An endoscopic system includes a single-use portion and a multiple-use portion. The two portions can be mated and un-mated. The single-use portion includes an elongated cannula that has a bendable section near its distal end providing a “steerable” distal tip. The distal tip includes LED illumination and an imaging module that feeds live video to a display screen forming which forms part of the multiple-use portion. Ergonomically designed steering control and significant portions of the steering structure reside in the multiple-use portion. The cannula is configured to rotate, which further expands the field of view when combined with steering deflection along a single axis. Some embodiments, include motorized distal tip deflection and/or omni-directional tip deflection.

A medical arm system including: an arm unit that supports a medical instrument, and adapts a position and posture of the medical instrument with respect to a point of action on the medical instrument; and a control unit that controls an operation of the arm unit to adapt the position and the posture of the medical instrument with respect to the point of action and, one or more acquisition units configured to acquire environment information of a space surrounding the point of action, wherein the control unit is configured to generate or to update mapping information mapping the space surrounding the point of action on a basis of the environment information acquired by the one or more acquisition units and arm state information representing the position and the posture of the medical instrument with respect to the point of action according to a state of the arm unit.

A computer-assisted medical system comprises a flexible elongate instrument. The flexible elongate instrument comprises a plurality of wires extending from a proximal end of the flexible elongate instrument to a distal end of the flexible elongate instrument. Each wire of the plurality of wires may be used to steer the distal end. The system also comprises a control system coupled to the flexible elongate instrument. The control system is configured to monitor movement of the flexible elongate instrument along a longitudinal central axis and determine an extent of motion of the flexible elongate instrument in a first direction along the longitudinal central axis based on the monitoring. The control system is also configured to alter a rigidity of the flexible elongate instrument based on a rigidity profile relative to the extent of motion by adjusting one or more forces applied by the plurality of wires to the distal end of the flexible elongate instrument.

The invention relates to a surgery assistance system for guiding an endoscope camera, at least a section of which can be introduced through a first surgical opening and is movable in a controlled manner in an operating space of a patient body. The system includes an endoscope camera for capturing images of the operating space and robot kinematics. The free end of the robot kinematics accommodates the endoscope camera by an auxiliary instrument carrier, the robot kinematics being movable by motor control for guiding the endoscope camera in the operating space and via control signals (SS) generated by a control unit, at least one voice control routine being executed in the control unit by which voice commands and/or voice command combinations in the form of voice data are captured, evaluated, and the control signals being generated on the basis thereof.

A drive assembly of a surgical robotic system is disclosed herein. In some embodiments, the drive assembly includes a first drive unit having a first drive unit face, a second drive unit having a second drive unit face, and a third drive unit having a third drive unit face. Each drive unit may include a plurality of motors configured to rotate a corresponding one of a plurality of drive elements about rotational axes perpendicular to the respective the respective drive unit face. the first drive unit, the second drive unit, and the third drive unit configured to be positioned about the drive assembly common axis with respect to a vertical plane passing through the drive assembly common axis such that an orientation and position of the first drive unit face mirrors those of second drive unit face, and the third drive unit face is bisected by the vertical plane.

A medical system includes a medical device, an over-tube, and a console. The medical device includes an insertion portion. The over-tube is configured to receive the insertion portion. A console having a first connector is attached to the medical device and a second connector is attached to the over-tube. The over-tube has a tubular main body and a proximal-end portion. The proximal-end portion comprises a tubular member having an insertion port for receiving the insertion portion of the medical device therethrough. A base portion is coupled to the second connector and a moving mechanism is coupled to both the tubular member and the base portion. The moving mechanism is configured to cause the tubular member to move with respect to the second connector such that the tubular member has two or more degrees of freedom with respect to the second connector.

A surgery manipulator arm according to an embodiment may include an arm body and a translation mechanism provided to a distal end portion of the arm body. The translation mechanism includes: a proximal side unit connected to the distal end portion of the arm body; a distal side unit including a tool holding part to which a surgical tool is attached; a connection unit connecting the proximal and distal side units; and an electrical wiring circuit electrically connecting the proximal and distal side units. The connection unit includes first and second pulleys; and a belt member wound around the first and second pulleys. The proximal and distal side units are attached to first and second attachment positions of the belt member such that the distal side unit moves in a direction opposite to a direction in which the proximal side unit moves in association with movements of the belt member.

A method of imaging a vessel with a catheter includes positioning an imaging tip in a reinforced terminal section of an outer sheath of the catheter, inserting the catheter into a vessel, and performing near infrared spectroscopy of the vessel by retracting the imaging tip to a retracted position proximally spaced from the reinforced terminal section of the outer sheath, transmitting near infrared light from the imaging tip to the vessel wall via the outer sheath, and collecting near infrared light from the vessel wall at the imaging tip via the outer sheath. Transmitting and collecting may be performed after retracting the cable and while the imaging tip is rotated and translated proximally from the retracted position along the outer sheath. Ultrasound energy may be transmitted to the vessel from a transducer on the imaging tip and received from the vessel at the transducer.

Embodiments of a robotic medical system comprise a steerable instrument that includes a bendable body and a connector assembly configured to detachably connect the bendable body to an actuation unit. A controller is configured to control the actuation unit. The connector assembly comprises a connection receptor coupled to the actuation unit and a connecting shaft coupled to the bendable body. The connecting shaft includes a plurality of driving rods that are attached in a one-to-one correspondence to a plurality of driving wires and that detachably attach to the connection receptor. In a connected state where the bendable body is connected to the actuation unit via the connector assembly, the controller causes the actuation unit to transmit an actuating force from an actuator to a driving rod, and the driving rod actuates or moves a driving wire in a same direction as the actuating force applied by the actuator.

A medical system comprises an elongate instrument and a control system. The control system is adapted to generate a first model of the elongate instrument and generate a second model of the elongate instrument based at least in part on a reference pose of the elongate instrument. The control system is further adapted to compare the first model with the second model and determine a difference between the first model and the second model. The control system is further adapted to characterize the difference between the first model and the second model and determine a state of instrument buckling based on the characterization of the difference between the first model and the second model.