CN112057174A

CN112057174A - Surgical instrument, slave operation device, and surgical robot

Info

Publication number: CN112057174A
Application number: CN202011069493.6A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 吴仲兵; 上官希坤; 王建辰
Original assignee: Shenzhen Edge Medical Co Ltd
Current assignee: Shenzhen Edge Medical Co Ltd
Priority date: 2020-09-30
Filing date: 2020-09-30
Publication date: 2020-12-11

Abstract

The invention provides a surgical instrument, a slave operation device applying the surgical instrument and a surgical robot with the slave operation device, wherein the surgical instrument comprises an end effector, a driving device and cables, and the cables comprise a first driving cable, a first pair of cables and a second pair of cables; the end effector of the present invention is driven in two directions of the pitching motion by different driving principles, namely, the pitching motion in the first direction is driven by a special pitching driving cable, and the pitching motion in the other direction is driven by the driving cable for driving the end effector to yaw.

Description

Surgical instrument, slave operation device, and surgical robot

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of medical instruments, and in particular, to a surgical instrument, a slave operation device using the surgical instrument, and a surgical robot having the slave operation device.

Background

The minimally invasive surgery is a surgery mode for performing surgery in a human body cavity by using modern medical instruments such as a laparoscope, a thoracoscope and the like and related equipment. Compared with the traditional minimally invasive surgery, the minimally invasive surgery has the advantages of small wound, light pain, quick recovery and the like.

With the progress of science and technology, the minimally invasive surgery robot technology is gradually mature and widely applied. The minimally invasive surgical robot generally comprises a master operation console and a slave operation device, wherein the master operation console is used for sending control commands to the slave operation device according to the operation of a doctor so as to control the slave operation device, and the slave operation device is used for responding to the control commands sent by the master operation console and carrying out corresponding surgical operation.

A surgical instrument is detachably connected to the slave operating device, the surgical instrument includes a driving device and an end effector for performing a surgical operation, the driving device is used for connecting the surgical instrument to the slave operating device and receiving a driving force from the slave operating device to drive the end effector to move, the driving device is connected with the end effector through a driving cable, and the driving device is used for controlling the movement of the end effector through the driving cable. End effectors typically include three degrees of freedom of movement, i.e., opening and closing, pitch and yaw, and some end effectors also have rotational movement, with the yaw and opening movement of the end effector being controlled by one set of drive cables and the pitch movement of the end effector being controlled by another set of drive cables.

When a surgical operation is performed in a human body, many complex scenes are often needed, one of the scenes is that the end effector needs to be lifted in one direction with larger force, and when the end effector is lifted in the opposite direction, the end effector does not need to be lifted with larger force, for example, when the end effector of the surgical instrument is lifted in one direction, a part of human tissue needs to be pressed in one direction, when the end effector is lifted in the other direction, the end effector needs to provide larger force to lift or press the human body combination, and when the end effector is released, the end effector does not need to provide larger force.

The forces required to pitch the end effector in both directions are the same, which either causes the end effector to pitch in one direction and not provide the required amount of force, or causes the end effector to pitch in both directions with a greater force, which results in unnecessary waste because a larger drive cable or a thicker cable is required to output a greater amount of pitch force.

Disclosure of Invention

In view of the above, the present invention provides a surgical instrument, a slave operation device to which the surgical instrument is applied, and a surgical robot having the slave operation device. A surgical instrument comprising an end effector, a drive device configured to drive movement of the end effector via a cable, the cable comprising a first drive cable, a second drive cable, and a third drive cable, the first drive cable configured to drive the end effector in a pitch motion in cooperation with the second drive cable and the third drive cable, the second drive cable and the third drive cable further configured to drive the end effector in a yaw motion, the drive device comprising:

the near end of the first driving cable is connected with the driving unit, and the driving unit drives the end effector to execute pitching motion by the first driving cable in cooperation with the second driving cable and the third driving cable;

the decoupling mechanism comprises a main decoupling piece and a slave decoupling piece connected with the main decoupling piece, the slave decoupling piece comprises a sliding frame and a guide part arranged at one end of the sliding frame and used for guiding a second driving cable and a third driving cable, the main decoupling piece is coaxially arranged with the driving unit, and the main decoupling piece is used for rotating coaxially with the driving unit and driving the sliding frame to move so as to increase or decrease the lengths of the second driving cable and the third driving cable in the driving device simultaneously, so that the driving unit drives the end effector to execute pitching motion.

Preferably, the main decoupling member drives the carriage to move linearly to change the length of the second and third drive cables within the drive device.

Preferably, the slave decoupling assembly further comprises a first and a second decoupling cable connected at both ends of the carriage, one end of the first and second decoupling cables being connected to the master decoupling assembly, the master decoupling assembly being configured to drive the carriage through the first and second decoupling cables to vary the length of the second and third drive cables within the drive device.

Preferably, the main decoupling element is connected to the carriage in a geared manner.

Preferably, the main decoupling element has a cam structure, and the main decoupling element is configured to rotate to drive the cam structure to abut against the carriage to drive the carriage to move.

Preferably, the sliding frame further includes a first protrusion and a second protrusion, the cam structure includes a first cam and a second cam that are staggered from each other up and down in the axial direction of the main decoupling member, and the main decoupling member rotates to enable the first cam to abut against the first protrusion and the second cam to abut against the second protrusion so as to push the sliding frame to move.

Preferably, the outer contour of the projection of the first cam and/or the second cam on a plane perpendicular to the rotation axis of the main decoupling member has an involute, and the change amount of the distance from the involute to the rotation axis of the main decoupling member when the main decoupling member rotates has a linear change relationship with the angle of the main decoupling member rotating around the rotation axis.

Preferably, the outer contour further includes a first arc and a second arc at both ends of the involute, and a distance from the involute to the rotation axis of the main decoupling member gradually increases from a end where the involute is connected to the first arc to a end where the involute is connected to the second arc.

Preferably, the driving device further comprises a first guide wheel, and the second driving cable and the third driving cable extend to the end effector after being guided by the first guide wheel and then guided by the guide portion.

Preferably, the direction of movement of the decoupling member is parallel to the portions of the second and third drive cables between the first guide and the carriage.

Preferably, the driving device further comprises a second guide wheel, and the second driving cable and the third driving cable are guided by the guide part and then are guided by the second guide wheel to extend to the end effector.

Preferably, the direction of movement of the carriage is parallel to the portions of the second and third drive cables between the guide and the second guide wheel.

Preferably, the first drive unit and the master decoupling member are rotated in a first direction to simultaneously decrease the length of the first drive cable and the second drive cable on the end effector and move the slave decoupling member upon actuation of the master decoupling member to increase the length of the second drive cable and the third drive cable within the drive assembly.

Preferably, the first drive unit and the master decoupling member are rotated in a second direction to simultaneously increase the length of the first drive cable and the second drive cable on the end effector and move the slave decoupling member upon actuation of the master decoupling member to decrease the length of the second drive cable and the third drive cable within the drive mount.

Preferably, the first drive unit and the primary decoupling member are adapted to rotate such that the amount of change in the length of the second or third drive cable on the end effector is equal to twice the distance traveled by the secondary decoupling member in the drive device.

Preferably, the main decoupling element is adapted to rotate in the second direction such that the length of the first cable on the end effector decreases by an amount equal to twice the distance the main decoupling element moves within the drive device.

Preferably, the primary decoupling member is adapted to rotate in a first direction to pull the first decoupling cable and release the second decoupling cable, moving the carriage to increase the length of the second and third drive cables within the drive device.

Preferably, the primary decoupling member is adapted to rotate in a second direction opposite the first direction to release the first decoupling cable and to retract the second decoupling cable, moving the carriage to reduce the length of the second and third drive cables within the drive device.

The slave operation equipment comprises a mechanical arm and the surgical instrument, wherein the surgical instrument is mounted on the mechanical arm, and the mechanical arm is used for manipulating the movement of the surgical instrument.

A surgical robot comprises a main operation console and the slave operation equipment, wherein the slave operation equipment executes corresponding operation according to the instruction of the main operation console.

The driving device of the surgical instrument can drive the end effector to perform pitching motion towards two directions by using different driving principles, namely, the pitching motion towards the first direction is driven by the special pitching driving cable, and the pitching motion towards the other direction is driven by the driving cable for driving the end effector to yaw.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural view of a slave manipulator of a surgical robot according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a main console of a surgical robot according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a robotic arm of the slave manipulator apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic structural view of a surgical instrument according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 5A-5H are schematic structural views of an end effector according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6A is a perspective view of a first bracket of an end effector of one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6B is a top view of the first support of the end effector of the embodiment of FIG. 6A of the present invention;

FIG. 6C is a top view of a first support of an end effector of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7A is a perspective view of an end effector of another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7B is an exploded view of the end effector of the embodiment of FIG. 7A of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a top view of a first support of the end effector of the embodiment shown in FIG. 7A;

FIGS. 9A and 9B are schematic views of the pitch state of the end effector of the embodiment shown in FIG. 7A;

FIG. 9C is a schematic view of a yaw assembly of the end effector of the embodiment shown in FIG. 7A;

FIG. 10A is a schematic top view of a driving device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 10B-10C are schematic views of the decoupling process of the drive arrangement of the embodiment shown in FIG. 10A;

FIG. 11A is an enlarged schematic view of a portion of the first guide portion and the first guide wheel of the embodiment shown in FIG. 10A;

FIG. 11B is an enlarged schematic view of the first guide and third guide wheel portions of the embodiment shown in FIG. 10A;

FIG. 12 is a schematic view of a driving device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a schematic view of a driving device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 14A is a perspective view of a drive device according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 14B is a top view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 14A;

FIG. 14C is an exploded view of the decoupling mechanism and installation of the embodiment shown in FIG. 14A;

FIG. 14D is a top view of a main decoupling of the embodiment shown in FIG. 14A;

FIG. 14E is a schematic illustration of the decoupling process of the drive arrangement of the embodiment shown in FIG. 14A;

FIG. 15 is a schematic view of a driving device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 16A is a schematic view of a driving device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 16B is a schematic illustration of the decoupling process of the drive arrangement of the embodiment shown in FIG. 16A;

FIG. 17 is a schematic view of a driving device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 18A is a schematic view of a driving device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 18B is a pitch view of a primary decoupling of the drive device of the embodiment shown in fig. 18A.

Detailed Description

To facilitate an understanding of the invention, the invention will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. Preferred embodiments of the present invention are shown in the drawings. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete.

It will be understood that when an element is referred to as being "disposed on" another element, it can be directly on the other element or intervening elements may also be present. When an element is referred to as being "connected" to another element, it can be directly connected to the other element or intervening elements may also be present. The terms "vertical," "horizontal," "left," "right," and the like as used herein are for illustrative purposes only and do not represent the only embodiments. As used herein, the terms "distal" and "proximal" are used as terms of orientation that are conventional in the art of interventional medical devices, wherein "distal" refers to the end of the device that is distal from the operator during a procedure, and "proximal" refers to the end of the device that is proximal to the operator during a procedure.

Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. The terminology used herein in the description of the invention is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the term "and/or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

The minimally invasive surgical robot generally comprises a slave operation device and a master operation console, wherein fig. 1 shows the slave operation device 100 according to an embodiment of the invention, fig. 2 shows the master operation console 200 according to an embodiment of the invention, a surgeon performs related control operations on the slave operation device 100 on the master operation console 200, and the slave operation device 100 performs a surgical operation on a human body according to an input instruction of the master operation console 200. The master operation console 200 and the slave operation device 100 may be disposed in one operation room or in different rooms, and even the master operation console 200 and the slave operation device 100 may be far apart, for example, the master operation console 200 and the slave operation device 100 are respectively located in different cities, the master operation console 200 and the slave operation device 100 may transmit data by wire, or may transmit data by wireless, for example, the master operation console 200 and the slave operation device 100 are located in one operation room and transmit data by wire, or the master operation console 200 and the slave operation device 100 are respectively located in different cities and transmit data by 5G wireless signals.

