Operating room machines for ophthalmic surgery

Abstract

Certain embodiments disclosed herein provide a surgical instrument including a base for placement on a floor. A boom extends upward from a central base and extends outward and forward from the central base. A gantry is suspended from the boom and has three or more degrees of freedom. A surgical instrument, such as a surgical microscope, is mounted on the gantry. One or more electrical components are mounted within the central base and configured to assist in performing ophthalmic surgery, such as a computing device and a vacuum pump. A surgical chair is mounted on an arcuate track in the base and is slidable along the track. The surgical chair has adjustable arms secured to the surgical chair for holding surgical equipment. A patient bed incorporates a storage device and a coupler that engages with a corresponding coupler coupled to a computing device in the base to download patient data from the storage device.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE The present disclosure relates generally to instruments for facilitating the performance of ophthalmic surgery. [Background technology]

[0002] Many disorders of the eye are treatable with ophthalmic surgery. Defects of the lens, such as cataracts, can be treated by replacing the lens with an artificial intraocular lens (IOL). Disorders of the retina can also be treated with various surgical procedures. The eye is very delicate, and the anatomical structures operated on are very small. Therefore, ophthalmic surgery is performed in a highly controlled environment with sophisticated equipment. Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0003] FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE The present disclosure relates generally to operating room equipment for assisting in ophthalmic surgery.

[0004] Certain embodiments disclosed herein include a surgical instrument including a base for resting on a floor. A boom extends upwardly from the base and outwardly from the base in a forward direction. A gantry is suspended from the boom and has three or more degrees of freedom. A surgical instrument is mounted to the gantry. One or more electrical components are mounted within the base and configured to assist in performing ophthalmic surgery.

[0005] The following description and the related drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative features of the one or more embodiments.

[0006] The accompanying drawings depict certain aspects of one or more embodiments and therefore should not be considered as limiting the scope of the disclosure. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1A]FIG. 1A is an isometric view of operating room equipment for supporting ophthalmic surgery, according to one specific embodiment. [Figure 1B] FIG. 1B is an alternative isometric view of the operating room equipment of FIG. 1A. [Figure 2A] FIG. 2A is an isometric view of an articulating boom arm for supporting a surgical microscope, according to one specific embodiment. [Figure 2B-2C] 2B-2C are cutaway views of the articulating boom arm of FIG. 2. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is an isometric view of operating room equipment including an articulating monitor support arm, according to one specific embodiment. [Figures 4A-4D] 4A-4D are isometric views illustrating electrical connectors for connecting an electronic patient bed to operating room equipment, according to certain embodiments. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is an isometric view of an articulating surgical chair, according to one particular embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a schematic block diagram of components of operating room equipment, in accordance with one specific embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a process flow diagram of a method for exchanging data between an electronic patient bed and operating room equipment, according to certain embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] For clarity, where possible, the same reference numerals have been used to denote identical elements common to the figures, and it is contemplated that elements and features of one embodiment may be beneficially incorporated in other embodiments without specific indication.

[0009] Traditional approaches to performing ophthalmic surgery require numerous pieces of equipment, each with its own power cord, housing, and sometimes other features such as vacuum tubing. As a result, operating rooms can become cluttered and present numerous tripping hazards.

[0010] In the surgical equipment disclosed herein, a boom is attached to a base that houses one or more computing devices, a vacuum pump, and possibly other equipment. A gantry is attached to the boom, and surgical equipment such as a surgical microscope and one or more displays may be attached to the gantry. A surgical chair is mounted on an arcuate path so that the chair can easily move to the left or right of the patient bed or above the patient bed. The chair has adjustable arms attached to it to hold additional equipment such as holders for phaco-vit handpieces, scanners for surgical instruments, and / or additional displays. The patient bed may have a storage device and may be electrically connected to the computing device in the base to transfer and receive patient data for ophthalmic surgery.

