Patent ID: 7297133

Claim:
A surgical irrigation system, comprising: a handpiece locatable adjacent a surgical site and comprising an irrigation liquid inlet and an irrigation liquid outlet; a motor/pump unit locatable remote from said handpiece and comprising a motor having a shaft and a housing including a receptacle having an end opening, a cover, and a motor receiving member axially opposing said receptacle and said cover; said motor receiving member comprising an end wall and a hollow tubular wall extending from said end wall and defining a recess, said end wall having a hole therethrough, said motor being received in said recess with said shaft extending through said hole in said end wall, said motor receiving member being interposed between said receptacle and cover; said cover comprising the open ended dome having a roof and a peripheral wall extending from said roof, said motor receiving member being received in said dome, an annular seal ring radially interposed between said motor receiving member and a surrounding portion of said peripheral wall of said dome, said motor receiving member being axially spaced from said roof of said dome by a pumping chamber, an impeller fixed on said shaft about said motor receiving member and disposed in said pumping chamber, said pumping chamber having an irrigation liquid inlet and an irrigation liquid outlet; an elongate irrigation liquid path connecting said irrigation liquid outlet of said motor/pump unit to said irrigation liquid inlet of said handpiece.