Abstract: The subject disclosure is directed to an articulated medical device having a hollow cavity, wherein the device is capable of maneuvering within a patient, and allowing a medical tool to be guided through the hollow cavity for medical procedures, including endoscopes, cameras, and catheters.

Abstract: A system and method configured to position medical instruments. The system and method includes an orientation localizer including at least one fiducial marker and having a localized plane, wherein the orientation localizer is mountable at a skin entry point on a patient, a computer configured to receive at least one medical image on the localized plane, register a position and orientation of the orientation localizer with the at least one medical image using the at least one fiducial marker, determine at least one cross sectional image based on the at least one medical image on the localized plane, and determine an insertion plane perpendicular to the localized plane, and an image display connected to the computer, wherein the image display displays the at least one cross sectional image on the localized plane and/or on the insertion plane.

Abstract: When a bendable medical instrument is used, the present invention reduces a risk that a body of the medical instrument is damaged. The present invention provides a medical instrument which includes: a deformable portion; a wire configured to deform the deformable portion; and a driving unit configured to transmit driving force to the wire, wherein: the medical instrument includes a load detecting unit configured to detect load applied to the deformable portion; and when the load detected by the load detecting unit exceeds a threshold value, the driving unit breaks connection between the wire and the driving force.

Abstract: Provided are both a flexible printed board, in which heat dissipation performance can be improved in without using an aluminum heal dissipating material, which is light in weight, has good processability and can be reduced in cost, and a method for manufacturing such a flexible printed board. The flexible printed board is a flexible printed board 10 on which a power consuming load is mounted, including: a front surface heat dissipation layer 30 made of a copper foil and having a circuit portion on which the load is mounted; a thermally conductive resin layer 20 having the front surface heat dissipation layer 30 laminated to a front surface side thereof and having a thermal conductivity of 0.49 W/mK or more; and a rear surface heat dissipation layer made of a copper foil, laminated to a rear surface side of the thermally conductive resin layer 20, and having a thickness of 100 to 400% with respect to the front surface heat dissipation layer 30.

Abstract: A low-friction coating includes: an aliphatic hydrocarbon group showing a peak in a region of 2,900 cm?1 to 3000 cm?1 in an infrared absorption spectrum; a carbonyl group showing a peak in a region of 1,650 cm?1 to 1,800 cm?1 in an infrared absorption spectrum; an aromatic component (C7H7+) showing a peak at mass 91.1 in a positive ion spectrum obtained by TOF-SIMS; and a condensed ring based component (C9H7+) showing a peak at mass 115.2 in the positive ion spectrum obtained by TOF-SIMS.

Abstract: A continuum robot having at least two independently manipulatable bendable section for advancing the robot through a passage, without contacting fragile elements within the passage, wherein the robot incorporates control algorithms that enable the continuum robot to operate and advance into the passage, as well as the systems and procedures associated with the continuum robot and said functionality.

Abstract: A method of performing a percutaneous multi-probe treatment includes: acquiring a scan image of an object to be treated with multi-probe percutaneous insertions; determining a first point in a region of interest (ROI) in the scan image; determining a second point at a surface of the object in the scan image; generating a reference trajectory by connecting the first point and the second point; arranging, around the first point, a number of third points corresponding to tips of probes to be inserted into the object; generating planned insertion trajectories for the probes based on the number of probes to be inserted and the reference trajectory; and causing a monitor to display superposed on the scan image, at least one of the planned insertion trajectories. The planned insertion trajectories extend in a geometric relationship to the reference trajectory and pass through the third points and through one or more second points.

Abstract: The disclosure of this application relates generally to medical devices and in particular to a steerable medical instrument applicable to guide interventional tools and instruments, such as percutaneous biopsy and ablations tools and endoscopes. The steerable medical instrument has an outer and an inner tube where the inner tube is movable at the proximal end and fixed at the distal end. At least one of the outer tube and inner tube has a plurality of openings, which creates deformable portions so that the outer and the inner tubes can bend by moving the inner tube at the proximal end.

Abstract: A medical guidance apparatus includes a base assembly including a base ring having an inner circumference defining an opening; and a guide rotateably mateable with the base assembly, the guide including: a frame comprising: an inner circumference defining an opening; and an outer circumference, wherein, in a configuration where the guide is mated with the base assembly, the opening of the frame overlays the opening of the base ring; a gap extending from the inner circumference of the frame to the outer circumference of the frame; and an arc member including a first end integrally formed with the frame and a second end integrally formed with the frame, wherein the first end of the arc member is diametrically opposed to the second end of the arc member.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method and an apparatus for controlling a flexible manipulator including a plurality of bendable mechanisms via a control apparatus. The control apparatus includes a drive-mode selecting unit allows for the selection of a movement mode which may provide a bending movement, an angled view movement, or a remote center movement.

