Patent Description:
Multi-port laparoscopic minimally invasive surgery has occupied an important position in surgery because of it having small wound and rapid postoperative recovery. The existing da Vinci surgical robot of the Intuitive Surgical, Inc. assists doctors in implementing the multi-port laparoscopic minimally invasive surgery and has achieved great commercial success.

For the minimally invasive surgery, after the multi-port laparoscopic surgery, single-port laparoscopic surgery and natural orifice transluminal non-invasive surgery have been further developed and have less trauma to the patient and higher postoperative outcomes. However, in the single-port laparoscopic surgery and the natural orifice transluminal non-invasive surgery, all surgical instruments including a visual illumination module and a surgical manipulator have access to the surgical site through a single channel, which is extremely stringent for the preparation of the surgical instruments. A distal structure of an existing surgical instrument is mainly of multiple rods articulated in series, and is driven by a pulling force from a wire rope, so that the surgical instrument can turn at an articulated joint. Since the wire rope has to be continuously tensioned by a pulley, this driving method can hardly lead to further miniaturization of the surgical instrument, and also further improvement of the moving performance of the instrument.

Although the Intuitive Surgical, Inc. recently introduces a da Vinci Single-Site surgical robot, in which the original rigid surgical instrument is modified into a semi-rigid surgical instrument and a prebent sleeve is additionally provided so as to improve the moving performance of the surgical instrument to a certain extent, it is impossible to fundamentally solve the problems faced by the traditional microsurgical instruments.

The document <CIT> relates to systems and methods for force sensing using continuum robots.

Further embodiments are illustrated in the dependent claims.

In order to achieve the above object, the following technical solutions are used in the present invention: a sterilizable flexible surgical instrument system, comprising a flexible continuous body structure comprising a distal structural body, a middle connecting body and a proximal structural body, the distal structural body comprising at least one distal structural segment comprising a distal spacing disk, a distal fixing disk and structural backbones, the proximal structural body comprising a proximal structural segment comprising a proximal spacing disk, a proximal fixing disk and structural backbones, and the proximal structural segment being linked to the distal structural segment via the middle connecting body, wherein the flexible surgical instrument system further comprises a transmission unit, the transmission unit comprises a transmission mechanism fixing plate arranged at distal side of the middle connecting body, a transmission mechanism for converting a rotary motion input into a linear motion output is arranged on the transmission mechanism fixing plate, output ends of the transmission mechanism are respectively securely connected to ends of different driving backbones via adaptors, and other ends of the driving backbones pass through the proximal spacing disk and are then securely connected to the proximal fixing disk;.

Preferably, the number of the proximal structural segments is equal to the number of the distal structural segments.

In one preferred embodiment, the middle connecting body comprises two channel fixing plates and a structural backbone guide channel provided between the two channel fixing plates; and the structural backbones of the distal structural segment are securely connected, in one-to-one correspondence, to or are the same as the structural backbones of the proximal structural segment, one end of each of the structural backbones is securely connected to the proximal fixing disk, passing through the proximal spacing disk, the structural backbone guide channel and the distal spacing disk in sequence, and the other end of the structural backbone is securely connected to the distal fixing disk.

In one preferred embodiment, the transmission mechanism comprises a gear transmission mechanism; the gear transmission mechanism comprises a driving gear, a rack, a slider, a guide rod, and a guide rod base; the guide rod is securely connected to the transmission mechanism fixing plate or a flexible surgical instrument front end plate via the guide rod base, the slider is slidably connected to the guide rod, the slider is securely connected to the rack, the rack is securely connected to the middle of the bundle of steering structural backbones; the rack meshes with the driving gear; and the driving gear is securely sheathed over a driving shaft, and a rear end of the driving shaft is rotatably supported on the flexible surgical instrument rear end plate located in rear of the proximal structural body and is securely connected with a male coupling.

In one preferred embodiment, the middle connecting body comprises two channel fixing plates and a structural backbone guide channel provided between the two channel fixing plates; and each of the steering structural backbones passes through the two steering structural backbone guide channels, with one end of the steering structural backbone guide channel being securely connected to the channel fixing plate, and the other end of the steering structural backbone guide channel being securely connected to the guide rod base arranged on the transmission mechanism fixing plate.

In one preferred embodiment, a guide rod is arranged between the two channel fixing plates, and the adaptor is slidably connected to the guide rod.

