JP4346615B2 - Medical manipulator - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a medical manipulator, and more particularly to a medical manipulator provided with surgical forceps and the like.

  Conventionally, in laparoscopic surgery such as cholecystectomy, as shown in FIG. 8, several small holes 151, 152, and 153 are opened in the abdomen of a patient 150, trocars 154 are attached to them, and trocars 154 are inserted into these holes. An endoscope 161, forceps 171, 172, and the like are inserted, and an operator (usually a surgeon) 160 performs an operation while viewing an image of the endoscope 161 on a monitor 162 (see Patent Document 1).

Since such an operation does not open, the burden on the patient is small, the postoperative recovery and the number of days until discharge are greatly reduced, and this is a surgical method that is expected to expand in the future.
Japanese National Patent Publication No. 10-504984

  However, the conventional laparoscopic surgery as described above is an excellent surgical method with less burden on the patient 150, but the operator 160 cannot actually see the surgical site, and the forceps 171 and 172 are normally opened and closed. Since only the gripping part is provided, the posture (direction) of the gripping part other than the opening / closing operation of the gripping part cannot be changed, and the operability may be deteriorated.

  Due to such factors, there are problems that the number of operators who can perform appropriate treatments by the above-described surgical method is limited and that it takes time to become skilled.

  Several applications of remote control robot technology such as master-slave manipulators have been studied to deal with such problems. However, these are robot systems in which the master arm operated by the operator and the slave arm performing the operation are completely separated, and the command value of the master arm is transmitted to the slave arm as an electrical signal.

  Therefore, usually the master and slave both have a number of joints with more than 6 degrees of freedom and a complicated structure, and a controller is required for each. Therefore, the reliability may be reduced.

  In addition, the apparatus itself becomes large, and the purchase cost and maintenance cost increase.

  Furthermore, since the surgeon operates from a remote location, there is a risk that the patient cannot be treated immediately in the event of an emergency such as bleeding.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above-described conventional problems, and the working unit is configured to have at least two degrees of freedom with multiple degrees of freedom, and by operating the position and posture of the working unit at the operation unit, An object of the present invention is to provide a medical manipulator with improved operability of the working unit.

  According to one aspect of the present invention, the working unit having at least two degrees of freedom and contacting the work target, the first operation unit that can be grasped by the operator, and the two-degree-of-freedom direction of the working unit And a second operation unit for controlling the operation of the medical device, wherein the second operation unit is attached so that the angle formed by the first and second operation units can be changed. A manipulator is provided.

  According to the present invention as described above, it is possible to improve operability and achieve high functionality by making the working unit a structure having at least two degrees of freedom, and unnecessary freedom of the entire apparatus compared to the master-slave manipulator. By greatly reducing the degree and simplifying the mechanism, reliability can be improved and costs can be reduced. Further, since the surgeon is present near the patient in an emergency, the patient can be treated quickly and a highly safe operation can be realized. Furthermore, operations that can only be performed by skilled physicians can be performed easily and safely.

  In the present invention as described above, by separating the operation part of the positioning operation and the posture determination operation, there is little influence of mutual interference, the fine operation becomes easy, and the medical device has high reliability and safety. A manipulator can be provided.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of a medical manipulator of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  1 to 4 are schematic structural views showing a medical manipulator according to an embodiment of the present invention. The medical manipulator of the present invention assumes a forceps.

  The medical manipulator rotates in the direction indicated by the arrow, which is a phase shifted by 90 degrees with respect to the first rotary joint 20 that can rotate in the direction of the arrow and the first rotary indirect 20 at the forceps tip 10 that is the working unit. A first operation unit that has a second rotary joint 30 that can be held and a grasping opening / closing unit 40 that can grasp and open the work object, and that can be grasped by the operator at the rear end 50 of the forceps The control rod 60, the joystick 70 as the second operation unit for operating the two rotary joints, and the lever 80 for operating the opening and closing are configured. The medical manipulator is provided with a cord (not shown) connected to a control unit or a power source for controlling the operation of the medical manipulator.

  The operation of the first embodiment having such a configuration will be described.

  The joystick 70 is provided with an angle detector such as a potentiometer, and detects vertical and horizontal movements. The detected angle is electrically sent to a control device (not shown). Similarly, the lever for operating the opening / closing section has a displacement detector. The two rotary joints at the tip of the forceps and the opening / closing part are driven by motors 90, 91, 92 installed on the rear end side by a drive signal from the control device via wires, pulleys, gears and the like.

