In-Line Shoulder Joint for Single-Port Robotic Surgery
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current robotic surgical systems for minimally invasive procedures, such as Laparo-Endoscopic Single-Site Surgery, face challenges including increased surgery duration, reduced visibility, greater dexterity requirements for surgeons, and high costs and complexity of existing robotic platforms like the Da Vinci system, which are not affordable for smaller hospitals and require extensive training.
Innovation Solution
A single-armed robotic device with an in-line shoulder joint and compact design that can be inserted through a trocar port, featuring a minimal cross-sectional profile and three degrees of freedom, allowing for reduced incision size and ease of handling, and utilizing existing tools and techniques familiar to surgeons, thus reducing the need for specialized infrastructure and training.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a traditional robotic surgical platform like Da Vinci is used, then surgical precision and dexterity are improved, but device complexity and cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The robotic system is divided into modular components: a trocart with seal mechanism, a robotic arm with degrees of freedom, and an end effector. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently while reducing overall system complexity and cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The robotic arm components are nested within the trocart structure, with the arm rotating within the trocart housing. The end effector is nested within the arm structure, creating a compact hierarchical arrangement that reduces device complexity while maintaining surgical precision.
2Length of moving object
If a single-port entry device is used for LESS/SILS, then incision size is reduced, but surgeon dexterity and surgery duration are adversely affected
Solution Approach 1:
The robotic arm provides dynamic movement capabilities with multiple degrees of freedom, allowing the end effector to achieve complex trajectories and orientations despite the constrained single-port entry. This dynamic capability restores surgeon dexterity while maintaining the benefit of reduced incision size.
Solution Approach 2:
The robotic system adds dimensional freedom by implementing rotational joints and degrees of freedom within the arm structure. This allows the end effector to move in multiple dimensions (pitch, roll, yaw) despite the linear constraint of single-port entry, effectively adding spatial dimensions to the surgical tool's capability.
3Reliability
If existing robotic platforms are deployed, then surgical capability is enhanced, but infrastructure requirements and training needs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The trocart includes an integrated seal mechanism that automatically maintains the barrier between pressurized and unpressurized environments without requiring external infrastructure. The robotic arm uses spring-loaded or elastomeric seals that self-regulate, reducing the need for complex infrastructure while maintaining surgical capability.
Data Source
Figure 1A~1C
Figure 2A~2B
Figure 2C~2D
AI summary
Disclosed herein are various robotic surgical devices and systems that include first and second elongate bodies, first and second driveshafts disposed through the second elongate body, and an in-line shoulder joint with a robotic arm coupled thereto. In certain implementations, the in-line shoulder joint has a differential yoke and a dual shaft disposed within the yoke lumen.