Tool position indicator

• US 7,302,288 B1
• Filed: 11/25/1996
• Issued: 11/27/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/25/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: MAKO Surgical Corporation (Stryker Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Biomet Manufacturing, LLC (Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.), Z-KAT, Inc.
• Inventors: Schellenberg, John D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Smith; Ruth S.
• Application Number:
  US08/756,257
• Time in Patent Office: 4,019 Days
• Field of Search: 606/130, 600/434, 600/407, 600/420, 600/421, 600/410, 600/424, 600/179, 600/117, 600/109, 600/118, 600/427, 600/429, 434/262, 702150-154, 702/159
• US Class Current: 600/427
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/107 Visualisation of planned trajectories or target regions
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/2055 Optical tracking systems
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/2068 using pointers, e.g. pointers having reference marks for determining coordinates of body points
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/3983 Reference marker arrangements for use with image guided surgery
• 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 90/36 Image-producing devices or illumination devices not otherwise provided for

Abstract

A tool for use with a surgical navigation system includes a plurality of LEDs mounted to the distal end of the tool. The LED'"'"'s provide an indication of the direction in which the tool must be moved to reach a desired position. Four LED'"'"'s mounted along perpendicular axes are provided. Modes for indicating the desired location, orientation, rotation, and depth are provided. A mode indicator may also be provided. The tool is designed for use with a surgical navigation system which includes an infrared localizer and computer system. The indicators assist the surgeon in positioning the surgical tool in relation to the patient. Indicators other than LEDs may be used; the indicators may also be mounted in alternate locations in the operating room environment.

Claims

1. An apparatus for guiding the movement of a surgical toot in relation to the anatomy of a patient, the apparatus comprising:

a surgical tool;

a display remote from the tool for displaying a diagnostic image of the anatomy;

a means for superimposing at least one of a proposed target and a proposed trajectory indicative of a desired position of the tool on the display;

means for determining an actual position of the tool;

means for determining a difference between the actual position of the tool and the desired position of the tool; and

,

indicating means different from the remote display and mounted on the tool for indicating to a human the difference between the actual and desired positions of the tool, the indicating means having an indicator reference frame different from the remote display frame of reference, the difference being indicated with respect to the indicator reference frame.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the indicating means comprises at least one indicator.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the means for deter the actual position of the tool comprises one of an infrared localizer and an articulated arm.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the actual and desired positions include at least one of a location, trajectory, depth, and rotation of the tool.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the indicating means comprises a position indicator and a mode indicator.

6. An apparatus for guiding the movement of a surgical tool in relation to the anatomy of a patient, the apparatus comprising:

a surgical tool, wherein the surgical tool includes a pointing axis;

a position determining means for determining an actual position and orientation of the pointing axis the surgical tool;

a difference determining means for determining a difference between the actual position and orientation of the pointing axis of the surgical tool and a desired position and orientation of the pointing axis of the surgical tool;

at least two electronic indicators mounted to the surgical tool in a plane substantially orthogonal to the pointing axis, the indicators being connected with the difference determining means to indicate the determined difference between the actual and desired position and orientation of the pointing axis, in a frame of reference of the surgical tool; and

a display remote from the electronic indicators which displays a diagnostic image with the actual position and orientation of the pointing axis of the surgical tool and the desired position and orientation of the pointing axis of the surgical tool superimposed thereon.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, further including at least two pairs of electronic indicators.

8. An apparatus for use with an image guided surgery system, the apparatus comprising:

a surgical tool;

first and second display members associated with the tool and arranged along a first line and third and fourth display members associated with the tool and arranged along a second line, the first and second lines being perpendicular, the display members providing to a human operator an indication of a direction in which the tool should be moved to reach a desired position;

a mechanism for determining an actual position of the surgical tool;

a processor programmed to update the tool position, to control the first, second, third, and fourth display members, as the tool moves, to indicate deviations from a planned trajectory in a frame of reference of the display members.