  The operator holds the operation rod 60, puts his thumb on the joystick (flat part), moves it up and down, left and right, reads the operation amount with the angle detector, and the first rotation joint and the second rotation at the tip of the forceps Each joint is driven according to the operation amount. Similarly, the position of the lever 80 is detected to control the opening / closing amount of the forceps tip 10. Other operations are the same as those of the conventional forceps.

  Therefore, as compared with the prior art, since there are two rotary joints at the tip, the direction of the tip of the forceps can be freely changed only by the operation of the fingertip, and more delicate surgical work such as suturing work can be easily performed. Further, since the forceps positioning operation is performed by grasping and moving the operation rod 60 and the position of the distal end portion is operated by the thumb, the operation of the operator is facilitated.

  In addition to the electromagnetic motor, the actuator may be a shape memory alloy or an electrostatic actuator. Further, by providing an actuator on the operation side, the force at the tip can be returned to the operator. For example, the operator grips by detecting the force applied to the gripping portion with a force sensor such as a strain gauge and generating a force corresponding to the detected force on the finger with the lever on the operation side. I can feel the power. The same applies to the two rotary joints 20 and 30. In addition, the forceps tip 10 can be opened / closed by a switch that functions by pressing the joystick 70 from above without using a lever. For example, the forceps tip 10 may be closed when the joystick 70 is pressed once and opened when the joystick 70 is pressed again.

  Furthermore, the joystick 70 detects force applied in the direction in which the operator wants to move by a force sensor capable of detecting force in a multiaxial direction, not a displacement amount such as translation or tilt, and forceps in the direction of the detected force. The tip 10 can also be moved.

  The operating rod 60 may be attached in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction as shown in FIG. 1, or may be attached in the longitudinal direction as shown in FIG. 3A, or may be attached at an angle. good. Further, as shown in FIG. 3B, a rotary shaft 100 is provided between the forceps rear end portion 50 and the operating rod 60, and the operator can set the angle arbitrarily. The operability is improved by using it at an angle that is easy to use by the surgical contents and the surgeon.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 4A, a switch 200 may be used instead of the joystick 70. For example, there are four button switches of left 210, right 220, upper 230, and lower 240, and only while the button is pressed. It is also possible to move the tip of the forceps. Alternatively, dials 250 and 260 may be used as shown in FIG. 4B, or a trackball 270 used for a personal computer mouse may be attached and operated as shown in FIG. 4C.

  In the first embodiment as described above, the work unit is configured to have at least two degrees of freedom and the operation unit is operated by operating the position and posture of the work unit. Can be improved.

  In addition, since the joystick 70 and the lever 80 are used when operating the working unit, the operator can change the position or posture without releasing the forceps, and the operator's wrist can be rotated without being bent or bent. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of relative displacement between the working unit and the affected part on which the working unit works.

  Next, a medical manipulator according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of an operation unit according to the second embodiment.

  The operation unit includes an operation rod 300 as a first operation unit and a knob unit 310 as a second operation unit. When the operation rod 300 is gripped, a finger is applied to the knob portion 310, and the knob portion 310 is supported by two orthogonal rotating shafts 320 and 330. The knob 310 can operate the roll shaft 320 and the yaw axis 330 at the tip of the forceps, and the tip posture operation is performed by an operation unit different from the positioning operation performed by moving the operation rod 300, so that a fine operation is realized. it can. Here, the order of the joints supporting the knob portion is not limited.

  FIG. 6A shows the joint arrangement of FIG. 5, and the yaw axis 330 a and the roll axis 320 a are connected to the knob portion 310 in this order. FIG. 6B shows the joint arrangement in the reverse order, which is connected to the knob portion 310 in the order of the roll shaft 320b and the yaw shaft 330b. In both cases, the center 340 of the knob portion is a point where the manipulator longitudinal direction 350, the roll shaft 320, and the yaw axis 330 intersect.

  When the roll shaft is operated by the knob portion 310, the angle is detected, the motor is driven via the control portion, and the tip portion operates at the corresponding angle. Similarly, when the yaw axis is operated, the tip yaw axis moves by a corresponding angle. The joint at the distal end does not necessarily correspond to the same joint as the operation unit, and can be freely made to improve operability through coordinate conversion.

  The knob 310 has a push switch 360, which closes the forceps gripping portion when pressed and opens the gripping portion when pressed again. Alternatively, a member into which a finger can be inserted is provided, and by opening and closing the finger by inserting the finger into this portion, the opening / closing amount can be detected, and the gripper can be opened / closed to correspond to the opening / closing amount.

