Surgical Stapler Switch System Reduces Firing Force
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current motor-driven surgical staplers lack user feedback and control, leading to high force-to-fire requirements and increased complexity, which limits acceptance among surgeons due to the inability to experience proportional force distribution and maintain control during the cutting/stapling process.
Innovation Solution
A surgical fastener apparatus with a handle and elongated shaft, featuring a power assist system with a gear drive train and sensors that provide feedback on the position and force of the end effector, allowing for controlled deployment and reduced firing force through separate closure and firing triggers, and adjustable spacing between jaws for tissue adaptation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Force
If motor-driven actuation is used to reduce firing force, then force-to-fire is reduced, but user feedback and control are lost
Solution Approach 1:
A mechanical feedback linkage acts as an intermediary between the motor-driven firing mechanism and the user's trigger. This linkage transmits tactile feedback from the end effector to the user's hand, allowing the user to sense tissue engagement and firing progress while the motor provides the primary actuation force, thus resolving the contradiction between reduced firing force and maintained user control
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates a feedback mechanism where the user's trigger movement is mechanically linked to the motor actuation and end effector movement. This creates a closed-loop system where the user receives real-time tactile feedback about tissue clamping and stapling progress, maintaining intuitive control despite the motor-driven actuation reducing the physical force required
2Force
If motor-driven actuation is used to reduce firing force, then force-to-fire is reduced, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The motor assembly serves multiple functions: it provides the primary firing actuation force, drives the end effector through a shared mechanical linkage, and enables feedback transmission to the user's trigger. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate components, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity while achieving reduced firing force
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines the motor-driven actuation system with the existing mechanical feedback linkage in a unified system. Rather than adding a completely separate motor control system, the design merges the motor actuation with the traditional mechanical feedback path, allowing the same mechanical components to serve both power transmission and feedback functions, thus limiting complexity increase
3Adaptability or versatility
If adjustable jaw spacing is implemented for tissue adaptation, then adaptability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The jaw spacing mechanism is designed to be dynamically adjustable rather than fixed. The electrical adjustment mechanism allows the gap between jaws to be modified based on tissue thickness and type, providing adaptability. The dynamic nature of this adjustment, integrated into the existing jaw closure mechanism, allows for tissue adaptation without requiring entirely separate adjustment systems, thus limiting complexity increase
Data Source
AI summary
A surgical fastener apparatus having a handle, an elongated shaft having a proximal end attached to the handle and a distal end extending therefrom. An end effector including a pair of jaws pivoted at a proximal end thereof and movable between an open and closed position. A cartridge containing a plurality of surgical fasteners, the cartridge attached to the end effector. An electrically powered actuator for deploying the surgical fasteners, the actuator including a power source and a motor. A switch configured to prevent application of firing motions to the end effector until the switch has been activated.