Removable Surgical Cable Couplings for Sterile Line Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current surgical instruments and systems face challenges in efficiently managing and sterilizing the complex interconnections of energy, data, and fluid lines during surgical procedures, leading to potential contamination and increased procedural time.
Innovation Solution
The introduction of a hub modular enclosure that integrates generator, smoke evacuation, and suction/irrigation modules, along with a cable assembly featuring adaptable adapters and a communication coupling, to manage and secure these connections, reducing entanglement and facilitating easier sterilization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If surgical instruments use complex interconnections of energy, data, and fluid lines, then functional capabilities are improved, but sterilization efficiency deteriorates and contamination risk increases
Solution Approach 1:
The surgical instrument system is divided into separate modular components: a reusable surgical instrument with cable adapter that can be sterilized, and disposable instrument adapters that contain the complex interconnections. This segmentation allows the sterilizable portions to be simplified while maintaining full functionality through the combination with disposable adapters.
Solution Approach 2:
The complex interconnections of energy, data, and fluid lines are extracted from the reusable surgical instrument and placed into disposable instrument adapters. This extraction removes the sterilization burden from the complex components while preserving their functional capabilities in the disposable portion.
2Adaptability or versatility
If surgical instruments have complex interconnections of energy, data, and fluid lines, then functional capabilities are improved, but procedural time increases due to entanglement management
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the system into reusable instruments with simple cable adapters and disposable adapters containing all complex lines, the reusable portion has minimal entanglement risk. The disposable adapters are pre-configured and discarded after use, eliminating time spent managing complex interconnections during procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
Disposable instrument adapters are used to contain the complex energy, data, and fluid line interconnections. These single-use components are discarded after one procedure, eliminating the need to repeatedly sterilize and manage complex cable assemblies, thereby reducing procedural time.
3Reliability
If surgical instruments use integrated cable assemblies, then connection stability is improved, but sterilization frequency and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The cable assembly is segmented into a reusable cable adapter with simple electrical contacts that can be sterilized, and a disposable instrument adapter that contains the complex connections. This allows the sterilizable portion to have simple, robust connections while maintaining overall connection stability through the disposable component.
Solution Approach 2:
The complex connection interfaces are extracted from the reusable cable assembly and placed into disposable instrument adapters. This extraction allows the reusable portion to have simplified, easily sterilized connections while maintaining connection stability through the pre-configured disposable adapters.
Data Source
AI summary
A surgical device and method of processing includes a cable and a first adapter. The adapter includes a body, an electrical contact connected to the cable, and an engagement assembly. The engagement assembly includes a latch coupling or a communication coupling. The latch coupling is movable between a locked and an unlocked position and includes a catch member. The communication coupling is configured to be resiliently biased into engagement between the electrical contact and an instrument or generator.