US Patent 8006535 Expandable prosthetic valve crimping device

A device for crimping an implantable device or a part thereof between a radially expanded condition and a radially contracted condition, includes first and second annular bodies arranged about a common axis, and a ring-like array of linear crimping elements having respective opposite ends linked to the first and second annular bodies, respectively. These annular bodies are relatively rotatable around the common axis between a first position, wherein the annular array of crimping elements define a wider orifice for receiving a device to be crimped, and a second position, wherein the annular array of crimping elements define a narrower orifice.