Drill Guide Assembly with Navigation Tracking for Surgical Precision
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Solution Overview
Problem
During medical procedures, such as forming a burr hole in the skull, surgeons rely solely on visual cues and experience due to the tool tip being hidden from direct view, making it challenging to accurately determine the location and depth of the drill, potentially leading to inefficiencies and increased risk of damaging surrounding tissues.
Innovation Solution
A powered drill assembly equipped with a tracking system that uses navigation processors and imaging technologies to display the tool's location relative to the patient's image, combined with a depth guide and trajectory guide, allowing for precise control and alignment of the drill.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a powered drill is used to perform procedures on a subject, then the drilling speed and efficiency are improved, but the ability to directly view and control the tool tip location deteriorates because the tool tip is hidden from direct view
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a navigation system that provides real-time feedback by tracking the powered drill's position and displaying it on an image of the subject. This allows the user to see the tool tip location indirectly through the navigation display, resolving the contradiction by maintaining high drilling speed while restoring visual control capability through electronic feedback rather than direct line-of-sight
Solution Approach 2:
The navigation system acts as an intermediary between the powered drill and the user's visual perception. Instead of requiring direct viewing of the hidden tool tip, the system uses tracking devices and image processing to create a visual representation of the drill's position, mediating the control task and eliminating the need for direct visual contact with the tool tip
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the tool tip is hidden from direct view during the procedure, then the surgical approach can be minimally invasive, but the measurement precision of the tool location deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The navigation system continuously tracks and displays the powered drill's position relative to the subject's anatomy, providing precise measurement feedback without requiring physical exposure or invasive viewing. The tracking system maintains accurate position data throughout the procedure, ensuring measurement precision is preserved while keeping the approach minimally invasive
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces mechanical line-of-sight measurement with an electronic navigation and tracking system. Instead of requiring the user to physically see the tool tip through direct viewing, the system uses electronic tracking devices and computer processing to determine and display the tool's precise location, substituting mechanical observation with electronic measurement
3Manufacturing precision
If a guide assembly is added to control the powered drill, then the manufacturing precision of the procedure is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The guide assembly is designed to perform multiple functions: it provides mechanical guidance for drill trajectory, incorporates depth limiting features, and integrates with the navigation system. By combining these functions into a single integrated device, the system achieves high procedural accuracy while minimizing the number of separate components, thus reducing overall device complexity
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a system to engage one or more tools. In the system, a drive shaft and collet may be assembled to engage and disengage, selectively, a plurality of tools. A guide may be used with the system to select various features of a procedure, such as depth and position.