Surgical Stapler Battery Health Check During Operation

This patent describes a powered surgical stapler that can detect if some of its rechargeable battery cells are damaged while it's actually firing staples, helping ensure the procedure finishes safely.

What it covers

The patent describes a surgical instrument, like a stapler, that uses an electric motor to deploy staples into tissue. This motor is powered by a rechargeable battery pack. The clever part is an electronic control circuit within the power pack that constantly checks the health of individual battery cells using special indicators. If the circuit detects that a subset of these rechargeable battery cells is damaged *during* the firing sequence, it can assess this issue. This allows the instrument to potentially compensate or alert the surgeon, preventing a complete power failure during a critical moment.

What it doesn't cover

• —Does not cover surgical instruments powered by non-rechargeable batteries.
• —Does not cover battery health assessment performed only before or after a firing sequence, but not during.
• —Does not cover systems that only detect a complete failure of the entire battery pack, rather than a subset of cells.
• —Does not cover instruments where the electric motor is not directly coupled to a firing assembly for staples.
• —Does not cover battery health monitoring in non-surgical or non-medical devices.

The clever bit

The novelty lies in assessing the health of a *subset* of rechargeable battery cells *during* the active firing sequence of a surgical instrument. This real-time, granular monitoring allows for early detection of partial battery degradation, which is crucial for maintaining power during a critical operation.

Why it matters

In surgery, reliable power for instruments like staplers is critical for patient safety. A sudden power loss during a procedure could have serious consequences. This invention aims to make powered surgical instruments safer by providing real-time battery health monitoring, specifically identifying partial failures before they lead to complete system shutdown. This allows for more predictable and controlled surgical outcomes.

Real-world examples

• 1.Powered surgical staplers
• 2.Robotic surgical instruments with integrated power packs
• 3.Advanced electrosurgical devices