Patent ID: 7407078

Claim:
A surgical instrument, comprising: a handle portion operable to produce a firing motion; an implement portion responsive to the firing motions from the handle portion, the implement portion comprising: an elongate staple channel coupled to the handle portion and including a channel slot, a staple cartridge having an upper surface and received in the elongate staple channel and containing a plurality of staples each having a staple length sized for forming a closed staple between a first height and a second height, a wedge member movably positioned in the implement portion to drive the plurality of staples of the staple cartridge; an anvil pivotally coupled to the elongate staple channel and including an anvil channel comprising a vertical slot inwardly open along a longitudinal axis of the anvil and comprising left and right rectangular prism-shaped recesses communicating with, bisected by, and transverse to the vertical slot, wherein said left and right rectangular prism-shaped recesses extend substantially along the longitudinal length of the vertical slot; a firing device including a distally presented cutting edge longitudinally received between the elongate staple channel and the vertical slot of the anvil channel of the anvil, an upper member comprised of left and right lateral upper pins sized to slidingly engage upper and lower inner surfaces of the left and right rectangular-shaped recesses of the anvil channel, a lower member engaging the channel slot, and a middle member operable to actuate the staple cartridge by distally translating the wedge member through the staple cartridge, the firing device positively engaging both the elongate staple channel and the anvil during longitudinal firing travel to provide spacing therebetween for staple formation, and wherein engagement of the firing device during firing maintains vertical spacing between the elongate staple channel and the anvil resisting both pinching due to an inadequate clamped tissue and partial opening due to an excessive amount of clamped tissue; and a resilient portion of the firing device allowing a height between the staple forming undersurface of the anvil and the upper surface of the staple cartridge to vary between the first and second heights of the closed staples in relation to the clamped tissue thickness.