As shown in fig. 1, the slave manipulator 100 includes a plurality of mechanical arms 110, each of the mechanical arms 110 includes a plurality of joints and a mechanical holding arm 130, the plurality of joints are linked to realize the movement of the mechanical holding arm 130 with a plurality of degrees of freedom, a surgical instrument 120 for performing a surgical operation is mounted on the mechanical holding arm 130, the surgical instrument 120 is inserted into a human body through a trocar 140 fixed to a distal end of the mechanical holding arm 130, and the mechanical arms 110 are used to manipulate the movement of the surgical instrument 120 to perform the surgical operation. Surgical instrument 120 is removably mounted on a manipulator arm 130 so that different types of surgical instruments 120 may be readily replaced or surgical instruments 120 may be removed to wash or sterilize surgical instrument 120. As shown in fig. 3, the arm 130 includes an arm body 131 and an instrument mounting bracket 132, the instrument mounting bracket 132 is used for mounting the surgical instrument 120, and the instrument mounting bracket 132 can slide on the arm body 131 to advance or withdraw the surgical instrument 120 along the arm body 131.

As shown in fig. 4, surgical instrument 120 includes a drive mechanism 170 and a distal end effector 150 disposed at a proximal end and a distal end, respectively, of surgical instrument 120, and a long shaft 160 disposed between drive mechanism 170 and end effector 150, drive mechanism 170 being configured to be coupled to instrument mount 132 of instrument arm 130, and instrument mount 132 having a plurality of actuators (not shown) disposed therein, the plurality of actuators being coupled to drive mechanism 170 to transmit a driving force of the actuators to drive mechanism 170. Long shaft 160 is used to connect drive device 170 and end effector 150, long shaft 160 being hollow for the passage of a drive cable therethrough, and drive device 170 being used to cause end effector 150 to perform an associated surgical procedure by movement of end effector 150 via the drive cable.

Fig. 5A-5D are schematic structural views of an end effector 150 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and as shown in fig. 5A and 5B, the end effector 150 includes a first bracket 210 and a second bracket 310, a distal end of the first bracket 210 has a first support post 211 and a second support post 212, a proximal end of the first bracket 210 has a first base frame 213, one end of the base frame 213 is connected to the long shaft 160, another end of the first base frame 213 extends toward a distal end of the end effector 150 to form the first support post 211 and the second support post 212, and the first support post 211, the second support post 212, and the first base frame 213 form a substantially U-shaped clamp structure.

A first pin 214 and a second pin 215 are provided between the first support column 211 and the second support column 212, the first pin 214 is fixedly connected at one end to the first support column 211 and at the other end to the second support column 212, similarly, the second pin 215 is fixedly connected at one end to the first support column 314 and at the other end to the second support column 212, and the first pin 214 and the second pin 215 are provided side by side on the first support column 211 and the second support column 212, wherein the first pin 214 is closer to the base frame 213 of the first support 210 than the second pin 215.

The first pin 214 is provided with a first pulley block, the first pulley block comprises a first pulley 221, a second pulley 222, a third pulley 223 and a fourth pulley 224 which are arranged on the first pin 214 from left to right, the second pin 215 is provided with a second pulley block, the second pulley block comprises a fifth pulley 225, a sixth pulley 226, a seventh pulley 227 and an eighth pulley 228 which are arranged on the second pin 215 from left to right, the first pulley 211 to the eighth pulley 218 are used for guiding the driving cable, and since the pulleys for guiding the driving cable are arranged on the first bracket 210 and no pulley is arranged on the second bracket 310, the volume of the second bracket 310 can be made smaller, so that the volume of the end effector 150 is smaller, and the risk of the pulley falling off does not exist.

The second bracket 310 is provided with a third support 311, a fourth support 312, and a pitching wheel 314, the third support 311 and the fourth support 312 are formed by extending from the pitching wheel 314 along the distal end of the end effector 150, the third support 311, the fourth support 312, and the pitching wheel 314 form a substantially U-shaped frame, the pitching wheel 314 of the second bracket 310 is mounted on the first bracket 210 by a second pin 312, and the second bracket 310 is rotatable about an axis AA' passing through the second pin 215 to realize the pitching motion of the end effector 150.

A third pin 313 is arranged between the third support column 311 and the fourth support column 312 of the second bracket 310, one end of the third pin 313 is fixedly connected with the other end of the third support column 311 and fixedly connected with the fourth support column 312. Grip 410 of end effector 150 includes first grip 411 and second grip 412, first grip 411 and second grip 412 are rotatably disposed on second support 310 by third pin 313, first grip 411 and second grip 412 are rotatable about axis BB' passing through third pin 313 to effect opening and closing and/or yaw movement of end effector 150, wherein first pin 214 is parallel to second pin 215, third pin 313 is perpendicular 215 to first pin 214 and second pin, first grip 411 and second grip 412 may be jaws for gripping tissue, or an anastomat for suturing, or a cauterizer for electrocautery, etc.

The orientation indicators in FIG. 5A are for convenience of describing the manner in which the drive cables are routed around end effector 150, where distal and proximal are the distal and proximal directions of end effector 150, and where front, back, left and right are the front, back, left and right directions of end effector 150 in the perspective of FIG. 5A, and where the orientation of end effector 150 can be easily deduced from FIG. 5A, although no orientation indicators are shown, the drive cables disposed at end effector 150 include a first drive cable, a second pair of cables, and a third pair of cables, where the second pair of cables includes a second drive cable 152A and a third drive cable 152B, where second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 152B cooperate to effect rotation of first grip 411 about third pin 313, and where first drive cable and

second drive cable

152A, 152B cooperate to effect rotation of first grip 411 about third pin 313, Third drive cables 152B cooperate together to effect a pitch motion that manipulates end effector 150; the third pair of cables includes a fourth drive cable 153A and a fifth drive cable 153B, the fourth drive cable 153A and the fifth drive cable 153B cooperating to effect manipulation of the second grip 412 to rotate about the third pin 313, and the second drive cable 152A, the third drive cable 152B cooperating with the fourth drive cable 153A and the fifth drive cable 153B to effect opening and closing and yaw movement of the end effector 150.

The distal end of the first driving cable 151 has a first mounting end 151A, and the second chassis 310 of the second bracket 310 has a first mounting cavity for receiving the first mounting end 151A. the first mounting end 151A is received in the first mounting cavity to couple the first driving cable 151 to the second chassis 310. The distal ends of the second and third pairs of cables have a second mounting end 152C and a third mounting end 153C, respectively, the first and

second clamping portions

411 and 412 have a second mounting cavity 411A and a third mounting cavity 412A, respectively, and the second and third mounting

cavities

411A and 412A are configured to receive the first and second mounting ends 151C and 152C to connect the first and second pairs of cables with the first and

second clamping portions

411 and 412, respectively.

To effect the first drive cable 151 in cooperation with the second and

third drive cables

152A, 152B to effect a pitch motion of the end effector 150, the second drive cable 152A is routed over the first and second pulley sets in the same manner as the third drive cable 152B is routed over the first and second pulley sets on the end effector 150 side, and the fourth drive cable 153A is routed over the first and second pulley sets in the same manner as the fifth drive cable 153B is routed over the first and second pulley sets. As shown particularly in fig. 5C, the proximal end of the second drive cable 152A is connected to the drive unit in the drive device 170, and the distal end of the second drive cable 151A is guided by the front portion of the first pulley 211 and then continues toward the distal end of the end effector 150, and is guided by the rear portion of the fifth pulley 215 and then continues along the distal end of the end instrument 150 and finally is mounted by the second mounting end 151C in the second mounting cavity 411A of the first clamping portion 411; the third drive cable 151B is routed through the front of the fourth pulley 224 and then continues toward the distal end of the end effector 150, and is routed through the rear of the eighth pulley 228 and then continues toward the distal end of the end effector 150 and finally is mounted by the third mounting end 152C in the second mounting cavity 411A of the second clamping portion 411. The distal end of fourth drive cable 153A continues through the rearward guide of second pulley 222 toward the distal end of end effector 150, through the forward guide of sixth pulley 226 toward the distal end of end instrument 150 and finally through third mounting end 153C into third safety lumen 412A of second clamping portion 412, and the distal end of fifth drive cable 153B continues through the rearward guide of third pulley 223 toward the distal end of end effector 150, through the forward guide of seventh pulley 217 toward the distal end of end instrument 150 and finally through third mounting end 153C into third mounting lumen 412A on second clamping portion 412.

Second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 152B cooperate together to operate first grip 411 to rotate about axis BB 'of third pin 313, and fourth drive cable 153A and fifth drive cable 153B cooperate together to operate second grip 412 to rotate about axis BB' of third pin 313, whereby second drive cable 152A, third drive cable 152B, fourth drive cable 153A, and fifth drive cable 153B cooperate together to operate first grip 411 and second grip 412 to effect opening and closing and/or yaw movement of end effector 150.

In addition, first drive cable 151A cooperates with second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 152B to operate grip 410 and second support 310 to rotate about axis AA' of second pin 215 to effect a pitch motion of end effector 150.

Specifically, as shown in fig. 5C-5D, when the drive mechanism simultaneously retracts second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 152B and simultaneously releases first drive cable 151, fourth drive cable 153A, and fifth drive cable 153B, grip 410 and second support 310 rotate counterclockwise about axis AA' of second pin 215, and end effector 150 performs the pitch motion shown in fig. 5D; as the drive mechanism retracts first drive cable 151A and/or simultaneously retracts fourth drive cable 153A and fifth drive cable 153B, grip 410 and second support 310 rotate clockwise about axis AA' of second pin 215, and end effector 150 performs a pitch motion as shown in fig. 5E.

When the drive mechanism retracts the third drive cable 152B and the fifth drive cable 153B and simultaneously releases the second drive cable 152A and the fourth drive cable 153A, the clamp 410 rotates clockwise about the axis BB' of the third pin 313 and the end effector 150 performs a yaw motion as shown in fig. 5F. When the drive device retracts third drive cable 152B and fourth drive cable 153A and simultaneously releases second drive cable 152A and fifth drive cable 153BA, first clamp 411 rotates counterclockwise about axis BB 'of third pin 313, second clamp 412 rotates clockwise about axis BB' of third pin 313, and end effector 150 performs the opening movement of clamp 410 shown in fig. 5G. The pitch, yaw, and opening and closing motions of the end effector 150 may also be performed simultaneously, as shown in fig. 5H by the first drive cable 151, the first pair of cables, and the second pair of cables cooperating together to operate the end effector 150 to perform the pitch, yaw, and opening and closing motions simultaneously. It will be appreciated that when the direction of movement of the drive cables is opposite to that described above, the direction of pitch, yaw, and opening and closing of end effector 150 is opposite to that described above and will not be described in detail herein.

