Additively Manufactured Flexible Endoscope Driven By Guided Antagonistic Twisted String Actuation: A Pilot Experimental Evaluation

This paper provides a preliminary experimental assessment of a flexible endoscope driven by antagonistic twisted string actuation (TSA). Traditional endoscope designs have relied on manual manipulation or actuation systems lacking force control loops, limiting their versatility and ease of use. The proposed approach leverages the benefits of additive manufacturing to create customizable, deformable endoscope’s tip structures, while TSA provides an efficient and potentially compact actuation mechanism. The experimental evaluation encompasses two key aspects of endoscope performance: tissue interaction and stiffness variation. Through a series of controlled experiments, the endoscope’s ability to interact with mock biological tissues is assessed, demonstrating successful force application using both agonist-only and antagonistic functioning modalities. Furthermore, the endoscope’s resilience to external disturbances is evaluated, with results showing significant improvements in stiffness and response to perturbations when utilizing antagonistic control. These findings highlight the potential of the proposed device to improve flexible endoscopy design and functionality. By integrating advanced manufacturing techniques with innovative actuation mechanisms, robotic flexible endoscopes can offer enhanced maneuverability, diagnostic precision, and patient safety.