Implant driver

An apparatus for inserting implants in a bone, comprising:

• a frame having a cartridge receiving chamber and a barrel, the barrel having a sidewall, a proximal end, a distal end, and a longitudinal passage extending through the barrel from the proximal end to the distal end;
• a cartridge defining a plurality of chambers extending through the cartridge in a substantially parallel relationship to one another, the cartridge positioned in the cartridge receiving chamber of the frame so as to be movable relative to the barrel in a way that each of the chambers is selectively alignable with the longitudinal passage of the barrel;
• a drill bit positioned in one of the chambers of the cartridge, the drill bit having an instrument head and an instrument shaft configured for making a hole in the bone;
• a plurality of screws positioned in selected ones of the chambers of the cartridge, each of the screws having an implant head and an implant shaft configured to be implanted in the bone;
• and
• a drive assembly having a proximal end and a distal end, the distal end of the drive assembly being engageable with the drill bit and the screws, the drive assembly slidably and rotatably disposed in the frame in a way that the drive assembly is moveable between a retracted position wherein the drive assembly is positioned to permit the cartridge to be moved so as to align a selected one of the drill bit and the screws with the longitudinal passage of the barrel, an engaging position wherein the distal end of the drive assembly is positioned to engage the selected one of the drill bit and the screw positioned within the chamber aligned with the longitudinal passage of the barrel, and an extended position wherein the drive assembly is extended through the chamber aligned with the longitudinal passage of the barrel to transport the selected one of the drill bit and the screw from the chamber to the distal end of the barrel where the drive assembly is rotatable relative to the barrel to apply a rotational force to the selected one of the drill bit and the screw.

A method of making an apparatus, comprising the steps of:

• positioning an instrument configured to form a hole in a bone into a first chamber of a cartridge;
• positioning an implant configured to be implanted within the hole in the bone into a second chamber of the cartridge;
• placing the cartridge having the instrument and the implant within a container;
• and
• sealing the container.

A method of inserting implants into a bone, comprising:

• loading a cartridge having at least one implant and at least one instrument into a frame supporting a drive mechanism and a drive assembly;
• forming a hole in a bone by selectively moving the drive assembly and the cartridge and selectively actuating and deactuating the drive mechanism;
• and
• placing an implant of the at least one implant into the hole in the bone by moving the drive assembly to a retracted position, moving the cartridge to place an implant in an use position, moving the drive assembly to a driving position, and selectively actuating the drive mechanism.

An apparatus, comprising:

• a cartridge having a first chamber and a second chamber;
• an instrument positioned in the first chamber, the instrument configured to form a hole in a bone;
• and
• an implant positioned in the second chamber of the cartridge, the implant configured to be implanted within the hole formed by the instrument.

An apparatus for inserting implants in a bone, comprising:

• a frame having a cartridge receiving chamber and a barrel, the barrel having a sidewall, a proximal end, a distal end, and a longitudinal passage extending through the barrel from the proximal end to the distal end;
• a cartridge defining a plurality of chambers extending through the cartridge in a substantially parallel relationship to one another, the cartridge positioned in the cartridge receiving chamber of the frame so as to be movable relative to the barrel in a way that each of the chambers is selectively alignable with the longitudinal passage of the barrel;
• a plurality of screws positioned in selected ones of the chambers of the cartridge, each of the screws having an implant head and an implant shaft configured to be implanted in the bone;
• and
• a drive assembly having a proximal end and a distal end, the distal end of the drive assembly being engageable with the screws, the drive assembly slidably and rotatably disposed in the frame in a way that the drive assembly is moveable between a retracted position wherein the drive assembly is positioned to permit the cartridge to be moved so as to align a selected one the screws with the longitudinal passage of the barrel, an engaging position wherein the distal end of the drive assembly is positioned to engage the selected one of the screw positioned within the chamber aligned with the longitudinal passage of the barrel, and an extended position wherein the drive assembly is extended through the chamber aligned with the longitudinal passage of the barrel to transport the selected one of the screw from the chamber to the distal end of the barrel where the drive assembly is rotatable relative to the barrel to apply a rotational force to the selected one of the screw.