Protective cover installation and removal tool, systems, and methods
AssigneeIntuitive Surgical Operations, Inc.
InventorsPaul J. Floyd, Rosemary Cole, Christina J. Shuh, Ralph Wadensweiler, Mark Palmer
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method of removing a protective cover from an instrument includes inserting a distal end of the instrument on which the protective cover is positioned within an opening of a tool; engaging an edge of the protective cover with a movable member of the tool; and while the edge is engaged, using relative movement between the instrument and the tool to remove the protective cover from the instrument.
Claims19
1-4. (canceled)
A system, comprising:
- an instrument with a distal end portion;
- a protective cover configured to be positioned over the distal end portion of the instrument;
- and
- a tool for one or both of installing and removing the protective cover from the instrument, the tool comprising:
- a body portion with an interior passage configured to receive the protective cover, the interior passage extending along a longitudinal axis of the body portion;
- and
- one or more members movable relative to the body portion, the one or more members each comprising an engaging portion configured to enter a junction between the protective cover and the distal end portion of the instrument when the protective cover is in an installed position on the instrument.
A tool for installing and/or removing a protective cover of an instrument, comprising:
- a sleeve having an open end and a lateral wall comprising an interior surface at least partially circumscribing an interior passage and configured to receive at least a portion of the protective cover in the interior passage, the sleeve defining a longitudinal axis;
- and
- one or more cutout regions extending through a thickness of the lateral wall of the sleeve;
- wherein an exterior surface of the lateral wall of the sleeve is configured to be grasped by a user, and
- wherein the one or more cutout regions are configured to enable the sleeve to expand and contract radially.
A tool for installing and/or removing a protective cover of an instrument, comprising:
- a body portion having an open end and a closed end, the open end defining an interior passage that extends into the body portion along a longitudinal axis of the body portion toward the closed end of the body portion, the interior passage configured to receive at least a portion of the protective cover in the interior passage;
- and
- one or more members connected to the body portion and comprising a free end movable relative to the body portion,
- wherein in a state of the protective cover received in the interior passage, the one or more members are accessible by a user and configured to be moved toward one another by application of a force exerted in a radial direction by the user.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.