Obstetric imaging in low- and middle-income countries

Lowering the disease burden with the contextualised design of robotic telesonography

Master thesis (2023)

Authors

S.T. Heikens Mechanical Engineering

Contributors

J. Dankelman Medical Instruments & Bio-Inspired Technology - Mechanical, Maritime and Materials Engineering (mentor)
Faculty
Mechanical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering
Copyright: © 2023 Sybren Heikens
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Published Date

24-03-2023

Language

English

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Faculty

Mechanical Engineering

Abstract

Background
The availability of medical ultrasound imaging is still limited in low- and middle-income countries, despite its potential impact on patient outcomes. This problem partially manifests in the limited availability of trained physicians due to the unequal distribution of physicians between rural and urban areas in India. Robotic telesonography offers a solution by allowing physicians to consult a patient remotely. However, current solutions are generally aimed at high-income countries and, therefore, incompatible with the resource-limited setting of low- and middle-income countries [3, 4]. This thesis aims to develop a contextualised design for Indian healthcare of the follower robot of the telesonography system.

Method
The design space of robotic telesonography is analysed to determine the optimal design direction. A mechanical design is selected based on the defined performance parameters according to the local context and
design stage. These are costs, maintenance requirements, functionality and portability. The forward kinematic and static load models are set up to test the theoretical performance. The design is optimised in terms of the kinematic design, the actuation layout and the structural design. Furthermore, an initial prototype is constructed to validate the design and performance by performing a force/deflection test on beam I and a friction measurement in joint θ3.

Results
A detailed design has been realised, conforms to the requirements, that aims to overcome the barriers. The resulting design comprises a remotely controlled serial spherical robotic arm that can orientate the ultrasound probe. The robot can be placed passively by an assistant at the region of interest to cover the full workspace. The force/deflection test reveals a difference between the physical and simulated models due to the nonlinear behaviour of the physical model. The friction test shows that the friction in the bearings does not impede the motion.

Conclusion
This thesis presents a novel design of the follower robot for telesonography. The design is contextualised to the setting of Indian healthcare aiming to overcome the barriers to medical devices in low- and middleincome countries. The design is the first step towards a solution to the limited availability of sonography by targeting the majority of the disease burden.