In one preferred embodiment, the transmission mechanism comprises a pulley transmission mechanism; the pulley transmission mechanism comprises a driving pulley, a driven pulley, a cable, a slider, a guide rod, and a guide rod base; two driven pulleys are provided, and are respectively rotatably arranged on the transmission mechanism fixing plate; two ends of the cable respectively pass around the driven pulley and are then securely connected to the driving pulley; the slider is securely connected to the cable between the two driven pulleys, the slider is slidably connected to the guide rod, and the guide rod is supported on the transmission mechanism fixing plate via the guide rod base; the slider is securely connected to the middle of the bundle of steering structural backbones, and the two ends of the bundle of steering structural backbones are respectively connected to a linear motion mechanism which comprises the adaptors; and the driving pulley is securely sheathed over a driving shaft, and a rear end of the driving shaft is rotatably supported on the flexible surgical instrument rear end plate arranged in rear of the proximal structural body and is securely connected with a male coupling.

In one preferred embodiment, the middle connecting body comprises two channel fixing plates; and the linear motion mechanism comprises a second guide rod securely connected to the two channel fixing plates and a adaptor slidably connected to the second guide rod, with a front end of the adaptor being securely connected to the steering structural backbone, and a rear end of the adaptor being securely connected to the driving backbone.

In one preferred embodiment, the middle connecting body comprises two channel fixing plates and a structural backbone guide channel provided between the two channel fixing plates; and each of the steering structural backbones passes through the two steering structural backbone guide channels, with one end of the steering structural backbone guide channel being securely connected to the channel fixing plate, and the other end of the steering structural backbone guide channel being securely connected to a support frame of the transmission mechanism fixing plate.

In one preferred embodiment, a surgical end effector is arranged at a front end of the distal structural body, a actuation wire of the surgical end effector passes through the distal structural body, the other end is connected to the end effector driving mechanism, and the surgical end effector driving mechanism implements motion control over the surgical end effector by means of physically pushing and pulling the actuation wire.

In one preferred embodiment, the surgical end effector driving mechanism comprises a threaded rod, a nut, a guide sleeve base, a guide sleeve, a push-pull rod and a male coupling; the threaded rod is rotatably connected to the flexible surgical instrument rear end plate in rear of the proximal structural body, and a rear end of the threaded rod is securely connected to the male coupling; the nut is threadedly connected to the threaded rod; a front end of the guide sleeve base is securely connected to the guide sleeve, and a rear end of the guide sleeve base is securely connected to the flexible surgical instrument rear end plate; an inner hole of the guide sleeve is a square hole in which the nut can only slide and cannot rotate; and a rear end of the push rod is securely connected to the nut, and a front end of the push rod is securely connected to the actuation wire.

In one preferred embodiment, the flexible surgical instrument system further comprises a flexible surgical instrument housing, and the transmission mechanism fixing plate, the flexible surgical instrument front end plate and the flexible surgical instrument rear end plate are all securely connected to the flexible surgical instrument housing.

In one preferred embodiment, the flexible surgical instrument system further comprises a motor driving unit, wherein the motor driving unit is connected to the flexible surgical instrument via a sterile barrier; the motor driving unit comprises a motor driving unit shell, a motor fixing plate, and a plurality of motors securely connected to the motor fixing plate, with an output shaft of each of the motors being securely connected with a second male coupling; the sterile barrier comprises a sterile barrier support plate, a sterile barrier cover, and a plurality of female couplings rotatably connected to the sterile barrier support plate, with a front end of the female coupling being connected to the male coupling, and a rear end of the female coupling being connected to the second male coupling; and a sterile membrane is securely connected to the sterile barrier cover.

In one preferred embodiment, a front end of the motor fixing plate is provided with a first connecting pin seat, and a rear end of the sterile barrier support plate is provided with a second connecting pin seat, the first connecting pin seat being connected to the second connecting pin seat via a pin hole.

In one preferred embodiment, the flexible surgical instrument system further comprises a motor driving unit, wherein the motor driving unit is connected to the flexible surgical instrument via a sterile barrier; the motor driving unit comprises a motor driving unit shell, a motor fixing plate, and a second motor securely connected to the motor fixing plate, the motor fixing plate being rotatably connected to the motor driving unit shell, an inner wall of the motor driving unit shell being securely connected with an inner ring gear, an output shaft of the second motor being securely connected with a gear, and the gear meshing with the inner ring gear.

