Interchangeable Probe Catheter Control for Small-Lumen Navigation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Manufacturing a catheter that includes mechanical structures for remote operation and has a diameter small enough to navigate small body lumens, such as those found in the lungs, is challenging due to the need for features like a tool-mounted flexible distal tip, tendons, lumens for suction and irrigation, vision systems, and sensors, which are difficult to accommodate in a 3 mm or less diameter.
Innovation Solution
A catheter control system with a holding mode that maintains a desired working configuration, allowing interchangeable probes, and a feedback control method with multiple stiffening modes to respond to external forces, using real-time sensor data and actuators to articulate the distal portion, enabling smaller diameter navigation through interchangeable vision and medical probes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of moving object
If the catheter diameter is reduced to 3 mm or less to navigate small body lumens, then the ability to access small passages is improved, but the space available to accommodate mechanical structures for remote operation is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements nesting by placing the distal tip assembly within the catheter shaft, with the tip mounted on a flexible support structure that allows it to be stored within the catheter body when not in use. The drive mechanism and sensors are nested within the catheter shaft, utilizing the available space efficiently to accommodate remote operation capabilities while maintaining a small overall diameter.
Solution Approach 2:
The catheter is divided into functional segments: a proximal control section with drive mechanisms and sensors, a flexible shaft section that transmits forces, and a distal tip assembly that performs the medical task. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently and facilitates compact packaging of the mechanical structures within the small diameter constraint.
2Adaptability or versatility
If interchangeable probes are implemented to provide multiple functions, then the versatility is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The catheter is designed with a universal distal tip assembly that can accept multiple types of probes through a standardized interface. The flexible support structure and drive mechanism are configured to accommodate different probe types (e.g., biopsy probes, ablation probes, sensing probes) while maintaining the same basic catheter architecture, thereby achieving multi-functionality without proportionally increasing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The distal tip assembly is designed with localized functionality, where the flexible support structure and drive mechanisms are concentrated at the tip while the proximal catheter shaft remains a simple flexible tube. This local quality approach allows the complex interchangeable probe interface to be contained at the distal end without complicating the entire catheter system.
3Measurement precision
If a vision system is included to view the work site, then the measurement precision is improved, but the catheter diameter increases
Solution Approach 1:
The vision system components (camera, lens, illumination) are nested within the distal tip assembly, which itself is nested within the catheter shaft. The camera is positioned at the very tip to capture images of the work site, with the lens and illumination fibers arranged around it in a compact configuration that minimizes the overall diameter while providing adequate viewing capability.
Data Source
AI summary
A medical system including a catheter, a sheath, and a control system. The catheter includes a lumen, a distal steerable segment, and a distal tip. The sheath is disposed within the lumen of the catheter and the sheath is extendable from the distal tip of the catheter. The control system is coupled to the catheter and includes a memory operable to store desired position coordinates and a plurality of modes including a stiffening mode in which the control system actively maintains the distal tip at the desired position coordinates.