U.S. patent application number 14/266743 was filed with the patent office on 2014-08-21 for mounting stents on stent delivery systems.
This patent application is currently assigned to Abbott Cardiovascular Systems Inc.. The applicant listed for this patent is Abbott Cardiovascular Systems Inc.. Invention is credited to Jason Van Sciver.
Application Number | 20140230225 14/266743 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 44628582 |
Filed Date | 2014-08-21 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140230225 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Van Sciver; Jason |
August 21, 2014 |
MOUNTING STENTS ON STENT DELIVERY SYSTEMS
Abstract
A system for mounting a stent on a balloon catheter includes two
positioning and alignment stations, which are used to prepare a
stent and catheter for crimping using the same crimping head. The
system is configured for automated assembly of the stent and
catheter prior to crimping. A catheter and stent are placed on a
computer-controlled carriage that delivers the stent and catheter
to the crimper head. Before placing the stent and catheter into the
crimper head, an automated alignment system locates the stent
between balloon markers.
Inventors: |
Van Sciver; Jason; (Los
Gatos, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Abbott Cardiovascular Systems Inc. |
Santa Clara |
CA |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
Abbott Cardiovascular Systems
Inc.
Santa Clara
CA
|
Family ID: |
44628582 |
Appl. No.: |
14/266743 |
Filed: |
April 30, 2014 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
12831878 |
Jul 7, 2010 |
8752261 |
|
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14266743 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
29/468 ;
29/281.5; 29/705; 29/715 |
Current CPC
Class: |
Y10T 29/53978 20150115;
Y10T 29/53065 20150115; A61F 2002/9583 20130101; Y10T 29/53987
20150115; Y10T 29/53917 20150115; Y10T 29/49902 20150115; A61F
2/958 20130101; A61F 2/9522 20200501; Y10T 29/53022 20150115 |
Class at
Publication: |
29/468 ;
29/281.5; 29/705; 29/715 |
International
Class: |
A61F 2/958 20060101
A61F002/958 |
Claims
1-21. (canceled)
22. An apparatus, comprising: a stent comprising a polymer having a
glass transition temperature; a non-stick material; a crimping
station including a crimper head having jaws; and a processor for
crimping the stent, whereupon receiving a user command, the
processor causes the crimping station to (a) insert the stent into
the crimper head, wherein the non-stick material is disposed
between the jaws and the stent; (b) heat the stent; and (c) crimp
the stent from a first diameter to a second diameter.
23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the stent is heated to near
the glass transition temperature.
24. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the stent is heated to a
temperature between the glass transition temperature (Tg) and 15
degrees Celsius below Tg.
25. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the stent is on a balloon
catheter during step (c), and after step (c) the crimper jaws are
held at the second diameter and the balloon is inflated for a dwell
period while the stent has the second diameter.
26. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the stent is made from
poly(L-lactide).
27. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein before step (a) the
processor accesses crimping parameters defining a crimping sequence
for the stent upon receiving an identification code provided with
the stent.
28. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein after step (c), the stent is
removed from the crimper head, alignment of the stent on a balloon
is verified, the stent and balloon are re-inserted into the crimper
head, and the stent is crimped to a final crimp diameter that is
less than the second diameter.
29. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the stent before crimping
has a diameter about 2.5 times larger than the second diameter.
30. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the stent is crimped from
the first diameter to an intermediate diameter that is the same as
a balloon diameter, the stent is removed from the crimper head
after crimping to the first diameter, followed by re-inserting the
stent into the crimper head wherein the stent disposed upon a
balloon and disposed between balloon markers when re-inserted into
the crimper head.
31. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the crimper head jaws are
made of metal and the non-stick material is a polymer having a
higher compliance than the metal.
32. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein after step (c) the stent is
placed in a sheath and the stent and sheath are placed in a
refrigeration unit.
33. An apparatus, comprising: a stent made from a polymer material
having a glass transition temperature; a balloon catheter; a
non-stick material; a crimping station including a crimper head
having jaws; and a processor for crimping the stent to the balloon
catheter, whereupon receiving a user command, the processor causes
the crimping station to (a) insert the stent and balloon catheter
into the crimper head; (b) heat the stent; (c) crimp the stent from
a first diameter to a second diameter; (d) hold the crimper jaws at
the second diameter for a first dwell period to allow for stress
relaxation in the polymer material; (e) crimp the stent from the
second diameter to a third diameter. (f) hold the crimper jaws at
the third diameter for a second dwell period to allow for stress
relaxation in the polymer material; and (g) crimp the stent from
the third diameter to a fourth diameter.
34. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein the first and second dwell
periods have durations of between 10 and 200 seconds.
35. A crimping method, comprising providing a stent made from a
polymer material having a glass transition temperature, the stent
having an initial diameter; crimping the polymer stent to a polymer
balloon, including (a) placing the stent over the balloon, (b)
removing a static charge between the stent and the balloon, and (c)
using a crimping device, crimping the stent from the initial
diameter to a first diameter less than the initial diameter while
the stent is being heated.
36. The crimping method of claim 35, wherein step (b) includes
directing anti-static air over the stent and balloon.
37. The apparatus of claim 35, wherein the stent temperature is
near the glass transition temperature during step (c).
38. The apparatus of claim 35, wherein the stent temperature is
between the glass transition temperature (Tg) and 15 degrees
Celsius below Tg during step (c).
39. The crimping method of claim 35, wherein the first diameter
equal to an outer diameter of the balloon, further including the
steps of (e) removing the stent from the crimping device after
crimping the stent to the first diameter, and (f) placing the stent
and balloon back into the crimper and crimping the stent to a
second diameter less than the first diameter.
40. The apparatus of claim 35, wherein after step (c), the stent
and balloon are removed from the crimper head, the stent and
balloon are re-inserted into the crimper head, and the stent is
crimped to a final crimp diameter that is less than the first
diameter.
41. An apparatus, comprising: a crimper head having jaws and a
non-stick material arranged for being placed between the jaws and a
stent received within the crimper head; and a first station and a
second station disposed adjacent the crimper head and configured to
receive, respectively, a first stent and a first balloon catheter
assembly and a second stent and a second balloon catheter assembly;
a processor for crimping the first stent to the first balloon
catheter and the second stent to the second balloon catheter using
the crimper head, whereupon receiving a user command, the processor
causes (a) the first station to insert the first stent and first
balloon catheter into the crimper head and the second station to
insert the second stent and second balloon catheter into the
crimper head, and (b) the crimper head to perform a crimping
sequence including the first stent being crimped to the first
balloon catheter and the second stent being crimped to the second
balloon catheter.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to drug-eluting medical
devices; more particularly, this invention relates to systems,
apparatus and methods for mounting to a delivery balloon a
balloon-expandable stent, such as a polymeric stent.
[0003] 2. Background of the Invention
[0004] FIGS. 1A and 1B depict perspective views of a prior art
crimping station used to crimp a balloon expandable stent to a
deployment balloon of a balloon catheter. The crimping station
includes a crimper head 220, an interactive screen 216 for
programming a crimping sequence, e.g., diameter reduction, dwell
times between successive crimps, temperature control of the crimper
jaws, etc. A carriage 242 aligns a catheter 209 with the opening
222 to the crimper head 220 and advances the distal end 209b of the
catheter, where a stent 100 and the balloon are located, into the
crimper head 220. The crimper head 220 includes three rollers 223,
224 and 225, which place a clean sheet of non-stick polymer
material between the crimper jaws and stent 100 to avoid buildup of
coating material on the jaws when plural stents having drug-polymer
coatings are being crimped to balloon catheters.
