Robotic cutting systems and methods for surgical saw blade cutting on hard tissue
AssigneeMAKO Surgical Corp.
InventorsSeamus Gilhooley, David Gene Bowling, Paul Shiels
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Methods of cutting bone using a robotic cutting system are provided. The robotic cutting system includes one or more controllers, a robotic manipulator, and one or more cutting tools, such as those including a bur or a saw blade, that can be coupled to the robotic manipulator. An initial cut, such as a notch, is made into the bone with the bur or the saw blade. This notch is then used to constrain the saw blade for limiting skiving of the saw blade during cutting along a cutting plane.
Claims19
A method of cutting bone using a robotic cutting system including a robotic manipulator, a cutting tool coupled to the robotic manipulator and having a saw blade configured to cut a bone, and one or more controllers coupled to the robotic manipulator, the method comprising:
- controlling, with the one or more controllers, the robotic manipulator and the cutting tool to facilitate cutting along an initial plane with the saw blade to create a notch;
- controlling, with the one or more controllers, the robotic manipulator and the cutting tool to facilitate reorienting the saw blade from the initial plane to a cutting plane that is at a different orientation than the initial plane;
- and
- controlling, with the one or more controllers, the robotic manipulator and the cutting tool to facilitate cutting along the cutting plane with the saw blade and capturing the saw blade with the notch created along the initial plane for limiting skiving of the saw blade during cutting along the cutting plane.
A method of cutting bone using a robotic cutting system including a robotic manipulator, a first cutting tool configured to be coupled to the robotic manipulator and comprising a bur, a second cutting tool configured to be coupled to the robotic manipulator and having a saw blade configured to cut a bone along a cutting plane, and one or more controllers coupled to the robotic manipulator, the method comprising:
- controlling, with the one or more controllers, the robotic manipulator and the first cutting tool to facilitate burring a notch into the bone with the bur;
- and
- controlling, with the one or more controllers, the robotic manipulator and the second cutting tool to facilitate cutting along the cutting plane with the saw blade and capturing the saw blade with the notch burred into the bone for limiting skiving of the saw blade during cutting along the cutting plane.
A method of operating a robotic cutting system, the robotic cutting system comprising a robotic manipulator, a cutting tool configured to be coupled to the robotic manipulator and having a saw blade for cutting a bone, and one or more controllers coupled to the robotic manipulator, the method comprising the one or more controllers controlling the robotic manipulator for:
- aligning the saw blade along a first plane;
- operating the cutting tool for creating a groove in the bone with the saw blade along the first plane;
- reorienting the saw blade along a second plane that virtually intersects the first plane within a volume of the bone;
- and
- operating the cutting tool for cutting the bone with the saw blade along the second plane whereby the saw blade crosses into the groove during cutting along the second plane for limiting skiving of the saw blade.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.