U.S. patent application number 11/051882 was filed with the patent office on 2005-09-08 for bone crusher and method for bone crushing.
Invention is credited to Carnation, James, Hay, James Scott, Panther, Adrian, Singh, Ryan, Wieder, Brian.
Application Number | 20050194481 11/051882 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 34914825 |
Filed Date | 2005-09-08 |
United States Patent
Application |
20050194481 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hay, James Scott ; et
al. |
September 8, 2005 |
Bone crusher and method for bone crushing
Abstract
An apparatus for bone milling includes a housing defining a
first opening, a second opening opposite the first opening, and a
linear passage from the first opening to the second opening. The
linear passage has a first surface with third opening there through
and a second surface transverse to the first surface. A rotatable
grinding member is insertable through the third opening to
partially block the linear passage. The rotatable grinding member
is positioned at a distance from the second surface of the linear
passage corresponding to a predetermined bone chip size.
Inventors: |
Hay, James Scott; (Parkland,
FL) ; Carnation, James; (Tamarac, FL) ;
Wieder, Brian; (Englewood, CO) ; Panther, Adrian;
(Golden, CO) ; Singh, Ryan; (Loxahatchee,
FL) |
Correspondence
Address: |
John Christopher
Christopher & Weisberg, P.A.
200 East Las Olas Boulevard, Suite 2040
Fort Lauderdale
FL
33301
US
|
Family ID: |
34914825 |
Appl. No.: |
11/051882 |
Filed: |
February 4, 2005 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
60542209 |
Feb 5, 2004 |
|
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|
Current U.S.
Class: |
241/93 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B02C 19/0056 20130101;
A61F 2002/30604 20130101; A61F 2/4644 20130101; A61F 2002/469
20130101; A61F 2002/4645 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
241/093 |
International
Class: |
B02C 017/02 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. An apparatus for bone milling, comprising: a housing defining a
first opening, a second opening opposite the first opening, and a
linear passage from the first opening to the second opening, the
linear passage having a first surface with third opening there
through and a second surface transverse to the first surface; a
rotatable grinding member insertable through the third opening to
partially block the linear passage, the rotatable grinding member
being positioned at a distance from the second surface of the
linear passage corresponding to a predetermined bone chip size.
2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an
actuator element having a first end and a second end opposite the
first end, wherein the first end is removably coupled to the
housing.
3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the actuator element
defines a channel adapted to contain at least a portion of the
rotatable grinding member therein.
4. The apparatus according to claim 3, where the channel extends
substantially from the first end to the second end.
5. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the rotatable
grinding member is removable from the channel and the linear
passage of the housing while the actuator remains coupled to the
housing.
6. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein an actuator cap is
removably coupleable with the second end of the actuator
element.
7. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a
receptacle removably coupled to the second opening.
8. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the receptacle has a
first end and a second end opposite the first end, the second end
having a substantially larger surface area than the first end.
9. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the housing includes
one or more ridges disposed about at least a portion of the surface
of the housing.
10. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the receptacle
further includes an alignment element for engagement with a
corresponding element on the housing.
11. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the alignment
element on the receptacle is one of a groove and a raised
projection.
12. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rotatable
grinding member includes a spiral-oriented plurality of grooves
that provide a respective plurality of cutting edges.
13. The apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the rotatable
grinding member is removably coupled to an actuator element, the
actuator element having a first end and a second end opposite the
first end, wherein the first end is removably coupled to the
housing.
14. The apparatus according to claim 1, further including a plunger
dimensioned to be removably insertable into the first opening of
the housing.
15. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the apparatus
further comprises a coupling element engageable with the housing
and the actuator element to keep the actuator element coupled to
the housing during operation.
16. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the housing
further includes at least one slot, and wherein the coupling
element has: at least one projection engageable with a
corresponding at least one slot to removeably couple the coupling
element with the housing; and at least one shoulder to engage the
actuator element.
