 90° for combination of forward navigation and side visibility.  A side viewing angle allows for greater visual detail on bore or cylinder walls.  A retro viewing angle has retrospective or backward oblique viewing.  The tip may come equipped with a swing prism that allows the user to change the viewing angle without changing scope position by pivoting a prism front and back.  A combination objective has multiple viewing angles, typically with a prism.  These can be used for side-by-side straight and side viewing, for example.  Interchangeable objectives allow tips with different viewing angles to be readily interchanged.  A rotatable tip allows the tip to rotate for viewing around interior walls.  A two way articulated tip can be manipulated or "curled back".  Two-way implies single plane articulation, as in only right-left or up-down.  A four way articulated tip can be manipulated or "curled back". Four-way implies double plane articulation, as in both right-left and up-down  Specifications for articulation range give the maximum angular articulation possible, measured from 0° as straight-ahead.  Articulations greater than 90° correlate to retrospective views.  The minimum sheath bend radius is the minimum radius around which sheath or flexible tube can bend.

Features common to fiberscopes include integral illumination, integral working channel and integral video capabilities.  Fiberscopes may have a camera mount as a feature that allows for a simple mount for a camera to augment or replace visual inspection.  Cameras can be C-mount, CS-mount, S-mount, F-mount, and K-mount.

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Part Numbers for Fiberscopes