What Are the Types of Robotic Surgery?

Medical robotics is the future of science. Though one Da Vinci surgical robot costs roughly $1.7 million, surgeons who have used it say it is both remarkable and revolutionary. "I do a lot of gallbladder surgery," explains Dr. Glen Gibson of Annapolis General Hospital. "Operating on livers, stomachs and colons used to be stem-to-stern incisions; I have had to take out (only) one gallbladder by traditional surgery in the last three years." Robotic surgery promises quicker recovery times, less pain medication and fewer incisions, he adds.

Currently there are three types of robotic surgery systems: Supervisory-Controlled systems, Telesurgical systems and Shared-Control systems. Supervisory-Controlled systems (a.k.a. Computer Assisted Surgery) are the most automated of the three. The surgeon undertakes considerable prep work, inputs data into the robotic system, plans the course of action, takes x-rays, tests the robot's motions, places the robot in the appropriate start position and oversees the robotic action to ensure everything goes as planned. The most famous prototype is the RoboDoc system developed by Integrated Surgical Systems, which is commonly used in orthopedic surgeries.

The Telesurgical robotic system is the second type of device used in modern robotic surgery. The most common variety, the Da Vinci Robotic Surgical System, enhances the surgery by providing 3-D visualization deep within hard-to-reach places like the heart, as well as enhancing wrist dexterity and control of tiny instruments. This technology allows surgeons to make quicker, more controlled and more accurate movements by using the robot arm with its wider range of motions.

It also allows more surgeons to perform these procedures, since many of the techniques performed by robot assistants are highly skilled and extremely difficult for humans to master. Now more procedures (like artery repair and valve repair) can be done without long recovery times or bodily injury.

The Shared-Control System is the final category of robotic surgery devices. In this system, the human does the bulk of the work, but the robot assists when needed. In many cases, the robotic system monitors the surgeon, providing stability and support during the procedure. Before getting started, the surgeons program the robots to recognize safe, close, boundary and forbidden territories within the human body. Safe regions are the main focus of the surgery.

Close regions border easily damaged soft tissue and the boundary is where soft tissue begins. As the surgeon nears these dangerous areas, the robot pushes back against the surgeon, or in some cases, when the forbidden zone is reached, the robotic system actually locks up to prevent any further injury. Shared-Control systems might work best for brain surgeries, where the surgeon provides the action but the robot arm steadies the hand.

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Robotics and Consumer Goods Production

When you say robotics, people usually think large scale production lines as in the manufacture of cars, complicated construction machinery and technology for space explorations. What a lot of people don't know is that robotics is utilized in so many other "smaller" aspects of our lives.

Consumer products are so commonplace that it is easy for people to think of them as simple creations. What you might not know is that the production of these goods more often than not, involves some sort of robotics system. While processes are complicated, robotics helps simplify them.

Industries Utilizing Robotics

Robotics systems are an integral component of the mobile phone industry. The roles that robots play in the production process range from assembly to internal treatments to testing. Robotics is utilized in putting certain cellphone parts together as well as coating phone interiors. There are also robots designed to check if the phones are working they way they should be.

The pharmaceutical industry also benefits extensively from robotics. The pharmaceutical industry is responsible for the production and distribution of life saving medications and robotics ensures that these products are indeed of the highest caliber. There are simple roles that robots are tasked to do, such as dispensing functions in pharmacies and there are also more complicated tasks, as in the research and development of new medicines.

The manufacture of food and drinks is one of the processes that most often makes use of robotics systems. Practically all kinds of food have been produced with the help of robots. There are many areas of food production that are dependent on robotics such as packaging, sanitation and delivery.

Production=Pick, Pack, Pallet

Robotics systems are vital in the effectiveness and efficiency of the procedures involved in the manufacture of consumer goods. Picking is an important function performed by robotics. This is where individual food items are picked and placed onto their respective wrappers or packages. This is a complex process because food comes in a variety of shapes. Nevertheless, robotics makes it easy to execute this step so that this contributes to the overall speed of production.

Packing is also another major task performed with the help of robots. Individually wrapped items need to be placed in boxes and other types of casings. There are varied packaging options but robotics systems are capable of efficiently adapting to the differences in package shapes and sizes. Some of these packaging materials are:

• styrofoam boxes

• sachets

• jars

• plastic tubes

Finally, robotics is essential to stacking food items in bulk. This involves heavy lifting but robots can accomplish this in little time plus there's no need to worry about possible injuries.

