Impact mechanism for percussion of gripping clamp

Abstract

A surgical system is disclosed that includes an end effector and a drive system configured to implement at least one function of the end effector. The end effector includes a first jaw, a second jaw rotatable relative to the first jaw between an open configuration and a closed configuration, and a staple cartridge including staples removably stored in the staple cartridge. The drive system includes a motor and an impact mechanism including a rotary input drivable by the motor and a rotary output drivable by the rotary input. Rotation of the rotary output is designed to enable the at least one function of the end effector. The impact mechanism is configurable in: a coupled state in which rotation of the rotary input causes corresponding rotation of the rotary output; and a sliding state in which the rotation input portion rotates relative to the rotation output portion.

Description

Background Art

[0001] The present invention relates to surgical instruments and, in various arrangements, to surgical stapling and cutting instruments designed to stapling and cutting tissue and staple cartridges for use therewith. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0002] The various features of the embodiments described herein, together with their advantages, may be understood from the following description in conjunction with the following drawings:

[0003] Figure 1 is a perspective view of an implementation scheme of a robot controller;

[0004] Figure 2 is a perspective view of a robotic surgical arm cart / manipulator of a robotic system operably supporting multiple surgical tool embodiments of the present invention;

[0005] Figure 3 for Figure 2 A side view of a robotic surgical arm cart / manipulator as depicted in;

[0006] Figure 4 is a perspective view of an exemplary cart structure having positioning links for operably supporting robotic manipulators that may be used with various surgical tool embodiments of the present invention;

[0007] Figure 5 is a perspective view of a surgical tool embodiment of the present invention;

[0008] Figure 6 for Figure 5 A cross-sectional side view of a portion of a surgical end effector and an elongated shaft assembly of a surgical tool embodiment of the present invention, wherein the anvil is in an open position and the closure clutch assembly is in an intermediate position;

[0009] Figure 7 for Figure 6 Another cross-sectional side view of the surgical end effector and elongated shaft assembly shown in , with the clutch assembly engaged in a closed position;

[0010] Figure 8 for Figure 6 Another cross-sectional side view of the surgical end effector and elongated shaft assembly shown in , with the clutch assembly engaged in the fired position;

[0011] Fig. 9 A top view of a portion of an embodiment of a tool mounting portion of the present invention;

[0012] Fig.10 The invention relates to an impact mechanism in a coupled state according to at least one aspect of the present disclosure.

[0013] Fig.11 According to at least one aspect of the present disclosure, the Fig.10 Impact mechanism.

[0014] Fig.12 According to at least one aspect of the present disclosure Fig.10 An impact mechanism, wherein its rotation output part is located in the groove of the rotation input part of the impact mechanism.

[0015] Fig.13 According to at least one aspect of the present disclosure Fig.12 An impact mechanism wherein a rotating input portion causes a rotating output portion to cam outwardly from the slot.

[0016] Fig.14 For returning to the connected state according to at least one aspect of the present disclosure Fig.10 Impact mechanism.

[0017] Fig.15 An algorithm for determining an output angle of a rotation output portion of an impact mechanism according to at least one aspect of the present disclosure is disclosed.

[0018] Figures 16 to 18 According to at least one aspect of the present disclosure Fig.15 A first example implementation of an algorithm.

[0019] Figures 19 to 21 According to at least one aspect of the present disclosure Fig.15 A second example implementation of an algorithm.

[0020] Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views.The exemplification described herein illustrates various embodiments of the invention in one form, and such exemplification should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention in any way. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] Many specific details are listed herein to provide a thorough understanding of the overall structure, function, manufacture, and use of the embodiments described in the specification and shown in the drawings. Well-known operations, parts, and elements are not described in detail to avoid obscuring the embodiments described in the specification. The reader will understand that the embodiments described and shown herein are non-limiting examples, so that it can be recognized that the specific structural and functional details disclosed herein can be representative and illustrative. These embodiments can be modified and changed without departing from the scope of the claims.

[0022] The terms "comprise" (and any form of "comprise", such as "comprises" and "comprising"), "have" (and any form of "have", such as "has" and "having"), "include" (and any form of "include", such as "includes" and "including"), and "contain" (and any form of "contain", such as "contains" and "containing") are open-ended linking verbs. Thus, a surgical system, device, or apparatus that "comprises," "has," "includes," or "contains" one or more elements has those one or more elements, but is not limited to having only those one or more elements. Likewise, an element of a system, device, or apparatus that "comprises," "has," "includes," or "contains" one or more features has those one or more features, but is not limited to having only those one or more features.

[0023] The terms "proximal" and "distal" are used herein relative to a clinician manipulating the handle portion of a surgical instrument. The term "proximal" refers to the portion closest to the clinician, and the term "distal" refers to the portion positioned away from the clinician. It should also be understood that for brevity and clarity, spatial terms such as "vertical," "horizontal," "upper," and "lower" may be used herein in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. However, surgical instruments are used in many orientations and positions, and these terms are not intended to be limiting and / or absolute.

[0024] Various exemplary devices and methods are provided for performing laparoscopic and minimally invasive surgical procedures. However, the reader will readily appreciate that the various methods and devices disclosed herein can be used in a variety of surgical procedures and applications, including, for example, in conjunction with open surgical procedures. Continuing to refer to this detailed description, the reader will further appreciate that the various instruments disclosed herein can be inserted into the body in any manner, such as through a natural cavity, through an incision or puncture formed in the tissue, etc. The working portion or end effector portion of the instrument can be inserted directly into the patient's body or can be inserted through an access device having a working channel through which the end effector and elongated shaft of the surgical instrument can be advanced.

[0025] The surgical stapling system may include an axis and an end effector extending from the axis. The end effector includes a first jaw and a second jaw. The first jaw includes a staple cartridge. The staple cartridge can be inserted into the first jaw and can be removed from the first jaw; however, other embodiments are envisioned in which the staple cartridge cannot be removed from the first jaw or can at least be easily replaced from the first jaw. The second jaw includes an anvil configured to deform the staples ejected from the staple cartridge. The second jaw can pivot relative to the first jaw about a closed axis; however, other embodiments are envisioned in which the first jaw can pivot relative to the second jaw. The surgical stapling system also includes an articulated joint configured to allow the end effector to rotate or articulate relative to the axis. The end effector can rotate around an articulated axis extending through the articulated joint. Other embodiments are envisioned that do not include an articulated joint.

[0026] The staple cartridge comprises a cartridge body. The cartridge body comprises a proximal end, a distal end and a platform extending between the proximal end and the distal end. In use, the staple cartridge is positioned on a first side of a tissue to be sutured, and the anvil is positioned on a second side of the tissue. The anvil moves toward the staple cartridge to compress the tissue and clamp it against the platform. The staples removably stored in the cartridge body can then be deployed into the tissue. The cartridge body comprises a staple cavity defined in the cartridge body, wherein the staples are removably stored in the staple cavity. The staple cavities are arranged in six longitudinal rows. Three rows of staple cavities are positioned on a first side of the longitudinal slot and three rows of staple cavities are positioned on a second side of the longitudinal slot. Other arrangements of staple cavities and staples are also possible.

[0027] The nail is supported by a nail driver in the cartridge body. The driver can move between a first or non-firing position and a second or firing position to eject the nail from the nail cavity. The driver is retained in the cartridge body by a retainer that extends around the bottom of the cartridge body and includes a resilient member configured to grip the cartridge body and retain the retainer to the cartridge body. The driver can move between its non-firing position and its firing position by a slide. The slide can move between a proximal position adjacent to the proximal end and a distal position adjacent to the distal end. The slide includes a plurality of ramp surfaces that are configured to slide and lift the driver under the driver toward the anvil, and the nail is supported on the driver. In various other embodiments, the nail is formed with an integral nail driver so that the slide directly cams the nail toward the firing position. The nail with the integral nail driver can be formed by punching the nail from a sheet of material.

[0028] In addition to the above, the slider can also be moved distally by the firing member. The firing member is configured to contact the slider and push the slider toward the distal end. The longitudinal slot defined in the magazine body is configured to receive the firing member. The anvil also includes a slot configured to receive the firing member. The firing member also includes a first cam engaging the first jaw and a second cam engaging the second jaw. As the firing member is advanced distally, the first cam and the second cam can control the distance or tissue gap between the platform of the nail magazine and the anvil. The firing member also includes a knife configured to cut into the tissue captured between the nail magazine and the anvil. It is desired that the knife is positioned at least partially close to the ramp surface so that the nail is ejected before the knife.

[0029] Figure 1 Describes the combinable Figure 2 The master controller 1001 used in the type of robot arm slave vehicle 1100 depicted in the drawings. The master controller 1001 and the robot arm slave vehicle 1100 and their respective components and control systems are collectively referred to herein as the robot system 1000. Examples of such systems and devices are disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 7,524,320, which has been incorporated herein by reference. Therefore, various details of such devices will not be described in detail herein except as may be necessary to understand the various embodiments and forms of the present invention. As is well known, the master controller 1001 generally includes a master controller (in Figure 1 The main controller 1001 is generally indicated as 1003 in the figure, which is grasped by the surgeon and manipulated in the air while the surgeon observes the surgery via a stereoscopic display 1002. The main controller 1001 typically includes a manual input device that preferably moves with multiple degrees of freedom and typically also has an actuatable handle for actuating tools (e.g., for closing a grasping saw, applying an electric potential to an electrode, etc.). Additional details regarding the main controller 1001 and the robotic arm slave vehicle 1100 can be found in U.S. Patent No. 8,684,253, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

[0030] like Figure 2As can be seen in the figure, in one form, the robotic arm cart 1100 is configured to actuate multiple surgical tools (generally represented as 1200). Various robotic surgical systems and methods using a master controller and a robotic arm cart arrangement are disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 6,132,368, entitled "MULTI-COMPONENT TELEPRESENCE SYSTEM AND METHOD," published on October 17, 2000, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. In various forms, the robotic arm cart 1100 includes a base 1002, which, in the illustrated embodiment, supports three surgical tools 1200. In various forms, the surgical tools 1200 are each supported by a series of manually articulated links (commonly referred to as device joints 1104) and a robotic manipulator 1106. The structures shown herein have a protective cover extending over most of the mechanical links. These covers may be optional, and in some embodiments may be limited in size or eliminated entirely to minimize the inertia encountered by the servomechanisms used to operate such devices, limit the volume of moving parts to avoid collisions, and limit the overall weight of the cart 1100. The cart 1100 will generally be of a size suitable for transporting the cart 1100 between operating rooms. The cart 1100 may be configured to be generally suitable for passing through a standard operating room door and being placed on a standard hospital elevator. In various forms, the cart 1100 will preferably have a counterweight and include a wheel (or other transport) system that allows the cart 1100 to be positioned adjacent to the operating table by a single caregiver.

[0031] See now Figure 3 In at least one form, the robotic manipulator 1106 may include a link 1108 that constrains the movement of the surgical tool 1200. In various embodiments, the link 1108 includes rigid links connected together by rotational joints in a parallelogram arrangement so that the surgical tool 1200 rotates about a point in space 1110, as more fully described in issued U.S. Patent No. 5,817,084, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. The parallelogram arrangement constrains the rotation to pivot about an axis 1112a (sometimes referred to as a pitch axis). The link supporting the parallelogram link is pivotally mounted to the device joint 1104 ( Figure 2), so that the surgical tool 1200 also rotates about axis 1112b (sometimes called the yaw axis). The pitch axis 1112a and the yaw axis 1112b intersect at the remote center 1114, which is aligned along the axis 1208 of the surgical tool 1200. When supported by the manipulator 1106, the surgical tool 1200 can have additional driven degrees of freedom, including sliding movement of the surgical tool 1200 along the longitudinal tool axis "LT-LT". When the surgical tool 1200 slides along the tool axis LT-LT relative to the manipulator 1106 (arrow 1112c), the remote center 1114 remains fixed relative to the base 1116 of the manipulator 1106. Therefore, the entire manipulator is moved as a whole to reposition the remote center 1114. The linkage 1108 of the manipulator 1106 is driven by a series of motors 1120. These motors actively move the linkage 1108 in response to commands from the processor of the control system. As will be described in further detail below, the motor 1120 is also used to manipulate the surgical tool 1200.

[0032] Alternative device connector structures such as Figure 4 As illustrated. In this embodiment, the surgical tool 1200 is supported between two tissue manipulation tools by an alternative manipulator structure 1106'. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that various embodiments of the present invention may be combined with a variety of alternative robotic structures, including those described in U.S. Patent No. 5,878,193, entitled "AUTOMATEDENDOSCOPE SYSTEM FOR OPTIMAL POSITIONING," published on March 2, 1999, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. In addition, although data communications between robotic components and the processor of the robotic surgical system are preliminarily described herein with reference to communications between the surgical tool 1200 and the main controller 1001, it should be understood that similar communications may occur between the circuit systems of manipulators, device connectors, endoscopes or other image capture devices, etc., and the processor of the robotic surgical system for component compatibility confirmation, component type identification, component correction (such as offset, etc.) communication, component connection confirmation with the robotic surgical system, etc.

