Fiberbots: Robotic fibers for high-precision minimally invasive surgery.

Journal: Science advances
Published Date: Jan 19, 2024

Abstract

Precise manipulation of flexible surgical tools is crucial in minimally invasive surgical procedures, necessitating a miniature and flexible robotic probe that can precisely direct the surgical instruments. In this work, we developed a polymer-based robotic fiber with a thermal actuation mechanism by local heating along the sides of a single fiber. The fiber robot was fabricated by highly scalable fiber drawing technology using common low-cost materials. This low-profile (below 2 millimeters in diameter) robotic fiber exhibits remarkable motion precision (below 50 micrometers) and repeatability. We developed control algorithms coupling the robot with endoscopic instruments, demonstrating high-resolution in situ molecular and morphological tissue mapping. We assess its practicality and safety during in vivo laparoscopic surgery on a porcine model. High-precision motion of the fiber robot delivered endoscopically facilitates the effective use of cellular-level intraoperative tissue identification and ablation technologies, potentially enabling precise removal of cancer in challenging surgical sites.

Authors

  • Mohamed E M K Abdelaziz
  • Jinshi Zhao
    The Hamlyn Centre for Robotic Surgery, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UK.
  • Bruno Gil Rosa
    The Hamlyn Centre for Robotic Surgery, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UK.
  • Hyun-Taek Lee
    Department of Mechanical Engineering, Inha University, Incheon 22212, South Korea.
  • Daniel Simon
    Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UK.
  • Khushi Vyas
    The Hamlyn Centre for Robotic Surgery, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UK.
  • Bing Li
  • Hanifa Koguna
    Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UK.
  • Yue Li
    School of Computer Science and Software Engineering, University of Science and Technology Liaoning, Anshan, China.
  • Ali Anil Demircali
    Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UK.
  • Huseyin Uvet
    Department of Mechatronics Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Yildiz Technical University, Istanbul 34349, Turkey.
  • Gulsum Gencoglan
    Department of Dermatology and Venereology, Liv Hospital Vadistanbul, Istanbul 34396, Turkey.
  • Arzu Akcay
    Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Yeni Yüzyıl University, Istanbul 34010, TR.
  • Mohamed Elriedy
    Anesthesiology, University Hospitals of Derby and Burton, Derby, DE22 3NE, UK.
  • James Kinross
    PanSurg Collaborative, Department of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom.
  • Ranan Dasgupta
    Department of Urology, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, Charing Cross Hospital, London W6 8RF, UK.
  • Zoltan Takáts
    Department of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, U.K.
  • Eric Yeatman
    Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UK.
  • Guang-Zhong Yang
    Institute of Medical Robotics, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China. dgunning@fb.com gzyang@sjtu.edu.cn.
  • Burak Temelkuran
    The Hamlyn Centre for Robotic Surgery, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom.

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