[0005] FIG. 1B shows a perspective view of the carriage 242, which
includes a slidable block 250 holding catheter 209. The block 250
is used to advance the catheter distal end 209b and stent 100 into
and out of the crimper head 220 using knob 274. The catheter 209 is
held within a groove 252 formed on the block 250. The catheter 209
shaft is retained in the groove 252 by a pair of cylindrical rods
253, 254 which are rotated down to trap the catheter shaft in the
groove 252 before it is advanced into the crimper head 220 via the
opening 222. The rods 253, 254 are rotated from the closed position
(as shown) to an open position to allow the catheter 209 to be
removed from the groove 252 by rotating hinge arms 253a, 254a
clockwise (as indicated by A, B). A handle 255 is connected to the
hinge arms 253a, 254a and rotated in direction C to move the hinge
arms 253a, 254a to the open position. A rail 273 is connected to
the block 250 at block extension 250a. The block 250 is
displaceable over a distance "S". An operator manually moves the
distal end 209b and stent 100 towards or away from the crimper head
220 using the knob 274. The rail 273 is received within, and slides
over a passage of a support 272, which is mounted to the table of
the crimper station. The block 250 is received within, and slides
along grooves (not shown) of a support piece 260. An abutment 275
of the support piece 260 serves as a stop to indicate when the
catheter distal end 209b is positioned properly within the crimper
head 220.
[0006] In operation, the operator manually places the catheter 209
within the groove 252 and holds it in place by rotating the handle
clockwise to position the rods 253, 254 into the position shown in
FIG. 1B. The operator then manually places the stent 100 over the
balloon. Prior to inserting the distal end 209b within the crimper
head 220, the operator must ensure that the stent is properly
positioned on the balloon, i.e., the operator must ensure that the
stent is located between marker bands of the balloon before placing
the stent within the crimper head 220, so that when the balloon is
inflated, the stent will expand properly within a patient's
vasculature. the stent and balloon are then advanced into the
crimper head by push the carriage forward until block 250 strikes
or abuts the stop 275. When the block 250 hits the stop 275 the
stent and balloon are in the desired position within the crimper
head.
[0007] Preparing a stent-catheter assembly utilizing equipment such
as that described above, and/or production techniques whereby
operators dedicated to manually loading a stent on a balloon and
ensuring the assembly is positioned/aligned properly so that the
stent is properly crimped to the crimping head, is burdensome. In
the case of high volume polymer stent--catheter assembly production
there can be significantly more time spent properly crimping a
polymer stent compared to a metal stent. Moreover, existing
procedures for placing and aligning a stent, just prior to crimping
has become more problematic and time-consuming as the lengths of
deployment balloons have been shortened to about the length of a
stent. Since the balloon length is matched more closely to the
length of the stent (for purposes of avoiding damage to vascular
tissue when the stent is deployed within a body) there is less
margin for error by the operator. Given the small sizes for stents
and balloons, great care must therefore be exercised by the
operator to ensure that the stent is properly located on the
balloon before crimping. If the stent is not properly positioned on
the balloon before crimping, both the stent and catheter must the
discarded.
[0008] The art recognizes a variety of factors that affect a
polymeric stent's ability to retain its structural integrity when
subjected to external loadings, such as crimping and balloon
expansion forces. These interactions are complex and the mechanisms
of action not fully understand. According to the art,
characteristics differentiating a polymeric, bio-absorbable stent
of the type expanded to a deployed state by plastic deformation
from a similarly functioning metal stent are many and significant.
These and related challenges faced in the manufacture and crimping
of polymer stents to balloons are discussed in U.S. application
Ser. Nos. 12/776,317 (attorney docket no. 62571.398) and 12/772,116
(attorney docket no. 62571.399).
[0009] One aspect of polymer stents, as compared to metal stents,
that has presented certain challenges is the procedures required to
ensure an acceptable yield when crimping large numbers of polymer
stents to balloon catheters, as explained in more detail in
applications U.S. application Ser. Nos. 12/776,317 (attorney docket
no. 62571.398) and 12/772,116 (attorney docket no. 62571.399), as
well as improving efficiency in crimping large numbers of polymer
stents to balloons so that production-level polymer stent crimping
does not impose unacceptable delays in the manufacturing process.
The operation of crimping devices are time consuming when being
used to crimp polymer stents and current production yields are less
than favorable.
[0010] In view of the foregoing, there is a need to improve upon
existing crimping processes, such as in the case of crimping
polymer stents to balloon catheters.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0011] The invention provides an apparatus, system and process for
crimping a stent to a balloon catheter. According to one aspect of
the disclosure, a stent mounting system includes a crimper head and
a pair of stations, located on opposite sides of the crimper head,
for positioning first and second stent and catheter assemblies and
aligning the first and second stents on their respective balloon
catheters prior to crimping the stents to the balloons. The crimper
head is adapted for receiving the stent and catheter assemblies
from both stations to perform a crimping process at the same time.
The system incorporates computer-controlled processes for reducing
much of the labor typically required by an operator, e.g., a
technician, when preparing a stent and catheter for crimping and
monitoring the crimping process. Automated, computer-controlled
processes replacing manual pre-crimping processes can increase
yield, since there is less likelihood that a stent and catheter
will be improperly located within the crimper head, which can
result in uneven crimping over the length of a stent, or a stent
not properly aligned with a balloon markers prior to crimping. By
using automated, computer-controlled process the time required for
crimping can be reduced, and production yields increased. Moreover,
more operator time is made available, so that multiple crimping
sequences can be monitored by the same operator.
[0012] These and other advantages of the invention are particularly
worth noting when polymer stents are crimped. In contrast to a
metal stent, a polymer stent must be crimped at a much slower rate
due to the inherent limitations of the material compared at that of
a metal. This slower process can produce significant bottlenecks
during stent-catheter production. By automating manual crimping
tasks, the overall time needed to crimp a polymer stent can be
noticeably reduced. Polymer stents are more sensitive to fracture
when crimping produces irregular bending or twisting of struts,
since a polymer material suitable for a load-bearing stent, e.g.,
PLLA, is far more brittle than a metal. Inaccurate crimping within
the crimper head, e.g., non-uniform applied forces through the
crimper jaws when the stent and catheter are not properly located,
or positioned within the crimper head, is therefore more likely to
cause fracture in polymer stent struts. Accuracy and repeatability
in the crimping process is therefore more critical to increased
yield for a polymer stent than a metal stent. According to one
aspect of the invention, there is a discovered need for more
automation in a crimping process for polymer stents, whereas there
is less need for automation when crimping metal stents. A crimping
sequence for a polymer stent can be about five times longer than a
metal stent. This 5-fold increase in crimping time, when multiplied
out by the number of polymer stent-balloon assemblies crimped
during a production run, poses unique challenges in planning and
resource allocation, which is contrast to the time and resource
allocation needed for crimping metal stents. A primary reason for
the delay is the need to crimp the polymer material more slowly to
reduce instances of crack creation or propagation, and to reduce
recoil when the crimping jaws are removed from the stent
surface.
