US-12623054-B2 - Handle assembly including a smart catheter ring connector

US12623054B2US 12623054 B2US12623054 B2US 12623054B2US-12623054-B2

Abstract

A handle assembly for a smart catheter includes a housing extending along an axis from a proximal end to a distal end. A smart catheter extends through the housing and along the axis from a receiving end to a distal tip that extends outwardly from and terminates in spaced relationship with the distal end of the housing. The smart catheter includes an outer catheter surface extending annularly about the axis between the receiving end and the distal tip. At least one circuit is disposed along said outer catheter surface and extends between said receiving end and said distal tip. A ring connector is co-axially aligned with said smart catheter and disposed in radially surrounding relationship with a portion of the outer catheter surface to dispose the ring connector in electrical communication with the circuit.

Inventors

Timothy S. Zeis

Assignees

FREUDENBERG MEDICAL, LLC

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20221201

Claims (20)

1 . A handle assembly for a smart catheter comprising: a housing extending along an axis from a proximal end to a distal end; a smart catheter extending through the housing and along the axis from a receiving end to a distal tip that extends outwardly from and terminates in spaced relationship with said distal end of said housing; said smart catheter including an outer catheter surface having an outer diameter D o extending annularly about the axis between said receiving end and said distal tip; at least one circuit disposed along said outer catheter surface and extending between said receiving end and said distal tip; said at least one circuit including a circuit trace extending from a proximal contact pad disposed adjacent said receiving end to a distal circuit end disposed adjacent said distal tip; a ring connector co-axially aligned with said smart catheter and disposed in radially surrounding relationship with a portion of said outer catheter surface; said ring connector including an annular body presenting an outer connector surface and an inner connector surface each extending circumferentially about the axis in radially spaced relationship with one another; said inner connector surface defining a central opening having an inner diameter D i being approximately equal to said outer diameter D o of said outer catheter surface for disposing said inner connector and outer catheter surfaces in contact with one another when said ring connector is co-axially aligned with said ring connector; said inner connector surface of said ring connector including at least one electrical connector, and said ring connector disposed in radially surrounding relationship with said at least one proximal contact pad to dispose said at least one electrical connector in abutting and electrical connection with said at least one proximal pad and establish electrical communication between said ring connector and said at least one circuit.
2 . The handle assembly as set forth in claim 1 , further comprising: said smart catheter including a plurality of circuits each extending in circumferentially spaced relationship with one another between respective proximal contact pads and distal circuit ends; said at least one electrical connector including a plurality of electrical connectors arranged around said inner connector surface in circumferentially spaced relationship with one another and each disposed in abutting and electrical communication with a respective one of said plurality of contact pads; each of said plurality of electrical connectors extending through said annular body from an outer electrical connecting portion disposed along said outer connector surface to an inner electrical connecting portion disposed along said inner connector surface and in abutting relationship with a respective one of said plurality of proximal contact pads; and a plurality of electrical wires each electrically connected to a respective one of said outer electrical connecting portions and extending outwardly from said housing to respective wire ends disposed in an environment of the handle assembly for connection to an external controller.
3 . The handle assembly as set forth in claim 2 , wherein said plurality of electrical wires extend collectively outwardly from said housing as a wire bundle passing through a sheath.
4 . The handle assembly as set forth in claim 2 , wherein each of said inner electrical connecting portions includes a spring component extending radially inwardly from said inner connector surface and self-biased towards said axis to resist radially outward movement for maintaining contact between said inner electrical connection portions and said proximal contact pads.
5 . The handle assembly as forth in claim 4 , wherein each of said inner electrical connecting portions include a leg component connected with said spring component and seated within a chamber defined by said annular body for traveling within said chamber from adjacent said inner connector surface towards said outer connector surface during contact of said spring component with said proximal contact pad.
6 . The handle assembly as set forth in claim 2 , further comprising: a valve assembly disposed adjacent said proximal end of said housing and in fluid communication with said receiving end of said smart catheter; and said connector ring integrally formed with a distal valve end of said valve assembly.
7 . The handle assembly as set forth in claim 2 , further comprising; a valve assembly disposed adjacent said proximal end of said housing and in fluid communication with said receiving end of said smart catheter; and said connector ring disposed in spaced and adjacent relationship with a distal valve end of said valve assembly.
