Abstract: An intraluminally implantable stent is formed of helically wound wire. The stent has a generally elongate tubular configuration and is radially expandable after implantation in a body vessel. The wire includes successively formed waves along the length of the wire. When helically wound into a tube, the waves are longitudinally nested along the longitudinal extent of the stent so as to form a densely compacted wire configuration. After radial expansion the stent maintains high radial compressive strength and wire density to retard tissue ingrowth.

Abstract: A medical device for use in the interior of a body lumen includes a balloon catheter and a radially expandable stent. The stent includes a plurality of zig-zags of a low memory metal formed into a hollow, open-ended cylindrical shape. The individual zig-zags have a curved portion forming a reversing bend which allows the zig-zags to expand and deform as the balloon radially expands the stent. The curved portions of the zig-zags are aligned along the length of the stent in a spaced-apart arrangement with some curved portions attached and others unattached to adjacent zig-zags. The resulting stent is longitudinally flexible throughout its length when unexpanded and is also capable of conforming to a bend in the body lumen when expanded.

Abstract: An intraluminally implantable stent is formed of helically wound wire. The stent has a generally elongate tubular configuration and is radially expandable after implantation in a body vessel. The wire includes successively formed waves along the length of the wire. When helically wound into a tube, the waves are longitudinally nested along the longitudinal extent of the stent so as to form a densely compacted wire configuration. After radial expansion the stent maintains high radial compressive strength and wire density to retard tissue ingrowth.

Abstract: A medical device for use in the interior of a body lumen includes a balloon catheter and a radially expandable stent. The stent includes a plurality of zig-zags of a low memory metal formed into a hollow, open-ended cylindrical shape. The individual zig-zags have a curved portion forming a reversing bend which allows the zig-zags to expand and deform as the balloon radially expands the stent. The curved portions of the zig-zags are aligned along the length of the stent in a spaced-apart arrangement with some curved portions attached and others unattached to adjacent zig-zags. The resulting stent is longitudinally flexible throughout its length when unexpanded and is also capable of conforming to a bend in the body lumen when expanded.

Abstract: An intraluminally implantable stent is formed of helically wound wire. The stent has a generally elongate tubular configuration and is radially expandable after implantation in a body vessel. The wire includes successively formed waves along the length of the wire. When helically wound into a tube, the waves are longitudinally nested along the longitudinal extent of the stent so as to form a densely compacted wire configuration. After radial expansion the stent maintains high radial compressive strength and wire density to retard tissue ingrowth.

Abstract: An intraluminally implantable stent is formed of helically wound wire. The stent has a generally elongate tubular configuration and is radially expandable after implantation in a body vessel. The wire includes successively formed waves along the length of the wire. When helically wound into a tube, the waves are longitudinally nested along the longitudinal extent of the stent so as to form a densely compacted wire configuration. After radial expansion the stent maintains high radial compressive strength and wire density to retard tissue ingrowth.

Abstract: A stent for implantation in a body vessel in which a cylindrical stent body coiled from a generally continuous wire with a zig-zag structure is provide with attachment of the wire ends to an adjacent coil.

Abstract: An intraluminally implantable stent is formed of helically wound wire. The stent has a generally elongate tubular configuration and is radially expandable after implantation in a body vessel. The wire includes successively formed waves along the length of the wire. When helically wound into a tube, the waves are longitudinally nested along the longitudinal extent of the stent so as to form a densely compacted wire configuration. After radial expansion the stent maintains high radial compressive strength and wire density to retard tissue ingrowth.

Abstract: A stent for providing support to a body lumen comprises a wire wound in a continuous winding into a generally cylindrical shape with the cylindrical shape terminating at one end in a closed loop of the wire and a line of elongated flexible material extending through the closed loop and looped back on itself at the closed loop such that the line is secured to the winding at the closed loop and is freely slideable through the closed loop. If necessary, this stent can be readily removed from the body lumen after implantation or left in the body lumen as a permanent implant.

Abstract: A medical device for use in the interior of a body lumen including a catheter and a radially expandable stent mounted on the catheter. The radially expandable stent is in the form of a hollow cylinder defined by a sequence of spaced apart wire elements with each of the wire elements extending 360 degrees around the cylinder and the wire elements having extendible, sinusoidal zig-zags lying flat with respect to the cylinder. The zig-zags are shaped in a generally longitudinal direction along the cylinder at one point and then reverse their direction so that the zig-zags may open as the wire element is expanded. The adjacent wire elements are flexibly connected together in an end-to-end fashion by helical winding.

Abstract: An intraluminally implantable stent is formed of helically wound wire. The stent has a generally elongate tubular configuration and is radially expandable after implantation in a body vessel. The wire includes successively formed waves along the length of the wire. When helically wound into a tube, the waves are longitudinally nested along the longitudinal extent of the stent so as to form a densely compacted wire configuration. After radial expansion the stent maintains high radial compressive strength and wire density to retard tissue ingrowth.

