Abstract: An actively bendable sheath such as ureteral access sheath (UAS) and a method for delivering a medical instrument (e.g. a ureteroscope) therethrough are disclosed. The sheath's tubular wall includes a deflectable or bendable segment at or adjacent to the distal sheath end. Two pull/control wires are slidably disposed within two separate dedicated channels/lumens and attached to points distally beyond the deflectable segment. The bendable segment may be passively bended by force from a bending medical instrument within it or by the force of a surgeon pulling one of the two pull/control wires.

Abstract: The present invention discloses a flexible digital ureteroscope that is at least partially disposable. The ureteroscope comprises a single-use catheter and a handle. The catheter comprises a distal end, a bend portion, and a proximal portion. The distal end has a rigid or semi-rigid shell that houses a set of micro lenses, an image sensor microchip, and a plurality of LED light sources. A working channel extends along the entire catheter and is coupled to a working channel port on the handle to receive various medical devices and irrigation lines during an endoscopic procedure. In addition, the catheter includes one or more steering wires to control the distal end to bend towards a desired direction. The rigid or semi-rigid shell of the distal end is made of a mix of polymer composite material with graphene nano-filler for enhancing thermal dissipation. The handle may be a single-use handle or a reusable handle.

Abstract: This present invention proposes new methods of designing single-use endoscopes with built-in optical fibers and operating fixtures. As compared to conventional endoscopes, a separate lumen is reserved for integrating a laser fiber along the insertion tube of the proposed endoscope, and an optical fiber placement device (OFPD) is correspondingly added in the endoscope handle for controlling the movement of the laser fiber. By sliding the slider or dialing the wheel of OFPD, a surgeon can conveniently control movement of the laser fiber. By pressing a retractable control stick in the OFPD, the surgeon can either push the laser fiber out from the endoscope's distal-end or pull back the laser fiber, further unlocking or locking the power switch of the laser fiber to avoid mis-operations. All these above operations can be performed by the surgeon's one-hand, including the routine deflections and rotations of the endoscope. Four implementations of the OFPD are introduced in this invention.

Abstract: The present invention proposes a method of transforming a traditional, single-use medical tube to a novel one with add-on endoscopic capabilities. A tiny, transparent shell is added at the distal end of the medical tube for containing lighting sources inside, and the lighting source can be any small-size LED, OLED, or ?LED device. Moreover, the tube has one additional lumen for installing power wires of the lighting sources, and another isolated lumen for inserting a flexible endoscope (video/image camera system) to observe targets inside human body. For minimizing outer diameter and cost, this endoscope does not include any built-in lighting source. While in use, the endoscope is first inserted into the medical tube through its specific lumen, and the lighting source at the tip is on. Secondly, the whole medical tube is safely inserted into human body for diagnosis or treatment with the help of endoscopic videos.

Abstract: This present invention proposes new methods of designing single-use endoscopes with built-in optical fibers and operating fixtures. As compared to conventional endoscopes, a separate lumen is reserved for integrating a laser fiber along the insertion tube of the proposed endoscope, and an optical fiber placement device (OFPD) is correspondingly added in the endoscope handle for controlling the movement of the laser fiber. By sliding the slider or dialing the wheel of OFPD, a surgeon can conveniently control movement of the laser fiber. By pressing a retractable control stick in the OFPD, the surgeon can either push the laser fiber out from the endoscope's distal-end or pull back the laser fiber, further unlocking or locking the power switch of the laser fiber to avoid mis-operations. All these above operations can be performed by the surgeon's one-hand, including the routine deflections and rotations of the endoscope. Four implementations of the OFPD are introduced in this invention.

Abstract: The present invention discloses a flexible digital ureteroscope that is at least partially disposable. The ureteroscope comprises a single-use catheter and a handle. The catheter comprises a distal end, a bend portion, and a proximal portion. The distal end has a rigid or semi-rigid shell that houses a set of micro lenses, an image sensor microchip, and a plurality of LED light sources. A working channel extends along the entire catheter and is coupled to a working channel port on the handle to receive various medical devices and irrigation lines during an endoscopic procedure. In addition, the catheter includes one or more steering wires to control the distal end to bend towards a desired direction. The rigid or semi-rigid shell of the distal end is made of a mix of polymer composite material with graphene nano-filler for enhancing thermal dissipation. The handle may be a single-use handle or a reusable handle.

Abstract: The present invention provides an optoelectronic module and an imaging apparatus such as an endoscope comprising such module. The optoelectronic module includes a housing and an image sensor. The image sensor's face has a perimeter S, the cross section of the optoelectronic module along the face has a perimeter H, and S<H<1.6S. In an example, illumination components such as a flashing LED and the image sensor are confined within the minimum bounding circle of the sensor's face. The invention exhibits technical advantage in minimizing the size of the insert portion of the endoscopy.

Abstract: The present invention provides an optoelectronic module and an imaging apparatus such as an endoscope comprising such module. The optoelectronic module includes a housing and an image sensor. The image sensor's face has a perimeter S, the cross section of the optoelectronic module along the face has a perimeter H, and S<H<1.6S. In an example, illumination components such as a flashing LED and the image sensor are confined within the minimum bounding circle of the sensor's face. The invention exhibits technical advantage in minimizing the size of the insert portion of the endoscopy.

