Aspects of the present disclosure are presented for a surgical instrument having one or more sensors at or a near an end effector and configured to aide in the detection of tissues and other materials and structures at a surgical site. The detections may then be used to aide in the placement of the end effector and to confirm which objects to operate on, or alternatively, to avoid. Examples of sensors include laser sensors used to employ Doppler shift principles to detect movement of objects at the surgical site, such as blood cells; resistance sensors to detect the presence of metal; monochromatic light sources that allow for different levels of absorption from different types of substances present at the surgical site, and near infrared spectrometers with small form factors.

A surgical instrument comprising an end effector and an articulation drive system operable to articulate the end effector about an articulation joint is disclosed. The articulation drive system comprises an actuator which indicates whether the articulation drive system is in an operable state.

Surgical stapler systems can include lockout mechanisms to restrict further movement of a jaw assembly and provide different functionality when a jaw assembly is empty and when a partially or fully fired reload cartridge is present in the jaw assembly. When the jaw assembly is empty, the empty jaw assembly lockout mechanism can arrest an open-close stroke of the jaw assembly. When an at least partially fired reload is present in the jaw assembly, a fired reload lockout mechanism can allow operation of the jaw assembly through a substantial portion of an open-close stroke, but restrict actuation of the jaw assembly in a firing stroke. The separate lockout mechanisms can be embodied in a single lockout lever actuatable by lockout actuators to three distinct positions or by two independently-operable lockout levers.

An anvil buttress loading system includes an anvil assembly, an anvil buttress loading tool, and an anvil buttress. The anvil buttress is retainable on each of the anvil buttress loading tool and the anvil buttress, and is transferrable from the anvil buttress loading tool to the anvil assembly.

A staple driver actuator for a surgical stapler includes a base having at least one bottom surface. The bottom surface defines a plane and is configured to slide longitudinally relative to a jaw of the surgical stapler. The staple driver actuator also includes a plurality of rails extending upwardly from the base. Each of the plurality of rails includes at least one cam surface, and each of the cam surfaces is inclined relative to the plane. The plurality of rails includes a laterally-opposed pair of outer rails and a laterally-opposed pair of inner rails. The staple driver actuator further includes a distal nose extending distally from at least a portion of the base and having at least one ledge surface. The ledge surface faces upwardly, is parallel to the plane, and is at least partially positioned distally relative to each of the outer and inner rails.

A surgical instrument includes a first and second jaw, a firing assembly, a first buttress assembly, and a second buttress assembly. The first and second jaw actuate relative to each other between an open and closed position to grasp tissue. The second jaw includes a fastening assembly having a deck defining a plurality of openings and a plurality of fasteners housed within the openings. The firing assembly drives the plurality of fasteners out of the plurality of openings against a plurality of fastening forming features of the first jaw. The first buttress assembly and the second buttress assembly are associated with the first and second jaw, respectively. The first buttress assembly includes a first material and a first thickness. The second buttress assembly includes a second material and a second thickness. The first material and the second material differ in rigidity. The first thickness and the second thickness are different.

An apparatus includes a jaw body configured to couple with an end effector portion of a surgical stapler and cooperate with an opposing jaw to compress, staple, and cut tissue. An anvil surface of the jaw body has a plurality of staple forming pockets configured to form a plurality of staples. An elongate slot extends through the anvil surface from a proximal slot end at a proximal end of the staple forming pockets to a distal slot end at a distal end of the staple forming pockets. A first slot portion is configured to slidably receive a first portion of a firing member, and a second slot portion opens to the anvil surface and is configured to slidably receive a second portion of the firing member. A dimension of the second slot portion varies along the longitudinal axis between the proximal slot end and the distal slot end.

Devices, systems and/or methods for repairing soft tissue adjacent a soft tissue repair site. In one embodiment, a repair device includes an anchor member, a capture member and one or more flexible members. The anchor member includes a base with at least four legs extending integrally from the base, the at least four legs configured to be moveable from a straight first position to a formed second position. The capture member is configured to be coupled to the anchor member such that the at least four legs of the anchor member move around structural portions of the capture member with the at least four legs of the anchor member in the formed second position. The one or more flexible members are coupled to the base of the anchor member, the one or more flexible members extending at least partially along the base of the anchor member.

A robotic surgical system includes a surgical instrument defining a first longitudinal axis and a robotic surgical assembly defining a second longitudinal axis. The robotic surgical assembly includes an instrument drive unit configured for selectively receiving and driving the surgical instrument. The robotic surgical assembly defines a side opening having an insertion axis that is angled with respect to the second longitudinal axis. The surgical instrument is selectively insertable through the side opening to enable relative movement between the first longitudinal axis and the second longitudinal axis for selectively side-loading the surgical instrument into or out of engagement with the instrument drive unit

A surgical instrument system is disclosed which comprises a distal end and a staple cartridge assembly comprising staples removably stored therein. The instrument system further comprises a firing drive including an electric motor and a firing member operably couplable with the electric motor. The electric motor is operable to advance the firing member toward the distal end during a staple firing stroke to eject the staples from the staple cartridge. The electric motor is operable to retract the firing member away from the distal end during a retraction stroke. The surgical instrument system further comprises a manually-operated bailout mechanism operable to perform the retraction stroke in lieu of the electric motor, a controller, and a display in communication with the controller. The controller is configured to display the progress of the retraction stroke when the firing member is being manually retracted by the bailout mechanism.