Articulation assembly for surgical instruments

An articulating surgical instrument comprising:

• a) a frame including a hand grip for gripping and manipulating said instrument at a first end of said instrument;
• b) a shaft extending from said frame, said shaft having a longitudinal axis;
• c) an end effector at an opposite end of said instrument for manipulating tissue to carry out a desired surgical function, said end effector being movable to provide articulation of said end effector from a first position generally parallel to said shaft longitudinal axis to a second position angled from said shaft longitudinal axis;
• d) a flexible neck assembly coupled to a proximal end of said end effector for articulating said end effector from said first position to said second position, said flexible neck assembly including:
• i) first and second flexible neck portions separated by a central longitudinal rib therebetween, each of said flexible neck portions having a plurality of neck ribs configured as semi-circular disks extending from said central longitudinal rib and a plurality of kerfs separating each of said neck ribs from an adjacent neck rib, each of said neck ribs having a side slot therethrough, and each of said semi-circular disks of said neck ribs having an interior plate extending generally perpendicularly from said central longitudinal rib and parallel to an adjacent interior plate, and a concave exterior dish extending from said interior plate;
• and
• ii) first and second transmission bands received within each said side slots of said neck ribs of said first and second flexible neck portions for reciprocating movement therein;
• wherein when said first and second transmission bands are reciprocated in opposite directions within each said side slot of said neck ribs of said first and second flexible neck portions of said flexible neck assembly, said end effector is articulated from said first position to said second position.