Patent Description:
This disclosure relates to surgical stapling apparatus and, more particularly, to structures and methods for establishing a sealed electrical connection between a surgical loading unit and an adapter of a powered surgical stapling apparatus.

Fasteners have traditionally been used to replace suturing when joining various body structures. Surgical stapling apparatus employed to apply these fasteners are generally designed to simultaneously cut and seal tissue to reduce the time and risks involved with surgical procedures. Surgical stapling apparatus that clamp, cut and/or staple tissue are well known in the art. Such surgical stapling apparatus include end effectors having two elongated jaw members used to capture or clamp tissue. These end effectors can be provided in the form of an elongate loading unit removably attachable to a housing assembly via an adapter to enable drive components of the housing assembly to operate the end effector in vivo, for instance, laparoscopically. In particular, one of the two jaw members of the end effector usually carries a staple cartridge that houses a plurality of staples positioned in rows, while the other of the two jaw members has an anvil for forming the staples as the staples are driven from the staple cartridge. In linear surgical stapling apparatus, for example, a stapling operation is effectuated by a cam bar, a drive sled or other similar mechanism having a cam member that travels longitudinally through channels defined in the staple cartridge and acts upon staple pushers in the channels to sequentially eject linear rows of staples from the staple cartridge. A knife is movably positioned between the linear rows of staples such that when the surgical stapling apparatus is positioned about tissue and actuated, the tissue is joined and/or simultaneously or nearly simultaneously cut.

<CIT> relates to a surgical stapling device including a handle assembly, an adapter assembly and a tool assembly or end effector which are configured for selective electrical connection.

<CIT> relates to a modular surgical instrument comprising a flex circuit in a shaft component forming an electrical connection interface.

According to one aspect, a surgical stapling apparatus includes a housing assembly and an elongated shaft assembly. The elongated shaft assembly is selectively attachable to the housing assembly. The elongated shaft assembly includes an adapter assembly and a loading unit. The adapter assembly extends distally to a distal tip housing. The distal tip housing supports an adapter electrical connector assembly therein. The loading unit is selectively attachable to the adapter assembly and extends distally to an end effector supporting one or more sensors therein. The loading unit supports a loading unit electrical connector assembly therein. The loading unit electrical connector assembly is positioned to contact the adapter electrical connector assembly when the adapter assembly and the loading unit are coupled together to electrically couple the one or more sensors to the housing assembly.

In aspects, the one or more sensors may be configured to measure data including thickness of tissue clamped by the end effector, clamp force of the end effector, or firing force of the end effector.

In various aspects, the adapter electrical connector assembly may include an adapter connector housing that rotatably supports a firing rod therethrough. The adapter electrical connector assembly may include an electronic ring assembly that is supported on the adapter connector housing. The adapter connector housing may include a connector shaft that supports the electronic ring assembly thereon. The connector shaft may define a plurality of annular ribs and a plurality of ring recesses disposed between the annular ribs. The plurality of ring recesses and the plurality of annual ribs may be positioned to support a plurality of contact rings of the electronic ring assembly. The plurality of contact rings may be electrically coupled to a flex cable supported by a channel defined within the adapter connector housing. The loading unit electrical connector assembly may include a loading unit connector housing that supports a plurality of spring contacts positioned to contact the plurality of contact rings of the electronic ring assembly. The plurality of spring contacts may be electrically coupled to the one or more sensors.

In aspects, the adapter electrical connector assembly and the loading unit electrical connector assembly may be sealed within elongated shaft assembly when electrically coupled together.

According to yet another aspect, a surgical stapling apparatus includes a housing assembly, an adapter assembly, and a loading unit. The adapter assembly is removably secured to the housing assembly and supports an adapter electrical connector assembly therein. The loading unit is selectively electrically connectable to the adapter assembly by relative translating and rotating movement between the loading unit and the adapter assembly. The loading unit supports a loading unit electrical connector assembly. The loading unit electrical connector assembly is positioned to receive the adapter electrical connector assembly to cause the adapter assembly and the loading unit to electrically couple together in response to the translating and rotating movement.

In aspects, the loading unit may extend to an end effector. The end effector may support one or more sensors disposed in electrical communication with the adapter electrical connector assembly when the loading unit and the adapter assembly are coupled together.

