# US 11,109,740 B2 · Apparatus and method for four dimensional soft tissue navigation in endoscopic applications

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- Number: US 11,109,740 B2
- Document ID: US11109740B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 16/358,882
- Filed: 2019-03-20
- Published: 2019-10-24
- Granted: 2021-09-07
- Earliest claimed: 2010-08-20
- Assignees: Veran Medical Technologies, Inc.
- Applicants: Veran Medical Technologies, Inc.
- Inventors: Troy L. Holsing; Mark Hunter
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11109740B2

## CPC

- A61B 5/062: {using magnetic field}
- A61B 1/00009: {of image signals during a use of endoscope}
- A61B 1/0005: {combining images e.g. side-by-side, superimposed or tiled}
- A61B 1/00094: {Suction openings}
- A61B 1/04: combined with photographic or television appliances
- A61B 1/2676: {Bronchoscopes}
- A61B 5/0066: {Optical coherence imaging}
- A61B 5/061: {Determining position of a probe within the body employing means separate from the probe, e.g. sensing internal probe position employing impedance electrodes on the surface of the body (A61B1/00158 takes precedence)}
- A61B 5/064: {using markers (A61B5/062 takes precedence)}
- A61B 5/065: {Determining position of the probe employing exclusively positioning means located on or in the probe, e.g. using position sensors arranged on the probe}
- A61B 5/066: {Superposing sensor position on an image of the patient, e.g. obtained by ultrasound or x-ray imaging}
- A61B 5/113: occurring during breathing
- A61B 5/352: Detecting R peaks, e.g. for synchronising diagnostic apparatus; Estimating R-R interval
- A61B 5/415: {the glands, e.g. tonsils, adenoids or thymus}
- A61B 5/418: {lymph vessels, ducts or nodes}
- A61B 8/0841: {for locating instruments}
- A61B 8/12: in body cavities or body tracts, e.g. by using catheters
- A61B 34/20: Surgical navigation systems; Devices for tracking or guiding surgical instruments, e.g. for frameless stereotaxis
- A61B 90/39: {Markers, e.g. radio-opaque or breast lesions markers}
- A61M 25/09: Guide wires
- A61B 2034/2051: {Electromagnetic tracking systems}
- A61B 2034/2061: {using shape-sensors, e.g. fiber shape sensors with Bragg gratings}
- A61B 2034/2063: {Acoustic tracking systems, e.g. using ultrasound}
- A61B 2034/2065: {Tracking using image or pattern recognition}
- A61B 2034/2068: {using pointers, e.g. pointers having reference marks for determining coordinates of body points}
- A61M 2025/09183: {having tools at the distal tip}
- G06T 2207/30061: Lung
- A61B: DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION (usefulness limited to only animals A61D)
- A61M: DEVICES FOR INTRODUCING MEDIA INTO, OR ONTO, THE BODY (introducing media into or onto the bodies of animals A61D7/00; means for inserting tampons A61F13/26; devices for administering food or medicines orally A61J; containers for collecting, storing or administering blood or medical fluids A61J1/05); DEVICES FOR TRANSDUCING BODY MEDIA OR FOR TAKING MEDIA FROM THE BODY (surgery A61B; chemical aspects of surgical articles A61L); DEVICES FOR PRODUCING OR ENDING SLEEP OR STUPOR {(Electrotherapy, e.g. producing anaesthesia by the use of alternating or intermittent currents A61N1/36021)}
- G06T: IMAGE DATA PROCESSING OR GENERATION, IN GENERAL

## Abstract

A surgical instrument navigation system is provided that visually simulates a virtual volumetric scene of a body cavity of a patient from a point of view of a surgical instrument residing in the cavity of the patient. The surgical instrument navigation system includes: a surgical instrument; an imaging device which is operable to capture scan data representative of an internal region of interest within a given patient; a tracking subsystem that employs electro-magnetic sensing to capture in real-time position data indicative of the position of the surgical instrument; a data processor which is operable to render a volumetric, perspective image of the internal region of interest from a point of view of the surgical instrument; and a display which is operable to display the volumetric perspective image of the patient.

## Claims

### Claim 1

An image-guided method comprising:
directing an endoscope having a tip that is equipped with a five degree of freedom electromagnetic sensor to an anatomical position in a patient, the tip configured to facilitate generation of real-time video image data having a direction of view along a path;
forming a 3D navigation model representative of the patient's lung anatomy from CT data;
capturing video of the patient's anatomy with the endoscope;
presenting an image of the anatomical position within the 3D navigation model of the patient's lung anatomy;
activating a steering mechanism of the endoscope to repeatedly move the tip in an arc constrained to a plane to acquire a sixth degree of freedom representing orientation of said direction of view and defining a view along the path.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The image-guided method of claim 1, further comprising:
determining the orientation and location of the sensor in the patient as the sensor is being repeatedly moved;
correlating the determined sensor location and orientation with one or more patient images acquired prior to the repeated movement of the sensor.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The image-guided method of claim 2, wherein orientation and location determination comprise applying a deformation vector field.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The image-guided method of claim 3, wherein the one or more patient images are derived from an imaging device in conjunction with a patient tracking device disposed at an external region of the patient.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The image-guided method of claim 1, wherein the anatomical position is a branching point of a bronchial tree.