9. A method for guiding the movement of a surgical tool with respect to the anatomy of a patient having a patient reference fame, the method comprising the steps of:

determining a desired position of the tool based on an image of the anatomy of a patient, the image having an image reference frame;

correlating the image and patient reference frames;

determining an actual position of the tool;

determining a direction in which the tool must be moved to reach the desired position;

determining an actual position of a human readable position display disposed remote from the tool having a display reference frame; and

utilizing the human readable position display to indicate the direction in which the tool must be moved to reach the desired position, said indication being provided in relation to the display reference fame.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the human readable position display includes a plurality of light emitting diodes.

11. A method for guiding the movement of a surgical tool with respect to the anatomy of a patient having a patient reference frame, the method comprising the steps of:

displaying an image of the anatomy of the patient on a display disposed remote from the surgical tool;

determining a desired position of a tip of the tool based on the displayed image;

electronically determining a direction the tool must be moved for the tip to reach a desired position;

determining an actual position of the tip of the tool;

superimposing a representation of the tip of the tool on the image of the anatomy displayed on the display;

utilizing a position indicator mounted to the tool to indicate to a human the magnitude of the distance the tool must be moved for the tip to reach the desired position, said position indicator having an indicator reference frame, said indication being provided in relation to the indicator reference frame.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein said indication is provided by varying one of blink rate and color of an indicator visible to a user.

13. An apparatus comprising:

a surgical tool;

direction indicators attached to the tool for rotation therewith;

a mechanism for locating an actual location and orientation of a distal end of the tool with its attached direction indicators;

a mechanism for causing the direction indicators attached to the tool to indicate to a human a direction in a frame of reference of the tool in which the tool should be moved for the distal end to travel on a desired trajectory to a desired position; and

,

a display which displays at least the actual location of the distal end and the desired position in a fixed frame of reference such that an orientation of the display remains fixed as the tool moves and rotates.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the direction indicators comprise a plurality of indicators disposed at angular intervals surrounding a central point.

15. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the display includes a plurality of light emitting elements attached to the tool demarcating at least two different axes such that illumination of the light emitting elements is indicative of the direction in which the tool should be translated.

16. An apparatus comprising:

a tool for use in connection with surgery,

a first display remote from the tool which displays an anatomical image including target anatomy and a desired trajectory to be followed while moving the tool to the target anatomy;

a mechanism for locating an actual position of the tool relative to the target anatomy as the tool is moved toward the target anatomy;

a second display mounted on the tool for indicating differences between the actual position of the tool and the desired trajectory, wherein said differences are indicated with respect to the tool; and

a mechanism for causing the second display to indicate to a human a direction in a frame of reference of the second display which the tool should be moved to reach the target anatomy.

17. A method for guiding the movement of a surgical tool, said method comprising:

tracking a surgical tool with reference to a patient'"'"'s anatomy;

determining a direction in which the surgical tool should be moved from an actual position for a distal end to reach a desired position with respect to the patient, the desired position being indicated with reference to a diagnostic image of the patient displayed on a display remote from the surgical tool in a frame of reference which is fixed relative to a frame of reference of the patient'"'"'s anatomy; and

activating a display on the surgical tool adjacent a handle end to indicate the direction in a frame of reference of the tool in which a handle end of the tool should be moved to move a distal end of the tool from the determined actual position to reach the desired position, the tool frame of reference changing relative to the frame of reference of the diagnostic image and the patient'"'"'s anatomy with movement of the tool.

18. An apparatus, comprising:

a hand-held surgical tool to which a position indicator is mounted;

a tool position tracker for tracking a position and orientation of the hand-held tool and the direction indicator with respect to a reference frame;

the direction indicator being configured to produce a visual indication of a direction in which a hand-held portion of the tool should be moved to reach a desired position based at least in part on the position and orientation of the tool as determined by the tool position tracker, the indicated direction being relative to a reference frame of the hand-held surgical tool which surgical tool frame of reference changes relative to a frame of reference of the patient as the surgical tool moves relative to the patient; and

a display remote from the tool and the direction indicator which displays a diagnostic anatomical image of the patient with a representation of the tool in its current position and orientation superimposed thereon.