Surgical cable tensioning system

Inventors

Pratt, William Ralph • Bruce, Robert • Howard, Stephen F • Sarin, Vineet Kumar • Pratt, Clyde Ronald • Kendall, Richard L

Assignees

Kinamed Inc

Abstract

A cable tensioning system includes a reaction frame which contains a sliding platform arranged to move linearly within the frame, and a clam-type cleat attached to the sliding platform. The cleat features one or more grooves, each of which comprises two arrays of opposing ridges that converge to form a V-shape groove adapted to receive a length of cable. The ridges of each groove are tilted relative to an axis perpendicular to the groove's longitudinal axis, such that the cable is progressively captured between the ridges of the opposing arrays as it settles into the crotch of the groove when moved in a first direction, and can be disengaged from the cleat by relaxing the axial force on the cable and moving it in the opposite direction. A linear actuator mechanism may be coupled to the sliding platform to move the platform with respect to the reaction frame.

Core Innovation

The disclosed invention provides a surgical cable tensioning system that includes a reaction frame and a sliding platform arranged to move linearly within the reaction frame along a first axis. A clam-type cleat is attached to the sliding platform, where the cleat includes one or more grooves configured to receive a length of cable. Each groove has two arrays of opposing ridges that converge to form a V-shape, with a groove longitudinal axis approximately parallel to the first axis so that the received cable lies along an axis approximately parallel to the groove longitudinal axis.

The ridges of each V-shaped groove are tilted relative to an axis perpendicular to the groove longitudinal axis so that a length of cable is progressively captured between the ridges of opposing arrays when the cable settles toward the bottom of the V-shaped groove as it is moved in a first direction relative to the cleat. The same structure enables cable disengagement when axial force on the cable is relaxed and the cable is moved in the direction opposite the first direction. This capture and disengagement behavior is produced by the combined groove geometry and the axial-force-dependent state of the cable within the V-shaped cleat.

The system further includes a threading assist device (TAD) coupled to a distal end of the reaction frame via a wrist joint. The wrist joint allows the distal end of the TAD to pivot up and down around a wrist joint axis perpendicular to the first axis, enabling channel-based guidance of cable during threading. In addition, a linear tension mechanism coupled to the sliding platform pulls the sliding platform toward the proximal end of the reaction frame when actuated, thereby applying tension through linear movement.

Claims Coverage

The document provides one independent claim. It includes three main inventive areas: (i) the clam-type cleat with V-shaped grooves that progressively capture and disengage cable based on movement direction and axial-force relaxation, (ii) the threading assist device with a wrist joint that pivots relative to the first axis, and (iii) a linear tension mechanism that pulls the sliding platform toward the proximal end when actuated.

Overall, the claim coverage focuses on the interaction between a linearly moving sliding platform and a clam-type cleat whose V-shaped grooves progressively capture and then disengage cable based on movement direction and axial-force relaxation, while cable threading is supported by a TAD having a wrist-joint pivot, and tension is applied by a linear tension mechanism that pulls the sliding platform toward the proximal end.

Stated Advantages

Documented Applications