Articulatable member with constrained motion and related apparatus and methods

Abstract

The present application is entitled "Articulatable member with constrained motion and related devices and methods". The articulatable member includes a distal end, a proximal end, an actuating member and a constraining member. The actuating member extends from the proximal end to the distal end. The actuating member transmits force to cause the articulatable member to bend from a neutral orientation. The constraining member extends from the proximal end to the distal end. The constraining member may have opposite ends fixed to the distal end and the proximal end. In one embodiment, the constraining member follows a spiral path along at least a portion of the articulatable member from the proximal end to the distal end. In another embodiment, the actuating member follows a spiral path along at least a portion of the articulatable member.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application of Chinese patent application 201580019171.1 (PCT / US2015 / 015849) filed on February 13, 2015 and entitled “Articulatable components with constrained motion and related devices and methods”.

[0002] Related Applications

[0003] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61 / 943,106, filed February 21, 2014, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Technical Field

[0004] Various aspects of the present disclosure relate to articulatable members that exhibit constrained motion. More specifically, various aspects of the present disclosure relate to surgical instruments utilizing such articulatable members and related systems and methods. Background Art

[0005] Remotely controlled surgical instruments, which may include both remotely operated surgical instruments and manually operated (e.g., laparoscopy, thoracoscopy) surgical instruments, are commonly used in minimally invasive medical procedures. During a medical procedure, an instrument may be articulated to position a portion of the instrument in a desired position. Positioning an instrument in a desired position or orientation may be achieved by constraining the movement of one or more joints of the instrument. However, mechanisms that constrain the movement of one or more joints of an instrument may increase the mechanical complexity and operation of the instrument, and increase the difficulty of manufacturing the instrument.

[0006] The overall size of minimally invasive surgical instruments can impose constraints on the design of surgical instruments. In various applications, it is desirable that the overall size of such instruments, including external transverse dimensions (e.g., diameter), be relatively small to fit within narrow lumens and other passages. Therefore, in some cases, it is desirable to select the number and layout of force transmission elements so as to reduce the overall size of the instrument. For example, the number and layout of force transmission elements that interconnect a series of hingedly connected links to provide actuation forces to control the bending of the links can allow one or more force transmission elements to pass through one or more links without being directly attached to or terminating at such links. For example, the bending and turning of a series of multiple joints (or link pairs) can be actuated by a single force transmission element (or by a single set of force transmission elements in the case of multiple bending directions and / or degrees of freedom (DOF)), rather than each joint or link pair being able to be bent directly and individually by actuation of a force transmission element directly attached to this link pair. This configuration is sometimes referred to as "underconstrained". In other words, steering and bending of multiple link pairs are actuated by a single force transmission element or set of force transmission elements attached to and terminating at a link of one of the link pairs. However, such "under-constrained" structures can create challenges when attempting to controllably steer and bend the structure, potentially resulting in unpredictable and / or uncontrollable movement (articulation) of the links.

[0007] Control systems and other mechanisms have been proposed to help constrain the movement of otherwise under-constrained articulated linkage structures. However, there is a need to provide alternative designs for articulatable members that achieve constrained motion so that the movement and positioning of the articulatable members can be accurately controlled. Summary of the invention

[0008] Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure may solve one or more of the above problems and / or may exhibit one or more of the above desirable features.Other features and / or advantages will become apparent from the following description.

[0009] According to at least one exemplary embodiment, the articulatable member includes a distal end, a proximal end, an actuating member, and a constraining member. The actuating member may extend from the proximal end to the distal end. The actuating member may transmit a force to bend the articulatable member from a neutral position. The constraining member may extend from the proximal end to the distal end. The constraining member may have opposite ends fixed to the distal end and the proximal end, respectively. Further, the constraining member may follow a spiral path along at least a portion of the articulatable member from the proximal end to the distal end.

[0010] According to another exemplary embodiment, the articulatable member may include a proximal end, a distal end, an actuating member, and a constraining member. The actuating member may extend from the proximal end to the distal end. The actuating member may be configured to transmit a force to cause the articulatable member to bend from a neutral position. The constraining member may extend from the proximal end to the distal end. The constraining member may have opposite ends fixed to the distal end and the proximal end, respectively. Further, the actuating member may follow a spiral path along at least a portion of the articulatable member between the proximal end and the distal end of the articulatable member.

[0011] According to another exemplary embodiment, a surgical instrument includes: a shaft, a force transmission mechanism connected to the proximal end of the shaft, a parallel motion mechanism connected to the distal end of the shaft, a wrist, an actuating member, and a constraining member. The wrist may include a plurality of links and is coupled to the distal end of the parallel motion mechanism. The actuating member may transmit force from the force transmission mechanism to bend the articulated member from a neutral position, or to bend the wrist from a neutral position. The constraining member may extend at least through the wrist. The constraining member may passively constrain the movement of the wrist mechanism. The opposite ends of the constraining member may be fixed to the proximal end and the distal end of the wrist, respectively.

[0012] Additional objects, features and / or advantages will be described in part in the following description, and in part will be apparent from the description, or may be learned through the practice of the present disclosure and / or claims. At least some of these objects and advantages may be realized and obtained through the elements and combinations specifically pointed out in the accompanying claims.

[0013] It is to be understood that the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the claims; rather, the claims should be given their full scope, including the scope of equivalents. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] The present disclosure may be understood from the following detailed description alone or in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the present disclosure and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The accompanying drawings illustrate one or more exemplary embodiments of the present teachings and together with the description serve to explain certain principles and operations.

[0015] Figure 1A A teleoperated surgical system is shown according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0016] Figure 1B A portion of a manipulator arm of a patient side cart is shown according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0017] Figure 2 is a top view of an exemplary embodiment of a surgical instrument including a force transmission mechanism.

[0018] Figure 3is a partial view of a distal portion of a surgical instrument including an articulated linkage structure according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0019] Figure 4 is a partial top view of a shaft portion and a force transmission mechanism of an instrument according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0020] Figure 5 for Figure 3 A partial view of the 3D printed circuit board with the disc removed to show the internal components.

[0021] Figure 6 1 is a perspective view of an actuation member in a spiral shape according to an exemplary embodiment and a projection in a plane of the angular extent of the spiral shape.

[0022] Fig. 7A and Figure 7B A side view of an exemplary embodiment of an articulated linkage structure and a cross-sectional view of a disk of the articulated linkage structure to illustrate the helical path of the constraining tendon.

[0023] Fig. 8A is a top perspective view of a disc of an articulated linkage structure according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0024] Figure 8B is a top perspective view of a disc of an articulated linkage structure according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0025] Fig. 9 is a partial view of a distal portion of a surgical instrument including an articulated linkage structure according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0026] Fig.10 For along Fig. 9 A cross-sectional view along line 10-10.

[0027] Fig.11 is a side view of a wrist including a braided structure according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0028] Fig.12 For Fig.11 Area in Fig.12 A magnified view of .

[0029] Fig.13 For along Fig.11 View of line 13-13 in FIG.

[0030] Fig.14 is a side view of a distal portion of a surgical instrument according to an exemplary embodiment, the surgical instrument including an articulating linkage structure having a braided structure.

[0031] Fig.15 is a side view of an articulated linkage structure including a braided structure according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0032] Fig.16 is a partial perspective view of a distal portion of a surgical instrument including a parallel motion mechanism according to an exemplary implementation.

[0033] Fig.17 According to an exemplary embodiment Fig.16 A partial perspective view of a distal portion of a surgical instrument with the parallel motion mechanism articulated into a deflected configuration.

[0034] Fig.18 Show Fig.16 A view of the distal portion of a surgical instrument with exterior surfaces removed to facilitate viewing of various internal components.

[0035] Fig.19 is a schematic perspective view of a central tube extending through a parallel motion mechanism and an actuation member according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0036] Fig. 20 is an end view of a disk of a parallel motion mechanism according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0037] Fig.21 is a partial perspective view of a distal portion of a surgical instrument according to an exemplary embodiment, the surgical instrument including a wrist and a parallel motion mechanism having one or more shared constraint mechanisms. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0038] This specification and the accompanying drawings illustrating exemplary embodiments should not be considered as limiting. Without departing from the scope of this specification and claims (including equivalents), various mechanical, compositional, structural, electrical and operational changes may be made. In some cases, well-known structures and technologies are not shown or described in detail so as not to obscure the present disclosure. Similar numbers represent identical or similar elements in two or more drawings. In addition, as long as it is practically feasible, the elements described in detail with reference to one embodiment and their associated features may be included in other embodiments that are not specifically shown or described. For example, if an element is described in detail with reference to one embodiment without describing it with reference to a second embodiment, the element may still be required to be included in the second embodiment.

[0039] For the purposes of this specification and the appended claims, unless otherwise indicated, all numbers expressing quantities, percentages or ratios and other numerical values ​​used in the specification and claims should be understood as being modified by the term "about" in all cases, to the extent that they have not been so modified. Therefore, unless otherwise indicated, the numerical parameters set forth in the following specification and the appended claims are approximate values, which may vary depending on the desired properties to be obtained. At the very least, and not attempting to limit the application of the doctrine of equivalents to the scope of the claims, each numerical parameter should at least be interpreted in light of the number of reported significant digits and by applying common rounding techniques.

[0040] It should be noted that, as used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the," as well as any singular use of any term, include plural referents unless expressly and unequivocally limited to one referent. As used herein, the term "include" and its grammatical variations are intended to be non-limiting, such that the recitation of items in a list does not exclude other similar items that can be substituted or added to the listed items.

[0041] Further, the proper nouns of this specification are not intended to limit the present disclosure or claims. For example, spatially related terms, such as "below", "below", "lower", "above", "upper", "proximal", "distal", etc., can be used to describe the relationship between one element or feature and another element or feature, as illustrated in the orientation of the accompanying drawings. These spatially related terms are intended to include different orientations (i.e., positions) and orientations (i.e., rotational layouts) of the equipment in use or operation other than the orientations and orientations shown in the accompanying drawings. For example, if the equipment in the accompanying drawings is reversed, the elements described as "below" or "below" other elements or features may be subsequently "above" or "above" other elements or features. Therefore, the exemplary term "below" may include two orientations and orientations of above and below. The equipment can be oriented in other ways (rotated 90 degrees or in other orientations), and the spatially related descriptors used herein can be interpreted accordingly. The relative proximal and distal directions of the surgical instruments are marked in the accompanying drawings.

[0042] In various instruments having an articulatable member, such as an articulated linkage structure, the movement of the articulatable member is constrained by actively controlling the movement of a component of the articulatable member, such as a disc. An actuating member, such as a drive tendon or a drive rod, used to articulate the articulatable member may also be used to actively constrain the movement of the articulatable member. For example, the actuating member may be coupled to a force transmission mechanism, such as a universal cable actuator described in U.S. Patent No. 6,817,974, and coupled to a disc of the articulated linkage structure, such that the force transmitted to the actuating member via the force transmission mechanism may be used to move the disc and articulate the articulated linkage structure. This configuration may also be used to actively constrain the movement of the disc, such as by transmitting force from the force transmission mechanism to the actuating member to hold the disc in place.

[0043] In some cases, an apparatus that actively constrains movement via an actuating member utilizes a relatively large number of actuating members to accurately control the movement of an articulated member when the articulated member is articulated or its movement is constrained. For example, a wrist may include an additional joint to increase the range of motion of the wrist. However, this may result in additional actuating members that actuate and / or constrain the additional joint, thereby increasing the complexity and cost of the wrist, particularly when the joint is actively constrained. In addition, particularly for apparatuses with smaller diameters, it is generally desirable to use fewer actuating members in order to save space within the apparatus. Due to the mechanism for applying force to the actuating member, the properties of actively controlled constraining members (e.g., actuating members for actively constraining the movement of an articulated member using a force applied to the actuating member) in addition to their number may increase the complexity of the wrist. Therefore, it is desirable to provide a constraining member that is not actively constrained.

[0044] Various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure contemplate an articulated member in which the movement of the articulated member is passively constrained. In other words, the movement of the articulated member is constrained without using an actuator such as a force transmission mechanism and a control algorithm that controls the actuator. For example, in various exemplary embodiments, the movement of the disc of the articulated linkage structure is passively constrained by a constraining member, which cannot be actuated by an external drive or transmission mechanism, but reacts to the movement (articulation) of the articulated linkage structure itself. According to an exemplary embodiment, the constraining member may be fixed at the opposite ends of the articulated linkage structure. Therefore, the constraining member does not need to utilize a force transmission mechanism to actively constrain the movement of the articulated member, which allows the use of fewer actuating members and potentially less complex force transmission mechanisms. Further, the ends of the constraining member may be fixed at the opposite ends of the articulated member. Therefore, the constraining member does not need to extend to the proximal end of the instrument where the actuator such as the force transmission mechanism is located, thereby saving space along the instrument axis proximal to the articulated member. Further, by not extending the constraining member through the lumen (eg, shaft) of the instrument to the proximal end of the instrument, the interior space of the lumen may be easier to clean due to having less material within the lumen.