In various aspects, the loading unit may define a lug channel positioned to receive a lug of the adapter assembly. The lug channel may have a longitudinally-extending portion to enable translating movement of the lug therethrough and a transverse portion to enable rotating movement of the lug therethrough.

Other aspects, features, and advantages will be apparent from the description, the drawings, and the claims that follow.

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate aspects of the disclosure and, together with a general description of the disclosure given above and the detailed description given below, serve to explain the principles of this disclosure, wherein:.

Aspects of the disclosed surgical stapling apparatus are described in detail with reference to the drawings, in which like reference numerals designate identical or corresponding elements in each of the several views. As commonly known, the term "clinician" refers to a doctor, a nurse, or any other care provider and may include support personnel. Additionally, the term "proximal" refers to the portion of structure that is closer to the clinician and the term "distal" refers to the portion of structure that is farther from the clinician. In addition, directional terms such as front, rear, upper, lower, top, bottom, and the like are used simply for convenience of description and are not intended to limit the disclosure attached hereto.

In the following description, well-known functions or constructions are not described in detail to avoid obscuring the present disclosure in unnecessary detail.

Further, although the surgical instrument described herein is provided in connection with a powered laparoscopic surgical stapling apparatus for brevity, the disclosed surgical instrument can include any powered, manual, or robotically-controlled surgical instruments such as a clip applier, stitching device, energy-based device (e.g., a bipolar or monopolar forceps) or the like, and/or other surgical stapling apparatus such as a circular stapler, a transverse stapler, or an open stapler. For a detailed description of the structure and function of exemplary surgical stapling apparatus, one or more components of which may be included, or modified for use with the disclosed aspects, reference may be made to <CIT>; <CIT>; <CIT>; <CIT>; <CIT><CIT>;<CIT>;<CIT>; <CIT>; <CIT>; and <CIT>.

Briefly, due to minerals, ions, etc. in bodily fluids, bodily fluids can be electrically conductive. This disclosure details mechanical structure and methods for securing (and sealing) an electrical connection that resists contamination from body fluids and saline to prevent electronics of the disclosed surgical stapling apparatus from short circuiting. More specifically, this disclosure details structure and methods for effectively relaying information/data (e.g., continuously) from one or more sensors in an end effector of a surgical stapling apparatus at a distal end portion thereof to a housing or handle assembly at a proximal end portion thereof to accurately determine and/or analyze, for example, tissue thickness, clamp force, firing force, etc. using high speed data transfer speeds and a robust sensor signal (e.g., a strain gauge signal).

With reference to <FIG> and <FIG>, a surgical stapling apparatus <NUM> of this disclosure includes a housing assembly <NUM> (which may include one or more handles that may be manually actuatable to fire surgical stapling apparatus <NUM>) and an elongated shaft assembly <NUM> that is removably secured to housing assembly <NUM>. Elongated shaft assembly <NUM> extends distally to housing assembly <NUM> and defines a longitudinal axis "X" therealong. Elongated shaft assembly <NUM> includes an adapter assembly <NUM> having a proximal end portion removably secured to housing assembly <NUM>. Elongated shaft assembly <NUM> further includes a loading unit <NUM> that is removably secured to a distal end portion of adapter assembly <NUM> and which extends distally from adapter assembly <NUM> to an end effector <NUM>. Loading unit <NUM> may be disposable and/or include one or more disposable components. End effector <NUM> of loading unit <NUM> includes an anvil assembly <NUM> and a cartridge assembly <NUM> that houses a plurality of staples (not shown) in a reload or cartridge <NUM> thereof that may be selectively replaceable. Anvil assembly <NUM> includes an anvil 302a against which the plurality of staples is formed upon a firing of surgical stapling apparatus <NUM>. End effector <NUM> further includes one or more sensors <NUM> disposed in electrical communication with housing assembly <NUM>. Sensors <NUM> may include, for example, a strain gauge, a cartridge ID sensor, a near field communications (NFC) antenna, etc. Sensors <NUM> may be disposed within one or both of anvil assembly <NUM> and cartridge assembly <NUM>. Sensors <NUM> are configured to electrically communicate with housing assembly <NUM> regarding data/information regarding the end effector <NUM> and/or tissue engaged by end effector <NUM>. For instance, such data/information may relate to tissue thickness, clamp force, firing force, etc..

