A mechanism for surgical tool manipulation

Abstract

A compact mechanism is designed to enable manipulation about a pivot point, different kinds of surgical tools which are commonly used in minimally invasive surgery such as therapy laser delivery tools, biopsy and bracytherapy needles. The robot's special configuration will enable it to reorient a surgical tool about a pivot point conveniently; achieve and control small-scale movement for precision manipulation in two independent degrees of freedom, and allow for miniaturization so it can overcome problems associated with the limited surgical workspaces. The manipulator can be used in manual, autonomous or remote-control modes. Performance analysis showed that the robot can operate with an average angular accuracy of 1.4 and 1.1 degrees for the joints. The features of the proposed mechanism make it well suited for use in a broad range of medical interventions.