Patent ID: 8187168

Claim:
A surgical instrument comprises: a sleeve; a power source mounted outside of said sleeve for generating a magnetic field within said sleeve; an ultrasonic transducer in said sleeve, said transducer including a vibration source within said sleeve for generating mechanical vibrations in response to the magnetic field applied thereto by said power source, said vibration source being supported within said sleeve at a point where essentially no vibration occurs; a horn attached to said transducer operatively associated with and vibrated by said vibration source and supported within said sleeve at a point where essentially no vibration motion occurs; a tip operatively associated with said horn and vibrated by said horn, said tip having a terminus for extending outside of said sleeve and contacting tissue; said transducer with its said vibration source and said horn and said tip being longitudinally mounted within said sleeve for extending and retracting motion within said sleeve while said tip is vibrating independently of said sleeve, said extending and retracting motion being an axial movement which is relative to said power source; irrigating structure communicating with said sleeve for irrigating a work site having the tissue contacted by said tip and for irrigating said vibration source with fluid to contact said vibration source and the tissue; aspiration structure communicating with said sleeve for withdrawing irrigation fluid and removed biological material from the tissue; and viewing structure for visualizing said tip and the tissue; wherein said power source is an electric coil positioned about the outside of said sleeve, said sleeve being made of non-electrically conductive material, and the energy being transferred to said transducer by the magnetic field produced by said electric coil without direct electrical contact.