Ergonomic Orthopedic Drill Guide for Improved Visibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing drill guides do not provide optimal usefulness for surgeons to accurately drill holes for bone screws, especially in challenging conditions such as obstructed views due to tissue, retractors, and bulky instruments, making it difficult to achieve precise offset and angle alignment for fracture reduction and compression.
Innovation Solution
A drill guide device with a handle and drill guide assembly designed for improved ergonomics and visibility, featuring a cylindrical rod with a hand grip and a tubular drill guide that can be angled, allowing for offset and angled hole drilling with adjustable dimensions to accommodate different screw sizes and bone plate thicknesses, enhancing tactile feedback and visibility during the drilling process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a traditional drill guide is used, then the drilling function is provided, but the visibility and control for precise alignment are insufficient due to obstructed views from tissue, retractors, and bulky instruments
Solution Approach 1:
The drill guide is extended with a long shaft that projects the drilling interface away from the obscured surgical field, allowing the surgeon to view and control the drilling operation from a different spatial dimension where visibility is not blocked by tissue or retractors
Solution Approach 2:
The extended shaft acts as an intermediary transmission element that transfers the drilling function from the distal end (positioned in the obscured field) to the proximal end (accessible to the surgeon), mediating between the surgical site and the surgeon's control and vision
2Manufacturing precision
If the drill guide is made more robust for stability, then the drilling accuracy is improved, but the device complexity and bulk increase
Solution Approach 1:
The drill guide is segmented into distinct functional zones along its length: a rigid distal portion for stable positioning and drilling, a flexible intermediate section for navigation, and a controlled proximal portion for surgeon manipulation, allowing each segment to be optimized independently
Solution Approach 2:
The shaft's mechanical properties are varied along its length, with the distal portion having higher stiffness for stability and the intermediate portion having lower stiffness for flexibility, optimizing both drilling accuracy and device adaptability without increasing overall bulk
3Ease of operation
If the drill guide structure is simplified for ease of use, then the ease of operation is improved, but the ability to provide precise offset and angle alignment is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The drill guide incorporates pre-configured angular offsets and alignment features that are established during manufacturing, allowing the surgeon to achieve precise alignment simply by positioning the guide without requiring complex adjustments or calculations during surgery
Data Source
AI summary
An ergonomic drill guide device with increased visibility is provided. The drill guide device has a handle with a top and bottom. The handle includes a rod and a hand grip. The rod has an outer dimension R. The hand grip at least partially surrounds the rod and has an end portion. The hand grip has an outer dimension H at an end. The drill guide has an outer dimension D. There is a gap G between the end of the end portion and the drill guide. The ratio of R to D is between 0.2 to 1.0.