[0045] According to various exemplary embodiments, the present disclosure contemplates an articulated member for an apparatus, the apparatus including a mechanism for constraining the motion of the articulated member. The constraining mechanism may be fixed at the opposite ends of the articulated member, and the articulated member may be a wrist, a parallel motion mechanism, or other articulated members for the apparatus. In various exemplary embodiments, the articulated member is an articulated linkage structure. In an exemplary embodiment of the wrist of the apparatus, the constraining mechanism extends along a spiral path along at least a portion of the length of the wrist. The wrist may further include an actuating member extending substantially straight through the wrist, such as a driving tendon. The wrist may include a series of connected discs that pivot around an axis of rotation that alternates in different directions (e.g., orthogonal), or pivot around two continuous axes of rotation that extend in substantially the same direction. The constraining mechanism is not limited to a tendon or a rod but may be, for example, a braided structure that can be used to provide a structure of the articulated member such as by replacing the disc of the articulated linkage structure. Alternatively, the braided structure can be used to constrain the motion of the disc of the articulated linkage structure. In the parallel motion mechanism, when the constraint mechanism and the driving tendon for the parallel motion mechanism extend through at least a portion of the length of the parallel motion mechanism, the constraint mechanism may extend substantially straight through the parallel motion mechanism, while the driving tendon for the parallel motion mechanism extends along a spiral path. According to an exemplary embodiment, when the instrument includes both a wrist and a parallel motion mechanism, the constraint mechanism may be used to constrain the movement of at least the wrist, or the movement of both the wrist and the parallel motion mechanism. In another example, independent constraint mechanisms may be used to constrain the movement of the wrist and the parallel motion mechanism, respectively.

[0046] Reference now Figure 1A , which shows an exemplary embodiment of a teleoperated surgical system 100, the surgical system 100 includes a patient-side cart 110, a surgeon's console 120, and an auxiliary control / imaging cart 130, the surgeon's console 120 being used to receive input from a user to control instruments of the patient-side cart 110. The system 100 may be, for example, a da Surgical system, da Si (Model IS3000), Single Site da Surgical system or da Xi surgical system. However, various other teleoperated surgical system configurations may be used with the exemplary embodiments described herein. Figure 1B , which shows an exemplary embodiment of a manipulator arm 140 of a patient side cart, with two surgical instruments 141, 142 in an installed position. For simplicity, Figure 1B The schematic diagram of only depicts two surgical instruments, but as is familiar to those skilled in the art, more than two surgical instruments can be received in a mounted position at the patient side cart. Each surgical instrument 141, 142 includes an instrument shaft 150, 151 having a movable end effector at a distal end (hereinafter referred to as Figure 2 ) or a camera or other sensing device, and may or may not include a wrist mechanism for controlling movement of the distal end (discussed below with respect to Figure 2 for discussion).

[0047] exist Figure 1B In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the distal end portions of surgical instruments 141, 142 are received by a single port structure 152 for introduction into the patient. Other configurations of patient side carts that can be used with the present disclosure can use several separate manipulator arms. In addition, the separate manipulator arms can include a single instrument or multiple instruments. Further, the instrument can be an instrument with an end effector, or can be a camera instrument or other sensing instrument used during a surgical procedure to provide information (e.g., visualization, electrophysiological activity, pressure, fluid flow, and / or other sensing data) of a remote surgical site.

[0048] A force transmission mechanism 147, 148 is provided at the proximal end of each shaft 150, 151 and is connected to an actuation interface assembly 143, 144 through a sterile adapter 145, 146. The actuation interface assembly 143, 144 includes various mechanisms (described below) that are controlled by a controller (e.g., at a control cart of the surgical system). Figure 2), in response to input commands at the surgeon-side console of the surgical system, force is transmitted to the force transmission mechanisms 147, 148 to actuate the instruments 141, 142.

[0049] The diameter or diameters of the instrument shaft, wrist, and end effector are typically selected based on the size of the cannula to be used with the instrument and based on the surgical procedure being performed. In various exemplary embodiments, shafts and / or wrists having diameters of, for example, approximately 3 mm, 4 mm, 5 mm, 6 mm, 7 mm, or 8 mm are inserted into some existing cannula systems; however, larger instrument sizes are also considered to be within the scope of the present disclosure. According to exemplary embodiments, one or more of the surgical instruments 141, 142 may be in communication with the flux source 160 via the flux transmission conduit 132, depending on the type of surgical instrument. For example, if the surgical instrument 141 is an electrosurgical instrument, the flux transmission conduit 132 is an electrical energy transmission cable, and the flux source 160 is an electrical energy generator.

[0050] Steering Figure 2 , which shows a bottom schematic diagram of a surgical instrument 240 according to an exemplary embodiment. The surgical instrument 240 may include a force transmission mechanism 250, a shaft 260 connected to the force transmission mechanism 250 at a proximal end 263 of the shaft 260, and an end effector 280 connected to a distal end 265 of the shaft 260. According to an exemplary embodiment, the end effector 280 may be coupled to the distal end 265 of the shaft 260 via a wrist 270, such as Figure 2 The wrist 270 can be actuated in one or more degrees of freedom (DOF) (eg, pitch, yaw, and roll) to position the end effector 280 at a desired location.

[0051] According to an exemplary embodiment, the instrument 240 may include other joints, such as a parallel motion mechanism (not shown) positioned between the distal end 265 of the shaft 260 and the wrist 270. For further details regarding exemplary parallel motion mechanisms and their functions, reference is made to U.S. Patent No. 7,942,868 issued May 17, 2011 and U.S. Patent No. US 2008 / 0065105 published March 13, 2008, both of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

[0052] The surgical instrument 240 may include one or more actuation members to transfer force between the force transmission mechanism 250 and the end effector 280, and between the force transmission mechanism 250 and the wrist 270 and / or a parallel motion mechanism (not shown). For example, one or more actuation members 290 may connect the force transmission mechanism 250 to the end effector 280 to provide an actuation force to the end effector 280. The actuation member may extend along the interior of the shaft 260. By utilizing one or more actuation members 290, the force transmission mechanism 250 may actuate the end effector 280 to, for example, control the jaws (or other movable portions) of the end effector 280 and / or control the wrist 270 of the instrument 240. The one or more actuation members 290 may be tension members, such as, for example, cables, wires, etc., and may actuate the surgical instrument in a pull-pull manner. In another exemplary embodiment, one or more actuation members 290 may be a compression member, such as, for example, a push rod, and operate in a push-pull manner, as described in U.S. Patent No. 8,545,515 issued on October 1, 2013, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

[0053] The force transmission mechanism 250 may include one or more components to engage the patient side cart of the teleoperated surgical system to transfer the force provided by the patient side cart to the surgical instrument 240. According to an exemplary embodiment, the force transmission mechanism 250 includes one or more driver disks 252, 254, which engage the patient side manipulator of the patient side cart, as described in U.S. Patent No. 8,545,515. Thus, the driver disks 252, 254 utilize the actuation force from the teleoperated (robotic) manipulator to actuate various DOFs of the instrument 240, including but not limited to, for example, roll, pitch, yaw and / or various end effector movements (e.g., opening, closing, translation). The force transmission mechanism 250 is not limited to two driver disks 252, 254, but may include fewer or more numbers of driver disks. For example, the force transmission mechanism 250 may include a plurality of driver disks corresponding to the number of DOFs of the instrument 240, wherein some of the disks or combinations of disks potentially control multiple instrument DOFs. Additionally, although the driver disks 252, 254 are depicted as being substantially parallel to Figure 2 This results in the axis of rotation (not shown) of the driver disks 252, 254 being substantially perpendicular to the plane of the page. Figure 4 The plane of the page extends, while the axis 260 is substantially parallel to Figure 4 260, but the embodiments described herein may use force transmission mechanisms including driver discs arranged in other configurations, such as, for example, driver discs whose rotational axes extend substantially parallel to shaft 260.

[0054] The diameter or diameters of the shaft 260, wrist 270, and end effector 280 of the surgical instrument 240, as well as the diameter of the camera instrument, are typically selected based on the size of the cannula with which the instrument will be used. In another exemplary embodiment, the diameter of the camera instrument and the diameters of the wrist 270 and the main shaft 260 may be in a range from about 3 mm to about 10 mm. In another exemplary embodiment, the diameter of the camera instrument and the diameters of the wrist 270 and the main shaft 260 may be in a range from about 5 mm to about 8 mm. For example, the diameter may be about 4 mm, about 5 mm, about 6 mm, about 7 mm, or about 8 mm, for example, so as to be sized to be inserted into some existing cannula systems. Further, while the instrument may have a circular cross-section, instruments having non-circular cross-sections are also contemplated. For example, the camera instrument may have an oval cross-section, such as a cross-section having a major axis length of, for example, about 13 mm to about 17 mm, and a minor axis length of, for example, about 8 mm to about 10 mm.

[0055] Systems and techniques for constraining movement (bending) of an articulatable member, such as a wrist, can allow precise control of the movement of an articulatable member by minimizing undesirable movement of parts of the articulatable member. For example, when an arcuate shape with a single bend may be desired, the constraint mechanism can minimize movement of a disk in an unintended direction, which could cause the disk to slip or misalign relative to other disks in the articulated linkage structure, or could result in an S-shaped configuration.

[0056] As discussed above, the motion of an articulatable member, such as a wrist, may be actively constrained by connecting a set of actuating elements (e.g., tendons) to one or more force transmission mechanisms, such as force transmission mechanism 250. Various mechanisms in the transmission mechanism of the instrument may be used to provide control of the actuating elements and thereby constrain the motion of an articulated linkage structure or other articulatable member.

[0057] A constraint configuration utilizing multiple sets of cables that terminate at each of a series of disks to actively control the motion of the disks and extend to a force transmission mechanism at the proximal end of the instrument can increase the mechanical complexity of the instrument and take up valuable space in a smaller instrument that could be used for other components.

[0058] In view of these considerations, various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure contemplate an articulatable member that exhibits constrained motion, such that articulation of the articulatable member is performed in a relatively repeatable, precise, and smooth manner, thereby positioning the articulatable member in a desired and predictable configuration. Further, an instrument including an articulatable member according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure may have a mechanically less complex force transmission mechanism, may be relatively easy to operate, and may be cost-effective to manufacture despite a relatively small overall instrument diameter.

[0059] According to an exemplary embodiment, the articulatable member with constrained motion is an articulated linkage structure used as a wrist in a surgical instrument. Figure 3 , which shows the distal portion 300 of the instrument shaft. As non-limiting examples, the surgical instrument can be a camera instrument or a surgical instrument with an end effector that is configured to move the surgical instrument in a manner consistent with the present invention. Figure 2 For example, an end effector or camera device (not shown) may be connected to the distal end 302 of the distal portion 300 of the surgical instrument, and the distal end 302 may be, for example, a bushing. Figure 3 As shown, the distal portion 300 may include a wrist 310 connected to a portion 316 of the instrument proximal to the wrist 310. The portion 316 may be, for example, Figure 2 The wrist 310 is an articulated linkage structure including a plurality of discs connected at joints between the discs to provide movement for the wrist 310 in any pitch and / or yaw direction. For example, the wrist 310 may include discs 311-315, but other numbers of discs may be utilized in the wrist, such as 7 discs (such as in a wrist mechanism with 6 joints), 8 discs (such as in a wrist with 7 joints), or even more discs. Although the exemplary embodiments described herein are described as including discs, this is only one possible non-limiting configuration. For example, a link may be used instead of a disc for the exemplary embodiments described herein. According to an exemplary embodiment, the discs 311-315 may include a mechanical stop (not shown) to limit the movement of the wrist 310, such as in the pitch and / or yaw directions.

[0060] like Figure 3 As depicted, wrist 310 further includes joint 322 providing rotation axis 350 between a pair of disks 311 and 312; joint 324 providing rotation axis 352 between a pair of disks 312 and 313; joint 326 providing rotation axis 354 between a pair of disks 313 and 314; and joint 328 providing rotation axis 356 between a pair of disks 314 and 315. Axis 350 and axis 354 extend in substantially the same direction as one another, and axis 352 and axis 356 extend in substantially the same direction as one another and in a direction substantially orthogonal to axis 350 and axis 354. Thus, axes 350, 352, 354, 356 are arranged to provide movement in any of the pitch and yaw directions of joints 322, 324, 326, and 328, with axes 350, 352, 354, 356 alternating in different directions, as shown. Figure 3 Although the joints 322, 324, 326, 328 are Figure 325 , which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, but the joints 322, 324, 326, 328 may instead include other numbers of axes. For example, the joints 322, 324, 326, 328 may be articulated according to the exemplary embodiments of U.S. Pat. No. 8,911,428, issued Dec. 16, 2014, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, including the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 25 of U.S. Pat. No. 8,911,428.

[0061] like Figure 3 As shown in the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, one or more actuation elements 320 extend through the wrist 310. For example, the actuation element 320 can be a tendon for actuating the wrist 310, such as by fixing the distal end of the actuation element 320 to the distal end 302 of the instrument shaft portion 300, or to the disc 311 of the wrist 310. In another example, one or more actuation elements 320 can be used to actuate other components of the instrument, such as the end effector of the surgical instrument, such as according to Figure 2 The actuating member 290 and the end effector 280 of the exemplary embodiment of the present invention. According to the exemplary embodiment, and as Figure 3 As illustrated, the actuation element 320 may extend substantially straight as the actuation element 320 passes through the wrist 310 .

