Surgical instruments with movable member

Claim 2

A surgical instrument comprising: a hollow shaft having an inner passage; a working piece mounted to the distal end of said shaft; an ultrasonic transducer to produce vibratory mechanical energy that is applied to said shaft to be deliberately propagated along said shaft to vibrate said working piece, wherein the vibratory mechanical energy along said shaft has a pattern with at least one nodal point of reduced energy; a movable member pivotally mounted on said shaft at a said nodal point of the vibratory mechanical energy in cooperative relationship to said working piece; a connecting element extending along the shaft inner passage having one end exiting thorough an opening in said shaft and connected to said movable member; and an actuating member connected to said connecting element which upon actuation pushes and pulls on said connecting element to move said movable member toward and away from said working piece.

Claim 3

An ultrasonic instrument as in claim 1 wherein said opening for the exit of said connecting element one end from said shaft inner passage is at a said nodal point.

Claim 4

An ultrasonic surgical instrument as in claim 2 wherein said movable member pivotal mounting and said opening for the exit of said connecting element one end from said shaft inner passage are at the same nodal point.

Claim 5

An ultrasonic surgical instrument as in claim 1 wherein each of said working piece and said movable member comprises a cutting implement, said working piece being vibrated relative to said movable member.

Claim 6

An ultrasonic surgical instrument as in claim 1 wherein said movable member comprises a pair of spaced arms.

Claim 7

An ultrasonic surgical instrument as in claim 5 wherein said pair of arms form a clamp to hold an object between said clamp and said vibrating working piece.

Claim 8

An ultrasonic surgical instrument as in claim 5 wherein said vibrating working piece has a cutting edge and said pair of arms have cutting edges in opposition to said working piece cutting edge.

Claim 9

An ultrasonic surgical instrument as in claim 5 further comprising a cross-piece connecting said pair of arms.

Claim 10

An ultrasonic surgical instrument as in claim 8 wherein said one end of said connecting element is connected to said cross-piece to move said movable member.

Claim 11

An ultrasonic instrument as in claim 1 further comprising an extension piece connected to said shaft at a said nodal point and extending toward the proximal end of said shaft, said movable member being pivotally mounted to said extension piece.

Claim 12

A surgical instrument as in claim 10 further comprising: a second connecting element extending along the shaft inner passage having one end exiting thorough an opening in said shaft and connected to said movable member; and an actuating member connected to said second connecting element which upon actuation pushes and pulls on said second connecting element to move said movable member toward and away from said working piece.

Claim 13

A surgical instrument comprising: a hollow shaft having an inner passage; a working piece at the distal end of said shaft; an ultrasonic transducer to produce vibratory mechanical energy along said shaft to vibrate said working piece; a movable member pivotally mounted on said shaft in cooperative relationship to said working piece; a connecting element extending along the shaft inner passage having one end exiting thorough an opening in said shaft and connected to said movable member; and p 1 an actuating member connected to said connecting element which upon actuation pushes and pulls on said connecting element to move said movable member toward and away from said working piece, wherein said working piece at the distal end of said shaft comprises: a head having a plurality of working implements mounted therearound; a rotatable mount connecting said head to an end of said shaft; a mount actuating element extending along the shaft inner passage having one end connected to actuate said rotatable mount; and an actuating member connected to said mount actuating element which upon actuation pushes and pulls on said mount actuating element to actuate said mount to rotate said head to rotate said working implements relative to said shaft.

Claim 14

A surgical instrument comprising: a hollow shaft having an inner passage; a working piece at the distal end of said shaft; an ultrasonic transducer to produce vibratory mechanical energy along said shaft to vibrate said working piece; a movable member pivotally mounted on said shaft in cooperative relationship to said working piece; a connecting element extending along the shaft inner passage having one end exiting thorough an opening in said shaft and connected to said movable member; and p 1 an actuating member connected to said connecting element which upon actuation pushes and pulls on said connecting element to move said movable member toward and away from said working piece, wherein said working piece at the distal end of said shaft comprises: a head having a plurality of working implements mounted therearound; a rotatable mount connecting said head to an end of said shaft; a mount actuating element extending along the shaft inner passage having one end connected to actuate said rotatable mount; and an actuating member connected to said mount actuating element which upon actuation pushes and pulls on said mount actuating element to actuate said mount to rotate said head to rotate said working implements relative to said shaft.

