IP Library Granted Patent US 12,616,551
Granted Patent B2
US 12,616,551 · App. 18/350,324 · Granted May 5, 2026

Mechanism for retaining a marker

Inventors: Kenneth Sykes (Bluffdale, UT); Steven Weir (Sandy, UT); Emilio Aguilar (South Jordan, UT); Richard P. Jenkins (Bluffdale, UT); Jim Mottola (West Jordan, UT); Michael Dean Haslam (Sandy, UT)
Assignee: Merit Medical Systems, Inc.
A61B90/39A61B17/3468A61M37/0069A61B2090/3987
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,616,551
App. No.
18/350,324
Granted
May 5, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

A device, and methods for using said device, for inserting a marker into a patient's body. The device may comprise a retention mechanism to hold the device in an first, undeployed, state. The device may be inserted into a patient's body in the first state, transitioned by the user into a second state wherein the retention mechanism is overcome, and then transition the device into a third state to deliver a marker to a precise location. The device may then be removed from the patient's body.

Claims (21)

1 . A system for implanting a marker in a patient's body, comprising:

a cannula;

a marker within the cannula;

a stylet configured to eject the marker from the cannula; and

an indented bridge defined by the cannula configured to engage with and retain the marker within the cannula,

wherein the indented bridge is disposed between two slots in the cannula and a portion of the indented bridge is bent radially inward, and

wherein a distal portion and a proximal portion of the indented bridge are secured to the cannula.

2 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the marker comprises a proximal antenna and a distal antenna.

3 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the indented bridge of the cannula constricts an inner diameter of the cannula.

4 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the indented bridge is bent radially inwards a distance of 0.003 to 0.005 inches.

5 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the indented bridge comprises a flat lowered portion between the distal portion and the proximal portion of the indented bridge.

6 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the cannula further comprises a deformity that comprises a point deformation on an cannula inner wall.

7 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the stylet comprises a deformity.

8 . The system of claim 7 , wherein the deformity comprises a bend in the stylet configured to engage with an antenna of the marker.

9 . The system of claim 7 , wherein the deformity comprises a channel in the stylet.

10 . The system of claim 9 , wherein the channel is configured to receive an antenna of the marker.

11 . The system of claim 9 , wherein the channel is configured to provide a force on an antenna of the marker.

12 . The system of claim 7 , wherein the deformity comprises a cavity in the stylet.

13 . The system of claim 12 , wherein the cavity is configured to receive an antenna of the marker.

14 . The system of claim 13 , wherein the antenna comprises a bend.

15 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the marker comprises a deformity.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Dec 7, 2023
From: SYKES, KENNETH; WEIR, STEVEN; AGUILAR, EMILIO; JENKINS, RICHARD P.; MOTTOLA, JIM; HASLAM, MICHAEL DEAN
To: MERIT MEDICAL SYSTEMS, INC.
Reel/Frame 065802/0021 →
Continuity (2)
Provisional Application 63368186 · Jul 12, 2022
Related Publication 20240016573A1 · Jan 18, 2024
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