Patents by Inventor Gary B. Weller

Gary B. Weller has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Surgical instruments for stabilizing the beating heart during coronary artery bypass graft surgery
    Patent number: 6036641
    Abstract: This invention is methods and devices for stabilizing the beating heart during a surgical procedure on the heart. Pursuant to the invention, a stabilizing device is introduced through an opening in the chest and brought into contact with the beating heart. By contacting the heart with the device and by exerting a stabilizing force on the device, the motion of the heart caused by the contraction of the heart muscles is effectively eliminated such that the heart is stabilized and the site of the surgery moves only minimally if at all. Typically, in separate steps, the surgeon contacts the heart with the stabilizing device, assesses the degree of movement of the anastomosis site, and exerts a force on the stabilizing device such that the contraction of the beating heart causes only minimal excess motion at the surgery site.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 1997
    Date of Patent: March 14, 2000
    Assignee: Cardiothoracic System, Inc.
    Inventors: Charles S. Taylor, Dwight P. Morejohn, Benjamin Sherman, Gary B. Weller, William Friederich Witt, Caralin R. Adair