Abstract: There is provided a medical support device for holding and positioning a needle. This device is particularly useful for positioning needles in a less invasive puncture treatment. This device comprises two rotational elements and at least one needle guide attached to a rotational element and. The needle guide guides the direction of insertion of a needle-like instrument and includes a guide portion that guides a needle or other needle-like instrument where the puncture point of the needle in a first position is different from the puncture point when the needle guide guides the needle in a second position.

Abstract: A process for producing on an industrial scale the oxidized coenzyme Q10, includes culturing a reduced coenzyme Q10-producing microorganism selected from the group consisting of the genus Rhodobacter, the genus Saitoella, the genus Schizosaccharomyces and the genus Trichosporon, to obtain microbial cells containing reduced coenzyme Q10 at a ratio of not less than 70 mole % among the entire coenzymes Q10; and one of: (a) oxidizing thus-obtained reduced coenzyme Q10 to oxidized coenzyme Q10 and then extracting the oxidized coenzyme Q10 by an organic solvent; or (b) extracting reduced coenzyme Q10 by an organic solvent and oxidizing the extracted reduced coenzyme Q10 to oxidized coenzyme Q10.

Abstract: A low-friction coating includes: an aliphatic hydrocarbon group showing a peak in a region of 2,900 cm?1 to 3000 cm?1 in an infrared absorption spectrum; a carbonyl group showing a peak in a region of 1,650 cm?1 to 1,800 cm?1 in an infrared absorption spectrum; an aromatic component (C7H7+) showing a peak at mass 91.1 in a positive ion spectrum obtained by TOF-SIMS; and a condensed ring based component (C9H7+) showing a peak at mass 115.2 in the positive ion spectrum obtained by TOF-SIMS.

Abstract: There is provided a medical support device for holding and positioning a needle. This device is particularly useful for positioning needles in a less invasive puncture treatment. This device comprises two rotational elements and at least one needle guide attached to a rotational element and. The needle guide guides the direction of insertion of a needle-like instrument and includes a guide portion that guides a needle or other needle-like instrument where the puncture point of the needle in a first position is different from the puncture point when the needle guide guides the needle in a second position.

Abstract: A sliding surface, which is formed using metal (SUJ2, palladium etc.) or oxide ceramics (ZrO2), is made to slide, at a Hertzian contact stress of 1.0 GPa or more in an atmospheric environment containing a hydrogen gas including a minute amount of an alcohol and water, against a slid surface including a PLC film which is a coating formed by an ionization deposition method while applying a low bias voltage. Consequently, it is possible to form, on the sliding surface, a low-friction coating that stably exhibits a significantly low friction coefficient of 10?4 order (less than 0.001).

Abstract: A sound absorbing body comprises a non-woven fabric or a non-woven fabric laminate, the non-woven fabric or the non-woven fabric laminate comprises a fiber that has an average fiber diameter of less than 3,000 nm, the non-woven fabric or the non-woven fabric laminate has a thickness of less than 10 mm, the non-woven fabric or the non-woven fabric laminate has a unit thickness flow resistance of greater than 4.0 E+06 Ns/m4 and less than 5.0 E+08 Ns/m4, and the non-woven fabric or the non-woven fabric laminate has a bulk density of greater than 70 kg/m3 and less than 750 kg/m3.

Abstract: An ink jet head includes a pressure chamber, a main flow path, an actuator, a nozzle, a first communication flow path, and a filter. The pressure chamber is filled with an ink. The main flow path supplies the ink to the pressure chamber. The actuator changes the pressure of the ink filled in the pressure chamber. The nozzle is connected to the pressure chamber and ejects the ink filled in the pressure chamber by driving of the actuator. The first communication flow path connects the pressure chamber to the main flow path. The filter is disposed at a predetermined position between the nozzle and the vicinity of a first boundary of the main flow path and the first communication flow path, and the filter captures an impurity in the ink which has a size larger than the diameter of the nozzle.

Abstract: This application provides a medical guidance device with an inertial measurement unit and a mechanical interface. This device can provide accurate and precise orientation of insertable medical tools is critical in surgical procedure, such as for placement of a needle-like instrument according to plan based on medical images (e.g., computed tomography (CT) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)) in percutaneous interventions.