Abstract: A surgical file instrument including a surgical file assembly having an elongated tubular member with a guide/shield supporting the blade of the surgical file and being formed on the distal end thereof, the guide/shield portion being generally planar shaped and having an elongated longitudinally extending dimple defining a rail for guiding said blade and keeping it central and preventing wobbling. The side edges of said guide/shield extend upwardly and bear against the underside of the blade for supporting the same.

Abstract: A surgical file instrument comprising a file, file guide, an outer split casing, a motion converter converting rotary motion to reciprocal motion and file assembly. The file assembly consists of an angular shaped elongated tube fairing into a generally flat portion defining the guide for the blade of the file, a complementary shaped file and a plastic rod insert having a lumen for the file and a lumen defining a passage for flowing a fluid to the surgical site. The motion converter consists of a planetary gear system connected to the battery powered motor that rotates a platen which in turn drives a cam and cam follower fitted into the cam slot for driving a drum for producing rectilinear motion. The file assembly is attached to the drum for reciprocating the file blade for use in a medical procedure for removing bone or a portion thereof.

Abstract: A suture tensioning apparatus for tightening the suture used to tie a tissue of a patient to the bone of the patient so that the tissue will cinch to the bone. A lever is mounted on a stub shaft that is supported to a base member and is movable in a lateral position. A pair of spaced spools are mounted on the lever and the reach of the suture is wrapped around each of the spools. Means, including a coil spring wrapped around the stub shaft is connected to the lever and a rotatable dome. The movement of the lever causes the lower portion of the coils to unwrap around the stub shaft, and rotation of the dome causes the upper portion of the coils to unwrap whereby the movement of the coil spring forces the lever to return to its original position. The tensioning apparatus can be incorporated into an existing suture gun or can be made integral therewith.

Abstract: A filtration system for collecting bone fragments during surgery performed on a patient includes a cylinder having a rotating disk with circumferential arms extending radially in the cylinder to define pockets. The rotating disk includes a longitudinal hub that carries an outlet connected to a central passageway formed in the disk. A plurality of apertures on the disk permit the liquid to flow into the passageway and through the outlet while the pockets retain the bone fragments. The disk is rotated to align circumferential spaced pockets to align with the inlet and outlet ports. The disks includes bearing surfaces that permit the rotation thereof and the arms are spaced from the cylinder inner surface to allow the flow of fluid in the event the pockets fill and clog the apertures and prevent flow into the outlet passage.

Abstract: A modular constructed surgical motor with an outer cylindrical case used as the handle, and a spaced inner motor case resiliently mounted thereto forms an air gap for reducing vibrations and heat, a separate module houses the chuck, a ball coupling made from an elastomeric material transmits rotary motion, undercuts in the spindle adjacent the vanes and in the peripheral edge enhance power, the inlet opening to the vanes are positioned to increase the volume of inlet air, the inner surface of the cylinder is contoured to define a crescent seal, the inlet and outlet to the spindle are positioned in the cylinder to increase the power stroke, the discharge holes in the cylinder are oriented for uniform contact surface, the flow passages in the cylinder cool the cylinder and bearing, and one seal cured in situ and another seal adjacent the bearing prevent leakage of oil into ambient and the surgical tool.

Abstract: A needle bearing is designed for a high speed drill or MDA surgical instruments that include alternate rollers made from metallic and plastic or synthetic material mounted in the bore of the housing of the drill or MDA and the shaft being supported by the needle bearing. The inner race, outer race and/or cage may be eliminated from the assembly.

Abstract: The rotary motion created by a motor is transmitted from the drive shaft of the motor to the driven shaft through a pair of diametrically opposed balls fitted into a coupling mechanism attached to the drive shaft and through a pin fitted into holes formed in the opposed balls and through the driven shaft disposed between the opposed balls for eliminating vibration and noise. The thrust loads imposed in the structure supporting the motor is directed to bypass the motor through a bearing supporting the driven shaft through its housing and into the outer housing surrounding the motor. The motor is encased in a cartridge disposed in a central cavity of the outer housing and the cartridge is not rigidly attached to the outer housing so that the thrust loads bypass the motor.

