Forceps device

Abstract

The present invention comprises: a grip part; a plurality of wires that transmit drive force for operating the grip part; a cable that supplies current to the grip part; a support body that holds the grip part; and a first rotary shaft that rotatably supports the support body. The wires are disposed at both ends of the first rotary shaft, the support body has a guide part that guides the cable to the first rotary shaft side, and the cable is guided by the guide part to one side interposed between the wires and the center part of the first rotary shaft.

Description

forceps device

[0001] FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE The present disclosure relates to medical forceps devices.

[0002] In surgical procedures using surgical robots, bipolar forceps (hereinafter also referred to as bipolar forceps) are used, which are capable of performing incisions, cauterization, and the like of biological tissue by passing a high-frequency current through a pair of grippers. In bipolar forceps, wires for transmitting driving force are hung between movable parts such as grippers and joints, and electric wires (hereinafter also referred to as cables) are connected to the grippers. In this case, when the wires are pulled to move the movable parts, the cables connected to the movable parts also move passively. Therefore, in the bipolar forceps disclosed in Patent Document 1, first and second pulleys are provided at the joints, and the cables connected to one of the grippers are constrained to move around the first pulley, and the cables connected to the other gripper are constrained to move around the second pulley.

[0003] Special Publication No. 2020-524567

[0004] However, in the forceps device described above, a pulley is required for each cable, which increases the number of components and makes it difficult to reduce the size of the device. Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to provide a forceps device that can be reduced in size and allows smooth movement of the cables.

[0005] A forceps device according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a gripping portion, a plurality of wires that transmit a driving force to operate the gripping portion, a cable that supplies current to the gripping portion, a support that holds the gripping portion, and a first rotation axis that rotatably supports the support, wherein the wires are arranged at both ends of the first rotation axis, the support has guide portions that guide the cable toward the first rotation axis, and the cable is guided by the guide portions to one side sandwiched between the center of the first rotation axis and the wires.

[0006] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a forceps device that can be made smaller and allows smooth movement of the cable.

[0007] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a forceps device 10 according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a front view of the forceps device 10 shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from direction A. FIG. 3 is a side view of the forceps device 10 shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from direction B. FIG. 4 is a rear perspective view of the forceps device 10 shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from direction C. FIG. 5(a) is a front view of a support body 14 according to an embodiment, and FIG. 5(b) is a plan view of the support body 14 shown in FIG. 5(a) as viewed from direction D. FIG. 6(a) is an upper perspective view of the support body 14 shown in FIG. 5 as viewed from direction E. FIG. 6(b) is a lower perspective view of the support body 14 shown in FIG. 5 as viewed from direction F. FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the arrangement of cables 60, 62 in the support body 14 according to an embodiment.

[0008] Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present disclosure will be described in detail. Note that the present disclosure is not limited to these examples, but is defined by the claims, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope equivalent to the claims. Note that in the description of the specification and drawings relating to each embodiment, components having substantially the same or corresponding functional configurations may be designated by the same reference numerals, and redundant description may be omitted.

[0009] In addition, the drawings may be emphasized, omitted, or adjusted in proportion to facilitate understanding, and may differ from the actual shapes, positional relationships, and proportions. Hatching lines may be omitted in cross-sectional views. In addition, in the drawings, ridge lines representing steps, slopes, etc. may be shown with dashed lines.

[0010] In the direction of the central axis (hereinafter also referred to as the first axis V) of the forceps device 10, the side of the gripping portion 12 at the tip is the downstream side, and the opposite side is the upstream side. In each figure, "-Y" indicates the upstream direction, and "+Y" indicates the downstream direction. "+X" indicates the right-hand direction when facing upstream from the gripping portion 12, and "-X" indicates the left-hand direction when facing upstream from the gripping portion 12. "+Z" indicates the front direction, and "-Z" indicates the rear direction. The directions indicated by X, Y, and Z are mutually orthogonal and each serves as a three-dimensional coordinate axis. With respect to an object, the +X side may be referred to as the right side, the -X side as the left side, the +Y side as the upper side, the -Y side as the lower side, the +Z side as the front side, and the -Z side as the rear side. Furthermore, the X-axis direction may be referred to as the left-right direction, the Y-axis direction as the up-down direction, and the Z-axis direction as the front-back direction.

