Granted Patent B2

US 12,622,721 · App. 18/663,898 · Granted May 12, 2026

Inventors: Frederick E. Shelton, IV (Hillsboro, OH); Shane R. Adams (Lebanon, OH); Nicholas J. Ross (Franklin, OH); Jason L. Harris (Lebanon, OH); Sudhir B. Patel (Mason, OH)

Assignee: Cilag GmbH International

A61B17/32A61B17/068A61B2017/00039A61B2017/00137A61B2017/00367A61B2017/00473A61B2017/00477A61B2017/07285

Abstract

Claims (41)

1 . A surgical instrument assembly, comprising:

a shaft;

an end effector attached to the shaft;

a sub-component system configured to experience strain within the surgical instrument assembly;

a woven conductive fabric attached to the sub-component system, wherein the woven conductive fabric comprises:

a primary body portion; and

a plurality of conductive fibers extending through the primary body portion; and

a control circuit configured to monitor a resistance of the woven conductive fabric and determine a load on the sub-component system based on the resistance of the woven conductive fabric.

2 . The surgical instrument assembly of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of conductive fibers are interwoven into the primary body portion.

3 . The surgical instrument assembly of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of conductive fibers are wired in parallel.

4 . The surgical instrument assembly of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of conductive fibers are wired in series.

5 . The surgical instrument assembly of claim 1 , wherein the woven conductive fabric is attached to a grounded location within the shaft.

6 . The surgical instrument assembly of claim 1 , wherein each conductive fiber of the plurality of conductive fibers comprises a different material.

7 . The surgical instrument assembly of claim 1 , wherein the woven conductive fabric comprises a first woven conductive fabric, wherein the first woven conductive fabric is configured to measure load applied to the sub-component system in a first plane, wherein the surgical instrument assembly further comprises a second woven conductive fabric configured to measure load applied to the sub-component system in a second plane.

8 . The surgical instrument assembly of claim 1 , wherein the resistance of the woven conductive fabric is configured to correspond to displacement of the sub-component system.

9 . A surgical instrument assembly, comprising:

a shaft;

an articulation joint;

an end effector attached to the shaft by way of the articulation joint;

a firing member comprising:

a plurality of bands attached to each other; and

a plurality of conductive fabrics;

wherein each band comprises a conductive fabric attached thereto; and

a control circuit configured to monitor a resistance of each conductive fabric to measure a parameter of each band.

10 . The surgical instrument assembly of claim 9 , wherein each conductive fabric comprises a plurality of conductive fibers.

11 . The surgical instrument assembly of claim 9 , wherein each band comprises an electrical contact positioned on a proximal end thereof.

12 . The surgical instrument assembly of claim 9 , wherein the plurality of conductive fabrics comprises a plurality of conductive textiles.

13 . The surgical instrument assembly of claim 9 , wherein the plurality of conductive fabrics comprises a plurality of metalized conductive fabrics.

14 . A surgical instrument, comprising:

a shaft;

a sub-component system configured to experience strain within the surgical instrument;

a woven conductive fabric attached to the sub-component system, the woven conductive fabric comprising:

a body portion; and

a plurality of conductive fibers extending through the body portion; and

a control circuit configured to monitor a resistance of the woven conductive fabric and determine a load on the sub-component system based on the resistance of the woven conductive fabric.

15 . The surgical instrument of claim 14 , wherein the plurality of conductive fibers comprises a first portion in which the plurality of conductive fibers are oriented in a first direction and a second portion in which the plurality of conductive fibers are oriented in a second direction which is different from the first direction.

16 . The surgical instrument of claim 15 , wherein the first direction is orthogonal to the second direction.

17 . The surgical instrument of claim 14 , wherein the plurality of conductive fibers comprises a first portion attached to a first region of the sub-component system and a second portion attached to a second region of the sub-component system which is different from the first region.

18 . The surgical instrument of claim 17 , wherein the first region is stiffer than the second region, wherein the first portion is used to measure a force in the sub-component system, and wherein the second portion is used to measure a strain in the sub-component system.

19 . The surgical instrument of claim 14 , wherein the plurality of conductive fibers comprises a first portion attached to a first sub-component of the sub-component system and a second portion attached to a second sub-component of the sub-component system which is different from the first sub-component.

20 . The surgical instrument of claim 19 , wherein the first sub-component comprises a first layer of a firing member and the second sub-component comprises a second layer of the firing member.

Assignments (2)

Continuity (3)

References Cited (400)