Design and Calibration of Dual Sensor: Towards Simultaneous Instrument Tracking and Deformable Shape Sensing in Computer-Integrated Surgery

We introduce a novel integration of vision sensors in the form of a dual sensor system. The dual sensor system combines three distinct units: an optical localizer and two RGB-D sensors. This system is uniquely capable of concurrently providing real-time 3D shape information for deformable objects and accurate pose tracking data for medical instruments. This capability positions the dual sensor with immense potential for application in image-guided surgical navigation, robotic systems, and robot-assisted automation for surgical procedures involving deformable target objects. This paper provides an overview of the design, fabrication and a one-time calibration methodology of the dual sensor. An experiment was performed to assess the calibration accuracy of the dual sensor. Experimental results indicated that the dual sensor system delivers a level of accuracy that renders it suitable for deployment within the envisioned scope of applications.Clinical relevance— The presented dual sensor provides real-time shape scanning of intra-operatively deforming objects and instrument tracking capabilities simultaneously, contributing to successful outcomes of diverse computer-integrated surgeries dealing with non-rigid surgical targets such as breast, face, and incised skin area