US 12,144,533 B2
Electrosurgical apparatus and method
Kamaljit Singh Chana, Oxford (GB); Parvinderpal Singh Sains, Thames Ditton (GB); Vikram Sridhar, Oxford (GB); and Richard T. Bryan, Birmingham (GB)
Assigned to OXFORD UNIVERSITY INNOVATION LIMITED, Oxford (GB)
Appl. No. 17/281,288
Filed by Oxford University Innovation Limited, Oxford (GB)
PCT Filed Oct. 2, 2019, PCT No. PCT/GB2019/052776
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Mar. 30, 2021,
PCT Pub. No. WO2020/070491, PCT Pub. Date Apr. 9, 2020.
Claims priority of application No. 1816140 (GB), filed on Oct. 3, 2018.
Prior Publication US 2022/0000535 A1, Jan. 6, 2022
Int. Cl. A61B 18/12 (2006.01); A61B 18/00 (2006.01); A61B 18/08 (2006.01); A61B 18/10 (2006.01); A61B 18/14 (2006.01)
CPC A61B 18/1206 (2013.01) [A61B 18/082 (2013.01); A61B 18/10 (2013.01); A61B 18/14 (2013.01); A61B 2018/00488 (2013.01); A61B 2018/00494 (2013.01); A61B 2018/00517 (2013.01); A61B 2018/00601 (2013.01); A61B 2018/00875 (2013.01); A61B 2018/1407 (2013.01)] 21 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An electrosurgical apparatus, comprising:
an electrosurgical element; and
a control system configured to:
electrically drive the electrosurgical element in a first electrical driving mode, the first electrical driving mode being such as to cause heating of human or animal tissue by the electrosurgical element when the apparatus is used in a surgical operation, the heating contributing to modification or cutting of tissue by the electrosurgical element;
electrically drive the electrosurgical element in a second electrical driving mode; and
measure an electrical response of the electrosurgical element during the electrical driving of the electrosurgical element in the second electrical driving mode, wherein the control system is further configured to use the measured electrical response to determine compositional information about material that is or was in thermal contact with the electrosurgical element during the driving of the electrosurgical element in the second electrical driving mode, wherein:
the electrical driving of the electrosurgical element in the second driving mode is such as to generate heating predominantly by resistive heating within a resistive element of the electrosurgical element and the measuring of the electrical response of the electrosurgical element during the electrical driving of the electrosurgical element in the second electrical driving mode comprises measuring an electrical response of the resistive element to the heating generated within the resistive element.