Trocar System With Nested Cannulas and Ring Jet Pneumatic Seal
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current surgical access devices for single-incision laparoscopic procedures face challenges in accommodating multiple instruments of differing sizes due to mutual interference and space constraints, and traditional mechanical seals fail to maintain pressure differential effectively when using multiple instruments through a single trocar.
Innovation Solution
A trocar system with a nested configuration of outer and inner cannulas, a tube center component, and a ring jet assembly that uses high-speed gas jets to maintain pressure differential, combined with an instrument guide having angled channels to accommodate multiple robotic surgical instruments, allowing for simultaneous use of instruments of varying cross-sections through a single incision.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional mechanical seals are used in a single trocar to maintain pressure differential, then sealing function is provided, but the seal fails to maintain pressure differential effectively when multiple instruments of differing sizes are used simultaneously
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces traditional mechanical seals with a pneumatic sealing system using high-speed gas jets. The jets create a pressurized gas barrier that seals the trocar aperture without mechanical contact, allowing multiple instruments of varying sizes to pass through simultaneously while maintaining the pressure differential between the abdominal cavity and external environment.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses pneumatic pressure from high-speed gas jets to create a sealing effect. The pressurized gas forms a barrier that prevents leakage and maintains the pressure differential, replacing mechanical sealing mechanisms with a fluid-based pneumatic system that is more adaptable to multiple instrument configurations.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If multiple traditional surgical instruments are inserted through a single incision, then minimally invasive procedure is achieved, but mutual interference and lack of available space occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a nested configuration where an inner cannula is positioned within an outer cannula, creating multiple concentric lumens. This nested structure allows multiple surgical instruments to be inserted through the single trocar simultaneously, each passing through its own lumen, thereby eliminating mutual interference while maintaining a single incision site.
Solution Approach 2:
The trocar is segmented into multiple functional components including outer and inner cannulas with separate lumens, a tube center component, and a ring jet assembly. This segmentation creates distinct pathways for different instruments, allowing them to operate independently without interference while all passing through the single incision site.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If a single incision is used for laparoscopic procedures, then trauma and scarring are reduced, but it becomes difficult to accommodate multiple instruments simultaneously
Solution Approach 1:
The nested cannula configuration allows the trocar to accommodate multiple instruments of varying sizes through a single incision. The inner cannula fits within the outer cannula, creating multiple concentric passageways that can simultaneously receive different surgical instruments, thereby maintaining the benefits of a single incision while increasing instrument capacity.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from a single-lumen to a multi-lumen structure by nesting cannulas within each other. This dimensional transformation creates multiple independent pathways within the same external aperture, allowing multiple instruments to pass through the single incision without interfering with each other.
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 the use of multiple robotic surgical instruments through a single incision with improved mechanical sealing and reduced trauma, facilitating minimally invasive procedures while maintaining effective gas recirculation and fluid management.
Implementation Method 1
The nozzle passages, in turn, are adapted and configured to issue high speed jets substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the trocar toward the distal end of the trocar
Implementation Method 2
The tube center component and ring jet assembly are adapted and configured to define a plenum capable of receiving a pressurized gas, the plenum being in fluid communication with the nozzle passages
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
The disclosure includes systems and methods for performing surgery. In a first aspect, the system includes a trocar having in a nested configuration, an outer cannula, an inner cannula disposed within the outer cannula, the inner cannula defining the central longitudinal lumen at least in part to provide access through the trocar, a tube center component disposed within the outer cannula, and a ring jet assembly disposed within the outer cannula. In a further aspect, the system includes an instrument guide disposed in the central longitudinal lumen of the trocar. The instrument guide has a proximal end, a distal end, and a plurality of channels defined through the instrument guide from the proximal end to the distal end, each channel being adapted and configured to receive a surgical instrument.