Surgical instrument

Abstract

This application relates to the field of medical device technology, and provides a surgical instrument including an actuator assembly, a staple cartridge assembly, a drive assembly, and a control circuit. The staple cartridge assembly includes a mounting base and a firing element. The drive mechanism includes a drive mechanism and a transmission mechanism. If the control circuit determines that the current drive speed of the drive mechanism is less than a speed threshold, it controls the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element until a specific preset condition is met, at which point it controls the drive mechanism to either continue driving the firing element or control the drive mechanism to drive the firing element back. This application uses the drive speed of the drive mechanism to determine whether the drive mechanism should pause, thereby precisely controlling the timing of the pause and avoiding the impact of premature pausing on firing efficiency and the damage to tissue caused by premature pausing.

Description

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202411978513.X, filed with the Chinese Patent Office on December 30, 2024, entitled "Surgical Instruments", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0002] This application relates to the field of medical device technology, and more specifically, to a surgical instrument. Background Technology

[0003] Electric staplers are a commonly used surgical instrument in minimally invasive surgery. The working principle of an electric stapler is that the jaws of the actuator grasp the tissue, and the motor drives the actuator's cutting blade to cut the tissue. During cutting, the motor also drives the actuator's staple cartridge assembly to fire staples, thereby suturing the tissue. If encountering thick or excessively thick tissue, the electric stapler's motor may stall.

[0004] To avoid stalling, current electric staplers monitor the motor's output current and stop operation when the current exceeds a threshold. However, this stall control method lacks precision, potentially leading to decreased firing efficiency or tissue damage. Summary of the Invention

[0005] In view of this, this application provides a surgical instrument for precisely controlling the timing of the motor's pause, thereby improving the firing efficiency of the surgical instrument and avoiding damage to the clamped tissue.

[0006] A first aspect of this application provides a surgical instrument, comprising:

[0007] An actuator assembly, the actuator assembly including a first jaw and a second jaw for gripping tissue;

[0008] A staple cartridge assembly is disposed between a first jaw and a second jaw, the staple cartridge assembly is used to receive suture staples, the staple cartridge assembly includes a mounting base and a firing element, the firing element being movably disposed on the mounting base;

[0009] A drive assembly, comprising a drive mechanism and a transmission mechanism, wherein the drive mechanism is used to drive the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base to the other end via the transmission mechanism;

[0010] A control circuit, at least configured to determine, during the process of the drive mechanism driving the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base to the other end, that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than a speed threshold, control the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element to move, and control the drive mechanism to continue driving the firing element to move to the other end of the mounting base after determining that a preset condition is met.

[0011] A second aspect of this application provides a surgical instrument, comprising:

[0012] An actuator assembly, the actuator assembly including a first jaw and a second jaw for gripping tissue;

[0013] A staple cartridge assembly is disposed between a first jaw and a second jaw, the staple cartridge assembly is used to receive suture staples, the staple cartridge assembly includes a mounting base and a firing element, the firing element being movably disposed on the mounting base;

[0014] A drive assembly, comprising a drive mechanism and a transmission mechanism, wherein the drive mechanism is used to drive the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base to the other end via the transmission mechanism;

[0015] The control circuit is at least configured to, during the process of the drive mechanism driving the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base to the other end, determine that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than a speed threshold, and control the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element to move; and determine that after a preset condition is met, control the drive mechanism to drive the firing element to retract to the one end of the mounting base.

[0016] As can be seen from the above technical solutions, the surgical instrument provided in this application includes an actuator assembly, a staple cartridge assembly, a drive assembly, and a control circuit. The staple cartridge assembly includes a mounting base and a firing element. The drive mechanism includes a drive mechanism and a transmission mechanism. If the control circuit determines that the current drive speed of the drive mechanism is less than a speed threshold, it controls the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element until a specific preset condition is met, at which point it controls the drive mechanism to either continue driving the firing element or drive the firing element to retract. This application uses the drive speed of the drive mechanism to determine whether the drive mechanism should pause, thereby precisely controlling the timing of the pause and avoiding the impact of premature pausing on firing efficiency and the damage to tissue caused by premature pausing. Attached Figure Description

[0017] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0018] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a surgical instrument provided in one embodiment;

[0019] Figure 2A A schematic diagram of the structure of an actuator assembly provided in one embodiment;

[0020] Figure 2B A schematic diagram of the structure of a staple cartridge assembly provided in one embodiment;

[0021] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the control flow of a drive mechanism provided in one embodiment;

[0022] Figure 4 A control flow diagram of the drive mechanism is provided for another embodiment;

[0023] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of the control flow of the drive mechanism provided in another embodiment. Detailed Implementation

[0024] An electric stapler is a commonly used surgical instrument. When in operation, it can clamp tissue near the lesion site through the jaws of the actuator assembly, and cut the tissue with the cutting blade of the actuator assembly. At the same time, the staple cartridge assembly on the actuator assembly can also suture the tissue.

[0025] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this application, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0026] Please see Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a surgical instrument provided in an embodiment of this application. In some embodiments, the surgical instrument is specifically a stapler. Figure 1 As shown, the surgical instrument includes: an actuator assembly 100, a staple cartridge assembly 200, a drive assembly 300, and a control circuit (not shown). The following section will first combine... Figure 1 , Figure 2A and Figure 2BThe functions of actuator component 100, staple cartridge component 200, and drive component 300 are explained.

[0027] like Figure 2A As shown, the actuator assembly 100 includes a first jaw 110 and a second jaw 120 for gripping tissue. Exemplarily, the first jaw 110 and the second jaw 120 are movably connected, and the first jaw 110 and the second jaw 120 are capable of relative movement to achieve closing and opening.

[0028] like Figure 2A and 2B As shown, the staple cartridge assembly 200 is disposed between the first jaw 110 and the second jaw 120. The staple cartridge assembly 200 is used to receive suture staples. The staple cartridge assembly 200 includes a mounting base 210 and a firing element, which is movably disposed on the mounting base 210. The firing element is used to fire the suture staples and / or cut tissue.

[0029] In one specific embodiment, please refer to Figure 2B The staple cartridge assembly 200 includes a mounting base 210 and a firing element. The firing element may include a staple pusher slider 220 and / or a cutting blade 230. The mounting base 210 has multiple mounting positions for mounting staples and a tissue-contacting surface for contacting tissue. The staple pusher slider 220 is movably mounted on the mounting base 210. The cutting blade 230 is movably connected to the mounting base 210. The staple pusher slider 220 and the cutting blade 230 are movable between one end and the other end of the mounting base 210. The cutting blade 230 cuts the tissue held by the first jaw 110 and the second jaw 120 as it moves from proximal to distal. The staple pusher slider 220 fires the staples to suture the tissue as it moves from proximal to distal.

