Abstract: An instrument driver comprises opposing rotatable gripping pads. Each of the gripping pads including an outer circular rim and a center hub. The pads are configured for applying a gripping force to an elongated member. The instrument driver further comprises shafts affixed to the center hubs, and a driver assembly configured for rotating at least one of the shafts, thereby causing the pads to rotate in opposite directions to linearly translate the gripped member. Each of the pads further includes a framework for partially collapsing in response to the gripping force, such that portions of the rims flatten to contact each other. Each rim has a concave gripping surface in order to facilitate vertical centering of the member between the pads. Each of the pads further includes a pair of upper and lower sprockets for interlacing with each other to prevent the elongated member from slipping out between the pads.

Abstract: A robotic surgical system configured for the articulation of a catheter comprises an input device, a control computer, and an instrument driver having at least one motor for displacing the pull-wire of a steerable catheter wherein the control computer is configured to determine the desired motor torque or tension of the pull-wire of a catheter based on user manipulation of the input device. The control computer is configured to output the desired motor torque or tension of the pull-wire to the instrument driver, whereby at least one motor of the instrument driver implements the desired motor torque to cause the desired pull-wire tension to articulate the distal tip of the catheter. The present embodiment further contemplates a robotic surgical method for the articulation of a steerable catheter wherein an input device is manipulated to communicate a desired catheter position to a control computer and motor torque commands are outputted to an instrument driver.

Abstract: A robotic medical surgical system configured for performing prostate procedures includes a controller including a master input device, an instrument driver in communication with the controller, an instrument assembly operatively coupled to the instrument driver, and a surgical tool operatively coupled to the controller and carried on the distal end portion of the instrument assembly, wherein the controller and master input device are configured to allow a system operator to position the surgical tool proximate a prostate abnormality without entering a restricted zone, at least partially automatically controlled based on an images obtained of the surgical zone.

Abstract: A medical system comprises a medical probe including an elongated probe body, a lumen extending within the probe body, an axially flexible section, and a push-pull member slidably disposed within the lumen. The system comprises a ditherer mechanically coupled to the member for cyclically displacing it axially back and forth within the lumen, such that the ends of the probe body are axially displaced relative to each other via the axially flexible section. The system further comprises a sensor for sensing a force axially applied to the distal end of the probe body. A method comprises introducing a medical probe into a patient, axially dithering the distal end of the medical probe back and forth relative to the proximal end of the medical probe, and sensing a force applied between tissue of the patient and the distal end of the medical probe while the distal end is axially dithered.

Abstract: Systems and method are disclosed whereby elongate medical instruments may be registered to adjacent tissue structures and other structures, and may be navigated and operated in a coordinated fashion to maximize ranges of motion, ease of use, and other factors. A method for registering an instrument relative to nearby structures may comprise moving a portion of the instrument between two in situ positions, tracking movement during this movement with both a kinematic model and also a localization sensor based configuration, determining the orientation of the tracked portion relative to both the instrument coordinate system used in the kinematic modeling and also a localization coordinate reference frame, and adjusting the orientation of the instrument coordinate reference frame to minimize the difference between determined orientations using the kinematic model and localization sensors. Methods and configurations for navigating coupled and registered instrument sets are also disclosed.