Surgical tool monitoring system and methods of use
AssigneeUniversity of Pittsburgh—Of the Commonwealth System of Higher Education
InventorsJeffrey Vipperman, Carl Snyderman, Timothy Ryan, Paul Johnson
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A device for simultaneously monitoring the health of surgical drills and detecting proximity to critical structures during surgery is described herein. By using various sensors (e.g. microphones, accelerometers, temperature sensors, etc.), signals from the drill can be measured and analyzed. The processed signals can then be used to indicate the proximity of the drill bit to critical structures, such as the patient's brain, and identify drill health issues (e.g. worn bearings, misaligned rotational axis, etc.).
Claims18
A surgical tool for cutting tissue in a body, comprising:
- a cutting member;
- at least one sensor configured to provide information about at least one physical condition of the cutting member;
- and
- an indicator system that receives the information obtained from the at least one sensor about the at least one physical condition of the cutting member, analyzes the information to detect the approach of the cutting member to a transition from a first tissue type to a second tissue type, and generates a first alert to a user when the cutting member is approaching the transition from the first tissue type to the second tissue type;
- wherein the at least one sensor comprising one or more microphones to obtain information about an acoustic state of the cutting member.
A method of identifying a state of a cutting tool during a surgical procedure, the method comprising:
- contacting the cutting tool with tissue in a body;
- receiving information about a physical condition of the cutting tool from one or more sensors on the surgical tool as the cutting tool contacts the tissue;
- analyzing the received information and comparing the received information to stored information regarding predetermined states of the surgical tool to determine whether the cutting tool is approaching a transition between a first type of tissue and a second type of tissue;
- and
- based on the comparison, providing an indication to a user when the cutting member is approaching the transition from the first type of tissue to the second type of tissue;
- wherein the at least one sensor comprises one or more microphones and the physical condition of the cutting member comprises an acoustic state of the cutting member.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.