[0030] It should be noted that the tissue-contacting surface of the mounting base 210 refers to the side of the mounting base 210 that contacts the tissue being held when it is clamped. Understandably, during tissue suturing, the suture pin is pushed out from the tissue-contacting surface of the mounting base 210 to achieve suturing of the tissue; the pushing out of the suture pin is equivalent to the firing of the pusher slider 220. Furthermore, the mounting base 210 has a movable cavity arranged along its axial direction, within which the pusher slider 220 and the cutter 230 are movably disposed. The movable cavity limits the direction of movement of the pusher slider 220 and the cutter 230, ensuring that the pusher slider 220 and the cutter 230 can move between the proximal and distal ends of the mounting base 210 along its axial direction.

[0031] In some embodiments, the staple cartridge assembly 200 can be considered as part of the actuator assembly 100. For example, the staple cartridge assembly 200 can be fixedly connected to the first jaw 110 or the second jaw 120 or form an integral structure. The staple cartridge assembly 200 can also be considered as a component independent of the actuator assembly 100. For example, the staple cartridge assembly 200 can be detachably mounted to the first jaw 110 or the second jaw 120, thereby allowing the staple cartridge assembly 200 to be considered as a consumable used in the actuator assembly 100.

[0032] like Figure 1 , 2A As shown in Figure 2B, the drive assembly 300 includes a drive mechanism (not shown) and a transmission mechanism 310. The drive mechanism can also be referred to as a power source; in some specific embodiments, the drive mechanism is a motor. The drive mechanism is used to drive the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base 210 to the other end via the transmission mechanism 310, such as moving from the proximal end to the distal end of the mounting base 210 or from the distal end to the proximal end of the mounting base 210. It should be noted that in the embodiments of this application, "distal end" refers to the end away from the operator when operating the surgical instrument, and "proximal end" refers to the end close to the operator when operating the surgical instrument. Exemplarily, a mounting cavity is formed between the first jaw 110 and the second jaw 120, the staple cartridge assembly 200 is disposed within the mounting cavity, and the distal end of the transmission mechanism 310 extends into the mounting cavity to drive the movement of the firing element of the staple cartridge assembly 200 within the mounting cavity.

[0033] The drive mechanism can drive the firing element to move via the transmission mechanism 310. Specifically, the drive mechanism can apply a force in the axial direction of the transmission mechanism 310 to move the transmission mechanism 310 distally, causing the transmission mechanism 310 to push the firing element to move. During this movement, the firing element fires the suture staples to suture and / or cut tissue. In some embodiments, when the drive mechanism drives the transmission mechanism 310 with different drive parameters, the moving speed of the transmission mechanism 310 varies, which in turn causes differences in the moving speed of the firing element and the firing speed of the suture staples. In some embodiments, the drive mechanism is a motor, and the moving speed of the transmission mechanism 310 can be controlled by setting parameters such as the motor's current and speed, thereby controlling the firing speed of the suture staples.

[0034] In some implementations, please refer to Figure 1 The surgical instrument may also include a handle assembly 400. The handle assembly 400 includes a fixed handle and one or more movable triggers for an operator to grip and perform functional operations. The handle assembly 400 is connected to the actuator assembly 100 via a drive assembly 300. The drive assembly 300 includes, for example, an outer tube in which a transmission mechanism 310 is at least partially housed. The proximal end of the outer tube is connected to the handle assembly 400, and the distal end is connected to the actuator assembly 100.

[0035] For example, the drive assembly 300 includes a firing drive chain, a closing drive chain, and a bending drive chain. The drive mechanism can drive the firing element to move via the firing drive chain, for example, the firing drive chain includes a transmission mechanism 310, which is used to fire the stitching staple under the action of the drive mechanism and to cut with the cutting blade 230; the handle assembly 400 can close the jaws of the actuator assembly 100 via the closing drive chain; the handle assembly 400 can bend the jaws of the actuator assembly 100 via the bending drive chain. In practical applications, when operating surgical instruments, the operator can hold the fixed handle and insert the actuator assembly 100 into the lesion site inside the human body through the slender outer tube; then, by triggering the closed drive chain, the jaws of the actuator assembly 100 are closed and clamped near the lesion site; next, by triggering the firing switch of the surgical instrument, such as by triggering the firing drive chain, the cutting blade 230 in the staple cartridge assembly 200 cuts the tissue, and at the same time, the tissue is sutured by the suture staples in the staple cartridge assembly 200.

[0036] The working process of surgical instruments typically includes three phases: the squeezing phase, the firing phase, and the retraction phase.

[0037] Compression Phase: During the compression phase of the surgical instrument procedure, the first jaw 110 and the second jaw 120 close to compress the tissue between the first jaw 110 and the second jaw 120. Surgical instruments such as staplers compress the tissue before firing and maintain this compression for a period of time to ensure the tissue is compressed to a suitable thickness to guarantee the subsequent staple formation effect.

[0038] Firing Phase: During the firing phase of the surgical instrument, the drive mechanism drives the firing element to move via the transmission mechanism 310, causing the firing element to fire suture staples and / or cut tissue during the movement. For example, after the stapler has compressed the tissue and held it for a period of time, such as 15 seconds, the drive mechanism can be triggered to drive the firing element to move via the transmission mechanism 310, causing the pusher slider 220 to fire one or more suture staples during the movement to suture the tissue between the first jaw 110 and the second jaw 120. In some embodiments, during the firing phase of the surgical instrument, the transmission mechanism 310 is capable of driving the pusher slider 220 to move from the proximal end to the distal end of the mounting base 210 to fire suture staples and thus suture the tissue.

[0039] Retraction Phase: During the retraction phase of the surgical instrument operation, the drive mechanism drives the firing element to move from the distal end to the proximal end of the mounting base 210 via the transmission mechanism 310. For example, after suturing is completed, the transmission mechanism 310 can also drive the pusher slider 220 to move from the distal end to the proximal end of the mounting base 210.