Housing assembly <NUM> of surgical stapling apparatus <NUM> includes a housing 12a configured for selective removable receipt of a rechargeable battery 12b. Battery 12b is configured to supply power to electrical components of surgical stapling apparatus <NUM>. Housing 12a supports a controller 12c (e.g., a circuit board) therein that is configured to control various operations of surgical stapling apparatus <NUM>, and which includes any number of electronic components such as memory 12d, a processor 12e, a network interface 12f, and/or other input/output modules <NUM>. Controller 12c may be coupled to a local or remote display device (not shown) for outputting information and/or data such as a condition of components of surgical stapling apparatus <NUM> and/or tissue grasped by end effector <NUM>.

Surgical stapling apparatus <NUM> further includes a drive mechanism <NUM> configured to drive mechanical and/or electrical components such as rotatable shafts and/or gear components (not shown) within housing 12a in order to perform various operations of surgical stapling apparatus <NUM>. For instance, drive mechanism <NUM> may be operable to selectively rotate and/or articulate end effector <NUM> about, and/or relative to, the longitudinal axis "X" of surgical stapling apparatus <NUM>, as indicated by arrows "A" and "B," respectively; to selectively move anvil assembly <NUM> relative to the cartridge assembly <NUM> and/or vice versa, as indicated by arrows "C" to selectively clamp tissue; and/or to fire surgical stapling apparatus <NUM> for fastening and/or cutting the clamped tissue. Battery 12b, controller 12c, and/or drive mechanism <NUM> may be operably coupled to one or more actuators 13a, 13b, and 13c such as finger-actuated control buttons, rocker devices, and/or the like to effectuate various functions of surgical stapling apparatus <NUM> such as those described above.

Turning now to <FIG>, adapter assembly <NUM> of elongated shaft assembly <NUM> includes an outer housing <NUM> and supports a drive assembly <NUM> therein. Outer housing <NUM> has a proximal outer housing 110a and a tubular outer housing 110b that extends distally from proximal outer housing 110a to a distal tip housing 110c. Proximal outer housing 110a supports an electrical assembly 110d and a plurality of drive couplers 110c that electromechanically couple to drive mechanism <NUM> of housing assembly <NUM>. More specifically, electrical assembly 110d includes, for example, an electrical port 110z and a printed circuit board assembly 110y in electrical communication with one another (see <FIG>). Electrical assembly 110d is configured to electrically communicate with, for example, controller 12c of housing assembly <NUM> when adapter <NUM> is coupled to housing assembly <NUM> while drive couplers 110c mechanically engage drive mechanism <NUM>, which may include, for instance, a plurality of rotatable actuators (shown) to impart mechanical force (e.g., rotational force) through drive assembly <NUM> of adapter assembly <NUM>. For example, drive assembly <NUM> of adapter assembly <NUM> includes a firing rod 112a that extends distal to distal tip housing 110c and is mechanically engageable with the proximal end portion of loading unit <NUM> to impart mechanical force (e.g., linear and/or rotational) onto end effector <NUM> for firing end effector <NUM> when drive mechanism <NUM> of housing assembly <NUM> is actuated. Distal tip housing 110c includes lugs 110e (see <FIG>) extending radially inward from an inner surface of distal tip housing 110c and positioned to facilitate locking engagement with a proximal end portion of loading unit <NUM>. Lugs 110e may be disposed in diametrically opposed relationship to one another.

Adapter assembly <NUM> further supports an adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> that is disposed in electrical communication with electrical assembly 110d of proximal outer housing 110a. Adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> includes an adapter connector housing <NUM> that is positioned to receive firing rod 112a therethrough so that firing rod 112a is rotatable relative to adapter connector housing <NUM>. Adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> further includes an electronic ring assembly <NUM> and a seal <NUM> (e.g., an annular seal or gasket such as an O-ring) that are secured to adapter connector housing <NUM>.

