Minimally invasive use of robotic appendage for surgery and expansive device and surgical implant
OwnerDouglas George Hughesinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A device for safely approaching vertebral disc space utilizing stereotactic guidance, clearing material from the disc space, a device for expanding the disc space, stereotactic methods for implant planning and monitoring articulating instrument end effectors and a device for implantation into the disc space for the purpose of fusion or disc replacement.
Claims13
A method of accounting for and/or monitoring a variance in a position of a stereotactic end effector, the method comprising:
- calculating a variation in an angle between a first movable reference fiducial and two spaced apart stationary reference fiducials based on a distance between the movable reference fiducial and each of the two stationary reference fiducials wherein the distance between the first movable reference fiducial and each of the two stationary fiducials is determined by a camera;
- calculating a variation in an angle between a second movable reference fiducial and two spaced apart stationary reference fiducials based on a distance between the movable reference fiducial and each of the two stationary reference fiducials wherein the distance between the second movable reference fiducial and each of the two stationary fiducials is determined by the camera;
- and
- correlating the calculated variation in the angles to variations in the position of the end effector to determine a location, position, orientation, or combination thereof of the end effector.
A method of accounting for and/or monitoring a variance of a stereotactic end effector, the method comprising:
- correlating a rotational movement of a control dial for the end effector to a linear movement of a reflective stereotactic sphere coupled to the control dial;
- using a stereotactic frame coupled to a housing also supporting the control dial as a fixed reference point;
- accounting for a changing position of the reflective stereotactic sphere with respect to one or more points on the stereotactic frame by determining the distance between the reflective stereotactic sphere and each of the one or more points on the stereotactic frame with an infrared camera;
- using a trigonometric relationship between any two points on the stereotactic frame and the reflective stereotactic sphere to calculate one or more angles of the triangle formed between the two points and the reflective stereotactic sphere;
- and
- representing changing angles as a virtual change in an articulation of the end effector.
The method of claim 11 wherein the stereotactic frame comprises an array of reflective stereotactic spheres.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.