Surgical Drill Guide with Pivotable Location Post for Spinal Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
In spinal surgery, there is a challenge in achieving precise alignment of screws with bone screw holes in bone plates due to the sensitivity of the spinal cord and constrained vertebral bone dimensions, leading to potential tissue damage and unstable connections if misalignment occurs.
Innovation Solution
A surgical drill guide with a guide barrel and alignment assembly that includes a pivotable location post with resilient finger elements for secure engagement with the bone plate, allowing precise alignment and axial locking, and a swivel handle assembly for easy maneuverability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a drill guide is used to align screws with bone screw holes, then alignment precision is improved, but the complexity of the surgical system increases
Solution Approach 1:
The drill guide assembly is nested within the bone plate structure, with the guide barrel fitting into a recess of the plate. The location post is received within the recess, and the guide barrel is pivotable about the location post, creating a compact nested arrangement that provides precise alignment without adding significant external complexity to the surgical system.
Solution Approach 2:
The location post serves as an intermediary element between the bone plate and the guide barrel. It is received within the recess of the bone plate and provides a pivot point for the guide barrel, enabling precise alignment of the drill with the bone screw holes while simplifying the overall connection mechanism.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the location post is made pivotable to allow selective alignment, then adaptability is improved, but the stability of the drill guide decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The location post is designed to be pivotable about the bone plate recess, allowing the guide barrel to be selectively aligned with multiple fastener holes. This dynamic capability enables the drill guide to adapt to different alignment requirements while maintaining stable engagement with the bone plate through the recess reception.
Solution Approach 2:
The alignment assembly is segmented into distinct functional components: the location post for engagement with the bone plate, the guide barrel for receiving the bone tool, and the pivot mechanism for alignment adjustment. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function optimally while maintaining overall stability.
3Reliability
If resilient finger elements are used to axially lock the drill guide, then reliability is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The resilient finger elements are configured to automatically engage with the bone plate recess and provide axial locking through their inherent elasticity. The resilient fingers self-adjust to the contours of the recess, providing reliable retention without requiring additional locking components or complex mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The resilient finger elements utilize elastic deformation to achieve axial locking. When compressed, the resilient fingers expand radially to engage the bone plate recess, and their material properties allow them to maintain continuous contact pressure, ensuring reliable retention through parameter changes in their physical state.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The drill guide ensures precise alignment of screws with bone screw holes, minimizing tissue damage and providing a stable connection by allowing for accurate hole drilling and screw placement, even in constrained spinal environments.
Implementation Method 1
a plurality of resilient finger elements configured to frictionally engage the bone plate recess to thereby axially lock the drill guide to the bone plate
Implementation Method 2
a spring element disposed at least partially within a second axial bore in the housing to bias the location post to the extended position
Data Source
AI summary
A surgical drill guide for use with a bone plate having fastener holes oriented at predetermined angles with respect to the plate, the surgical drill guide having at least one alignment drill guiding barrel that is aligned with the respective fastener holes in the bone plate for drilling the holes at the desired range of angles permitted by the plate hole.