[0062] According to an exemplary embodiment, the actuating elements 320 may be arranged in pairs that extend through the wrist 310, the shaft of the instrument, and to a force transmission mechanism. The force transmission mechanism may include various types of mechanisms for actuating the actuating elements, such as, for example, capstans, gears, levers, universal joints, rack and pinion devices, pulleys, and other devices familiar to those skilled in the art. For example, four actuating elements 320 arranged in two pairs may extend through the wrist 310, but other numbers of actuating elements 320 and pairs of actuating elements 320 may also be utilized. A pair of actuating elements 320 may be connected to a capstan to actuate the actuating elements in the form of a pull / pull drive mechanism or a push / pull drive mechanism, as described in U.S. Patent No. 8,545,515. According to an exemplary embodiment, the capstan may be connected to a Figure 2 The force transmission mechanism 250 of the exemplary embodiment of the present invention is one of the interface disks 252, 254, which transmits the force received from the interface disk 252, 254. Figure 1A The patient side manipulator of the patient side cart 110 of the exemplary embodiment of the present invention is used to rotate the capstan and actuate the actuation element 320. As is familiar to those skilled in the art, other force transmission mechanisms may be used, wherein the capstan is a non-limiting and exemplary configuration.

[0063] like Figure 4 As shown in an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, such as when the actuating element 364 is a pull / pull actuating member, the actuating element 364 can extend through the shaft 362 of the instrument to the force transmission mechanism 360. In another exemplary embodiment, the actuating element 364 can be a push / pull actuating member, and a gear can replace the capstan 366 to drive the actuating element 364. The force transmission mechanism 360 can be based on Figure 2 For example, the force transmission mechanism 360 may include an interface driver disk that actuates the capstan 366, similar to Figure 2 The interface driver disks 182, 184 of an exemplary embodiment.

[0064] Wrist 310 may include a structure that passively constrains the movement of wrist 310. According to an exemplary embodiment, wrist 310 may include one or more restraining tendons extending through wrist 310. To constrain the movement of wrist 310, one or more restraining tendons may be fixed to the distal end and the proximal end of wrist 310. According to an exemplary embodiment, one or more passive restraining tendons may be fixed to the ends of the articulatable portion of wrist 310, such as, for example, the articulatable portion provided by discs 311-315. Thus, as will be discussed below, one or more restraining tendons may be fixed to, for example, discs 311 and 315 themselves, or to locations proximal to discs 311 and 315. When wrist 310 is articulated to bend in a desired direction, one or more restraining tendons will bend with wrist 310. Since one or more restraining tendons are fixed to the distal end and the proximal end of wrist 310, one or more restraining tendons have a fixed length relative to wrist 310, so that one or more restraining tendons passively apply force to discs 311-315. Thus, if one of the disks 311-315 begins to translate in a radial direction relative to the other disks, the restraining tendons will act on the translating disk to attempt to resist translational movement and keep the disks aligned along the longitudinal axis of the wrist. For example, if disk 313 experiences a force that serves to cause disk 313 to translate radially in direction 358 relative to disks 312 and 314, the restraining tendons in contact with disk 313 will act on disk 313, such as by passing through a hole in disk 313, to resist radial translation in direction 358, thereby attempting to restrain translational movement of disk 313.

[0065] The tendons may be secured in place by, for example, welding the tendons in place, crimping the tendons to another object, or by other methods familiar to those skilled in the art. For example, the distal ends of the tendons may be secured to disk 311 or the distal end 302 of the instrument, and the proximal ends of one or more tendons may be secured to disk 315 or the portion 316 of the instrument proximal to wrist 310. Figure 5 , which shows Figure 3315 or the instrument portion 316. The distal ends of the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 may also be secured in the channel of the disc 311 or the distal end 302 of the distal portion 300 of the instrument shaft by a clamp (not shown).

[0066] According to exemplary embodiments, the restraining tendon may be fixed in place to apply tension to the restraining tendon. In various exemplary embodiments, when the wrist is in a position such as Figure 3 The tension applied to the fixed restraining tendons (which may also be referred to as preload tension) may be, for example, in the range of about 0 pounds to about 5 pounds when the wrist is in a substantially straight or neutral configuration as shown in the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 1 . For example, when the tension is about 0 pounds in the substantially straight or neutral configuration, the restraining tendons may apply force to the discs of the wrist to constrain the movement of the discs once the wrist is articulated. According to another exemplary embodiment, when the wrist is in a position such as Figure 3 In the substantially straight or neutral configuration shown in the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the tension applied to the fixed restraining tendon can be in the range of, for example, from about 3 pounds to about 5 pounds. According to exemplary embodiments, because the restraining tendon is fixed at the end of the wrist, the restraining tendon does not extend through the shaft of the instrument to the force transmission mechanism and is not actuated by the force transmission mechanism, which can simplify the force transmission mechanism, facilitate control and save instrument space.

[0067] According to an exemplary embodiment, the restraining tendon may be twisted (e.g., in a substantially spiral pattern) through at least a portion of the wrist. Figure 5 As shown in the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, wrist 310 includes four restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336, but the present disclosure contemplates other numbers of restraining tendons, such as 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 or more restraining tendons. According to the exemplary embodiment, restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 extend from disk 315 to disk 311 along a spiral path, as shown in FIG. Figure 5 As shown, each of the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 traverses a helical path.

[0068] According to an exemplary embodiment, the restraining tendon of the exemplary embodiment described herein can be continuously bent when extending along a spiral path and follow a substantially twisted path. For example, the restraining tendon can extend along a spiral path, and the spiral path has a substantially constant radius of curvature or has a different radius of curvature in each segment along the restraining tendon. According to another exemplary embodiment, the restraining tendon extending along the spiral path may include one or more straight path segments in which the restraining tendon extends substantially straight. For example, the restraining tendon may include a straight segment extending between each of the discs such as, for example, discs 311-315. According to an exemplary embodiment, the restraining tendon may extend along the spiral path by including a series of substantially straight segments that are angled relative to each other to provide a spiral path. According to another exemplary embodiment, the restraining tendon may include a mixture of one or more curved segments in which the restraining tendon is bent and one or more substantially straight segments. For example, the restraining tendon may be bent when passing through the disc and be substantially straight between the discs. According to an exemplary embodiment, when the restraining tendon extends in the longitudinal direction of the instrument, the inclination of the restraining tendon may be substantially constant or variable. For example, as the tendon extends in the longitudinal direction of the instrument, the inclination of the tendon may change from one curved segment to another curved segment, from one straight segment to another straight segment, or between straight segments and curved segments of the tendon. Regardless of whether the helical path followed by the tendon includes some straight segments or a variable degree of curvature, the helical path may be considered to be generally helical, such that the tendon extends within some angular range when projected onto a plane.

[0069] The angular range of the helical path of the restraining tendon is further Figure 6 This is described in the exemplary embodiment of FIG. Figure 6 As shown, the helical twisted tendon extends from a first end 402 to a second end 406 in a spiral path 400 about a longitudinal axis 408 (at the centerline of the spiral path 400). To illustrate the angular extent of the spiral path 400, the spiral path 400 can be projected onto a plane 401 that is perpendicular to the axis 408. The projection is an arc 410, with a radius of curvature 403 of the arc 410 corresponding to the radius of curvature of the twisted path 400, wherein points on the arc 410 correspond to locations on the spiral path 400. For example, point 412 on the arc 410 corresponds to the first end 402 of the spiral path, and point 414 on the arc 410 corresponds to point 404 that is approximately in the middle of the length of the spiral path. Although the spiral path 400 is substantially angular in extent, the spiral path 400 may be substantially angular in extent. Figure 6Although described in the exemplary embodiment of the invention as having a substantially continuous radius of curvature 403, the spiral path 400 (and therefore the arc 410) may also include segments having different curvatures, and may include one or more straight segments, as discussed above. Therefore, when a spiral path is discussed in the exemplary embodiments herein, the spiral path may have a spiral shape with a substantially continuous radius of curvature, or the spiral path may include segments having different radii of curvature, including curved segments and / or straight segments having different radii of curvature.

[0070] like Figure 6 As shown, the angular range 420 between point 412 and point 414 on arc 410 is approximately 180° relative to centerline 408 (also projected onto plane 401). Therefore, when discussing the angular range of the spiral path in the exemplary embodiments herein, the angular range can be determined based on the angular range 420 relative to centerline 408, such as Figure 6 Further, since the spiral path 400 completes a full 360-degree spiral twist from the first end 402 to the second end 406, the point 412 on the arc 410 corresponds to both the first end 402 and the second end 406, wherein the angular range 422 between the first end 402 and the second end 406 is 360 degrees. Figure 6 In the exemplary illustration of , arc 410 forms a complete circle. However, in embodiments where the spiral path does not complete a 360 degree turn, arc 410 will not complete a circle because the angular extent of the spiral path is less than 360 degrees.

[0071] According to an exemplary embodiment, the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 extend along a helical path such that the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 have an angular range of approximately 360 degrees along the entire length of the wrist 310. For example, the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 may extend along a helical path having an angular range of approximately 90 degrees between each of the disks 311-315 of the wrist 310 when the wrist 310 includes four disks 311-315. In other words, the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 may each extend along a helical path having an angular range of approximately 90 degrees between disks 315 and 314, between disks 314 and 313, between disks 313 and 312, and between disks 312 and 311. In another exemplary embodiment, the wrist may include 6 discs, wherein the constraining tendons of the wrist extend along a torsion path having an angular range of approximately 60 degrees between each disc of the wrist, wherein the total angular range along the entire wrist is 360 degrees for the constraining tendons. Thus, according to an exemplary embodiment, the constraining tendons may extend along a torsion path, the angular range of which is equal to the total angular range (e.g., 360 degrees) across the wrist for the constraining tendons divided by the number of discs of the wrist. However, various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure contemplate that the constraining tendons of the wrist may extend along a spiral path to other angular ranges. For example, the constraining tendons may extend along a spiral path so that the amount of the angular range is different between different discs of the wrist. This configuration may provide a wrist with different degrees of bending (articulation) at different segments along the length of the wrist. Further, according to an exemplary embodiment, the total angular range of the constraining tendons may be an integer multiple of 360 degrees, such as when the instrument includes an integer multiple of wrists. Further, according to an exemplary embodiment, the constraining tendons may extend along a spiral path between the discs by an amount different from approximately 90 degrees, such as, for example, approximately 180 degrees. According to an exemplary embodiment, the restraining tendon may extend along a helical path in an amount described in the exemplary embodiments of US Provisional Application No. 61 / 943,084 (Attorney Docket No. ISRG04490PROV / US), filed on February 21, 2014, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

[0072] To illustrate the helical path of the restraining tendon, Fig. 7A In the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 3 , a side view of a wrist 360 including discs 361-365 is shown, wherein the spiral path 366 of a single restraining tendon passing through the discs 361-365 is shown in phantom to facilitate viewing of the spiral path, but a different number of restraining tendons are contemplated, as described above with respect to FIG. Figure 3 Further, Figure 7B The corresponding cross-sections 371-375 shown through the disks 361-365 illustrate the orientation of the path 366 of the restraining tendon through the disks 361-365. Fig. 7AIn the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the path 366 of the restraining tendon follows a helical path from disc to disc having an angular range of approximately 90 degrees, although other angular ranges may be utilized, as discussed above.

[0073] Twisting the restraining tendon so as to traverse the helical path through at least a portion of the wrist provides advantages in addition to constraining the motion of the wrist to provide accurate control over the movement and shape of the wrist. For example, the restraining tendon may extend along the helical path so that the restraining tendon is positioned in a different orientation than the joint between the discs of the wrist. Figure 3 As shown in the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 3 , wrist 310 includes a joint 322 between disk 311 and disk 312 that allows disk 311 and disk 312 to rotate (i.e., pivot) relative to each other about axis 350 in direction 351. Restraining tendons 334 and 336 extend between disk 311 and disk 312 such that restraining tendons 334 and 336 do not physically pass through joint 322. In other words, restraining tendons 334 and 336 are offset from joint 322, as shown in FIG. Figure 3 Therefore, the joint 322 does not need to include a hollow passage for the restraining tendons 334 and 336, thereby allowing the joint 322 to have a smaller size while still serving the purpose of carrying the compressive load between the disks 311 and 312.

[0074] The restraining tendons may follow a torsional path to avoid the joint connecting the disks, so the restraining tendons are offset or otherwise adjacent to the joint. For example, restraining tendons 334 and 336 may extend between disks 311 and 312 on the open side of wrist 310 (when wrist 310 is in Figure 3 311 and 312) wherein holes 340 are provided between disk 311 and disk 312 so that tendons 334 and 336 do not pass through joint 322, which would otherwise weaken joint 322 due to tendons 334 and 336 passing through joint 322. According to an exemplary embodiment, joint 322 may include surface 304 in disk 311 and surface 306 in disk 312, which contact each other to form a revolute joint between disk 311 and disk 312. Tendons 334 and 336 may extend between disk 311 and disk 312 so that tendons 334 and 336 do not pass through surfaces 304 and 306, which would otherwise need to pass through and weaken surfaces 304 and 306. For example, restraining tendons 334 and 336 may be offset from surface 304 and surface 306 of joint 322 in a lateral direction.

[0075] Similarly, tendons 330 and 334 may extend between disk 313 and disk 312 so that tendons 330 and 334 do not pass through joint 324, which allows disk 313 and disk 312 to rotate relative to each other around axis 352 in direction 352; tendons 330 and 332 may extend between disk 314 and disk 313 so that tendons 330 and 332 do not physically pass through joint 326, which allows disk 314 and disk 314 to rotate relative to each other around axis 354 in direction 355; and tendons 332 and 336 may extend between disk 314 and disk 315 so that tendons 332 and 336 do not physically pass through joint 328, which allows disk 315 and disk 314 to rotate relative to each other around axis 356 in direction 357.