[0011] 1 illustrates operating room equipment 100 that may be used to assist in the performance of ophthalmic surgery. The operating room equipment 100 may be understood in terms of a longitudinal direction 102a, a transverse direction 102b, and a vertical direction 102c, which are all mutually perpendicular to one another. The vertical direction 102c may be defined as being approximately perpendicular (e.g., within 2 degrees) to the floor of the room in which the operating room equipment 100 is located.

[0012] The operating room equipment 100 may include a support frame 104 that includes a boom 106. The boom 106 extends upward from the floor in a vertical direction 102c and outward along a longitudinal direction 102a, i.e., the "forward direction" as used herein. The boom 106 extends upward from a central base 108. The central base 108 may have sufficient weight to prevent the boom 106 from tipping, including when various items of surgical equipment are suspended therefrom. Thus, the central base 108 may include both a structural frame for securing the boom 106 as well as some ballast, such as steel plate, concrete block, or other dense material.

[0013] In the illustrated embodiment, the lateral bases 110a, 110b are fixed to the central base 108 and extend outward in the transverse direction 102b and forward direction to provide additional stability. The boom 106, central base 108, and lateral bases 110a, 110b may be formed from an interior frame, such as a steel frame, covered with a shell, such as a shell made from one or more plastic panels.

[0014] The lateral bases 110a, 110b may cooperate with the weight of the central base 108 to prevent tipping of the boom 106. However, in some embodiments, the lateral bases 110a, 110b are omitted or removable such that the central base 108 alone is sufficient to prevent tipping. In still other embodiments, the central base 108 or the boom 106 may be secured to the floor, wall, post, or other structure to prevent tipping.

[0015] The central base 108 and the lateral bases 110a, 110b may be hollow and provide cavities for housing computing devices, power adapters, power lines, vacuum pumps, and other components (see FIG. 6 and related discussion). The weight of such components may increase the stability and resistance to tipping provided by the central base and the lateral bases 110a, 110b. The central base 108 and the lateral bases 110a, 110b may have vents 112 on one or more surfaces thereof to facilitate the removal of heat generated by such components. One or more fans may also be housed within some or all of the central base 108 and the lateral bases 110a, 110b to promote airflow through the vents 112. In some embodiments, airflow caused by one or more fans is exhausted from the rear side of the central base 108 and / or the lateral bases 110 a, 110 b to prevent dust from blowing into or otherwise interfering with the performance of eye surgery in front of the central base 108. The rear side may face a rearward direction opposite the forward direction. Power cords for providing power to components mounted within the central base 108 may also extend from the rear side of the central base 108, thereby avoiding a tripping hazard in front of the central base 108.

[0016] The boom 106 may have a control panel 114 mounted thereon and facing forward. The control panel 114 may have controls (buttons, switches, touchscreen, etc.) for controlling a vacuum tool, such as a phaco-vit tool for performing phacoemulsification and vitrectomy. The control panel 114 may further define a connector for connecting to a hose 116 of the vacuum tool. The control panel 114 may further define a physical connector or wireless interface for receiving input from another device, such as a foot pedal. The control panel 114 may be connected to a vacuum pump housed within the central base 108, and the vacuum pump may be controlled by control input received by the control panel 114.

[0017] The gantry 118 is secured to the boom 106 and extends downward from the boom 106 in the vertical direction 102c. The gantry 118 may define one or more degrees of translation along some or all of the longitudinal direction 102a, the transverse direction 102b, and the vertical direction 102c. The gantry 118 may define one or more degrees of rotational motion, such as rotation about an axis parallel to some or all of the longitudinal direction 102a, the transverse direction 102b, and the vertical direction 102c. For example, the gantry 118 may define more than two degrees of freedom, and may have up to six degrees of freedom, including up to three translational degrees of freedom and up to three rotational degrees of freedom.

[0018] The gantry 118 may have various items of equipment mounted thereto, such as a surgical microscope 120 and one or more displays 122. The surgical microscope 120 and one or more displays may have computing components housed therein or may be connected to computing components housed in the central base 108. The equipment mounted on the gantry 118 may be easily removed and replaced in a modular manner. Power and data wires and tubing to connect to the equipment mounted on the gantry 118 may be routed upwardly and through the boom 106 to reach the components mounted in the central base 108.

