Apparatus and method for four dimensional soft tissue navigation in endoscopic applications

• US 8,696,549 B2
• Filed: 08/22/2011
• Issued: 04/15/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Veran Medical Technologies, Inc. (Olympus Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Veran Medical Technologies, Inc. (Olympus Corporation)
• Inventors: Holsing, Troy, Hunter, Mark
• Primary Examiner(s): Leubecker, John P
• Application Number:
  US13/215,017
• Publication Number:
  US 20120059220A1
• Time in Patent Office: 967 Days
• Field of Search: 600/103, 600/117, 600/146
• US Class Current: 600/117
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00009 of image signals during a use of endoscope
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/0005 combining images e.g. side-by-side, superimposed or tiled
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00094 Suction openings
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/04 combined with photographic or television appliances
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/2676 Bronchoscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/2051 Electromagnetic tracking systems
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/2061 using shape-sensors, e.g. fiber shape sensors with Bragg gratings
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/2063 Acoustic tracking systems, e.g. using ultrasound
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/2065 Tracking using image or pattern recognition
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/2068 using pointers, e.g. pointers having reference marks for determining coordinates of body points
• 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 5/0066 Optical coherence imaging
• 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: A61B 5/062 using magnetic field
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/064 using markers A61B5/062 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/065 Determining position of the probe employing exclusively positioning means located on or in the probe, e.g. using position sensors arranged on the probe
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/066 Superposing sensor position on an image of the patient, e.g. obtained by ultrasound or x-ray imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/113 occurring during breathing
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/352 Detecting R peaks, e.g. for synchronising diagnostic apparatus; Estimating R-R interval
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/415 the glands, e.g. tonsils, adenoids or thymus
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/418 : lymph vessels, ducts or nodes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/0841 : for locating instruments
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/12 : in body cavities or body tracts, e.g. by using catheters catheters per se A61M25/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/39 : Markers, e.g. radio-opaque or breast lesions markers
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2025/09183 : having tools at the distal tip
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 25/09 : Guide wires
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30061 : Lung

Abstract

A surgical instrument navigation system is provided that visually simulates a virtual volumetric scene of a body cavity of a patient from a point of view of a surgical instrument residing in the cavity of the patient. The surgical instrument navigation system includes: a surgical instrument; an imaging device which is operable to capture scan data representative of an internal region of interest within a given patient; a tracking subsystem that employs electro-magnetic sensing to capture in real-time position data indicative of the position of the surgical instrument; a data processor which is operable to render a volumetric, perspective image of the internal region of interest from a point of view of the surgical instrument; and a display which is operable to display the volumetric perspective image of the patient.

Claims

1. An image-guided method comprising:

directing an endoscope comprising a five degree of freedom tip sensor to an anatomical position in a patient;

capturing video of the patient'"'"'s anatomy with the endoscope,

aligning the captured video with a visual orientation of a user directing the endoscope to the anatomical position;

activating a steering mechanism of the endoscope to repeatedly move the tip sensor in an arc constrained to a plane;

determining the orientation and location of the tip sensor in the patient as the tip sensor is being repeatedly moved;

defining a sixth degree of freedom of the tip sensor using the determined orientation and location of the tip sensor; and

correlating the determined tip sensor location and orientation with one or more patient images acquired prior to the repeated movement of the tip sensor.

2. The image-guided method of claim 1 wherein the anatomical position is a branching point of a bronchial tree.

3. The image-guided method of claim 1 wherein the tip sensor is an angled coil sensor, the coil being disposed at a 45°

angle relative to a core portion of the tip sensor.

4. The image-guided method of claim 1 wherein orientation and location determination comprise applying a deformation vector field.

5. The image-guided method of claim 1 wherein the one or more patient images are derived from an imaging device in conjunction with a patient tracking device disposed at an external region of the patient.