Improving surgical outcomes with an augmented reality laser projection system

本研究将在手术室使用激光投影增强现实系统来提高计算机辅助手术的效果。这项工作有可能提供更准确和更容易的工具指导，更短的手术时间，以及检测计算机上的手术计划与手术室中患者位置之间潜在的危险错位。我们将针对计算机辅助骨科手术的发展和验证所提出的研究：患者在手术台上的位置与虚拟手术计划的对齐将比目前的实践更可靠地计算。潜在的危险错位将通过一个界面检测，允许直观的视觉确认对齐。排列中不确定性的分布将被投射到病人身上，供外科医生使用。外科医生将获得一个更容易使用的界面来指导他们的工具。该激光投影系统将由两名硕士生、一名博士生和一名博士后使用。这些人将在增强现实领域进行前沿研究，并直接应用于临床实践，通过与外科同事的互动，为他们提供跨学科的技能。在加拿大，这样的高素质人才严重短缺。我们期望我们的研究将导致新的引导技术在计算机辅助手术。加拿大公司将从这项研究中受益，包括激光投影系统制造商Traxtal Technologies（多伦多，安大略省）和外科手术工具跟踪设备生产商Northern Digital（滑铁卢，安大略省）。

This research will use a laser projection augmented reality system in the operating room to improve computer-assisted surgery outcomes. This work has the potential to provide more accurate and easier tool guidance, shorter operating times, and detection of a potentially dangerous misalignment between the surgical plan on the computer and the patient position in the operating room. We will target computer-assisted orthopaedic surgery in the development and validatation of the proposed research: The alignment of the patient's location on the operating table to the virtual surgical plan will be computed more reliably than current practice. Potentially dangerous misalignments will be detected through an interface that permits intuitive visual confirmation of the alignment. The distribution of uncertainty in the alignment will be projected onto the patient for use by the surgeon.  And the surgeons will be provided with an easier-to-use interface to guide their tools. The laser projection system will be used by two MSc students, one PhD student, and one postdoctoral fellow.  These people will perform leading edge research in augmented reality with direct applications in clinical practice, providing them with interdisciplinary skills through interactions with our surgical colleagues.  There is a critical shortage of such highly qualified people in Canada. We expect that our research will lead to novel guidance technology in computer-assisted surgery.  Canadian companies will benefit from this research, including Traxtal Technologies (Toronto, Ontario), the manufacturer of the laser projection system, and Northern Digital (Waterloo, Ontario), a producer of surgical tool tracking equipment.