Surgical stapler
OwnerJoseph W. Blake, III, Jack W. Kaufmaninventors
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A skin stapler having a plurality of staples comprising a frame structure, with a nose section for directing the staple at a wound site, including a housing therein having an anvil, a staple ejector, a driver for deforming the staple about the anvil, and a staple follower for continually urging the staples against a release member. Means are also provided for actuating the driver in a substantially translatable direction; and the actuating means comprises a toggle mechanism. In addition, the stapler is provided with means for restoring the driver to its unactivated position, and means are provided for preventing the double loading of the staples in said surgical stapler. The skin stapler is lightweight and of the disposable type as it is generally small and relatively compact.
Claims9
A surgical stapler adapted to be hand held, having a staple supply for suturing tissue with a plurality of staples and having a frame structure with a curved nose section, comprising:
- an anvil, a housing structure having a single track therein and having a curved nose section shaped like said curved nose section of said frame structure for a driver-follower assembly unit;
- the follower being secured to the driver and travelling in a slot provided in the driver and being resiliently biased so as to continuously urge said plurality of staples, which are visible through a top front window in said stapler, and which are stacked end to end atop said driver to a forwardly position, a release member disposed above the most forward staple for uring said staple into position in front of said driver;
- said driver being manually actuated by actuating means for cyclically travelling between a forming position for closing said staple about said anvil and a retracting position in said track, for reloading a next staple in front of said driver, and said actuating means including a toggle-like drive mechanism providing an increasing force to said driver for forming said staple about said anvil, whereby the nose section of said staples having said window provides a visual indication of the staple supply.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.