Speech interface for an automated endoscopic system
First Claim
1. A surgical robotic system for use in minimally invasive surgery, the minimally invasive surgery performed at an internal surgical site of a patient body, the surgical robotic system comprising:
- a surgical instrument having a proximal end and a distal end, the instrument extendible distally through an incision to the internal surgical site;
a robot supporting the proximal end of the instrument, the robot moving the instrument in response to motor signals;
a voice recognition system for inputting a plurality of spoken instructions, each spoken instruction including a spoken qualifier and a spoken direction of movement, the voice recognition system changing from a first state to a second state in response to the spoken qualifier and identifying the spoken direction of movement from among a plurality of alternative directions in the second state; and
a computer coupling the voice recognition system to the robot, the computer generating the motor signals in response to the spoken instructions to move the distal end of the surgical instrument at the internal surgical site in the spoken directions by pivoting the instrument about the incision.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A robotic system which controls the movement of a surgical instrument in response to voice commands from the user. The robotic system has a computer controlled arm that holds the surgical instrument. The user provides voice commands to the computer through a microphone. The computer contains a phrase recognizer that matches the user'"'"' speech with words stored in the computer. Matched words are then processed to determine whether the user has spoken a robot command. If the user has spoken a recognized robot command the computer will move the robotic arm in accordance with the command.
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Citations
33 Claims
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1. A surgical robotic system for use in minimally invasive surgery, the minimally invasive surgery performed at an internal surgical site of a patient body, the surgical robotic system comprising:
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a surgical instrument having a proximal end and a distal end, the instrument extendible distally through an incision to the internal surgical site;
a robot supporting the proximal end of the instrument, the robot moving the instrument in response to motor signals;
a voice recognition system for inputting a plurality of spoken instructions, each spoken instruction including a spoken qualifier and a spoken direction of movement, the voice recognition system changing from a first state to a second state in response to the spoken qualifier and identifying the spoken direction of movement from among a plurality of alternative directions in the second state; and
a computer coupling the voice recognition system to the robot, the computer generating the motor signals in response to the spoken instructions to move the distal end of the surgical instrument at the internal surgical site in the spoken directions by pivoting the instrument about the incision. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A minimally invasive surgical robotic method comprising:
- inserting a distal end of a surgical instrument through an incision to an internal surgical site;
manipulating a proximal end of the instrument with a robot in response to motor signals;
inputting spoken instructions, including a qualifier and a desired direction of movement, into a voice recognition system;
changing a state of the voice recognition system from a first state to a second state in response to the qualifiers;
selecting the desired direction of movement from a plurality of alternative directions of movement associated with the second state;
generating the motor signals in response to the spoken instructions with a computer; and
moving the distal end of the surgical instrument in the desired directions at the internal surgical site by pivoting the instrument about the incision with the robot in response to the motor signals. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
- inserting a distal end of a surgical instrument through an incision to an internal surgical site;
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13. A system for positioning a surgical instrument relative to a patient'"'"'s body, comprising:
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a robotic manipulator having at least one controlled degree of freedom;
a controller controlling the robotic manipulator;
an instrument holder attaching a first surgical instrument to the robotic manipulator so that the first surgical instrument can pivot about an aperture into the patient body; and
a voice recognition system coupled to the controller, the voice recognition system permitting a surgeon to verbally command motions of the robotic manipulator, the instrument initiating pivoting about the aperture in response to the commands only when the commands are preceded by a verbal qualifier, the instrument motions halting when the command comprises a stop command without a verbal qualifier. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A surgical system for use in minimally invasive surgery performed at an internal surgical site of a patient body, the system comprising:
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an endoscope having a proximal portion and a distal end, said endoscope extendable distally through an aperture in a body wall to the internal surgical site;
a display operatively coupled to said endoscope for allowing a surgeon to view an image of the internal surgical site, the image changing in response to signals;
a voice recognition system for inputting a plurality of spoken instructions, the spoken instructions each including a qualifier and a command selected from a plurality of commands so as to effect a desired change in the image, the voice recognition system changing from a first state to a second state in response to the qualifier and only accepting the plurality of command in the second state; and
a computer operatively coupling the voice recognition system to the endoscope, the computer generating the signals in response to the spoken instructions to effect the desired change to the image of the internal surgical site. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A minimally invasive surgical method comprising:
- inserting a distal end of an endoscope through an aperture in a body wall of a patient to an internal surgical site;
displaying an image of the internal surgical site for perception by a surgeon controlling said endoscope in response to signals;
inputting a plurality of spoken instructions into a voice recognition system, each instruction comprising a qualifier which changes a state of the voice recognition system and a subsequent command;
generating, with a computer, said motor signals in response to said spoken instructions; and
changing the image in response to the signals. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
- inserting a distal end of an endoscope through an aperture in a body wall of a patient to an internal surgical site;
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30. A system for positioning an endoscopic surgical instrument relative to a surgical site within a patient'"'"'s body, comprising:
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a robotic manipulator having at least one controlled degree of freedom;
a controller that is adapted to be capable of controlling the robotic manipulator;
an instrument holder for coupling said surgical instrument to said robotic manipulator; and
a voice recognition command input system operatively coupled to the controller, the voice recognition system having a first state and a second state, the voice recognition system changing from the first state to the second state in response to a verbal qualifier, the voice recognition system permitting a surgeon to specify desired motion of the surgical instrument to the controller only when in the second state, such that the robotic manipulator moves said instrument to a position relative to the patient'"'"'s body, as specified by the surgeon using the command input system, by pivoting the instrument about an aperture into the patient'"'"'s body.
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31. A surgical system for use in an operating room to control a surgical instrument, the surgical instrument having a control input accepting control signals, the system comprising:
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a voice recognition system having a first state and a second state, the voice recognition system in the first state accepting a verbal qualifier and changing from the first state to the second state in response to the verbal qualifier, the voice recognition system in the second state accepting a verbal command and comparing the verbal command to a plurality of command alternatives associated with the second state so as to identify a matching command; and
a processor operatively coupling the voice recognition system to the device, the processor generating the control signals at least in part in response to the identification of the matching command. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33)
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Specification