A magnetic guidance system (20) for guiding a guidewire (70) or other elongate medical device includes a magnet unit (20) disposed in one implementation adjacent a head end of a patient table (30). The magnet unit is disposed on a magnet support which enables the magnet unit (20) to move in a periodic motion substantially around a single plane. The preferred motion is a rotary motion about a patient's head, which creates a repetitive repulsive force at the distal end of the medical device, causing the distal end of the medical device to move in different directions within the patient's vasculature, useful in assisting the guidance of the medical device through tortuous vessel structures. The repetitive alternating medical field makes guidance of a medical device within a patient's vasculature a relatively simple task.

Systems and methods for electromagnetic distortion detection are disclosed. In one aspect, the system includes an electromagnetic (EM) sensor configured to generate an EM sensor signal in response to detection of the EM field. The system may also include a processor configured to calculate a baseline value of a metric indicative of a position of the EM sensor at a first time and calculate an updated value of the metric during a time period after the first time. The processor may be further configured to determine that a difference between the updated value and the baseline value is greater than a threshold value and determine that the EM field has been distorted in response to the difference being greater than the threshold value.

A propelling device and methods of use thereof. The device is configured to propel through a medium, using external magnetic stimuli applied thereon; the device comprises: a propelling-element and a magnet in communication with the propelling element. The magnet is configured to respond to the applied magnetic stimuli and to rotate the propelling-element; the propelling-element is configured to convert rotary motion thereof into translation motion, and thereby to propel the device through the medium.

This invention relates to apparatus for creating a magnetic field to propel a magnetic device within a diverse media including biological matrices, tissues, organs, animals and humans. In one embodiment, a cylindrical dual Halbach array provides a uniform magnetic field with a settable field direction. Another embodiment provides support and orientation apparatus for a controlled-gradient conical magnet to achieve a full 4π steradian solid angle coverage around the specimen.

Devices, systems and methods for controlling motion of magnetic-driven nanobots are provided. Based on a selection indicative of a pattern of movement of the nanobots (200), a signal can be generated indicative of a pattern of magnetic field to be produced. Electrical signals can be generated to cause production of the pattern of magnetic field. The electrical signals can be provided to a device (300, 800) which is adaptable for being placed on the head or around a tooth of the patient. A first coil (502, 602, 804) of the device can receive the electrical signals and produce the pattern of the magnetic field to drive the magnetically-driven nanobots from a pulp region of the tooth into the dentinal tubules.

An auxiliary apparatus for minimally invasive surgery is provided. The auxiliary apparatus includes an in vivo device, an in vitro device, a locating probe and a control system. The in vitro device includes an in vitro magnetic field generating element and a driving mechanism. The in vivo device includes a magnetic auxiliary member and an clip. The locating probe includes a magnetic field sensor. The auxiliary apparatus can achieve the effects of easy control of the mucosa curling angle, high repeatability of operation, fast speed, high safety and reliability for the mucosa to be dissected in any spatial orientation.

As an expert gives instructions to cause movements of their own hands transferred directly as tactile force sense while perceiving surrounding information of a collaborator on a real-time basis and watching the collaborator's line-of-sight end and movements of the collaborator's hands, the collaborator indirectly receives the instructions of the expert's manual skills, which are the expert's tacit knowledge, on a real-time basis while sharing realistic sensations with the expert who is at a remote location when the collaborator performs an act of working with their own hands.

A device for robot-assisted surgery comprises at least one manipulator arm with a non-sterile coupling unit comprising at least one first drive element. Further, the device comprises a sterile instrument unit arranged in a sterile area and comprising at least one second drive element arranged rotatably around an axis of rotation. The first drive element and the second drive element are configured and arranged in a coupled state such that by the first drive element a force can be exerted on the second drive element, for rotation of the second drive element about the axis of rotation, and in the coupled state the first drive element and the second drive element are arranged side by side in a plane of rotation orthogonally to the axis of rotation. Further, the device comprises a sterile barrier which is arranged at least between the first drive element and the second drive element.

An integrated robotic system and methods for delivery and on-demand tasks of magnetic devices in a body for different clinical applications are provided. The integrated robotic system includes a magnetic actuation device, a plurality of imaging devices, a delivery device, and at least one magnetic device. The magnetic actuation device includes a permanent magnet or an electromagnetic coil system, and a controller for controlling the magnetic device. The plurality of imaging devices include two or more imaging modalities for capturing images of the magnetic device and tracking locations of the magnetic device in the body. The magnetic device includes one or more selected from a millimeter-sized robot, a microrobot, a nanorobot, a microrobotic swarm, and particles or drugs that respond to a magnetic field and small enough to be delivered by the delivery device.

A magnetic manipulation system and method for moving and navigating a magnetic device in a body are provided. The system includes a robotic parallel mechanism having at least three electromagnets and at least three electromagnetic coils coupled to the at least three electromagnets, respectively. The electromagnetic coils are actuated to keep the electromagnets in static conditions or move the electromagnets along a desired trajectory, a current control unit supplying currents to the electromagnetic coils which have soft iron cores. The currents supplied by the control unit are configured to generate dynamic magnetic field in the soft iron core's linear region. The current control unit and the robotic parallel mechanism are configured to generate desired dynamic magnetic fields in desired positions within a workspace to control a magnetic device, and a three-dimensional position sensor is configured for performing a close loop control of the robotic parallel mechanism.