Electrosurgical Handpiece Feedthrough Layout for Laminar Irrigation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electrosurgical handheld devices, such as resectoscopes, face challenges in maintaining a laminar flow of irrigation liquid due to the offset configuration of electrode arms, which disrupts the fluid flow and complicates production with high costs.
Innovation Solution
The device is composed of a central handle, a distal body, and a proximal adapter, with funnel-shaped and oval/oblong feedthroughs that allow easy passage of electrode arms, ensuring a laminar flow and reducing production complexity through injection molding.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the electrode arms are configured with an offset to facilitate passage through the device, then the ease of operation is improved, but the irrigation liquid flow is disrupted and production complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device is divided into three separate portions (distal, central, and proximal) that can be manufactured independently and then assembled. The central portion contains the feedthroughs for electrode arms, while the distal and proximal portions form the irrigation liquid passage. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function and manufactured using appropriate processes, reducing overall production complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The feedthroughs for the electrode arms are extracted as separate features in the central portion, distinct from the main irrigation liquid passage formed by the distal and proximal portions. This extraction allows the electrode arm passage to be designed independently with optimal geometry (funnel-shaped feedthroughs) without compromising the laminar flow requirements of the irrigation liquid.
2Reliability
If the central portion is manufactured as a single integrated component, then the device reliability is improved, but the manufacturing cost and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The main body is segmented into three portions that are manufactured separately and then assembled. This allows the central portion to be produced using cost-effective injection molding with integrated funnel-shaped feedthroughs, while the distal and proximal portions can be manufactured using other appropriate processes. The segmentation reduces manufacturing cost and complexity while maintaining device reliability through proper assembly and sealing.
Solution Approach 2:
Different portions of the device are manufactured with locally optimized qualities and processes. The central portion uses injection molding to achieve complex feedthrough geometries with good surface finish, while the distal and proximal portions use processes optimized for their specific requirements. This local quality approach reduces overall manufacturing cost while ensuring each component meets its performance requirements.
3Ease of operation
If the feedthrough cross section changes from oval to circular along the central portion, then the ease of passage for electrode arms is improved, but the manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The feedthroughs in the central portion are designed with a funnel shape that transitions from an oval cross-section at the distal end to a circular cross-section at the proximal end. This curved transition provides a smooth guide for the electrode arms, facilitating easy passage and alignment. The gradual transition reduces stress concentrations and simplifies the insertion process while remaining manufacturable using injection molding techniques.
Data Source
AI summary
Electrosurgical handheld devices are used mainly for endoscopic applications in urology or in gynaecology. However, the field of use of these instruments is not limited to these regions of the human body and instead also includes the treatment of further organs in the lower part of the human abdomen. The invention makes available an electrosurgical handheld device and also a handle, a main body and an adapter, which are particularly easy and cost-effective to produce and which at the same time ensure a laminar flow of the irrigation liquid at the distal end of the handheld device. This is achieved by the fact that a feedthrough extending through a handle is funnel-shaped, wherein a cross section of the feedthrough tapers from a distal side to a proximal side of the handle.