Motor-driven medical instrument with flexible shaft

Details Motor-driven medical instrument with flexible shaft Motor-driven medical instrument with flexible shaft

1998-02-17

2001-06-12

Recla, Henry J. (Department: 3731)

Surgery

Instruments

Cutting, puncturing or piercing

Reexamination Certificate

active

06245086

ABSTRACT:

TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a medical instrument as set forth in the generic part of the alternative independent claims
1
and
2
.
Medical instruments of the class presupposed in the generic part of the alternative independent claims
1
and
2
are employed, by way of illustration, in the form of a so-called sheaver. Instruments of this type have a motor disposed at their proximal ends. The driven shaft of this motor is connected via a transmission shaft disposed in the instrument or connected directly to at least one surgical element, such as a knife, an ablating element or the like, disposed at the distal end.
STATE OF THE ART
The known generic instruments are either designed in such a manner that the engine is disposed coaxially to the shaft in the instrument or that the motor driven shaft and the shaft in the instrument include a specific, predetermined, unchangeable angle. Usually the motor is disposed in a hand piece with which the physician holds the instrument.
Which of the possible arrangements is preferable depends on the personal preferences of the person operating the instrument as well as on the respective procedure to be executed.
Therefore, in the past two instruments, one in which the hand piece is disposed at an angle to the instruments and one in which the hand piece and the instrument are disposed coaxially, were purchased, making the investment rather expensive.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to improve a generic type medical instrument in such a manner that the cost of the investment is reduced.
An invented solution to this object is set forth in the alternative independent claims
1
and
2
.
In the solution set forth in claim
1
, the motor is connected in an as such known detachable manner to the shaft. A bend can be inserted between the motor shaft and the shaft disposed in the instrument.
In this way, the motor can be flanged both coaxially to the instrument and by means of the bend to the instrument in such manner that it is connected at an angle.
In the solution set forth in claim
2
, a flexible bend is inserted between the motor and the shaft. By adjusting this bend, the motor can be disposed coaxially to the shaft as well as at any desired angle.
Claim
3
characterizes that the motor is disposed in an as such known manner in a hand piece of the instrument, thereby improving the instrument egonomically, because the operating person can hold the instrument by the hand piece.
The power transmission between the motor shaft and the transmission shaft in the instrument can occur, in principle, in any manner, by way of illustration via a deflection transmission.
The improvement described in claim
4
, in which the power transmission occurs via a flexible shaft, has the advantage that it is not only simple and inexpensive to realize, but it also permits adjusting the angle between the motor driven shaft and the transmission shaft in a simple manner.
By means of the improvement described in claim
5
length compensation is achieved for the different constructions of the motor and of the instrument:
For this purpose, the one end of a first rotatable helical spring is attached to a holder for the motor driven shaft and the other end to a rotatably borne connecting element. The rotatably borne connecting element is connected via the flexible shaft or the cardan joint to a holder for the shaft of the surgical element.
For medical instruments, it is important that the instrument can be dismantled for cleaning and sterilizing. The improvement set forth in claim
6
simplifies reassembly of the instrument following dismantling: for this purpose a second stationary helical spring is provided which surrounds the cardan joint and presses a bearing element, which is attached distally to the cardan joint, into a cone.
Claim
7
describes an embodiment in which two angles, by way of illustration 0° and 90°, can be adjusted in an extremely simple manner:
According to this improvement, a two-part housing is provided, the two housing halves can be rotated toward each other in order to set the angle between the motor driven shaft and the drive shaft of the surgical instrument.


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