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Soft Robotics and Applied Control

Soft and flexible robotic systems for affordable healthcare.

Head of Group

B414B Bessemer Building
South Kensington Campus

What we do

Our research investigates fundamental aspects of control of soft and flexible robots for surgery. These include harnessing the intrinsic compliance of soft robots, rejecting disturbances that characterise the surgical environment, and complying with stringent safety requirements. Our ambition is to provide affordable robotic solutions for a range of surgical applications, including endoscopy, percutaneous intervention, and multi-handed surgery.

Why it is important?

Robotics for healthcare is one of the fastest growing segments in the global robotics market. However, conventional surgical robots are unaffordable in low-resource settings. Harnessing the potential of soft and flexible robots can contribute to making surgery safter, more accurate, and more accessible in low-middle income countries. These are pressing needs due to the aging population, and to the growing workforce crisis in the healthcare market.

How can it benefit patients?

Our work aims to improve accuracy, reduce the risk of injury, and reduce discomfort in percutaneous interventions such as biopsy, in diagnostic and interventional endoscopy, and in multi-handed surgery.

Dr Enrico Franco
Lecturer

Citation

BibTex format

@article{Aktas:2024:10.1109/TMRB.2023.3336961,
author = {Aktas, A and Franco, E},
doi = {10.1109/TMRB.2023.3336961},
journal = {IEEE Transactions on Medical Robotics and Bionics},
pages = {362--365},
title = {A force-limiting mechanism for needle insertions},
url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/TMRB.2023.3336961},
volume = {6},
year = {2024}
}

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RIS format (EndNote, RefMan)

TY  - JOUR
AB  - Needle bending is a significant cause of error in biopsies, leading to lesion missampling and consequent cancer misdiagnosis. This paper presents the design of a new mechanism that detects the needle bending as soon as it occurs and immediately reduces the insertion force. Importantly, this is achieved without employing external sensors or electromechanical actuators. Experiments on a silicone-rubber phantom indicate that the proposed device can help to avoid deep insertions with bent needles, thus potentially reducing the associated risks and improving patient safety in biopsies and percutaneous interventions.
AU  - Aktas,A
AU  - Franco,E
DO  - 10.1109/TMRB.2023.3336961
EP  - 365
PY  - 2024///
SN  - 2576-3202
SP  - 362
TI  - A force-limiting mechanism for needle insertions
T2  - IEEE Transactions on Medical Robotics and Bionics
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/TMRB.2023.3336961
UR  - http://hdl.handle.net/10044/1/107983
VL  - 6
ER  -

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