In one preferred embodiment, the flexible surgical instrument system further comprises a motor driving unit shell and a linear module, wherein the motor driving unit shell is directly or indirectly connected to the flexible surgical instrument housing; and the linear module comprises a bracket body, a third motor securely connected to the bracket body, and a linear feed mechanism securely connected to an output shaft of the third motor, with an output end of the linear feed mechanism being securely connected to the motor driving unit shell, and the third motor driving the motor driving unit shell via the linear feed mechanism to drive the motor driving unit, the sterile barrier and the flexible surgical instrument to perform a linear motion.

In one preferred embodiment, the linear feed mechanism comprises a lead screw rotatably connected to the bracket body, the lead screw is sheathed with a second slider which is threadedly fitted with the lead screw, the bracket body is provided with a linear sliding groove, and the second slider is slidably arranged in the linear sliding groove; and the output shaft of the third motor is securely connected to the lead screw via a coupling.

The present disclosure has the following advantages due to utilizing the above technical solutions:.

The present disclosure can be applied to the single-port endoscopic surgery, and can also be applied to the natural orifice transluminal non-invasive surgery.

The present disclosure is to be described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

As shown in <FIG> , the present invention comprises a flexible surgical instrument <NUM>, and the flexible surgical instrument <NUM> comprises a flexible continuous body structure and a transmission unit <NUM>, the flexible continuous body structure being composed of a distal structural body <NUM> (as shown in <FIG> ), a proximal structural body <NUM> (as shown in <FIG> ) and a middle connecting body <NUM> (as shown in <FIG> ). The distal structural body <NUM> is linked to the proximal structural body <NUM> via the middle connecting body <NUM>; and the transmission unit <NUM> is linked to the proximal structural body <NUM>, and when the transmission unit <NUM> drives the proximal structural body <NUM> to turn in any direction, the distal structural body <NUM> correspondingly turns in the opposite direction.

As shown in <FIG> , the distal structural body <NUM> comprises a first distal structural segment <NUM> and a second distal structural segment <NUM>, wherein the first distal structural segment <NUM> comprises first distal spacing disks <NUM>, a first distal fixing disk <NUM> and first segment structural backbones <NUM>; and the second distal structural segment <NUM> comprises second distal spacing disks <NUM>, a second distal fixing disk <NUM> and second segment structural backbones <NUM>. The first distal spacing disks <NUM> and the second distal spacing disks <NUM> are respectively distributed at intervals in the first distal structural segment <NUM> and the second distal structural segment <NUM>, in order to prevent the first segment structural backbones <NUM> and the second segment structural backbones <NUM> from being destabilized when being pushed.

As shown in <FIG> , the proximal structural body <NUM> comprises a first proximal structural segment <NUM> and a second proximal structural segment <NUM>, wherein the first proximal structural segment <NUM> comprises first proximal spacing disks <NUM>, a first proximal fixing disk <NUM> and first segment structural backbones <NUM>; and the second proximal structural segment <NUM> comprises second proximal spacing disks <NUM>, a second proximal fixing disk <NUM>, and second segment structural backbones <NUM>, wherein the first proximal spacing disks <NUM> and the second proximal spacing disks <NUM> are respectively distributed at intervals in the first proximal structural segment <NUM> and the second proximal structural segment <NUM>, in order to prevent the first segment structural backbones <NUM> and the second segment structural backbones <NUM> from being destabilized when being pushed. The first segment structural backbones <NUM> on the first proximal structural segment <NUM> are securely connected, in one-to-one correspondence, to or are the same as the first segment structural backbones <NUM> on the first distal structural segment <NUM>; and the second segment structural backbones <NUM> on the second proximal structural segment <NUM> are securely connected, in one-to-one correspondence, to or are the same as the second segment structural backbones <NUM> on the second distal structural segment <NUM>. For each of the proximal structural segments <NUM>, <NUM> and each of the distal structural segments <NUM>, <NUM>, the number of structural backbones is three or more.