[0013] Existing systems for crimping a stent to a balloon require
an operator to both manually align stents between balloon markers,
properly insert the stent and balloon assembly within a crimper
head and then verify that the stent is being properly crimped in
mid-process. The invention substantially overcomes many of the
drawbacks of requiring an operator to perform these tasks by
introducing automated processes for positioning and aligning a
stent and catheter for crimping.
[0014] According to the disclosure, the system may be configured to
automate the following manual tasks:
[0015] Manually positioning a catheter distal end at the entrance
of the aperture and then manually advancing the stent and catheter
within the crimper head. According to one aspect of the invention,
a computer automatically advances the stent and catheter into the
crimper head after an operator has verified, e.g., by a laser light
identifying the proper location of the catheter's proximal balloon
seal relative to a reference point, that the catheter has been
properly placed within a carriage that advances the catheter and
stent into the crimper head under computer control. A laser
positioning system or a camera may be used to locate the proper
placement of the catheter relative to the carriage, as well as to
signal to a processor controlling the carriage motion forward into
the crimper head that the stent-catheter as been positioned
properly within the crimper head, once this signal is received, an
actuator advances the stent-catheter assembly into the crimper
head. The device illustrated in FIGS. 1A-1B, by contrast, utilizes
a mechanical stop 275 to indicate to the operator that the
stent-catheter assembly is located properly within the crimper
head. However, it has been discovered that this manner of
positioning the stent-catheter assembly within the crimper head can
cause the stent to displace relative to the balloon, thereby
throwing the stent out of alignment. The invention recognizes that
a mechanical stop, even when found suitable for positioning a metal
stent within a crimper head, introduces problems for polymer
stents, particularly when the polymer stent has a much larger
diameter than the balloon. As a solution to this problem, a servo
mechanism is used to advance the stent-catheter assembly into the
crimper head at a rate which reduces the chance that the stent will
move relative to the balloon.
[0016] Manually aligning the stent between balloon markers.
According to one aspect of the invention, an imaging system is used
to image the stent and catheter and then determine, e.g., by
pattern recognition software, whether the stent is properly
aligned. If the stent is not properly aligned, the stent position
relative to balloon markers is adjusted using computer-controlled
actuators. The actuators may be controlled by servo mechanisms
driven by a processor, which processor may utilize a camera or
laser alignment system and may incorporate controller logic with or
without a feedback loop during the adjustment.
[0017] Manual inspection of the stent on the balloon after an
initial, or pre-crimp, to ensure that the stent has not shifted
relative to the balloon markers within the crimper. If the stent
has shifted, then the operator manually adjusts the stent before
placing the stent and catheter back into the crimper. According to
another aspect of the invention, the crimping process is under
computer control after the stent-catheter assembly is loaded onto a
carriage and the operator activates the process. The stent-catheter
assembly is placed in the crimper head, a pre-crimp is performed,
then the stent-catheter are withdrawn from the crimper head. The
imaging system is then activated to verify that the stent is
aligned with the balloon markers. After verifying that the stent is
between the balloon markers, the stent-catheter assembly is
advanced again into the crimper head to perform the final crimp. No
operator involvement is necessary.
[0018] Performing the above manual processes, one after another,
for a first stent, then a second stent after the first stent has
been crimped to a balloon. According to another aspect of the
invention, a crimper head is provided for simultaneously crimping
first and second stent and catheter assemblies in one crimping
sequence. Hence, the automated positioning, aligning, and
verification after pre-crimp steps described above can be performed
concurrently for two stent and catheter assemblies.
[0019] The invention addresses the need to improve alignment
processes for stent-catheter assemblies that demand tighter
alignment tolerances. Short balloon tapers and shorter marker bands
drive more precise stent positioning. Precise position correction
of the stent is difficult to perform manually by an operator and
requires special training. Manually positioning can result in
stent, coating and/or balloon damage if not done correctly. This
positioning task is made more difficult when the stent is
manufactured to have a deployed or over-deployed diameter (a large
starting diameter is chosen to provide improved mechanical
characteristics when the stent is expanded to its deployed
diameter). The relatively large annular gap between the stent and
folded balloon presents significant positioning challenges.
[0020] Consistent with these objectives and in view of the
foregoing problems and/or needs in the art addressed/met by the
invention, the invention provides, in one aspect, a crimper head, a
first station and a second station disposed adjacent the crimper
head and configured to receive, respectively, a first stent and a
first balloon catheter assembly and a second stent and a second
balloon catheter assembly, the first station and the second station
each include an aligning portion and a positioning portion, and a
processor for simultaneously crimping both the first stent to the
first balloon catheter and the second stent to the second balloon
catheter using the crimper head. When a user command, e.g., start
crimping sequence, is received by the processor, the processor,
e.g., a local computer, causes (a) the first station to align the
first stent with the first balloon catheter and the second station
to align the second stent with the second balloon catheter using
the respective first and second station aligning portions, (b) the
first station to insert the first stent and first balloon catheter
into the crimper head and the second station to insert the second
stent and second balloon catheter into the crimper head using the
respective first and second station positioning portions, and (c)
the crimper head to perform a crimping sequence for crimping both
the first stent to the first balloon catheter and the second stent
to the second balloon catheter.
[0021] According to another aspect of the invention, there is
provided machine executable code residing on a machine readable
storage medium for performing tasks (a), (b) and (c). The machine
readable code may include code for operating the aligning portion
using a control system (with or without a feedback loop).
[0022] The aligning portion may include a camera for obtaining an
image of a stent on a balloon, machine readable instructions
accessible to the processor for analyzing the image to determine
whether the stent is misaligned on the balloon, an actuator for
displacing one of the stent and balloon relative to the other of
the stent and balloon if a misalignment of the stent relative to
the balloon was detected from the analyzed image, and a controller
for controlling movement of the actuator for displacing one of the
stent and balloon relative to the other using the actuator
according to an offset of the stent relative to the balloon.
[0023] According to another aspect of the invention, there is a
method for crimping a stent to a balloon of a balloon catheter, the
balloon having balloon markers identifying a proper alignment of
the stent with the balloon, the method including preparing the
balloon catheter for crimping including placing the catheter on a
movable carriage; verifying that the stent is aligned with the
balloon including collecting at least one image of the stent and
balloon and then analyzing the image to verify that the stent is
between the balloon markers; after the verifying step, inserting
the stent and balloon into a crimper; and crimping the stent to the
balloon.
[0024] According to another aspect of the invention, there is a
crimping method for a polymer stent including a final crimp
followed by a dwelling period. During the dwell period the balloon
and stent are maintained at an elevated temperature and a leak test
for the balloon is performed while the stent-catheter assembly is
being gripped by the crimper jaws.
[0025] According to another aspect of the invention, there is an
apparatus for crimping a polymer stent to a balloon catheter,
comprising: a crimper head having jaws; an aligning portion; a
positioning portion; a processor in communication with the crimper
head, aligning portion and the positioning portion; and machine
executable code, executable by the processor, for performing a
crimping process.
[0026] The machine executable code includes a first code for
aligning the polymer stent with the balloon of the balloon catheter
and positioning the polymer stent and balloon within the crimper
head, and a second code for crimping the polymer stent to the
balloon, including setting the crimper jaws at a final crimping
diameter followed by a dwell time to allow stress relaxation to
occur within the polymer stent and to perform a balloon test
including inflating the balloon to a pressure and then measuring
the pressure over a time period to detect a leak in the
balloon.
