Universal catheter handle

A catheter actuation handle assembly adapted to manipulate one or more distally-extending members that connect to the catheter handle and extend from the handle to locations distal from the handle for realizing translation, articulation and/or rotation of these distally-extending members using a combination of components comprising at least a moveable component that is connected to a distally-extending member and is actuated by an associated actuation component that can be manually manipulated, said handle assembly comprising:

• at least a pair of mating exterior shell halves, each exterior shell half having an exterior shell outer surface and an exterior shell inner surface, the pair of exterior shell halves being mateable with one another to form a generally cylindrically-shaped actuation handle housing having a cross-sectional shape selected from circular and ovular, and the housing defines an exterior shell cavity and a handle longitudinal axis;
• at least a moveable component positioned inside the exterior shell cavity whereby the moveable component is enabled for linear movement along, and/or rotational movement about, the longitudinal axis, or alternatively is enabled for rotation about an axis orthogonal to the longitudinal axis, by means of engagement with one or more actuation components of the assembly;
• at least a connection between the moveable component and a distally-extending member;
• and,
• one or more access ports through the actuation handle housing providing access into the exterior shell cavity for manipulating the moveable component and/or the actuating component from outside the actuation handle housing;
• and also wherein the handle assembly comprises one or more of the following features:
• (a) an actuation component comprising a pair of mating interior shell halves forming a cylindrically-shaped interior shell segment that is sized to fit inside and rotate within the exterior shell cavity such that threading along an interior shell inner surface engages corresponding threading along an outer surface of a moveable component comprising a driver whereby rotation of the interior shell segment via an associated access port causes linear movement of the driver along the handle longitudinal axis;
• (b) an actuation component comprising a pair of mating interior shell halves forming a cylindrically-shaped interior shell segment that is sized to fit inside and rotate within the exterior shell cavity such that threading along an interior shell inner surface engages corresponding threading along an outer surface of a moveable component comprising a driver whereby rotation of the interior shell segment via an associated access port causes linear movement of the driver along the handle longitudinal axis, and the assembly further comprises at least a stationary driver of substantially the same size and shape as the moveable driver but positioned inside the exterior shell cavity proximal or distal of the interior shell segment containing the moveable driver, and a connection between the stationary driver and a distally-extending member;
• (c) an actuation component comprising a pair of mating interior shell halves forming a cylindrically-shaped interior shell segment that is sized to fit inside and rotate within the exterior shell cavity such that threading along an interior shell inner surface engages corresponding threading along an outer surface of a moveable component comprising a driver whereby rotation of the interior shell segment via an associated access port causes linear movement of the driver along the handle longitudinal axis, and the assembly further comprises at least first and second stationary drivers of substantially the same size and shape as the moveable driver but positioned inside the exterior shell cavity, one located proximal of and the other being distal of the interior shell segment containing the moveable driver;
• (d) an actuation component comprising a pair of mating interior shell halves forming a cylindrically-shaped interior shell segment that is sized to fit inside and rotate within the exterior shell cavity such that threading along an interior shell inner surface engages corresponding threading along an outer surface of a moveable component comprising a driver whereby rotation of the interior shell segment via an associated access port causes linear movement of the driver along the handle longitudinal axis, and the assembly further comprises at least first and second stationary drivers of substantially the same size and shape as the moveable driver but positioned inside the exterior shell cavity, one located proximal of and the other being distal of the interior shell segment containing the moveable driver, and also including at least a pair of guide rails positioned in guide rail slots at different circumferential locations, such as on opposite sides, of the proximal stationary driver, and extending through corresponding guide rail slots of the moveable driver and to corresponding guide rail slots of the distal stationary driver to constrain rotation of the moveable driver during rotation of the interior shell segment;
• (e) an actuation component comprising a pair of mating interior shell halves forming a cylindrically-shaped interior shell segment that is sized to fit inside and rotate within the exterior shell cavity such that threading along an interior shell inner surface engages corresponding threading along an outer surface of a moveable component comprising a driver whereby rotation of the interior shell segment via an associated access port causes linear movement of the driver along the handle longitudinal axis, and the assembly further comprises corresponding circumferential rib projections along the inner surfaces of the exterior shell halves and also along the outer surfaces of the interior shell halves to facilitate positioning and rotation of the interior shell inside the exterior shell cavity;
