|Publication number||US7025923 B2|
|Application number||US 10/226,433|
|Publication date||11 Apr 2006|
|Filing date||22 Aug 2002|
|Priority date||10 Oct 1997|
|Also published as||US6579582, US20030008083|
|Publication number||10226433, 226433, US 7025923 B2, US 7025923B2, US-B2-7025923, US7025923 B2, US7025923B2|
|Inventors||E. Paul Harhen, James M. Goddard|
|Original Assignee||Vision Sciences, Inc.|
|Export Citation||BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan|
|Patent Citations (34), Referenced by (2), Classifications (29), Legal Events (4)|
|External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, Espacenet|
This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/366,950, filed Aug. 4, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,579,582 B1 which is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/948,615, filed Oct. 10, 1997, now abandoned.
The present invention is directed toward a method of making medical components, and more particularly toward a method of making contoured, thin-walled, complex-shaped medical components usable with intrabody medical devices.
The use of intrabody medical equipment, such as endoscopes, catheters, and the like, for diagnostic and therapeutic indications is rapidly expanding. To improve performance, the equipment has been optimized to best accomplish the selected purpose. As an example, endoscopes have been optimized and refined so as to provide upper endoscopes for the examination of the esophagus, stomach, and duodenum, colonoscopes for examining the colon, angioscopes for examining blood vessels, bronchoscopes for examining the bronchii, laparoscopes for examining the peritoneal cavity, arthroscopes for examining joint spaces, nasopharygoscopes for examining nasal passages and pharynx, and intubation scopes for examination of a person's airway.
Optimization of the intrabody medical devices for such therapeutic and diagnostic procedures has resulted in sterile, inexpensive disposable equipment that is used alone or with non-disposable equipment. In the field of endoscopes, a conventional endoscope 10, shown in
Disposable endoscopic sheath assemblies are used to cover the insertion tube 12 and protect it from being contaminated. Accordingly, the sheath assemblies alleviate the problem and cost of cleaning and sterilizing the insertion tube 12 between endoscopic procedures. As seen in
Endoscopic sheath assemblies used with insertion tubes that have a complex cross-sectional shape, such as C-shaped, often must have an endcap with a corresponding complex cross-sectional shape to snugly fit over the insertion tube's distal end 20. The complex-shaped endcap can be a costly and laborious component to manufacture for the sheath assembly. Other thin-walled components that would be required to have a complex shape if used with endoscopic sheaths or other medical devices having complex shapes may include precision detent mechanisms and short-pitched threads that are manufactured with the necessary accuracy and tolerances required for intricate-medical devices.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,443,781 to Saab teaches a method of forming a disposable sheath with an optically transparent window that is integral with the sheath. The transparent window is formed so as to maintain a thin-walled, relatively inelastic, yet flexible sheath for an optical medical instrument. Saab teaches forming the sheath by heating a sheet or film of optically transparent polymeric material until the material's viscosity is substantially reduced and the film is malleable. As shown in
The sheath and technique of making the sheath as discussed in Saab, however, results in the film being heated, stretched, and then cooled to remain the shape that generally corresponds to the mandrel's simple shape. The resulting sheath is limited to having a relatively simple geometrical shape. The method of Saab does not sufficiently allow for making complex-shaped components having close tolerances.
In the design of intrabody medical devices and accessories, including optical and non-optical devices, the need for components having a complex geometry has become more and more apparent. As an example, there is a need for highly-detailed components, such as endcaps, used with more complicated endoscopes. There is further a need for precisely manufactured catheter components or the like with accurately positioned detents or close-pitched threads. Other medical devices and accessories would be benefited by inexpensive thin-walled components with close tolerance demands.
The present invention provides a method capable of forming complex-shaped medical components in a heated polymeric film to provide thin-walled, durable, low-cost components that may be manufactured to close tolerances, which has been problematic in the prior art. In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the method of forming a thin-walled polymeric component includes the steps of heating a portion of the polymeric film to a malleable temperature, and using a forming tool to form a protrusion in the film's heated portion while the polymeric film is malleable. The formed protrusion has an open proximal end, a distal end spaced apart from the proximal end, and sidewalls extending between the proximal and distal ends. The sidewalls and distal end define a first shape of the protrusion and also define an interior of the protrusion. The forming tool has a shaping portion that may have a selected complex shape that is different than the protrusion's first shape. The method further includes the step of exerting a force radially inwardly on the protrusion and moving the protrusion into firm engagement with the forming tool's shaping portion so the protrusion moves from the first shape to a second shape that closely conforms to the selected shape of the forming tool's shaping portion.
In the exemplary embodiment, the radially inward force exerted on the protrusion is achieved by creating a differential pressure so the pressure within the interior of the protrusion is less than the pressure outside the protrusion, thereby causing the protrusion's sidewalls to move inwardly to the second shape. In one embodiment, the step of exerting a differential pressure on the protrusion is achieved by drawing a partial vacuum inside the protrusion. The partial vacuum may be drawn through the forming tool and through at least one vacuum port in the forming tool.