[0027] The scope of the methods and apparatus of the invention also
encompass processes that crimp a stent as substantially described
in US Pub. No. 2010/0004735 and US Pub. No. 2008/0275537. The
thickness of the tube from which the stent is formed may have a
thickness of between 0.10 mm and 0.18 mm, and more narrowly at or
about 0.152 mm. The stent may be made from PLLA. And the stent may
be crimped to a PEBAX balloon.
INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE
[0028] All publications and patent applications mentioned in this
specification are herein incorporated by reference to the same
extent as if each individual publication or patent application was
specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by
reference, and as if each said individual publication or patent
application was fully set forth, including any figures, herein.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0029] FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a crimping system according
to the prior art.
[0030] FIG. 1B is a perspective view of a carriage of the system of
FIG. 1A.
[0031] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a stent mounting system
configured for positioning and aligning two pair of stent-catheter
assemblies at stations on left and right sides of a crimper head
and then crimping the stents to their respective catheters using
the crimper head, and using a single crimping cycle. In one aspect
of the disclosure, the process is automated, involving little if
any operator involvement once the stent-catheter assembly has been
placed on carriages at the left and right sides of the crimper
head.
[0032] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a mounting apparatus of the
system of FIG. 2 including a crimper head and dispensing rolls.
[0033] FIGS. 4A-4B are close-up views of a positioning and
alignment system for the right hand side station of the system of
FIG. 2. Shown are elements of an imaging system and a carriage
associated with a positioning and alignment system.
[0034] FIG. 4C is a perspective view of the carriage portion of the
positioning and alignment system of FIG. 2.
[0035] FIGS. 5A-5C is a sequence of views showing a
re-positioning/re-alignment of a stent on a balloon. The sequence
shown uses computer-controlled actuator portions of the positioning
and alignment system.
[0036] FIG. 6 is another example of a mechanism of a
computer-controlled positioning and alignment system.
[0037] FIGS. 7A and 7B depict aspects of another example of a
mechanism of a computer-controlled positioning and alignment
system. In this example, a polymer stent is being repositioned
after the stent has been pre-crimped to a smaller diameter
[0038] FIG. 8 is a flow process describing steps associated with
the positioning and alignment of a stent-catheter assembly, and
then crimping the stent to the catheter using the system of FIG.
2.
[0039] FIG. 9 is a flow process showing steps associated with
crimping a polymer stent to a catheter balloon.
[0040] FIG. 10 is a flow process describing a process for verifying
alignment of the stent on the balloon and repositioning the stent
on the balloon to correct for a misalignment of the stent on the
balloon.
[0041] FIG. 11 is a flow chart showing some of the manufacture
steps associated with making a PLLA stent and then crimping the
PLLA stent to a catheter balloon.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
[0042] Throughout this disclosure, the balloon expandable implant
will be called a "stent", whether the description is referring to
an implant made in whole or part of a metal material or a polymeric
material such as PLLA. In some instances, the term "scaffold" may
be used, which is specifically referring to a biodegradable,
polymer implant.
[0043] FIG. 2 illustrates a stent mounting system 10 according to
one aspect of the disclosure. The stent mounting system 10 is
configured for positioning a stent on a delivery balloon, then
crimping the stent to the balloon in an automated fashion. The
system 10 is preferably constructed so that two stents may be
simultaneously loaded onto separate balloon catheters, then each
placed within a crimper head by a computer-controlled positioning
and alignment system. Both stents are then crimped to their
respective balloon using the same crimper head. As such, two stents
may be simultaneously crimped to catheters during a single crimping
sequence. The attending operator need only perform a relatively
straight-forward assembly of the stent and catheter, and then mount
the stent-catheter assembly on a carriage. A start sequence button
is pressed, at which point the remainder of the process is
hands-off, thereby alleviating the operator from much of the manual
labor that is typically required with existing systems.
[0044] Referring again to FIG. 2, system 10 includes left and right
positioning and alignment stations 14, 16 located on left and right
sides, respectively, of a crimping apparatus 12, which includes the
crimping head 20, e.g., an iris-type crimper, and rollers for
dispensing a thin sheet of a non-stick polymer material between
jaws of the crimping head 20 and a stent to be crimped. Coiled
catheters 8, 9 are shown mounted on respective computer-controlled
left and right moving carriages 42a, 42b portions of the
positioning and alignment stations 14, 16. The carriage portions
42a, 42b may perform various functions associated with an automated
stent positioning and alignment process, such as positioning the
catheter distal end (where the balloon is located) within the
appropriate location in the crimping head 20 and aligning the stent
on the balloon of the catheter prior to initiating a crimping
sequence. After the stent is properly aligned relative to balloon
markers, the catheter with stent is advanced into the crimper head
20 to start the crimping sequence. The stent may then be reduced in
diameter to a final crimped state before being withdrawn from the
crimper, or partially reduced in diameter, removed to verify proper
placement on the balloon, then re-inserted into the crimper to
complete the crimping process.
[0045] Referring to FIG. 3, there is shown a perspective view of
the mounting apparatus 12. As mentioned above, this portion of the
mounting system 10 includes a crimper head 20 and dispensing rolls.
The crimper head 20 may be an iris type crimper, an example of
which is described in US Pub. No. 2003/0070469. The crimper head 20
includes left and right apertures for passage of the stent and
catheter into the crimper head 20 via the left and right
positioning and alignment systems 14, 16, respectively (aperture or
opening 20a is viewable in the perspective views of FIGS. 2 and 3).
Preferably, the crimper head 20 is configured with a compliance
offset feature which allows it to properly crimp one or two stents.
The compliance offset feature may be implemented by an adjustment
of the travel of the crimper jaws on one end when only one stent is
being crimped. Without adjustment of jaw loading between two vs.
one stents being crimped at the same time, the crimper jaws will
produce an uneven force distribution over the length of the
stent.
[0046] One favorable aspect of a crimper head configured to
simultaneously crimp two stents as depicted in FIGS. 2 and 3 is
uniformity of the applied load on the stents and bearings of the
crimper head. Stent designs can range from 8-80 mm and longer for
some applications. Due to catheter fixturing limitations, the
proximal edge of the stent is inserted the same distance into the
crimp head for all stent sizes. The crimp head can experience high
torsional loading in the bearings and diameter disparity between
the right hand side and left hand side when a stent of short length
is disposed on only one of these sides. By having stents located on
both sides of the crimper head the load becomes more evenly
distributed, or balanced, thereby providing more uniform resistance
during the crimp process.
[0047] Three rolls 23, 24, 25 are used to position a clean sheet of
non-stick material between the crimping jaws and stent prior to
crimping. For example, upper roll 25 holds the sheet secured to a
backing sheet. The sheet is drawn from the backing sheet by a
rotating mechanism (not shown) within the crimper head 20. The used
sheet is gathered by the mid roll 24 after crimping and the backing
sheet is collected by the lower roll 23. As an alternative to
rollers dispensing a non-stick sheet, each stent may be covered in
a thin, compliant protective sheath before crimping.