• (f) an actuation component comprising a pair of mating interior shell halves forming a cylindrically-shaped interior shell segment that is sized to fit inside and rotate within the exterior shell cavity such that threading along an interior shell inner surface engages corresponding threading along an outer surface of a moveable component comprising a driver whereby rotation of the interior shell segment via an associated access port causes linear movement of the driver along the handle longitudinal axis, and the assembly further comprises at least first and second stationary drivers of substantially the same size and shape as the moveable driver but positioned inside the exterior shell cavity, one located proximal of and the other being distal of the interior shell segment containing the moveable driver, and the assembly also comprises circumferential rib projections along the inner surfaces of the exterior shell halves at their proximal and distal ends that define pockets for accommodating, respectively, the proximal end and distal end stationary drivers;
• (g) an actuation component comprising a pair of mating interior shell halves forming a cylindrically-shaped interior shell segment that is sized to fit inside and rotate within the exterior shell cavity such that threading along an interior shell inner surface engages corresponding threading along an outer surface of a moveable component comprising a driver whereby rotation of the interior shell segment via an associated access port causes linear movement of the driver along the handle longitudinal axis, and the moveable driver comprises a threaded driver end having a first diameter with circumferential threading along the outer surface and axially-oriented guide rail slots intersecting the threading, and an unthreaded protrusion driver end having a second diameter, smaller than the first diameter, and with axially-oriented control wire slots along the outer surface;
• (h) an actuation component comprising a pair of mating interior shell halves forming a cylindrically-shaped interior shell segment that is sized to fit inside and rotate within the exterior shell cavity such that threading along an interior shell inner surface engages corresponding threading along an outer surface of a moveable component comprising a driver whereby rotation of the interior shell segment via an associated access port causes linear movement of the driver along the handle longitudinal axis, and the moveable driver comprises a threaded driver end having a first diameter with circumferential threading along the outer surface and axially-oriented guide rail slots intersecting the threading, and an unthreaded protrusion driver end having a second diameter, smaller than the first diameter, and with axially-oriented control wire slots along the outer surface, and further wherein the threaded driver end includes an end face with a recess sized and shaped to receive sealing and locking elements;
• (i) at least two moveable components comprising drivers of substantially the same size and shape, each associated with a driver-distal member control wire that connects the moveable driver to a distally-extending member;
• (j) at least two moveable components comprising drivers of substantially the same size and shape, each associated with a driver-distal member control wire that connects the moveable driver to a distally-extending member, and further where each of the moveable drivers is located in a separate, independently rotatable interior shell segment such that it can be actuated independently of the other moveable drivers;
• (k) at least two moveable components comprising drivers of substantially the same size and shape, each associated with a driver-distal member control wire that connects the moveable driver to a distally-extending member, and also an actuation component associated with each moveable driver, each actuation component comprising a pair of mating interior shell halves forming a cylindrically-shaped interior shell segment that is sized to fit inside and rotate within the exterior shell cavity such that threading along an interior shell inner surface engages corresponding threading along an outer surface of the driver whereby rotation of the interior shell segment via an associated access port causes linear movement of the driver along the handle longitudinal axis;
• (l) at least two moveable components comprising drivers of substantially the same size and shape, each associated with a driver-distal member control wire that connects the moveable driver to a distally-extending member, and also an actuation component that comprises a pair of mating interior shell halves forming a cylindrically-shaped interior shell segment that is sized to fit inside and rotate within the exterior shell cavity such that first threading along a first portion of the interior shell inner surface engages corresponding threading along an outer surface of a first moveable driver, and second threading of a different orientation direction and/or a different pitch than the first threading along a second portion of the interior shell inner surface engages corresponding threading along an outer surface of a second moveable driver, whereby rotation of the interior shell segment housing the first and second moveable drivers via an associated access port results in linear movement of both moveable drivers but in different directions or at different rates of movement;
