Patent ID: 11963691
Assignee: CILAG GMBH INTERNATIONAL
Field: Medical technology (Instruments)
Classification: CPC A | IPC A

Claim 12:
13. A method of indicating a predetermined gap between an ultrasonic blade and a clamp arm of a surgical instrument, the surgical instrument having (a) an end effector, including: (i) the ultrasonic blade, and (ii) the clamp arm configured to move relative to the ultrasonic blade from an opened position toward an intermediate position and a closed position, wherein the ultrasonic blade and the clamp arm are configured to receive tissue in the opened position, wherein the clamp arm is configured to clamp tissue against the ultrasonic blade in the closed position, and wherein the clamp arm is offset from the ultrasonic blade to define the predetermined gap in the intermediate position between the opened position and the closed position; (b) a shaft assembly projecting proximally from the end effector and including an acoustic waveguide operatively connected to the ultrasonic blade, wherein the acoustic waveguide is configured to connect to an ultrasonic transducer; (c) a body projecting proximally from the shaft assembly; (d) a clamp arm actuator operatively connected to the clamp arm and configured to selectively move relative to the body from an opened configuration to a closed configuration to thereby direct the clamp arm respectively from the opened position toward the intermediate position and the closed position; and (e) an urging mechanism operatively connected to the clamp arm and configured to provide tactile feedback when the clamp arm is in the intermediate position and the predetermined gap is formed between the clamp arm and the ultrasonic blade, wherein the urging mechanism comprises a biasing member configured to bias the clamp arm actuator relative to the body, the method comprising:
(a) selectively directing the clamp arm toward the ultrasonic blade to thereby define the predetermined gap;
(b) biasing the clamp arm actuator relative to the body; and
(c) providing tactical feedback to an operator of the surgical instrument with the predetermined gap thereby indicating the predetermined gap.