Automatic feed medical screwdriver

A device for automatically feeding a series of medical fasteners to a location for mating with a rotary fastener driver and for placement of each of said series of medical fasteners into tissue or bone structure to hold said tissue or bone structure together, comprising:

• a driver body, a powered screw driver positioned within the driver body, a fastener carrier system removable from and attachable to the driver body and means for positioning and advancing the individual fasteners of the series of medical fasteners in a controlled manner to a position to receive a driving tip on the powered screw driver,
• the medical fastener comprising a screw having a head with a recess therein for receiving the tip of the screw driver, the head of the screw and the tip of the screw driver having interlocking structures such that, once the tip is inserted in the recess in the screw head the screw is carried by the driver tip until intentionally dislodged, the recess further including one or more structures therein or thereon which interact with mating structures on the driver tip to transmit rotary motion of the driver tip to the screw,
• wherein the means for positioning and advancing the individual fasteners of the series of medical fasteners in a controlled manner to a position to receive a driving tip on the powered screw driver comprises a finger actuated trigger mounted on the driver body,
• a) movement of said finger actuated trigger to a driving position extends the tip of the screw driver to interlock said tip with the head of the fastener, removes the fastener from the fastener carrier system and causes rotary motion to be applied to the fastener for driving the fastener into the bone structure, and
• b) release of the trigger or movement of the trigger to an off position following positioning of the fastener in the bone disconnects the screw driver tip from the fastener head, retracts the screw driver tip from the fastener carrier system and causes the fastener carrier system to advance forward, to position a subsequent fastener in a position to be grasped by the screw driver tip.

A device for feeding a series of medical fasteners to a location for mating with a rotary fastener driver and for placement of each of said series of medical fasteners into tissue or bone structure to hold said tissue or bone structure together, comprising:

• an assembly including a powered screw driver and a fastener carrier mounted external thereto, the fastener carrier including, or adapted to receive, a series of individual medical fasteners on a moveable band to provide and position said individual fasteners of the series of medical fasteners in a controlled manner to a position to receive a driving tip on the powered screw driver,
• the medical fastener comprising a screw having a head with securing structure therein or thereon interacting with the tip of the screw driver such that, once the tip is placed in contact with the screw head the screw is carried by the driver tip until intentionally dislodged, the head further including one or more driving structures therein or thereon which interact with mating structures on the driver tip to transmit rotary motion of the driver tip to the screw,
• wherein the screw head has a recess therein with a depth suitable to receive the tip of the screw driver, an inner side wall extending from an upper edge of the recess to a lower edge of the recess, at least a portion of the inner side wall having a peripheral length greater then the length of the periphery of the upper edge, the tip of the screw driver having an enlargement thereon, the tip configured so that the enlargement can be pushed into the recess in the screw head and lodge within said portion of the inner wall.