[0048] The dispensed sheet of non-stick material (or protective
sheath) is used to avoid buildup of coating material on the crimper
jaws for stents coated with a therapeutic agent held within a
polymer carrier. The sheet is replaced by a new sheet after each
crimping sequence. By advancing a clean sheet after each crimp,
accumulation of coating material from previously crimped stents can
be avoided. The film is also beneficial when crimping a polymer
stent. When metal jaws of a crimper apply pressure to struts of a
polymer stent, damage can occur to the struts due to the difference
in hardness between the metal and polymer. The polymer film
provides a more compliant surface between the jaws and the stent
struts to avoid pitting of the stent struts during crimping.
[0049] Left positioning and alignment station 14 has the same
characteristics as right station 16. Therefore, the remaining
discussion applies to either station 14 or 16. Right alignment
station 16 includes a display which may be an interactive display
16a for modifying, or simply monitoring a pre-programmed
positioning and alignment sequence for a stent and catheter, and
subsequent crimping sequence. Information about the process for the
particular stent is retrievable from an input stent ID. After
scanning in the stent ID via a barcode or receiving the stent ID
via an RFID transmitter on the stent holder, the station 16 may
upload from a remote storage area process information including
parameters/recipes for crimping the particular stent to a catheter,
e.g., balloon pressures, dwell times, diameter reductions,
temperature, etc. Additional information may be uploaded from the
stent ID, such as stent and balloon sizes, which additional
information is used to assist with an automated alignment of the
stent on the catheter, discussed below.
[0050] Control buttons 16a on the front panel of the station 16 may
be provided to initiate or abort intermediate phases of a crimping
process, e.g., control buttons for initiating/aborting an alignment
of the stent on catheter, clamping or releasing the catheter
to/from the carriage 42a, aborting a crimping step, advancing the
stent and catheter into, or removing the stent and catheter form
the crimper head 20, etc.
[0051] As indicated above, a polymer sheet is disposed between the
stent and crimper jaws. It has been found that a significant static
charge can be present on these sheets. Additionally, a static
charge can build up when the polymer stent is slid over the balloon
surface, or during pre-handling of the stent. For a polymer stent
having a much larger diameter than the balloon, these static
charges can cause the stent to be thrown out of alignment, either
when resting on the balloon or when the stent-catheter assembly is
initially introduced to the crimper head and in proximity of the
charged polymer sheets. For a polymer stent crimping process, it is
desirable to remove or minimize this static charge prior to
inserting the stent-catheter assembly into the crimper head. For
example, anti-static air may be directed into the crimper head and
over the stent-catheter assembly prior to crimping.
[0052] Station 16 includes a carriage 42a (hereinafter carriage 42
or 42a), which carries the stent and catheter into and out of the
crimper head 20 and assist with re-aligning the stent 100 on the
balloon 112. The carriage 42 translates left and right by a
computer-controlled, linear drive mechanism coupled to the carriage
42. Referring to FIGS. 4A-4B there are two close-up perspective
views of right positioning and alignment station 16, in particular,
the carriage 42 and elements of an imaging system 60 (a camera 62
and reference plane 64) which are used with the carriage 42 to
assist with aligning the stent 100 on the balloon 112. The carriage
42 includes a tray 41 for holding a coiled portion 9a of the
catheter 9 (via clips 41a). The tray 41 includes a proximal guiding
flange 44 which directs the catheter 9 shaft towards fore and aft
grippers 48, 50 disposed adjacent a channel 46 for holding the
distal end 9b of the catheter 9 in alignment with the entrance 22
to the crimper head 20. The proximal end 9c of the catheter 9 is
disposed in a convenient position on the tray 41 to attach a luer
extension, which provides a coupling for connecting a pressure
source (not shown) and associated pressure gauge to the distal
catheter end 9c. The pressure source and gauge are placed in fluid
communication with the balloon inflation lumen for inflating and
measuring balloon pressure when the stent-catheter assembly is
within the crimper head 20. A clip 41b is provided for attaching a
hose, which couples to the luer extension.
[0053] The carriage 42 channel 46 includes an outer channel piece
46b and inner channel piece 46a, arranged to form parallel walls
for alignment of the catheter 9 shaft 9d with the crimper head 20
entrance 22. The distal gripper pair 48 and proximal gripper pair
50 include a pair of opposed posts each receiving a compliant
sleeve that abuts the catheter shaft. The distal grippers 48 are
fixed in position and spaced apart to provide a snug space for the
catheter distal end 9b. The proximal gripper pairs 50 are movable
towards and way from each other by a pneumatic actuator to secure
and release, respectively, the distal catheter shaft 9d from the
channel 46. A user toggle switch (not shown) releases or engages
the grippers 50 with the catheter shaft 9d. The grippers 50,
therefore, operate as a clamp to hold the catheter 9 distal end 9d
within the channel 46. The catheter 9 is positioned in the carriage
42 so that the balloon 112 is forward of the distal grippers 48.
The stent 100 is on the balloon 112 in FIGS. 4A-4B. As an aid in
alignment a metal rod (not shown) is advanced through the catheter
guide wire lumen to increase the catheter's flexural rigidity at
the distal end. The channel 46 includes a V-groove formed by a
magnetic material, or having a magnetic material proximate the
groove to bring the catheter into alignment within the groove and
retain it in this position by magnetic forces acting on the rod
disposed within the guidewire lumen.
[0054] The stent 100 may be manually placed on the balloon 112 by
the operator after the balloon 112 has been positioned distal of
the grippers 48. After the balloon 112 and stent 100 have been
properly located on the carriage 42 distal of the grippers 48, the
toggle switch is depressed to bring the proximal gripper pair 50
together to clamp the catheter 9 in place. In another embodiment,
the stent may be placed on a tray and the catheter (held on the
carriage 42) advanced through the stent bore by a
computer-controlled actuator. This stent tray may have a curved
receiving surface, e.g., a portion of a cylindrical surface, to
receive the stent, which allows the operator to simply drop the
stent onto the receiving surface where the receiving surface
naturally causes the stent to come to rest at the center, e.g.,
stent bore axis and axis of cylinder lie in same plane. A flange
may be formed along the distal edge of this receiving surface so
that the stent abuts the flange if the stent is displaced distally.
The catheter distal end is advanced into the stent bore until the
distal balloon marker begins to appear distal of the stent distal
end. If there is contact between the catheter and stent during this
step, the distal flange will act as a stop to hold the stent in
position while the catheter distal end is passing through the stent
bore. In another example the tray depicted in FIG. 6 and described
more fully below may receive the stent. Then the catheter distal
end is advanced through the stent bore. In either of the above
embodiments, e.g., tray of FIG. 6 or body having a curved receiving
surface, the stent alignment process (as described in greater
detail below) may be performed concurrently with placing the stent
on the distal end of the catheter.
[0055] FIG. 4C shows a perspective of the carriage 42. As mentioned
above, carriage 42 includes a tray 41 with rail portion 44, rail 46
and clip 41b, and grippers 48, 50. In FIGS. 4A-4B carriage is shown
being received within a slot which it translates along as the
stent-catheter assembly is moved towards/away from opening 22.
Carriage 42 includes an extension piece 43 received within the slot
and connected to a linear actuator via bolts 44. Grippers 50, which
are pneumatically actuated, are connected to the actuator via
couplings 50a.
