SURGICAL INSTRUMENT WITH PRESURE SENSING AND VISION FEEDBACK FUNCTIONS

Abstract

A surgical instrument with pressure sensing and vision feedback functions has an instrument body and a piezochromic device. The instrument body includes a work piece with a visible surface. The piezochromic device is disposed on the visible surface of the work piece of the instrument body and performs color change when the piezochromic device senses pressure. Therefore, when a doctor performs surgery using the surgical instrument, the doctor can directly see the piezochromic device. When the piezochromic device contacts other surgical instruments or presses organs or tissues within a patient's body, the piezochromic device will change color when the piezochromic device senses the pressure enabling the doctor to adjust the surgical instrument accordingly.

Claims

1. A surgical instrument with pressure sensing and vision feedback functions, comprising: an instrument body including a work piece with a visible surface; and a piezochromic device disposed on the visible surface of the work piece of the instrument body, wherein the piezochromic device performs a color change when the piezochromic device senses pressure.

2. The surgical instrument with pressure sensing and vision feedback functions of claim 1, wherein the piezochromic device is structured as one piece.

3. The surgical instrument with pressure sensing and vision feedback functions of claim 1, wherein the piezochromic device includes hollowed-out patterns.

4. The surgical instrument with pressure sensing and vision feedback functions of claim 3, wherein the piezochromic device includes a plurality of hollows.

5. The surgical instrument with pressure sensing and vision feedback functions of claim 4, wherein the plurality of hollows are different shapes.

6. The surgical instrument with pressure sensing and vision feedback functions of claim 4, wherein the plurality of hollows are aligned.

7. The surgical instrument with pressure sensing and vision feedback functions of claim 5, wherein the plurality of hollows are aligned.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] FIG. 1 is a plan view of a surgical instrument in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0011] FIG. 2 is a plan view of a piezochromic device in the embodiment of the present invention; and

[0012] FIG. 3 is a plan view of the piezochromic device in another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0013] With reference to FIG. 1, a surgical instrument with pressure sensing and vision feedback functions in the present invention includes an instrument body 10 and a piezochromic device 20. It should be noted that the surgical instrument of the present invention is not limited to be a handheld surgical instrument and can also be a surgical instrument for minimally invasive surgery equipment.

[0014] The instrument body 10 includes a handle 11 and a work piece 12. The handle 11 can be a handheld component such that medical staffs can hold the handle 11. In another embodiment, the handle 11 can be a connecting portion such that a robotic arm of the minimally invasive surgical equipment can be connected to the handle 11. The work piece 12 is a portion that can enter a patient's body when the instrument body 10 is used during a surgery. The work piece 12 includes a visible surface 121 and the visible surface 121 is a surface where the doctor can directly see during the surgery. For example, the instrument body 10 can be a scalpel, surgical scissors, blood vessel pliers, forceps, a needle holder, tissue forceps, a towel clamp, a right-angle clamp, an intestinal clamp, a stomach clamp, a towing hook, a suction, etc, but it is not limited herein. The instrument body 10 shown in FIG. 1 is a handheld clamp as an example, and the work piece 12 includes a clamp surface 122 for gripping objects and the visible surface 121 is another surface opposite to the clamp surface 122.

[0015] The piezochromic device 20 is mounted on the visible surface 121 of the work piece 12 of the instrument body 10. With reference to FIG. 2, the piezochromic device 20 can be a one-piece structure. When the piezochromic device 20 doesn't sense pressure, a first color is shown. When the piezochromic device 20 senses pressure, a pressed portion of the piezochromic device 20 shows a second color, which is different from the first color. When the pressure is removed from the piezochromic device 20, the piezochromic device 20 doesn't sense pressure and shows the first color. Therefore, the piezochromic device 20 senses the pressure to perform color change.

[0016] In addition, the piezochromic device 20 can be a hollow pattern structure, including one or more hollows. With reference to FIG. 3, the piezochromic device 20 includes multiple hollows 21. The hollows 21 are reference points to determine positions of the piezochromic device 20. As the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the hollows 21 are aligned and respectively formed in different shapes (such as, for example, a circular shape, an oval shape, a polygonal shape, etc) enabling the doctor to distinguish a front section, a middle section or a rear section of the piezochromic device 20.

[0017] Since the piezochromic device 20 is mounted on the visible surface 121 of the work piece 12, the doctor can directly see the piezochromic device 20 during the surgery to determine whether the color change of the piezochromic device 20 occurs. Therefore, when the piezochromic device 20 contacts other surgical instruments or presses the normal organs or the normal tissues within the patient's body, the piezochromic device 20 senses the pressure and directly changes its color. When the doctor observes that the color of the piezochromic device 20 is changed, the doctor can adjust the movement of the surgical instrument and the surgery can be performed smoothly.