Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 20
Claim 1
Independent Claim
125 words
A trocar including: a. a cannula having a proximal end and a distal end, said distal end of said cannula having an outer perimeter surface; b. a blade having a blade tip and a blade body, said blade body having an outer perimeter surface c. means coaxially fitting the blade within the cannula; d. means controlling the extent to which the blade can be extended beyond the distal end of the cannula; and e. means creating a step-less connection between the blade body and the distal end of the cannula when the blade body is extended beyond the distal end of the cannula, whereby the outer perimeter surface of the blade body corresponds to the outer perimeter surface of the distal end of the cannula.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
125 words
A trocar including: a. a cannula having a proximal end and a distal end, said distal end of said cannula having an outer perimeter surface; b. a blade having a blade tip and a blade body, said blade body having an outer perimeter surface c. means coaxially fitting the blade within the cannula; d. means controlling the extent to which the blade can be extended beyond the distal end of the cannula; and e. means creating a step-less connection between the blade body and the distal end of the cannula when the blade body is extended beyond the distal end of the cannula, whereby the outer perimeter surface of the blade body corresponds to the outer perimeter surface of the distal end of the cannula.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
27 words
A trocar as claimed in claim 1 wherein the means creating a step-less connection between the blade and the cannula include providing a shoulder on the blade.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
17 words
A trocar as claimed in claim 2 wherein the cannula has fingers on the distal end thereof.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
19 words
A trocar as claimed in claim 3 wherein the fingers retract about the blade to engage the shoulder thereof.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
22 words
A trocar as claimed in claim 4 wherein the fingers are expandable to allow the blade to retract coaxially within the cannula.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
19 words
A trocar as claimed in claim 2 wherein the body is connected to the shoulder by an annular ramp.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
42 words
A trocar as claimed in claim 6 wherein the annular ramp is at an angle of between 5° to 60° to the axis of the cannula in any plane that includes the axis of the cannula and passes through the annular ramp.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
30 words
The trocar as claimed in claim 7 wherein the cannula has fingers at the distal end thereof, and said fingers have ramp engaging surfaces that mate with the annular ramp.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
27 words
The trocar as claimed in claim 8 wherein the ramp engaging surfaces are substantially complementary to the shape of at least a portion of the annular ramp.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
44 words
A trocar as claimed in claim 1 wherein the means controlling the extent to which the blade can be extended beyond the distal end of the cannula include a base on the proximal end of the cannula and a grip connected to the blade.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
16 words
A trocar as claimed in claim 10 including a shaft between the grip and the blade.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
17 words
A trocar as claimed in claim 11 wherein the base of the cannula fits within the grip.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
20 words
A trocar as claimed in claim 12 wherein the grip includes a channel with the base fitting within said channel.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
13 words
A trocar as claimed in claim 10 wherein the base includes a flange.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
13 words
A trocar as claimed in claim 14 wherein the flange abuts the grip.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
202 words
A trocar including a cylindrically shaped cannula having a base at one end thereof and axially directed slots at the other end thereof; b. said axially directed slots forming fingers, each finger having a base at one end and a tip at an opposite end; c. the other end of said cannula being formed of a material that is biased radially inwardly so that the fingers will tend to contract and cause the other end of the cannula to have a conical shape; d. the slots in the other end of the cannula are of a dimension that will allow the fingers to contract at the most a distance that will cause the outside diameter of the cannula at the tips of the fingers to be approximately 2t less than the outside diameter of the cannula at the base of the fingers where t is the thickness of the wall of the cannula; e. a blade coaxially fitted within the cannula; and f. said blade including a body and a shoulder, the body having an outside diameter substantially equal to the inside diameter of the cannula and the shoulder having an outside diameter 2t less than the inside diameter of the cannula.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
202 words
A trocar including a cylindrically shaped cannula having a base at one end thereof and axially directed slots at the other end thereof; b. said axially directed slots forming fingers, each finger having a base at one end and a tip at an opposite end; c. the other end of said cannula being formed of a material that is biased radially inwardly so that the fingers will tend to contract and cause the other end of the cannula to have a conical shape; d. the slots in the other end of the cannula are of a dimension that will allow the fingers to contract at the most a distance that will cause the outside diameter of the cannula at the tips of the fingers to be approximately 2t less than the outside diameter of the cannula at the base of the fingers where t is the thickness of the wall of the cannula; e. a blade coaxially fitted within the cannula; and f. said blade including a body and a shoulder, the body having an outside diameter substantially equal to the inside diameter of the cannula and the shoulder having an outside diameter 2t less than the inside diameter of the cannula.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
25 words
The trocar as claimed in claim 16 including means controlling the extent that the blade can be extended beyond the other end of the cannula.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
55 words
The trocar as claimed in claim 16 wherein the bias of the material causes the fingers to contract about the shoulder of the blade to create a stepless transition between the blade body and the other end of the cannula when the blade is extended its maximum distance beyond the other end of the cannula.