International Journal of Mechanical Sciences 65 (2012) 157–167

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International Journal of Mechanical Sciences

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ijmecsci

Models of the cutting edge geometry of medical needles

with applications to needle design
Peidong Han n, Demeng Che, Kumar Pallav, Kornel Ehmann
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208, United States

a r t i c l e i n f o abstract

Article history: Tissue cutting by a needle is greatly influenced by the geometry of its cutting edges. Yet, there are very
Received 13 May 2012 few results in the technical literature that address the issues surrounding the relation between needle
Received in revised form tip and cutting edge geometry and its cutting/insertion force. In the present paper, general mathema-
20 August 2012
tical models of the included and inclination angles of a needle’s cutting edge are formulated since they
Accepted 25 September 2012
Available online 3 October 2012
exert a profound influence on cutting behavior. Specific models for various tip geometries are
developed to investigate four types of needle tips including one-plane, asymmetric three-plane,
Keywords: symmetric multi-plane, and symmetric three-curved-surface needles. The results show that the cutting
Tissue cutting edge of the one-plane needle has a very undesirable configuration. Asymmetric three-plane needles,
Medical needle design
such as the lancet and back bevel tip needles, can significantly improve the configuration of the cutting
Cutting edge geometry
edge. Back bevel tip needles, in turn, offer even more desirable cutting edge geometry than lancet tip
Needle insertion
needles. In evaluating the cutting edge angles of multi-plane needles, it was shown that the included
angle is limited by its tip geometry. To resolve this problem a needle formed by three curved surfaces
was proposed. It was found that this new design has significant potential for reducing patient trauma as
well as target accuracy during needle insertion. The proposed general approach provides the foundation
for designing medical needles with specific cutting edge properties.
& 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction critical to the success of the procedure. Additionally, the studies by

Medical needles are the most commonly used medical devices
and are widely used in minimally invasive percutaneous proce-
dures such as injection, regional anesthesia, blood sampling,
biopsy and brachytherapy. These procedures require inserting a
needle to a target inside the body for either drug delivery or tissue
sample removal. Brachytherapy is a medical procedure to place
radioactive seeds inside or near the tumor using a needle for
cancer treatment. The success of this procedure depends on the
accurate placement of the seeds. However, inserting a needle
deforms the tissue and displaces the target causing placement
errors [1,2]. Substantial practice is needed to avoid placement
errors by compensating for tissue deformation and target
displacement caused by the needle tip force and friction. It has been
shown by Alterovitz [2–4] that without preoperative planning
placement errors may be as large as 26% of the prostate diameter
resulting in damage to healthy tissue and failure to kill cancerous
cells. A practical approach to reducing the placement error is to
minimize the needle insertion force. Thus, a needle that creates
lower insertion forces and smaller displacements of the target is
n
Corresponding author. Tel.: þ1 84 7467 0712.
E-mail address: peidonghan2014@u.northwestern.edu (P. Han).
Egekvist et al. [5,6] and Arendt-Nielsen et al. [7] have shown that the
needle insertion force is positively correlated with the frequency and
intensity of pain and trauma. For example, the insertion force is
significantly higher for 27G needle insertions compared to 30G
needle insertions. Correspondingly, 53% of insertions with the 27G
needles caused pain and 39% of insertions with 30G needles caused
pain. In [8], the bluntness of the needle tip has been found to be
related to the increased pain in subcutaneous injections. Thus,
needles with lower insertion forces are important to reduce the pain
and trauma experienced by the patients during the procedure.
Needle insertion is essentially a tissue cutting process. The
force of tissue cutting by a needle greatly depends on its cutting
edge geometry. Prior to studying the cutting edge geometry of a
needle, one may begin by examining a blade with a straight
cutting edge that is defined by its included angle y and the cutting
edge radius also referred to as the ‘‘roundness’’ of the cutting edge,
as illustrated in Fig. 1(a). Maximal knife sharpness is obtained with a
small included angle and a small radius for the cutting edge [9].
The knives with a small included angle, such as surgical scalpels and
straight razors, are extremely sharp but fragile. On the contrary,
knives that require a tough edge usually have a large included angle.
Typical values of the included angle are about 151 for razor blades
and veneer cutting knives, 20–301 for microtome knives and 30–401
for kitchen knives [9]. Typical radii of cutting edges are 5 mm for a

0020-7403/$ - see front matter & 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijmecsci.2012.09.014
158 P. Han et al. / International Journal of Mechanical Sciences 65 (2012) 157–167
Edge bevel
Bevel cutting edge
 Lancet point needle stylet

