Patent ID: 9468408
Filing Date: 2016-10-18
CPC Classification: A61B,A61F,A61M

Claim Text:
1. A delivery system comprising a hollow catheter, an anchor coupled to the catheter, and an implant secured within the anchor, the anchor having stowed and deployed configurations and comprising: a base portion having a longitudinal axis and comprising first and second longitudinal ends in oppositely-disposed first and second longitudinal directions, respectively, of the anchor, and a cage between the first and second longitudinal ends, the medical implant being secured within the cage of the base portion so that at least a portion of the implant is between the first and second longitudinal ends of the base portion; a coupler portion releasably coupled to the catheter and connected to and spaced apart from the second longitudinal end of the base portion in the second longitudinal direction of the anchor, wherein longitudinal concave troughs are defined in the coupler portion and each of the longitudinal concave troughs has a recess therein and is contiguous with an end of the coupler portion farthest from the base portion; a plurality of flexible arms and legs that, in the stowed configuration of the anchor, axially extend from the first and second longitudinal ends, respectively, of the base portion, the arms and legs being resiliently biased so that, in the deployed configuration of the anchor, the arms radially project away from the longitudinal axis of the base portion and axially project toward the second longitudinal end of the base portion and the legs project radially away from the longitudinal axis of the base portion and axially project toward the first longitudinal end of the base portion; and means for articulating movement of the anchor relative to the catheter in directions transverse to the longitudinal axis of the base portion, the articulating means including at least three connectors that project from the catheter and engage the coupler portion and means for causing the at least three connectors to move relative to each other and thereby cause articulation of the anchor relative to the catheter in directions transverse to the longitudinal axis of the base portion, wherein the at least three connectors are received in the longitudinal concave troughs of the coupler portion and distal tips of each of the at least three connectors engage the recesses in the longitudinal concave troughs such that the distal tips of the at least three connectors are radially confined within a radial profile of the coupler portion.