Medical telerobotic systems: current status and future trends

Area of Science:

• Robotics
• Medical Technology
• Telecommunications

Background:

• Teleoperated medical robotic systems facilitate remote surgeries, treatments, and diagnoses.
• The field has experienced significant growth between 2004 and 2015.
• These systems utilize wired and/or wireless communication networks.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review medical teleoperated robotic systems literature from 2004-2015.
• To provide insights into design concepts, enabling technologies, and applications.
• To highlight limitations and future trends in medical telerobotics.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature review focusing on medical teleoperated robotic systems.
• Analysis of engineering characteristics and employed robotics technology.
• Classification of systems into short- and long-distance categories based on operation distance.

Main Results:

• Detailed review of telerobotics systems, including design, technologies (robotic manipulation, telecommunications, vision), and applications.
• Examples provided: da Vinci Surgical System (short-distance) and diagnostic ultrasound scanning (long-distance).
• Categorization of systems by operation distance and application field.

Conclusions:

• Medical telerobotics has advanced significantly, offering potential for remote healthcare delivery.
• Key challenges and future directions for the field were identified.
• The review provides a comprehensive overview of the current status and significance of medical telerobotics.