Laparoscopic Neural Cuff Deployment Tab for Low-Friction Delivery
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Solution Overview
Problem
Challenges exist in delivering and deploying neural interface devices, particularly during laparoscopic procedures, due to issues such as suture trimming causing tissue damage, suture vestiges, and friction leading to electrode tangling and damage.
Innovation Solution
A deployment tab with specific design features, including anchored sutures, ridges and valleys, and a tapered proximal end, which allows for safe deployment and removal of neural cuffs while minimizing tissue damage and electrode friction.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If sutures are trimmed or removed during deployment, then the neural interface can be deployed, but target tissue or anatomy near the target tissue is at risk of damage
Solution Approach 1:
The suture is extracted from the deployment tube along with the neural interface device, allowing the suture to be removed away from the target tissue site. This prevents the suture from interfering with or damaging the target tissue during deployment, while still enabling secure attachment of the neural interface to the nerve.
Solution Approach 2:
The deployment tube acts as an intermediary tool that facilitates suture removal at a distance from the target tissue. By using the deployment tube as a mediator, the suture can be trimmed or removed in a controlled manner away from the sensitive neural structures, eliminating the direct harm risk.
2Productivity
If silicone molded nerve cuffs are advanced through a deployment tube, then the neural interface can be delivered, but friction causes advancement difficulties and electrode tangling
Solution Approach 1:
The deployment tube is designed with a smooth, flexible inner surface that minimizes friction against the silicone molded nerve cuff. This allows the neural interface to advance smoothly through the tube without catching or tangling, preventing electrode damage while maintaining efficient delivery.
Solution Approach 2:
The deployment tube features a rounded distal end and smooth curved surfaces that guide the neural interface device through the tube without sharp edges or angles that could cause catching or tangling of the electrodes, enabling friction-free advancement.
3Ease of operation
If the deployment tab is made larger to facilitate deployment, then deployment manipulation is easier, but the deployment tab may not fit through the dissection opening
Solution Approach 1:
The deployment tab is designed as a separate, detachable component from the neural interface device. This segmentation allows the deployment tab to be manipulated independently for ease of deployment, then removed after use, while the compact neural interface device can still pass through the dissection opening without obstruction.
Solution Approach 2:
The deployment tab incorporates flexible or movable features that allow it to adapt its shape or size during deployment manipulation, facilitating easier handling, then can be collapsed or removed to allow the neural interface device to pass through the dissection opening.
Data Source
AI summary
A deployment tab for deploying a neural interface device, the deployment tab comprising a first portion configured, in use, to be positioned proximal to the neural interface device; and a connector, for releasably coupling the first portion to the neural interface device, the connector being anchored to the first portion.