[0033] Figures 5 to 9A surgical tool 2300 is illustrated that can be effectively used in conjunction with a robotic system 1000 having a tool drive assembly that is operably coupled to a controller of the robotic system that can be operated by input from an operator and is configured to provide at least one rotational output motion to at least one rotatable body portion supported on the tool drive assembly. In various forms, the surgical tool 2300 includes a surgical end effector 2312 that includes an elongated channel 2322 and a pivotally translatable clamping member such as an anvil 2324 that is maintained at a spacing that ensures effective stapling and severing of tissue clamped in the surgical end effector 2312. As shown in the illustrated embodiment, in addition to the aforementioned elongated channel 2322 and anvil 2324, the surgical end effector 2312 may also include: a cutting instrument 2332 having a slider portion 2333 formed thereon; a surgical staple cartridge 2334 disposed in the elongated channel 2322; and a rotating end effector drive shaft 2336 having a spiral thread formed thereon. The cutting instrument 2332 may be, for example, a knife. As will be discussed in further detail below, the rotation of the end effector drive shaft 2336 will cause the cutting instrument 2332 and the slider portion 2333 to axially advance through the surgical staple cartridge 2334 to move between a starting position and an end position. The axial travel direction of the cutting instrument 2332 depends on the direction in which the end effector drive shaft 2336 rotates. The anvil 2324 may be pivotally opened and closed at a pivot point 2325 connected to the proximal end of the elongated channel 2322. The anvil 2324 may also include a protrusion 2327 at its proximal end that operably interfaces with a component of a mechanical closure system (described further below) to open and close the anvil 2324. When the end effector drive shaft 2336 rotates, the cutting instrument 2332 and the slide 2333 will move longitudinally from a starting position through the surgical staple cartridge 2334 to a terminal position, thereby cutting the tissue clamped within the surgical end effector 2312. The movement of the slide 2333 through the surgical staple cartridge 2334 causes the staples therein to be driven through the severed tissue and against the closed anvil 2324, which causes the staples to rotate to fasten the severed tissue. In one form, the elongated channel 2322 and the anvil 2324 may be made of a conductive material, such as metal, so that they can be used as part of an antenna that communicates with a sensor in the end effector, as described above. The surgical staple cartridge 2334 may be made of a non-conductive material, such as plastic, and the sensor may be connected to or disposed in the surgical staple cartridge 2334, as described above.

[0034] It should be noted that although the embodiment of the surgical tool 2300 described herein uses a surgical end effector 2312 for suturing severed tissue, in other embodiments, different techniques for fastening or sealing severed tissue may be used. For example, an end effector that uses radio frequency energy or an adhesive to fasten severed tissue may also be used. U.S. Patent No. 5,709,680, entitled "ELECTROSURGICAL HEMOSTATIC DEVICE" published on January 20, 1998, and U.S. Patent No. 5,688,270, entitled "ELECTROSURGICAL HEMOSTATIC DEVICE WITH RECESSED AND / OR OFFSET ELECTRODES" published on November 18, 1997, disclose cutting instruments that use radio frequency energy to fasten severed tissue, and these patents are incorporated herein by reference. U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 11 / 267,811 filed on November 4, 2005 (now U.S. Patent No. 7,673,783) and U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 11 / 267,383 filed on November 4, 2005 (now U.S. Patent No. 7,607,557) disclose cutting instruments that use adhesives to fasten severed tissue, and these patent applications are also incorporated herein by reference. Therefore, although the description herein relates to cutting / stapling operations, etc., it should be recognized that this is an exemplary embodiment and is not meant to be limiting. Other tissue fastening techniques may also be used.

[0035] In the illustrated embodiment, the surgical end effector 2312 is coupled to an elongated shaft assembly 2308 that is coupled to a tool mounting portion 2460 and defines a longitudinal tool axis LT-LT. In this embodiment, the elongated shaft assembly 2308 does not include an articulated joint. One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that other embodiments may have an articulated joint therein. In at least one embodiment, the elongated shaft assembly 2308 includes a hollow outer tube 2340 that is rotatably supported on a tool mounting plate 2462 of the tool mounting portion 2460, as will be discussed in further detail below. In various embodiments, the elongated shaft assembly 2308 also includes a distal spine shaft 2350. The distal spine shaft 2350 has a distal end portion 2354 that is coupled to or otherwise integrally formed with a distal stationary base portion 2360 that is non-movably coupled to the channel 2322. See Figures 6 to 8 .

[0036] like Figure 6As shown, the distal spinal shaft 2350 has a proximal end portion 2351 that is slidably received in a slot 2355 in a proximal spinal shaft 2353 that is immovably supported within the hollow outer tube 2340 by at least one support collar 2357. Figure 6 and Figure 7 As can be further seen in the figure, the surgical tool 2300 includes a closure tube 2370 that is constrained to move axially only relative to the distal stationary base portion 2360. The closure tube 2370 has a proximal end 2372 having an internal thread 2374 formed therein that is threadedly engaged with a transmission arrangement structure (generally depicted as 2375) that is operably supported on the tool mounting plate 2462. In various forms, the transmission arrangement structure 2375 includes a rotating drive shaft assembly (generally indicated as 2381). When rotated, the rotating drive shaft assembly 2381 will cause the closure tube 2370 to move axially, as will be described in further detail below. In at least one form, the rotating drive shaft assembly 2381 includes a closing drive nut 2382 of a closing clutch assembly (generally indicated as 2380). More specifically, the closure drive nut 2382 has a proximal end portion 2384 that is rotatably supported relative to the outer tube 2340 and threadedly engaged with the closure tube 2370. For assembly purposes, the proximal end portion 2384 can be attached to a retaining ring 2386 by threads. The retaining ring 2386, which cooperates with the end 2387 of the closure drive nut 2382, defines an annular slot 2388, into which a shoulder 2392 of the locking collar 2390 extends. The locking collar 2390 is attached (e.g., welded, glued, etc.) to the end of the outer tube 2340 in a non-movable manner. Such an arrangement is used to fix the closure drive nut 2382 to the outer tube 2340 while enabling the closure drive nut 2382 to rotate relative to the outer tube 2340. The closure drive nut 2382 also has a distal end 2383 having a threaded portion 2385 that threadably engages the internal threads 2374 of the closure tube 2370. Thus, rotation of the closure drive nut 2382 will cause the closure tube 2370 to move axially, such as Figure 7 Indicated by the arrow “D” in FIG.

[0037] Closure of the anvil 2324 and actuation of the cutting instrument 2332 are achieved by controlled motion transmitted by the hollow drive sleeve 2400. Figure 6 and Figure 7 As can be seen in FIG, a hollow drive sleeve 2400 is rotatably and slidably received on the distal spinal shaft 2350. The drive sleeve 2400 has a proximal end portion 2401 that is rotatably mounted to a proximal spinal shaft 2353 that protrudes from a tool mounting portion 2460 so that the drive sleeve 2400 can rotate relative thereto. Figure 6 .like Figures 6 to 8 It can also be seen in FIG. 2 that the drive sleeve 2400 is rotated about the longitudinal tool axis “LT-LT” by a drive shaft 2440 . The drive shaft 2440 has a drive gear 2444 attached to its distal end 2442 and meshingly engages with a driven gear 2450 attached to the drive sleeve 2400 .

[0038] The drive sleeve 2400 also has a distal end portion 2402 that is coupled to a closing clutch 2410 portion of the closing clutch assembly 2380, which has a proximal side 2412 and a distal side 2414. The proximal side 2412 has a series of proximal teeth 2416 formed thereon that are selectively engageable with corresponding proximal tooth cavities 2418 formed in the proximal end portion 2384 of the closing drive nut 2382. Thus, when the proximal teeth 2416 meshingly engage with the proximal tooth cavities 2418 in the closing drive nut 2382, rotation of the drive sleeve 2400 will result in rotation of the closing drive nut 2382 and ultimately axial movement of the closing tube 2370, as will be discussed in further detail below.

[0039] like Figure 6 and Figure 7 As can be most particularly seen in the drawings, the distal side 2414 of the drive clutch portion 2410 has a series of distal teeth 2415 formed thereon which are capable of selectively engaging with corresponding distal tooth cavities 2426 formed in the faceplate portion 2424 of the knife drive shaft assembly 2420. In various embodiments, the knife drive shaft assembly 2420 includes a hollow knife shaft segment 2430 which is rotatably received on a corresponding portion of a distal spine shaft 2350 which is attached to or protrudes from a stationary base 2360. When the distal teeth 2415 of the closing clutch portion 2410 are meshingly engaged with the distal tooth cavity 2426 in the faceplate portion 2424, rotation of the drive sleeve 2400 will cause the drive shaft segment 2430 to rotate about the stationary shaft 2350. As shown in FIG. Figures 6 to 8As can be seen in the figure, the knife drive gear 2432 is attached to the drive shaft segment 2430 and meshes with the drive knife gear 2434 attached to the end effector drive shaft 2336. Therefore, the rotation of the drive shaft segment 2430 will cause the rotation of the end effector drive shaft 2336 to drive the cutting instrument 2332 and the slider 2333 distally through the surgical staple cartridge 2334, thereby cutting and suturing the tissue clamped in the surgical end effector 2312. The slider 2333 can be made of, for example, plastic and can have an inclined distal surface. When the slider 2333 traverses the elongated channel 2322, the forward inclined surface of the slider 2333 pushes or "drives" the nails in the surgical staple cartridge 2334 upward through the clamped tissue and against the anvil 2324. The anvil 2324 rotates or "forms" the nails, thereby suturing the severed tissue. As used herein, the term "firing" refers to the initiation of the action required to drive the cutting instrument and sled portion in a distal direction through the surgical staple cartridge to cut tissue clamped in the surgical end effector and drive the staples through the severed tissue.

[0040] In use, it may be desirable to rotate the surgical end effector 2312 about the longitudinal tool axis LT-LT. In at least one embodiment, the transmission arrangement 2375 includes a rotation transmission assembly 2465 that is configured to receive a corresponding rotational output motion from the tool drive assembly 1010 of the robotic system 1000 and convert the rotational output motion into a rotational control motion to rotate the elongated shaft assembly 2308 (and the surgical end effector 2312) about the longitudinal tool axis LT-LT. Fig. 92460, the proximal end 2341 of the outer tube 2340 is rotatably supported within a hanger device 2343 of a tool mounting plate 2462 attached to the tool mounting portion 2460. A rotation gear 2345 is formed at or attached to the proximal end 2341 of the outer tube 2340 of the elongated shaft assembly 2308 for meshing engagement with a rotation gear assembly 2470 operably supported on the tool mounting plate 2462. In at least one embodiment, when the tool mounting portion 2460 is coupled to the tool drive assembly 1010, the rotation drive gear 2472 is coupled to a corresponding first of the driven disks or driven elements on the adapter side of the tool mounting plate 2462. The rotation drive assembly 2470 also includes a rotation driven gear 2474 that is rotatably supported on the tool mounting plate 2462 in a meshing engagement with the rotation gear 2345 and the rotation drive gear 2472. Thus, applying a first rotational output motion from the robotic system 1000 to the corresponding driven element via the tool drive assembly 1010 will cause rotation of the rotational drive gear 2472 due to being operably coupled thereto. The rotation of the rotational drive gear 2472 ultimately causes the elongated shaft assembly 2308 (and the end effector 2312) to rotate about the longitudinal tool axis LT-LT (primary rotational motion).

[0041] The closing of the anvil 2324 relative to the staple cartridge 2034 is achieved by axially moving the closure tube 2370 in the distal direction "DD". The axial movement of the closure tube 2370 in the distal direction "DD" is achieved by applying a rotational control motion to the closure drive nut 2382. In order to apply a rotational control motion to the closure drive nut 2382, the closure clutch 2410 must first be engaged with the proximal end portion 2384 of the closure drive nut 2382. In various embodiments, the transmission arrangement 2375 also includes a shifter drive assembly 2480 operably supported on the tool mounting plate 2462. More specifically and with reference to FIG. 47, it can be seen that the proximal end portion 2359 of the proximal spine portion 2353 extends through the rotation gear 2345 and is rotatably coupled to the shifter rack 2481, which is slidably attached to the tool mounting plate 2462 through the slot 2482. The shifter drive assembly 2480 also includes a shifter drive gear 2483 that is coupled to a corresponding second of the driven disks or driven elements on the adapter side of the tool mounting plate 2462 when the tool mounting portion 2460 is coupled to the tool holder. The shifter drive assembly 2480 also includes a shifter driven gear 2478 that is rotatably supported on the tool mounting plate 2462 in meshing engagement with the shifter drive gear 2483 and the shifter rack gear 2482. Thus, applying a second rotational output motion from the robot system 1000 through the tool drive assembly 1010 to the corresponding driven element will cause rotation of the shifter drive gear 2483 due to being operably coupled thereto. Rotation of the shifter drive gear 2483 ultimately results in axial movement of the shifter rack 2482 and the proximal ridge portion 2353, as well as the drive sleeve 2400 and the closing clutch 2410 attached thereto. The direction of axial travel of the closing clutch 2410 depends on the direction in which the robotic system 1000 rotates the shifter drive gear 2483. Thus, rotation of the shifter drive gear 2483 in a first rotational direction will result in axial movement of the closing clutch 2410 in a proximal direction "PD" to engage the proximal teeth 2416 with the proximal tooth cavity 2418 in the closing drive nut 2382. Conversely, rotation of the shifter drive gear 2483 in a second rotational direction (opposite to the first rotational direction) will result in axial movement of the closing clutch 2410 in a distal direction "DD" to engage the distal teeth 2415 with the corresponding distal tooth cavity 2426 formed in the faceplate portion 2424 of the knife drive shaft assembly 2420.