Abstract: An electrical switch contact arrangement having a spring which snaps the movable arcing contact away from the stationary arcing contact at a high rate of speed to open the arcing contacts, but only after the movable main contact has moved through a considerable portion, for example, at least about 50%, of its opening movement away from the stationary main contact. The spring is tensioned as the main contacts open. At an intermediate point during the opening movement of the movable main contact, the moveable main contact positively initiates opening movement of the arcing contacts whereupon the spring snaps the arcing contacts open at a high rate of speed independent of the opening speed of the main contacts.

Abstract: A stent for implantation into a body vessel in which a cylindrical stent body coiled from a generally continuous wire with a deformable zig-zag structure is provided with means for preventing the stent body from stretching along its longitudinal axis. This stent is especially useful when implanting very long stents by means of balloon expansion.

Abstract: A manual operator for opening and closing an electrical switch, including a switch-driving element, a relatively rotatable handle element, and a resilient transmission, e.g., a leaf spring or springs, extending between the two elements. An abutment is fixed to one of the elements and a follower is fixed to the other, the abutment engaging the follower only after the resilient transmission has been tensioned by rotation of the handle element. When the driving element engages a portion of the switch mechanism, initial rotation of the handle causes the resilient transmission to be tensioned and the abutment to engage the follower. Further rotation of the handle is transmitted through the abutment and follower to the driving element to initiate the movement of the switch mechanism, following which the tensioned resilient transmission instantly shifts the switch mechanism through the remainder of its movement to snap the switch open or closed.

Abstract: A device to be used as a vascular stent comprising a cylindrical open-ended wire component made of a low memory metal such as copper alloy, titanium, or gold, providing a radial support from within a blood vessel after implantation therein. The coronary stent is characterized by its ability to be expanded radially to a larger diameter after initial implantation and means for causing said stent to expand to a larger diameter and a method for transporting, positioning and implantation of such coronary stent transluminally to have said stent act as a permanent prosthesis to assure vascular patency. And method for simultaneous angipolasty and stent implant procedure.

Abstract: A device to be used as a vascular stent comprising a cylindrical open-ended wire component made of a low memory metal such as copper alloy, titanium, or gold, providing a radial support from within a blood vessel after implantation therein. The coronary stent is characterized by its ability to be expanded radially to a larger diameter after initial implantation and means for causing said stent to expand to a larger diameter and a method for transporting, positioning and implantation of such coronary stent transluminarely to have said stent act as a permanent prosthesis to assure vascular patency. And method for simultaneous angioplasty and stent implant procedure.

Abstract: A catheter arrangement including a main tubing containing a radially expandable liner and a member for moving the liner out of the tubing while the tubing is in a blood vessel. Once out of the tubing, the liner expands radially outwardly into engagement with the blood vessel wall. The liner is a tube of woven plastic strands, and the moving member may be a secondary tube within the main tubing. The tubing or liner, or both, may carry a metal element for use as an X-ray marker. A smooth plastic nose cone is carried by the distal end of the main tubing, the nose cone being openable to permit ejection of the liner from the tubing.

Abstract: A catheter arrangement including an inflatable variable diameter element and a linearly expandable spring-like liner retained in a compressed state behind the inflatable element and means to change the diameter of the inflatable element. The expandable liner is transported to desired location in its compressed state and is released and allowed to expand after a successful P.T.A.P. operation when the balloon is deflated and evacuated creating a diameter of the balloon which is smaller than that of the expandable liner. The catheter is then allowed to be removed and withdrawn leaving the liner deployed and implanted within the blood vessel.

Abstract: An electrical switching device having an actuator reciprocable between two extreme positions, the switch being open and closed, respectively, when the actuator is in its two extreme positions. An electrical operator, such as a solenoid having a movable armature, responds to successive momentary energizations by moving the actuator first to one extreme position and then the other. The actuator is mechanically held in each extreme position by a spring-biased element which also serves to transmit movement of the actuator to the switch contacts. The actuator may have a cam surface shaped to cause opening and closing of the switch contacts, the cam surface also cooperating with the spring-biased element for urging the actuator toward each of its extreme positions. The switching device may be used for interrupting electric power to a customer of a utility by being located between a watt-hour meter and the customer's load, or in other similar applications.

Abstract: A switch for interrupting electric power to the customer of a utility, the switch including two female contacts for accepting the male plug-in contacts of a watt-hour meter, and two male contacts for insertion into the female contacts which ordinarily receive the male contacts of the meter. A switch is located between one of each female contact and its corresponding male contact, and an operator, such as a solenoid, opens the switch(es) in response to a signal, so as to disconnect the customer's load from the utility source. A latch holds the switch(es) open until another signal causes a second operator, such as a solenoid, to deactivate the latch and permit the switch(es) to reclose. An auxiliary switch in the circuits for energizing the two solenoids deenergizes the first solenoid when the switch(es) are latched open, and deenergizes the second solenoid when the switch(es) become unlatched and move toward their closed condition.