As shown in <FIG> , the middle connecting body <NUM> comprises two channel fixing plates <NUM> and a structural backbone guide channel <NUM> fixedly connected between the two channel fixing plates <NUM>. One end of the first segment structural backbone <NUM> (<NUM>) is securely connected to the first proximal fixing disk <NUM>, and the other end passes through the first proximal spacing disks <NUM>, the structural backbone guide channel <NUM> and the first distal spacing disks <NUM> in sequence and is then securely connected to the first distal fixing disk <NUM>. One end of the second segment structural backbone <NUM> (<NUM>) is securely connected to the second proximal fixing disk <NUM>, and the other end passes through the second proximal spacing disks <NUM>, the structural backbone guide channel <NUM>, the first distal structural segment <NUM> and the second distal spacing disks <NUM> in sequence and is then securely connected to the second distal fixing disk <NUM>. The structural backbone guide channel <NUM> functions to maintain the shape of the structural backbone under a pushing or pulling force.

The number of the distal structural segments comprised in the distal structural body <NUM> and the number of the proximal structural segments comprised in the proximal structural body <NUM> may also be one or more than two, but the number of the proximal structural segments must be consistent with the number of the distal structural segments. In addition, when the number of the distal structural segments comprised in the distal structural body <NUM> is two or more, the distal structural segments are connected in series, that is, the second segment structural backbone passes through the first distal fixing disk and the first distal spacing disks (and can also pass through the first segment structural backbone if the first segment structural backbone is of a tubular structure); and when the number of the proximal structural segments comprised in the proximal structural body <NUM> is two or more, series connection, independent arrangement or nested arrangement (as shown in <FIG> ), etc. may be applied between the structural segments.

As shown in <FIG> and <FIG> , the transmission unit <NUM> comprises a transmission mechanism fixing plate <NUM> arranged at distal side of the middle connecting body <NUM>, and a gear transmission mechanism <NUM> arranged between the transmission mechanism fixing plate <NUM> and the flexible surgical instrument front end plate <NUM> or a pulley transmission mechanism <NUM> arranged on the transmission mechanism fixing plate <NUM>, both the gear transmission mechanism <NUM> and the pulley transmission mechanism <NUM> being used for converting a rotary motion input into a linear motion output. When the gear transmission mechanism <NUM> is used, an output end of the gear transmission mechanism <NUM> is respectively securely connected to one ends of two driving backbones <NUM> via two adaptors <NUM>; and when the pulley transmission mechanism <NUM> is used, an output end of the pulley transmission mechanism <NUM> is respectively securely connected to one end of two driving backbones <NUM> via two linear motion mechanisms <NUM> arranged between the two channel fixing plates <NUM>. The other ends of the two driving backbones <NUM> respectively pass through the first proximal spacing disk <NUM> and are then securely connected to the first proximal fixing disk <NUM>, or pass through the second proximal spacing disk <NUM> and are then securely connected to the second proximal fixing disk <NUM>. Thus, by means of one gear transmission mechanism <NUM> or pulley transmission mechanism <NUM>, a pair of driving backbones <NUM> can be pushed or pulled cooperatively so as to implement turning of the first proximal structural segment <NUM> or the second proximal structural segment <NUM>. In this embodiment, the number of driving backbones <NUM> is eight, four of which are securely connected to the first proximal fixing disk <NUM>, and the other four are securely connected to the second proximal fixing disk <NUM>. Since the gear transmission mechanisms <NUM> or pulley transmission mechanisms <NUM> can cooperatively push or pull a pair of driving backbones <NUM>, four gear transmission mechanisms <NUM> or four pulley transmission mechanisms <NUM> are provided in this embodiment, in which two of the gear transmission mechanisms <NUM> or the pulley transmission mechanisms <NUM> are used to drive the first proximal structural segment <NUM> to perform a turning motion in any direction, and when the first proximal structural segment <NUM> turns in a certain direction, the first distal structural segment <NUM> will turn in the opposite direction in a certain proportional relationship (determined by the distribution radius of the first segment structural backbone <NUM> and the first segment structural backbone <NUM> together); and the other two gear transmission mechanisms <NUM> or pulley transmission mechanisms <NUM> are used to drive the second proximal structural segment <NUM> to perform a turning motion in any direction, and when the second proximal structural segment <NUM> turns in a certain direction, the second distal structural segment <NUM> will turn in the opposite direction in a certain proportional relationship (determined by the distribution radius of the second segment structural backbone <NUM> and the second segment structural backbone <NUM> together).

