Electrosurgical instrument with flexible wiring assemblies

An electrosurgical instrument, comprising:

• a housing comprising a printed control board;
• a shaft extending from the housing;
• an end effector extending from the shaft;
• an articulation joint rotatably connecting the end effector to the shaft;
• and
• a wiring circuit extending from the printed control board through the shaft and into the end effector, wherein the wiring circuit is configured to monitor a function of the end effector and communicate the monitored function to the printed control board, and wherein the wiring circuit comprises:
• a rigid portion;
• a resilient portion transitionable between a relaxed configuration and an unrelaxed configuration;
• and
• a conductive wire extending through the resilient portion, wherein the conductive wire comprises a stretchable portion, wherein the stretchable portion at least partially traverses the articulation joint, and wherein the conductive wire is configured to elongate when the resilient portion is transitioned from the relaxed configuration to the unrelaxed configuration.

An electrosurgical instrument, comprising:

• a housing comprising a printed control board;
• a shaft extending from the housing;
• an end effector extending from the shaft;
• a translating member configured to translate relative to the shaft to perform an end effector function;
• and
• a wiring harness extending from the printed control board into the shaft, wherein the wiring harness comprises:
• a rigid body portion fixed to the shaft;
• a resilient portion extending from the rigid body portion, wherein an end of the resilient portion is attached to the translating member, wherein the end of the resilient portion comprises a sensor, and wherein the sensor is configured to measure an attribute of the translating member;
• and
• a conductive wire extending through the rigid body portion and the resilient portion.