Robotic Surgery Tissue Identification Using Force-Displacement Sensors
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Solution Overview
Problem
Robotic surgery lacks tactile feedback, impairing surgeons' ability to characterize tissue location and extent, particularly for structures like tumors and lymph nodes, due to the loss of sense of touch.
Innovation Solution
A sensor device integrated into surgical instruments, utilizing force and displacement sensors, such as Fiber Bragg Gratings, to quantify tissue mechanical properties and provide real-time feedback, enabling accurate tissue identification and characterization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If robotic surgery is used to provide minimally invasive access with increased range of motion, then surgical precision and dexterity are improved, but tactile feedback and sense of touch are lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements tactile feedback by integrating force sensors and displacement sensors into the robotic end effector. The force sensor measures forces applied to tissue while the displacement sensor measures tissue deformation, providing real-time tactile information back to the surgeon through the haptic interface, thus resolving the loss of tactile feedback in robotic surgery
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces sensorized end effectors as intermediaries between the robotic manipulator and tissue. These end effectors equipped with force and displacement sensors act as mediators that convert mechanical tissue interactions into measurable signals, enabling the surgeon to perceive tactile information that would otherwise be lost
2Stability of the object's composition
If robotic instruments with rigid structure are used to provide stable manipulation, then structural stability is improved, but ability to characterize tissue location and extent is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces direct mechanical tactile perception with sensor-based measurement systems. Force sensors and displacement sensors substitute for the surgeon's hand in characterizing tissue properties, providing quantitative mechanical property data that enables precise tissue identification and characterization while maintaining instrument stability
3Measurement precision
If sensor device is integrated into robotic end effector to provide tactile feedback, then tissue identification accuracy is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates force and displacement sensors into the robotic end effector, enabling a single device to perform both manipulation and tissue characterization functions. This multi-functionality allows the end effector to serve dual purposes: mechanical manipulation and tactile feedback, thereby improving tissue identification accuracy without requiring separate specialized devices
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
The sensor device enhances tissue identification accuracy beyond human capabilities, providing rapid and reliable mechanical property feedback for improved surgical precision and efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
The force sensor comprises one or more fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors
Implementation Method 2
The force sensor comprises one or more piezoelectric sensors
Implementation Method 3
The force sensor comprises one or more capacitive sensors
Implementation Method 4
The displacement sensor comprises an angle encoder
Implementation Method 5
The displacement sensor comprises a stereoscope
Data Source
AI summary
A device for tissue mechanical property detection during robotic surgery, comprising a sensor frame having proximal and distal ends and a length therebetween, a force sensor disposed along the length of the sensor frame, and a displacement sensor configured to measure a position of the sensor frame. Related systems and methods are also disclosed.