Brake mechanism of a steerable catheter

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10588495-B2
Application number	US-201715655017-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 20, 2017
Priority date	Jul 28, 2016
Publication date	Mar 17, 2020
Grant date	Mar 17, 2020

Abstract

A steerable catheter includes a brake mechanism with a knob mounted to a catheter handle body. The knob is rotatable around a knob axis, and the catheter handle body includes at least one steering control spool rotatable around a spool axis that is orthogonal to the knob axis. The knob contacts and rotates in a limited arc along a recessed handle body surface between stop surfaces. A frictional braking element in mechanical communication, along the knob axis, with the knob is disposed adjacent the at least one steering control spool and actuatable into and out of contact with a contact surface of the at least one spool upon rotation of the knob around the knob axis.

First claim

We claim:

1. A steerable catheter with a braking mechanism, the steerable catheter comprising:
a proximal handle body from which extends distally an elongate steerable catheter body including a deflectable distal catheter body end;
where the proximal handle body includes:
at least a first control wheel in mechanical communication, via a first spool, with the distal catheter body end, where the at least a first control wheel and the first spool are rotatable around a common control wheel axis;
a brake knob mounted rotatingly to the proximal handle body and configured to rotate around a brake knob axis that is non-coaxial with the control wheel axis;
a brake arm in mechanical communication with the brake knob and disposed between the brake knob and the first spool, said brake arm including at least one spool-engagement surface; and
ramped and planar handle body surfaces that complementarily interface with ramped and planar brake knob surfaces such that
in a first brake-actuation knob position the at least one spool-engagement surface does not contactingly engage the first spool, and
in a second brake-actuation knob position the at least one spool-engagement surface does contactingly engage the first spool, configured such that movement between the first and second brake-actuation knob positions is along the brake knob axis.

2. The steerable catheter of claim 1 , where the at least one spool-engagement surface is biased away from the knob and toward the control wheel axis.

3. The steerable catheter of claim 2 , where the brake knob axis is orthogonal to the control wheel axis.

4. The steerable catheter of claim 1 , where the knob includes a stop tab, which—when the knob is disposed in the first brake-actuation knob position—contacts a first stop-surface of the handle body, and which—when the knob is disposed in the second brake-actuation knob position—contacts a second stop-surface of the handle body.

5. The steerable catheter of claim 4 , where the knob's stop tab contacts at least one of the ramped and planar handle body surfaces between the first stop-surface and the second stop-surface.

6. The steerable catheter of claim 4 , where the knob is confined to a mechanically-limited arc of rotation, one end of which arc corresponds to the knob being in the first brake-actuation knob position and the stop tab contacting the first stop-surface, and an opposite end of which arc corresponds to the knob being in the second brake-actuation knob position and the stop tab contacting the second stop-surface.

7. The steerable catheter of claim 1 , where the at least one spool-engagement surface is configured as at least one brake shoe.

8. The steerable catheter of claim 1 , where the knob is located in a position such that it is reachable by a digit of a user's hand when other digits of said hand are simultaneously operably grasping the at least a first control wheel.

9. The steerable catheter of claim 1 , constructed such that when the knob is in the second brake-actuation knob position, the at least one spool-engagement surface contacting engagement with the first spool provides sufficient friction to inhibit said spool from rotating freely, and thereby corresponds to inhibiting change in a deflected state of the distal catheter body end.

10. The steerable catheter of claim 1 , where a coil spring biases the at least one spool-engagement surface away from the knob and toward the control wheel axis with a predetermined amount of force such that the at least one spool-engagement surface contacting engagement with the first spool provides sufficient friction to inhibit said spool from rotating freely inhibits change in a deflected state of the distal catheter body end.

11. A steerable catheter with a brake mechanism, the brake mechanism comprising:
a knob mounted to a catheter handle body, said knob being rotatable, relative to the handle body, around a knob axis;
where the catheter handle body includes at least one steering control spool rotatable around a spool axis that is orthogonal to the knob axis;
a handle ramped surface separated from a handle stop-surface, where a handle-contacting knob surface is movable across the handle ramped surface and not movable past the handle stop-surface; and
a frictional braking element in mechanical communication, along the knob axis, with the knob, said braking element disposed adjacent the at least one spool and actuatable into and out of contact with a contact surface of the at least one spool upon rotation of the knob around the knob axis.

12. The steerable catheter of claim 11 , where the braking element is biased away from the knob and toward the at least one spool.

13. The steerable catheter of claim 11 , where the handle-contacting knob surface includes a knob ramped surface and includes a knob stop-surface substantially perpendicular to the knob ramped surface.

14. The steerable catheter of claim 13 , where a first actuation state corresponds to the knob stop-surface contacting the handle stop-surface and the frictional braking element contacting the at least one spool with sufficient force to inhibit spool rotation.

15. The steerable catheter of claim 14 , where the braking element is biased away from the knob and toward the spool.

16. The steerable catheter of claim 15 , where the knob has a mechanically-limited arc of rotation, one end of which arc is defined by the knob stop-surface contacting the handle stop-surface, and an opposite end of which arc corresponding with the braking element not inhibiting rotation of the at least one spool.

17. The steerable catheter of claim 14 , constructed where contacting the at least one spool with sufficient force to inhibit spool rotation prevents rotation of the at least one spool relative to the braking element.

18. The steerable catheter of claim 11 , where the at least one spool includes at least one face surface intersecting the spool axis and at least one circumferential surface that includes or is included by the contact surface.

19. The steerable catheter of claim 11 , where the knob is located in a position such that it is reachable and rotatable by a digit of a user's hand when other digits of said hand are simultaneously operably contacting at least a first control wheel, which control wheel shares a common rotational axis with the at least one spool.

20. The steerable catheter of claim 11 , where a braking element portion, actuatable into and out of contact with the contact surface of the at least one spool, comprises a brake shoe that is biased away from the knob and toward the at least one spool by a coil spring disposed between the brake shoe and the catheter handle body.

Assignees

• Cook Medical Technologies Llc
• Cook Medical Tech Ll

Inventors

• Simmons Victor
• Dillon Travis E

Classifications

• A61M25/0028

  characterized by features relating to at least one lumen located at the proximal part of the catheter, e.g. alterations in lumen shape or valves (catheter hubs A61M25/0097) · CPC title

• A61B1/0051 Primary

  with controlled bending of insertion part · CPC title

• A61M2025/004

  characterized by lumina being arranged circumferentially · CPC title

• A61B1/0057

  Constructional details of force transmission elements, e.g. control wires · CPC title

• A61M25/0105

  Steering means as part of the catheter or advancing means; Markers for positioning (systems for detection of markers A61B) · CPC title