8 . The handle assembly as set forth in claim 2 , wherein said ring connector is integrally formed with a cord inner support extending through said housing transverse to said axis.
9 . The handle assembly as set forth in claim 2 , wherein said connector ring is disposed adjacent said distal end of said housing.
10 . The handle assembly as set forth in claim 1 , wherein said annular body is comprised of a non-conductive material to provide electrical isolation for said at least one electrical connector.
11 . A handle assembly for a smart catheter comprising: a housing extending along an axis from a proximal end to a distal end; a smart catheter extending through the housing and along the axis from a receiving end to a distal tip that extends outwardly from and terminates in spaced relationship with said distal end of said housing; said smart catheter including an outer catheter surface having an outer diameter D o extending annularly about the axis between said receiving end and said distal tip; a ring connector co-axially aligned with said smart catheter and disposed in radially surrounding relationship with a portion of said outer catheter surface; said ring connector including an annular body presenting an outer connector surface and an inner connector surface each extending circumferentially about the axis in radially spaced relationship with one another; said inner connector surface defining a central opening having an inner diameter D i being approximately equal to said outer diameter D o of said outer catheter surface for disposing said inner connector and outer catheter surfaces in contact with one another when said ring connector is co-axially aligned with said ring connector; said smart catheter including a plurality of circuits each extending in circumferentially spaced relationship with one another between respective proximal circuit ends and distal circuit ends, and said ring connector including a plurality of electrical connectors arranged around said inner connector surface in circumferentially spaced relationship with one another and each disposed in abutting and electrical communication with a respective one of said plurality of circuits.
12 . The handle assembly as set forth in claim 11 , further comprising: each of said plurality of electrical connectors extending through said annular body from an outer electrical connecting portion disposed along said outer connector surface to an inner electrical connecting portion disposed along said inner connector surface and in abutting relationship with a respective one of said plurality of circuits; and a plurality of electrical wires each electrically connected to a respective one of said outer electrical connecting portions and extending outwardly from said housing to respective wire ends disposed in an environment of the handle assembly for connection to an external controller.
13 . The handle assembly as set forth in claim 12 , wherein said plurality of electrical wires extend collectively outwardly from said housing as a wire bundle passing through a sheath.
14 . The handle assembly as set forth in claim 12 , wherein each of said inner electrical connecting portions includes a spring component extending radially inwardly from said inner connector surface and self-biased towards said axis to resist radially outward movement for maintaining contact between said plurality of electrical connectors and a respective one of said plurality of circuits.
15 . The handle assembly as forth in claim 14 , wherein each of said inner electrical connecting portions include a leg component connected with said spring component and seated within a chamber defined by said annular body for traveling within said chamber from adjacent said inner connector surface towards said outer connector surface during contact of said spring component with a respective one of said plurality of circuits.
16 . The handle assembly as set forth in claim 12 , wherein said ring connector is integrally formed with a cord inner support extending through said housing transverse to said axis.
17 . The handle assembly as set forth in claim 11 , wherein said annular body is comprised of a non-conductive material to provide electrical isolation for said plurality of electrical connectors.
18 . A method of assembling a handle assembly for a smart catheter, the method comprising: providing a housing extending along an axis from a proximal end to a distal end; disposing a ring connector within said housing in axially aligned relationship with the axis, the ring connector including an annular body presenting an inner connector surface defining a central opening having an inner diameter D i , and the inner connector surface including at least one electrical connector; inserting a smart catheter into the housing, the smart catheter including an outer catheter surface having an outer diameter D o being approximately equal to the inner diameter D i of the central opening and at least one circuit including a circuit trace extending from a proximal contact pad disposed adjacent a receiving end of the smart catheter to a distal circuit end disposed adjacent a distal tip of the smart catheter; and passing the smart catheter through the ring connector to dispose the inner connector surface of the ring connector in contact and radially surrounding relationship with a portion of the outer catheter surface of the smart catheter and the at least one electrical connector in abutting and electrical communication with the at least one proximal pad.
