Ranier Technology – Distractor

The Ranier Technology distractor is a surgical instrument used during spinal disc replacement which enables the surgeon to move apart the vertebrae and create a working channel to allow other instruments to be inserted as part of the procedure.

We created the surgical instrument design for the distractor which allows the surgeon to use a standard 5mm hex driver to adjust the moving distractor blade through a worm and wheel gearbox.

The device had to be as light as possible for ease of use yet strong enough to withstand the forces during distraction. The device is CNC machined from stainless steel and can be easily dissembled for hospital cleaning before re-assembly for gamma sterilisation.

The design was fully detailed in 3D with accompanying 2D drawings to allow transfer to prototyping, testing and manufacture.

The product is now a CE marked surgical instrument.