[0042] Once the closing clutch 2410 has been meshed with the closing drive nut 2382, the closing drive nut 2382 is rotated by rotating the closing clutch 2410. The rotation of the closing clutch 2410 is controlled by applying a rotational output motion to the rotational drive transmission arrangement structure portion 2490 of the transmission arrangement structure 2375 operably supported on the tool mounting plate 2462, as shown in FIG. Fig. 9 In at least one embodiment, the rotary drive transmission device 2490 includes a rotary drive assembly 2490', which includes a gear 2491, which is coupled to a corresponding third driven disk or driven element on the adapter side of the tool mounting plate 2462 when the tool mounting portion 2460 is coupled to the tool holder. The rotary drive transmission device 2490 also includes a first rotary driven gear 2492, which is rotatably supported on the tool mounting plate 2462 in a meshing engagement with a second rotary driven gear 2493 and the rotary drive gear 2491. The second rotary driven gear 2493 is coupled to the proximal end portion 2443 of the drive shaft 2440.

[0043] Rotation of the rotary drive gear 2491 in a first rotational direction will cause the drive shaft 2440 to rotate in the first direction. Conversely, rotation of the rotary drive gear 2491 in a second rotational direction (opposite to the first rotational direction) will cause the drive shaft 2440 to rotate in the second direction. As described above, the drive shaft 2440 has a drive gear 2444 attached to its distal end 2442 and meshingly engages with the driven gear 2450 attached to the drive sleeve 2400. Therefore, rotation of the drive shaft 2440 will cause rotation of the drive sleeve 2400.

[0044] A method of operating the surgical tool 2300 will now be described. Once the tool mounting portion 2462 has been operably coupled to the tool holder of the robotic system 1000 and oriented into a position adjacent to the target tissue to be cut and stapled, if the anvil 2334 is not already in the open position ( Figure 6 ), the robotic system 1000 can apply a first rotational output motion to the shifter drive gear 2483, which causes the closing clutch 2410 to move axially into meshing engagement with the closing drive nut 2382 (if the closing clutch is not already in meshing engagement with the closing drive nut). Figure 7Once the controller 1001 of the robotic system 1000 has confirmed (e.g., using a sensor in the surgical end effector 2312 in communication with the robotic control system) that the closing clutch 2410 is in meshing engagement with the closing drive nut 2382, the robotic controller 1001 can then apply the second rotational output motion to the rotary drive gear 2492, which ultimately results in rotation of the rotary drive nut 2382 in the first direction, as described above, which results in axial travel of the closure tube 2370 in the distal direction "DD". As the closure tube 2370 moves in the distal direction, it contacts a portion of the anvil 2323 and causes the anvil 2324 to pivot to the closed position to clamp the target tissue between the anvil 2324 and the surgical staple cartridge 2334. Once the robotic controller 1001 determines, through a corresponding sensor in the surgical end effector 2312 in communication with it, that the anvil 2334 has pivoted to the closed position, the robotic system 1000 stops applying the second rotational output motion to the rotary drive gear 2491. The robotic controller 1001 can also provide an indication to the surgeon that the anvil 2334 has been fully closed. The surgeon can then initiate a firing procedure. In an alternative embodiment, the firing procedure can be automatically initiated by the robotic controller 1001. The robotic controller 1001 then applies a primary rotational control motion 2483 to the shifter drive gear 2483, which causes the closing clutch 2410 to move axially into meshing engagement with the faceplate portion 2424 of the knife drive shaft assembly 2420. See Figure 8Once the controller 1001 of the robotic system 1000 has confirmed (using a sensor in the end effector 2312 that communicates with the robotic controller 1001) that the closing clutch 2410 is engaged with the panel portion 2424, the robotic controller 1001 can then apply a second rotational output motion to the rotary drive gear 2492, which ultimately results in axial movement of the cutting instrument 2332 and the sled portion 2333 through the surgical staple cartridge 2334 in the distal direction "DD", as described above. As the cutting instrument 2332 moves distally through the surgical staple cartridge 2334, the tissue clamped therein is severed. When the sled portion 2333 is driven distally, it causes the staples in the surgical staple cartridge to be driven through the severed tissue and into contact with the anvil 2324. Once the robot controller 1001 has determined (using a sensor in the end effector 2312 in communication with the robot controller 1001) that the cutting instrument 2324 has reached the end position within the surgical staple cartridge 2334, the robot controller 1001 stops applying the secondary rotational output motion to the rotational drive gear 2491. The robot controller 1001 then applies the secondary rotational output motion to the rotational drive gear 2491, which ultimately causes the cutting instrument 2332 and the slider portion 2333 to travel axially to the starting position in the proximal direction "PD". Once the robot controller 1001 has determined using a sensor in the surgical end effector 2312 in communication with the robot controller 1001 that the cutting instrument 2324 has reached the starting position, the robot controller 1001 stops applying the secondary rotational output motion to the rotational drive gear 2491. The robot controller 1001 then applies the primary rotational output motion to the shifter drive gear 2483 so that the closing clutch 2410 moves into engagement with the rotational drive nut 2382. Once the closure clutch 2410 has moved into meshing engagement with the rotary drive nut 2382, the robotic controller 1001 applies a secondary output motion to the rotary drive gear 2491, which ultimately causes rotation of the rotary drive nut 2382 in a second direction to move the closure tube 2370 in the proximal direction "PD". Figures 6 to 8 As can be seen in FIG. 23, the closure tube 2370 has an opening 2345 therein that engages a protrusion 2327 on the anvil 2324 to cause the anvil 2324 to pivot to the open position. In an alternative embodiment, when the closure tube 2370 has returned to the starting position ( Figure 6 ), a spring can also be used to pivot the anvil 2324 to the open position.

[0045] In various embodiments, a single rotational input can be used to control multiple functions of the end effector of a surgical instrument. In one embodiment, as described above, rotation of the drive shaft 2440 can achieve movement of the anvil 2334 to capture / release tissue in the end effector 2312, and axial movement of the cutting instrument 2332 and the slide portion 2333 through the surgical staple cartridge 2334 to cut and suture tissue. In various other embodiments, a single rotational input can be used to quickly transform the first and second jaws of the end effector from an open configuration to a closed configuration at a first speed to gently grasp the tissue between the first and second jaws, thereby achieving a brisk movement for grasping and manipulating tissue. A single rotational input can also be used to slowly transform the first and second jaws from an open configuration toward a closed configuration at a second speed slower than the first speed to forcefully grasp the tissue between the first and second jaws, thereby preparing the tissue to be sutured. The single rotary input can further be used to drive a firing assembly that can actuate a staple cartridge located in the end effector to fire staples into the grasped tissue while also deploying a knife to cut the stapled tissue. The multiple functions of the single rotary input place conflicting demands on the drive train design.

[0046] One solution to the above problem is to use inertia to "smooth" power consumption and "plow" brief peak loads, such as during a strong grasping or staple firing operation of tissue, while still enabling brisk motion to grasp with the jaws of the end effector. Impact driver mechanisms generate the desired peak loads needed; however, these mechanisms introduce unacceptable recoil for gently grasping tissue. Therefore, it is desirable to have an impact-type mechanism that generates the desired peak loads but avoids unacceptable grasping recoil.

[0047] In various embodiments, reference Fig.10 , according to at least one aspect of the present disclosure, an impact mechanism 100 is provided. The impact mechanism 100 includes a rotational input 150, a rotational output 200, and a compression spring 250. In various embodiments, the rotational input 150 can be rotatably driven by a motor, such as a motor in a handle assembly, such as the handle assembly in U.S. Patent No. 7,845,537, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. In various embodiments, the rotational input 150 can be rotatably driven by a motor, such as a motor from a robotic surgical system, such as a motor in a robotic arm vehicle 1100. Other embodiments are contemplated in which the rotational input 150 is driven by other motion generators other than a motor, such as driven by a trigger of a surgical instrument.

[0048] The rotary input 150 includes a shaft 152 and an impact driver 154 extending from the shaft 152. In various embodiments, the impact driver 154 is removably coupled to the shaft 152 at a coupling interface 153, thereby allowing the impact driver 154 to be replaced with another impact driver. The impact driver 154 includes a base 156 and two arms 158, 160 extending from the base 156. The arm 158 includes a ramp cam 158a, 158b defined on each side of the arm 158 and a distal surface 158c extending between the ramp cams 158a, 158b. Similarly, the arm 160 includes a ramp cam 160a, 160b defined on each side of the arm 160 and a distal surface 160c extending between the ramp cams 160a, 160b. The base 156 includes a curved transition surface 156a, 156b on each side thereof. The ramped cams 158a, 160a and the curved transition surface 156a define a first curved path 162a from the distal surface 158c of the arm 158 to the distal surface 160c of the arm 160. Similarly, the ramped cams 158b, 160b and the curved transition surface 156b define a second curved path 162b from the distal surface 158c of the arm 158 to the distal surface 160c of the arm 160. In addition, each arm 158, 158 includes a grasping pawl 158d, 160d defined in the distal surface 158c, 160c that is sized to receive and retain a corresponding ridge of the rotation output 200, as will be explained in further detail below.

[0049] In various embodiments, the rotation output 200 includes a shaft 202 and a head 204 extending therefrom. The head 204 includes a pair of ridges 204a, 204b extending from sides 205a, 205b thereof (ridges 204a are located at Figures 10 to 14 100, the pair of ridges correspond to the gripping detents 158d, 160d defined in the distal surfaces 158c, 160c of the arms 158, 160. In various other embodiments, the head 204 includes a continuous ridge extending from a first side 205a of the head 204 to a second side 205b of the head 204, as opposed to two discrete ridges extending from discrete locations on the sides 205a, 205b of the head 204. In one aspect, the head 204 defines an impact surface 204c, 204d on each side thereof, as will be explained in further detail below.

[0050] like Fig.10 As can be seen in FIG. 2 , compression spring 250 surrounds shaft 202 and applies force to head 204 to push rotational output 200 toward rotational input 150 and operably engage with the rotational input. In various embodiments, rotational output 200 can be moved relative to rotational input 150 in an engaged position (e.g., Fig.10As can be seen in the figure, the compression spring 250 is compressed by a first amount) and the sliding position (such as Fig.12 As can be seen in FIG. 1 , the compression spring 250 is compressed to move axially between a second amount (which is smaller than the first amount).

[0051] In operation, the impact mechanism 100 may be in a coupled state, such as Fig.10 , where the rotational input 150 is operably coupled to the rotational output 200 via the gripping pawls 158d, 160d and the ridges 204a, 204b. As described above, the motor can apply an input rotational motion to the rotational input 150, which can cause the rotational input to rotate in a first direction 300 (such as a clockwise direction) or a second direction 310 (such as a counterclockwise direction). In the coupled state, the rotation of the rotational input 150 in the first direction 300 causes the rotational input 150 to apply torque to the rotational output 200 via the coupled pawls 158d, 160d and the ridges 204a, 204b, thereby causing a corresponding directional rotation of the rotational output 200 (i.e., direction 302). Similarly, in the coupled state, rotation of the rotational input 150 in the second direction 310 causes the rotational input 150 to apply torque to the rotational output 200 through the coupled detents 158d, 160d and ridges 204a, 204b, thereby resulting in a corresponding directional rotation (i.e., direction 312) of the rotational output 200. In one aspect, in the coupled state, there is no relative rotation between the rotational input 150 and the rotational output 200.

[0052] Rotation of the rotational output 200 can achieve multiple end effector functions, such as quickly moving the jaws of the end effector between an open configuration and a closed configuration to grasp and manipulate tissue. In one embodiment, rotation of the rotational output 200 can move the anvil 2324 and the elongated channel 2322 between an open configuration and a closed configuration, as described elsewhere herein. In one aspect, rotation of the rotational input 150 along the first direction 300 causes a corresponding rotation of the rotational output 200 along the first direction 302, thereby moving the jaws toward the open configuration. On the other hand, rotation of the rotational input along the second direction 310 causes a corresponding rotation of the rotational output 200 along the second direction 312, thereby moving the jaws toward the closed configuration.

[0053] In one aspect, the rotation of the rotational output 200 can achieve a plurality of other end effector functions, such as quickly and slowly moving the jaws of the end effector between an open configuration and a closed configuration to clamp tissue in preparation for suturing. In one aspect, the rotation of the rotational input 150 along the first direction 300 causes a corresponding rotation of the rotational output 200 along the first direction 302, thereby moving the jaws toward the open configuration. In another aspect, the rotation of the rotational input 150 along the second direction 310 causes a corresponding rotation of the rotational output 200 along the second direction 312, thereby moving the jaws toward the closed configuration to forcefully grasp tissue.

[0054] In one aspect, the rotation of the rotary output 200 can achieve a plurality of other end effector functions, such as actuating the firing drive to deploy the nail into the tissue clamped between the jaws and cut the sutured tissue. In one embodiment, the rotation of the rotary output 200 can drive the cutting instrument 2332 having the slider portion 2333 formed thereon through the surgical staple cartridge 2334 to deploy the nail from the surgical staple cartridge and cut the tissue within the end effector 2312, as described elsewhere herein. In one aspect, the rotation of the rotary input 150 along the first direction 300 causes the corresponding rotation of the rotary output 200 along the first direction 302, thereby moving the firing drive through the nail firing stroke to deploy the nail from the staple cartridge and cut the sutured tissue. On the other hand, the rotation of the rotary input 150 along the second direction 310 causes the corresponding rotation of the rotary output 200 along the second direction 312, thereby moving the firing drive toward the non-firing position to prepare for positioning a new staple cartridge in the end effector.

