Claims
- 1. A torque transmission system comprising:
an outer tube having at least one longitudinal extending slot; an inner tube having at least one longitudinal extending groove aligned with the slot of the outer tube, the inner tube slidably engaged within the outer tube; a pinion shaft operatively coupled to a drive system and coupled to the outer tube to transfer rotational torque to the outer tube; and one or more ball bearing, each ball bearing rollably positioned within the slot and groove, wherein the ball bearing urges the inner tube to rotate as the outer tube rotates.
- 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the groove of the inner tube and the slot of the outer tube each include aligned side walls and the ball bearing biases against the aligned side walls to urge the inner tube to rotate.
- 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the groove of the inner tube includes a proximal end and the slot includes a distal end, and wherein the system is capable of extending by the inner tube sliding distally from the inner tube until the ball bearing catches the distal end of the slot and the proximal end of the groove.
- 4. The system of claim 1, further including a main shaft coupled to the inner tube and to a drive shaft.
- 5. The system of claim 1, wherein the width of the slot is slightly larger than the diameter of the ball bearing.
- 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the pinion shaft includes at least one gear operatively couple to the drive system gear.
- 7. An intracorporeal device comprising:
a drive shaft; a drive system; and a torque transmission system comprising:
an outer tube having at least one longitudinal extending slot; an inner tube with at least one longitudinal extending groove aligned with the slot of the outer tube, the inner tube slidably engaged within the outer tube; a pinion shaft operatively coupled to the drive system and coupled to the outer tube to transfer rotational torque to the outer tube; and one or more ball bearing, each ball bearing rollably positioned within the slot and groove, wherein the ball bearing urges the inner tube to rotate as the outer tube rotates and inner tube conveys the rotational torque to the drive shaft.
- 8. The system of claim 8, wherein the groove of the inner tube and the slot of the outer tube each include aligned side walls and the ball bearing biases against the aligned side walls to urge the inner tube to rotate.
- 9. The system of claim 8, wherein the groove of the inner tube includes a proximal end and the slot includes a distal end, and wherein the system is capable of extending by the inner tube sliding distally from the inner tube until the ball bearing catches the distal end of the slot and the proximal end of the groove.
- 10. The device of claim 10, further including a sealing member to slide in a movement that coincides with the sliding of the inner tube.
- 11. The device of claim 11, further including a hand held device to house the sealing member, drive system and transmission system.
- 12. The device of claim 8, further including a console unit to control the drive system.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/453,846, filed Mar. 10, 2003. The disclosure of this application is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Provisional Applications (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
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60453846 |
Mar 2003 |
US |