A cable‐driven soft robotic end‐effector actuator for probe‐based confocal laser endomicroscopy: Development and preclinical validation

• Published in: Translational biophotonics 2023-05, Vol.5 (2), p.n/a
• Main Authors: DeLorey, Charles, Davids, Joseph D., Cartucho, Joao, Xu, Chi, Roddan, Alfie, Nimer, Amr, Ashrafian, Hutan, Darzi, Ara, Thompson, Alex James, Akhond, Saina, Runciman, Mark, Mylonas, George, Giannarou, Stamatia, Avery, James
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: actuation; Actuators; Automation; brain tissue characterisation; brain tumours; Cancer; Damage; Design; Electrodes; End effectors; end‐effector; Formability; Histology; Lasers; Manufacturing; Manufacturing engineering; Microscopy; Neurosurgery; Position measurement; p‐CLE; Robotic surgery; soft robot; Soft robotics; Spectrum analysis; Surgeons
• ISSN: 2627-1850; 2627-1850
• DOI: 10.1002/tbio.202200015

Soft robotics is becoming a popular choice for end‐effectors. An end‐effector was designed that has various advantages including ease of manufacturing, simplicity and control. This device may have the advantage of enabling probe‐based devices to intraoperatively measure cancer histology, because it can flexibly and gently position a probe perpendicularly over an area of delicate tissue. This is demonstrated in a neurosurgical setting where accurate cancer resection has been limited by lack of accurate visualisation and impaired tumour margin delineation with the need for in‐situ histology. Conventional surgical robotic end‐effectors are unsuitable to accommodate a probe‐based confocal laser endomicroscopy (p‐CLE) probe because of their rigid and non‐deformable properties, which can damage the thin probe. We have therefore designed a new soft robotic platform, which is advantageous by conforming to the probe's shape to avoid damage and to facilitate precision scanning. The use of soft robots as end‐effectors has recently grown in popularity. This preclinical study demonstrates an example application of a cable‐driven soft robotic actuator designed to hold a probe‐based confocal laser endomicroscopy probe applied in the neurosurgical setting for tissue scanning. Subsequent applications of this involve supporting probe positioning for real‐time operative differentiation between cancer tissue and normal brain tissue, allowing the surgeon to focus on the operative process.