Catheter steering in interventional cardiology: Mechanical analysis and novel solution

In recent years, steerable catheters have been developed to combat the effects of the dynamic cardiac environment. Mechanically actuated steerable catheters appear the most in the clinical setting; however, they are bound to a number of mechanical limitations. The aim of this research is to gain insight in these limitations and use this...

Surgeon-instrument interaction: A hands-off approach

The field of minimally invasive surgery (MIS) is constantly evolving towards the minimization of surgical trauma. Surgical instrumentation enabling this advancement must aid the surgeon, rather than hamper or burden. Surgeon-Instrument Interaction (SII) is of particular importance. Bad SII-design choices during instrument development can...

A gesture-based design tool: Assessing 2DOF vs. 4DOF steerable instrument control

Iterative prototyping is costly and time-consuming. Particularly when designing medical instruments, human factors related design choices significantly impact performance and safety. A tool is presented that allows for the evaluation of steerable instrument controls before the onset of the prototyping stage. The design tool couples gestural...

A laparoscopic morcellator redesign to constrain tissue using integrated gripping teeth

Laparoscopic hysterectomy is a procedure that involves the removal of the uterus through an abdominal keyhole incision. Morcellators have been specifically designed for this task, but their use has been discouraged by the food and drug administration (FDA) since November 2014 because of risks of cancerous tissue spread. The use of...

The art of electrosurgery: Trainees and experts

The benefits of electrosurgery have been acknowledged since the early 1920s, and nowadays more than 80% of surgical procedures involve devices that apply energy to tissues. Despite its widespread use, it is currently unknown how the operator's choices with regard to instrument selection and application technique are related to complications....

Review of techniques to achieve optical surface cleanliness and their potential application to surgical endoscopes

A clear visualization of the operative field is of critical importance in endoscopic surgery. During surgery the endoscope lens can get fouled by body fluids (eg, blood), ground substance, rinsing fluid, bone dust, or smoke plumes, resulting in visual impairment. As a result, surgeons spend part of the procedure on intermittent cleaning of...

Robust Hand Motion Tracking through Data Fusion of 5DT Data Glove and Nimble VR Kinect Camera Measurements

Vision based interfaces for human computer interaction have gained increasing attention over the past decade. This study presents a data fusion approach of the Nimble VR vision based system, using the Kinect camera, with the contact based 5DT Data Glove. Data fusion was achieved through a Kalman filter. The Nimble VR and filter output were...

Industrial of medical tool with steering cables

Instrument provided with cables extending between a first portion and a second portion of the instrument at opposite sides of its longitudinal axis and disposed at predefined angles with respect to said axis, which instrument has one or more sets of cables, each set of cables comprising in combination a first cable running parallel to the...

Robust hand motion tracking through data fusion of 5dt data glove and nimble VR kinect camera measurements

Vision based interfaces for human computer interaction have gained increasing attention over the past decade. This study presents a data fusion approach of the Nimble VR vision based system, using the Kinect camera, with the contact based 5DT Data Glove. Data fusion was achieved through a Kalman filter. The Nimble VR and filter output were...

Kantoren binnenste buiten gekeerd

Ontwikkelingen in communicatiemedia maken het mogelijk om werkprocessen tijd- en plaatsonafhankelijk te faciliteren. Traditionele hiërarchische organisaties maken plaats voor dynamische organisaties met meer zelfsturing. Hiermee verandert ook de rol van het kantoorgebouw als facilitator van werkprocessen. Het Nieuwe Werken leidt tot een netwerk...

The design of merchant ships. A manual for determining the principal dimensions, engine power and internal arrangement, freeboard and tonnage measurement, and the calculation of the period of vibration and the strength of the hull