Sterile Barrier Assembly Tab Sliding Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current sterilization techniques for robotic surgical systems are not suitable for electrical and electronic components, and existing sterile barriers are difficult to install and remove, posing challenges in maintaining sterility during minimally invasive procedures.
Innovation Solution
A sterile barrier assembly with a base member, securing member, and a barrier membrane that slides along a tab, separating the sterile and non-sterile sides, allowing for easy attachment and detachment while maintaining a hermetic seal and enabling the transmission of mechanical forces and torque to surgical instruments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional sterile barriers are used to cover non-sterile components, then sterility is maintained, but the barriers are difficult to install and remove
Solution Approach 1:
The sterile barrier is segmented into a modular assembly comprising a base member, a barrier membrane, and a securing member. This segmentation allows the barrier to be installed by attaching components sequentially and removed by reversing the attachment steps, significantly improving ease of installation and removal while maintaining sterility through the integrated seal.
Solution Approach 2:
The securing member is designed to transition between engaged and disengaged states, transforming the static barrier into a dynamic assembly that can be easily attached and detached. This dynamic mechanism allows surgical personnel to quickly install and remove the sterile barrier without complex procedures, directly addressing the operational difficulty while preserving the hermetic seal when engaged.
2Reliability
If a hermetic seal is maintained between sterile and non-sterile sides, then sterility is ensured, but mechanical forces and torque transmission are hindered
Solution Approach 1:
The barrier membrane acts as an intermediary element that transmits mechanical forces and torque from the non-sterile side to the sterile side while maintaining the hermetic seal. The membrane is specifically designed to be force-transmissive, allowing actuation forces to pass through the barrier without compromising sterility, thus resolving the contradiction between seal integrity and force transmission.
Solution Approach 2:
The barrier membrane is implemented as a flexible thin film that can deform under mechanical loading while maintaining its seal. This flexible film structure allows it to transmit torques and forces effectively across the sterile barrier interface, enabling mechanical actuation of surgical instruments on the sterile side driven by motors on the non-sterile side without breaking the hermetic seal.
3Reliability
If sterilization techniques are applied to electrical and electronic equipment, then sterility is achieved, but the equipment may be damaged or the process is not suitable
Solution Approach 1:
The electronic and electrical components are extracted from the sterile field and placed on the non-sterile side of the barrier assembly. This extraction allows these sensitive components to be sterilized using conventional techniques or pre-sterilized as separate units, while the sterile barrier assembly itself can be sterilized independently. The barrier membrane and mechanical components form a interface that transmits actuation without requiring the electronics to be sterile, thus resolving the incompatibility between sterilization methods and electronic equipment.
Data Source
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AI summary
A sterile barrier assembly includes a tab sliding along a sliding path in a cavity of the sterile barrier assembly and a barrier membrane partitioning the cavity into a sterile side and a non-sterile side. The barrier membrane moves with the tab as the tab slides along the sliding path. A first portion of the tab interfaces with an output of a surgical tool driving unit on the non-sterile side. A second portion of the tab interfaces with a tool driver of a surgical tool on the sterile side.