[0011] <Embodiment> <Overall Configuration of Forceps Device 10> First, the overall configuration of the forceps device 10 will be described. The forceps device 10 according to this embodiment is a bipolar forceps, and is applied to a master-slave type surgical robot. Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the forceps device 10 according to this embodiment. Fig. 2 is a front view of the forceps device 10 shown in Fig. 1, as seen from direction A. Fig. 3 is a side view of the forceps device 10 shown in Fig. 1, as seen from direction B. Fig. 4 is a rear perspective view of the forceps device 10 shown in Fig. 1, as seen from direction C. The forceps device 10 includes a pair of gripping portions 12, a support 14 that holds the pair of gripping portions 12, a first rotation shaft 16 that rotatably supports the support 14, a base component 18 that holds the first rotation shaft 16, four guide pulleys (first guide pulleys) 20 that are coaxial with the first rotation shaft 16 and around which wires 46, 48, 50, and 52 are hung, a guide pulley (second guide pulley) 22 that is coaxial with the first rotation shaft 16 and around which cables 60 and 62 are hung, a second rotation shaft 24 that rotatably supports the pair of gripping portions 12 and is held by the support 14, and two jaw pulleys (gripper pulleys) 26 that are held coaxially with the second rotation shaft 24. Note that the rotation shaft need not necessarily be one that rotates (turns) itself, but may be any axis about which a supported member rotates, and may be an axis that is fixed to another member.

[0012] [Base Component 18] The base component 18 has a pair of arms 18a that hold both ends of the first rotating shaft 16, and a third rotating shaft 28 that is held by the pair of arms 18a and rotatably supports two guide pulleys that are located upstream of the guide pulley 20. The third rotating shaft 28 is provided on each of the pair of arms 18a.

[0013] [Support body 14] Fig. 5(a) is a front view of the support body 14 according to the embodiment, and Fig. 5(b) is a plan view of the support body 14 shown in Fig. 5(a) as viewed from direction D. Fig. 6(a) is an upper perspective view of the support body shown in Fig. 5 as viewed from direction E, and Fig. 6(b) is a lower perspective view of the support body shown in Fig. 5 as viewed from direction F. The support body 14 has a pair of arms 14a that hold the second rotating shaft 24, a guide portion 14b that is provided between the pair of arms 14a and that guides the cable to the guide pulley 22, and a pulley portion 14c into which the first rotating shaft 16 is inserted.

[0014] (Pair of arms 14a) The arms 14a have a tip portion that holds the second rotation shaft 24 that is thinner than the base portion. Guide portions 14b are provided on the inside of the pair of arms 14a in the second axial direction. Furthermore, an insertion hole 14d through which the second rotation shaft 24 is inserted is provided on the tip side of the arm 14a.

[0015] (Pulley portion 14c) The pulley portion 14c has a pulley groove 32 formed along the circumferential direction of the first pivot shaft 16. The pulley portion 14c is disposed below the arm 14a (on the base component 18 side) and shifted to the left with respect to the first axis V. A circular through-hole 29 is formed in the pulley portion 14c, into which a bearing 30 is attached. The first pivot shaft 16, which rotatably supports the support body 14, is inserted into the bearing 30 attached to the pulley portion 14c. Wires 54, 56 that transmit a driving force for rotating the support body 14 about the first pivot shaft 16 are hung on the pulley portion 14c. (Guide portion 14b) The guide portion 14b is sandwiched between the pair of arms 14a and the pulley portion 14c. In addition, the guide portion 14b has a pair of side portions facing each other in the direction of the first rotation axis 16, an upper surface portion that is continuous with the upper edge of the side portion and has a guide hole 38, and a bottom surface portion that is continuous with the lower edge of the side portion and has an outlet hole 42.

[0016] The guide portion 14b also has a groove 34 extending in the front-rear direction (second pivot shaft 24) along the circumferential direction of the pulley groove 32. The groove 34 is formed across the guide portion 14b in the front-rear direction. Therefore, the top and bottom surfaces have open holes 40 that communicate with the groove 34. The side surface forms an inclined surface that widens outward in the direction of the first pivot shaft 16 as it extends upward (toward the grip portion 12). A pair of deflection pulleys 36 are attached to the outer side of the side surface in the direction of the first pivot shaft 1. The length (height) of the side surface in the direction of the first axis V is slightly less than half the length (height) of the arm 14a. The top surface has two approximately elliptical guide holes 38 and an open hole 40 formed along the front-rear direction.