Motion
Edge bevel
Work
Cutting edge radius

 Franseen tip needle cannula
 
 Conical tip needle stylet
2 1
Motion
Motion
Work Work
Fig. 1. (a) cross-section of a blade showing the included angle y and cutting edge
radius; (b) plan view of cutting with inclination angle l; (c) illustration of the
cutting process (a ¼ rake angle, b ¼ setting angle, z ¼ relief/clearance angle); and
(d) the cutting process at b ¼01.
scalpel and 17 mm for a new safety razor blade (34 mm when
worn) [9]. Another important factor in cutting is the inclination
angle l, which describes the angle of the cutting edge relative to the
cutting direction, as illustrated in Fig. 1(b). It has been shown by
Atkins [10–12] that the cutting force exerted by a sharp object
depends on the slice/push ratio k given by k¼(speed parallel to
cutting edge/speed perpendicular to the cutting edge). An increase
in the slice/push ratio reduces the cutting force. When the cutting
edge is inclined at an inclination angle l, the slice/push ratio is given
by k¼tan l. An increase in the inclination angle increases k, leading
to a lower cutting force. For a general cutting process, three other
basic angles are important: the rake angle (a), the clearance/relief
angle (z), and the setting angle (b), as shown in Fig. 1(c). The cutting
surface of the blade is the rake face. The rake angle is the angle of
the rake face with respect to the perpendicular to the cut surface.
The clearance/relief angle is the angle between the second face of
the blade and the cut surface. Hence, y þ a þ z ¼901. It can be seen
that the rake angle and clearance/relief angle depend on the setting
angle. Tissue cutting by a scalpel or a needle is a process where the
tool cuts by penetration into the tissue. This type of cutting has a
setting angle b ¼01, as shown in Fig. 1(d), where both the edge
bevels act as rake faces. Hence, y þ a1 þ a2 ¼1801. A symmetric blade
has a1 ¼ a2. For a blade with only one side beveled and the other side
remaining flat, a2 is equal to 901, hence y þ a1 ¼901.
Compared to a straight blade, a needle usually has more
complicated cutting edges. For biopsy and brachytherapy, the
needle often consists of an outer cannula (hollow needle) and an
inner stylet (solid needle) [13]. Currently, there exist a wide
variety of needle tip geometries. The simplest needle tip geometry
is the one-plane bevel tip. A multi-plane needle is formed by
planes oriented symmetrically or asymmetrically. Commercially,
the symmetric three-plane stylet is called a trocar. Examples of
needle tip geometries are illustrated in Fig. 2.
Bevel tip needle stylet
Bevel tip needle cannula
Back bevel needle stylet
Back bevel needle cannula
Trocar tip needle stylet
Fig. 2. Examples of needle tips.
Surprisingly little research has been carried out related to the
modeling of the needle cutting edge geometry and to investigate
how the cutting edge geometry influences the penetration force of a
needle. Studies have been conducted to investigate the effects of
needle tip geometry on the penetration force and needle sharpness
[14–20]. In these works needle tip geometry was defined only by the
bevel angle, the angle between the bevel ground surface and the
needle longitudinal axis, which does not directly reveal any specific
information about the cutting edges. The needle sharpness was
judged by the penetration force encountered during passing through
tissue. However, little is known about how sharpness and penetra-
tion force are directly influenced by tip geometry. Moore et al.
[21–23] have used the customary cutting tool geometry approach
widely used in metal cutting theory to model the hollow biopsy
needle tip. The emphasis of their work was on the determination of
the variation of the inclination and rake angles along the needle
cutting edge. For a biopsy cannula, where the cutting edge is
generated by the intersection of the needle side surface and the
bevel plane (rake face), one rake angle together with the inclination
angle and edge radius properly describes the cutting edge. However,
in case of a multi-plane needle stylet where the needle cutting edge
is formed by the intersection of two bevel surfaces, one rake angle
together with the inclination angle and edge radius does not
adequately represent the cutting edge geometry. Until now, no work
has been reported on modeling the cutting edge of a needle stylet.
In this paper, the cutting edge geometry of a needle is defined
by the included angle, the inclination angle, and the cutting edge
radius, as is defined for a blade. The radius of a cutting edge
depends on the manufacturing processes including the machin-
ing, deburring, and coating processes, while the included angle
and inclination angle of a needle’s cutting edge are determined by
its tip geometry. From the design point of view, smaller included
angle and larger inclination angle are desirable for reducing the
penetration forces during needle insertion. However, the included
angle and inclination angle of a needle’s cutting edge are not
explicitly defined. In the absence of closed form expressions for
the included angle and inclination angle the only way to pinpoint
the best needle tip design is via repeated experiments and
simulations. Consequently, making a design decision about which
needle type will result in minimal penetration and side/lateral
forces becomes difficult.
 P. Han et al. / International Journal of Mechanical Sciences 65 (2012) 157–167 159

h      i
This work addresses the above-mentioned issues in the context vector to surface F2 is N2 ¼ F 2,x F 2,y F 2,z M0 , as
M0 M0
of the needle tip geometry by obtaining general expressions for the
illustrated in Fig. 3. The included angle y is the angle between
included angle and inclination angle of the needle cutting edge in
two surfaces F1 and F2. The dot product can be used to determine
Section 2. In Section 3 specific expressions are derived and used to
this angle. Given two normal vectors N1 and N2, the angle
examine asymmetric needles. At the same time, since asymmetric
needles suffer from excessive deflection and poor targeting accuracy between the vectors N1 and N2 at M0(x0,y0,z0) is p  y and can
the included angle and inclination angle are also derived and be computed from
examined for symmetric needles. It is shown that while symmetric N1  N2
cosðpyÞ ¼
needles do not suffer from significant deflection issues the minimal :N1 ::N2 :
insertion forces are limited due to a limitation on the included angle.            
F 1,x M F 2,x M þ F 1,y M F 2,y M þ F 1,z M F 2,z M
A novel needle tip design, a three-cylindrical-surface tip, is proposed ¼ qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
2
0
 2
0
 2 qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
0

