Automated Needle Loader for Minimally Invasive Surgery
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Minimally invasive surgical procedures, such as those using trocars, face difficulties in suturing due to the challenges of manipulating needles and sutures through small access ports, which existing instruments do not adequately address.
Innovation Solution
A laparoscopic suturing instrument with an end effector that drives a curved needle in a circular path to pierce tissue and pull suture, combined with automated needle loaders that facilitate easy loading and unloading of needles, enhancing the efficiency and safety of suturing procedures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional tissue graspers are used to manipulate needles and sutures through trocars, then the surgical procedure can be performed minimally invasively, but the manipulation becomes relatively difficult for surgeons
Solution Approach 1:
The suturing instrument is divided into distinct functional modules: a needle holder component, a suture spool component, and a driver component. Each module performs a specific function, allowing surgeons to manipulate needles and sutures independently through the trocar, reducing the difficulty of minimally invasive suturing while keeping each component relatively simple in design
Solution Approach 2:
A dedicated suturing instrument acts as an intermediary device between the surgeon's manual control and the tissue/needle/suture manipulation. The instrument includes a needle holder that securely grasps the needle, a spool that manages the suture, and a driver that coordinates their movement, making the overall manipulation easier despite the complexity of the instrument itself
2Ease of operation
If automated needle loaders are implemented, then the ease of use for surgeons is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The needle loader is pre-loaded with multiple needles in a magazine or holder before the surgical procedure begins. The automated loading mechanism prepares the needles in advance, allowing the surgeon to simply activate the loading function without manually inserting each needle, thereby improving ease of use while containing the complexity within the automated loading subsystem
Solution Approach 2:
The needle loader is designed to automatically load needles into the needle holder without requiring manual intervention for each needle insertion. The mechanism self-activates when triggered, automatically transferring needles from the magazine to the holder, making the process easier for surgeons while confining the complexity to the automated mechanism itself
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus for loading suture needles into a surgical instrument comprises a body, a first movable member, an engagement feature, and a needle. The body has a channel configured to receive a surgical instrument. The engagement feature is configured to open a cover of a surgical instrument upon insertion of a surgical instrument into the channel of the body. The first movable member is configured to deliver the suture needle to a surgical instrument after a surgical instrument has been inserted into the channel and the cover has been opened. The apparatus may further comprise a second movable member configured to facilitate delivery of the needle to a surgical instrument in conjunction with the first movable member.