Deployable, Variable Stiffness, Cable Driven Robot for Minimally Invasive Surgery

Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS) imposes a trade-off between non-invasive access and surgical capability. Treatment of early gastric cancers over 20 mm in diameter can be achieved by performing Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection (ESD) with a flexible endoscope; however, this procedure is technically challenging, suffers from extended operation times and requires extensive training. To facilitate the ESD procedure, we have created a deployable cable driven robot that increases the surgical capabilities of the flexible endoscope while attempting to minimize the impact on the access that they offer. Using a low-profile inflatable support structure in the shape of a hollow hexagonal prism, our robot can fold around the flexible endoscope and, when the target site has been reached, achieve a 73.16% increase in volume and increase its radial stiffness. A sheath around the variable stiffness structure delivers a series of force transmission cables that connect to two independent tubular end-effectors through which standard flexible endoscopic instruments can pass and be anchored. Using a simple control scheme based on the length of each cable, the pose of the two instruments can be controlled by haptic controllers in each hand of the user. The forces exerted by a single instrument were measured, and a maximum magnitude of 8.29 N observed along a single axis. The working channels and tip control of the flexible endoscope remain in use in conjunction with our robot and were used during a procedure imitating the demands of ESD was successfully carried out by a novice user. Not only does this robot facilitate difficult surgical techniques, but it can be easily customized and rapidly produced at low cost due to a programmatic design approach.