[0019] The operating room equipment 100 may further include an articulating surgical chair 126 and a patient bed 128, both of which are described in more detail below. Any number of additional displays 130 may be further mounted to the support frame 104, e.g., on one or both of the lateral bases 110a, 110b, by gantries 132 having one or more articulating joints, each having one to six degrees of freedom. The displays 130 may be connected to computing components housed within the central base 108 by wired or wireless connections.

[0020] 2A, 2B, and 2C show structure for mounting the gantry 118 to the boom 106. One or more displays 122 may be similarly mounted to the boom 106. In the illustrated embodiment, a rotatable member 200 is mounted to the distal end of the boom 106 and is rotatable relative to the boom 106. For example, the rotatable member 200 may be rotatable about an axis generally parallel to the vertical direction 102c (e.g., within 5 degrees of the vertical direction 102c), e.g., about a pivot point 200a. As will be apparent, the mounting point of the gantry 118 may be offset from the pivot point 200a. In some embodiments, the rotatable member 200 is omitted, and the distal portion of the boom 106 has the gantry 118 mounted thereto using the structure described below with respect to the rotatable member 200.

[0021] The rotatable member 200 may define a slot 202, for example, having a length thereof generally parallel to the longitudinal direction 102a (e.g., within 5 degrees of the longitudinal direction 102a). A plate 204 or other structure may be slidably mounted on or within the slot 202 and be slidable along the slot 202 in the longitudinal direction 102a. In the illustrated embodiment, a floor 206 extends inward from the slot 202 in the short direction 102b and defines an inner slot 208. Thus, the plate 204 may rest on the floor 206 and be slidable along the floor 206.

[0022] Collar 210 may be rotatably mounted to plate 204 and may extend into and be slidable within internal slot 208. Collar 210 rotatably, and in some cases, removably, receives shaft 212 to which gantry 218 is mounted. Gantry 218 may be mounted such that the optical axis of surgical microscope 120 (or other optical instrument) is approximately collinear (e.g., within 10 cm) and parallel (e.g., within 5 degrees) with the axis of rotation of shaft 212. For example, the shaft 212 may have one or more pins 214 protruding outwardly therefrom, and the interior 216 of the collar 210 may define one or more slots 218, in a spiral or other configuration, arranged parallel to the axis of symmetry of the interior 216 (e.g., the axis of a cylinder defined by the interior 216). The shaft 212 may be inserted through the collar 210 with the one or more pins 214 positioned in the one or more slots 218. In this case, the shaft 212 may rotate relative to the collar 210, and the pins 214 may be seated in one or more recesses 220 defined in the upper edge of the collar 210. In this case, the weight of the shaft 212, the gantry 218, and any equipment attached to the gantry 118 may resist removal of the pins 214 from the recesses 220.

[0023] The collar 210 may be rotatable relative to the plate 204, thereby defining a rotational degree of freedom for the gantry 118 perpendicular to the rotational degree of freedom provided by the rotatable member 200. In that case, the gantry 118 itself may similarly provide up to six degrees of freedom to provide fine adjustment of the orientation and position of equipment secured to the gantry 218.

[0024] The boom 106, rotatable member 200, and shaft 212 are preferably rigid enough to withstand vibrations caused by actuators of the gantry 118 and the equipment attached to the gantry 118, such as the surgical microscope 112. In this way, vibrations caused by adjusting the position and / or orientation of the gantry 118 or zooming in or out by the surgical microscope 112 are damped more rapidly.

[0025] The combination of the pivoting of the rotatable member 200, the sliding movement of the collar 210, and the rotation of the shaft 212, along with the alignment of the optical axis of the surgical microscope 120 or other optical instrument with the rotational axis of the shaft 212, may provide relatively small lateral movements in the longitudinal direction 102a and the transverse direction 102b, as well as rotational movements coaxial with the rotational axis of the shaft 212. This facilitates ergonomic and rapid implementation of three primary surgical positions (left temporal, upper temporal, and right temporal). Current operating room equipment requires a large range of motion to achieve the primary surgical positions, often requiring the equipment to be moved to the other side of the patient's bed, a slow and cumbersome process. In some operating rooms, patients are placed feet-first rather than head-first, eliminating the need to move the equipment to different sides of the bed, which can be difficult due to the many cords and tubes on the floor.