0
2 
0
2 
0
2
that overcomes this limitation on the included angle of conventional F 1,x M þ F 1,y M þ F 1,z M F 2,x M þ F 2,y M þ F 2,z M
0 0 0 0 0 0

symmetric three-plane tip needle while maintaining the advantage ð3Þ

of lower deflection provided by symmetry. Therefore, this new
design has significant potential for reducing patient trauma as and is explicitly given by
well as target accuracy during needle insertion. Finally, Section 4 y ¼ parccos
0 1
summarizes this work. The findings of this research will assist            
B F 1,x F 2,x þ F 1,y F 2,y þ F 1,z F 2,z C
medical needle manufacturers in developing novel needles with M0 M0 M0
@qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
M0 M0 M0
 2  2  2 qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
2  2  2 A
lower penetration force to minimize pain and trauma. New biopsy F 1,x M þ F 1,y M þ F 1,z M F 2,x M þ F 2,y M þ F 2,z M
0 0 0 0 0 0
needles will increase the quality of tissue samples and improve
ð4Þ
the accuracy of diagnosis. Needles with lower included and larger
inclination angles will reduce the penetration force and place- For percutaneous procedures, the penetration direction vector
ment errors in brachytherapy. coincides with the needle longitudinal axis and can be expressed
 
as v ¼ 0 0 1 , while the tangent vector to the cutting edge can
be given by the cross product of vectors N1 and N2 as
2. General mathematical model for included and inclination  
 
angles   i 
j
 
k
 
 F F F

t ¼ N 1  N 2 ¼  1,x M0 1,y M 0 1,z M 0  ð5Þ
 F      
In general, a needle tip is generated by planes or curved surfaces  2,x M0 F 2,y M0 F 2,z M0 
intersecting each other. Fig. 3 illustrates a needle tip formed by the
intersection of two arbitrary surfaces F1 and F2 and of the needle The inclination angle l is the angle between the vector t and
body. A Cartesian coordinate system with the z-axis coinciding with the xy-plane (plane with normal vector v). It can be given by
the needle longitudinal axis and x-axis passing through the lowest 9tUv9
point of the needle tip profile is defined. The cutting edge is the l ¼ arcsin ð6Þ
:t::v:
intersection between these two surfaces, and it can be mathemati-
cally given by Eqs. (4) and (6) describe the included angle and inclination
( angle along the cutting edge formed by the intersection of two
F 1 ðx,y,zÞ ¼ 0 general surfaces.
ð1Þ
F 2 ðx,y,zÞ ¼ 0

The normal vector at a point (x0,y0,z0) on a surface F(x,y,z) ¼0 3. Specific mathematical model for included and inclination
is, in turn, given by angles
h      i
N ¼ F x x0 ,y0 ,z0 F y x0 ,y0 ,z0 F z x0 ,y0 ,z0 ð2Þ In this section, expressions will be given for specific needle tip
geometries. Needle tips generated by planar surfaces will be
where Fx ¼qF/qx, Fy ¼qF/qy, and Fz ¼qF/qz are partial derivatives.
evaluated first. The mathematical models will provide valuable
At a point M0(x0,y0,z0) on the cutting edge, the normal vector
h      i information regarding the included angle and inclination angle of
to surface F1 is N1 ¼ F 1,x M 0
F 1,y M F 1,z M and the normal
0 0 the needle cutting edge. The results will help in identifying the
drawbacks of the planar needle and guide the design of new needles.
Needle tips generated by curved surfaces will then be investigated.
- t The benefits obtained from curved surfaces will also be described.
N2
N1
M0 3.1. One-plane bevel tip needle
F1 F2
y The bevel tip needle is made by one-plane being ground at a
z specific bevel angle x, where the leading edge of the needle tip
acts as the cutting edge, as marked in Fig. 4. The angular position
v of a point on the cutting edge is defined by g in the coordinate
x
system, as shown in Fig. 4(a). The parametric equation of the
cutting edge for a bevel tip needle with a radius of r is given by
x ¼ rcosg
y ¼ rsing
 
z ¼ r 1cosg cotx ð7Þ

Fig. 3. Illustration of a needle tip formed by two arbitrary surfaces F1 and F2. The angle between the needle side surface and the bevel plane
The cutting edge is the intersection of these two surfaces. is the included angle y. From Eq. (2), the unit normal vector to the
160 P. Han et al. / International Journal of Mechanical Sciences 65 (2012) 157–167

needle side surface at a point on the cutting edge At the tip point of the needle, l is equal to 01 regardless of x, which
h i
is c ¼ cos g sin g 0 . The unit normal vector to the bevel is the worst possible cutting configuration [21,24]. Smaller x leads to
  larger inclination angles with a maximum equal to l ¼901 x at
plane is b ¼ cosx 0 sinx . From Eq. (3), one obtains g ¼901 and g ¼ 2701.
bUc At the tip point of the needle, i.e., at g ¼1801, the cutting edge
cosðpyÞ ¼ ¼ cosxcosg ð8Þ has y ¼ x, the smallest possible included angle; however, the
:b::c:
inclination angle is 01. At g ¼901 and g ¼2701, the cutting edge
The equation for y of a bevel tip needle is then given by has l ¼901 x, the largest possible inclination angle, however, the
  cutting edge has y ¼901, a very large included angle. Remember-
y ¼ parccos cosxcosg
p ing that lower included angles and larger inclination angles are
0oxr ð9Þ desirable for reducing needle penetration forces, the cutting edge
2
of the bevel tip needle has an undesirable geometry. A larger x
The tangent vector of the cutting edge can be obtained using increases y and reduces l, thereby creating a higher penetration
h i
Eq. (5) as t ¼ 1 cotg cotx . The penetration direction vector force during needle insertion [25]. Large penetration forces not
  only increase the patient pain and trauma but also cause needle
is v ¼ 0 0 1 . From Eq. (6), the inclination angle l for the bevel
placement errors, resulting in treatment failure. The tip geometry
tip needle can be obtained and the result agrees with that by Moore
can be improved by using multi-plane needles, as will be discussed
[21]
  in the next section.
  cot xsin g p
l x, g ¼ arcsin qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi 0 o x r ð10Þ
2
1 þ cot2 xsin2 g 3.2. Asymmetric three-plane needle

