U.S. patent application number 11/028792 was filed with the patent office on 2005-06-02 for microwrist system for surgical procedures.
This patent application is currently assigned to Intuitive Surgical, Inc.. Invention is credited to Sanchez, Dan, Svanidze, Oleg, Uecker, Darrin, Wang, Yulun, Wright, James.
Application Number | 20050119790 11/028792 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 21758139 |
Filed Date | 2005-06-02 |
United States Patent
Application |
20050119790 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Sanchez, Dan ; et
al. |
June 2, 2005 |
Microwrist system for surgical procedures
Abstract
A medical robotic system with a handle assembly that is used to
control a medical instrument. The handle assembly and medical
instrument have five degrees of freedom. Five degrees of freedom
may provide greater dexterity than medical robotic systems of the
prior art with four or less degrees of freedom. Five degrees of
freedom reduces the size and complexity of the instrument.
Inventors: |
Sanchez, Dan; (Santa
Barbara, CA) ; Uecker, Darrin; (Santa Barbara,
CA) ; Svanidze, Oleg; (Santa Barbara, CA) ;
Wright, James; (Santa Barbara, CA) ; Wang, Yulun;
(Goleta, CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
TOWNSEND AND TOWNSEND AND CREW, LLP
TWO EMBARCADERO CENTER
EIGHTH FLOOR
SAN FRANCISCO
CA
94111-3834
US
|
Assignee: |
Intuitive Surgical, Inc.
Sunnyvale
CA
|
Family ID: |
21758139 |
Appl. No.: |
11/028792 |
Filed: |
January 3, 2005 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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11028792 |
Jan 3, 2005 |
|
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10013067 |
Dec 7, 2001 |
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6839612 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
700/245 ; 606/1;
700/251; 700/257; 700/258; 700/262; 700/264 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A61B 34/30 20160201;
A61B 34/37 20160201; A61B 90/361 20160201; A61B 34/35 20160201;
A61B 2034/305 20160201 |
Class at
Publication: |
700/245 ;
700/251; 700/257; 700/262; 700/264; 700/258; 606/001 |
International
Class: |
G06F 019/00 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A robotic master handle assembly for manipulation by a user's
hand having a centroid located between a thumb, an index finger and
a middle finger, the assembly comprising: a handle having a handle
body and a grasper movable relative to the handle body by grasping
of the handle with the thumb, index finger, and middle finger of
the user's hand; a wrist body coupled to said handle by a handle
joint so as to allow rotation of the handle about a handle-wrist
spinning axis; a wrist joint for coupling the wrist body to a
handle linkage, the wrist joint allowing the wrist body and handle
to be rotated about a wrist-linkage roll axis, the roll axis
intersecting the spinning axis at the centroid of the user's
hand.
2. The assembly of claim 1, wherein said handle body includes thumb
groove, and said grasper includes first and second grooves
configured for receiving said index finger and said middle finger
of the user's hand.
3. The assembly of claim 2, wherein said grasper includes a
switch.
4. The assembly of claim 3, wherein said handle body includes a
plurality of buttons.
5. The assembly of claim 2, wherein the handle comprises an
ellipsoid configured for grasping by the hand of the user, the
centroid being disposed within the ellipsoid when the hand of the
user grasps the handle.
6. The assembly of claim 1, further comprising the linkage coupled
to the wrist body, the linkage comprising: translator means for
allowing lateral translation of said wrist and said handle; elbow
means for allowing rotation of said translator means, said wrist
body and said handle about an elbow axis; and shoulder means for
allowing rotation of said elbow means, said translator means, said
wrist body and said handle about a shoulder axis.
7. The assembly of claim 1, further comprising the linkage coupled
to the wrist body, the linkage comprising: a translator that is
coupled to said wrist joint; an elbow joint coupled to said
translator; and a shoulder joint coupled to said wrist joint.
8. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the handle is positionable in
only five degrees of freedom.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This is a continuation patent application which claims
priority from U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/013,067 filed on
Dec. 7, 2001, the full disclosure of which is incorporated herein
by reference.
STATEMENT AS TO RIGHTS TO INVENTIONS MADE UNDER FEDERALLY SPONSORED
RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
[0002] NOT APPLICABLE
REFERENCE TO A "SEQUENCE LISTING," A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM
LISTING APPENDIX SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT DISK
[0003] NOT APPLICABLE
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0004] 1. Field of the Invention
[0005] The present invention relates to a handle assembly for a
medical robotic system.
[0006] 2. Background Information
[0007] Historically, surgery has been performed by making large
incisions in a patient to provide access to the surgical site.
There has been developed instruments that allow a surgeon to
perform a procedure through small incisions in the patient. The
instruments include an endoscope which has a camera that allows the
surgeon to view the internal organs of the patient through a small
incision. Such procedures are less traumatic to the patient and
have shorter recovery times than conventional surgical procedures.
Endoscopic instruments have even been used to perform minimally
invasive heart surgery. Blockage of a coronary artery may deprive
the heart of blood and oxygen required to sustain life. The
blockage may be removed with medication or by an angioplasty. For
severe blockage, a coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) is performed
to bypass the blocked area of the artery. CABG procedures are
typically performed by splitting the sternum and pulling open the
chest cavity to provide access to the heart. An incision is made in
the artery adjacent to the blocked area. The internal mammary
artery is then severed and attached to the artery at the point of
incision. The internal mammary artery bypasses the blocked area of
the artery to again provide a full flow of blood to the heart.
Splitting the sternum and opening the chest cavity can create a
tremendous trauma to the patient.
[0008] COMPUTER MOTION of Goleta, Calif. provides a system under
the trademark ZEUS.RTM. that allows a surgeon to perform a
minimally invasive surgery, including CABG procedures. The
procedure is performed with instruments that are inserted through
small incisions in the patient's chest. The instruments are
controlled by robotic arms. Movement of the robotic arms and
actuation of instrument end effectors are controlled by the surgeon
through a pair of handles and a foot pedal that are coupled to an
electronic controller. Alternatively, the surgeon can control the
movement of an endoscope used to view the internal organs of the
patient through voice commands. Additionally, the cracked sternum
prolongs the recovery period of the patient.
[0009] The incisions create pivot points for the medical
instruments. The pivot points constrain movement of the instruments
within the patient to four degrees of freedom; translation, pan,
tilt and rotation of the instrument shaft. Additionally, the pivot
point may cause a reverse movement of the instrument. For example,
leftward movement of the system input handle may actually cause a
rightward movement of the instrument. The surgeon must compensate
for such constraints, thereby increasing the difficulty of using
the system for performing a medical procedure.
[0010] It would be desirable to provide a robotic handle that gives
the user the sensation of controlling the tip of the instrument. It
would also be desirable to generally improve the ergonomics of
medical robotic master handles.
[0011] There have been developed medical robotic systems that
create six degrees of freedom for the surgical instruments. Six
degrees of freedom requires relatively complex mechanism that
increases the size and cost of the system. It would be desirable to
provide an effective medical robotic system that would only require
five degrees of freedom.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0012] A master robotic handle assembly that has only five degrees
of freedom. The master handle assembly is used to move a
robotically controlled surgical instrument.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] FIG. 1 is a top view of an illustration of a robotic
system;
[0014] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a surgeon control area of
the robotic system;
[0015] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a handle assembly of the
robotic system used to control a medical instrument;
[0016] FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective view of a wrist assembly
of the robotic system controlled by a user's hand;
[0017] FIG. 5 is a sectional perspective view of the handle/wrist
assembly.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0018] Disclosed is a medical robotic system with a handle assembly
that is used to control a medical instrument. The handle assembly
and medical instrument have five degrees of freedom. Five degrees
of freedom may provide greater dexterity than medical robotic
systems of the prior art with four or less degrees of freedom. Five
degrees of freedom reduces the size and complexity of the
instrument and the overall robotic system.