Conclusion

Robotics systems continue to figure in importantly in the production of consumer goods and many people believe the potential for robotics in this industry will rise even more. There are opportunities for robotics in household goods and health care products among others. There is constant development of new software and supplementary tools designed to automate even more tasks. This may mean that someday, virtually all processes in food production will be performed by robots.

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The Da Vinci Robot - Marvel of Medical Technology

The Da Vinci robot is a highly sophisticated, computerized optical and mechanical system for performing a great many surgical procedures with an ease, accuracy, and effectiveness never before possible. The surgeries are not performed by the robot per se; rather, the robot is an extension of the surgeon's eyes and hands, which gathers information about what is going on in the patient's body and enables the surgeon to perform precise movements which are much less invasive of the patient's body than conventional surgery. Because the incisions required to insert the tiny hands and eyes of the robot are much smaller than the large incisions needed to insert human hands, there is much less patient pain and discomfort, considerably less blood loss and reduced scarring than in conventional surgery. This means faster recovery times and return to normal daily activity. Often patients can recover and resume playing athletics in a few weeks.

A special television screen meets the challenge of producing superb high-resolution imaging for guiding the surgeon through minimally-invasive vascular surgical procedures. These systems possess special live, three-dimensional imaging tools which deliver extraordinary clarity together with three-dimensional insight, enabling surgeons to see clearly exactly what is happening in real time, and to unerringly guide the robotic arms and tools to navigate the tortuous vasculature. This complete informational picture from inside the patients allows surgeons in hospitals in IL to make immediate, insightful, and well-judged decisions. The images are crisp and virtually free of distortion, so tiny objects and details can be visualized clearly in endovascular surgeries. Moreover, advanced technology for measuring precise X-ray dosages reduces the radiation exposure for both the medical staff and patients while at the same time providing excellent image quality. Vascular procedures often require long fluoroscopy times, and a large number of radiographic images. The DoseWise component of the surgical robot is an integrated system with wide approach to managing X-ray dosages, which allows the surgeon to choose the image quality most appropriate for the procedure, at the lowest X-ray dose possible.

The preset protocols in the imaging system and the automated settings of the fixed X-ray system during minimally-invasive surgery permit clinicians to focus their complete attention on the patient and the procedure. Three dimensional guidance tools support the most complex minimally-invasive surgeries. Even the operating table is automated, with a cradle and tilt movement in order to enable the patient to be positioned optimally for the more invasive and needle-guided puncture procedures. Other robotic capabilities allow clinicians to acquire soft tissue volumes at any time during a vascular surgery procedure. Moreover, robotic heart surgery systems are tailored individually for use in pediatric cardiology, interventional cardiology, and cardiovascular mixed use environments.

The amazing Da Vinci robot is a marvel of modern medical technology. Robotic heart surgery and prostatectomy are now available routinely at hospitals in IL.

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Five Important Advancements in Medical Equipment

Doctors are only as good as their equipment allows. Today, new research into medical equipment is not only improving the effectiveness of medical procedures every day, but also changing the way we think about health and medicine. Here are 5 of the most important and promising advancements in medical equipment today.

1. Smartphone Ultrasound Imaging

With the help of a $100,000 grant from Microsoft, computer scientists at Washington University have combined USB-based ultrasound probe technology with smart phone technology. The result is a portable medical imaging device small enough to fit in your palm. One of the goals of the research team is to train people in developing countries to use the portable probe to gather patient data, which can then be sent to specialists' half-way around the world for study and quick diagnosis.

2. New Prostate Treatment Method: Bubbles

Traditional treatment of prostate growths involves inserting a metal tool into the prostate and scraping away malignant cells lining the walls. At the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, a team of urologists have developed a more effective and less invasive method, using incredibly focused ultrasound pulses. The pulses create microscopic bubbles out of dissolved gas in prostate tissue. When these bubbles collapse, they release acoustic shock waves that, over thousands of repetitions, liquefy prostate growths. This is the first time that cavitation has been controlled well enough to be used as a tool at such microscopic level.