[0040] Currently, surgeons may encounter situations where the tissue being cut or sutured is excessively thick, exceeding the maximum thickness that the staples in the cartridge can suture. In such cases, surgeons may still operate the instruments during the firing phase. When encountering this surgical scenario, current surgical instruments typically employ two control methods:

[0041] Some surgical instruments have motors that are designed to stall or stop naturally for safety reasons. However, even after stalling or stopping, the motor still retains maximum firing power. This control method can cause the motor to overheat, leading to other problems such as a further decrease in firing power.

[0042] Some surgical instruments detect the motor current and compare it to a current threshold. When the detected current exceeds the threshold, the motor's rotation is temporarily stopped. After a pause, the motor's operating current is reduced to prevent overheating. The tissue continues to flow and compress under the continued pressure of the surgical instrument, further reducing resistance, and the motor may fire successfully again after a short wait. However, the motor current detection is affected by many factors, making it impossible to accurately detect the exact operating current. Furthermore, the motor's operating current does not accurately represent the force acting on the motor (i.e., the resistance of the tissue to the staples or cutter) or the speed of the firing element. Therefore, the timing of the motor's pause in this control method is inaccurate, potentially resulting in pauses that are too late or too early. A late pause can easily lead to tissue damage, while a premature pause reduces the instrument's firing efficiency.

[0043] To at least solve any of the aforementioned technical problems, the surgical instrument provided in this application embodiment uses a control circuit to control the pausing of the motor during the firing phase by detecting the drive speed of the motor. The specific control process of the control circuit is described in detail below. It should be noted that the pausing control of the motor by the control circuit can be applied not only to the firing phase of the surgical instrument but also to the retraction phase.

[0044] Please see details. Figure 3 The control circuit is at least used to determine, during the process of the drive mechanism driving the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base 210 to the other end, that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than a speed threshold, and to control the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element to move until a preset condition (first preset condition) is determined to be met, and then to control the drive mechanism to continue driving the firing element to move to the other end of the mounting base 210.

[0045] As described above regarding the staple cartridge assembly 200 and the drive assembly 300, the drive mechanism drives the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base 210 to the other. Specifically, the drive mechanism drives the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base 210 to the other via the transmission mechanism 310. In some embodiments, the movement of the firing element from one end of the mounting base 210 to the other refers to movement during the firing phase. In other embodiments, the movement of the firing element from one end of the mounting base 210 to the other refers to movement during the retraction phase.

[0046] In some embodiments, the control circuit includes a controller, which implements the above-described control process of the drive mechanism by calling and executing a computer program. In other embodiments, the control circuit is a circuit structure with control functions other than a controller. The control circuit is specifically coupled to the drive mechanism included in the drive assembly, and the specific control of the drive mechanism by the control circuit includes the following processes.

[0047] First, the control circuit's control of the drive mechanism occurs during the process of the drive mechanism driving the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base 210 to the other. Since the firing phase (i.e., the drive mechanism driving the firing element to begin moving) occurs when the triggering condition is met, the control circuit can determine whether this process has occurred by detecting whether the triggering condition is met. Taking the aforementioned surgical instrument as an example, after the firing switch of the surgical instrument is triggered, the drive mechanism will drive the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base 210 to the other. Therefore, when the control circuit detects that the firing switch has been triggered, it can determine that the process of the drive mechanism driving the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base 210 to the other has occurred.

[0048] Then, the control circuit detects the driving speed of the drive mechanism (e.g., Figure 3 As shown in step 1.1, the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is detected. Once it is determined that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than a speed threshold, the drive mechanism is controlled to stop driving (e.g., the motor is controlled to stop rotating), thereby stopping the firing element from moving. It is understood that a single control process of the control circuit may include steps such as driving speed detection, driving speed comparison, and whether to control the drive mechanism to stop driving. In some embodiments, this control process of the control circuit can be executed according to a preset period during the movement of the firing element from one end to the other. For example, the control circuit detects the driving speed of the drive mechanism every 1ms and compares the driving speed with a speed threshold to determine whether to control the drive mechanism to stop driving. Of course, the periodic interval can be flexibly set according to actual conditions and is not limited to the numerical example above.

[0049] It is understandable that the current drive speed refers to the drive speed of the drive mechanism detected at a specific moment, such as the drive speed detected every 1ms. The drive mechanism can be a motor, so the current drive speed of the drive mechanism can be the motor's rotational speed. The current drive speed needs to be compared with a speed threshold, which is understood to be a threshold value for the drive speed.

[0050] Regarding the speed threshold, it's important to note that its setting is related to whether the surgeon can perceive whether the drive mechanism is moving the firing pin. The speed threshold can be a pre-set fixed value or a current value set based on the current tissue resistance (this value can vary). The following sections will explain both scenarios in detail.

[0051] In some embodiments, the speed threshold can be a preset speed threshold within the surgical instrument (in this case, the speed threshold can be referred to as the preset speed threshold). The preset speed threshold can be set based on one or more of the following parameters: the transmission efficiency of the transmission mechanism, the upper limit threshold of the driving force of the drive mechanism, and the speed threshold under normal tissue suturing conditions. These parameters are fixed parameters of the surgical instrument, and their values ​​are affected by various factors such as mechanical structure design, instrument materials, and transmission lubrication. The parameter values ​​of these parameters can be calculated through multiple tests before the surgical instrument leaves the factory. Therefore, in this embodiment, these parameters can be used as known experience to determine the preset speed threshold. Wherein:

[0052] The transmission efficiency of a transmission mechanism refers to the efficiency with which input energy is converted into useful output power in a mechanical transmission system. It is an important indicator for measuring the energy conversion and transmission capability of a mechanical transmission system. A mechanical transmission system with high transmission efficiency can better transfer energy from the driving end to the executing end, reducing energy losses (such as friction and heat), thereby improving the performance of the mechanical transmission system. Specifically, in the surgical instrument of this application embodiment, the driving mechanism in the driving assembly drives the firing element of the staple cartridge assembly to move through the transmission mechanism. Therefore, the input energy of the driving mechanism to the transmission mechanism can be detected, and the useful output power of the transmission mechanism can be detected, thereby calculating the transmission efficiency of the transmission mechanism.

[0053] The driving force of a drive mechanism refers to the force or torque generated by the drive mechanism to drive a mechanical load. The drive mechanism converts electrical energy into mechanical energy (usually torque and speed) to generate driving force to propel the load. The driving force is closely related to the design parameters of the drive mechanism, power supply characteristics, and load conditions. Specifically, in the surgical instrument embodiment of this application, the drive mechanism can be a motor, etc. The driving force of the motor is obtained by combining the design parameters of the motor configured in the surgical instrument, the power supply characteristics of the power supply used by the motor, and the situation of the firing mechanism driven by the motor. It should be noted that the driving force of the drive mechanism is a default parameter and can be obtained from the factory parameters of the drive mechanism. The driving force can be a driving force range, and a preset speed threshold is determined using the upper limit threshold of the driving force.

