Design of a Teleoperated Robotic Bronchoscopy System for Peripheral Pulmonary Lesion Biopsy

TL;DR

This paper presents a new teleoperated robotic bronchoscopy system with a variable stiffness catheter, validated through in-vivo experiments, aiming to improve accuracy and safety in lung lesion biopsies.

Contribution

It introduces a novel robotic system and procedure for robot-assisted bronchoscopy, including a variable stiffness catheter for better tissue sampling.

Findings

Validated through in-vivo experiments

Demonstrated improved accuracy and safety

Potential for clinical application

Abstract

Bronchoscopy with transbronchial biopsy is a minimally invasive and effective method for early lung cancer intervention. Robot-assisted bronchoscopy offers improved precision, spatial flexibility, and reduced risk of cross-infection. This paper introduces a novel teleoperated robotic bronchoscopy system and a three-stage procedure designed for robot-assisted bronchoscopy. The robotic mechanism enables a clinical practice similar to traditional bronchoscopy, augmented by the control of a novel variable stiffness catheter for tissue sampling. A rapid prototype of the robotic system has been fully developed and validated through in-vivo experiments. The results demonstrate the potential of the proposed robotic bronchoscopy system and variable stiffness catheter in enhancing accuracy and safety during bronchoscopy procedures.