Patent ID: 7491008

Claim:
A clamping element for engaging a rod of an external fixation system, comprising: a first jaw member having a bore therethrough and a rod receiving cavity spaced radially from said bore; a second jaw member having a bore therethrough and a rod receiving cavity spaced radially from said bore; an axially extending locking shaft extending through the bore of said first and-second jaw member for moving said first jaw member towards said second jaw member; and an insert having a first part with a bore for receiving said locking shaft and a second part extending into said rod receiving cavity of said first jaw member and being generally at a 90° angle with respect to the first part, said second part having tapered edges forming teeth for engaging an outer circumferential surface of the rod to be received within said rod receiving cavity of said first jaw member for preventing movement of said rod wherein the first and second jaw members lie opposite one another and form the rod receiving cavity being laterally open for lateral accommodation of the rod, at least the first jaw member has a passageway extending between an outer side surface of said first jaw member and a surface that delimits the cavity of the first jaw member, said passageway receiving the second part of said insert wherein one of the teeth has one engagement edge oriented perpendicular to another engagement edge of another one of the teeth.