  In the second embodiment as described above, the work unit is configured to have at least two degrees of freedom and the operation unit is operated by operating the position and posture of the work unit. Can be improved.

  Further, by attaching an actuator such as a motor to the joint, the reaction force during operation can be returned to the operator as in the first embodiment, and the operability can be further improved.

  In addition, since the operation of the position and posture of the work unit can be performed by separate operation units, the position operation unit and the posture operation unit are conventionally the same, so the position of the work unit is changed when the posture operation is performed. Although it is affected by the effect to some extent, it is difficult to carry out fine work on the tip, but according to this embodiment, it can be easily implemented.

  Next, the medical manipulator of the 3rd Embodiment of this invention is demonstrated using FIG. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of an operation unit according to the third embodiment.

  The wrist (or arm) of the operator is fixed to the rear end portion 400 of the forceps by a fixing portion 410 such as a belt as a first operation portion, and a joystick that is a second operation portion that is also fixed to the rear end portion 400 with a fingertip. 420 is operated. The entire manipulator is moved by moving the wrist, and the posture of the forceps tip can be changed by operating the joystick 410 with the fingertip. Further, in such a system, the length may be longer in the longitudinal direction and the operability may be lowered. By providing a joint portion 430 that is bent and fixed at an arbitrary position, the longitudinal direction is shortened and the operation is facilitated. In this case, the fixing mechanism 440 may be an electromagnetic brake, or may be mechanically fixed with a screw or a lock mechanism. Reference numeral 400a denotes a form in which the joint 430 is rotated.

  In the third embodiment as described above, the work unit is configured to have at least two degrees of freedom and the operation unit is operated by operating the position and posture of the work unit. Can be improved.

  In addition, the operator can naturally perform the position operation by moving the arm without being conscious of the operation of grasping the operation rod, so that it is possible to concentrate on the posture operation of the distal end portion and facilitate the fine work.

  Needless to say, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and can be variously modified. For example, although the case where the degree of freedom of the forceps tip is 2 degrees of freedom has been described, it may have 3 degrees of freedom or more as required.

  Moreover, it can be applied not only to the medical field but also to an apparatus that performs precision work.

  Moreover, although the forceps are supported by the operator, it is possible to provide support means for supporting the forceps as required.

The schematic perspective view of 1st Embodiment of the medical manipulator of this invention. Schematic which shows the operation part of 1st Embodiment of the medical manipulator of this invention. Schematic which shows another operation part of 1st Embodiment of the medical manipulator of this invention. Schematic which shows the attitude | position operation method of 1st Embodiment of the medical manipulator of this invention. The schematic perspective view which shows the operation part of 2nd Embodiment of the medical manipulator of this invention. The schematic diagram which shows the operation part of 2nd Embodiment of the medical manipulator of this invention. The schematic perspective view which shows the operation part of 3rd Embodiment of the medical manipulator of this invention. The schematic block diagram of the conventional medical manipulator.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Forceps front-end | tip part 20 1st rotating shaft 30 2nd rotating shaft 40 Opening and closing part 50 Forceps rear end part 60 Operation rod 70 Joystick 80 Lever 90 Motor 100 Rotary axis 200 Switch 210, 220, 230, 240 Pushbutton switch 250, 260 Dial 270 Trackball 300 Operation rod 310 Knob portion 320, 320a, 320b Roll shaft 330, 330a, 330b Yaw shaft 340 Knob portion center 350 Manipulator longitudinal direction 360 Push switch 400 Rear end portion 410 Fixed portion 420 Joystick 430 Rotating shaft 440 Fixed Mechanism 400a Rear end after rotation

Claims (3)

A working part having at least two degrees of freedom and contacting the work object;
A first operation unit that can be grasped by an operator;
A second operation unit attached to the first operation unit, for controlling the operation of the working unit in the direction of two degrees of freedom;
A driving force having a plurality of motors connected to the one end side, the first operation unit connected to the other end side, and generating a driving force for driving the working unit in at least two directions of freedom. Generating part;
A third operation unit attached to the first operation unit and for controlling the operation of the working unit in a direction different from the second operation unit;
The first operation unit is provided to be rotatable around a rotation axis orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the driving force generation unit, and the two degrees of freedom direction is a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the driving force generation unit. A medical manipulator characterized by that. The medical manipulator according to claim 1, wherein the rotation shaft is provided at one end of the driving force generation unit. The medical manipulator according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the second operation unit includes first and second dials.

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