Propulsive Ingestible Capsule for GI Camera Positioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional endoscopies are invasive, time-consuming, and costly, with limitations in controlling the camera's orientation and reaching certain areas of the body, such as the small intestine, efficiently.
Innovation Solution
A propulsive ingestible device equipped with a camera, antenna, and propulsion components, allowing it to navigate through the gastrointestinal tract under its own power, transmit images in real-time, and be controlled remotely to focus on specific areas of interest.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a flexible tube is used to position the camera in endoscopy, then the camera can reach various areas of the body, but the procedure becomes invasive and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The ingestible device propels itself through the GI tract using onboard propulsion components (motors, propellers, or undulating mechanisms), eliminating the need for external manipulation via flexible tube. The device autonomously navigates to target areas, performs imaging, and exits the body naturally, reducing procedure time from 8-12 hours to potentially under 2 hours.
Solution Approach 2:
The camera and imaging system are extracted from the external endoscope and placed inside an ingestible capsule. This allows the imaging function to be performed internally without requiring the invasive flexible tube insertion through the mouth or rectum, thereby eliminating the associated procedure time and patient discomfort.
2Reliability
If conventional endoscopy is performed with flexible tube insertion, then medical professionals can examine GI tract structures, but patients face infection risks and tissue damage
Solution Approach 1:
The ingestible device is swallowed by the patient and travels through the GI tract autonomously, eliminating the need for flexible tube insertion. This removes the primary source of infection risk and tissue damage associated with conventional endoscopy, while maintaining diagnostic capability through onboard imaging sensors that capture images throughout the journey.
Solution Approach 2:
The device incorporates multiple imaging modalities including visible light cameras, infrared sensors, and potentially other spectral detection capabilities. These multiple 'visual channels' allow comprehensive examination of GI tract structures, compensating for the lack of physical manipulation and ensuring reliable diagnosis without invasive procedures.
3Ease of operation
If sedation is used during endoscopy, then patients experience reduced discomfort, but recovery time and hospital resource usage increase
Solution Approach 1:
The ingestible device requires no sedation administration or monitoring infrastructure. Patients swallow the device and can typically resume normal activities immediately after it passes through the system, eliminating the 8-12 hour hospital stay required for sedation recovery and reducing healthcare resource utilization.
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 more efficient and less invasive monitoring of in vivo environments by allowing the device to autonomously navigate and transmit high-quality images in real-time, reducing the need for extensive medical procedures and hospital resources.
Implementation Method 1
an optical fiber exposed near the end of the flexible tube may carry light reflected by the structures within the body to a camera located outside the living body
Implementation Method 2
a camera that is affixed to the end of a flexible tube... generate images of biological structures
Implementation Method 3
transmit the images to an electronic device located outside of the living body
Data Source
AI summary
Introduced here is an ingestible device comprising a capsule having a central axis therethrough, at least one propulsion component, and at least one motor configured to supply motive power to the propulsion component(s). The propulsion component(s) may be disposed at locations radially offset from the central axis. Upon receiving input indicative of a request to alter a position and/or an orientation of the ingestible device, the motor(s) can supply motive power to some or all of the propulsion component(s) to cause movement of the ingestible device.