Trocar Positioning Device for Surgical Instrument Cleaning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current trocars for minimally invasive surgery lack a mechanism to efficiently position and clean the distal end of surgical instruments like laparoscopes before insertion, leading to unnecessary docking procedures and reduced efficiency in robotic-assisted surgeries.
Innovation Solution
A trocar with a positioning device on the proximal head that allows the distal end of the surgical instrument to be positioned and locked outside the trocar head, featuring a telescopic tube section that can be moved relative to the trocar shaft, enabling easy cleaning and eliminating the need for repeated reference positioning during robotic-assisted surgeries.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the distal end of the surgical instrument is inserted directly into the trocar head without external positioning, then the insertion procedure is simpler, but the cleaning and inspection of the distal end becomes difficult and additional docking procedures are required
Solution Approach 1:
The trocar system is divided into distinct functional segments: the trocar head for insertion, the positioning device for external holding, and the telescopic tube section for extension. This segmentation allows the distal end to be positioned externally for cleaning while maintaining connection to the trocar system, resolving the contradiction between ease of operation and device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The positioning device enables preliminary positioning and cleaning of the distal end before actual insertion into the patient's body. The telescopic tube section can be extended to allow cleaning operations to be performed externally, and then retracted for insertion, eliminating the need for additional docking procedures during surgery.
2Productivity
If the telescopic tube section is extended to position the distal end externally, then cleaning and inspection become easier, but the device occupies more space and requires more complex mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The telescopic tube section is nested within the trocar shaft when retracted, minimizing the occupied space during storage and insertion. When extension is needed for cleaning and inspection, the tube section can be extended outward. This nesting mechanism allows the system to maintain high productivity when needed while keeping the device compact when not in use, balancing surgical efficiency with mechanism complexity.
3Reliability
If the distal end is retracted into the trocar head after surgery, then the connection is more secure, but repeated insertion and retraction requires repeated reference positioning
Solution Approach 1:
The positioning device maintains continuous positioning information throughout repeated insertion and retraction operations. By keeping the distal end positioned externally during non-surgical periods and using the telescopic mechanism for controlled extension and retraction, the system maintains continuous reference positioning without requiring re-registration, ensuring connection stability while eliminating time loss from repeated positioning operations.
Data Source
AI summary
A trocar for use with a surgical instrument. The trocar including; a proximal trocar head; a trocar shaft arranged on the trocar head, the trocar shaft is configured to receive an elongated shaft of the surgical instrument, and a positioning device provided on the proximal trocar head and being movable between retracted and extracted states relative to the trocar head, the positioning device being configured to position a distal end of the elongated shaft of the surgical instrument outside the trocar head in the extracted position.