Illumination – Photographic lighting – Plural light sources or light source supports
Reexamination Certificate
2000-12-22
2002-10-29
O'Shea, Sandra (Department: 2875)
Illumination
Photographic lighting
Plural light sources or light source supports
C362S008000, C362S033000, C362S404000, C362S401000, C362S427000, C362S428000, C362S429000, C348S370000, C348S373000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06471363
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a ceiling mounted system for use in a surgical theater. More particularly, the present invention relates to an apparatus having articulating arms that support a surgical light, a video camera, and video monitors. The present invention also relates to such an apparatus wherein the articulating arms are inter-changeable between apparatus in different locations and configured to display video images selected from a plurality of video devices.
Video monitors are used in surgical theaters for viewing images such as, for example, images produced from lapyroscopic and endoscopic cameras. These monitors display images placed in a position so that the surgeon can view them during a surgical procedure. These monitors are typically mounted on top of a rolling cart that contains the lapyroscopic or endoscopic equipment. This cart is large and bulky and takes up valuable space around the operating table. Since the monitor is on top of the cart, the monitor cannot always be placed in a position that is the most optimum for viewing by the surgeon.
In many surgical procedures, two monitors are used because a physician's assistant is located on the opposite side of the operating table from the surgeon and cannot see the monitor that is positioned for the surgeon's viewing. In these cases, two monitors must be used at different locations around the table. The positions of the monitors varies depending on the type of surgery and the positions of the surgeon and the assistant. Having two carts with monitors on them takes up an excessive amount of floor space.
With the development of flat screen monitors, the size of the monitors has decreased dramatically. For flat screen monitors and CRT monitors having comparable image sizes, the footprint of the flat screen monitor enclosure is much smaller than that of the comparable CRT monitor. Similarly, the weight of the flat screen monitor is only a fraction of a comparable CRT type monitor.
Flat screen monitors are compatible with mounting on an arm that is attached to the ceiling. This allows the endoscopic cart to be separated from the video monitor. The cart can then be moved away from the table to different areas of the suite out of the way of the surgeon. The scope is plugged into a wall outlet that is hard wired through the wall and down through the support arms to the video monitors.
Filming and recording surgical procedures is now becoming more routine. Operating rooms are typically not adequately equipped to record these surgical procedures. In fact, more often than not, a surgeon employs the services of a professional company or utilizes the in house services available to film a procedure. This requires advance scheduling and is very expensive. Previously, such filming of surgical procedures was principally done for education within the hospital. Today, however, the need to film surgical procedures has expanded considerably.
Cameras are used in operating rooms as a means of networking with the rest of the world. The camera has now become the vehicle by which surgeons can consult with each other during live procedures. For certain surgical procedures it is not uncommon for surgeons to consult with each other from different parts of the world during a case (commonly referred to as ‘Telesurgery’). In teaching hospitals, clinical educators require interactive filming capabilities that can be controlled remotely from the classroom. Such procedures are either recorded for critique at a later date or simply observed ‘real time’ for teaching. Surgeons routinely record procedures and edit the content for presentation at a conference. More surgical procedures are being recorded for future reference should the outcome of the surgery be questioned.
The increased practice of endoscopic and lapyroscopic surgery has produced the need for more sophisticated camera and monitor systems that can alternate between internal and external images. The need to do this in a seamless and user friendly fashion is driving the demand for a new level of sophistication in cameras offered with surgical theater systems. Among the features demanded in these new systems is the ability for the system to be operated by the surgical staff.
Preferably, a surgical camera is movable to different vantage points around the patient, and should even be able to shoot laterally and directly downwardly over the center of the patient. To meet this unique set of needs and provide flexibility, the present invention provides a surgical theater system having a camera mounted on a support arm assembly extending from the same hub which supports the surgical light.
Typically, a surgical light hangs above the table in an OR suite for lighting the surgical site. Many health care facilities have more than one, and often several, OR suites in which surgical lights are mounted to illuminate surgical procedures. The disclosed device includes a plurality of arms mounted to the hub of a surgical theater system so that a surgical light, a camera and/or video monitors can be positioned effectively around the surgical table. In this specification, including the claims, the term “hub” is intended to refer to a member which rotates about an axis or shaft. Typically, a shaft is mounted to the ceiling in the OR to extend downwardly and at least one and often two lights are mounted on the hub for movement about the shaft.
According to one aspect of the invention, a surgical theater apparatus for suspending from a ceiling structural member of a hospital includes first and second devices selected from the group of a surgical light, a camera, and a monitor and a central hub mountable to the ceiling structural member to rotate about a rotation axis. The hub has a pivot axis spaced apart from and parallel to the rotation axis. A first device arm is coupled at a first end to the first device and mounted at a second end to the hub for movement about the rotation axis and about the pivot axis. A second device arm is coupled at a first end to the second device and mounted at a second end to the hub for movement about the rotation axis. The first device may be a monitor and the second device a camera. The hub may include a second pivot axis spaced apart from and parallel to the rotation axis and the first pivot axis so that a third device selected from the group of a surgical light, a camera, and a monitor may be mounted by a third device arm to the hub for movement about the rotation axis and about the second pivot axis. This third device may be a monitor. The first and second pivot axes and the rotation axis are coplanar. The first device arm includes a first segment and a second segment pivotally mounted to the first segment about a third pivot axis which is perpendicular to the first pivot axis. The apparatus may also include an additional surgical light attached to a surgical light arm mounted to the hub for movement about the rotation axis. The device may also include slip rings to facilitate passage of cables through the hub and arms, adjustable brakes for controlling rotation of the hub and pivoting of the arms, and stops limiting the motion of the arms.
According to another aspect of the invention, a surgical light apparatus for mounting to a support in a ceiling includes a surgical light head, a first monitor, a second monitor, a camera, and a shaft mountable to the support. The shaft includes a longitudinal axis extending downwardly from the support. A light hub is mounted to rotate about the longitudinal axis, the light head being coupled to the light hub by a light arm extending laterally away from the light hub. A camera hub is mounted to rotate about the longitudinal axis, the camera being coupled to the camera hub by a camera arm extending laterally away from the camera hub. A monitor hub having first and second pivot joints pivoting about first and second pivot axes respectively is mounted to rotate about the longitudinal axis. The first monitor is coupled to the first pivot joint by a first monitor arm and the second monitor
Gray Gary A.
Heimbrock Richard H.
Howell Charles A.
Manlove Scott
Reed Howard
Barnes & Thornburg
Hill-Rom Services Inc.
Lee Guiyoung
O'Shea Sandra
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