Patent ID: 8579920

Claim:
An applicator instrument for dispensing surgical fasteners comprising: a housing; an elongated shaft extending from said housing, said elongated shaft having a proximal end, a distal end, and a longitudinal axis extending between the proximal and distal ends; a firing rod disposed inside said elongated shaft and being movable within a first plane between a retracted position and an extended position; an advancer disposed inside said elongated shaft and being moveable within a second plane between a retracted position and an extended position; an actuator coupled with said advancer for selectively moving said advancer back and forth between the retracted and extended positions, wherein said actuator is squeezed from an open position to a closed position for moving said advancer distally into the extended position; a staging assembly located adjacent the distal end of said elongated shaft and being adapted to align surgical fasteners with the first plane at a distal end of said firing rod, wherein said staging assembly includes a spring-like device that is deflectable away from the first plane by said advancer when said advancer is in the extended position and said staging assembly is adapted to move into alignment with the first plane at the distal end of said firing rod when said advancer is in the retracted position.