[0026] 3, in some embodiments, the operating room equipment 100 includes a large display 300, e.g., one meter or more along at least one side, that cannot be easily mounted on the gantry 118 due to excessive weight or lack of space. The display 300 may be rotatably suspended from the boom 106, e.g., from an arm 302 attached to the top of the boom 106.

[0027] 4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D, the patient bed 128 may have a storage device attached thereto. The storage device may be a storage device alone, such as a flash storage device, or may be a computing device incorporating a storage device. In that case, the storage device may be loaded with patient data, such as a treatment plan to be implemented by an ophthalmic surgery performed using the operating room equipment 100. In that case, the patient bed 128 may be connected to the operating room equipment 100, and the patient data may be downloaded and used to provide guidance for the ophthalmic surgery.

[0028] 4A and 4B , a first coupler 400, e.g., a plug, protrudes from a housing 402. The housing 402 may be secured to the base of the articulating surgical chair 126 (see the discussion of FIG. 5 below), the central base 108, the operating room floor, or some other structure. A second coupler 404, e.g., a socket, is secured to the patient bed 126, e.g., to the housing 406. The second coupler 404 is sized and configured to engage the first coupler 402 to establish a connection for providing power to a storage device and data communication channel within the patient bed 126. The arrangement of the first coupler 400 and the second coupler 404 may be reversed in some embodiments. The first coupler 400 and the second coupler 404 may have a dedicated electrical connection or may use a standard configuration, such as Universal Serial Bus (USB) or other connection standard.

[0029] 4C and 4D , the housing 402 may include a slot 408 for receiving the housing 406, or may be secured adjacent the slot 408. A latch 410 may be positioned within the slot 408 and may engage the housing 404. The slot 408 may be oriented to deflect the latch 410 upon insertion of the housing 404 into the slot 408 until the second coupler 404 engages the first coupler 402. The latch 410 may then be biased upward and resist removal of the housing 404 from the slot 408 until the latch 410 disengages, i.e., moves out of the way of the housing 404. The latch 410 may be manually actuated or may be connected to an electric actuator, e.g., a solenoid, that is activated by a button on the patient bed 126, the control panel 114, or elsewhere on the procedure room equipment 100.

[0030] 5, the articulating surgical chair 126 may include a base 500 having a track 502 formed thereon. The track 502 may be implemented as an arcuate slot, an arcuate rail, or other form of guide. A sliding base 504 engages with and is slidable about the track 502. A seat 506 on which the surgeon sits is attached to the sliding base 504, for example, on top of the sliding base 504. The track 502 may be shaped to allow the seat 504 to be positioned in various positions relative to the patient bed 128, such as in left, upper temporal, and right temporal positions.

[0031] The locking mechanism may be activated by a user to lock the sliding base 504 relative to the track 502. An actuator on the base 500 or the sliding base 504 may move the sliding base 504 relative to the track 502 in response to a control input from a user. Alternatively, the sliding base 504 may be moved manually around the track 502. In some embodiments, one or both of the gantry 118 and the arm 302 may be coupled to an actuator that coordinates with the position of the sliding base 504. For example, when the sliding base 504 slides to the right of the track 502, the actuator on the gantry 118 and / or the actuator coupled to the arm 302 may also rotate so that the surgical microscope 120, the display 122, and / or the display 300 are on the left side of the track 502, e.g., with the patient bed 126 between the sliding base 504 and the surgical microscope 120, the display 122, and / or the display 300.

