Abstract: A manipulator system including a manipulator having a flexible manipulator provided with an elongated flexible insertion portion, a movable portion provided at a distal end of insertion portion, a driving portion provided at a proximal end of insertion portion and drives movable portion; an operation input portion operated by operator and with which an operation instruction for flexible manipulator is input; a control unit that controls driving portion based on operation instruction input via operation input portion; an information input portion with which treatment-site specifying information for specifying a treatment target by using flexible manipulator is input; and an information storage portion that sets a control parameter for controlling driving portion based on treatment-site specifying information, control unit controls driving portion based on the treatment-site specifying information input via information input portion using control parameter set by information storage portion.

Abstract: For bending a manipulator without excessive increase in a tensile force acting on a driving power transmitting member, a manipulator is provided with: an end effector; a driving unit; a guide member to which the end effector is attached at one end thereof and the driving unit is attached at the other end thereof; and a driving power transmitting members that transmit the driving power from the driving unit to the end effector, wherein the guide member includes a guide tube that has lumens, and an outer sheath that has a greater rigidity than the guide tube and that covers an outer circumference of the guide tube, and one end of the outer sheath is movable in a longitudinal direction with respect to the end effector or the driving unit.

Abstract: Provided is a medical manipulator system including: a manipulator including an end effector configured to treat a patient and a driver configured to drive the end effector; an operation input unit configured to generate an operation command for the manipulator; a storage configured to store a history information of each operator; and a controller comprising one or more processors, the one or more processors configured to: receive identification information of an operator by inputting of the operation input unit; get the history information of the operator from the storage based on the identification information; estimate a skill of the operator based on the history information; set a maximum operating speed of the manipulator and/or an operating range of the manipulator in proportion to the skill; qualify the operation command based on the maximum operating speed and/or the operating range; and control the driver based on the qualified operation command.

Abstract: Provided is an operation input device for inputting a manipulation command to a manipulator having an end effector for observing or medically treating an affected site. The operation input device includes a grip section that is holdable by changing a method of holding the grip section with the same hand of an operator and an operating section that is provided in the grip section and that is operated with a single finger, which is the same before and after the holding method is changed, so as to manipulate a main function of the end effector.

Abstract: Provided is an operation input device for inputting an operation command to a medical manipulator having a distal-end-side moving portion having at least one joint on a distal end and a proximal-end-side moving portion that is connected to a proximal-end side of the distal-end-side moving portion and moves the distal-end-side moving portion, and the operation input device includes a first operation portion that generates a moving command for driving the distal-end-side moving portion in accordance with an operation command input with a palm or a finger and a second operation portion that is linked to the first operation portion and generates the moving command for driving the proximal-end-side moving portion in accordance with an operation command input with a wrist or an arm.

Abstract: A surgical instrument device includes a surgical instrument portion which is used in a surgical operation, a slave arm which holds the surgical instrument, a driving rod which is formed in a shaft shape, of which one end portion in the axial direction is connected to the surgical instrument and the other end portion in the axial direction is supported by the slave arm, and which transmits a force between the surgical instrument and the slave arm, a distance change detecting unit which detects a change in distance between two points in the axial direction of the driving rod based on a distance when no load is applied to the surgical instrument, and a force calculating unit which calculates a force applied from the surgical instrument or the slave arm to the driving rod based on the change in distance detected by the distance change detecting unit.

Abstract: Provided is a medical treatment tool, the distance between a first advance and retraction axis, and a tip end is shorter than the length of the first link member, and the length when a line segment connecting the base end and the center of a forceps rotation shaft is projected on the first advance and retraction axis is shorter than the length is projected on the first advance and retraction axis. The distance between a second advance and retraction axis, and a tip end is shorter than the length of the second link member, and the length when a line segment connecting the base end and the center of a forceps rotation shaft is projected on the second advance and retraction axis is shorter than the length projected on the second advance and retraction axis.

Abstract: A manipulator and a manipulator system adjust the initial tension easily yet unerringly during assembling. The manipulator includes a main unit, an elongated portion that extends from the main unit, a distal end that is connected to the elongated portion, a wire for transmission of power for putting the distal end into actuation, a drive unit for generation of power to the wire, a rotary unit which is located in the main unit, around which the wire is wound and which is rotated by the drive unit, and an elastic unit for connecting the wire to the rotary unit.

Abstract: A medical manipulator system including: a medical manipulator having a joint; an operating section having an operating system; and a control unit controlling the medical manipulator according to an operation applied to the operating section. The operating section includes a switch enters or releases a command. The control unit determines whether a deviation between the joint and the operating system exceeds a threshold while the command is entered, carries out a first motion for moving the joint by a displacement corresponding to the displacement of the operating system if the deviation is equal to or smaller than the threshold, carries out a second motion for approaching the joint to the operating system angle if the deviation exceeds the threshold, and stops the motion for approaching the joint to the operating system angle when the command is released when the deviation exceeds the threshold.

Abstract: When the mass of the first moving body is defined as M1, the mass of the second moving body is defined as M2, the distance between a first intersection point of a perpendicular line from a rotation center of the rotation axis to the first moving body and a first gravity center of the first moving body when the distance between the first intersection point and the first gravity center in the first moving body is the shortest is defined as L1, and the distance between a second intersection point of a perpendicular line from the rotation center of the rotation axis to the second moving body and a second gravity center of the second moving body when the distance between the second intersection point and the second gravity center in the second moving body is the shortest is defined as L2, M2=(L1/L2)×M1 is satisfied.

