Patent ID: 7547311

Claim:
A surgical instrument operable to implant an anastomotic ring, the instrument comprising: a handle; a ring deployment mechanism having a proximal portion, a distal portion, and a central portion, wherein the ring deployment mechanism is configured to receive and deploy an anastomotic ring, wherein the central portion comprises a rib member; an elongate shaft connecting the handle to the ring deployment mechanism; a first rigid member attached to the distal portion of the ring deployment mechanism and configured to engage the rib member of the central portion of the ring deployment mechanism; a second rigid member attached to the proximal portion of the ring deployment mechanism and configured to engage the rib member of the central portion of the ring deployment mechanism, wherein the second rigid member is shorter than the first rigid member; a first sliding actuating member configured to communicate with the first member via a cable, wherein the first sliding actuating member is configured such that sliding the first sliding actuating member from an unactuated position to an actuated position causes the first rigid member to disengage the rib member of the central portion of the ring deployment mechanism, wherein the second rigid member is configured to engage the rib member after the disengagement of the first rigid member and the rib member; a second sliding actuating member configured to communicate with the second rigid member via a cable, wherein the second sliding actuating member is configured such that sliding the second sliding actuating member from an unactuated position to an actuated position causes the second rigid member to disengage the rib member of the central portion of the ring deployment mechanism; and a resilient member in communication with the ring deployment mechanism, wherein the resilient member comprises a first end and a second end, wherein the resilient member is biased to urge the distal portion of the ring deployment mechanism toward the proximal portion of the ring deployment mechanism, wherein the first end of the resilient member is engaged with the distal portion of the ring deployment mechanism when the first sliding actuating member is in the unactuated position, the resilient member being moveable from a first position when the first actuating member is in the unactuated position to a second position when the first actuating member is in the actuated position, the resilient member being moveable from a second position when the second actuating member is in the unactuated position to a third position when the second actuating member is in the actuated position, wherein the resilient member is configured to actuate the ring deployment mechanism by moving from the first position to the second position and to the third position.