Modular Energy Hub With Adaptive Surgical Instrument Interfaces
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Solution Overview
Problem
Operating rooms are cluttered with a tangled web of cords and devices due to the need for multiple specialized equipment, each with unique user interfaces and operation techniques, leading to inefficiencies in surgical procedures.
Innovation Solution
A modular energy system with a header module that removably connects to energy modules, featuring a display screen and control circuit to detect and display user interfaces for multiple energy modules, allowing seamless integration and reconfiguration of UI elements on a single screen.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple specialized capital equipment devices are used to perform different surgical tasks, then functional versatility is improved, but device complexity and equipment footprint increase
Solution Approach 1:
The surgical system hub provides a universal platform that can perform multiple surgical tasks through different modules and attachments. The hub includes a display screen that can display various user interfaces for different surgical functions, and a control circuit that can control different surgical instruments and energy modules, eliminating the need for multiple separate capital equipment devices
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines multiple previously separate surgical devices into a single integrated hub. The hub merges the functions of multiple capital equipment devices including display capabilities, control capabilities, energy delivery, and instrument manipulation into one consolidated system, reducing equipment footprint while maintaining functional versatility
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple specialized capital equipment devices with unique user interfaces are used, then task-specific functionality is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to staff needing to learn multiple interfaces
Solution Approach 1:
The hub's display screen and control circuit provide a universal interface that adapts to different surgical tasks. The control circuit is configured to display a user interface on the display screen that is specific to the particular surgical instrument or energy module in use, while maintaining consistent operation methods across all functions
Solution Approach 2:
The user interface dynamically adapts based on which surgical instrument or energy module is currently connected and being used. The control circuit detects the connected device and automatically configures the display screen to show the appropriate user interface, providing task-specific functionality through a single adaptable interface rather than multiple static interfaces
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple separate devices are used in the OR, then functional capabilities are improved, but loss of time increases due to staff needing to interact with multiple devices
Solution Approach 1:
By merging multiple surgical functions into a single hub, the system eliminates the need for staff to physically move between or reconfigure multiple separate devices during surgery. All functional capabilities are accessible from one location through one interface, significantly reducing time loss and improving surgical staff efficiency
Data Source
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AI summary
A modular energy system including a header module configured to removably connect to an energy module. The energy module can comprise a port configured to deliver one or more energy modalities to a surgical instrument connected thereto. The header module can comprise a display screen configured to display a user interface. The header module can further include a control circuit configured to detect attachment of energy modules to the modular energy system and control the display of the user interface to display Ul portions for each connected module and reconfigure the displayed Ul portions to accommodate the new Ul portions as additional energy modules are connected to the modular energy system.