[0017] The two guide holes 38 are arranged adjacent to each other in the front-rear direction. The two guide holes 38 are also arranged offset in the left-right direction with respect to the first axis V. For example, the guide hole 38 (hereinafter also referred to as the first guide hole) into which the cable 62 connected to the rear grip portion 12 is inserted is offset to the right, and the guide hole 38 (hereinafter also referred to as the second guide hole) into which the cable 60 connected to the front grip portion 12 is inserted is offset to the left. The peripheries of the guide holes 38, which are offset in the left-right direction, protrude outward from the side surface toward the first pivot shaft 16. The left end of the guide hole 38 is connected to the open hole 40. That is, the guide hole 38 and the open hole 40 are continuous. By offsetting the guide holes 38 in the left-right direction according to the inserted cables 60, 62, the cables 60, 62 can be easily inserted.

[0018] The bottom surface portion has two circular lead-out holes 42 and an open hole 40 formed along the front-rear direction. The two lead-out holes 42 are positioned offset to the right with respect to the first axis V. They are also positioned adjacent to each other in the front-rear direction. The lead-out holes 42 may have a smaller diameter than the guide hole 38. The guide hole 38 and the lead-out hole 42 are connected in the direction of the first axis V. Hereinafter, the lead-out hole 42 connected to the first guide hole 38 will be referred to as the first lead-out hole, and the lead-out hole 42 connected to the second guide hole 38 will be referred to as the second lead-out hole. Furthermore, the cable insertion space formed by the communication between the first guide hole 38 and the first lead-out hole 42 will be referred to as the first insertion space S1, and the cable insertion space formed by the communication between the second guide hole 38 and the second lead-out hole 42 will be referred to as the second insertion space S2. The first insertion space S1 and the second insertion space S2 are partially separated by a partition wall 44 formed along the left-right direction. The cable 62 connected to the rear grip portion 12 is inserted through the first insertion space S1, and the cable 60 connected to the front grip portion 12 is inserted through the second insertion space S2. As a result, the cable 62 inserted into the first guide hole 38 from the right side with respect to the first axis V and the cable 60 inserted into the first guide hole 38 from the left side with respect to the first axis V are led out to the right side with respect to the first axis V through the lead-out hole 42. In other words, the wires 60, 62 inserted into the guide portion 14b from the left and right directions across the first axis V are guided by the first insertion space S1 and the second insertion space S2 and led out to the right side with respect to the first axis V.

[0019] (Guide Pulley 22) The guide pulley 22 is rotatably supported on the first rotating shaft 16 and is disposed offset to the right with respect to the first axis V. The guide pulley 22 is rotatably supported on the first rotating shaft 16, which is inserted into a bearing 30 attached to the support body 14. Two cables 60, 62 extending from the guide portion 14b are hung around the guide pulley 22, each extending halfway around the guide pulley 22. Specifically, the cable 62 connected to the rear grip portion 12 is hung around the rear half of the guide pulley 22 with respect to the first axis V, and the cable 60 connected to the front grip portion 12 is hung around the front half of the guide pulley 22 with respect to the first axis V. The cables 60, 62 are guided above the corresponding half of the guide pulley 22 by the guide portion 14b. Specifically, the cable 62 is led out through the first lead-out hole 42 above the rear half of the guide pulley 22, and the cable 60 is led out through the second lead-out hole 42 above the front half of the guide pulley 22. In this manner, the two cables 60, 62 led out to the right side with respect to the first axis V by the guide portion 14b are hung on a single guide pulley 22. Therefore, compared to a case where a pulley is provided for each cable 60, 64, by having the two cables 60, 64 hung on a single guide pulley 22, the number of components can be reduced, resulting in weight reduction and cost reduction. Furthermore, by using a single guide pulley 22, the device can be prevented from becoming larger in the outer diameter direction, thereby enabling a more compact (thinner) device.

[0020] (Deflection pulley 36) The deflection pulley 36 is attached to the outer surface of the side portion by, for example, a spindle. The deflection pulley 36 is attached at a predetermined angle with respect to the first rotation shaft 16. The deflection pulley 36 deflects the wires 46, 50 toward the guide pulley 20, which is disposed on the inside in the direction of the first rotation shaft 16.