[0076] The discs of the wrist may be configured to position and / or guide the restraining tendons as they pass through the discs. For example, it may be desirable to avoid passing the restraining tendons through the joints between the discs. Fig. 8A , which shows a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of a disk 500. Figure 3 and Figure 5 The discs 311-315 of the wrist can be configured according to the disc 500. The disc 500 includes one or more actuation tendon holes 510 through which the actuation tendons can pass. Figure 3 and Figure 5 When the discs 311-315 of the exemplary embodiment of the disc 500 are configured according to the exemplary embodiment of the disc 500, the actuation element 320 can extend through the drive tendon hole 510. Further, the disc 500 can include one or more restraint tendon holes 512 through which the restraint tendons can pass. Thus, when the discs 311-315 of the wrist 310 are configured according to the exemplary embodiment of the disc 500, the restraint tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 can extend through the restraint tendon holes 512. The disc 500 can further include a central hole 516 through which one or more flux conduits (e.g., electrical conductors or optical fibers) or other actuation elements such as actuation elements for an end effector can extend.

[0077] Because the restraining tendons extend in a spiral path along at least a portion of the wrist, when the wrist is actuated to articulate and flex, the restraining tendons can sweep over a larger circumferential range (e.g., move in direction 530 relative to the disks 500) than the drive tendons, which extend in a substantially straight direction between the wrist disks. The restraining tendon holes 512 can be located closer to the outer periphery 502 of the disks 500 because less restraining tendon sweeping can occur when the restraining tendons are positioned further away from the center hole 516 of the disks. Although some restraining tendon sweeping can still occur, locating the restraining tendon holes 512 closer to the periphery 502 also provides more room for the center hole 516 of the disk 500 and / or the joint structure 520. As shown in Fig. 8A As shown in the exemplary embodiment of , both the drive tendon holes 510 and the restraining tendon holes 512 can be located near the outer periphery 502 of the disk 500 in a similar orientation along the radial direction 515 relative to the center hole 516.

[0078] According to another exemplary embodiment, the driving tendon hole 510 and the restraining tendon hole 512 may be located at different positions along the radial direction 515. For example, the restraining tendon hole 512 may be radially offset from the driving tendon hole 510 so that the restraining tendon hole 512 is located closer to the center hole 516 along the radial direction 515 than the driving tendon hole 510. Therefore, the restraining tendon extending through the restraining tendon hole 512 may be located radially inside the joint structure 520 of the disk 500 so that the restraining tendon does not interfere with the joint structure 520. In another example, the restraining tendon holes 512 of the restraining tendons extending along different spiral path directions may be offset from each other. For example, in Figure 5 The holes of the restraining tendon 330 extending along the spiral path in a first direction 342 (such as, for example, in the left-hand direction proximal to the distal direction) and the holes of the restraining tendon 334 extending along the spiral path in a second direction 344 (such as, for example, in the right-hand direction proximal to the distal direction) can be offset to minimize or avoid friction between the restraining tendons extending in different directions.

[0079] According to an exemplary embodiment, the actuation tendon holes 510 may be located at a distance from the center hole 516 along the radial direction 515, such as about 0.095 inches to about 0.100 inches, and the restraining tendon holes may be located at a distance from the center hole 516 along the radial direction 515, such as about 0.080 inches to about 0.085 inches. In an exemplary embodiment in which the restraining tendon holes 512 are radially offset from the actuation tendon holes 510, the disk 500 may include four restraining tendon holes 512 (e.g., in FIG. Fig. 8A) is used for a corresponding number of restraining tendons, but other numbers of restraining tendon holes 512 and restraining tendons may be utilized. For example, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 or more restraining tendon holes 512 and restraining tendons may be used. According to an exemplary embodiment, the number of restraining tendons and restraining tendon holes 512 used may be equal to, for example, the number of joints in a wrist including one or more disks 500 plus one.

[0080] To accommodate the sweep of the restraining tendon, the restraining tendon hole 512 may have a different shape than the actuating tendon hole 510, for example. For example, the actuating tendon hole 510 may have a substantially circular cross-section, while the restraining tendon hole 512 may have an elongated and non-circular cross-section, such as elongated along direction 530. For example, the restraining tendon hole 512 may have an oval, elliptical, or kidney-shaped shape. In another example, the restraining tendon hole 512 may span a different range along direction 530 than the actuating tendon hole 510. For example, the restraining tendon hole 512 may span a larger range along direction 530 than the actuating tendon hole 510. According to an exemplary embodiment, the actuating tendon hole 510 may have a diameter in a range of, for example, from about 0.020 inches to about 0.025 inches, and the restraining tendon hole 512 may have a length along the circumferential direction 530, for example, from about 0.020 inches to about 0.025 inches, wherein the length or diameter of the restraining tendon hole 512 is equal to or approximately the length or diameter of the actuating tendon hole 510. Due to the elongated shape and / or circumferential length of the restraining tendon hole 512, the restraining tendon hole 512 can better accommodate the sweep of the restraining tendon extending therethrough when the wrist is actuated to flex from its cubic orientation.

[0081] According to an exemplary embodiment, the disc 500 may include a recessed surface portion 514 located adjacent to and extending from the restraining tendon hole 512. As the restraining tendon extends along a spiral path along at least a portion of the wrist, the restraining tendon may sweep along a circumferential direction 530 and against a circumferential edge 513 of the restraining tendon hole 512. By providing the recessed surface portion 514 adjacent to the restraining tendon hole 512, the sweeping of the restraining tendon may be further accommodated, such as by allowing the restraining tendon to enter the recessed surface portion 514 as it sweeps against the circumferential edge 513 of the restraining tendon hole 512. The recessed surface portion 514 may have, for example, an elongated shape having a substantially constant depth or a depth that varies by, for example, decreasing in a direction away from the restraining tendon hole to which the recessed surface portion 514 is adjacent. The latter, therefore, provides a ramp-like feature from the hole 512 all the way to the surface of the disc 500. According to an exemplary embodiment, the recessed surface portion 514 may be inclined at an angle, for example, the angle may be in a range from about 20 degrees to about 30 degrees.

[0082] According to an exemplary embodiment, the disk 500 may include a joint structure 520 to form a joint between adjacent disks. The joint structure 520 may be configured in various ways. For example, the joint structure 520 may include a cycloid shape as described in U.S. Patent No. 8,887,595, published on November 18, 2014, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, or the joint structure 520 may be configured according to the exemplary embodiments of U.S. Patent No. 8,911,428, published on December 16, 2014, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. Figure 3 The joints 322, 324, 326, 328 of the exemplary embodiment may be configured like the joint structure 520. According to the exemplary embodiment, the joint structure 520 may include a protrusion 522 (or tooth). The protrusion 522 may be inserted into an adjacent disk such as in Figure 8B In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 5 , the disk 540 may include a groove 552 having a corresponding shape and configured to receive the protrusion 522 of the disk 500. According to an exemplary embodiment, the groove 552 may form one or more pins to intermesh with the teeth 522. Thus, in a pair of adjacent disks, the first disk may include one or more protrusions (or teeth), and the second disk may include one or more grooves (or pins) configured to receive the one or more protrusions.

[0083] According to an exemplary embodiment, Fig. 8A The joint structure 520 of the disk 500 of the exemplary embodiment may further include a protrusion 524 configured to contact a corresponding protrusion of an adjacent disk, such as in Figure 8B 540 in the exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Thus, the protrusions 524 can be used as compressive load bearing surfaces between adjacent disks. Because the restraining cables are disposed separately from and facing away from the joint structure 520, including the load bearing protrusions 524, the joint structure 520 is not weakened by the restraining cable holes extending through the joint structure 520. Therefore, the joint structure 520, including the load bearing protrusions 524, can be made larger, which increases the load that a wrist including a disk like the disk 500 can accommodate, thereby making the wrist stronger.

[0084] Another advantage provided by extending the restraining tendons along a helical path is that when the wrist is actuated to articulate (e.g., flex), the length of the restraining tendons is substantially conserved. Figure 3When the tendons 330 and 332 are pivoted relative to each other about the axis 354 in the direction 355 in the wrist 310, the tendons 330 and 332 may experience a change in length between the disks 313 and 314. For example, when the disks 313 and 314 are rotated relative to each other about the axis 354 in a direction away from the side of the wrist 310, the tendons 330 and 332 may experience a positive change in length between the disks 313 and 314, where the tendons 330 and 332 are on the side of the wrist 310 between the disks 313 and 314. Conversely, as disks 313 and 314 rotate relative to each other about axis 354 in a direction toward the side of wrist 310, restraining tendons 330 and 332 may experience a negative change in length between disks 313 and 314, where tendons 330 and 332 are on the side of wrist 310 between disks 313 and 314. Other restraining tendons experience similar positive or negative changes in length between other disks as wrist 310 actuates.

[0085] A torsion path through which the restraining tendon passes through an articulated member such as a wrist may be selected to account for changes in the length of the restraining tendon. According to an exemplary embodiment, a passive restraining tendon may extend along a spiral path along at least a portion of the wrist so that the length of the restraining tendon over the entire length of the wrist is substantially conserved. The restraining tendon may passively constrain the movement of the articulated member without using an actuator such as a force transmission mechanism and a control algorithm that controls the actuator. For example, in various exemplary embodiments, the movement of the disc of the articulated linkage structure may be passively constrained by a restraining member that may not be actuated by an external drive mechanism or transmission mechanism. To achieve this, a passive restraining tendon may extend along a spiral path so that when the articulated member including the restraining tendon is bent, such as in pitch and / or yaw motion, the restraining tendon experiences a positive length change or a negative length change between a first pair of adjacent discs, and experiences a corresponding and opposite negative length change or a positive length change between a second pair of adjacent discs, and the second pair of adjacent discs substantially offsets the length change from the first pair of adjacent discs. Therefore, the length of the restraining tendon is substantially conserved. Further, since the ends of the restraining tendons are fixed at the opposite ends of the articulatable member, which fixes the length of the restraining tendons, bending motions (e.g., pitch and / or yaw motions) are allowed because the bending motions do not substantially cause the length of the restraining tendons to change. Conversely, translational motions, such as moving the wrist laterally into an S-shape, can be substantially prevented because the translational motion does not cause the length of the restraining tendons to be conserved, but the fixed ends of the restraining tendons substantially prevent the length of the restraining tendons from changing.

[0086] Steering Figure 5In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, when disk 315 and disk 314 rotate toward each other about axis 356 in direction 357 on the side of wrist 310 where restraining tendons 332 and 336 are located, restraining tendons 332 and 336 experience a negative change in length. Restraining tendons 332 and 336 extend through wrist 310 along a helical path such that restraining tendons 332 and 336 extend on opposite sides of wrist 310 between disk 313 and disk 312, and restraining tendons 332 and 336 extend from opposite sides of wrist 310 between disk 315 and disk 314. Thus, when disks 313 and 312 are rotated about axis 352 in direction 353 in substantially the same manner as disks 315 and 314, tendons 332 and 336 experience a positive change in length between disks 313 and 312 by an amount that substantially cancels out a negative change in length between disks 315 and 314, thereby substantially conserving the lengths of tendons 332 and 336. Similarly, when wrist 310 is actuated in the opposite direction, such that tendons 332 and 336 experience a positive change in length between disks 315 and 314 and a negative change in length between disks 313 and 312, the lengths of tendons 332 and 336 remain substantially conserved. The restraining tendons 330 and 334 may also extend along a spiral path so that the change in length of the restraining tendons 330 and 334 between disk 315 and disk 314 substantially offsets the change in length of the restraining tendons 330 and 334 between disk 313 and disk 312. In addition, the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 extend along a spiral path so that the change in length of the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 between disk 314 and disk 313 substantially offsets the change in length of the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 between disk 312 and disk 311.

[0087] According to an exemplary embodiment, Figure 3 As shown, when the bending axes 350, 352, 354, 356 of the wrist 310 alternate in different (e.g., orthogonal) directions, the restraining tendons 332 and 336 are moved from the positions of the restraining tendons 332 and 336 between the disks 315 and 314 (such as, for example, at Figure 3 370) to the position of the restraining tendon 332 and the restraining tendon 336 between the disk 313 and the disk 312 (such as, for example, at Figure 3The position of the restraining tendon 330 and the restraining tendon 334 at the position 372 shown in the figure can extend in a spiral path within an angular range of about 180 degrees. In this way, the restraining tendon 332 and the restraining tendon 336 are located on opposite sides of the wrist 310 to help conserve the length of the restraining tendon 332 and the restraining tendon 336. As described above, the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 can extend in a spiral path within an angular range of about 90 degrees from the disk 311 to the disk 312, from the disk 312 to the disk 313, etc., thereby providing a spiral path with a total angular range of about 180 degrees from the disk 311 to the disk 313. Similarly, the restraining tendons 330 and the restraining tendons 334 can extend along a spiral path with an angular range of about 180 degrees from the position of the restraining tendons 330 and the restraining tendons 334 at the position between the disk 315 and the disk 314 to the position of the restraining tendons 330 and the restraining tendons 334 at the position between the disk 313 and the disk 312. Additionally, the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 may extend along a spiral path having an angular range of approximately 180 degrees from the position of the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 between disk 313 and disk 314 to the position of the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 between disk 312 and disk 311.