[0054] The speed threshold for normal tissue suturing refers to the highest and lowest speeds used when surgical instruments are used to properly suture the tissue being cut and sutured. In practice, the speed at which surgical instruments cut and suture various tissues can be tested to determine the highest and lowest speeds that guarantee normal cutting and suturing of each tissue. Then, referring to these tested speed thresholds, the speed thresholds (preset speed thresholds) used by the surgical instruments in actual tissue cutting and suturing are determined. It is understandable that during the testing phase, the speed thresholds for normal suturing of different tissues will vary due to differences in thickness. Therefore, for the same surgical instrument, preset speed thresholds can be determined for multiple different tissues based on the speed thresholds for normal cutting and suturing of different tissues during the testing phase. In other words, the same surgical instrument can be pre-set with multiple speed thresholds (preset speed thresholds) corresponding to different tissues. Thus, when a surgeon actually uses a surgical instrument to cut and suture a tissue, they can obtain the preset speed threshold corresponding to that tissue.

[0055] In this embodiment, a fixed preset speed threshold is used as the comparison condition for the current driving speed, making the implementation of the scheme relatively simple.

[0056] In other embodiments, the speed threshold is determined based on at least one of the following parameters: the current drive current of the drive mechanism, the current output power of the drive mechanism, the type of the staple cartridge assembly, and the thickness of the clamped tissue. For example, a preset speed threshold can be obtained, and the preset speed threshold can be adjusted based on the current drive current of the drive mechanism, the current output power of the drive mechanism, the thickness of the clamped tissue, and the type of the staple cartridge assembly to obtain a speed threshold for comparison with the current drive speed (which can be referred to as the current speed threshold for ease of description).

[0057] Current drive current of the drive mechanism: Referring to the above explanation of the current drive speed, the current drive current is the drive current of the drive mechanism at a given moment. Drive current can also be called current. Since the drive mechanism can be a motor, the current drive current of the drive mechanism can be the current current of the motor. The current drive current reflects the reaction force (resistance) of the clamped tissue on the staple cartridge assembly. A larger current indicates a thicker clamped tissue, meaning a greater reaction force is generated; conversely, a smaller current indicates a smaller reaction force. Therefore, a larger current can reduce the preset speed threshold to a greater extent, while a smaller current can reduce the preset speed threshold to a lesser extent.

[0058] Output power of the drive mechanism: This refers to the power by which the drive mechanism converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Based on the physical relationship between power, speed, and force, at the same driving speed, a higher output power of the drive mechanism results in a greater force (i.e., striking force), requiring a significantly lower speed threshold. Similarly, at the same output power, a lower driving speed results in a greater force (i.e., striking force), again requiring a significantly lower speed threshold.

[0059] The type of staple cartridge assembly primarily represents the height of the staples. Higher staples indicate thicker clamped tissue, meaning a greater reaction force is generated; conversely, shorter staples indicate a smaller reaction force. Therefore, higher staples can reduce the preset speed threshold to a greater extent, while shorter staples can reduce it to a lesser extent. In some embodiments, the type of staple cartridge assembly can be determined by detecting the color of the staples, such as black staples being higher than white staples. In some embodiments, the type of staple cartridge assembly can be identified using radio frequency (RFID) information. For example, an RFID card can be inserted into the surgical instrument to allow the control circuit to read the staple cartridge information from the RFID card, including the type of staple cartridge assembly.

[0060] The above three parameters can indirectly reflect the thickness of the clamped tissue, and of course, the thickness of the clamped tissue can also be directly measured by the detection structure.

[0061] In this embodiment, a preset speed threshold is adjusted based on the current drive current, current output power, staple cartridge assembly, and thickness of the clamped tissue to obtain a speed threshold for comparison with the current drive speed. Besides the actual detected thickness of the clamped tissue, the thickness can be indirectly obtained by detecting the current drive current, current output power, and staple cartridge type of the drive mechanism. This allows for real-time adjustment of the speed threshold based on the tissue thickness, enabling different control actions for the drive mechanism according to varying tissue thicknesses, resulting in more flexible and precise control.

[0062] The control circuit determines that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than the speed threshold, indicating that the currently held tissue thickness is relatively thick. In this case, the control mechanism stops driving the firing element to move (e.g., Figure 3 As shown in steps 1.2 and 1.3, the control circuit can send a stop drive command to the drive mechanism to control the drive mechanism to stop driving the movement of the firing element, until a specific preset condition is met, and then control the drive mechanism to continue driving the movement of the firing element (such as...). Figure 3 As shown in steps 2.1 and 2.2, if the control circuit determines that the preset condition is met, it sends a continue driving command to the drive mechanism to continue driving the firing element to move to the other end, in the following direction: Figure 3 (As shown by the double-lined arrows in the diagram). Compared to current surgical instrument control methods, this embodiment uses the driving speed of the drive mechanism (such as the rotational speed of a motor) to determine whether the drive mechanism should pause. Since the driving speed of the drive mechanism can be accurately extracted, and the driving speed can accurately reflect the reaction force of the tissue on the suture staple or cutting blade, the timing of pausing the drive mechanism can be precisely controlled, avoiding the impact of premature pausing on firing efficiency and the damage to the tissue caused by late pausing.

[0063] It should be noted that the embodiments of this application can be applied not only to the firing phase of surgical instruments but also to the retraction phase. During the retraction phase, the firing element is moved from one end of the staple cartridge assembly's mounting base to the other by the transmission mechanism. Although tissue cutting and suturing are not required during this movement, the actuator assembly still holds the tissue. The firing element may encounter a situation where it is pulled and jammed by the tissue during the retraction stroke. The surgical instrument of this application embodiment detects the driving speed of the drive mechanism during the retraction stroke of the firing element through a control circuit, and uses the driving speed to pause the drive mechanism, thus avoiding tissue damage during the retraction phase of the surgical instrument.

