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US 11,950,805 B2Granted
Sharp turning steerable needle
AssigneeThe Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania
InventorMark Yim
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Disclosed are steerable needles having a shaft that can be controllably buckled, a steering head positioned at a distal end of the shaft, a transmission for controlling the orientation of the steering head, and a base at the end of the shaft, the base optionally comprising a controller for controlling the transmission. Also disclosed are methods of using the disclosed steerable needles.
Claims14
A steerable needle, comprising:
- a first tape spring comprising a first steering head adapted for insertion into a living subject, the first steering head located at a distal end of the first tape spring, at least a portion of the first tape spring having a mechanical bias in a first direction;
- a second tape spring comprising a second steering head adapted for insertion into a living subject, the second steering head located at a distal end of the second tape spring at least a portion of the second tape spring having a mechanical bias in a second direction opposite the first direction, wherein:
- the first and second tape springs are engaged with one another such that the mechanical bias of the first tape spring counters the mechanical bias of the second tape spring;
- the first and second tape springs are further engaged with one another such that upon advancement of the first steering head beyond the second steering head,
- the first steering head translates in the direction of the mechanical bias of the first tape spring, and
- the first and second tape springs are further engaged with one another such that upon advancement of the second steering head beyond the first steering head, the second steering head translates in the direction of the mechanical bias of the second tape spring.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.