As best seen in <FIG>, adapter connector housing <NUM> of adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> is supported within tubular outer housing 110b of adapter assembly <NUM>. Adapter connector housing <NUM> includes a proximal base 122a having a distal ledge 122b recessed from proximal base 122a to enable adapter connector housing <NUM> to couple to a proximal end portion of distal tip housing 110c of adapter assembly <NUM>. Adapter connector housing <NUM>, which may be wholly or partially non-conductive, further includes a connector shaft 122c that extends distally from proximal base 122a for supporting electronic ring assembly <NUM> and seal <NUM>. Connector shaft 122c and proximal base 122a define a flex channel 122x (see <FIG>) along an outer surface thereof for supporting electronic ring assembly <NUM> and a central lumen <NUM> therethrough for rotatably receiving firing rod 112a therethrough. Connector shaft 122c includes a mounting finger 122d having a plurality of annular ribs 122e that are longitudinally spaced apart along an outer surface of mounting finger 122d to define ring recesses 122f between adjacent annular ribs 122e for receiving electronic ring assembly <NUM>. Connector shaft 122c further defines a pair alignment notches <NUM> disposed in diametrical opposed relation to one another (see <FIG> and <FIG>) on the outer surface of connector shaft 122c and distal to the plurality of annular ribs 122e to facilitate engagement with loading unit <NUM> (and to help maintain proper positioning of ribs 122e for isolating electrical contacts). Connector shaft 122c further defines an annular seal channel <NUM> for mounting seal <NUM> to adapter connector housing <NUM> over electronic ring assembly <NUM> (e.g., overmolded or assembled). Electronic ring assembly <NUM> includes a plurality of longitudinally spaced apart contact rings 124a, which are conductive (e.g., metallic), that are secured within ring recesses 122f of mounting finger 122d (e.g., insert molded) and are coupled to a connector flex assembly 124b (e.g., soldered) that is supported within flex channel 122x of adapter connector housing <NUM>. Connector flex assembly 124b, which may be in the form of a flex cable for electrically communicating data and/or power, extends proximally from adapter connector housing <NUM> and is disposed in electrical communication with electrical assembly 110d of adapter assembly <NUM>.

With reference to <FIG>, and <FIG>, loading unit <NUM> of elongated shaft assembly <NUM> has a tubular shaft <NUM> that supports a loading unit drive assembly <NUM> therein that is configured to couple to drive assembly <NUM> of adapter assembly <NUM> to operate end effector <NUM>. A proximal portion of tubular shaft <NUM> of loading unit <NUM> has a pair of curved tines <NUM> disposed in mirrored relationship with one another (e.g., diametrically opposed) and which extend to a proximal end of loading unit <NUM>. Tines <NUM> of tubular shaft <NUM> are receivable within distal tip housing 110c of adapter assembly <NUM>. The curved tines <NUM> define a pair of outer lug channels <NUM> for receiving lugs 110e of adapter assembly <NUM> (see <FIG>) therein to secure loading unit <NUM> and adapter assembly <NUM> together. Outer lug channels <NUM> of loading unit <NUM> include a longitudinally-extending portion 206a for longitudinally receiving lugs 110e, as indicated by arrows "L" in <FIG>, and a transverse portion 206b at a distal end of longitudinally-extending portion 206a for rotatably receiving lugs 110e therein, as indicated by arrows "R" in <FIG>, to lock loading unit <NUM> and adapter assembly <NUM> together.

