US 12,029,519 B2
Articulation capstan tension retainment using clutch mechanism
Austin Michael Fischer, Blue Ash, OH (US); William George Saulenas, Blue Ash, OH (US); and Eric N. Johnson, Maineville, OH (US)
Assigned to Cilag GmbH International, Zug (CH)
Filed by Cilag GmbH International, Zug (CH)
Filed on Feb. 10, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/172,518.
Prior Publication US 2022/0249184 A1, Aug. 11, 2022
Int. Cl. A61B 34/30 (2016.01); A61B 34/00 (2016.01)
CPC A61B 34/71 (2016.02) [A61B 2034/715 (2016.02)] 13 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A surgical tool, comprising:
a drive housing with an elongate shaft extending therefrom and an end effector arranged at a distal end of the elongate shaft;
a drive input rotatably mounted to the drive housing and an input shaft extending from the drive input, the input shaft defining a rotational axis;
upper and lower capstans mounted to the input shaft;
first and second drive cables coupled to the upper and lower capstans, respectively, and extending to the end effector; and
a clutch feature including a plurality of ratchet teeth on at least a first one of the upper and lower capstans, each of the ratchet teeth being radially asymmetrically shaped about the rotational axis and arranged to selectively mate with at least one tooth on a second one of the upper and lower capstans to permit the upper capstan and the lower capstan to rotate with respect to one another in at least one angular direction about the rotational axis, the clutch feature movable between an engaged position, where rotation of the input shaft in either angular direction rotates the upper and lower capstans in the same angular direction, and a disengaged position, where the upper and lower capstans are rotatable independent of each other in the at least one angular direction.