Patents
US 12121211 B2: Guidewire and catheter system for in-vivo forward viewing of the vasculature
- Granted
- 2024-10-22
- Filed
- 2020-11-20 application 16953515
- Type
- Utility · 21 claims
- Elsewhere
- Google Patents ↗ · USPTO patent document ↗ · USPTO Patent Center record ↗
Abstract
A medical system comprising a guidewire that is connectable to a catheter is described. The guidewire has a housing connected to the distal end of a core wire. A printed circuit board (PCB) electrically connected to a camera chip resides in the housing. An atraumatic lens is supported by the housing with the camera chip residing between the atraumatic lens and the housing so that light rays entering the atraumatic lens are refracted to a focal plane aligned along a distal face of the camera chip. A proximal connector powered by a controller is wired to a visual display. With the proximal end of the guidewire connected to the proximal connector, the controller provides electrical power to the camera chip via a power cable extending along the core wire to the PCB. The catheter has an axially-extending primary lumen and a plurality of optical fibers extending to respective light-emitting lenses. During a medical procedure, the guidewire is first inserted into the vasculature of a patient. The guidewire is then received in the primary lumen of the catheter to connect the catheter to the guidewire. Then, the guidewire is connected to the proximal connector to enable the controller to provide electrical power to the camera chip. This provides the surgeon with a visual image of the vasculature illuminated by the light-emitting lenses of the catheter during the medical procedure.
Source: PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 (ipg241022.xml).
Assignees
| Assignee | Type | Place | Also on furp.org | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Region Manufacturing, Inc. 30 patents | US company or organization | Chaska, MN | LAKE REGION MANUFACTURING, INC. State business registration EXACT high confidence: identical full name and state | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 |
Inventors
| Inventor | Place | Patents | Person page | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Michael Hayes | Cork, IE | 14 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 | |
| Ivan Mooney | Tuam, IE | 9 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 |
CPC categories
| Subclass | Category | First group | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| A61B | Diagnosis; surgery; identification | A61B1/00096 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 |
| A61M | Devices for introducing media into, or onto, the body ; devices for transducing body media or for taking media from the body ; devices for producing or ending sleep or stupor | A61M25/09 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 |
| G02B | Optical elements, systems or apparatus | G02B3/0087 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 |
| H04N | Pictorial communication, e.g. television | H04N23/54 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 |
Cooperative Patent Classification, as currently assigned (one row per subclass).
Assignments and security interests
| Recorded | What | From | To | Reel/frame | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-09-10 | Security interest Security interest Security interest | GREATBATCH LTD. signed 2021-09-02 ELECTROCHEM SOLUTIONS, INC. signed 2021-09-02 LAKE REGION MEDICAL, INC. signed 2021-09-02 LAKE REGION MANUFACTURING, INC. signed 2021-09-02 | WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT ROANOKE, VA | 57468/56 | PASDL, file of 2026-10-15 |
| 2020-11-20 | Assignment Assignment of assignor's interest | HAYES, JOHN signed 2020-11-19 MOONEY, IVAN signed 2020-11-19 | LAKE REGION MANUFACTURING, INC. CHASKA, MN | 54430/745 | ECORSEXC, file of 2026-09-25 |
Documents recorded with the USPTO Assignment Recordation Branch that list this patent. A security interest is a lender’s claim on the patent as collateral; a release ends it.
USPTO bulk data: PatentsView granted patents, disambiguated (PVGPATDIS) for patents, assignees, inventors, places and CPC categories; the USPTO Patent Assignment Dataset (ECORSEXC) for assignments and security interests. Patents filed in the last 20 years. No claims or full text. Links to other records are by name (and state): EXACT means the identical full name and state; FUZZY means a looser name match, with the confidence shown.