US20020107484A1
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Surgical instrument seal assembly
Assignee: Conmed Corp
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Filing: 2002-03-28
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2022-03-28
Abstract
Abstract A surgical instrument valve assembly is provided with a valve seal where the upper portion of the valve seal is rigidly mounted to the body of the valve assembly. The lower portion of the valve seal is configured to allow some radial movement while the upper portion of the valve seal remains rigidly mounted within the valve assembly. The valve seal may be provided with a stay that prevents the valve seal from inverting when an instrument in withdrawn from the valve assembly.
Inventors
- 👤 William Dennis
- 👤 Michael Prosek
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-23 00:41
CPC Classifications
A; A61; A61B; A61B17/00; A61B17/34; A61B17/3462; A61B2017/3464
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 41
Claim 1
Independent Claim
197 words
1 . A surgical instrument seal assembly for mounting to a cannula for the insertion of a surgical instrument, the seal assembly comprising: an upper body portion having an upper surface that defines a throughbore extending completely through the seal assembly; a lower body portion projecting below the upper body portion wherein the lower body portion defines a cannula receiving opening adapted to mount the seal assembly on the cannula; and a unitary valve seal comprising: an upper seal portion having a mounting portion and a generally frusto-conical upper sealing member having a first taper extending from the mounting portion, wherein the mounting portion is rigidly mounted in the upper body portion adjacent an interior portion of the upper body portion, said interior portion opposing the upper surface, the upper seal portion being mounted about the throughbore, and a lower seal portion extending from the upper seal portion, the lower seal portion being adapted to seal around the surgical instrument and having a generally frusto-conical lower sealing member having a second taper that is different from the first taper, the frusto-conical lower sealing member terminating in a distal lower seal end that defines an instrument seal opening.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
197 words
1 . A surgical instrument seal assembly for mounting to a cannula for the insertion of a surgical instrument, the seal assembly comprising: an upper body portion having an upper surface that defines a throughbore extending completely through the seal assembly; a lower body portion projecting below the upper body portion wherein the lower body portion defines a cannula receiving opening adapted to mount the seal assembly on the cannula; and a unitary valve seal comprising: an upper seal portion having a mounting portion and a generally frusto-conical upper sealing member having a first taper extending from the mounting portion, wherein the mounting portion is rigidly mounted in the upper body portion adjacent an interior portion of the upper body portion, said interior portion opposing the upper surface, the upper seal portion being mounted about the throughbore, and a lower seal portion extending from the upper seal portion, the lower seal portion being adapted to seal around the surgical instrument and having a generally frusto-conical lower sealing member having a second taper that is different from the first taper, the frusto-conical lower sealing member terminating in a distal lower seal end that defines an instrument seal opening.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
33 words
2 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 1 wherein the valve seal further comprises a stay wherein at least a portion of the stay is encapsulated in the valve seal.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
22 words
3 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 2 wherein the stay is unitarily formed with the lower seal portion.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
32 words
4 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 2 wherein the stay is adapted to resist inversion of the valve seal when an instrument is withdrawn from the valve seal.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
31 words
5 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 4 wherein the stay is made from a material selected from the group consisting of polyethylene, polypropylene, nylon, and plastic elastomers.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
29 words
6 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 4 wherein the stay has a lower portion encapsulated by the valve seal material and forms a unitary structure.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
23 words
7 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 2 wherein the stay is shaped to substantially match the lower seal portion.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
31 words
8 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 2 wherein at least a portion of the stay is encapsulated in at least a portion of the lower seal portion.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
39 words
9 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 8 wherein the stay further comprises a circumferential flange above the at least a portion of the stay encapsulated in at least a portion of the lower seal portion.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
25 words
10 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 9 wherein the stay further includes a circumferential upper wall disposed above the circumferential flange.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
24 words
11 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 2 wherein at least a portion of the stay is approximately frusto-conical in shape.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
21 words
12 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 2 wherein the stay further comprises a plurality of flexible members.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
46 words
13 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 1 wherein the upper seal portion and the lower seal portion are integrally formed from the same material and wherein the valve seal further comprises a stay that is partially encapsulated in the lower seal portion.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
21 words
14 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 1 wherein the valve seal is formed from an elastomeric material.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
32 words
15 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 14 wherein the elastomeric material is selected from the group consisting of silicone, plastic elastomers, polyisoprene, butyl rubber, neoprene and natural rubber.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
22 words
16 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 1 , further comprising a duckbill valve in the lower body portion.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
46 words
17 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 1 wherein the lower sealing member has a lower seal wall having an inner wall portion and an outer wall portion, a reinforcing layer being disposed intermediate the inner wall portion and the outer wall portion.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
28 words
18 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 17 wherein the reinforcing layer is integrally formed with at least a portion of the inner wall portion.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
46 words
19 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 1 wherein the generally frusto-conical lower sealing member has a lower seal wall terminating at the distal lower seal end, the lower seal wall being curved inward and defining a concave lower sealing member outer surface.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
