Cooper Medical Devices Corporation

Joseph T Buckingham

Carl C Wang

Steve Charles

A method is disclosed in which the suctioning of materials from a surgical zone, such as the human eye, is automatically controlled linearly by means of a pressure transducer continuously sensing the vacuum level of a debris receptacle (for collecting suctioned materials from the surgical zone) when material is being suctioned from the zone. The vacuum level in the debris receptacle is linearly varied when the vacuum level in the receptacle is either raised or lowered depending on the suctioning requirements from the surgical zone and whether or not the vacuum level in the receptacle is greater or lower than a previously determined and desirable vacuum level. The vacuum level of the receptacle may, in part, be controlled and varied, by means of a foot pedal operated by the surgeon.

Method of performing opthalmic surgery utilizing a linear intra-ocular

An apparatus is disclosed which automatically controls the suctioning of materials from a surgical zone, such as the human eye, which may function as a counterpart to an apparatus for automatically regulating the pressure of fluid in the same surgical zone. The apparatus incorporates a pressure transducer which continuously senses the vacuum level of a debris receptacle when the suctioning of material from the surgical zone into the receptacle is desired. The receptacle may be maintained at a certain predetermined maximum vacuum level by a vacuum source, and the vacuum may vary depending on the application. To control the vacuum of the debris bottle, the pressure transducer communicates with the control electronics which can vary the vacuum level in the receptacle by either increasing the vacuum level by opening a valve, located between the vacuum source and the debris receptacle, where the vacuum level in the receptacle is insufficient to properly suction materials from the surgical zone. On the other hand, the vacuum level in the debris receptacle may be decreased where the vacuum level in the receptacle level is above that required to properly suction materials from the surgical zone, by opening a bleed or an atmospheric valve to allow the vacuum in the receptacle to decrease to the desirable level. The vacuum level of the receptacle may be controlled by a manually operated potentiometer which may be in the form of a foot pedal to be operated by the surgeon doing surgery.

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Moraga, CA, United States of America

Joseph T Buckingham