[0055] In operation, when the rotational output 200 encounters resistance due to, for example, thick tissue positioned between the jaws of the end effector, the amount of torque required to rotate the rotational output 200 increases. When the amount of torque required to rotate the rotational output 200 reaches or exceeds the torque threshold, the torque applied by the rotational input 150 may cause the compression spring 250 to compress slightly, thereby causing the ridges 204a, 204b to "slip" from the pawls 158d, 160d, as shown in FIG. Fig.11 , thereby transitioning the impact mechanism 100 to the sliding state. Once the ridges 204a, 204b have slid from the pawls, the rotational motion of the rotational input 150 is no longer transferred (at least temporarily, as will be explained in more detail below) to the rotational output 200. Instead, in the sliding state, the rotational input 150 rotates relative to the rotational output 200.

[0056] In one aspect, the torque threshold is based on the spring constant of the compression spring 250. In various embodiments, the impact mechanism 100 may be provided with multiple compression springs 250, allowing a user to swap out compression springs 250 to change the torque threshold depending on the application in which the impact mechanism 100 will be utilized.

[0057] Continuing from above, rotation of the rotary input 150 in the sliding state causes relative rotation between the rotary input 150 and the rotary output 200. Thus, in the sliding state, the arms 158, 160 of the rotary input 150 rotate relative to the head 204 of the rotary output 200. Once the rotary input 150 has rotated a certain amount relative to the rotary output 200, the compression spring 250 can axially drive the head 204 of the rotary output 200 into the slot 170 defined between the arms 158, 160 of the impact driver 154, as shown in FIG. Fig.12 , thereby converting the rotation output 200 to the sliding position, as described above. In one aspect, the specific amount of rotation can be the amount of rotation required for the lateral ends 205a, 205b of the head 204 to pass over the distal surfaces 158c, 160c of the arms 158, 160 to allow the head 204 to be driven into the slot 170 defined between the arms of the rotation input. In one aspect, the specific amount of rotation can be less than or equal to 15°. In one aspect, the specific amount of rotation can be between 15° and 30°, such as 20° or 25°. In one aspect, the predetermined amount of rotation can be greater than or equal to 30°, such as 45°. In one aspect, the predetermined amount of rotation can be greater than or equal to 45°, such as 50°, 75°, or 90°.

[0058] Continuing from above, with the head 204 of the rotary output 200 positioned in the slot 170 of the impact driver 154 (i.e., the sliding position), the rotary input 200 can continue to rotate relative to the rotary output 154 in the first direction 300, causing the ramped camming surface 158a to impact the impact surface 204c and the ramped camming surface 160b to impact the impact surface 204d, thereby causing the impact driver 200 to deliver a transient peak load to the rotary output 150 that is higher than the load that is normally possible when the impact mechanism 100 is in the coupled state. In various embodiments, the transient peak load may be 1.2 times the load that can be achieved when the impact mechanism 100 is in the coupled state. In various embodiments, the transient peak load may be 1.5 times the load that can be achieved when the impact mechanism 100 is in the coupled state. In various embodiments, the transient peak load may be 2 times the load that can be achieved when the impact mechanism 100 is in the coupled state.

[0059] After the ramped cam surfaces 158a, 160b impact the corresponding impact surfaces 204c, 204d of the head 204, further rotation of the rotational input portion 150 causes the rotational output portion 200 to be driven out of the slot 170. More specifically, as Fig.13, rotation of the rotary input 150 in the first direction 300 causes the ramp cam 158a to engage the impact surface 204c and cam the impact surface away from the base 156. Similarly, rotation of the rotary input 150 in the first direction 300 causes the ramp cam 160b to engage the impact surface 204d and cam the impact surface away from the base 156. The cooperative camming action of the ramp cams 158a, 160b on the impact surfaces 204c, 204d compresses the compression spring 250 and drives the rotary output 200 toward the engaged position. Once the impact surfaces 204c, 204d pass over the apex of the ramp cam surfaces 158a, 160b, the rotary input 150 can continue to rotate relative to the rotary output 200 in the first direction 300 until the ridges 204a, 204b of the head 204 are aligned with the detents 158d, 160d of the rotary input 150. At this time, the force applied to the head 204 by the compression spring 250 forces the ridges 204a, 204b to enter the pawls 158d, 160d, thereby returning the impact mechanism 100 to the coupled state, as shown in FIG. Fig.14 It should be noted that at this point, due to the relative rotation that has occurred between the rotational input 150 and the rotational output 200, the ridge 204b is now engaged with 158d, and the ridge 204a is engaged with the pawl 160d.

[0060] Although the above process of utilizing the impact mechanism 100 is described as rotating the rotation input portion 150 in the first direction 300, it should be understood that the process for utilizing the impact mechanism 100 in the second direction 310 will be substantially the same, except that the ramp cam 158b will impact the impact surface 204c and cam the impact surface after the impact mechanism 100 transitions to the sliding state and the ramp cam 160a will impact the impact surface 204d and cam the impact surface back to the coupling state. Therefore, the impact mechanism 100 is able to provide a short peak load to the rotation output portion 200 when the rotation input portion 150 rotates in the first direction 300 and the second direction 310.

[0061] In various embodiments, after the rotational input 150 transmits a brief peak load to the rotational output 200 and the impact mechanism 100 returns to the coupled state, the amount of torque required to rotate the rotational output 200 may still exceed the torque threshold. Therefore, continued rotation of the rotational input 150 after the ridges 204a, 204b and the pawls 158d, 160d have returned to the coupled state can cause the ridges 204a, 204b to "slip again" and repeat the above-described impact process to once again apply a brief peak load to the rotational output 200. This allows the impact mechanism 100 to apply multiple consecutive brief peak loads to overcome the resistance encountered by the rotational output 200.

[0062] As described above, the impact mechanism 100 is capable of applying short peak loads that are usually not available to the drive assembly, thereby allowing the drive assembly to drive both high torque functions (such as powerfully grasping tissue or performing nail firing operations) and low torque functions (such as quickly grasping tissue with the jaws of the end effector). In addition, when performing low torque functions, the connection between the ridges 204a, 204b and the pawls 158d, 160d eliminates unacceptable grasping clearances.

[0063] In various embodiments, the present disclosure contemplates a second impact mechanism. The second impact mechanism can be similar to the impact mechanism 100 in many respects, except for the differences noted below. The second impact mechanism may include an impact driver that, unlike the impact driver of the impact mechanism 100, has four arms that are rotationally spaced 90° from each other relative to a central axis defined by the input shaft 152, with gaps defined between adjacent arms. Similar to the arms 158, 160 of the impact mechanism 100, each arm of the impact driver may include a pawl and a ramp cam on each side thereof. In addition, the second impact mechanism may also include a head that, unlike the "I-shaped" head of the impact mechanism 100, may have a "+-shaped" head, wherein each of the four arms of the "+-shaped" head includes a ridge extending therefrom that can be coupled to a corresponding pawl in the head of the second impact mechanism. In one aspect, unlike impact mechanism 100 having two contact points between rotational input 150 and rotational output 200 (the contact point of ridge 204b with pawl 160d and the contact point of ridge 204a with pawl 158d), the second impact mechanism may include four contact points between the rotational input and the rotational output.

[0064] In one aspect, the second impact mechanism can operate in a substantially similar manner to the impact mechanism 100. However, unlike the impact mechanism 100, after the second impact mechanism transitions to the sliding state, the rotational input of the second impact mechanism rotates only 90° relative to the rotational output between the coupled states. In one aspect, increasing the contact points between the rotational input and the rotational output can increase the amount of torque that the rotational input can apply to the rotational output before transitioning to the sliding state. Similarly, increasing the number of arms and impact surfaces can increase the transient peak load that the rotational input applies to the rotational output in the sliding state.

[0065] The present disclosure contemplates various other impact mechanisms. In one aspect, an impact mechanism is contemplated wherein the rotational output comprises a pawl and the rotational input comprises a ridge. In one aspect, an impact mechanism is contemplated wherein a compression spring surrounds the axis of the rotational input and the rotational input is axially movable relative to the rotational output.

[0066] As described above, the impact mechanism 100 relies on relative rotation between the rotational input 150 and the rotational output 200 to apply a brief peak load to the rotational output 200. When the impact mechanism 100 is used, this relative rotation results in different angular rotation amounts of the rotational input 150 and the rotational output 200, such as during a surgical procedure. In one embodiment, reference is made to Figures 10 to 14 , after the impact mechanism 100 is transformed into the sliding state and returned to the coupled state, the rotation input 150 of the impact mechanism 100 will rotate more than the rotation output 200, such as 180° more relative to the rotation output 200. Due to the possibility of "slipping" in the impact mechanism 100, the user may not know how much of the rotation from the rotation input 150 has actually been transferred to the rotation output 200. Since it is not known how much rotation has actually been transferred to the rotation output 200, the user may inadvertently over-clamp or under-clamp the tissue between the jaws of the end effector. As another example, since it is not known how much rotation has been transferred to the rotation output 200, the user may inadvertently try to transfer the jaws to the open configuration before the nail firing stroke has been completed. As another example, since it is not known how much rotation has been transferred to the rotation output 200, the user may rotate the rotation output 200 too much, thereby causing the firing drive to be stuck in either the proximal end or the distal end of the end effector, thereby potentially damaging the end effector. Therefore, a control system is needed for determining how much angular rotation has been transferred from the rotational input 150 to the rotational output 200 .

[0067] Reference now Fig.15 According to at least one aspect of the present disclosure, an algorithm 400 for determining the output angle of the rotational output 200 of the impact mechanism 100 is provided. In one aspect, the algorithm 400 can determine the angle of the rotational output 200 by monitoring the number of slips in the impact mechanism 100 (i.e., the number of times the impact mechanism 100 transitions to a sliding state and then transitions back to a coupled state). As will be explained in more detail below, the occurrence of slips can be used together with a predetermined correction angle and the angle of the rotational input 150 to determine the angle of the rotational output 200, and therefore determine how much angular rotation has been transferred from the rotational input 150 to the rotational output 200. In various embodiments, the algorithm 400 can be stored in a memory and executed by any suitable means, such as with a controller, a control system, a control circuit, a processor, or any other suitable manner for executing an algorithm as known in the art or described elsewhere herein.

[0068] As mentioned above, the algorithm 400 can use a predetermined correction angle, etc. to determine the output angle of the rotating output 200. In one aspect, the correction angle is defined as the angular rotation of the rotating input 150 relative to the rotating output 200 between the coupled states of the impact mechanism after transitioning to the sliding state. In various embodiments, the correction angle is based on the geometric relationship between the rotating input 150 and the rotating output 200 and the number of contact points between the rotating input and the rotating output. In one embodiment, due to the geometric relationship between the rotating output 200 and the rotating input 150 of the impact mechanism 100, such as Figures 10 to 14 As seen in , the rotation input 150 rotates 180° relative to the rotation output 200 between transitioning to the sliding state and then returning to the connected state. In another embodiment, due to the geometric relationship between the rotation output and the rotation input of the second impact mechanism as described above, the rotation input rotates 90° relative to the rotation output between transitioning to the sliding state and then returning to the connected state. Therefore, the correction angle can be defined based on how far the rotation input will rotate relative to the rotation output between each sliding and reconnection of the corresponding impact mechanism. In various embodiments, the correction angle can be greater than 180°, such as 270° or 360°. In various embodiments, the correction angle can be less than 90°, such as 45°. In various embodiments, the correction angle can be between 90° and 180°, such as 135°. Any suitable impact mechanism can be constructed so that the desired correction angle can be achieved.

[0069] As mentioned above, the algorithm 400 may be executed by a control system or the like. At the beginning of use of the impact mechanism 100, the control system may initiate the algorithm 400 to set a slip count at box 402, which may be updated during operation of the impact mechanism 100, as will be described below. In one aspect, the control system may initially set the slip count N to 0, thereby indicating that the angle of the rotating input 150 is the same as the angle of the rotating output 200 (i.e., not offset), as determined by the equation at box 404.

[0070] In addition, the control system can set the correction angle of the impact mechanism that will be used to determine the output angle of the rotating output 200. In one aspect, the correction angle can be set by the user at the user interface according to the known geometric relationship between the rotating input and the rotating output. In one aspect, the correction angle can be set automatically by the control system. In one embodiment, the control system may include an RFID scanner that can interrogate the RFID tags on one or both of the rotating input and / or the rotating output to determine the type of the rotating input and the rotating output used in the impact mechanism. Based on the reading, the control system can determine the geometric relationship between the rotating input and the rotating output to determine the correction angle of the impact mechanism based on data stored in the memory or obtained from a cloud-based system. In various other embodiments, the control system can set a default correction angle (such as 180°) to be applied unless input indicating other circumstances is received from the user. In various embodiments, the control system can prompt the user to provide input, such as the type of impact mechanism used, the surgical instrument used, or a numerical value associated with the surgical instrument, such as a serial number or model, so that the control system can determine the impact mechanism to be used based on data stored in the memory or obtained from a cloud-based server. The present disclosure contemplates various other means for determining the correction angle.

[0071] As mentioned above, the control system can determine the output angle of the rotational output 200 based on the input angle of the rotational input 150, etc. In one aspect, the angle of the rotational input can be sensed and / or tracked by the control system in any suitable manner, such as using an angle sensor, an encoder, an optically based angle measurement system, or any suitable mechanism for tracking the angle of the rotational input 150, such as those disclosed elsewhere herein. As can be seen at block 404, the control system can calculate the output angle by adjusting the determined input angle of the rotational input by the product of the correction angle and the slip count N. For example, at the beginning of using the impact mechanism with a slip count N of 0, the output angle of the rotational output will be equal to the input angle of the rotational input.