[0088] According to an exemplary embodiment, by fixing the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 at the opposite ends of the wrist 310, the bending angles of similar joints of the wrist will be substantially the same. By providing a wrist with substantially the same bending angles for similar joints, the movement of the wrist can be easily controlled and can be smoother. According to an exemplary embodiment, when the wrist 310 is actuated to bend toward the side of the wrist 310 where the restraining tendons 332, 336 extend between the disk 315 and the disk 314, the extent to which the disk 315 and the disk 314 rotate relative to each other around the axis 356 is substantially the same as the extent to which the disk 313 and the disk 312 rotate relative to each other around the axis 352. This is because the axis 356 and the axis 352 are substantially parallel to each other. Similarly, when the wrist 310 is actuated to cause rotation between the disk 311 and the disk 312 around the axis 350, the disk 313 and the disk 314 also rotate to substantially the same extent around the axis 354.

[0089] According to an exemplary embodiment, all of the restraining tendons of the wrist may extend in a spiral path in the same circumferential direction from the distal disk (e.g., disk 311) to the proximal disk (e.g., disk 315). However, in this exemplary embodiment, one or more of the restraining tendons may pass through one or more joint structures between adjacent disks, which may result in weakening of one or more joint structures. To address this, the restraining tendons may be routed to extend along spiral paths in different directions. For example, one restraining tendon may extend along a torsional path in the proximal-distal direction of the instrument in either the right-hand direction or the left-hand direction, and another restraining tendon may extend along a torsional path in the proximal-distal direction of the instrument in the other of the left-hand direction or the right-hand direction. As in Figure 5 As shown in the exemplary embodiment of , the restraining tendon 330 extends from the disk 311 to the disk 315 along a spiral path in a first direction 342 (such as, for example, in a left-hand direction proximal to the distal direction), and the restraining tendon 334 extends from the disk 311 to the disk 315 along a spiral path in a second direction 344 different from the first direction 344 (such as, for example, in a right-hand direction proximal to the distal direction). For example, the first direction 342 and the second direction 344 are in opposite directions to each other. By extending the restraining tendon 330 and the restraining tendon 334 from the disk 311 to the disk 315 along the spiral path in the respective directions 342 and 344, the restraining tendons 330 and 334 can extend between the disks 311-315 without passing through any of the joints 322, 324, 326, 328.

[0090] Similarly, restraining tendons 332 and 336 extend from disk 311 to disk 315 along a spiral path in respective opposite directions 344 and 342, such that restraining tendons 332 and 336 do not physically pass through any of joints 322, 324, 326, 328. According to an exemplary embodiment, at least a portion of both restraining tendons 330 and 336 extend from disk 311 to disk 315 along a spiral path in direction 342. According to an exemplary embodiment, at least a portion of both restraining tendons 334 and 332 extend from disk 311 to disk 315 along a spiral path in direction 344. In other words, when wrist 310 includes four restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336, two of the restraining tendons may extend from disk 311 to disk 315 along a spiral path in direction 342, while the other two restraining tendons may extend from disk 311 to disk 315 along a spiral path in direction 344.

[0091] One consideration in configuring the restraining tendon is the amount of friction between the restraining tendon and components of the wrist, which can affect the movement of the wrist, the power required to actuate the wrist, and / or wear on components of the wrist. For example, in wrists that use multiple sets of actuation members to actively restrain the wrist, the actuation members typically extend along a straight path through the instrument and wrist, where the actuation members bend when the wrist bends. Given the increased amount of friction that occurs between the restraining tendon and components of the wrist due to the helical path of the restraining tendon compared to, for example, a straight path, the restraining tendon can extend along the helical path in a manner that helps minimize friction.

[0092] According to an exemplary embodiment, having the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 extend along a spiral path so as to have an angular range of approximately 90 degrees as the tendons traverse between each pair of disks 311-315 does not result in a significant increase in friction compared to conventional wrists that utilize multiple sets of straight tendons to constrain joint motion. This is because, although the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 extend along a spiral path, the wrap angle that can be used to determine the amount of friction between the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 and the wrist components is not significantly greater than the wrap angle of straight tendons used to constrain joint motion in conventional wrists. The friction between the restraining tendons and their one or more supporting surfaces can be determined by the capstan equation T 负载 =T 保持 e μΦ , where T 保持 is the tension applied to the tendon (such as a preload tension), μ is the coefficient of friction between the tendon and one or more supporting surfaces, Φ is the total angle swept by the torsion of the tendon, and T 负载 is the force between the tendon and one or more supporting surfaces. Therefore, twisting the tendon by too large an angle Φ results in a large T between the tendon and one or more supporting surfaces. 负载 In an exemplary embodiment, using a spiral path having an angular range of approximately 90 degrees between each of adjacent disks 311-315 can be used, for example, Figure 5 The three bend locations 345, 346, 347 shown in the exemplary embodiment of the present invention provide a wrap angle having an angle range of, for example, about 40 degrees to about 70 degrees.

[0093] Various wrist exemplary embodiments described herein may include disks arranged in various configurations. Figure 3The configuration shown in the exemplary embodiment of may be referred to as an "ABAB" wrist due to the alternating orthogonal directions of the axes 350, 352, 354, 356. In other exemplary embodiments, the wrist may utilize a configuration in which the axes of rotation between the disks alternate in orthogonal directions but instead follow an "ABBA" configuration, such that two consecutive axes (e.g., the axis of the middle disk) extend in substantially the same direction and are "bookened" by an axis extending in the same direction but orthogonal to the two consecutive axes.

[0094] The ABBA configuration acts like a constant velocity joint, which is desirable when rolling motion is transmitted through the wrist. For example, when the wrist is used in an instrument and a rolling motion is input to the instrument shaft, the rolling motion is transmitted through the wrist, thereby causing the distal end of the instrument, which may include an end effector, to also roll. Since the wrist includes one or more joints, the wrist acts like the input shaft and output shaft of a vehicle transmission system connected via one or more joints. As is familiar to those skilled in the art, when there is an angle between the input shaft and the output shaft of a vehicle transmission system, a speed change occurs between the input shaft and the output shaft, which is undesirable. A wrist with an ABBA mechanism addresses this concern by acting like a constant velocity joint similar to a double universal joint, wherein the two A joints have substantially the same angle and the two B joints have substantially the same angle, thereby causing the speed change between the input side and the output side to be substantially offset. Therefore, for rolling motion applied to the instrument shaft, the ABBA wrist can minimize or eliminate the speed change between the input side and the output side of the wrist.

[0095] Although the ABBA configuration minimizes or eliminates the velocity variation between the input and output sides of the wrist for rolling motion, an ABAB configuration such as Figure 3 The exemplary embodiments of the invention can be used to advantageously provide a wrist 310 in which the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 extend a minimum amount along the spiral path of each disk 311-315 compared to the ABBA configuration, while also conserving the length of the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 substantially, and positioning the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 so that the restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 do not pass through the joints connecting the disks. Thus, precise control of the movement of the wrist 310 can be obtained using smooth motion, and the joints connecting the disks 311-315 can be small.

[0096] Although the wrist mechanism with the ABAB configuration provides the disadvantage of naturally providing a speed variation between its input side and output side, extending the restraining tendon along a spiral path through at least a portion of the wrist and fixing the restraining tendon at the opposite ends of the wrist provides a significant advantage of at least compensating for this disadvantage. Further, by adjusting the input rotational speed to the wrist to achieve rolling, any speed variation can be compensated, such as by changing the input speed according to the bending angle of the wrist to compensate for the speed variation.

[0097] Steering Fig. 9 , which depicts an exemplary embodiment of an ABBA wrist utilizing a restraining tendon. Fig. 9 , wrist 600 includes disks 611-615 arranged in an ABBA joint configuration. Specifically, joint 640 between disk 611 and disk 612 allows disk 611 and disk 612 to rotate about axis 620 in direction 621, joint 642 between disk 612 and disk 613 allows disk 612 and disk 613 to rotate about axis 622 in direction 623, connection 644 between disk 613 and disk 614 allows disk 613 and disk 614 to rotate about axis 624 in direction 625, and connection 646 between disk 614 and disk 615 allows disk 614 and disk 615 to rotate about axis 626 in direction 627. As shown in Fig. 9 As shown in the exemplary embodiment of , axis 620 and axis 626 may extend in substantially the same direction, axis 622 and axis 624 may extend in substantially the same direction, and axis 620 and axis 626 may be substantially orthogonal to axis 622 and axis 624, thereby producing an axis configuration of an ABBA joint (or any pitch-yaw-yaw-pitch rotation of the disk pair).

[0098] The wrist 600 further includes restraining tendons fixed at opposite ends of the wrist 600. Fig. 9 As shown in the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 6 , wrist 600 includes four restraining tendons 630, 632, 634, 636, but other numbers of restraining tendons may be used. Figure 3 The exemplary embodiments are different in that Fig. 9In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the restraining tendons 630, 632, 634, 636 are substantially straight from disk 611 to disk 612, from disk 612 to disk 613, from disk 613 to disk 614, and from disk 614 to disk 615, but extend across disk 613 along a spiral path having an angular range of approximately 180 degrees, such as, for example, along a torsional path or another path across disk 613 to reach a point 180 degrees away. Thus, when wrist 600 articulates (e.g., bends), the lengths of restraining tendons 630, 632, 634, 636 can be conserved. In other words, instead of extending along a spiral path having an angular range of approximately 90 degrees for all joints, the restraining tendons in the ABBA configuration can extend along a spiral path having an angular range of approximately 180 degrees between B-type joints and along a spiral path having an angular range of approximately 0 degrees across A-type joints.

[0099] This is Fig.10 It is further explained in Fig.10 For along Fig. 9 A cross-sectional view of line 10-10 in FIG. Fig.10 As shown, each of the restraining tendons 630 and 632 may span an angular range of approximately 180 degrees across the disc 613. The restraining tendons 634 and 636 may have the same angular range as the restraining tendons 630 and 632, but enter and exit the disc 613 at different locations. Since the restraining tendons 630, 634 and the restraining tendons 632, 636 cross each other, Fig.10 In the cross-sectional view of the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 600 , the restraining tendons 630, 634 and the restraining tendons 632, 636 are depicted in the same position. Therefore, although the ABBA configuration can minimize the speed change between the input side and the output side for rotational (rolling) motion, the restraining tendons can still pass through the center of the wrist. Although the wrist 600 can be configured so that the path extending along the periphery of the disk 613 of the restraining tendons 630, 632, 634, 636 is twisted in a spiral shape, this design may not be as practical as extending the path across the center of the disk 613.

[0100] For example, when the wrist 600 is used Fig. 8A and Figure 8BWhen the disc 500 and the disc 540 of the exemplary embodiment of the present invention are arranged in a circle, the restraining tendon can pass through the central lumen provided by the central hole 516 of the disc, thereby potentially interfering with any actuating member that can otherwise pass through the central lumen. Therefore, if the central lumen can otherwise receive an actuating member for the end effector, the end effector actuating member will have to be set to pass through a different lumen and may require a different design when it is not located in the central lumen. Further, due to the larger angular range of the helical path of the restraining tendons 630, 632, 634, 636, the wrap angle for the restraining tendons 630, 632, 634, 636 is also larger, which results in a greater amount of friction between the restraining tendons 630, 632, 634, 636 compared to a wrist having an ABAB configuration. The wrist 600 having an ABAB configuration can be used, for example, for relatively large diameter instruments that are subjected to relatively small loads. According to another exemplary embodiment, the restraining tendons 630, 632, 634, 636 may be configured to extend along a path that does not pass through the center of the central lumen. However, this embodiment may result in a greater wrap angle of the restraining tendons 630, 632, 634, 636, which may result in increased friction between the restraining tendons 630, 632, 634, 636 and the disc 613.

[0101] although Figure 3 and Fig. 9 The exemplary embodiment of the present invention depicts a wrist including 4 joints, but the articulated components of the wrist and other articulated linkage structures according to the exemplary embodiments described herein are not limited to 4 joints. For example, the wrist and other articulated components may have 2 discs, 3 discs, 5 joints, 6 joints, 8 joints, or a greater number of joints.

[0102] As mentioned above about Figure 3 , Figure 4 , Fig. 9 and Fig.10 As discussed in the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, an articulated linkage structure such as a wrist may include a series of connected discs with tendons to provide a structure for constraining wrist motion. However, other articulated members used as a wrist or for other purposes according to exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure may include other structures. Steering Fig.11 , which shows an exemplary embodiment of an articulatable member 700 in which a braided structure 710 replaces a disk and forms the body of the articulatable member 700. As in other exemplary embodiments described herein, the articulatable member 700 may be a wrist, part of a parallel motion mechanism, or other articulatable component of an instrument such as a surgical instrument. Fig.11 The articulatable member 700 is shown in a straight (ie, non-bent) configuration.

[0103] According to an exemplary embodiment, the braided structure 710 may have a hollow cylindrical or tubular shape that defines a central passage of the instrument component. Fig.12 Shown in Fig.11 A portion of the braided structure 710 Fig.12 . As shown, the braided structure 710 may include braids 712 interwoven with each other. In the braided structure 710, each of the braids 712 forms a spiral structure around the center line of the braided structure 710, the center line extending between the proximal end 702 and the distal end 704 of the hingeable member 700, the center line defining the spiral axis. In one aspect (not shown), each of the braids 712 rotates around the spiral axis once within the distance between the disks 721 and 722.

