Micro-Robotics for Minimally-Invasive Neurosurgery

描述（由申请人提供）： 机器人技术已经在外科手术中被广泛接受，特别是在腹腔镜手术中，其中臂现在可以由外科医生通过来自腹腔镜的直接视觉反馈进行远程操纵来使用，以在心脏、胸部和腹部空间中进行解剖、缝合、打结和执行复杂手术。然而，目前的机器人技术不适合神经外科显微手术，因为机器人需要很大的工作空间，而且机器人不是为神经外科医生通常需要做的任务而设计的。该提案旨在开发和利用新的机器人技术来应对这些令人兴奋的机会。 第一阶段将开始开发可操纵的微型机器人，这些机器人可以由神经外科医生通过许多入口点准确地引导到大脑中的位置，而无需大切口、骨切除和与开放式神经外科技术相关的组织牵开。临床和工程团队将设计，制造和测试拟议的微型机器人概念的代表性原型。这些原型将被引导通过代表实际神经外科手术的障碍课程。测试将评估设计微型机器人的可行性，这些机器人可以进行必要的转弯，绕过障碍物，避开指定为“禁区”的位置，并承受预期的稳定和瞬态载荷。此外，由于在强度/稳定性和小型化之间存在权衡，该项目将展示在此权衡空间中的最佳设计点如何取决于手头任务的细节。最后，第一阶段将证实，许多自由度的微型机器人可以很容易地控制与神经外科所需的小型化相称的总体积的驱动和布线。第一阶段的活动将仅限于原型开发和实验室测试，而第二阶段将转移到尸体和动物测试。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Robotics has found a well accepted role in surgical procedures, particularly in laparoscopic procedures where arms can now be used with remote manipulation by a surgeon with direct visual feedback from the laparoscope to dissect, suture, tie, and perform complex procedures in the cardiac, thoracic, and abdominal spaces. Current robotic technology, however, is unsuitable for neurosurgical microsurgery, because of the large working space that is required for the robots, and the fact that the robots were not designed for the tasks that neurosurgeons normally need to do. This proposal aims to develop and utilize new robotic technologies to address these exciting opportunities. The Phase I will begin development of steerable micro-robots that could be accurately directed by the neurosurgeon to locations in the brain via a number of entry points without the large incision, removal of bone, and tissue retraction associated with open neurosurgical techniques. The clinical and engineering team will design, fabricate and test representative prototypes of the proposed micro-robotic concept. The prototypes will be steered through obstacle courses that are representative of actual neurosurgery. The testing will evaluate the feasibility of designing micro-robots that can make the necessary turns, circumvent obstacles, avoid locations designated as "off-limit," and withstand anticipated steady and transient loads. Moreover, since there is a tradeoff between strength/stability and miniaturization, the project will show how the optimum design point in this tradeoff space depends on the particulars of the task at hand. Finally, the Phase I will confirm that the many degrees of freedom of the micro-robot can be readily controlled with a total volume of actuation and wiring commensurate with the miniaturization demanded by neurosurgery. The Phase I activities will be limited to prototype development and testing in the laboratory, whereas the Phase II would move onto to cadaver and animal testing.