[0064] As can be seen from the descriptions of the above embodiments, when the current driving speed of the driving mechanism is less than a preset threshold, the control circuit controls the driving mechanism to pause operation so that the firing element stops moving. Pausing operation means that even after detecting that a specific preset condition has been met, the control circuit will still control the driving mechanism to continue operating so that the firing element continues to move. The preset conditions and the continued driving process of the driving mechanism after the preset conditions are met will be specifically described below through several embodiments. To distinguish it from the preset conditions used below for controlling the firing element to retract, the preset conditions used here for controlling the continued movement of the firing element can be referred to as the first preset condition, and the preset conditions used below for controlling the retraction of the firing element can be referred to as the second preset condition.

[0065] In the first embodiment, the preset condition can be determined by the shielding period. The control circuit determines that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than the speed threshold, and controls the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element to move during the shielding period. After the shielding period ends, the control circuit actively controls the drive mechanism to continue driving the firing element to move to the other end of the mounting base.

[0066] Specifically, a pre-set shielding period (a set time duration) can be implemented. When the control circuit determines that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than a speed threshold, it controls the drive mechanism to stop, indicating that the drive mechanism has entered the shielding period, and the drive mechanism remains stopped throughout this period. After the shielding period ends, the control circuit actively controls the drive mechanism to continue driving the firing element to the other end of the mounting base. This embodiment is relatively simple to implement. In some cases, the shielding period is equivalent to further compressing the unfired tissue, making it easier to fire.

[0067] In the second embodiment, the preset conditions can be determined by two factors: the shielding period and the user's firing command. The control circuit determines that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than a speed threshold, and controls the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element during the shielding period. Once the shielding period ends, it receives the user-triggered firing command and, in response, controls the drive mechanism to continue driving the firing element to the other end of the mounting base.

[0068] Unlike the previous embodiment, in this embodiment, after the shielding period ends, the drive mechanism continues to drive the firing element to move based on the user-triggered firing command. That is, if a user-triggered firing command is obtained after the shielding period ends (such as the user operating the firing switch of a surgical instrument), the control circuit responds to the firing command and controls the drive mechanism to continue driving the firing element to move; if no user-triggered firing command is obtained after the shielding period ends, the drive mechanism remains in a stopped state.

[0069] In this embodiment, the control circuit of the surgical instrument stops the drive mechanism during the shielding period to prevent damage to thicker tissue from firing. After the shielding period ends, the drive mechanism resumes movement in response to the firing command issued by the surgeon. When the user operates the surgical instrument and notices that the drive mechanism has entered the shielding period and is paused, the compression of the clamped tissue can be observed after the shielding period ends. The user can then decide whether to trigger the firing command and the timing of the trigger based on the compression of the clamped tissue, thereby avoiding potential tissue damage from sudden continued firing.

[0070] In the two embodiments described above, "controlling the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element during the shielding period" is a result state, meaning the drive mechanism remains in a stopped state throughout the entire shielding period. However, in practical applications, a possible scenario is that a surgeon may issue a firing command to the surgical instrument during the shielding period. To ensure the drive mechanism remains in a stopped state throughout the entire shielding period, the control circuit's control process includes:

[0071] The control circuit determines that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than the speed threshold, and controls the drive mechanism to enter a shielding period to stop driving the firing element to move; during the shielding period, if a firing command triggered by the user is received, the control circuit does not respond to the firing command, so that the drive mechanism remains in a state of stopping driving the firing element to move during the shielding period.

[0072] Specifically, the control circuit determines that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than the speed threshold. It first controls the drive mechanism to stop driving (i.e., enter the shielding period). If the user operates the firing switch of the surgical instrument during the shielding period to generate a firing command, the firing command is sent to the control circuit. After receiving the firing command, if the control circuit determines that the shielding period has not ended, it does not respond to the firing command, thereby keeping the drive mechanism in a state of stopping the movement of the firing element during the shielding period.

[0073] In the third embodiment, the preset conditions can be determined by the user's firing command. The control circuit determines that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than a speed threshold, and controls the drive mechanism to enter a shielding period to stop driving the firing element to move; during the shielding period, it determines that a firing command triggered by the user has been received, and in response to the firing command, controls the drive mechanism to continue driving the firing element to move to the other end of the mounting base.

[0074] Unlike the previous embodiment, this embodiment, if a user trigger command is received during the shielding period, can respond to the user-triggered firing command and control the drive mechanism to continue moving the firing element. This solution eliminates the need to wait for the shielding period to end, allowing the user to directly select the timing of continued firing based on the compression of the clamped tissue, making the firing method more flexible for the user.

[0075] In all the above embodiments, the drive mechanism is controlled to enter a shielding period. The setting of the shielding period increases the probability that the drive mechanism can continue to fire when firing, and protects the tissue from damage.

[0076] To help users intuitively understand the working status of surgical instruments during the entry and exit of the shielding period, status prompts can be provided through a prompt component.

[0077] In some embodiments, the surgical instrument further includes prompting components such as a display screen, a light-emitting device, an audio device, and a vibration motor. The control circuit is also used to control the prompting components to output status prompt information after the control drive mechanism enters a shielded period. The status prompt information can manifest in various forms such as display information, light, sound, and vibration. This status prompt information is used to indicate that the drive mechanism is in a shielded period, and the user can understand through this status prompt information that the drive mechanism has stopped working, which means that the firing element has stopped moving.

[0078] In some embodiments, the control circuit is further configured to control the prompting component to output a status prompt message to indicate that the drive mechanism has exited the shielding period after the control drive mechanism continues to drive the firing element to move to the other end of the mounting base (i.e., exiting the shielding period). This status prompt message can be designed with reference to the status prompt message for indicating entry into the shielding period described above, and will not be repeated here.

[0079] Regarding the shielding period, it should be noted that: in some embodiments, the duration of the shielding period can be preset to a fixed duration (based on known experience summarized from experimental data). In other embodiments, the duration of the shielding period can be determined based on at least one of the following: the current driving current of the driving mechanism, the current output power of the driving mechanism, the type of the staple cartridge assembly, and the thickness of the clamped tissue. In this case, the shielding period determined is used for the pause duration of the current control driving mechanism. For ease of description, this shielding period can be referred to as the current shielding period.

[0080] Taking the current drive current of the drive mechanism as an example, one way to determine the current shielding period is to adjust a preset fixed-length shielding period based on the current drive current. For example, the larger the current drive current, the longer the preset fixed-length shielding period will be. Another way is to pre-determine the mapping relationship between the drive current and the shielding period length, and then obtain the corresponding shielding period length as the current shielding period after detecting the current drive current. The mapping relationship can be a linear mapping or a gear mapping.

