Tension compensation system, robotically controlled medical device, instrument control module and non-transitory computer readable medium
Patent Information
- Application Number
- JP2024519496
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Priority Date
- 2022-03-15
- Filing Date
- 2022-11-29
- Publication Date
- 2025-12-05
AI Technical Summary
Conventional robotic surgical systems, particularly for endoluminal and single-site surgeries, lack effective mechanisms to compensate for actuation cable elongation and stretch, leading to reduced performance over time.
A tension compensation system for robotically controlled medical devices that applies compensating tension to actuation cables based on actuation data, using a hub with a data storage medium and an instrument control module to manage cable stretch, and incorporates force sensors for real-time calibration.
The system effectively reduces actuation cable stretch, maintaining performance and extending the lifespan of robotic surgical instruments by compensating for elongation and wear, thereby enhancing the reliability and precision of surgical procedures.
Smart Images

Figure 00000000_0000_ABST
Abstract
Description
[Technical field]
[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 284,512, filed November 30, 2021, and U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 319,841, filed March 15, 2022, the entire contents of each of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
[0002] The present disclosure relates to robotic surgical systems for minimally invasive surgery, including but not limited to endoluminal and single-site surgery. [Background technology]
[0003] Minimally invasive procedures such as endoluminal and single-site robotic surgery offer significant advantages over traditional robotic surgery. For example, endoluminal robotic surgery does not require incisions to access difficult to access locations within a patient's natural lumens. This significantly reduces and / or eliminates recovery time and increases the safety of the procedure. Single-site systems reduce incisions to a minimal single site and numerous other incisions that provide access for a particular procedure.
[0004] Certain endoluminal and single-site robotic surgical systems have been proposed. Examples of such systems and associated components can be found in U.S. Patent No. 10,881,422, and U.S. Patent Application Nos. 2021 / 0322046, 2021 / 0322045, 2019 / 0117247, 2021 / 0275266, 2021 / 0267702, 2020 / 0107898, 2020 / 0397457, 2020 / 00397456, 2020 / 0315645, and 2019 / 62914226, all of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.
[0005] Conventional surgical robots and systems have generally been deemed satisfactory for their intended purposes. However, there remains a need in the art for improved robotic surgical systems, devices, methods, controls, and components, particularly those configured for endoluminal and single-site surgery. The present disclosure, for example, provides improvements in such areas. Summary of the Invention
[0006] According to at least one aspect of the present disclosure, a tension compensation system for a robotically controlled medical device may include an instrument controller configured to operably connect to the robotically controlled medical device to provide tension to one or more actuation cables of the robotically controlled medical device. The system may include an instrument control module configured to control the instrument controller to provide a compensating tension to at least one of the one or more actuation cables to compensate for elongation of the at least one of the one or more actuation cables based on actuation data associated with the at least one of the one or more actuation cables.
[0007] At least one of the one or more actuation cables may be a respective actuation cable. The actuation data may include a number of times each actuation cable has been actuated. In certain embodiments, the actuation data may include an average tension of each actuation cable. Any suitable actuation data configured to enable determining an elongation of each wire and / or a suitable compensation tension to compensate for the elongation is contemplated herein.
[0008] In certain embodiments, the system may include a robotically controlled medical device. The robotically controlled medical device may include a hub having a data storage medium and a data interface connected to the data storage medium. The instrument controller may be configured to connect to the data interface when the medical device is installed on the instrument controller.
[0009] In certain embodiments, the actuation data may be stored on the robotically controlled medical device, and the instrument control module may be configured to read the actuation data from a data storage medium of the robotically controlled medical device to determine the compensation tension for each actuation cable, respectively.
[0010] In certain embodiments, the data storage medium may include a unique instrument identification. In certain embodiments, the operational data may be stored external to the robotically controlled medical device and associated with the unique instrument identification. Any other suitable storage location and / or manner for associating operational data with each operational wire of the robotically controlled medical device is contemplated herein.
[0011] In certain embodiments, the instrument controller may include an independent motor for each actuation wire. In certain embodiments, the actuation data may include an actuation cycle count. In certain embodiments, the instrument control module may increment the actuation cycle count of each actuation cable each time each independent motor completes one revolution.
