Robotic arm having an extendable prismatic link
AssigneeVerb Surgical Inc.
InventorsRoman Devengenzo, Pablo Garcia Kilroy
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Robotic arms and surgical robotic systems incorporating such arms are described. A robotic arm includes a roll joint connected to a prismatic link by a pitch joint and a tool drive connected to the prismatic link by another pitch joint. The prismatic link includes several prismatic sublinks that are connected by a prismatic joint. A surgical tool supported by the tool drive can insert into a patient along an insertion axis through a remote center of motion of the robotic arm. Movement of the robotic arm can be controlled to telescopically move the prismatic sublinks relative to each other by the prismatic joint while maintaining the remote center of motion fixed. Other embodiments are also described and claimed.
Claims20
A method of controlling a robotic arm to maintain a remote center of motion fixed, comprising:
- driving, by a processor, the robotic arm to move a surgical tool that is inserted into a patient along an insertion axis through the remote center of motion;
- determining, by the processor, movements of a plurality of joints or links of the robotic arm to maintain the remote center of motion fixed, wherein the remote center of motion is at an intersection of the insertion axis and a roll axis of a roll joint of the robotic arm, wherein a prismatic link connects the roll joint to a tool drive supporting the surgical tool, and wherein the prismatic link includes a plurality of prismatic sublinks coupled by a prismatic joint;
- and
- driving, by the processor, the robotic arm to effect movements of the plurality of joints or links including telescopically moving the prismatic sublinks relative to each other by the prismatic joint to maintain the remote center of motion fixed while moving the surgical tool.
A method of controlling a robotic arm to maintain a remote center of motion fixed, comprising:
- driving, by a processor, the robotic arm to move a surgical tool that is inserted into a patient along an insertion axis through the remote center of motion;
- determining, by the processor, movements of a plurality of joints or links of the robotic arm to maintain the remote center of motion fixed, wherein the remote center of motion is at an intersection of the insertion axis and a roll axis of a roll joint of the robotic arm, wherein a prismatic link connects the roll joint to a tool drive supporting the surgical tool, wherein the prismatic link extends along a linear axis and includes a plurality of prismatic sublinks coupled by a prismatic joint, and wherein the linear axis is oblique to the roll axis;
- and
- driving, by the processor, the robotic arm to effect movements of the plurality of joints or links including telescopically moving the prismatic sublinks relative to each other by the prismatic joint to maintain the remote center of motion fixed while moving the surgical tool.
A method of controlling a robotic arm to maintain a remote center of motion fixed, comprising:
- driving, by a processor, the robotic arm to move a surgical tool that is inserted into a patient along an insertion axis through the remote center of motion;
- determining, by the processor, movements of a plurality of joints or links of the robotic arm to maintain the remote center of motion fixed, wherein the remote center of motion is at an intersection of the insertion axis and a roll axis of a roll joint of the robotic arm, wherein a prismatic link connects the roll joint to a tool drive supporting the surgical tool, wherein the prismatic link has a first end and a second end, extends along a linear axis from the first end to the second end, and wherein the linear axis is oblique to the roll axis and intersects the insertion axis;
- and
- driving, by the processor, the robotic arm to effect movements of the plurality of joints or links to maintain the remote center of motion fixed while moving the surgical tool.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.