VIRTUAL MEASUREMENT TOOL FOR MINIMALLY INVASIVE SURGERY

• US 20100317965A1
• Filed: 06/16/2009
• Published: 12/16/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/16/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intuitive Surgical Operations, Inc. (Intuitive Surgical Holdings, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Intuitive Surgical Incorporated (Intuitive Surgical Holdings, LLC)
• Inventors: Curet, Myrian J., Zhao, Tao, Mohr, Catherine J., Hasser, Christopher J., Dimaio, Simon, Zhao, Wenyi, ITKOWITZ, BRANDON D., Stein, Hubert
• Granted Patent: US 9,492,240 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/425
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00193 adapted for stereoscopic vision
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00194 adapted for three-dimensional imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/00477 Coupling A61B2017/0046 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/2065 Tracking using image or pattern recognition
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/061 for measuring dimensions, e.g. length
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/25 User interfaces for surgical systems
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/30 Surgical robots
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/35 for telesurgery
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/37 Master-slave robots A61B34/35 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/06 Measuring instruments not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/361 Image-producing devices, e.g. surgical cameras

Abstract

Robotic and/or measurement devices, systems, and methods for telesurgical and other applications employ input devices operatively coupled to tools so as to allow a system user to manipulate tissues and other structures being measured. The system may make use of three dimensional position information from stereoscopic images. Two or more discrete points can be designated in three dimensions so as to provide a cumulative length along a straight or curving structure, an area measurement, a volume measurement, or the like. The discrete points may be identified by a single surgical tool or by distances separating two or more surgical tools, with the user optionally measuring a structure longer than a field of view of the stereoscopic image capture device by walking a pair of tools “hand-over-hand” along the structure. By allowing the system user to interact with the tissues while designating the tissue locations, and by employing imaging data to determine the measurements, the measurement accuracy and ease of measurement may be enhanced.

Claims

1. A method for measuring tissue, the method comprising:

acquiring an image of the tissue so as to generate corresponding image data;

indicating a first tissue location with a first robotic tool;

superimposing a first graphical indicator on the image of the tissue at the first location; and

generating a measurement between the first graphical indicator and a second tissue location using the image data.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the image of the tissue comprises left and right stereoscopic images shown on a stereoscopic display, wherein the first tool is guided to the first tissue location by a system user with reference to the stereoscopic images, the first tool and display being included in a telesurgical system, and further comprising inputting at least one tissue designation command, by the user, when the first and second locations are engaged.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the system includes a stereoscopic image capture device transmitting stereoscopic imaging data to the stereoscopic display, wherein the graphical indicator comprises a three dimensional indicator superimposed on the stereoscopic images of the tissue so as to appear coincident in three dimensions with the first location, wherein the system determines the first location of the superimposed indicator using the stereoscopic imaging data of the first tool.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the first tool indicates the first tissue location and the first tool also indicates the second tissue location, the first and second tissue locations being indicated sequentially.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein a second robotic tool indicates the second tissue location the first and second tissue locations being indicated simultaneously.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the image encompasses a plurality of robotic tools including the first tool, further comprising superimposing a graphical tool measurement marker on the display coincident with the first tool while guiding the first tool to the first tissue location using the image.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising superimposing a moving line extending between the first and second locations while guiding the first tool to the first location.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising robotically indicating at least one additional tissue location, the measurement comprising a three dimensional offset distance between a sequential pair of tissue locations, and determining a cumulative total of a plurality of offset distances.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the first tool grasps and manipulates the tissue at the first tissue location, and further comprising alternatingly engaging a plurality of additional tissue locations with the first tool and a second robotic tool by grasping tissue at the locations in jaws of the tools and summing the distances between the locations so as to measure a hand-over-hand length along the grasped tissue.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising indicating a plurality of additional tissue locations defining an enclosed area, wherein the measurement comprises an area measurement.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising palpating the first tissue location with the first tool.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the tool manipulates the tissue so as to move the tissue to a measurement configuration for indicating the first tissue location.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the first tissue location is indicated by moving the first tool toward the first location and snapping the tissue location from the tool to a tissue surface adjacent the tool using stereoscopic image data of the tissue surface.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the tissue comprises a physiologically moving tissue, wherein the image comprises a still stereoscopic image of the moving tissue acquired while the first tool is indicating the first tissue location, and wherein the second tissue location is indicated by positioning a three dimensional graphical indicator superimposed on the still stereoscopic image so as indicate the second tissue location.

