Vicarious Surgical System

BESCHREIBUNG

The Vicarious Surgical System is a single-port surgical robot for minimally invasive abdominal surgery, designed so that all robotic motion happens inside the patient. A camera and two robotic instruments enter through one small incision - the system is capable of incisions as small as 1.2 cm; current disposables require 1.8 cm, and Vicarious is developing 1.5 cm disposables - and the design intends to maximise visualisation, precision and control, as if the surgeon were transported inside the body. Its arms are human-inspired: with 28 sensors per arm, they are designed to replicate a surgeon's natural upper-body movements from shoulders to elbows to wrists, and they move freely in all directions - down, sideways, up and even backward. Centred pivoting inside the abdomen lets the surgeon work from any direction through any entry point, and keeping all motion internal means more freedom of movement and less risk of external collisions around the surgical field. Immersive 3D stereoscopic imaging with 360-degree visibility responds to the surgeon's movements. The system comprises a patient cart and a surgeon console. Vicarious reports going from nine early prototypes to a fully integrated surgical platform. The robot has received FDA Breakthrough Device Designation; it has not been cleared by the FDA and is not for commercial sale in the United States, and the VR headset seen in early videos will not be part of the first-generation system.

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