Jointed Shaft and Helical Needle for Automated Suturing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing suturing devices are inefficient and cumbersome during minimally-invasive procedures, particularly in arthroscopic repair surgery and sewing devices for twisted sutures, lacking automation and ease of use.
Innovation Solution
A device with a rotatable shaft and a helical needle that advances and retracts over a clamp to automatically suture tissue, featuring a clamp for tissue fixation, a driver for needle movement, and a motor for precise control, allowing for continuous or incremental needle advancement and retraction, with a suturing thread disposed through the needle.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual suturing is used in minimally-invasive procedures, then surgical flexibility is maintained, but procedural time and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The helical needle is nested within the shaft assembly, allowing it to rotate and advance along the longitudinal axis while remaining compact. The driver mechanism is integrated within the shaft, enabling automated needle advancement without requiring external manipulation. This nesting approach automates suturing operations while maintaining a compact form factor suitable for minimally-invasive procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical manipulation with an automated driver system that rotates the helical needle and advances it along the shaft. The driver mechanism converts rotational motion into linear advancement of the needle through the tissue, eliminating the need for manual suture passing and knot tying, thereby increasing suturing speed while reducing procedural complexity.
2Manufacturing precision
If traditional suture devices are used, then simplicity is maintained, but surgical precision and efficiency decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The shaft is designed with a joint that allows rotation about an axis at an angle greater than zero to the longitudinal axis. This dynamic capability enables the needle to be precisely oriented and positioned at various angles during the suturing process, improving surgical precision while the automated driver maintains ease of operation by eliminating manual manipulation requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The clamp is pre-configured to securely hold the tissue in position before needle advancement. The driver mechanism is pre-positioned within the shaft, ready to rotate and advance the helical needle along the longitudinal axis. This preliminary preparation ensures precise needle placement and tissue alignment, improving surgical precision without complicating the overall operation.
3Loss of time
If automated needle advancement is implemented, then procedural time is reduced, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The driver mechanism is merged with the shaft assembly, with the driver rotating the helical needle and advancing it along the longitudinal axis of the shaft. This integration combines multiple functions (needle rotation, needle advancement, and shaft positioning) into a single automated system, reducing procedural time while managing device complexity through functional consolidation rather than adding separate components.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables efficient and automated suturing with minimal invasiveness, reducing procedural complexity and improving surgical precision and speed.
Implementation Method 1
A helical needle is connected to the driver such that the helical needle is rotated while advancing or retracting over a length of the clamp and over the joint of the shaft. In this way, rotation of the driver causes rotation of the helical needle.
Implementation Method 2
A driver is configured to engage with a screw of the shaft so that the driver translates along a length of the shaft when the driver is rotated.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2A~2B
Figure 3A~3B
AI summary
A device for automatic suturing includes a shaft having a longitudinal axis. The shaft has a joint rotatable about a joint axis which is at an angle > 0° to the longitudinal axis. The device includes a clamp at a distal end of the shaft. The clamp is configured to be positioned over a length of tissue to be sutured. A driver is configured to engage with a screw of the shaft so that the driver translates along a length of the shaft when the driver is rotated. A helical needle is connected to the driver such that rotation of the driver causes rotation of the helical needle. In this way, the needle is advanced or retracted over a length of the clamp and over the joint of the shaft.