ENT Instrument Adapter for Electromagnetic Navigation Tracking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current surgical navigation systems face challenges in providing real-time spatial positioning of instruments within the body, especially in areas where direct visualization is difficult or impossible, such as during ENT procedures.
Innovation Solution
An image-guided instrument assembly with an adapter assembly that includes a navigation guidewire and a coupling unit, allowing existing surgical instruments to be integrated with electromagnetic navigation systems, enabling real-time tracking and visualization of instrument positions within the body using a processor and field generators.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If existing surgical instruments are used without navigation integration, then device complexity is reduced, but measurement precision and real-time tracking capability are lost
Solution Approach 1:
The navigation guidewire is nested within the adapter assembly, which itself attaches to the surgical instrument. This nested configuration allows the navigation system to be integrated within the instrument structure without requiring separate external tracking systems, thereby improving measurement precision while controlling device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The adapter assembly serves as an intermediary component that couples the surgical instrument to the navigation guidewire. This mediator enables existing instruments to be integrated with electromagnetic navigation systems without modifying the instruments themselves, thus improving measurement precision while minimizing the increase in device complexity.
2Adaptability or versatility
If navigation guidewire and adapter assembly are added to existing instruments, then navigation capability is improved, but ease of operation is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The navigation system is segmented into separate functional components: the adapter assembly that attaches to the instrument, the navigation guidewire with electromagnetic sensor, and the external tracking system. This segmentation allows the navigation capability to be added without permanently modifying the surgical instrument, thereby improving adaptability while maintaining ease of operation through modular assembly and disassembly.
Solution Approach 2:
The adapter assembly is designed as a universal interface that can be attached to various surgical instruments. This multi-functionality allows a single adapter design to work with different instrument types, improving navigation integration capability without requiring instrument-specific modifications that would complicate operation.
3Measurement precision
If real-time tracking components are integrated into instruments, then navigation accuracy is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The electromagnetic sensor and major navigation processing components are extracted from the surgical instrument itself and placed in separate units: the sensor is integrated into the removable adapter assembly, while the field generators and processing system are external. This extraction reduces the complexity of the instrument structure while maintaining real-time tracking accuracy through the distributed sensor system.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables precise real-time tracking and visualization of surgical instruments within the body, enhancing navigation and manipulation during procedures by superimposing instrument positions onto preoperative images, thereby improving surgical accuracy and safety.
Implementation Method 1
sensors (e.g., electromagnetic coils that emit electromagnetic fields and/or are responsive to externally generated electromagnetic fields)
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus includes a proximal portion and a distal portion attached to the proximal portion. The proximal portion includes a proximal surface. The proximal portion defines a first pathway and a second pathway that both extend distally from the proximal surface. The first pathway is dimensioned to receive a shaft while the second pathway is dimensioned to receive a navigation guidewire. The distal portion includes a distal tip terminating into a distal end. The second pathway extends from the proximal portion into the distal tip.