Motion feedback as a navigation aid in robot assisted neurosurgery

This paper describes a test prototype for precision robot-assisted surgery using a hexapod operating robot and a movable operating cockpit. The objective of the work described is twofold: 1) To evaluate the use of hexapod robots for precisely manipulating endoscopes and surgical instruments in sub-millimeter surgery. 2) To test a new user interface concept based on motion feedback. This paper gives an overview of the system components and the user interface concept, and reports results from initial tests. Finally, the paper investigates potential applications and areas for further development.