• (m) a shell half connection system selected from a plurality of corresponding threaded exterior shell screw holes that are located along the periphery of the exterior shell halves and a set of screws sized and threaded to match the exterior shell screw holes or a snap-fit connection system is used to fasten the exterior shell halves together;
• (n) an actuation component comprising a pair of mating interior shell halves forming a cylindrically-shaped interior shell segment that is sized to fit inside and rotate within the exterior shell cavity such that threading along an interior shell inner surface engages corresponding threading along an outer surface of a moveable component comprising a driver whereby rotation of the interior shell segment via an associated access port causes linear movement of the driver along the handle longitudinal axis, and also a shell half connection system selected from a plurality of corresponding threaded interior shell screw holes that are located along the periphery of the interior shell halves and a set of screws sized and threaded to match the interior shell screw holes or a snap-fit connection system is used to fasten the interior shell halves together;
• (o) an actuation component comprising a pair of mating interior shell halves forming a cylindrically-shaped interior shell segment that is sized to fit inside and rotate within the exterior shell cavity such that threading along an interior shell inner surface engages corresponding threading along an outer surface of a moveable component comprising a driver whereby rotation of the interior shell segment via an associated access port causes linear movement of the driver along the handle longitudinal axis, and also one or more knob features along the outer surface of the interior shell at locations where the knob features align with and project at least partly into or through an access port;
• (p) at least two moveable components comprising drivers of substantially the same size and shape, each associated with a driver-distal member control wire that connects the moveable driver to a distally-extending member, and further where each of the moveable drivers is located in a separate, independently rotatable interior shell segment such that it can be actuated independently of the other moveable drivers, and also a knob feature along the outer surface of each interior shell segment that houses a moveable driver where the knob feature aligns with and projects at least partly into or through an access port;
• (q) at least two moveable components comprising drivers of substantially the same size and shape, each associated with a driver-distal member control wire that connects the moveable driver to a distally-extending member, and further where each of the moveable drivers is located in a separate, independently rotatable interior shell segment such that it can be actuated independently of the other moveable drivers, and also a slotted support washer positioned between at least two of the separate interior shell segments with slots sized and located to accommodate a pair of guide rails that extend between the most proximal and the most distal drivers;
• (r) at least two moveable components comprising drivers of substantially the same size and shape, each associated with a driver-distal member control wire that connects the moveable driver to a distally-extending member, and further where each of the moveable drivers is located in a separate, independently rotatable interior shell segment such that it can be actuated independently of the other moveable drivers, and also a distal-end stationary driver positioned distal of the most distal of the moveable drivers, a proximal-end stationary driver positioned proximal of the most proximal of the moveable drivers, and a mid-body stationary driver positioned between the most distal moveable driver and the most proximal moveable driver;
• (s) at least two moveable components comprising drivers of substantially the same size and shape, each associated with a driver-distal member control wire that connects the moveable driver to a distally-extending member, and further where each of the moveable drivers is located in a separate, independently rotatable interior shell segment such that it can be actuated independently of the other moveable drivers, and also a distal-end stationary driver positioned distal of the most distal of the moveable drivers, a proximal-end stationary driver positioned proximal of the most proximal of the moveable drivers, and a mid-body stationary driver positioned between the most distal moveable driver and the most proximal moveable driver, and also slotted support washers positioned between the interior shell segment housing the mid-body stationary driver and the distal and proximal interior shell segments housing, respectively, the distal moveable driver and the proximal moveable driver, each slotted support washer having slots sized and located to accommodate a pair of guide rails that extend between the most proximal and the most distal drivers;
• (t) a moveable driver-distal member control wire that connects at least one moveable driver to a distally-extending member;
• (u) at least one stationary driver located within the exterior shell cavity together with a stationary driver-distal member control wire that connects at least one of the stationary drivers to a distally-extending member;
• (v) at least one stationary driver located within the exterior shell cavity together with a stationary driver-distal member control wire that connects at least one of the stationary drivers to a distally-extending member, and also a moveable driver-distal member control wire that connects at least one moveable driver to a distally-extending member;
