SmartArm: Integration and validation of a versatile surgical robotic system for constrained workspaces

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Background: With the increasing presence of surgical robots minimally invasive surgery, there is a growing necessity of a versatile surgical system for deep and narrow workspaces. 

Methods: We developed a versatile system for constrained workspaces called SmartArm. It has two industrial-type robotic arms with flexible tools attached to its distal tip, with a total of nine active degrees-of-freedom. The system has a control algorithm based on constrained optimization that allows the safe generation of task constraints and intuitive teleoperation. 

Results: The SmartArm system is evaluated in a master-slave experiment in which a medically untrained user operates the robot to suture the dura mater membrane at the skull base of a realistic head phantom. Our results show that the user could accomplish the task proficiently, with speed and accuracy comparable to manual suturing by surgeons. 

Conclusions: We demonstrated the integration and validation of the SmartArm.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere2053
Pages (from-to)1-11
Number of pages11
JournalInternational Journal of Medical Robotics and Computer Assisted Surgery
Volume16
Issue number2
Early online date2 Nov 2019
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Apr 2020

Keywords

  • brain
  • kinematics
  • mechatronics
  • microsurgery
  • neurology
  • pediatrics
  • safety

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