Patent ID: 7717926

Claim:
An apparatus for application of surgical clips to body tissue, which comprises: a) a handle portion; b) a body extending distally from the handle portion and defining a longitudinal axis; c) a plurality of surgical clips disposed within the body; d) a jaw assembly mounted adjacent a distal end portion of the body, the jaw assembly including first and second jaw portions movable between a spaced-apart and an approximated position; e) a wedge plate longitudinally movable between the first and the second jaw portions; f) a clip pusher configured to individually distally advance a surgical clip to the jaw assembly while the jaw portions are in the spaced apart position; g) an actuator at least partially disposed within the body and longitudinally movable in response to actuation of the handle portion, the actuator having a cam link mounted thereto and being in operative cooperation with the wedge plate; and h) a jaw closure member positioned adjacent the first and second jaw portions to move the jaw portions to the approximated position, wherein said cam link longitudinally moves said wedge plate between the first and the second jaw portions, wherein said wedge plate: biases the first and the second jaw portions when said wedge plate is longitudinally moved between the first and the second jaw portions; and maintains said first and said second jaw portions in a fixed predetermined relationship during loading of said clip, said fixed predetermined relationship preventing flexing of the first and the second jaw members during clip loading; and wherein said wedge plate has: a first proximal window adapted to be engaged by a member disposed in said body, said member being configured to hold said wedge plate in a distal most position, said distal most position being between said first and said second jaw members; and a second proximal window adapted to be engaged by said member, said second proximal window configured to hold said wedge plate in a proximal most position being retracted from said first and said second jaw members, said proximal most position of said wedge plate configured to allow the first and the second jaw members to be moved to the approximated position to compress said clip.