Torqueable catheter shaft delivery system - Medtronic patent US12594400B2
Summary
USPTO granted Medtronic patent US12594400B2 for a torqueable catheter shaft delivery system. The patent covers a catheter shaft design with varying stiffness along proximal, intermediate, and distal portions, a tubular braid component, and a hypotube with patterned sidewall cuts for elastic deformation. The 20-year patent term began from the December 2021 filing date.
What changed
USPTO issued patent grant US12594400B2 to Medtronic covering a catheter shaft with improved torque transmission. The design features gradient stiffness through three polymer sections, a tubular braid reinforcement, and a patterned hypotube in the distal portion. Competitors developing torqueable catheters must design around this patent or seek licensing agreements to avoid infringement liability.
Medical device manufacturers entering the catheter market should conduct freedom-to-operate analyses and consider design alternatives. The patent's broad CPC classifications covering A61M25 (catheters) and A61F2/958 (balloon catheters) suggest applications spanning vascular, structural heart, and neurovascular procedures.
What to do next
- Monitor for potential licensing opportunities
- Review product designs for potential infringement risk
Archived snapshot
Apr 7, 2026GovPing captured this document from the original source. If the source has since changed or been removed, this is the text as it existed at that time.
Delivery system with a torqueable catheter shaft
Grant US12594400B2 Kind: B2 Apr 07, 2026
Assignee
MEDTRONIC, INC.
Inventors
Alan McGuinn, Niall Duffy
Abstract
A catheter shaft includes a proximal portion with a first polymer having a first stiffness and a first portion of a tubular braid component extending within the first polymer, an intermediate portion with a second polymer having a second stiffness and a second portion of the tubular braid component extending within the second polymer, and a distal portion with a third polymer having a third stiffness, a third portion of the tubular braid component extending within the third polymer, and a hypotube extending within the third polymer. The hypotube is configured for elastic deformation and includes a sidewall cut with a pattern. Along an overlap segment of the distal portion, the third portion of the tubular braid component and the hypotube overlap each other. The outer shaft is configured for improved torque transmission.
CPC Classifications
A61M 25/0053 A61M 25/0136 A61M 25/0147 A61M 2025/1061 A61M 2205/583 A61M 25/0051 A61M 25/0138 A61M 25/0054 A61M 25/10 A61M 25/0045 A61F 2/2433 A61F 2/958
Filing Date
2021-12-20
Application No.
18253988
Claims
20
Related changes
Get daily alerts for ChangeBridge: Patent Grants - Medical Devices (A61M)
Daily digest delivered to your inbox.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime.
Source
About this page
Every important government, regulator, and court update from around the world. One place. Real-time. Free. Our mission
Source document text, dates, docket IDs, and authority are extracted directly from USPTO.
The plain-English summary, classification, and "what to do next" steps are AI-generated from the original text. Cite the source document, not the AI analysis.
Classification
Who this affects
Taxonomy
Browse Categories
Get alerts for this source
We'll email you when ChangeBridge: Patent Grants - Medical Devices (A61M) publishes new changes.