Multi-plane needles are intended to obtain a desirable cutting

3.1.1. Results and discussion for bevel tip needles
The included angle y for needles with bevel angles x ¼151, 301,
451, and 601 is plotted in Fig. 5(a). It is clear from the results that the
bevel tip needle is symmetric about the xz-plane. Fig. 5(a) shows
that y increases with the increase in x. For a given x, the minimum y
is equal to x at the needle tip point (g ¼1801). Fig. 5(b) plots the
inclination angle l for the needles with x ¼151, 301, 451, and 601.
edge configuration, i.e., a smaller included angle and a larger
inclination angle. Among multi-plane needles, three-plane nee-
dles are widely used. For an asymmetric three-plane needle, the
tip is generated by a primary bevel grind followed by two
secondary bevel grinds. Fig. 6 illustrates an asymmetric three-
plane needle formed by a primary bevel plane F1 with a bevel
angle of x1 and two secondary bevel planes F2 and F3 with a bevel
angle of x2. The secondary bevel plane F2 is obtained by rotating

90°- v
t
z P P

b
-
c
y

z z
 x

r x y

Fig. 4. Illustration of the bevel tip needle. Fig. 6. Illustration of an asymmetric three-plane needle.

Fig. 5. (a) included angle y and (b) inclination angle l for bevel tip needles.
 P. Han et al. / International Journal of Mechanical Sciences 65 (2012) 157–167 161

the primary bevel plane about the z-axis by a counterclockwise to the secondary bevel plane can be given by
angle of f followed by translating the interim plane along its 2 32 3 2 3
cosf sinf 0 cosx2 cosx2 cosf
normal direction by a distance d. This transformation is illustrated 6 76 7 6 7
in Fig. 6. The secondary bevel plane F3 is similarly obtained by b2 ¼ 4 sinf cosf 0 54 0 5 ¼ 4 cosx2 sinf 5 ð11Þ
rotating the primary bevel plane about the z-axis by a clockwise 0 0 1 sinx2 sinx2
angle of f followed by translating the interim plane along its
with the normal vectors to the surfaces that form the cutting edges
normal direction by a distance d. Note that the intersection of the
defined, one can obtain the included and inclination angles from
needle side surface and of the primary bevel plane is an ellipse
Eqs. (4)–(6).
with center Ps and vertex P. The interim plane of F2 passes
through Ps and has the same normal vector as F2. The intersection
of the primary bevel plane and secondary bevel planes forms the 3.2.1. Lancet tip needle
tip point. The location of this tip point may vary from P to Ps The included angle of the cutting edge ‘‘curve PM’’ for a lancet
depending on d. When d ¼0 the tip point coincides with Ps. At a tip needle is the angle between the needle side surface and the
certain value of d, the tip point will coincide with P. secondary bevel plane. Given the normal vectors c and b2, the
Among commercially available needles, the lancet tip and back equation for the included angle y of a lancet tip needle is obtained
bevel tip needles can be categorized as asymmetric three-plane using Eq. (4) as
needles. Both needles are geometrically asymmetric, but they are     
y x2 , g, f ¼ parccos cosx2 cos gf
symmetric with respect to the xz-plane, as shown in Fig. 6. The
secondary bevel plane divides the cutting edge into two sections. p
0 o x2 r ð12Þ
Section 1 is the cutting edge ‘‘PM’’ formed by the secondary bevel 2
plane, while Section 2 is the remaining part of the bevel tip needle The tangent vector of the cutting edge ‘‘curve PM’’ is the cross
cutting edge, as marked in Fig. 7. The location of M determines the product ofhthe normal vectors c and b2 and  ican be obtained using
transition position between the two sections and will be derived Eq. (5) t ¼ sing cosg cotx2 sin gf . The cutting direction
 
later. Note that ‘‘PM’’ is solely the cutting edge when the angular vector is v ¼ 0 0 1 . From Eq. (6), the inclination angle l for
position gM of point M is less than 901. For a lancet tip needle, the the lancet tip needle can be obtained and the result agrees with
cutting edge ‘‘curve PM’’ is the intersection of the needle side that by Moore [21]
surface and secondary bevel plane. For a back bevel tip needle, the   
  cot x2 sin gf 
cutting edge ‘‘line PM’’ is the intersection of the primary bevel l x2 , g, f ¼ arcsin qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
 
plane and of the secondary bevel plane. Whether the cutting edge 1þ cot2 x2 sin2 gf
is ‘‘curve PM’’ or ‘‘line PM’’ depends on the angle f. When f o901, p
the included angle of ‘‘curve PM’’ is smaller than that of ‘‘line PM’’, 0 o x2 r ð13Þ
2
which makes ‘‘curve PM’’ the cutting edge. When f 4901, the
included angle of ‘‘line PM’’ is smaller than that of ‘‘curve PM’’, By comparing the included angle and inclination angle expres-
which makes ‘‘line PM’’ the cutting edge. sions for the bevel tip needle (Eqs. (9) and (10)) with those of the
The unit normal vector to the needle side surface at a point on lancet tip needle (Eqs. (12) and (13)), it can be seen that the
h i included angle and inclination angle for a lancet tip needle can be
the cutting edge is c ¼ cosg sing 0 . The unit normal vector to
h i obtained from those for a bevel tip needle with a phase shift of f.
the primary bevel plane is b1 ¼ cosx1 0 sinx1 . The unit normal
3.2.2. Back bevel tip needle
The included angle y of the cutting edge ‘‘line PM’’ for a back
bevel tip needle is the angle between the primary and secondary
P P P P bevel planes. Given the normal vectors b1 and b2, the equation for
the included angle y for a back bevel tip needle can be obtained
from Eq. (4) as
 
