Disposable staple cartridge having an anvil with tissue locator for use with a surgical cutting and fastening instrument and modular end effector system therefor

An end effector for a surgical cutting and fastening instrument, said end effector comprising:

• a channel having a proximal end attachable to a portion of the surgical cutting and fastening instrument, said channel further having a distal end and being configured to support a disposable staple cartridge therein;
• a rigid top anvil plate having a distal end and a proximal end, said proximal end pivotally coupled to said proximal end of said channel and being selectively pivotable between an open position wherein said distal end of said top anvil plate is away from said distal end of said channel to permit a disposable staple cartridge to be seated within said channel and a closed position wherein said top anvil plate is adjacent to the staple cartridge seated within the channel in response to opening and closing forces, respectively, applied thereto from a drive system supported in the surgical cutting and fastening instrument, said rigid top anvil plate configured to mate with a disposable anvil plate associated with the disposable staple cartridge seated within the channel;
• a knife assembly operably supported in said channel and coupled to the drive system of the surgical cutting and fastening instrument to drive said knife assembly from said proximal end of said channel to said distal end and return said knife assembly to said proximal end of said channel;
• and
• a wedge sled associated with said knife assembly for travel therewith, said wedge sled oriented to actuate staple drivers in the disposable staple cartridge seated in the channel when said knife assembly is driven from said proximal end of said channel to said distal end of said channel.

A disposable staple cartridge for a surgical cutting and fastening instrument, said staple cartridge, comprising:

• a cartridge body operably supporting a plurality of staples therein;
• disposable staple forming means attached to said cartridge body such that disposable staple forming means is movable between a closed position wherein a bottom surface thereof is adjacent a top surface of said cartridge body and an open position wherein the bottom surface of said disposable staple forming means is spaced away from said top surface of said cartridge body to permit tissue to be inserted therebetween;
• and
• tissue stop means on said disposable staple forming means for contacting the tissue inserted between the bottom surface of the disposable staple forming means and the top surface of said cartridge body to orient the tissue relative to the staples supported within said cartridge body.

An end effector for a surgical cutting and fastening instrument constructed for use in connection with at least one of a plurality of staple cartridge bodies that each have a common length and wherein each staple cartridge body operably supports a plurality of staples therein that are aligned in at least one first line of staples and has at least one tissue stop associated therewith, the end effector further being constructed for use with at least one other staple cartridge body of another plurality of other staple cartridge bodies that are each equal in length to the common length of the staple cartridge bodies and each operably supports a plurality of other staples therein that are aligned in at least one other line of other staples that is longer than the lines of staples in the staple cartridge bodies, said end effector comprising:

• an elongate channel attachable to a portion of the surgical cutting and fastening instrument, said elongate channel being configured to support any one of the staple cartridge bodies and other staple cartridge bodies therein;
• a top anvil plate pivotally coupled to said elongate channel and movable between open and closed positions in response to opening and closing forces, respectively, applied thereto from a drive system supported in the surgical cutting and fastening instrument, said top anvil plate having at least one top tissue stop associated therewith configured to cooperate with at least one of the tissue stops associated with one of cartridge bodies when said cartridge body is seated within said elongate channel to orient tissue relative to the lines of staples therein, said at least one top tissue stop further configured to orient tissue clamped between the top anvil and one of the other staple cartridge bodies when said other cartridge body is seated in said elongate channel such that said at least one top tissue stop orients the tissue relative to the at least one other line of other staples in said other staple cartridge body;
• and
• a knife and staple driver assembly operably supported in said elongate channel and configured to receive forward driving and reversing motions from the drive system of the surgical cutting and fastening instrument such that when said knife and staple assembly is driven forward, the tissue clamped in the end effector is severed thereby and stapled by staples supported in the cartridge seated in the elongate channel.