Guide Wire Gripping Unit Axial Alignment

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing guide wire grasping devices face difficulties in accessing the bile duct or pancreatic duct through the duodenal papilla due to misalignment between the medical instrument and guide wire axes, making it challenging to introduce medical instruments into these hollow organs using the rendezvous method.

Innovation Solution

A guide wire grasping device with a sheath and a movable grasping portion that can adjust its position relative to the guide wire, allowing it to be sandwiched between the grasping surface and the sheath's outer peripheral surface, ensuring proper alignment and easy introduction into hollow organs.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the guide wire is hooked on the bent portion, then the guide wire can be captured, but a certain angle is formed between the axis line of the medical instrument and the axis line of the guide wire making it difficult to access the bile duct or pancreatic duct

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveguide wire capture reliabilityVSAvoidaccess to bile duct or pancreatic duct

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The grasping portion is divided into multiple contact surfaces (first contact surface, second contact surface, third contact surface) that can independently engage with the guide wire from different directions. This segmentation allows the device to capture the guide wire effectively while maintaining proper axial alignment, resolving the contradiction between reliable capture and proper orientation for duct access.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Instead of bending the medical instrument to hook the guide wire (which creates angular misalignment), the invention inverts the approach by providing multiple contact surfaces that can wrap around and engage the guide wire while keeping the instrument axis straight. This ensures both reliable capture and proper alignment with the duodenal papilla.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

2Ease of operation

If the axis of the medical instrument and the axis of the guide wire are parallel, then it is easier to enter the bile duct or pancreatic duct, but existing designs with bent portions cannot achieve this alignment

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveentry into bile duct or pancreatic ductVSAvoidgrasping mechanism design

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The grasping portion is designed to be movable relative to the sheath, allowing dynamic adjustment of the contact surfaces to engage the guide wire. This dynamic mechanism enables parallel axis alignment for easy duct entry while providing sufficient complexity in the grasping action through controlled movement of the grasping portion.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

Data Source

PatentUS11701498B2Guide wire gripping unit

Publication Date: 2023.07.18 OLYMPUS CORPORATION(JP)

AI summary

A guide wire gripping device is provided that includes: a sheath; an advanceable and retractable part extending along the longitudinal axis of the sheath; an operation control that moves the advanceable and retractable part along the longitudinal axis; a grasping portion having a contact surface having a peripheral edge surrounded by a distal end, a proximal end, and a pair of side ends; and a support part connected to the advanceable and retractable part and fixed to one of the pair of side ends.