1. An apparatus to remove a deposit on an inner surface of a flowline in a downhole tool, comprising;
a movable scraper disposed in a flowline of a downhole tool, wherein the movable scraper is configured to selectively obstruct the flowline so that a fluid flowing in the flowline moves the movable scraper in the flowline, and wherein the movable scraper has an outer surface configured to engage an inner surface of the flowline so that movement of the outer surface along the inner surface removes a deposit on at least a portion of the inner surface.
2. The apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the movable scraper comprises a pressure relief member that obstructs the fluid flowing in the flowline to move the scraper, and wherein the pressure relief member opens or breaks in response to an increase in fluid pressure in the flowline to substantially decrease an obstruction in the flowline provided by the movable scraper.
3. The apparatus as defined in claim 2, wherein a pressure at which the pressure relief member opens or breaks is sufficient to cause a transient fluid flow in the flowline to further remove the deposit.
4. The apparatus as defined in claim 2, wherein the flowline comprises a restricted portion to cause the increase in fluid pressure in the flowline to open or break the pressure relief member.
5. The apparatus as defined in claim 2, wherein the pressure relief member comprises a membrane or a hydraulic fuse.
6. The apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the scraper comprises a magnetic portion to enable movement of the scraper in the flowline in response to a magnetic field external to the flowline.
7. The apparatus as defined in claim 1, further comprising a storage location to hold the movable scraper out of a flow path of fluid in the flowline.
8. The apparatus as defined in claim 7, wherein the storage location is not in-line with the flow path of the fluid in the flowline.
9. The apparatus as defined in claim 7, further comprising an actuator adjacent the storage location to dispose the movable scraper in the flow path of the fluid in the flowline.
10. The apparatus as defined in claim 9, wherein the actuator is hydraulically, pneumatically, or mechanically operated.
11. The apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the movable scraper comprises a valve to obstruct the fluid flowing in the flowline to move the scraper, and wherein the valve opens to substantially decrease an obstruction in the flowline provided by the movable scraper.
12. The apparatus as defined in claim 11, wherein the valve is magnetically operated.
13. The apparatus as defined in claim 12, further comprising at least one coil external to the flowline to magnetically operate the valve.
14. The apparatus as defined in claim 11, wherein the valve comprises a rotatable flap to selectively provide the obstruction to the fluid flowing in the flowline.
15. The apparatus as defined in claim 14, wherein the flap is breakable to substantially decrease the obstruction in the flowline provided by the movable scraper.
16. The apparatus as defined in claim 14, wherein the flap comprises a magnetic portion to enable rotation of the flap in response to a magnetic field external to the flowline.
17. The apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the movable scraper is cylindrically shaped.
18. The apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the outer surface of the movable scraper is flexibly engageable with the inner surface.
19. The apparatus as defined in claim 18, wherein the outer surface is made at least partially of a rubber material.
20. The apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the movable scraper is made at least partially of rubber, metal, or ceramic.
21. The apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the inner surface is associated with a downhole sensor.
22. The apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the deposit comprises at least one of a formation fluid or a drilling fluid.
23. An apparatus to clean an inner surface of a flowline in a downhole tool, comprising:
a body configured to move within a flowline of a downhole tool, wherein the body comprises a central portion to obstruct the flowline so that a fluid flowing in the flowline moves the body in the flowline, and wherein the body has an outer surface configured to engage an inner surface of the flowline so that movement of the outer surface along the inner surface is to clean at least a portion of the inner surface.
24. An apparatus as defined in claim 23, wherein the body is cylindrically shaped.
25. An apparatus as defined in claim 23, wherein the central portion is to selectively obstruct the flowline.
26. An apparatus as defined in claim 25, wherein the central portion comprises a pressure relief member that opens or breaks to substantially reduce an obstruction provided by the body after the outer surface has moved along the inner surface to clean the at least the portion of the inner surface.
27. An apparatus as defined in claim 25, wherein the central portion comprises a movable plate that is to rotate to substantially reduce an obstruction provided by the body after the outer surface has moved along the inner surface to clean the at least the portion of the inner surface.
28. An apparatus as defined in claim 25, wherein the central portion is responsive to a pressure increase in the flowline or a magnetic field external to the flowline to selectively obstruct the flowline.
29. An apparatus as defined in claim 23, further comprising at least one storage location for the body, wherein the at least one storage location holds the body out of a flow path of fluid in the flowline.
30. An apparatus as defined in claim 23, further comprising at least one restricted portion of the flowline to constrain the travel of the body within the flowline.
31. An apparatus to remove a deposit on a surface of a flowline in a downhole tool, comprising:
a movable scraper disposed in a flowline of a downhole tool that includes a magnetic portion to enable movement of the scraper in the flowline in response to a magnetic field, and wherein the movable scraper has a surface configured to engage a corresponding surface of the flowline so that movement of the surface along the corresponding surface removes a deposit on at least a portion of the corresponding surface.
32. The apparatus as defined in claim 31, further comprising a coil to emit the magnetic field, wherein the movable scraper moves within the flowline in response to a change in a position of the coil relative to the flowline.
33. The apparatus as defined in claim 31, further comprising at least one coil to emit the magnetic field, wherein the movable scraper moves within the flowline in response to a magnetic polarity of the at least one coil.
34. The apparatus as defined in claim 31, further comprising one or more structures within the flowline to substantially limit the movement of the scraper.
35. The apparatus as defined in claim 31, wherein the scraper defines a recess that corresponds to at least a portion of a sensor that protrudes into the flowline.
36. The apparatus as defined in claim 31, further comprising a first coil and a second coil, wherein the first coil is to attract the scraper and the second coil is to repel the scraper between a first position and a second position.
