Rainer Konietschke

A Humanoid Two-Arm System for Dexterous Manipulation

This paper presents a humanoid two-arm system developed as a research platform for studying dexterous two-handed manipulation. The system is based on the modular DLR-Lightweight-Robot-III and the DLR-Hand-II. Two arms and hands are combined with a three degrees-of-freedom movable torso and a visual system to form a complete humanoid upper body. In this paper we present the design considerations and give an overview of the different sub-systems. Then, we describe the requirements on the software architecture. Moreover, the applied control methods for two-armed manipulation and the vision algorithms used for scene analysis are discussed

DLR MiroSurge: a versatile system for research in endoscopic telesurgery.

PurposeResearch on surgical robotics demands systems for evaluating scientific approaches. Such systems can be divided into dedicated and versatile systems. Dedicated systems are designed for a single surgical task or technique, whereas versatile systems are designed to be expandable and useful in multiple surgical applications. Versatile systems are often based on industrial robots, though, and because of this, are hardly suitable for close contact with humans.MethodTo achieve a high degree of versatility the Miro robotic surgery platform (MRSP) consists of versatile components, dedicated front–ends towards surgery and configurable interfaces for the surgeon.ResultsThis paper presents MiroSurge, a configuration of the MRSP that allows for bimanual endoscopic telesurgery with force feedback.ConclusionsWhile the components of the MiroSurge system are shown to fulfil the rigid design requirements for robotic telesurgery with force feedback, the system remains versatile, which is supposed to be a key issue for the further development and optimisation.

The DLR MIRO: a versatile lightweight robot for surgical applications

Purpose – Surgical robotics can be divided into two groups: specialized and versatile systems. Versatile systems can be used in different surgical applications, control architectures and operating room set‐ups, but often still based on the adaptation of industrial robots. Space consumption, safety and adequacy of industrial robots in the unstructured and crowded environment of an operating room and in close human robot interaction are at least questionable. The purpose of this paper is to describe the DLR MIRO, a new versatile lightweight robot for surgical applications.Design/methodology/approach – The design approach of the DLR MIRO robot focuses on compact, slim and lightweight design to assist the surgeon directly at the operating table without interference. Significantly reduced accelerated masses (total weight 10 kg) enhance the safety of the system during close interaction with patient and user. Additionally, MIRO integrates torque‐sensing capabilities to enable close interaction with human beings ...

A hands-on-robot for accurate placement of pedicle screws

This paper presents a novel system for accurate placement of pedicle screws. The system consists of a new light-weight (<10 kg), kinematically redundant, and fully torque controlled robot. Additionally, the pose of the robot tool-center point is tracked by an optical navigation system, serving as an external reference source. Therefore, it is possible to measure and to compensate deviations between the intraoperative and the preoperatively planned pose. The robotic arm itself is impedance controlled. This allows for a new intuitive man-machine-interface as the joint units are equipped with torque sensors: the robot can be moved just by pulling/pushing its structure. The surgeon has full control of the robot at every step of the intervention. The hand-eye-coordination problems known from manual pedicle screw placement can be omitted

The DLR MiroSurge - A robotic system for surgery

This video presents the in-house developed DLR MiroSurge robotic system for surgery. As shown, the system is suitable for both minimally invasive and open surgery. Essential part of the system is the MIRO robot: The soft robotics feature enables intuitive interaction with the robot.

Planning and control of a teleoperation system for research in minimally invasive robotic surgery

This paper introduces the planning and control software of a teleoperation system for research in minimally invasive robotic surgery. It addresses the problem of how to organize a complex system with 41 degrees of freedom as a flexible configurable platform. Robot setup planning, force feedback control and nullspace handling with three robotic arms are considered. The planning software is separated into sequentially executed planning and registration procedures. An optimal setup is first planned in virtual reality and then adapted to variations in the operating room. The real time control system is structured in hierarchical layers. Functions are arranged in the layers with respect to their domain and maximum response time. The design is flexible and expandable while performance is maintained. Structure, functionality and implementation of planning and control are described. The prototypic robotic system provides intuitive bimanual bilateral teleoperation within the planned working space.