15. A robotic system for measuring tissue, the system comprising:

an image capture device orientable toward a surgical site, the image capture device in use generating image data corresponding to an image of the tissue at the surgical site;

a display coupled to the image capture device so as to show the image to a system user;

a first robotic tool;

an input for designating tissue locations indicated by the first tool;

a processor coupling the input to the display so as to superimpose a first graphical indicator on the image of the tissue at a first designated tissue location, and so as to determine a measurement between the first graphical indicator and a second tissue location using the image data.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the image capture device comprises a stereoscopic image capture device, wherein the display comprises a stereoscopic display, and further comprising a master controller coupled with the robotic tool for receiving movement commands from a system user to guide the first tool to the first tissue location with reference to left and right stereoscopic images shown on the display, and wherein the processor superimposes a graphical tool measurement marker on the image coincident with the first tool while the user guides the first tool to the first tissue location.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the processor is configured to receive tissue designating commands sequentially from the user so as to facilitate indication of the second tissue location with the first tool.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the processor is configured to receive a tissue designating command from the user so as to simultaneously indicate the first tissue location with the first tool and the second tissue location with a second robotic tool.

19. The system of claim 16, wherein the processor couples the input to the display so as to superimpose a moving line extending between the first and second locations while the user guides the first tool to the first location.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the processor is configured to determine an offset display location such that the measurement is displayed superimposed on the tissue image and separated from the line.

21. The system of claim 15, wherein the processor couples the input to the display so as to receive additional input designation commands indicating additional tissue locations, so as to determine a three dimensional offset distance between sequential pairs of tissue locations, and so as to sum the offset distances and superimpose a resulting cumulative measurement on the image.

22. The system of claim 15, wherein the first tool and a second tool each comprise jaws, wherein the tissue designation input comprises jaw articulation inputs for the jaws so that processor is configured to measure the plurality of offset distances by summing the offset distances in a hand-over-hand length measurement along the tissue.

23. The system of claim 15, wherein the processor couples the input to the display so as to receive additional input designation commands so as to define an enclosed area, wherein the measurement comprises an area measurement.

24. The system of claim 15, wherein the tissue locations comprise discrete locations bordering the area, with each tissue location having an associated designation command.

25. The system of claim 15, wherein the image capture device comprises a stereoscopic image capture device, wherein the processor determines a three dimensional location of a tissue surface in response to the image data, and wherein the processor designates the first tissue location by snapping the graphical indicator from the first tool to the tissue surface.

26. The system of claim 15, the tissue comprising a physiologically moving tissue, wherein the image comprises a still stereoscopic image of the moving tissue, and further comprising a three-dimensional input device coupled to the display by the processor so that a three dimensional graphical indicator superimposed on the still stereoscopic image is positioned using the input device so as to indicate the second tissue location.

27. A robotic system for measuring physiologically moving tissue, the system comprising:

a stereoscopic image capture device orientable toward a surgical site, the image capture device in use generating video image data corresponding to an image of the tissue at the surgical site;

a display coupled to the image capture device so as to show the image to a system user;

an input for designating tissue locations;

a processor coupling the input to the display so as to position a three dimensional graphical indicator superimposed on a frozen stereoscopic image of the tissue when a first tissue location has been designated, and so as to determine a measurement between the graphical indicator and the first tissue location.