KR102683579B1 - Laser marking apparatus for medical suture - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention is a laser engraving device for sutures that engraves one or more marks selected from the group consisting of graduations, numbers, letters and symbols on the surface of the suture. The engraving is environmentally friendly and highly productive using a CO ₂ laser or Nd YAG laser. This relates to a possible laser engraving device for sutures.

Description

Laser marking apparatus for suture { Laser marking apparatus for medical suture }

The present invention relates to a laser engraving device for sutures, and specifically, laser engraving of sutures including a laser oscillator that engraves the surface of the suture by emitting a laser beam to the surface of the suture so that a desired symbol can be engraved on the surface of the suture. It's about devices.

Sutures are medical tools that provide hemostasis by ligating blood vessels or suturing surgical incisions to support damaged tissues until they heal.

As a prior art for such sutures, Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 1995-0016667 discloses a colored surgical suture to facilitate identification of sutures, and Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 10-2014-0145436 discloses sutures. A functional suture is disclosed that includes a color-developing material that is deposited and develops a color different from that of the suture in response to changes in the external environment.

However, in the case of the suture according to the prior art, it is not colored and does not pose a particular problem during general surgical operations, but it causes a very serious problem during laparoscopy, which has been widely performed recently.

In other words, in a general surgery where the treatment area is completely open, there is no risk of confusing the top and bottom of the suture, but in the case of surgery that is performed while looking inside the abdominal cavity by drilling a small hole of 5 cm in size and inserting an endoscope, the suture Confusion between the top and bottom frequently occurs. In addition, when sutures are sutured inside the body and taken out of the body, problems such as the upper and lower ends being confused and multiple suture strands becoming twisted or missing often occur.

Additionally, during the suturing procedure, it is not easy to determine the length of the suture used for suturing, making it very difficult to determine whether the affected area has been properly sutured. Accordingly, the surgery takes a long time, and when it is resewn, there is a problem of further deteriorating the sutured area.

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a laser engraving device for sutures that can engrave at high speed one or more symbols selected from the group consisting of graduations, numbers, and letters on the surface of sutures.

A laser engraving device 100 for engraving the surface of a suture 10 using a laser according to the present invention to solve the above problem includes a suture supply unit 20 that supplies the suture 10; A laser oscillator (30) that emits a laser beam to the surface of the suture (10) supplied through the suture supply unit (20) to imprint the surface of the suture (10); A scanner (40) that irradiates the laser beam emitted from the laser oscillator (30) to the suture (10); A focus lens 45 provided at the lower part of the scanner 40; A work table 50 provided below the focus lens 45 to engrave the suture 10; A winding device 60 for winding the suture 10 with an engraved surface on the work table 50; and a control unit 70 that controls the laser oscillator 30. The focus lens 45 may be spaced apart from the suture 10 in a range of 200 to 500 mm, and the laser engraving device (100) further includes a cutting device for cutting the suture 10, and the laser is preferably a CO ₂ laser or an Nd YAG laser.

In addition, the laser beam is a single mode beam, the pulse width is in the range of 1 picosecond (psec) to 1000 nanoseconds (nsec), and the wavelength is particularly preferably 10.6 microns (㎛) to 355 nanometers (㎚).

The laser engraving device 100 for the suture 10 according to the present invention uses a laser to imprint a desired symbol on the surface of the suture 10, making it easy to determine the length of the suture 10 used for suturing during a suturing procedure. And, it has the effect of making it easier to determine whether the affected area has been properly sutured. In addition, this has the effect of shortening the surgery time. In addition, according to the present invention, it is possible to quickly engrave on the surface of the suture 10, and it has the effect of enabling precise engraving in an environmentally friendly manner by reducing energy consumption.

In addition, by engraving a symbol on the surface of the suture 10, medical staff, etc. can easily determine the depth of the suture area and the length of the suture 10 used during suturing, thereby making a judgment as to whether the operator has properly sutured the affected area. By making it easy, it has the effect of dramatically shortening the surgery time.

Figure 1 is an overall configuration diagram of the laser engraving device 100 according to the present invention,
Figure 2 is a configuration diagram of the laser oscillator 30 according to the present invention,
Figure 3 is a conceptual diagram in which the focal size of a laser beam is exaggerated to explain the focusing state of the laser beam.

Hereinafter, an experimental example of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the experimental examples disclosed below, but can be implemented in various different forms. The following experimental examples ensure that the disclosure of the present invention is complete, and provide those of ordinary skill in the art with the scope of the invention. It is provided to provide complete information. Additionally, for convenience of explanation, the sizes of components may be exaggerated or reduced in the drawings. In the drawings, variations of the depicted shape may be expected, for example, depending on manufacturing technology and/or tolerances. Accordingly, the experimental examples of the present invention should not be construed as being limited to the specific shape of the area shown in this specification, but should include, for example, changes in shape resulting from manufacturing.