[0021] (Wires 46, 48, 50, 52, 54, 56) Each of the wires 46, 48, 50, 52, 54, 56 transmits driving force to operate the gripping portion 12 and the joints. Specifically, the wires 46, 48 are connected to and hung around the jaw pulley 26 of the front gripping portion 12, such that the front gripping portion 12 moves in an opening direction when the wire 46 is pulled and moves in a closing direction when the wire 48 is pulled. Furthermore, the wires 50, 52 are connected to and hung around the jaw pulley 26 of the rear gripping portion 12, such that the rear gripping portion 12 moves in an opening direction when the wire 50 is pulled and moves in a closing direction when the wire 52 is pulled. Furthermore, the corresponding wires 46, 48, 50, 52 are hung around each of the four guide pulleys 20. The wires 46, 48, 50, 52 pass through the corresponding guide pulleys 20 and are hung on the upper side (the gripping portion 12 side) of the guide pulleys 20. Each of the wires 54, 56 is for transmitting a driving force that rotates the support body 14 about the first rotation shaft 16. Specifically, the wires 54, 56 are hung on the pulley portion 14c, and the support body 14 rotates about the first rotation shaft 16 when the wires 54, 56 are pulled.

[0022] (Cables 60, 62) Each of the cables 60, 62 is a copper conductor coated with an insulating layer. Connecting the cables 60, 62 to the gripping portion 12 converts the gripping portion 12 into an electrode. Specifically, one end of the cables 60, 62 is connected to the gripping portion 12, and the cables 60, 62 are hung adjacent to the wires 48, 52 on the half-circumference side of the jaw pulley 26 on which the wires 48, 52 are hung. When the wires 48, 52 are pulled to move the gripping portion 12 in the closing direction, the gripping portion 12 pulls the cables 60, 62 from the connecting portion as a starting point. As a result, the cables 60, 62 are pushed by the gripping portion 12 and move upstream from the connecting portion as a starting point.

[0023] (Arrangement of guide pulleys 20, 22) The first rotating shaft 16 is arranged in the left-right order with the guide pulley 20, guide pulley 20, pulley portion 14c, guide pulley 22, guide pulley 20, and guide pulley 20. The guide pulley 20, guide pulley 20, and pulley portion 14c are arranged on the left side of the first axis V, and the guide pulley 22, guide pulley 20, and guide pulley 20 are arranged on the right side of the first axis V. Corresponding wires 46, 48, 50, 52, 54, and 56 are respectively hung in the arrangement described above. In this way, the wires 46, 48, 50, 52, 54, and 56 are arranged asymmetrically with respect to the first axis V.

[0024] (Diameter of Guide Pulleys 20, 22) When the wires 54, 56 are pulled to rotate the support body 14 about the first rotation shaft 16, the lengths of the wires 46, 48, 50, 52 and the cables 60, 62 change between the guide pulleys 20, 22 and the gripping portion 12. That is, when the forceps device 10 is bent, the path lengths of the wires 46, 48, 50, 52 and the cables 60, 62 change. Therefore, the diameters of the guide pulleys 20, 22 are set so that the change in path length of the wires 46, 48, 50, 52 is equal to or greater than the change in path length of the cables 60, 62 when the forceps device 10 is bent.

[0025] In this embodiment, the diameter of the guide pulley 20 for the wires 46, 48, 50, and 52 is, for example, 3.0 mm, and the diameter of the guide pulley 22 for the cables 60 and 62 is, for example, 1.94 mm. Furthermore, the wires 46, 48, 50, and 52, each having a diameter of, for example, 0.45 mm, are wound around the guide pulley 20, and the cables 60 and 62, each having a diameter of, for example, 0.67 mm, are wound around the guide pulley 22. In other words, the sum of the diameters of the guide pulley 20 and the wires 46, 48, 50, and 52 is equal to or greater than the sum of the diameters of the guide pulley 22 and the cables 60 and 62. This makes it possible to prevent breakage of the cables 60 and 62 when the joint is flexed, thereby improving the durability of the cables 60 and 62.

