Patent ID: 7585282

Claim:
An automatic tissue sampling apparatus for use with a biopsy needle set having an inner needle and an outer cannula, comprising: an elongated housing having a forward end defining an opening for passage of the inner needle and outer cannula, said housing defining an interior cavity and configured to be held by an operator's hand along the length thereof; a first carrier slidably disposed within said interior cavity and having a portion configured to support one of the inner needle and the outer cannula; a second carrier slidably disposed within said interior cavity and having a portion configured to support the other of the inner needle and the outer cannula; a first driving mechanism disposed within said interior cavity in operable engagement with said first carrier, said first driving mechanism having a cocked position in which said mechanism stores potential energy and a firing position in which said mechanism releases the potential energy to drive said first carrier toward said forward end of said housing; a second driving mechanism disposed within said interior cavity in operable engagement with said second carrier, said second driving mechanism having a cocked position in which said mechanism stores potential energy and a firing position in which said mechanism releases the potential energy to drive said second carrier toward said forward end of said housing; and a cocking mechanism operable to sequentially move said first driving mechanism to its cocked position and said second driving mechanism to its cocked position, said cocking mechanism including a manually operated cocking lever positioned outside said housing for single handed manipulation by the same operator's hand holding said housing, wherein said cocking lever is pivotally supported on said housing, and includes a cocking slider having an engagement portion and an elongated bar slidably disposed within said housing so that when said cocking slider slides in a rearward direction away from said forward end of said housing said engagement portion applies a force against at least one of said first and second carriers to move the carrier to its cocked position, said engagement portion including a forward engagement member defined at a forward end of said bar arranged to engage said first carrier and a rearward engagement member arranged to engage said second carrier; and a force transmission mechanism engaged between said cocking lever and said cocking slider and configured to translate pivoting movement of said cocking lever to sliding movement of said cocking slider in said rearward direction against said at least one of said first and second carriers, said force transmission mechanism including a first elongated beam slidably supported at one end by said cocking lever and pivotally connected at an opposite end to said elongated bar, wherein said first elongated beam is pivotally connected at a position along the length of said elongated bar of said cocking slider closer to the forward end of said bar than to the rearward end of said bar.