Biopsy Needle Tip with Concave Faces for Low Force Penetration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Biopsy devices often require high force to penetrate dense tissue, which can be challenging and uncomfortable for users, especially when dealing with fibrous breast tissue or other dense conditions.
Innovation Solution
The design of biopsy devices with specialized needle tips and cannulas that reduce the force required for penetration, such as those with concave faces, blades, and surface modifications like shot peening or scallops, which allow for penetration with minimal force and smooth insertion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Force
If a biopsy device uses a conventional needle tip design, then the device structure is simple, but high force is required to penetrate dense tissue
Solution Approach 1:
The needle tip incorporates concave faces that curve inward, creating a hollow-ground or rounded geometry that facilitates tissue penetration. This curvature allows the needle to more easily displace and split tissue fibers, reducing the force required for insertion while maintaining structural simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The needle tip features localized surface modifications such as shot peening or scallops at specific regions, particularly at the cutting edges and concave faces. These localized treatments create micro-irregularities that reduce friction and tissue adhesion during penetration, lowering the overall force requirement without complicating the entire needle structure.
2Force
If a biopsy device uses a needle with higher incision length to perimeter ratio, then tissue penetration force is reduced, but the needle design becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The needle tip is divided into multiple concave faces (typically three or more) that meet at a central point, creating segmented cutting edges. This segmentation increases the effective incision length distributed across multiple faces, reducing the force required for penetration while maintaining a relatively simple cylindrical needle body with a modified tip geometry.
Data Source
AI summary
A biopsy device includes a body portion, a tip, at least one blade, and a cutter. The cannula defines at least one lumen. The cannula has a transverse aperture configured to receive tissue. The tip is located at the distal end of the cannula, and may include at least two concave surfaces. The blade extends longitudinally from the tip. A second blade may also extend longitudinally from the tip. Blades may be axially staggered relative to the cannula. Blades may also have lengths that differ from one another. In addition, a blade may have a pointed distal end, or may have a curved distal edge. The configuration of the blade and tip may provide reduced force to penetrate tissue. The blade and tip may produce a cut length that is greater than or equal to the length of the outer perimeter of the cannula.