Cilag International Gmbh

Ethicon, Gmbh

Christopher W Birri

Steven G Hall

Benjamin D Dickerson

Mark A Davison

Daniel James Prenger

William George Saulenas

Ryan Alan Klenke

Joseph Thomas Mozloom, Jr

Austin Michael Fischer

Jason Alan Hill

Andrew Kolpitcke

Jalen Lee Wize

Thomas J Erb

Joseph Thomas Mozloom Jr

A surgical tool includes a drive housing, a drive input rotatably mounted to a bottom of the drive housing, a capstan assembly arranged within the drive housing to rotate a drive gear about a rotational axis and within a drive plane orthogonal to the rotational axis, a longitudinally driven gear engageable with the drive gear, and a drive rod operatively coupled to the longitudinally driven gear and extending from the drive housing to a knife extendable within end effector of the surgical instrument. The drive rod is aligned within the drive plane such that translation of the longitudinally driven gear induces a corresponding longitudinal translation of the drive rod within the drive.

Knife drive mechanism

A surgical tool includes a drive housing, a drive input rotatably mounted to a bottom of the drive housing, a capstan assembly arranged within the drive housing and operatively coupled to the drive input such that rotation of the drive input correspondingly actuates the capstan assembly, a static actuation limiter arranged within the drive housing, and a dynamic actuation limiter provided by the capstan assembly and engageable with the static actuation limiter as the capstan assembly is actuated. Engaging the dynamic actuation limiter against the static actuation limiter stops actuation of the capstan assembly.

Maintaining cable routing in cable-actuated surgical tools

An integral seal system includes a body that defines a central opening, and an asymmetric seal extending into the central opening and including a diaphragm and an annular flange that extends between the body and the diaphragm, wherein the diaphragm has a cross-sectional thickness larger than a cross-sectional thickness of the annular flange. A duckbill seal extends distally from a bottom of the body and defines one or more parting lines that separate opposing seal flaps. The diaphragm complements insertion and extraction drag forces generated by the duckbill seal against a surgical tool shaft extended therethrough such that total insertion and extraction drag forces generated by the integral seal system are equalized.

Asymmetric shaft seal

A surgical instrument and method of operating same includes an end effector and a shaft assembly. The shaft assembly has proximal and distal shaft portions respectively extending along proximal and distal axes, a first elongate member, and an articulation section. The articulation section extends between the proximal and distal shaft portions and is configured to articulate about a first articulation axis and about a second articulation axis to thereby respectively deflect the end effector along a first plane and a second plane. The articulation section has a first lumen radially offset from the proximal and distal axes that longitudinally intersects the first and second articulation axes. The first lumen movably supports the first elongate member such that the radial spacing of the first elongate member is maintained relative to the proximal and distal axes at each of the first and second articulation axes during deflection of the end effector.

Articulation joint with helical lumen

An articulable wrist for an end effector includes a distal linkage provided at a distal end of the articulable wrist, a proximal linkage provided at a proximal end of the articulable wrist, and a central channel cooperatively defined by the distal and proximal linkages and extending between the distal and proximal ends. A flexible member is arranged within the central channel and has a first end operatively coupled to the distal linkage and a second end axially movable relative to the proximal linkage. One or more conduits are defined in the flexible member to receive one or more central actuation members extending through the flexible member.

Articulate wrist with flexible central member

A trocar assembly includes a trocar that includes a trocar housing and a cannula that extends distally from the trocar housing, and an integral seal system positioned within a central passageway extending axially through the trocar and engageable against a surgical tool shaft extended therethrough. The integral seal system includes an asymmetric seal and a duckbill seal arranged distal to the asymmetric seal, and the asymmetric seal defines a diaphragm that complements insertion and extraction drag forces generated by the duckbill seal against the surgical tool shaft such that total insertion and extraction drag forces generated by the integral seal system are equalized.

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West Chester, OH, United States of America

Christopher W Birri