[0056] A laser light (or camera) may be used to assist the operator
with identifying the appropriate position of the balloon 112 aft
seal 112a relative to the distal gripper pair 48, to ensure that
the balloon 112 and stent 100 will be advanced to the designated
area within the crimper head 20 prior to activating the crimper
head 20. If the catheter distal end 9b is too far forward of, or
close to the gripper 48, which is arbitrarily chosen, for
convenience, as the reference point for the travel length forward
of the carriage 42 from the position shown in FIG. 4A to a crimping
location within the crimper head 20, then the stent and catheter
can be positioned incorrectly within the crimper head 20, resulting
in possible damage to the stent and/or the crimper head. The
operator adjusts the position of the catheter distal end 9b
relative to the laser light, which is directed at, and generates a
red line across the catheter shaft, until the balloon 112 proximal
seal 112a is illuminated by the light. This laser light is directed
about 10 mm forward of the grippers 48.
[0057] As mentioned earlier, the carriage 42 and imaging system 60
assist with aligning the stent on the balloon. As shown in FIG. 4A,
the catheter balloon 112 and stent 100 are located between the
reference plane 64 and the camera 62 (the reference plane provides
a black backdrop, or contrasting background to the stent and
catheter so that images collected by the camera 62 can clearly
discern the stent and balloon 112 distal and proximal seals, and/or
balloon markers). The background may be any color or may consist of
another light source to backlight the product if desired for
accurate dimensional transitions.
[0058] Reference points may be disposed on the backdrop or contrast
surface, e.g., an approximate distal and proximal location for the
balloon on the catheter when the balloon has properly positioned on
the rail by the operator, or reference indices indicating a measure
of length, e.g., hashes showing millimeter increments.
[0059] After the catheter 9 is positioned in the carriage 42 as
shown in FIG. 4A, stent 100 alignment on the balloon 112, followed
by the crimping sequence may be initiated by an automated process.
Thus, following proper placement of the catheter 9 within the
carriage 42, the remainder of the crimping process for the stent
100 and catheter balloon 112 may commence without further
involvement by the operator.
[0060] Misalignment of the stent on the balloon may be detected
using the imaging system 60 and computer-executed algorithm that
includes a position detection routine that collects digitized
image(s) of the stent 100 on the balloon 112 and analyzes the
image(s) to determine whether the stent is aligned or misaligned.
That is, collected image(s) is/are analyzed to locate edges 104,
105 of the stent relative to the balloon 112 (see FIG. 5A). To
assist with identification of stent edges, balloon seals, stent and
balloon markers etc. from the images data about the stent is
accessed. Stent and balloon lengths, distances from edges to
markers, etc. and other identifying characteristics may be remotely
accessed through the stent ID then compared to the image to
identify (through pattern recognition routines) the stent structure
used to determine whether the stent is misaligned relative to
balloon markers 114.
[0061] After a determination has been made that the stent is
misaligned, a positioning mechanism is employed to automatically
reposition the stent 100 on the balloon 112. The computer
algorithms that may be used to re-align the stent include a
controller with or without a feedback loop. In both instances, the
controllers seek to move the stent by a computed offset distance to
properly align the stent between balloon markers.
[0062] For example, referring to a controller without feedback,
after locating the stent edges 104, 106, balloon seals 112b, 112a
and/or marker bands 114a, 114b in the image, the stent 100 position
relative to the balloon markers can be found and an offset distance
"d1" computed (FIG. 5A). This offset is then input to the
controller that has control over movement of carriage 42 and/or
stent 100 to move one relative to the other. After the balloon 112
has been displaced relative to the stent 100, or the stent 100
displaced relative to the balloon 112, presumably by the distance
d1, a second image is taken to re-evaluate the stent position
relative to the balloon 112. The same sequence may be performed
multiple times until the stent 100 is properly located on the
balloon 112, e.g., between marker bands 114a, 114b. Movement of the
stent relative to the balloon is determined once the offset d1 is
computed. If the second image reveals that the stent is still
misaligned, a new offset d1 is computed and the process is
repeated.
[0063] Examples of actuator-controlled mechanisms that may be
incorporated into station 16 for restraining or moving the stent
relative to the balloon 112 (or balloon relative to stent) are
depicted in FIGS. 5A-5C, FIG. 6 and FIGS. 7A-7B.
[0064] Referring to FIGS. 5A-5C, located beneath the stent 100 is
an arm or pair of arms 74 that are raised (+y) to engage struts or
ring elements of the stent 100. Shown is one pair of arms 74 at end
104 of stent 100. The arms 74a, 74b are positioned between a stent
strut and then brought together to grip the strut or ring element
102 (FIG. 5B). Or the arms 74a, 74b may be positioned between
struts and then moved apart until then contact a stent ring element
or strut. Two pair of arms of the type shown (i.e., arms 74),
operated simultaneously, may restrain both ends 104 and 106 of the
stent, or one arm (or post) at each end 104, 106 may be raised (+y)
to serve as an abutment preventing horizontal motion (+/-x) of the
stent 100 relative to the balloon 112 so that the balloon 112 may
be moved relative to the stent 100. Referring to FIGS. 5B-5C, the
carriage 42, for example, is moved forward by the distance d1 while
the stent is held by the arms 74. After the carriage 42 is moved,
the arms 74 are retracted to their starting position. A second
image of the stent 100 and balloon 112 is taken to determine
whether the stent 100 is now located between the marker bands 114a,
114b as shown. Referring of FIG. 6, a cradle 76 having a plurality
of upwardly disposed protuberances 77 (e.g., square-like
extensions, bumps) or roughened (rubber like) surfaces 77 having a
high coefficient of friction may, in the alternative, be used to
restrain stent 100 motion while the balloon 112 is repositioned.
Alternatively, the cradle 76 may be moved horizontally (-x) to move
the stent 100 relative to the balloon 112. This tray 76 may also be
used to place the stent 100 on the catheter 9, as mentioned
earlier.
[0065] Referring to FIGS. 7A-7B there is another embodiment of a
stent alignment mechanism. Shown is stent 100 after its diameter
has been decreased to about 1/2 size of its starting diameter
following a pre-crimp step, discussed in greater detail, below. A
fork 150 shown in FIGS. 7A, 7B is used to engage the stent 100
proximal end 105b to push the stent 100 forward over the balloon
112 until the ends 104, 105 are between the balloon markers 114.
The fork 150 is prepositioned adjacent the carriage 42, then moved
forwards by a linear actuator. The fork 150 includes opposed arms
152, 154 extending upwards from a root. Connecting hardware 156 for
connecting the fork 150 to an actuator arm (not shown) is shown. A
inner surface 158 of the fork 150 is shaped to as a rounded surface
and sized so that there is a slight clearance between the balloon
surface and the surface 158. Thus, as the fork 150 moves to the
left in FIG. 7A the surface 158 passes over the outer surface of
balloon 112 and when reaching the stent 100 fork 150 abuts the end
105a. The fork 150 and stent 100 continue to move distally over the
balloon 112 according to the controller logic (below) until the
stent 100 has moved the offset distance d2 indicated in FIG.
7A.
[0066] In the case where the stent 100 being located to far distal,
i.e., edge 104 is distal of balloon marker 114b, then a similar
fork 150 may be disposed to the left of the stent to push it
towards the proximal balloon marker. The same fork 150 may be used
for correcting distal or proximal misalignments. The fork 150 may
be re-positioned distal or proximal of the stent 100 depending on
the alignment Correction needed. When alignment is needed, it can
be preferred to have misalignment always be of the type illustrated
in FIG. 7A, since in these cases the catheter is brought into
tension, rather than into compression, when there is stent-balloon
interference as the stent 100 is moved relative to the balloon
112.