Abstract: A surgical pneumatic motor is designed to be used with or without an MRI machine without affecting or influencing the magnetic characteristic of the MRI machine. The motor includes an improved vane motor with undercuts in the spindle to increase the power faces of the vanes and spindle itself, the holes in the cylinder are modified to increase the sealing area between the spindle. The inlet cylindrical holes and the cylinder holes and grooves are arranged to enhance the life . Wear of the edge of the vanes is decreased by the judicious location of the discharge holes. The bearings are cooled by bypassing a portion of cylinder air before re-entering the air. The noise is attenuated by a cris-cross plug in the hose the temperature of the handle is reduced by a serrated sleeve. Slipping discs in the seal serves to enhance seal life.

Abstract: A seal for an attachment to a surgical motor is provided by cutting threads into the inner surface of the nose cone of the attachment whereby the helical wound threads are in a direction opposite to the direction of the rotating shaft of the instrument being supported by the attachment. The motor can likewise by configured to define a seal where an attachment is not being utilized.

Abstract: A cris-cross pattern of flow channels serves to divide the flow of fluid and then cross the flow to cause an impact between the flow in each channel to impact against each other to reduce the decibels and noise level created by the flowing of the fluid. In a pneumatic surgical drill the spent air used to power the vane motor is diverted so that the flow of is divided in separate flow paths that cross to allow the air that flows from one of the divided channels impinges on the air flowing from the other of the divided channels. In one embodiment the divided channels or flow passageways is formed in the end cap of the housing of a pneumatic surgical drill and in another embodiment the flow diverter with the divided passageways or channels is formed in a plug the fits into the coaxial hose that connects to the housing of the pneumatic surgical drill.

Abstract: A cylinder to a vane motor is designed to include cylindrically shaped inlet and outlet holes, an axial passage that includes a blocked upstream portion that bypasses the upstream inlet holes, spaced circumferentially slots for leading a portion of the pressurized air into the inlet holes, discharging the portion of pressurized air from the axial passage into an annular cavity to bathe the bearing in the cooler pressurized air, and recirculating the portion of pressurized air through another axial passageway to flow into all of the inlet holes. The discharge holes are judiciously oriented in a particular pattern to assure that the edge of the vanes wear uniformly. The inlet holes are spaced from the pinch point of the spindle to cylinder to permit an increased volume of pressurized air to enter the vane motor and the outlet holes are spaced to maximize the power stroke of the vane motor.

Abstract: The spindle of a vane motor is designed to enhance the power, speed and torque by undercutting the spindle adjacent to the vanes on the power stroke side to increase the working area of the vanes and by adding slots intermediate the vane formed in said spindle and each slot has a working face for accepting pressurized air during the power stroke. The slots are located out of coincidence with the rotating axis of the spindle and the vanes include a contoured bottom edge fitted into the slots so as to enhance its ability to be retracted in opposition to centrifugal force created by the rotating cylinder.

Abstract: A seal for a rotating machine is designed to be operable when set and cured in situ and one seal arrangement includes a washer having a beveled face and a nut having a beveled face axially spaced therefrom and mounted in a housing, the one seal arrangement is mounted between the bevel faces and assembled to be angularly disposed relative to the rotating shaft. The bottom edge defines a lip that defines a minuscule opening allowing only the air from an air/oil mist to leak downstream thereof. Another seal arrangement also set and cured in situ, is mounted adjacent the rotating inner race of a ball bearing so that the reaction from the seals static relationship and the rotating inner race causes the oil of the oil mist to be slung in a direction complementing the centrifugal force while the air flows axially. When the two seals are mounted in tandem the oil does not leak pass the angularly disposed seal.

