A tactile sensing and feedback system for tumor localization

Haptic information such as pressure (tactile) distribution could improve the clinical outcomes significantly by helping to detect tumors within soft-tissue organs and indicating potential abnormalities. In open surgeries, fingers are used to obtain this information. However, current surgical tele-manipulators do not provide explicit haptic feedback during soft tissue palpation. This paper describes a tactile sensing and feedback system, consisting of a colored tactile information display and pneumatic multi-fingered haptic feedback. This tissue stiffness feedback system is validated by palpating two phantom organs to locate tissue tumors. The results proved that the stiffness distribution is acquirable, visible, and palpable using our method.