Medical instrument
First Claim
1. A medical instrument comprising:
- a relatively rigid shaft having a flexible tip attached to a distal end of the shaft, said shaft and tip each having a central lumen in fluid communication with one another;
tension cables fastened to said flexible tip, said tension cables being guided essentially parallel to the tip and the shaft; and
a handle fastened to the proximal end of the shaft with an adjusting wheel therein rotatably mounted about a rotation axis perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the shaft, said tension cables being fastened to the adjusting wheel, the adjusting wheel having a central opening with the proximal end of said shaft inserted therein, said handle including means for rotating said adjusting wheel.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A medical instrument consists of a relatively rigid shaft (1) and a flexible tip (3) that is attached to one end of the shaft (1) as an extension thereof. Fastened to its outer end at points opposite each other are tension cables (5, 6), which are guided in a tubular sheath parallel to the tip (3) and to the shaft (1) to its other end, and at the other end of the shaft are joined to an adjusting wheel (8) that allows shortening of one and equal lengthening of the other of the two oppositely located tension cables (5, 6) in order to impart to the tip (3) a selectable curvature in the direction of the shortened tension cable. The invention has as its object a simplification of known instruments which simultaneously allows a reduction in dimensions. According to the invention the shaft (1) and the tip (3) consist of extruded plastic parts that are provided with conduits, located just under their surface, to accommodate the tension cables (5, 6) which are firmly joined to the tip (3), and the plastic parts are adhesively butt-bonded together at the transition (10) from shaft (1) to tip (3).
238 Citations
16 Claims
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1. A medical instrument comprising:
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a relatively rigid shaft having a flexible tip attached to a distal end of the shaft, said shaft and tip each having a central lumen in fluid communication with one another; tension cables fastened to said flexible tip, said tension cables being guided essentially parallel to the tip and the shaft; and a handle fastened to the proximal end of the shaft with an adjusting wheel therein rotatably mounted about a rotation axis perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the shaft, said tension cables being fastened to the adjusting wheel, the adjusting wheel having a central opening with the proximal end of said shaft inserted therein, said handle including means for rotating said adjusting wheel. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A medical instrument comprising:
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a relatively rigid shaft having a flexible tip attached to a distal end of the shaft, the shaft and the tip comprising of extruded plastic parts adjoined to one another at a transition from the shaft to the tip, said shaft and tip each having a lumen in fluid communication with one another; tension cables fastened to the flexible tip, said tension cables being guided essentially parallel to the tip and the shaft to a proximal end of the shaft; a handle fastened at the proximal end of the shaft with an adjusting wheel therein rotatably mounted about a rotation axis perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the shaft, said tension cables being fastened to the adjusting wheel, the adjusting wheel having a central opening with the proximal end of said shaft inserted therein, said handle including means for rotating the adjusting wheel; strips incorporated into the plastic material of the tip, said strips being disposed symmetrically and transverse to the tip longitudinal axis with one narrow side of each strip facing one another, and also facing the tip lumen. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16)
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Specification