17. An apparatus for bone milling, comprising: a housing defining a
first opening, a second opening opposite the first opening, and a
linear passage from the first opening to the second opening, a
rotatable grinding member traversing at least a portion of the
linear passage; and an actuator element defining a first end, a
second end opposite the first end and a channel extending from the
first end to the second end; the channel being adapted to contain
at least a portion of the rotatable grinding member therein, the
first end being removably coupled to the housing and the rotatable
grinding member being removable from the channel through the second
end of the actuator element while the actuator element remains
coupled to the housing.
18. The apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the rotatable
grinding member includes a spiral-oriented plurality of grooves
that provide a respective plurality of cutting edges.
19. The apparatus according to claim 18, wherein the housing
further includes at least one slot, and wherein the apparatus
further comprises a coupling element, the coupling element having:
at least one projection engageable with a corresponding at least
one slot to removeably couple the coupling element with the
housing; and at least one shoulder to engage the actuator
element.
20. A method for milling bone, comprising the steps of: inserting
bone to be milled into a bone milling apparatus, the apparatus
being comprised of: a housing defining a first opening, a second
opening opposite the first opening, and a linear passage from the
first opening to the second opening, the linear passage having a
first surface with third opening there through and a second surface
transverse to the first surface; and a rotatable grinding member
insertable through the third opening to partially block the linear
passage, the rotatable grinding member being positioned at a
distance from the second surface of the linear passage
corresponding to a predetermined bone chip size; a plunger; and a
milled material receptacle removably coupled to the second opening;
placing the plunger in the first opening of the apparatus to force
the bone towards the rotatable grinding member, operating the
actuator element to rotate the rotatable grinding member, thereby
milling the bone, and collecting the milled material in the milled
material receptacle.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application is related to and claims priority to U.S.
Utility patent application Ser. No. 10/961,573, filed Oct. 08,
2004, entitled BONE CRUSHER AND METHOD FOR BONE CRUSHING, which
application is related to and claims priority to U.S. Provisional
Patent Application Ser. No. 60/542,209, filed Feb. 5, 2004,
entitled BONE CRUSHER AND METHOD THEREFORE, the entirety of all
which are incorporated herein by reference.
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
[0002] n/a
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0003] The present invention relates to an orthopedic medical
device and method, in particular to a method and device for bone
grinding for use during orthopedic surgery.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0004] Orthopedic surgery often requires the infusion of a slurry
comprised of blood and crushed bone into a surgical site to promote
healing and recovery after an injury. The crushed bone in the
slurry is ground and pulverized from a larger bone specimen using a
bone grinder that reduces the larger specimen into crushed bone
particles. Bone mills allow patients to have their own bone
particles implanted when there is a preference towards using an
autograft to alleviate the possibility of rejection or infection at
the surgical site. The surgeon can utilize the bone particles and
the resulting slurry to repair bone defects and perform bone
augmentation.
[0005] Existing bone mills are large, expensive devices which are
cumbersome to use and clean and further require re-sterilization at
the end of each procedure. Such re-sterilization takes the form of
expensive and time consuming gas sterilization or autoclave
sterilization. In the case of gas sterilization, the nature of the
sterilization process makes the bone mills available for use only
once in a 24-hour period. When using an autoclave sterilization
process, the bone mills can be sterilized and available for reuse
in less than a 24-hour period, however, the bone mills are not
immediately available. The resulting period required to
re-sterilize the bone mills nevertheless increases the time which
necessarily passes between procedures, thereby decreasing operating
room and surgical efficiency. Further, the porous nature of blades
commonly found in bone mills facilitates the retention of bone
particles. The blade porosity hampers the effectiveness of the
cleaning process, which furthers the possibility of contamination
during subsequent use of the bone mill.
[0006] Moreover, existing bone mills are typically powered devices
that require an external means for driving the mill, such as a
pressurized air source or an electrical motor. Additionally,
existing mills may only have the capability to produce a single
size of crushed bone particles. As such, a surgical suite needs to
have multiple devices to provide crushed bone at different sizes,
which greatly increases the cost of having bone-milling
capabilities. Otherwise, a surgeon is disadvantageously forced to
use crushed bone having a size either too large or too small for a
particular surgical procedure, resulting in potential difficulties
during an orthopedic procedure.
