Surgical instrument
First Claim
1. A surgical instrument for cutting body tissue, comprising:
- an elongate support shaft;
a tip assembly attached to a distal end of the support shaft, said tip assembly comprising a stationary portion and a movable portion, a distal end of said movable portion being pivotally connected to a distal end of the stationary portion so as to form a cutting jaw; and
means extending coaxially with the support shaft for applying closing and opening forces to the movable portion of the cutting jaw;
wherein said stationary portion comprises a first cutting edge extending substantially parallel to and laterally adjacent a central longitudinal axis of the support shaft, and a second cutting edge extending substantially orthogonally from the first cutting edge and outwardly from the longitudinal axis of the support shaft; and
wherein said movable portion comprises first and second cutting edges which cooperate, respectively, with the first and second cutting edges of the stationary portion to define first and second substantially orthogonally disposed cutting planes; and
wherein said stationary portion further comprises a third cutting edge extending substantially orthogonally from the second cutting edge and substantially parallel to the first cutting edge such that said first, second and third cutting edges of the stationary portion define three sides of a generally rectangular opening in the stationary portion, and wherein said movable portion further comprises a third cutting edge which cooperates with the third cutting edge of the stationary portion to form a third cutting plane substantially orthogonally disposed to said second cutting plane.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A surgical instrument has an elongate support shaft, a tip assembly permanently attached to the shaft, a cutting jaw which opens in a backward facing direction and which is laterally offset from the longitudinal axis of the support shaft, and a rod extending coaxially with the elongate support shaft for applying closing and opening forces to the cutting jaw. The tip assembly comprises a stationary portion and a movable portion having respective tissue cutting edges which define the cutting jaw. The stationary portion of the tip assembly is permanently attached to the distal end of the support shaft, and the movable portion of the tip assembly is pivotally attached to a distal end of the stationary portion. The stationary portion of the tip assembly has a plurality of cutting edges which define an opening which extends axially adjacent the longitudinal axis of the support shaft. The movable portion has corresponding cutting edges which cooperate with the cutting edges of the stationary portion to define the cutting jaw. The cutting jaw has a fully open position in which the movable element extends outwardly from the longitudinal axis and toward a proximal end of the elongate shaft at an angle of approximately 60°. The cutting jaw has a fully closed position in which the cutting element is disposed within the opening in the stationary portion of the tip assembly. The tip assembly has an overall height dimension, when the cutting element is in the fully closed position, which is substantially equal to a corresponding cross-sectional dimension of the elongate support shaft.
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Citations
19 Claims
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1. A surgical instrument for cutting body tissue, comprising:
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an elongate support shaft; a tip assembly attached to a distal end of the support shaft, said tip assembly comprising a stationary portion and a movable portion, a distal end of said movable portion being pivotally connected to a distal end of the stationary portion so as to form a cutting jaw; and means extending coaxially with the support shaft for applying closing and opening forces to the movable portion of the cutting jaw; wherein said stationary portion comprises a first cutting edge extending substantially parallel to and laterally adjacent a central longitudinal axis of the support shaft, and a second cutting edge extending substantially orthogonally from the first cutting edge and outwardly from the longitudinal axis of the support shaft; and wherein said movable portion comprises first and second cutting edges which cooperate, respectively, with the first and second cutting edges of the stationary portion to define first and second substantially orthogonally disposed cutting planes; and wherein said stationary portion further comprises a third cutting edge extending substantially orthogonally from the second cutting edge and substantially parallel to the first cutting edge such that said first, second and third cutting edges of the stationary portion define three sides of a generally rectangular opening in the stationary portion, and wherein said movable portion further comprises a third cutting edge which cooperates with the third cutting edge of the stationary portion to form a third cutting plane substantially orthogonally disposed to said second cutting plane. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A surgical instrument for cutting body tissue, comprising:
- a support shaft having a longitudinal axis;
a tip assembly attached to a distal end of the support shaft, said tip assembly comprising a stationary portion and a movable portion, said stationary portion having a pair of opposing sidewalls; means for pivotally connecting a distal end of the movable portion between distal ends of the opposing sidewalls of the stationary portion so as to form a cutting jaw; means extending coaxially with the support shaft for applying closing and opening forces to the movable portion of the cutting jaw, said means comprising an elongate, substantially straight member pivotally connected to the movable portion of the tip assembly; and wherein said stationary and movable portions comprise a plurality of cooperating cutting edges which define a plurality of cutting planes, said cutting edges being disposed between substantially parallel planes which extend substantially transversely through the pivotable connections at the distal ends of the opposing sidewalls. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
- a support shaft having a longitudinal axis;
Specification