y x1 , x2 , f ¼ parccos ðcosx1 cosx2 cosf þ sinx1 sinx2 Þ
N N M p
N N M 0oxr ð14Þ
2
PS PS PS PS The tangent vector of the cutting edge ‘‘line PM’’ is the cross
product of the normal vectors b1 and b2 and can be obtained using
Eq. (5):
h i
z z t ¼ sinx1 cosx2 sinf sinx1 cosx2 cosfcosx1 sinx2 cosx1 cosx2 sinf
z z
x y x y ð15Þ
r r
From Eq. (6), the inclination angle is therefore obtained as
y y 9cosx1 cosx2 sinf9
M M sinl ¼ qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
2 2 2
ðsinx1 cosx2 sinfÞ þ ðsinx1 cosx2 cosfcosx1 sinx2 Þ þ ðcosx1 cosx2 sinfÞ
m M m M
1 1 ð16Þ
P x P x
To simply the equation for l, the inclination angle is expressed
in terms of the tangent of l, which gives
N N
Plan view Plan view 9sinf9
tan l ¼ qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi ð17Þ
2 2
Fig. 7. Needles with (a) lancet tip and (b) back bevel tip. tan x1 þtan x2 2tan x1 tan x2 cos f
162 P. Han et al. / International Journal of Mechanical Sciences 65 (2012) 157–167
Finally, the inclination angle l for a back bevel needle is given
by
0 1
 
sin f
lðx1 , x2 , fÞ ¼ arctan @qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiC
B
A yielding
tan2 x1 þtan2 x2 2tan x1 tan x2 cos f
p 1m2
0 o x1,2 r ð18Þ
2 1 þm2
3.2.3. Determination of the transition point M
The location of point M determines the transition position
between two sections of the cutting edge. More importantly, point
M determines the length of the cutting edge formed by the secondary
bevel plane, which influences the shape of the incision hole and the
penetration force [26]. The transition point for a lancet tip cannula
has been derived by Wang et al. [27]. The same approach is used here
for the derivation of the location of point M.
The tangent direction of ‘‘line PM’’ has been given by Eq. (15).
The slope of ‘‘line PM’’ in the xy-plane can be expressed as
sinx1 cosx2 cosfcosx1 sinx2 cotx1 tanx2 cosf
m¼ ¼ ð19Þ
sinx1 cosx2 sinf sinf
with the point P (  r, 0) and the slope m, the coordinates of point
M in the xy-plane can be solved and are given by M((r m2r)/
(1þm2), 2mr/(1 þm2)). The angular position gM of point M can be
Fig. 8. Lancet tip needles with various secondary bevel angles.
Fig. 9. (a) included angle y and (b) inclination angle l for lancet tip needles.
solved from
rm2 r
r cosgM ¼ ð20Þ
1 þm2

gM ¼ arccos ð21Þ
3.2.4. Results and discussion for asymmetric three-plane needles
As previously discussed, when gM 4901, the secondary bevel
plane divides the cutting edge into two sections. Section 1 is the
cutting edge ‘‘PM’’ and Section 2 is the remaining part of the bevel
tip needle cutting edge. The included and inclination angles for
Section 2 remain the same as for the bevel tip needle. However, the
included and inclination angles for Section 1 will be different and
will be highlighted in different colors and markers in the following
figures. Since both the lancet tip and the back bevel tip needles are
symmetric about the xz-plane, only the results from g ¼901 to
g ¼1801 will be plotted. When gM o901, ‘‘PM’’ is solely the cutting
edge. The results from g ¼ gM to g ¼1801 will be plotted.
For a lancet tip needle, f needs to be smaller than 901. Fig. 8
shows needles with a bevel tip: needle-1 and with lancet tips:
needle-2, needle-3, and needle-4, at x1 ¼151, f ¼451, and x2 ¼181,
22.51, 301. It can be noticed that the length of the cutting edge
‘‘curve PM’’ increases with the decrease in the secondary bevel
angle. Fig. 9 plots the included angle y and the inclination angle l for
these needles. In Fig. 9(b) the values of l are plotted from gM to
g ¼1801 for needles 2, 3 and 4 which corresponds to the cutting
edge formed by the secondary bevel planes. It can be observed that
the value of l at g ¼1801, i.e., the needle tip point, is significantly
greater for these needles 2, 3 and 4 as compared to l at g ¼1801 for
the bevel tip needle. Therefore, lancet tip needles are much better
than the bevel tip needle as far as inclination angle is concerned.
From a design point of view, Fig. 9(b) shows that higher inclination
angles can be achieved with smaller secondary bevel angles. How-
ever, the included angle, shown in Fig. 9(a), is increased compared to
the bevel tip needle. Slightly smaller included angles can be
achieved with smaller secondary bevel angles, but the reduction is
very limited. Therefore, the lancet tip needles increase the inclina-
tion angle at the cost of an increase in the included angle as well.
For a back bevel tip needle, f needs to be larger than 901. Back
bevel tip needles with x1 ¼151, f ¼1351, and x2 ¼51, 101, 151 are
shown in Fig. 10. It can be seen that the cutting edge formed
by the secondary bevel planes features a straight cutting edge
with constant included and inclination angles. Like the lancet
tip needle, the length of the cutting edge, ‘‘line PM’’ increases
with the decrease in the secondary bevel angle. Fig. 11 plots
the included angle y and inclination angle l for these needles.
 P. Han et al. / International Journal of Mechanical Sciences 65 (2012) 157–167 163