[0081] It should be noted that the current drive current of the drive mechanism, the current output power of the drive mechanism, the type of the staple cartridge assembly, and the thickness of the clamped tissue can all directly or indirectly reflect the thickness of the clamped tissue, that is, they can reflect the reaction force currently generated by the clamped tissue on the firing element. Among these factors, it is preferable to use the current drive current to adjust the preset shielding period to obtain the current shielding period. The adjustment of the preset shielding period was explained above using the current drive current as an example. The current output power of the drive mechanism, the type of the staple cartridge assembly, and the thickness of the clamped tissue can also be adjusted in the same way to obtain the current shielding period.

[0082] In this embodiment, the control circuit can determine the squeezing condition of the clamped tissue based on factors such as the current drive current, and adjust the duration of the shielding period according to the squeezing condition of the clamped tissue, thereby obtaining a shielding period that is more in line with the current squeezing condition, which ensures firing efficiency and avoids tissue damage.

[0083] To prevent tissue damage during the firing phase, in addition to controlling the drive mechanism to pause operation using its current drive speed, the current drive speed can also be controlled to prevent excessively high cutting and suturing speeds at excessively high drive speeds, which could damage thicker or ultra-thicker tissues. Specifically:

[0084] Please refer to Figure 4 In some embodiments of stage 1 shown, the control circuit is further configured to: adjust the duty cycle of the pulse input signal of the drive mechanism to reduce the current drive speed of the drive mechanism during the process of the drive mechanism driving the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base to the other end, based on at least one of the current drive current of the drive mechanism, the current output power of the drive mechanism, the type of the staple cartridge assembly, and the thickness of the clamped tissue; wherein the reduced current drive speed is greater than or equal to a speed threshold.

[0085] The current drive current of the drive mechanism, the current output power of the drive mechanism, the type of the staple cartridge assembly, and the thickness of the clamped tissue can reflect the current reaction force (i.e., resistance) of the clamped tissue on the firing pin. Therefore, the current drive speed of the drive mechanism can be reduced based on at least one of these factors. If at least one of these factors indicates that the current reaction force of the clamped tissue on the firing pin is too large (e.g., exceeding the reaction force threshold), the current drive speed of the drive mechanism is reduced.

[0086] Understandably, the duty cycle of the pulse input signal of the drive mechanism determines its driving speed; a lower duty cycle results in a lower driving speed. Therefore, when the control circuit determines, by monitoring any of the aforementioned factors, that the current reaction force of the clamped tissue on the firing element is excessive, it reduces the duty cycle of the pulse input signal of the drive mechanism, thereby reducing its current driving speed. As the current speed of the drive mechanism decreases, the likelihood of damage to the tissue, especially thicker and ultra-thicker tissues, also decreases, thus preventing tissue damage.

[0087] It should be noted that reducing the current drive speed of the drive mechanism is conditional on ensuring that it does not fall below the current speed threshold, otherwise it may directly cause the drive mechanism to stop. Therefore, the current drive speed is reduced in small increments each time, and is determined by referring to the difference between the current speed threshold and the current speed threshold. On the other hand, as mentioned earlier, the speed threshold can also be adjusted (reduced) based on the current drive current of the drive mechanism. Therefore, although the current drive speed decreases, the current speed threshold also decreases synchronously, which can also prevent the drive mechanism from stopping directly due to a reduction in the current drive speed. It should also be noted that if the speed threshold is a fixed preset speed threshold, then this preset speed threshold will be set to a smaller value from known experience, which can also prevent the drive mechanism from stopping directly due to a reduction in the current drive speed.

[0088] Provided the drive mechanism's speed has not fallen below the speed threshold, its speed may continue to decrease under certain circumstances, leading to a reduction in the firing efficiency of surgical instruments. Therefore, while ensuring no tissue damage, the drive mechanism's speed can be appropriately maintained. Specifically:

[0089] Please refer to Figure 4 In stage 2 shown, in some embodiments, the control circuit is further configured to: during the process of the drive mechanism driving the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base to the other end, if it is determined that the current drive speed is continuously decreasing and the continuous decrease is not due to the control circuit adjusting the duty cycle of the pulse input signal of the drive mechanism, then adjust the duty cycle of the pulse input signal of the drive mechanism to maintain the current drive speed of the drive mechanism; if it is determined that the adjusted duty cycle of the pulse input signal reaches a preset upper limit threshold, then stop adjusting the duty cycle of the pulse input signal.

[0090] The previous embodiment mentioned that the control circuit can actively reduce the current driving speed of the drive mechanism. After reducing the current driving speed, if there is no change in external force, the drive mechanism can maintain the reduced driving speed. However, during implementation, there may be a situation where the tissue becomes thicker and thicker. In this case, the reduced driving speed may not be maintained, but will continue to decrease due to the increased resistance generated by the tissue. That is, the continuous decrease in the driving speed of the drive mechanism is not due to the control circuit adjusting the duty cycle of the pulse input signal of the drive mechanism.

[0091] If the current driving speed is not lower than the speed threshold, to ensure firing efficiency, the duty cycle of the pulse input signal of the driving mechanism can be adjusted (i.e., the duty cycle is increased) to maintain the current driving speed of the driving mechanism. It should be noted that the duty cycle is constrained by a duty cycle upper limit threshold (which can be a default upper limit threshold or flexibly set according to actual needs). If it is determined that the adjusted duty cycle of the pulse input signal reaches the preset duty cycle upper limit threshold, the adjustment of the pulse input signal's duty cycle stops. It is understood that if the tissue thickness is too thick, the driving speed of the driving mechanism will continuously decrease until it falls below the speed threshold. In this case, the control circuit controls the driving mechanism to pause and enter a shielding period to protect the tissue, especially thicker or ultra-thicker tissues.

[0092] like Figure 4 As shown, during the process of the drive mechanism driving the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base to the other, the control circuit can control the drive mechanism in three stages. In some practical implementations, the control of stage 1, stage 2, and stage 3 occurs sequentially, and the control of stage 1 and stage 2 may alternate.

[0093] The surgical instruments provided in the embodiments of this application have drive mechanisms selected based on the transmission efficiency of the transmission mechanism. In the embodiments of this application, when the current drive speed of the drive mechanism is less than a speed threshold, the control circuit controls the drive mechanism to temporarily stop working and not continue firing when the speed is less than the threshold. On the one hand, this facilitates the surgeon's accurate operation of the surgical instruments (because the drive speed of the drive mechanism is very small, making it impossible for the user to perceive whether the instrument is working or paused, which may lead to misoperation of the surgical instruments and tissue damage). On the other hand, it enables effective control of the drive mechanism (because when the drive speed of the drive mechanism is very small, such as when it is close to the limit speed of the drive mechanism, it is impossible to effectively control the operation of the drive mechanism).

