Patent ID: 8419754

Claim:
A suturing system for use with a needle, the suturing system comprising: a cartridge having a cartridge body, a plurality of jaws, and a cartridge interface; a drive unit having a drive unit body, a linkage, and a drive unit interface, the cartridge interface removably mountable to the drive unit interface, cycling of the linkage effecting alternating grasping of the needle by the jaws when the drive unit interface engages the cartridge interface and the needle is positioned for use; the drive unit interface or the cartridge interface comprising a latch having a latched position maintaining the cartridge interface in engagement with the drive unit interface and a released position releasing the cartridge from the drive unit; and a latch input coupled to the latch so that two opposed motions, each relative to the drive unit body, effect movement of the latch to the released position and removal of the cartridge from the drive unit, wherein the cartridge interface is removable from the drive unit interface along a removal orientation, and wherein the latch input is coupled to the latch so that a movement of the latch input along a mounting orientation moves the latch to the released position, the mounting orientation opposing the removal orientation so that removal of a latched drive unit involves opposed motions of the latch input and the cartridge, and wherein the cartridge interface or the drive unit interface includes a channel and the other includes a shaft and a column, the channel axially receiving the column along the mounting orientation.