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US 6,824,087 B2Granted
Automatic bone mill
AssigneeMedtronic, Inc.
InventorsCameron McPherson, Larry Dale Estes, Scott A. Singer, Kevin T. Foley
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A bone mill for use in a surgical or otherwise sterile environment includes a particle reducer such as a pulverizing blade, a motor such as an electrical motor, and a coupling such as a rotary shaft for connecting the particle reducer to the motor.
Claims19
An automatic surgical mill for use in a sterile environment, comprising:
- a sterile casing;
- a sterile cover selectively connectable to the sterile casing to define a substantially hollow sterile compartment, the sterile compartment being adapted to receive bone and other material;
- a particle reducer positioned inside the sterile compartment;
- a motor for providing a rotational force;
- and
- a coupling for connecting the particle reducer to the motor so that the rotational force is applied to the particle reducer to pulverize bone and other material within the sterile compartment
- wherein the sterile casing and particle reducer can be separated from the motor and can be sterilized or disposed of when separated and wherein the motor is non-sterile and the sterile casing comprises means for receiving a second cover, so that the second cover can be selectively positioned to conceal at least a portion of the first coupling member when the sterile casing is separated from the non-sterile motor.
4 more elements
An automatic bone mill comprising:
- a cup-like mill casing body defining a cutter receiving space and having an open upper end;
- a mill casing cover detachably covering said open upper end of said mill casing body to define a substantially hollow bone-receiving compartment;
- a rotatable pulverizing cutter positioned in the cutter receiving space, the rotatable pulverizing cutter being adapted to pulverize bone within the mill casing body;
- a torque transfer device for providing a rotational force to the rotatable pulverizing cutter and adaptable to connect to a motor for providing the rotational force;
- wherein maid mill casing body, said mill casing cover, and said rotatable pulverizing cutter are separable from the motor and wherein the mill casing body includes means for covering the torque transfer device when the torque transfer device is not connected to the motor such that said mill casing body, said mill casing cover, and said rotatable pulverizing cutter are capable of maintaining a sterile environment when separated from the motor.
2 more elements
A method of using a bone mill in a sterile environment, the method comprising:
- placing a piece of bone inside a sterile casing, the sterile casing including a sterile rotatable pulverizing cotter connected to a sterile shaft extending externally from the casing;
- attaching the sterile shaft to a motor;
- activating the motor to rotate the sterile rotatable pulverizing cutter, thereby milling the bone;
- removing the shaft from the motor;
- covering the shaft with a sterile cover after removing the shaft from the motor;
- and
- removing the milled bone from the sterile casing.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.