3. Treating Tumors with Microwaves

Liver cancer is becoming more common in the U.S. Traditional treatment involves either transplant or open surgery. But at UC San Diego's Medical Center, a new tool is being used to remove liver tumors: microwave ablation. The procedure involves accessing the liver via a small skin incision and piercing the cancerous tumor with a thin antenna that emits microwaves at temperatures above 60 degrees Celsius, causing cellular death in the tumor usually after 10 minutes.

4. Gamma Camera

New high-resolution gamma cameras are allowing doctors to detect breast cancer more effectively than with traditional mammograms or clinical exams. This new method is called breast-specific gamma imaging (BSGI). But the possible uses of gamma imaging are not limited to breast cancer only. High-resolution gamma cameras are becoming one of the most important tools for early detection of many different types of cancers.

5. First Steps toward Robotic Surgeries

Medical equipment is supposed to help human beings perform medical procedures. But the day may not be far when human hands are not needed at all during surgeries. Unassisted, robot-performed surgeries are a possibility that engineers at Duke University are working to make reality. Using a basic, tabletop robot, 3-D ultrasound technology and an artificial intelligence program, researchers were able to create a robot that could perform many basic tasks required during surgeries on its own. More research and development is needed before surgery robots become viably usable, but the first steps have been taken.

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Robotics in the Medical Industry

The medical industry is one of the sectors that benefit from the use of robots. One would think that with a gloomy economy as backdrop, the medical industry would hold back in terms of robotics investments but this sector shows no signs of slowing down. More and more equipment and applications are being developed to cater specifically to the medical market.

In turn, other industries related to the medical sciences are gradually increasing their allocations for robotics systems schemes. Precision is highly important in life-saving devices and medical research. Robotics is seen as a viable tool for ensuring that these industries continue to efficiently safeguard public health.

Research and Development

Robots figure in importantly in medical research and development. Medical practitioners are constantly trying to come up with new and better cures in the form of life-saving medications and robotics helps facilitate these functions. Because of the large amount of samples taken, robots are needed to increase the speed and accuracy within which these samples are tested.

There is also the added security of using robotics in research and development. These systems come with sophisticated sterilizing mechanisms to ensure that the work environment is at its safest levels and that there is a much lesser risk of contamination.

Laboratories also conduct a lot of research, and robotics helps manage the sometimes overwhelming amount of information generated by these studies. Needless to say, these studies hold life-saving information and these data need to be organized and then accessed at the appropriate time. It would be nearly impossible to manually find all the necessary information needed at a given situation.

Medical Devices

There is also an increasing reliance on robotics when it comes to the manufacture of medical devices. Robots can execute a variety of complex tasks such as the assembly of minute devices. Medical equipment such as pacemakers and hearing aids require the utmost care in assembly and the degree of success in completing these functions are higher when robotics are utilized. Additionally, robots can more speedily accomplish assembly which makes these devices immediately available to patients.

Advances in robotic vision systems enable even greater precision in the manufacture of medical devices. Robots are designed to accurately pinpoint and pick up parts needed to assemble devices and because this function is highly repetitive, robots need to be able to execute exact movements each time. A vision system helps guarantee this exactness.

Patient Care

Robots are also increasingly being utilized in patient care systems. Surgical robotics is an area that is constantly being refined. There are devices being used by doctors that treat tumors more precisely. These devices zero in on a tumor and apply radiation on that spot to treat the tumor. Surgeons depend on robots to implement this procedure.

Recent developments and innovations also hold great promise for cardiology. There are devices being developed to enable doctors to access the areas of the heart that are difficult and risky to get into.

Prosthetics are also created with the help of robots. Devices such as replacement hips and knee joints require painstaking assembly and robotics helps put together these varying parts.

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How Robotic Medical Solutions Can Automate Surgical Procedures

Many surgical procedures require a high degree of precision and a steady hand. Good surgeons practice for years to develop these skills. However, with advances in robotic devices for medical procedures, many medical solutions are being found that do not take up the limited time and expertise of a surgeon. Instead, a good number of tests and minor operations are being carried out by automated devices.

Any surgical device or tool needs to have certain qualities in order to be useful in the medical field. They need to deliver a high degree of precision and accuracy while being lightweight and minimally invasive. Robotic medical tools also need to deliver power in a very compact frame and be able to respond to the environment in which they are working. Hence, these devices require compact, high torque motors to perform operations and servo motors to create a feedback loop to ensure reliability and accuracy.

