A Dexterous Needlescopic Instrument using Soft Robotics for Minimally Invasive Surgery

Robotic-assisted surgical systems have enabled minimally invasive procedures to reduce recovery time and traumas compared to conventional open surgery. Even though there exist some examples of systems capable of accessing remote places within the body, e.g., the current commercial systems are limited by their large size, high cost, and inability to navigate in tortuous paths. They cannot offer enough dexterity while having smaller dimension which is suitable for the tight anatomical space. It is difficult to have a manipulator that is thin enough to enter through the narrow passageway of the body and steerable for navigation through the body cavity while having sufficient rigidity during tissue manipulation. In this research, we plan to develop scalable and dexterous instrument to enhance a higher degree of freedom of minimally invasive surgery, such as micro-laparoscopy and neurosurgery. Tube patterning, variable stiffness mechanism, and soft robotics will be applied to enhance the functionality of the instrument.

Faculty Supervisor:

James Drake

Student:

Partner:

Seoul National University

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Education

University:

University of Toronto

Program: