Surgical instrument control

An apparatus comprising:

• a shaft comprising a proximal end portion and a distal end portion;
• an end effector coupled to the distal end portion of the shaft, the end effector comprising:
• a jaw mechanism movable through a range of motion between an open position and a closed position;
• a translating mechanism movable between a proximal position and a distal position relative to the jaw mechanism;
• a first user-actuated input mechanism;
• a second user-actuated input mechanism;
• and
• a controller configured to:
• in response to a first input at the first user-actuated input mechanism, command the jaw mechanism to move from the open position to an intermediate closed position within the range of motion and command the translating mechanism to move from the proximal position to an intermediate position relative to the jaw mechanism, and
• after a second input at the second user-actuated input mechanism and in response to a third input at the first user-actuated input mechanism, command the jaw mechanism to move to the closed position and command the translating mechanism to move from the intermediate position to the distal position relative to the jaw mechanism.