A surgical instrument with pressure sensing and vision feedback functions has an instrument body and a piezochromic device. The instrument body includes a work piece with a visible surface. The piezochromic device is disposed on the visible surface of the work piece of the instrument body and performs color change when the piezochromic device senses pressure. Therefore, when a doctor performs surgery using the surgical instrument, the doctor can directly see the piezochromic device. When the piezochromic device contacts other surgical instruments or presses organs or tissues within a patient's body, the piezochromic device will change color when the piezochromic device senses the pressure enabling the doctor to adjust the surgical instrument accordingly.

A medical device includes a flexible elongate instrument, an actuator for inserting and retracting the instrument, and a control unit configured to determine at least one of a force being exerted by the actuator or an amount of force applied at a proximal end of the instrument. The control unit is configured to determine a force exerted by the instrument on tissue of a patient based on a shape of the instrument and at least one of the force exerted by the actuator or the force applied at the proximal end. A method of operating a medical device includes: determining a shape of a flexible elongate instrument and at least one of a first force exerted by an actuator or a second force applied to a proximal end; and determining a third force, exerted on tissue, based on the shape and at least one of the first or second forces.

A multi-layer, super-planar laminate structure can be formed from distinctly patterned layers. The layers in the structure can include at least one rigid layer and at least one flexible layer; the rigid layer includes a plurality of rigid segments, and the flexible layer can extend between the rigid segments to serve as a joint. The layers are then stacked and bonded at selected locations to form a laminate structure with inter-layer bonds, and the laminate structure is flexed at the flexible layer between rigid segments to produce an expanded three-dimensional structure, wherein the layers are joined at the selected bonding locations and separated at other locations. A layer with electrical wiring can be included in the structure for delivering electric current to devices on or in the laminate structure.

Various surgical systems are disclosed. A surgical system can include a surgical robot and a surgical hub. The surgical robot can include a control unit in signal communication with a control console and a robotic tool. The surgical hub can include a display. The surgical hub can be in signal communication with the control unit. A facility can include a plurality of surgical hubs that communicate data from the surgical robots to a primary server. To alleviate bandwidth competition among the surgical hubs, the surgical hubs can include prioritization protocols for collecting, storing, and/or communicating data to the primary server.

Systems and methods for surgical preparation are disclosed. A system may include at least one processor configured to access a repository surgical video footage. The processor may enable a surgeon preparing for a contemplated surgical procedure to input case-specific information corresponding to the contemplated surgical procedure and compare the case-specific information with data associated with the surgical video footage to identify a group of intraoperative events likely to be encountered during the contemplated surgical procedure. The processor may determine that a first set and a second set of video footage from differing patients contain frames associated with intraoperative events sharing a common characteristic and omit the second set from a compilation to be presented to the surgeon and include the first set in the compilation to be presented to the surgeon to enable the surgeon to view a presentation including the compilation.

Systems, devices, and methods are operable to track usage of a surgical instrument and modify the performance of the surgical instrument based on the prior usage of the surgical instrument. Some surgical instruments are designed to have a limited service life beginning at their first use, or a limit to their overall usage in order to ensure safe use of the sensitive instruments. However, a lack of ability to track usage characteristics when the instrument is separated from an external power supply allows for user abuse and avoidance of such safety mechanisms. Adding a battery or capacitor to the instrument may allow for an ability to track usage when the instrument is separated from an external power supply. Implementing special user prompts, device use ratios, and device use half-life upon powering down of an instrument may additionally be used to prevent circumvention of safety features.

Described herein include embodiments of devices, systems and methods for measuring drill depth, such as drill depths in bone material. For example, embodiments of drill depth measuring systems and associated methods are described. Some drill depth measuring systems can utilize at least resistance, capacitance, optical and/or acoustic sensing features for assisting the drill depth measuring system with determining drill depths and types of tissue being drilled into. Various other related features, devices and methods are also described.

The invention relates to a cardiac lead extraction system, comprising: a handle; an elongated body in communication with said handle; a bendable flexible portion in communication with said elongated body, said bendable flexible portion comprising a first lumen sized and shaped to fit over a cardiac lead; said bendable flexible portion being more flexible than said elongated body; an operational distal end in communication with said bendable flexible portion; where said bendable portion is configured to bend to a bending radius of less than 4 cm while keeping said first lumen open; and where said operational distal end comprises at least one lead extraction assistive tool, said operational distal end comprising a second lumen sized and shaped to fit over a cardiac lead, said second lumen being in communication with said first lumen, and said first lumen comprises an inner diameter of from about 1 mm to about 5 mm.

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide techniques and configurations for an apparatus for a user's physiological context measurements. In one instance, the apparatus may include a head-fitting component to be mounted at least partly around a user's head, and a sensor disposed on the head-fitting component to generate a signal indicative of a user's physiological context in response to contact with the user's head. The physiological context may comprise a respiration cycle, and the sensor may sense vibration in a portion of the user's head produced in response to the respiration cycle. The apparatus may further include a controller coupled with the sensor, to process the signal and generate data indicative of the physiological context of the user. Other embodiments may be described and/or claimed.

A bone plate apparatus comprises a first plate comprising one or more openings configured for use in securing the first plate to a portion of a bone, a second plate comprising one or more openings configured for use in securing the second plate to a portion of a bone, and a linking segment. The first plate is connected to the linking segment at a first articulating joint, and the second plate is connected to the linking segment at a second articulating joint.