97 words
20 . A surgical instrument seal assembly according to claim 1 wherein the throughbore is symmetrically formed around a bore axis and the upper sealing member defines an access opening adjacent the mounting portion that has a diameter larger than the throughbore, and wherein the valve seal is configured so that upon insertion of an instrument in an orientation not aligned with the bore axis, the distal lower seal end and the instrument seal opening will move radially relative to the bore axis and the instrument access opening will remain substantially unmoved relative to the bore axis.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
101 words
21 . A valve seal for use in a surgical instrument seal assembly, the valve seal comprising: an upper seal portion having a mounting portion and a generally frusto-conical upper sealing member having a first taper extending from the mounting portion; and a lower seal portion extending from the upper seal portion, the lower seal portion being adapted to seal around a surgical instrument and having a generally frusto-conical lower sealing member having a second taper that is different from the first taper, the frusto-conical lower sealing member terminating in a distal lower seal end that defines an instrument seal opening.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
101 words
21 . A valve seal for use in a surgical instrument seal assembly, the valve seal comprising: an upper seal portion having a mounting portion and a generally frusto-conical upper sealing member having a first taper extending from the mounting portion; and a lower seal portion extending from the upper seal portion, the lower seal portion being adapted to seal around a surgical instrument and having a generally frusto-conical lower sealing member having a second taper that is different from the first taper, the frusto-conical lower sealing member terminating in a distal lower seal end that defines an instrument seal opening.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
44 words
22 . A valve seal according to claim 21 wherein the lower sealing member has a lower seal wall having an inner wall portion and an outer wall portion, a reinforcing layer being disposed intermediate the inner wall portion and the outer wall portion.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
26 words
23 . A valve seal according to claim 21 wherein the upper seal portion and the lower seal portion are integrally formed from the same material.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
25 words
24 . A valve seal according to claim 23 wherein the upper seal portion and the lower seal portion are formed from an elastomeric material.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
30 words
25 . A valve seal according to claim 24 wherein the elastomeric material is selected from the group consisting of silicone, plastic elastomers, polyisoprene, butyl rubber, neoprene and natural rubber.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
31 words
26 . A valve seal according to claim 21 wherein the valve seal further comprises a stay wherein at least a portion of the stay is encapsulated in the valve seal.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
30 words
27 . A valve seal according to claim 21 wherein the stay is adapted to resist inversion of the valve seal when an instrument is withdrawn from the valve seal.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
29 words
28 . A valve seal according to claim 21 wherein the stay is made from a material selected from the group consisting of polyethylene, polypropylene, nylon, and plastic elastomers.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
21 words
29 . A valve seal according to claim 21 wherein the stay is shaped to substantially match the lower seal portion.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
32 words
30 . A valve seal according to claim 21 wherein the stay further comprises a circumferential flange above the at least a portion of the stay encapsulated in the lower seal portion.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
23 words
31 . A valve seal according to claim 30 wherein the stay further includes a circumferential upper wall disposed above the circumferential flange.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim
19 words
32 . A valve seal according to claim 31 wherein the stay further comprises a plurality of flexible members.
Claim 35
Dependent Claim
19 words
33 . A valve seal according to claim 21 wherein the stay further comprises a plurality of flexible members.
Claim 36
Dependent Claim
22 words
34 . A valve seal according to claim 21 wherein at least a portion of the stay is approximately frusto-conical in shape.
Claim 37
Dependent Claim
27 words
35 . A valve seal according to claim 21 wherein the stay has a lower portion encapsulated by the valve seal material and forms a unitary structure.
Claim 38
Dependent Claim
44 words
36 . A valve seal according to claim 21 wherein the generally frusto-conical lower sealing member has a lower seal wall terminating at the distal lower seal end, the lower seal wall being curved inward and defining a concave lower sealing member outer surface.
Claim 39
Dependent Claim
87 words
37 . A valve seal according to claim 21 wherein the upper sealing member defines an access opening adjacent the mounting portion, the access opening being symmetrically formed around a bore axis, and wherein the valve seal is configured so that upon insertion of an instrument in an orientation not aligned with the bore axis, the distal lower seal end and the instrument seal opening will move radially relative to the bore axis and the instrument access opening will remain substantially unmoved relative to the bore axis.
Claim 40
Dependent Claim
170 words
38 . A valve seal for use in a surgical instrument seal assembly, the valve seal comprising: an upper seal portion having a mounting portion and a generally frusto-conical upper sealing member having a first taper extending from the mounting portion, the upper sealing member defining an access opening adjacent the mounting portion, the access opening being symmetrically formed around a bore axis; and a lower seal portion extending from the upper seal portion, the lower seal portion being adapted to seal around a surgical instrument and having a lower seal wall that curves inward and downward from the upper seal portion and terminates in a distal lower seal end that defines an instrument seal opening, wherein the valve seal is configured so that upon insertion of an instrument in an orientation not aligned with the bore axis, the distal lower seal end and the instrument seal opening will move radially relative to the bore axis and the instrument access opening will remain substantially unmoved relative to the bore axis.
Claim 41
Dependent Claim
170 words
38 . A valve seal for use in a surgical instrument seal assembly, the valve seal comprising: an upper seal portion having a mounting portion and a generally frusto-conical upper sealing member having a first taper extending from the mounting portion, the upper sealing member defining an access opening adjacent the mounting portion, the access opening being symmetrically formed around a bore axis; and a lower seal portion extending from the upper seal portion, the lower seal portion being adapted to seal around a surgical instrument and having a lower seal wall that curves inward and downward from the upper seal portion and terminates in a distal lower seal end that defines an instrument seal opening, wherein the valve seal is configured so that upon insertion of an instrument in an orientation not aligned with the bore axis, the distal lower seal end and the instrument seal opening will move radially relative to the bore axis and the instrument access opening will remain substantially unmoved relative to the bore axis.
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