Hereinafter, the laser engraving device 100 for suture 10 according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Figure 1 attached to the present invention is an overall configuration diagram of the laser engraving device 100 according to the present invention, Figure 2 is a configuration diagram of the laser oscillator 30 according to the present invention, and Figure 3 shows the focusing state of the laser beam. This is a conceptual diagram in which the focal size of the laser beam is exaggerated for explanation purposes.

Typically, engraving work is largely divided into ink engraving using ink and laser engraving using a laser beam, and recently, non-contact engraving methods using a laser beam have been widely used. The engraving work using the laser beam has the advantage that there is no room for static electricity generation, productivity is guaranteed because the engraving speed is fast, and there is no room for contamination by ink, so the engraving work can be performed in an environmentally friendly manner.

Meanwhile, lasers are used not only for grooving, drilling, and cutting objects, but also for engraving devices that engrave surfaces. In contrast to existing methods such as drilling and corrosion, laser engraving enables precise engraving while minimizing physical and chemical damage to the object.

Laser engraving can be applied to a variety of materials such as metals, non-metals, ceramics, plastics, organic materials, semiconductors, etc.

The laser engraving device 100 for engraving the surface of the suture 10 according to the present invention includes a suture supply unit 20 that supplies the suture 10, as shown in FIG. 1; a laser oscillator (30) that emits a laser beam to the surface of the suture (10) supplied through the suture supply unit (20) to imprint the surface of the suture (10); A scanner (40) that irradiates the laser beam emitted from the laser oscillator (30) to the suture (10); A focus lens 45 provided at the lower part of the scanner 40; A work table 50 provided below the focus lens 45 to engrave the suture 10; A winding device 60 for winding the suture 10 with an engraved surface on the work table 50; and a control unit 70 that controls the laser oscillator 30.

As shown in FIG. 1, the suture supply unit 20 is configured to supply the suture 10 to the lower part of the scanner 40 provided below the laser oscillator 30, and can be formed as a typical monofilament supply device. there is. That is, the suture supply unit 20 rotates the suture winding roll on which the suture 10 to be laser engraved is wound and the suture winding roll to supply the wound suture 10 to the lower part of the laser oscillator 30. It may be composed of a motor (not shown) to do this.

As described above, the suture 10 supplied as the suture winding roll provided in the suture supply unit 20 rotates is provided at the bottom of the laser oscillator 30, which later emits a laser beam to imprint the surface of the suture 10. It is supplied to the lower part of the scanner 40.

The laser oscillator 30 may be provided to emit a laser beam to imprint the surface of the suture 10 supplied through the suture supply unit 20.

The laser oscillator 30 is configured to emit a laser to the surface of the suture 10, and the laser oscillator 30 applied to the present invention may be configured as shown in FIG. 2, for example.

That is, referring to FIG. 2, the laser oscillator 30 may include a pumping source 32, a resonator 35, a fiber cable 37, a connector 39, and a collimator 45.

The pumping source 32 may use, for example, a single emitter diode laser to emit a laser beam of a designated wavelength.

The resonator 35 is connected to a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) on both sides, and the laser beam emitted from the pumping source 32 travels back and forth between the FBGs multiple times to amplify the laser beam that reaches the output. .

The laser beam amplified from the resonator 35 as described above is made into a parallel beam by a collimator 45 that adjusts the optical axis through the fiber cable 37, and is then irradiated by the focusing lens 45. As a result, the upper part of the object, the suture 10, is irradiated.

The configuration of the laser oscillator 30 shown in FIG. 2 is only an example, and of course, any configuration that can oscillate a laser can be adopted.

The laser oscillator 30 emits a laser beam while maintaining constant power, speed, and frequency in order to imprint the surface of the suture 10.

According to the present invention, the laser beam emitted from the laser oscillator 30 is a single-mode beam, and the focal size of the laser beam can be obtained from equation (1) below.

Here, λ is the wavelength of the laser light, f is the focal length of the focal lens, R is the radius of the beam at the focal lens, and r is the radius of the laser beam at the focal point.

According to the present invention, the laser is preferably a CO ₂ laser or a Nd YAG laser. The CO ₂ laser is a laser using carbon dioxide as a medium, and has a wavelength of 10600 nm, which indicates a laser that has high water absorption and generates high temperature heat. .