Abstract: The present invention is about an endoscope ideal for a single use. The endoscope is able to enter human's body capturing real-time endourologic imaging, bending the distal end, and allowing the entrance of surgical tools. The distal end carries imaging sensor(s) and MicroLED/OLED/infrared LED/Laser LED/Laser diode/LED lighting source(s). The lever on the handle is able to control the distal end for bending up to 275 degrees in two directions, for rotating the distal end up to 360 degrees, and for adjusting an image sensor's orientation.

Abstract: A computer implemented method for determining a timing variation for an edge of a waveform under simultaneous switching noise (SSN) conditions is provided. The method includes characterizing an impact of mutual inductive relationships on a pin while the pin is at a quiet state and characterizing a signal edge applied to the pin. The signal edge can be characterized by the slew rate in one embodiment. A voltage change related to a curve characterizing the impact of mutual inductive relationships is identified and the voltage change is applied to a curve characterizing an impact of SSN on the signal edge. The method includes calculating a timing variation correlated to the voltage change applied to the curve characterizing the impact of SSN on the signal edge and presenting the calculated timing variation.

Abstract: A computer implemented method for determining a timing variation for an edge of a waveform under simultaneous switching noise (SSN) conditions is provided. The method includes characterizing an impact of mutual inductive relationships on a pin while the pin is at a quiet state and characterizing a signal edge applied to the pin. The signal edge can be characterized by the slew rate in one embodiment. A voltage change related to a curve characterizing the impact of mutual inductive relationships is identified and the voltage change is applied to a curve characterizing an impact of SSN on the signal edge. The method includes calculating a timing variation correlated to the voltage change applied to the curve characterizing the impact of SSN on the signal edge and presenting the calculated timing variation.

Abstract: In an example embodiment, the system obtains the mutual inductance (e.g., Mij) between a quiet I/O buffer and each switching I/O buffer on a PLD from an automatic SSN measurement system. The system calculates the corrected mutual inductance between the quiet I/O buffer and each switching I/O buffer by multiplying the mutual inductance by a correction factor (e.g., ?j). The system multiplies each corrected mutual inductance by the rate of current flowing through the switching I/O buffer to obtain an induced voltage resulting from the switching I/O buffer. The system sums the induced voltages for all the switching I/O buffers on the PLD to obtain an estimate of total induced voltage caused in the quiet I/O buffer by all switching I/O buffers. The correction factor is based on bench measurements and depends on the amplitude of the simultaneous switching noise affecting each switching I/O buffer.

Abstract: In an example embodiment, the system obtains the mutual inductance (e.g., Mij) between a quiet I/O buffer and each switching I/O buffer on a PLD from an automatic SSN measurement system. The system calculates the corrected mutual inductance between the quiet I/O buffer and each switching I/O buffer by multiplying the mutual inductance by a correction factor (e.g., ?j). The system multiplies each corrected mutual inductance by the rate of current flowing through the switching I/O buffer to obtain an induced voltage resulting from the switching I/O buffer. The system sums the induced voltages for all the switching I/O buffers on the PLD to obtain an estimate of total induced voltage caused in the quiet I/O buffer by all switching I/O buffers. The correction factor is based on bench measurements and depends on the amplitude of the simultaneous switching noise affecting each switching I/O buffer.

Abstract: In an example embodiment, the system obtains the mutual inductance (e.g., Mij) between a quiet I/O buffer and each switching I/O buffer on a PLD from an automatic SSN measurement system. The system calculates the corrected mutual inductance between the quiet I/O buffer and each switching I/O buffer by multiplying the mutual inductance by a correction factor (e.g., ?j). The system multiplies each corrected mutual inductance by the rate of current flowing through the switching I/O buffer to obtain an induced voltage resulting from the switching I/O buffer. The system sums the induced voltages for all the switching I/O buffers on the PLD to obtain an estimate of total induced voltage caused in the quiet I/O buffer by all switching I/O buffers. The correction factor is based on bench measurements and depends on the amplitude of the simultaneous switching noise affecting each switching I/O buffer.

Abstract: A method for predicting a predetermined bit error rate for an actual data transmission from a transmitter to a target receiver over an actual backplane link is disclosed. The method involves defining a simulated backplane corresponding to an actual backplane link intended to be used for data transmission between a transmitter and a target receiver. Once the simulated backplane is defined, a data transmission from the transmitter to the receiver is simulated and captured across the simulated backplane. A waveform simulation of the data transmission over the simulated backplane is then generated. The waveform simulation takes into account characteristics of the simulated backplane and the target receiver. From the waveform simulation, a total jitter for a predetermined bit error rate for the data transmission is extrapolated.

Abstract: A method for optimizing pin selection for an integrated circuit is provided. Pin locations are mapped to a vector. The mutual inductive relationships between pins of the integrated circuit are captured into a matrix. The matrix contains the data of how a signal state of each pin is affected by the toggling of other pins within the I/O bank. The pin locations and the crosstalk matrix are combined to characterize the impact of the crosstalk on the pins for the pin placement. Thereafter, a user may decide to alter the pin placement or alter the sampling interval for the pin to avoid sampling the pin when the crosstalk may affect the signal integrity. The method may be applied for multiple simultaneous switching noise cause mechanisms impacting the signal integrity. In this embodiment, a worst case cause mechanism from the individually quantified cause mechanisms is determined by comparing an impact of each of the cause mechanisms.