37. The apparatus as defined in claim 31, wherein the movable scraper further comprises a pressure relief member that opens or breaks in response to an increase in fluid pressure in the flowline to substantially decrease an obstruction in the flowline provided by the movable scraper.
38. The apparatus as defined in claim 37, wherein the pressure relief member comprises a membrane or a hydraulic fuse.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A delivery device for endoluminal delivery of a luminary graft, comprising:
a generally tubular temporary stent having a radially compressed and a radially expanded configuration, the temporary stent comprising two pluralities of parallel helical thread members, the two pluralities crossing one another at a multiplicity of intersecting locations along the length of the temporary stent and terminating with discrete ends; the thread members connected by an connecting structure at an end of the temporary stent opposite the discrete ends;
a temporary attachment device surrounding the discrete ends of the temporary stent such that the temporary stent can be detached from the graft by drawing the discrete ends through the temporary attachment device;
a catheter attached to the two pluralities of parallel helical thread members proximate the connecting structure.
2. The delivery device of claim 1, further comprising
a tubular sheath for radially constraining the temporary stent; the sheath configured to be longitudinally moveable relative the temporary stent to constrain and reconstrain the temporary stent when positioned over the temporary stent, and to release the temporary stent when withdrawn from over the temporary stent.
3. The delivery device of claim 2 wherein the temporary stent is self-expanding and the sheath is configured to be drawn over the temporary stent during advancement of the graft, drawn proximally off of the temporary stent at the graft location to allow the temporary stent to stabilize the graft for fixation to a wall of the body lumen, and to allow the temporary stent to be proximally drawn into the sheath to reconstrain the temporary stent and release the graft.
4. The delivery device of claim 2 wherein the sheath radially constrains the graft during advancement of the catheter.
5. The delivery device of claim 2 further comprising an outer sheath wherein the outer sheath radially constrains the graft during advancement of the catheter and is proximally withdrawn from the sheath allowing the temporary stent to radially expand the graft at the graft location.
6. The delivery device of claim 1 wherein the temporary stent is sufficiently open to allow fluid flow therethrough when radially expanded.
7. The delivery device of claim 2 wherein the temporary stent is self-expanding and the sheath is configured to be drawn over the temporary stent during advancement of the graft, drawn proximally off of the temporary stent at the graft location to allow the temporary stent to expand and stabilize the graft for fixation to a wall of the body lumen, and distally drawn over the temporary stent to reconstrain the temporary stent.
8. The delivery device of claim 1 wherein the graft is released from the delivery system by withdrawing the delivery system following fixation of the graft.
9. The delivery device of claim 1 wherein the temporary stent comprises braided thread members comprising a material having an elasticity sufficient to cause radial expansion of the temporary stent.
10. The delivery device of claim 9 wherein the material elgiloy.
11. The delivery device of claim 9 wherein the material is bio-absorbable.
12. The delivery device of claim 9 wherein the material is not bio-absorbable.
13. The delivery device of claim 1 wherein the temporary stent comprises braided thread members comprising a material having shape memory causing radial expansion of the temporary stent.
14. The delivery device of claim 13 wherein the material comprises nitinol.
15. The delivery device of claim 1 further comprising a crochet rip cord disposed over the graft wherein the crochet radially constrains the graft during advancement of the catheter, wherein the graft is released by pulling the rip cord to unravel the crochet.
16. The delivery device of claim 1 wherein the graft is temporarily affixed to the temporary stent using sutures.
17. The delivery device of claim 1 wherein the graft is temporarily affixed to the temporary stent using an adhesive.
18. The delivery device of claim 1 wherein the graft is temporarily affixed to the temporary stent using a ring encircling the graft and temporary stent.
19. The delivery device of claim 1 further comprising an intravascular ultrasound device attached to the catheter to provide visualization within the blood vessel.
20. The device of claim 1 wherein the temporary stent is biased to the radially expanded configuration.
21. The device of claim 20 further comprising a sheath configured to selectively and reversibly surround the temporary stent to control expansion of the temporary stent.
22. The device of claim 1 further comprising an expansion mechanism, wherein the temporary stent is radially expanded by the expansion mechanism to the radially expanded condition.
23. The device of claim 22 wherein the expansion mechanism comprises a perfusion balloon.
24. The device of claim 22 wherein the temporary stent is biased to the radially compressed state.
25. A generally tubular temporary stent having a radially compressed and a radially expanded configuration, the temporary stent comprising two pluralities of parallel helical thread members, the two pluralities crossing one another at a multiplicity of intersecting locations along the length of the temporary stent and terminating with discrete ends; the thread members connected by a connecting structure at an end of the temporary stent opposite the discrete ends; the temporary stent being configured to be temporarily attached to a graft by temporary attachment devices surrounding the discrete ends such that the temporary stent can be detached from the graft by drawing the discrete ends through the temporary attachment devices.
26. The temporary stent of claim 25 wherein the thread members comprise a material having an elasticity sufficient to cause radial expansion of the temporary stent.
27. The temporary stent of claim 26 wherein the material comprises elgiloy.
28. The temporary stent of claim 25 wherein the thread members comprise a material having shape memory causing radial expansion of the temporary stent.
29. The temporary stent of claim 28 wherein the material comprises nitinol.
30. The temporary stent of claim 25 wherein the attachment devices comprise sutures.
31. The temporary stent of claim 25 wherein the attachment devices comprise pockets formed in the graft.
32. The temporary stent of claim 25 wherein the attachment devices comprise beads of adhesive.
33. The temporary stent of claim 25 wherein the two pluralities of parallel helical thread members are inwardly tapered proximate the connecting structure.