From Fig. 11(b), it can be noticed that the inclination angle has
greatly increased with the back bevel cut. Higher inclination
angles can be achieved with smaller secondary bevel angles. At
the same time, Fig. 11(a) shows that the included angle of back
bevel tip needle is significantly lower compared to that of the
lancet tip needle.
By comparing Fig. 9 with Fig. 11, it can be seen that both the
lancet tip needle and back bevel tip needle have large inclination
angles, however, in terms of the included angle, the back bevel tip
needle has a better configuration. Therefore, it is to be expected that
the insertion forces for the back bevel tip needle will be lower than
those for the lancet tip needle. This is in fact what was observed by
Suzuki et al. [26] who showed that the penetration force by a back
bevel tip needle is 40% lower than that by the lancet tip needle. For
both lancet and back bevel tip needles, it is clear that the included
angle, inclination angle, and cutting edge length depend on x1, f,
and x2. The tip geometry may be optimized by varying the angles,
which is not the scope of this paper. However the findings from the
above-presented models create an opportunity for medical needle
manufacturers to design lancet and back bevel needles with lower
included angles and larger inclination angles.
An issue with asymmetric needles, including the bevel tip needle,
lancet needle, and back bevel tip, is needle deflection during
percutaneous procedures, because the tissue exerts higher forces
on one side. Needle bending is one of the reasons for placement
errors in needle insertion procedures. Preoperative planning is
needed to avoid placement errors. A symmetric needle reduces the
deflection during needle insertion. Therefore, mathematical models
for symmetric needles will be given in the following sections.
3.3. Symmetric multi-plane needle
A symmetric multi-plane needle is formed by bevel planes
oriented symmetrically. The cutting edge is the intersection
between two bevel planes. This needle features straight cutting
edges with a constant included angle and inclination angle given
the number of bevel planes P and bevel angle x. A symmetric two-
plane stylet has P¼2 and therefore has a single cutting edge. The
number of cutting edges for a multi-plane stylet is equal to P for
P42. Fig. 12 illustrates the cutting edges, bevel planes, and bevel
angles for a symmetric three-plane needle, which is the most
popular commercially available needle today.
The unit normal vector to the bevel plane formed by the cutting
 
edges PB and PC, as shown in Fig. 12, is b1 ¼ cosx 0 sinx . The
unit normal vector to the bevel plane formed by the cutting edges of
PC and PA can be given by
2 32 3 2 3
cosf sinf 0 cosx cosxcosf
6 76 0 7 6 cosxsinf 7
b2 ¼ 4 sinf cosf 0 54 5¼4 5 ð22Þ
0 0 1 sinx sinx

where f is the rotation angle about the z-axis between successive

bevel planes and is therefore f ¼2p/P, and P is an integer represent-
ing the number of planes.

P
z
P

A C
B

C
x
A
r O M

Fig. 10. Back bevel tip needles with various secondary bevel angles. Fig. 12. Illustration of a three-plane symmetric needle.

Fig. 11. (a) included angle y and (b) inclination angle l for back bevel tip needles.
164 P. Han et al. / International Journal of Mechanical Sciences 65 (2012) 157–167

As before, with the normal vectors to the surfaces that form with P¼ 2, regardless of x. Smaller x leads to larger inclination
the cutting edges determined, the included and inclination angles angles with P42. For a specific x, the inclination angle increases
can be obtained from Eqs. (4)–(6). with the increase in P.
The included angle y for a symmetric multi-plane needle is the P ¼3 gives the best combination of included and inclination
angle between two successive bevel planes. With the normal angles. Commercially, the symmetric three-plane needle is called
vectors b1 and b2, the equation for y for a multi-plane needle can a trocar. However, the results show that the included angle for a
be obtained from Eq. (4) as symmetric three-plane needle is always larger than 601. For
instance, when x ¼151, the included angle of the cutting edge
y ¼ parccos cos2 xcos f þ sin2 x for a three-plane needle is 661. It is clear from the above results
f ¼ 2p=P that the cutting edges of a multi-plane needle have a large
p included angle which is undesirable for lowering the insertion
0oxr ð23Þ
2 force. In order to achieve an included angle less than 601, models
The tangent vector of the cutting edge is the cross product of for needles formed by curved surfaces will be presented in the
the normal vectors b1 and b2 and can be given by t ¼ next section.
h i
sinf cosf1 sinfcotx . The angle between the xy-plane
and vector t is the inclination angle l. From Eq. (6), the inclination 3.4. Symmetric three-curved-surface needle
angle can be given by
The majority of current needles are formed by using planar
cot xsin f
sin l ¼ qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi ð24Þ surfaces. The above-presented models have shown that the
22cos f þ sin2 fcot2 x cutting edges of a symmetric three-plane needle have a large
included angle. To address this problem, curved surfaces can be
To simply the equation, the inclination angle can be expressed
used to generate the needle tip. The most common curved
as
surfaces are quadratic surfaces. Examples of quadratic surfaces
f include the cone, cylinder, elliptic cylinder, sphere, etc. Consider-
tanl ¼ cos cotx ð25Þ
2 ing that the grinding wheel surface is a cylinder, mathematical
Hence, equation for l of a symmetric multi-plane needle can models for needles formed by cylinders, as shown in Fig. 14, will
finally be given by be derived. The cutting edges are the intersections of these three

f
lðx, fÞ ¼ arctan cos cotx
2
r
f ¼ 2p=P Cylinder F3 in CS3
p R
0oxr ð26Þ
2
Cylinder F1 in CS1

3.3.1. Results and discussion for symmetric multi-plane needles

Fig. 13(a) shows the included angle y for needles with P¼2, 3, 4, y
and 5. It can be seen that a smaller bevel angle x leads to a smaller
included angle y where the minimal y is limited to (P 2)p/P. The x
minimal y for P¼2, 3, and 4 is limited to 01, 601, and 901,
respectively. At the same time for a given x, the included angle
increases with the increase in P. P¼2 gives the minimal included
z
angle, however, its inclination angle is equal to zero along the z1 Cylinder F2 in CS2
entire cutting edge. An increase in P beyond 3 greatly increases
the included angle, thereby making the needle less effective y1
in cutting. As P approaches infinity, y approaches p and the y
multi-plane needle approaches a conical needle. The inclination Fig. 14. Illustration of a needle formed by three cylinders, (a) front view showing
angle for needles with P¼2, 3, 4, and 5 is shown in Fig. 13(b). the needle and one cylinder, and (b) plan view showing the needle and three
The inclination angle is equal to zero along the entire cutting edge cylinders.