Manipulability and Accuracy Measures for a Medical Robot in Minimally Invasive Surgery

This paper presents measures for manipulability and accuracy that are specifically adapted to the conditions found in robotically assisted minimally invasive surgery. The considered robot consists of 9 active joints, thus allowing for full manipulability at the tool tip as well as null-space motion. The presented manipulability and positioning accuracy measures are based on an “inverse Jacobian” approach since the constraints at the entry point into the human body forbid a classic formulation. High significance of the measures is reached by including robot design parameters such as encoder resolution and maximum joint velocity.

Kinematic Design Optimization of an Actuated Carrier for the DLR Multi-Arm Surgical System

In this paper, a generic approach to optimize the design of an actuated carrier for the DLR multi-arm surgical system is presented. The carrier is attached to the ceiling of the operating room and provides additional degrees of freedom to the surgical robots with the purpose of automatic, optimal positioning of their bases as well as guaranteeing high stiffness. Standard workspaces of minimally invasive as well as open surgical procedures are considered and optimization criteria are derived. The minimum necessary degrees of freedom of the carrier are obtained as well as the optimal segment dimensions by use of an optimization with genetic algorithms

Inverse kinematics with closed form solutions for highly redundant robotic systems

This paper presents inverse position kinematics algorithms with real time capability for Justin, a robotic system with high redundancy and many degrees of freedom. The combination of closed form solutions for parts of the kinematic chain embedded in a nonlinear equation solver is shown to be advantageous. The algorithms are evaluated with DLRs robot Justin both in simulation and reality. Calculation times of 1 ms are achieved, including various optimization criteria for redundancy resolution. In case only a single arm with 7 DoF is considered, a fast calculation time of 250 µs is reached. With inclusion of an iterative step, reachability can be shown in more than 99% of the calculations regardless of the initial guess. The problem of weighting in multi-criteria optimization problems remains, though in the chosen approach the tool tip position is never compromised by other criteria due to the partially closed form solution. The presented algorithm can be applied to inverse position kinematics for all manipulators with serial or tree structure and redundant joints in case closed form solutions are available for parts of the kinematic chain.

A Co-Robotic Positioning Device for Carrying Surgical End-Effectors

The development of a remotely operated, Co-Robotic Positioning Device (CRPD) for instrumental backing and optimal base position to robotic arms in tele-surgery is discussed. To optimise the setting of robotic operating rooms (ROR) by reducing the structures’ size around the patient and by selecting task-driven layouts, the design of a hanging servo-carrier coming from the ceiling is chosen, rather than a device located on the floor. The present study prospects a split-duty approach, distinguishing the Co-Robotic Positioning Device, CRPD, from the front-end effectors, each subsystem hierarchically controlled by remote location, in keeping with optimal protocols. The attention is focused on the slave-carrier, to establish an optimal design of the CRPD, based on the characteristics of robotic effectors and the surgical task. The CRPD is conceived to support (up to four) robotic effectors, each one equipped with proper tools (endoscope, scalpels, scissors, suture needles, etc.). The CRPD, actually, by optimally positioning the robotic arms, avoids the need of manual deployment, in current setups often necessary to avoid singularities or collisions. The Automatic Changing Device for Surgical Tools, ACD-ST, is another significant device of the conceived slave-carrier. It allows the tele-operating surgeon to change the tools (scalpels, scissors, etc.) by a direct command from his console. Example applications aim at ticklish endoscopic/tomic operations that require high accuracy with low involved forces such as cardio-thoracic-surgery, abdominal surgery, spine-surgery, microsurgery (neurosurgery, hand-surgery, ophthalmic-surgery, ear-nose-throat surgery), say, the typical domains of MIRS, where robotic surgery is quickly expanding.Copyright