Robotic Stapler End Effector Reloading With Failure Data Logging
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Endoscopic surgical instruments often fail, making it challenging and costly for manufacturers to analyze failures and determine the cause, as they require reconstructing the failure conditions based on instrument damage, often attributing failures to improper use without clear data.
Innovation Solution
A surgical instrument equipped with sensors that record conditions such as trigger and end effector states, using a memory device to monitor and store data, allowing for detailed analysis of usage and failure patterns.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If manufacturers analyze failures by reconstructing conditions based on instrument damage, then analysis can be performed without additional components, but the accuracy and reliability of failure cause determination deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by recording usage data before failures occur. Sensors continuously monitor and store operational parameters (temperature, pressure, usage patterns) in memory during normal instrument operation, so that when a failure happens, the pre-recorded data is already available for accurate analysis without needing to reconstruct conditions afterward.
2Reliability
If sensors and memory devices are added to record usage data, then failure analysis accuracy improves, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing sensors and memory devices that serve multiple functions. The same sensors that monitor usage data for failure analysis also provide real-time feedback for operational control and safety monitoring. The memory device stores both historical usage patterns for analysis and real-time operational data for immediate decision-making, maximizing the utility of added components.
3Ease of manufacture
If detailed usage data is recorded and stored, then design improvements can be facilitated through actionable data, but memory requirements and data management complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies taking out by extracting only the most critical and actionable usage data for storage and analysis. Rather than recording all possible parameters continuously, the system selectively monitors and stores key operational parameters that have the highest impact on failure analysis and design improvement, such as extreme temperature events, pressure thresholds, and usage pattern anomalies, reducing overall data storage requirements.
Data Source
AI summary
A stapling instrument for use with a robotic surgical system comprising a drive system including at least three motor-driven drivers is disclosed. The stapling instrument comprises a housing, a shaft, an articulation joint, and a loading unit. The housing comprises a drive interface defined on an exterior surface of the housing. The drive interface is operably engageable with the drive system of the robotic system. The drive interface comprises at least three rotatable inputs positioned thereon. Each input is operably engaged with one of the motor-driven drivers. The loading unit comprises a first jaw, a second jaw, a staple cartridge, and a drive member. The first jaw and the second jaw are rotatable about the articulation joint by a longitudinally-displaceable articulation actuator. The housing comprises means for converting the rotation of one of the rotatable inputs to the longitudinal motion of the articulation actuator.