Patent ID: 11871927
Assignee: nan
Field: Medical technology (Instruments)
Classification: CPC A | IPC A

Claim 26:
27. An end effector for use by a surgeon to staple an anatomical structure of a patient during a minimally invasive procedure, the anatomical structure having a first outer side and a second outer side, the end effector comprising:
(a) a first jaw having a first end, a second end, a longitudinal axis, and an anvil, the anvil comprising an anvil face positionable on the first outer side of the anatomical structure, the anvil further comprising a plurality of pocket rows, each pocket row comprising a plurality of staple pockets, wherein the plurality of pocket rows includes at least one pocket row whose plurality of staple pockets comprises a depth that differs from the depth of the plurality of staple pockets of at least one other pocket row;
(b) a second jaw having a first end, a second end, a longitudinal axis, and a cartridge housing a plurality of staples, the cartridge having a cartridge face positionable on the second outer side of the anatomical structure;
(c) a first coupling that couples the first end of the first jaw to the first end of the second jaw;
(d) a second coupling including a rigid link and a slot, the rigid link being inflexible and having a first end and a second end, wherein, when the end effector is in both a first open position and a second closed position, the first end of the rigid link is movably and fixedly connected to the first jaw and the second end of the rigid link is movably and fixedly connected to the second jaw, and wherein said slot is defined in an end of the first jaw such that the slot retains the rigid link such that the rigid link is slidable within the slot, wherein the rigid link includes a first portion offset and angled from a second portion, the rigid link further including a ramp surface; and
(e) a buttress, the buttress comprising;
(i) a first buttress member, the first buttress member being positioned adjacent the anvil face such that the first buttress member covers a portion of the anvil face; and
(ii) a second buttress member, the second buttress member being positioned adjacent the cartridge face such that the second buttress member covers a portion of the cartridge face,

wherein the end effector has a distal end and a proximal end, and a distance between the distal end and the proximal end is fixed;
wherein a staple configuration in which a staple of a plurality of staples is formed is based on the depth of a corresponding staple pocket.