Abstract: A powered surgical handpiece that includes a motor for actuating a cutting accessory. The handpiece has a housing with a bore for receiving the cutting accessory and a coupling member internal to the bore that releasably engages and actuates the cutting accessory. A coil is mounted to the housing adjacent the bore. More particularly, the coil is located so that when the cutting accessory is seated in the bore, the coil is able to exchange signals with a complementary coil integral with the cutting accessory. A locking assembly mounted to the housing releasably holds the cutting accessory in the bore.

Abstract: The shape and orientation of rigid or nearly rigid moveable bodies are determined using a shape characterization. Sensors capture a plurality of representations of different perspectives of the body that are analyzed to determine a bounding volume of the body. The shape of the body is determined from the bounding volume. The position of the body is determined using tracking devices that sense the position of the body. The bounding volume and position information are combined to define the shape and orientation in space of the body, and in particular the position of a point of interest on the body.

Abstract: A light source illuminates a field of interest that includes an illumination module capable of projecting illumination light to the field of interest and a light projector associated with the illumination module. The light source also includes an input device associated with the light projector; the input device capable of sending signals to the light projector such that the light projector simultaneously projects data light along with the illumination light to the field of interest.

Abstract: An adapter can be easily used to assist a surgical navigation system to determine the effector axis or the effector plane of a surgical device. The adapter has a body with a geometrical feature, the geometrical feature has a known relation with a navigation tracker device that can be attached to the adapter. When the adapter is held against a surgical device in a non-fixed manner, the effector axis or the effector plane of the device can be tracked by the surgical navigation system. The method includes a calibration method to determine the known relation between the effector axis or the effector plane and the location of the navigation tracker.

Abstract: A system for virtually planning a size and position of a prosthetic implant for a bone on a patient includes a database containing pre-defined form factor information for a plurality of different implants and a circuit for obtaining surface shape information of the bone. The system further includes a circuit for defining baseline location parameters for an implant location in relation to a virtual representation of the bone based on the surface shape information and a circuit for assessing a fit calculation of each implant in relation to the virtual representation of the bone based on the form factor in formation and a plurality of fit factors at each of a plurality of incremental positions in relation to the bone. Still further, the system includes a circuit for selecting a best fit implant size and position from all of the fit calculations.

Abstract: A system and method for locating cutting accessories such as saw blades that, when actuated by the complementary driver, move relative to the driver. The saw blade is provided with one or more geometric features. The location of these features is identified by a pointer. The pointer is part of a surgical navigation system used to monitor the position of the driver to which the saw blade is attached. Based on the location of the geometric features, data regarding the head of the saw blade are generated. Thus, the surgical navigation has data indicating the position and orientation of the driver and the position of the head of the cutting accessory relative to the driver. Based on these data, the surgical navigation system generates data indicating the position and orientation of the head of the saw blade or like cutting accessory.

Abstract: A two dimensional image is registered with mechanical axis data, and possibly other data, using a surgical navigation system. This provides the user with additional graphical information on a display screen as the procedure is performed. The mechanical axis data can be generated using an anatomical assessment.

Abstract: A method for easily calibrating both the position of the tip of a surgical tool and the orientation of that tool includes attaching a tracking device capable of communication with the surgical navigation system to the surgical tool using an adapter, where the adapter has a known relation between the tracking device and the axis of the surgical tool. The method then performs a calibration process to calculate the position of the tip of the surgical tool and the position of the tracking device and orientation data for the surgical tool from the known relation between the tracking device and the axis of the surgical tool and from the tool tip position. Lastly, the method stores the position of the tool tip for the surgical tool and the orientation data within memory of the surgical navigation system so the position and the orientation of the surgical tool can be tracked by the surgical navigation system.

Abstract: A method for easily calibrating both the position of the tip of a surgical tool and the orientation of that tool includes attaching a tracking device capable of communication with the surgical navigation system to the surgical tool using an adapter, where the adapter has a known relation between the tracking device and the axis of the surgical tool. The method then performs a calibration process to calculate the position of the tip of the surgical tool and the position of the tracking device and orientation data for the surgical tool from the known relation between the tracking device and the axis of the surgical tool and from the tool tip position. Lastly, the method stores the position of the tool tip for the surgical tool and the orientation data within memory of the surgical navigation system so the position and the orientation of the surgical tool can be tracked by the surgical navigation system.

Abstract: A method for easily calibrating both the position of the tip of a surgical tool and the orientation of that tool includes attaching a tracking device capable of communication with the surgical navigation system to the surgical tool using an adapter, where the adapter has a known relation between the tracking device and the axis of the surgical tool. The method then performs a calibration process to calculate the position of the tip of the surgical tool and the position of the tracking device and orientation data for the surgical tool from the known relation between the tracking device and the axis of the surgical tool and from the tool tip position. Lastly, the method stores the position of the tool tip for the surgical tool and the orientation data within memory of the surgical navigation system so the position and the orientation of the surgical tool can be tracked by the surgical navigation system.

Abstract: A method is described for navigating in the interior of the body using three-dimensionally visualized structures. In a first step of the method, at least two two-dimensional images of the same anatomical object are provided from different perspectives, and also items of information that make it possible to draw conclusions about the respective spatial position of an imaging system relative to the anatomical object. The projections of a geometrical structure to be visualized are then created in every two-dimensional image, wherein a geometrical structure to be visualized is created in each two-dimensional image, wherein the geometrical structure to be visualized is different from the anatomical object.

Abstract: A method of registering an article having a surface to previously created scan data of the article includes the steps of providing a flexible substrate having multiple tracking points attached to the substrate, applying the substrate to the article to be registered, creating a model of the surface of the article from a location of each tracking point; and registering the model with the previously created scan data. A method of creating a model of a surface having a shape and an article to enable the creation of a model of a surface are also disclosed.

Abstract: A method for easily calibrating both the position of the tip of a surgical tool and the orientation of that tool includes attaching a tracking device capable of communication with the surgical navigation system to the surgical tool using an adapter, where the adapter has a known relation between the tracking device and the axis of the surgical tool. The method then performs a calibration process to calculate the position of the tip of the surgical tool and the position of the tracking device and orientation data for the surgical tool from the known relation between the tracking device and the axis of the surgical tool and from the tool tip position. Lastly, the method stores the position of the tool tip for the surgical tool and the orientation data within memory of the surgical navigation system so the position and the orientation of the surgical tool can be tracked by the surgical navigation system.

Abstract: A surgical tool system with a handpiece that has an internal power generating unit used to actuate an accessory attached to the handpiece. Power to actuate the handpiece comes from a control console. Internal to the accessory there is an identification chip that describes the operating and/or physical characteristics of the accessory. Complementary coils in the handpiece and accessory facilitate the reading by inductive coupling of the data in the accessory. The data in the accessory are inductively read by the control console through the handpiece. Based on the read data, the control console actuates the handpiece in an appropriate manner for the attached accessory. The accessory data and data inductively read from an implant the accessory is used to set are supplied to a surgical navigation unit. The surgical navigation unit, based on these data, tracks and indicates the position of the implant as it fitted in the patient.

Abstract: A surgery system comprising at least one smart instrument, a computer system, and a sensor system. The sensor system is adapted to wirelessly sense the position of the at least one smart instrument and to transmit position information to the computer system.