Devices and methods related to medical tubes

A spool drive system for actuating a guide wire, said system comprising:

• a housing assembly having first and second opposing housing portions directly connected to one another and defining a common enclosure therebetween, and an inlet adapted to establish fluid communication between a medical tube and said enclosure;
• a spool within said enclosure, said spool being rotatable about an axis thereof to wind and unwind said guide wire on said spool, thereby withdrawing or advancing, respectively, said guide wire through said inlet;
• a track spaced from and extending at least partially about a perimeter of said spool following a curvature thereof within said enclosure, said track being adapted to direct said guide wire onto or off of said spool about the perimeter thereof as the spool is rotated;
• a motor disposed within said enclosure and operable to advance or withdraw said guide wire from or into said enclosure through said inlet, said first and second opposing housing portions being connected together to yield a single hand held assembly having both said spool and said motor within the common enclosure defined therebetween;
• and
• a partition wall disposed within and enclosed by the first and second opposing housing portions, said partition wall partitioning the enclosure into first and second portions thereof, wherein the spool is disposed within the first portion of the enclosure and the motor is disposed within the second portion of the enclosure.