Patent ID: 7651519

Claim:
An introducer for an expandable endovascular prosthesis having a tubular member defining a lumen about a longitudinal axis, including a proximal portion, a distal portion, and a middle portion between the proximal and distal portions, the prosthesis being radially movable between a compressed configuration and an expanded configuration, the introducer comprising: a distal prosthesis positioning mechanism including a distal retention section positioned radially inside of a sheath to retain said prosthesis distal portion until deployment, and a first control member to selectively disengage the distal retention section from said prosthesis distal portion; a proximal prosthesis positioning mechanism including a cylindrical sleeve to maintain the proximal portion of said prosthesis in the compressed configuration until deployment, the cylindrical sleeve having a tapered extension coupled thereto and extending proximally therefrom, and a second control member to selectively disengage said prosthesis proximal portion from the cylindrical sleeve, wherein the second control member includes a first region coupled to the distal prosthesis positioning mechanism extending longitudinally therefrom, and a second region including an enlarged uninflatable tip coupled to the first region, the enlarged tip comprising a conical surface facing the proximal direction, the enlarged tip positioned within said prosthesis lumen, the conical surface selectively abutting a distal end of said prosthesis proximal portion to retain said prosthesis proximal portion in the cylindrical sleeve; and the sheath positioned radially outside of the cylindrical sleeve to retain the distal and middle portions of said prosthesis in the compressed configuration until deployment.