[0032] The sliding base 504 may have structures secured thereto for mounting and positioning accessories. In the illustrated embodiment, these structures include rings 508 that surround the sliding base 504 and are rotatable relative to the sliding base 504 and may be locked at various points along the range of rotation of the ring 508 about the sliding base 504. Each ring 508 may have one or more arms 510 extending outward and upward therefrom such that the distal end of each arm 510 is conveniently positioned for a surgeon seated in the seat 506. Each arm 510 may be adjusted and locked in various positions with respect to one or more degrees of freedom, for example, to extend the length of each arm 510, tilt each arm 510, and / or articulate one or more joints of each arm 510. The distal end of each arm 510 may have an accessory attached to it, such as a ring 512 for holding a phaco-vit vacuum pump handpiece, a display 514 (e.g., a tablet computer), an instrument holder 516, an instrument tray, a tube management device, a mechanical arm, a robotic arm, or other accessory. The instrument holder 516 may include a scanner 518 for scanning instruments removed from and returned to the instrument holder 516.

[0033] The sliding base 504 may have one or more foot controls 520 attached to it and positioned to be contacted by the surgeon when seated in the seat 506. The foot controls 520 may be fixed to the sliding base 504 or may translate with the sliding base 504. The foot controls 520 may include a foot control for controlling any of the components forming part of the operating room equipment 100. For example, the foot controls 520 may include a control for controlling an actuator that positions the sliding base 504 on the track 502, for controlling a phaco-vit vacuum pump, for controlling the positioning of the gantry 118, for controlling the positioning of the display 300, for controlling the information displayed on any of the displays 122, 130, 300, 514, or for controlling any other item of equipment included in the operating room equipment 100.

[0034] The base 504 may provide space for routing tubes and wires between the central base 108 and the sliding base 504 to reduce clutter and eliminate tripping hazards. The tubes and / or wires may then be routed through the base 504 and the arm 510 to components attached to or resting on the arm 510.

[0035] 6 illustrates electronic components 600 that may be incorporated into the operating room equipment 100. The electronic components 600 may be connected to a data / power bus 602 that allows for data communication between the electronic components 600 and for power to be provided to the electronic components 600.

[0036] Electronics 600 may include a control computing device 604. Control computing device 604 may implement control of an actuator incorporated into some or all of gantry 118, coupled to arm 302, and controlling movement of sliding base 504, or any other actuator incorporated into the operating room equipment. Control computing device 604 may be programmed to effect coordinated movement of components, such as movement of gantry 118 and / or display 300 in response to movement of the sliding base.

[0037] The electronics 600 may include an imaging computing device 606 that receives images captured by the surgical microscope 120 or other imaging device and displays the images on any of the displays 122, 130, 300, 514. The imaging computing device 606 may process the images to generate a processed image that is output on any of the displays 130, 300, 514. For example, the processed image may have guides superimposed thereon to guide the performance of the ophthalmic surgery, e.g., incision location, IOL alignment, etc.

[0038] The electronic component 600 includes one or more imaging devices 608, such as the surgical microscope 120, that provide images to an imaging computing device 606. Other imaging devices 608 may include an optical coherence tomography (OCT) scanner.

[0039] The electronics 600 may include a positioning actuator 610. The positioning actuator 610 may include an actuator for positioning the gantry 118, the arm 302, the sliding base 504, or other components of the procedure room equipment 100.

[0040] Electronic component 600 may include one or more displays 612, such as some or all of display 122, display 130, display 300, and display 514. Electronic component 600 may include a phaco-vit vacuum pump 614. Electronic component 600 may also include control panel 114.

[0041] The electronics 600 may include electronics 616 of the surgical chair 126. These electronics 616 may include a scanner 518, a foot control 520, and possibly actuators 618 for adjusting the position and orientation of the surgical chair 126, such as the height, forward / backward positioning, tilt, and position and height of the arm 510, the position of the accessories 512, 514, 516, 518, and the position of the foot control 520.

[0042] The electronics 600 may include the electronics of the patient bed 128. The patient bed 128 may include one or more actuators 620, such as an actuator for raising and lowering the platform 128a of the patient bed 128 or an actuator for changing the angle of a portion of the platform. The electronics of the patient bed 128 may include sensors 622, such as a sensor for detecting whether the patient bed 128 is connected to the plug 400, the position of the platform 128a of the patient bed 128, or other attributes of the patient bed 128. The electronics may further include a storage device 624. As noted above, the storage device 624 may be a standalone storage device or may be incorporated into a computing device housed within the patient bed 128.

