Method and apparatus for tracking a surgical instrument during surgery
First Claim
1. An endoscope comprising:
- an elongate tubular member, at least a portion of which is flexible, having a proximal end and a distal end;
a light channel extending through the tubular member to the distal end; and
a plurality of optical fiber curvature sensors located along the flexible portion of the tubular member to provide through the light channel a first signal for use in determining a current position and orientation of the distal end, wherein the curvature sensors vary in length and the lengths of the curvature sensors decrease with increasing proximity to the distal end of the tubular member.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An endoscopic surgical navigation system comprises a tracking subsystem to capture data representing positions and orientations of a flexible endoscope during an endoscopic procedure, to allow coregistration of live endoscopic video with intra-operative and/or pre-operative scan images. Positions and orientations of the endoscope are detected using one or more sensors and/or other signal-producing elements disposed on the endoscope. The sensors include optical curvature sensors located along the endoscope, where the length of each optical curvature sensor decreases with increasing proximity to the distal end of the endoscope. Output signals of the sensors can be routed to the tracking subsystem through the light channel in the endoscope. A hybrid approach can be used to separately track the position and orientation of the (rigid) base and the flexible portion of the endoscope.
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Citations
17 Claims
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1. An endoscope comprising:
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an elongate tubular member, at least a portion of which is flexible, having a proximal end and a distal end; a light channel extending through the tubular member to the distal end; and a plurality of optical fiber curvature sensors located along the flexible portion of the tubular member to provide through the light channel a first signal for use in determining a current position and orientation of the distal end, wherein the curvature sensors vary in length and the lengths of the curvature sensors decrease with increasing proximity to the distal end of the tubular member. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. A surgical instrument comprising:
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a rigid member; an elongate flexible member extending from the rigid member, the flexible member having a distal tip; and a plurality of optical fiber curvature sensors disposed along the flexible member, each to produce a separate signal for use in determining a current position of the distal tip relative to the rigid member, wherein the curvature sensors vary in length and the lengths of the curvature sensors decrease with increasing proximity to the distal tip of the flexible member. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9)
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10. An endoscope comprising:
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a rigid member including a proximal end and a distal end; an elongate flexible member extending from the distal end of the rigid member, the flexible member having a distal tip of the endoscope; a light channel extending through the flexible member, to convey light from a light source to the distal tip of the endoscope; and a plurality of optical curvature sensors disposed along the flexible member and optically coupled to the light channel by light source connectors, each optical curvature sensor to produce a separate signal for use in determining a current position and orientation of the distal tip, wherein the curvature sensors vary in length and the lengths of the curvature sensors decrease with increasing proximity to the distal end of the flexible member. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12)
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13. A method of determining a current position and orientation of a distal tip of a flexible endoscope, the endoscope including a rigid member which has a proximal end and a distal end, and an elongate flexible member extending from the rigid member, the flexible member having a distal end including a distal tip of the endoscope, the method comprising:
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using a location element disposed on the rigid member to determine a current position of the rigid member as a reference point; receiving a plurality of signals from a plurality of optical curvature sensors located along the flexible member, wherein the curvature sensors vary in length and the lengths of the curvature sensors decrease with increasing proximity to the distal end of the flexible member; using the plurality of signals to compute a current position and orientation of the distal end of the flexible member relative to the reference point; and computing the current position and orientation of the distal tip of the endoscope, based on the reference point and the computed current position and orientation of the distal end of the flexible member relative to the reference point. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15)
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16. An apparatus for determining a current position and orientation of a distal tip of a flexible endoscope, the endoscope including a rigid member which has a proximal end and a distal end, and an elongate flexible member extending from the rigid member, the flexible member having a distal end including a distal tip of the endoscope, the apparatus comprising:
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means for determining a current position of the rigid member as a reference point; means for receiving a plurality of signals from a plurality of optical curvature sensors located along the flexible member, wherein the curvature sensors vary in length and the lengths of the curvature sensors decrease with increasing proximity to the distal end of the flexible member; means for using the plurality of signals to compute a current position and orientation of the distal end of the flexible member relative to the reference point; and means for computing the current position and orientation of the distal tip of the endoscope, based on the reference point and the computed current position and orientation of the distal end of the flexible member relative to the reference point. - View Dependent Claims (17)
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Specification