[0104] It should be understood that Fig.11 and zoomed in view Fig.12 7 is a schematic side view of an articulated member 700 including a braided structure 710 . Fig.12 An enlarged view of a portion of a braided structure 710 is shown, and more specifically, the geometry of an interwoven braid 712. The radial direction 711 and the weft direction 713 attempt to represent the helix angle of the braid 712 in two dimensions. Fig.12 The portion of the braided structure 710 shown in FIG. 7 is small, approximately flat segments of braids 712 that are interwoven with each other. Fig.12 The radial direction 711 and the weft direction 713 shown in the figure show the approximate angle of the braids relative to an imaginary axis, which extends along the length of the device on the outer surface of the braided structure 710 (i.e., a line formed by contacting a tangent plane with the curved outer surface of the braided structure 710, wherein the tangent plane is substantially parallel to the centerline of the braided structure 710). In one aspect, the angle between the radial direction 711 and the imaginary axis is the same as the angle between the weft direction 713 and the imaginary axis. In other words, the helix angle of the braids 712 aligned with the radial direction 711 and the helix angle of the braids 712 aligned with the weft direction 713 are the same, and the two sets of braids differ only in the handedness of their helical shapes (e.g., one direction of the braids 712 is in a right-handed helical direction, while the other direction of the braids 712 is in a left-handed helical direction). This braid configuration can produce a braided structure 710 that has a substantially symmetrical bending stiffness about its centerline.

[0105] Each braid 712 may be formed by a plurality of filaments 714 extending in a radial direction 711 or a weft direction 713. The braid 712 may have a generally rectangular structure having a substantially flat surface that forms an outer surface 703 of the braided structure 710, such as Fig.11 and Fig.12As shown. However, the braid may have other shapes, such as a circular cross-section, an oval cross-section, or other shapes. The filament 714 may be, for example, a nylon monofilament or other flexible and strong material, and may have a diameter in the range of, for example, about 0.008 inches to about 0.012 inches, such as, for example, about 0.010 inches. The filament 714 may be made of a material that allows the filament 714 to be flexible, so when the wrist including the braided structure is actuated, the braided structure 710 may bend, but also have sufficient bending stiffness to minimize or prevent buckling when a compressive load is applied to the filament 714.

[0106] As discussed herein, the braided structure 710 can be used to constrain the movement of the hingeable member 700 by securing the ends of the braided structure 710. Thus, the braided structure 710 can constrain the movement of the hingeable member 700 rather than Figure 3 and Fig. 9 As in the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a restraining tendon is used to restrain the movement of the articulatable member 700. According to an exemplary embodiment, the proximal end 702 of the braided structure 710 is fixed to a disk 721, which in turn can connect the wrist 700 to other instrument components, such as the distal end of a surgical instrument shaft, the distal end of a parallel motion mechanism, or other instrument structures (not shown). Similarly, the distal end 704 of the braided structure 710 is fixed to a disk 722, which in turn can connect the articulatable member 700 to other instrument components, such as the proximal end of an end effector (not shown) or other structures. The disks 712, 722 are connected to the disks of the articulatable member such as Figure 3 The difference of the discs 311-315 of the wrist 300 of the exemplary embodiment is that the discs 721, 722 are not connected to each other, such as via a joint. Therefore, according to the exemplary embodiment, the discs 721, 722 can be used as the ends of the wrist, and the ends of the wrist can then be connected to other instrument components.

[0107] For example, the braided structure 710 can provide relatively smooth movement for the articulated member 700 when used as a wrist and can be relatively inexpensive to manufacture. Further, similar to a wrist structure having an ABBA configuration, the braided structure 710 can minimize or eliminate velocity variations between its input side and output side when subjected to rotational (rolling) motion. The braided structure 710 can be provided by, for example, providing an actuation member 730 (e.g., a pull / pull or push / pull member that can be coupled to or actuated by a force transmission mechanism, as described above with respect to FIG. Figure 4 The braided structure 710 is actuated by applying a force such as tension or pressure as described in the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and the actuation member 730 is connected to the distal end 704 of the braided structure 710, such as to the distal disk 722, so that the braided structure 710 and thus the hinged member 700 are bent along an arc.

[0108] According to another exemplary embodiment, the proximal end 702 and the distal end 704 of the braided structure need not be separately secured to a disk, but can be secured directly to another instrument component without the use of a disk. Fig.14 , which shows a side view of a distal portion 750 of a surgical instrument including a wrist 751, the wrist 751 including a braided structure 710 forming the body of the wrist 751. The braided structure 710 may have a Fig.11 The structures and features discussed in the exemplary embodiments of the present invention. The proximal end 702 of the braided structure 710 is directly fixed to the distal end 754 of the surgical instrument component 572, which can be, for example, a surgical instrument shaft, the distal end of a parallel motion mechanism, or other instrument structure. Further, the distal end 704 of the braided structure 710 is directly fixed to the proximal end 758 of the end effector 756 or other structure. The wrist 751 may include an actuation member 760 to articulate the wrist 751 by, for example, applying a force (such as tension or pressure) to the actuation member 751 (e.g., pulling / pulling or pushing / pulling the actuation member), which in turn is connected to the proximal end 758 of the end effector 756 to bend the wrist 751 along an arc.

[0109] The articulatable member 700 may include one or more structures to control the diameter of the braided structure 710 so that the diameter of the braided structure 710 does not substantially contract or expand under load, which may otherwise affect the accuracy of the movement of the braided structure 710. Fig.11 As shown in the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 7 , one or more disks 720 may be provided around the outer surface 708 of the braided structure 710 to control the outer diameter of the braided structure (i.e., to control the outer diameter in the radial direction). The disks 720 and the disks of the hinged member such as Figure 3 The discs 311-315 of the wrist 300 of the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 7 differ in that the discs 721, 722 are not coupled to each other or to the discs 721 or 722, such as via joints. Fig.11 As shown, actuation member 730 can extend through hole 723 in disk 720 to guide actuation member 730 to distal disk 722. Actuation member 730 can also extend through holes 725 in disks 721 and 722.

[0110] Despite Fig.11 In the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 7 , two disks 720 are shown to facilitate viewing of the braided structure 710 , but other numbers of disks 720 may be utilized, such as, for example, 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, or more disks. The braided structure 710 may further include an internal structure to control the inner diameter of the braided structure 710 . Fig.13, which shows a cross-sectional view of an articulated member 700, an internal structure 740 may be provided inside the braided structure 710 to control the inner diameter of the braided structure 710. The internal structure 740 may have the shape of a hollow cylinder or tube including a central channel 742, and may be, for example, a spring or a hollow tube. The internal structure 740 may be made of metal, plastic, or other material that is strong enough to resist radial deformation of the braided structure 710, but is also flexible so that the internal structure 740 may be elastically deformable when the articulated member 700 and the braided structure 710 are actuated and bent.

[0111] According to an exemplary embodiment, an articulatable member including a braided structure may be attached using a disc such as Fig.11 The exemplary embodiment of the present invention may include other structures other than the disk 720 to control the diameter of the braided structure. Fig.14 As shown in the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 7 , wrist 751 may include a strap 762 wrapped around braided structure 710 to control the diameter of braided structure 710. Fig.14 Two strips 762 are shown in the exemplary embodiment of , but other numbers of strips 762 may be utilized, such as, for example, 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, or more numbers of disks. Further, the strips 762 may be free of channels for the actuation member 760, which may extend across the strips 762 between the proximal end 702 and the distal end 704 of the braided structure. Thus, as in Fig.14 As shown in the exemplary embodiment of , the wrist 751 having the braided structure 710 may be free of disks that fix the proximal end 702 and the distal end 704 of the braided structure 710 and / or the disks that control the diameter of the braided structure 710 .

[0112] According to an exemplary embodiment, the braided structure 710 may extend along a helical path between its proximal end 702 and distal end 704, such as in direction 706 or in direction 707. For example, individual filaments 714 may extend along the helical path. Providing a predetermined helical path for the braided structure 710 may control the number of DOFs of the braided structure 710, and thus control the motion of the braided structure 710, as well as control how the braided structure 710 constrains the motion of the wrist 700. For example, controlling the helical path traversed by the braided structure 710 may affect the number of degrees of freedom allowed by the braided structure 710 due to how the individual filaments are positioned relative to the bending axis along the length of the braided structure 710.

[0113] According to an exemplary embodiment, the braided structure 710 may extend along a helical path having an angular range of approximately 180 degrees between the proximal end 702 and the distal end 704 to provide a braided structure 710 with zero degrees of freedom. For example, the filaments 714 may extend along a helical path having an angular range of approximately 180 degrees between the proximal end 702 and the distal end 704. The 180 degree angular range of the helical path produces a braided structure 710 in which the length of the filaments 714 is not conserved when the braided structure 710 moves. Since the ends of the braided structure 710 are fixed and length changes are not allowed, bending and translational movements that would otherwise cause the length of the braided structure 710 to change are substantially prevented. The braided structure 710 with zero degrees of freedom may resist bending like a wrist, but due to the deformation of the filaments and / or braids under load, it may bend to a limited extent.

[0114] According to another exemplary embodiment, the braided structure 710 may extend along a spiral path having an angular range of about 360 degrees between the proximal end 702 and the distal end 704 to provide a braided structure 710 with two degrees of freedom, such as in any pitch and yaw directions. For example, when the filament 714 traverses from the proximal end 702 to the distal end 704, the filament 714 may extend along a spiral path having an angular range of about 360 degrees. By extending along a spiral path having an angular range of about 360 degrees, the braided structure 710 may act like a wrist including a series of connected disks in an ABAB configuration having two degrees of freedom, because bending motions in pitch and yaw directions may be allowed due to the conservation of bending motion length. On the contrary, since translational motions may not be length-conserving, and the fixed end of the braided structure 710 may substantially prevent the length of the braided structure 710 from changing, translational motions such as moving the braided structure 710 into an S shape may be substantially prevented. On the other hand, because the braided structure 710 has only two degrees of freedom when extending along a helical path having an angular range of approximately 360 degrees, the translational motion of the braided structure 710 in XY space can be constrained such that the braided structure 710 can articulate along an arc (e.g., like a wrist), but one portion of the braided structure 710 cannot translate laterally relative to another portion of the braided structure 710 (e.g., like a parallel motion mechanism, as described below with respect to FIG. Fig.17 No. 7,942,868, published on May 17, 2011, and U.S. Application No. 11 / 762,165, filed on June 13, 2007 and published as U.S. Publication No. US 2008 / 0065105). For a wrist that includes braided structure 710, lateral translational movement of one portion of braided structure 710 relative to another portion of braided structure 710 may not be desirable.

[0115] According to another exemplary embodiment, the braided structure 710 may extend along a helical path having an angular range of approximately 720 degrees between the proximal end 702 and the distal end 704, such that the movement of the braided structure 710 is substantially unconstrained. For example, when the filament 714 traverses from the proximal end 702 to the distal end 704, the filament 714 may extend along a helical path having an angular range of approximately 720 degrees. The braided structure extending over an angular range of approximately 720 degrees may be similar to two continuous braided structures each extending along a helical path having an angular range of approximately 360 degrees, thereby providing an overall braided structure having four degrees of freedom (which appears to be substantially unconstrained to the user) and allowing both bending and translational movement. Therefore, not only can the braided structure 710 bend in arbitrary pitch and yaw directions like a wrist, but the braided structure 710 can also move into an S-shape or like a parallel motion mechanism, as described below with respect to Fig.17 As described in an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the longitudinal axes passing through each of the proximal end 702 and the distal end 704 can be offset from each other but still be substantially parallel to each other.

[0116] When the braided structure 710 is used in the articulated member 700, the braided structure 710 can be used to replace a series of disks connected at joints, such as in Fig.11 In other words, the braided structure 710 itself can provide the structure and body of the articulated member 700 from one end to the other. In this exemplary embodiment, the articulated member 700 can function as a wrist and have the same diameter as the wrist structure discussed in the exemplary embodiments above. Further, the braided structure 710 can have both torsional and compressive stiffness and can be placed under tension and compression.

[0117] Although the braided structure 710 can be used to replace the connecting disks and provide a wrist with constrained motion, as in Fig.11 Although shown in the exemplary embodiment of , the braided structure can also be used in combination with the connecting disc to provide an alternative articulated member (e.g., a wrist) with constrained motion. In this case, the braided structure can replace the restraining tendon, such as Figure 3 The restraining tendons 330, 332, 334, 336 of the exemplary embodiment of the present invention are shown in FIG. Fig.15 , which shows a side view of an articulated member 800 including connecting disks 801-805 and a braided structure 810. The disks 801-805 can be connected to Figure 3 The exemplary embodiment is connected and configured in the same manner as the exemplary embodiment of the present invention (i.e., in an ABAB configuration and in Fig.15 To constrain the movement of the disks 801-805, such as to allow controlled bending along an arc, a braided structure 810 may be provided around the exterior of the disks 801-805, such as in Fig.14The braided structure 810 may be based on Fig.11 805. The braided structure 810 is configured in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention and includes filaments 714 forming an interwoven braid 712 to form an overall hollow cylindrical or tubular structure around the discs 801-805. The proximal end 810 and the distal end 814 of the braided structure 810 can be fixed relative to the discs 801-805. According to an exemplary embodiment, the proximal end 810 and the distal end 814 of the braided structure 810 can be fixed to place the braided structure 810 under tension, wherein the discs 801-805 carry a compressive load. Further, according to an exemplary embodiment, by placing the braided structure 810 around the exterior of the discs 801-805, the inner diameter of the braided structure 810 can be controlled by the discs 801-805 themselves.

