Haptic guidance system and method

A surgical method, comprising the steps of:

• creating a representation of an anatomy of a patient;
• associating the anatomy and a surgical device with the representation of the anatomy;
• manipulating the surgical device to perform a procedure on a patient by moving a portion of the surgical device in a region of the anatomy;
• controlling the surgical device to provide at least one of haptic guidance and a limit on manipulation of the surgical device, based on a relationship between the representation of the anatomy and at least one of a position, an orientation, a velocity, and an acceleration of a portion of the surgical device;
• and
• adjusting the representation of the anatomy in response to movement of the anatomy during the procedure.

A surgical method, comprising the steps of:

• creating a representation of an anatomy of a patient;
• associating the anatomy and a haptic device with the representation of the anatomy;
• manipulating the haptic device to perform a procedure on a patient by moving a portion of the haptic device in a region of the anatomy;
• the haptic device including at least one feedback mechanism configured to supply feedback during manipulation;
• and
• controlling the at least one feedback mechanism to provide haptic guidance, during manipulation of the haptic device, based on a relationship between the representation of the anatomy of the patient and at least one of a position, an orientation, a velocity, and an acceleration of a portion of the haptic device.

A method for joint replacement, comprising the steps of:

• creating a representation of a first bone;
• creating a representation of a second bone;
• planning bone preparation for implanting a first implant on the first bone;
• preparing the first bone to receive the first implant by manipulating a surgical tool to sculpt the first bone;
• planning bone preparation for implanting a second implant on the second bone after preparing the first bone;
• and
• preparing the second bone to receive the second implant by manipulating the surgical tool to sculpt the second bone.

A surgical planning method, comprising the steps of:

• detecting a height of a cartilage surface above a bone;
• creating a representation of the bone and a representation of the height of the cartilage surface;
• and
• planning bone preparation for implanting an implant on the bone based at least in part on the detected height of the cartilage surface.

A surgical planning method, comprising the steps of:

• creating a representation of a bone of a joint;
• moving the joint to a first position;
• identifying a first point corresponding to a first location in the joint, when the joint is in the first position;
• moving the joint to a second position;
• identifying a second point corresponding to a second location in the joint, when the joint is in the second position;
• and
• planning bone preparation for implanting an implant on the bone based at least in part on the first and second points.