Spinal Fixation Bridge for Multi-Vertebrae Reference Frame
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current spinal surgery methods require complex and inconvenient procedures for performing operations on multiple vertebrae, involving either fixing each vertebra to a stationary frame or using multiple dynamic referencing sensors, and rely on inaccurate visual estimation for spinal curvature corrections.
Innovation Solution
A novel frame device that fixes multiple vertebrae together to create a single reference frame, allowing for movement with the spine, which can be used with dynamic referencing sensors or robots to perform surgeries on multiple vertebrae with a single registration process, and provides accurate alignment information along the spine.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If dynamic referencing sensors are affixed at each level of the spine or on each vertebra, then relative motion between different regions of the spine can be detected and compensated for, but the device complexity and procedural complexity increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple vertebrae into a single reference frame by rigidly connecting them together, allowing the group to move as one unit. This eliminates the need for multiple separate dynamic referencing sensors at each vertebra level, reducing device complexity while maintaining the ability to track and compensate for spinal motion through a single reference frame.
Solution Approach 2:
The reference frame serves multiple functions simultaneously: it provides a common coordinate system for navigation, enables tracking of spinal motion, and allows registration for multiple vertebrae in a single procedure. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate systems for each function, thereby reducing overall device complexity.
2Measurement precision
If all vertebrae to be operated on are fixed to a stationary frame, then well-defined positions are ensured, but the procedure becomes complex and inconvenient
Solution Approach 1:
The reference frame is designed to be dynamically connected to the spine through rigid connections to multiple vertebrae, allowing it to move with the spine rather than being fixed to a stationary external frame. This dynamic connection maintains well-defined relative positions between vertebrae and the reference frame while enabling natural spinal motion, thereby improving ease of operation without sacrificing measurement precision.
3Ease of operation
If visual estimation is used for determining vertebrae positions at different spinal levels, then the procedure is simple, but accuracy is compromised and highly dependent on surgeon skill
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a reference frame as an intermediary between the surgeon and the vertebrae. This reference frame provides objective, measurable position information for multiple vertebrae, replacing subjective visual estimation. The reference frame serves as a mediator that translates complex spatial relationships into measurable coordinates, improving accuracy while maintaining procedural simplicity through standardized registration processes.
Data Source
AI summary
A framed device in the form of a bridge for fixing a number of vertebrae together into positions which are uniquely defined relative to the bridge, but which can move with the spine relative to the external environment. The fixation generated by such a bridge is especially useful in Computer Assisted Surgery procedures, either using manual navigation and a tracking system to follow the position of the surgeon's tools relative to the operated vertebrae, or by using a pre-programmed robot mounted on the bridge itself to perform the surgery. Alternative embodiments of the bridge may be used either for performing surgery in one procedure on a number of vertebrae of the spine, or as a reference frame for performing surgery at different locations along the spine, while providing an alignment reference along major lengths or along all of the spine.