MemoBox: A mechanical follow-the-leader system for minimally invasive surgery

ABSTRACT: With the increase in Natural Orifice Transluminal Endoscopic Surgery procedures, there is an increasing demand for surgical instruments with additional degrees of freedom, able to travel along tortuous pathways and guarantee dexterity and high accuracy without compromising the surrounding environment. The implementation of follow-the-leader motion in surgical instruments allows propagating the decided shape through its body and moving through curved paths avoiding sensitive areas. Due to the limited operational area and therefore the instrument size, the steerable shaft of these instruments is usually driven by cables that are externally actuated. However, a large number of degrees of freedom requires a great number of actuators, increasing the system complexity. Therefore, our goal was to

SUBMITTER: Culmone C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9632848 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature