Rotary punch for excising uniform diopsy specimens

Claim 1

An instrument for excising uniform biopsy specimens, comprising: a. a housing; b. a hollow cylindrical spindle longitudinally disposed within said housing, said spindle having a ratchet wheel integrally secured on its forward portion and an anchor collar rotatably mounted on its rear portion and secured to said housing; c. a torque spring axially aligned over the external surface of the aforesaid spindle and attached to the anchor collar and to the ratchet wheel; d. a winding knob for rotating the aforesaid ratchet wheel and storing torque in the spring, said knob being circumferentially secured to the spindle immediately rearward of the aforesaid anchor collar; e. a cutting die assembly comprising: 1. a cutting die for excising a biopsy specimen threaded onto the forward end of the aforesaid spindle; 2. a die guard sleeve covering and coaxially aligned with the cutting die; 3. a compression spring for holding the die guard sleeve in place; and 4. a cutting die depth control collar threaded on said sleeve for regulating the penetrating depth of the cutting die; f. an actuating mechanism including a trigger means for engaging the aforesaid ratchet wheel and maintaining storage of torque in the spring and for releasing the torque thus causing the spindle and attached cutting die to rotate at high speed; g. a specimen ejector mechanism for ejecting biopsy specimens from the aforesaid cutting die, including an ejector rod and spring means, said rod extending coaxially through the hollow cylindrical spindle into the cutting die and provided at its forward end with a disc.