OPTICAL SHAPE SENSING FIBER FOR TIP AND SHAPE CHARACTERIZATION OF MEDICAL INSTRUMENTS

• US 20130310685A1
• Filed: 01/25/2012
• Published: 11/21/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
• Inventors: Chan, Raymond, Manzke, Robert, Popovic, Aleksandra, 'T Hooft, Gert Wim, Von Busch, Heinrich
• Granted Patent: US 9,693,707 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/424
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/2061 using shape-sensors, e.g. fiber shape sensors with Bragg gratings
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/20 Surgical navigation systems; Devices for tracking or guiding surgical instruments, e.g. for frameless stereotaxis
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/30 Surgical robots
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/061 Determining position of a probe within the body employing means separate from the probe, e.g. sensing internal probe position employing impedance electrodes on the surface of the body A61B1/00158 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 11/18 using photoelastic elements
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 5/35345 using Amplitude variations to detect the measured quantity

Abstract

A shape sensing device, system and method include an interventional instrument (102) having regions of articulation to be configured to change shape during an interventional procedure. An optical fiber (202) is disposed on or about the areas of articulation in a pattern to provide an optical signal indicating an instantaneous change or current position or orientation of the instrument. A signal interpretation module (115) is configured to receive the optical signals and interpret the instantaneous change or cur rent position or orientation of the instrument.

Claims

1. A shape sensing device, comprising:

an interventional instrument (102) having one or more regions of articulation to be configured to change shape during an interventional procedure;

one or more optical fibers (202) disposed on or about the areas of articulation in a pattern such that the pattern permits detection of shape tracking errors, the one or more optical fibers providing an optical signal indicating an instantaneous change or current position or orientation of the instrument; and

a signal interpretation module (115) configured to receive the optical signals and interpret the instantaneous change, current position or orientation of the instrument and the shape tracking errors.

2. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein the one or more optical fibers (202) are disposed on or in the instrument and the optical signal includes a return signal and backreflections.

3. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein the one or more optical fibers include two fiber segments (502, 504) on or in the instrument and the fiber segments are coupled with a splitter (506) at a tip of the instrument such that an optical loss at the splitter indicates the tip.

5. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein the one or more optical fibers (202) are configured to indicate a start position (204) where monitoring of the instrument begins, the start position including a sensor (208, 210) to confirm the start position, wherein the sensor includes at least one of an electromagnetic tracking sensor, a photoacoustic sensor and a marker.

8. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein the interventional instrument includes at least one of:

one or more rigid segments (602, 604), and the one or more optical fibers are disposed within the one or more rigid segments; and

a joint (700) and the one or more optical fibers are disposed within members (704, 706) connected by the joint.

10. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein the one or more optical fibers are disposed within a flexible sheet (804), the flexible sheet being coupled to the instrument for sensing a shape.

11. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein the instrument includes a volume-forming portion (914) and the one or more optical fibers are bundled at poles for sensing a shape of the portion.

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12. A system for shapinge sensing a medical instrument, comprising:

a processor (114);

a memory (116) coupled to the processor;

one or more optical fibers (126) disposed in a pattern on or about regions of articulation of an interventional instrument such that the pattern permits detection of shape tracking errors, the one or more optical fibers providing optical signals indicating an instantaneous change or current position or orientation of the instrument;

an optical interrogation module (108) configured to interact with the one or more optical fibers to generate the optical signals; and

a shape determination module (115) stored in memory and configured to determine location and shape of the instrument and compute shape tracking errors during a procedure based on the optical signals from the one or more optical fibers.

18. The system as recited in claim 12, wherein the one or more optical fibers include at least one of:

two segments (502, 504) on or in the instrument and the fiber segments are coupled with a splitter (506) at a tip of the instrument such that an optical loss at the splitter indicates the tip; and

a fiber terminated (404) at a tip of the instrument such that an optical loss in fiber indicates the tip.

22. The system as recited in claim 12, wherein the interventional instrument includes one or more rigid segments (602, 604), and the one or more optical fibers are disposed within the one or more rigid segments.

23. The system as recited in claim 12, wherein the interventional instrument includes a joint (700) and the one or more optical fibers are disposed within members (704, 706) connected by the joint.

24. The system as recited in claim 12, wherein the one or more optical fibers are disposed within a flexible sheet (804), the flexible sheet being coupled to the instrument for sensing shaping.

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26. A method for shape sensing a medical device, comprising:

providing (1002) an interventional instrument having one or more regions of articulation with one or more optical fibers disposed in a pattern on or about the one or more regions of articulation of the instrument such that the pattern permits detection of shape tracking errors;

interrogating (1006) the one or more optical fibers to provide optical signals indicating an instantaneous change or current position or orientation of the instrument; and

interpreting (1008) the optical signals received to define the instantaneous change, current position or orientation of the instrument and the shape tracking errors.

31. The method as recited in claim 26, wherein providing (1002) includes at least one of:

providing one or more rigid segments, and the one or more optical fibers are disposed within the one or more rigid segments; and

providing a joint and the one or more optical fibers are disposed within members connected by the joint.

33. The method as recited in claim 26, wherein the one or more optical fibers are disposed within a flexible sheet (804), the flexible sheet being coupled to the instrument for sensing shape on the instrument.

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