Patent ID: 11937813
Assignee: COVIDIEN LP
Field: Medical technology (Instruments)
Classification: CPC A | IPC A

Claim 13:
14. A surgical stapling instrument, comprising:
a reload including a staple cartridge assembly and an anvil assembly;
an adapter assembly having an elongate shaft, an articulating distal end, and a mounting member disposed at the articulating distal end and pivotably attached to the elongate shaft to move the reload between an unarticulated position and an articulated position; and
a drive mechanism in the adapter assembly and including a bar extending through the mounting member, the bar supported by a pair of bar guides, blowout plates, and a support block defining an opening, wherein the bar and the blowout plates are disposed in the opening of the support block, and wherein when the reload is articulated, the pair of bar guides and the mounting member pivot, relative to the elongate shaft, in opposite directions relative to one another.