CONTROL FEATURES FOR ARTICULATING SURGICAL DEVICE
First Claim
1. An electrosurgical device, comprising:
- (a) a body;
(b) an end effector comprising;
(i) a first jaw, and(ii) a second jaw,wherein the first jaw is movable toward the second jaw to clamp tissue between the first and second jaw,wherein at least one of the jaws comprises at least one electrode,wherein the at least one electrode is operable to deliver RF energy to tissue clamped between the first and second jaw;
(c) a cutting member operable to cut tissue clamped between the first jaw and the second jaw;
(d) an actuating member operable to selectively actuate the cutting member; and
(e) a shaft extending between the body and the end effector, wherein the shaft defines a longitudinal axis, wherein the shaft includes an articulation section, wherein the articulation section is operable to selectively position the end effector at non-parallel positions relative to the longitudinal axis of the shaft, wherein the body includes a controller operable to selectively actuate the articulation section.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An electrosurgical device includes a body, an end effector, a cutting member, and a shaft. The end effector comprises a pair of jaws and at least one electrode that is operable to deliver RF energy to tissue clamped between the jaws. The cutting member is operable to cut tissue clamped between the jaws. The shaft includes an articulation section that is operable to selectively articulate the end effector relative to the shaft. The body includes a controller operable to selectively actuate the articulation section. The controller may include a trigger that also drives the cutting member, a rotator that also rotates the shaft and end effector, a wedge-shaped pivoting member, a pivotally coupled pair of housing portions, or a pivoting cam member, etc. A release member may selectively release the articulation section from the controller, allowing a resilient bias to return the end effector into alignment with the shaft.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. An electrosurgical device, comprising:
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(a) a body; (b) an end effector comprising; (i) a first jaw, and (ii) a second jaw, wherein the first jaw is movable toward the second jaw to clamp tissue between the first and second jaw, wherein at least one of the jaws comprises at least one electrode, wherein the at least one electrode is operable to deliver RF energy to tissue clamped between the first and second jaw; (c) a cutting member operable to cut tissue clamped between the first jaw and the second jaw; (d) an actuating member operable to selectively actuate the cutting member; and (e) a shaft extending between the body and the end effector, wherein the shaft defines a longitudinal axis, wherein the shaft includes an articulation section, wherein the articulation section is operable to selectively position the end effector at non-parallel positions relative to the longitudinal axis of the shaft, wherein the body includes a controller operable to selectively actuate the articulation section. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A surgical instrument, comprising:
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(a) a body; (b) an end effector, wherein the end effector is operable to engage tissue; (c) a shaft extending between the body and the end effector, wherein the shaft defines a longitudinal axis, wherein the shaft includes an articulation section, wherein the articulation section is operable to selectively position the end effector at non-parallel positions relative to the longitudinal axis of the shaft, wherein the articulation section is resiliently biased to align the end effector with the shaft; (d) a controller operable to selectively actuate the articulation section against the resilient bias of the articulation section; and (e) a release member operable to selectively release the articulation section from the controller to return the articulation section to a position aligned with the shaft.
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20. A surgical instrument, the instrument comprising:
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(a) a body; (b) an end effector comprising; (i) a first jaw, and (ii) a second jaw, wherein the first jaw is movable toward the second jaw to clamp tissue between the first and second jaw; (c) a cutting member operable to cut tissue clamped between the first jaw and the second jaw; (d) a shaft extending between the body and the end effector, wherein the shaft and the end effector are together rotatable relative to the body; and (e) a controller operable to selectively rotate the shaft and the end effector relative to the body, wherein the controller is further operable to articulate the end effector relative to the body.
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Specification