[0007] It is therefore desirable to have an inexpensive bone mill
which is easy to sterilize and can further be adapted to create
bone chips of different sizes. It is also desirable to have a bone
mill which can be manually operated without the assistance of
external power sources.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] The present invention advantageously provides a method and
system for a bone mill that is easy to sterilize, adapted to create
bone chips of different sizes, and operated manually without the
need for external power sources. As such, the present invention
reduces the overall cost of orthopedic procedures requiring a
crushed bone slurry, does not adversely impact the surgical suite
turn-over time and provides a high yield of usable bone particles
having relatively uniform dimensions.
[0009] In accordance with the present invention, an aspect provides
an apparatus for bone milling in which a housing defines a first
opening, a second opening opposite the first opening, and a linear
passage from the first opening to the second opening. The linear
passage has a first surface with third opening there through and a
second surface transverse to the first surface. A rotatable
grinding member is insertable through the third opening to
partially block the linear passage. The rotatable grinding member
is positioned at a distance from the second surface of the linear
passage corresponding to a predetermined bone chip size.
[0010] In accordance with another aspect, the present invention
provide an apparatus for bone milling in which a housing defines a
first opening, a second opening opposite the first opening, and a
linear passage from the first opening to the second opening. A
rotatable grinding member traverses at least a portion of the
linear passage. An actuator element defines a first end, a second
end opposite the first end and a channel extending from the first
end to the second end. The channel is adapted to contain at least a
portion of the rotatable grinding member therein. The first end is
removably coupled to the housing and the rotatable grinding member
is removable from the channel through the second end of the
actuator element while the actuator element remains coupled to the
housing.
[0011] According to still another aspect a method for milling bone
is provided in which bone to be milled is inserted into a bone
milling apparatus. The apparatus has a housing defining a first
opening, a second opening opposite the first opening, and a linear
passage from the first opening to the second opening, the linear
passage having a first surface with third opening there through and
a second surface transverse to the first surface. The apparatus
also has a rotatable grinding member insertable through the third
opening to partially block the linear passage. The rotatable
grinding member is positioned at a distance from the second surface
of the linear passage corresponding to a predetermined bone chip
size. The apparatus further includes a plunger and a milled
material receptacle removably coupled to the second opening. The
plunger is placed in the first opening of the apparatus to force
the bone towards the rotatable grinding member. The actuator
element is operated to rotate the rotatable grinding member,
thereby milling the bone. The milled material is collected in the
milled material receptacle.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] A more complete understanding of the present invention, and
the attendant advantages and features thereof, will be more readily
understood by reference to the following detailed description when
considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings
wherein:
[0013] FIG. 1 illustrates the internal and external features of a
bone mill in accordance with the present invention;
[0014] FIG. 2 depicts an exploded view of a bone mill in accordance
with the present invention;
[0015] FIG. 3 shows added features of a bone mill in accordance
with the present invention;
[0016] FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of an alternative embodiment
of a bone mill in accordance with the present invention;
[0017] FIG. 5 illustrates a side view of an alternative embodiment
of a bone mill in accordance with the present invention;
[0018] FIG. 6 depicts a rear view of an alternative embodiment of a
bone mill in accordance with the present invention;
[0019] FIG. 7 shows a front view of an alternative embodiment of a
bone mill in accordance with the present invention;
[0020] FIG. 8 illustrates a top view of an alternative embodiment
of a bone mill in accordance with the present invention;
[0021] FIG. 9 depicts a bottom view of an alternative embodiment of
a bone mill in accordance with the present invention;