[0067] As indicated earlier, prior to a pre-crimp, a polymer stent
diameter is can be much larger than the balloon 112 diameter (FIG.
5A). For re-alignments at this stent diameter, it should not make
much difference whether there is a proximal or distal re-alignment
needed to the left or right needed since the stent 100 easily moves
over the balloon 112. However, when re-alignment is needed
following a pre-crimp step (FIG. 7A), where the polymer stent
diameter has been reduced to a point where it begins to engage the
balloon surface, there is expected to be stent-balloon interaction
to some degree. This follows from the purpose of the pre-crimp
diameter. The diameter is chosen so that the stent does not easily
move about, yet is still capable of being moved relative to the
balloon surface when a re-alignment is needed. As alluded to
earlier, this highlights another challenge faced with polymer
stents not present with metal stents. A large starting diameter is
used for a polymer stent, as mentioned earlier, for mechanical
performance reasons at the deployed diameter. However, the larger
diameter (relative to the balloon) also increases the likelihood
the stent will shift relative to the balloon when the initial
diameter reduction is performed. There is a need, therefore, to
remove the stent after an initial diameter reduction to verify that
it is properly aligned before the stent is reduced to a diameter
that prevents further adjustment.
[0068] When the stent is misaligned relative to the balloon markers
as shown in FIG. 7A, the stent is pushed forward. Any resistance to
stent movement by stent-balloon contact will produce tension in the
catheter, which is acceptable. However, if the stent 100 is
disposed distal of the distal balloon marker and needs to be
re-aligned proximally, resistance to movement by balloon-stent
contact will place the catheter distal end 9b into compression,
which can cause the tip of the catheter to displace off axis, makes
the re-alignment process more difficult (since the catheter is
moving laterally while the stent is being repositioned).
[0069] This problem may be addressed by holding the distal end 9b
while the fork 150 is moved towards the proximal end, or by using
an alternative mechanism (as necessary) to grip and move the stent
while holding the distal tip on axis as the stent 100 is being
moved. For example, in an alternative embodiment the upper surface
of tray 76 from FIG. 6 is curved, or includes a pair of opposed
curved surfaces that are brought together to grip the surface of
the stent 100, then this tray is displaced to the proximally while
the tip 9d is held on-axis. Alternatively, the initial alignment of
the stent 100 can be proximal of the proximal balloon marker,
thereby ensuring that any shifting during the pre-crimp will not
result in the stent 100 being distal of the distal balloon
marker.
[0070] The sequence of operations described above, which makes use
of one or more computer-controlled actuating mechanisms, are
controlled by a computer, e.g., a personal computer or PC or
workstation having DRAM, disk storage, hardware bus, CPU, user
input device, e.g., touch screen 16a, keyboard, mouse, external
drives, and a network connection to a LAN and drivers for
controlling the actuators used to drive the mechanisms described in
FIGS. 5-6. The computer resident at station 16a may access
information about the stent and catheter remotely using a LAN, WAN
or other network type, which information may be accessed through a
file server. The machine executable code associated with the
algorithmic aspects of the positioning system may be software or
hardware implemented, or a combination of both. Off the shelf
equipment may be used for the imaging system 60 and actuators
referred to above.
[0071] Determining a location of the stent edges 104, 105 and
balloon distal/proximal seals 112, 114 from the camera 62 collected
image(s), may be accomplished using pattern recognition algorithm,
which, as mentioned earlier, can compare the camera 62 image to
pre-stored information about the stent length and/or pattern to
distinguish the stent 100 from the balloon 112 in the image.
Distinguishing balloon markers, for example, from the stent and
other parts of the catheter 9 may be accomplished by illuminating
the stent and balloon with light that causes the balloon markers to
illuminate light within a particular band in contrast to the
surrounding image. The same technique may also be used to find the
stent edges, based on the illumination of stent markers then
computing the location of the stent edges relative to those
markers. The pattern recognition algorithm may be programmed to
receive as input the stent length, marker location and pattern,
pre-crimp diameter, balloon length between proximal/distal seals
and markers and output a signal to indicate the stent is aligned
with the balloon or the offset distance, which is then received by
the controller for repositioning the stent 100 relative to the
balloon 112.
[0072] As mentioned earlier, a controller using a feedback loop may
be used to reposition the stent on the balloon. The feedback for
this controller would be position information extracted from images
of intermediate positions of the stent relative to the balloon as
the stent or balloon is moved relative to the other. Thus, the
stent, for example, is moved an incremental distance and an image
is taken of the new position. The next input to the actuator, e.g.,
an input to a servo, is computed based on feedback information
extracted from the image, the next incremental displacement is
performed, a third image is taken, etc. until the offset distance
approaches zero, i.e., the stent is between the balloon markers.
The control system may adopt a PID control, or state-space control
logic for computing the next input to the actuator. The actuators
may be controlled by a servo mechanism or stepper motors to provide
precise control over movement of the actuators.
[0073] It would, of course, be desirable to utilize a process that
does not require an iterative closed or open-loop feedback control
for locating a stent between markers. Multiple iterations, however,
may be necessary when a stent is repositioned following pre-crimp,
for the reasons alluded to earlier. When re-alignment is needed
following pre-crimp the balloon may introduce enough hysteresis
into the system to require an iterative approach.
[0074] As discussed earlier, pre-crimping of the stent seeks to
provide enough friction to not cause the stent to easily move
about, but not too much friction to prevent repositioning when
needed. The pre-crimp reduces the diameter to enable more accurate
measurement of the distance between the stent edge and the marker
band. The majority of defects and stent movement due to distortion
of the stent occurs during a pre-crimp step. In this sense it will
be appreciated that by incorporating aspects of the disclosed
alignment system following pre-crimp there is the opportunity to
make fine adjustments of the stent when it is very close to its
final diameter and shape.
[0075] FIGS. 8-10 describe process flows for positioning and
aligning a catheter and stent and crimping the stent in the crimper
head 20 using the system 10.
[0076] Referring to FIG. 8, the process begins by an operator
reading the identification (ID) of the stent(s) to be crimped to a
catheter. The process of positioning, aligning and then crimping is
the same for a stent and catheter loaded at the left or right
stations 14, 16 of the system 10. When both stations 14, 16 are
being used to simultaneously crimp stents to catheters 8, 9, a
central processor may control both stations, or a separate
processor at each station 14, 16 may control the process up until
the point the stents and catheters are ready to be inserted into
the crimper head 20, at which point a central control takes over
for the crimping steps. One aspect of the crimping process, a
pre-crimp step, is followed by removal of the stent and catheter to
verify alignment. For this step control may return to the station
14, 16 processor to perform a verification and possible
re-alignment, followed by return of control over to a central
processor (or only one station 14, 16 processor performs the
crimping sequence while the other remains idle).
[0077] Referring to the process flow of FIG. 8, with the stent ID
input to the computer control, process controls are selectable by
the operator via the user display 16a, or these controls may be
automatically retrieved from storage base d on the input stent ID.
The catheter 9 is then loaded onto the alignment carriage 42. The
coiled portion 9a of the catheter 9 is placed onto the tray 41.
