HANDLE THUMB WHEEL MECHANISM WHICH MAINTAINS HOLDING FORCES WHEN STERILIZED AND WHEN ENGAGED

摘要

A thumb wheel mechanism (5) includes a thumb wheel (20) with upper and lower surfaces, the lower surface including a bore (16) with a ball (18) connected to it, and an handle half (10) with upper and lower surfaces, the upper surface including a divot (12), the thumb wheel lower surface being aligned with the handle half upper surface so that the ball rests in the divot of the handle half upper surface when the thumb wheel mechanism is in the neutral position, thereby minimizing the compression load on the thumb wheel mechanism.