[0072] In various embodiments, the control system can monitor various parameters of the impact mechanism 100 in order to adjust the slip count N. In operation, as discussed above, the rotational input 150 can be rotated in a first direction 300 (such as a clockwise direction) or a second direction 310 (such as a counterclockwise direction) to transmit corresponding rotational motion to the rotational output 200 in a first direction 302 or a second direction 312, respectively. Therefore, due to the two directional rotations of the rotational input 150, the impact mechanism 100 can experience two types of sliding events—a first sliding event in which the rotational input 150 slides and reconnects while it rotates in the first direction 300, such as in a second sliding event. Figures 10 to 14As can be seen in the progression of FIG. 4 , in the second sliding event, the rotational input 150 slides and reconnects while it rotates in the second direction 310. Thus, the algorithm 400 can adjust the sliding count N based on the detected sliding event. In one aspect, the control system can determine the occurrence of the first sliding event and decrement the sliding count at box 412 or box 414 by determining whether certain conditions are met along the first path 420 of the algorithm 400, as will be described in more detail below. In another aspect, the control system can determine the occurrence of the second sliding event and increment the sliding count at box 462 or box 464 by determining whether certain conditions are met along the second path 450 of the algorithm 400, as will be described in more detail below.

[0073] In one aspect, the impact mechanism 100 can start in a coupled state so that rotation of the rotational input 150 in a first direction 300 causes a corresponding rotation of the rotational output 200 in a first direction 302. During operation of the impact mechanism 100, the control system can monitor the input torque applied by the rotational input 150 to the rotational output 200 (as an example, via the coupled ridges 204a, 204b and the pawls 158d, 160d). In various embodiments, the control system can monitor the input torque using any suitable torque or force sensor. In one aspect, the control system can monitor the input torque using a strain gauge located on the rotational input 150 and / or the rotational output 200. In various embodiments, the control system can monitor the input torque by, for example, monitoring the amount of current or voltage supplied to the motor driving the rotational input 150 with a current or voltage sensor, respectively. The present disclosure contemplates various other mechanisms for monitoring the input torque provided by the rotational input 150, such as those disclosed elsewhere herein.

[0074] As mentioned above, when the rotation output 200 encounters resistance due to, for example, thick tissue positioned between the jaws of the end effector, the amount of torque required to rotate the rotation output 200 increases. The control system can monitor the input torque applied by the rotation input 150 and compare the monitored torque with the torque thresholds A and -A. In various embodiments, the torque thresholds A and -A can be stored in a memory or in a cloud-based system and can be retrieved by the control system. In various embodiments, the torque thresholds A and -A can be thresholds indicating that the rotation input 150 applies a torque to the rotation output 200, which causes the compression spring 250 to compress and thus potentially causes the ridges 204a, 204b to slide from the pawls 158d, 160d. In various embodiments, the magnitude of the torque thresholds A and -A can be the same, only mirrored along the x-axis (i.e., they differ in multiplying by a factor of -1). In various other embodiments, the magnitude of the torque threshold A can be different from the torque threshold -A. In various embodiments, rotation of the rotational input 150 in a first direction causes the control system to sense a positive torque value, and rotation of the rotational input 150 in a second direction causes the control system to sense a negative torque value.

[0075] In one aspect, detection of the input torque reaching or exceeding the torque threshold A may indicate a slip event, wherein the rotating input 150 slips relative to the rotating output 200 when it rotates in a first direction, such as the first direction 300. Similarly, in one aspect, detection of the input torque reaching or dropping below the torque threshold-A may indicate a slip event, wherein the rotating input 150 slips relative to the rotating output 200 when it rotates in a second direction, such as the second direction 310. Based on the above threshold detections, the control system may proceed along a first path 420 of the algorithm 400 or a second path 450 of the algorithm 400, the first path indicating the potential occurrence of a slip event in the first direction when the torque threshold A is reached or exceeded, and the second path indicating the potential occurrence of a slip event in the second direction when the torque threshold-A is reached or dropped below.

[0076] In one aspect, when the control system detects that the torque threshold A has been reached or exceeded, the control system can proceed to block 406, indicating that the ridges 204a, 204b of the rotational output 200 may have slipped from the detents 158d, 160d of the rotational input 150 when the rotational input 150 was rotated in the first direction. At block 406, the control system can verify the occurrence of the slip event by comparing the determined tension associated with the impact mechanism 100 to the tension threshold B, i.e., determining whether the ridges 204a, 204b actually slipped from the detents 158d, 160d. In one aspect, the tension is defined as the derivative of the torque applied by the rotational input 150 over time.

[0077] In the event that the ridges 204a, 204b actually slide from the pawls 158d, 160d, as mentioned above, the impact mechanism 100 will transition to a sliding state, so that the rotational input 150 will rotate relative to the rotational output 200. At this point, since the ridges 204a, 204b will be drivingly decoupled from the pawls 158d, 160d, the amount of torque applied by the rotational input 150 to the rotational output 200 will quickly drop to zero, causing the tension to have a negative slope, dropping below the tension threshold B. In various embodiments, the tension threshold B can be stored in a memory or cloud-based system and can be retrieved by the control system. In various embodiments, the tension threshold B can be based on known characteristics of the impact mechanism. In various embodiments, the tension threshold B can be a threshold indicating that the ridges 204a, 204b are drivingly decoupled from the pawls 158d, 160d.

[0078] When the control system detects the occurrence of the tension force dropping below the tension threshold B at box 406, the control system can confirm that a sliding event in the first direction has actually occurred and proceed to box 408. In the event that the ridges 204a, 204b do not actually slip from the pawls 158d, 160d, the rotation of the rotational input 150 will continue to cause a corresponding rotation of the rotational output 200. In this case, the control system can detect that the input torque provided by the rotational input 150 drops below the torque threshold A and returns to box 404 to continue monitoring the input torque of the rotational input 150 against the torque thresholds A, -A. In some embodiments, at box 406, the control system can determine that a sliding event has not actually occurred by determining whether the detected tension force is greater than the tension threshold B (which can indicate that a sliding event has not actually occurred).

[0079] As mentioned above, once the control system has determined that the impact mechanism 100 has transitioned to the sliding state and the rotational input 150 is now rotating relative to the rotational output 200, the control system proceeds to box 408. At box 408, the control system may monitor when the rotational input 150 and the rotational output 200 have returned to the coupled state. At box 408, the control system may monitor the occurrence of the tension of the impact mechanism 100 reaching or exceeding the tension threshold C, which may indicate that the rotational input 150 impacts the rotational output 200 to deliver a brief peak load and the impact mechanism 100 potentially returns to the coupled state. In the event that the control system detects the occurrence of the tension exceeding the tension threshold C, the control circuit may proceed to box 410 to verify whether the rotational input 150 and the rotational output 200 have actually returned to the coupled state. In various embodiments, the tension threshold C may be stored in a memory or a cloud-based system and may be retrieved by the control system. In various embodiments, the tension threshold C may be based on known characteristics of the impact mechanism. In various embodiments, the tension threshold C can be a threshold that indicates that the ridges 204a, 204b are potentially drivingly reconnected with the pawls 158d, 160d.

[0080] At box 410, the control system can verify whether the rotational input 150 and the rotational output 200 have returned to the coupled state by determining whether the input torque applied by the rotational input 150 exceeds a torque threshold D (which indicates that the rotational input 150 and the rotational output 200 have returned to the coupled state). In various embodiments, the torque threshold D can be stored in a memory or a cloud-based system and can be retrieved by the control system. In various embodiments, the torque threshold D can be based on known characteristics of the impact mechanism. In various embodiments, the torque threshold D can be a known torque threshold that indicates that the impact mechanism has reached the coupled state. In various embodiments, the torque threshold D can be a threshold that indicates that the spines 204a, 204b are drivingly reconnected with the pawls 158d, 160d.

[0081] At box 410, if the control system does not detect that the input torque from the rotation input 150 reaches or exceeds the torque threshold D, the control system may also determine whether the detected tension drops below the tension threshold-C. In various embodiments, the detection of a tension below the tension threshold-C indicates that the rotation input 150 and the rotation output 200 return to the coupled state, and then the rotation input 150 continues to rotate in the opposite direction (such as the second direction 310) and slides in the second direction. In various embodiments, the detection of a tension below the tension threshold-C indicates that the rotation input 150 and the rotation output 200 do not return to the coupled state, but the rotation input 150 rotates in the opposite direction (i.e., the second direction) before the impact mechanism 100 returns to the coupled state. In various embodiments, the tension threshold-C can be stored in a memory or a cloud-based system and can be retrieved by the control system. In various embodiments, the tension threshold-C can be based on a known characteristic of the impact mechanism. In various embodiments, the tension threshold-C can be a known threshold indicating that the impact mechanism reaches the coupled state and then rotates and slides in the second direction. In various embodiments, the tension threshold-C may be a known threshold indicating that the impact mechanism rotates in the second direction before reaching the coupled state. In various embodiments, the magnitude of the tension threshold-C may be the same as the tension threshold-C, only mirrored along the x-axis (i.e., they differ in multiplication by a factor of -1). In various other embodiments, the magnitude of the tension threshold-C may be different from the tension threshold-C. In various embodiments, the tension threshold-C may be the same as the tension threshold-B. In various embodiments, the tension threshold-C may be different from the tension threshold-B.

[0082] In either of the above conditions (torque reaches or exceeds torque threshold D or tension reaches or drops below −C), the control system may decrement the slip count by one at either box 412 or box 414 , depending on which of the above conditions the control system meets and detects.

[0083] In one embodiment, along frame 412, in the case where the rotational input 150 of the impact mechanism 100 slides from the rotational output 200 and returns to the coupled state, the control system can then determine the output angle of the rotational output 200 relative to the rotational input 150 at frame 404. As mentioned above, at frame 404, the correction angle of the impact mechanism 100 is predetermined (180°) and known. In addition, since the slip count starts at zero and then decrements at frame 412, the control system knows that the slip count is -1 (or one less than the previous slip count N if the slip count has previously experienced a slip event). Based on this data, the control system can determine that the output angle of the rotational output 200 is equal to the input angle of the rotational input 150 minus 180°, that is, when the rotational input 150 rotates another 180° in the first direction, the rotational output 200 is offset 180° from the rotational input 150 in the second direction.

[0084] Thus, the control system can utilize this corrected output angle of the rotational output 200 to ensure that the correct amount of input rotational motion is applied to the rotational input 150 to perform a specific end effector function. In one aspect, when performing a specific function, the control system can know that the rotational input 150 will need to rotate the rotational output 200 along the first direction with the rotational input 150 by at least an additional 180°. In various embodiments, the control system can transmit a signal to the display so that the user is provided with real-time data about how many sliding events have occurred at the impact mechanism 100 and how much rotation has been transferred to the rotational output 200. Based on this information, the user can see that the impact mechanism 100 is experiencing more sliding than expected, which can indicate that too much tissue is positioned in the end effector. Therefore, the user can decide to retract the firing mechanism and reposition the end effector in a new position.

[0085] In another aspect, the impact mechanism 100 may begin in a coupled state such that rotation of the rotational input 150 in the second direction 310 causes a corresponding rotation of the rotational output 200 in the second direction 312. During operation of the impact mechanism 100, the control system may monitor the input torque applied by the rotational input 150 to the rotational output 200 (via the coupled ridges 204a, 204b and the detents 158d, 160d).

[0086] As mentioned above, when the rotational output 200 encounters resistance due to, for example, thick tissue positioned between the jaws of the end effector, the amount of torque required to rotate the rotational output 200 increases. The control system can monitor the input torque applied by the rotational input and compare the monitored torque to the torque thresholds A and -A. In one aspect, detecting that the input torque reaches or drops below the torque threshold -A can indicate a slip event, in which the rotational input 150 slips relative to the rotational output 200 as it rotates in a second direction, such as the second direction 310. Based on this threshold detection, the control system can proceed along the second path 450 of the algorithm 400, which indicates the potential occurrence of a slip event in the second direction.

[0087] In one aspect, when the control system detects that the torque threshold-A has been reached or dropped below, the control system can proceed to block 456, thereby indicating that the ridges 204a, 204b of the rotational output 200 have slid from the detents 158d, 160d of the rotational input 150 when the rotational input 150 was rotated in the second direction. At block 456, the control system can then verify the occurrence of the sliding event by comparing the determined tension associated with the impact mechanism 100 to the tension threshold B, i.e., determining whether the ridges 204a, 204b actually slid from the detents 158d, 160d.

[0088] In the event that the ridges 204a, 204b actually slide from the pawls 158d, 160d, as mentioned above, the impact mechanism 100 will transition to a sliding state, so that the rotational input 150 will rotate relative to the rotational output 200. At this point, since the ridges 204a, 204b will be drivingly decoupled from the pawls 158d, 160d, the amount of torque applied by the rotational input 150 to the rotational output will quickly drop to zero, resulting in a tension having a positive slope, reaching or exceeding the tension threshold-B. In various embodiments, the magnitude of the tension threshold-B can be the same as the tension threshold B, only mirrored along the x-axis (i.e., they differ by a factor of -1). In various other embodiments, the magnitude of the tension threshold B can be different from the tension threshold B. In various embodiments, the tension threshold B can be stored in a memory or a cloud-based system and can be retrieved by the control system. In various embodiments, the tension threshold-B can be based on known characteristics of the impact mechanism. In various embodiments, the tension threshold-B is a threshold indicating that the ridges 204a, 204b are drivingly decoupled from the pawls 158d, 160d. In various embodiments, the tension threshold-B can be the same as the tension threshold C. In various embodiments, the tension threshold-B can be different from the tension threshold C.

