10975 results about "Wedge shape" patented technology

A composite implant is provided for repairing a tissue defect in a patient. In one embodiment, the implant is a porous tissue scaffold having at least one pocket formed therein and adapted to contain a viable tissue. The tissue scaffold can have a variety of configurations, and in one embodiment it includes top and bottom portions that can be at least partially mated to one another, and in an exemplary embodiment that are heated sealed to one another around a perimeter thereof to form an enclosed pocket therebetween. The pocket is preferably sealed with a viable tissue disposed therein. In another embodiment, the tissue scaffold is substantially wedge-shaped and the pocket comprises a hollow interior formed in the tissue scaffold, and / or at least one lumen extending into the tissue scaffold. The tissue scaffold can also optionally include at least one surface feature formed thereof to promote blood vessel formation.

The spinal fusion cage of the invention comprises two opposing end plates, and three opposing collapsible legs. The two opposing end plates and three opposing collapsible legs are adapted to be configured into an expanded cage from a collapsed configuration. The expanded cage assumes a predetermined rigid shape and volume for disposition between two adjacent vertebrae. The collapsed configuration of the cage is adapted for posterior insertion into the disk space. The apparatus further comprises locking means for at least temporarily locking the legs and maintaining the cage in an expanded configuration. One of the legs is medially disposed on a first side of the cage and the other two are laterally disposed with respect to the end plates on a second side. The three legs have differing lengths so that the cage assumes a wedge-shaped envelope in the expanded configuration. The wedge-shaped envelope reestablishes a predetermined lordosis between fused vertebrae. The invention includes an inserter comprised of a tubular member and holding clamp disposed on the distal end of the tubular member. The holding clamp holds the cage in the collapsed configuration for insertion into a confined surgical theater. The cage is then reconfigured to the expanded configuration using the inserter. Further activation of the inserter causes the cage to be temporarily locked into the expanded configuration.

An interior rearview mirror assembly for a vehicle includes a prismatic mirror element and a display element. The prismatic mirror element includes a wedge-shaped prism element having a front surface and a rear surface and a second element having a transflective reflector on a first surface thereof. The front surface of the prism element generally faces a driver of the vehicle when the mirror assembly is installed in the vehicle, and the rear surface is opposite the front surface. The transflective reflector coated first surface of the second element is attached to the rear surface of the prism element via an optically matching medium. The display element is positioned to the rear of the prismatic mirror element and operates to display information through the prismatic mirror element so as to be viewable by a driver of the vehicle when the display element is operated to emit visible light.

A broadband power combining device includes an input port, an input waveguide section, a center waveguide section formed by stacked wedge-shaped trays, an output waveguide section, and an output port. Each tray is formed of a wedge-shaped metal carrier, an input antipodal finline structure, one or more active elements, an output antipodal finline structure, and attendant biasing circuitry. The wedge-shaped metal carriers have a predetermined wedge angle and predetermined cavities. The inside and outside surfaces of the metal carriers and surfaces of the cavity all have cylindrical curvatures. When the trays are assembled together, a cylinder is formed defining a coaxial waveguide opening inside. The antipodal finline structures form input and output arrays. An incident EM wave is passed through the input port and the input waveguide section, distributed by the input antipodal finline array to the active elements, combined again by the output antipodal finlines array, then passed to the output waveguide section and output port. A hermetic sealing scheme, a scheme for improving the power combining efficiency and thermal management scheme are also disclosed. The broadband power combining device operates with multi-octave bandwidth and is easy to manufacture, well-managed thermally, and highly efficient in power combining.

A see-through free-form head-mounted display including a wedge-shaped prism-lens having free-form surfaces and low F-number is provided.

Improved nucleus pulposus implants are provided to better accommodate the disc nucleus space, to provide a modified compressive modulus, to facilitate positioning, to enhance fixation, and to facilitate effective implantation and use. Some implants have sloped upper and / or lower surfaces to provide a “wedge-shaped” implant, while other implants have circumferential grooves, and / or have radiographic markers, and / or are modified by including a material having a compression profile that differs from the compression profile of the predominant material of the implant. Some implants have surface features to enhance fixation to surrounding surfaces.

