Evaluation of virtual fixtures for robot-assisted cochlear implant insertion

Abstract

Cochlear implantation requires the placement of an electrode array into the cochlea of patients with severe to profound hearing loss. As the array is placed without direct visualization, robotic guidance has significant potential to improve upon the precision of electrode placement within the cochlea. Here, we evaluate the repeatability of robot-assisted placement of an implant array to an optimal deployment point within a phantom cochlea. This system guides the insertion of the implant by enacting virtual fixtures. When compared to the standard manual method of insertion, we observed a 61.7% reduction in the mean error.