Vanderbilt University

Virtuoso Surgical, Inc.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Richard Joseph Hendrick

Robert J Webster, Iii

Philip Joseph Swaney

Ray Adams Lathrop

Evan Blum

Neal P Dillon

Trevor L Bruns

Hunter Bryant Gilbert

S Duke Herrell

Robert James Webster

Stanley Duke Herrell

Ron Alterovitz

Patrick S Wellborn

Arthur William Mahoney

Kyle Weaver

Stephanie Amack

Lauren Branscombe

Neal Dillon

Luis Guillermo Torres

Paul T Russell

Iii Robert J Webster

Patrick Wellborn

An insertable robot for minimally invasive surgery includes a tube array having a guide tube housed within a straightening tube. The guide tube includes a curved working end. The guide tube may be axially translated and rotated relative to the straightening tube such that the curved working end is constrained inside the straightening tube, causing the curved working end to achieve a smaller dimension. The tube array is inserted into a working channel on an endoscope, resectoscope or trocar. Once the tube array is inserted, the curved working end of the guide tube is translated forward beyond the distal end of the working channel, allowing the curved working end to return to its pre-formed shape. A surgical tool is inserted through the guide tube for an operation. The straightening tube allows the guide tube curved working end to be temporarily straightened during insertion and removal of the tube array.

Insertion methods for robotic surgical devices

An apparatus for supporting a medical device on a patient includes a mounting structure configured to be fitted onto the patient to encircle at least a portion of a body part of the patient. The mounting structure includes an inner layer and an outer layer that define a confinement. A jamming material is contained within the confinement. The jamming material is configured to flow within the confinement to conform to the shape of the body part of the patient onto which the mounting structure is fitted. The mass of jamming material is configured to harden and become rigid in its conformed shape in response to a vacuum being formed in the confinement.

Variable rigidity, conformable apparatus for non-invasively affixing surgical fiducials and surgical tools to patients

A highly intuitive physician input device for communication with a minimally invasive endoscopic concentric tube surgical robot. The physician input device can comprise a user interface handle assembly, a user interface linear joint assembly, a user interfaced bearing block assembly, and a user interface base assembly, and sensors distributed throughout to measure each of these axes, possibly redundantly for safety. Due to the network of sensors and encoders built in to the physician input device, it is capable of triggering a movement in the endoscopic concentric tube robot corresponding to that of the movements made on the physician input device. There are at least four movement controls the physician input device is capable of communicating to the concentric tube robot, those being translation, pan, tilt, and axial rotation. In some embodiments a fifth control includes actuation of a tool such as a gripper.

Physician input device for a concentric tube surgical robot

Insertable robot for minimally invasive surgery

Systems for controlling concentric tube probes are disclosed. In some examples, the system includes a concentric tube position display interface and a control system. The concentric tube display interface includes a display for displaying visual feedback to a user indicating a position (and possibly orientation) of a tip of a concentric tube probe and a user input device for receiving user input from the user designating a goal position (and possibly orientation) for the tip of the concentric tube probe. The control system is configured for interactive-rate motion planning of the concentric tube probe by creating, in real-time or near real-time, a motion plan to move the tip of the concentric tube probe to the goal position (and possibly orientation) while avoiding contact by the concentric tube probe with one or more obstacles and for configuring the concentric tube probe as specified by the motion plan.

Methods, systems, and computer readable media for controlling a concentric tube probe

A robotic surgical apparatus includes at least two tubes having a nested, concentric configuration with an inner tube positioned in an outer tube. The tubes are configured to deliver surgical therapy. A first tube carrier connected to the outer tube and a second tube carrier connected to the inner tube. The first tube carrier and its associated outer tube and the second tube carrier and its associated inner tube form a robotic arm assembly. An actuator for actuating the robotic arm assembly is configured to receive the robotic arm assembly via a tube insertion interface into which the robotic arm assembly can be inserted.

Concentric tube robot

A surgical robot system includes a support structure for positioning relative to a patient. The support structure includes a plurality of mounting structures. One or more robotic tool cassettes that are configured to interchangeably connect with any of the mounting structures. Each tool cassette includes a concentric tube manipulator and a transmission for operating the concentric tube manipulator. The support structure also includes a tube collector including a tube assembly associated with each of the mounting structures. The tube assemblies are configured to receive the concentric tube manipulators and guide the manipulators to extend along predetermined trajectories relative to each other.

Modular sterilizable robotic system for endonasal surgery

An apparatus () for performing endoscopic surgery on a patient () includes at least two concentric tube manipulators () adapted to carry devices () for performing a surgical operation. A transmission () operates the concentric tube manipulators (). An endoscope tube () has a proximal end portion fixed to the transmission (). The concentric tube manipulators () extend from the transmission () through an inner lumen () of the endoscope tube () and are operable to extend from a distal end () of the endoscope tube.

System and method for endoscopic deployment of robotic concentric tube manipulators for performing surgery

Growing community of inventors

Nashville, TN, United States of America

Richard Joseph Hendrick