• (w) a moveable driver-distal member control wire that connects at least one moveable driver to a distally-extending member, and at least one stationary driver connected to a distally-extending member;
• (x) a moveable driver-distal member control wire that connects at least one moveable driver to a distally-extending member, and a guide sleeve that houses at least a portion of the moveable driver-distal member control wire that is in the exterior shell cavity;
• (y) an actuation component comprising a pair of mating interior shell halves forming a cylindrically-shaped interior shell segment that is sized to fit inside and rotate within the exterior shell cavity such that threading along an interior shell inner surface engages corresponding threading along an outer surface of a moveable component comprising a driver whereby rotation of the interior shell segment via an associated access port causes linear movement of the driver along the handle longitudinal axis, and the moveable driver comprises a threaded driver end having a first diameter with circumferential threading along the outer surface and axially-oriented guide rail slots intersecting the threading, and an unthreaded protrusion driver end having a second diameter, smaller than the first diameter, and with axially-oriented control wire slots along the outer surface, and a moveable driver-distal member control wire that passes through one of the driver's control wire slots in connecting the moveable driver to a distally-extending member;
• (z) a fluid line that extends from outside the actuation handle housing into the interior shell cavity, where it connects to a driver and/or to a distally-extending member and/or to another fluid tube that connects to a driver and/or a distally-extending member;
• (aa) an actuation component that comprises a pair of mating interior shell halves forming a cylindrically-shaped interior shell segment that is sized to fit inside and rotate within the exterior shell cavity and a moveable component comprising a driver housed inside and attached to the interior shell segment whereby rotation of the interior shell segment via an associated access port results in rotation of the moveable driver and the distally-extending members connected to the driver;
• (bb) a moveable component comprising a rotatable cam member pivoted inside the exterior shell cavity to rotate about an axis that is orthogonal to the handle longitudinal axis;
• a pair of opposing cam-distal member control wires that connect different portions of the cam member to a distally-extending member;
• and, a knob feature connected to the cam member and projecting through an access port that aligns with the cam member;
• (cc) a moveable component comprising a moveable driver located within the exterior shell cavity;
• a pair of driver-distal member control wires providing two connections between the driver and a distally-extending member, where a first of the control wires connects directly to a connection point of the driver, while a second of the control wires is routed through the exterior shell cavity to a location proximal of the driver where it loops around and returns to the driver connection point;
• and, an actuation component for translating the driver distally or proximally along the axis of the actuation handle;
• (dd) a moveable component comprising a rotational knob adapted to rotate about the axis of the actuation handle at an axial location where it aligns with an access port;
• a pair of knob-distal member control wires providing two connections between the rotational knob and a distally-extending member;
• and, an actuation component comprising a geometrical feature along the circumference of the rotational knob that facilitates rotation of the knob via the access port;
• (ee) a moveable component comprising a pivot assembly adapted to pivot about a point along the axis of the actuation handle at an axial location where it aligns with an access port;
• two or more pivot-distal member control wires providing multiple connections between the pivot assembly and a distally-extending member;
• and, an actuation component comprising a plate member exterior of the actuation handle housing that is connected to the pivot assembly via the access port;
• (ff) a spring-loaded component comprising a compressed spring element located within the exterior shell cavity and connected to a distally-extending member such that release of the compressed spring element via an access port drives the distally-extending member rapidly and forcefully in the distal direction, in combination with a spring-release mechanism;
• (gg) an actuation component comprising a positioning button having upper and lower sides that slidably rides in an access port comprising an elongated slot in the actuation handle housing that parallels the handle longitudinal axis, also where the upper side of the positioning button is exterior to the actuation handle housing while the lower side is within the exterior shell cavity, and the lower side has a geometrical feature that can releasably engage the moveable driver for linear movement along the longitudinal axis;
• and/or,
• (hh) an actuation handle housing comprising two pairs of mating exterior shell halves, one of which is a distal exterior shell segment and the other a proximal exterior shell segment that houses the moveable component, where the distal segment and the proximal segment are axially spatially separated but connected such that the distal segment can be articulated relative to the longitudinal axis of the proximal segment, and also where the spatial separation constitutes the access port.