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Design and Fabrication of an Elastomeric Unit for Soft Modular Robots in Minimally Invasive Surgery
Published on: November 14, 2015
Development of a master-slave isomorphic modular handheld electric robotic prototype for laparoscopic surgery
Li Ma1, Bingyue Yang1, Jie Shao1,2
1School of Mechanical Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong University, No. 28 Xianning West Road, Xi'an, 710049, Shaanxi, China.
International Journal of Computer Assisted Radiology and Surgery
|August 11, 2026
Summary
This study presents a novel handheld electric surgical robot with a joystick for improved usability in minimally invasive procedures. The robot demonstrated excellent trajectory consistency and ease of use in simulated suturing tasks.
Area of Science:
- Robotics in Medicine
- Minimally Invasive Surgery
- Surgical Technology
Background:
- Handheld laparoscopic robots offer portability and robotic flexibility but face usability challenges.
- Existing wrist-controlled handheld robots raise concerns regarding intuitiveness.
Purpose of the Study:
- To introduce a novel modular handheld electric surgical robot with enhanced usability.
- To address challenges in handheld robotic surgery through innovative design and control.
Main Methods:
- Developed a modular handheld electric surgical robot with a joystick and a Hooke hinge end effector.
- Employed kinematic modeling and a joint incremental proportional control method.
- Utilized an optical 3D motion capture system for performance evaluation.
Main Results:
- The end effector achieved ±90° yaw and pitch range with consistent multi-axis circular movements.
- Quick-change mechanism time was under 7 seconds, with a master-slave control delay of 0.304 seconds.
- Demonstrated improved ease of grasping and suturing in laparoscopic simulations.
Conclusions:
- The electric surgical device offers advantages in master-slave trajectory consistency and usability.
- The proposed control approach is applicable to other rope-driven continuum robotics.
