Suture Cutting Tool Blade Retraction Mechanism
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Internal suturing procedures face challenges such as tissue damage and complications due to the risk of scissors contacting or inadvertently cutting tissue while cutting sutures, leading to potential infections, bleeding, or organ failure.
Innovation Solution
A suture cutting tool with a housing, plunger assembly, and blade configuration that allows for precise cutting of sutures within a suture slot without the blade reaching the bottom wall of the blade slot, minimizing tissue damage, featuring a return spring for safe blade retraction and alignment tabs for precise alignment, ensuring the cutting edge cuts the suture at the top surface without entering the blade slot.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If scissors are used to cut sutures during internal suturing, then the suture can be cut, but there is a risk of tissue damage from the scissors contacting or inadvertently cutting tissue
Solution Approach 1:
The cutting function is segmented from the handling function. The blade is a separate component that can be independently controlled and positioned, allowing the cutting action to be isolated from the tissue handling areas. This segmentation enables precise cutting without exposing the entire instrument to tissue damage risks.
Solution Approach 2:
The anvil assembly acts as an intermediary structure between the blade and the tissue. The V-shaped groove in the anvil provides a controlled interface where the suture is positioned and cut, preventing direct contact between the blade and surrounding tissue while maintaining effective cutting capability.
2Measurement precision
If a blade is extended beyond the housing to cut sutures, then cutting precision is improved, but the risk of accidental tissue cutting increases
Solution Approach 1:
The housing structure provides preliminary protection by containing the blade within defined boundaries. The blade extension is controlled and limited by the housing geometry, preventing it from reaching areas where tissue might be inadvertently contacted. This preliminary structural constraint reduces the risk before the cutting action occurs.
Solution Approach 2:
The anvil assembly serves as an intermediary that receives the blade's cutting action. The V-shaped groove in the anvil guides and contains the cutting process, ensuring that the blade cuts only the suture material positioned in the groove and not surrounding tissue. This intermediary structure mediates between the extended blade and the tissue environment.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the blade is retracted into the housing for safety, then tissue damage risk is reduced, but suture cutting capability is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The blade is designed with dynamic positioning capability, allowing it to extend beyond the housing when needed for cutting and retract when not in use. This dynamic configuration enables the system to switch between safe retracted state and functional extended state, maintaining both safety and operational capability throughout the device's use cycle.
Solution Approach 2:
The anvil assembly with its V-shaped groove acts as an intermediary that enables cutting when the blade is extended. The groove geometry ensures that when the blade protrudes, it is precisely positioned to cut only the suture material that is intentionally placed in the groove, maintaining safety even in the extended position.
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 tool effectively cuts sutures without causing tissue damage, reducing the risk of complications like infections and bleeding, and allows for safe handling by preventing accidental cutting of tissues during the suturing process.
Implementation Method 1
The return spring forces the blade away from the second position
Data Source
AI summary
A suture cutting tool having a housing, a plunger assembly and a blade. The housing has an inner bore and a main body having an anvil assembly that is positioned at the distal end of the housing, defining a suture slot. The anvil assembly having top surface and a blade slot. The plunger assembly has a plunger rod slidably movable relative to the housing. The blade is coupled to the plunger rod and includes a cutting edge. The blade is movable along with the plunger assembly between at least a first position having the cutting edge within the suture slot to a second position having the cutting edge within the blade slot of the anvil. Thru the movement between the first and second positions, the cutting edge is structurally configured to cut a suture traversing the blade slot.