Patent ID: 7766819

Claim:
A flexible endoscope comprising an insertion section, wherein the insertion section extends in an axial direction, includes a bending section configured to be bendable in a first and a second bending orientation opposite to each other, of a bending direction substantially orthogonal to the axial direction and a tip forming portion provided at a distal end portion of the bending section, and is configured to be inserted into a lumen from the tip forming portion, the tip forming portion includes a paddle-shaped protrusion, the paddle-shaped protrusion is located close to a first bending orientation side in the tip forming portion, protrudes toward a distal end side so as to taper within the width of a proximal end portion of the tip forming portion, is formed to be wide in a lateral direction substantially orthogonal to the axial direction and the bending direction, and includes a slope portion and a distal end face, the slope portion is wide in the lateral direction, located on a second bending orientation side in the paddle-shaped protrusion, formed such that a distal end side of the slope portion is located close to the first bending orientation side, a proximal end side of the slope portion is located close to the second bending orientation side and a distal end of the slope portion is located on a distal end of the whole tip forming portion with respect to the axial direction, and the slope portion is provided with a channel port and the distal end face of the paddle-shaped protrusion forms a distal end face of the whole tip forming portion, is protruded, and includes a first part thereof, wherein the whole of the first part is substantially orthogonal to the axial direction and has a substantially elliptical shape whose minor axis extends in the bending direction and whose major axis extends in the lateral direction, and the first part is provided with an illumination window and an observation window.