[0089] When the control system detects the occurrence of the pulling force reaching or exceeding the pulling force threshold-B at box 456, the control system can confirm that a sliding event in the second direction has actually occurred and proceed to box 458. In the event that the ridges 204a, 204b do not actually slip from the pawls 158d, 160d, the rotation of the rotational input 150 will continue to cause a corresponding rotation of the rotational output 200. In this case, the control system can detect that the input torque provided by the rotational input 150 reaches or exceeds the torque threshold-A, and returns to box 404 to continue monitoring the input torque of the rotational input 150 against the torque thresholds A, -A. In some embodiments, at box 456, the control system can determine that a sliding event has not actually occurred by determining whether the detected pulling force is less than the pulling force threshold-B (which can indicate that a sliding event has not actually occurred).

[0090] As mentioned above, once the control system has determined that the impact mechanism 100 has transitioned to the sliding state and the rotational input 150 is now rotating relative to the rotational output 200, the control system proceeds to box 458. At box 458, the control system may monitor when the rotational input 150 and the rotational output 200 have returned to the coupled state. At box 458, the control system may monitor the occurrence of the tension reaching or dropping below the tension threshold-C, which may indicate that the rotational input 150 impacted the rotational output 200 to deliver a brief peak load and the impact mechanism potentially returned to the coupled state. In the event that the control system detects the occurrence of the tension reaching or dropping below the tension threshold-C, the control circuit may proceed to box 460 to verify whether the rotational input 150 and the rotational output 200 have actually returned to the coupled state.

[0091] In various embodiments, the magnitude of the tension threshold-C can be the same as the tension threshold-C, only mirrored along the x-axis (i.e., they differ by a factor of -1). In various other embodiments, the magnitude of the tension threshold-C can be different from the tension threshold-C. In various embodiments, the tension threshold-C can be stored in a memory or in a cloud-based system and can be retrieved by the control system. In various embodiments, the tension threshold-C can be based on known characteristics of the impact mechanism. In various embodiments, the tension threshold-C is a threshold indicating that the ridges 204a, 204b are potentially drivingly reconnected with the pawls 158d, 160d.

[0092] At box 460, the control system can verify whether the rotating input 150 and the rotating output 200 have returned to the coupled state by determining whether the input torque applied by the rotating input 150 reaches or drops below a torque threshold-D (which indicates that the rotating input 150 and the rotating output 200 have returned to the coupled state). In various embodiments, the magnitude of the torque threshold-D can be the same as the torque threshold D, only mirrored along the x-axis (i.e., they differ in multiplication by a factor of -1). In various other embodiments, the magnitude of the torque threshold-D can be different from the torque threshold D. In various embodiments, the torque threshold-D can be stored in a memory or in a cloud-based system and can be retrieved by the control system. In various embodiments, the torque threshold-D can be based on a known characteristic of the impact mechanism. In various embodiments, the torque threshold D can be a known torque threshold indicating that the impact mechanism has actually reached the coupled state.

[0093] At box 460, if the control system does not detect that the input torque from the rotational input 150 reaches or drops below the torque threshold -D, the control system can determine whether the detected tension reaches or exceeds the tension threshold C. In various embodiments, the detection of the tension reaching or exceeding the tension threshold C indicates that the rotational input 150 and the rotational output 200 return to the coupled state, and then the rotational input 150 continues to rotate in the opposite direction (such as the first direction 310) and slides in the first direction. In various embodiments, the detection of the tension reaching or exceeding the tension threshold C indicates that the rotational input 150 and the rotational output 200 do not return to the coupled state, but the rotational input 150 rotates in the opposite direction (i.e., the first direction) before the impact mechanism 100 returns to the coupled state. In either of the above conditions (torque reaches or drops below -D or tension reaches or exceeds C), the control system can increment the slip count by one at box 462 or box 464, depending on which of the above conditions has been met and detected by the control system.

[0094] In one embodiment, along frame 462, in the case where the rotational input 150 of the impact mechanism 100 slides from the rotational output 200 and returns to the coupled state, the control system can then determine the output angle of the rotational output 200 relative to the rotational input 150 at frame 404. As mentioned above, at frame 404, the correction angle is predetermined (180°) and known. In addition, since the slip count starts at zero and then increments at frame 462, the control system knows that the slip count is 1 (or one greater than the previous slip count N if the slip count has previously experienced a slip event). Using this data, the control system can determine that the output angle of the rotational output 200 is equal to the input angle of the rotational input 150 plus 180°, that is, when the rotational input 150 rotates another 180° in the second direction, the rotational output 200 is offset 180° from the rotational input 150 in the first direction. The control system can use this correction output angle of the rotational output 200 to ensure that the correct amount of input rotational motion is applied to the rotational input 150 to perform a specific end effector function. In one aspect, when performing a particular function, the control system may know that the rotational input 150 will need to rotate the rotational output 200 at least an additional 180° in the second direction.

[0095] As mentioned above, at blocks 410 and 460, the control system may determine that the rotational input 150 has begun to rotate in the opposite direction without reaching or exceeding the torque thresholds D, −D, respectively. Therefore, the control system may proceed to the opposite path of the algorithm 400 that it previously followed. In one embodiment, Fig.15 , when the rotational input 150 experiences a slip event as it rotates in a first direction, the control system proceeds along a first path 420. However, at box 410, when a pulling force is detected below the pulling force threshold-C, the control system may decrement the slip count at box 414 and then proceed to box 458, which is part of a second path 450 of the algorithm 400 indicating a potential slip event in a second direction.

[0096] Similarly, in one embodiment, Fig.15 4, when the rotary input 150 experiences a slip event while it is rotated in the second direction, the control system proceeds along the second path 450. However, at box 460, when a pulling force is detected above the pulling force threshold-C, the control system may increment the slip count at box 464 and then proceed to box 408, which is part of the first path 420 of the algorithm 400 indicating a potential slip event in the first direction. Thus, when the rotary input 150 changes rotational direction during use, the control system using the algorithm 400 is able to account for slip events.

[0097] Reference now Figures 16 to 18According to at least one aspect of the present disclosure, a first exemplary embodiment of an impact mechanism 100 using an algorithm 400 is provided. Fig.17 As shown in , for t1, the rotation input portion 150 and the rotation output portion 200 are in a coupled state such that the input angle and the output angle are the same and therefore overlap, while the rotation input portion 150 is rotated by, for example, a motor. Fig.18 As shown in , during t1, the rotating output 200 begins to experience resistance, causing the input torque provided by the rotating input 150 to increase. At t2, the input torque exceeds 502 the torque threshold A, indicating that a potential slip event has occurred. Therefore, upon detecting that the torque threshold A is exceeded, the control system advances 512 from box 404 to box 406 to verify whether a slip event has actually occurred. Fig.18 As can be seen in FIG. 5 , the control system determines that the tension of the impact mechanism 100 has dropped below 504 the tension threshold C, thereby confirming that a sliding event in the first direction has actually occurred. Therefore, the control system advances 514 from frame 406 to frame 408 to monitor the return of the rotation input 150 and the rotation output 200 to the coupled state.

[0098] like Fig.18 As shown in , during t3, since the rotating input 150 is rotating relative to the rotating output 200, no torque is transmitted to the rotating output 200. At t4, the control system detects a tension exceeding 506 the tension threshold C, which indicates that the impact mechanism 100 has potentially returned to the coupled state. Therefore, the control system advances 516 from box 408 to box 410 to determine whether the impact mechanism has actually returned to the coupled state. At t4, the control system detects an input torque from the rotating input 150 that exceeds 508 the torque threshold D, which indicates that the impact mechanism 100 has actually returned to the coupled state. Fig.18 As can be seen in FIG. 1 , at t4, the output torque from the rotating output 200 peaks due to the impact received from the rotating input 150, i.e., the rotating input 150 delivers a short peak load to the rotating output 200. Since the control system detects that the input torque from the rotating input 150 exceeds the torque threshold D, the control system proceeds 518 to block 412 and decrements the slip count N by one. The control system can then use the known correction angle, the known angle data from the rotating input (e.g., obtained from an angle sensor), and the updated slip count to adjust the output angle of the rotating output 200, as shown in FIG. Fig.17 Thus, the algorithm 400 tracks the angular difference between the rotational input 150 and the rotational output 200 during use of the impact mechanism 100 .

[0099] Reference now Figures 19 to 21According to at least one aspect of the present disclosure, a second exemplary embodiment of the impact mechanism 100 using the algorithm 400 is provided. Fig. 20 As shown in , for t1, the rotation output part 200 is driven by the rotation input part 150, so that the angle of the rotation output part 200 changes. Fig.21 As shown, during t1, the rotating output 200 begins to experience resistance, causing the input torque provided by the rotating input 150 to increase within t1. At t2, the input torque exceeds 602 the torque threshold A, indicating that a potential slip event has occurred. Therefore, the control system detects that the torque threshold A has been reached and proceeds 612 from box 404 to box 406 to verify whether a slip event has actually occurred. Fig.21 As can be seen in FIG. 6 , the control system determines that the tension of the impact mechanism 100 has dropped below the tension threshold-C at 604, thereby confirming that a sliding event in the first direction has actually occurred. Therefore, the control system advances 614 from frame 406 to frame 408 to monitor the return of the rotation input 150 and the rotation output 200 to the coupled state.

[0100] like Fig.21 As shown in FIG, during t3, no torque is transmitted to the rotational output 200 because the rotational input 150 is rotating relative to the rotational output 200. Until t4, the control system detects an increase in input torque from the rotational input 150 and a tension exceeding 606 the tension threshold C, which indicates that the impact mechanism 100 has potentially returned to the coupled state. Therefore, the control system advances 616 from box 408 to box 410 to determine whether the impact mechanism has actually returned to the coupled state.

[0101] At t4, the control system detects an input torque from the rotational input 150 that is greater than the torque threshold D. Therefore, the control system does not proceed to block 412, but instead continues to monitor the input torque of the rotational input 150 and the tension of the impact mechanism over time t5. At time t6, the control system detects a tension that is less than the tension threshold -C, indicating that the rotational input 150 is rotating in the opposite direction. In an exemplary embodiment of the impact mechanism 100, as shown in FIG. Fig.21As can be seen in FIG. 4 , the tension threshold B and the tension threshold -C are the same. Therefore, the control system advances 618 from box 410 to box 414 to decrement the slip count N, and then advances to box 460 via box 458 to monitor when the impact mechanism returns to the coupled state. At time t7, the control system detects that the input torque has dropped below 610 torque threshold -D, indicating that the impact mechanism 100 has returned to the coupled state. Therefore, the control mechanism advances 620 to box 462 and increments the slip count N. Overall, since the control system decrements the slip count at box 414 and increments the slip count at box 462, the control system can determine that the output angle of the rotating output has been realigned with the input angle of the rotating input 150, as shown in FIG. Fig. 20 Visible in.

[0102] Although the impact mechanism 100 and algorithm 400 described above are described in the context of a surgical stapling instrument having a rotary driver for driving multiple functions of an end effector, it should be understood that the impact mechanism 100 and algorithm 400 can be applied to a variety of other applications, such as any suitable surgical instrument that transfers rotational motion from a motion generator (hand, motor, etc.) to a rotational output. Thus, the impact mechanism 100 can be used to provide a short peak load to other rotation-based systems. In various embodiments, for example, the impact mechanism can be used in an energy device such as a radio frequency device to drive a knife in an end effector that includes an electrode for sealing tissue.

[0103] The surgical instrument systems described herein have been described in conjunction with the deployment and deformation of staples; however, the embodiments described herein are not limited thereto. For example, various embodiments are contemplated that deploy fasteners other than staples, such as clamps or tacks. In addition, various embodiments are contemplated that utilize any suitable device for sealing tissue. For example, an end effector according to various embodiments may include an electrode configured to heat and seal tissue. Additionally, for example, an end effector according to certain embodiments may apply vibration energy to seal tissue.

[0104] The entire disclosures of the following patents are hereby incorporated herein by reference:

[0105] - U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 16 / 553,725, filed on August 28, 2019, entitled “ARTICULATING INCLUDING ANTAGONISTIC CONTROLS FOR ARTICULATION AND CALIBRATION,” now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2021 / 0059777;

[0106] - U.S. Patent No. 5,403,312, issued on April 4, 1995, entitled "ELECTROSURGICALHEMOSTATIC DEVICE";

[0107] - U.S. Patent 7,000,818, issued on February 21, 2006, entitled "SURGICAL STAPLING INSTRUMENT HAVING SEPARATE DISTINCT CLOSING AND FIRING SYSTEMS";

[0108] - U.S. Patent 7,422,139, issued on September 9, 2008, entitled "MOTOR-DRIVENSURGICAL CUTTING AND FASTENING INSTRUMENT WITH TACTILE POSITION FEEDBACK";

[0109] - The name announced on December 16, 2008 is

[0110] U.S. Patent 7,464,849 for “ELECTRO-MECHANICAL SURGICAL INSTRUMENT WITH CLOSURE SYSTEM AND ANVILALIGNMENT COMPONENTS”;

[0111] - U.S. Patent 7,670,334, issued on March 2, 2010, entitled “SURGICAL INSTRUMENT HAVING ANARTICULATING END EFFECTOR”;

[0112] - U.S. Patent 7,753,245, issued on July 13, 2010, entitled “SURGICAL STAPLING INSTRUMENTS”;

[0113] - U.S. Patent 8,393,514, issued on March 12, 2013, entitled “SELECTIVELY ORIENTABLE IMPLANTABLE FASTENER CARTRIDGE”;

[0114] - U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 11 / 343,803, entitled “SURGICAL INSTRUMENT HAVING RECORDING CAPABILITIES,” now U.S. Patent No. 7,845,537;

[0115] - U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 12 / 031,573, filed February 14, 2008, entitled “SURGICAL CUTTING AND FASTENING INSTRUMENT HAVING RF ELECTRODES”;

[0116] - U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 12 / 031,873, filed on February 15, 2008, entitled “END EFFECTORS FOR ASURGICAL CUTTING AND STAPLING INSTRUMENT,” now U.S. Patent No. 7,980,443;

[0117] - U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 12 / 235,782, entitled “MOTOR-DRIVEN SURGICAL CUTTING INSTRUMENT,” now U.S. Patent No. 8,210,411;

[0118] - U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 12 / 235,972, entitled “MOTORIZED SURGICAL INSTRUMENT,” now U.S. Patent No. 9,050,083.

