Surgical Assistant System Arm Position Visualization
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Solution Overview
Problem
In master-slave type surgical assistant systems, surgeons face difficulties in recognizing the state of the arm or patient arrangement due to the lack of visibility of the arm while operating, leading to increased operation time and potential errors.
Innovation Solution
The surgical assistant system incorporates an operation imaging unit, synthetic image creation, and display unit to provide a synthetic image combining operation, arm, and internal-body images, allowing the surgeon to easily switch between operation modes and visualize the arm and treatment tool positions, even when focusing on the display unit.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If the surgeon watches the immersive type monitor displaying internal body images, then the surgeon can observe the surgical site in detail, but the surgeon cannot recognize the state of the arm or the arrangement of footswitches
Solution Approach 1:
The patent overlays 2D images of the arm and footswitches onto the immersive 3D surgical view, adding spatial dimensionality to the display. This allows the surgeon to see both the internal body images and the external device states simultaneously in a unified visual field, resolving the contradiction between detailed surgical observation and awareness of device arrangement.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges multiple separate visual information sources (internal body images from the endoscope, arm position images from cameras, and footswitch state images from sensors) into a single composite display. This integration allows the surgeon to access all necessary information through one immersive monitor without needing to shift attention between multiple devices.
2Measurement precision
If the surgeon operates the arm while watching the immersive monitor, then the surgical precision is improved, but the operation time increases due to difficulty in recognizing arm position
Solution Approach 1:
The system provides real-time visual feedback by continuously displaying the arm's position and the treatment tool's location overlaid on the surgical field. This immediate feedback loop allows the surgeon to maintain precise control without needing to pause or adjust to check arm position, thereby maintaining surgical precision while reducing operation time.
Solution Approach 2:
The system pre-positions and pre-displays visual indicators of the arm and treatment tool in the immersive monitor before the surgeon needs to make adjustments. This preliminary visual preparation allows the surgeon to anticipate arm position and plan movements more efficiently, reducing the time required for precise positioning during surgery.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple arms and footswitches are disposed in the console, then the system functionality is enhanced, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The immersive monitor serves multiple functions simultaneously: it displays internal body images for surgical guidance, shows arm position for spatial awareness, and indicates footswitch states for control monitoring. This multi-functionality consolidates what would otherwise require separate displays or indicators, enhancing system functionality while managing console complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an image processing unit as an intermediary that automatically captures, processes, and overlays images from multiple sources (cameras on the arm, sensors on footswitches) onto the surgical display. This intermediary automates the complex task of integrating multiple device states, reducing the manual configuration burden and simplifying the console setup while maintaining enhanced system functionality.
Data Source
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AI summary
A surgical assistant system (1) includes an operation unit configured to give an input, an arm unit (21 A to 2 ID) on which a treatment tool is mounted, an operation imaging unit configured to acquire an operation image that is an image including the operation unit, an endoscope (45) configured to acquire an internal-body image including an image of the interior of a body of a patient, a mode control unit (55) having a plurality of operation modes and configured to enable one of the plurality of operation modes to be set as a setting operation mode, a driving unit (35) configured to enable the arm unit to be operated based on the input given by the operation unit and the setting operation mode, a synthetic image creation unit (60) configured to synthesize images using at least the operation image to create a synthetic image based on the setting operation mode, and a display unit (65) configured to display the synthetic image.