The gear transmission mechanism <NUM> and the pulley transmission mechanism <NUM> will be respectively described below:As shown in <FIG> , the gear transmission mechanism <NUM> comprises a driving gear <NUM>, a rack <NUM>, a slider <NUM>, a guide rod <NUM>, a guide rod base <NUM> and a steering structural backbone <NUM>, wherein the guide rod <NUM> is securely connected to the transmission mechanism fixing plate <NUM> or the flexible surgical instrument front end plate <NUM> via the guide rod base <NUM>, the slider <NUM> is slidably connected to the guide rod <NUM>, the slider <NUM> is securely connected to the rack <NUM>, the rack <NUM> is securely connected to the middle of a bundle of steering structural backbones <NUM>, and two ends of the bundle of steering structural backbones <NUM> extend backward through the transmission mechanism fixing plate <NUM> and are then connected to one of the driving backbones <NUM> via one of the adaptors <NUM>, respectively. The rack <NUM> meshes with the driving gear <NUM>, the driving gear <NUM> is securely sheathed over the driving shaft <NUM>, the rear end of the driving shaft <NUM> passes through the transmission mechanism fixing plate <NUM>, the channel fixing plate <NUM>, and the flexible surgical instrument rear end plate <NUM> arranged in rear of the proximal structural body <NUM> in sequence, and is securely connected to the male coupling <NUM>, and the driving shaft <NUM> is rotatably connected to the flexible surgical instrument rear end plate <NUM>.

Further, a plurality of guide rods are provided between two channel fixing plates <NUM>, and the adaptor <NUM> is slidably connected to the guide rod, so as to ensure that the adaptor <NUM> always performs a linear motion, preventing the adaptor <NUM> from turning over when the driving backbone <NUM> is pushed or pulled.

Further, each of the steering structural backbones <NUM> passes through the two steering structural backbone guide channels <NUM>, with one end of the steering structural backbone guide channel being securely connected to the channel fixing plate <NUM>, and the other end being securely connected to the guide rod base <NUM>, and the steering structural backbone guide channel <NUM> functions to keep the shape of the steering structural backbone <NUM> unchanged under a pushing or pulling force.

As shown in <FIG> , the pulley transmission mechanism <NUM> comprises a driving pulley <NUM>, a driven pulley <NUM>, a cable <NUM>, a slider <NUM>, a guide rod <NUM>, a guide rod base <NUM> and a steering structural backbone <NUM>, wherein two driven pulleys <NUM> are provided and respectively rotatably arranged on the transmission mechanism fixing plate <NUM>, two ends of the cable <NUM> respectively pass around a driven pulley <NUM> and are then securely connected to the driving pulley <NUM>, the driving pulley <NUM> is securely sheathed over the driving shaft <NUM>, the rear end of the driving shaft <NUM> pass through the transmission mechanism fixing plate <NUM>, the channel fixing plate <NUM>, and the flexible surgical instrument rear end plate <NUM> arranged in rear of the proximal structural body <NUM> in sequence, and is securely connected to the male coupling <NUM>, and the driving shaft <NUM> is rotatably connected to the flexible surgical instrument rear end plate <NUM>. A slider <NUM> is securely connected to the cable <NUM> between two driven pulleys <NUM>, the slider <NUM> is slidably connected to the guide rod <NUM>, and the guide rod <NUM> is fixedly supported on the transmission mechanism fixing plate <NUM> via the guide rod base <NUM>. The slider <NUM> is securely connected to the middle of a bundle of steering structural backbones <NUM>, and two ends of the bundle of steering structural backbones <NUM> extend backward through the transmission mechanism fixing plate <NUM> and are respectively connected to the linear motion mechanism <NUM>. The linear motion mechanism <NUM> comprises a guide rod <NUM> securely connected between the two channel fixing plates <NUM> and a adaptor <NUM> slidably connected to the guide rod <NUM>, with a front end of the adaptor <NUM> being securely connected to the steering structural backbone <NUM>, and a rear end of the adaptor being securely connected to the driving backbone <NUM>.

Further, each of the steering structural backbones <NUM> passes through the two steering structural backbone guide channels <NUM>, with one end of the steering structural backbone guide channel being securely connected to the channel fixing plate <NUM>, and the other end of the steering structural backbone being securely connected to a support frame <NUM> fixedly arranged at a front side of the transmission mechanism fixing plate <NUM>, and the steering structural backbone guide channel <NUM> functions to keep the shape of the steering structural backbone <NUM> unchanged under a pushing or pulling force.

