Tomoya Sakai

The University of Tokyo, Chiba University

Papers

Total Citations

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About

Tomoya Sakai is a pioneering researcher in the field of surgical robotics, with a primary focus on vitreoretinal surgery—a domain demanding micrometer-scale precision. His most significant contribution is the design and development of a miniature five-degree-of-freedom (DOF) parallel robot for eye surgery, detailed in his 2014 paper, which has garnered 17 citations. This robot was specifically engineered to safely and accurately remove the thin internal limiting membrane during vitreoretinal procedures, addressing the critical challenge of involuntary hand tremors that compromise manual surgery. Sakai’s work integrates advanced robotics with surgical simulation, using a simulator to optimize design parameters for clinical viability. His 2016 research further advances autonomous 3-D positioning of surgical instruments, ensuring compatibility with delicate eye surgical workflows. Additionally, his earlier work on on-line planar area segmentation from monocular images contributes to visual navigation for autonomous robots, showcasing his versatility in robotics and computer vision. Sakai’s innovations directly enhance surgical safety and precision, making him a key figure in the evolution of robot-assisted microsurgery.