Fig. 13. (a) included angle y and (b) inclination angle l for symmetric multi-plane needles.
 P. Han et al. / International Journal of Mechanical Sciences 65 (2012) 157–167 165

cylinders. The included angle and inclination angle depend on the where r is the radius of the needle, R is the radius of the cylinder
angle between the needle axis and the cylinder axis x, the needle used to form the needle tip, and x is the angle between the needle
radius r, and the cylinder radius R, as shown in Fig. 14. axis and cylinder axis.
In order to describe the position and orientation of each cylinder, The normal vector to the surface F2 at a point on the cutting
four coordinate systems are assigned, one to each cylinder (OXYZ to edge is
the needle, O1X1Y1Z1 to cylinder-1, O2X2Y2Z2 to cylinder-2, and 2 pffiffi pffiffiffi pffiffi 3
1
O3X3Y3Z3 to cylinder-3). The coordinate systems are assigned in a 2 x 23y þ 3cosx 2
3
x þ 12y cosxzsinx
6 7
6 pffiffiffi pffiffi pffiffi 7
way that their origins coincide with each other and the z-axis of 6 1 3 3 1 7
b2 ¼ 6 3 2 x þ 2 y þcos x 2 x þ 2 y cos xzsinx 7 ð32Þ
each coordinate system coincides with the cylinder longitudinal 6 ffiffi 7
4 p 5
axis. At this point one could express each cylinder in its native 2sinx  23 x þ 12y cosx þ zsinx
coordinate system by
  The normal vector to the surface F3 at a point on the cutting
F xn ,yn ,zn ¼ x2n þ y2n R2 ¼ 0 ð27Þ
edge is
where n¼1, 2, 3, and R is the radius of the cylinder. 2 pffiffi pffiffiffi pffiffi 3
1
2 x þ 23y þ 3cosx 3 1
2 x2y cosx þ zsinx
The description of the cylinders with respect to the coordinate 6 7
6 pffiffiffi pffiffi pffiffi 7
system OXYZ needs to be given in order to establish the needle tip 6 1 3 3 1 7
b3 ¼ 6 3 2 x þ 2 y cosx 2 x2y cosx þ zsinx 7 ð33Þ
geometry. O1X1Y1Z1 is obtained by rotating OXYZ around the x-axis 6 ffiffi 7
4 p
3 1
5
by a counterclockwise angle of x, O2X2Y2Z2 is obtained by rotating 2sinx 2 x2y cosx þ zsinx
OXYZ about the z-axis by a counterclockwise angle of 1201 followed
by a rotation about the new x-axis by a counterclockwise angle of x. with the normal vectors b2 and b3, the equation for the included
O3X3Y3Z3 is similarly obtained by rotating OXYZ about the z-axis by angle y at any point M0(x0,y0,z0) on the cutting edge can be given
a counterclockwise angle of  1201 followed by a rotation about the by
new x-axis by a counterclockwise angle of x. The corresponding !
b2 Ub3
transformations can be expressed as y ¼ parccos ¼ parccos
2 3 2 32 3 :b2 ::b3 :
x1 1 0 0 x 0 1
           
6 y 7 6 0 cosx sinx 76 y 7 B F 2,x F 3,x þ F 2,y F 3,y þ F 2,z F 3,z C
4 15¼4 54 5 M0 M0 M0
@qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
M0 M0 M0
2  2  2 qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
2  2  2 A
z1 0 sinx cosx z F 2,x M þ F 2,y M þ F 2,z M F 3,x M þ F 3,y M þ F 3,z M
0 0 0 0 0 0
2 3 2 32     32 3
x2 1 0 0 cos 2p=3 sin 2p=3 0 x ð34Þ
6 y 7 6 0 cosx sinx 76     76 7
4 25¼4 54 sin 2p=3 cos 2p=3 0 54 y 5 The tangent vector of the cutting edge can be obtained using
z2 0 sinx cosx 0 0 1 z Eq. (5), i.e.,  t¼ b2  b3. The penetration direction vector is
2 3 2 32     32 3
x3 1 0 0 cos 2p=3 sin 2p=3 0 x v ¼ 0 0 1 . From Eq. (6), the inclination angle l is given by
6 y 7 6 0 cosx sinx 76     76 7
4 35¼4 54 sin 2p=3 cos 2p=3 0 54 y 5 9tUv9 9ðb2  b3 ÞUv9
z3 0 sinx cosx z
l ¼ arcsin ¼ arcsin ð35Þ
0 0 1 :t::v: :b2  b3 ::v:
ð28Þ
The functions of the cylinders relative to the coordinate
system OXYZ can then be given by 3.4.1. Results and discussion for three-cylindrical-surface needles
2 2 2 An example of a three-cylindrical-surface needle is shown in
F 1 ðx,y,zÞ ¼ x þ ðycosx þ zsinxÞ R ¼ 0 ð29aÞ
Fig. 15. The position of the needle tip point corresponds to y¼0
pffiffiffi !2 pffiffiffi ! !2 and y¼r is the end of the cutting edge.
1 3 3 1 Fig. 16 plots the included angle y and inclination angle l for
F 2 ðx,y,zÞ ¼ x y þ x þ y cosxzsinx R2 ¼ 0
2 2 2 2 three-cylindrical-surface needles with r¼0.5 mm, R¼2, 3, 4 mm,
ð29bÞ and x ¼101. For comparison, the included and inclination angles for
a three-plane needle with r¼0.5 mm and x ¼ 101 are also plotted.
pffiffiffi !2 pffiffiffi ! !2
It can be seen from Fig. 16(a) that the included angle of a three-
1 3 3 1
F 3 ðx,y,zÞ ¼ xþ y þ x y cosx þ zsinx R2 ¼ 0 cylindrical-surface needle is smaller than that of a three-plane
2 2 2 2
ð29cÞ
A symmetric three-cylindrical-surface needle has three cutting
edges which are the intersections of the three cylinders. Due to
the symmetry of the needle tip, only the equations for one cutting
edge and of the associated included and inclination angles need to
be derived. It is evident from Fig. 14(b) that the cutting edge
formed by the cylindrical surfaces F2 and F3 lies in the yz-plane
and, therefore, x¼0. The equation for this cutting edge can then
be obtained by setting x ¼0 in Eqs. (29b) or (29c), i.e.:
pffiffi 2  2
3
2 y þ 12ycosx þ zsinx R2 ¼ 0 ð30Þ

