Articulated Disc Preparation Instrument for Endplate Alignment
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional manual instruments used in minimally invasive spinal surgery for disc space preparation face challenges due to the need for smaller access openings, limiting their effectiveness in preparing the disc space for implantation of fusion or replacement implants.
Innovation Solution
Articulated instruments that combine rotatory and angular motion, featuring a disruption tool that can move between straight and angled configurations, allowing for broader tissue disruption and improved alignment with the endplate, utilizing a pivot-mounted end effector and mechanisms like squeezable levers or rotating knobs for controlled tip deflection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If traditional manual straight or curved instruments are used for disc space preparation, then the instruments are simple and easy to manufacture, but they cannot effectively reach areas perpendicular to the entry axis through small access openings
Solution Approach 1:
The instrument employs an articulated shaft with a universal joint that enables dynamic angular deflection of the disruption tool between 0° and 120° relative to the shaft axis. This dynamic configuration allows the tool to adapt to different disc space geometries and reach areas perpendicular to the entry axis, resolving the contradiction between adaptability and structural simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention adds angular freedom in a second dimension by allowing the disruption tool to deflect at various angles (0° to 120°) relative to the shaft axis. This dimensional addition enables the tool to access perpendicular areas while maintaining a relatively simple overall instrument structure.
2Manufacturing precision
If traditional manual instruments are used with small access openings, then the surgical approach is minimally invasive, but the instruments cannot provide adequate tissue disruption and alignment
Solution Approach 1:
The articulated mechanism with universal joint provides dynamic angular adjustment (0° to 120°) that enables precise alignment of the disruption tool with the endplate surface. This dynamic positioning capability achieves manufacturing precision in alignment while maintaining ease of operation through manual control of the articulation mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The instrument allows continuous parameter change in the angular position of the disruption tool from 0° to 120°, enabling precise adjustment to match the specific anatomical geometry of each disc space. This parameter flexibility achieves both precision and ease of operation.
3Area of stationary object
If the disruption tool is fixed in a straight configuration, then the instrument structure is simple, but it cannot provide broader area of tissue disruption
Solution Approach 1:
The articulated shaft with universal joint transforms a simple fixed structure into a dynamic system that can deflect the disruption tool at angles from 0° to 120°. This dynamic capability expands the effective tissue disruption area without requiring a completely complex instrument design.
Solution Approach 2:
The instrument is segmented into distinct components (shaft, universal joint, disruption tool) that can move independently relative to each other. This segmentation allows the disruption tool to be positioned at various angles to maximize tissue disruption area while keeping each individual component relatively simple.
Data Source
AI summary
Articulated instruments that include tools for disrupting and/or distracting tissue, and methods of using the same.