SURGICAL STAPLE CARTRIDGES WITH DETACHABLE SUPPORT STRUCTURES AND SURGICAL STAPLING INSTRUMENTS WITH SYSTEMS FOR PREVENTING ACTUATION MOTIONS WHEN A CARTRIDGE IS NOT PRESENT
Surgical staple cartridges and end effectors for surgical stapling instruments. In various embodiments, a cartridge support member is coupled to a portion of an implantable staple cartridge body. The cartridge support member is configured to be removably coupled to an elongated channel portion of a surgical instrument. When the stapling process has been completed, the implantable cartridge body remains stapled to the tissue and is separated from the cartridge support member which remains affixed to the elongated channel to provide the surgeon with an indication that no cartridge is present within the elongated channel. In other embodiments, a closure lockout arrangement is provided to prevent the advancement of a closure member to a fully fired position when a staple cartridge is not present within the end effector.
