US 6,647,755 B2 · Method for manufacturing small diameter medical devices

Abstract

An apparatus and method for manufacturing small diameter ultrasonic probes capable of vibrating in a transverse mode that can be used in ultrasonic tissue ablation. The apparatus includes a die, a style puller which is used to engage a functional end of the medical device, and a die room puller which is used to draw the medical device through the die. The die includes a bell-shaped lead-in on a front side of the die and a bell-shaped lead-in on a back side of the die allowing for reversal of the direction of the draw. The method of manufacturing includes heat treating a large diameter medical device, drawing the large diameter device through a die and reversing the draw of the medical device through the die to provide a medical device having a varying diameter along a length of the device. The method is repeated until a final diameter is reached.

Claims39

Dependent claims

A method of manufacturing a small diameter medical device comprising:

heat treating a large diameter medical device through an annealing process;
drawing the large diameter medical device through a plurality of dies where a subsequent die has a diameter smaller than a previous die, enabling a stepwise reduction in a diameter of the large diameter medical device to yield a small diameter medical device;
and
heat treating the medical device prior to drawing the medical device through each die of the plurality of dies.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application

10/092,862Filed 6 Mar 2002 · us provisional application

Priority

7 Mar 2001

Published

US 2002/0124617 A112 Sep 2002

Granted

18 Nov 2003

Term ends

Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification11 codes

B21C 3/02
Profiling tools for metal drawing; Combinations of dies and mandrels for metal drawing: dies; Selection of material therefor; Cleaning thereof
A61B 17/22012
Using mechanical vibrations, e.g. ultrasonic shock waves: in direct contact with, or very close to, the obstruction or concrement
B21C 1/22
Metal drawing by machines or apparatus in which the drawing action is effected by means other than drums, e.g. by a longitudinally-moved…
B21C 1/30
Carriages; Drives: drives, e.g. carriage-traversing mechanisms; Driving elements, e.g. drawing chains; Controlling the drive

Method for manufacturing small diameter medical devices

Life of this patent

Method for manufacturing small diameter medical devices

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims39