Pistol for the pressing out of bone cement with an attachable cement syringe

• US 6,425,897 B2
• Filed: 01/10/2001
• Issued: 07/30/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 01/18/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Zimmer GmbH (Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Sulzer Orthopedics Inc. (Centerpulse Orthopedics Incorporated)
• Inventors: Overes, Tom, Faoro, Francisco
• Primary Examiner(s): Philogene, Pedro
• Application Number:
  US09/759,555
• Publication Number:
  US 20010008968A1
• Time in Patent Office: 566 Days
• Field of Search: 606/92, 606/93, 606/94, 606/95, 604/57-59, 604/140, 604/141, 604/143, 604/147, 222/388, 222/389, 222/391, 222/323, 222/324, 222/326
• US Class Current: 606/93
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/8822 characterised by means facilitating expulsion of fluid from the introducer, e.g. a screw pump plunger, hydraulic force transmissions, application of vibrations or a vacuum
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/8825 characterised by syringe details A61B17/8822, A61B17/8827 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/30561 breakable or frangible
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/4694 pneumatic
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2250/0071 breakable or frangible
• CPC Class Codes: B05C 17/015 with pneumatically or hydraulically actuated piston or the like B05C17/00543 takes precedence

Abstract

A pistol for the pressing out of bone cement (1) comprises an attachable cement syringe (2) which has a cylinder (3) with an ejection piston (4) and a narrower neck (5) which adjoins at the cylinder (3), with a displacer bar (6) being insertable into the pistol in order to additionally eject residual cement with a second advance mechanism (8). A first piston (9) acts via a piston rod (7) on the ejection piston (4). A second piston (11), which is displaceably journalled in the piston rod (7) and can be activated independently of the first piston, acts on the displacer bar (6). A fluid (10) which is under pressure is controlled via a control device (12) in such a manner that the displacer bar (6) moves relative to the first piston (9) only when the latter has reached a predetermined end position.

Claims

1. Pistol for the pressing out of bone cement, comprising an attachable cement syringe which has a cylinder with an ejection piston and a narrower neck which adjoins at the cylinder, with a displacer bar being insertable into the pistol, which displacer bar can after the ejection of the cylinder content be introduced into the neck through an aperture of the ejection piston by means of a first tubular bar which acts on the ejection piston and which has a second advance mechanism which is journalled in the tubular bar, wherein the tubular bar is designed as a piston rod of a first piston which is individually displaceable by a fluid in the pistol;

and wherein the second advance mechanism is individually displaceable by a second piston, which is charged by the fluid and which ejects the displacer bar;

with the two pistons being excitable with the fluid, which is under pressure, via a control device in the pistol;

whereby the displacements of the two pistons relative to their cylinders are added for one large stroke.

2. Pistol in accordance with claim 1 wherein the fluid is a gas.

3. Pistol in accordance with claim 2 including a reservoir in the pistol for the gas.

4. Pistol in accordance with claim 1 wherein the second piston is blocked until the first piston has reached a predetermined front end position.

5. Pistol in accordance with claim 4 wherein the displacer bar is blocked in the ejection piston in such a manner that it punctures the ejection piston only at a predetermined breaking-loose force.

6. Pistol in accordance with claim 4 wherein the second piston can be charged with pressure only when the first piston has reached its predetermined front end position.

7. Pistol in accordance with claim 1 wherein the control device has a trigger bow which acts on a control slider for metering the fluid which is under pressure.

8. Pistol in accordance with claim 7 wherein the control slider covers off a tube piece with a blocking region and with a region with individual bores which can be brought one after the other into the fluid flow via the trigger bow in order to increase the ejection speed at the first piston step-wise.

9. Pistol in accordance with claim 8 wherein an increasing restoring force can be felt at the trigger bow with the increasing of the through-flow cross-section for the fluid flow.

10. Pistol in accordance with claim 9 wherein a first weak restoring spring is effective in the region of a predetermined smallest through-flow cross-section;

and wherein a stiffer, second restoring spring is effective in the region with a greater through-flow cross-section.

11. Pistol in accordance with claim 8 wherein, when the trigger bow is not actuated, a connection line between the control slider and the first piston is ventilated by the control slider and an inflow line from a gas reservoir to the control slider is blocked.

12. Pistol in accordance with claim 5 including a differential piston which acts on the second piston and is journalled inside the first piston as a third piston in order to produce via its greater piston surface a greater breaking-loose force than can be produced with the second piston.

13. Pistol in accordance with claim 5 wherein the displacer bar is blocked in an axial direction through a membrane in the aperture of the ejection piston, the membrane being perforable at a predetermined breaking-loose force of the displacer bar in order to free the way for the latter in the ejection direction.

14. Pistol in accordance with claim 5 including a flap arranged in the aperture of the ejection piston which hinders the bone cement from flowing out and which frees the way for movement of the displacer bar in the ejection direction.

15. Pistol in accordance with claim 3 wherein the reservoir comprises a replaceable cartridge filled with one of CO₂ or NO₂.

16. Pistol for dispensing bone cement from a syringe which is attachable to the pistol and has a cylindrical portion terminating in a reduced cross-section neck through which fluid can be ejected and an ejection piston that is movable in the cylinder, the pistol comprising a first piston coupled to a tubular bar having a free end engageable with the ejection piston;

a source of pressurized fluid and a control device fluidly coupled thereto for charging-the first piston with a pressurized fluid;

a displacer bar axially movable disposed in the tubular bar and having an end extendable through the ejection cylinder for extending the displacer bar into the neck of the syringe; and

a second piston operatively coupled with the displacer bar for axially moving the displacer bar relative to the tubular bar and thereby extending the displacer bar beyond the end of the tubular bar into the neck of the syringe;

the control device being fluidly connected with and operative for charging the second piston with pressurized fluid independently of the first piston so that the first and second-pistons can be activated independently of each other.

17. Pistol for use with a syringe having a cylinder terminating in a reduced cross-section neck through which fluid can be ejected and an ejection piston including a central, axially oriented, closable through aperture and being movably disposed in the cylinder of the syringe, the pistol comprising a housing and a telescopic actuator for reciprocating the ejection piston in the syringe and forcing fluid through the neck out of the syringe, the telescopic actuator comprising a first piston coupled to a tubular piston rod and reciprocably arranged in the pistol housing, a forward end of the tubular piston rod being engageable with the ejection piston for moving the ejection piston towards the neck of the syringe, a second piston coupled to a second piston rod axially movably arranged within the tubular piston rod, the second piston rod being extendable through the aperture in the ejection piston for movement toward and into the neck of the syringe;

and fluid flow control means operatively coupled with the first and second pistons for independently charging the first and second pistons with a pressurized fluid and therewith independently activating the pistons so that, upon activation of the second piston by the control means, the second piston moves the second piston rod relative to the tubular piston rod.