Optically Trackable Surgical Cutting Tool for Bone Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current surgical cutting tools lack precise positional accuracy during bone cuts, which is crucial for successful procedures like Total Knee Arthroplasty, as they rely on manual alignment and do not provide real-time feedback on the cutting tool's position relative to the patient's anatomy.
Innovation Solution
A cutting tool with an optically trackable feature, detectable by a camera integrated with or attached to a power tool, that computes and displays the relative pose of the cutting feature with respect to the patient's bone, enabling precise alignment and real-time feedback for improved surgical accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If manual alignment is used for cutting tools, then the device complexity is low, but the measurement precision and manufacturing precision of bone cuts deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual mechanical alignment with an optical tracking system. A camera captures images of optically trackable features on the cutting tool and patient anatomy, and a computing unit calculates real-time pose information, substituting manual alignment procedures with automated optical-mechanical systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces optically trackable features as intermediaries between the cutting tool and the navigation system. These features serve as mediators that enable the camera to detect and track the cutting tool's position and orientation without direct mechanical contact or complex sensors on the tool itself.
2Measurement precision
If real-time feedback is implemented, then the measurement precision improves, but the device complexity and loss of time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary registration of the patient's anatomy and establishes the optical tracking system before the actual cutting procedure. This allows the system to be pre-calibrated and ready for real-time tracking during surgery, reducing the time penalty of setup and computation during the critical cutting phases.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements continuous real-time tracking throughout the surgical procedure. The camera continuously captures images of the optically trackable features, and the computing unit continuously updates pose information, maintaining uninterrupted feedback during the entire cutting process rather than taking discrete measurements.
3Measurement precision
If optically trackable features are added to the cutting tool, then the measurement precision improves, but the manufacturing precision requirements and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses optically trackable features that create a visual copy or representation of the cutting tool's position in the navigation system's coordinate space. The camera captures images of these features, creating an optical copy that the computing unit processes to determine pose information, eliminating the need for direct electronic sensors on the tool.
4Reliability
If navigation system integration is implemented, then the reliability of surgical outcomes improves, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a universal navigation system that can track multiple optically trackable features simultaneously - both on the cutting tool and on the patient's anatomy. This multi-functional system handles registration, real-time tracking, and pose calculation through a single integrated optical tracking approach rather than requiring separate specialized systems for each function.
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
Enhances positional accuracy of bone cuts by providing real-time display information and control to surgeons or robotic systems, ensuring well-aligned and balanced implant positioning during surgeries like TKA.
Implementation Method 1
The trackable feature may include reflective material applied to a surface (e.g. a recessed blade surface)
Data Source
AI summary
Cutting tools, systems and methods for navigated procedures are provided. A cutting tool (e.g. oscillating blade, etc.) for a power tool has an optically trackable feature in a defined positional relationship relative to a cutting feature of the cutting tool. The trackable feature may include reflective material applied to a surface (e.g. a recessed blade surface). The trackable feature is be imaged by a camera integral with or attached to the power tool and provided to a computing unit of a navigation system to determine a relative pose of the cutting feature and camera. The camera may also track a patient's bone such that the computing unit may determine a relative position of the bone and camera. The unit then computes a relative pose of the cutting feature with respect to the patient's bone and provides same for determining display information and/or to a robotic controller for procedural control.