In addition, the Nd: YAG laser is a laser that uses a medium doped with trivalent ions of Nd (neodymium), a type of rare earth element, into a crystal of YAG (Yttrium Aluminum Garnet: Y ₃ Al ₅ O ₁₂ ), and its wavelength is 532 nm. It has a short wavelength of 1064 nm, so it can focus light to a small point and reacts well with materials, so it is widely used in material processing.

Additionally, according to the present invention, the focal distance can be adjusted so that the focal spot size calculated from equation (1) is in the range of 1 μm to 60 μm. That is, as shown in FIG. 3, it is desirable to adjust the focus of the laser beam by positioning the suture 10 at a point selected from 0.2 mm (L1) to 7 mm (L2) in the downward direction away from the scanner 40. .

As described above, the center of the focusing lens 45 is in the range of 200 to 500 mm from the suture 10 so that the suture 10 can be positioned at a point selected from 0.2 mm (L1) to 7 mm (L2) in the downward direction. It is desirable to have a separation height (h) in

As shown in FIG. 1, the laser oscillator 30 emits a laser beam, and the emitted laser beam is incident on the scanner 40 through the fiber cable 37. At this time, the reflection angle of the mirror provided inside the scanner 40 is controlled by the control unit 70 to irradiate the laser beam to the focus lens 45 located below.

According to the present invention, the scanner 40 can be configured as, for example, a galvano mirror scanner 40.

In addition, the focus lens 45 provided at the bottom of the scanner 40 is provided on the top of the work table 50, and the laser beam reflected from the scanner 40 passes through the focus lens 45 to perform the work. As the surface of the suture 10 moving to the upper part of the table 50 is irradiated, a symbol, etc. is engraved.

.

According to the present invention, the suture 10 can be seated on the work table 50, and when engraving a symbol, etc. on the surface of the suture 10, the engraving process can be performed while transporting the work table 50. do.

As the suture thread 10 continuously travels on the upper part of the work table 50, the surface is engraved by the laser beam emitted from the laser oscillator 30.

As shown in FIG. 1, a laser beam from the laser oscillator 30 is irradiated to the upper part of the work table 50, and at this time, the laser beam is applied to the suture 10 running on the upper part of the work table 50. The beam is irradiated.

According to the present invention, there is a movement control device (not shown) that moves the work table 50 in the up and down and left and right directions so that the laser beam is accurately irradiated to the suture 10 moving toward the top of the work table 50. It is also possible to install it.

Additionally, the laser engraving device 100 of the present invention may be provided with a control unit 70. The control unit 70 controls the laser beam emitted from the laser oscillator 30, and radiates the laser beam reflected from the scanner 40 to the focusing lens 45 to engrave the surface of the suture 10. takes control.

That is, the control unit 70 inputs engraving parameters, such as an engraving target symbol and engraving coordinates, through an input means (not shown). At this time, the control unit 70 drives the laser oscillator 30 based on the input engraving parameters, emits a laser beam through the fiber cable 37, and simultaneously drives the scanner 40. Additionally, the control unit 70 controls the work table 50 to focus the laser beam on the surface of the suture 10 running on top of the work table 50.

That is, information about symbols such as letters or figures imprinted on the surface of the suture 10 and the movement path of the laser beam can be controlled by the control unit 70.

The laser engraving device 100 according to the present invention irradiates a laser beam by the scanner 40 to the surface of the suture 10 traveling on the upper part of the work table 50 according to the path input to the control unit 70. By doing this, an angular symbol, etc. is engraved on the surface of the suture 10.

According to the present invention, the pulse width of the laser beam oscillated from the laser oscillator 30 as described above ranges from 1 picosecond (psec) to 1000 nanoseconds (nsec), and the wavelength ranges from 10.6 microns (㎛) to 355 nanometers ( ㎚) is preferable.

According to the present invention, the symbol engraved by the laser engraving device 100 as described above may be one or more selected from the group consisting of graduations, numbers, and letters.

As the above symbol is imprinted on the surface of the suture 10 as described above, it is easy for the medical staff to determine the length of the suture 10 used for suturing during the suturing procedure, making it easy to judge whether the affected area has been properly sutured. I do it. This has the advantage of shortening the surgery time.

As the suture 10 progresses to the upper part of the work table 50, various patterns or symbols such as numbers may be engraved on the surface of the suture 10 by the laser beam emitted from the laser oscillator 30. Subsequently, the suture 10 whose surface is engraved is wound around the winding device 60, thereby completing the engraving process.

Looking at the method of engraving the suture 10 using the laser engraving device 100 according to the present invention, first, engraving parameters, etc. are input to the control unit 70 using an input device (not shown).

The imprint parameter for imprinting the surface of the suture 10 may be an imprint target symbol or imprint coordinates.

