Steering techniques for surgical instruments
AssigneesMassachusetts Institute of Technology, The General Hospital Corporation
InventorsWestin Michael Hill, Matthew Roy Johnson, Tara Lee Schmidt Boettcher, Patrick James Codd
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A steerable endoscopic tool uses concentric sleeves of varying curvature to steer a tool tip toward or in the direction of a location of surgical interest. By rotating and/or axially displacing such sleeves relative to one another the tool tip may be maneuvered within a current field of view with several degrees of freedom without any physical movement of an endoscope, thus facilitating improved surgical access and control without complex mechanical systems in the endoscope or at the surgical site.
Claims21
An apparatus comprising:
- a tube having an end with a predetermined radius of curvature and a predetermined stiffness, the tube including a hollow core and an exit from the hollow core for a surgical tool;
- a sleeve slidably disposed outside of and concentric with the tube, the sleeve having a terminal portion proximal to the end of the tube with a stiffness greater than the predetermined stiffness of the tube and a radius of curvature greater than the predetermined radius of curvature of the tube;
- and
- a control mechanism distal to the end of the tube with a control configured to change a curvature of the end of the tube by axially displacing the sleeve relative to the tube.
An endoscope comprising:
- a flexible endoscopic body having a first end and a second end;
- a tube within the flexible endoscopic body having an end proximal to the first end of the flexible endoscopic body with a predetermined radius of curvature and a predetermined stiffness, the tube including a hollow core and an exit from the hollow core for a surgical tool;
- a sleeve slidably disposed outside of and concentric with the tube, the sleeve having a terminal portion proximal to the end of the tube with a stiffness greater than the predetermined stiffness of the tube and a radius of curvature greater than the predetermined radius of curvature of the tube;
- a fiber optic within the hollow core extending from the first end to the second end of the flexible endoscopic body;
- a laser source coupled to the fiber optic and the second end of the flexible endoscopic body;
- and
- a control mechanism proximal to the second end of the flexible endoscopic body with a control configured to change a curvature of the end of the tube by axially displacing the sleeve relative to the tube.
21-22. (canceled)
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.