Atherectomy catheter drive assemblies

• US 10,244,934 B2
• Filed: 05/23/2016
• Issued: 04/02/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/14/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avinger Inc.
• Original Assignee: Avinger Inc.
• Inventors: Tachibana, Brian Y., McNall, Charles W., Zung, Michael, Smith, Peter Howard, Chiu, Brian, Bourne, Douglas Joseph Scott, Gupta, Priyanshu
• Primary Examiner(s): Remaly, Mark
• Application Number:
  US15/162,391
• Publication Number:
  US 20160338582A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,044 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00066 Proximal part of endoscope body, e.g. handles A61B1/0052 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00126 optical, e.g. for light supply cables
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00133 Drive units for endoscopic tools inserted through or with the endoscope
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/0016 using motor drive units
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00165 with light-conductive means, e.g. fibre optics A61B1/07 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/04 combined with photographic or television appliances
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/07 using light-conductive means, e.g. optical fibres
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/3137 for examination of the interior of blood vessels
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/320758 with a rotating cutting instrument, e.g. motor driven A61B17/320725, A61B17/32075 and A61B17/320783 take precedence; for removing intra-ocular material A61F9/00763; endoscopic rotatable cutting instruments A61B17/32002
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0066 Optical coherence imaging

Abstract

A drive assembly for driving an imaging catheter has a rotatable fiber and a rotatable drive shaft. The drive assembly includes a fiber optic rotating junction and a motor configured to rotate the rotatable portion of the fiber optic rotating junction. In some embodiments, the drive assembly includes a sensor configured to detect a rotational position of the fiber optic rotating junction and a processor configured to obtain the detected rotational position and stop the motor only when the fiber optic rotating junction is in a predetermined rotational position. In some embodiments, the motor includes a hollow shaft through which at least a portion of the fiber optic rotating junction extends.

Claims

1. A drive assembly for driving an imaging catheter having a rotatable fiber, the drive assembly comprising:

a fiber optic rotating junction having a stationary portion with a stationary fiber therein and a rotatable portion with a rotatable fiber therein;

a first optical connector configured to connect the stationary fiber with a light source;

a motor configured to simultaneously rotate the rotatable portion of the fiber optic rotating junction and a rotatable shaft of the catheter, the motor having a hollow shaft configured to house a portion of the fiber optic rotating junction; and

a second optical connector configured to connect the rotatable portion of the fiber optic rotating junction with the rotatable fiber of the imaging catheter so as to allow torque to simultaneously be transmitted from the motor to the rotatable shaft and the rotatable fiber of the catheter and so as to allow light to be transmitted from the light source to the rotatable fiber of the catheter.

2. The drive assembly of claim 1, wherein only the rotatable fiber of the fiber optic junction is housed within the hollow shaft.

3. The drive assembly of claim 1, further comprising a locking mechanism configured to lock a handle of the imaging catheter to the drive assembly.

4. The drive assembly of claim 1, wherein the stationary and rotatable fibers are configured to transmit an optical coherence tomography signal.

5. The drive assembly of claim 1, wherein the second optical connector is an MU adaptor.

6. The drive assembly of claim 1, wherein the stationary fiber is positioned inside the hollow shaft.

7. The drive assembly of claim 1, wherein the stationary fiber is positioned within a tube inside the hollow shaft.

8. The drive assembly of claim 1, wherein the motor does not include gearing.

9. The drive assembly of claim 1, wherein the motor and a fiber of the fiber optical rotating junction are coaxial.

10. The drive assembly of claim 1, further comprising an alignment mechanism configured to rotationally align the rotatable portion of the fiber optic rotating junction with the rotatable fiber of the imaging catheter.

11. A drive assembly for driving an imaging catheter having a rotatable fiber, the drive assembly comprising:

a fiber optic rotating junction having a stationary portion with a stationary fiber therein and a rotatable portion with a rotatable fiber therein;

a first optical connector configured to connect the stationary fiber with a light source;

a motor configured to simultaneously rotate the rotatable portion of the fiber optic rotating junction and a rotatable shaft of the catheter, the motor having a shaft that is coaxial with a fiber of the fiber optic rotating junction; and

a second optical connector configured to connect the rotatable portion of the fiber optic rotating junction with the rotatable fiber of the imaging catheter so as to allow torque to simultaneously be transmitted from the motor to the rotatable shaft and the rotatable fiber of the catheter and so as to allow light to be transmitted from the light source to the rotatable fiber of the catheter.

12. The drive assembly of claim 11, further comprising a locking mechanism configured to lock a handle of the imaging catheter to the drive assembly.

13. The drive assembly of claim 11, wherein the stationary and rotatable fibers are configured to transmit an optical coherence tomography signal.

14. The drive assembly of claim 11, wherein the second optical connector is an MU adaptor.

15. The drive assembly of claim 11, wherein the motor does not include gearing.

16. The drive assembly of claim 11, wherein the shaft of the motor is hollow and is configured to house a portion of the fiber optic rotating junction therein.

17. The drive assembly of claim 16, wherein only the rotatable fiber of the fiber optic junction is housed within the hollow shaft.

18. The drive assembly of claim 16, wherein the stationary fiber is positioned inside the hollow shaft.

19. The drive assembly of claim 18, wherein the stationary fiber is positioned within a tube inside the hollow shaft.

20. The drive assembly of claim 11, further comprising an alignment mechanism configured to rotationally align the rotatable portion of the fiber optic rotating junction with the rotatable fiber of the imaging catheter.