Abstract: An overtube includes a first tube member has a first distal opening end; a second tube member has a second distal opening end; a substantially tubular coupling member has first and second through-holes communicating with inside of the first and second tube member respectfully; a tapered surface forms part of a conical surface; a tube holding member fixed to an outer circumference surface of the second distal opening end of the second tube member; an operation wire coupled to the tube holding member and be operable to be moved along a longitudinal axis; and a guide member guides a distal part of the second tube member in movable manner, wherein the tube holding member coincides with the tapered surface or is located further inside the coupling member than the tapered surface in a state where the second tube member has the straight tube shape inside the coupling member.

Abstract: A medical manipulator system including: a manipulator provided with an elongated portion, a movable portion which has one or more joints, and a driving portion which is disposed at a proximal end of the elongated portion and which drives the movable portion; a medical device having a channel that can accommodate at least a portion of the elongated portion and the movable portion; a manipulation input portion that generates an operation instruction for moving the manipulator between a treatment state in which the movable portion protrudes from a distal end of the channel and an accommodated state in which the movable portion is accommodated in the channel in accordance with a manipulation instruction input; and a notifying portion that notifies a situation in which the manipulator is shifting from the treatment state to the accommodated state.

Abstract: An operation support system performing treatment on a target tissue while observing using an image capturing unit, using a treatment unit installed at a distal end side of a manipulator, a distal end seen from a fixing end of the manipulator, includes: the manipulator having joints corresponding to degrees of freedom and including at least two redundant joints having a redundant relationship among the joints; an operating unit configured to provide operating information corresponding to the degrees of freedom; a positional relationship calculation unit calculating a switching positional relationship between the target tissue or the treatment unit and the image capturing unit; and a control unit controlling an operation of the joint according to the operating information. The control unit controls the manipulator using one redundant joint as a driving joint and the other redundant joints as a fixing joint based on the switching positional relationship.

Abstract: In a medical manipulator configured to have a manipulation unit including a first input unit and a second input unit that are exchangeable, a signal generation unit configured to process an input with respect to the manipulation unit based on a predetermined process condition and to generate a manipulation signal, an operating unit configured to be operated by the manipulation signal, and a detection unit configured to recognize a type of a used input unit, the process condition corresponded to the first input unit and the process condition corresponded to the second input unit differ, and the signal generation unit generates the manipulation signal based on the process condition corresponded to the input unit recognized by the detection unit.

Abstract: An operation support device includes a manipulation input unit that outputs a manipulation command in accordance with an input from an operator, and a motion unit that causes a surgical instrument to move in accordance with the manipulation command. The manipulation input unit includes an object-to-be-detected that is gripped by the operator and a detection device that detects the object-to-be-detected. The object-to-be-detected includes a body part that has a first marker, which is detected by the detection device, disposed thereon, a manipulation part that is disposed in the body part and that is manipulated by the operator, and a second marker that is disposed in at least one of the body part and the manipulation part.

Abstract: This overtube has a distal-end-side tubular portion that is provided with a first channel through which a manipulator is made to pass and a second channel through which an endoscope is made to pass, and that has flexibility to be driven in accordance with motions of the endoscope; and a proximal-end-side tubular portion that extends the first channel toward a proximal-end side from a proximal end of the distal-end-side tubular portion, wherein distal-end openings of the first channel and the second channel are provided at a distal end of the distal-end-side tubular portion, a proximal-end opening of the second channel is provided at the proximal end of the distal-end-side tubular portion, and a proximal-end opening of the first channel is provided at a proximal end of the proximal-end-side tubular portion.

Abstract: A device for operating a surgical manipulator including, at a distal end of an elongate shaft: a rotational joint that is rotatable about a longitudinal axis of the shaft; and a flexing joint that is on a distal-end side of the rotational joint and that can be flexed about an axis that intersects the longitudinal axis. A surgical-manipulator operating device including: a gripping portion that is gripped by an operator; a rotation input portion that is provided with a rotating member attached to the gripping portion in a rotatable manner and with which rotation instructions for the rotational joint are input in accordance with rotational angles of the rotating member; and flexion input portions with which flexion instructions for the flexing joint are input in directions corresponding to fixed circumferential-direction operating positions on the rotating member.

Abstract: Provided is a forceps device including: an elongated body portion; a pair of gripping pieces that are provided at a distal end of the body portion, at least one of which possesses conductivity; a motive-power output portion that is provided at a base end of the body portion; a motive-power converting mechanism that connects the pair of gripping pieces and the motive-power output portion, and that converts motive power output by the motive-power output portion into relative opening/closing motions of the pair of gripping pieces; and an insulating member that is provided in a pathway connecting the pair of gripping pieces and the motive-power output portion via the motive-power converting mechanism.

Abstract: Provided is a manipulator equipped with a joint mechanism that couples an end effector with a body portion via two linkage members, wherein the joint mechanism is provided with: a first joint that couples the end effector with the linkage member in a mutually pivotable manner; a second joint that couples the linkage members with each other so as to be pivotable about a second axis; a third joint that couples the linkage member with the body portion so as to be pivotable about a third axis that is parallel to the axis; and a pair of restraining members that have constant lengths, that flank the second and third axes in the radial direction, and that are disposed in a crossed manner so as to intersect each other just once between the second and third joints.

Abstract: A guiding device includes an elongate flexible section having a first part at the distal end thereof and a second part at the proximal end thereof, a flexible channel tube disposed in the longitudinal direction within the flexible section, a manipulation unit that is provided at the proximal end of the flexible section and that is to be manually operated for bending a bending part at the distal end of the flexible section, and a rotating section that connects the first part to the second part in a rotatable manner about a longitudinal axis of the flexible section.