Clamp having bendable shaft
AssigneeNovare Surgical Systems, Inc.
InventorsDavid J. Danitz, David E. Hegeman, Terrence J. Buelna, Adam C. Gold
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A clamp has a handle assembly, a gripping assembly having a pair of jaws that can be opened and closed to grip an element, and a shaft assembly. The shaft assembly has a flexible shaft having a proximal end that is coupled to the handle assembly and a distal end that is coupled to the gripping assembly. The flexible shaft also defines a bore that retains a cable which is operatively coupled to the handle assembly and to the gripping assembly. The shaft assembly also includes a retractable generally rigid covering which can be oriented in a first position where the covering exposes a portion of the flexible shaft, and in a second position where the covering completely covers the flexible shaft.
Claims26
A clamp, comprising:
- a handle assembly;
- a gripping assembly having a pair of jaws that can be opened and closed to grip an element;
- and
- a shaft assembly having:
- a flexible shaft having a proximal end that is coupled to the handle assembly and a distal end that is coupled to the gripping assembly, the flexible shaft defining a bore;
- a cable which extends through the bore of the flexible shaft, the cable having a proximal end that is operatively coupled to the handle assembly and a distal end that is operatively coupled to the gripping assembly;
- and
- a plurality of rigid telescoping tubes that can be oriented in a first position where the telescoping tubes are nested within each other, and in a second position where the telescoping tubes are fully deployed to completely cover the flexible shaft.
A clamp, comprising:
- a handle assembly;
- a gripping assembly having a pair of jaws that can be opened and closed to grip an element;
- and
- a shaft assembly having:
- a flexible shaft having a proximal end that is coupled to the handle assembly and a distal end that is coupled to the gripping assembly, the flexible shaft defining a bore;
- a cable which extends through the bore of the flexible shaft, the cable having a proximal end that is operatively coupled to the handle assembly and a distal end that is operatively coupled to the gripping assembly;
- and
- a retractable generally rigid covering that can be oriented in a first position where the covering exposes a portion of the flexible shaft, and in a second position where the covering completely covers the flexible shaft.
A surgical method, comprising:
- a. providing a clamp, comprising:
- a handle assembly;
- a gripping assembly having a pair of jaws that can be opened and closed to grip an element;
- and
- a shaft assembly having a flexible shaft having a proximal end that is coupled to the handle assembly and a distal end that is coupled to the gripping assembly, and a retractable rigid covering that completely covers the flexible shaft so that a region of the flexible shaft is generally rigid;
- b. introducing the jaws through a surgical site or a trocar;
- c. closing the jaws to grip a blood vessel;
- d. withdrawing the covering from the flexible shaft so that a portion of the region of the flexible shaft is completely flexible;
- and
- e. moving the handle assembly away from the surgical site.
A clamp comprising:
- a handle assembly;
- a gripping assembly having a pair of jaws that can be opened and closed to grip an element;
- and
- a shaft assembly having:
- a flexible elongate member having a proximal end that is operatively coupled to the handle assembly and a distal end that is operatively coupled to the gripping assembly;
- and
- a movable covering coaxial to the elongate member that can be placed in a first position where the covering exposes a portion of the flexible shaft, and in a second position where the covering covers a substantial portion of the flexible shaft.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.