[0043] Various other electronic components 600 may be incorporated. For example, the electronic components 600 may include sensors for monitoring the surgeon's stress and a computing device (which may be the control computing device 604) programmed to receive and process the output of these sensors. The electronic components may also include sensors for monitoring the patient's vitals and stress and a computing device (which may be the control computing device 604) programmed to receive and process the output of these sensors. Output from any of these sensors may be used to generate content displayed on any of the displays 122, 130, 300, 514 or output on another output device of the device, for example, output by a speaker. The sensors for monitoring the patient's vitals and stress may include a galvanic skin response wristband, which may include other physiological sensors, such as a heart rate sensor.

[0044] FIG. 7 illustrates a method 700 that can be performed using the operating room equipment 100. The method 700 may be performed by the control computing device 604 or other components of the electronics 600. The method 700 includes, in step 702, detecting docking of the patient bed 128 with the plug 400. Step 702 may include detecting a storage device 624 connected to the plug 400. The method 700 includes, in step 704, retrieving patient data from the storage device 624 of the patient bed 128. As described above, the patient data may include a treatment plan for an ophthalmic surgery performed using the operating room equipment 100. The patient data may additionally or alternatively include pre-operative diagnosis and analysis. In particular, the surgical microscope 120 combined with the imaging computing device 606 may display guidance for performing the ophthalmic surgery on one or more of the displays 612 or on an internal display of the surgical microscope 120.

[0045] The method may further include uploading surgeon preferences for positioning the platform 128a of the patient bed 128 in step 708. Step 708 may include either (a) uploading the preferences to the patient bed 128, e.g., a computing device integrated into the patient bed, which then implements the preferences by activating an actuator 620 on the patient bed, or (b) the control computing device 604 sending a control signal to the actuator 620 to implement the surgeon's preferences. In this way, the surgeon can ensure that the patient is positioned at a preferred height when performing ophthalmic surgery without having to manually adjust the height of the platform 128a of the patient bed 128. The actuator 620 may control other components of the patient bed 128, such as headrest position, spinal support positioning, and knee bolster positioning.

[0046] In some embodiments, the method 700 further includes, at step 710, uploading the post-operative data to a storage device 624 of the patient bed 128, thereby ensuring that a copy of the post-operative data is created and associated with the patient.

[0047] The above-described apparatus and method provide the following advantages: Reduced floor space usage due to components being integrated into a central base 108 and tied to a common power bus. Improved ergonomics due to a highly adjustable gantry 118 and improved operating chair 126. · Cost savings due to many items of surgical equipment being incorporated into a single stand-alone support structure that can be acquired as a single unit without requiring modifications to the operating room itself. · Consolidation of various items of equipment into a single, standalone structure, thereby improving safety by reducing clutter and tripping hazards from exposed wires and tubes. Improved workflow due to the need to move or adjustable mounting points for items of equipment, including various displays and surgical instruments mounted on the gantry 118, which can be easily moved to and from the surgical area without effort. Improved data security due to storage of patient data within the patient bed 128 and transfer of patient data without a wireless connection. Improved image stability and faster image stabilization due to the stiffness of the boom 106 and the weight of the central base 108, including the weight of the electronics housed in the central base 108. Noise reduction due to fan containment within the central base 108 and lateral bases 110a, 110b and rear-facing exhaust outlets. Integration of the phaco-vit pump 614 into the central base 108 and the control panel 114 into the boom 106, as well as improved tube management with rings 512 integrated into the operating chair 126. A modular design that allows various items of surgical equipment to be selectively attached to the gantry 118 or surgical chair 126. · A surgical chair 126 having integral adjustable attachment points for holding multiple items of surgical equipment in an ergonomic position.

