Surgical Tool Holder With Dynamically Adjustable Opening
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Solution Overview
Problem
Minimally invasive surgical instruments face challenges in flexibility, dexterity, and sensitivity during robotic surgery due to the length of endoscopic instruments and lack of intuitive movement coordination, which hinders effective surgical procedures.
Innovation Solution
A tool holder with an elongate carrier arm and dynamically adjustable opening to accommodate varying shaft diameters, featuring engagement features like ribs, spring-biased centering balls, semi-segmented balloons, and elastomeric materials to resist angular forces and maintain the shaft's alignment, allowing for intuitive tool placement and reduced bending loads.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If traditional minimally invasive surgical instruments are used, then surgical procedures can be performed through small incisions, but the surgeon experiences reduced flexibility in tool placement and difficulty in feeling forces exerted by tissues
Solution Approach 1:
The surgical instrument is divided into distinct segments: a long flexible shaft for reaching deep into the body, a separate housing containing the end effector, and a tool holder interface. This segmentation allows the instrument to maintain length for deep access while providing discrete functional zones that improve maneuverability and force feedback.
Solution Approach 2:
A tool holder acts as an intermediary component between the robotic system and the surgical instrument. It provides a mechanical interface that enhances force feedback to the surgeon and improves control precision, mediating between the long instrument shaft and the surgeon's manipulative intent.
2Ease of operation
If elongate flexible shafts are introduced into the body, then access to deep surgical sites is achieved, but coordination of end effector movement with visual feedback becomes non-intuitive
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates visual feedback through imaging systems that display the position and orientation of the end effector in real-time. This feedback loop allows the surgeon to coordinate movements intuitively by seeing the actual position of the tool tip, compensating for the non-intuitive nature of manipulating long flexible shafts.
Solution Approach 2:
The tool holder serves as a mediator that improves the transmission of rotational inputs from the surgeon to the end effector. It provides mechanical advantage and precise angular control, making the coordination between surgeon input and end effector movement more intuitive despite the length of the flexible shaft.
3Adaptability or versatility
If a fixed diameter opening is used in the tool holder, then manufacturing is simplified, but the tool holder cannot accommodate shafts of varying diameters
Solution Approach 1:
The opening in the tool holder is designed to be dynamically adjustable rather than fixed. The diameter can change to accommodate different shaft sizes, providing adaptability. This dynamic feature allows the same tool holder to work with various instrument diameters without requiring multiple specialized holders.
Solution Approach 2:
The tool holder employs mechanisms that allow change in the geometric parameter of the opening diameter. Through mechanical adjustment or elastic deformation, the opening size is modified to match the shaft diameter, enabling versatile accommodation of different instruments while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure.
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 tool holder enhances surgical dexterity by providing adjustable support for elongate shafts, minimizing bending loads and maintaining alignment, thus improving the surgeon's ability to perform precise movements during robotic surgery.
Implementation Method 1
The opening can include at least one engagement feature, such as ribs, spring-biased centering balls, spring-biased arms, semi-segmented balloons, and an elastomeric squeeze fit material for adjusting a size of the inner diameter of the opening.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and devices are provided for supporting an elongate shaft on a surgical tool during robotic surgery. For example, a tool holder is provided with an elongate carrier arm configured to couple to a distal end of a surgical robotic arm. The tool holder has a housing that is removably mounted on the carrier arm and that is configured to be positioned adjacent to a tissue surface without extending into tissue. The tool holder thus simulates a trocar. The housing has an opening formed therethrough for receiving an elongate shaft of a surgical tool, and the opening has an inner diameter that is configured to dynamically adjust in size to adapt to and resist movement of elongate shafts of varying diameters inserted therethrough.