Modular manipulator support for robotic surgery

• US 8,834,489 B2
• Filed: 07/11/2012
• Issued: 09/16/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/24/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Intuitive Surgical Operations, Inc. (Intuitive Surgical Holdings, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Intuitive Surgical Operations, Inc. (Intuitive Surgical Holdings, LLC)
• Inventors: Cooper, Thomas G., Blumenkranz, Stephen J., Guthart, Gary S., Rosa, David J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Dvorak, Linda
• Assistant Examiner(s): SMITH, KAITLYN ELIZABETH
• Application Number:
  US13/546,249
• Publication Number:
  US 20120277764A1
• Time in Patent Office: 797 Days
• Field of Search: 606/1, 606/130, 901 14- 18
• US Class Current: 606/130
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/00477 Coupling A61B2017/0046 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/304 including a freely orientable platform, e.g. so called 'Stewart platforms'
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/305 Details of wrist mechanisms at distal ends of robotic arms
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/506 using a parallelogram linkage, e.g. panthograph
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/30 Surgical robots
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/37 Master-slave robots A61B34/35 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/71 Manipulators operated by drive cable mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/10 for stereotaxic surgery, e.g. frame-based stereotaxis
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/361 Image-producing devices, e.g. surgical cameras
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/09 Closed loop, sensor feedback controls arm movement
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/14 Arm movement, spatial
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/15 Jointed arm
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/16 Cartesian, three degrees of freedom
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/17 Cylindrical
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/18 Spherical

Abstract

A robotic surgery system comprises a mounting base, a plurality of surgical instruments, and an articulate support assembly. Each instrument is insertable into a patient through an associated minimally invasive aperture to a desired internal surgical site. The articulate support assembly movably supports the instruments relative to the base. The support generally comprises an orienting platform, a platform linkage movably supporting the orienting platform relative to the base, and a plurality of manipulators mounted to the orienting platform, wherein each manipulator movably supports an associated instrument.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a platform linkage comprising a linear axis and a carriage slidable along the linear axis;

an orienting platform rotationally coupled to the carriage;

a plurality of set-up arms, each of the plurality of set-up arms including a proximal end, a distal end, and links coupled by a releasably fixable joint, each of the plurality of set-up arms being rotationally coupled at its proximal end to the orienting platform; and

a robotic manipulator coupled to the distal end of each of the plurality of set-up arms.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a mounting base coupled to the platform linkage.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the mounting base comprises a ceiling-height support structure.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the mounting base comprises a ceiling supported structure so as to permit the orienting platform to extend generally downward from the mounting base.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the platform linkage further comprises a rail, and the carriage is coupled to slide on the rail.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a first arm coupled between the carriage and the orienting platform.

7. The apparatus of claim 1:

wherein each of the plurality of set-up arms is configured to accommodate translation of the associated robotic manipulator in a generally vertical direction.

8. The apparatus of claim 1:

wherein at least one set-up arm of the plurality of set-up arms includes a parallelogram linkage to accommodate translation of the associated robotic manipulator in a generally vertical direction.

9. The apparatus of claim 1:

wherein at least one set-up arm of the plurality of set-up arms includes a linear sliding axis.

10. The apparatus of claim 9:

wherein the linear sliding axis accommodates translation of the associated robotic manipulator in a generally vertical direction.

11. The apparatus of claim 1:

wherein at least one set-up arm of the plurality of set-up arms includes a curved sliding axis.

12. The apparatus of claim 11:

wherein the curved sliding axis accommodates translation of the associated robotic manipulator in a generally vertical direction.

13. The apparatus of claim 1:

wherein each set-up arm of the plurality of the set-up arms is coupled to the orienting platform to rotate around a unique rotational axis, the unique rotational axes being parallel to each other.

14. The apparatus of claim 1:

wherein the robotic manipulator coupled to the distal end of a first one of the plurality of set-up arms comprises an endoscopic camera manipulator; and

wherein the robotic manipulator coupled to the distal end of a second one of the plurality of set-up arms comprises a surgical instrument manipulator.

15. The apparatus of claim 1:

wherein at least one releasably fixable joint of the plurality of set-up arms rotates around a generally vertical axis.

16. The apparatus of claim 1:

wherein at least one releasably fixable joint of the plurality of set-up arms includes a brake system.

17. The apparatus of claim 16:

wherein the brake system comprises a brake biased toward a fixed configuration and a brake release actuator.

18. The apparatus of claim 1:

wherein at least one of the robotic manipulators is coupled to the distal end of its associated set-up arm by a rotational joint.

19. The apparatus of claim 1:

wherein the robotic manipulator comprises a remote center linkage.

20. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:

a joint sensor system coupled to each releasably fixable joint in the plurality of set-up arms; and

a computer configured to receive joint configuration signals from the joint sensor system and to use information carried in the received joint configuration signals to calculate a coordinate system transformation between a first reference coordinate system affixed relative to the base and a second reference coordinate system affixed relative to an instrument supported by one of the robotic manipulators.

21. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:

a display coupled to the orienting platform.

22. The apparatus of claim 21:

wherein the display includes an interactive monitor.

23. The apparatus of claim 1:

wherein the orienting platform is rotatable relative to the platform linkage about a rotational axis perpendicular to the linear axis of the platform linkage.

24. The apparatus of claim 23:

wherein at least one of the plurality of set-up arms is rotationally coupled to the orienting platform for rotation about an axis perpendicular to the linear axis of the platform linkage.

25. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the links of at least one of the plurality of set-up arms comprise a distal link configured to be vertically displaceable relative to the orienting platform.

26. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein for at least one of the plurality of set-up arms, the distal link rotates about a first axis at a joint coupling the distal link to the rest of the set-up arm.

27. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein at least one of the robotic manipulators rotates about a second axis at a joint coupling the distal link to the robotic manipulator.

28. The apparatus of claim 27, at least one of the robotic manipulators comprising:

a manipulator base coupled to the distal link of the associated one of the plurality of set-up arms; and

a parallelogram linkage base coupled to the manipulator base, the parallelogram linkage base rotatable relative to the manipulator base about a yaw axis, the yaw axis intersecting the second axis at an angle offset from 90 degrees.

29. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the orienting platform comprises four hubs each rotationally coupled to an associated unique one of the plurality of set-up arms and a fifth hub coupled to the platform linkage, wherein the fifth hub is aligned with a pivot point and accommodates rotation of the orienting platform about the pivot point.

30. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein three of the robotic manipulators are instrument manipulators, and one of the robotic manipulators is an image capture device manipulator.

31. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the orienting platform comprises a plurality of hubs and an additional hub, each of the plurality of hubs being rotationally coupled to an associated unique one of the plurality of set-up arms, the additional hub being coupled to the platform linkage, the additional hub being aligned with a pivot point and accommodating rotation of the orienting platform about the pivot point.

32. The apparatus of claim 1, a plurality of the robotic manipulators being instrument manipulators, and one of the robotic manipulators being an image capture device manipulator.

33. A method comprising:

sliding a carriage along a linear axis of a platform linkage;

rotating an orienting platform coupled to the carriage;

rotating each arm of a plurality of set-up arms relative to the orienting platform, each of the plurality of set-up arms including a proximal end, a distal end, and links coupled by a releasably fixable joint, each of the plurality of set-up arms being rotationally coupled at its proximal end to the orienting platform; and

manipulating a robotic manipulator coupled to the distal end of each of the plurality of set-up arms.

34. The method of claim 33, further comprising:

sliding the carriage along a rail of the platform linkage.

35. The method of claim 33, further comprising:

maneuvering each one of the plurality of set-up arms to translate the associated robotic manipulator in a generally vertical direction.

36. The method of claim 33, further comprising:

rotating each one of the plurality of set-up arm around a unique rotational axis, the rotational axes being parallel.

37. The method of claim 33, further comprising:

receiving joint configuration signals from a joint sensor system coupled to each releasably fixable joint in the plurality of set-up arms; and

using information from the received joint configuration signals to calculate a coordinate system transformation between a first reference coordinate system affixed relative to a base coupled to the platform linkage and a second reference coordinate system affixed relative to an instrument supported by one of the robotic manipulators.

38. The method of claim 33, further comprising:

rotating at least one of the plurality of set-up arms relative to the orienting platform about an axis perpendicular to the linear axis of the platform linkage.

39. The method of claim 38, further comprising:

vertically displacing a distal link of the links of one of the plurality of set-up arms relative to the orienting platform.

40. The method of claim 39, further comprising:

rotating the distal link about a first axis at a joint coupling the distal link to the rest of the set-up arm.

41. The method of claim 39, further comprising:

rotating the robotic manipulator associated with the one of the plurality of set-up arms about a second axis at a joint coupling the distal link to the robotic manipulator associated with the one of the plurality of set-up arms.

42. A surgical robotic apparatus comprising:

a carriage that slides along a linear axis of a platform linkage;

an orienting platform coupled to the carriage, wherein the orienting platform rotates relative to the carriage;

a plurality of set-up arms that each include a proximal end, a distal end, and links coupled by a releasably fixable joint, wherein each one of the plurality of set-up arms is coupled to the orienting platform at the set-up arm'"'"'s proximal end, and wherein each one of the plurality of set-up arms rotates relative to the orienting platform; and

a plurality of surgical robotic manipulators, wherein each unique one of the surgical robotic manipulators is coupled to the distal end of a corresponding unique one of the plurality of set-up arms.