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:
Dec. 15, 2009
Filed:
Jul. 06, 2005
Robert H. Dahla, Sunnyvale, CA (US);
Robert H. Dahla, Sunnyvale, CA (US);
ArthroCare Corporation, Austin, TX (US);
Abstract
An electrosurgical apparatus for performing a surgical procedure on a target site, comprising a shaft having a distal end portion, the distal end portion comprising an active electrode including a fuse leg, the fuse leg adapted to break and disable the instrument upon applying a voltage differential between the active electrode and a return electrode for a predetermined amount of time. In another embodiment, the present invention is a method of performing an electrosurgical procedure on a target tissue, comprising: placing an electrosurgical instrument in close proximity to the target tissue, the electrosurgical instrument comprising an active electrode having a pre-selected portion adapted to break and disable the instrument upon applying a voltage differential thereto for a working time; and applying the voltage differential.