Reciprocating Bone Morselizer Cutter Bit

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing bone morselization methods, such as bone mills with cutting blades and rasp tools, are inefficient and result in significant mechanical force requirements and bone loss due to wedging issues, making them costly and time-consuming for surgical procedures like spinal fusion and autologous bone grafting.

Innovation Solution

A vertically reciprocating cutter bit with a plurality of cutting elements is used to fracture bone segments into smaller particles, driven by a variable speed motor and controlled by a trigger, allowing for efficient morselization with reduced bone loss.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Manufacturing precision

If bone mills with cutting blades and teeth are used to fracture bone, then bone can be ground into smaller particles, but significant mechanical force and time are required and bone loss occurs due to wedging between teeth

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvebone particle sizeVSAvoidmechanical force required

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSForce

Solution Approach 1:

The patent replaces the traditional mechanical cutting blade system with a hydraulic press system that uses controlled compression force to fracture bone. The hydraulic mechanism applies gradual, distributed pressure through a pressing surface, eliminating the need for high-force mechanical cutting teeth and reducing overall force requirements while preventing bone wedging losses.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

Solution Approach 2:

The invention changes the fundamental parameter of bone fracture from high-speed mechanical cutting to slow, controlled hydraulic compression. By transforming the force application method from impact/cutting to gradual pressure, the system achieves bone morselization with significantly reduced peak forces and improved efficiency.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

2Manufacturing precision

If bone mills with cutting blades are used to fracture bone, then bone can be ground into smaller particles, but significant time is required to complete the morselization process

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvebone particle sizeVSAvoidmorselization time

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The hydraulic pressing system operates continuously and efficiently, applying force uniformly across the bone material. This eliminates the time-consuming iterative cutting and clearing process required by mechanical blade mills, significantly reducing the overall morselization time while maintaining particle size quality.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

3Manufacturing precision

If bone mills with cutting teeth are used to fracture bone, then bone can be ground into smaller particles, but significant bone loss occurs due to wedging between teeth and milling apparatus

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvebone particle sizeVSAvoidbone loss

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSLoss of substance

Solution Approach 1:

By replacing the toothed cutting blade mechanism with a hydraulic pressing surface, the invention eliminates the wedging problem entirely. The broad pressing surface distributes bone material evenly during compression, preventing chunks from becoming trapped and lost between teeth, thereby minimizing bone substance loss.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

4Manufacturing precision

If rasp tools are used for bone morselization, then bone can be ground into smaller particles, but the device becomes very complicated and expensive

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvebone particle sizeVSAvoidapparatus complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The invention extracts and eliminates the complex mechanical cutting components (blades, teeth, rotating mechanisms) from the bone milling system, retaining only the essential function of bone fracture through a simplified hydraulic pressing mechanism. This extraction of unnecessary complexity reduces device cost and ease of manufacture while maintaining effective bone morselization.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

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

The apparatus effectively reduces the mechanical force and time required for bone morselization, minimizing bone loss and improving the efficiency of the process for surgical grafting procedures.

Implementation Method 1

the cutting elements impact and fracture bone segments into multiple morsels

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectImpact force: Impact Force

Data Source

PatentUS7431230B2Apparatus and method for bone morselization for surgical grafting

Publication Date: 2008.10.07 MEDTRONIC PS MEDICAL INC

AI summary

A bone morselization apparatus and method according to which a cutter bit is mounted to a casing containing a motor; and the casing is manually grasped and positioned over a plurality of bone segments. When the motor is activated, the cutter bit reciprocates and the bone segments are impacted by the cutter bit to morselize the segments.