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

Claim 36:
37. An end effector for use by a surgeon to staple an anatomical structure of a patient during a minimally invasive procedure, the end effector comprising:
(a) an anvil comprising a first end, a second end, and an anvil face; 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 cartridge comprising a first end, a second end, and a cartridge face, the cartridge housing a plurality of staples, wherein the first end of the anvil is coupled with the first end of the cartridge and the second end of the anvil is coupled to the second end of the cartridge;
(c) a one-piece rigid link, the one-piece rigid link being inflexible, and wherein the one-piece rigid link having a first end and a second end, and wherein, when the end effector is in both a first open position and a second closed position, the first end of the one-piece rigid link is movably and fixedly connected to the cartridge, and the second end of the rigid link is movably and fixedly connected to the anvil, wherein the one-piece rigid link includes a first portion offset and angled from a second portion, the one-piece rigid link further including a ramp surface; and
(d) a buttress, the buttress comprising;
(i) a first buttress member, the first buttress member being coupled with 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 coupled with the cartridge face such that the second buttress member covers a portion of the anvil 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 the plurality of staples is formed is based on the depth of a corresponding staple pocket.