In contrast to prior art end effectors, end effector 150 of the present surgical instrument is operated clockwise along second pin axis AA 'by first drive cable 151, while rotation of the end effector counterclockwise along second pin axis AA' is operated by both second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 153A. Since the moment to which the second bracket 310 is subjected by the driving mechanism 170 when the first driving cable 151 is drawn is greater than the moment to which the second bracket 310 is subjected by the driving mechanism 170 when the second driving cable 152A and the third driving cable 152B are drawn, thus, end effector 150 is more powerful when rotated clockwise than when end effector 150 is rotated counterclockwise, this is primarily for scenarios where a greater amount of force is required to tilt end effector 150 in one direction, when the utility model is pitched in the opposite direction, the utility model does not need large force, for example, the surgical instrument is needed to pick up a part of human tissue in the surgical operation, or one part of human tissue is pressed in one direction, when the end effector of the surgical instrument tilts towards the direction of picking up or pressing the human tissue, a larger force is required to be provided to pick up or press the human body combination, and otherwise, the larger force is not required to release the human body tissue picked up or pressed by the end effector.

In one embodiment of the present invention, when end effector 150 of the surgical instrument is operated by first drive cable 151 and fourth drive cable 153A in conjunction with fifth drive cable 153B during clockwise rotation about second pin axis AA ', end effector 150 rotates clockwise about second pin axis AA' with a greater force than when end effector 150 is operated by first drive cable 151 alone, allowing the end effector to accommodate scenarios in which a unidirectional pitch operation provides a greater force.

In addition, because the present invention has only one first drive cable dedicated to operating the end effector 150 for pitch motion, and there is less drive cable dedicated to operating the end effector for pitch motion than the prior art, the first and second supports can be made smaller in size, so that the overall end effector is correspondingly smaller in size, simpler in structure, and more convenient to assemble and assemble.

It will be appreciated that in other embodiments, in contrast to the two embodiments described above, the first drive cable, which is dedicated to manipulating end effector pitch, manipulates end effector counterclockwise, while the second and third drive cables, which manipulate end effector to open and close and yaw, manipulate end effector clockwise.

To accomplish end effector pitch manipulation using the second drive cable and the third drive cable for end effector opening and closing and yaw, as shown in fig. 5C-5G, regardless of the movement of the end effector 150, the portion of the distal ends of the first pair of cables to the second pulley set and the portion of the distal ends of the second pair of cables to the second pulley set are located on opposite sides of a plane M (first plane) passing through the axis AA 'of the second pin 215 and perpendicular to the axis BB' of the third pin 313, the portion of the distal ends of the first pair of cables to the second pulley set including the first partial cable 152A 'and the second partial cable 152B' and the portion of the distal ends of the second pair of cables to the second pulley set including the third partial cable 153A 'and the fourth partial cable 153B', i.e., the first partial cable 152A 'and the second partial cable 152B' are located on the same side of the plane M, the first partial cable 152A 'and the second partial cable 152B' are located on the other side of the plane M, wherein the portion of the distal end of the first pair of cables to the second pulley set and the portion of the distal end of the second pair of cables to the second pulley set do not include the portion of the first pair of cables and the second pair of cables looped around the second pulley set.

As shown in fig. 5C, the portion of the first pair of cables between the second pulley block and the second mounting cavity 412A of the second clamping portion 412 includes a first portion of cable 152A 'of the second drive cable 152A between the sixth pulley 226 and the second mounting cavity 412A and a second portion of cable 151B' of the third drive cable 152B between the seventh pulley 227 and the second mounting cavity 412A, and the portion of the second pair of cables between the second pulley block and the first mounting cavity 411A of the first clamping portion 411 includes a third portion of cable 152A 'of the fourth drive cable 153A between the fifth pulley 225 and the first mounting cavity 411A and a fourth difference cable 152B' of the fifth drive cable 153B between the eighth pulley 228 and the first mounting cavity 411A.

Thus, when drive device 170 simultaneously retracts second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 152B of the first pair of cables and releases first drive cable 151 and fourth drive cable 153A and fifth drive cable 153B of the second pair of cables, second clamp portion 412 is urged by the moment of the first pair of cables to rotate counterclockwise about axis AA' of second pin 215 and end effector 150 performs the pitch motion shown in FIG. 5D. Conversely, when the drive device 170 retracts the first drive cable 151 and releases the second pair of cables, the second bracket 310 is pulled by the first drive cable 151 to rotate clockwise about the axis AA' of the second pin 215, and the pitch motion of the end effector 150 is reversed from that shown in FIG. 5E. In another embodiment, when the driving device 170 retracts the first driving cable 151 and simultaneously retracts the fourth driving cable 153A and the fifth driving cable 153B to release the two cables, the second bracket 310 is pulled by the first driving cable 151, and the first clamping portion 411 is pushed by the moment of the second pair of cables, so that the end effector 150 is driven to rotate clockwise by the two moments (i.e., the moments of the first driving cable 151 and the second pair of cables), thereby providing a greater force when the end effector 150 tilts clockwise to accommodate more applications.

As shown in FIGS. 5D-5H, regardless of how end effector 150 is pitched, first portion of cable 152A ' and second portion of cable 152B ' are always positioned on opposite sides of plane M as do third portion of cable 153A ' and fourth portion of cable 153B ', first portion of cable 152A ' and second portion of cable 152B ' are always positioned on the same side of plane M, and third portion of cable 153A ' and fourth portion of cable 154 are always positioned on the same side of plane M, such that, regardless of the position of end effector 150, simultaneous retraction of second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 152B causes end effector 150 to be subjected to a moment that drives it counterclockwise about axis AA ' and clockwise about axis AA ', and, similarly, simultaneous retraction of fourth drive cable 153A and fifth drive cable 153B causes end effector 150 to be subjected to a moment that drives it counterclockwise about axis AA ' and counter clockwise about axis AA ' regardless of the position of end effector 150 The needle moves.

Similarly, the portion of the first pair of cables between the first pulley block and the first chassis 213 of the second bracket 210 and the portion of the second pair of cables between the first pulley block and the first chassis 213 are located on either side of a plane P (second plane) passing through both the axis of the first pin 214 and the axis AA 'of the second pin 215, i.e., plane P refers to an end surface passing through the axis AA' of the end effector 150 pitch motion and perpendicular to the distal end of the first chassis 213, and the portion of the first pair of cables between the first pulley block and the first chassis 213 of the second bracket 210 and the portion of the second pair of cables between the first pulley block and the first chassis 213 do not include a portion that wraps over the first pulley block.

As shown in fig. 6A and 6B, the first chassis 213 is provided with through holes for passing the first driving cable, the first pair of cables and the second pair of cables, and specifically, the first chassis 213 has a first through hole 213A for passing the first driving cable 151, a second through hole 213B for passing the second driving cable 152A, a third through hole 213C for passing the third driving cable 152B, a fourth through hole 213D for passing the fourth driving cable 153A and a fifth through hole 213E for passing the fifth driving cable 153B, wherein the first through hole 213A, the second through hole 213B and the third through hole 213C are located on the same side of the plane P, and the fourth through hole 213D and the fifth through hole 213E are located on the other side of the plane P, so that the portion of the first pair of cables between the first pulley block and the first chassis 213 and the portion of the second pair of cables between the first pulley block and the first chassis 213 are located on both sides of the passing plane P, and the portions of the first drive cable 151 and the first pair of cables between the first pulley block and the first chassis 213 for a coordinated pitch movement of the end effector 150 are located on the same side of the plane P.

In order to maximize the transmission efficiency of the driving cable, the straight line passing through the centers of the second through hole 213B and the third through hole 213C is parallel to the straight line passing through the centers of the fourth through hole 213D and the fifth through hole 213E, and the connecting lines of the centers of the second through hole 213B, the third through hole 213C, the fourth through hole 213D and the fifth through hole 213E form a trapezoid as shown in fig. 6A. In another embodiment of the present invention, as shown in fig. 6C, a line connecting centers of the second through hole 223B, the third through hole 223C, the fourth through hole 223D, and the fifth through hole 223E of the first bracket 220 forms a parallelogram. The proximal ends of the first and second pairs of cables extend through the openings in the first brackets 210, 220 into the long shaft 160 and are ultimately secured to the drive unit 170.

7A-7B, an end effector (510) of an end effector (250) includes a first frame (510) and a second frame (610), wherein the first frame (510) has a first base (513) at a proximal end thereof, one end of the base (513) is connected to the shaft (160) and the other end extends toward a distal end of the end effector (250) to form a first leg (511) and a second leg (512), and the first leg (511), the second leg (512) and the first base (513) form a substantially U-shaped clamp structure.

A first pin 514 and a second pin 515 are provided between the first support column 511 and the second support column 512 in parallel with each other, one end of the first pin 514 and the other end of the second pin 515 are fixedly connected to the first support column 511, the other end of the first pin 514 and the other end of the second pin 515 are fixedly connected to the second support column 512, and the first pin 214 and the second pin 215 are provided side by side on the first support column 211 and the second support column 212, wherein the first pin 214 is closer to the bottom frame 213 of the first bracket 210 than the second pin 215.

The first pin 514 is provided with a first pulley block, the first pulley block comprises a first pulley 521 and a second pulley 522 which are sequentially arranged on the first pin 514 from left to right, the second pin 215 is provided with a second pulley block, the second pulley block comprises a third pulley 523 and a fourth pulley 524 which are sequentially arranged on the second pin 515 from left to right, the first pulley 521 to the fourth pulley 524 are used for guiding the driving cable, and the pulleys for guiding the driving cable are all arranged on the first bracket 510, and no pulley is arranged on the second bracket 610, so that the volume of the second bracket 310 can be made smaller, the volume of the end effector 150 is smaller, and the risk of falling of the pulley is avoided.

The proximal end of the second support 610 has a pitch wheel 613, a third support column 611 and a fourth support column 612 are formed extending from the pitch wheel 613 along the distal end of the end effector 250, the third support column 611, the fourth support column 612 and the pitch wheel 613 form a substantially U-shape, the pitch wheel 613 of the second support 610 is mounted on the first support 510 by a second pin 515, and the second support 610 is rotatable about an axis AA' passing through the second pin 515 to achieve the pitch motion of the end effector 150.

A third pin 313 is arranged between the third support column 611 and the fourth support column 612 of the second bracket 610, the third pin 313 is perpendicular to the first pin 514 and the second pin 515, and the third pin 313 is fixed between the third support column 611 and the third support column 612. The implement 620 of the end effector 250 is rotatably disposed on the second bracket 610 by a third pin 623, the implement 620 being rotatable about an axis BB' passing through the third pin 623 to effect yaw movement of the end effector 250, the implement 620 in this embodiment being an electrocautery instrument, and in other embodiments, the implement 620 is also a cutting knife, a needling instrument, or the like.

The drive cables disposed at the end effector 250 include a first drive cable 251 and a first pair of cables 252, wherein the first pair of cables 252 includes a second drive cable 252A and a third drive cable 252B, wherein the first drive cable 251 is disposed between the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252B, wherein the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252B cooperate to effect rotation of the manipulation implement 620 about the third pin 623 to effect yaw movement of the end effector 250, and wherein the first drive cable 251 and the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252B cooperate together to effect pitch movement of the manipulation implement 250.

The distal end of the first driving cable 251 has a first mounting end 251A, the pitching wheel 613 of the second bracket 310 has a first mounting cavity (not shown) for receiving the first mounting end 251A, the first mounting end 251A is received in the first mounting cavity to connect the first driving cable 251 with the pitching wheel 613, the pitching wheel 613 further has an annular groove for guiding and receiving the first driving cable 251, and the first driving cable 251 can form a wrap angle in the annular groove. The distal ends of the first pair of cables 252 each have a second mounting end 252, and the second frame 610 has a second mounting cavity (not shown) for receiving the second mounting end 252C to couple the first pair of cables 252 to the actuating portion 620.

