The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Oct. 15, 2002
Filed:
Nov. 05, 1999
William J. Park, San Jose, CA (US);
Douglas B. Dull, Palo Alto, CA (US);
John W. Eaton, TOURS Cedex 1, FR;
Robert A Howard, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Stephen L. Ijams, Los Alto, CA (US);
Acuson Corporation, Mountain View, CA (US);
Abstract
A controller for an ultrasonic transducer assembly includes a housing having a longitudinal axis that extends generally parallel to the proximal end of a conduit, such as a catheter. A steering actuator is mounted to the housing for rotation about the longitudinal axis, and a steering hub is mounted for rotation in the housing and coupled to the steering actuator such that rotation of the steering ring with respect to the housing causes rotation of the steering hub. A steering line is secured adjacent the steering hub and extends to the distal end of the conduit such that rotation of the steering hub alters the effective length of the steering line to steer the distal end. The steering line is wrapped at least partially around a stator to avoid threading the steering line through multiple holes and slots prior to termination to the steering hub. The steering line is preferably formed of a liquid crystal polymer, and the housing of the steering mechanism preferably contains an extension portion to ensure that the portion of the housing that the user grips to manipulate the steering mechanism is sufficiently far away from the cable to ensure that the cable will remain sterile and thus reusable. In an additional preferred embodiment, the controller is contoured to a human hand to provide a comfortable, efficient, and enjoyable one-handed operation.