19 . The method as set forth in claim 18 , wherein the at least one electrical connector includes a spring component extending radially inwardly from the inner connector surface and self-biased towards the axis to resist radially outward movement, and said step of passing the smart catheter through the ring connector includes disposing the outer catheter surface in abutting relationship with the spring component to push the spring component radially outwardly and establish a resistive force of the spring component which maintains electrical contact between the at least one electrical connector and the at least one proximal contact pad.
20 . The method as set forth in claim 19 , wherein the at least one electrical connector includes a leg component connected with the spring component and seated within a chamber defined by the annular body, and said step of passing the smart catheter through the ring connector includes pushing the leg component radially outwardly during commensurate movement of the spring component.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present disclosure relates generally to medical devices and procedures. In particular, the present disclosure relates to a handle assembly for supporting and controlling a steerable catheter. 2. Description of the Prior Art This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art. A catheter is a medical instrument for use in accessing an interior of a patient's body with a distal tip during a medical procedure. The catheter can include at least one working component, such as a fluid channel, a working channel, and/or an electronics cable, which extend along the catheter and terminate at or adjacent the distal tip. There is a growing trend in the industry to also integrate circuits into the catheter shaft, thereby providing intelligence to the catheter (i.e., a “smart catheter”). The current state of the art for connectorizing to the circuits in the smart catheter typically involves running a plurality of wires through the smart catheter and out a proximal end, at which point the plurality of wires need to be cut to length, jacket stripped, ends pre-tinned, and then connected via solder or laser welding to electrical contact pads or wires in an umbilical cable disposed inside the handle assembly. However, this is a time consuming and costly manufacturing process, as a result of the multiple cutting, soldering, and/or welding manufacturing processes. Additionally, the resultant handle assembly lacks robustness due to the small, fragile wires which are required to establish an electrical connection to the circuits in the smart catheter. Accordingly, there remains a continuing need for improved ways of establishing an electrical connection with a circuit of the smart catheter during assembly of the handle assembly. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This section provides a general summary of the disclosure and is not intended to be a comprehensive disclosure of its full scope, aspects, objectives, and/or all of its features. The subject invention is directed to a handle assembly for a smart catheter that includes a housing extending along an axis from a proximal end to a distal end. A smart catheter extends through the housing and along the axis from a receiving end to a distal tip that extends outwardly from and terminates in spaced relationship with the distal end of the housing. The smart catheter includes an outer catheter surface extending annularly about the axis between the receiving end and the distal tip. At least one circuit is disposed along the outer catheter surface and extends between the receiving end and the distal tip. A ring connector is co-axially aligned with the smart catheter and is disposed in radially surrounding relationship with a portion of the outer catheter surface to dispose the ring connector in electrical communication with the circuit. The subject invention is also directed to a method of assembling a handle assembly for a smart catheter. The method includes providing a housing extending along an axis from a proximal end to a distal end, and disposing a ring connector within the housing and in axially aligned relationship with the axis. The assembly method proceeds by inserting a smart catheter having an outer catheter surface including at least one circuit into the housing, and then passing the smart catheter through the ring connector to dispose the ring connector and the smart catheter in co-axially aligned relationship. In this position, the ring connector is disposed in radially surrounding relationship with a portion of the outer catheter surface to dispose the ring connector in electrical communication with the at least one circuit. The handle assembly and method of assembling same in accordance with the subject invention simplifies the process of establishing an electrical connection with the at least one circuit of the smart catheter by eliminating the small, fragile wires and associated soldering and/or welding processes required by the prior art handle assemblies to establish an electrical connection with the circuit(s) of the smart catheter. Put another way, in this simpler manufacturing design, the ring connector functions as a female connector component and the circuit arranged on the outer catheter surface functions as the male connector component to establish a solderless electrical connection between the ring connector and the smart catheter. Thus, the resultant handle assembly is not only more cost effective and easier to assemble due to the solderless design, but the ring connector also makes the overall handle assembly more robust due to reduced likelihood of connector breakage. Further advantages will become apparent from the description provided herein. The description and specific examples in this summary are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS T