Towards Semi-Autonomous Colon Screening Using an Electromagnetically Actuated Soft-Tethered Colonoscope Based on...

Area of Science:

• Robotics
• Medical Devices
• Gastroenterology

Background:

• Conventional colonoscopy faces challenges with patient discomfort and complex surgeon manipulation.
• Existing robotic colonoscopes often retain difficult control schemes, limiting widespread clinical adoption.
• There is a need for more intuitive and automated robotic systems to improve colonoscopy procedures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate visual servo-based semi-autonomous manipulations for the electromagnetic actuated soft-tethered (EAST) colonoscope.
• To reduce the difficulty of robotic colonoscope manipulation and enhance clinical applicability.
• To improve the autonomy and reduce user workload in robotic colonoscopy.

Main Methods:

• Developed kinematic modeling and an adaptive visual servo controller for the EAST colonoscope.
• Implemented template matching and a lumen/polyp detection model for semi-autonomous control.
• Enabled automatic region-of-interest tracking and autonomous navigation with polyp detection capabilities.

Main Results:

• The EAST colonoscope achieved visual servoing with an average convergence time of 2.5 seconds and disturbance rejection within 3.0 seconds.
• Semi-autonomous manipulations were successfully performed in both a colonoscopy simulator and an ex-vivo porcine colon.
• Demonstrated a reduction in user workload compared to traditional manual control methods.

Conclusions:

• The EAST colonoscope successfully performed visual servoing and semi-autonomous manipulations in laboratory and ex-vivo settings.
• The developed techniques enhance the autonomy of robotic colonoscopes.
• These advancements facilitate the development and clinical translation of more user-friendly robotic colonoscopy systems.