[0119] - U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 12 / 249,117, entitled “POWERED SURGICAL CUTTING AND STAPLING APPARATUS WITH MANUALLYRETRACTABLE FIRING SYSTEM,” now U.S. Patent No. 8,608,045;

[0120] - U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 12 / 647,100, filed December 24, 2009, entitled "MOTOR-DRIVEN SURGICAL CUTTING INSTRUMENT WITH ELECTRIC ACTUATOR DIRECTIONAL CONTROL ASSEMBLY," now U.S. Patent No. 8,220,688;

[0121] - U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 12 / 893,461, filed on September 29, 2012, entitled “STAPLE CARTRIDGE,” now U.S. Patent No. 8,733,613;

[0122] - U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 13 / 036,647, filed on February 28, 2011, entitled “SURGICAL STAPLING INSTRUMENT,” now U.S. Patent No. 8,561,870;

[0123] - U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 13 / 118,241, entitled “SURGICAL STAPLING INSTRUMENTS WITH ROTATABLE STAPLEDEPLOYMENT ARRANGEMENTS,” now U.S. Patent No. 9,072,535;

[0124] - U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 13 / 524,049, filed on June 15, 2012, entitled “ARTICULATABLE SURGICAL INSTRUMENT COMPRISING A FIRING DRIVE,” now U.S. Patent No. 9,101,358;

[0125] - U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 13 / 800,025, filed on March 13, 2013, entitled "STAPLE CARTRIDGE TISSUE THICKNESS SENSOR SYSTEM," now U.S. Patent No. 9,345,481;

[0126] U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 13 / 800,067, filed on March 13, 2013, and entitled “STAPLE CARTRIDGETISSUE THICKNESS SENSOR SYSTEM,” now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014 / 0263552;

[0127] - U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2007 / 0175955, filed January 31, 2006, entitled "SURGICAL CUTTING AND FASTENING INSTRUMENT WITH CLOSURE TRIGGERLOCKING MECHANISM"; and

[0128] - U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2010 / 0264194, filed on April 22, 2010, entitled "SURGICAL STAPLING INSTRUMENT WITH ANARTICULATABLE END EFFECTOR," now U.S. Patent No. 8,308,040.

[0129] Various aspects of the subject matter described herein are set forth in the following numbered examples:

[0130] Embodiment 1—A surgical system comprises: an end effector and a drive system, wherein the drive system is configured to achieve at least one function of the end effector. The end effector comprises a first jaw, a second jaw and a nail magazine, wherein the second jaw is capable of rotating between an open configuration and a closed configuration relative to the first jaw, and the nail magazine comprises nails removably stored in the nail magazine. The drive system comprises a motor and an impact mechanism, wherein the impact mechanism comprises a rotation input portion that can be driven by the motor and a rotation output portion that can be driven by the rotation input portion. The rotation of the rotation output portion is designed to achieve the at least one function of the end effector. The impact mechanism can be configured in the following states: a connected state, in which the rotation of the rotation input portion causes a corresponding rotation of the rotation output portion; and a sliding state, in which the rotation input portion rotates relative to the rotation output portion.

[0131] Example 2 - A surgical system as described in Example 1, wherein the rotational output portion includes an output shaft and a head extending from the output shaft, wherein the head includes a first ridge and a second ridge extending therefrom.

[0132] Example 3 - A surgical system according to Example 2, wherein the rotational input portion includes an input shaft and an impact driver, the input shaft is capable of being driven by the motor, the impact driver includes a base, a first arm extending from the base, and a second arm extending from the base, wherein a first pawl is defined in the first arm, and wherein a second pawl is defined in the second arm.

[0133] Example 4 - A surgical system according to Example 3, wherein, based on the impact mechanism being in the connected state, the first ridge is engaged with the first pawl and the second ridge is engaged with the second pawl, and based on the impact mechanism being in the sliding state, the first ridge is disengaged from the first pawl and the second ridge is disengaged from the second pawl.

[0134] Example 5 - A surgical system as described in Example 3, wherein the rotational output portion is capable of axially moving relative to the rotational input portion between an engaged position and a sliding position.

[0135] Example 6 - A surgical system according to Example 5, wherein the impact mechanism further includes a spring, and the spring is configured to bias the rotational output portion toward the rotational input portion.

[0136] Example 7 - A surgical system as described in Example 5, wherein the first arm and the second arm define a slot therebetween, and wherein the head is capable of being positioned in the slot based on the rotational output portion being in the sliding position.

[0137] Example 8—A surgical system according to Example 5, wherein the first arm includes a first cam surface, wherein the second arm includes a second cam surface, and wherein the first cam surface and the second cam surface are configured to be able to cooperatively cam the rotational output portion toward the engagement position based on rotation of the rotational input portion relative to the rotational output portion.

[0138] Example 9 - A surgical system according to Example 1, wherein the rotational input portion is configured to provide a first torque amount to the rotational output portion based on the impact mechanism being in the connected state, and wherein the rotational input portion is configured to provide a second torque amount greater than the first torque amount to the rotational output portion based on the impact mechanism being in the sliding state.

[0139] Embodiment 10 - A surgical system, comprising: an end effector and a drive system, the drive system being configured to achieve at least one function of the end effector, wherein the drive system comprises an impact mechanism, the impact mechanism comprising a rotation input portion that can be rotated by a motion generator and a rotation output portion that can be rotated by the rotation input portion, wherein the rotation of the rotation output portion is designed to achieve the at least one function of the end effector. The impact mechanism can be configured in the following states: a coupled state, in which the rotation input portion is configured to provide a first torque amount to the rotation output portion; and a sliding state, in which the rotation input portion is configured to provide a second torque amount greater than the first torque amount to the rotation output portion.

[0140] Example 11—A surgical system according to Example 10, wherein the rotational output portion includes a head, wherein the rotational input portion includes an impact driver, wherein the impact driver is connected to the head in the connected state, and wherein the impact driver is configured to be able to rotate relative to the head and impact the side of the head in the sliding state.

[0141] Example 12 - A surgical system comprising: an end effector and a drive system configured to perform at least one function of the end effector, wherein the drive system comprises an impact mechanism, the impact mechanism comprising a rotation output and a rotation input, wherein the rotation of the rotation output is designed to perform the at least one function of the end effector, and the rotation input is configured to drive the rotation output. The impact mechanism can be configured in the following states: a coupled state, in which the rotation of the rotation input causes the rotation of the rotation output; and a sliding state, in which the rotation input rotates relative to the rotation output. The impact mechanism is configured to transition from the coupled state to the sliding state based on the occurrence of a sliding event. The impact mechanism is configured to transition from the sliding state to the coupled state based on the rotation input rotating a predetermined amount relative to the rotation output in the sliding state. The surgical system also includes a control system configured to determine the amount of angular rotation transmitted from the rotation input to the rotation output.

[0142] Example 13 - A surgical system according to Example 12, wherein the sliding event includes the torque provided from the rotational input portion to the rotational output portion reaching or exceeding a torque threshold.

[0143] Example 14 - A surgical system according to Example 12, wherein the control system is configured to detect the occurrence of a sliding event, verify the occurrence of the sliding event, detect the occurrence of the impact mechanism reaching the connected state, and verify the occurrence of the impact mechanism reaching the connected state.

[0144] Example 15 - The surgical system of Example 14, wherein detecting the occurrence of a sliding event comprises sensing a torque provided by the rotational input to the rotational output and comparing the sensed torque to a torque threshold. Verifying the occurrence of the sliding event comprises determining a tension associated with the impact mechanism and comparing the determined tension to a tension threshold.

[0145] Example 16 - The surgical system of Example 15, wherein detecting the occurrence of the impact mechanism reaching the coupled state comprises determining a tension associated with the impact mechanism and comparing the determined tension to a tension threshold. Verifying the occurrence of the impact mechanism reaching the coupled state comprises sensing a torque provided by the rotational input to the rotational output and comparing the sensed torque to a torque threshold.

[0146] Example 17 - A surgical system according to Example 16, wherein the control system is further configured to be capable of setting a slide count and adjusting the slide count based on the occurrence of verifying that the impact mechanism has reached the coupled state.

[0147] Example 18 - A surgical system according to Example 12, wherein the control system is further configured to be capable of setting a slide count, setting a correction angle associated with the impact mechanism, and determining an output angle of the rotational output portion relative to an input angle of the rotational input portion based on the correction angle and the slide count.

[0148] Example 19 - A surgical system according to Example 18, wherein the correction angle includes an angle associated with the predetermined amount of rotation of the rotational input portion in the sliding state.

[0149] Example 20 - A surgical system according to Example 18, wherein the control system is configured to decrement the slide count based on the control system detecting a slide event when the rotational input portion is rotated in a first direction, and to increment the slide count based on the control system detecting a slide event when the rotational input portion is rotated in a second direction opposite to the first direction.

[0150] Although various devices have been described herein in conjunction with certain embodiments, many modifications and variations of these embodiments may also be implemented. In one or more embodiments, specific features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner. Therefore, without limitation, specific features, structures, or characteristics shown or described in conjunction with one embodiment may be combined in whole or in part with features, structures, or characteristics of one or more other embodiments. In addition, where materials for certain components are disclosed, other materials may also be used. In addition, according to various embodiments, a single component may be replaced with multiple components, and multiple components may also be replaced with a single component to perform a given one or more functions. The above-described specific embodiments and the following claims are intended to cover all such modifications and variations.

[0151] The device disclosed herein can be designed to be discarded after a single use, or it can be designed to be used multiple times. However, in either case, the device can be used again after being conditioned after at least one use. Conditioning may include any combination of the following steps, including but not limited to disassembling the device, cleaning or replacing specific parts of the device, and then reassembling the device. Specifically, the conditioning facility and / or surgical team can disassemble the device, and after cleaning and / or replacing specific parts of the device, the device can be reassembled for subsequent use. Those skilled in the art will understand that conditioning the device can utilize various techniques for disassembly, cleaning / replacement, and reassembly. The use of such techniques and the resulting repair device are within the scope of this application.

[0152] The devices disclosed herein can be processed before surgery. First, new or used instruments can be obtained and cleaned as needed. Then, the instruments can be sterilized. In one sterilization technique, the instrument is placed in a closed and sealed container (such as a plastic or TYVEK bag). The container and the instrument can then be placed in a radiation field that can penetrate the container, such as gamma radiation, X-rays and / or high-energy electrons. Radiation can kill bacteria on the instrument and in the container. The sterilized instrument can then be stored in a sterile container. The sealed container can keep the instrument sterile until the container is opened in a medical facility. The device can also be sterilized using any other technology known in the art, including but not limited to beta radiation, gamma radiation, ethylene oxide, plasma peroxide and / or steam.

[0153] While the present invention has been described as having an exemplary design, the present invention can be further modified within the spirit and scope of this disclosure. Therefore, this application is intended to cover any variations, uses or adaptations of the invention using its general principles.

[0154] The above specific embodiments have been described in various forms of devices and / or methods using block diagrams, flow charts and / or examples. As long as such block diagrams, flow charts and / or examples contain one or more functions and / or operations, those skilled in the art will understand that each function and / or operation in such block diagrams, flow charts and / or examples can be implemented individually and / or collectively by a variety of hardware, software, firmware or any combination thereof. Those skilled in the art will recognize that some aspects of the forms disclosed herein can be implemented equivalently in integrated circuits as one or more computer programs running on one or more computers (e.g., as one or more programs running on one or more computer systems), as one or more programs running on one or more processors (e.g., as one or more programs running on one or more microprocessors), as firmware, or as any combination thereof in whole or in part, and according to the present disclosure, designing circuit systems and / or writing software and / or hardware codes will be within the technical scope of those skilled in the art. In addition, those skilled in the art will recognize that the mechanisms of the subject matter described herein can be distributed as one or more program products in a variety of forms, and the illustrative forms of the subject matter described herein are applicable regardless of the specific type of signal-bearing medium used for actual distribution.

[0155] Instructions for programming logic to perform various disclosed aspects may be stored in a memory in the system, such as a dynamic random access memory (DRAM), a cache, a flash memory, or other memory. In addition, the instructions may be distributed via a network or by other computer-readable media. Therefore, a machine-readable medium may include any mechanism for storing or transmitting information in a machine (e.g., computer) readable form, but is not limited to a floppy disk, an optical disk, a compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), and a magneto-optical disk, a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a magnetic card or an optical card, a flash memory, or a tangible, machine-readable storage device used when transmitting information on the Internet via an electrical signal, an optical signal, an acoustic signal, or other form of propagation signal (e.g., a carrier wave, an infrared signal, a digital signal, etc.). Therefore, a non-transitory computer-readable medium includes any type of tangible machine-readable medium suitable for storing or transmitting electronic instructions or information in a machine (e.g., computer) readable form.

