Ethicon, Gmbh

Teresa M Shaw

David D Demarest

Anthony Esteves

Michael G Hodulik

Robert A Daniele

George Horst Reinemuth

Richard Paul Branco

Matthew Cafone

John F Blanch

William F Smith

Irwin J Shiffer

A control system for a needle singulation and infeed apparatus that automatically picks up surgical needles in random, un-oriented positions on a transport conveyor or like device, and places them in oriented positions for suture attachment at a fully automated needle swaging station. The apparatus employs one or more robot devices for picking up the needles and placing them in individual precision engagement devices for sequential conveyance to an automatic swaging machine. After gripping the needle, and, depending upon the orientation of the needle with respect to the robot gripper, the robot gripper can pick the needle and move to a location where a mechanical finger is fixedly positioned. The robot is programmed to move to the mechanical finger and tap the needle held by the robot gripper against the finger to orient or rotate the needle in the proper direction prior to placing the needle in the precision engagement device. This, obviates the need for a further needle orienting step downstream of the robot pick and place location and ensures the high-speed transport of highly oriented needles for the automatic swaging operation.

Robotic control system for needle sorting and feeder apparatus

A method for automatically forming armed surgical needles and for automatically packaging the same in a packaging tray, the automatic forming and packaging operating under control of a control computer, each armed surgical needle including a surgical needle having a suture receiving opening formed therein for attachment of a definite length suture material thereof. The method comprises the steps of sorting and depositing a plurality of needles on an indexing conveyor; enabling a robot gripper device to sequentially pick up the needles and place a picked needle in a precision conveyor device for automatic sequential conveyance to a first station; utilizing a first indexing device for sequentially indexing the needle from the first station to a second station to form the armed needle, the first indexing device being elevated in height; at the second station, automatically inserting a free end of a suture strand into the suture receiving opening of the needle, swaging the needle about the free end of the suture, and cutting the suture strand to a predetermined definite length to form the armed needle. The formed armed needle is then sequentially inserted into a respective single package tray indexed at a subsequent station that has been oriented in height with respect to the first indexing device in accordance with the size of the needle. At a further subsequent station the tray and parked armed needle therein is subject to at least one rapid winding operation to wind the suture around a peripheral channel of the tray.

Control system for an automatic needle-suture assembly and packaging

The present invention is directed to improvements in an Automated Swage Wind and Packaging Machine that is particularly adapted to assist in the automated singulation of surgical needles to enable subsequent automated handling of the needle, automatic swaging of the suture into a receiving end of the needle, automatic pull testing of the combined needle and suture, and automated packaging of the pull tested combined needle and suture into a tray having a cover.

Automated swage wind and packaging machine

A machine and a method for the automated packaging of armed sutures or; in effect, surgical needles having sutures attached thereto and, more particularly, an automated machine for the high-speed individualized packaging of single or individual surgical needles each having an attached suture into a tray and detachable cover providing a suture package utilized for the packaging of the individual or single needles and attached sutures. Additionally, the automated packaging machine incorporates operative mechanism adapted to wind the sutures into a peripheral channel of the tray and facilitating the attachment of the cover to the tray which contains the single needle and attached wound suture, and which cover concurrently constitutes a product-identifying label as a component of the tray, and upon removal of the cover enables a user to gain access to the contents of the tray; in essence, the armed suture.

Machine for the automated packaging of needles and attached sutures

Procedures for adjusting or reseting the pressure used to swage needles to suture at a needle swaging station. The forces required to break the sutures from the needles are measured and added to a data base; and each time a value, or sample, is added to that data base, an average of all the sample values in the data base is calculated. Each time an average value is calculated, that value is compared to a first range, referred to as a reject range. If any calculated average value falls outside that reject range, then the swaging pressure is adjusted and the procedure is restarted, with a new, or empty, data base. Also, once the sample reaches a given size, such as eight or nine samples, the calculated average values are also compared to a second range, referred to as an accept range, and which is within and narrower than the reject range. If a calculate average value is within this accept range, the swaging pressure is considered acceptable and the procedure terminates immediately.

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Lawrenceville, NJ, United States of America

Teresa M Shaw