Parameter-based navigation by a lumen traveling device

• US 9,408,530 B2
• Filed: 08/05/2011
• Issued: 08/09/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/12/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Gearbox LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Gearbox LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Ferren, Bran, Hillis, W. Daniel, Hyde, Roderick A., Ishikawa, Muriel Y., Jung, Edward K. Y., Leuthardt, Eric C., Myhrvold, Nathan P., Nugent, Thomas J. Jr., Sweeney, Elizabeth A., Tegreene, Clarence T., Wood, Lowell L. Jr., Wood, Victoria Y. H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Mallari, Patricia
• Assistant Examiner(s): TOTH, KAREN E
• Application Number:
  US13/136,680
• Publication Number:
  US 20120035440A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,831 Days
• Field of Search: 600/300
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00156 using self propulsion
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/041 Capsule endoscopes for imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 10/0045 Devices for taking samples of body liquids devices for taking blood samples A61B5/15
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 10/04 Endoscopic instruments
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/22 Implements for squeezing-off ulcers or the like on the inside of inner organs of the body; Implements for scraping-out cavities of body organs, e.g. bones; Calculus removers; Calculus smashing apparatus; Apparatus for removing obstructions in blood vessels, not otherwise provided for dilators A61M29/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/22012 in direct contact with, or very close to, the obstruction or concrement for removing obstructions in blood vessels by laser A61B18/245
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/20 using laser
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2010/0077 Cerebrospinal fluid
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2010/0225 for taking multiple samples
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/00022 Sensing or detecting at the treatment site
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/00345 Micromachines, nanomachines, microsystems
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/73 Manipulators for magnetic surgery
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0022 Monitoring a patient using a global network, e.g. telephone networks, internet
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0031 Implanted circuitry
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0071 by measuring fluorescence emission
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/01 Measuring temperature of body parts ; Diagnostic temperature sensing, e.g. for malignant or inflamed tissue clinical contact thermometers G01K13/20
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/02007 Evaluating blood vessel condition, e.g. elasticity, compliance
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0215 by means inserted into the body catheters A61M25/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/026 Measuring blood flow A61B3/1233, A61B3/1241 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/03 Detecting, measuring or recording fluid pressure within the body other than blood pressure, e.g. cerebral pressure; Measuring pressure in body tissues or organs A61B5/205 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/062 : using magnetic field
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/07 : Endoradiosondes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/073 : Intestinal transmitters
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/076 : Permanent implantations telemetry using implanted circuitry A61B5/0031; implanted stimulators for therapy A61N1/3605, A61N1/362, A61N1/372
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/082 : Evaluation by breath analysis, e.g. determination of the chemical composition of exhaled breath A61B5/083, A61B5/091 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14539 : for measuring pH
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14546 : for measuring analytes not otherwise provided for, e.g. ions, cytochromes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4064 : Evaluating the brain A61B5/031, A61B5/369, A61B5/14553 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/411 : Detecting or monitoring allergy or intolerance reactions to an allergenic agent or substance
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/418 : lymph vessels, ducts or nodes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4839 : combined with drug delivery
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6852 : Catheters
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 7/00 : Instruments for auscultation
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/82 : Devices providing patency to, or preventing collapsing of, tubular structures of the body, e.g. stents stent-grafts for tubular structures of the body other than blood vessels A61F2/04; stent-grafts for blood vessels A61F2/07; instruments specially adapted for placement or removal of stents or stent-grafts A61F2/95; for closing wounds, or holding wounds closed A61B17/04 - A61B17/115; dilators A61M29/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/406 : using implantable thermoseeds or injected particles for localized hyperthermia preparations of seeds and particles A61K41/0052
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 7/00 : Ultrasound therapy lithotripsy A61B17/22, A61B17/225; massage using supersonic vibration A61H23/00 ; using ultrasound for introducing media into the body A61M37/0092
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 : for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16Z 99/00 : Subject matter not provided for in other main groups of this subclass

Abstract

Methods of controlling the operation of a device traveling in a body tube tree, including sensing parameters from possible directions of travel and selecting the direction of travel based on the sensed parameters, implemented with a control system located partially or fully on the lumen traveling device. Various actions can be performed by the device for, e.g., medical or therapeutic purposes. Machine-readable media including instructions for performing the methods are also described.