After the engraving parameters are input to the control unit 70 through the input device, the suture 10 is supplied from the suture supply unit 20 in the direction of the laser oscillator 30.

At the same time, the control unit 70 drives the laser oscillator 30 based on the engraving parameters input as described above.

The laser oscillator 30 driven as described above oscillates a laser beam, and the laser beam oscillated as described above passes through the scanner 40 through the fiber cable 37 to emit the laser beam.

The laser beam emitted as described above is irradiated to the surface of the suture 10 running on the upper part of the work table 50 through the focusing lens 45.

In addition, of course, the moving speed of the work table 50 and the reflection angle of the scanner 40 are driven based on the engraving parameters under the control of the control unit 70.

As described above, the laser beam irradiated to the surface of the suture 10 melts the surface of the suture 10 or performs an engraving operation through cutting or chemical change.

After the imprinting of symbols such as letters on the surface of the suture 10 is completed as described above, the suture 10 is wound around the winding device 60 to complete the imprinting process.

In the laser engraving device 100 according to the present invention, the laser oscillator 30 and the scanner 40 and focus lens 45 provided on one side of the laser oscillator 30 are controlled by the control unit 70, through which A precise engraving is performed on the surface of the supplied suture 10.

Since the scanner 40 and the focus lens 45 provided at the lower part of the laser oscillator 30 are lightweight, stable movement and precise engraving are possible .

The engraving of the suture 10 using the laser engraving device 100 according to the present invention is semi-permanent, and it is possible to engrave uniform quality with low power consumption.

Additionally, according to the present invention, one side of the laser engraving device 100 may be equipped with a cutting device (not shown) for cutting the suture 10 on which the surface of the laser engraving device 100 is engraved to a certain length.

The cutting device can cut the suture 10 with an engraved surface using a cutter, and can also cut it using a laser.

According to the present invention, cutting the suture 10 using a laser enables high accuracy and rapid productivity. In particular, the suture 10 has the advantage of being able to omit the post-processing process because the ends are sutured at the same time as cutting.

The process of engraving the surface of the suture 10 using the laser engraving device 100 can be completed by cutting and packaging the suture 10 with the engraved surface to a certain length using the above cutting device.

By using the laser engraving device 100 for the suture 10 according to the present invention, it is possible to quickly engrave the surface of the suture 10, and the energy consumption is reduced, which has the effect of performing the engraving process in an environmentally friendly and precise manner. have

The suture 10 with an engraved surface as described above has the effect of making it easy to determine the length of the suture 10 during a suturing procedure and making it easier to determine whether the affected area has been properly sutured. Accordingly, the surgical time can be dramatically shortened by making it easier for medical staff to determine the depth of the suture area and the length of the suture 10 used during suturing, thereby making it easier for the operator to determine whether the affected area has been properly sutured. There is a possible effect.

The present invention has been described with reference to the experimental examples shown in the drawings, but these are merely exemplary, and those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications and other equivalent experimental examples are possible therefrom. Additionally, a person skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains will understand that the present invention can be easily modified into another specific form without changing its technical idea or essential features. Therefore, the embodiments described above should be understood in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, and the true scope of technical protection of the present invention should be determined by the technical spirit of the appended claims.

10: suture
20: Suture supply unit
30: Laser oscillator
40: scanner
45: Focus lens
50: work table
60: winding device
70: control unit
100: Laser engraving device

Claims (4)

A laser engraving device (100) for engraving letters or figures on the surface of the suture (10) using a laser,
A suture supply unit 20 that supplies the suture 10;
A laser oscillator (30) that emits a laser beam to the surface of the suture (10) supplied through the suture supply unit (20) to imprint the surface of the suture (10);
A scanner (40) that irradiates the laser beam emitted from the laser oscillator (30) to the suture (10);
A focus lens 45 provided at the lower part of the scanner 40;
A work table 50 provided below the focus lens 45 to engrave the suture 10;
A winding device 60 for winding the suture 10 with an engraved surface on the work table 50; and
It includes a control unit 70 that controls the laser oscillator 30,
The laser beam emitted from the laser oscillator 30 is a single-mode beam, and the laser engraving device for the suture 10 is characterized in that the focal size of the laser beam obtained from equation (1) below is 1 μm to 60 μm. (100).



Here, λ is the wavelength of the laser light, f is the focal length of the focal lens, R is the radius of the beam at the focal lens, and r is the radius of the laser beam at the focal point.
delete In claim 1,
The laser engraving device 100 for the suture 10 further includes a cutting device for cutting the suture 10.
In claim 1,
The laser engraving device (100) for the suture (10), characterized in that the laser is a CO ₂ laser or a Nd YAG laser.