[0094] Under the same inventive concept as the above embodiments, this application also provides a surgical instrument for achieving precise control of the timing of the firing pin's pause.

[0095] like Figure 1, Figure 2A , Figure 2B and Figure 5 As shown, a surgical instrument includes an actuator assembly 100, a staple cartridge assembly 200, a drive assembly 300, and a control circuit. Unlike the embodiments described above, after the firing element stops moving and a preset condition is met, it does not continue moving in the same direction, but instead retracts in the opposite direction under the control of the control circuit. The function of the control circuit will be described in detail below; other structural details can be found in the relevant descriptions of the embodiments described above, and will not be repeated here.

[0096] The control circuit is at least used to determine, during the process of the drive mechanism driving the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base to the other, that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than a speed threshold, and to control the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element to move; and to control the drive mechanism to drive the firing element back to one end of the mounting base after determining that a preset condition has been met.

[0097] Specifically, during the movement of the firing element from one end of the mounting base to the other, if the control circuit determines that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than a speed threshold, it indicates that the currently held tissue thickness is relatively thick. In this case, the control drive mechanism stops driving the firing element to move (e.g., Figure 5 As shown in steps 1.2 and 1.3, the control circuit can send a stop drive command to the drive mechanism to control the drive mechanism to stop the movement of the firing element. After the control circuit detects that a specific preset condition (the second preset condition) is met, it controls the drive mechanism to drive the firing element back to the end where it started moving (e.g., ...). Figure 5 As shown in steps 3.1 and 3.2, if the control circuit determines that the preset condition is met, it sends a retraction command to the drive mechanism to drive the firing element back to the starting end of the movement. The retraction direction is as follows: Figure 5 (As shown by the double-lined arrow in the image).

[0098] Compared with the above embodiments, in this embodiment, the control circuit not only controls the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element to move after determining that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than the speed threshold, so as to accurately control the pause time of the firing element, but also controls the firing element to perform a retraction operation after the firing element stops moving, so as to further avoid damage to thicker or ultra-thick tissues that may be caused by continued firing, thereby improving the safety of surgical instruments.

[0099] The retraction process after the firing element stops moving can be triggered by the user or automatically controlled by the surgical instrument. Details are as follows:

[0100] "After determining that the preset conditions are met, control the drive mechanism to drive the firing element to retract to one end of the mounting base." One specific implementation method includes: obtaining the user-triggered retraction command and responding to the retraction command by controlling the drive mechanism to drive the firing element to retract to one end of the mounting base.

[0101] Specifically, surgical instruments can be equipped with a retraction control to allow the user to trigger a retraction command. For example, the handle assembly 400 of the surgical instrument may include a retraction trigger; pressing the retraction trigger indicates that a retraction command has been triggered. The control circuit of the surgical instrument detects the user-triggered retraction command and responds by controlling the firing mechanism, which is in a stopped state, to perform a retraction operation, retracting it to one end of the mounting base. In this retraction method, the user can control the duration of tissue compression and decide whether to continue firing or retract based on the tissue compression status, thus providing the user with greater control over the surgical instrument.

[0102] "After determining that the preset conditions are met, control the drive mechanism to drive the firing element back to one end of the mounting base." Another specific implementation method includes: after determining that the firing element has stopped moving, actively control the drive mechanism to drive the firing element back to one end of the mounting base.

[0103] Specifically, after the control circuit detects that the firing element is in a stopped state (e.g., the control circuit sends a stop drive command to the drive structure, indicating that the firing element is in a stopped movement state), it directly and automatically controls the firing element to perform a retraction operation. Compared to the above retraction method, this retraction method makes the control process of surgical instruments more intelligent and the operation simpler and more convenient for users.

[0104] It should be understood that although the steps in the flowcharts of the embodiments described above are shown sequentially according to the arrows, these steps are not necessarily executed in the order indicated by the arrows. Unless explicitly stated herein, there is no strict order restriction on the execution of these steps, and they can be executed in other orders. Moreover, at least some steps in the flowcharts of the embodiments described above may include multiple steps or multiple stages. These steps or stages are not necessarily completed at the same time, but can be executed at different times. The execution order of these steps or stages is not necessarily sequential, but can be performed alternately or in turn with other steps or at least some of the steps or stages of other steps.

[0105] The features described above in the disclosed embodiments can be substituted or combined with each other to enable those skilled in the art to implement or use this application. This document has been described with reference to various exemplary embodiments. However, those skilled in the art will recognize that changes and modifications can be made to the exemplary embodiments without departing from the scope of this document. For example, various operational steps and components for performing operational steps can be implemented differently depending on the specific application or considering any number of cost functions associated with the operation of the system (e.g., one or more steps can be deleted, modified, or combined with other steps).

[0106] The terms "first," "second," etc., used in this specification, claims, and the accompanying drawings are used to distinguish different objects, not to describe a specific order. Furthermore, the terms "comprising" and "having," and any variations thereof, are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus that includes a series of steps or units is not limited to the listed steps or units, but may optionally include steps or units not listed, or may optionally include other steps or units inherent to these processes, methods, or apparatuses.

[0107] Furthermore, as those skilled in the art will understand, the principles herein can be reflected in a computer program product on a computer-readable storage medium pre-loaded with computer-readable program code. Any tangible, non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may be used, including magnetic storage devices (hard disks, floppy disks, etc.), optical storage devices (CD-ROMs, DVDs, Blu-ray discs, etc.), flash memory, and / or the like. These computer program instructions may be loaded onto a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to form a machine, such that instructions, which execute on the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, can generate means to perform a specified function. These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable storage medium that can instruct the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to operate in a particular manner, such that instructions stored in the computer-readable storage medium can form an article of manufacture, including means for implementing the specified function. The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to perform a series of operational steps on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer-implemented process, such that instructions, which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus, can provide steps for implementing the specified function.