The present invention is also directed toward a polymeric medical component that may have a selected complex shape that is made by the above-described process.
The present invention is also directed toward a vacuum-forming tool capable of forming the medical component from a malleable polymeric protrusion. The vacuum-forming tool includes a shaft having an air passageway and a forming portion, and the forming portion has a shape corresponding to the selected shape of the medical component. The forming portion has an outer surface and a plurality of apertures extending from the outer surface to the air passageway. The shaft is connectable to a vacuum source so the air passageway communicates with the vacuum source to allow the vacuum source to draw air through the apertures into the air passageway, thereby forming a partial vacuum within the malleable polymeric protrusion during the formation of the medical component.
A thin-walled polymeric medical component 50 having a complex shape made in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention is described herein with reference to the attached drawings. An exemplary embodiment of a thin-walled medical component 50, shown in
The distal end portion 55 of the illustrated insertion tube 56 has a generally C-shaped cross-section and the endcap 51 is formed with a corresponding complex geometrical shape that closely conforms to the insertion tube's distal end portion. More specifically, the C-shaped cross-section of the illustrated endcap 51 is defined by a curved outer axial wall 60 that has a selected radius and a curved inner axial wall 62 that is integrally connected to the outer axial wall 60. The inner axial wall 62 has a radius which is smaller than the radius of the outer axial wall 60. The inner axial wall 62 defines a receiving area 64 that is shaped and sized to receive one or more selected working channels 66, shown in phantom lines, extending through the sheath 54. As an example, the illustrated endoscopic sheath 54 includes a tubular working channel 66 that extends through the sheath and that is sealably connected to the sheath's distal end 52. The tubular working channel 56 snugly fits in the endcap's receiving area 64, while the distal end of the endoscope's insertion tube 56 is snugly received in the endcap 51 between the inner and outer walls. Accordingly, the thin-walled endcap 51 is provided with a complex geometrical shape that receives and retains the insertion tube's distal end therein and retains the working channel 66 adjacent to the distal end while minimizing the cross-sectional area of the sheath and insertion tube combination which is to be inserted into a patient.
While the medical component 50, such as the end cap 51, and the method of making the component is discussed herein with reference to an endoscopic sheath, the method of the present invention is equally applicable to medical components used in procedures for medical devices other than endoscopic procedures. As an example, the medical component 50 in alternate embodiments are complex-shaped components used with catheters, optical medical equipment, and non-optical imaging medical equipment.
The thin-walled polymeric medical component 50 is made by forming a thin polymeric film into the desired shape. The preferred polymeric film used with the present invention is a thermoplastic material including PVC, acrylic, polycarbonate, polyethylene terephthalate, or other thermoplastic polyester material. The polymeric material used by the present invention allows for thin-walled medical components that are substantially inelastic, flexible, and have high strength, and that can be easily, inexpensively, and quickly manufactured. The polymeric film is selected so the medical component 50 has a wall thickness in the range of approximately 0.0005 to 0.015 inches, inclusive, and preferably in the range of approximately 0.0008 to 0.005 inches, inclusive.
In the exemplary embodiment illustrated in
As best seen in
After the film's heated portion 70 is malleable, the forming tool's shaping portion 78 is pressed into the heated portion generally perpendicular to the plane defined by the film 68, and the forming tool stretches the heated portion away from the plane to form a thin-walled, generally funnel-shaped protrusion 80.
The protrusion 80 has an open proximal end 82, a closed distal end 84 spaced away from the open proximal end and sidewalls 86 extending between the proximal and distal ends. The closed distal end 84 and the sidewalls 86 define an interior 88 of the protrusion 80 that contains the forming tool's shaping portion 78 as the protrusion is formed.
As the protrusion 80 is formed, the protrusion has a generally tubular shape that only roughly conforms to the outer shape of the forming tool's shaping portion 78, but the protrusion's sidewalls 86 do not yet closely conform to the complex shape of the forming tool's shaping portion. As an example, the protrusion's sidewalls 86 conform to the shaping portion's outer curved surface but do not conform to the shaping portion's inner curved surface, such that the protrusion has a generally D-shaped cross-section, rather than the C-shaped cross-section of the shaping portion.
While still malleable, the protrusion's sidewalls 86 and the closed distal end 84 are then brought into firm and close engagement with the forming tool's shaping portion 78, as shown in
As best seen in
As best seen in
In an alternate embodiment (not shown), the protrusion 80 is moved to the contracted position by exerting substantially uniform, exterior pressure on the protrusion in a radially inward direction. As an example, the distal portion of the protrusion 80 and the forming tool's shaping portion 78 are positioned, as a unit, within a pneumatic pressure-generating device or other suitable device that exerts the exterior pressure, and the pressure generating device moves the protrusion's sidewalls 86 from the expanded position to the contracted position and into close engagement with the forming tool's shaping portion 78. Accordingly, the radially inward directed forces on the protrusion 80 may be achieved by generating a vacuum in the protrusion's interior or by creating a pressure external to the protrusion. The preferred method, however, is to use the partial vacuum within the protrusion's interior 88 because the partial vacuum does not disturb the temperature profile of the heated polymeric film.
