An example physical tracking tool includes a main body defining a channel configured to receive a tool, the channel having a longitudinal axis; and one or more physical tracking features attached to the main body, each physical tracking feature comprising a plurality of planar faces, each planar face of the plurality of planar faces including different a graphical pattern of a plurality of graphical patterns.

Orthopedic implants, systems, instruments, and methods. A bi-portal lumbar interbody fusion system may include an expandable interbody implant and minimally invasive pedicle-based intradiscal fixation implants. The interbody and intradiscal implants may be installed with intelligent instrumentation capable of repeatably providing precision placement of the implants. The bi-portal system may be robotically-enabled to guide the instruments and implants along desired access trajectories to the surgical area.

An anatomical sensing system-guided prostate procedure device that includes a housing having a proximal end and a distal end. The housing may be divided into a distal housing section, amid housing section, and a proximal housing section, wherein the distal housing section is configured for insertion into the anus and retention in the rectum of a subject. The device further includes an instrument convergence point disposed between the proximal end and the distal end, the convergence point configured to allow an instrument pass though the instrument convergence point at a variable angle; and an instrument angle orienting system at the proximal end of the housing, the angle orienting system directing an orientation of the variable angle about the convergence point. Methods of the using an anatomical sensing system-guided prostate procedure device and system including the same.

A computer-implemented method plans a position of a tracking reference device for referencing a position in a medical environment. The method includes a determination of avoidance regions in which a tracking reference device should not be placed so as to safeguard proper tracking of the tracking reference device and/or an instrument tracking reference device which is attached to a medical instrument. The avoidance region is a region lying, from the point of view of a tracking device for tracking the tracking reference device, in the shadow of an envelope surrounding at least one medical instrument. Additionally or alternatively, an avoidance region may lie in between the position of the tracking device and the envelope to avoid a shadowing, by the tracking reference device, of an instrument tracking reference device attached to the medical instrument. Information describing the position of the at least one avoidance region is displayed to a user, and also information about the position of a region which is suitable for placement of the tracking reference device can be displayed to the user.

Optical tracking of objects in arthroscopic surgery. Examples comprise a resection instrument system including: a handpiece; a mechanical resection device comprising a stationary outer hub, an elongate outer tube coupled to and extending away from the stationary outer hub, and a cutter disposed at a distal end of the elongate shaft, the stationary outer hub coupled to the handpiece; a fiducial array; and a sleeve connector. The sleeve connector may include: a sleeve defining a distal end, a proximal end, and a through bore, the sleeve concentrically arranged with the elongate shaft; an array connector coupled to the proximal end of the sleeve, the array connector coupled to the fiducial array.

A technique for determining a need for a re-registration of an optical patient tracker with medical image data of a patient is presented. A camera system is configured to generate camera image data for tracking the tracker. The camera system comprises an acceleration sensor configured to generate inertial data indicative of an acceleration of the camera system. A method implementation of the technique comprises the following steps performed by a processor: receiving image data from the camera system and analyzing the received image data for a positional change of the tracker indicative of at least one of a drift of the tracker and an impact on the tracker; receiving inertial data acquired by the acceleration sensor and analyzing the received inertial data, or data derived therefrom, with respect to at least one first predetermined condition indicative of an impact on the camera system; and generating, in case a positional change of the tracker indicative of at least one of a drift of the tracker and an impact on the tracker is identified based on the image data and the at least one first predetermined condition is not fulfilled, at least a re-registration signal.

A technique for determining a need for a re-registration of a patient tracker with medical image data of a patient is presented. The patient tracker comprises an acceleration sensor configured to generate inertial data indicative of an acceleration of the patient tracker. A method implementation of the technique comprises the following steps performed by a processor: receiving inertial data acquired by the acceleration sensor, analyzing the received inertial data, or data derived therefrom, with respect to at least one first predetermined condition indicative of a drift of the tracker or an impact on the tracker, and generating, when the at least one first predetermined condition is fulfilled, at least a first re-registration signal.

A surgical assembly for kinematically coupling two surgical components is provided. The surgical assembly includes a first surgical component having a receiver, which defines a cavity and has a plurality of constraint surfaces accessible in the cavity. The surgical assembly further includes second surgical component having a key, which has a triplicity of kinematic elements to repeatably position the key in the receiver. The surgical assembly further includes a preloading mechanism having a load member arranged to secure the key in the receiver such that the kinematic elements contact the receiver at the plurality of constraint surfaces such that the key is kinematically constrained to the receiver by being constrained by six points of contact with the receiver.

A system for constructing fluoroscopic-based three-dimensional volumetric data of a target area within a patient from two-dimensional fluoroscopic images including a structure of markers, a fluoroscopic imaging device configured to acquire a sequence of images of the target area and of the structure of markers, and a computing device. The computing device is configured to estimate a pose of the fluoroscopic imaging device for at least a plurality of images of the sequence of images based on detection of a possible and most probable projection of the structure of markers as a whole on each image of the plurality of images. The computing device is further configured to construct fluoroscopic-based three-dimensional volumetric data of the target area based on the estimated poses of the fluoroscopic imaging device.

A sterile sheath and methods for enclosing a confocal endomicroscopy (CEM) scanner probe with the sterile sheath are provided. The scanner probe includes a probe shaft, a probe tip, a probe body, and a probe umbilical. The sterile sheath for enclosing the CEM scanner probe includes a sheath tube configured to receive the probe shaft and has a distal tube end, a proximal tube end, a sheath tip mounted at the distal tube end of the sheath tube, and a sheath socket configured to receive the probe body. The sheath socket has a distal socket end and a proximal socket end. The proximal tube end of the sheath tube is fixed to the sheath socket at the distal socket end. The sterile sheath further includes a sheath lock ring and a sheath drape mounted on the sheath socket at the proximal socket end with the sheath lock ring.