Navigation system and method for removing a volume of tissue from a patient

• US 9,480,534 B2
• Filed: 08/05/2013
• Issued: 11/01/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/03/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Stryker Corporation
• Original Assignee: Stryker Corporation
• Inventors: Bowling, David Gene, Stuart, John Michael, Culp, Jerry A., Malackowski, Donald W., Moctezuma de la Barrera, Jose Luis, Roessler, Patrick, Beer, Joel N.
• Primary Examiner(s): Edwards, Jerrah
• Assistant Examiner(s): Weber, Tamara
• Application Number:
  US13/958,834
• Publication Number:
  US 20140039517A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,184 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/16 Bone cutting, breaking or removal means other than saws, e.g. Osteoclasts; Drills or chisels for bones; Trepans arthroscopic bone cutters A61B17/320016; dental implant drills potentially for other surgical use A61C8/0089; bone grinders A61F2/4644, A22C17/06; A61B17/1662 takes precedence over all other subgroups except A61B17/17
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/148 having a short, rigid shaft for accessing the inner body transcutaneously, e.g. for neurosurgery or arthroscopy
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00565 Bone
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00601 Cutting
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/104 Modelling the effect of the tool, e.g. the effect of an implanted prosthesis or for predicting the effect of ablation or burring
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/107 Visualisation of planned trajectories or target regions
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/2046 Tracking techniques
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/2055 Optical tracking systems
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/2059 Mechanical position encoders
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/10 Computer-aided planning, simulation or modelling of surgical operations
• 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 34/30 Surgical robots
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/32 operating autonomously
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/37 Master-slave robots A61B34/35 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/70 Manipulators specially adapted for use in surgery
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/74 Manipulators with manual electric input means
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/76 Manipulators having means for providing feel, e.g. force or tactile feedback
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 13/00 Controls for manipulators programme controls B25J9/16; control in general G05
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/161 Hardware, e.g. neural networks, fuzzy logic, interfaces, processor
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/1633 compliant, force, torque control, e.g. combined with position control
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/09 : Closed loop, sensor feedback controls arm movement

Abstract

A navigation system for use with a surgical manipulator operable in manual or semi-autonomous modes and a method for removing a volume of tissue from a patient. The navigation system includes a tracker for attaching to the patient and a localizer to receive signals from the tracker or transmit signals to the tracker. The navigation system includes a navigation processor that runs a plurality of software modules.

Claims

1. A navigation system for use with a surgical manipulator operable in manual or semi-autonomous modes and an energy applicator coupled to the surgical manipulator to remove a volume of tissue from a patient, said navigation system comprising:

a patient tracker for attaching to the patient;

a localizer configured to receive signals from said patient tracker or transmit signals to said patient tracker to determine a position and orientation of said patient tracker; and

at least one processor configured to determine a position of the energy applicator with respect to the volume of tissue to be removed based on the position and orientation of said patient tracker,

said at least one processor further configured to run a removed material logger module to collect data relating to locations at which the energy applicator has been applied to the volume of tissue in the manual mode and locations at which the energy applicator has not been applied to the volume of tissue in the manual mode and to run a tool path generator module to generate a tool path for the energy applicator to traverse in the semi-autonomous mode, wherein said tool path generator module references said data collected by said removed material logger module so that said tool path generated by said tool path generator module accounts for tissue previously removed by the energy applicator in the manual mode by generating tool path segments along the locations at which the energy applicator has not been applied to the volume of tissue in order to avoid, in the semi-autonomous mode, an attempt to remove tissue previously removed by the energy applicator in the manual mode.

2. The navigation system of claim 1 wherein said tool path is a revised tool path generated by said tool path generator module based on said data.

3. The navigation system of claim 1 including a tool tracker for tracking the energy applicator wherein said at least one processor is configured to determine the position of the energy applicator with respect to the volume of tissue to be removed based on a position and orientation of said tool tracker and the position and orientation of said patient tracker.

4. The navigation system of claim 1 wherein the volume of tissue to be removed includes bone.

5. The navigation system of claim 1 wherein the volume of tissue to be removed is determined based on a pre-operative image of the patient.

6. The navigation system of claim 1 including a display in communication with said at least one processor, said at least one processor configured to generate image data for presentation on said display to:

indicate sections of tissue to which the energy applicator has been applied;

indicate sections of tissue to which the energy applicator has not been applied;

or indicate sections of tissue to which it is not necessary to apply the energy applicator.

7. The navigation system of claim 1 wherein each of said tool path segments includes a set of points for the energy applicator to traverse in the semi-autonomous mode.

8. The navigation system of claim 1 wherein said tool path generator module is configured to receive data defining a boundary of the volume of tissue to be removed so that said tool path is generated based on said boundary.

9. The navigation system of claim 1 wherein said tool path for the energy applicator to traverse in the semi-autonomous mode comprises tool path segments that extend in free space created by the energy applicator in the manual mode between the locations at which the energy applicator has not been applied to the volume of tissue in the manual mode.

10. A method for removing a volume of tissue from a patient using a navigation system including a patient tracker and a localizer configured to receive signals from the patient tracker or transmit signals to the patient tracker, a surgical manipulator operable in manual or semi-autonomous modes, and an energy applicator coupled to the surgical manipulator, said method comprising the steps of:

tracking a position of the energy applicator with respect to the volume of tissue to be removed as the surgical manipulator is operated in the manual mode;

collecting data relating to locations at which the energy applicator has been applied to the volume of tissue in the manual mode and locations at which the energy applicator has not been applied to the volume of tissue in the manual mode;

generating a tool path for the energy applicator to traverse in the semi-autonomous mode based on the data collected so that the tool path accounts for tissue previously removed by the energy applicator in the manual mode, wherein the tool path comprises tool path segments along the locations at which the energy applicator has not been applied to the volume of tissue in order to avoid, in the semi-autonomous mode, an attempt to remove tissue previously removed by the energy applicator in the manual mode; and

controlling operation of the surgical manipulator to remove tissue with the energy applicator in the semi-autonomous mode by traversing the energy applicator along the tool path.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein generating the tool path for the energy applicator to traverse in the semi-autonomous mode based on the data collected is further defined as generating a revised tool path for the energy applicator to traverse in the semi-autonomous mode based on the data collected.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein tracking the position of the energy applicator with respect to the volume of tissue to be removed includes receiving signals from a tool tracker associated with the energy applicator, receiving signals from the patient tracker attached to the patient, and processing the signals from the tool tracker and the patient tracker to determine a position and orientation of each of the tool tracker and the patient tracker.

13. The method of claim 10 wherein the volume of tissue to be removed includes bone.

14. The method of claim 10 including determining the volume of tissue to be removed based on a pre-operative image of the patient.

15. The method of claim 10 including displaying images that:

indicate sections of tissue to which the energy applicator has been applied;

indicate sections of tissue to which the energy applicator has not been applied;

or indicate sections of tissue to which it is not necessary to apply the energy applicator.

16. The method of claim 10 wherein each of the tool path segments includes a set of points for the energy applicator to traverse in the semi-autonomous mode.

17. The method of claim 10 including receiving data defining a boundary of the volume of tissue to be removed so that the tool path is generated based on the boundary.

18. The method of claim 10 wherein the tool path for the energy applicator to traverse in the semi-autonomous mode comprises tool path segments that extend in free space created by the energy applicator in the manual mode between the locations at which the energy applicator has not been applied to the volume of tissue in the manual mode.