Design and implementation of a mechatronic device for robot-assisted neurosurgery

Neurosurgery can take significant advantages from the introduction of computer and robot technologies. As a matter of fact, the major benefits of robots, such as precision, accuracy and repeatability make them ideal neurosurgeons' assistants. This paper presents a master-slave haptic robotic system for minimally invasive neurosurgery, which can aid surgeons in performing safer and more accurate stereotactic neurosurgical interventions. The system basically comprises a slave device and a haptic master. The slave can move a laser pointer, a biopsy needle, or a low-energy X-ray emitter along a pre-planned axis. The surgeon guides the tool insertion into the brain through the haptic interface (master), which can reproduce the contact force between the surgical tool and the cerebral tissue. Moreover so as to assist the surgeons during the operations, the master can exert suitable forces on the surgeon. Such forces are computed in an appropriately designed "virtual environment". Experimental tests have been carried out to prove the accuracy of the overall system and to assess the effectiveness of the control schemes synthesized