Articulatable surgical instrument comprising a firing drive

A surgical instrument for treating tissue, comprising:

• a handle comprising a trigger;
• a shaft extending from said handle;
• an end effector;
• an articulation joint, wherein said end effector is rotatably coupled to said shaft by said articulation joint;
• a firing member operably coupled with said trigger, wherein the operation of said trigger is configured to advance said firing member toward said end effector;
• and
• an articulation member operably coupled with said end effector, wherein said articulation member is selectively engageable with said firing member such that said articulation member is operably engaged with said firing member in an engaged configuration and such that said articulation member is operably disengaged from said firing member in a disengaged configuration, wherein said firing member is configured to move said articulation member relative to said end effector to rotate said end effector about said articulation joint when said articulation member and said firing member are in said engaged configuration, and wherein said firing member is configured to move independently of said articulation member when said firing member and said articulation member are in said disengaged configuration.

A surgical instrument for treating tissue, comprising:

• a handle comprising a trigger;
• a shaft extending from said handle;
• an end effector;
• an articulation joint, wherein said end effector is rotatably coupled to said shaft by said articulation joint;
• a firing member operably coupled with said trigger, wherein the operation of said trigger is configured to advance said firing member toward said end effector;
• and
• an articulation member operably coupled with said end effector, wherein said articulation member is selectively engageable with said firing member such that said articulation member is operably engaged with said firing member in an engaged configuration and such that said articulation member is operably disengaged from said firing member in a disengaged configuration, wherein said firing member is configured to move said articulation member relative to said end effector to rotate said end effector about said articulation joint when said articulation member and said firing member are in said engaged configuration, wherein said handle further comprises an electric motor configured to advance said firing member distally toward said end effector and to retract said firing member proximally away from said end effector, and wherein said firing member is configured to retract said articulation member away from said end effector to rotate said end effector about said articulation joint when said firing member and said articulation member are in said engaged configuration.

A surgical instrument for treating tissue, comprising:

• a handle comprising a trigger;
• a shaft extending from said handle;
• an end effector;
• an articulation joint, wherein said end effector is rotatably coupled to said shaft by said articulation joint;
• a firing member operably coupled with said trigger, wherein the operation of said trigger is configured to advance said firing member toward said end effector;
• and
• an articulation member operably coupled with said end effector, wherein said articulation member is selectively engageable with said firing member such that said articulation member is operably engaged with said firing member in an engaged configuration and such that said articulation member is operably disengaged from said firing member in a disengaged configuration, and wherein said firing member is configured to move said articulation member relative to said end effector to rotate said end effector about said articulation joint when said articulation member and said firing member are in said engaged configuration,
• further comprising an end effector lock configured to selectively lock said end effector in position relative to said shaft, and
• further comprising a force-limiting clutch configured to transmit movement between said firing member and said articulation member when said articulation member and said firing member are in said engaged configuration, wherein said force-limiting clutch is configured to permit relative movement between said firing member and said articulation member and enter into said disengaged configuration when a force transmitted between said articulation member and said firing member has exceeded a predetermined force.

A surgical instrument for treating tissue, comprising:

• a handle comprising a trigger;
• a shaft extending from said handle;
• an end effector;
• an articulation joint, wherein said end effector is rotatably coupled to said shaft by said articulation joint;
• a firing member operably coupled with said trigger, wherein the operation of said trigger is configured to advance said firing member toward said end effector;
• and
• an articulation member operably coupled with said end effector, wherein said articulation member is selectively engageable with said firing member such that said articulation member is operably engaged with said firing member in an engaged configuration and such that said articulation member is operably disengaged from said firing member in a disengaged configuration, and wherein said firing member is configured to move said articulation member relative to said end effector to rotate said end effector about said articulation joint when said articulation member and said firing member are in said engaged configuration,
• further comprising an end effector lock configurable in a locked configuration and an unlocked configuration, wherein said end effector lock is configured to place said articulation member and said firing member in said engaged configuration when said end effector lock is in said unlocked configuration.

A surgical instrument for treating tissue, comprising:

• a handle comprising a trigger;
• a shaft extending from said handle;
• an end effector;
• an articulation joint, wherein said end effector is rotatably coupled to said shaft by said articulation joint;
• a firing member operably coupled with said trigger, wherein the operation of said trigger is configured to advance said firing member toward said end effector;
• and
• an articulation member operably coupled with said end effector, wherein said articulation member is selectively engageable with said firing member such that said articulation member is operably engaged with said firing member in an engaged configuration and such that said articulation member is operably disengaged from said firing member in a disengaged configuration, and wherein said firing member is configured to move said articulation member relative to said end effector to rotate said end effector about said articulation joint when said articulation member and said firing member are in said engaged configuration,
• further comprising an end effector lock configurable in a locked configuration and an unlocked configuration, wherein said end effector lock is configured to place said articulation member and said firing member in said engaged configuration when said end effector lock is in said unlocked configuration, and
• further comprising a biasing member configured to bias said articulation member and said firing member into said disengaged configuration when said lock is in said locked configuration.

A surgical instrument for treating tissue, comprising:

• an electric motor;
• a shaft;
• an end effector;
• an articulation joint, wherein said end effector is rotatably coupled to said shaft by said articulation joint;
• a firing drive operably engageable with said electric motor, wherein said firing drive is configured to be advanced toward said end effector and retracted away from said end effector by said electric motor;
• and
• an articulation drive operably coupled with said end effector, wherein said articulation drive is configured to rotate said end effector in a first direction when said articulation drive is pushed distally toward said end effector, wherein said articulation drive is configured to rotate said end effector in a second direction when said articulation drive is pulled proximally away from said end effector, wherein said firing drive is selectively engageable with said articulation drive and is configured to at least one of push said articulation drive distally toward said end effector and pull said articulation drive away from said end effector when said firing drive is operably engaged with said articulation drive, and wherein said firing drive can operate independently of said articulation drive when said firing drive is operably disengaged from said articulation drive.

A surgical instrument for treating tissue, comprising:

• a shaft;
• an end effector rotatably coupled to said shaft;
• a firing member configured to be moved relative to said end effector;
• an articulation member operably coupled with said end effector, wherein said articulation member is selectively engageable with said firing member such that said articulation member is operably engaged with said firing member in an engaged configuration and such that said articulation member is operably disengaged from said firing member in a disengaged configuration, and wherein said firing member is configured to move said articulation member relative to said end effector to rotate said end effector when said articulation member and said firing member are in said engaged configuration;
• and
• an end effector lock configurable in a locked configuration and an unlocked configuration, wherein said end effector lock is configured to operably engage said articulation member with said firing member when said end effector lock is in said unlocked configuration.