Loading unit <NUM> of elongated shaft assembly <NUM> supports a loading unit electrical connector assembly <NUM> between the pair of curved tines <NUM>. Loading unit electrical connector assembly <NUM> extends distally through tubular shaft <NUM> for electrically coupling to sensors <NUM> supported within end effector <NUM>, and <NUM> includes a loading unit connector housing <NUM> (wholly or partially non-conductive) having a tubular body 212a that supports an outer rail 212b. Outer rail 212b defines a series of spring contact recesses 212c therein. The spring contact recesses 212c are longitudinally spaced apart from one another. Spring contact recesses 212c support a series of spring contacts 212d, which are electrically conductive (e.g., metallic). Outer rail 212b further defines rail channel 212x therein that extends longitudinally along outer rail 212b. Tubular body 212a defines a central passage 212e therethrough and which is configured to receive adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> of adapter assembly <NUM> therein and firing rod 112a of adapter assembly <NUM> therethrough. Tubular body 212a further includes a pair of tabs 212f (see <FIG> and <FIG>) extending radially inward from an inner surface of tubular body 212a. Tabs 212f are positioned to engage the pair alignment notches <NUM> defined in connector shaft 122c of adapter connector housing <NUM> (see <FIG>) to facilitate securement of loading unit <NUM> and adapter assembly <NUM> together. Tubular body 212a further includes a distal tooth <NUM> which functions as a rotational stop for lugs 110e of adapter assembly <NUM> (see <FIG>) and a retention feature that keeps loading unit connector housing <NUM> engaged with loading unit <NUM>. Loading unit electrical connector assembly <NUM> further includes a seal cap <NUM>, a loading unit flex assembly <NUM>, which may be in the form of a flex cable, and a seal ring <NUM> (e.g., an O-ring). Seal cap <NUM> is mounted in rail channel 212x of outer rail 212b over a backside of loading unit flex assembly <NUM> and is configured to secure spring contacts 212d within outer rail 212b and to stiffen and seal the backside of loading unit flex assembly <NUM>. Loading unit flex assembly <NUM> extends distally through loading unit <NUM> to electrically couple to sensors <NUM> within end effector <NUM>. Seal ring <NUM> seats in a distal portion of central passage 212e of tubular body 212a of loading unit electrical connector assembly <NUM> to seal the central passage 212e of tubular body 212a.

With reference to <FIG> and <FIG>, to mechanical and electrically couple adapter assembly <NUM> and loading unit <NUM> together, the curved tines <NUM> of tubular shaft <NUM> of loading unit <NUM> is inserted within distal tip housing 110c of adapter assembly <NUM> so that lugs 110e of distal tip housing 110c translate distally along outer lug channels <NUM>. Lugs 110e are advanced distally along longitudinally-extending portion 206a of outer lug channel <NUM>, as indicated by arrows "L" (see <FIG>) until longitudinally aligned with transverse portion 206b of outer lug channel <NUM>, and tabs 212f of tubular body 212a are longitudinally aligned with alignment notches <NUM> of connector shaft 122c. Then, relative rotation between adapter assembly <NUM> and loading unit <NUM>, as indicated by arrows "RR" shown in <FIG>, causes lugs 110e to rotate into transverse portion 206b of outer lug channel <NUM>, as indicated by arrows "R" in <FIG> and tabs 212f to rotate into alignment notches <NUM>. In this position, adapter assembly <NUM> and loading unit <NUM> are mechanical locked together and electrically coupled together via contact between adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> and loading unit electrical connector assembly <NUM> as seen in <FIG> so that an electrical circuit is formed from sensors <NUM> in end effector <NUM> through elongated shaft assembly <NUM>, and to housing assembly <NUM> (e.g., controller 12c, battery 12b, etc., thereof. ) In this position, adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> and loading unit electrical assembly <NUM> are sealed via seal ring <NUM> and seal <NUM>.

Once the electrical circuit is created, surgical stapling apparatus <NUM> can be used to effectuate a surgical procedure, whereby the electrical circuit can determine and/or analyze data/information may relate to tissue thickness, clamp force, firing force, etc. to help facilitate the efficiency and effectiveness of the surgical procedure. Loading unit <NUM> can be separated and removed from adapter assembly <NUM> as desired, for example, to dispose of and/or replace the loading unit <NUM> with another loading unit <NUM>. Adapter assembly <NUM> is likewise removable and replaceable with respect to loading unit <NUM> and/or housing assembly <NUM>.

Turning now to <FIG>, according to another aspect, adapter assembly <NUM> and a loading unit <NUM> can also be removably, electromechanically coupled together similar to adapter <NUM> and loading unit <NUM>. Adapter assembly <NUM> includes adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> and loading unit <NUM> includes loading unit electrical connector assembly <NUM>. Adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> of adapter assembly <NUM> couples to electrical assembly 110d at the proximal end portion of adapter assembly <NUM> and loading unit electrical connector assembly <NUM> couples to sensors <NUM> supported in end effector <NUM>. Adapter assembly <NUM> supports a firing rod <NUM> and defines lug slots <NUM> therein for receiving lugs <NUM> extending radially outward from the proximal end portion of loading unit <NUM>. Adapter assembly <NUM> further includes seal ring <NUM> supported about firing rod <NUM> proximal to adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM>.

