Robotic Operating Table Vertical Joint Orientation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing robotic patient positioning systems for surgical operations face challenges in downsizing their robotic arms to prevent interference with medical personnel while maintaining the strength to support heavy patients, as the reduction in joint size compromises load-bearing capacity.
Innovation Solution
A robotic operating table with an articulated robotic arm featuring vertical joints with horizontal rotation axes, positioned parallel to the table's longitudinal direction, which allows for compact design without compromising load-bearing strength, and includes a pitch mechanism to facilitate patient positioning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If the robotic arm is downsized to prevent interference with medical personnel, then the space around the operating table is increased and interference is reduced, but the joint strength to withstand loads is lowered
Solution Approach 1:
The patent reorients the rotation axis of vertical joints from the conventional vertical direction to a horizontal direction parallel to the table's longitudinal axis. This dimensional change in the joint configuration allows the robotic arm to achieve the necessary lifting capacity with a more compact structure, resolving the contradiction between downsizing for space and maintaining strength for load-bearing.
2Strength
If a large robotic arm is used to ensure joint strength for heavy patients, then the load-bearing capacity is sufficient, but the space around the operating table is reduced and interference with medical personnel occurs
Solution Approach 1:
By changing the orientation of the vertical joint's rotation axis to horizontal, the patent enables a more compact robotic arm configuration that provides sufficient lifting capacity without encroaching on the space needed for surgical operations, thus resolving the contradiction between strength and available space.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs an asymmetric joint configuration where the rotation axis of vertical joints is oriented horizontally rather than vertically. This asymmetric design allows the robotic arm to achieve optimal mechanical advantage for lifting heavy patients while maintaining a compact profile that does not interfere with the operating space.
Data Source
AI summary
An operating table may include: a table on which to place a patient; a base buried or fixed to a floor; and an articulated robotic arm including first end supported on the base and a second end supporting the table, wherein the robotic arm includes at least one vertical joint, and a rotation axis of the vertical joint is positioned along a direction that is horizontal and substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the table.