[0048] Additional considerations The above description is provided to enable those skilled in the art to practice various embodiments described herein. Various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments. For example, changes may be made to the function and arrangement of elements discussed without departing from the scope of the disclosure. In various examples, various actions or elements may be omitted, substituted, or added as appropriate. Features described with respect to some examples may be combined in several other examples. For example, an apparatus may be implemented or a method may be practiced using any number of aspects described herein. Furthermore, the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover similar apparatuses or methods that are implemented using structure, functionality, or structure and functionality in addition to or other than various aspects of the disclosure described herein. It should be understood that any aspect of the disclosure disclosed herein may be implemented by one or more elements recited in the claims.

[0049] As used herein, a phrase referring to "at least one of" a list of items refers to any combination of those items, including single members. As an example, "at least one of a, b, or c" is intended to cover a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, and abc, as well as any combination of multiples of the same element (e.g., aa, aaa, aab, aac, abb, acc, bb, bbb, bbc, cc, and ccc, or any other permutation of a, b, and c).

[0050] As used herein, the term "determining" encompasses a wide variety of actions. For example, "determining" may include calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating, querying (e.g., querying a table, database, or other data structure), ascertaining, etc. Also, "determining" may include receiving (e.g., receiving information), accessing (e.g., accessing data in a memory), and others. Also, "determining" may include ascertaining, selecting, choosing, establishing, and others.

[0051] The methods disclosed herein include one or more steps or actions for achieving the method. Method steps and / or actions may be interchangeable with one another without departing from the scope of the claims. In other words, unless a specific order of steps or actions is specified, the order and / or use of specific steps and / or actions may be modified without departing from the claims. Furthermore, various actions of the methods described above may be performed by any suitable means capable of performing the corresponding functions. These means may include various hardware and / or software elements and / or modules, including, but not limited to, circuits, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), or processors. In general, where there are actions illustrated in figures, those actions may include corresponding means-plus-function elements that are similarly numbered.

[0052] The various illustrative logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with this disclosure may be implemented or performed by a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device (PLD), discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware elements, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but alternatively, the processor may be any commercially available processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in cooperation with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0053] The processing system may be implemented with a bus architecture. The bus may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, depending on the particular application and overall design constraints of the processing system. The bus may interconnect various circuits, including, among other things, a processor, machine-readable media, and input / output devices. A user interface (e.g., keypad, display, mouse, joystick, etc.) may also be connected to the bus. The bus may also connect various other circuits, such as timing sources, peripherals, voltage regulators, power management circuits, etc., which are known in the art and will not be described further. The processor may be implemented with one or more general-purpose and / or special-purpose processors. Examples include microprocessors, microcontrollers, DSP processors, and other circuits capable of executing software. Those skilled in the art will recognize how to best implement the described functionality of the processing system, depending on the particular application and the overall design constraints imposed on the overall system.

[0054] If implemented in software, the functions described above may be stored on or transmitted as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Software should be construed broadly to mean instructions, data, or any combination thereof, whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise. Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media, such as any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A processor may be responsible for managing the bus and general processing, including the execution of software modules stored on the computer-readable storage medium. The computer-readable storage medium may be coupled to the processor such that the processor can read information from and write information to the storage medium. Alternatively, the storage medium may be integral to the processor. By way of example, computer-readable media may include a transmission line, a carrier wave modulated with data, and / or a computer-readable storage medium on which instructions are stored separately from a wireless node, all of which may be accessed by the processor via a bus interface. Alternatively or additionally, the computer-readable medium, or any portion thereof, may be integrated into the processor, such as in the case of a cache and / or general-purpose register file. Examples of machine-readable storage media include, for example, RAM (random access memory), flash memory, ROM (read-only memory), PROM (programmable read-only memory), EPROM (erasable programmable read-only memory), EEPROM (electrically erasable programmable read-only memory), registers, magnetic disks, optical disks, hard drives, or any other suitable storage medium or any combination thereof. The machine-readable medium may be embodied in a computer program product.

