Exoskeleton plan for surgeons

Thursday March 16th, 2017

Engineers in Bristol are planning to develop exoskeletons for surgeons as part of a programme aimed at revolutionising minimally invasive surgery.

Some four million Euros is being pumped into the project by the EU to support researchers at a range of institutions in Bristol, UK.

It could enable the expansion of minimally invasive surgery to more complex procedures, according to the developers.

The exoskeleton will allow the surgeon to handle a "gripper" mimicking the thumb and two fingers of the hand, according to the plans.

Surgeons will also use instruments with haptic abilities that allow them to "feel" tissues and organs.

And they will wear smart glasses that give them a "realistic" view of what is going on inside the body.

Developer Professor Sanja Dogramadzi, from the Bristol Robotics Laboratory, said: “The research will use the expertise and feedback of senior surgeons to develop the tools. We will use rapid prototyping to make prototype tools that the surgeons will be able to test and we will incorporate their feedback into the next stage of design.

"This means we can adapt tools to the needs of different surgical procedures and this user-centred design process places surgeons at the heart of the development of this system."

He added: “We hope our research into designing this wearable system will help to expand the range of surgical procedures that can use robotic assisted systems so that more patients and hospitals can gain the benefits from this type of surgery.”

Cardiac surgeon Professor Raimondo Ascione, director of the Bristol Translational Biomedical Research Centre, said: “The advent of effective biomedical technologies makes this exciting collaborative project within reach. We will be delighted to test the new prototype."

Tags: General Health | UK News

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