As best seen in <FIG>, adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> includes a connector housing <NUM> and a peripheral seal <NUM> secured onto connector housing <NUM> (e.g., overmolded). Adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> further includes a plurality of spring contacts <NUM>, which are electrically conductive, supported in connector housing <NUM> and longitudinally spaced apart from one another. Spring contacts <NUM> are coupled to a flex cable <NUM> (e.g., soldered thereto).

With reference to <FIG>, loading unit electrical connector assembly <NUM> includes a connector housing <NUM> that has a tubular body 512a. Tubular body <NUM> defines snap-fit apertures 512b through a sidewall of tubular body 512a. Tubular body <NUM> further defines a cable channel 512c along an outer surface of tubular body 512a. Loading unit electrical connector assembly <NUM> further includes a seal <NUM> (e.g., an O-ring), an electrical coupler <NUM> onto which seal <NUM> mounts, and a flex cable <NUM>. Electrical coupler <NUM> includes a plurality of longitudinally spaced apart contract rings 516a, each of which is electrically conductive, and a pair of snap-fit arms 516b flexibly mounted thereto. Snap-fit arms 516b are configured to snap-fit into snap-fit apertures 512b of tubular body <NUM> to secure electrical coupler <NUM> to tubular body <NUM> as seen in <FIG>.

With reference to <FIG>, to electromechanically couple loading unit <NUM> to adapter assembly <NUM>, loading unit <NUM> is axially inserted into adapter assembly <NUM> and rotated similar to loading unit <NUM> and adapter assembly <NUM>, as detailed above, so that loading unit electrical connector assembly <NUM> and adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> electrically couple together.

Turning now to <FIG>, according to yet another aspect, a loading unit electrical connector assembly <NUM> can be electrically coupled to an adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM>. Loading unit electrical connector assembly <NUM> includes a plurality of sheet metal contacts <NUM>, each of which is electrically conductive, angularly spaced about a tubular body <NUM> of loading unit electrical connector assembly <NUM> and seal <NUM> supported on tubular body <NUM>. Sheet metal contacts <NUM> may be angularly and/or longitudinally spaced apart from one another. In aspects, sheet metal contacts <NUM> may be disposed in a spiral arrangement about tubular body <NUM>. Adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> includes a plurality of annular contact rings <NUM>, each of which is electrically conductive. The annular contact rings <NUM> are longitudinally spaced apart along an inner surface of a tubular body <NUM> of adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM>. Adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> further includes a seal <NUM> supported therein.

With reference to <FIG>, according to still another aspect, a loading unit electrical connector assembly <NUM> can be electrically coupled to an adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM>. Loading unit electrical connector assembly <NUM> includes a tubular body <NUM> supporting a plurality of contact rings <NUM>, each of which is electrically conductive, at longitudinally spaced apart locations and a seal <NUM>. Adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> includes a tubular body <NUM> defining a cutout <NUM> that extends longitudinally along sidewall 902a of tubular body <NUM>. Adapter electrical connector assembly <NUM> further includes a seal <NUM> and a contact insert assembly <NUM> that is receivable in cutout <NUM> of tubular body <NUM>. Contact insert assembly <NUM> includes an elongate leg 908a and a plurality of arched contacts 908b, each of which is electrically conductive, longitudinally spaced apart along elongate leg 908a and receivable within tubular body <NUM> when elongate leg 908a is seated in cutout <NUM> of tubular body <NUM>.

Further, the various aspects disclosed herein may also be configured to work with robotic surgical systems and what is commonly referred to as "Telesurgery. " Such systems employ various robotic elements to assist the clinician and allow remote operation (or partial remote operation) of surgical instrumentation. Various robotic arms, gears, cams, pulleys, electric and mechanical motors, etc. may be employed for this purpose and may be designed with a robotic surgical system to assist the clinician during the course of an operation or treatment. Such robotic systems may include remotely steerable systems, automatically flexible surgical systems, remotely flexible surgical systems, remotely articulating surgical systems, wireless surgical systems, modular or selectively configurable remotely operated surgical systems, etc..

