Cranial drill stop

• US 5,382,250 A
• Filed: 03/08/1994
• Issued: 01/17/1995
• Est. Priority Date: 03/08/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: DePuy Orthopaedics Incorporated (Johnson & Johnson)
• Original Assignee: Johnson and Johnson Professional Inc (Johnson & Johnson)
• Inventors: Kraus, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): ASCHENBRENNER, PETER
• Application Number:
  US08/207,978
• Time in Patent Office: 315 Days
• Field of Search: 606/172, 606/80, 606/79, 606/96, 606/97, 606/98, 606/130, 408/202, 408/241 S
• US Class Current: 606/80
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/1695 Trepans or craniotomes, i.e. specially adapted for drilling thin bones such as the skull
• CPC Class Codes: B23B 49/005 Attached to the drill
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 408/8925 Depth-limiting member

Abstract

A device to stop the penetration of a cranial drill that is used to pierce the skull during neurosurgical procedures. The device uses a plurality of spacers that each have a body in the form of a cylinder having a bore extending therethrough with a flat disc adjacent the cylindrical body with a plurality of tabs fixed to the disk in a circumferential pattern around the bore and axially aligned therewith. The periphery of the disk having a diameter larger than the cylindrical body portion to form a gripping member. Each of the tabs having an indent positioned on an outer surface and an interior surface of the cylindrical body portion having a bead positioned around the interior diameter of the cylindrical body portion so that the indents in the tabs are adapted to engage and retain a bead of another spacer when the spacers are fitted together to define a drill stop. Each of the plurality of spacers are of different lengths than at least one of the other spacers.

Claims

1. A cranial drill stop comprising a plurality of spacers, each of said spacers having a body having a first end and a second end, said first end comprising a cylindrical portion having a bore extending therethrough, said second end comprising a flat disk adjacent said cylindrical portion and having a plurality of tabs affixed thereto and extending perpendicular from the face of said disk and arrange in a circumferential pattern around a bore centrally located in said disk and axially aligned with the bore in said cylindrical portion, the periphery of said disk defining a gripping flange having a diameter larger than the diameter of said cylindrical portion, each of said tabs having an indent positioned on an outer surface, a bead positioned around the interior diameter of said cylindrical portion, said indents in said tabs adapted to engage and retain a bead of another spacer when the spacers are fitted together to define a drill stop.

2. The drill stop of claim 1 comprising at least three spacers, the axial length of the cylindrical portion of at least one of said spacers being a different length than that of at least one of the other spacers.