Claims

1. A method of operating a lumen traveling device with a lumen traveling device control system, comprising:

identifying at least two possible directions of travel of an untethered lumen traveling device through a body tube tree with control circuitry in the lumen traveling device control system located at least in part on the lumen traveling device, the body tube tree including a plurality of branched, interconnected channels, and the at least two possible directions of travel corresponding to at least two of the branched, interconnected channels;

receiving data with the control circuitry, the data representing at least one parameter value sensed with a sensor within the body tube tree on the lumen traveling device from at least one of the at least two possible directions of travel of the lumen traveling device through the body tube tree;

selecting a direction of travel with the control circuitry, the direction of travel selected from the at least two directions of travel based at least in part on the data representing at least one parameter value sensed with the sensor from at least one of the at least two possible directions of travel of the lumen traveling device through the body tube tree; and

directing at least one of a steering mechanism and a propelling mechanism within the body tube tree on the lumen traveling device with the control circuitry to cause the lumen traveling device to move through the body tube tree in the selected direction of travel;

wherein selecting the direction of travel with the control circuitry from the at least two directions of travel based at least in part on the data representing at least one parameter value sensed with the sensor from at least one of the at least two possible directions of travel of the lumen traveling device through the body tube tree includes selecting a direction of travel from the at least two directions of travel based at least in part on the data representing parameter values sensed at two or more times by comparing a rate of change of at least one parameter from the at least two possible directions of travel and selecting the direction of travel from the group consisting of the direction of travel having a lowest rate of change of the at least one parameter and the direction of travel having a highest rate of change of the at least one parameter.

2. The method of claim 1, including

identifying a stop condition based at least in part on the data representing at least one parameter value sensed from the at least two possible directions of travel of the lumen traveling device through the body tube tree;

and

directing at least one of the steering mechanism and the propelling mechanism to cause the lumen traveling device to stop moving through the body tube tree.

3. The method of claim 1, including

storing the data representing at least one parameter value sensed with the sensor from the at least two possible directions of travel of the lumen traveling device through the body tube tree in a memory location within the body tube tree on the lumen traveling device.

4. The method of claim 1, including

storing instructions related to directing at least one of the steering mechanism and the propelling mechanism to cause movement of the lumen traveling device in a memory location within the body tube tree on the lumen traveling device.

5. The method of claim 4, including receiving the instructions from a remote device.

6. The method of claim 1, including

transmitting the data representing at least one parameter value sensed with the sensor from at least one of the at least two possible directions of travel of the lumen traveling device through the body tube tree from the lumen traveling device to a remote device.

7. The method of claim 1, including

transmitting instructions related to directing at least one of the steering mechanism and the propelling mechanism to cause movement of the lumen traveling device from the lumen traveling device to a remote device.

8. The method of claim 1, including

receiving information related to whether or not at least one of the at least two possible directions of travel of the lumen traveling device through the body tube tree has previously been traveled by the lumen traveling device;

and

selecting the direction of travel with the control circuitry from the at least two possible directions of travel based at least in part on the information related to whether or not the at least one of the at least two possible directions of travel of the lumen traveling device through the body tube tree has previously been traveled by the lumen traveling device.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein directing the at least one of the steering mechanism and the propelling mechanism within the body tube tree on the lumen traveling device with the control circuitry to cause the lumen traveling device to move through the body tube tree in the selected direction of travel includes directing the at least one of the steering mechanism and the propelling mechanism within the body tube tree on the lumen traveling device to cause the lumen traveling device to move through the body tube tree in the selected direction of travel for a pre-determined distance, for a pre-determined duration, or until a stop instruction is received from a remote device by the lumen traveling device.