The third pair of cables has the second drive cable 252A wound around the first and

third pulleys

521 and 523 in the same manner as the third drive cable 253A is wound around the second and

fourth pulleys

522 and 524. Specifically, second drive cable 252A continues to extend through the rear guide of first pulley 521 and then through the front guide of third pulley 523 to the distal end of end effector 250 and finally through first securement to implement 620, and third drive cable 252B continues through the rear of second pulley 442 and then continues through the front of fourth pulley 444 to the distal end of end effector 250 and finally to implement 620. After being wound in the manner described above, regardless of the movement of end effector 250, the portion 252A 'of second drive cable 252A between second mounting end 252C and third pulley 523 and the portion 252B' of third drive cable 252B between second mounting end 252C and third pulley 524 are always on the same side of a first plane M, which is a plane passing through axis AA 'of first pin 515 and perpendicular to axis BB' of third pin 623.

As shown in fig. 7B, the end effector 250 further includes an electric cable 253 for providing electric power to the actuator 620, the second pulley 552 includes a guide pulley 522A for guiding the second driving cable 252B and a first guide boss 422B for guiding the electric cable 253, the fourth pulley 424 includes a guide pulley 524A for guiding the second driving cable 252B and a second guide boss 524BA for guiding the electric cable 253, and the electric cable 253 is connected to the actuator 620 after being guided by the first guide boss 522B of the second pulley 522 and the second guide boss 524B of the fourth pulley 524.

The actuating portion 430 includes an electric hook 624 and an insulating member for preventing the electric hook and the cable 253 from burning to an undesired portion, the insulating member includes at least a first insulating member 621, a second insulating member 622, and a third insulating member 625, a proximal end of the electric hook 624 and a distal end of the cable 253 are connected in the first insulating member 621, the second insulating member 622 is connected to the distal end of the first insulating member 621, an end portion of the electric hook 624 is fixed in the second insulating member 622, and a distal end of the cable 253 is received in the third insulating member 625 and extends into the first insulating member 621 to be connected to the proximal end of the electric hook 624.

As shown in fig. 8, the first bracket 510 has a plurality of through holes for allowing the driving cables and the cables to pass through, the plurality of through holes includes a first through hole 513a for passing the first driving cable 251, a second through hole 523B for passing the second driving cable 252A, a third through hole 513c for passing the third driving cable 252B and a fourth through hole 513d for passing the cable 253, similarly to the previous embodiment, the first through hole 513a, the second through hole 513B and the third through hole 513c are located on the same side of a second plane P passing through the axis of the first pin 414 and parallel to the axis of the through holes, and the fourth through hole 513d is located on the opposite side of the second plane P from the first through hole 513a, the second through hole 513B and the third through hole 513c, and in other embodiments, the fourth through hole 513d may also be located on the same side of the second plane P from the first through hole 513a, the second through hole 513B and the third through hole 513 c. The first through hole 513a, the second through hole 513b, and the third through hole 513c are located on the same side of the second plane P, which is different from the second plane P, so that the transmission efficiency of the first driving cable 251 and the first pair of cables 252 can be maximized, and the first pair of cables can be easily wound on the end effector 250.

As shown in FIG. 7A, when the drive mechanism of the surgical instrument simultaneously retracts second drive cable 252A and third drive cable 252B and releases first drive cable 251, pitch wheel 613 of second support 610 rotates in a first direction about the axis of second pin 515, i.e., first axis AA', as end effector 250 performs a pitch motion as shown in FIG. 9A. Conversely, when the drive device retracts first drive cable 251 and simultaneously releases second drive cable 252A and third drive cable 252B, pitch wheel 613 of second support 610 rotates in a second direction about first axis AA' as end effector 250 performs a pitch motion as shown in fig. 9B. Because the first drive cable 251 and the first pair of cables 252 are wound and connected differently at the end effector 250, when the drive unit retracts the second drive cable 252A and releases the third drive cable 252B, the implement 620 rotates about the axis BB' of the third pin 623 a third rotation, the end effector 250 performs a yaw motion as shown in fig. 9C, and conversely, when the drive unit retracts the third drive cable 252B and releases the second drive cable 252A, the end effector performs a yaw motion opposite to that of fig. 9C.

For the embodiment shown in fig. 5A, since the proximal ends of the second and

third drive cables

152A, 152B of the first pair and the fourth and

fifth drive cables

153A, 153B of the third pair are wound around the drive unit within the drive device, the drive unit can only rotate to effect the retraction or release of the first drive cable 151 to the fifth drive cable 153B. However, since the drive unit is unable to translate, it is unable to simultaneously retract or release second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 152A, and likewise, the drive unit is unable to simultaneously retract or release fourth drive cable 153A and fifth drive cable 153B. While clockwise rotation of end effector 150 about axis AA 'of second pin 215 requires retraction of first drive cable 151 and simultaneous release of second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 152B of the first pair of cables as in the two embodiments described above, counterclockwise rotation of end effector 150 about axis AA' of second pin 215 requires simultaneous retraction of second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 153A of the first pair of cables and simultaneous release of fourth drive cable 153A and fifth drive cable 153B of the second pair of cables, in short, the coupling between first drive cable 151, the first pair of cables, and the second pair of cables is not achieved in driving the pitch motion of end effector 150 of the present invention. The present invention also provides a driving device which can drive the end effector 150 of the present invention, and particularly, the end effector 150 of the present invention to perform a pitching motion, and it is understood that the driving device of the present invention can be applied not only to the end effector 150 of the first embodiment of the present invention, but also to other end effectors having a different structure from the

end effectors

150 and 250 of the present invention but having the same principle.

This coupling relationship between the first drive cable 151, the second pair of cables, and the third pair of cables in the embodiment shown in fig. 5A is described in detail below. During rotation of end effector 150 from the straight zero state shown in figure 5C to the pitch state shown in figure 5E, when the drive unit 170 pulls the first drive cable 151, if the target pitch angle that the end effector 150 needs to turn is alpha, a horizontal plane a passing through the axis of the second pin 215 needs to be rotated by an angle alpha, also clockwise, from the position in fig. 5D to the position of plane b in fig. 5E, provided that the radii of the first and second pulley sets are both r, in order for the end effector 150 to successfully rotate the target pitch angle alpha, it is now necessary to increase the wrap angle lengths of the second and

third drive cables

152A and 152B over the sixth and

seventh pulleys

226 and 227, respectively, by the length L, where L α r1, and the wrap angle lengths of the respective fourth and

fifth drive cables

153A, 153B on the fifth and

eighth pulleys

225, 228, respectively, are simultaneously reduced by the length L. Similarly, if simultaneous retraction of second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 152B is to be achieved such that end effector 150 is rotated counterclockwise from the null position of fig. 5D by angle α, to the position shown in fig. 5D, it is necessary to enable both the wrap angle lengths of second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 152B over sixth change 226 and seventh pulley 227, respectively, to be simultaneously decreased by length L, and correspondingly the wrap angle lengths of third drive cable 153A and fifth drive cable 153B over fifth pulley 225 and eighth pulley 228, respectively, to be simultaneously increased by length L, where L is α r 1.

Whereas, as shown in FIG. 10A, in the drive device 170, the proximal end of the first drive cable 151 is looped around the rotatable first drive unit 171, the second drive cable 152A and the third drive cable 152B are looped around the rotatable second drive unit 172 in opposite directions, the fourth drive cable 153A and the fifth drive cable 153B are looped around the rotatable second drive unit 173 in opposite directions, and the first drive unit 171, the second drive unit 172, and the third drive unit 173 are rotationally fixed on their axes of rotation, so the second drive unit 172 and the third drive unit 173 are not translatable, and thus the lengths of the second drive cable 152A and the third drive cable 152B cannot be simultaneously increased or decreased by simply rotating the second drive unit 172, and likewise, the lengths of the fourth drive cable 153A and the fifth drive cable 153B cannot be simultaneously increased or decreased by rotating the third drive unit 173, as described above, if it is necessary to simultaneously increase or decrease the lengths of second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 152B and increase or decrease the lengths of fourth drive cable 153A and fifth drive cable 153B to achieve the desired pitch movement of end effector 150, the movement of first drive cable 151 is constrained by the first pair of cables, and the first and second pairs of cables are constrained by each other during manipulation of the end effector pitch movement.

The relationship in which such a variation of one element is limited by another element is referred to as a coupled relationship, i.e., there is a coupled relationship between one element and another element. The restricted relationship for the first drive cable 151, the second pair of cables, and the third pair of cables may be such that the first drive cable is restricted to the first pair of cables, thereby completely disabling movement of the third pair of cables, the first pair of cables and the second pair of cables are restricted to each other, thereby disabling movement of the first pair of cables and the second pair of cables, thereby disabling the end effector from performing a pitch motion, or the first drive cable may be restricted to the first pair of cables, the first pair of cables and the second pair of cables are restricted to each other, thereby disabling movement of any of the first pair of cables, the second pair of cables, and the third pair of cables, thereby disabling the end effector from performing a desired operation, for example, when the first drive cable 151 is operating to perform a pitch motion, because of the coupling between the first drive cable 151 and the first pair of cables, movement of the third pair of cables may simultaneously cause movement of the first pair of cables and/or the second pair of cables, such that the end effector may simultaneously move in pitch and cause opening and closing and/or yaw movements of the end effector, which may affect the end effector in pitch and opening and/or yaw movements, which may be independent of the end effector in pitch and opening and/or yaw movements, which may prevent the end effector 150 from properly performing a surgical procedure. It is therefore desirable to decouple the first drive cable 151, the first pair of cables, and the second pair of cables such that the first drive cable 151 is no longer constrained in its movement by the first pair of cables, the first and second pairs of cables are no longer constrained by one another during operation of the end effector in a pitch motion, and the movement of the drive cables can be independent of one another, non-interfering with one another, or otherwise interfering with one another, such decoupling of the first drive cable 151 from the first pair of cables, and the first and second pairs of cables during operation of the end effector in a pitch motion.

Regarding how to decouple the driving cables in the two embodiments, taking the end effector in the embodiment shown in fig. 5A as an example, a conventional decoupling method is to use a software algorithm to decouple, and the main console 200 controls the first driving unit to drive the first driving cable to move, and controls the second driving unit and the third driving unit to drive the first pair of cables and the second pair of cables to move, so that the wrap angle length of the first pair of cables and the second pair of cables on the pulley increases L or decreases L along with the movement of the third pair of cables, but this decoupling method needs to make the first portion cable 152A 'and the second portion cable 152B' of the first pair of cables on the end effector respectively located on different sides of the plane M, the second portion cable 153A 'and the third portion cable 153B' of the second pair of cables respectively located on different sides of the plane M, so that the second drive cable 152A and the third drive cable 152B of the first pair of cables form a loop spanning the plane M and the fifth drive cable 153A and the sixth drive cable 153B of the second pair of cables also form a loop spanning the plane M, it is possible to achieve decoupling by controlling the movement of the drive unit by software. However, as mentioned above, the first portion 152A 'and the second portion 152B' of the first pair of cables and the second portion 153A 'and the third portion 153B' of the second pair of cables are located on the same side of the plane M of the end effector of the embodiment of the present invention shown in fig. 5A, and therefore the prior art software decoupling method cannot decouple this type of end effector of the present invention. In addition, the method of decoupling by using a software algorithm may cause a control program of the surgical robot to be complex and prone to errors, and the method of decoupling by using a software algorithm may cause each driving unit of a driving mechanism of the surgical instrument to lose independence, specifically, the driving device has a driving unit for driving the third pair of cables and a driving unit for driving the first driving unit and the second driving unit, and ideally, the driving units are controlled to be opposite to each other. And the software decoupling method does not decouple the first pair of cables from the second pair of cables when manipulating the end effector pitch operation.

