Breakthrough Robot Technology Could Allow Entire Surgery to Be Performed Without Human Intervention

Current surgical robotics technologies typically rely on two main automation techniques. The first is model-based automation, where procedural steps and conditions for starting or stopping are pre-programmed. The second method involves machine-learning algorithms, which require vast datasets of procedures and task sequences. While both approaches have contributed to advancements in surgical robotics, they face limitations in scalability, generalizability, and adaptability. Now, a groundbreaking multi-institutional project aims to revolutionize robotic surgery by integrating model-based and learning-based approaches for the first time. This will enhance the adaptability, scalability, robustness, and interpretability of automation in surgery.

The project involving a team of robotics experts and surgeons from the University of Tennessee (Knoxville, TN, USA) aims to develop a surgical robot capable of performing an entire surgery without human intervention. This leap forward is made possible by a new technological breakthrough called concentric tube robots. These needle-sized robots can bend and elongate like tentacles, consisting of a series of telescoping, curved, super-elastic tubes that rotate within each other. The researchers will develop computational models that simulate tissue and robot movement during surgery, using these models to guide the automated system through artificial intelligence (AI) training, motion planning, and mapping the surgical environment.

The goal is to enable the new surgical robot to perform less invasive and more effective surgeries in anatomical areas that are currently inaccessible to existing surgical robots. This includes procedures like tumor removal from the trachea and prostate without direct surgeon intervention. Additionally, the researchers envision this technology being applied to other conditions such as uterine fibroids, bladder tumors, spinal procedures, and brain cysts, expanding the potential impact across various clinical applications.

“This project will endow surgical robots with autonomy, much further than has ever been done before, and with a robot that is an order of magnitude smaller than current commercial surgical robots,” said Caleb Rucker, an associate professor, and B. Ray Thompson Professor in the Department of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Biomedical Engineering. “Surgical robot autonomy can bring many potential benefits to patients by increasing safety and offloading the surgeon’s physical and cognitive workload.”

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