[0019] Referring to the drawings more particularly by reference
numbers, FIG. 1 shows a robotic system 10. The system 10 may
include a plurality of robotic arms 12 located adjacent to a table
14. Two of the robotic arms 12 may control the movement of
corresponding medical instruments (not shown). The third robotic
arm 12 may control the movement of an endoscope (not shown). The
robotically controlled instruments and endoscope may be used to
perform a minimally invasive medical procedure on a patient lying
on the table 14.
[0020] The robotic arms 12 and accompanying instruments may be the
same or similar to robotic products sold by Computer Motion under
the trademarks AESOP.RTM. and ZEUS.RTM.. Although three robotic
arms 12 are shown and described, it is to be understood that the
system 10 may have a different number of arms 12.
[0021] The robotic arms 12 are controlled from a "surgeon" area 16.
The surgeon area 16 may be located adjacent to the table 14.
Alternatively, the surgeon area 16 may be coupled to the robotic
arms 12 through a telecommunications link to allow a surgeon to
have remote input into the system 10.
[0022] FIG. 2 shows a surgeon area 16. The surgeon area 16 includes
a pair of handle assemblies 18 located adjacent to a surgeon's
chair 20. The handle' assemblies 18 are coupled to a controller 22
that is also coupled to the robotic arms 12 and medical
instruments. The controller 22 may include one or more
microprocessors, memory devices, drivers, etc. that convert input
information from the handle assemblies 18 into output control
signals which move the robotic arms and/or actuate the medical
instruments.
[0023] The surgeon's chair 20 and handle assemblies 18 may be in
front of a video console 24. The video console 24 may be linked to
the endoscope to provide video images of the patient. The surgeon's
area 16 may also include a computer screen 26 coupled to the
controller 22. The screen 26 may display graphical user interfaces
(GUIs) that allow the surgeon to control various functions and
parameters of the system 10.
[0024] Each handle assembly 18 may include a handle/wrist assembly
30. The handle/wrist assembly 30 has a handle 32 that is coupled to
a wrist 34. The wrist 34 is connected to a forearm linkage 36 that
slides along a slide bar 38. The slide bar 38 is pivotally
connected to an elbow joint 40. The elbow joint 40 is pivotally
connected to a shoulder joint 42 that is attached to the controller
22.
[0025] FIG. 3 shows a handle assembly 18 superimposed with a
medical instrument 50. The instrument 50 includes an end effector
52 attached to an instrument shaft 54. The shaft 54 extends through
a cannula 56 inserted through an incision of a patient 58. The
incision defines a pivot point P for the medical instrument 50.
[0026] The shoulder joint 42 includes a sensor (not shown) that
provides feedback on the movement of the handle about a shoulder
axis 60. The sensor may be a mechanical encoder, optical encoder,
etc. or other device which provides an output signal that
corresponds to a position of the handle 32 about the shoulder axis
60. The output of the shoulder sensor is provided to the controller
22. The controller 22 performs a series of computations to
determine a corresponding movement of the medical instrument 50.
The computations may include one or more transformation and
kinematic equations. The controller 22 provides output signals to
the corresponding robotic arm 12 to move the instrument 50 about
point P as indicated by the arrow 62.
[0027] The elbow joint 40 includes a sensor (not shown) that
provides positional feedback on the position of the assembly about
an elbow axis 64. The controller 22 utilizes the positional
feedback to drive the robotic arm and move the instrument in the
direction indicated by the arrow 66.
[0028] The forearm linkage 36 and slide bar 38 create a translator
68 that allows linear movement of the linkage 36 along a translator
axis 70. The translator axis 70 intersects with the axes 60 and 64.
The translator 68 has a sensor (not shown) that provides feedback
information that is used to drive the robotic arm and move the
instrument 50 in the direction indicated by the arrows 72.