[0012] In certain embodiments, the instrument control module 107 may be configured to pre-compensate at least one actuation cable with a compensating tension before an actuation cycle begins. In certain embodiments, the system may include a force sensor mounted on at least one actuation cable (e.g., on each cable) and configured to detect an actual tension on the respective actuation cable. The control module may be configured to automatically calibrate the compensating tension on the actuation cable during an actuation cycle in response to the detected actual tension from the force sensor.
[0013] According to at least one aspect of the present disclosure, a robotically controlled medical device may include one or more actuation cables and a hub. The hub may include a data storage medium configured to store actuation data for each of the one or more actuation cables and / or unique identification information for correlating with actuation data stored elsewhere. The hub may include a data interface connected to the data storage medium, the storage medium configured to be connected to the instrument controller when the medical device is installed in the instrument controller for the instrument control module to access data in the data storage medium.
[0014] In accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure, the instrument control module may be configured to control the operation of the instrument controller to control a robotically controlled medical device having one or more actuation cables. The instrument control module may also be configured to provide a compensating tension to at least one of the one or more actuation cables to compensate for elongation of the at least one of the one or more actuation cables based on actuation data associated with the at least one of the one or more actuation cables. The instrument control module and / or the actuation data may be the same or similar to any embodiment disclosed herein, e.g., as described above.
[0015] According to at least one aspect of the disclosure, a non-transitory computer-readable medium may include computer-executable instructions configured to cause a computer to perform a method. The method may include receiving actuation data associated with at least one actuation cable of one or more actuation cables of a robotically controlled medical device attached to an instrument controller, and actuating one or more motors of the instrument controller to provide a compensating tension to the at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables to compensate for elongation of the at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables based on the actuation data associated with the at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables. The at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables may be, for example, each actuation cable. The actuation data may include any suitable actuation data, for example, as described above. For example, the actuation data may include an actuation cycle count, such that each time the one or more motors of the instrument controller rotates one revolution, the instrument control module may increment the actuation cycle count of the respective actuation cable associated with the one or more motors. The method may include any other suitable method and / or portions thereof.
[0016] These and other features of the subject disclosed embodiments will become readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the drawings. [Brief description of the drawings]
[0017] Embodiments thereof are described in detail hereinafter with reference to certain figures so that those skilled in the art to which the subject disclosure pertains will readily understand, without undue experimentation, how to make and use the devices and methods of the subject disclosure.
[0018] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is an elevation view of one embodiment of a system according to the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is an elevational view of an embodiment of a robotically controlled medical device in accordance with the present disclosure. [Diagram 3]3A-3C are cross-sectional, perspective, and exploded views of an embodiment of a shaft of the embodiment of FIG. 2, showing one or more actuation wires. [Figure 4] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the hub of the embodiment of FIG. 2. [Figure 5A] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a tip according to the present disclosure. [Figure 5B] FIG. 5B is a rear perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 5A. [Figure 5C] 5B is a cross-sectional view of the embodiment of the hub of FIG. 4, showing the chip of FIG. 5A mounted within the hub. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0019] Reference is now made to the drawings, in which like reference numerals identify similar structural features or aspects of the subject disclosure. For purposes of explanation and illustration, and not limitation, an exemplary diagram of one embodiment of a system according to the present disclosure is shown in Figure 1 and generally designated by reference character 100. Other embodiments and / or aspects of the present disclosure are shown in Figures 2-5C.
[0020] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a system 100 according to the present disclosure. With reference to FIGS. 1-4, a tension compensation system 100 for a robotically controlled medical device 103 may include an instrument controller 101 configured to operably connect to the robotically controlled medical device 103 to provide tension to one or more actuation cables 105 of the robotically controlled medical device 103. The system 100 may include an instrument control module 107 operably connected to the instrument controller 101. The instrument control module 107 may be configured to control the instrument controller 101 to provide a compensating tension to at least one of the one or more actuation cables 105 to compensate for elongation of the at least one of the one or more actuation cables 105 based on actuation data associated with the at least one of the one or more actuation cables 105.
