Slave Device for Eye Surgery with Dual Delta Robot Control

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Solution Overview

Problem

In eye surgery, there is a challenge in maintaining precision and avoiding damage to the eye surface while navigating surgical instruments, and observing the internal eye region is limited due to the small pupil opening.

Innovation Solution

A slave device with a lower and upper delta robot structure, allowing for precise movement and adjustment of surgical instruments with a surgical tip of smaller thickness, and a method for controlling the device to maintain a remote rotation center while adjusting the distance between grippers for optimal positioning and movement.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If a surgical instrument is moved to penetrate the eye surface, then the internal eye region can be accessed, but the eye surface may be damaged

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveaccess to internal eye regionVSAvoideye surface damage

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The surgical instrument is segmented into multiple components: an insertion portion that penetrates the eye surface, a shaft portion that extends into the internal region, and a surgical tip portion that performs the actual surgery. This segmentation allows the insertion portion to be minimized in size to reduce surface damage while the shaft and tip can be optimized for their respective functions deep within the eye

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Different portions of the surgical instrument have different local properties: the insertion portion has small dimensions to minimize trauma to the eye surface, the shaft has appropriate stiffness to maintain position, and the tip has surgical-specific properties for the procedure. This local quality optimization resolves the contradiction between accessing internal regions and protecting the surface

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

2Object-affected harmful factors

If the pupil opening is small, then the eye surface is protected, but observation of the internal eye region is limited

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveeye surface protectionVSAvoidobservation of internal eye region

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSDifficulty of detecting and measuring

Solution Approach 1:

The shaft portion acts as an intermediary that passes through the small pupil opening to deliver the surgical tip to the internal eye region. The shaft's design allows it to navigate through the constrained pupil while providing a stable platform for the surgical tip, thus enabling internal observation and surgery without requiring a larger pupil opening

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Measurement precision

If the distance between lower gripper and upper gripper is adjusted, then positioning precision is improved, but the position of surgical instrument may change

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepositioning precisionVSAvoidsurgical instrument position

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The lower shaft and upper shaft are merged into a single integrated shaft structure that extends from the lower gripper to the upper gripper. This merging ensures that when the distance between grippers is adjusted for precision positioning, the entire shaft moves as one unit, maintaining the relative position and orientation of the surgical instrument without introducing misalignment errors

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Data Source

PatentUS20220401168A1Slave Device and Control Method Therefor, and Eye Surgery Device and Control Method Therefor

Publication Date: 2022.12.22 ROEN SURGICAL INC

AI summary

A slave device according to an example embodiment may comprise: a lower shaft; an upper shaft connected to the lower shaft so as to be able to slide with a single degree of freedom; a lower gripper rotatably supporting the lower shaft; an upper gripper rotatably supporting the upper shaft; a lower delta robot movably supporting the lower gripper; and an upper delta robot movably supporting the upper gripper.