[0022] FIG. 10 shows a cross-sectional view of an alternative
embodiment of a bone mill in accordance with the present
invention;
[0023] FIG. 11 depicts a perspective view of a mill body of an
alternative embodiment of a bone mill in accordance with the
present invention;
[0024] FIG. 12 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a mill body of
an alternative embodiment of a bone mill in accordance with the
present invention;
[0025] FIG. 13 shows an additional cross-sectional view of a mill
body of an alternative embodiment of a bone mill in accordance with
the present invention;
[0026] FIG. 14 illustrates a perspective view of an actuator
element of an alternative embodiment of a bone mill in accordance
with the present invention;
[0027] FIG. 15 depicts a cross sectional view of an actuator
element of an alternative embodiment of a bone mill in accordance
with the present invention;
[0028] FIG. 16 shows a side view of an actuator element of an
alternative embodiment of a bone mill in accordance with the
present invention;
[0029] FIG. 17 illustrates a perspective view of a coupling element
of an alternative embodiment of a bone mill in accordance with the
present invention;
[0030] FIG. 18 depicts a cross-sectional view of a coupling element
of an alternative embodiment of a bone mill in accordance with the
present invention;
[0031] FIG. 19 shows an actuator cap of an alternative embodiment
of a bone mill in accordance with the present invention;
[0032] FIG. 20 illustrates a cross-sectional view of an actuator
cap 46 of an alternative embodiment of a bone mill in accordance
with the present invention;
[0033] FIG. 21 shows a plunger of an alternative embodiment of a
bone mill in accordance with the present invention;
[0034] FIG. 22 depicts a receptacle of an alternative embodiment of
a bone mill in accordance with the present invention;
[0035] FIG. 23 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a receptacle
of an alternative embodiment of a bone mill in accordance with the
present invention; and
[0036] FIG. 24 shows an expanded view of an assembly of a bone mill
in accordance with the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0037] The present invention provides a disposable, hand-operated
bone mill that accommodates cutting plates to produce bone chips of
a selected size based on a blade installed in the mill body 10.
Referring now to FIG. 1, an exemplary embodiment of the present
invention includes a bone mill having a mill body 10 that defines a
first opening 12, a second opening 14, and a linear passage 15 that
extends from the first opening 12 to the second opening 14. The
mill body 10 further includes a rotatable grinding member 18
coupled to an actuator element 20, as shown in FIG. 2. Further, the
mill body 10 can include a third opening 16 through which the
rotatable grinding member 18 couples to the actuator element 20.
The first opening 12 can be adapted to receive a plunger 22, and a
receptacle 24 can be removably coupled to the second opening
14.
[0038] The first opening 12 provides an access area into which a
suitably sized bone portion can be inserted for milling. First
opening 12 can be of any shape, whether having a circular or
rectangular cross-section, so long as a bone specimen of a
particular dimension can pass through first opening 12 and into the
mill body 10 for subsequent milling. First opening 12 can be
adapted to receive the plunger 22, which is used to aid in forcing
a bone specimen further into the linear passage 15 towards the
rotatable grinding member 18. The plunger 22 can be of any shape or
orientation, so long as it is capable of being inserted into the
first opening 12, and includes at least one depressing surface for
contacting a bone specimen in the mill body 10 and forcing it
further into the linear passage 15.
[0039] The second opening 14 provides an exit area from which
milled bone particles may be dispensed. Second opening 14 can be of
any shape, whether having a circular or rectangular cross-section,
so long as it is of sufficient width to allow milled bone particles
to descend out of the opening and into the receptacle 24.
Receptacle 24 can be removably coupled to the second opening 14
through any suitable affixation means, including affixation through
the use of a threaded interlocking surface, a snap-on mechanism, or
the like. Additionally, receptacle 24 may be affixed either to an
exterior surface or interior surface of the mill body 10 in the
vicinity of the second opening 14 in order to capture the dispensed
milled bone material. The receptacle 24 generally defines an
interior cavity accessible by a single opening to receive dispensed
milled material, and may be of any suitable shape as to be
removably coupled to the second opening 24 of the mill body 10.
