Drill Guide With Transverse Engagement Channel
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current treatments for joint and ligament injuries, such as acromioclavicular joint disruptions, face challenges in accurately reapproximating bones, tendons, and ligaments for effective healing, particularly in providing stable and precise alignment for surgical interventions.
Innovation Solution
A drill guide with a tubular sleeve and guide body featuring a first channel aligned with the longitudinal axis and a second channel transverse to it, along with an engagement member that can move between engaged and disengaged positions, is used to secure the drill guide and facilitate precise drilling and alignment of bones, allowing for the reapproximation of anatomical structures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a drill guide is used to provide stable and precise alignment for surgical interventions, then manufacturing precision and reliability are improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The drill guide employs a nested structure where the tubular guide sleeve is positioned within the guide body, and the engagement member is received within the second channel of the guide body. This nesting allows multiple functional components to be integrated in a compact arrangement, achieving precise alignment capabilities while controlling overall device complexity through space-efficient design.
Solution Approach 2:
The drill guide is divided into distinct functional segments: the guide body providing structural support and channel definition, the tubular guide sleeve providing the drilling pathway, and the engagement member providing adjustable constraint. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function while maintaining overall system precision.
2Reliability
If an engagement member is added to inhibit proximal movement of the sleeve, then reliability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The engagement member is designed to automatically engage with the tubular guide sleeve through the second channel, providing self-constraining functionality. The member can move between engaged and disengaged positions based on the positioning requirements, allowing the system to self-regulate stability without requiring additional control mechanisms or increasing overall device complexity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple channels are included in the guide body for sleeve and engagement member, then adaptability is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The first and second channels are integrated into a single guide body structure, with the second channel positioned transverse to the first channel. This merging of multiple functional pathways into one monolithic component achieves the adaptability needed for both sleeve guidance and engagement member movement while maintaining precise spatial relationships through unified manufacturing.
Data Source
AI summary
A drill guide includes a body, a stabilizing member, a tubular guide sleeve, and an engagement member. The body includes a first channel aligned with a longitudinal axis and a second channel transverse to the longitudinal axis. The first channel is dimensioned to receive the sleeve, while the second channel is dimensioned to receive an engagement member. The engagement member is adapted to move within the second channel between an engaged position, where the engagement member inhibits proximal motion of the sleeve, and a second position, where motion of the sleeve is not inhibited. An alignment member is further mounted to the distal end of the sleeve that includes a distally extending member, spaced from the sleeve. In use, the distally extending member may be employed to exert a force upon a bone or other tissue lateral to the longitudinal axis for improved positioning of the bone or tissue.