[0156] As used in any aspect of this document, the term "control circuitry" or "control system" may refer to, for example, hard-wired circuitry, programmable circuitry (e.g., a computer processor including one or more separate instruction processing cores, a processing unit, a processor, a microcontroller, a microcontroller unit, a controller, a digital signal processor (DSP), a programmable logic device (PLD), a programmable logic array (PLA), a field programmable gate array (FPGA)), a state machine circuitry, firmware that stores instructions executed by the programmable circuitry, and any combination thereof. The control circuitry may be implemented collectively or individually as circuitry that forms part of a larger system, such as an integrated circuit (IC), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a system on a chip (SoC), a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a server, a smart phone, etc. Thus, as used herein, "control circuitry" includes, but is not limited to, electronic circuitry having at least one discrete circuit, electronic circuitry having at least one integrated circuit, electronic circuitry having at least one application specific integrated circuit, electronic circuitry forming a general purpose computing device configured by a computer program (e.g., a general purpose computer configured by a computer program to at least partially implement the methods and / or devices described herein, or a microprocessor configured by a computer program to at least partially implement the methods and / or devices described herein), electronic circuitry forming a memory device (e.g., forming a random access memory), and / or electronic circuitry forming a communication device (e.g., a modem, a communication switch, or an optoelectronic device). Those skilled in the art will recognize that the subject matter described herein may be implemented in analog or digital form, or some combination thereof.

[0157] As used in any aspect of this document, the term "logic" may refer to an application, software, firmware, and / or circuitry configured to perform any of the foregoing operations. Software may be embodied as a software package, code, instructions, instruction sets, and / or data recorded on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. Firmware may be embodied as code, instructions, instruction sets, and / or data hard-coded (e.g., non-volatile) in a memory device.

[0158] As used in any aspect of this document, the terms "component," "system," "module" and the like may refer to a computer-related entity, hardware, a combination of hardware and software, software, or software in execution.

[0159] As used in any aspect herein, an "algorithm" refers to a self-consistent sequence of steps leading to a desired result, wherein the "steps" refer to manipulations of physical quantities and / or logical states which may (but need not) take the form of electrical or magnetic signals capable of being stored, transferred, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated. References to such signals are often made to bits, values, elements, symbols, characters, terms, numbers, and the like. These and similar terms may be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and are merely convenient labels applied to such quantities and / or states.

[0160] Unless otherwise expressly indicated in the above disclosure, it is understood that discussions using terms such as "processing," "computing," "calculating," "determining," and "displaying" in the above disclosure refer to the actions and processes of a computer system or similar electronic computing device that manipulates data represented as physical (electronic) quantities within the computer system's registers and memories and transforms it into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the computer system's memories or registers or other such information storage, transmission, or display devices.

[0161] One or more components may be referred to herein as "configured to be able to", "configurable to be able to", "operable / operably", "suitable / adaptable to", "able to", "conformable / conform to", etc. Those skilled in the art will recognize that, unless the context indicates otherwise, "configured to be able to" may generally cover components in an active state and / or components in an inactive state and / or components in a standby state.

[0162] Those skilled in the art will recognize that, in general, the terms used herein, and in particular in the appended claims (e.g., the body of the appended claims), are generally intended to be "open" terms (e.g., the term "including" should be interpreted as "including but not limited to", the term "having" should be interpreted as "having at least", the term "comprising" should be interpreted as "including but not limited to", etc.). Those skilled in the art will also understand that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such intent will be explicitly stated in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation, no such intent is present. For example, to aid understanding, the following appended claims may contain use of the introductory phrases "at least one" and "one or more" to introduce claims. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed as implying that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite article "a" or "an" limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim recitation to claims containing only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases "one or more" or "at least one" and an indefinite article such as "a" or "an" (e.g., "a" and / or "an" should generally be interpreted as meaning "at least one" or "one or more"); this also applies to the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations.

[0163] In addition, even if a specific number of claim recitations is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should generally be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., a bare recitation of "two recitations" without other modifiers generally means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations). In addition, in those cases where a convention similar to "at least one of A, B, and C, etc." is used, generally, such construction is intended to have the meaning that those skilled in the art will understand the convention (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, and C" will include, but is not limited to, systems having only A, only B, only C, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and / or A, B, and C together, etc.). In those cases where a convention similar to "at least one of A, B, or C, etc." is used, generally, such construction is intended to have the meaning that those skilled in the art will understand the convention (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, or C" will include, but is not limited to, systems having only A, only B, only C, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and / or A, B, and C together, etc.). Those skilled in the art will also understand that, generally, unless the context indicates otherwise, transitional words and / or phrases presenting two or more alternative terms in the detailed description, claims, or drawings should be understood to include the possibility of including one of the terms, any one of the terms, or both of the terms. For example, the phrase "A or B" will generally be understood to include the possibility of "A" or "B" or "A and B".

[0164] For the appended claims, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the operations described therein may generally be performed in any order. In addition, although various operational flow charts are presented in one or more sequences, it should be understood that the various operations may be performed in other orders than the order shown, or the various operations may be performed simultaneously. Unless the context otherwise dictates, examples of such alternative orderings may include overlapping, interleaved, interrupted, reordered, incremental, preparatory, supplementary, simultaneous, reverse, or other altered orderings. In addition, unless the context otherwise dictates, terms such as "responsive to," "related to," or other past tense adjectives are generally not intended to exclude such variants.

[0165] It is worth mentioning that any reference to "one aspect", "an aspect", "an example", or "an example" means that the specific features, structures, or characteristics described in conjunction with the aspect are included in at least one aspect. Therefore, the phrases "in one aspect", "in an aspect", "in an example", or "in an example" appearing in various places throughout the specification do not necessarily refer to the same aspect. In addition, specific features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more aspects.

[0166] Any patent application, patent, non-patent publication or other public material referred to in this specification and / or listed in any Application Data Sheet is incorporated herein by reference to the extent that the incorporated material is inconsistent herewith. Therefore, and to the extent necessary, the disclosure explicitly set forth herein supersedes any conflicting material incorporated herein by reference. Any material or portion thereof that is allegedly incorporated herein by reference but conflicts with existing definitions, statements or other public material set forth herein will be incorporated only to the extent that there is no conflict between the incorporated material and the existing public material.

[0167] The terms "comprise" (and any form of "comprise", such as "comprises" and "comprising"), "have" (and any form of "have", such as "has" and "having"), "include" (and any form of "include", such as "includes" and "including"), and "contain" (and any form of "contain", such as "contains" and "containing") are open-ended linking verbs. Thus, a system that "comprises," "has," "includes," or "contains" one or more elements has those one or more elements, but is not limited to having only those one or more elements. Likewise, an element of a system, device, or apparatus that "comprises," "has," "includes," or "contains" one or more features has those one or more features, but is not limited to having only those one or more features.

[0168] The terms "substantially," "about," or "approximately" as used in this disclosure refer to the acceptable error for a particular value as determined by one of ordinary skill in the art, which depends in part on how the value is measured or determined. In certain embodiments, the terms "substantially," "about," or "approximately" refer to within 1, 2, 3, or 4 standard deviations. In certain embodiments, the terms "substantially," "about," or "approximately" refer to within 50%, 20%, 15%, 10%, 9%, 8%, 7%, 6%, 5%, 4%, 3%, 2%, 1%, 0.5%, or 0.05% of a given value or range.

[0169] In summary, many of the benefits resulting from the use of the concepts described herein have been described. For purposes of illustration and description, one or more of the above specific embodiments have been provided. These specific embodiments are not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the precise forms disclosed by the invention. The invention may be modified or varied in accordance with the above teachings. The one or more forms selected and described are intended to illustrate the principles and practical applications so that one of ordinary skill in the art can utilize various forms and various modifications suitable for the intended specific use. The claims submitted herewith are intended to define the full scope.

Claims

1. A surgical system comprising: End effector; and A drive system configured to realize at least one function of the end effector, wherein the drive system comprises an impact mechanism, and the impact mechanism comprises: a rotation input portion that can be rotated by a motion generator; and a rotation output portion, the rotation output portion being rotatable by the rotation input portion, wherein the rotation of the rotation output portion is designed to achieve the at least one function of the end effector; and Wherein, the impact mechanism can be configured in the following states: a coupled state in which the rotational input is configured to provide a first amount of torque to the rotational output; and A sliding state in which the rotational input portion is configured to provide a second torque amount greater than the first torque amount to the rotational output portion.

2. The surgical system of claim 1, wherein: The rotation output portion includes a head, wherein the rotation input portion includes an impact driver, wherein the impact driver is coupled to the head in the coupled state, and wherein the impact driver is configured to be rotatable relative to the head and impact a side of the head in the sliding state.

3. The surgical system of claim 1 or claim 2, wherein: The end effector comprises: First jaw; a second jaw rotatable relative to the first jaw between an open configuration and a closed configuration; and a staple cartridge comprising staples removably stored therein; and wherein the motion generator is a motor, and wherein, when the impact mechanism is in the coupled state, rotation of the rotation input portion causes a corresponding rotation of the rotation output portion; and wherein, when the impact mechanism is in the sliding state, the rotation input portion rotates relative to the rotation output portion.

4. The surgical system of claim 1 or claim 3, wherein: The rotation output portion comprises: output shaft; and A head portion extends from the output shaft, wherein the head portion includes a first ridge and a second ridge extending therefrom.

5. A surgical system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: The rotation input unit comprises: an input shaft drivable by the motion generator; and An impact driver, the impact driver comprising: base; a first arm extending from the base, wherein a first pawl is defined in the first arm; and A second arm extends from the base, wherein a second pawl is defined in the second arm.

6. The surgical system of claim 4 or claim 5, wherein: Upon the impact mechanism being in the coupled state, the first ridge is engaged with the first pawl and the second ridge is engaged with the second pawl; as well as Upon the impact mechanism being in the sliding state, the first ridge is disengaged from the first pawl and the second ridge is disengaged from the second pawl.

7. A surgical system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: The rotational output portion is axially movable relative to the rotational input portion between an engaged position and a sliding position.

8. A surgical system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: The impact mechanism further includes a spring configured to bias the rotation output portion toward the rotation input portion.

9. A surgical system according to any one of claims 5 to 8 when dependent on claim 2 or claim 4, wherein: The first arm and the second arm define a slot therebetween, and wherein the head is positionable in the slot based on the rotational output being in the sliding position.

10. A surgical system according to any one of claims 5 to 9 when dependent on claim 2 or claim 4, wherein: The first arm includes a first cam surface, wherein the second arm includes a second cam surface, and wherein the first cam surface and the second cam surface are configured to cooperatively cam the rotational output toward the engaged position based on rotation of the rotational input relative to the rotational output.

11. A surgical system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: The rotation input portion is configured to provide a first torque amount to the rotation output portion based on the impact mechanism in the coupled state, and wherein the rotation input portion is configured to provide a second torque amount greater than the first torque amount to the rotation output portion based on the impact mechanism in the sliding state.

12. A surgical system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: When the impact mechanism is in the coupled state, rotation of the rotation input portion causes rotation of the rotation output portion; and wherein when the impact mechanism is in the sliding state, the rotation input portion rotates relative to the rotation output portion, and wherein the impact mechanism is configured to be able to transition from the coupled state to the sliding state based on the occurrence of a sliding event, wherein the impact mechanism is configured to be able to transition from the sliding state to the coupled state based on the rotation input portion rotating a predetermined amount relative to the rotation output portion in the sliding state; and A control system is configured to determine an amount of angular rotation transferred from the rotational input to the rotational output.

13. The surgical system of claim 12, wherein: The slip event includes the torque provided from the rotational input to the rotational output reaching or exceeding a torque threshold.

14. A surgical system according to claim 12 or claim 13, wherein: The control system is configured to: Detect the occurrence of a sliding event; verifying the occurrence of the sliding event; detecting the occurrence of the impact mechanism reaching the coupled state; and The occurrence of the impact mechanism reaching the coupled state is verified.

15. The surgical system of claim 14, wherein: Detecting the occurrence of a sliding event includes: sensing torque provided by the rotational input to the rotational output; and comparing the sensed torque to a torque threshold; and Verifying the occurrence of the sliding event includes: determining a tension force associated with the impact mechanism; and The determined pulling force is compared to a pulling force threshold value.

16. The surgical system of claim 15, wherein: Detecting that the impact mechanism reaches the coupled state comprises: determining a tension force associated with the impact mechanism; and comparing the determined tension to a tension threshold; and Verifying that the impact mechanism reaches the coupled state comprises: sensing torque provided by the rotational input to the rotational output; and The sensed torque is compared to a torque threshold.

17. The surgical system of claim 16, wherein: The control system is further configured to: Setting the slide count; and Based on verifying the occurrence of the impact mechanism reaching the coupled state, the slip count is adjusted.

18. The surgical system of any one of claims 12 to 16, wherein: The control system is further configured to: Set the slide count; setting a correction angle associated with the impact mechanism; and Based on the correction angle and the slip count, an output angle of the rotation output portion relative to an input angle of the rotation input portion is determined.

19. The surgical system of claim 18, wherein: The correction angle includes an angle associated with the predetermined amount by which the rotation input portion rotates in the sliding state.

20. The surgical system of claim 18 or claim 19, wherein: The control system is configured to: decrementing the slip count based on the control system detecting a slip event while the rotational input is rotated in a first direction; as well as The slip count is incremented based on the control system detecting a slip event when the rotational input is rotated in a second direction opposite to the first direction.

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