Instrument controller for robotically assisted minimally invasive surgery

A robot control system, comprising:

• a handheld medical instrument;
• a controller device mountable on the medical instrument and including a housing with a trackpad configured to interact with a printed circuit board therein to create electronic signals corresponding with movement of the trackpad, the electronic signals including a point signal and a click signal, and an adapter formed on the housing and configured to detachably connect the controller device to the medical instrument, the controller device being configured to permit access to the trackpad by a hand of a user while employing the medical instrument;
• a display responsive to the point signal of the controller device to permit a cursor to be moved on the display to indicate a position to be imaged or moved to by an imaging device providing viewing content on the display;
• and
• a robot system configured to respond to the click signal to move the imaging device held by the robot in accordance with the position to be imaged or moved to such that the robot system is controlled by the user with the hand employing the medical instrument.