BIOPSY DRIVER ASSEMBLY HAVING A CONTROL CIRCUIT FOR CONSERVING BATTERY POWER

摘要

A biopsy driver assembly includes a biopsy driver housing. An electrical assembly is coupled to the biopsy driver housing. The electrical assembly includes at least one electrical drive configured for drivably engaging a biopsy probe assembly. A battery is coupled to the biopsy driver housing. A control circuit is coupled to the biopsy driver housing. The control circuit is electrically coupled to the battery and to the electrical assembly. The control circuit has a motion detector, a timer circuit and a battery dwell circuit. The control circuit is configured to conserve the battery by providing electrical power only to the motion detector after a predetermined time following a last detected physical movement of the biopsy driver assembly and to provide electrical power from the battery also to the electrical assembly when a physical movement of the biopsy driver assembly is detected.

主权项

1. A method for conserving battery power in a biopsy apparatus having a biopsy driver assembly configured to mount a biopsy probe assembly, the biopsy driver assembly comprising a biopsy driver housing; an electrical assembly coupled to the biopsy driver housing, the electrical assembly including at least one electrical drive configured for drivably engaging the biopsy probe assembly; and a battery coupled to the biopsy driver housing, the method comprising:
providing a motion detector, a timer circuit, a probe presence circuit, and a battery dwell circuit; providing an operative mode wherein electrical power is supplied to the electrical assembly when a physical movement of the biopsy driver assembly is detected by the motion detector; providing a battery dwell mode wherein electrical power is supplied to the motion detector to the exclusion of the timer circuit and the electrical assembly after a predetermined time following the last detected physical movement of the biopsy driver assembly; de-activating the motion detector if the probe presence circuit determines that the biopsy probe assembly is not mounted to the biopsy driver assembly such that neither the operative mode nor the battery dwell mode is operational; and bypassing the probe presence circuit based on a user input to activate the motion detector and to cause the battery dwell circuit to enter the operative mode in an absence of the biopsy probe assembly being mounted to the biopsy driver assembly.