Steerable Catheter Handle with Internal Track and Strain Relief
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Solution Overview
Problem
Small-diameter steerable catheters face challenges such as resistance to crimping, kinking, and collapse during operation, particularly when used in constrained anatomical spaces like the biliary tree, and require improved handle designs for secure attachment to larger endoscopes with efficient fluid and vacuum management, as well as robust construction for reliable functionality.
Innovation Solution
A steerable catheter handle with a multilumen catheter body, internal track, manifold, working channel port, vacuum channel port, and control surfaces that allow the distal end to be deflectable along multiple axes, featuring a strain relief sheath to minimize friction and prevent kinking, and secure attachment to a larger endoscope for enhanced operational control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of moving object
If a small-diameter catheter is used to navigate constrained anatomy, then the catheter can access difficult-to-reach areas, but the catheter becomes more susceptible to crimping, kinking, and collapse
Solution Approach 1:
The catheter shaft is divided into multiple segments or sections with different structural characteristics. The proximal portion has a first construction while the distal portion has a second construction, allowing each segment to be optimized for its specific functional requirements while maintaining overall catheter integrity and resistance to deformation
Solution Approach 2:
The catheter employs composite material constructions with different layers and materials having varying mechanical properties. This allows the catheter to achieve both small diameter and high resistance to crimping and kinking by combining materials with complementary characteristics in different catheter sections
2Ease of operation
If the catheter handle includes multiple control wheels and brake mechanisms for steering control, then the operator can precisely control catheter deflection, but the handle design becomes more complex and requires multiple grip positions
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple control functions are merged into integrated control mechanisms. The brake mechanisms are combined with the control wheels such that a single rotational input can simultaneously control both braking and steering functions, reducing the number of separate controls and simplifying the handle design while maintaining precise control capability
Solution Approach 2:
The control wheel assembly is designed to perform multiple functions through a single mechanism. The same control wheel structure serves both as a steering control and incorporates the brake function, allowing one component to fulfill multiple operational roles and reducing overall system complexity
3Reliability
If the catheter requires secure attachment to a larger endoscope, then the catheter can be stabilized during procedures, but the attachment mechanism increases device complexity and size
Solution Approach 1:
The catheter handle is designed to nest within or attach to the larger endoscope structure. The catheter can be inserted through the endoscope's working channel and secured in a nested configuration, providing stable attachment while utilizing the existing endoscope structure rather than adding separate complex mounting mechanisms
Solution Approach 2:
The attachment mechanism is designed to be self-securing through simple insertion and locking actions. The catheter handle includes features that automatically engage with the endoscope structure, allowing the operator to secure the attachment through straightforward manipulation without requiring complex fastening procedures or additional components
Data Source
AI summary
A steerable-catheter handle includes an outer housing with a multilumen catheter body extending generally distally therefrom. An internal track, including at least one track-defining lateral edge element, is disposed between distal and proximal terminal ends of the outer housing, which also houses a manifold engaged with the catheter body, a working-channel port member in fluid and mechanical communication with at least a first catheter lumen, a vacuum channel port member in fluid communication with at least one catheter lumen via one or both of the working channel port member and the manifold, and a generally proximal catheter port open to the internal track, where a distal endmost portion of the catheter mechanically communicates with one or more control surfaces so that the distal endmost portion of the catheter is deflectable along at least two intersecting axes, and where a portion of the catheter body extends removably through the internal track.