U-Shaped Guide Wire for Endoscope and Surgical Instrument Positioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing endoscope systems face challenges in manipulating surgical instruments within the pericardial cavity, particularly in achieving precise positioning and orientation while maintaining clear observation of the treatment site, due to complex manipulation requirements and potential shadowing by the surgical instrument's mantle.
Innovation Solution
The system comprises a long, narrow endoscope with a guide wire extending from its distal end, a guide unit with a flexible tube member, and a guide wire with curved sections and stoppers, allowing independent manipulation of the endoscope and surgical instrument within the pericardial cavity, enabling clear observation and precise positioning through a U-shaped guide wire configuration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a surgical instrument is inserted into the pericardial cavity for treatment, then the treatment function is achieved, but the surgical instrument's mantle shadows and obscures the treatment site in the endoscopic image
Solution Approach 1:
The patent positions the observation window and channel opening to face each other in a spatial arrangement that allows the endoscope to observe the treatment site from a different dimensional perspective, avoiding the shadowing effect caused by the surgical instrument's mantle in the traditional forward-viewing configuration
2Reliability
If the endoscope and surgical instrument are manipulated within the pericardial cavity, then treatment can be performed, but the manipulation becomes complex and difficult to control independently
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a guide wire as a separate guiding element that is distinct from both the endoscope and surgical instrument, allowing independent manipulation of each component while maintaining coordinated positioning through the guide wire's directional guidance
Solution Approach 2:
The guide wire acts as an intermediary element between the operator's control and the positioning of the endoscope and surgical instrument, simplifying the manipulation by providing a shared reference path that both devices can follow independently
3Manufacturing precision
If a guide wire with low flexibility is used to guide the endoscope and tube member, then precise positioning is achieved, but the guide wire cannot adapt to curved paths in the pericardial cavity
Solution Approach 1:
The guide wire is designed with different flexibility characteristics at different locations - the intermediate position has lower flexibility for precise positioning control, while other portions maintain sufficient flexibility to navigate curved paths within the pericardial cavity
Solution Approach 2:
The guide wire's flexibility is dynamically optimized through its structural design, allowing it to bend and adapt to curved anatomical paths while maintaining rigid control at the intermediate positioning point where precision is most critical
Data Source
AI summary
An endoscope and a surgical instrument are easily manipulated to desired positions and orientations independently while the state of treatment with the surgical instrument can be easily observed using an endoscopic image. Provided is a medical-device guiding method comprising a U-shape forming step of placing both ends of a guide wire outside the pericardium and placing the guide wire, with an intermediate portion curved in a substantially U-shape in the pericardial cavity; an endoscope inserting step of inserting an endoscope into the pericardial cavity along the guide wire from one end of the ends placed outside the pericardium in the U-shape forming step; a guide-unit inserting step of inserting the guide unit into the pericardial cavity along the guide wire from the other of the ends placed outside the pericardium in the U-shape forming step; and an opposing step of opposing the distal end portions of the endoscope and the guide unit, which are inserted into the pericardial cavity in the endoscope inserting step and the guide-unit inserting step, respectively, at intermediate positions of the guide wire.