Needle steering with unlimited steerability
Manual percutaneous insertion of rigid needles is commonly performed during minimally invasive surgery. These needles often deviate from their intended paths due to organ deformation, tissue inhomogeneity, anatomical obstructions, and physiological processes. Inaccurate needle placement may result in ineffective treatment, misdiagnosis, or traumatic effects due to medical complications.
The Surgical Robotics Laboratory (SRL) develops a range of image-guided (ultrasound, magnetic resonance (MR), computed tomography (CT)) techniques to steer flexible needles for clinical interventions in several regions within the body (e.g., brain, breast, lung, liver, brain). The innovative needles used in the studies are sensorized and have unlimited steerability.
Over the last decade SRL have developed novel MR- and CT-compatible robots, and evaluated them with clinical partners. The robots can be coupled to a range of continuum robotic instruments (e.g., endoscopes, catheters, etc.) These robots (e.g., MIRIAM, RICIBION, etc.) are fully autonomous or can be operated with human-in-the-loop. Please visit the SRL website for additional details.