Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 15, 2026

Remote Magnetic Navigation for Accurate, Real-time Catheter Positioning and Ablation in Cardiac Electrophysiology Procedures
Published on: April 21, 2013
A Miniature Mobile Robot for Navigation and Positioning on the Beating Heart
Nicholas A Patronik1, Takeyoshi Ota, Marco A Zenati
1N. A. Patronik was with the Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15213 USA. He is now with St. Jude Medical, St. Paul, MN 55117 USA.
HeartLander, a miniature mobile robot, offers precise, stable access for cardiac surgery on beating hearts. This robotic system demonstrates feasibility for minimally invasive therapies requiring accurate navigation to multiple cardiac targets.
Area of Science:
- Minimally Invasive Surgery
- Medical Robotics
- Cardiac Surgery
Background:
- Conventional endoscopy has limitations for cardiac surgery.
- Robotic assistance can enhance endoscopic procedures.
- Existing robotic systems face challenges in cardiac applications.
Purpose of the Study:
- To introduce HeartLander, a novel miniature mobile robot for cardiac surgery.
- To evaluate HeartLander's ability to provide precise and stable access to the beating heart.
- To demonstrate the feasibility of semiautonomous navigation and therapy delivery on the cardiac surface.
Main Methods:
- HeartLander robot adheres to and navigates the heart surface in a semiautonomous manner.
- Target acquisition strategy involves region navigation followed by fine positioning.
- Preclinical studies conducted in closed-chest, beating-heart animal models.
Main Results:
- Demonstrated navigation to targets around the heart circumference.
- Achieved accurate target pattern acquisition on anterior and posterior surfaces (average error: 1.7 mm).
- Minimal average drift during station-keeping (0.7 mm).
Conclusions:
- HeartLander shows feasibility for precise, semiautonomous therapy delivery to the beating heart surface.
- The robot addresses limitations of current robotic endoscopic systems in cardiac surgery.
- Preclinical results support HeartLander's potential for less-invasive cardiac interventions.
Related Concept Videos
Location and Orientation of the Heart
Overview of the Heart
The heart's structure...
Anatomy of the Heart
The heart has three layers: the innermost endocardium, the muscular myocardium, and the outer epicardium, all working together for optimal cardiac function.
Chambers of the Heart
The heart is made up of four...
Anatomy of the Heart
Development of the Heart
As the embryo undergoes lateral folding, these paired tubes approach each other, merging into a single primitive heart tube by...
Equipments Used To Measure Blood Pressure
This invasive approach involves cannulating a peripheral artery. During each cardiac contraction, pressure generates mechanical motion within the catheter, transmitted through rigid, fluid-filled tubing to a transducer. This transducer converts mechanical motion into electrical signals displayed as waveforms on a monitor. An automatic flushing system prevents blood backflow. Due to the potential risk of unexpected arterial blood loss, this method is primarily used in intensive...

