Patent ID: 7833175

Claim:
An intracorporeal device comprising: a) a helically wound coil having a plurality of windings forming a coil length and defining a longitudinal coil axis extending along the coil length; and b) at least ten joining elements disposed along the coil length, wherein each joining element is located at a longitudinal position along the coil length relative to the coil axis and couples two or more coil windings, wherein a first series of joining elements are spaced apart longitudinally along the coil length, and a second series of joining elements are spaced apart longitudinally along the coil length, wherein the longitudinal positions of the joining elements in the first series are transversely offset from the longitudinal positions of the joining elements in the second series along the coil length, such that the joining elements in the first series are staggered relative to the joining elements in the second series along the coil length.