A delivery system for deploying a medical device, such as a stent, atincreasing deployment speed is described. The system comprises a cathetercomprising a catheter shaft, a retractable sheath slidably mounted on thecatheter shaft, and the device in a compressed state sandwiched between theshaft and sheath. A control handle is included with a housing and knobs for auser to apply a rotary or other force to retract the sheath. The sheath isattached to a slider that is mounted on a slide rod and attached to a drivebelt. A take up pulley is provided in the housing and connected to the beltinput knob, so that the pulley turns when the knob is turned. The belt isattached to the pulley so that the drive is wound onto the rotating pulley. Asthe belt winds upon the pulley, the overall outside diameter of the pulleyincreases, thereby increasing the deployment speed.
