Endoscope-Microscope Integration for 3D Neurosurgical Visualization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current endoscopic surgery lacks 3-D viewing capability, leading to increased risk of patient accidents during procedures, while microscopic surgery provides 3-D vision but with limited versatility in combining with endoscopic techniques, particularly in neurosurgical procedures.
Innovation Solution
Development of an endoscope/microscope combination system where the endoscope is attached to microsurgical instruments and integrated into the oculars of an operating microscope, allowing for both endoscopic and microscopic views, enhancing surgical precision and safety by providing a 3-D visualization with additional 2-D endoscopic information.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If endoscopic surgery is used to provide wide angle view and enhanced illumination, then the ability to look around corners and illuminate the target is improved, but 3-D viewing capability is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines an endoscope and a microscope into a single integrated surgical system. The endoscope provides wide-angle viewing and illumination capabilities, while the microscope contributes 3-D visualization. The merged system allows the surgical team to simultaneously access both 2-D endoscopic images and 3-D microscopic views, resolving the contradiction between enhanced illumination/wide-angle view and loss of 3-D capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The integrated system serves multiple functions: it provides both 2-D endoscopic imaging and 3-D microscopic visualization, combines wide-angle viewing with depth perception, and integrates illumination from both systems. This multi-functionality allows the surgical team to leverage the strengths of both endoscopic and microscopic approaches without being constrained by the limitations of either system alone.
2Reliability
If microscopic surgery is used to provide 3-D vision in narrow operating space, then depth perception is improved, but versatility in combining with endoscopic techniques is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges microscopic and endoscopic systems into a unified platform, allowing neurosurgeons to perform microscopic procedures with 3-D vision while simultaneously accessing endoscopic imaging capabilities. The integrated system enables the combination of both techniques during the same surgical procedure, eliminating the limitation of having to choose between microscopic or endoscopic approaches.
Solution Approach 2:
The integrated surgical system provides universal functionality by supporting both microscopic and endoscopic techniques. It allows the surgical team to switch between or combine 3-D microscopic visualization and 2-D endoscopic imaging as needed during the procedure, enhancing versatility and adaptability in neurosurgical applications.
3Adaptability or versatility
If endoscope is used as a separate surgical tool, then endoscopic capabilities are provided, but surgical space becomes crowded with additional tools
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates the endoscope with the microscope system, combining two previously separate tools into one unified platform. This merger eliminates the need for additional separate endoscopic equipment in the surgical field, reducing clutter and simplifying the surgical environment while maintaining both microscopic and endoscopic capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
The integrated system serves as a universal surgical platform that combines microscopic and endoscopic functions. Instead of requiring multiple separate tools, the single system provides both 3-D microscopic visualization and 2-D endoscopic imaging, reducing the number of devices needed in the surgical space while enhancing versatility.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a surgical apparatus that includes a surgical instrument including an elongated shaft extending along a longitudinal axis from a proximal end to a distal end, a working element coupled to the distal end of the elongated shaft for manipulating tissue; an endoscope having a tubular body including an image fiber, an endoscopic lens coupled to a distal end of the tubular body and operably coupled to the image fiber, the endoscopic lens defining a viewing field about a central axis; and the endoscope mounted to the elongated shaft of the surgical instrument, the endoscopic lens protruding from an outer longitudinal surface of the elongated shaft, the central axis of the viewing field being oblique to the longitudinal axis of the elongated shaft and intersecting the outer longitudinal surface, the working element located within the viewing field and separated from the central axis by a distance.