The present invention proposes a mechanical decoupling scheme, and a mechanical decoupling mechanism is provided in the driving device 170 of the surgical instrument 120, thereby avoiding the drawbacks of the software algorithm decoupling described above.

Fig. 10A is a schematic diagram of a driving device 170 according to an embodiment of the invention, wherein the driving device 170 is adapted to drive the end effector shown in fig. 5A. The driving device 170 includes a housing 178, a first driving unit 171 located in the housing 178 for driving the end effector 150 to perform a pitch motion, a second driving unit 172 and a third driving unit 173 for driving the end effector 150 to perform an opening and closing, a yaw motion, and a pitch motion, and a fourth driving unit 174 for driving the long shaft 160 to perform a rotation motion. A first drive cable 151 is wound at a proximal end thereof about the first drive unit and at a distal end thereof about the end effector 150, a first pair of cables is wound about the second drive unit 172 with a second drive cable 152A and a third drive cable 152B, respectively, wound in opposite windings, a second pair of cables is wound about the third drive unit 173 with a fourth drive cable 153A and a fifth drive cable 153B, respectively, wound in opposite windings, and a third pair of cables is wound about the fourth drive unit 174 with a sixth drive cable 154A and a seventh drive cable 154B, respectively, wound in opposite windings.

When the actuator within the instrument mount 132 drives the first drive unit 171 to rotate with its shaft 171A, the first drive unit 171 pulls or releases the first drive cable 151 to rotate the second bracket 310 about the axis AA' of the second pin 215, as the actuator within the instrument mount 132 drives the second drive unit 172 for rotation with its shaft 172A, the second drive unit 172 retracts or releases the second drive cable 152A or the third drive cable 152B to rotate the second clamp 412 about the third pin 313, when the actuator drives the third drive unit 173 to rotate with its shaft 173A, the third drive unit 173 pulls or releases the fourth drive cable 154A or the fifth drive cable 154B to rotate the first clamp 411 about the third pin 313, and the first clamp 411 and the second clamp 412 move about the third pin 313 such that the end effector 150 performs an opening and closing and/or yawing motion. As the actuator within the implement mounting bracket 132 drives the fourth drive unit 174 to rotate about its axis 174A, the fourth drive unit 174 retracts or releases either the seventh drive cable 154A or the eighth drive cable 154B to effect a spinning motion of the drive shaft 160.

The drive device 170 further includes a decoupling mechanism 175 for decoupling the coupling relationship between the first drive cable 151, the first pair of cables, and the third pair of cables on one side of the end effector 150, the decoupling mechanism 175 including a master decoupling member 1751 and a slave decoupling member, the slave decoupling member including a carriage 1752 and first and

second guides

1753 and 1754 connected at opposite ends of the carriage, the master decoupling member 1 being connected to opposite ends of the carriage 1752 by first and

second decoupling cables

1761 and 1762, the master decoupling member 1751 manipulating the movement of the slave decoupling member by manipulating the first and

second decoupling cables

1761 and 1762. The first and

second decoupling cables

1761 and 1762 are wound around the main decoupling element 1751 in opposite directions, the main decoupling element 1761 moves at the same angular velocity as the first drive unit 171, and the main decoupling element 1751 and the first drive unit 171 may be disposed on the same axis 173A, so that the main decoupling element 1751 rotates coaxially with the first drive unit 171 along the axis 171A, and in other embodiments, the main decoupling element 1751 and the first drive unit 171 may be disposed on different rotational axes. The main decoupling element 1751 and the first drive unit 171 have different radii, the radius of the main decoupling element 1751 is R2, the radius of the first drive unit 171 is R2, wherein R2< R2, the main decoupling element 1751 effecting movement from the decoupling element by pulling or releasing the first or

second decoupling cables

1761, 1761. The main decoupling element 1751 and the first driving unit 171 may receive the driving from the same power source, i.e. the actuator in the slave operation device, in other embodiments, the main decoupling element and the first driving unit are disposed on different rotation axes, but the main decoupling element still receives the driving force of the same source as the first driving unit, for example, the main decoupling element and the first driving unit are respectively connected and driven by different manners on the same actuator.

As will be described in greater detail below with respect to how decoupling mechanism 175 decouples, second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 152B are routed through first guide wheel 176A, first guide 1753, and third guide wheel 176C into the long axis and then extend to end effector 150, as shown in fig. 10A-10C. Fourth drive cable 153A and fifth drive cable 153B are guided by second guide wheel 176B, second guide 1764 and fourth guide wheel 176D into the long axis and extend to end effector 150. As to how the first drive cable 151 through the fifth drive cable 153B are connected to the end effector 150, the above description has been given in detail, and will not be repeated herein. The first drive cable 151 is routed through the fifth guide wheel 176E and into the long shaft and extends to the end effector 150. The decoupling mechanism 175 may slide relative to the housing 178 of the drive device 170, and in particular, the rotation of the primary decoupling member draws the first decoupling cable 1761 and simultaneously releases the second decoupling cable 1762, or releases the first decoupling cable 1761 and simultaneously releases the second decoupling cable 1762, thereby pulling the secondary decoupling member to move within the drive device 170, causing the first and second pairs of cables to change length within the drive device 170 when pulled from the decoupling member to disengage the coupling between the first drive cable 151, the first pair of cables, and the second pair of cables, as the first pair of cables are wrapped around a portion of the first guide portion 1753 and the second pair of cables are wrapped around a portion of the second guide portion 1754.

In order to allow for precisely controlled release of the coupling between the first drive cable 151, the first pair of cables, and the second pair of cables at the decoupling mechanism 175, the slave decoupling member driven by the master decoupling member 1751 is always moved in a straight line and the changes in length of the second drive cable 152A, the third drive cable 152B, the fourth drive cable 153A, and the fifth drive cable 154B within the drive unit 170 caused by the slave decoupling member movement are always linear. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 7A-7C, the first decoupling cable 1761 is redirected by fifth guide wheel 176F to extend in the direction of movement from the decoupling member and is fixed to one end of the decoupling member, and likewise, the second decoupling cable 1762 is redirected by seventh guide wheel 176G to extend in the direction of movement of the decoupling mechanism 175 and is fixed to the other end of the decoupling member, such that the portion of the first decoupling cable 1761 between fifth guide wheel 176F and carriage 1752 is parallel to the direction of movement from the decoupling member, and likewise, the portion of the second decoupling cable 1762 between seventh guide wheel 176G and carriage 1752 is also parallel to the direction of movement from the decoupling member. Thus, during decoupling, the first and

second decoupling cables

1761 and 1762 pull the velocity of movement of the secondary decoupler carriage 1752 in direct proportion to the linear velocity of rotation of the primary decoupler 1751 and the first drive unit 171. It will be appreciated that in other embodiments, the portion of the first decoupling cable 1761 between the fifth guide wheel 176F and the carriage 1752 is only partially parallel to the direction of motion of the slave decoupler, or the portion of the second decoupling cable 1762 between the seventh guide wheel 176G and the carriage 1752 is only partially parallel to the direction of motion of the slave decoupler, with the non-parallel portion not changing the direction of motion of the carriage, thereby still allowing the slave decoupler to move in a straight line.

In addition, the first to fourth guide wheels 176A to 176D, the fifth guide wheel 176F, the seventh guide wheel 176G, the first guide 1752, and the second guide 1753 are all structures having two pulleys side by side for guiding two drive cables. As shown in fig. 11A, the two side-by-side pulleys of the first guide pulley 176A, the first guide portion 1753, and the third guide pulley 1762 are used to guide the second drive cable 152A and the third drive cable 152B, respectively, the second drive cable 152A is formed with a fifth portion of cable 152Aa between the first guide pulley 176A and the first guide portion 1753 after being guided by the first guide pulley 176A, and the third drive cable 152B is formed with a sixth portion of cable 152Ba between the first guide pulley 176A and the first guide portion 1753, the fifth portion of cable 152Aa and the sixth portion of cable 152Ba not including portions wound around the pulleys, wherein the fifth portion of cable 152Aa and the sixth portion of cable 152Ba are both parallel to the direction of movement of the secondary decoupling member. Therefore, the changes in the lengths of the first and second partial cables 151Aa and 151Ba caused during linear movement of the slave decoupler by the master decoupler 1751 are always linear.

As shown in fig. 11B, the second drive cable 152A forms a seventh portion of cable 152Ab between the first guide 1753 and the third guide wheel 176C, the third drive cable 152B forms an eighth portion of cable 152Bb between the first guide 1753 and the third guide wheel 176C, the seventh portion of cable 152Ab and the eighth portion of cable 152Bb are symmetrical with respect to a center plane H1 of the third guide wheel 176C, the center plane H1 of the third guide wheel 176C is a plane that is centered between the two side-by-side sheaves of the third guide wheel 176C and perpendicular to the axis C1 of the third guide wheel 176C, and likewise, the seventh portion of cable 152Ab and the eighth portion of cable 152Bb do not include portions that wrap around the sheaves. The angles of the seventh portion of cables 152Ab and the eighth portion of cables 152Bb to the central plane H1 are each theta and are small enough so that the lengths of the fifth portion of cables 152Ab and the seventh portion of cables 152Bb are nearly equal to the distance of the shortest straight line of the first guide 1753 and the third guide 176C in the central plane H1 so that the seventh portion of cables 152Ab and the eighth portion of cables 152Bb are also substantially parallel to the direction of movement from the decoupler. Thus, the changes in the lengths of the seventh portion of cables 152Ab and the eighth portion of cables 152Bb that result when the secondary decoupler moves in a straight line upon actuation of the primary decoupler 1751 are also substantially linear.

Likewise, the portions of the fourth 153A and fifth 153B driving cables of the second pair of cables between the second 176B, second 1754 and fourth 176D guide wheels are also of the same arrangement as the first pair of cables described above and will not be described again. Therefore, during decoupling, the rate of change of length of any one of second drive cables 152A through fifth drive cables 153B is directly proportional to the speed of movement of carriage 1752, and as described above, the speed of movement of carriage 1752 is directly proportional to the rotational linear speeds of main decoupler 1751 and first drive unit 171, and therefore the rate of change of length of any one of second drive cables 152A through fifth drive cables 153B is directly proportional to the rotational linear speeds of main decoupler 1751 and first drive unit 171, thereby making the decoupling process precisely controllable.

The decoupling process of the drive device 170 is illustrated in fig. 10B and 10C, and when the first drive unit 171 rotates clockwise as illustrated in fig. 10B, the first drive unit 171 pulls the first drive cable 151 such that the second bracket 220 of the end effector 150 rotates clockwise about the second axis AA' as illustrated in fig. 5E, and the entire end effector 150 performs a clockwise pitch motion. As described above, the wrap angle lengths of the second and

third drive cables

152A, 152B over the sixth and

seventh pulleys

226, 227, respectively, need to be increased by L at the same time, and at the same time, the wrap angle lengths of the fourth and

fifth drive cables

153A, 153B over the fifth and

eighth pulleys

225, 228 need to be decreased by L at the same time to allow the end effector 150 to smoothly perform a pitch motion. Since the main decoupling 1751 of the decoupling mechanism 175 rotates coaxially with the first drive unit 171 at the same angular velocity, thus, while first drive unit 171 rotates clockwise about axis 171A, main decoupling element 1751 also rotates clockwise about axis 171A, at which time main decoupling element 1751 receives second decoupling cable 1762 and simultaneously releases first decoupling cable 1761, provided main decoupling element 1751 rotates through an arc length of L/2, the slave decoupling member moves L/2 distance in direction a under the pull of the second decoupling cable 1762, causing the lengths of the portions of the second and

third drive cables

152A and 153B between the first and

third guide wheels

176A and 1753 and 176C to be reduced by L/2 respectively, thus allowing the lengths of the second and

third drive cables

152A and 152B, respectively, to be reduced by L within the drive unit 170.

