Jin Kang: Image-guided smart surgical tools for surgery

Medical robotics are expected to play a key role in the future of surgical technologies by enabling new, advanced procedures and improving outcomes of established procedures. As more medical robotics are being used in a wide range of surgical applications, some of the limitations associated with these technologies, such as lack of vision and sensing during the surgical tool manipulations, are being revealed.

In this BiOS keynote presentation, Jin Kang, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at Johns Hopkins University, discusses some of these limitations and how his research is helping to overcome them. His talk focuses on retinal microsurgery since, due to an aging population and rising rates of diabetes, more retinal surgeries are being performed.

Using what he calls a "human/robotic collaborative approach," Jin and his team have been developing SMART surgical tools and 3D image-guided robotic procedures that incorporate optical imaging and sensing technologies to improve surgical outcomes and precision.

"Our motivation behind using optical sensor/image guided surgical tools is to reduce surgical complications, duration, fatigue, and enable novel surgical procedures," says Kang.

Kang's team have three main goals in their robotic surgical tool approach: creating a safety barrier to prevent unintentional collisions of the instrument with the surface; having the ability to scan a probe across a surface while maintaining a constant distance offset; and creating a virtual fixture -- or target -- and guide the surgical tool precisely.

"Smart instrumentation combined with robotics assistance can provide enhanced information and feedback to the surgeon," says Kang. "This can enable a safer and easier operation, and improve the capabilities of vitreoretinal surgery.

Related SPIE content:

Jin Kang: Developing smarter tools for microsurgery
Using optical coherence technology and motion compensation, a tool developed at Johns Hopkins can aid surgeons in delicate operations.

Hands-on laser "homework" led to biophotonics career
"Great" professors inspired Jin Kang.

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