This is a manual operation performed by the operator. The catheter
proximal end 9c is positioned to face the clip 9c, the coiled
portion 9a is placed on the tray 41 and the shaft 9d including
proximal end 9b is aligned via the rail 44 and positioned distal of
the grippers 48. A luer extension is attached and the pressure
source connected to the luer extension. The operator depresses a
button to bring gripper pairs 50 together, thereby clamping the
catheter in the carriage 42. The position of the balloon 112
proximal seal 112a relative to the distal grippers 48 is then
verified by inspecting whether an illuminating light shines on the
balloon proximal seal location (or a camera verifies a proper
location and indicates this position by a green light, or red light
if misaligned). If properly aligned, the flow next proceeds to the
stent alignment sequence (FIG. 10), if not, the clamp is released
and the operator re-positions the catheter distal end 9b until the
aft balloon seal aligns with the reference light. The stent may be
placed on the catheter manually or by an automated mounting
process, as explained earlier.
[0078] Referring to the process flow of FIG. 10, with a signal
received from the operator, e.g., a start button depressed, to
begin the crimping sequence, control then shifts to the stent
alignment phase (or stent placement on balloon and alignment phase
using the same mechanism and control system) for determining
whether the stent is properly aligned relative to the balloon
markers. The positioning carriage 42 advances the catheter distal
end 9b and stent 100 to the appropriate position for checking the
alignment, i.e., the stent and balloon being centrally positioned
at the camera 62 bore site. In this position, images collected by
the camera may be used to extract distance information, relative
positions of the stent and balloon and making adjustments to the
stent position as described earlier.
[0079] After collecting one or more digital images, stent and
catheter information is recalled to assist with determining the
exact location of the stent edges and balloon markers and/or seals.
For example, the distance from the distal balloon seal and balloon
marker may be used to determine where the distal balloon marker is
located relative to the distal seal, as in the case of the stent
edge overhanging the balloon marker, thereby obscuring the camera
60 view of it (FIG. 5A). With information about the length of the
stent, its pre-crimp diameter, stent pattern, location of its
markers relative to edges, etc. the identification of the markers
in the digital image, or other patterns matched to the information
from the image the algorithm may determine where the stent edge is
located.
[0080] With the stent edges and balloon markers located, the
controller (with or without a feedback loop) determines whether the
stent is aligned, or whether the stent or balloon needs to be moved
relative to the other so that the stent is between the balloon
markers (as desired) prior to crimping. If the stent is aligned
between the balloon markers, then a control signal is passed to the
central control to have the stent and balloon moved into the
crimper head 20. If it is determined that the stent is not aligned,
then the stent is moved relative to the balloon (or balloon
relative to the stent) using, for example, the mechanisms described
in FIGS. 5-7. After the stent has been aligned with the balloon
markers, the stent and catheter are now ready for crimping.
[0081] There are two possible stent positioning sequences that
would occur during the crimping process. The first would include
the pre-positioning of the non-crimped stent on the catheter
relative to the marker bands. It may be preferred during the
initial alignment phase to instead bias the stent proximal to the
desired location, such that the final positioning after pre-crimp
would always be done by pushing the stent distal relative to the
catheter and thus putting the catheter into tension, rather than
compression. The second possible positioning sequence would include
the re-positioning of the stent on the catheter after pre-crimping,
before final crimp. This needs to be the final location as the
stent cannot be moved relative to the balloon after final
crimping.
[0082] Referring to the general process flow for crimping of FIG.
9, the carriage is advanced forward into the crimper head 20 under
computer control to ensure the stent does not shift when being
placed within the crimper. The first diameter reduction by the
crimper, called a pre-crimp, reduces the stent diameter by about
1/2. As indicated above, stent struts have not been pressed into
the balloon material, but have begun to engage this material. After
the pre-crimp, the stent and balloon are removed from the crimper
head 20 so that the stent 100 position relative to balloon markers
may be verified once again before the final crimp begins. Control
then switches over to the process described in connection with FIG.
10. After that process again signals that the stent is aligned
properly with the balloon, the stent and balloon are again placed
within the crimper head 20. The final crimping steps begin.
Examples of these crimping steps for a preferred embodiment, a PLLA
stent crimped at a temperature near its glass transition
temperature and reduced to a diameter of about 2.5 times that of
the pre-crimp diameter, are shown in FIG. 11.
[0083] One or two forms of heating may be employed during the
crimping process. Heating may be accomplished by heating the jaws
of the crimper head, or heated air may be used in addition to
heating the crimper jaws. There may be a benefit to using both
heated air and convection and radiation from the crimper jaws. This
combination of heat sources can cause the balloon material to flow
more easily into the gaps between stent struts. Additionally, the
use of hot air concurrently with heated jaws will reduce the
temperature needed to heat the stent and balloon through convection
and radiation from the jaws. This can be desirable so that the
surface of the stent does not overheat and cause damage while being
crimped. Thus, by using air in combination with heated jaws the jaw
temperature can be lowered.
[0084] As can be appreciated from FIG. 11, there are several
intermediate crimping steps, with significant dwell times needed
for the polymer stent. This is because unacceptable cracks can
develop if the diameter is reduced at too high a rate. A slow,
incremental crimping process is needed so that internal stresses
can work themselves out. Ideally, from a strength/integrity point
of view a polymer material should be plastically deformed at an
extremely slow rate (e.g., over several hours). However, this is
not practical from a production viewpoint. The crimping steps
illustrated in FIG. 11 were found to produce acceptable yields.
When considering the significant time needed to perform a crimping
sequence for a polymer stent as shown in FIG. 11, the advantages of
an automated system 10 are appreciated.
[0085] The final crimp step, i.e., crimping stage 4 from FIG. 11,
includes a 200 second dwell time. While the crimper jaws remain
fixed in this position on the stent struts (for stress relaxation
and minimizing recoil after the jaws are removed from the stent)
the balloon is inflated to a pressure of about 200 psi to perform a
leak test. After the leak test and 200 second dwell, the stent and
catheter are removed from the crimper, a sheath is placed over the
stent, and the stent and catheter are placed in a refrigeration
unit. It has been found that there are benefits, in addition to the
reduction in the time needed in the production process, to
performing the leak test while the polymer stent is in the crimper
head and restrained by the crimper jaws during the dwell time.
First, by increasing the balloon pressure while at an elevated
temperature, the balloon-stent contact can be increased as the
increased pressure causes balloon folds to find their way between
stent struts. This can increase the retention force of the stent on
the balloon. Second, a lower stent-balloon profile is possible.
[0086] In the typical case, such as when using the apparatus of
FIGS. 1A-1B, the leak test is performed after the stent has been
removed from the crimper head and inserted within the restraining
sheath. The restraining sheath, being far more radially compliant
than the crimper jaws, will expand to some degree when the leak
test is performed. It is preferred to maintain the smallest profile
as possible. Thus, if the leak test is performed in the crimper
head, the smaller profile is maintained since the crimper jaws will
maintain the diameter despite the increase in balloon pressure.
[0087] While particular embodiments of the present invention have
been shown and described, it will be obvious to those skilled in
the art that changes and modifications can be made without
departing from this invention in its broader aspects. Therefore,
the appended claims are to encompass within their scope all such
changes and modifications as fall within the scope of this
invention.
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