[0021] At least one actuation cable 105 of the one or more actuation cables 105 may be each actuation cable 105. The actuation data may include a number of times each actuation cable 105 has been actuated. In certain embodiments, the actuation data may include an average tension of each actuation cable 105. Any suitable actuation data configured to enable determining a stretch of each wire and / or a suitable compensation tension to compensate for the stretch is contemplated herein.
[0022] The tool control module 107 may be configured to correlate actuation data (e.g., number of tension cycles, and average tension, etc.) to the tension that should be applied to account for the stretch in the actuation cables. The data correlating the stretch / compensation tension to the actuation data may be in the form of a look-up table and may be based on a priori data (e.g., which may be a function of each cable type, material composition, etc.).
[0023] In certain embodiments, the system 100 may include a robotically controlled medical device 103. The robotically controlled medical device 103 may include a hub 109 having a data storage medium 111 and a data interface 113 connected to the data storage medium 111. The instrument controller 101 may be configured to connect to the data interface 113 when the medical device 103 is installed on the instrument controller 101.
[0024] In certain embodiments, the actuation data may be stored in the robotically controlled medical device 103. The instrument control module 107 may be configured to read the actuation data from the data storage medium 111 of the robotically controlled medical device 103 to determine the compensation tension for each actuation cable 105, respectively.
[0025] In certain embodiments, the data storage medium 111 may include a unique instrument identification (e.g., a serial number). In certain embodiments, the operational data may be stored external to the robotically-controlled medical device 103 and associated with a unique instrument identification (e.g., such that all data is stored accessible to the instrument control module 107). For example, the instrument control module 107 may be configured to store data for each cable 105 of each medical device 103 correlated (e.g., within desired data age limits) with its respective unique instrument identification, and the instrument control module 107 may store the data after the medical device 103 is disconnected from the instrument controller 101. The instrument control module 107 may then examine the operational data when the medical device 103 is reconnected at some future point (e.g., later in the same procedure or for a different patient for a reusable device) to determine appropriate tension compensation. Any suitable storage location and / or manner for associating operational data with each operational wire of the robotically-controlled medical device 103 is contemplated herein.
[0026] In certain embodiments, the instrument controller 101 may include an independent motor 115 (e.g., a push motor) for each actuation wire 105. In certain embodiments, the actuation data may include an actuation cycle count. In certain embodiments, each time each independent motor 115 rotates, the instrument control module 107 may increment the actuation cycle count of each actuation cable 105. In this regard, the instrument control module 107 may add additional tension to each cable 105 (e.g., to increase the stroke length by pushing the motor slightly forward in a push motor arrangement as shown) to account for the elongation with each cycle. In some embodiments, the instrument control module 107 may pre-compensate the actuation cable 105 with a compensating tension before the start of an actuation cycle. In other embodiments, a force sensor (such as a load cell, not shown) may be further mounted on the actuation cable 105 and configured to detect tension in the actuation cable 105, so that during an actuation cycle, the instrument control module 107 may automatically calibrate a compensating tension for the actuation cable 105 in response to the detected tension from the force sensor.
[0027] According to at least one aspect of the present disclosure, the robotically controlled medical device 103 may include one or more actuation cables 105 and a hub 109. The hub 109 may include a data storage medium 111 configured to store actuation data for each of the one or more actuation cables 105 and / or unique identification information for correlating with actuation data stored elsewhere. The hub 109 may also include a data interface 113 connected to the data storage medium 111. The data storage medium 111 may be configured to be connected to the instrument controller 101 when the medical device 103 is installed on the instrument controller 101 for the instrument control module 107 to access data in the data storage medium 111.
[0028] Figure 2 is an elevational view of an embodiment of a robotically controlled medical device 103 in accordance with the present disclosure. Figure 3 is a cross-sectional perspective exploded view of one embodiment of a shaft 117 of the medical device 103, showing one or more actuation cables 105. Figure 4 is a perspective view of a hub 109 of the medical device 103.