[0055] A software module may include a single instruction or many instructions and may be distributed across several different code sections, across different programs, and across multiple storage media. A computer-readable medium may include many software modules. A software module contains instructions that, when executed by a device such as a processor, cause a processing system to perform various functions. A software module may include a transmitting module and a receiving module. Each software module may reside on a single storage device or may be distributed across multiple storage devices. For example, a software module may be loaded from a hard drive into RAM when a trigger event occurs. During execution of a software module, a processor may load some of the instructions into a cache to speed access. One or more cache lines may then be loaded into a general-purpose register file for execution by the processor. When referring to the functionality of a software module, it is understood that such functionality is implemented by the processor when executing instructions from that software module.

[0056] The following claims are not limited to the embodiments set forth herein but are to be accorded the full scope consistent with the language of the claims. In the claims, when an element is referred to in the singular, it does not mean "only one" unless specifically stated otherwise, but rather "one or more." The term "some" refers to one or more unless specifically stated otherwise. No element of a claim is to be construed under the provisions of 35 U.S.C. § 112(f) unless the element is expressly recited using the phrase "means for," or, in the case of a method claim, unless the element is recited using the phrase "step of." All structural and functional equivalents of the elements of various aspects described throughout this disclosure that are known or later become known to those skilled in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be encompassed by the claims. Furthermore, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be made available to the public, regardless of whether such disclosure is expressly recited in the claims.

Claims

1. a base for placing it on the floor; a boom extending upwardly from the base and extending outwardly from the base in a forward direction; a gantry suspended from the boom and having three or more degrees of freedom; a surgical instrument mounted on the gantry; one or more electrical components mounted within the base, the electrical components configured to assist in performing ophthalmic surgery; 1. An operating room device comprising:

2. The operating room equipment of claim 1 , wherein the one or more electrical components include a vacuum pump.

3. 3. The operating room equipment of claim 2, further comprising a control panel mounted on the boom and facing forward, the control panel defining connectors for coupling tubing to the vacuum pump and defining controls for controlling operation of the vacuum pump.

4. The operating room equipment of claim 1 , wherein the one or more electrical components include a computing device.

5. The operating room equipment of claim 4 , wherein the surgical instrument comprises a surgical microscope, and the computing device is configured to process images from the surgical microscope.

6. The operating room equipment of claim 1 , further comprising a vent on a surface of the base facing in a rearward direction opposite the forward direction.

7. 2. The operating room equipment of claim 1, wherein the base is a central base having first and second lateral bases secured thereto, a center base between the first and second lateral bases, and the first and second lateral bases are configured to rest on the floor when the center base rests on the floor and extends outward from the base in the forward direction.

8. The operating room equipment of claim 1 , wherein the base includes a ballast.

9. The operating room equipment of claim 1 , wherein the gantry has six degrees of freedom.

10. The operating room equipment of claim 1 , further comprising a rotatable member secured to the boom, the gantry suspended from the rotatable member.

11. The operating room equipment of claim 10 , further comprising a shaft slidably and rotatably mounted to the rotatable member, the gantry mounted to the shaft.

12. a first electrical coupler connected to the one or more electrical components; a patient bed housing a storage device; 10. The procedure room equipment of claim 1, further comprising: a patient bed including a second electrical coupler connected to the storage device and configured to engage the first electrical coupler.

13. the one or more electrical components comprising a computing device; configured to detect a connection of the second electrical coupler to the first electrical coupler; downloading patient data from the storage device in response to detecting a connection of the second electrical coupler to the first electrical coupler; 13. The operating room equipment of claim 12.

14. an arcuate track for placement on the floor; a sliding base attached to the arcuate track and slidable along the arcuate track; a seat attached to the sliding base; The operating room equipment of claim 1 further comprising:

15. 15. The operating room equipment of claim 14, wherein one or more arms are rotatably mounted to the sliding base, and any of the one or more arms fixed thereto, a phaco-vit handpiece, a display device, an instrument holder, and a ring for supporting a scanner.

16. The operating room equipment of claim 14, further comprising one or more foot controls attached to the sliding base.

17. The operating room equipment of claim 16 , wherein the foot control is configured to control the surgical instrument.

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