[0118] As in Figures 3 to 15 As described in the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the articulated member with constrained motion may be a wrist. However, the articulated member with constrained motion is not limited to the wrist. According to an exemplary embodiment, the articulated member with constrained motion may be a parallel motion mechanism, the functions of which are described in, for example, U.S. Patent No. 7,942,868, published on May 17, 2011, and U.S. Publication No. US 2008 / 0065105, published on March 13, 2008, which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

[0119] refer to Fig.16 , which shows a distal portion 900 of a surgical instrument, the distal portion 900 includes a parallel motion mechanism 910 connected to an instrument shaft 906. Figure 2 According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the instrument can be a camera instrument or a surgical instrument having an end effector 908. According to an exemplary embodiment, the distal portion 900 of the instrument can include, for example, a wrist 902, which can be configured according to any of the above exemplary embodiments, but the instrument can also lack a wrist 902.

[0120] As in Fig.16As shown in the exemplary embodiment of the parallel motion mechanism 910, the parallel motion mechanism 910 may include a straight shaft segment 916 that separates the proximal joint mechanism 912 from the distal joint mechanism 914. Similar to the exemplary embodiments disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 7,942,868 on May 17, 2011 and the U.S. Publication No. US2008 / 0065105 on March 13, 2008, the joint mechanism 912 and the joint mechanism 914 and the opposite ends of the straight segment 916 are connected together so as to cooperate with each other to operate. According to an exemplary embodiment, the proximal joint mechanism 912 and the distal joint mechanism 914 may include a plurality of connected disks similar to the wrist. The disk may include, for example, a mechanical stopper (not shown) to limit the movement of the joint mechanism 912, 914, such as movement in the pitch and / or yaw directions.

[0121] Fig. 20 An end view of an exemplary embodiment of a disc 1100 for a joint mechanism of a parallel motion mechanism is shown. The disc 1100 may include a central hole 1102, a connecting portion 1104, and a plurality of holes for actuating members. For example, the disc 1100 may include a plurality of holes 1110 for wrist drive tendons, a plurality of holes 1120 for parallel motion mechanism drive tendons, and a plurality of holes 1130 for restraint tendons, which are discussed further below. As described in Fig. 20 As depicted in the exemplary embodiment of , holes 1110 , 1120 , 1130 may be located at the same distance (e.g. , radius) with respect to the center of disk 1100 (e.g. , the center of center hole 1102 ), or holes 1110 , 1120 , 1130 may be located at different distances (e.g. , radii) with respect to the center of disk 1100 .

[0122] Fig.17 Show Fig.16 An exemplary implementation of wherein the parallel motion mechanism 910 is actuated. Fig.16 As shown, the parallel motion mechanism 910 can control the relative orientation of the distal portion 917 of the parallel motion mechanism 910 and the proximal portion 915 of the parallel motion mechanism 910. Therefore, the longitudinal axis 913 passing through the distal portion 917 of the parallel motion mechanism 910 can be substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis 911 passing through the proximal end 915 of the parallel motion mechanism 910 (the longitudinal axis 911 can also be the longitudinal axis of the instrument shaft 906 (not shown) Fig.16 904 ). Thus, the end effector 908, camera device (not shown), or other components at the distal end 904 of the instrument distal portion 900 may vary in XY space, but the orientation of the end effector 908 relative to the longitudinal axis 911 may be maintained (before any motion due to the wrist 902 is accounted for).

[0123] Unlike the wrist motion, which can be constrained to substantially follow an arc, the motion of parallel motion mechanism 910 can be constrained so that parallel motion mechanism 910 translates in XY space, such as in Fig.16 As shown in an exemplary embodiment of . Since the movement along the arc through the proximal joint 912 to the distal joint 914 can not cause the distal portion 917 of the parallel motion mechanism 910 to translate in XY space while maintaining the orientation of the distal portion 917 relative to the proximal end 915, the movement of the parallel motion mechanism 910 can be constrained so as to minimize or prevent movement along the arc. Figures 3 to 15 The wrist of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention may constrain the parallel motion mechanism 910 in substantially the opposite manner. That is, the wrist may be constrained to allow bending motion along an arc but minimize or prevent translational motion in XY space that may result in an S-shape, etc., while the parallel motion mechanism may be constrained to allow translational motion in XY space but minimize or prevent bending motion along an arc.

[0124] Steering Fig.18 , which shows Fig.16 906 and the outer surfaces of the straight segment 916 of the parallel motion mechanism 910 are removed to show the internal components. Fig.18 As shown in the exemplary embodiment of , the straight section 916 may include a central tube 918 extending between the proximal joint mechanism 912 and the distal joint mechanism 914. The central tube 918 may be hollow, thereby allowing components of the instrument to pass through the interior of the central tube 918, such as to the wrist 902 and / or the end effector 908.

[0125] As in Fig.18 As shown in the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a wrist drive tendon 920 can extend from the shaft 906 and the parallel motion mechanism 910 to the wrist 902, wherein the wrist drive tendon 920 can be attached to the distal end of the wrist 902 or the distal end 904 of the instrument distal portion 900 to actuate the wrist 902, as described above with respect to Figure 3 The wrist drive tendon 920 may extend over the outer surface of the center tube 918, such as at Fig.18 According to an exemplary embodiment, the wrist drive tendon 920 can pass through the central tube 918 of the straight section 916 and the outer shell 919 (in Fig.16 and Fig.17 An annular space is provided between the

[0126] The instrument further includes one or more tendons to actuate the parallel motion mechanism 910. For example, a parallel motion mechanism actuation member 930 may extend from the shaft 906 through the parallel motion mechanism 910 and be fixed to the distal end 914 of the parallel motion mechanism 910, so that the parallel motion mechanism 910 can be actuated by, for example, applying a force to the tendon 930. According to an exemplary embodiment, the actuation member 930 can be a pull / pull actuation member or a push / pull actuation member. Due to the limitation of the amount of internal space within the parallel motion mechanism, some parallel motion mechanisms may use 3 drive tendons to actuate the parallel motion mechanism. However, the parallel motion mechanism of the exemplary embodiments described herein may provide an increased amount of internal space due to its configuration, thereby allowing the use of various numbers of drive tendons. For example, 4 actuation members 930 may be used to actuate the parallel motion mechanism 910, where similar to Figure 4 The actuating members 364 of the exemplary embodiment of the present invention are arranged in pairs, for example, to be connected to a winch, which provides a robust construction and control for actuating the drive tendons and the parallel motion mechanism 910. The actuating members 930 may extend above the central tube 918. According to an exemplary embodiment, the actuating members 930 may pass through an annular space provided between the central tube 918 and the outer shell 919 of the straight segment 916.

[0127] According to an exemplary embodiment, the parallel motion mechanism 910 may further include one or more restraining members fixed at opposite ends of the parallel motion mechanism 910. For example, a restraining tendon 940 may extend from a distal end 915 to a proximal end 917 of the parallel motion mechanism 910, wherein the restraining tendon 940 is fixed at the distal end 915 and the proximal end 917. The restraining tendon 940 may be fixed in place by, for example, welding the restraining tendon 940 to a component of the parallel motion mechanism 910, crimping the restraining tendon 940 to another object, or by other techniques familiar to those skilled in the art. Fig.18 In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the distal end of the restraining tendon 940 is fixed to the disc of the distal joint mechanism 914 and to the disc of the proximal joint mechanism 912. Fig.18 As shown in the exemplary embodiment of , one end of the restraining tendon 940 may be fixed at the distal end 917 of the parallel motion mechanism 910 by a distal clamp 941, and the other end of the restraining tendon 940 may be fixed at the proximal end 915 of the parallel motion mechanism 910 by a proximal clamp 943. Fig.18 As shown in the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 1 , the restraining tendon 940 may extend above the outer surface of the central tube 918. According to an exemplary embodiment, the restraining tendon 940 may pass through the central tube 918 of the straight section 916 and the outer shell 919 (in Fig.16 and Fig.17 An annular space is provided between the

[0128] Although the parallel motion mechanism of the exemplary embodiment described herein has similar motion and function to the embodiments described in U.S. Patent No. 7,942,868, published on May 17, 2011, and U.S. Publication No. US2008 / 0065105, published on March 13, 2008, the exemplary embodiment of the parallel motion mechanism described herein has a different structure that provides more internal space for more components such as drive tendons and / or restraining tendons, and provides smooth and precise movement of the parallel motion mechanism.

[0129] According to an exemplary embodiment, the parallel motion mechanism 910 does not include the rigid bracket 1670 described in U.S. Patent No. 7,942,868, thereby creating more internal space within the parallel motion mechanism 910. Although the rigid bracket 1670 described in U.S. Patent No. 7,942,868 takes up some internal space, the configuration of the rigid bracket 1670 increases the tension applied to the actuation cable 1680 connected to the bracket 1670, where both the restraining cable and the actuation cable extend straight through the parallel motion mechanism. To address this, the actuation member 930 of the parallel motion mechanism 910 may extend along a spiral path along at least a portion of the parallel motion mechanism 910. This is Fig.19 As further described in the exemplary embodiments of Fig.19 The central tube 1018 of the parallel motion mechanism having the wrist drive tendon 1020, the restraining tendon 1040 and the parallel motion mechanism drive tendons 1032, 1034, 1036, 1038 is shown. Fig.19 As shown, the wrist drive tendon 1020 and the restraining tendon 1040 may be substantially straight, while the parallel motion mechanism drive tendons 1032, 1034, 1036, 1038 extend in a spiral path around the central tube 1018. According to an exemplary embodiment, the parallel motion mechanism drive tendons 1032, 1034, 1036, 1038 may extend along the central tube 1018 along a spiral path having an angular range of approximately 180 degrees, as shown in FIG. Fig.19 For example, in Fig.18 The tendon 930 of the parallel motion mechanism, including the parallel motion mechanism drive tendon 934, can extend from the proximal end 915 of the parallel motion mechanism 910 to the distal end 917 of the parallel motion mechanism 910 along a spiral path having an angular range of approximately 180 degrees.

[0130] Because the parallel motion mechanism actuating member can extend along a helical path along at least a portion of the parallel motion mechanism, a mechanical advantage can be provided to the tendon without using rigid supports and mechanisms employed in other parallel motion mechanism designs. Fig.17When actuated as shown, the parallel motion mechanism drive tendon 934 is on the bottom side 950 of the parallel motion mechanism 910 at the proximal end 915, causing a positive length change of the drive tendon 934 and causing additional tension to be applied to the drive tendon 934. However, because the same drive tendon 934 extends along a helical path having an angular range of approximately 180 degrees, the drive tendon 934 is on the top side 954 of the parallel motion mechanism 910 at the distal end 917, causing the drive tendon 934 to also experience a positive length change at the distal end 917, which also applies tension to the drive tendon 934. Therefore, the actuation member 930, including the tendon 934, can extend along the helical path along the parallel motion mechanism 910 to provide a mechanical advantage for actuating the parallel motion mechanism 910, while also creating more internal space for components by eliminating other internal structural support elements.

[0131] Compared to actuation member 930, restraining tendons 940 follow a substantially straight path as they extend through parallel motion mechanism 910, as shown in FIG. Fig.18 Thus, when the parallel motion mechanism 910 is as shown in the exemplary embodiment of Fig.17 When actuated as shown, the restraining tendon 940 on the bottom side 950 of the proximal joint mechanism 912 experiences a positive change in length. Since the restraining tendon 940 is fixed at the opposite end of the parallel motion mechanism 910, the same restraining tendon 940 running straight along the bottom side of the parallel motion mechanism 910 experiences a negative change in length on the bottom side 952 of the distal joint mechanism 914, thereby causing the distal joint mechanism 914 and the proximal joint mechanism 912 to bend in opposite ways to provide an offset but parallel positioning of the distal end 917 and the proximal end 915 of the parallel motion mechanism 910.

[0132] As in Figures 16 to 20 In the exemplary embodiment described in the embodiment of the present invention, the parallel motion mechanism can use tendons as a mechanism for constraining the motion of the parallel motion mechanism. In other exemplary embodiments, the parallel motion mechanism may include a braided structure, such as in Figures 11 to 15 According to an exemplary embodiment, the braided structure can be as described in relation to Fig.11 The exemplary embodiment described in the embodiment replaces the disks in the proximal joint mechanism 912 and the distal joint mechanism 914 of the parallel motion mechanism 910. In another exemplary embodiment, the braided structure can be placed around the disks of the proximal joint mechanism 912 and the distal joint mechanism 914, as described with respect to Fig.15 The exemplary embodiments are described in detail.

[0133] Although the wrist and parallel motion mechanism according to the exemplary embodiments described herein can be used separately (i.e., the instrument may include the wrist or the parallel motion mechanism), the instrument may include both the wrist and the parallel motion mechanism. When the instrument includes both the wrist and the parallel motion mechanism, the wrist may include a constraint mechanism such as a constraint tendon, which may be separated from the constraint mechanism of the parallel motion mechanism such as the constraint tendon. For example, the wrist includes a first constraint mechanism, such as a first group of one or more constraint tendons, and the parallel motion mechanism includes a second constraint mechanism, such as a second group of one or more constraint tendons. According to an exemplary embodiment, when the wrist and the parallel motion mechanism have separate constraint tendons, the constraint tendons of the wrist and the parallel motion mechanism may be different, such as, for example, having different diameters, or other structural differences or material differences, which may be selected to achieve the desired motion effect.

