Patent US 5,494,483

In accordance with one form of the present invention, a stereoscopic endoscope is provided which has an elongated thin cylindrical barrel with a pair of CCDs mounted transversely within the barrel adjacent the distal end thereof. A pair of objective optics are mounted within the barrel between the distal end thereof and the respective CCDs for focusing an image observed through the endoscope on the CCDs. Image signal transmitting wires connected to each CCD extend longitudinally through the barrel and out the proximal end thereof for transmitting an image signal to a remote location. Light transmitting fibers are tightly packed around the objective optics and the CCDs. A first connector is secured to the proximal end of the wires for connection to a stereoscopic image producing device and a second connector is secured to the proximal of the light transmitting fibers for connection to a light source. In another embodiment, the CCDs are mounted in back-to-back relationship and use a prism for directing and focusing an imaging on each CCD. In a third embodiment, an end cap is hinged to the distal end of the barrel with one CCD mounted at the end of the barrel and the other CCD mounted in the end of the end cap in face-to-face relationship with the first CCD when the end cap is closed. The end cap can be swung to an open position to generate a stereoscopic image.