A Novel Modeling Approach for Collision Avoidance in Robotic Surgery

We present a new system that can be used in combination with an array of ultrasonic piezoelectric sensors and has application in surgical navigation procedures. Using the proposed assembly, the maneuverability of the surgical tools can be enhanced and the incidence of potentially damaging contact with non-target tissue can be reduced. The emphasis of our work was based on controlling the motion of the surgical tools so that they can readily move around a biological tissue. According to the results of the simulation performed, the direction of the tool can be monitored and controlled continuously and hence the outcome of the surgery can be improved. Another important parameter that incorporated in the simulation was the distance between the tool and the tissue. The simulation results show that the proper control of the tool movement can keep the distance between the two at a certain predetermined value while the tool passing by the tissue. In the collision avoidance scheme, the transducers located on the lateral side of the surgical tool mainly act as the distance detector to keep the distance between the lateral surface of the tool and the tissue surface at a constant value of 5 mm.