Case Study - Automated Lung Biopsy

Lung biopsies are performed to sample lung tissue to test for diseases such as lung cancer. The typical procedure calls for a physician to use a CT scanner to manually guide a needle into the lungs. The physician takes a scan and then adjusts the position of the needle. These steps are repeated up to 10 times until the needle is in its proper place and a sample can be taken. This is a long and uncomfortable process for a patient under light anesthesia.

A newly developed robotic sampling device is able to utilize a smaller series of scans and adjustments, typically only four, to automate and accelerate the process. A radiologist can perform this procedure by remote control and reduce the number of total scans, ultimately decreasing the exposure to both the patient and doctor.

System Design

In order to have an automated biopsy robot, many stringent design specifications had to be met. The key to the system is a set of four servo motors that orient the needle, power a pinion drive, and a final motor to rotate the passive roller. Each high torque motor provides a 10 Newton piercing force within a 10 millimeter sized motor coupled to a minuscule 10 millimeter gearbox.

Clearly, delivering a high torque motor that can meet such extreme size restrictions is a breakthrough in servo motor technology. The entire unit is designed to sit on a patient's chest, so the entire device is extremely lightweight. The servo motors combine with a microcontroller to create a feedback system that allows an efficient harvesting process that cuts down on procedure time and patient discomfort.

In the highly complex and technical healthcare field, medical solutions often require serious engineering capabilities. Miniaturized, high torque motors have provided automated tools to facilitate delicate procedures. Saving time and reducing costs while improving patient care is the ultimate goal of any medical solution and is the best way to improve the current ailing healthcare system. The application of high precision components to assist the medical expertise of doctors will continue revolutionize how patients are treated.

Chris Harmen is an author for MicroMo Medical Solutions, the leading medical industry partner providing servo motors and high precision components.

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Working With Robots

The advances in computing and miniaturization technologies have made possible an increasing use of unmanned devices to do routine work once done by man. Most repetitive precision and rule-based work can now be automated using sophisticated robotics.

As electro-optical-mechanical contraptions, robots are perfect for jobs that are repetitive, require precise rule-based actions and in areas where potential harm exists. People need salaries, vacations, coffee breaks and a reasonably comfortable work environment. Robots don't. People get bored doing routines and that could lead to fatigue that in turn could lead to errors and failures. Robots are immune from boredom.

In Manufacturing

Robots come in various forms and sophistication. Almost all of them are deployed in manufacturing. Car factories are highly automated with more human workers employed to supervise and manage the work, leaving robotic arms and AI-based computer machines to weld, paint, and assemble the different car parts together as well as move completed cars into the testing and distribution zones of the factory.

Another useful work for robots is in food plants that arrange, say, an assortment of chocolate cookies or candies in boxes. A computer system typical guides the robotic armatures with optical sensors over a moving conveyor belt, enabling the robot to pick and aggregate different objects into a container. Such contraptions, properly configured can produce the required daily volumes at predictable quality levels and cost structures to make the product more affordable.

Computer and electronic gadget makers use robots to solder together minute wires and parts onto the chip sets. "Pick and place" robotic armatures insert chips onto circuit boards found in all electronics gears from radios to cellphones.

In The Hospitals

Robots are increasingly common in pharmaceuticals and hospitals. The same "pick and place" robotics can be used to package medicines into boxes or bottles for market distribution. They are often found in sterile plants that are a requirement in handling pharmaceutical items.

There are robotic messengers on wheels used in some hospitals to carry medical and surgical supplies or equipment from one area to another on the same floor. Some medical robots enable remote surgery on patients using feedback sensors that allow surgeons to explore tissue sensed by the robot's instruments. It may be along while for miniature robot sensors to travel through the blood stream by remote control as described in science fiction, but that is certainly not far-fetched

Robots at home

Robotic engineers and scientists are now predicting that our homes would soon have robots as household help to do more of the routine and menial chores at home. Some appliance companies have started working on prototypes vacuum cleaners and lawn mowers that have microchip-based "brains," sonar sensors or optical "eyes" and solenoid and micro-motor armatures that can do most of the chores on their own.

They can go around the house to memorize their "assignments" and can pretty much clean the house or mow the lawn at pre-set hours of the day. Already in the market is a robotic lawn mower made by Friendly Robotics. It has bump sensors that define its obstacles and learns the area it will work on.

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