[0029] When transforming movement of the handle 32 to movement of
the instrument 50 the controller 22 may equate the intersection of
the axes 60, 64 and 70 to the instrument pivot point P. Equating
the intersection of the axis 60, 64 and 70 with the pivot point P
provides a kinematic relationship such that the surgeon "feel" like
they are actually moving the instrument 50. Additionally, the
length of the forearm linkage and location of the handle are such
that the surgeon is provided with the sensation that they are
holding and moving the distal end of the instrument. These
relationships also improve the ergonomics of the handle assembly
and the ease of use of the robotic system as a whole. The
transformation and kinematic equations may be similar to the
equations used in the AESOP.RTM. and ZEUS.RTM. products with the
signs (+/-) reversed to account for the elbow axis 64 being behind
the surgeon.
[0030] The handle assembly 18 has only five degrees of freedom;
handle spin, wrist, translator, elbow and shoulder. Having only
five degrees of freedom reduces the complexity of the system 10.
The medical instrument 50 thus only needs a wrist with one degree
of freedom which reduces the complexity, size and corresponding
cost of the instrument. The configuration of the handle assembly
allows the surgeon to perform any movement of the instrument with
only five degrees of freedom.
[0031] FIGS. 4 and 5 show the wrist/handle assembly 30. The wrist
34 includes a joint shaft 74 that is coupled to the forearm linkage
36 by a roll bearing 76. The roll bearing 76 allows the handle 32
to rotate about a roll axis 78. The roll axis 32 may further
include a sensor 80 that provide positional feedback to the
controller 22. Movement of the handle 32 about the roll axis 78 may
cause a corresponding rotation of the instrument end effector 52 in
the direction indicated by the arrows 110 in FIG. 3.
[0032] The handle 32 includes a grasper 84 that is coupled to a
handle housing 86. The housing 86 and grasper 84 are preferably
shaped as an ellipsoid that allows the user to more easily grasps
the handle 32 with their hand. The housing 86 may have a thumb
groove 88 that receives the user's thumb. The grasper 84 may have a
pair of grooves 90 and 92 to receive the index and middle fingers
of the user respectively.
[0033] The handle 32 can rotate about a wrist axis 94. The wrist 32
provides a fifth degree of freedom not found in medical robotic
systems of the prior art. The wrist 32 may include a sensor 104
that provides positional feedback for the controller 22. To improve
the ergonomics of the wrist/handle assembly 30 the wrist axis 94
preferably intersects the roll axis 78 at a centroid 96 located
between the thumb 98, index finger 100 and middle finger 102 of the
user's hand. It has been found that such a configuration creates a
more ergonomically correct feel of the handle 32 and movement of
the handle assembly 30.
[0034] The sensors 104 provide positional feedback information to
the controller 22 which is used to spin the medical instrument 50
as indicated by the arrows 82 in FIG. 3.
[0035] The grasper 84 can be depressed by user. The grasper 84 is
coupled to a sensor 112 which provides feedback information to the
controller 22. The feedback information is used by the controller
22 to actuate the end effector 52 shown in FIG. 3. By way of
example, depressing the grasper 84 may close the end effector 52.
The grasper 84 may include a switch 114 that allows the user to
lock the position of the grasper 84 and the end effector 52 of the
corresponding medical instrument. The locking switch 114 may be
coupled to a ratchet (not shown) that allows the grasper 84 and
corresponding end effector 52 to be locked at a number of different
positions.
[0036] The handle 32 may have a plurality of buttons 116, 118 and
120 that can be depressed by the user. By way of example, button
116 may be used to activate a cutting mode on a cauterizing end
effector. Button 118 may be used to activate a coagulating medical
instrument. The button 120 may be used to used to vary different
functions of the system.
[0037] While certain exemplary embodiments have been described and
shown in the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that
such embodiments are merely illustrative of and not restrictive on
the broad invention, and that this invention not be limited to the
specific constructions and arrangements shown and described, since
various other modifications may occur to those ordinarily skilled
in the art.
* * * * *