Patent ID: 8057470

Claim:
An electrosurgical pencil for delivering electrical energy from an electrode to tissue at an electrosurgical site and for evacuating electrosurgical byproducts from the site created by delivering the electrical energy to the tissue, comprising: a pencil housing; a suction tube movably positioned at the housing and defining an interior passageway which surrounds the electrode and through which the byproducts are evacuated, the suction tube having a distal end which moves in extension and retraction outside of the housing and relative to the electrode, the suction tube also having a proximal end which remains within the housing during the extension and retraction movement of the suction tube; an electrode anchor unit operatively connected to the housing within the interior passageway of the suction tube to permit the extension and retraction of the suction tube while remaining stationary relative to the housing with respect to the extension and retraction movement of the suction tube, the electrode anchor unit including a socket member by which to connect and disconnect the electrode; an airflow connector on the housing through which to communicate low-pressure air to the interior passageway of the suction tube for evacuating the byproducts from the surgical site through the interior passageway; and an electrical connector connected to the socket member by which to deliver the electrical energy to the electrode; and wherein the electrode anchor unit further comprises: a collet member which supports the socket member, the collet member including contact structures which movably contact the suction tube within the interior passageway; and an anchor rod extending from the collet member and the socket member through the interior passageway and connecting to the housing at a location beyond the proximal end of the suction tube to avoid interfering with the extension and retraction movement of the suction tube, the anchor rod maintaining the collet member and the socket member stationary relative to the housing with respect to the extension and retraction movement of the suction tube.