[0040] The rotatable grinding member 18 preferably includes a
cylindrical, rod-shaped element having a substantially solid
cross-section, and further has at least one cutting element or
cutting groove disposed on its outer periphery. Additionally, the
rotatable grinding element 18 has a diameter that is less than
one-half of an inch, and is positioned in the mill body 10 such
that the rotatable grinding member substantially fills or occludes
a portion of the linear passage 15. By occluding or filling a
portion of the linear passage 15, a bone specimen inserted in the
bone mill is ensured direct contact with the rotatable grinding
member 18 to further guarantee that only bone chips of a particular
dimension proceed further down the linear passageway 15, where they
eventually descend into the receptacle 24. An example of a suitable
embodiment of the rotatable grinding member 18 is a precision
milling bit (for instance, part # 233049 from CONTROX.RTM.). The
rotatable grinding member is preferably constructed from a highly
durable steel or metal material that will not dull easily during
repeated uses of the bone mill. Rotatable grinding member 18 can
include a spiral-oriented plurality of grooves which present
multiple cutting edges for reducing a bone specimen into bone chips
or particles. While an exemplary size of the bone particles
produced by the rotatable grinding member 18 ranges from one-eighth
(1/8) of an inch to approximately three-sixteenths ({fraction
(3/16)}) of an inch, the measurements and dimensions of the cutting
grooves located on the rotatable grinding member may be modified or
characterized in order to produce bone chips of an alternatively
predetermined size.
[0041] Rotatable grinding member 18 is coupled to an actuator
element 20 by any suitable means of affixation including a bolt,
screw, lock ring, or the like. Actuator element 20 provides the
mechanical driving means to rotate the rotatable grinding member
18. The bone mill is preferably manually driven, only requiring the
hand strength of a single individual. To ease the use of the bone
mill, the actuator element 20 can be in the form of a knob or
handle having a diameter or width that is significantly larger than
the diameter or width of the rotatable grinding member 18. The size
ratio between the actuator element 20 and the rotatable grinding
member 18 provides a mechanical advantage for the user and
decreases the force that needs to be applied to the actuator
element 20 in order to create sufficient force in the rotatable
grinding member 18 to successfully reduce a bone specimen into
particles of a desired size.
[0042] The linear passage 15 provides a direct pathway in which a
bone specimen can descend directly through the first opening 12,
through the rotatable grinding member 18, and outward from the
second opening 14. The linear passage 15 can have any virtually any
shape or orientation, whether being a circular or rectangular
cross-section, so long as the width is sufficient to receive a bone
specimen and allow the specimen to descend through the mill body
10. The linear passage 15 can further include a first region 26
having a first width and a second region 28 having a second width.
The first width of the first region 26 can be larger than the
second width of the second region 28 so as to accommodate a larger
bone specimen, while the second region need only be of sufficient
width to allow the milled particles to descend downward to the
receptacle 24. The rotatable grinding member 18 can be positioned
such that at least a portion of the rotatable grinding member 18
intersects at least a portion of the first region 26 and at least a
portion of the second region 28. Placing the rotatable grinding
member 18 in such a position can ensure that only milled bone
particles of a particular size can pass through to the second
region 28 of the linear passage 15, while maintaining location of
the larger bone specimen within the first region 26. Alternatively
to having a first and second region, the linear passage can have a
single, uniform width, or a plurality of widths, so long as a bone
specimen to be milled comes into contact with the rotatable
grinding member prior to exiting the mill body 10.
[0043] As shown in FIG. 3, the bone mill can further include a
funnel 30 and syringe 32. The funnel 30 can be removably coupled to
the receptacle 24 when a desired amount of milled bone has been
collected. The receptacle 24 is uncoupled from the mill body 10,
and is then coupled to the funnel 30 through a mechanism similar to
that which coupled the receptacle 24 to the mill body 10, whether
by the use of a threaded interlocking surface, a snap-on mechanism,
or the like. Upon coupling the receptacle 24 to the funnel 30, the
milled contents in the receptacle can be transferred into the
syringe 32 for direct insertion to a surgical site. By coupling the
funnel 30 directly to the receptacle 24, a user can ensure that no
milled contents are wasted or lost when transferring the milled
bone from the bone mill to the eventual surgical site.
[0044] In an exemplary use prior to a medical procedure, a bone
specimen to be milled is inserted into the first opening 12 of the
mill body 10. The plunger 22 is then placed into contact with the
bone specimen as it resides in the first region 26 of the linear
passage 15 in the area above the rotatable grinding member 18. The
actuator element 20 is then manually turned, which, in turn,
rotates the rotatable grinding member 18. While turning the
actuator element 20, the user can depress the plunger, thereby
forcing the bone specimen towards and into contact with the
rotatable grinding member. As the user continues to depress the
plunger and turn the actuator element, the bone specimen will be
reduced to bone particles of a desired size, which then descend
through the second region 28 of the linear passage 15 and into the
receptacle 24 that is removably coupled to the second opening 14 of
the mill body.