[0026] As described above, the forceps device 10 includes the gripping portion 12, the plurality of wires 46, 48, 50, 52 that transmit a driving force to operate the gripping portion 12, the cables 60, 62 that supply current to the gripping portion 12, the support body 14 that holds the gripping portion 12, and the first rotation shaft 16 that rotatably supports the support body 14, the wires 46, 48, 50, 52 are disposed at both ends of the first rotation shaft 16, the support body 14 has guide portions 14b that guide the cables 60, 62 toward the first rotation shaft 16, and the cables 60, 62 are guided by the guide portion 14b to one side sandwiched between the center of the first rotation shaft 16 and the wires 46, 48, 50, 52. This makes it possible to provide a forceps device 10 that can be made more compact and that allows the cables 60, 62 to move smoothly.

[0027] Furthermore, by configuring the two cables 60, 62 to move while being guided by one guide pulley 22, it is possible to reduce the number of components, thereby reducing manufacturing costs and weight. Furthermore, it is possible to reduce the diameter of the forceps device 10.

[0028] Furthermore, by setting the diameters of the guide pulleys 20 and 22 so that the change in path length of the wires 46, 48, 50, and 52 is greater than or equal to the change in path length of the cables 60 and 62 when the joint is flexed, damage to the cables 60 and 62 can be suppressed, and the durability of the cables 60 and 62 can be improved.

[0029] Although the forceps device has been described above using embodiments, the present disclosure is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications and improvements, such as combinations or substitutions with part or all of other embodiments, are possible within the scope specified in the claims.

[0030] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 10 forceps device 12 gripping portion 14 support 14a arm 14b guide portion 14c pulley portion 14d insertion hole 16 first rotation shaft 18 base part 18a arm 20 guide pulley (first guide pulley) 22 guide pulley (second guide pulley) 24 second rotation shaft 26 jaw pulley (gripping portion pulley) 28 third rotation shaft 29 through hole 30 bearing 32 pulley groove 34 groove portion 36 deflection pulley 38 guide hole 40 open hole 42 lead-out hole 44 partition wall portion 46, 48, 50, 52, 54, 56 wire 60, 62 cable V first shaft S1 first insertion space S2 second insertion space

Claims

1. A forceps device comprising: a gripping portion; a plurality of wires that transmit a driving force to operate the gripping portion; a cable that supplies current to the gripping portion; a support that holds the gripping portion; and a first rotation axis that rotatably supports the support, wherein the wires are arranged at both ends of the first rotation axis, the support has guide portions that guide the cable toward the first rotation axis, and the cable is guided by the guide portion to one side sandwiched between the center of the first rotation axis and the wire.

2. The forceps device according to claim 1, wherein there are a pair of gripping parts, each of which is connected to the cable and the wire, the wire connected to one of the gripping parts is disposed at one end of the first rotating shaft, the wire connected to the other of the gripping parts is disposed at the other end of the first rotating shaft, and the cables connected to each of the gripping parts are all disposed on one side between the center of the first rotating shaft and the wires connected to each of the gripping parts.

3. The forceps device according to claim 2, further comprising: a first guide pulley arranged coaxially with the first rotation shaft and around which the wire is hung; and a second guide pulley arranged coaxially with the first rotation shaft and around which the cable is hung; the first guide pulleys are arranged at both ends of the first rotation shaft, and the second guide pulleys are arranged on one side between the center of the first rotation shaft and each of the first guide pulleys.

4. The forceps device according to claim 3, wherein the second guide pulley is disposed on one side of the cables guided by the guide portion.

5. The forceps device according to claim 4, wherein each of the cables is hung separately on each half-circumference portion of the second guide pulley.

6. A forceps device according to claim 5, wherein the guide portion has a guide hole at one end along the first axial direction and an outlet hole at the other end, the guide hole and the outlet hole communicate with each other, and each cable inserted into the guide portion via the guide hole is led out by the outlet hole towards each half-circle portion of the second guide pulley.

7. A forceps procedure according to claim 6, wherein the support has a pulley portion formed with a through hole in which a bearing is attached, the support is rotatably supported by the first rotating shaft inserted into the bearing attached to the pulley portion, the second guide pulley is disposed on one side of the first shaft, and the pulley portion is disposed on the other side of the first shaft.

8. A forceps device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the change in the path length of the wire from the first guide pulley to the gripping portion when the support body rotates is equal to or greater than the change in the path length of the cable from the second guide pulley to the gripping portion.

9. The forceps device according to claim 8, wherein the sum of the diameter of the first guide pulley and the diameter of the wire is equal to or greater than the sum of the diameter of the second guide pulley and the diameter of the cable.

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