Surgical Instrument Coupling Point Contacts Disinfection

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Solution Overview

Problem

Surgical instruments with pivoting branches face challenges in disinfection due to inaccessible contact surfaces in the coupling area, leading to incomplete disinfection and increased disinfection time.

Innovation Solution

Designing surgical instruments with hinged branches that feature surface structures with point or line contacts in the coupling area, minimizing total contact surface and creating gaps for disinfectants, while maintaining stable sliding guides and improved lubrication.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Stability of the object's composition

If surface contact structures are used in the coupling area to ensure robust guiding of branches, then guiding stability is improved, but accessibility to disinfectant is worsened

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveguiding stabilityVSAvoiddisinfectant accessibility

Core Design Contradiction:

Stability of the object's compositionVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The contact surface is segmented into multiple discrete contact points instead of a continuous surface. The first contact element has a first contact point and the second contact element has a second contact point, creating gaps between contact areas that allow disinfectant to reach all surfaces while maintaining stable guiding through distributed point contacts

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

2Strength

If full-surface contact is used in the coupling area, then guiding robustness is improved, but disinfection time is increased

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveguiding robustnessVSAvoiddisinfection time

Core Design Contradiction:

StrengthVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The contact interface is divided into discrete contact points rather than full-surface contact. Multiple contact points distributed over the contact surface provide sufficient guiding robustness while creating gaps that enable rapid disinfectant penetration, significantly reducing disinfection time compared to full-surface contact designs

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

3Ease of operation

If point contacts are used in the coupling area, then disinfectant accessibility is improved, but guiding stability is worsened

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedisinfectant accessibilityVSAvoidguiding stability

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The contact surface is segmented into multiple discrete contact points distributed across the contact area. This segmentation provides sufficient guiding stability through the collective effect of multiple points while maintaining excellent disinfectant accessibility, as the gaps between contact points allow complete penetration of disinfectant to all surfaces

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Multiple individual contact points are merged into a distributed contact system that collectively provides stable guiding. The first contact element with its contact point and the second contact element with its contact point work together as an integrated system, combining the advantages of point contact accessibility with enhanced guiding stability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Data Source

PatentUS10448991B2Surgical instrument having point contacts in coupling area

Publication Date: 2019.10.22 AESCULAP AG

AI summary

A surgical instrument includes a female branch defining in a coupling area a hollow volume including inwardly facing inner coupling surfaces and including a male branch which can be pivoted relative to the female branch at least partly inside the hollow volume about a pivot axis, the male branch defining in the coupling area a guide portion having outwardly facing outer coupling surfaces in which outer coupling recesses are arranged, wherein on the inner coupling surfaces, inner coupling recesses are arranged which extend relative to a longitudinal axis of the surgical instrument in a direction other than that of the outer coupling recesses.