Surgical fastener applying apparatus
First Claim
Patent Images
1. Apparatus for applying surgical fasteners to body tissue comprising:
- an anvil assembly;
a fastener holding assembly movably mounted relative to the anvil assembly; and
actuator means for supporting the anvil assembly and for moving the fastener holding assembly toward the anvil assembly to clamp the tissue to be fastened between the anvil assembly and the fastener holding assembly, the actuator means including (1) a lever member pivotable by the operator of the apparatus to produce the mechanical work necessary to cause the fastener holding assembly to move and clamp the tissue, the lever member having a cam surface which moves when the lever member is pivoted, and (2) a movable cam follower member having a cam follower surface in contact with the cam surface for transmitting the mechanical work of the lever member from the cam surface to the fastener holding assembly to cause the fastener holding assembly to move and clamp the tissue, the cam surface and the cam follower surface including cooperating segments which comprise detent means for releasably holding the fastener holding assembly at a predetermined position intermediate the position in which the actuator means begins to move the fastener holding assembly toward the anvil assembly and the position in which the tissue is clamped.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
In a surgical fastener applying instrument of the type in which the tissue is first clamped by operation of a lever mechanism, a releasable latch is included in the lever mechanism for releasably holding the tissue clamping elements at an intermediate latching position. In this position, the tissue to be fastened is enclosed but not fully clamped by the instrument so that the position of the instrument relative to the tissue can be adjusted without reopening the instrument.
1519 Citations
13 Claims
-
1. Apparatus for applying surgical fasteners to body tissue comprising:
-
an anvil assembly; a fastener holding assembly movably mounted relative to the anvil assembly; and actuator means for supporting the anvil assembly and for moving the fastener holding assembly toward the anvil assembly to clamp the tissue to be fastened between the anvil assembly and the fastener holding assembly, the actuator means including (1) a lever member pivotable by the operator of the apparatus to produce the mechanical work necessary to cause the fastener holding assembly to move and clamp the tissue, the lever member having a cam surface which moves when the lever member is pivoted, and (2) a movable cam follower member having a cam follower surface in contact with the cam surface for transmitting the mechanical work of the lever member from the cam surface to the fastener holding assembly to cause the fastener holding assembly to move and clamp the tissue, the cam surface and the cam follower surface including cooperating segments which comprise detent means for releasably holding the fastener holding assembly at a predetermined position intermediate the position in which the actuator means begins to move the fastener holding assembly toward the anvil assembly and the position in which the tissue is clamped. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
-
-
6. Apparatus for applying surgical fasteners to body tissue comprising:
-
a longitudinal anvil assembly; a longitudinal fastener holding assembly movably mounted relative to the anvil assembly so that the longitudinal axes of the anvil and the fastener holding assemblies are coplanar; and actuator means for supporting the anvil assembly and for moving the fastener holding assembly toward the anvil assembly to clamp the tissue to be fastened between the anvil assembly and the fastener holding assembly, the actuator means including (1) a lever member pivotally mounted on a fulcrum, the end portion of the lever on one side of the fulcrum being engagable by the operator of the apparatus to pivot the lever and thereby produce the mechanical work required to cause the fastener holding assembly to move and clamp the tissue, the end portion of the lever member on the other side of the fulcrum having a cam surface which moves when the lever member is pivoted, and (2) a movable cam follower member having a cam follower surface in contact with the cam surface for transmitting the mechanical work of the lever member from the cam surface to the fastener holding assembly to cause the fastener holding assembly to move and clamp the tissue, the cam surface and the cam follower surface including cooperating segments which comprise detent means for releasably holding the fastener holding assembly at a predetermined position intermediate the position in which the actuator means begins to move the fastener holding assembly toward the anvil assembly and the position in which the tissue is clamped. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
-
Specification