In one form of the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for forming a wedge-like opening in a bone for an open wedge osteotomy, the apparatus comprising: targeting apparatus for identifying a cutting plane through the bone and a boundary line for terminating a cut made along the cutting plane, wherein the boundary line is located within the bone; and an apex pin for disposition along the boundary line for providing (i) a positive stop at the boundary line for limiting cutting along the cutting plane, and (ii) a cylindrical opening extending along the boundary line so as to minimize the occurrence of stress risers within the bone when the bone on either side of the cut is moved apart so as to form the wedge-like opening in the bone. In another form of the present invention, there is provided a method for forming a wedge-like opening in a bone for an open wedge osteotomy, the method comprising: positioning targeting apparatus relative to the bone, so as to identify a cutting plane through the bone and a boundary line for terminating a cut made along the cutting plane, wherein the boundary line is located within the bone; and positioning an apex pin along the boundary line so as to provide (i) a positive stop at the boundary line for limiting cutting along the cutting plane, and (ii) a cylindrical opening extending along the boundary line so as to minimize the occurrence of stress risers within the bone when the bone on either side of the cut is moved apart so as to form the wedge-like opening in the bone; cutting the bone along the cutting plane, with the cut terminating at the boundary line; and moving the bone on either side of the cut apart so as to form the wedge-like opening in the bone.

The enumeration of cells in fluids by flow cytometry is widely used across many disciplines such as assessment of leukocyte subsets in different bodily fluids or of bacterial contamination in environmental samples, food products and bodily fluids. For many applications the cost, size and complexity of the instruments prevents wider use, for example, CD4 analysis in HIV monitoring in resource-poor countries. The novel device, methods and algorithms disclosed herein largely overcome these limitations. Briefly, all cells in a biological sample are fluorescently labeled, but only the target cells are also magnetically labeled. The labeled sample, in a chamber or cuvet, is placed between two wedge-shaped magnets to selectively move the magnetically labeled cells to the observation surface of the cuvet. An LED illuminates the cells and a CCD camera captures the images of the fluorescent light emitted by the target cells. Image analysis performed with a novel algorithm provides a count of the cells on the surface that can be related to the target cell concentration of the original sample. The compact cytometer system provides a rugged, affordable and easy-to-use technique, which can be used in remote locations.

A spinal implant apparatus that is an expandable spacer including features to minimize or eliminate spacer cant or offset during and after completing the expansion process. The spacer includes a top component, a base component in engagement with the top component, and an expansion mechanism arranged to change the top component's position with respect to the base component. The mechanism for causing expansion may be a screw, a cam, a wedge or other form of distracting device. In one embodiment, the expandable spacer includes a base component with a set of towers and a top component with a set of corresponding silos, where the towers and silos are configured to minimize or eliminate tilt of the top component as it extends upwardly from the base component. In another embodiment, the spacer may include a stepped arrangement around the perimeter of the top component and the base component for engagement during height expansion with minimal canting or slippage. In another embodiment, the spacer may include texturing modification at the opposite ends of the longitudinal axis of the spacer to prevent tilting, slipping, or canting. Additionally, a portion of one or more exterior surfaces of the spacer may be textured, sawtoothed, dovetailed or the like to increase frictional intervertebral contact. The spacer may contain one or more passageways of selectable shape / dimension for bone growth through the spacer.

A vertebral implant for fusing adjacent vertebrae or for replacing vertebral bodies is disclosed. The implant is a biocompatible metal, resorbable, or radiolucent implant conforming substantially in size and shape with an end plate of a vertebra. The implant preferably has a wedge-shaped profile to restore disc height and the natural curvature of the spine. The top and bottom surfaces of the implant have areas with a plurality of teeth to resist expulsion and provide initial stability and areas devoid of any protrusions to receive implantation instrumentation. The implant also has a stackability feature. The implant provides initial stability needed for fusion without stress shielding.

Apparatus for performing an open wedge, high tibial osteotomy, the apparatus comprising: a wedge-shaped implant for disposition in a wedge-shaped opening created in the tibia, wherein the wedge-shaped implant comprises a hole extending therethrough; a fixation screw for extending through the hole and securing the wedge-shaped implant to the tibia; and a locking mechanism for releasably locking the fixation screw to the wedge-shaped implant.Apparatus for performing an open wedge, high tibial osteotomy, the apparatus comprising: a fixation screw for securing an implant to the tibia, the fixation screw comprising: a shaft having a distal threaded portion and a proximal threaded portion, wherein the distal threaded portion and the proximal threaded portion are characterized by different thread pitches.