Claim 15

A surgical instrument as in claim 12 wherein said ultrasonic transducer produces mechanical energy along said shaft to vibrate said head and the working implements thereon.

Claim 16

A surgical instrument as in claim 13 wherein the vibratory mechanical energy along said shaft has a pattern with at least one nodal point of reduced energy, said movable member being pivotally mounted to said shaft at a said nodal point.

Claim 17

A surgical instrument as in claim 12 wherein the vibratory mechanical energy along said shaft has a pattern with at least one nodal point of reduced energy, and wherein said opening for the exit of said connecting element one end from said shaft inner passage is at a said nodal point.

Claim 18

A surgical instrument as in claim 12 further comprising a protective cover over said head to expose a selected one of said working implements into an operative position upon rotation by said head.

Claim 19

A surgical instrument comprising: a hollow shaft having an inner passage; a working piece at the distal end of said shaft; an ultrasonic transducer to produce vibratory mechanical energy along said shaft to vibrate said working piece; a movable member pivotally mounted on said shaft in cooperative relationship to said working piece; a connecting element extending along the shaft inner passage having one end exiting thorough an opening in said shaft and connected to said movable member; and an actuating member connected to said connecting element which upon actuation pushes and pulls on said connecting element to move said movable member toward and away from said working piece, wherein said working implement comprises: a plurality of working implements pivotally mounted in said passage at the distal end of said shaft, said shaft distal end having an opening through which a said working implement can project; and a plurality of connecting elements extending along the shaft inner passage, each said connecting element connected to a selected one of said working implements, actuation of a connecting element moving the connected working implement to project through said shaft opening to a position external of said shaft.

Claim 20

A surgical instrument comprising: a hollow shaft having an inner passage; a working piece at the distal end of said shaft; an ultrasonic transducer to produce vibratory mechanical energy along said shaft to vibrate said working piece; a movable member pivotally mounted on said shaft in cooperative relationship to said working piece; a connecting element extending along the shaft inner passage having one end exiting thorough an opening in said shaft and connected to said movable member; and an actuating member connected to said connecting element which upon actuation pushes and pulls on said connecting element to move said movable member toward and away from said working piece, wherein said working implement comprises: a plurality of working implements pivotally mounted in said passage at the distal end of said shaft, said shaft distal end having an opening through which a said working implement can project; and a plurality of connecting elements extending along the shaft inner passage, each said connecting element connected to a selected one of said working implements, actuation of a connecting element moving the connected working implement to project through said shaft opening to a position external of said shaft.

Claim 21

A surgical instrument as in claim 17 wherein said ultrasonic transducer produces mechanical energy along said shaft to vibrate said working implements.

Claim 22

A surgical instrument as in claim 18 wherein said ultrasonic transducer produces mechanical energy along said shaft that has a pattern with at least one nodal point of reduced energy and said movable member is mounted to said shaft at a said nodal point.

Claim 23

A surgical instrument as in claim 18 wherein said ultrasonic transducer produce mechanical energy along said shaft that has a pattern with at least one nodal point of reduced energy and wherein said opening for the exit of said connecting element one end from said shaft inner passage is at a said nodal point.

Claim 24

A surgical instrument as in claim 17 further comprising: a second connecting element extending along the shaft inner passage having one end exiting thorough an opening in said shaft and connected to said movable member; and an actuating member connected to said second connecting element which upon actuation pushes and pulls on said second connecting element to move said movable member toward and away from said working piece.