Patent · US Expired

Surgical apparatus and method

US6254532A · kind A · utility

114Cited by
19References
14Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateMay 21, 1999
Grant dateJul 3, 2001
Priority date
Expiry dateMay 21, 2019

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
  • CPC primaryA61B2017/0243
  • WIPO fieldMedical technology
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

A surgical apparatus is described for performing cardiac surgery on the coronary organs of a patient. It has a contacting means capable of providing a mechanical load on at least a portion of said coronary organ, a positioning means which allows the setting of either or both the contacting means and coronary organ in a large number of positions or orientations within a surgical workspace. The apparatus also has a manipulation means serving as a single point control to position and orient the contacting means onto the coronary organ tissue. An adjustment means serves to bias the range of at least one motion degree of freedom of the surgical apparatus within a the limits of a restricted range that is less than the full range of motion of that degree of freedom of motion that would be otherwise achievable when the bias is not present or overridden. This achieves the placement of the contacting means within the surgical workspace, with or without the simultaneous manipulation, retraction, or stabilization of coronary organ tissue also within the workspace. Any of the motion degrees of freedom of the surgical apparatus can be "biased". All motion degrees of freedom of the surgical appar…

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.