A cable-driven parallel manipulator with force sensing capabilities for high-accuracy tissue endomicroscopy
This addresses the need for precise tissue manipulation in surgical procedures, but it is incremental as it builds on existing robotic instrument technology.
The paper tackles the problem of achieving accurate contact force application and high-resolution, repeatable probe movement in surgical end-effectors by introducing a cable-driven parallel manipulator at the distal end of a robotic instrument, resulting in a design integrated with a modified da Vinci robot for applications like endomicroscopy and micro-surgery.
This paper introduces a new surgical end-effector probe, which allows to accurately apply a contact force on a tissue, while at the same time allowing for high resolution and highly repeatable probe movement. These are achieved by implementing a cable-driven parallel manipulator arrangement, which is deployed at the distal-end of a robotic instrument. The combination of the offered qualities can be advantageous in several ways, with possible applications including: large area endomicroscopy and multi-spectral imaging, micro-surgery, tissue palpation, safe energy-based and conventional tissue resection. To demonstrate the concept and its adaptability, the probe is integrated with a modified da Vinci robot instrument.