Development of a fluid drive system for the endoscopic surgery robot

Abstract

Natural orifice translumenal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) and single-port surgery (SPS) have attracted attention as new minimally invasive surgical techniques. These procedures offer many advantages: preventing wounds on the body surface, reducing infections and hernias, and improving postoperative recovery. Endoscopic surgery robots employing NOTES and SPS are under development; however, they lack the features to reach target organs. In this study, a fluid drive system was developed to support the movement of an endoscopic robot. A rubber actuator was fabricated from silicon tube that can realize bending of about 162° using fluids such as air and water. The endoscopic robot can bend in three directions through the use of three rubber actuators set around the robot. This paper presents the results of experiments on pneumatic control and hydraulic control.