Surgical Instrument with Sensor and Memory for Failure Analysis
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Solution Overview
Problem
Endoscopic surgical instruments often fail without clear cause determination, requiring extensive analysis and potential design changes, which is costly and challenging due to lack of user feedback and recording capabilities.
Innovation Solution
A surgical instrument with sensors and an externally accessible memory device that records the conditions of the end effector and trigger, allowing for monitoring and recording of instrument states, providing user feedback and facilitating analysis.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If surgical instruments are used without recording capabilities, then the device complexity is reduced, but the reliability of failure analysis deteriorates due to lack of data on failure conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by implementing sensors and memory devices that continuously monitor and record instrument conditions (temperature, pressure, operational parameters) before failures occur. This pre-recording of data enables reliable post-failure analysis without requiring complex real-time diagnostic systems, thus improving failure analysis reliability while maintaining relatively simple device architecture.
2Loss of information
If sensors and memory devices are added to record instrument conditions, then the loss of information during failure analysis is reduced, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs sensors as intermediary devices that indirectly capture operational conditions without requiring direct observation or complex analysis systems. The memory device serves as another intermediary, storing data that can be later retrieved for analysis. This approach minimizes information loss while adding only moderate complexity through standardized sensing and storage components.
3Loss of time
If extensive analysis is performed on failed instruments without recording capabilities, then the loss of time for determining failure cause is reduced, but the productivity of the analysis process deteriorates due to lack of clear data
Solution Approach 1:
The patent records operational data (temperature, pressure, operational parameters) in advance during normal instrument use. When a failure occurs, this pre-recorded data is immediately available for analysis, eliminating the need for time-consuming investigative procedures. The analysis efficiency improves because investigators can directly examine recorded failure conditions rather than attempting to reconstruct them.
4Reliability
If design changes are implemented based on incomplete failure analysis, then the manufacturing cost is reduced, but the reliability of subsequent instruments deteriorates due to improper design modifications
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback by systematically collecting and analyzing recorded failure data to identify root causes. This feedback loop enables evidence-based design modifications that address actual failure mechanisms rather than making speculative changes. The reliability of subsequent instruments improves because design changes are grounded in empirical data from recorded failures, while manufacturing costs remain controlled through targeted rather than comprehensive redesigns.
Data Source
AI summary
A surgical instrument. The surgical instrument has an end effector and a trigger in communication with the end effector. The surgical instrument also has a first sensor and an externally accessible memory device in communication with the first sensor. The first sensor has an output that represents a first condition of either the trigger or the end effector. The memory device is configured to record the output of the first sensor. In various embodiments, memory device may include an output port and/or a removable storage medium.