In one form of the present invention, there is provided an osteotomy implant for supporting an open wedge osteotomy, the osteotomy implant comprising: a first graft containment arm for disposition along one side of the open wedge osteotomy; a second graft containment arm for disposition along a second, opposite side of the open wedge osteotomy; and a base component for disposition along the mouth of the open wedge osteotomy, the base component being configured to selectively connect the first graft containment arm and the second graft containment arm to one another so as to form a generally wedge-shaped structure, wherein the base component constitutes the thicker end of the wedge. In another form of the present invention, there is provided a method for conducting an open wedge osteotomy, comprising: forming a wedge-like opening in the bone; positioning a first graft containment arm along one side of the wedge-like opening, and positioning a second graft containment arm along a second, opposite side of the wedge-like opening; and positioning a base component along the mouth of the wedge-like opening, the base component being selectively connected to the first graft containment arm and the second graft containment arm so as to form a generally wedge-shaped structure, wherein the base component constitutes the thicker end of the wedge.

A method of forming an electrical connection between an electrochemical cell and a meter is provided. According to the method, an electrical connection is made between a meter, by means of a wedge-shaped connector with upper and lower conductive surfaces, and an electrochemical cell comprising a first substrate with a first electrically conductive coating and a second substrate with a second electrically conductive coating, the electrically conductive coatings being disposed to face each other in a spaced apart relationship by an insulating spacer. The meter further includes a pivot point for rotating the wedge connector on the pivot point.

A surgical clip includes a pair of opposed arms joined at one end by an integrally formed flexible hinge and a hinge lock. A male locking pin near the free end of one arm is configured to penetrate tissue when the male locking pin is urged towards a mating female aperture near the end of the opposite arm. The clamping side of an arm may include a protruding feature, such as a wedge shape elongated ridge, while the clamping side of the opposite arm includes a corresponding trough or aperture that receives the protruding feature. Clamping surfaces may include non-slip protrusions, such as ribs, ridges, cones or pins. An applicator holding feature, such as a boss, near the hinge prevents the clip from yawing and becoming askew during application.

The present invention is in the field of polymer interlayers and multiple layer glass panels comprising polymer interlayers, and, more specifically, the present invention is in the field of wedge shaped polymer interlayers.

A self-locking pin having a shaft, a headed end, and detent means biased in a bore in the pin. The portion of the detent or plunger that extends outwardly from the bore is wedge-shaped, while the portion of the plunger disposed inside the bore is cylindrical. A transitional angle is formed at the point where the configuration of the plunger changes from cylindrical to wedge-shaped. The transitional angle defines shoulders on either side of the plunger. The shaft is staked at points along the perimeter of the bore so that the inwardly extending surface created by the staking abuts the shoulders and prevents the plunger from rotating or being removed from the bore. In an alternate embodiment, the plunger may be rotated to a locked depressed position.

Apparatus for performing an open wedge, high tibial osteotomy, the apparatus comprising: a wedge-shaped implant for disposition in a wedge-shaped opening created in the tibia, wherein the wedge-shaped implant comprises at least two keys, laterally offset from one another, for disposition in corresponding keyholes formed in the tibia adjacent to the wedge-shaped opening created in the tibia. Apparatus for performing an open wedge, high tibial osteotomy, the apparatus comprising: a wedge-shaped implant for disposition in a wedge-shaped opening created in the tibia, wherein the wedge-shaped implant comprises at least two keys, vertically offset from one another, for disposition in corresponding keyholes formed in the tibia adjacent to the wedge-shaped opening created in the tibia, and a shear rib, laterally offset from the at least two keys, for disposition in a corresponding shear rib keyhole formed in the tibia adjacent to the wedge-shaped opening created in the tibia.

A rotary blood pump is provided which includes a pump housing and a rotor mounted for rotation with the housing. The rotor has an impeller. A rotor motor is provided including a plurality of permanent magnets carried by the impeller. A first motor stator is positioned on one side of the impeller and a second motor stator is positioned on an opposite side of the impeller. The motor stators each include a plurality of electrically conductive coils and pole pieces located within the housing. A plurality of wedge-shaped hydrodynamic thrust bearings are located outside of the axis of the rotor. During rotation of the impeller, the hydrodynamic bearings are separated from the housing by a fluid film and are not in direct mechanical contact with the housing.

Methods and apparatus for separating mold sections, removing a lens product from the separated mold sections, and transferring the lens product to a processing tray are provided and include contacting assembled mold sections with a warm fluid to break fused portions between the mold sections, and using one or more wedge shaped elements to pry apart and separate the mold sections, one from the other. A vacuum head having multiple vacuum ports is employed for lifting the newly molded lens product from a mold section and for releasing the lens from the vacuum head into a processing tray. A cylinder of flowing air directed around the circumference of the lens is effective to maintain the lens in an unfolded position as the lens is being released into the processing tray. A tray set including multiple trays holding multiple lenses is provided and includes features for enabling visual and / or mechanical distinction of the trays and lenses held thereby.