Control Architecture and experimental validation of a Novel Surgical Robotic Instrument

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel 4-DOF flexible laparoscopic surgical instrument with integrated control architecture, validated through experimental tests and simulation, aiming to improve minimally invasive surgery tools.

Contribution

It presents a new control architecture for a 4-DOF flexible laparoscopic instrument with experimental validation and integration with a parallel robot for surgical simulation.

Findings

Predicted jaw opening closely matches CAD measurements with MAE 0.13°

OptiTrack motion capture shows MAE 1.43° in validation

Instrument maintains 10 mm diameter compatible with standard trocars

Abstract

Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) reduces patient trauma and shortens recovery time; however, conventional laparoscopic instruments remain constrained by limited range of movements. This work presents the control architecture of a 4-DOF flexible laparoscopic instrument integrating distal bending, independent distal head rotation, shaft rotation, and a gripper, while maintaining a 10 mm diameter compatible with standard trocars. The actuation unit and SpaceMouse teleoperation are implemented on Raspberry Pi 5 with Motoron controllers. An analytical scissor-linkage model is derived and parameterized. The predicted jaw opening corresponds to CAD measurements (MAE 0.13{\textdegree}) and OptiTrack motion capture (MAE 1.43{\textdegree}). Integration with the ATHENA parallel robot is validated through a simulated pancreatic surgery procedure.