US Patent Issued to Intuitive Surgical Operations on May 26 for "Systems and methods for orienting tools within flexible elongated devices" (California Inventor)

ALEXANDRIA, Va., May 26 -- United States Patent no. 12,635,865, issued on May 26, was assigned to Intuitive Surgical Operations Inc. (Sunnyvale, Calif.).

"Systems and methods for orienting tools within flexible elongated devices" was invented by Lucas S. Gordon (Sunnyvale, Calif.).

According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A medical instrument includes a tool having a mating tool portion with a first set of angled flats and a flexible elongated body having a mating channel portion with a second set of angled flats. When the tool is inserted into a channel of the flexible elongated body, the first set of angled flats engages with the second set of angled flats. The first and second sets of angled flats may...