Cooperative Surgical Instrument Control Across Anatomical Boundaries
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Solution Overview
Problem
Surgical procedures often face challenges due to anatomical limitations and imaging system limitations, where surgical instruments operating from different anatomic spaces cannot be coordinated effectively, and existing imaging systems struggle to recognize concealed structures and convey necessary information to medical practitioners during procedures.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising a first surgical instrument inserted outside a lumen structure, a second surgical instrument inserted within the lumen, and a controller using image sensors from endoscopes to determine the location of both instruments and coordinate their cooperative movement, enabling the delivery of adjuncts and fixating implants across anatomical boundaries.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If multiple surgical instruments operate from different anatomic spaces independently, then each instrument can access its target area, but coordination between instruments becomes difficult or impossible
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple independent surgical instruments into a coordinated robotic system with a shared control architecture. The control system integrates inputs from multiple image sensors and coordinates movement of instruments from different anatomic spaces (e.g., intraluminal and extraluminal approaches) to work together on the same tissue target, transforming independent operations into a unified coordinated system.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system acts as an intermediary that receives data from multiple image sensors positioned in different anatomic spaces and translates this information into coordinated control signals for multiple surgical instruments. This intermediary processing enables synchronization of instrument movements without requiring direct manual coordination between surgeons operating different instruments.
2Device complexity
If imaging systems use standard sensors, then system complexity remains low, but concealed structures and three-dimensional information become unrecognizable
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs multiple image sensors positioned at different spatial locations and orientations to capture images from multiple dimensions and perspectives. By combining data from these多角度 sensors, the system reconstructs three-dimensional information and visualizes concealed structures that would be invisible from any single viewpoint, adding dimensional information without requiring complex single-sensor systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system performs multiple functions: it processes images from various sensors, determines three-dimensional positions, tracks instrument locations, and generates coordinated control signals. This multi-functional approach consolidates what could be separate specialized systems into a single universal control platform, managing complexity through integration rather than proliferation of dedicated components.
3Ease of operation
If surgical instruments are operated independently without coordination, then operational simplicity is maintained, but surgical outcomes fail to achieve successful procedures requiring coordinated operation
Solution Approach 1:
The system continuously receives feedback from multiple image sensors monitoring the positions and movements of surgical instruments in real-time. The control system processes this feedback information and dynamically adjusts control signals to maintain proper coordination between instruments, ensuring that cooperative operations remain synchronized throughout the procedure and achieving reliable surgical outcomes.
Data Source
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AI summary
Systems, devices, and methods for controlling cooperative surgical instruments with variable surgical site access trajectories are provided. Various aspects of the present disclosure provide for coordinated operation of surgical instruments accessing a common surgical site from different approach and/or separate body cavities to achieve a common surgical purpose. For example, various methods, devices, and systems disclosed herein can enable the coordinated treatment of tissue by disparate minimally invasive surgical systems that approach the tissue from varying anatomical spaces and must operate differently, but in concert with one another, to effect a desired surgical treatment.