Appeal No. 96-2631
Application No. 08/177,616
6. A safety penetrating instrument for penetrating an
anatomical cavity wall to gain access to an anatomical cavity
comprising
a cannula having a distal end for introduction in the
anatomical cavity, a proximal end and a lumen between said distal
and proximal ends of said cannula;
a penetrating member disposed in said lumen of said cannula
and having a distal end for penetrating the anatomical cavity
wall;
retracting means for moving said penetrating member
proximally from an extended position where said penetrating
member distal end is disposed distally of said cannula distal end
to a retracted position where said penetrating member distal end
is disposed within said cannula distal end;
locking means for locking said penetrating member in said
extended position; and
a trigger member movable a predetermined proximal distance
during penetration of the anatomical cavity wall for triggering
release of said locking means to permit said retracting means to
move said penetrating member from said extended position to said
retracted position, said predetermined distance corresponding to
the thickness of the anatomical cavity wall to allow said
penetrating member to be moved to said retracted position upon
introduction of said cannula distal end in the anatomical cavity.
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