Wire Driver With Spring-Loaded Clamping Jaws
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing surgical wire drivers require complex adjustments and special wires, with cumbersome designs that complicate quick fastening and releasing, and often necessitate excessive wire length for effective operation.
Innovation Solution
A simplified mechanical design featuring a hollow drive shaft with preloaded clamping jaws operated by a lever, allowing for easy wire handling and minimal excess wire length, with a flange for connection to a medical handpiece and openings for sterilization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a split spring collet is used to hold the wire, then the wire can be securely clamped, but the device requires complex adjustment and special wires with flats for anti-rotational keying
Solution Approach 1:
The clamping jaws are preloaded by a spring mechanism that automatically adjusts to clamp the wire securely without requiring external adjustment tools like Allen wrenches. The system serves itself by using the wire insertion action to trigger the spring-loaded jaws to close and grip the wire.
Solution Approach 2:
The complex adjustment mechanism of the split spring collet is replaced by extracting only the essential function of wire holding. The design uses simple spring-loaded clamping jaws that open automatically when the wire is inserted and close automatically when the wire is removed, eliminating the need for manual adjustment mechanisms.
2Productivity
If a surgical chuck with clamping jaws is used for quick fastening and releasing, then wire changing is faster, but the configuration becomes complex and requires significant wire access length
Solution Approach 1:
The chuck is segmented into multiple independent spring-loaded clamping jaws that can move individually. This segmentation allows each jaw to independently grip or release the wire, enabling quick wire changing while maintaining a simple overall structure that requires minimal wire access length.
Solution Approach 2:
The clamping jaws are made dynamic through spring loading, allowing them to automatically adjust their position and grip force. The jaws can quickly transition between open and closed states in response to wire insertion or removal, providing fast wire changing without complex mechanical linkages.
3Reliability
If the clamping jaws are preloaded by a spring, then the wire is held securely, but the jaws require a mechanism to move them in or out of the hollow drive shaft
Solution Approach 1:
The spring-loaded clamping jaws automatically engage the wire when it is inserted into the hollow drive shaft and automatically release it when the wire is removed. The system uses the wire insertion action itself to trigger the jaw closure, eliminating the need for separate actuation mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The springs are pre-loaded during manufacturing to provide the necessary clamping force. This preliminary action ensures that when the wire is inserted, the jaws are already positioned and ready to clamp, providing immediate secure holding without requiring additional activation steps.
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
Enables quick and efficient holding and releasing of medical wires with a simple locking action, reducing the need for specific wire diameters and facilitating easy sterilization due to a low-component, gap-filled design.
Implementation Method 1
The clamping jaws are preloaded by a spring, pressing the jaws towards the distal end, resulting in pressing the jaws together or to the wire and therefore holding the wire
Implementation Method 2
The clamping jaws have at least one pin contact surface which contacts the surgical wire preferably causes friction to the wire
Implementation Method 3
The actuator preferably generates a linear motion of the jaw guide parallel to the rotation axis. It is further preferred, if the actuator is a lever, which preferably is tiltable about a lever axis
Implementation Method 4
The clamping jaws have a guiding cutout, which may interact with at least one cam provided at the jaw guide
Data Source
AI summary
A driver for medical wires has a hollow drive shaft, rotatable about a rotation axis. The hollow drive shaft has a distal end and a proximal end. Furthermore, a plurality of clamping jaws penetrates under an angle into the hollow drive shaft close to its distal end. The clamping jaws are moved into or out of the hollow drive shaft by means of a jaw guide mounted slidable parallel to the rotation axis and movably connected to the clamping jaws. An actuator is provided to shift the jaw guide parallel to the rotation axis and therefore modify the penetration depth of the clamping jaws.