Telesurgery with miniature robots to leverage surgical expertise in distributed expeditionary environments

Mark Reichenbach, Tom Frederick, Lou Cubrich, Walter Bircher, Nathan Bills, Marsha Morien, Shane Farritor, Dmitry Oleynikov

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

14 Scopus citations

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the capability of performing telesurgery via radio transmission for military arenas where wired internet connections may not be practical. Most existing robotic surgery systems are too large to effectively deploy with first responders. The miniature surgical platform in this study consists of a multifunctional robot suite that can fit easily into a briefcase. Methods: The focus of this study is to explore the implications of radio control of the robot. The hypothesis is that an in vivo robot and its control boards can be controlled using off-the-shelf wireless components. An experiment was designed with off-the-shelf wireless components to test the capability of our newest generation of miniature surgical robot to become battery-operated and wireless. Results: Wireless transmission of control signals has provided proof of concept and has exposed areas of the software that can be built upon to improve responsiveness. Wireless transmission of the video feed can be adequately performed with basic off-the-shelf components.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number316
Pages (from-to)316-321
Number of pages6
JournalMilitary medicine
Volume182
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 2017

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Medicine

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