[0029] FIG. 5A is a perspective view of one embodiment of a chip 500 that hosts the data interface 113 and storage medium 111. FIG. 5B is a rear perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 5A. FIG. 5C is a cross-sectional view of the embodiment of the hub of FIG. 4, showing the chip 500 of FIG. 5A mounted within the hub. For example, the chip 500 can be secured to an inner surface of the proximal housing portion, for example, via one or more fasteners (e.g., via screws as shown) and / or with a washer as shown. The proximal housing portion can be secured to the distal housing portion, for example, via one or more fasteners (e.g., multiple screws as shown).
[0030] In accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure, an instrument control module (e.g., module 107, described above) may be configured to control the operation of an instrument controller (e.g., controller 101, described above) to control a robotically controlled medical device (e.g., device 103, described above) having one or more actuation cables (e.g., cable 105, described above). The instrument control module may also be configured to provide a compensating tension to at least one of the one or more actuation cables to compensate for elongation of the at least one of the one or more actuation cables based on actuation data associated with the at least one of the one or more actuation cables. The instrument control module and / or the actuation data may be the same or similar to any embodiment disclosed herein, e.g., as described above.
[0031] According to at least one aspect of the disclosure, a non-transitory computer-readable medium may include computer-executable instructions configured to cause a computer to perform a method. The method may include receiving actuation data associated with at least one actuation cable of one or more actuation cables (e.g., cable 105, described above) of a robotically controlled medical device (e.g., device 103, described above) attached to an instrument controller (e.g., controller 101, described above), and actuating one or more motors of the instrument controller to provide a compensating tension to the at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables to compensate for elongation of the at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables based on the actuation data associated with the at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables. The at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables may be, for example, each actuation cable. The actuation data may include any suitable actuation data, for example, as described above. For example, the actuation data may include an actuation cycle count, and each time one or more motors of the instrument controller rotates, the instrument control module may increment the actuation cycle count of the respective actuation cable associated with the one or more motors. The method may include any other suitable methods and / or parts thereof.
[0032] Certain embodiments include a wire stretch compensation system, for example for tungsten control wires. The embodiments allow for monitoring and storing activation data per motor / wire and can use a lookup table to increase the stroke length of the motor a based on how many times the tungsten control wire has been used over time.
[0033] For example, various actuation components, including tungsten wires, can deform over time under stress, and the performance of conventional reusable instruments, such as in gripping, can degrade by about 25% over 10 cycles due to stretching of the actuation wires and friction in the various actuation components.
[0034] In certain embodiments, the instrument actuation information may be stored, for example, on a memory chip embedded in the medical device's data interface 113. Each actuation wire may be controlled by an independent motor 115, and the tension of each actuation wire may be adjusted by the system software. The actuation information stored on the medical device's memory chip may be utilized to predict the tension that should be compensated by the system software to achieve the desired performance.
[0035] Embodiments may be utilized in conjunction with any suitable robotically controlled medical device or system (eg, a robotic endoluminal surgical system).
[0036] Any module disclosed herein may include any suitable hardware and / or software modules configured to perform any suitable functions (e.g., as disclosed herein, e.g., as described above). As will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art, aspects of the present disclosure may be embodied as a system, method, or computer program product. Accordingly, aspects of the present disclosure may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment (including firmware, resident software, microcode, etc.), or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects, all of which may be referred to herein as a "circuit," "module," or "system." A "circuit," "module," or "system" may include one or more portions of one or more separate physical hardware and / or software components that together may perform the disclosed functions of the "circuit," "module," or "system," or a "circuit," "module," or "system" may be a single self-contained unit (e.g., of hardware and / or software). Additionally, aspects of the present disclosure may take the form of a computer program product embodied in one or more computer-readable medium(s) having computer-readable program code embodied therein.
[0037] Any combination of one or more computer readable media may be utilized. The computer readable medium may be a computer readable signal medium or a computer readable storage medium. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples (non-exhaustive list) of computer readable storage media include an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. In the context of this document, a computer readable storage medium may be any tangible medium that can contain or store a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.
[0038] A computer-readable signal medium may include a propagated data signal having computer-readable program code embodied therein, for example, in baseband or as part of a carrier wave. Such a propagated signal may take any of a variety of forms, including but not limited to, electrical-magnetic, optical, or any suitable combination thereof. A computer-readable signal medium may not be a computer-readable storage medium but may be any computer-readable medium that can communicate, propagate, or carry a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.
[0039] The program code embodied on the computer readable medium may be transmitted using any suitable medium, including but not limited to wireless, wired, fiber optic cable, RF, etc., or any suitable combination of the foregoing.
[0040] Computer program code for carrying out operations for aspects of the present disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including object-oriented programming languages such as Java, Smalltalk, C++, and conventional procedural programming languages such as the "C" programming language or similar programming languages. The program code may be executed entirely on the user's computer, partially on the user's computer, as a standalone software package, partially on the user's computer and partially on a remote computer, or partially on a remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or a connection to an external computer may be made (e.g., through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).
[0041] Aspects of the present disclosure may be described above with reference to flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of the present disclosure. Each block of any flowchart illustration and / or block diagram, and combinations of blocks in any flowchart illustration and / or block diagram, may be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to generate a machine, such that the instructions executed by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus create means for implementing the function / act specified in any flowchart and / or block diagram block or blocks.
[0042] These computer program instructions may also be stored on a computer-readable medium, which may direct a computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other device to function in a particular manner to generate an article of manufacture including instructions that implement the functions / acts specified in the flowchart and / or block diagram blocks or blocks.
[0043] Computer program instructions may also be loaded into a computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other device to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer, other programmable apparatus, or other device to generate computer-implemented processes, such that the instructions, which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus, result in processes to implement the functions / operations specified herein.
[0044] Those skilled in the art will understand that any numerical value disclosed herein may be an exact value or may be a value within a range. Furthermore, any term of approximation used in this disclosure (e.g., "about," "approximately," "approximately") may refer to a stated value within a range. For example, in certain embodiments, the range may be within 20% (plus or minus), or within 10%, or within 5%, or within 2%, or within any other suitable percentage or number as understood by those skilled in the art (e.g., relative to known tolerance limits or margins of error).
[0045] As used herein and in the appended claims, the articles "a," "an," and "the" are used herein to refer to one or to more than one (i.e., to at least one) of the grammatical object of the article, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. By way of example, "an element" means one element or more than one element.
[0046] The phrase "and / or" as used in the specification and claims should be understood to mean "either or both" of the elements so conjoined, i.e., elements that are conjointly present in some cases and disjointly present in other cases. Multiple elements marked with "and / or" should be interpreted in the same manner, i.e., "one or more" of the elements so conjoined. Other elements other than the elements specifically identified by the "and / or" clause may optionally be present, whether related or unrelated to those elements specifically identified. Thus, as a non-limiting example, a reference to "A and / or B," when used with open-ended language such as "comprising," may refer in one embodiment to only A (optionally including elements other than B), in another embodiment to only B (optionally including elements other than A), in yet another embodiment to both A and B (optionally including other elements), etc.
[0047] As used in the specification and claims, "or" should be understood to have the same meaning as "and / or" as defined above. For example, when separating items in a list, "or" or "and / or" should be understood as inclusive, i.e., including at least one, but also including more than one number or list element, and optionally including additional unlisted items. Only terms clearly indicated to the contrary, such as "only one of" or "exactly one of," or, when used in the claims, "consisting of," refer to the inclusion of exactly one element of a number or list of elements. In general, the term "or" as used herein should only be interpreted as an exclusive alternative (i.e., "one or the other, but not both") when preceded by an exclusive term, such as "either," "only one of," or "exactly one of."
[0048] Any suitable combination of any of the disclosed embodiments and / or any suitable portions thereof is contemplated herein as would be recognized by one of ordinary skill in the art upon reference to this disclosure.
[0049] The embodiments of the present disclosure described above and illustrated in the drawings represent improvements in the art to which they pertain. While the subject disclosure includes reference to specific embodiments, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that changes and / or modifications thereto may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the subject disclosure.
