Wireless technologies for robotic endoscope in gastrointestinal tract

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Robotics
• Wireless Communication

Background:

• Gastrointestinal endoscopy traditionally relies on wired systems.
• Existing wired systems present limitations in maneuverability and patient comfort.
• Advancements in wireless technologies offer potential solutions for robotic endoscope systems.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and evaluate wireless technologies for robotic endoscopes in gastrointestinal applications.
• To demonstrate the feasibility of wireless power transmission (WPT), wireless remote control (WRC), and wireless image transmission (WIT).

Main Methods:

• Developed and integrated WPT, WRC, and WIT modules into robotic endoscope prototypes.
• WPT utilizes electromagnetic coupling for powering actuators.
• WRC employs real-time bidirectional communication with a multikernel frame for multitasking.
• WIT delivers 320x240 pixel dynamic images at 30 fps.

Main Results:

• Three robotic endoscope prototypes equipped with customized wireless modules were fabricated.
• Experimental results validated the functionality of WPT, WRC, and WIT.
• The wireless technologies demonstrated effective performance in prototype testing.

Conclusions:

• The developed wireless technologies are suitable for integration into robotic endoscopes.
• These wireless solutions show significant potential for clinical applications in gastrointestinal diagnostics.
• The study highlights the value of wireless systems for enhancing endoscopic procedures.