Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Stereoscopic
3D display
Master
controls
(a)
(b)
Figure 9.2
Amadeus Composer
™
Robotic Surgical System, (a) Patient cart and robotic arms, (b)
Master station (
©
2012 Titan Medical, Inc.)
9.3 Advantages and Disadvantages of Robotic Surgery
The advantages of robotic surgery systems are numerous, because they overcome many
of the obstacles of laparoscopic surgery. They increase dexterity, restore proper hand/eye
harmony and an ergonomic position, and improve visualization. In addition, these systems
now enable surgeries that were previously either technically difficult or even unfeasible.
The advantages and disadvantages of conventional surgery, MIS and MIRS, on a com-
parative basis, are listed in Table 9.1.
These robotic systems enhance dexterity in several ways. Firstly, they are equipped
with instruments that provide increased degrees of freedom, which greatly enhance the
surgeon's ability to manipulate instruments that grasp the tissues. Secondly, they are
designed in such a way that any hand tremor can be compensated in the end-effector
motion through appropriate hardware and software filters. Thirdly, they scale movements
so that large movements of the control grips can be transformed into micro-motions inside
the patient [27].
Another important advantage is the restoration of proper hand/eye coordination and an
ergonomic position. These robotic systems eliminate the fulcrum effect, making instrument
manipulation more intuitive. With the surgeon sitting at a remote, ergonomically designed
workstation, current systems also eliminate the need to twist and turn in awkward positions
to move the instruments, while at the same time viewing the monitor.
By most accounts, the enhanced vision afforded by these systems is remarkable. The
three-dimensional view with its incumbent depth perception is a marked improvement
over the views supplied by conventional laparoscopic cameras. The surgeon also has the
ability to control a stable visual field directly, with increased magnification and maneu-
verability. All of this creates images with increased resolution that, combined with the