[0134] According to another embodiment, the wrist and parallel motion mechanisms use the same constraint mechanism, such as the same constraint tendon. Using the same constraint mechanism in the wrist and parallel motion mechanisms can effectively save internal space of the instrument that uses the same constraint mechanism for both wrist and parallel motion mechanisms.

[0135] refer to Fig.21 , which shows a partial view of the distal portion 1200 of the instrument, the distal portion 1200 includes a wrist 1202 and a parallel motion mechanism 1204, which can be based on Figures 16 to 20 Wrist 1202 may be configured according to an exemplary embodiment of Figures 3 to 14 The exemplary embodiment is configured, and the parallel motion mechanism 1204 can be configured according to Figures 15 to 19 The exemplary embodiment is configured as follows. Fig.21 As shown, wrist 1202 may be located distal to parallel motion mechanism 1204. Wrist drive tendons 1220 may extend through parallel motion mechanism 1204 to wrist 1202, and extend through wrist 1202 to a distal end of wrist 1202 or a distal end 1203 of the instrument, wherein wrist drive tendons 1220 are fixed to actuate wrist 1202. Parallel motion mechanism drive tendons 1230 extend through parallel motion mechanism 1204, and may be fixed at a distal end of parallel motion mechanism 1204.

[0136] According to an exemplary embodiment, the wrist 1202 and the parallel motion mechanism 1204 share a restraining tendon that restrains the motion of both the wrist 1202 and the parallel motion mechanism 1204. For example, the restraining tendon for both the wrist 1202 and the parallel motion mechanism 1204 includes a first portion 1240A of the restraining tendon that extends through the parallel motion mechanism 1204 and is fixed (fixed via a clamp 1210 such as discussed below, such as at the distal end of the parallel motion mechanism 1204, at the proximal end of the wrist 1202, or between the parallel motion mechanism 1204 and the wrist 1202), and a second portion 1240B of the restraining tendon that extends through the wrist 1202 and is fixed again. The first portion 1240A and the second portion 1240B have the same continuous restraining tendon, so that the same restraining tendon (portions 1240A, 1240B) can be used to restrain both the wrist 1202 and the parallel motion mechanism 1204. For example, the restraining tendon may be fixed at the distal end of the parallel motion mechanism 1204, at the proximal end of the wrist 1202, or in the connection area 1205 between the wrist 1202 and the parallel motion mechanism 1204, such as in Fig.21 Thus, a set of restraining tendons (including portions 1240A, 1240B) can be used to constrain the motion of both wrist 1202 and parallel motion mechanism 1204, which provides for efficient use of the space within the instrument.

[0137] According to an exemplary embodiment, wrist 1202 and parallel motion mechanism 1204 have separate restraining tendons that respectively restrain the motion of wrist 1202 and parallel motion mechanism 1204. For example, first portion 1240A of restraining tendons represents a first set of one or more restraining tendons, and second portion 1240B of restraining tendons represents a second set of one or more restraining tendons that are separate from first portion 1240A of restraining tendons. When the wrist 1202 and the parallel motion mechanism 1204 have different restraining tendons, the restraining tendon for the parallel motion mechanism 1204 (e.g., the first part 1240A) can be fixed at, for example, the distal end of the parallel motion mechanism 1204, the proximal end of the wrist 1202, or between the parallel motion mechanism 1204 and the wrist 1202, and the restraining tendon for the wrist 1202 (e.g., the second part 1240B) can be fixed at, for example, the distal end of the parallel motion mechanism 1204, the proximal end of the wrist 1202, or between the parallel motion mechanism 1204 and the wrist 1202, extend through the wrist 1202, and be fixed at the distal end of the wrist 1202.

[0138] according to Figures 3 to 20In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the restraining tendon may be fixed. For example, a first portion 1240A of the restraining tendon may extend through the parallel motion mechanism 1204, through a clamp 1210 that fixes the restraining tendon 1240 relative to the distal portion 1200 of the instrument, and terminate at the clamp, wherein a second portion 1240B of the restraining tendon extends separately through the wrist 1202 (such as when a separate tendon constrains the wrist 1202 and the parallel motion mechanism 1204), or the restraining tendon may continue from the clamp 1210 through the wrist 1202 as the second portion 1240B of the same restraining tendon extending through both the parallel motion mechanism 1204 and the wrist 1202. Further, the restraining tendon may be configured according to Figures 3 to 20 An exemplary embodiment is arranged in which, for example, a restraining tendon (e.g., portions 1240A, 1240B) extends through the parallel motion mechanism 1204 in a substantially straight direction and extends through at least a portion of the wrist 1202 along a helical path.

[0139] The exemplary embodiments and methods described herein have been described for use with surgical instruments for teleoperated surgical systems. However, the exemplary embodiments and methods described herein may be used with other surgical devices, such as laparoscopic instruments and other manual (e.g., handheld) instruments, as well as non-surgical devices, such as devices including any of a variety of actuated articulatable members, whether teleoperated, remotely controlled, or manually operated, including but not limited to wrists and / or parallel motion mechanisms.

[0140] By providing a surgical instrument having a constraint mechanism according to exemplary implementations described herein, an articulatable member is provided having a simpler force transmission mechanism that is easier to control and less expensive to manufacture, while providing substantially repeatable, smooth, precise motion.

[0141] In view of the disclosure herein, further modifications and alternative embodiments will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. For example, systems and methods may include additional components or steps that are omitted from the drawings and descriptions to make the operation clear. Therefore, this specification is interpreted as being exemplary only and is used to teach those skilled in the art the general manner of performing this teaching. It should be understood that the various embodiments shown and described herein should be considered exemplary. Elements and materials and the arrangement of those elements and materials may replace those illustrated and described herein, components and processes may be reversed, and certain features of this teaching may be used independently, all of which will be apparent to those skilled in the art after benefiting from the description herein. Changes may be made to the elements described herein without departing from the spirit and scope of this teaching and the appended claims.

[0142] It is to be understood that the particular examples and embodiments set forth herein are non-limiting and that modifications in structure, dimensions, materials, and methods may be made without departing from the scope of the present teachings.

[0143] Other embodiments according to the present disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art by consideration of the specification and practice of the invention disclosed herein.It is intended that the specification and examples be considered exemplary only, with the true scope and spirit of the specification and examples being indicated by the appended claims.

Claims

1. An articulated member comprising: distal end; proximal end; an actuation member extending from the proximal end to the distal end, wherein the actuation member is actuatable to transmit a force to cause the articulatable member to bend from a neutral orientation; as well as a restraining mechanism including a braided structure secured to and extending between the proximal end and the distal end; Wherein the braided structure comprises a plurality of filaments, and wherein the constraining mechanism extends along a helical path along at least a portion of the articulatable member from the proximal end to the distal end.

2. The articulatable member of claim 1, wherein the actuation member extends substantially straight through the articulatable member from the distal end to the proximal end.

3. The hingeable member according to claim 1, wherein: The articulatable member includes a plurality of links extending in series from a proximal end link to a distal end link; and The constraint mechanism passively constrains lateral translational movement of each link of the plurality of links relative to other links of the plurality of links.

4. The hinged member according to claim 3: wherein the plurality of links further comprises an intermediate link between the proximal end link and the distal end link; wherein the intermediate link is coupled to the proximal end link via a first joint, and the intermediate link is coupled to the distal end link via a second joint; and The rotation axis of the first joint is orthogonal to the rotation axis of the second joint.

5. The hingeable member according to claim 3, wherein the plurality of links comprises: A first link, a second link adjacent to the first link, a third link adjacent to the second link, a fourth link adjacent to the third link, and a fifth link adjacent to the fourth link; a first joint between the first link and the second link, the first joint allowing the first link and the second link to rotate relative to each other in a first direction; a second joint between the second link and the third link, the second joint allowing the second link and the third link to rotate relative to each other in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction; a third joint between the third link and the fourth link, the third joint allowing the third link and the fourth link to rotate relative to each other in the first direction; and A fourth joint between the fourth link and the fifth link allows the fourth link and the fifth link to rotate relative to each other in the second direction.

6. The hingeable member according to any one of claims 3 to 5, further comprising: straight axis segment; wherein the plurality of links comprises a first plurality of links, and the articulatable member further comprises a second plurality of links; as well as Wherein the first plurality of links and the second plurality of links are separated by the straight shaft segment.

7. The hingeable member according to any one of claims 1-5, wherein the angular range of each filament of the braided structure between the distal end and the proximal end of the braided structure is 180 degrees.

8. The hingeable member of any one of claims 1-5, wherein the angular range of each filament of the braided structure between the distal end and the proximal end of the braided structure is 360 degrees.

9. The hingeable member of any one of claims 1-5, wherein the angular range of each filament of the braided structure between the distal end and the proximal end of the braided structure is 720 degrees.

10. The hinged member according to any one of claims 1 to 5: wherein the plurality of filaments comprises at least a first filament and a second filament; wherein the first filament follows a first helical path spiraling in a first direction, and Wherein the second filament follows a second helical path spiraling in a second direction.

11. The articulatable member of claim 10, wherein the first helical path is right-handed and the second helical path is left-handed.

12. The articulatable member of any one of claims 1-5, wherein the articulatable member is a wrist of a surgical instrument.

13. The articulatable member of claim 1, wherein the braided structure forms at least a portion of the main structure of the articulatable member.

14. The hingeable member of claim 13, further comprising a tubular structure disposed inside the braided structure and configured to limit contraction of the braided structure.

15. The hingeable member of claim 13, further comprising at least one strap surrounding at least a portion of an exterior of the braided structure and configured to limit expansion of the braided structure.

16. An articulated member comprising: a plurality of links extending in series from a proximal end link to a distal end link, adjacent links of the plurality of links being pivotally coupled to form a joint between the adjacent links; a first cable extending between the proximal end link and the distal end link; and a second cable extending between and secured to the proximal and distal end links; wherein each link of the plurality of links comprises an annular shape defining a central aperture and an outer perimeter; wherein the first cable extends through a first hole in each of the plurality of links, the first hole being a first distance radially inward from an outer periphery of each of the plurality of links; wherein the second cable extends through a second hole in each of the plurality of links, the second hole being located between the central hole and the outer periphery and a second distance radially inward from the outer periphery of each of the plurality of links, the second distance being greater than the first distance; and Wherein the second cable follows a helical path along at least a portion of the articulatable member from the proximal end link to the distal end link.

17. The articulatable member of claim 16, wherein the first cable comprises an actuation cable configured to cause the articulatable member to articulate in response to tension applied to the actuation cable.

18. The articulatable member of claim 17, wherein the actuation cable follows a straight path along the articulatable member.

19. The articulatable member according to any one of claims 16-18, wherein the second cable comprises a restraining mechanism configured to passively restrain articulation of the articulatable member.

20. The articulatable member of claim 19, wherein the articulatable member includes a third cable extending between and secured to the distal and proximal end links.

21. The articulatable member of claim 20, wherein the third cable extends through a third hole in each of the plurality of links, the third hole being positioned the second distance radially inward from the outer periphery of each of the plurality of links.

22. The hingeable member of claim 21, wherein the second hole and the third hole are spaced 180 degrees from each other around the circumference of each link of the plurality of links.

23. The hingeable member of claim 16, wherein the first hole and the second hole are spaced 90 degrees from each other around the circumference of each link of the plurality of links.

24. An articulated member comprising: a plurality of links extending in series from a proximal end link to a distal end link, adjacent links of the plurality of links being pivotally coupled to form a joint therebetween, and each link of the plurality of links defining a central longitudinal axis and an outer transverse surface; a first constraint mechanism extending between and secured to the proximal and distal end links, the first constraint mechanism following a first right-handed helical path that spirals along at least a portion of the articulatable member; and a second constraint mechanism extending from the proximal end link to the distal end link, the second constraint mechanism having opposite ends fixed to the distal end link and the proximal end link, the second constraint mechanism following a second left-handed helical path that spirals in a direction different from the first direction along at least a portion of the articulatable member, The first restraint mechanism and the second restraint mechanism pass through the plurality of links at a location between the central longitudinal axis and the outer lateral surface.

25. The hingeable member of claim 24, wherein the plurality of links comprises: a first link, a second link adjacent to the first link, a third link adjacent to the second link, a fourth link adjacent to the third link, and a fifth link adjacent to the fourth link; a first joint between the first link and the second link, the first joint allowing the first link and the second link to rotate relative to each other in a first direction; a second joint between the second link and the third link, the second joint allowing the second link and the third link to rotate relative to each other in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction; a third joint between the third link and the fourth link, the third joint allowing the third link and the fourth link to rotate relative to each other in the first direction; and A fourth joint between the fourth link and the fifth link allows the fourth link and the fifth link to rotate relative to each other in the second direction.

26. The hingeable member according to claim 24, wherein: the first restraining mechanism being laterally spaced a first distance from the central longitudinal axis of the articulatable member; The second restraint mechanism is laterally spaced a second distance from the central longitudinal axis; and The second distance is greater than the first distance.

27. An articulated member according to claim 24, wherein the first restraint mechanism extends through a first hole in a link of the plurality of links, the first hole being radially offset from the central longitudinal axis of the link and positioned a first distance radially inward from the outer lateral surface of the link.

28. An articulated member according to claim 27, wherein the second restraint mechanism extends through a second hole in the link of the plurality of links, the second hole being radially offset from the central longitudinal axis of the link and positioned a second distance radially inward from the outer lateral surface of the link.

29. The hingeable member of claim 28, wherein the second distance is greater than the first distance.

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