Claims
1. 1. A tension compensation system for a robotically controlled medical device, comprising: an instrument controller configured to operably connect to a robotically controlled medical device to provide tension to one or more actuation cables of the robotically controlled medical device; an implement control module configured to control the implement controller to provide a compensating tension to at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables to compensate for elongation of the at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables based on actuation data associated with the at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables.
2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables is each actuation cable.
3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the actuation data includes the number of times each actuation cable has been actuated.
4. The system of claim 2 , wherein the actuation data includes an average tension in each actuation cable.
5. The system of claim 2 further comprising the robotically controlled medical device.
6. the robotically controlled medical device includes a hub, the hub comprising: a data storage medium; 6. The system of claim 5, further comprising: a data interface connected to the data storage medium, the data interface being configured to connect to the data interface when the robotically controlled medical device is installed on the instrument controller.
7. The system of claim 6 , wherein the operational data is stored in the robotically controlled medical device.
8. The system of claim 7 , wherein the instrument control module is configured to read the actuation data from the data storage medium of the robotically controlled medical device to determine a compensation tension for each actuation cable, respectively.
9. The system of claim 6 , wherein the data storage medium includes a unique instrument identification, and the operational data is stored external to the robotically controlled medical device and associated with the unique instrument identification.
10. 3. The system of claim 2, wherein the tool controller includes an independent motor for each actuation wire, the actuation data includes an actuation cycle count, and the tool control module increments the actuation cycle count for each actuation cable with each rotation of each independent motor.
11. 1. A robotically controlled medical device comprising: one or more actuation cables; a hub, the hub comprising: a data storage medium configured to store operational data for each of the one or more operational cables and / or unique identification information for correlating with operational data stored elsewhere; a data interface connected to the data storage medium, the data interface configured to be connected to an instrument controller when the robotically controlled medical device is installed on the instrument controller so that an instrument control module can access data in the data storage medium.
12. an instrument control module configured to control operation of an instrument controller to control a robotically controlled medical device having one or more actuation cables, the instrument control module comprising: an instrument control module configured to provide a compensating tension to at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables to compensate for elongation of the at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables based on actuation data associated with the at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables.
13. The tool control module of claim 12 , wherein the at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables is each actuation cable.
14. The tool control module of claim 13 , wherein the actuation data includes the number of times each actuation cable has been actuated.
15. The tool control module of claim 13 , wherein the actuation data includes an average tension in each actuation cable, respectively.
16. The tool control module of claim 13 , wherein the tool control module is configured to read the actuation data from a data storage medium of the robotically controlled medical device to determine a compensation tension for each actuation cable, respectively.
17. 17. The tool control module of claim 16, wherein the actuation data includes an actuation cycle count, and wherein the tool control module increments the actuation cycle count for each actuation cable each time each independent motor of the tool controller completes one revolution.
18. A non-transitory computer-readable medium containing computer-executable instructions configured to cause a computer to perform a method, the method comprising: receiving actuation data associated with at least one actuation cable of one or more actuation cables of a robotically controlled medical device attached to the instrument controller; and operating one or more motors of the instrument controller to provide a compensating tension to at least one actuation cable of one or more actuation cables to compensate for elongation of the at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables based on actuation data associated with the at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables.
19. 20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the at least one actuation cable of the one or more actuation cables is a respective actuation cable.
20. 20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the actuation data respectively includes a number of times each actuation cable is actuated and / or an average tension of each actuation cable.
21. 20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the actuation data includes an actuation cycle count, and wherein each time the one or more motors of the tool controller complete one revolution, the tool control module increments the actuation cycle count of each actuation cable associated with the one or more motors.
22. The system of claim 1 , wherein the tool control module can be configured to pre-compensate the at least one actuation cable with a compensating tension before an actuation cycle begins.
23. 10. The system of claim 1, further comprising a force sensor mounted on the at least one actuation cable and configured to detect an actual tension in the actuation cable, and wherein the tool control module is configured to automatically calibrate a compensation tension on the actuation cable during an actuation cycle in response to the detected actual tension from the force sensor.