In the above embodiment, the front end of the distal structural body <NUM> is provided with a surgical end effector <NUM> (as shown in <FIG> ), a actuation wire <NUM> of the surgical end effector <NUM> passes through the distal structural body <NUM>, and the other end is connected to the surgical end effector driving mechanism <NUM>. The surgical end effector driving mechanism <NUM> implements control over the surgical end effector <NUM> (e.g., surgical forceps) by means of physically pushing or pulling the actuation wire <NUM>. The actuation wire <NUM> may also transfer various forms of energy, such as electrical energy and highfrequency vibrations, to achieve specific surgical functions of the surgical end effector <NUM>. As shown in <FIG> , the surgical end effector driving mechanism <NUM> comprises a threaded rod <NUM>, a nut <NUM>, a guide sleeve base <NUM>, a guide sleeve <NUM>, a push-pull rod <NUM> and a male coupling <NUM>, wherein the threaded rod <NUM> is rotatably connected to the center of the flexible surgical instrument rear end plate <NUM>, a rear end of the threaded rod is securely connected to the male coupling <NUM>, and the nut <NUM> is threadedly connected to the threaded rod <NUM>; a front end of the guide sleeve base <NUM> is securely connected to the guide sleeve <NUM>, and a rear end of the guide sleeve base is securely connected to the flexible surgical instrument rear end plate <NUM>; an inner hole of the guide sleeve <NUM> is a square hole and forms a restriction on the nut <NUM>, so that the nut <NUM> can only slide in the inner hole of the guide sleeve <NUM> and cannot rotate; and a rear end of the push-pull rod <NUM> is securely connected to the nut <NUM>, and a front end of the push-pull rod is securely connected to the actuation wire <NUM>.

In the above embodiment, as shown in <FIG> and <FIG>, the present disclosure further comprises a motor driving unit <NUM>, and the motor driving unit <NUM> is connected to the flexible surgical instrument <NUM> via the sterile barrier <NUM>. The flexible surgical instrument <NUM> further comprises a flexible surgical instrument housing <NUM>, and the channel fixing plate <NUM>, the transmission mechanism fixing plate <NUM> and the flexible surgical instrument rear end plate <NUM> are all securely connected to the flexible surgical instrument housing <NUM>. The motor driving unit <NUM> comprises a motor driving unit shell <NUM>, a motor fixing plate <NUM>, and a plurality of first motors (not shown in the figure) securely connected to the motor fixing plate <NUM>, with an output shaft of each of the first motors being securely connected to one of the male couplings <NUM>. As shown in <FIG> , the sterile barrier <NUM> comprises a sterile barrier support plate <NUM>, a sterile barrier cover <NUM> and a plurality of female couplings <NUM> rotatably connected to the sterile barrier support plate <NUM>, with a rear end of the female coupling <NUM> being connected to the male coupling <NUM>, and a front end of the female coupling being connected to the male coupling <NUM> or the male coupling <NUM>. A front side of the motor fixing plate <NUM> is provided with a connecting pin seat <NUM>, and a rear side of the sterile barrier support plate <NUM> is correspondingly provided with a connecting pin seat <NUM>, the connecting pin seat <NUM> being quickly connected to the connecting pin seat <NUM> via a pin hole; and the sterile barrier cover <NUM> is detachably connected to the surgical instrument housing <NUM>. A sterile membrane (not shown in the figure) is securely connected on the sterile barrier cover <NUM> to isolate the sterilizable parts (such as the flexible surgical instrument <NUM> and other parts in front of the sterile barrier <NUM>) from the unsterilized parts (such as the motor driving unit <NUM> and other parts in rear of the sterile barrier), in order to ensure the clinical practicability of surgery.

In the above embodiment, it is a rotatable connection provided between the motor fixing plate <NUM> and the motor driving unit shell <NUM>, an inner wall of the motor driving unit shell <NUM> is securely connected with an inner ring gear <NUM>, the motor fixing plate <NUM> is also securely connected with a second motor (not shown in the figure), an output shaft of the second motor is securely connected with a gear <NUM>, and the gear <NUM> meshes with an inner ring gear <NUM>. When the output shaft of the second motor rotates, the gear <NUM> is driven to rotate, and the gear <NUM> circumferentially travels along the inner ring gear <NUM>, so as to drive all structures, other than the motor driving unit shell <NUM> and the inner ring gear <NUM> to rotate around the axis of the inner ring gear <NUM>, thereby implementing the rotation of the flexible surgical instrument <NUM> as a whole and achieving control over the roll angle of the distal structural body <NUM> and the surgical end effector <NUM>.