[0108] The foregoing specific descriptions have been described with reference to various embodiments. However, those skilled in the art will recognize that various modifications and changes can be made without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Therefore, considerations for this disclosure are to be illustrative rather than restrictive, and all such modifications are to be included within its scope. Similarly, advantages, other advantages, and solutions to problems with respect to various embodiments have been described above. However, benefits, advantages, solutions to problems, and any elements that produce these, or make them more explicit, should not be construed as critical, essential, or necessary. The term “comprising” and any other variations thereof as used herein are non-exclusive inclusion, meaning that a process, method, product, or apparatus that includes a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed or not part of the process, method, system, product, or apparatus. Furthermore, the term “coupled” and any other variations thereof as used herein refer to physical connections, electrical connections, magnetic connections, optical connections, communication connections, functional connections, and / or any other connections.

[0109] The above embodiments are merely illustrative of several implementation methods, and their descriptions are relatively specific and detailed. However, they should not be construed as limiting the scope of this invention. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make various modifications and improvements without departing from the concept of this invention, and these all fall within the protection scope of this invention. Therefore, the protection scope of this invention should be determined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A surgical instrument, characterized by include: An actuator assembly, the actuator assembly including a first jaw and a second jaw for gripping tissue; A staple cartridge assembly is disposed between a first jaw and a second jaw, the staple cartridge assembly is used to receive suture staples, the staple cartridge assembly includes a mounting base and a firing element, the firing element being movably disposed on the mounting base; A drive assembly, comprising a drive mechanism and a transmission mechanism, wherein the drive mechanism is used to drive the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base to the other end via the transmission mechanism; A control circuit, at least configured to determine, during the process of the drive mechanism driving the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base to the other end, that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than a speed threshold, control the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element to move, and control the drive mechanism to continue driving the firing element to move to the other end of the mounting base after determining that a preset condition is met.

2. The surgical instrument of claim 1, wherein, The step of controlling the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element to move until a preset condition is met, and then controlling the drive mechanism to continue driving the firing element to move towards the other end of the mounting base, includes: The drive mechanism is controlled to stop driving the firing element to move during the shielding period. After the shielding period ends, a firing command triggered by the user is obtained and responded to the firing command. The drive mechanism is then controlled to continue driving the firing element to move to the other end of the mounting base.

3. The surgical instrument of claim 1, wherein, The step of controlling the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element to move until a preset condition is met, and then controlling the drive mechanism to continue driving the firing element to move towards the other end of the mounting base, includes: The drive mechanism is controlled to stop driving the firing element during the shielding period. Once the shielding period ends, the drive mechanism is actively controlled to continue driving the firing element to move towards the other end of the mounting base.

4. A surgical instrument as claimed in claim 2 or 3, characterised in that, The control of the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element to move during the shielding period includes: The drive mechanism is controlled to enter the shielding period to stop driving the firing element to move; If a firing command triggered by a user is received during the shielding period, the driving mechanism does not respond to the firing command, so that the driving mechanism remains in a state of not driving the firing element to move during the shielding period.

5. The surgical instrument as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The step of controlling the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element to move until a preset condition is met, and then controlling the drive mechanism to continue driving the firing element to move towards the other end of the mounting base, includes: The drive mechanism is controlled to enter the shielding period to stop driving the firing element to move; During the shielding period, if a firing command triggered by the user is received, in response to the firing command, the drive mechanism is controlled to continue driving the firing element to move towards the other end of the mounting base.

6. The surgical instrument as described in claim 5, characterized in that, Also includes: a prompt component; The control circuit is also used to control the prompting component to output a status prompt message indicating that the device is in the shielding period after controlling the drive mechanism to enter the shielding period.

7. The surgical instrument according to any one of claims 2-5, characterized in that, The duration of the shielding period is a preset fixed duration, or the duration of the shielding period is determined based on at least one of the current driving current of the driving mechanism, the current output power of the driving mechanism, and the thickness of the clamped tissue.

8. The surgical instrument as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The speed threshold is determined based on at least one of the current drive current of the drive mechanism, the current output power of the drive mechanism, and the thickness of the clamped tissue.

9. The surgical instrument as described in claim 8, characterized in that, The speed threshold is a speed threshold preset based on one or more of the following parameters: the transmission efficiency of the transmission mechanism, the upper limit threshold of the driving force of the drive mechanism, and the speed threshold when the tissue is normally sutured.

10. The surgical instrument as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that, The control circuit is also used for: During the process of the drive mechanism driving the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base to the other end, the duty cycle of the pulse input signal of the drive mechanism is adjusted to reduce the current drive speed of the drive mechanism based on at least one of the current drive current of the drive mechanism, the current output power of the drive mechanism, and the thickness of the clamped tissue. The reduced current driving speed is greater than or equal to the speed threshold.

11. The surgical instrument as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that, The control circuit is also used for: During the process of the drive mechanism driving the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base to the other end, if it is determined that the current drive speed is continuously decreasing and the continuous decrease is not due to the control circuit adjusting the duty cycle of the pulse input signal of the drive mechanism, then the duty cycle of the pulse input signal of the drive mechanism is adjusted to maintain the current drive speed of the drive mechanism. If it is determined that the adjusted duty cycle of the pulse input signal reaches the preset upper limit threshold of the duty cycle, the adjustment of the duty cycle of the pulse input signal is stopped.

12. A surgical instrument, characterized in that, include: An actuator assembly, the actuator assembly including a first jaw and a second jaw for gripping tissue; A staple cartridge assembly is disposed between a first jaw and a second jaw, the staple cartridge assembly is used to receive suture staples, the staple cartridge assembly includes a mounting base and a firing element, the firing element being movably disposed on the mounting base; A drive assembly, comprising a drive mechanism and a transmission mechanism, wherein the drive mechanism is used to drive the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base to the other end via the transmission mechanism; A control circuit, at least configured to determine, during the process of the drive mechanism driving the firing element to move from one end of the mounting base to the other end, that the current driving speed of the drive mechanism is less than a speed threshold, and control the drive mechanism to stop driving the firing element to move. Once the preset conditions are met, the drive mechanism is controlled to drive the firing element back to one end of the mounting base.

13. The surgical instrument as described in claim 12, characterized in that, The step of controlling the drive mechanism to drive the firing element back to one end of the mounting base after determining that the preset condition is met includes: Upon receiving a user-triggered rollback command and responding to the rollback command, the drive mechanism is controlled to drive the firing element back to one end of the mounting base.

14. The surgical instrument as described in claim 12, characterized in that, The step of controlling the drive mechanism to drive the firing element back to one end of the mounting base after determining that the preset condition is met includes: After determining that the firing element has stopped moving, the driving mechanism is actively controlled to drive the firing element back to one end of the mounting base.

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