The robotic surgical systems may be employed with one or more consoles that are next to the operating theater or located in a remote location. In this instance, one team of clinicians may prep the patient for surgery and configure the robotic surgical system with one or more of the instruments disclosed herein while another clinician (or group of clinicians) remotely controls the instruments via the robotic surgical system. As can be appreciated, a highly skilled clinician may perform multiple operations in multiple locations without leaving his/her remote console which can be both economically advantageous and a benefit to the patient or a series of patients. For a detailed description of exemplary medical work stations and/or components thereof, reference may be made to <CIT>, and <CIT>.

Moreover, the disclosed electronic structure such as the electronic assembly and/or controllers, can include any suitable electrical components for operating the disclosed surgical stapling apparatus or components thereof. Such electrical components can include, for example, one or more controllers and/or circuitry, which may include or be coupled to one or more printed circuit boards. As used herein, the term "controller" includes "processor," "digital processing device" and like terms, and are used to indicate a microprocessor or central processing unit (CPU). The CPU is the electronic circuitry within a computer that carries out the instructions of a computer program by performing the basic arithmetic, logical, control and input/output (I/O) operations specified by the instructions, and by way of non-limiting examples, include server computers. In some aspects, the controller includes an operating system configured to perform executable instructions. The operating system is, for example, software, including programs and data, which manages hardware of the disclosed surgical stapling apparatus and provides services for execution of applications for use with the disclosed surgical stapling apparatus. Those of skill in the art will recognize that suitable server operating systems include, by way of non-limiting examples, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD®, Linux, Apple® Mac OS X Server®, Oracle® Solaris®, Windows Server®, and Novell® NetWare®. In some aspects, the operating system is provided by cloud computing.

In some aspects, the term "controller" may be used to indicate a device that controls the transfer of data from a computer or computing device to a peripheral or separate device and vice versa, and/or a mechanical and/or electromechanical device (e.g., a lever, knob, etc.) that mechanically operates and/or actuates a peripheral or separate device.

In aspects, the controller includes a storage and/or memory device. The storage and/or memory device is one or more physical apparatus used to store data or programs on a temporary or permanent basis. In some aspects, the controller includes volatile memory and requires power to maintain stored information. In various aspects, the controller includes non-volatile memory and retains stored information when it is not powered. In some aspects, the non-volatile memory includes flash memory. In certain aspects, the non-volatile memory includes dynamic random-access memory (DRAM). In some aspects, the non-volatile memory includes ferroelectric random access memory (FRAM). In various aspects, the non-volatile memory includes phase-change random access memory (PRAM). In certain aspects, the controller is a storage device including, by way of non-limiting examples, CD-ROMs, DVDs, flash memory devices, magnetic disk drives, magnetic tapes drives, optical disk drives, and cloud computing based storage. In various aspects, the storage and/or memory device is a combination of devices such as those disclosed herein.

In some aspects, the controller includes a display to send visual information to a user. In various aspects, the display is a cathode ray tube (CRT). In various aspects, the display is a liquid crystal display (LCD). In certain aspects, the display is a thin film transistor liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD). In aspects, the display is an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display. In certain aspects, on OLED display is a passive-matrix OLED (PMOLED) or active-matrix OLED (AMOLED) display. In aspects, the display is a plasma display. In certain aspects, the display is a video projector. In various aspects, the display is interactive (e.g., having a touch screen or a sensor such as a camera, a 3D sensor, a LiDAR, a radar, etc.) that can detect user interactions/gestures/responses and the like. In some aspects, the display is a combination of devices such as those disclosed herein.

The controller may include or be coupled to a server and/or a network. As used herein, the term "server" includes "computer server," "central server," "main server," and like terms to indicate a computer or device on a network that manages the surgical stapling apparatus, components thereof, and/or resources thereof. As used herein, the term "network" can include any network technology including, for instance, a cellular data network, a wired network, a fiber optic network, a satellite network, and/or an IEEE <NUM>. 11a/b/g/n/ac wireless network, among others.