Conversely, the lengths of the portions of the fourth and

fifth drive cables

153A, 153B between the second and

second guide wheels

176B, 1754 and between the second and

fourth guide wheels

1754, 176D are each increased by L/2, thereby increasing the lengths of the fourth and

fifth drive cables

153A, 153B within the drive device 170 by L.

Referring again to fig. 5E, if the radius of the second pulley set is R1, the pitch wheel 314 of the second bracket 310 has an annular groove 314A with a groove bottom radius R1 for receiving and guiding the first drive cable 151, which forms a wrap angle in the annular groove 314A when the end effector 150 pitches. As shown in fig. 5E, when the end effector 150 is pitched clockwise by an angle α, the wrap angle length of the first drive cable 151 on the pitch wheel 314 is decreased by L1, where L1 ═ α R1, since the clockwise pitching motion of the end effector 150 is driven by the first drive unit 171 in the drive device 170, as shown in fig. 10B, if the first drive unit 171 turns by an angle β that makes the end effector 150 pitch clockwise, the first drive unit 171 pulls the first drive cable 151, so that the length of the first drive cable 151 wound on the first drive unit 171 is increased by L1, where L1 β ═ R2. Since the main decoupling element 1751 and the first drive unit 1751 rotate coaxially, the main decoupling element 1751 releases the first decoupling cable 1761 and simultaneously pulls the second decoupling cable 1763, so that the distance of movement of the traction drive unit in the direction a is L/2, and accordingly the length of the first decoupling cable 1761 around the main decoupling element 1761 is reduced by L/2, i.e., the first decoupling cable 1767 is released by L/2, and the length of the second decoupling cable 1768 around the main decoupling element 1761 is increased by L/2, where L/2 is β r2, as can be seen from the foregoing, L α r 1. In summary, through the above four equations: l1 ═ α × R1, L1 ═ β R2, L/2 ═ β R2, and L ═ α R1, the following relationships can be obtained:

the above relation shows that the ratio of the radius of the first drive unit 173 to the radius of the main decoupling element 1761 is 2 times the ratio of the radius of the pitch wheel 319 to the radius of the second pulley block, which 2 times the relationship is caused because the secondary decoupling element has 2 secondary decoupling elementsGuides for guiding the first and second pairs of cables, namely first guide 1753 and second guide 1754. In other embodiments, the number of guides of the secondary decoupling element can be other numbers, so that the relation between the radius of the first drive unit and the radius of the primary decoupling element and the radius of the pitch wheel and the radius of the second pulley block also changes, for example the secondary decoupling element can have N guides for guiding the first and second pairs of cables, so that the ratio of the radius of the first drive unit and the radius of the primary decoupling element is N times the ratio of the radius of the pitch wheel and the radius of the second pulley block

However, the increase in the number of guides of the secondary decoupling element corresponds to a corresponding increase in the volume of the secondary decoupling element, and it is preferable to use 2 guide wheels for the secondary decoupling element in the above-described embodiment.

The amount of decrease in the length of the second and

third drive cables

152A, 152B in the drive unit 170 is thereby equal to the amount of increase required for the wrap angle lengths of the second and

third drive cables

152A, 152B over the sixth and

seventh pulleys

226, 227, respectively, and the amount of increase in the length of the fourth and

fifth drive cables

153A, 153B in the drive unit 170 is equal to the amount of decrease required for the wrap angle lengths of the fourth and

fifth drive cables

153A, 153B over the fifth and

eighth pulleys

225, 228. Thus, the movement of retracting the first drive cable 151 is no longer limited by the first pair of cables, and the movement of retracting the first drive cable 151 does not cause slack in the second pair of cables at the end effector 150, and the decoupling mechanism 175 decouples the third pair of cables from the first pair of cables and the end effector 150 executes the clockwise pitch motion of fig. 5E.

As shown in fig. 10C, as main decoupler 1751 of decoupling mechanism 175 rotates coaxially and at the same angular rate as first drive unit 171, while first drive unit 171 rotates counterclockwise with shaft 171A, main decoupler 1751 likewise rotates counterclockwise with shaft 171A, at which time main decoupler 1751 takes up first decoupling cable 1761 and releases second decoupling cable 1762, and if main decoupler 1751 rotates an arc length of L/2, the slave decoupler moves a distance L/2 in direction B under the pull of first decoupling cable 1761, causing the lengths of the portions of second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 153B between first guide wheel 176A and first guide portion 1753 and between first guide portion 1753 and third guide wheel 176C to increase by L/2, respectively, thus causing the lengths of the portions of second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 152B within drive unit 170 to increase by L/2, conversely, the lengths of the portions of the fourth and

fifth drive cables

153A, 153B between the second and

second guide wheels

176B, 1754 and between the second and

fourth guide wheels

1754, 176D are each reduced by L/2. The length of the fourth drive cable 153A and the fifth drive cable 153B within the drive device 170 is thus reduced by L.

The change in the lengths of second drive cable 152A, third drive cable 152B, fourth drive cable 153A, and fifth drive cable 153B at this time reflects the behavior of drive device 170 on the end effector of simultaneously retracting second drive cable 152A and third drive cable 152B and simultaneously releasing fourth drive cable 153A and fifth drive cable 153B.

The amount of increase in the length of the second and

third drive cables

152A, 152B in the drive unit 170 is thus equal to the amount of decrease in the wrap angle length of the second and

third drive cables

152A, 152B over the sixth and

seventh pulleys

226, 227, respectively, and the amount of decrease in the length of the fourth and

fifth drive cables

153A, 153B in the drive unit 170 is equal to the amount of increase in the wrap angle length of the fourth and

fifth drive cables

153A, 153B over the fifth and

eighth pulleys

225, 228. Therefore, the simultaneous retraction of the second drive cable 152A and the third drive cable 152B by the drive device is no longer limited by the fourth drive cable 153A and the fifth drive cable 153B, the decoupling mechanism 175 decouples the second pair of cables from the third cable, and the end effector 150 can smoothly execute the counterclockwise pitch motion shown in fig. 5D.

A drive arrangement according to another embodiment of the invention is shown in fig. 12, which is largely identical to the drive arrangement 170 of the previous embodiment, except that the drive arrangement is provided with guide wheels for guiding the first and second pairs of cables, that is, the seventh guide wheel 176H, the eighth guide wheel 176I, the ninth guide wheel 176J, and the tenth guide wheel 176K are added to the driving device, the second driving cable 152A and the third driving cable 152B are guided by the first guide wheel 176A, the first guide portion 1753, the third guide wheel 176C, the seventh guide wheel 176H, and the ninth guide wheel 176J in sequence and enter the long shaft 160 and extend to the end effector 150, and the fourth driving cable 153A and the fifth driving cable 153B are guided by the second guide wheel 176B, the second guide portion 1754, the fourth guide wheel 176D, the eighth guide wheel 176I, and the tenth guide wheel 176K in sequence and enter the long shaft 160 and extend to the end effector 150. In comparison to the previous embodiment, the portions of the second and

third drive cables

152A, 152B between the first and

third guide portions

1753, 176C and the portions of the fourth and

fifth drive cables

153A, 153B between the second and

fourth guide portions

1754, 176D are both parallel to the direction of movement of the slave decoupler such that movement of the slave decoupler causes less error in the linear change in the lengths of the first and second pairs of cables in the drive than the previous embodiment.

In the driving device according to an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in fig. 13, a main decoupling member 6741 of a decoupling mechanism 674 of the driving device is connected with a secondary decoupling member in a gear engagement manner, specifically, the secondary decoupling member has a carriage 6742, two ends of the carriage 6742 are respectively connected with a first guide portion 2753 and a second guide portion 2754, a body of the carriage 6742 has a rack structure, the main decoupling member 6741 has a gear structure engaged with the rack structure of the carriage 6742, when the main decoupling member 6741 rotates, the main decoupling member 6741 drives a pitch mechanism to move along a straight line, so as to change the lengths of a first pair of cables and a second pair of cables in the driving device, and thus realize the release of the coupling relationship among the first driving cable 151, the first pair of cables, and the second pair of cables. It will be appreciated that the primary decoupling member 6741 of the decoupling mechanism and the secondary decoupling member may not only be engaged by a rack and pinion arrangement, but in other embodiments the primary decoupling member and the carriage of the secondary decoupling member may also be engaged by two gears.

Fig. 14A-14E illustrate a drive device 570 according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the drive device 570 is provided with a first drive device 570 comprising a body 578, and a first drive unit 571, a second drive unit 572, a third drive unit 573 and a fourth drive unit 774 arranged on a body 778, the first drive unit 571 is wound with one end of a first drive cable 151, the other end of the first drive cable 151 is connected to an end effector through a long shaft 160, the second drive unit 572 is wound with one end of a first pair of cables, the first pair of cables comprises a second drive cable 152A and a third drive cable 152B wound around the second drive unit 572 in an opposite manner, the other end of the first pair of cables is connected to the end effector through the long shaft 160, the third drive unit 573 is wound with one end of a second pair of cables, the third pair of cables comprises a fourth drive cable 153A and a fifth drive cable 153B wound around the third drive unit 573 in an opposite manner, the other end of the second pair of cables is connected to the end effector through long shaft 160, the first pair of cables cooperates with the second pair of cables for manipulating the opening and closing and/or yaw movement of end effector 150 and cooperates with first drive cable 151 for manipulating the pitch movement of end effector 150, and fifth drive cable 553A and sixth drive cable 553B for driving long shaft 160 to rotate.

As shown in fig. 14B and 14C, the driving device 570 further includes a mounting base 577 and a decoupling mechanism disposed on the mounting base 577, the decoupling mechanism includes a main decoupling member 5761 and a sub decoupling member 5762, the main decoupling member 5761 and the first driving unit 571 are disposed on the same rotation axis 571A, the main decoupling member 5761 is a cam rotating at the same angular velocity as the first driving unit 571, the sub decoupling member 5762 includes a carriage 5765 and a first guide portion 5763 and a second guide portion 5764 mounted on the carriage 5765, and the driving device 570 further includes a first guide wheel 576A, a second guide wheel 576B, a third guide wheel 576C, and a fourth guide wheel 576D disposed on the mounting base 577, similarly to the previous embodiment. The rotation axis of the first guide wheel 576A is parallel to the rotation axis of the first guide portion 5763, and the rotation axis of the fourth guide wheel 576D is perpendicular to the rotation axis of the first guide wheel 576A and the rotation axis of the first guide portion 5763. The rotation axis of the second guide wheel 576B is parallel to the rotation axis of the second guide portion 5764, and the rotation axis of the third guide wheel 576C is perpendicular to the rotation axis of the second guide wheel 576B and the rotation axis of the second guide portion 5764. The second and

third drive cables

152A, 152B are redirected through the first guide wheel 576A, then through the first guide 5763, and finally redirected through the third guide 576C and out of the drive device 570 into the elongated shaft 160. The fourth drive cable 153A and the fifth drive cable 153B are redirected by the second guide wheel 576B and then by the second guide portion 5764 and finally redirected by the fourth guide 576D and exit the drive device 570 into the elongated shaft 160, and the first drive cable 151 is redirected by the fifth guide wheel 576E and enters the elongated shaft 160.

