Guidewire having varying diameters and method of making
AssigneeAbbott Cardiovascular Systems Inc.
InventorRobert Charles Hayzelden
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method of making a medical guidewire including providing a wire having a length that includes a proximal length and a distal length. The method further includes applying cold work to the distal length and not applying cold work to the proximal length, thereby imparting to the distal length a diameter that is smaller than the proximal length diameter; and applying a reducing process to the wire whereby the proximal length is reduced to have an outer diameter that is the same as the outer diameter of the distal length. The proximal length has an inner diameter and the distal length has an inner diameter that is less than the inner diameter of the proximal length.
Claims19
A method of making a guidewire, comprising:
- providing an elongated wire having a proximal end and a distal end and a lumen extending therethrough having a first inner diameter, wherein a first length separates the proximal end from the distal end;
- applying cold work to the elongated wire by applying a mechanical process in a sequence that comprises:
- swaging the elongated wire over a second length that includes the distal end by using the mechanical process wherein the second length is less than the first length;
- removing an outer surface of the elongated wire, whereby the outer surface of the elongated wire is reduced to have a uniform outer diameter over the first length and the second length and the first inner diameter extending through the first length and a second inner diameter extending through the second length;
- and
- wherein the second length is further processed by cutting coils along the second length.
A method of making a guidewire, comprising:
- providing an elongated tubular member having a lumen extending from a proximal end to a distal end, and having a proximal section and a distal section;
- the proximal section and the distal section having a first outer diameter and a first inner diameter;
- applying cold work to the elongated tubular member by applying a mechanical process in a sequence comprising:
- reducing the first outer diameter and the first inner diameter of the distal section by using the mechanical process thereby forming a second outer diameter and a second inner diameter for the distal section;
- removing an outer surface of the elongated tubular member so that the outer surface is reduced to form a third, uniform outer diameter along the proximal section and the distal section;
- and
- wherein at least a portion of the distal section is further processed by cutting coils along the distal section.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.