Slidable Push Grip Catheter for Kink Resistance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Medical catheters face challenges in efficiently advancing through vasculature due to limitations in applying axial forces and maintaining stability, particularly in tortuous paths and calcified areas, where existing designs may kink or fail to transmit forces effectively.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates a slidable push grip that is controllably engageable with a push member, allowing for axial force transmission when engaged and repositioning when disengaged, along with a kink resistance sleeve to prevent radial bending, facilitating easier advancement and navigation through complex vascular structures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a fixed grip design is used on the push member, then force transmission is simple, but the clinician cannot reposition the grip along the push member length
Solution Approach 1:
The push grip transitions from a static fixed design to a dynamic controllable engagement design, where the grip can switch between engaged and disengaged states. This allows the grip to be repositioned along the push member by disengaging and re-engaging at different locations, providing operational flexibility without requiring a completely complex mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The push assembly is segmented into distinct functional components: the push member and the separable push grip. This segmentation allows the grip to be independently positioned and engaged at different locations along the push member, enabling repositioning capability while keeping each component relatively simple in design.
2Ease of operation
If the push grip is made removable from the push member, then repositioning is maximized, but the risk of accidental loss or misplacement increases
Solution Approach 1:
The engagement mechanism provides a dynamic balance between retention and repositioning. When engaged, the grip is securely held on the push member through friction or mechanical features, preventing accidental loss. When disengaged, the grip can be freely repositioned along the push member. This dynamic state control resolves the contradiction by providing both security and flexibility at different operational phases.
3Force
If a rigid push member design is used, then axial force transmission is efficient, but the catheter may kink in tortuous vasculature
Solution Approach 1:
The push member exhibits different mechanical properties at different locations and orientations. The longitudinal structure maintains rigidity for efficient axial force transmission, while the cross-sectional geometry or material composition may provide some radial flexibility to accommodate tortuous vascular paths without kinking. This local differentiation of mechanical properties resolves the contradiction between force transmission efficiency and kinking resistance.
Data Source
AI summary
A catheter may include an elongate body extending from a proximal end to a distal end and defining a lumen; a push member mechanically coupled to the proximal end of the elongate body; and a slidable push grip disposed about an outer perimeter of the push member. The slidable push grip is controllably engageable with the push member. When the slidable push grip is in an engaged state with the push member, the slidable push grip transmits an axial force to the push member to enable the push member to transmit the axial force to the elongate body. When the slidable push grip is in a disengaged state with the push member, the slidable push grip is movable axially in at least one direction along a length of the push member while transmitting substantially no axial force to the push member.