As shown in fig. 14C, the mount 577 includes a first table 5771 and a second table 5772, the mount 577 is mounted to the main body 578 by the first table 5771, and the first guide wheel 576A, the second guide wheel 576B, the third guide wheel 576C, the fourth guide wheel 576D, and the fifth guide wheel 576E are mounted to the second table 5772. The slave decoupler 5762 includes a carriage 5765 and first and

second guides

5763, 5764 mounted on the carriage 5765, the first guide 5763 for coupling the second and

third drive cables

152A, 152B to the slave decoupler 5762 and the second guide 5764 for coupling the fourth and

fifth drive cables

153A, 153B to the slave decoupler 5762. The carriage 5765 includes a first opening 5766 and a second opening 5767, the first opening 5766 is for accommodating the main decoupling member 5761, the second opening 5767 is for accommodating the second table-top 5771 of the mounting base 577, and when the carriage 5765 moves to the extreme position, a side wall of the second table-top 5771 interferes with a side wall of the second opening 5767 to restrict movement of the carriage 5765 in the vertical sliding direction.

The sliding frame 5765 is provided with a first convex body 5768 and a second convex body 5769 extending into the first opening 5766, the main decoupling part 5761 is abutted with the first convex body 5768 and the second convex body 5769 in the first opening 5766, and the first convex body 5768 and the second convex body 5769 can move on the outer contour of the main decoupling part 5761 when the main decoupling part 5761 rotates, so that the sliding frame 5765 slides on the mounting seat 577. As shown in fig. 14C, the main decoupling member 5761 includes a first cam 5761A and a second cam 5761B fixed to the rotating shaft 573A, each of the first cam 5761A and the second cam 5761B is a half-heart cam, projections of the first cam 5761A and the second cam 4761B on a plane perpendicular to the shaft 573A have the same outer contour, the outer contour of the first cam 5761A has a half-heart involute S1 and a first arc S2 and a second arc S3 at both ends of the involute S1, the first arc S2 has a different radius from the second arc S3, a distance from the involute S1 to a shaft center of the rotating shaft 473A has a gradually increasing distance from an end connected to the first arc S2 toward an end connected to the second arc S3, and the involute S1 has the following profile: that is, the change amount P of the distance from the involute S1 to the axial center of the rotating shaft 473A is in a linearly changing relationship with the angle θ 1 of rotation of the first cam 5761A about the shaft 473A, where K1 × θ 1+ K2, where K1 and K2 are constant, so that when the main decoupling member 5761 rotates at an even speed, the distance from the contact point of the first protrusion 5768 with the involute S1 of the first cam 5761 to the rotating shaft 573A and the distance from the contact point of the second protrusion 5768 with the involute S1' of the second cam to the rotating shaft 573A also change at an even speed. The first cam 5761A and the second cam 5761B together form a heart-shaped cam-type main decoupling member 5761, the first cam 5761A and the second cam 5761B are vertically staggered in the axial direction of the shaft 573A of the cams, the first cam 5761A is in cooperative movement with the first protrusion 5768 of the carriage 5761, and the second cam 5761B is in cooperative movement with the second protrusion 5768 of the carriage 5761, so that the main decoupling member 5761 drives the movement of the secondary decoupling member 5762 to release the coupling relationship among the first drive cable 151, the second pair of cables, and the third pair of cables.

Decoupling of the drive arrangement 570 as shown in fig. 14E, during rotation of the first drive unit 571 (not shown in fig. 14E) from the null position of fig. 14B in a first direction (counterclockwise) driven by the actuator to the position shown in fig. 14E, the first drive unit 571 pulls the first drive cable 553B, the main decoupling member 4761 also moves counterclockwise due to the main decoupling member 473A and the first drive unit 571 being disposed on the same rotational shaft 473A, the first cam 4761a of the main decoupling member 4761 rotating counterclockwise causing the first boss 5768 to move on the involute S1 of the first cam 4761a in a direction of increasing distance on the involute S1 to the rotational shaft 473A, and conversely, the second cam 4761B of the main decoupling member 4761 rotating counterclockwise causing the first boss 5768 to move on the involute S1 of the second cam 4761B in a direction of decreasing distance on the involute S1 to the rotational shaft a, since the side wall of the second opening 5767 of the carriage 5765 cooperates with the inner wall of the second opening 5767 to restrict the movement of the carriage 5765 in the direction perpendicular to the a direction, the carriage 5765 is driven by the main decoupling member 4761 to move linearly in the a direction.

In order to make the change in length of the first and second pairs of cables within the drive device caused by movement of the carriage 5765 linear, the portion of the first pair of cables between the first guide wheel 576A and the first guide portion 5763 is parallel to the direction of movement of the carriage 5765 and the portion of the second pair of cables between the second guide wheel 576B and the second guide portion 5764 is parallel to the direction of movement of the carriage 5765, similar to the embodiment shown in fig. 10A. The portions of the second and third drive cables 152A, 152B between the first and fourth guides 5763, 576D are at the same angle to the line along direction a, and likewise, the portions of the third and fourth drive cables 553A, 553B between the second and third guides 5764, 576C are at the same angle to the line along direction a, provided that carriage 5765 is moved in direction a by a distance of L/2 upon actuation of main decoupling member 5761 in the position of figure 14E, the lengths of the second and third drive cables 152A and 152B between the first guide wheels 576A and the first guides 5763 respectively are reduced by L/2 as described above, the length between the first guide 5763 and the fourth guide wheel 576D is also reduced by L/2 as described above, the length of the secondary drive cable 152A and the secondary drive cable 551B within the drive mechanism 570 is thereby reduced by L. The lengths of the fourth and fifth drive cables 153A, 153B between the second and second guide wheels 576B, 576C and 5764 are increased by L/2, and the lengths between the second and third guide wheels 5764, 576C are also increased by L/2, so that the lengths of the third and fourth drive cables 552A, 552B within the drive device 570 are increased by L. The decoupling mechanism in drive device 570 thereby provides the amount of change in the length of second drive cable 152A, third drive cable 152B, fourth drive cable 153A, and fifth drive cable 153B on the side of end effector 150 required for the pitch movement of end effector 150, thereby decoupling the first drive cable, the first pair of cables, and the second pair of cables, such that the movement of the first drive cable is no longer limited by the first pair of cables, and the movement of the first pair of cables is no longer limited by the second pair of cables, such that end effector 150 can smoothly perform the pitch operation.

If the main decoupling element 5761 continues to rotate, so that the carriage 5765 moves into the extreme position, in which the first projection 5798 leaves the involute S1 of the first cam 5761A and enters the second circular arc S3, and the second projection 5769 leaves the involute S1 ' of the second cam 5761B and enters the first circular arc S2 ', while the distance from the contact point of the first projection 5798 with the first cam 5761A to the rotation axis 573A no longer changes as the first projection 5798 moves over the first circular arc S1 and the second circular arc S2 of the first cam 5761A, and likewise, the distance from the contact point of the second projection 5798 with the first cam 5761A to the rotation axis 573A no longer changes as the second projection 5798 moves over the first circular arc S1 ' and the second circular arc S2 ' of the second cam 5761B, so that the carriage 5765 no longer moves in the a direction, and the carriage 5765 is in the extreme position of movement in the a direction, so that the first arc S5725, S1 and the second arc S368632 ' of the main decoupling element 5761A do not change as the first arc S1, the first arc S2, the second arc S1, S2' causes the main decoupling 5761 to rotate to the limit position and continues to rotate and the carriage to move. In contrast, when the main decoupling member 5761 rotates clockwise, the movement of the first cam 5761A, the second cam 5761B and the carriage is opposite to the counterclockwise movement of the main decoupling member 5761, and thus, the description thereof is omitted.

Similarly, there is also a coupling relationship between the first drive cable 251 and the first pair of cables 252 for the end effector 250 of the second embodiment. Specifically, the proximal ends of the second drive cable 152A and the third drive cable 252B of the first pair are wound around the drive unit within the drive device, so that the drive unit cannot simultaneously pull in or release the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252A. While clockwise rotation of end effector 250 about first axis AA 'requires retraction of first drive cable 251 and simultaneous release of second drive cable 252A and third drive cable 252B of first pair of cables 252 as in the second embodiment described above, counterclockwise rotation of end effector 250 about first axis AA' requires simultaneous retraction of second drive cable 252A and third drive cable 253A of the first pair of cables, it can be seen that first drive cable 251 and first pair of cables 252 of the surgical instrument of the second embodiment are also coupled and that movement of first drive cable 251 is limited by first pair of cables 252.

As shown in fig. 15, the driving device 270 according to an embodiment of the present invention is adapted to drive the end effector 250 according to the second embodiment, and the driving device 270 includes a first driving unit 271 for driving the end effector 250 to perform a pitching motion, a second driving unit 272 for driving the end effector 250 to perform a pitching and yawing motion, and a third driving unit 273 for driving the end effector 250 to perform a rotation motion. The proximal ends of the first drive cables 251 for driving the end effector 250 in a pitch motion are looped around the first drive unit, and the proximal ends of the second drive cables 252A and the third drive cables 252B of the first pair of cables 252 for manipulating the end effector 250 in yaw and pitch motions are looped around the second drive unit 272 in an opposing manner, such that the second drive cables 252A and the third drive cables 252B are used to manipulate the end effector 250 in yaw motion in cooperation with each other and to manipulate the end effector 250 in pitch motion in cooperation with the first drive cables 251. The third driving unit 273 is wound with the fourth and

fifth driving cables

253A and 253B for driving the long shaft 160 to rotate, and the driving device 870 further includes a decoupling mechanism 274 for decoupling the first driving cable 251 from the first pair of cables 252.

The decoupling mechanism 274 comprises a main decoupling member 2741 and a secondary decoupling member, the main decoupling member 2741 and the first driving unit 271 are arranged on the same rotating shaft 272A, the main decoupling member 2741 and the first driving unit 271 move with the same angular velocity as the rotating shaft 872A, and the main decoupling member 2741 receives driving power from the same second driving unit and drives the secondary decoupling member to move so as to achieve the decoupling relationship. The secondary decouplers include guides 2743 and a carriage 2742, the primary decouplers 2741 are connected to both ends of the carriage 2742 by a first and

second decoupling cable

2744, 2745, and the primary decouplers 2741 manipulate movement of the secondary decouplers by the first and

second decoupling cables

2744, 2745.

The driving device further comprises a first guide wheel 275A and a second guide wheel 275B, and the first pair of cables 252 are guided by the first guide wheel 275A, then guided by the guide portion 2743, and finally guided by the second guide wheel 275B and enter the long shaft 160. The first decoupling cable 2744 is connected to the carriage 2742 after being guided by the third guide wheel 275C, the second decoupling cable 2745 is connected to the carriage 2742 after being redirected by the fourth guide wheel 275D, the first and

second decoupling cables

2744, 2745 are redirected by the third and

fourth guide wheels

275C, 275D, respectively, the portion of the first decoupling cable 2744 between the third guide wheel 275C and the carriage 2742 is parallel to the direction of movement of the carriage 2742, and the portion of the second decoupling cable 2745 between the fourth guide wheel 275D and the carriage 2742 is parallel to the direction of movement of the carriage 2742, such that during decoupling, the speed of movement of the carriage 2742 is directly proportional to the speed of rotation of the main decoupling member 2741 and the first drive unit 271. It will be appreciated that in other embodiments, the master decoupler is also connected to the slave decoupler by a gear mesh or cam as in the previous embodiments, as shown in fig. 17, the master decoupler 6741 of the decoupler 674 of the drive 670 is connected to the carriage 6742 of the slave decoupler by a gear mesh, as shown in fig. 18A, and the master decoupler 4741 of the decoupler 474 of the drive 470 is connected to the carriage 4742 of the slave decoupler by a cam.