In the above embodiment, as shown in <FIG> , the present disclosure further comprises a linear module <NUM> (the linear module <NUM> being also separated from the sterilized part via the sterile membrane <NUM>), which comprises a bracket body <NUM> with a sliding groove, a lead screw <NUM> is rotatably provided on the bracket body <NUM>, the lead screw <NUM> is sheathed with a slider <NUM> which is threadedly fitted with the lead screw <NUM> and is slidably provided in the sliding groove, one end of the bracket body <NUM> is provided with a motor <NUM>, and an output shaft of the motor <NUM> is securely connected to the lead screw <NUM> via a coupling. The motor driving unit housing <NUM> is securely connected to the slider <NUM>. When the output shaft of the motor <NUM> rotates, the slider <NUM> drives the motor driving unit housing <NUM> to perform linear movement along the sliding groove, so as to implement the feed motion of the flexible surgical instrument <NUM>.

In the above embodiment, as shown in <FIG>, an envelope <NUM> is provided over the outside of the distal structural body <NUM> and functions to improve the smoothness of the distal structural body <NUM> entering a natural orifice or a surgical incision in the human body. A sheath <NUM> (as shown in <FIG> ) may also be provided over the outside of the envelope <NUM>. In an application, the sheath <NUM> is fixed at a single incision in the abdominal cavity, and the distal structural body <NUM>, together with the envelope <NUM> and the surgical end effector <NUM>, can freely pass through a through hole in the sheath <NUM> for the passage of the surgical instrument and access to the surgical site. As shown in <FIG> , in another application, the sheath <NUM> may also be a flexible sheath that can more easily extend into various natural orifices of the human body and adaptively change shape as the shape of the orifices, one end of the flexible sheath is fixed at the entrance of the orifice, and the distal structural body <NUM>, together with the envelope <NUM> and the surgical end effector <NUM>, can freely pass through a through hole in the flexible sheath for the passage of the surgical instrument and access to the surgical site.

Claim 1:
A sterilizable flexible surgical instrument system, comprising a flexible continuous body structure comprising a distal structural body (<NUM>), a middle connecting body (<NUM>) and a proximal structural body (<NUM>), the distal structural body (<NUM>) comprising at least one distal structural segment (<NUM>,<NUM>) comprising a distal spacing disk (<NUM>,<NUM>), a distal fixing disk (<NUM>,<NUM>) and structural backbones (<NUM>,<NUM>), the proximal structural body (<NUM>) comprising a proximal structural segment (<NUM>,<NUM>) comprising a proximal spacing disk (<NUM>,<NUM>), a proximal fixing disk (<NUM>,<NUM>) and structural backbones (<NUM>,<NUM>), and the proximal structural segment (<NUM>,<NUM>) being linked to the distal structural segment (<NUM>,<NUM>) via the middle connecting body (<NUM>),wherein the flexible surgical instrument system further comprises a transmission unit (<NUM>), the transmission unit (<NUM>) comprises a transmission mechanism fixing plate (<NUM>) arranged at distal side of the middle connecting body (<NUM>), a transmission mechanism (<NUM>) for converting a rotary motion input into a linear motion output is arranged on the transmission mechanism fixing plate (<NUM>), output ends of the transmission mechanism (<NUM>) are respectively securely connected to ends of different driving backbones (<NUM>) via adaptors (<NUM>), and other ends of the driving backbones (<NUM>) pass through the proximal spacing disk (<NUM>,<NUM>) and are securely connected to the proximal fixing disk (<NUM>,<NUM>);
characterised in that the transmission mechanism (<NUM>) comprises at least one bundle of steering structural backbones (<NUM>,<NUM>), and the bundle of steering structural backbones (<NUM>,<NUM>) transmit the linear motion output; two ends of the bundle of steering structural backbones (<NUM>,<NUM>) extend backward through the transmission mechanism fixing plate (<NUM>) and are respectively connected to the corresponding adaptor (<NUM>).