Patent ID: 8449595

Claim:
A delivery system for delivering and deploying a stent graft, comprising: a) a curved guidewire catheter having a distal end and an interior extending along a longitudinal axis; b) an apex release catheter having a distal end and being slidably disposed about the guidewire catheter; c) an apex capture device including i) a distal capture portion fixedly connected to the distal end of the guidewire catheter, the distal capture portion having a distal portion with a proximal end, and a proximal stopper having an exposed side facing distally that is disposed in a plane approximately perpendicular to the longitudinal axis and defining stopping surface portions, and a proximal side extending along a line that intersects with the guidewire catheter proximal to the exposed side of the proximal stopper, and ii) a proximal capture portion fixedly connected to the distal end of the apex release catheter, and having fingers extending toward the distal capture portion in a distal direction, the fingers defining an interior cavity shaped to receive the proximal stopper therein, wherein the proximal and distal capture portions are formed to hold proximal apices joining struts of a stent therebetween and, together, define a stent captured state in which the proximal stopper and proximal apices of the stent are received in the interior cavity to thereby constrain the proximal apices while the struts emanate radially from between the fingers of the proximal capture portion, and the distal capture portion approximately closes off the interior cavity along the longitudinal axis; d) an outer catheter having a distal end and slidably disposed about the apex release catheter; and e) a distal nose having a proximal end connected to at least one of the distal capture portion and the distal end of the guidewire catheter.