[0045] In an alternative exemplary embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 4
through 24, a bone mill 40 includes a mill body 42, an actuator
element 44, an actuator cap 46, a plunger 48, and a receptacle 50.
In addition, as illustrated by FIG. 10, the bone mill 40 also
includes a rotatable grinding member 52 and a coupling element
54.
[0046] Now referring to FIGS. 11 through 13, the mill body 42
defines a first opening 56, a second opening 58, and a linear
passage 60 that extends from the first opening 56 to the second
opening 58. The first opening 56 can be adapted to receive the
plunger 48, and the receptacle 50 can be removably coupled to the
second opening 58. The mill body 42 may also include a plurality of
ridges 62 distributed about a portion of an exterior surface of the
mill body 42, as well as one or more coupling slots 64. The ridges
62 increase the ability of the mill body 42 to be gripped when the
bone mill 40 is in use, while the coupling slots 64 provide for
subsequent assembly of the bone mill 40.
[0047] The mill body 42 further includes a third opening 66 through
which the rotatable grinding member 52 may pass through as to
partially fill or occlude a portion of the linear passage 60. The
linear passage 60 includes a first region 68 descending from the
first opening 56 towards an area where the linear passage 60
intersects with the third opening 66, and thus, where the rotatable
grinding member 52 would be located within the linear passage 60.
Further, the linear passage 60 includes a second region 70
descending from the first region 68 towards the second opening
58.
[0048] As shown in FIG. 14, the rotatable grinding member 52 is
preferably a rod-like element having grooves or cutting projections
78 disposed about an outer surface of the grinding member.
Rotatable grinding member 52 can include a spiral-oriented
plurality of grooves which present multiple cutting edges for
reducing a bone specimen into bone chips or particles. The
rotatable grinding member 52 may be removably coupled to the
actuator element 44, where the actuator element 44 provides the
mechanical driving means to rotate the rotatable grinding member
52.
[0049] Now referring to FIGS. 15 and 16, the actuator element 44
may be in the form of a handle or knob having a diameter
significantly larger than the diameter of the rotatable grinding
member 52 in order to provide a mechanical advantage which reduces
the amount of force necessary in order to mill bone material. The
actuator element 44 can have a grinding member channel 72 extending
through the actuator element 44 which allows the rotatable grinding
member 52 to be inserted, and thus coupled, to the actuator element
44. The channel 72 extends through the entire width of the actuator
element 44, although the circumference of the channel 72 may vary
in order to mechanically engage the rotatable grinding member 52.
In addition, the actuator element 44 can have a mating groove 74
extending around a circumference of a surface of the actuator
element 44.
[0050] The bone mill 40 can also include the actuator cap 46, as
shown in FIGS. 17 and 18. The actuator cap 46 has a generally
disc-like shape and may further include a plurality of protrusions
76 adapted to removably couple to the actuator.
[0051] As shown in FIGS. 19 and 20, the bone mill 40 may include
the coupling element 54. The coupling element 54 is an essentially
ring-like structure that can include first and second projections
78 disposed about an outer surface. Additionally, the coupling
element 54 includes one or more prongs 80 extending from the body
of the coupling element 54, where the prongs 80 have a raised
shoulder 82 at a single end of the prong.
[0052] The plunger 48 is provided as illustrated in FIG. 21. The
plunger 48 can be adapted to any shape which allows for insertion
of the plunger 48 into the first opening 56 of the mill body 42 to
aid in forcing a bone specimen into the linear passage 60 and
towards the rotatable grinding member 52.