10. The method of claim 1, including receiving at least one user input instruction from a medical care provider, the user input instruction related to selecting at least one of a parameter type or a parameter value range for the at least one parameter value sensed with the sensor from the at least two possible directions of travel of the lumen traveling device through the body tube tree.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the data representing at least one parameter value sensed with the sensor from the at least two possible directions of travel of the lumen traveling device through the body tube tree includes receiving data representing at least one of an analyte, a temperature, a pressure, a fluid flow, a structural parameter of at least one of the plurality of branched interconnected channels, an electrical field, a magnetic field, an electromagnetic signal, an acoustic signal, or an optical signal.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the data with the control circuitry further includes receiving data from a remote device.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein directing the at least one of the steering mechanism and the propelling mechanism within the body tube tree on the lumen traveling device to cause the lumen traveling device to move through the body tube tree in the selected direction of travel includes directing at least one of the steering mechanism and the propelling mechanism within the body tube tree on the lumen traveling device to cause the lumen traveling device to turn, cause the lumen traveling device to continue moving in a current direction of travel, cause the lumen traveling device to reverse its direction of travel, cause movement of the lumen traveling device based on a previous movement direction, cause the lumen traveling device to move in a different direction than the direction it was previously instructed to move, or cause the lumen traveling device to move in the same direction it was previously directed to move.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising detecting an arrival of the lumen traveling device at a branch point in the body tube tree based on a signal from at least one arrival sensor on the lumen traveling device, the branch point including the at least two of the branched, interconnected channels corresponding to the at least two possible directions of travel.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving data representing at least one parameter value sensed from at least one of the at least two possible directions of travel of the lumen traveling device through the body tube tree includes receiving data representing an analyte, the analyte selected from a list consisting of a chemical, a biomaterial, an ion, an electrolyte, a biological marker, an antibody, a polypeptide, a protein, a nuclueic acid, an oligonucleotide, a polynucleotide, a complex, a pathogen, a signaling-material, a lipid, an alcohol, a sterol, a steroid, a carbohydrate, a sugar, a drug, a therapeutic, a gas, a metabolite, a cytokine, a chemokine, a hormone, an inflammatory molecule, a cell, and a cell fragment.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein selecting the direction of travel with the control circuitry from the at least two directions of travel based at least in part on the data representing at least one parameter value sensed with the sensor from the at least two possible directions of travel of the lumen traveling device through the body tube tree further includes avoiding at least one direction of travel if the data representing the at least one parameter value sensed with the sensor from the at least one direction of travel indicates that the at least one direction of travel is non-navigable by the lumen traveling device.

17. An untethered lumen traveling device system comprising:

a sensor, a steering mechanism and/or a propelling mechanism, and a lumen traveling device control system including non-transitory machine readable media including;

one or more instructions that cause the lumen traveling device control system to identify at least two possible directions of travel of the untethered lumen traveling device through a body tube tree, the body tube tree including a plurality of branched, interconnected channels, and the at least two possible directions of travel corresponding to at least two of the branched, interconnected channels;

one or more instructions that cause the lumen traveling device control system to receive data representing at least one parameter value sensed with the sensor within the body tube tree on the lumen traveling device from the at least two possible directions of travel of the lumen traveling device through the body tube tree;

one or more instructions that cause the lumen traveling device control system to select a direction of travel from the at least two directions of travel based at least in part on the data representing at least one parameter value sensed with the sensor from at least one of the at least two possible directions of travel of the lumen traveling device through the body tube tree; and

one or more instructions that cause the lumen traveling device control system to direct at least one of the steering mechanism and the propelling mechanism within the body tube tree on the lumen traveling device to cause the lumen traveling device to move through the body tube tree in the selected direction of travel;

wherein the one or more instructions that cause the lumen traveling device control system to select the direction of travel from the at least two directions of travel based at least in part on the data representing at least one parameter value sensed with the sensor from at least one of the at least two possible directions of travel of the lumen traveling device through the body tube tree include one or more instructions for comparing a rate of change of at least one parameter from the at least two possible directions of travel and selecting the direction of travel from the group consisting of the direction of travel having a lowest rate of change of the at least one parameter and the direction of travel having a highest rate of change of the at least one parameter.