Expressing z explicitly as a function of y, one obtains:

qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
ycosx þ 3y2 þ4R2
z¼
2sinx
0 r yr r ð31Þ Fig. 15. An example of three-cylindrical-surface needle.
166 P. Han et al. / International Journal of Mechanical Sciences 65 (2012) 157–167
Fig. 16. (a) included angle y and (b) inclination angle l for symmetric three-cylindrical-surface needles.
Convex grinding wheel
Wheel feed
direction
Wheel rotation
axis
Needle axis
Fig. 17. Illustration of the manufacturing method for the three-cylindrical-surface
needle.
needle. The included angle of a three-plane needle is constant and it
is always larger than 601. The included angle of a three-cylindrical-
surface needle is equal to the included angle of a three-plane needle
at the tip point (y¼0), but it decreases from y¼0 to y¼r. The
included angle increases with the increase in R. As R approaches
infinity, the three-cylindrical-surface needle degenerates to a three-
plane needle. Thus, a small R is needed in order to achieve a small
included angle. Fig. 16(b) shows that the inclination angle of a three-
cylindrical-surface needle is decreased compared with that of a
three-plane needle. A smaller R leads to a smaller inclination angle.
It is clear from the results that the needle generated by curved
surfaces can achieve a much smaller included angle than a planar
needle. Although the inclination angle of a three-cylindrical-surface
needle decreases, the reduction in the included angle is twice as
much as the reduction in the inclination angle. In addition, one can
always decrease x to achieve the desired included angle and
inclination angle for a three-cylindrical-surface needle.
From the manufacturing point of view, this needle can be
made using a convex grinding wheel, as illustrated in Fig. 17.
The curvature of the grinding wheel surface corresponds to the
cylinder radius R in the mathematical model. The angle x can be
controlled by adjusting the position and orientation of the needle
relative to the grinding wheel.
4. Conclusions
This study has developed general and specific mathematical
models for the included and inclination angles of the cutting edges
for a variety of needles. The included angle and inclination angle of a
one-plane needle were first investigated. The results show that it
has a very undesirable configuration. The mathematical models for
asymmetric three-plane needles were then derived. Specifically, the
lancet tip needle and back bevel tip needle were investigated. It was
shown that the back bevel tip needle can achieve a much smaller
included angle than a lancet tip needle. In evaluating the included
angle and inclination angle of a symmetric multi-plane needle, it
was found that its minimal included angle obtained was limited. For
a symmetric three-plane needle, commercially called a trocar
needle, the included angle is always larger than 601. To resolve this
issue a novel symmetric three-cylindrical-surface needle was pro-
posed and the respective mathematical models were formulated.
The results demonstrated that the included angle of a three-
cylindrical-surface needle has no limitation and is much smaller
than that of a three-plane needle, which potentially lowers the
penetration force during percutaneous procedures. Therefore, this
newly proposed needle geometry combines the advantages of better
targeting provided by the symmetry of the tip with reduced
insertion forces due to a lower included angle and inclination angle
than currently used symmetric three-plane needles.
This work provides a prerequisite for designing needle tip geo-
metries. The mathematical models formulated in this work can serve
as the basis for medical needle manufacturers to design optimized
needles. Newly designed needles will benefit all percutaneous
procedures. The pain and trauma experienced by the patients will
be reduced. New biopsy needles will increase the quality of tissue
samples and improve the accuracy of diagnosis. New brachytherapy
needles will reduce the penetration force and placement errors.
Future work of this research includes optimizing the included
and inclination angles of various needles based on the model. Newly
designed needles with various included and inclination angles will
be manufactured and the insertion/penetration force will be experi-
mentally studied to determine the most efficient geometry.
Acknowledgments
The support of the National Science Foundation (Grant
#CMMI-0825722) and of the Korea Institute of Machinery &
Materials is gratefully appreciated. The authors would also like
to thank Professor Albert Shih from the Department of Mechan-
ical Engineering at the University of Michigan, Ann-Arbor and
Dr. Rajiv Malhotra from the Department of Mechanical Engineer-
ing at Northwestern University for their valuable comments.
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