In addition to forming medical components having complex contoured shapes, such as the C-shape cross-sectional shape, the disclosed embodiment of the present invention also allows easy and inexpensive formation of a thin-walled, polymeric medical component 50 having close-pitched, accurately-located threads formed therein. As best seen in
The present invention also allows for easy and inexpensive formation of a thin-walled polymeric medical component 50, as shown in
After the polymeric material is cooled, the forming tool 74 is removed from the protrusion's interior 88 and the selected shaping portion of the protrusion 80 is cut in order to remove the complex-shaped medical component 50 from the rest of the protrusion. In the embodiment wherein a detent or the like is formed in the medical component 50, the forming tool 74 may be removed from the protrusion's interior 88 by slightly deflecting the sidewalls 86 of the protrusion 80 until sufficient clearance is provided between the sidewalls and the forming tool's shaping portion 78. Such deflection is possible because the thin-walled polymeric material is sufficiently flexible to move so as to allow removal of the forming tool without permanent deformation of the medical component 50.
In alternate embodiments, the thin-walled polymeric medical component 50 is formed by stretching or drawing the protrusion 80 in two or more steps, so selected portions of the component have a different thickness than the thickness of other portions of the component. In one embodiment, an endcap with an integral optical lens is formed by pressing a first forming tool 74 into the heated portion 70 to form the protrusion 80, and the differential pressure is applied to the protrusion, as discussed above. The first forming tool 74 is specifically designed to form the lens of the endcap to provide the selected thickness and optical characteristics of the lens.
After the lens is formed, the first forming tool is removed from the protrusion 80. While the protrusion 80 is still malleable, a second forming tool is pressed into the protrusion to further draw or stretch the protrusion's sidewalls 86 to form thinner sidewalls. The second forming tool is designed to support the lens portions so there is substantially no further drawing of the lens while the sidewalls 86 are being drawn. The differential pressure is exerted on the protrusion so the protrusion conforms to the second forming tool, and the second forming tool is then removed. Accordingly the lens maintains its selected thickness, and the sidewalls are thinner than when formed by the first forming tool.
In another one of the alternate embodiments, the protrusion 80 is formed with portions having different thicknesses by heating the film 68 a first time and forming the protrusion with a forming tool as discussed above. The protrusion 80 is then allowed to cool to below the malleable temperature. A selected portion of the protrusion 80, such as the sidewalls 86, is heated a second time to the malleable temperature, and the sidewalls or other selected portion is further stretched or drawn with the same or a different forming tool. Accordingly, the protrusion's selected portion that is reheated and further drawn is thinner while the protrusion's other portions that were not heated a second time are not further thinned by the second drawing process. If further drawing is needed at other specific portions of the protrusion 80, additional steps of heating and drawing can be performed to achieve the specific size, thickness, and characteristics of the component 50.In another alternate embodiment (not shown), the thin-walled polymeric medical component 50 is formed by pressing the forming tool 74 into the polymeric film's heated portion 70, such that the distal end of the forming tool pierces the distal end of the protrusion. In this alternate embodiment, the protrusion's sidewalls are substantially sealably connected to the forming tool's shaping portion 78, so a partial vacuum can still be generated to draw the sidewalls into firm engagement with the shaping portion.
In yet another embodiment (not shown), the complex-shaped medical component 50 is further modified or machined after formation of the component so as to remove or modify a selected portion of the medical component. As an example, polymeric material is removed from a distal end portion of a selected medical component to allow a selected medical device to be positioned partially within the component, while a selected portion of the device extends through the thin-walled polymeric medical component. Accordingly, the thin-walled, polymeric medical component can be formed with a selected complex shape for use with a wide range of medical devices.
From the foregoing it will be appreciated that, although specific embodiments of the invention have been described herein for purposes of illustration, various modifications may be made without deviating from the spirit and scope of the invention. Also, although the various embodiments of the invention have been described as being used to form complex components, it will be understood that relatively simple components may also be formed in accordance with the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not limited except as by the appended claims.
Atty Dkt #
Method for Form-
ents in a Heated
Method for Form-
ents in a Heated
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|U.S. Classification||264/521, 425/388, 264/332, 425/393, 264/296, 264/DIG.78, 264/294, 264/554|
|International Classification||B29C51/08, B29C43/56, A61B1/00, B29C51/36, B29C51/10, B29C43/14, B29C43/02|
|Cooperative Classification||A61B1/0011, Y10T428/13, Y10T428/1334, Y10T428/1352, Y10S600/92, Y10S264/78, B29K2995/0027, B29L2031/753, A61B1/00165, B29C2791/006, B29C51/10, B29C51/08|
|European Classification||B29C51/10, B29C51/08|
|27 May 2008||CC||Certificate of correction|
|3 Feb 2009||CC||Certificate of correction|
|12 Oct 2009||FPAY||Fee payment|
Year of fee payment: 4
|11 Sep 2013||FPAY||Fee payment|
Year of fee payment: 8