[0053] Now referring to FIGS. 22 and 23, the receptacle 50 defines
a cavity 84 for receiving milled bone material when coupled to the
mill body 42. In addition to capturing dispensed bone material, the
receptacle 50 may also provide a support function for stabilizing
the bone mill 40 when the mill is placed on a surface for
subsequent use. For example, the receptacle 50 can include a first
end 86 which couples to the mill body 42, where the first end 86
includes an opening into the cavity 84 for deposit of milled bone
material. The receptacle 50 also includes a second end 88, opposite
the first end 86, which has a larger width than the first end 86,
thereby increasing a surface area of the receptacle 50 and
increasing the stability of the bone mill 40 when placed on a
surface. The receptacle 50 may include an alignment feature, in the
form of a groove or raised projection to aid in ensuring the proper
alignment of the cavity 84 and the second opening 58 in the mill
body 42 when the receptacle 50 is coupled to the mill body 42.
[0054] As shown in FIG. 24, In an exemplary assembly and use of the
bone mill 40 of the present invention, the mill body 42 is mated
with the coupling element 54. The first and second projections 78
of the coupling element 54 are inserted into the coupling slots 64
of the mill body 42, as to secure the coupling element 54 to the
mill body 42. Subsequently, the actuator element 44 is mated with
the coupling element 54, and thus, to the mill body 42. The
shoulders 82 extending from the prongs 80 of the coupling element
54 engage the mating groove 74 of the actuator element 44 in such a
way that the actuator element 44 is firmly coupled to the coupling
element 54 and the mill body 42, yet retains the ability to rotate
in place.
[0055] Upon coupling the actuator element 44 to the mill body 42,
the rotatable grinding element is inserted through the actuator
element 44 and into the grinding member channel 72. Once the
rotatable grinding member 52 is placed in the channel 72, a portion
of the rotatable grinding member 52 will protrude out of the
actuator element 44, through the third opening 66 of the mill body
42, and into a portion of the linear passage 60.
[0056] To prevent the rotatable grinding member 52 from displacing
during use of the bone mill 40, the actuator cap 46 is then coupled
to the actuator, thus enclosing the exposed interior of the
actuator element 44, and preventing the rotatable grinding element
from falling out. Because of the removable nature of the actuator
cap 46 and the rotatable grinding member 52, grinding members
having different dimensions or features may be interchanged without
disassembling the entire bone mill 40, allowing bone chips of
varying, predetermined sizes to be created rather quickly and
effortlessly. The assembled bone mill 40, actuator element 44,
rotatable grinding member 52, and actuator cap 46 may then be
coupled to the receptacle 50 and placed on a surface, employing the
increased surface area, and thus stability, of the receptacle 50.
The desired material to be milled is then placed in the first
opening 56 of the mill body 42, and forced down the linear passage
60 towards the rotatable grinding member 52 by the plunger 48.
[0057] While the measurements and dimensions of the cutting grooves
located on the rotatable grinding member 52 may be modified or
characterized in order to produce bone chips of an alternatively
predetermined size, characteristics of bone chips created by the
bone mill 40 may further be manipulated by modifying the spacing
between an outer edge of the rotatable grinding member 52 and a
surface of the linear passage 60.
[0058] For example, as may be readily observed in FIG. 12, in the
mill body 42, if the first region 68 of the linear passage 60 has a
first width, and the rotatable grinding member 52 has a first
diameter that is smaller than the first width, then there would be
a space between a surface of the linear passage 60 and the
rotatable grinding member 52 equal to the difference between the
first width 54 and the first diameter 56. Thus, the spacing between
the rotatable grinding member 52 and a surface of the linear
passage 60 would physically prevent any bone chips having a size
greater than that spacing from passing about the rotatable grinding
element and descending through the linear passage 60. As a result,
by modifying the spacing between the rotatable grinding member 52
and a surface of the linear passage 60, for example by
interchanging rotatable grinding members having different
diameters, bone chips of a predetermined size may be created.
[0059] It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that
the present invention is not limited to what has been particularly
shown and described herein above. In addition, unless mention was
made above to the contrary, it should be noted that all of the
accompanying drawings are not to scale. A variety of modifications
and variations are possible in light of the above teachings without
departing from the scope and spirit of the invention, which is
limited only by the following claims.
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