Design Summary and Analysis Draft 3

5 Medical Robots

MEC 1281

Design Summary & Analysis 

Draft #3

By: Mohan s/o Ramamoorthy

According to the article, "5 Medical Robots..."(2020), there is an increasing amount of interest and funding for medical robots within the healthcare industry. The article suggests that there are many advantages to using medical robots in place of humans and one such advantage is that medical robots can "automate lower-level tasks" while humans can focus on high priority work. The article mentions 5 medical robots that are being used in the industry at the moment. Firstly, the da Vinci Surgical Robot, which is a "multi-armed wonderbot" that provides extra precision for a variety of procedures and helps reduce errors made during surgery. Another precision robotic system is the Cyberknife, which is used to treat tumours with utmost precision using radiotherapy. The PARO Therapeutic Robot is a unique invention as it is used to aid the recovery of patients from depression, surgery, or any mental illness in the form of an interactive robotic seal. The Xenex Germ-Zapping Robot disinfects hospital rooms within minutes, killing different types of bacteria. Lastly, the TUG is an automatic mobile robot that transports supplies within the hospital, relieving the hospital workers from carrying heavy loads.

While all 5 medical robots have their unique purpose, I feel that the Cyberknife has been revolutionary in treating tumours that are located in surgically complex parts of the body where tradional methods cannot or find it difficult to access. Despite its name being Cyberknife, this system is made up of a radiation source mounted on a robot, motion synchronization technology, a robotic arm-mounted linear accelerator, a multi-leaf collimator, a patient positioning system and many other technolgies (Kilby et al, 2010).

One of the main reason why the Cyberknife is groundbreaking is its ability to treat tumour using robotic radiography. Advancements in medical technology have led to the use of robotic assistance in the healthcare industry The goal of using robotic assistance in treating tumours is to achieve "tumour control rates" close to or equal to those achieved by traditional methods. According to the article, "Application of Robotic..."(2009),  robotic radiotherapy is safe and remarkable compared to "fractionated radiotherapy". The results are also closely approaching those obtained with traditional methods without the associated suffering from diseases or medical conditions.

The usage of state-of-the-art technology is another reason why the Cyberknife is revolutionary. Take the Robocouch for example. The Robocouch is used in the Cyberknife system to position and align the patient in "6 degrees of freedom" without the need to move the patient physically. This enables the system to accurately adjust the patient to the "machine center" (Kilby et al., 2020). The Robocouch, along with the other unique technologies in the Cyberknife system, enables precise and accurate doses of radiation to be delivered to the right parts of the body automatically.

Another reason that makes the Cyberknife unique is the use of a linear accelerator (LINAC) mounted on a robotic arm. According to Khandpur (2020),the LINAC produces precise doses of radiation that would be delivered to the tumours. The robotic arm, also known as the "robotic manipulator", allows the LINAC to be positioned in any direction, enabling the Cyberknife to access various parts of the body accurately. With such precision and accuracy, the Cyberknife makes use of its unique technology to help patients sufferring from "inoperable or surgically complex tumours". 

In conclusion, technological developments have helped the healthcare industry in many ways and medical robots have been proven to be a success. They help to save lives as well as make life better. The invention of the Cyberknife is groundbreaking in cancer treatment and the fact that deaths due to cancer remain to be at a high makes it an important invention in the medical industry due to its ability to perform treatment in complex locations of the body. 

References: 

Brown, W.T., Wu, T., Fayad, T., Fowler, J.F., Garcia, S., Monterroso, M.I., de la Zerda, A., Schwade, J.G.(2009). Application of Robotic Stereotactic Radiotherapy to Peripheral Stage I Non-small Cell Lung Cancer with Curative Intent. Journal of Clinical Oncology, 21(8), 623-631.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clon.2009.06.006

Case School of Engineering/Case Western Reserve University (2020, December 28). 5 Medical Robots Making a Difference in Healthcare. Retrieved from https://online-engineering.case.edu/blog/medical-robots-making-a-difference

Khandpur, R.S. (2020 February 3). Cyberknife. Compendium of Biomedical Instrumentation, 1(1) 583-587. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epub/10.1002/9781119288190

Kilby, W., Dooley, J.R., Kuduvalli, G., Sayeh, S., Maurer Jr, C.R. (2010). The Cyberknife Robotic Radiosurgery System in 2010. Journal of Technology in Cancer Research and Treatment, 9(5), 433-452. https://doi.org/10.1177/153303461000900502

Kilby, W., Nalylor, M., Dooley, J.R., Maurer Jr, C.R., Sayeh, S. (2020). A Technical Overview of the Cyberknife System. Handbook of Robotic and Image-Guided Surgery, 15-38. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-814245-5.00002-5