Abstract: For suture tying in a medical procedure including the use of an anchor that includes a suture locking device that includes a sliding pin guided by axial side slots formed in the locking device that forces the suture where the two ends thereof are inserted into the interior of the suture locking mechanism to drive the captured suture and pin to fit into a recess on the top of the suture locking mechanism such that the top of the pin binds the suture against the upper inner surface of the recess. The recess can be serrated to enhance the locking capability and the pin is polygonal shaped to provide side surfaces that run parallel to the wall of the recess to assure that the side portion of the pin does not fracture the suture and cause it to weaken. The locking of the suture is automatic upon the deployment of the anchor which actuates the pin into the locking position, thus eliminating the necessity of manually knotting the suture and improving the cinching of the tissue to the bone.

Abstract: A vane motor is modified to increase the sealing effectiveness of the gap made at the interface of the spindle and cylinder by undercutting the cylinder a predetermined amount and distance so as to increase the effectiveness of the spindle to cylinder gap and to decrease the requirements for lubrication of the vane motor.

Abstract: A hand-held directional irrigation tube and a suction tube surgical instrument includes a finger or thumb operated aperture on the suction tube communicating with the lumen thereof that serves to selectively by-pass and connect the suction pump with the surgical site and the irrigation tube being removably supported in a sleeve attached to the suction tube that includes a gear-like member having circumferentially spaced valleys or slots attached to the sleeve cooperating with a projection attached to the irrigation tube so that the surgeon can slide the irrigation tube to disengage the projection and rotate it and re-insert it into another slot in the gear-like member to re-direct the spray of irrigation fluid egressing from the irrigation tube to different locations in the surgical site.

Abstract: A ball bearing construction including a plurality of balls supported in a cage and each ball within a row is off-set relative to each other. In certain applications the rolling surface of the balls bear against the rotating shaft and the case enclosing the bearing. The number of balls and the number of rows are predicated on the particular application. This invention is particularly efficacious for use for medical instruments. In other embodiments an inner race and/or outer race can be utilized with this configured balls and cage.

Abstract: A journal bearing for a high speed surgical drill and/or attachment for rotatably supporting a cutter is made from a polymer of polyimide resin and graphite material and is designed to have a polygon configured bore where there are two point contact of the mating surfaces of the bore walls and cutter's shaft and preferably the bore is square shaped in cross section. This bearing results in a decrease in the envelope size of the support tube and hence, the overall diameter of the surgical instrument at the distal end enhances the line of vision of the cutter to the surgeon when the surgeon is performing surgical procedures. The entrance ends of the intermediate bearings are countersunk to define a ramp to ease the egress of the tool bit shaft for entering the tube of the drill motor or drill attachment during the assembly thereof.

Abstract: A high speed surgical instrument is designed with a clutch that automatically locks a cutter which is easily assembled and disassembled without moving parts. The clutch includes a pin and U-shaped pin that compliments a configured groove section at the proximal end of a cutter that fits into a clutch mechanism in the drill or attachment. The cutter includes axially spaced and opposed grooves judiciously located and a flat end portion that allows easy ingress and egress for locking into the clutch mechanism. A square or multi-sided bore configuration of a journal type bearing made from a high temperature resistance polymer material allows the drill to operate at high speeds with a reduction in the diameter of the distal end of the cutter support.

Abstract: A surgical instrument has a housing which contains a motor that drives a spindle. A tool bit is attached to the motor by a holder that includes a body with a first end portion connected to the spindle, a central portion with a cavity therein, and a second end portion having an aperture through which a shaft of the tool bit passes into the cavity. A pair of lock pawls are pivotally mounted in the cavity with each one having a first tab that enters a slot in the shaft when the lock pawls are in a first position to hold the tool bit in the instrument. The first tabs retract from the slot when the lock pawls are in a second position for changing the tool bit. The lock pawls have second tabs that engage a restrainer only in the second position to prevent the body from rotating. A ring extends around the body and pivots the lock pawls between the first and second positions when the ring moved longitudinally along the body.