In various aspects, the controller can be coupled to a mesh network. As used herein, a "mesh network" is a network topology in which each node relays data for the network. All mesh nodes cooperate in the distribution of data in the network. It can be applied to both wired and wireless networks. Wireless mesh networks can be considered a type of "Wireless ad hoc" network. Thus, wireless mesh networks are closely related to Mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs). Although MANETs are not restricted to a specific mesh network topology, Wireless ad hoc networks or MANETs can take any form of network topology. Mesh networks can relay messages using either a flooding technique or a routing technique. With routing, the message is propagated along a path by hopping from node to node until it reaches its destination. To ensure that all its paths are available, the network must allow for continuous connections and must reconfigure itself around broken paths, using self-healing algorithms such as Shortest Path Bridging. Self-healing allows a routing-based network to operate when a node breaks down or when a connection becomes unreliable. As a result, the network is typically quite reliable, as there is often more than one path between a source and a destination in the network. This concept can also apply to wired networks and to software interaction. A mesh network whose nodes are all connected to each other is a fully connected network.

In some aspects, the controller may include one or more modules. As used herein, the term "module" and like terms are used to indicate a self-contained hardware component of the central server, which in turn includes software modules. In software, a module is a part of a program. Programs are composed of one or more independently developed modules that are not combined until the program is linked. A single module can contain one or several routines, or sections of programs that perform a particular task.

As used herein, the controller includes software modules for managing various aspects and functions of the disclosed surgical stapling apparatus or components thereof.

The disclosed surgical stapling apparatus may also utilize one or more controllers to receive various information and transform the received information to generate an output. The controller may include any type of computing device, computational circuit, or any type of processor or processing circuit capable of executing a series of instructions that are stored in memory. The controller may include multiple processors and/or multicore central processing units (CPUs) and may include any type of processor, such as a microprocessor, digital signal processor, microcontroller, programmable logic device (PLD), field programmable gate array (FPGA), or the like. The controller may also include a memory to store data and/or instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform one or more methods and/or algorithms.

Any of the herein described methods, programs, algorithms or codes may be converted to, or expressed in, a programming language or computer program. The terms "programming language" and "computer program," as used herein, each include any language used to specify instructions to a computer, and include (but is not limited to) the following languages and their derivatives: Assembler, Basic, Batch files, BCPL, C, C+, C++, Delphi, Fortran, Java, JavaScript, machine code, operating system command languages, Pascal, Perl, PL1, scripting languages, Visual Basic, metalanguages which themselves specify programs, and all first, second, third, fourth, fifth, or further generation computer languages. Also included are database and other data schemas, and any other meta-languages. No distinction is made between languages which are interpreted, compiled, or use both compiled and interpreted approaches. No distinction is made between compiled and source versions of a program. Thus, reference to a program, where the programming language could exist in more than one state (such as source, compiled, object, or linked) is a reference to any and all such states. Reference to a program may encompass the actual instructions and/or the intent of those instructions.

As can be appreciated, securement of any of the components of the disclosed apparatus can be effectuated using known securement techniques such welding, crimping, gluing, fastening, etc. Also, any of the disclosed structure can include any suitable conductive material (e.g., metallic), semi-conductive material (e.g., silicone), and/or non-conductive/insulative material (e.g., plastic).

Claim 1:
A surgical stapling apparatus (<NUM>), comprising:
a housing assembly (<NUM>); and
an elongated shaft assembly (<NUM>) selectively attachable to the housing assembly, the elongated shaft assembly including:
an adapter assembly (<NUM>) extending distally to a distal tip Z housing (110c), the distal tip housing supporting an adapter electrical connector assembly (<NUM>) therein; and
a loading unit (<NUM>) selectively attachable to the adapter assembly and extending distally to an end effector (<NUM>) supporting at least one sensor (<NUM>) therein, the loading unit supporting a loading unit electrical connector assembly (<NUM>) therein, the loading unit electrical connector assembly positioned to contact the adapter electrical connector assembly when the adapter assembly and the loading unit are coupled together to electrically couple the at least one sensor to the housing assembly wherein the adapter electrical connector assembly includes an adapter connector housing (<NUM>) that rotatably supports a firing rod (112a) therethrough; wherein the adapter electrical connector assembly includes an electronic ring assembly (<NUM>) that is supported on the adapter connector housing;
charaterized in that
the adapter connector housing includes a connector shaft (122c) that supports the electronic ring assembly thereon; wherein the connector shaft defines a plurality of annular ribs (122e) and a plurality of ring recesses (122f) disposed between the annular ribs, the plurality of ring recesses and the plurality of annual ribs positioned to support a plurality of contact rings of the electronic ring assembly.