After the second and

third driving cables

252A and 252B are guided by the first and

second guide wheels

275A and 2743 and 275B, the portions of the second and

third driving cables

252A and 252B between the first and

second guide wheels

275A and 2743 are parallel to the direction of movement of the slave decoupling member, and the paths of the second and

third driving cables

252A and 252B at the guide portions 2743 and the second guide wheels 275B are substantially parallel to the direction of movement of the slave decoupling member, so that the rate of change of the length of the second or third driving

cable

252A or 252B during decoupling is directly proportional to the rate of movement of the carriage 2742 and the rate of rotation of the second and

third driving cables

252A and 252B are directly proportional to the rate of rotation of the master decoupling member 2741 and the first driving unit 271, thereby making the entire decoupling process precisely controllable. In other embodiments, the portions of the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 253B between the guide portion and the second guide wheel are also parallel to the direction of carriage movement, as in the embodiment shown in fig. 17 and 18A, the portions of the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 253B on either side of the guide portion of the carriage are both parallel to the direction of carriage movement, such that the changes in the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252B caused by carriage movement are completely linear.

Decoupling mechanism decoupling as shown in fig. 16B and 16C, when the first drive unit 271 rotates in a first direction, the first drive unit 271 releases the first drive cable 251, as the main decoupling member 2741 and the first drive unit 271 rotate at the same angular velocity, the main decoupling member 2741 simultaneously retracts the first decoupling cable 2744 and releases the second decoupling cable 2745, moving from the decoupling member in the a direction, thereby causing the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252B to simultaneously increase in length within the drive unit 270, reflecting that the lengths of the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252B on the end effector 250 simultaneously decrease in length on the end effector 250, the drive unit 270 simultaneously retracts the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252B and releases the first drive cable 251, the end effector 250 performs a pitch motion as shown in fig. 9A, and the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252B vary in length on the drive unit as compared to the end effector 250 Are equal in amount of change. If the decoupling element is moved a distance L/2 in the direction a, the lengths of the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252B in the drive 870 are increased by a length L, and the specific derivation process is the same as the embodiment shown in fig. 10A and will not be described again.

When the first drive unit 271 and the primary decoupling member 2741 are rotated in a second direction opposite the first direction, the first drive unit 271 pulls the first drive cable 251, at which point the primary decoupling member 2741 releases the first decoupling cable 2744 and pulls the second decoupling cable 2745 such that moving from the decoupling member in the direction B, the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252B decrease simultaneously in length of the drive device 270, reflected on the end effector 250, the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252B increase simultaneously in length of the drive device 270, the drive device 170 pulls the first drive cable 251 and releases the second drive cable 252 and the third drive cable 253 simultaneously, and the end effector 250 performs the pitch motion shown in fig. 9B.

Returning again to fig. 9B, if the radius of the second pulley set is R1 in this embodiment, the pitching wheel 613 of the second bracket 610 has an annular groove 613A with a radius R1 that receives and guides the first drive cable 251, and the first drive cable 251 can form a wrap angle in the annular groove 613A when the end effector 150 is pitched. As the end effector 250 rotates from the zero position shown in figure 7A to the position shown in figure 9B, the plane of the point where the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252B exit the second pulley block is rotated from a horizontal plane a to a plane B, the end effector 250 is tilted clockwise about the first axis AA' by an angle a, similar to the embodiment shown in fig. 7A, the wrap angle length of the first drive cable 251 within the annular groove 613A is reduced by L1, where L1 is α × R1, as shown in fig. 10C, if the first driving unit 271 makes the end effector 250 pitch clockwise by the angle α and rotate in the second direction by the angle β, the first driving unit 271 pulls the first driving cable 251, the length of the first drive cable 151 wound around the first drive unit 171 is increased by L1, where L1 ═ β R2. Since the main decoupling member 2741 and the first drive unit 271 rotate coaxially, the main decoupling member 2741 releases the first decoupling cable 2744 and simultaneously pulls the second decoupling cable 2745, such that the distance of the traction from the decoupling member in the direction B is L/2, and accordingly, the length of the first decoupling cable 2744 wound on the main decoupling member 2741 is reduced by L/2, i.e., the first decoupling cable 2744 is released by L/2, and the length of the second decoupling cable 2745 wound on the main decoupling member 2741 is increased by L/2, i.e., the second decoupling cable is pulled by L/2, wherein L/2 is β r2, and the angular lengths of the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252B on the third pulley 523 and the fourth pulley 524, respectively, are increased by L, wherein L is α r 1. In summary, through the above four equations: l1 ═ α × R1, L1 ═ β R2, L/2 ═ β R2, and L ═ α R1, the following relationships can be obtained:

in other embodiments, the number of guides of the secondary decoupling member for guiding the first pair of cables 252 may be other numbers, so that the relationship between the radius of the first drive unit and the radius of the primary decoupling member and the radius of the pitch wheel and the radius of the second pulley block may also vary, for example the secondary decoupling member may have N guides, the ratio of the radius of the first drive unit to the radius of the primary decoupling member being 2 x N times the ratio of the radius of the pitch wheel to the radius of the second pulley block, i.e. an increase in the number of decoupling wheels of the secondary decoupling member corresponds to a corresponding increase in the volume of the secondary decoupling member, preferably using one guide for the secondary decoupling member in the above-described embodiment, the guide being a pulley over which the first drive cable passes from the decoupling member.

The amount of decrease in the length of the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252B in the drive device 170 is thus equal to the amount of increase in the wrap angle length of the second drive cable 252A and the third drive cable 252B over the third pulley 523 and the fourth pulley 524, respectively, so that the movement of retracting and pulling the first drive cable 251 is no longer limited by the second drive cable 252A and the second drive cable 252B, the decoupling mechanism achieves a decoupling of the first drive cable from the first pair of cables, and the end effector 250 can smoothly perform the pitch motion shown in fig. 9B.

In the embodiment shown in fig. 18A, similar to the implementation shown in fig. 14A-14E, the main decoupling member 4741 in the drive device 470 is disposed coaxially with the first drive unit, the main decoupling member 4741 also drives the movement of the carriage 4742 by the first and

second cams

4741A and 4741B abutting the first and

second bosses

4741A and 4741B, respectively, on the carriage 4742 of the secondary decoupling member 474 to vary the length of the second and

third drive cables

252A and 252B within the drive device 470, the cam structure of the main decoupling member 4741 being the same as the main decoupling member 5761 in the drive device 570 in the embodiment shown in fig. 14D above, and therefore the description with reference to fig. 14D is possible. And will not be described in detail herein.

The decoupling process of drive device 470 is also similar to the decoupling process shown in fig. 14E, in that when main decoupling element 271 rotates in a first direction coaxially with first drive unit 271, first drive unit 271 releases first drive cable 251 and main decoupling element 4741 pushes carriage 4742 to move in a direction that increases second drive cable 252A and third drive cable 252B such that end effector 250 performs a pitch motion in the direction shown in fig. 9A. When primary decoupling element 271 is rotated coaxially with first drive element 271 in a direction opposite to the first direction, first drive cable 251 is pulled by first drive element 271 and primary decoupling element 4741 urges carriage 4742 to move in a direction that decreases second drive cable 252A and third drive cable 252B such that the amount of decrease in the lengths of second drive cable 252A and third drive cable 252B in the drive arrangement is exactly equal to the amount of increase in the wrap angle lengths of second drive cable 252A and third drive cable 252B over the second pulley block when end effector 250 performs a pitch motion in the direction shown in fig. 9B, thereby decoupling first drive cable 251 from second drive cable 252A and third drive cable 252B such that end effector 250 can smoothly perform a pitch motion in the direction shown in fig. 9B.

The above-mentioned embodiments only express several embodiments of the present invention, and the description thereof is more specific and detailed, but not construed as limiting the scope of the invention. It should be noted that, for a person skilled in the art, several variations and modifications can be made without departing from the inventive concept, which falls within the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present patent shall be subject to the appended claims.

Claims

1. A surgical instrument comprising an end effector, a drive device configured to drive movement of the end effector via a cable, and a cable, wherein the cable comprises a first drive cable, a second drive cable, and a third drive cable, the first drive cable configured to cooperate with the second drive cable and the third drive cable to drive the end effector to perform a pitch movement, the second drive cable and the third drive cable further configured to drive the end effector to perform a yaw movement, the drive device comprising:

a drive unit coupled to the proximal end of the first drive cable, the drive unit being coupled to the second drive cable and the third drive cable via the first drive cable to drive the end effector to perform a pitch motion;

the decoupling mechanism comprises a main decoupling part and a slave decoupling part connected with the main decoupling part, the slave decoupling part comprises a sliding frame and a guide part arranged at one end of the sliding frame and used for guiding the second driving cable and the third driving cable, the main decoupling part is coaxially arranged with the driving unit, and the main decoupling part is used for coaxially rotating with the driving unit and driving the sliding frame to move so as to simultaneously increase or simultaneously reduce the lengths of the second driving cable and the third driving cable in the driving device, so that the driving unit drives the end effector to execute pitching movement.

2. The surgical instrument of claim 1, wherein the primary decoupling element is configured to drive the carriage in a linear motion to vary the length of the second and third drive cables within the drive device.

3. The surgical instrument of claim 2, wherein the slave decoupling member further comprises a first and a second decoupling cable connected at both ends of the carriage, one end of the first and second decoupling cables being connected to the master decoupling member, the master decoupling member being configured to drive the carriage through the first and second decoupling cables to move to change the length of the second and third drive cables within the drive device.

4. The surgical instrument of claim 2, wherein the primary decoupling member is coupled to the carriage in a geared manner.

5. The surgical instrument of claim 2, wherein the primary decoupling member has a cam structure, and the primary decoupling member is configured to rotate to urge the cam structure against the carriage to drive the carriage to move.

6. The surgical instrument of claim 5, wherein the carriage further comprises a first protrusion and a second protrusion, the cam structure comprises a first cam and a second cam disposed offset from one another axially above and below the main decoupling member, and the main decoupling member rotates such that the first cam abuts the first protrusion and the second cam abuts the second protrusion to urge the carriage into motion.

7. The surgical instrument of claim 6, wherein an outer profile of a projection of the first cam and/or the second cam on the plane perpendicular to the rotational axis of the main decoupling member has an involute, and an amount of change in a distance of the involute from the rotational axis of the main decoupling member when the main decoupling member rotates has a linearly changing relationship with an angle through which the main decoupling member rotates about the rotational axis.

8. The surgical instrument of claim 7, wherein the outer profile further comprises a first arc and a second arc at opposite ends of the involute, and wherein the distance from the involute to the axis of rotation of the main decoupling member increases from the end of the involute that connects to the first arc to the end of the involute that connects to the second arc.

9. A slave manipulator apparatus, characterized in that it comprises a robotic arm on which the surgical instrument is mounted and a surgical instrument according to any of claims 1-8 for manipulating the surgical instrument in motion.

10. A surgical robot comprising a master operation console and a slave operation device according to claim 9, the slave operation device performing a corresponding operation according to an instruction of the master operation console.