Stapling Jaw Mounts With Orientation-Reversing Articulation Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing surgical stapling and cutting instruments face challenges in providing intuitive and efficient articulation and rotation controls, as well as ensuring precise tissue stapling and cutting without accidental incision during articulation and rotation.
Innovation Solution
The surgical instrument features an articulation joint and rotatable shaft with integrated control systems that adjust responsiveness based on the instrument's orientation, along with articulation indicators and a lockout mechanism to prevent accidental firing, ensuring precise stapling and cutting.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the instrument shaft is made rotatable to adapt to changing surgical orientations, then the adaptability is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the traditional control logic by reversing the articulation control direction based on instrument orientation. When the shaft rotates to different orientations, the control system automatically reverses the articulation jaw movement direction, making the operation intuitive regardless of orientation. This resolves the contradiction by maintaining consistent surgical manipulation feel while adapting to any shaft orientation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic control adaptation where the articulation control behavior changes based on the real-time orientation of the instrument shaft. The system dynamically adjusts the control reversal based on detected shaft position, allowing the instrument to adapt to changing surgical scenarios while maintaining a manageable control structure through software-based adaptation rather than complex mechanical systems.
2Reliability
If tissue stops are added to prevent accidental cutting or pinching, then the reliability is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by adding tissue stops only at specific critical locations within the jaw structure where tissue pinching or accidental cutting could occur. Rather than redesigning the entire jaw structure, localized stops are positioned at the anvil jaw and cartridge jaw interfaces to provide protection precisely where needed, maintaining overall structural simplicity while improving reliability at critical points.
Data Source
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AI summary
A surgical instrument comprising a first jaw, a moveable second jaw, and one or more mounting brackets that retain said second jaw to said first jaw is disclosed.