Extending Reach Inside the MRI Bore: A 7-DOF, Low-Friction, Hydrostatic Teleoperator

We present a hydrostatic teleoperator that provides physicians remote access inside the MRI bore and enables real-time MRI guided interventions such as liver biopsies. The device consists of a custom six-axis arm and a needle insertion end effector. The manipulator is passive and backdrivable with a near one-to-one mapping of motions and forces between the input and output. The six-axis arm translates and orients the needle during insertion and passively reflects respiratory motion while maintaining contact with the skin surface. Arm joints employ novel rotary rolling-diaphragms that provide stiff and low-friction rotational motion without the need for cables, belts, or gear mechanisms found in other solutions. We perform experiments to characterize the device’s force and position tracking and demonstrate its functionality with path following tasks. Our results find a system roll-off frequency at 20Hz and that teleoperation tasks are performed comparably to holding the output directly. We motivate the need for force transparency in MRI guided biopsies with a user study in which five radiologists perform phantom membrane puncture biopsies using the needle insertion mechanism. The results indicate a 50% reduction in scans and a 14.5% decrease in membrane overshoot when force feedback is present.